Well, it has been two days in our new temporary home and I have decided that over all it is a good apartment and a good location. It has taken a couple days to get past the fact that apt. is outdated and the floors need a good cleaning, but over all it is a good set up with a good amount of space. I am trying to unpack only what we need so I don't have to re-pack it in two months. However, I did set up the kids room and it looks great. S. has his own room with all our stuff and the twins have a separate room with all the toys in it that works also as a play room. I was really for putting all the kids in one room, but after this I am really considering one room for the twins and one for S. Our room is tiny as it is really just a small area just past the twins room but it has a half bath and it will work.
As for the area it convenient to everything which is nice and it is nice that I see D. not only everyday, but every few hours. He leaves at 7:30am, pops in again for about 15-20min. at about 8:40am then we see him for two hours at lunch 1:30p-3:30p and then again at 7:00pm. It really helps to know he will always be in for at least a little bit in a few hours. We have a nice path behind our house that has a great view of a pretty green area and there is a park. So for temporary housing it is pretty good. It is also nice that we have had a friend stop by every afternoon to help with the kids. So it is also convenient to free help!
Now on to the project of house hunting......uggghhhh....will keep you posted on that.
Thursday, May 31, 2007
Tuesday, May 29, 2007
Our new home
Just wanted to let everyone know that we are in our new temporary home. Tonight we moved to Jerusalem and will be staying here while we look for temporary housing. As fas as moves went, it actually went really well. We had friends from the south that came and helped out. We met them while they were living in our neighborhood, although by coincidence we also have mutual friends. Anyway, they came up to help and gave me and the kids a ride to Jerusalem. D got a ride with the movers. That is the other reason the move went well. Since we have no car and this is not like the States where you get everyone to with a truck to help you move, we had to hire movers. Also we needed someone to move the refrigerator, stove, etc. So unlike family and friends who say, "what is this, are you sure you want it? Why are you so unorganized?" They just get to work and ask what needs to be taken down. And besides for them the more unorganized people are the more they make. Although to be fair, for us, we were pretty organized. Hard to believe, I know, but like I said,"for us we were pretty organized." The apt. is OK, we don't plan on settling in too much as we are not staying here, but it will do for now. We had one of the rebbetzin's (Rabbi's wife) bring us dinner which was very tasty and we had some friends drop by. So it is kind of fun being near everyone too. On Shabbat one of our friends had a small get together at her place so we got to say good-bye to people there. And S went to play at a friends yesterday. And we had two friends make us lunch today. So that was our good-bye. Pretty quiet, but nice. We will really miss everyone, but on the other hand I will enjoy being in the neighborhood here. Gotta run it is late more later.
Thursday, May 24, 2007
Random musings
Over all today was a pretty good day. We were able to farm all the kids out to play dates so we could pack and paint. The packing is going slow, but the painting is going good. It is in our contract that we have to paint on the way out, so that is what we are doing. Fortunately D is an expert at touch up painting and has been able to just do the highlights and make it look really darn good!
I am muddling through the packing. Ugghhhhh......
Y got two new teeth today and bit me to test them out! Ouch! His stitches are coming along nicely and D. will take them out on Monday. It is really handy being married to a paremedic/engineer/computer geek/handyman/economist..............He can do a lot of really neat things. Like keeping out internet going as M pulled down our router and broke it. So for the next few days we are doing a proverbial duct tape fix on our wi-fi for internet access.
Does anyone else out there watch Smallville? Is it just me or is it getting too dramatic? We watched the season finally on monday and I have to say that although I am a sucker and of course in the fall I want to know what happens, but I think they are going to have to wind that show down soon as it is getting away from what it started as. Although I guess it is following the comic books, but it has gone from being lighthearted to really dramatic and soap operaish. Oh well time to find a new show or just bail on TV altogether. That is really the only show I watch. Although I have been known to watch Little Mosque on the Prairie (A real show out of Canada). It is a half hour sitcom i found on Peekvid.com which streams movie and TV shows. I have also been known to watch Becker re-runs on there.
