Bedoins, the Dead Sea, and a Birthday Party...

So I know, I know, I shouldn't be back online so soon.....I mean really, the massage oil can still be felt on my skin even though I've been in the pool, the hot tub, the warm tub, and the shower. But well, what can I say? I'm addicted......I feel the need to come on here and report! hee hee....as if what I do here can truly be called reporting, yeah right!

ANYWAY.......hubby and I went down to Yam HaMelach (the Dead Sea); left yesterday morning after bringing the kids to their ganim....we were on the road at a record timeof 9:15am! I must say, the drive from Jerusalem to the Dead Sea is incredible. I love just sitting and watching it all go by. I did a little wave at Maale Adumim for bec, tried to peek into the bedouin's homes as we sped past them, then began to enjoy the terrain that was spread out before us........a feast for the eyes!

So here's a funny...........we were talking about the Bedoins, how cool it is the way they live, and how just wild it is that they are living this way in the year 2006! And hubby chimes in..........

"Yeah, and what's the deal with them living always right on the highway, I mean, if they're already living like this, why don't you think they would want to be for example, a hill or two over there??"

I was laughing so hard! hee hee but it's true when you think about it....why do they build these tents right near the highway? And even IF, (which is possible, very possible) they were there FIRST, like before the highways were built, they're bedoins, nomads, people who MOVE AROUND, that's who they are..........do they LIKE breathing in carbon monoxide? bizarre, just bizarre.

So, anyway......more on our little vacation.............we stayed HERE...........very cool, huh??? we had a great time just relaxing, got my pedicure and a massage as planned, and they were both heaven! Most of all, I must admit it, it was nice to not deal with the rugrats for 33 hours, but who's counting? I mean, don't get me wrong, I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE my children, but I love them even more after not being around them for a while. :)

And please, they had tons of fun with their Saba and Safta today (my mom had the day off apparantly, and went to a museum with one of their friends). So S&S took them to a birthday party which just happened to be in the public park area right behind our building. There were bounce houses, pita making, a huge cake, tons of junk, a popcorn maker, and a cotton candy machine! whew! Sounds like fun, ugh, too bad I missed it.

Anyway, going to go hang out with hubby and watch some of the tube. Wishing those of you who fast an easy one...........

Happy Dance time.........

Hubby and I are off tomorrow for 2 days, 1 night of
RELAXATION ALONE WITHOUT CHILDREN IN A NICE HOTEL ON THE DEAD SEA!!!!
(insert happy dance here!)

And my BIGGEST plans for the time there...........(get your minds out of the gutter, this is not THAT KIND of blog) include a pedicure and a massage! Guess I better go shave my legs, huh?

ANYWAY......If I don't have blogability when I get home, I wish you all a Gamar Chatima Tova......may you be written in the good book for the coming year, and may this year bring you nothing but the good things in life that you deserve (like pedicures and massages at a hotel on the Dead Sea! hee hee)

L'hitraot!!!

ps. I just noticed that this is post #102 for me! very cool, didn't know I had passed into my second century! How fitting for the timing of the New Year! :) oh, and all you Israeli folk out there, don't forget to move your clocks forward 1 hour Sat. night!!! Can someone PLEASE tell my children not to wake up doubly early???

ok, really going now, bye!

CALGON......take me away!!! or, at least let me sleep!

so yes, it is 4am and I have been up since 2:15ish. Ilan started then with the "im thirsty" routine, it progressed to crying and holding his nose....... "Does it hurt? is it runny?" I asked......... "No, it's smelling" WHAT? "It's smelling the room" he tells me. Now, knowing that I had not (yet) passed anything offensive in his room, I knew this kid was bonkers and needed some sort of placebo to pacify him. So I gave him a wipe and sent him to bed. Luckily, I thought it might be a good idea to allow myself to be drawn to the laptop and the couch. I say luckily because sure enough, over the next 2 hours he has proceeded to call "emah............." at least a half dozen times. I finally brought him out to the living room with me, he slept and snored on the couch for a half hour, and just woke up to pee (yes, partly in the jammies that had to then be changed). Now, he has proclaimed he is hungry and is eating graham crackers and a cheese stick.

