I Don't Feel So Good

Has it only been a day??? It started at 5am. Nadav was awake and not feeling well. Once he calmed down I brought him downstairs for breakfast and Elmo. Eventually everyone else got up and joined us. Once we got Nadav to gan Josh and I headed to Beit Shemesh for the bris of Mira and Jason's new son. The bris was very nice and as always it is great to see them and their family. We eventually came home and then I ran a few errands in Modiin including buying some acamoli. After I returned I got a call from Nadav's gan that he has a high fever and I should come get him. Uh oh. He has almost 103 and was very whimper-y. I gave him a bath to cool him down but that didn't help to much. I picked Jordy and Danya up for school while Josh calmed Nadav down. Jordy was all excited as he made chocolate balls in school today. Anyhow, Nadav's fever never really went down so I scheduled him to see the doctor. Our regular office doesn't have hours on Monday afternoons so we went to another office and we met a very nice doctor. She had me buy and give Nadav some Advil as she wanted to examine him without a fever. So I waited in line for 15 minutes to buy it and then gave it to him. He and I cooled our heels for 45 minutes waiting for the fever to break. We bough borekas, we mushed borekas into the toy table, we spit borekas on Ema. The doctor reexamined him and determined that he has a virus and sent us home. We came back and everyone had dinner. I was rushing to get out of the house to get to my water aerobics class. I realized as I pulled up at the pool that I forgot a towel. Oops. The class was good and I came home sopping wet. When I returned Jordy was still awake and complaining of a tummy ache. He of course has a fever so I gave him Tylenol and scheduled an appointment for him to the doctor in the morning. Looks like tomorrow is going to be another fun, long day.

Acamoli To The Rescuse

This morning after getting the kids out I returned home to do a little cleaning and organizing. The guy came to deliver the lumber we ordered last week and Josh spent some time working in the yard and staining the wood. The bases are now in place and progress is being made. I ran to a toy store to buy a baby gift and I picked up a ball for Nadav. After lunch I got Nadav and he was so excited to see the new ball. He happily played all afternoon with the ball. Danya went to a friends after school and eventually I picked Jordy up from his last day of English class. Moshe B. came home with us as well. Danya returned at dinner time just as I noticed that Nadav felt a little warm. Hopefully it is just the new tooth that is growing in. Nothing a little Acamoli can't fix(thanks Lisa for the bottle of Acamoli). We had dinner-eggs and pasta and Nadav went to bed. Jordy played his Settlers game on the computer and Danya continued working her way through the blog. All the kids went to sleep and I went walking with Lori.

Pool Time

Friday morning after getting the kids out I began Shabbat preparation. Not long after the electrician came over. We called him on Monday and he told us he would be here on Tuesday, so it was right on time when he arrived on Friday. He looked around the house turning things on and off. He determined that the problem was the light switch in Danya and Jordy's bathroom. Yes, the reason our power goes out on Shabbat after the plata and the air go in is because of a bathroom light. It didn't sound right to me but he couldn't come up with anything else. He changed an old light fixture and sent him on his way.
I then made this weeks test challah which was from the back of the Kosher Palette entitled Delicious Challah. I did a bunch of laundry and some more cooking and before I knew it it was noon and I had to pick up Nadav. Everyone had some lunch. Then Josh drove Danya to a birthday party. I finished up the cooking and then we got everyone ready for the beginning of pool season. OK, pool season actually started a while ago but this was the beginning for us. We picked Danya up from the party and headed out. We stopped at the office to get our membership passes and headed into the pool. Nadav was so excited to see the kiddie pool and was so happy to stand there and splash. Eventually he wanted to join Josh, Danya and Jordy in the big pool so we went over. Nadav and I spent our time moving back and fourth between the 2 pools while Josh stayed with Danya and Jordy in the big pool. They were having so much fun.

It was kind of chilly near the pool and Nadav was getting cold so I took him out and he was happy eating crackers in his robe. He looked like Yoda-wrinkled feet and all.

We eventually made it home and got ready for Shabbat. I gave the kids dinner before Shabbat and we got Nadav into bed before candle lighting. Danya and Jordy proceeded to fight most the evening. Fun Friday night!
Shabbat morning Josh got up with Nadav and I got to sleep nice and late-when did after 8am become late?? Nadav and I got dressed and went to shul and like usual Danya and Jordy stayed home. Nadav took a nap and we ate lunch. After lunch I napped. Everyone stayed home the rest of the day. Later the Brodsky's came by and we played Settlers until Shabbat was over.