As far as my cooking kick I succeeded in making butter cookies that turned out really well and D and I shared in making blintzes. Tues. was Shavuot and is the holiday where we received the Ten commandments from G-d on Mt. Sinai. It is traditional to eat a dairy meal. So we had had thinly sliced cheese potatoes, blintzes and butter cookies. Yum, Yum!
Well that is all the news here in the Jensen house. Next time I post it will probably be from our new location in Jerusalem.
have a good weekend!
I am muddling through the packing. Ugghhhhh......
Y got two new teeth today and bit me to test them out! Ouch! His stitches are coming along nicely and D. will take them out on Monday. It is really handy being married to a paremedic/engineer/computer geek/handyman/economist..............He can do a lot of really neat things. Like keeping out internet going as M pulled down our router and broke it. So for the next few days we are doing a proverbial duct tape fix on our wi-fi for internet access.
Does anyone else out there watch Smallville? Is it just me or is it getting too dramatic? We watched the season finally on monday and I have to say that although I am a sucker and of course in the fall I want to know what happens, but I think they are going to have to wind that show down soon as it is getting away from what it started as. Although I guess it is following the comic books, but it has gone from being lighthearted to really dramatic and soap operaish. Oh well time to find a new show or just bail on TV altogether. That is really the only show I watch. Although I have been known to watch Little Mosque on the Prairie (A real show out of Canada). It is a half hour sitcom i found on Peekvid.com which streams movie and TV shows. I have also been known to watch Becker re-runs on there.
As far as my cooking kick I succeeded in making butter cookies that turned out really well and D and I shared in making blintzes. Tues. was Shavuot and is the holiday where we received the Ten commandments from G-d on Mt. Sinai. It is traditional to eat a dairy meal. So we had had thinly sliced cheese potatoes, blintzes and butter cookies. Yum, Yum!
Well that is all the news here in the Jensen house. Next time I post it will probably be from our new location in Jerusalem.
have a good weekend!
Tuesday, May 22, 2007
Mile Stones
Ok I am posting two blogs in one day as this one I started awhile ago but then had to put on hold as the kids were too distracting and it got put on the back burner. So I am going to finish it now.
The next few days will bring a lot of milestones with it that I have been thinking about them and what to comment on while it is still relevant and I have time.
The first is of course that the twins will be 1 year old on May 22, this means we have survived our first year as a family of 5! Wow! Never would I expect to be raising 3 kids. It has been a challenge for sure but also a lot of fun and I am proud to say that although, I have my moments of stress, agravation, messy house, etc. I was still able to get out with my kids by myself. Although within the neighborhood I stay pretty much in the house or at the park behind us, I also took my kids on the bus to Jerusalem, Herzilya and Raanana. D. and I also took them places together too. I am really proud of that fact. It is a lot of work, but worth it. I never wanted to be stuck at home because of the kids and thanks to my mom's example, I am not. Even with out a car. Anyway, it is really hard to believe they will be one. It seems they have been here so long that they should be having Bat and Bar Mitzvah's tomorrow! Then on the other hand, it of course has gone by quickly and it is amazing that they will be one tomorrow.
This means of course that S. will be 3.5 soon and is also a milestone. He is not a baby anymore and has not been for some time, but it also means he really is not a toddler either. He really is a big boy and will be in Kita Aleph(first grade) in just two short years! He really is growing up. He wants to help with everything or do it himself. He really can get dressed by himself, although it takes a whole lot of nudging to do and loves to do little things like take garbage out for us. Which is right at the end of the apartment basically.
The fact that the twins will be one year soon, also reminds me that S. was just one year and a few weeks when we arrived in the country. That really blows me away. To see that we have come that far, that our new babies are the same age as when S. arrived. It is just a milestone in and of itself. And that of course leads me to thinking about my family.