CALGON..............TAKE ME AWAY!!!!

Gotta love it!

So, my little one (3 years old) goes to a "Religious" gan (preschool). Ok, stop laughing, those that know, it's not exactly religious, as it is connected to the Reform Synagogue of our area. But still, their focus of learning is on the chagim (holidays), brachot (blessings), and living jewishly---very similar to the Jewish Preschools in the states. We decided to send him there for a couple of reasons. One being that the class sizes are in the 20's rather than the 30's, another being that we wanted him to get a similar background to what his brother got in his preschool years in the states.

Needless to say, all is great, he loves going to gan, and his gannenot (teachers) are fabulous. The main Ganenet (teacher) is an English speaker who made aliyah when she was 3, so he is not in any way feeling lost in his hebrew speaking environment.

Anyway, back to the story of the day...........they were talking today about the Kotel, about the New Year, and about the things that they wished for themselves for the New Year. They went around and asked each child what he wished for for himself. I'm sure they got some of the typical answers from kids who wished for hugs and kisses from their Mommies and Daddies.

As I was picking Ilan up today, the teacher came over to me in a completely serious manner and proceeded to tell me about this activity. I was waiting with anticipation for her to tell me that my kid enlightened the rest of the class with his wishes for World Peace, or something intense and earth shattering. Instead, what does she tell me that my enlightened son shared with the class??????

He said, "I wish for myself that my emah will get me new batteries for my robot."

hee hee

oh well, maybe next year a little more of the sense of the year will sink in.......... gotta love it!

SHANA TOVA!!!

Woke up this morning and of course decided to peruse my email, which led me back to my blog when I found notices of new comments. And when I was led back here, I realized that the post before was not a really NICE one to be leaving up as my "last post of the year".

I've been trying to change my outlook, change my attitude and am working on remaining NICE and sweet and not condescending in the New Year!

Wishing you all a SWEET, HAPPY, HEALTHY, FUN, PROSPEROUS new year!!!

How SWEET it is.......

The boys were riding their scooters round and round the table on the mirpeset (patio) yesterday afternoon singing, "Shana Tova, Shana Tova...." unfortunately that is all they know. So we heard it over and over and over and over again!!! But oh, how SWEET it is to hear the excitement in their voices as we talk about the chag (holiday) coming up and the different things they are learning in their Ganim (preschool and kindergarten).

The little one asks me each day if I know what "such and such" means in hebrew. Here are a few of the things that he has "taught" me:

Ilan's version: Bo weeshtot.
Ilan's meaning: "Come drink some water because it's hot outside."
True meaning: Come, drink.

Ilan's version: Al ha rosh.
Ilan's meaning: "head."
True meaning: On the head. (from a kids game/song)

Ilan's version: shev
Ilan's meaning: Sit
True meaning: he got this one 100%!!!

..............so as you see, even in the sample above, the language learning is progressing. Last night in his bath, 'Batman' was saying, "Ayzey yom hayom?" (what day is today) over and over again. It was too cute.

Aviv on the other hand isn't talking as much, but he seems to be surely building his vocabulary. It's such an amazing thing to say goodbye to them both each morning knowing that even though they are spending the day that is being conducted fully in hebrew, and they are HAPPY!!! so cool.

As a ROSH HASHANAH wish from me to you.........may you all know the sweetness and happiness that children feel. Have a SWEET and HAPPY New Year; Shana Tova U'metuka!

---Susie and the gang......

You spin me right round, baby, right round......

go on, sing the rest..........."Like a record baby, right round, right round!" or something like that!

hee hee, I am besides myself because we now have a working WASHING MACHINE AND DRYER IN OUR HOME!!! (insert happy dance here!) For 6 weeks now I have been shlepping a load of laundry each day (and sometimes more) to my in-law's house to wash. Then at least an hour later, sometimes more, I would go back there to get the laundry, and shlepp it home to hang on our patio.