Pouring Cement

This morning after getting the kids out I was in the kitchen making my morning omelet. I was getting annoyed at the volume of what I thought was a garbage truck outside. I went to go investigate and I found this:

Our cement truck had arrived. In all honesty I didn't know we were expecting a cement truck. This is more Josh's project. Anyhow we were entertained watching them work-I don't know that they enjoyed us watching them all day. Anyhow, after breakfast Josh and I took out my bike which needed a dusting off. I plan on starting biking now that my knee is all fixed up. Now we need to get my bike all fixed up. Josh had some difficulty getting my bike onto the bike rack on the car. Then after the first speed bump the bike tilted and I was pretty convinced that it was going to fall off, but I made it there without losing the bike. The bike fixer man said he can fix it and he'll call me later when it is ready. Of course he never called. I guess I should investigate tomorrow. I then went to get gas and then to the butcher and the bagel store. I returned home and ate lunch and picked up Nadav. Jordy and Moshe S. came home from school followed by Danya and Tamar. Everyone had fish sticks and then I took the boys to English. The girls then headed out to a Bnei Akiva event. The workers left and we were left with this:
Not bad huh? I did some Shabbat cooking and gave the kids dinner. Josh got Nadav to bed and Jordy and I played Doodle Dice. Danya was entertained by her new favorite activity: reading the blog. She keeps looking for specific events that refer to her("when did I get my glasses? Was it March 2009?"). Jordy was really excited to go to bed since I told him he could read for 10 minutes before going to sleep. He is really into reading his new chapter book. Danya eventually get to bed too and I got to finish cleaning the kitchen-we all win!

The Hungry Caterpillar

I was really scared to get out of bed this morning and not just because I don't like getting out of bed at 6am. I figured my knee would hurt even more after sleeping on it but it was much better. Alas I had no excuse to stay in bed. It was hard getting Jordy out of bed and I had Danya watch Nadav while I was getting Jordy going. While doing so Nadav got Danya's toothpaste all over his shirt. So I changed him and off we went. Shortly after returning home, eating breakfast, cleaning the kitchen and folding the laundry Josh and I headed to Kiryat Sefer to run a few errands. Josh dropped me off at one shopping center so I could drop off dry cleaning and go to Yesh-the religious grocery store- to buy diapers and a few other items and he was going to a hardware store. While I was in Yesh they announced that in 10 minutes there was going to be a security exercise(which I believe was country wide and I had heard about but forgotten about) and when it happened to please step into the security room. I was hoping to beat the clock and be out of the store by then but the line was long and as the cashier finished the woman before me the siren went off. The cashier smiled and told me to go to the secure room and I would be next when we could go out. I tried to convince her to check me out but she wouldn't(ok, she was right). So I followed the other shoppers to the secure room. After looking around I realized that there were only women in the room. Hmmm. Either they have another secure room for men OR in case of war the men would rather die then be trapped in a room with the women. Either way the room was hot and did not smell pretty. There was water and rugalach. I called Josh who thought it was funny that I was trapped and he said he would be waiting for me in the parking lot. A few minutes later we were dismissed from the room and I checked out and got out of there. Josh and I returned the grocery's home and then we went to Beit Nechemya to a guy who sells wood as we need....um....Josh I need you to fill in the blank here. The path between the plates on the baseball field. Baseline? Anyhow, Josh's vision has wood planks between the grass of the pitchers mound area and the outfield. So we went and ordered what we needed and headed out. We stopped in Kiryat Daniel to stop at Hatzorfim to buy a wedding gift from my in-laws. Then we headed home and ate lunch before getting Nadav. After picking him up he wanted to eat the salad I didn't finish. I gave him a baby spoon and a regular fork to eat it with but he insisted on holding them both together in his hand.
Not sure if this is the true definition of a 2 fisted eater but it comes close. We then spent the afternoon running carpools and trying to keep Nadav entertained. At one point it was done with a mini ice cream sandwich. We had to change his shirt again. Later he was going nuts climbing in and out of his high chair. We kept telling him to sit down but he wouldn't listen-until he got stuck.
He didn't think it was funny but we did. Eventually we had dinner-grilled cheese sandwiches. I went out to water the herbs and was surprised to see that my giant dill plant was just a skeleton of itself. Upon closer inspection I found these: 3 large caterpillars. I removed them and the eggs they laid and then trimmed the affected leaves. Then I took a look at our fruit trees and found some baby apples blooming on the apple tree. Cute! Anyhow we got everyone into bed and it is nice and quiet now. Here is a picture of the progress in the yard today. It is not so easy to see but the areas between the field and the house are divided out and ready to be cemented.

