Tuesday morning everyone slept a little late. We were all tired and lazy. Danya and Jordy then did all the homework they conveniently forgot about for the past 2 weeks-all of which is due tomorrow. I was going to go to the grocery store but didn't feel like battling the crowds. Lisa was going to the makolet to pick up some bread so she brought us 6 rolls(it was slim pickings)-4 of which were eaten in about 15 minutes, the other 2 about an hour later. In the afternoon Lori took Danya and Jordy with Tamar and Yakir to Modiin for pizza and bagels and then to the park for several hours. I attempted to get Nadav to nap but was unsuccessful so we walked to the Makolet to see if they had any bread. They did not. So we took a ride to the next makolet where we located pita and a few other items. We came home and made dinner. Danya and Jordy returned and everyone ate and showered and got ready for the big day back to school tomorrow.
This morning the alarm clock went off at 7am and man was that tough. It was all worth it though because by 8am everyone was out the door on their way back to school! I enjoyed the quiet for a while and then decided to take advantage and take a short nap. I was going to head to Rami Levy when Zev Brodsky came over. He was having car trouble and needed a ride to Shilat. So we all headed to Shilat. Josh and Zev met me at Rami Levy and were horrified by how long the lines were. It was after all 2 days after Pesach, 2 days before Shabbat and the first day the kdis were back in school. It was worse than erev pesach. An hour and a half later we headed home. Jordy was out all afternoon at English and at a friends house. Danya went to a friends and came home later in the afternoon. Everyone ate dinner and I headed out to zumba. Ugh, first exercise in over a week. Amazing how out of shape you can get in a week.
Wednesday, April 27, 2011
Monday, April 25, 2011
Chol Hamoid Pesach: Day 5
Sunday morning we slept late. I made matzah meal pancakes for breakfast. We were out of diapers so I ventured to Rami Levy with Nadav which was a bad move. It took us quite a while to get out of there. We got home and headed out almost immediately after. We headed to Tel Aviv where we met most of the Block's to see the Madrid Circus. Nadav was a little scared at the beginning but he eventually sat and enjoyed it. We all had a good time and really liked it. 
We came home and got ready for the end of chag. On Sunday night it was just us for dinner and we were all exhausted-except for Nadav. Eventually everyone went to sleep.
We all slept late on Monday morning. Danya went to Daniella's for lunch while the rest of us were home eating leftovers. After lunch Mira and Jason Aaronson and kids came home for a visit as they were in the neighborhood for chag. Eventually we made it to the end of Pesach. I am always amazed at how much work it is getting ready for Pesach and how an hour and a half later it is like it never happened.
We came home and got ready for the end of chag. On Sunday night it was just us for dinner and we were all exhausted-except for Nadav. Eventually everyone went to sleep.
We all slept late on Monday morning. Danya went to Daniella's for lunch while the rest of us were home eating leftovers. After lunch Mira and Jason Aaronson and kids came home for a visit as they were in the neighborhood for chag. Eventually we made it to the end of Pesach. I am always amazed at how much work it is getting ready for Pesach and how an hour and a half later it is like it never happened.
Saturday, April 23, 2011
Chol Hamoid Pesach: Days 3 and 4
Friday morning Josh, Danya and Jordy joined Akiva Silton and their 3 older kids at Latrun. They then went to a picnic in Park Canada. While they were gone I got a lot of cooking done. Nadav and I also walked to the makolet to pick up a couple things. Friday night Jordy went to the Gerson's for a sleepover with Yakir. Danya and Tamar were having a sleepover however Tamar came over after dinner. Friday night Zev Brodsky joined us for dinner as his parents are away. We had a nice dinner and then the Block's came over for dessert.
Shabbat morning I drank cold coffee and spent the morning getting ready for lunch. We had the Geller's and the Zemel's over for lunch. We were 18 people total. All the kids got along really well and played nicely so that the adults were able to enjoy lunch. The rest of the afternoon there were kids in and out of the house.
Shabbat morning I drank cold coffee and spent the morning getting ready for lunch. We had the Geller's and the Zemel's over for lunch. We were 18 people total. All the kids got along really well and played nicely so that the adults were able to enjoy lunch. The rest of the afternoon there were kids in and out of the house.