This summer it will be two years since I have been back to the States. I have missed a lot by being gone. The biggest is that I have a beautiful little nephew who is a year and a half and I have never met him. I have lots of photos and I hear him talking when I am on the phone with my sister, but it is not the same. And even though I can imagine my sister as a parent I know it will be different to actually see, the last time I saw her she was expecting him. I also have missed the smaller things like family vacations, birthdays, holidays, etc. I really miss those things, even just taking off with my mom and sister to go shopping or over night to the beach. And of course I miss my dad and my aunts and uncle and I miss my friends too. When I left many of my friends did not have kids and now they have children that are also about 1&1/2. It is just a part of my life right now and I am hoping that I will be able to visit in the fall. I think about what it will be like to be back. I remember when I was in Hawaii for 5mo. and in that short time so much had changed and it was weird being back, now after 2+years in a foreign country I imagine it will be quite different. I have been back to visit since we moved here, but it was 6mo. after we moved here and although somethings were different it just did not seem so remarkable. But now I just can't imagine what I will think or feel. But I am excited to see Oregon again and spend some time at the ocean and in the mountains.
On Tuesday we move, this is not just a milestone in that it points out that we have been here long enough to need to move, but because we are making more permanent plans. We came here on a program called Nefesh B'Nefesh and the agreement was that we would stay three years with no plan of returning to America when the three years was up. I look at it as a three and a half year contract. When we left, I did not even know if I would make it the three years. Now we are at two and a half and although we are moving, as an Israeli citizen I am starting to feel more settled in. There are things I would like to have a better handle on, like the language, but in general I feel at least like I really belong in the country on most days. Some days when it is needed I even get asked for my Israeli ID instead of a passport! Yeah! It means they see me as Israeli too! Many people have been asking when we are coming back. To that, my answer is, I am just taking a bit at a time. Right now we know we will be here at least through 2009. To say we are here forever, is too far to think about, but to say we are here short term is not being honest. So we are planning on being here for the long term for now, but we never know what tomorrow will bring.
One thing that is hard to imagine is that the twins have no connection to America. They were not born there, they have never been there and unless we move back there, it will never be their home. They are Israeli and that will be their first nationality. They will of course also be American Citizens too, we just have to turn in the paperwork. It is just that they are Americans by default because we are. I am really not even sure how much attachement S. will have. He has spent the majority of his life here. If we stay permanently the kids will automatically grow up with hebrew and english as away of life. In any case it will be much different than my childhood.
I like the idea that I live overseas for the experience of it, and for giving me a different perspective on the world. I also hope that my kids will gain the perspective that the world is not so big and that there is more out there than just their little corner. There are also the everyday benefits of living here too like being a country where Judaism is the major religion and that our religious holidays are national holidays,etc. I love being here for something and other things I really miss in the States. But that is way it is and every time we leave we take something with us and when we go back there is always something we miss. That is the nature of life. So I am going to enjoy what I have here. And look forward to visiting the things I miss in the States.
The next few days will bring a lot of milestones with it that I have been thinking about them and what to comment on while it is still relevant and I have time.
The first is of course that the twins will be 1 year old on May 22, this means we have survived our first year as a family of 5! Wow! Never would I expect to be raising 3 kids. It has been a challenge for sure but also a lot of fun and I am proud to say that although, I have my moments of stress, agravation, messy house, etc. I was still able to get out with my kids by myself. Although within the neighborhood I stay pretty much in the house or at the park behind us, I also took my kids on the bus to Jerusalem, Herzilya and Raanana. D. and I also took them places together too. I am really proud of that fact. It is a lot of work, but worth it. I never wanted to be stuck at home because of the kids and thanks to my mom's example, I am not. Even with out a car. Anyway, it is really hard to believe they will be one. It seems they have been here so long that they should be having Bat and Bar Mitzvah's tomorrow! Then on the other hand, it of course has gone by quickly and it is amazing that they will be one tomorrow.
