Is it summer already??!?

Tell me please, how it can be summer already (rosh chodesh Tammuz and everything...) and the first 'official' day of summer has yet to arrive?
This was Binyomin's last Shabbos with us, . We will miss him very much. We DO look forward to Joseph's imminent return though....
Shabbos was very pleasant. We had Craig, Alison and Oma for dinner on Friday night. Moshe stayed in Yeshiva, because he needed to study on Sunday for some big exams.
Michael was also not in attendance, as he was joining Rabbi Friedman on his last "shabbos yeshiva" before the summer. Lunch was a quiet affair, Jen having gone to Oma's house. Shalosh Seudos included the usual crowd - Yosef B, Craig and we were joined towards the end by Binyomin, Nochum G. and another young man. The singing was phenomenal guys! Judy and Nesanel stopped by as well. It was a three hour deal, because the kehilla was having it's annual "I don't speak yiddish but I'm not going to admit it" Shalosh Seudos, where the speaker talks in Yiddish and all the non-yiddish speaking, low self-esteem crowd, sits there nodding emphatically, smiling & pretending, all the while having NO CLUE as to what the speaker is saying. We welcomed everbody who got bored there at our table and not one of them was able to give over a single word of torah when asked..... now I ask you, what's the point of THAT??
Today - Father's Day is hot like the dickens. I bought Avram a really cool chin up bar. He was very excited and made an amazing first attempt at it in his suit and tie :)

The Grass is Always Greener

We had a quiet shabbos this week. No company on Friday night and none for lunch either. {OK, don't bring up the fact that we had Craig and Yosef B for shalosh seudos... that doesn't count... it's a set thing...} We all caught up on some much needed sleep, I will say that. I even finished my (long overdue) book.
Don't get me wrong... we all needed this weekend, but it certainly makes us remember why we love the busy fuller meals. Last Friday night we had Binyomin, Lester, Moshe, Chava, Megan and Oma. It was Lester's last Shabbos in America and we wanted to make it special. Binyomin will be graduating soon and moving on to Yeshiva, but he really has become like a "third son" this year (or rather as Erica says, "he's the brother I never had".... WHAT DOES THAT MEAN?!?!? If I were Michael or Joseph, I might be mildly insulted....).
Binny came by to say goodbye before he goes off to the Israeli Army. When did they grow up? I guess I blinked. No more blinking....

Michael's Graduation

Breuer's on Shavuos

So Who *IS* Coming to Dinner??

.... well ... if you had asked me that question Thanksgiving Weekend 2005, I might have prophetically answered, "my future son-in-law". The thing is, I had no idea............
Yes, Lester was (finally) joining us for a Thanksgiving Shabbos (after the fiasco cancellation of 2004). There were a host of others coming to help polish off the turkey and fixings when, at the last minute, Lester calls and asks if he can "bring a friend". Another Lester? Can we really take two at a time? "Sure, the more the merrier".... And are we ever glad!
Thus began a year and a half long odyssey worthy of "Small Miracles". Hashem really does have a hand in shidduchim and He really does engineer the world. Our Hachnosas Orchim was rewarded with one of the most valuable gifts.
The Bas Kol went out......... we just needed to hear it!
Mazal tov Erica and Moshe!!!!!!!!!!!!

Chol Hamoed at the Circus

So we went to the Ringling Brothers Chol Hamoed Pesach Spectacular - complete with performances by Uncle Moishy, Yeshiva Boys Choir, Bello the Clown (of course) and an all male cast suitable for most every level of observance.

I'm not sure how to effectively convey my feelings on this event but I will say that my Jewish Bretheren, as far as I could tell, did not create a chillul Hashem, which was something that often happens at such large gatherings.
I will also say that such an extravaganza - the entire Madison Square Garden, full of only frum Jews, selling only Pesachdik snacks, playing Jewish music, their world famous clown Bello, sporting peyos on occasion & dancing to the voices of a bunch of yeshiva elementary boys - is something that could only happen in America.
Although I'm grateful for this, I just hope we are all cognizant of the fact that we are still in golus......

Matzo Is Not Beneficial For the Digestive Tract

This is the picture BEFORE we all ate GENEROUS k'zaysim of matzo. Don't we look happy? 'Nuff said......
But I should mention that sedorim were WONDERFUL!!!!!!
Family, friends, words of torah, rousing renditions of Chad Gadya and Adon Olam and minimal wine spillage {grin}.