Thursday, April 21, 2011
Chol Hamoid Pesach: Day 2
On Thursday Max joined us as we headed to Rishon Letziyon to "movie park". Along the beach they had set up a place where they had different shows. It was done similar to Universal Studios, where they had different plays. After making it past the entrance and the characters where you could pose for a photo
we went to watch a show that showed behind the scenes action stunts. There was shooting, explosions etc. Nadav did not like this and spent the entire show(about 10 minutes) like this:
We then ate our picnic lunch and headed to a show about super heros:
The kids played on the bouncy castles and then we sat down to watch a musical number about music in the movies.
Then the kids went to play some games in a section about Westerns. They waited in some long lines:
(It looks like they really like each other here doesn't it???). As we were heading out they had just started the stunt show again and Danya and Jordy wanted to watch it. Josh and Max went with them to see it again while Nadav and I stayed far back with him curled up on my shoulder clutching his ears in fear. Poor kid. He fell asleep like this. I took him to the car and we headed back. We stopped in Modiin to get some ice cream and then came home. Max joined us for a nice healthy dinner of salami and eggs. After dinner I tried to get some cooking out of the way. Danya and Jordy went to bed and Nadav was up until almost midnight following his late nap.
we went to watch a show that showed behind the scenes action stunts. There was shooting, explosions etc. Nadav did not like this and spent the entire show(about 10 minutes) like this:
(It looks like they really like each other here doesn't it???). As we were heading out they had just started the stunt show again and Danya and Jordy wanted to watch it. Josh and Max went with them to see it again while Nadav and I stayed far back with him curled up on my shoulder clutching his ears in fear. Poor kid. He fell asleep like this. I took him to the car and we headed back. We stopped in Modiin to get some ice cream and then came home. Max joined us for a nice healthy dinner of salami and eggs. After dinner I tried to get some cooking out of the way. Danya and Jordy went to bed and Nadav was up until almost midnight following his late nap.
Wednesday, April 20, 2011
Chol Hamoid Pesach: Day 1
After a slow start we finally got our act together and out the door. The plan was to have a picnic at Annabe park in Modiin and then go to Mekorot followed by dinner at Colombus in Hertzilyah. By the time we got to the park the kids were hungry so we went straight to the picnic part. 
Followed by playing in the park. 
After a few hours we headed out to Mekorot. We learned about the rain patterns in Israel and how to conserve water. We then got to see a water pump. 
The kids were a little bored but it was interesting. We then headed to Colombus, where we have eaten each year on Pesach since we got here. They have a computer at the table where Danya and Jordy can play games which makes it a mostly enjoyable experience for the rest of us. Nadav kept insisting on going to the bathroom so we ran out of diapers and had to leave. We got home and everyone went to bed pretty quickly.
Tuesday, April 19, 2011
Pesach Begins
Sunday morning Danya had her last day of "pre-pesach" camp. She was gone most the day. Jordy was home all day and spent most of it in his pajama's playing Wii. Nadav was running around the house while I spent the day trying to do as much baking as possible and doing all the last minute cleaning/kashering. The kids spent most the afternoon fighting and getting in trouble. We were going to go out to dinner or get take out however nobody was behaving so Josh bought a package of hot dogs from the makolet and grilled them. We got the kids to bed and then continued with the cleaning/cooking/kashering.
Monday morning everyone ate breakfast and then we burned the chametz. Nadav was very upset by the fire and kept pointing to it saying "cham maod" and "chametz". Tamar and Yakir came over to play with Danya and Jordy for a while while I finished up Pesach prep. Nadav wouldn't nap. In the afternoon I took Jordy and Nadav for a ride with me to drop food off at the Gerson's, where we were having Seder, and at the Rotter's, where we were eating lunch the following day. Eventually we made it to Yom Tov. Danya and Jordy headed to the Gerson's right after candle lighting. Nadav and I stopped at the Block's for a little bit and then headed over. For Seder we were the Gerson's, us and Max. Everyone had a great time and participated nicely. Each kid had so much to add to the seder and except for Nadav they all sat the whole time. Nadav was tired but wouldn't sleep the whole evening. I finally got him to sleep by taking him on a walk in the stroller at 12:15am while everyone was looking for the afikomen. We finally finished the seder at 1:30am. Danya slept over at the Gerson's while the rest of us returned home.