It feels like a true luxury to wash it here and 1/2 hour later to hang it up!!!!

MAYTAG ROCKS!!!!

CALGON......take me away!!!

Ok, so I KNOW my problems or stresses are teeny-tiny in comparison to others that are experienced in this crazy world of ours.

But AARGH.....it's my life, my blog, etc. etc. and I'm stressed out!!!

My mom is coming tomorrow to stay with us for a month! We're all very excited (hubby even admitted the other night that he missed her, it was sweet), but aargh....so much to do!!! It doesn't help that my washer/dryer still is not able to be hooked up yet and I'm having to do laundry still at my in-laws (5 min away, in the neighborhood, but still a shlepp). They tried to hook it up for us the other day, but it has a "Teka Briti" (british plug) and needs an israeli one, or the Sheka (the outlet) needs to be switched to a "Briti" one. And speaking of the Sheka, it's on the SIDE of the washer/dryer space, and does not give enough room really to actually plug in the Teka. Teka-Sheka......what fun words! And the coolest thing was that we actually learned those in Ulpan (hebrew class) the same day that the technai (technician) came to my house to hook me up. cool.

Anyway, the boys are stressed too, guess they are feeling my energy. OH, and did I mention that the Instalator (plumber) is also coming back this afternoon to hopefully fix the guest bathroom that was leaking down to the neighbors' below. yeah, fun to be using one bathroom for a whole family, esp. when that one bathroom is tiny and inside of my bedroom.

aargh, I hear crying and it's possible someone may get hurt. I should stop blogging now and go be a referree (do I have to really? ) yes, Ido. bye!

Tribute.....Douglas MacMillan Cherry

Ok, so in true SusieStyle, I signed up (or at least I must have, because my name is there, but really I don't remember doing it....anyway) to participate in the 2996 memorials in tribute to victims of the 9-11-01 terror attack on the twin towers.

I have been assigned to DOUGLAS MACMILLAN CHERRY. I did not know him, and I have no connection to his family or friends. But when kvetch commented on my last post and mentioned that she was looking forward to my post, I felt awful dropping the ball.

So please, take a moment to meet DOUG CHERRY..... he was only 38. He had a wife and 3 children. If you go to the link, you'll see messages posted by family and friends. It's very moving.

And my eyes tear up, because I think of the children, and the wife, and the number of times each day that my own children ask when their father will be home from work. I am lucky to have an answer that they want to hear. My eyes tear up because I think of the thousands of children who are still waiting for their Daddies or Mommies or Aunts or Uncles or Grandparents to come home again. But they never will.

Thinking of all of the children today.......especially Doug Cherry's children.....

IT'S ABOUT TIME!!!

WHOOO-HOOOOO, Happy dance, happy dance!!!!

The movers are coming this afternoon with our stuff!!!!!

YIPPEEE!!!!!

I GET TO SLEEP IN MY BED TONIGHT!!!

HIP-HIP-HOORAY!!!

another fyi

it appears that if you do not have a blogger beta account, that you cannot publish a comment here, is that true? My blog and my account were merged with my google account and turned beta and now it's not letting people comment. so, for those of you having this trouble, I miss your comments, and can only suggest that if you are dying to comment and cannot, you can open a new beta account with blogger under a different name. I think they're working to fix this problem.

thanks for your patience. me

Update.........

Just an update into our world.....a few things of interest in case you are wonderin'........


*NO, our stuff has not arrived, still in customs here in Israel, so close we can taste it, but so far nothing in sight. ugh.

*Boys both started GAN (preschool for the little guy and Gan Chova--kindergarten for the big guy) this week. BOTH are doing well, are happy, and having a great time!

*I started Ulpan this week! I'm in a daled level class (level 4), and I go 3 times a week. The class has about 12 people in it, some haven't decided yet if they're staying. There are 3 Americans, I think 2 English, 2 Russian, and about 4 French, give or take a few Nationalities here and there! :) The teacher is fab and I'm enjoying it, even though I have to rush to be there for 8:30 after dropping the kids off around 7:30.