Orthopedist Times 2

This morning began bring and early. The workers arrived to begin project Field of Dreams. Eventually I got the kids out the door. Claudia and I went walking again. Then I went out to run an errand in Modiin and then to the orthopedist. I have been having a problem with my knee which I wrote about here and here and here. So I finally saw the orthopedist who told me that the pain is inflammation at the place where 3 muscles meet. Since my doctor had already attempted treating it with anti-inflammatory. So he decided that a cortisone injection was the way to go. Sounds so simple right? Well the pharmacy in the doctors office was closed so he wrote me the prescription and sent me to a pharmacy to pick it up and then I had to return to get the injection. It wasn't so bad in the end since there was a pharmacy a few blocks away. I returned and he took the giant needle and injected the cortisone along with anesthesia. He told me that it may hurt for a couple days and then it would be better. I went home and for 2 hours my leg was mostly numb. Once the numbness wore off the pain kicked in and holy cow does it hurt. It has something to do with the fact that it is near a joint that makes it worse but It hurts to bend it, make it straight, stand on it, walk and oh my gosh-stairs!!!! Yowch! I am really looking forward to a few days from now when it is all better! Anyhow, I wasn't the only one with an orthopedist appointment today. Nadav had his appointment finally. The doctor actually worked during the hours that the office is closed so there was tons of parking and we went right in. He looked at Nadav walk and he bent his legs and knees. Then he said that Nadav has a turned in step. He said it may correct itself over the next few years but if it doesn't seem to be getting better or if it seems to be getting worse we should bring him back. We went home and I spent the rest of the day trying to get Danya and Jordy to do everything so I could sit with my leg up. A shame that they can't make dinner. After dinner-shnitzel, couscous and roasted pepper and cauliflower soup-I left the kids in Josh's hands and headed out. My friend from high school, Inbar, has a women only show that she preforms in which she tells her life story and sings. She was going to be putting the show on in Petach Tikvah so I decided to go. I am so glad I went even though I couldn't get anyone to go with me. It was such a beautiful evening and I am so proud to be friends with such a talented person.

A Danya Milestone

This morning I got the kids out and about and I headed to Modiin for the bris of Donny and Gila's son. You know them from here. I thought I was going to be late due to traffic but I was in time for Donny's speech. As I walked in Lisa whispered "Nadav" to me and I thought she was inquiring as to where my son is but it occurred to me that she was telling me the name of the new baby. Apparently we are trend setters. After some lox I headed to Rami Levy for some groceries. Josh went over some plans he had for more yard work-we have a large yard with a lot of different sections so there will be more yard work to come. Here is the before photo: Can you figure out Josh's dream yard? Do the words "If you build it he will come" mean anything to you??? Anyhow I picked Nadav up after gan and Danya returned from school. Yesterday we made plans to go today to get her ears pierced. A long time ago I told her I would take her when she was ready to sit down calmly and get BOTH ears pierced without going crazy. Until then no earrings. Well a friend of hers got her ears pierced and she decided she was ready. So after picking Jordy up from school and arranging a play date for him Danya, Nadav and I headed to Modiin. There were plenty of parking spots which lead me to believe that the store would be closed for siesta and I was right. Danya calmly agreed that we could come back later. We came home and Jordy had a play date with Ayellet who he hasn't played with in a while but since he had a play date with Ariella yesterday he needed one with Ayellet today. Danya went to softball and I picked her up when it was over. I made dinner and then Danya and I headed back out to Modiin. It took more time for her to choose the earrings and to pay then it did to pierce her ears. It was so quick and it didn't hurt her. I almost missed videoing it. Almost:
We returned home and then Danya attempted to call anyone she ever met to tell them she got earrings. I then headed out to my water aerobics class and returned to find Danya still on the phone.