Tuesday morning Nadav came to my bed and he and I slept late-until after 9. I woke up and realized I had no hot water for coffee. Oh no. Laura knocked on my door soon after I got up and she brought us some muffins. Eventually we all got moving and headed out to the Rotter's with a quick stop at the Block's for hot water for coffee. We then headed to the Rotter's. On the walk there Jordy asked us if he was Sephardi or Temani. We wanted to know why he was asking. He told us that in school they divide the teams for soccer as the Temani's vs. the "Yisroaelim". We told Jordy that we were not Temani or Sephardi, but Ashkanazi, however all of which are Yisroaeli. This seemed to clear things up for him. I am wondering if he really thought we were Temani. We arrived at the Rotter's where we had a delicious lunch. We sat around talking while the kids played nicely. After eating too many of Dvora's gluten free cookies we headed home. Before we knew it yom tov was over.
Monday morning everyone ate breakfast and then we burned the chametz. Nadav was very upset by the fire and kept pointing to it saying "cham maod" and "chametz". Tamar and Yakir came over to play with Danya and Jordy for a while while I finished up Pesach prep. Nadav wouldn't nap. In the afternoon I took Jordy and Nadav for a ride with me to drop food off at the Gerson's, where we were having Seder, and at the Rotter's, where we were eating lunch the following day. Eventually we made it to Yom Tov. Danya and Jordy headed to the Gerson's right after candle lighting. Nadav and I stopped at the Block's for a little bit and then headed over. For Seder we were the Gerson's, us and Max. Everyone had a great time and participated nicely. Each kid had so much to add to the seder and except for Nadav they all sat the whole time. Nadav was tired but wouldn't sleep the whole evening. I finally got him to sleep by taking him on a walk in the stroller at 12:15am while everyone was looking for the afikomen. We finally finished the seder at 1:30am. Danya slept over at the Gerson's while the rest of us returned home.
Tuesday morning Nadav came to my bed and he and I slept late-until after 9. I woke up and realized I had no hot water for coffee. Oh no. Laura knocked on my door soon after I got up and she brought us some muffins. Eventually we all got moving and headed out to the Rotter's with a quick stop at the Block's for hot water for coffee. We then headed to the Rotter's. On the walk there Jordy asked us if he was Sephardi or Temani. We wanted to know why he was asking. He told us that in school they divide the teams for soccer as the Temani's vs. the "Yisroaelim". We told Jordy that we were not Temani or Sephardi, but Ashkanazi, however all of which are Yisroaeli. This seemed to clear things up for him. I am wondering if he really thought we were Temani. We arrived at the Rotter's where we had a delicious lunch. We sat around talking while the kids played nicely. After eating too many of Dvora's gluten free cookies we headed home. Before we knew it yom tov was over.
Saturday, April 16, 2011
Let The Games Begin
Friday was a busy day. I spent a lot of time cleaning for Pesach so as to "rest" the counter tops, oven and stove over Shabbat. Nadav kept himself entertained most of the morning. Danya and Jordy attended their Pre-Pesach camps. When they came home Josh took all 3 kids to get falafel and then to the park. I used this time to get as much done as possible. Of course no matter how late Shabbat starts we are always rushing to be ready. We were plesantly surprised by a delivery of sushi by the Blocks moments before Shabbat began. Mmmm....sushi. Friday night we had a nice quiet dinner. For the first time in a long time we didn't have any Friday night guests. I read and eventually we got everyone to sleep.
Shabbat morning Danya and Jordy slept late-ish. Jordy went to shul to do anim zmeriot. Danya eventually woke up and davened at home. After shul we had kiddush and then the Blocks came over for pot luck lunch. We also celebrated Eli's birthday. After they left Nadav and I took a nice long nap with his head on my arm. Moments after Shabbat I headed to Rami Levy to do my final Pesach shop. I got there early and it felt like Black Friday in the States. There was a crowd waiting for the doors to open. The shop was fast but there weren't enough cashiers right after Shabbat so it took a while to checkout. All in all not horrible. I then came home to kasher the meat counters, oven and stove and prepare the table and dairy counters. I went to sleep at 2:30.