Almost Done!

Chag Kasher V'sameach!!

Stating the Obvious

Never Trust a Guy with a Bad Haircut to GIVE YOU a Haircut.

For years, my darling Avram has been having his haircut by Enzo, a guy with a huge comb-over, and I have not been happy about it.....
Now depending on who you want to believe,
(a) my gentle prodding finally paid off,
(b) Yosef's insults were finally too much to bear or, more likely
(c) Craig's toe-tapping as he waited for Avram to do the whole "blow dry thing" after their gym workout was overwhelming.
But I don't even care who gets the credit for the change, because thanks to the talented folks at Dramatics, I've got the cutest looking husband around!!! {Don't mind my goofy face, I'll be grinning for a while}

I am NOT a wimp!

I cut my finger on the serrated edge of the Cling Wrap box today and it hurt like the dickens. Joseph tried to tell me I was being a bit hysterical by baring his latest ugly, festering, angry red, scabby sports injury, which covers the better part of his left elbow & forearm.
Just as I was about to feel truly wimpy, Eric said something profound. He said that our bodies expect wounds as large as Joseph's to hurt that much, but precisely because these tiny cuts are as small as they are, the pain we feel is totally out of proportion. This little cut, like many a paper cut, barely visible to the naked eye, can throb so badly that it makes us crazy. It hurts when you move it; it hurts when you don't move it; it hurts so much that even the air passing over it causes pain.
So thanks Eric, for making me feel like less of a hysterical female - - - oh, and thanks for the mac 'n cheese pizza too..........

Random Thoughts To Joseph Upon His Arrival Home

1. Fancy cashmere socks are NOT supposed to be covered in lint. Oh and while we are on the topic, and fleece slipper-socks are NOT meant to be worn Friday night to shul with dress shoes, NO MATTER WHAT is written on the package.
2. The lime green tie is nice, but I could do WITHOUT the obvious (ketchup?) stains on it.... {and this time, your standard line for stains won't work..."Don't worry Mom, the tie covers it"}
3. 100% wool pants, when washed in the machine, come out smelling like wet sheep. {Follow up thought... you could have spent more on the dry cleaners this year than $8.37)
4. If that bruise on your arm starts oozing, please see a doctor. Sports injuries are not in the same category as war wounds.....(though you might use them to impress a girl some day)
5. Thanks for bringing some warm weather with you - I'll reward you with an apple/cranberry kugel tonight.
6. I love you and I'm really glad you're home!

Quotes For The Day

"The nice part about living in a close community; when you don't know what you're doing, someone else always does" {This one is for you-know-who-you-are now grow up and mind your own .... [wink]}

"The best way to forget all your troubles is to wear tight shoes" {Have a GREAT weekend Erica....}

New Idea To Lessen the "Shidduch Crisis"

YU hosted a Dor Yesharim blood testing event last night. Michael participated (.....get in line ladies.....). Interestingly enough, what should have been a simple drawing of blood, actually developed into a nice forum for meeting & talking to other people. He came home very excited about all the interesting young men that he met there and how he might have found himself a few new chavrusas, etc. etc.
Now it occurs to me - if this event was so conducive to setting him up with new friends and chavrusas - imagine if Dor Yesharim had some sort of "supervised" mixed testing for young people! Yes, I do mean boys and girls in the same room folks... Find a mate and check compatibility at the same event. Talk about killing two birds with one stone........!
Am I inspired or what?
Now what catchy name for the event would you come up with? "Screen & Preen"? I leave the floor open. Feel free to comment.

Sleep Deprivation

I'm entirely too tired to come up with anything of import to say here.... who are those people who can live on only four hours of sleep and how can I learn their methods??!?
Due to this sleep deprivation, thoughts are bouncing around my head in a most disjointed and disconnected fashion.
I'll share a few but remember to watch out for flying objects and be ready to duck at a moment's notice.

• G-d's driving the bus..... (I just hope he lets me know where my stop is...)
• Pesach will come whether or not I vacuum out the inner recesses of my closet that I haven't seen all year
• I can choose to see any aspect of my life from either a positive or negative viewpoint.... choosing the positive never makes a person weak, even if it seems so
• There are times in life when we need to realize that we just have to trust our gut.... (and pray a little)
• Family and friends are the biggest gift in life
• Hugs are very important
• Do we really want to try the frozen pizza that is kosher l'pesach this year??
• I love chocolate