When Life Gives You Lemons

This morning after getting the kids out and about I went walking with Claudia. We are going to try to keep it up but of course I have to go to a Bris tomorrow morning so we'll see. Later Josh and I went to Modiin. He went to fix someones computer and I ran a few errands in the mall and waited for him. We returned home and before I knew it I had to go get Nadav. Danya returned from school and had plans to go bike riding with her friends. I went to pick up Jordy from English and he was very eager to have a play date with Ariella. Apparently they had seen each other at the end of the day and made plans because when I called Dvora told me that Ariella told her she was having a play date with Jordy. So we picked Ariella up and headed home. Danya was heading out with her friends as we returned. A little while later I got a call from Danya that one of the wheels came off her bike. She left it by friends for us to pick up later and she and her friend returned. Eventually we had dinner-Hot dogs and edemame- I know a weird combination but both were eaten. Nadav kept throwing the hot dogs over board and requesting "beans". After dinner we asked Danya to tell us what happened with her bike. She explained it to us and then said that when the wheel fell off that she decided that she would just ride it as a unicycle. I thought that was very funny but she said her friend didn't know what a unicycle is. Then I had to tackle the kitchen. Now Josh is watching the Blackhawks game-Go Hawks.

Shabbat

Friday morning everyone went back to school. Hooray. It was a short return but better than nothing! Merav hung out here in the morning and Nadav was so happy to see her when I went to pick him up. Danya went to a friends house and they eventually took her with them to the pool. Jordy hung out at home all afternoon. It was just us for Shabbat. Friday night we ate and everyone read and went to sleep.
Shabbat morning Nadav and I were up at our usual 6. I dosed off on the couch at one point and I woke to hear a banging noise. Nadav had climbed on the table and was pouring the salt shaker into the kiddush cup and then drinking it. Danya headed to the kids minyan followed by lunch at a friends house. She stayed all day and returned home at 7:15pm(I told her to come back at 6). After shul Nadav took a nap and I read until the power went out again. At least we seem to have figured out what the problem is. It seems to be a combination of the plata(heating plate) and the air conditioning. Anyhow, we ate lunch and then Nadav woke up. Jordy was bored and headed out to find a friend and he stayed out until 6:15(I also told him 6 but apparently this was Lisa's fault). I took a nap and then we were joined by the Brodsky's and the Block's for the street Settlers games. Everyone stayed until after Shabbat. Then we got the kids into bed, made the lunches and cleaned up. I went out to walk and now bed.

Misabat Chumash and Shavout

Sunday morning was spent running errands in Kiryat Sefer. I then went to get an x-ray of my knee to figure out what is wrong with it. Next I take the x-ray results to the orthopedist next week. I returned home and picked Nadav up. Nothing remarkable happened in the afternoon. Danya went to an erev kitah-class night-at school. Everyone else ate Shabbat leftovers.
Monday morning the kids and I all left the house at our regular 7:30am. After walking Nadav to gan I went to the makolet to buy Jordy's treats for his tiyul(for some reason this is the accepted practice-send a bunch of junk food with your kid on field trips) along with a 6 pack of water bottles. Then I walked to school as this was his misibat chumash as well and parents were accompanying the kids on the trip. We eventually got on the buses and headed to Jerusalem. Jordy was all excited about his treats and ate most of the Cheetos on the bus. When we arrived we ate aruchat esser and then began the tiyul. We went to King David's Tomb where the kids said tehelim. Then we saw 4 different Beit Kenneset-Churvh(no we didn't get to go inside), Sefardi, Ashkanezi and ..... what was the 4th?

I can't remember. I want to say Beit Kenneset shel Eliyahu HaNavi but that sounds wrong. Anyone? We then went to the cardo where it was somewhat cool(compared to the 95 and sunny outside) and the kids did the show and were presented with their chumashim-along with popsicles and treats.
We then headed down to the kotel where the kids were encouraged to say tehelim.

We then loaded back on the buses and returned to school. We returned at 3pm. Jordy went to a friends and I headed home and was ready to collapse. Nadav didn't let that happen. I chased him around the house and then he found a box of gum and emptied it out. He tasted each piece of mint gum and spit it out on the floor. He was having fun though.