Shabbat morning Danya and Jordy slept late-ish. Jordy went to shul to do anim zmeriot. Danya eventually woke up and davened at home. After shul we had kiddush and then the Blocks came over for pot luck lunch. We also celebrated Eli's birthday. After they left Nadav and I took a nice long nap with his head on my arm. Moments after Shabbat I headed to Rami Levy to do my final Pesach shop. I got there early and it felt like Black Friday in the States. There was a crowd waiting for the doors to open. The shop was fast but there weren't enough cashiers right after Shabbat so it took a while to checkout. All in all not horrible. I then came home to kasher the meat counters, oven and stove and prepare the table and dairy counters. I went to sleep at 2:30.
Thursday, April 14, 2011
Surprise! Last Day of Gan!
This morning Josh took Nadav to gan and then Jordy and his friend headed to camp. I then began making challah and cleaning out the fridge for Pesach. It feels putting both of those in the same sentence. The rest of the morning was spent Pesach cleaning and cooking for Shabbat. In the afternoon Jordy returned from camp. Not long after that I picked Nadav up from gan. I was very unhappily surprised when the gannent sent home all his Pesach projects. I was under the impression that there was going to be gan tomorrow however apparently today was the last day. Uh oh. We came home and I then headed out to an azkara for Esther Klieman. I returned home at 8pm and Danya had just returned home from her tiyul. She could hardly hold her head up she was so tired. I made her shower and she ate. Then everyone went to sleep. I then returned to the kitchen to finish up the Shabbat cooking and begin the clearing of the counter tops and the cleaning of the oven. Hopefully tomorrow Danya will be awake enough to tell us about her trip. Perhaps she will guest blog about it!
Wednesday, April 13, 2011
Bye Bubs and Pops, Hair Cuts, Marathons and Pesach
Here we go again. 2 weeks behind. Make yourself comfortable-it's going to be a long post.
2 Sundays ago, March 27th, Danya was home from school miserable with her strep. The good news was she was on the antibiotic and any minute now she would be feeling better. I went to book club in the morning where we discussed Pope Joan. I spent the rest of the day trying to get Danya to eat something-ice cream, popsicles, pudding-anything. She was miserable. Bubs and I went to Shilat to do some shopping in the afternoon and then I believe that Nocky and Ruanne came over for a BBQ for dinner on Sunday night.
Monday morning I went to Zumba. Danya was still sick but was starting to feel a slight bit better. In the afternoon I took Jordy to the dentist where for the first time he had no cavities! Hooray! Danya was feeling much better in the evening and we all went out to dinner with Bubs and Pops in Modiin. The kids were really well behaved during dinner. Bubs and Pops brought along a laptop with the movie Oy Baby which the kids now love(we are going to need to get it because since they left Nadav asks me to sing him his new favorite song "die-Heinu") and it kept them entertained at the end of the meal.
Then we went to the ice cream place for dessert. Yum.
Tuesday morning everyone headed to school. Josh and I joined Bubs on a tiyul to Yerushaliam. We had a few different plans on where to go and what to do. We started at the archeological excavations next to the kotel. My mother-in-law loves going there and was surprised that Josh and I had never been. It was very interesting and after seeing it I am surprised we hadn't been there before. We then went to Waffles Bar for lunch but had very little time so we quickly ordered, stuffed our faces and left. We tried to make a tour at The Herzel Museum but we weren't going to make it. So we attempted going to the Prisoner Museum but spent a lot of time looking for parking and finally gave up and headed home. We came back and then the kids returned. We ordered dinner from New Deli. Towards the end of the meal Danya announced that she only ate half of her sandwich. She told us that nobody should eat her sandwich because she wanted it. Danya specifically passed this message to Josh, who on occasion has eaten her leftovers-much to her chagrin.
Wednesday morning Bubs and Pops headed out early. As always, we were sad to see them leave but look forward to their next visit. In the morning I got a haircut which was my way of starting to get ready for Pesach. When Danya came home from school she wanted her leftover New Deli sandwich. Both she and I couldn't believe it when her sandwich wasn't there. Apparetnly Josh thoguht the sandwich he ate for lunch was his Dad's leftover sandwich but lo and behold it was Danya's. The same leftovers that Danya announced to Josh just the night before not to eat. She was not happy but Josh and I couldn't stop laughing that he went and ate her sandwich after the whole warning. Josh promised her he would get her a new sandwich soon. Later in the day I took Danya and Nadav for haircuts as well. Here are the before and after pictures:
Josh cut Jordy's haircut later in the evening as well. I didn't get a before but here's the after:
Thursday morning I did some cooking. I got a call not long into the morning that Nadav was sick and I had to pick him up at gan. There went my day. Poor Nadav was pretty sick and said his garon hurt him-the same garon that just got over strep. It's all a blur now but I am pretty sure we spent some time awake in the middle of the night and made a doctors appointment online at 3am.