This means of course that S. will be 3.5 soon and is also a milestone. He is not a baby anymore and has not been for some time, but it also means he really is not a toddler either. He really is a big boy and will be in Kita Aleph(first grade) in just two short years! He really is growing up. He wants to help with everything or do it himself. He really can get dressed by himself, although it takes a whole lot of nudging to do and loves to do little things like take garbage out for us. Which is right at the end of the apartment basically.
The fact that the twins will be one year soon, also reminds me that S. was just one year and a few weeks when we arrived in the country. That really blows me away. To see that we have come that far, that our new babies are the same age as when S. arrived. It is just a milestone in and of itself. And that of course leads me to thinking about my family.
This summer it will be two years since I have been back to the States. I have missed a lot by being gone. The biggest is that I have a beautiful little nephew who is a year and a half and I have never met him. I have lots of photos and I hear him talking when I am on the phone with my sister, but it is not the same. And even though I can imagine my sister as a parent I know it will be different to actually see, the last time I saw her she was expecting him. I also have missed the smaller things like family vacations, birthdays, holidays, etc. I really miss those things, even just taking off with my mom and sister to go shopping or over night to the beach. And of course I miss my dad and my aunts and uncle and I miss my friends too. When I left many of my friends did not have kids and now they have children that are also about 1&1/2. It is just a part of my life right now and I am hoping that I will be able to visit in the fall. I think about what it will be like to be back. I remember when I was in Hawaii for 5mo. and in that short time so much had changed and it was weird being back, now after 2+years in a foreign country I imagine it will be quite different. I have been back to visit since we moved here, but it was 6mo. after we moved here and although somethings were different it just did not seem so remarkable. But now I just can't imagine what I will think or feel. But I am excited to see Oregon again and spend some time at the ocean and in the mountains.
On Tuesday we move, this is not just a milestone in that it points out that we have been here long enough to need to move, but because we are making more permanent plans. We came here on a program called Nefesh B'Nefesh and the agreement was that we would stay three years with no plan of returning to America when the three years was up. I look at it as a three and a half year contract. When we left, I did not even know if I would make it the three years. Now we are at two and a half and although we are moving, as an Israeli citizen I am starting to feel more settled in. There are things I would like to have a better handle on, like the language, but in general I feel at least like I really belong in the country on most days. Some days when it is needed I even get asked for my Israeli ID instead of a passport! Yeah! It means they see me as Israeli too! Many people have been asking when we are coming back. To that, my answer is, I am just taking a bit at a time. Right now we know we will be here at least through 2009. To say we are here forever, is too far to think about, but to say we are here short term is not being honest. So we are planning on being here for the long term for now, but we never know what tomorrow will bring.
One thing that is hard to imagine is that the twins have no connection to America. They were not born there, they have never been there and unless we move back there, it will never be their home. They are Israeli and that will be their first nationality. They will of course also be American Citizens too, we just have to turn in the paperwork. It is just that they are Americans by default because we are. I am really not even sure how much attachement S. will have. He has spent the majority of his life here. If we stay permanently the kids will automatically grow up with hebrew and english as away of life. In any case it will be much different than my childhood.
I like the idea that I live overseas for the experience of it, and for giving me a different perspective on the world. I also hope that my kids will gain the perspective that the world is not so big and that there is more out there than just their little corner. There are also the everyday benefits of living here too like being a country where Judaism is the major religion and that our religious holidays are national holidays,etc. I love being here for something and other things I really miss in the States. But that is way it is and every time we leave we take something with us and when we go back there is always something we miss. That is the nature of life. So I am going to enjoy what I have here. And look forward to visiting the things I miss in the States.