I took Danya to and from softball and then picked Jordy up from his friends. I gave the kids dinner-deli sandwiches-and they stayed up a little late as there was no school the next day. I headed out to my water aerobics class and really liked it this time. I committed to the rest of the month and then we'll see.
Tuesday morning Danya escorted me in taking Nadav to gan. Then she and I stopped at the makolet to get the few things we needed. Danya and Jordy played most of the morning. I cooked and cleaned and ran a couple errands. Nadav was out of gan early as it was erev chag. Danya went out to a friends. Then we got a call from Lisa asking if Meira and Moshe could come over since Nafi was pretty sick and needed to get to the doctor before chag. So Jordy and Moshe played and Meira watched a movie and helped a bit with Nadav. They left and eventually Danya returned. Robert also showed up at some point too. Everyone got ready for Shavout and a few moments before lighting candles our power went out. Luckily I was able to turn it back on and all was well for the time being. We all ate dinner and Jordy went to bed. Danya headed to school to learn a bit. There were shiurim taking place for her age until 1am. We let her stay until then but realized later that we would then have to stay awake until she returned. Josh and I both fell asleep on the couch and I went to bed at 12:45. Danya woke Josh when she returned at 1:15.
The bigger kids slept a little bit late but Nadav and I were up at 6. I got a lot of reading in. After shul we went to the Brodsky's for kiddush. We returned to a warm house with no power. Shoot. Luckily the food had mostly heated and there was a nice breeze coming in through the windows. Lisa and kids joined us for lunch. I then took a nap while Josh played Cities and Knights with the Brodsky boys-one of which is now a doctor. After I woke up Josh informed me that the whole Brodsky family along with the Blocks were coming over to play Settlers. The Blocks didn't know how to play but wanted to learn and join the weekly street game. Everyone had fun and stayed even though it was dark in the house. After Yom Tov Meira came over for a sleepover(as Josh told the girls if they watched Nadav all afternoon they could have one-and they did).
Today was a quiet day. Nadav and I were up early and Jordy joined us a bit later. Danya and Meira slept late after I made them go back to bed. After breakfast I took a nap as apparently going to sleep late and waking up early isn't working for me. I woke up to a quiet house. Josh had put Nadav down for a nap and then took the older kids to an activity about recycling with projects out of plastics etc. Nadav and I hung out the rest of the afternoon. Jordy returned and Danya went to a friends. Jordy invited Moshe B. to come over for a while. We then gave the kids dinner and ice cream(not necessarily in that order). Josh gave Nadav a bath and we got him into bed while Danya and Jordy were cleaning up downstairs. I headed out to a Bat Mitzvah and returned to a quiet and clean home.

A Blessing On Your Head

Wednesday morning was the usual. Wake up early and get of the house on time. Nadav and I said goodbye to Danya and Jordy and we started heading towards gan. We got about a house away and Nadav saw a cat-a common sighting-and he ran to see it. It ran under a tree and so did Nadav. We then continued and I noticed what I thought was a leaf on his head. I went to remove it and realized that it wasn't a leaf but bird poop. Yes, that is right, my sweet little one year old had bird poop on his head. So gross! So we turned around and went back home. There was no way I was completely undressing him and giving him a bath especially since he just had one the night before. So I decided to hold him over the tub and use the sprayer and just wash his hair. I was surprised that this was successful and he didn't walk away soaked. About 5 minutes later we were back on our way-just not under trees. The gannenet said that bird pooping on you is a segula(a good luck sign?) but I didn't ask a segula for what. I headed home and watched Merav for Lisa so she could run some errands. Merav was tired so I took her on a 5 minute walk and she fell asleep. Later I ran some errands in Shilat and then returned home. Josh decided that today was the day to fix the dining room table. We got our table back in December of 2006. When it was delivered the board had nails sticking out the top so we sent it back. Since then we have tried many times to get the board replaced, fixed, corrected etc. So Josh decided today that this was the day to screw on a bracket so we can FINALLY use the board. The rest of the morning was spent planning and preparing for the Shabbat cooking. Nadav came home followed shortly by Jordy and then Danya. Later I took Danya to her dance class. The kids ate hot dogs and couscous for dinner and finally went to bed.
Thursday was a busy day. In the morning I got my challah dough assembled and then I dropped Nadav at gan and headed straight to the doctor. I have been having a problem with a muscle in my knee so I decided to get it checked out again. The doctor gave me a referral for an x-ray and a visit to the orthopedist. Fun. I returned home and made the challah. Then I went over to the Brodsky's to help them prepare for Jordan's medical school graduation party. I was there for about 2 hours. Then I came home and cooked a little more for Shabbat before picking Nadav up. Then the kids returned from school-Danya, Meira, Jordy, Moshe B and Moshe S. They all ate pizza along with Nadav. I took the boys to English and later picked up Jordy and Moshe B. along with Michali. The kids all played until Nafi came to pick them up. My kids ate mac and cheese and Nadav went to bed. Danya babysat for Jordy and Josh and I headed out to the graduation party. We only got 2 calls from Danya and I only stopped at home once. Josh came home for a while to work but returned to the party and we were there until after 1am. It was quite the cocktail party and we had a wonderful time.
It was not pleasant waking up at 6am on Friday especially since my kitchen was a mess and I had a lot of cooking to do. I got the kids out and got everything in order. We ran a couple errands in Modiin and returned to the cooking/cleaning. Friday night was a simple and quiet dinner.
Shabbat morning the kids played while I prepared for lunch. We had the Neuman's and the Wilen's families and we were 18 people all together. We had a great time and everyone stayed until 5! Laura and Danny came by towards the end of dessert and stayed until then as well. As everyone left the Brodsky's arrived. We played a large game of Settlers and Shabbat was almost over. Saturday night was spent cleaning up.