Friday the doctor said he just had a virus. Of course a few hours later he seemed to be getting better. The Brodsky's came over on Friday night with a few guests and really yummy dessert.
Shabbat was nothing out of the ordinary, if I recall correctly. On Saturday night I went with a few friends to a Zumba party in Modiin for a few hours.
On Sunday morning Jordy wasn't feeling great so we headed back to the doctors. She said he just had a virus and he can go to school so off to school he went. I began cleaning for Pesach and did the attic. After dinner I went to my Modiin book club and then came back and went with Josh to Sheva Brachot for the daughter of a shul member. On Monday morning I went to zumba followed by more Pesach cleaning. I felt silly cleaning Nadav's room for pesach as he doesn't really eat in there however when I pulled the changing table away from the wall I found an old cookie on the floor, so I guess it was worthwhile.
On Tuesday morning Lisa and I headed to Jerusalem to do the big Pesach shop. First we went to cheaperkol and bought most of the kitnyot free dry goods. Then we went to a butcher nearby and I got all my meat. By the time we got home the kids were returning from school.
Wednesday was spent mostly doing Pesach cleaning and the Rami Levy dry goods grocery shop(I have the pesach shopping down to a science and it is broken down to a few different trips to a few different stores). At night I went to Zumba followed by coffee to the soldiers.
Thursday I think was just a regular Thursday-cooking, cleaning....etc.
Friday was the big day. After about 45 minutes of sleep I got up at 5am and got ready for the Tel Aviv 10K. I was being picked up at 5:45am. As I left Nadav woke up(for about the 10th time-for those who wanted to know how the melatonin-it helps him fall asleep but not stay asleep). I went with the Brodsky's who were going to cheer on Zev. We got there with some time to spare before my 8:15am start time. In the meantime Lisa came to my house and Josh headed out as he was starting at 8:45am to roller blade the half marathon. Here I am pre-race pretending to drink coffee:
and with most of my fellow Hashmonaim runners:
The run was great. Much easier than Jerusalem as there are no hills. The could have used a water stop earlier than 4.5 kilometers-I thought I wasn't going to make it until I hit that water stop. I was happy to succeed in my 2 goals for this race. First I wanted to beat my Jerusalem time of 1 hour 10 minutes. I happily crushed it with 1 hour 5 minutes. My second goal was to run the entire time without walking and I did that as well. After crossing the finish line I got my medal, water, some snacks and went to the meeting spot. Not long after I noticed some of the roller bladers crossing the finish line so I went over to cheer Josh on. He finished the half in 1 hour 1 minute. He was a bit hungry and thirsty but after eating and drinking he was much better. Here we are after the race:
We headed home and went straight to falafel in Modiin and then to pick up Nadav from gan. Danya and Jordy returned from school really excited as they are now on Passover vacation. Josh then went to watch Danya play a softball game while I took a nap with Nadav. Jordy held down the fort playing with a friend. Friday night Laura came over with Eli for dessert/a birthday drink.
Shabbat morning the kids didn't want to go to shul but all stayed home and behaved nicely. After shul we had kiddush and everyone played. I took a nap and Josh let me sleep through lunch. After I got up he headed for a nap and I took Nadav on a walk to take Jordy to a friends house. Nadav was really sad along the way when his pacifier fell out of his mouth and into a sewer drain. After Shabbat Jordy and Danya returned home. Jordy was invited to a sleepover at his friends house. Danya was upset since she couldn't find anybody to sleepover. I told her she would hang out with Josh. I went with Laura to a Bar Mitzvah. When I came back Josh headed to Jerusalem to play a very late game of ice hockey.
Sunday morning Danya headed to her first day of Pesach camp(Jordy did too but he went from his friends house). Nadav headed to gan I headed to the gym. I then went to the mall to get some gear for Danya as she will be attending her first camping trip/overnight-er with Bnei Akiva called Masa Pesach. Danya went straight from camp on a Bnei Akiva trip to the zoo to play find the madrich. She had a great time. Everyone returned from camp/gan and ate dinner. Danya had 2 friends sleepover since she missed out the night before. Josh and I went to yet another Bar Mitzvah and then Josh headed back to Jerusalem for another game of ice hockey.