*I sat with Aliyah06 aka. BakaDiary during the break....it was nice to meet after only reading each other's blogs! (ps. we're still on for Thurs. unless i hear from the shippers...)

*My MOM is coming in a week to visit and stay for a month!!! We are all very excited to see her and to have her be with us, but we hope that we will have a bed to offer her. ugh.

and I think that's that.......gotta get moving on cleaning this place up. I'm meeting a new friend for coffee around 11 in the mall. hugs to all............me

fyi.........

just so you know..........I have been having trouble for a few days now trying to post comments on other people's blogs. I somehow had my blogger account merged with my google account and with blogger beta or something like that. So, I keep getting the message that I am not able to publish comments on non-beta blogs??? I don't know, they say they are working on this, so for now I have created another blogger login that allows me to publish comments on the non-beta blogs. So look for me again soon talking away on your blogs! :) hugs, me

Ri ron't Rink Ro!!!

hee hee...........so hubby was reading stories tonight, and the first pick was a Scooby-Doo mystery.

Anyway, Hubby was telling the kids about our dog that we had in college, whose name was, yes, you guessed it, Scooby; and we often called him Scooby-Doo.

Ilan(3) replied, "Abba, were you Shaggy?"

hee hee!

So hubby replies to him, "Yes, and Emah was Velma!"

tooo funny...........

It's a Small, Small, world..........

So this week has been a busy one......both boys had their beginning Gan (preschool) meetings, we had a parents' meeting for the little one's private gan (ridiculous waste of time---I mean really, how much time REALLY needs to be spent talking about what these kids are offered for lunch!) Anyway, and Fri. morning the little one had 2 hours of gan, to which we were informed Wed. night that parents were encouraged to stay with them if they were hesitant. So, WE went to gan, Ilan and I. It was fun, and contrary to my belief after the parents' meeting, the moms that I talked to were nice. They were all surprised to see that Ilan didn't speak ANY hebrew, and were encouraging that Hoo Yilmad Maher (he will learn fast).

This week has also been busy in that we opened our home to a new Olah, a new immigrant. This girl sent a note out on the nbn yahoo group asking for a place to stay before her kibbutz ulpan starts. It turned out that she is going to the SAME kibbutz that I lived on for 2 months as a part of my Young Judaea Year Course program in 1988-89. Anyway, I figured that was a nice coincidence and invited her to stay with us. Well, long story short, it turns out, our guest, CORI, is a BLOGGER!!! too wild! Small, small world!

But wait, it gets smaller......my good friend bec whom I have never met, and had never even spoken to on the phone, ever, told me that her cousin Danny was coming back to Israel after a short visit abroad, that he had recently made aliyah, and he was starting in the Army. So, we invited him over for shabbat dinner. As it turns out, he had no clue that bec and I had never met! too funny. So while we were all hanging out, we called bec and completely freaked her out.......she had no idea who I was, and even took a moment to figure out who Danny was!

Anyway, it was a fun night, good to be hanging out with friends, we had shabbat dinner on the mirpeset (patio), the one that overlooks the Jerusalem (new city not old people) skyline, and as we sat and talked the sun set, and the sky gave us a show of colors, then turned dark but lit up with the lights of the city........it is just an amazing view!

The whole Jewish Jeopardy blog world, who-knows-who scenario is always such an amzing thing to me! Have a great week everyone.................I hope to get back to blog, but we'll be busy this week............ Gan starting for both boys (preschool for Ilan and Kindergarten for Aviv), Ulpan starting for me (hebrew language class, after talking to the woman in charge on the phone, she says I can start in class level Daled--4th level!!!), and we HOPE, HOPE, HOPE, we are going to get our MECHOLA (lift, shipment, all of our crap....). Keep your fingers crossed on the last one!

So that's it for now........have a great day/week, etc.!!!