Stop and Smell The Roses

This morning Nadav and I slept nice and late until 6:45. As always he was anxious to get to gan and see his friends. After dropping him off I headed to Rami Levy. I was disturbed to verify what Dvora told me yesterday- that there is no gvinat parma or Parmesan cheese in the country. We are going to have to rethink the shavout menu. Anyhow, I returned home to put the groceries away and eat breakfast. Not long after I headed out to do mosaics. Here is how it looked after today's session. I think next time I will finish the tiling and gluing and we will be ready to grout it! Hooray! I came home and ate lunch and then picked Nadav up from gan. On the way home he was interested in the flowers by the park and he was trying to pull them so I showed him how to smell them. He thought this was hysterical and kept bobbing his head down and making an exaggerated inhalation noise and standing straight up and laughing. He then needed to do so by each and every flower. We eventually made it home followed by Jordy. Danya was at a friends house. Jordy and Nadav played, ate and watched TV. Later I took Nadav to the doctor as he has been running a low fever on and off for the past week. The doctor said not to worry, that he is teething and it is fine to send him to gan. We were home quickly and I gave the kids dinner-fish sticks. Eventually everyone got to bed. Nice and quiet.

Water Aerobics

This morning Nadav and I got up at 6. He ate and watched Elmo while I read. Eventually Jordy joined us and not much later Danya got up. Danya and Jordy headed to school while Nadav and I headed to see Ora and the babies. I was send on my way with a pacifier kiss. I spent all morning at home while Josh ran a couple errands. I picked Nadav up and then he and I went to pick up Jordy and his friend Covi. Jordy and Covi got slushies and Nadav screamed the whole car ride because he wanted one(Jordy tried to share his but Nadav couldn't figure out how to use the straw). We came home and everyone played for a while. Covi went home and Nadav and I went to pick up Danya from softball. We all came home and the kids (kind of) watched Nadav while I made dinner-grilled chicken and couscous. After Danya and Jordy showered I took them quickly to 2 clothing sales that were taking place on the same block. Jordy got a polo shirt and Danya got a jean skirt. We came home and the kids got ready for bed. I then headed out to try out a water aerobics class. I had never taken one before but I enjoyed it. It wasn't as challenging as I thought it would be but I think I will give it another try next week.

Happy Mother's Day

Last night Nadav was awake again. I want to say from 3 until 4 but it is all a blur. Then he finally slept and he slept a little late as did we. Jordy woke me up asking if I would drive them to school since it was starting soon. So I drove the kids to school and a few minutes after I returned Nadav woke up. I took him to gan and he was so excited to see Ora and his friends the babies. Soon after I headed to book club. Then I returned home and wanted to nap but it was more like a little cat nap. I ate lunch and then picked Nadav up from gan. In the afternoon the kids played and watched a few shows. I decided that for Mothers Day I didn't want to make dinner so I ordered a pizza. Everyone ate and then we called Savta and Bubs to wish them a happy mothers day. We finally put Nadav to bed who was soon followed by Jordy and then Danya. Now I am going to enjoy the quiet and read my book.