Monday morning I headed to zumba and then went out with some friends for brunch to celebrate Laura's birthday. By the time I got back there wasn't much time to do too much. I picked Jordy up after camp and took him to the ENT where he had his ears cleaned out. His ears were pretty clogged and he couldn't believe how loud things were after. When the elevator arrived he got scared as it was so loud. Then in the car as he was talking to me he asked me "am I yelling? My voice sounds like a trumpet". We picked up Moshe B. on our way home for a play date. Then I got Nadav and he and I stopped to pick up my gefilta fish order. We came home and later Lisa came by with Merav to play with Nadav. After the Balsams left we had pizza for dinner. Jordy invited his friend Yehoshua over for a sleepover. Later in the evening I was interviewed on Israel Sports Radio about my running experiences. The link to the interview isn't available yet but when it is I will share it.
Tuesday morning was supposed to be the day that Danya was headed on her trip however it was postponed by a day due to rain in the North. A good thing too since Tuesday Danya woke up with foot pain. After getting the boys out I took her to the doctor who said it was nothing-so glad I went there. I dropped Danya at her Pesach camp and came home to do some laundry. Josh and I then headed to Modiin to meet Tal and his wife Oshrat for lunch. They are in town for a few weeks so hopefully we will get to see them again. After lunch they came over for a little bit. Danya was home from camp and began packing. They were required to bring 2 bags-1 big bag for the campgrounds and 1 small bag to take on the day hike. It took us a while to sort everything out by bag and day but we managed to get it all in. In the afternoon Jordy came home with his friend Yehoshua. They played until the next friend came-Yehoshua left and Eitan came over. I think Nadav is confused by a new kid sleeping over each night. Jordy and Eitan played really nicely.
Wednesday morning I took Danya and all her luggage to drop her off at the bus. She was so excited to go! I brought Nadav to gan and then got the boys out. Later in the day I cleaned the freezer out for Pesach and cleaned the kitchen(not for pesach-just to clean it). Jordy returned from camp with his friend Eitan. I picked Nadav up from gan and he and I went to Modiin to buy him new sandals. He was so excited as we had been cramming his feet into shoes that were a little small for a while now. He happily tried on every pair in the store and kept saying "my shoes katan ma'od, ma'od"(very very small). We came home and went to the makolet to buy apple juice. Then I came home and was going to make a few different things for dinner based on what was left in the fridge but Jordy requested a cheese sandwich and Nadav wasn't interested in anything. I ended up making stir fried tofu with onions and peppers and was surprised when Nadav took a spoon and ate half of mine. Jordy was trying to convince us to have another sleepover when his friend Benny showed up at our door and asked if Jordy could come play. So Jordy went to their house to play. As I was about to go pick him up at 8pm he called asking if Benny could sleep over. So I picked up both boys and dropped them off at home for a sleepover and I headed to zumba. When I came home Nadav was asleep and the boys were getting ready for bed.
Ahh-all caught up...mostly. I have a bunch of videos to share but it is going to take a while to upload them so I will add them as a different post. Something to look forward to. Stay tuned.
2 Sundays ago, March 27th, Danya was home from school miserable with her strep. The good news was she was on the antibiotic and any minute now she would be feeling better. I went to book club in the morning where we discussed Pope Joan. I spent the rest of the day trying to get Danya to eat something-ice cream, popsicles, pudding-anything. She was miserable. Bubs and I went to Shilat to do some shopping in the afternoon and then I believe that Nocky and Ruanne came over for a BBQ for dinner on Sunday night.
Monday morning I went to Zumba. Danya was still sick but was starting to feel a slight bit better. In the afternoon I took Jordy to the dentist where for the first time he had no cavities! Hooray! Danya was feeling much better in the evening and we all went out to dinner with Bubs and Pops in Modiin. The kids were really well behaved during dinner. Bubs and Pops brought along a laptop with the movie Oy Baby which the kids now love(we are going to need to get it because since they left Nadav asks me to sing him his new favorite song "die-Heinu") and it kept them entertained at the end of the meal.