Creative Cooking
Cooking is something that is done out of necessity in our family. The only one that actually likes to cook is my aunt who lives in California. This is not to say that we can't cook, in fact my mom is a great cook, it just means that if we could find someone else to do it, that would be better. However, since I have become religious and observe the Sabbath, which is sundown Friday to sundown Saturday and I cannot go out to eat, I have started learning to cook. Amazingly enought I am starting take great pride in what I cook and I am even begnining to *GASP! * enjoy it. It has just taken me a few years to get beyond chicken and corn and pasta and shepperads pie and a few other things. So I am quite proud of myself that in the last few months I have added some new things to my repitoire. The first is lasagna which I always thought was a lot more difficult, however once we figured out that the noodles do not have to be boiled first, I have found it really pretty quick and easy. The second is chicken in red sauce, the third is chicken in a white non-dairy sauce and finally I have figured out how to make Challah from scratch no bread machine! The chicken dinners I am really excited about, not because they were difficult, but because I figured out how to make two full meals out of one whole chicken that we had cooked and then not eaten. It has been frozen in our freezer for a while and I was very excited to use it up. I think that has something to do with being a parent and working on a tighter budget than when I was single. I now get all excited when I can make a real meal from left overs. Oh the excitement of parenthood! Maybe I should get out more......Oh and I also made baked french toast this month. It uses about as many eggs as frying it, but no oil and I add cinnamon, sugar and orange zest to the batter and it makes it really sweet. Look mom, I can finally cook!
Sunday, May 20, 2007
ER
On Friday afternoon I had first experience with taking an injured child to the ER. Y pulled down a very think glass mug I had on the desk and of course it smashed and then because it scared him, he promptly sat down in it. This caused a huge gash on his calf and when all was said and done required 6 stitches and they want us to see an Orthopedist when the stitches come out to make sure there is no permanent damage. They told us this after an Orthopedist saw him at the Urgent Care and told us we had to go to a real hospital to get him stitched it was so deep. Get my 1 year old stitched up was of course a bit traumatic and so I have a lot of thoughts on the matter.
I am dissapointed that I panicked instead of being calm. D of course was not home, he happened to be in Jerusalem for a brit milah, so here I am with three little kids and a major catastrophe. I am glad I had the presence of mind to tell S. to keep M. away from the living room no matter what and that he is old enough to understand. I washed off the cut to see how bad it really was, but even as i picked him up I knew it was bad. I am dissapointed that I did not wrap the wound and apply direct pressure. I am glad I got the neighbor kid to come and watch the other two while I ran down to the neighbors to if they were in as he is a doctor, but no such luck. I also should have had the presence of mind to just call our doctor, which the neighbors on the other side did for me, and he is the one who said to go to ER. But it made aware of just how unprepared we are for major emergencies. This is ironic considering D is a paramedic and we used to be prepared for anything. Now with 3 little kids we seem prepared for nothing. So I have made a plan of action that we will be putting into affect this week. And what is first and for most is to have 100 shekel (about 20$) cash on hand in the first aid kit so that we have money for a cab, parking, anti-biotics, what ever, so that we can get the important things taken care of. Since it is a pain for us to get to the bank I do most everything by debit card and D pulls money out on Thurs. on his way home, but since he wasn't home..... we had no cash around the house. We are very fortunate that the neighbors were able to take us and stay with us the entire time. Now that we will be living in Jerusalem there is not doubt we would have had to take a cab and with out cash that is impossible it could have been a very bad scenario. We could have called an ambulance, but if the patient does not stay over night insurance won't cover it. That is about 500 shekel around $100.00. So a very expensive cab ride. The other thing we will be doing is re-stocking and up dating the first aid kit. I thought it was good to go, but since we have not needed anything (Thank G-d) for the last couple of years, we need to rotate supplies. And of course as Y and M get taller I will be keeping a closer eye on where I put things. Y in particular is just an accident in the making and on Friday I had already saved him from two potential disasters, it just seems like he wasn't going to give up until he succeeded in giving himself a real boo-boo. I of course feel like the worst parent in the world, but not even the doctors and nurses in the hospital said anything. And Israeli's are known for speaking their mind when it comes to anything, but particularly the safety of kids. And the neighbors with the 8 kids assured me that have spent lots of time in various Urgent Cares and ERs. And my mom said she did with my sister as well. But I feel like this was just total carelessnous and should not have happened. Fortunately other than when he got stitches, Y was a real trooper and although he is clingy he is not bothered by it. I thought he would favor the leg or something, but not at all. And you would think he would learn not try and pull stuff down but he was up and at it yesterday fishing around on the desk for what to pull down, of course there was nothing there. The one thing I do have to say is that Israeli ERs are very efficient. Despite the fact that we had to go to Urgent Care and then an ER we were only gone about 2&1/2 maybe 3 hours tops. And that was from the time we left the house to the time we returned home. From my experience in America you could spend all day and all night in an ER before you are seen. I remember spending 2-3 hours in one ER room waiting for my sister to be stitched up. Maybe we got some priority because of the age of the child and the nature of the wound, but even so I am impressed. For as bearucraticaly messed up as Israel can be, their ERs are truly and properly efficient. So in the end I am truly grateful that Y will be fine, his stitches come out in 10 days and he probably won't remember a darn thing. But I can't help feeling a little guilty that it happened. Particularly since there are some people who I know who have never had stitches in their whole life!