The Challah Experiment Continued

Nadav woke up early Friday morning around 6. Rather than his usual yelling "Ema" from his crib this morning it was "Ora". Apparently he likes his gannenet. Jordy had woke up the prior night at 4am and ended up sleeping on our floor. Good thing I warned Josh not to step on him as Josh never heard him. Josh got up with Nadav and Danya and Jordy joined them soon after. When I went downstairs Danya and Jordy were already dressed. I was talking to Jordy when I realized he was wearing long, tight gray shorts. I asked him what shorts he was wearing and he said he didn't know, he found them in his drawer. I then looked closer and realized that they were Nadav's gray pants! I wish I had taken a picture! He said they weren't tight and they were comfy. He went up to change and then returned with a pair of jean "shorts" that had a tag that said 18 months. Apparently I put some of Nadav's clothes away in Jordy's dresser. Danya, Jordy and Josh headed out towards school while Nadav and I headed to gan. I was waved off and sent on my way. I stopped at the makolet to pick up a couple of things and then headed home to cook and bake this weeks challah. We weren't sure we wanted to try a new recipe as we really liked the previous one however people responded to my request for recipes so I feel that I should try them all. So this weeks recipe was submitted by Annette F. who doesn't actually make the challah-it is made each week by her daughter Lital. Here is the recipe in case you want it(and just a heads up-you want it).
2 cups warm water
5 tsps yeast
2 Tbsp sugar

Mix the above and wait until yeast starts to bubble.

Add:
2 eggs
2/3 cup sugar
3 tsp salt
100 grams melted margarine (6 TBSP)

Stir in 1 kilo of flour-about 7 cups (slowly) with a fork - 1 cup at a time. Stir until it's too hard, then knead dough w/hands. Cover w/ 2 towels and let rise for 2-3 hours. Shape and brush with egg wash and bake @350 for 20-25 minutes.

Anyhow, so I made the challah, cooked, did laundry and cleaned a little. By then it was time to pick up Nadav. I walked into gan and he wasn't there. The gannenet said he was still sleeping. He had only been sleeping for 45 minutes. I attempted to pick him up without waking him but it didn't work. By the time we returned home he was awake. Danya and Jordy came home as Josh was heading to Modiin for falafel so they went with him. After they returned Danya went out to go riding bikes with Tamar. Josh and I met with a guy about building a pergola(hmmm-how do you translate that one? Permanent succah structure?). I gave the kids dinner before Shabbat and I got Nadav to bed before candle lighting. After I lit candles I gave Danya and Jordy presents. I bought them a few books at the book store this week and I though that maybe I could bribe them to sit down and have a quiet Friday night. For a while it worked and we were all sitting and reading. Ahhh. Peace. After Josh and Robert returned from shul we all sat down for dinner. We cut into the challah and YUM! We weren't really expecting any challah recipe to compete with last weeks but man were we surprised. We aren't sure what to do now that we have 2 recipes that we LOVE! I am thinking about combining the 2 recipes-ingredients from one with technique of the other and seeing what the results are. The other option is trading off weeks. Either way we have a lot of good challah here! During dinner we were discussing Israeli history for some reason and Josh was trying to remind Danya about places we have seen in the Old City and which wars we won them over in. Danya was trying to remember places in the Old City and she came up with Holy Bagel-ah the War of the Holy Bagel. OK, it was a lot funnier when she said it. After dinner Jordan came by to play cities and knights. Robert went to sleep while Jordan, Josh and I played.
This morning Josh got up with Nadav again. After he went to shul Nadav and I walked Danya and Jordy to the youth minyan at Glenwood. Then we went to find Josh at shul. Nadav and I took a nap after shul and before lunch. Then we ate lunch. After lunch Jordan and Joel came over. Before playing Cities and Knights the boys all played football in the living room and monkey in the middle. It ended after I got hit with a ball and Nadav got bumped in the face. Danya and Jordy left for the new Bnei Akiva program that started this week. Claudia came over during the game as well. After the game we took Nadav on a walk and found Danya and Jordy. We lost Danya as she went to a friends but we stopped at a few parks on the way home and ran into several cousins. We ate some dinner and did more reading until Shabbat ended. The kids went to sleep and I cleaned the kitchen. Good times.

Our Soldier

This morning I was happy to wake up at 6:30am as it mean that Nadav finally slept through the night. Everyone got up and out on time. Nadav was happy at gan and happily waved goodbye to me again. I headed to the Bris for Heidi and Jonathan's new son. After the bris we returned home and spent the rest of the morning at home cleaning and beginning Shabbat prep. After lunch I went to get Nadav. He happily ate a little and watched Elmo while I cooked for Shabbat. We picked Jordy up from his English class and then Danya returned from her friends house with 2 friends in tow. Eventually the friends went home and the kids settled in with some mac and cheese. Miriam came to babysit as I put Nadav to bed. Then Josh and I headed to the kotel for Roberts tekes haashbaah(swearing in ceremony). There were approximately 300 soldiers being sworn in and a TON of people there to watch. We were standing on the back stairs and could hardly see anything. Josh took the camera to the men's side and stood on a chair and got some pictures but there wasn't much of a view. While I couldn't really see it was still very moving to see the soldiers receive their guns and tanach. Also always moving to hear thousands of people singing hatikvah.