Tuesday morning everyone headed to school. Josh and I joined Bubs on a tiyul to Yerushaliam. We had a few different plans on where to go and what to do. We started at the archeological excavations next to the kotel. My mother-in-law loves going there and was surprised that Josh and I had never been. It was very interesting and after seeing it I am surprised we hadn't been there before. We then went to Waffles Bar for lunch but had very little time so we quickly ordered, stuffed our faces and left. We tried to make a tour at The Herzel Museum but we weren't going to make it. So we attempted going to the Prisoner Museum but spent a lot of time looking for parking and finally gave up and headed home. We came back and then the kids returned. We ordered dinner from New Deli. Towards the end of the meal Danya announced that she only ate half of her sandwich. She told us that nobody should eat her sandwich because she wanted it. Danya specifically passed this message to Josh, who on occasion has eaten her leftovers-much to her chagrin.
Wednesday morning Bubs and Pops headed out early. As always, we were sad to see them leave but look forward to their next visit. In the morning I got a haircut which was my way of starting to get ready for Pesach. When Danya came home from school she wanted her leftover New Deli sandwich. Both she and I couldn't believe it when her sandwich wasn't there. Apparetnly Josh thoguht the sandwich he ate for lunch was his Dad's leftover sandwich but lo and behold it was Danya's. The same leftovers that Danya announced to Josh just the night before not to eat. She was not happy but Josh and I couldn't stop laughing that he went and ate her sandwich after the whole warning. Josh promised her he would get her a new sandwich soon. Later in the day I took Danya and Nadav for haircuts as well. Here are the before and after pictures:
Thursday morning I did some cooking. I got a call not long into the morning that Nadav was sick and I had to pick him up at gan. There went my day. Poor Nadav was pretty sick and said his garon hurt him-the same garon that just got over strep. It's all a blur now but I am pretty sure we spent some time awake in the middle of the night and made a doctors appointment online at 3am.
Friday the doctor said he just had a virus. Of course a few hours later he seemed to be getting better. The Brodsky's came over on Friday night with a few guests and really yummy dessert.
Shabbat was nothing out of the ordinary, if I recall correctly. On Saturday night I went with a few friends to a Zumba party in Modiin for a few hours.
On Sunday morning Jordy wasn't feeling great so we headed back to the doctors. She said he just had a virus and he can go to school so off to school he went. I began cleaning for Pesach and did the attic. After dinner I went to my Modiin book club and then came back and went with Josh to Sheva Brachot for the daughter of a shul member. On Monday morning I went to zumba followed by more Pesach cleaning. I felt silly cleaning Nadav's room for pesach as he doesn't really eat in there however when I pulled the changing table away from the wall I found an old cookie on the floor, so I guess it was worthwhile.
On Tuesday morning Lisa and I headed to Jerusalem to do the big Pesach shop. First we went to cheaperkol and bought most of the kitnyot free dry goods. Then we went to a butcher nearby and I got all my meat. By the time we got home the kids were returning from school.
Wednesday was spent mostly doing Pesach cleaning and the Rami Levy dry goods grocery shop(I have the pesach shopping down to a science and it is broken down to a few different trips to a few different stores). At night I went to Zumba followed by coffee to the soldiers.
Thursday I think was just a regular Thursday-cooking, cleaning....etc.
Friday was the big day. After about 45 minutes of sleep I got up at 5am and got ready for the Tel Aviv 10K. I was being picked up at 5:45am. As I left Nadav woke up(for about the 10th time-for those who wanted to know how the melatonin-it helps him fall asleep but not stay asleep). I went with the Brodsky's who were going to cheer on Zev. We got there with some time to spare before my 8:15am start time. In the meantime Lisa came to my house and Josh headed out as he was starting at 8:45am to roller blade the half marathon. Here I am pre-race pretending to drink coffee:
We headed home and went straight to falafel in Modiin and then to pick up Nadav from gan. Danya and Jordy returned from school really excited as they are now on Passover vacation. Josh then went to watch Danya play a softball game while I took a nap with Nadav. Jordy held down the fort playing with a friend. Friday night Laura came over with Eli for dessert/a birthday drink.
Shabbat morning the kids didn't want to go to shul but all stayed home and behaved nicely. After shul we had kiddush and everyone played. I took a nap and Josh let me sleep through lunch. After I got up he headed for a nap and I took Nadav on a walk to take Jordy to a friends house. Nadav was really sad along the way when his pacifier fell out of his mouth and into a sewer drain. After Shabbat Jordy and Danya returned home. Jordy was invited to a sleepover at his friends house. Danya was upset since she couldn't find anybody to sleepover. I told her she would hang out with Josh. I went with Laura to a Bar Mitzvah. When I came back Josh headed to Jerusalem to play a very late game of ice hockey.
Sunday morning Danya headed to her first day of Pesach camp(Jordy did too but he went from his friends house). Nadav headed to gan I headed to the gym. I then went to the mall to get some gear for Danya as she will be attending her first camping trip/overnight-er with Bnei Akiva called Masa Pesach. Danya went straight from camp on a Bnei Akiva trip to the zoo to play find the madrich. She had a great time. Everyone returned from camp/gan and ate dinner. Danya had 2 friends sleepover since she missed out the night before. Josh and I went to yet another Bar Mitzvah and then Josh headed back to Jerusalem for another game of ice hockey.
Monday morning I headed to zumba and then went out with some friends for brunch to celebrate Laura's birthday. By the time I got back there wasn't much time to do too much. I picked Jordy up after camp and took him to the ENT where he had his ears cleaned out. His ears were pretty clogged and he couldn't believe how loud things were after. When the elevator arrived he got scared as it was so loud. Then in the car as he was talking to me he asked me "am I yelling? My voice sounds like a trumpet". We picked up Moshe B. on our way home for a play date. Then I got Nadav and he and I stopped to pick up my gefilta fish order. We came home and later Lisa came by with Merav to play with Nadav. After the Balsams left we had pizza for dinner. Jordy invited his friend Yehoshua over for a sleepover. Later in the evening I was interviewed on Israel Sports Radio about my running experiences. The link to the interview isn't available yet but when it is I will share it.
Tuesday morning was supposed to be the day that Danya was headed on her trip however it was postponed by a day due to rain in the North. A good thing too since Tuesday Danya woke up with foot pain. After getting the boys out I took her to the doctor who said it was nothing-so glad I went there. I dropped Danya at her Pesach camp and came home to do some laundry. Josh and I then headed to Modiin to meet Tal and his wife Oshrat for lunch. They are in town for a few weeks so hopefully we will get to see them again. After lunch they came over for a little bit. Danya was home from camp and began packing. They were required to bring 2 bags-1 big bag for the campgrounds and 1 small bag to take on the day hike. It took us a while to sort everything out by bag and day but we managed to get it all in. In the afternoon Jordy came home with his friend Yehoshua. They played until the next friend came-Yehoshua left and Eitan came over. I think Nadav is confused by a new kid sleeping over each night. Jordy and Eitan played really nicely.
Wednesday morning I took Danya and all her luggage to drop her off at the bus. She was so excited to go! I brought Nadav to gan and then got the boys out. Later in the day I cleaned the freezer out for Pesach and cleaned the kitchen(not for pesach-just to clean it). Jordy returned from camp with his friend Eitan. I picked Nadav up from gan and he and I went to Modiin to buy him new sandals. He was so excited as we had been cramming his feet into shoes that were a little small for a while now. He happily tried on every pair in the store and kept saying "my shoes katan ma'od, ma'od"(very very small). We came home and went to the makolet to buy apple juice. Then I came home and was going to make a few different things for dinner based on what was left in the fridge but Jordy requested a cheese sandwich and Nadav wasn't interested in anything. I ended up making stir fried tofu with onions and peppers and was surprised when Nadav took a spoon and ate half of mine. Jordy was trying to convince us to have another sleepover when his friend Benny showed up at our door and asked if Jordy could come play. So Jordy went to their house to play. As I was about to go pick him up at 8pm he called asking if Benny could sleep over. So I picked up both boys and dropped them off at home for a sleepover and I headed to zumba. When I came home Nadav was asleep and the boys were getting ready for bed.
Ahh-all caught up...mostly. I have a bunch of videos to share but it is going to take a while to upload them so I will add them as a different post. Something to look forward to. Stay tuned.
Monday, April 04, 2011
Hang in There
So much to do and so much to write. I didn't forget about you, my 7 loyal readers! I am just overwhelmed at the prospect of all the typing, uploading(lots of pictures) and uploading(lots of videos). I am trying to find a time to sit down and really focus and write it all but it's taking some time. As I tell Nadav "savlanut"(patience). Thanks for hanging in-get your reading glasses ready!
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