After the ceremony we found Robert and took a few pictures.
Then we got his bag and said goodbye until tomorrow.
Here is a picture of Josh playing Rambo:

Is It Bed Time Yet?

So much for the cough medicine. Nadav woke up in the middle of the night twice. The second time was at 5am and he didn't go back to sleep. Eventually I brought him downstairs and by then he was starving and almost shoved a whole banana in his mouth. We did hit a new milestone when arriving at gan. Nadav went in, started coloring and glanced up at me and said "bye Ema" as he waved me away. I guess he has settled in. I returned home and ignored my exhaustion and showered and got dressed. I had a bunch of errands to run at the mall. I drove Yael there as she was meeting a friend. Then I got my diet iced aroma-Gila, you don't need to keep it quiet anymore, and did my shopping. I returned home and cleaned the kitchen, baked cookies and ate lunch. Then it was time to pick up Nadav. Danya and a friend came home and I picked Jordy up from school. Later I took Nadav on a walk in attempt to get him to nap again as he was quite cranky(I was also cranky but no sleep for me). It didn't work. Nadav and I picked Danya up from dance class and I returned to make dinner. The kids ate their shnitzel and petitim and then went out to play. Once everyone went to sleep I joined Lori and we brought coffee and cookies to the soldiers. Even though I was exhausted I was so glad I went because they were so appreciative and they ate all the cookies. Now it's bed time!

Making a Difference

Nadav woke up early again this morning. I am beginning to think that this may not be early anymore-it may be regular. He happily ate breakfast with Elmo while I read. Everyone else got up and we got dressed and out the door. Nadav didn't cry at all when I left him at gan. He happily went straight to the markers and colored while I said goodbye. I then went to the grocery store as I now know that Rami Levy is pleasant before 9am. I returned at 8:50am and unpacked the groceries and finished my book. Lisa and Merav stopped by with Yael who is in town for the week. Then I headed out to do my mosaics. I missed last week so it was good getting back to it. Apparently I only have a few weeks of work left. After I returned and ate lunch I picked up Nadav and we came home. On the way home I got a text message from Danya and Jordy's school that due to a water outage they let the 3rd through 6th graders out at 1:45pm rather that the 2:30pm they were supposed to get out at. While I was impressed with the communication I thought it was interesting that the message arrived after 2pm. It also didn't discuss why the 1st and 2nd graders didn't get out early. It occurred to me that the 6th graders were the crossing guards and if they weren't at school then the 1st and 2nd graders were walking home without crossing guards. So I called the school. After being transferred to 4 different people who didn't know the answer to who was crossing my precious 7 year old across the busy traffic circle I was told I can pick him up. I told them this was unacceptable. They called me back 5 minutes later saying that they had arranged for crossing guards for the kids. As Josh said I made a difference today. Danya and Jordy both ended up at friends houses in the afternoon which was good because I took Nadav to the doctor about a rash on his face. We were in and out fairly quickly and came home to make dinner. Everyone ate breakfast for dinner which included scrambled eggs, toast, leftover pancakes and chocolate milk. Eventually everyone went to sleep.

Conferences

Everyone was tired this morning(except Nadav). Danya and Jordy were running late so I drove them to school and then dropped Nadav off at gan. The rest of the morning was spent at home. Jordy and Nadav spent some time watching TV and then playing football in the afternoon. Jordy for some reason had his heart set on buying more lead for his lead pencil. So he and Nadav and I stopped at the school supply store before picking Danya up from softball. We returned home and all 3 played together while I made pancakes. They all ate and then Josh gave Nadav a bath. After Nadav went to bed Josh and Jordy played Cities and Knights. Danya settled in with a book and I headed to school for conferences. After translating for another parent(isn't that funny that I was a translator??) I went straight into Jordy's class. His teacher said all good things and I was out 5 minutes later. I then wrapped his Chumash for his Chumash party and then read my book for an hour waiting for Danya's conference. I then met with Danya's teacher for 3 minutes who said all was great and she is so proud that Danya has been arriving to school on time(I didn't want to mention this as I was sure I would jinx it but Danya and Jordy have been getting up earlier lately(mostly due to Nadav screeching at the top of his lungs at 6:30) and arriving at school early since Pesach. So to sum up-over an hour at school for 8 minutes of conferences.