OK M is awake I am off!
I am dissapointed that I panicked instead of being calm. D of course was not home, he happened to be in Jerusalem for a brit milah, so here I am with three little kids and a major catastrophe. I am glad I had the presence of mind to tell S. to keep M. away from the living room no matter what and that he is old enough to understand. I washed off the cut to see how bad it really was, but even as i picked him up I knew it was bad. I am dissapointed that I did not wrap the wound and apply direct pressure. I am glad I got the neighbor kid to come and watch the other two while I ran down to the neighbors to if they were in as he is a doctor, but no such luck. I also should have had the presence of mind to just call our doctor, which the neighbors on the other side did for me, and he is the one who said to go to ER. But it made aware of just how unprepared we are for major emergencies. This is ironic considering D is a paramedic and we used to be prepared for anything. Now with 3 little kids we seem prepared for nothing. So I have made a plan of action that we will be putting into affect this week. And what is first and for most is to have 100 shekel (about 20$) cash on hand in the first aid kit so that we have money for a cab, parking, anti-biotics, what ever, so that we can get the important things taken care of. Since it is a pain for us to get to the bank I do most everything by debit card and D pulls money out on Thurs. on his way home, but since he wasn't home..... we had no cash around the house. We are very fortunate that the neighbors were able to take us and stay with us the entire time. Now that we will be living in Jerusalem there is not doubt we would have had to take a cab and with out cash that is impossible it could have been a very bad scenario. We could have called an ambulance, but if the patient does not stay over night insurance won't cover it. That is about 500 shekel around $100.00. So a very expensive cab ride. The other thing we will be doing is re-stocking and up dating the first aid kit. I thought it was good to go, but since we have not needed anything (Thank G-d) for the last couple of years, we need to rotate supplies. And of course as Y and M get taller I will be keeping a closer eye on where I put things. Y in particular is just an accident in the making and on Friday I had already saved him from two potential disasters, it just seems like he wasn't going to give up until he succeeded in giving himself a real boo-boo. I of course feel like the worst parent in the world, but not even the doctors and nurses in the hospital said anything. And Israeli's are known for speaking their mind when it comes to anything, but particularly the safety of kids. And the neighbors with the 8 kids assured me that have spent lots of time in various Urgent Cares and ERs. And my mom said she did with my sister as well. But I feel like this was just total carelessnous and should not have happened. Fortunately other than when he got stitches, Y was a real trooper and although he is clingy he is not bothered by it. I thought he would favor the leg or something, but not at all. And you would think he would learn not try and pull stuff down but he was up and at it yesterday fishing around on the desk for what to pull down, of course there was nothing there. The one thing I do have to say is that Israeli ERs are very efficient. Despite the fact that we had to go to Urgent Care and then an ER we were only gone about 2&1/2 maybe 3 hours tops. And that was from the time we left the house to the time we returned home. From my experience in America you could spend all day and all night in an ER before you are seen. I remember spending 2-3 hours in one ER room waiting for my sister to be stitched up. Maybe we got some priority because of the age of the child and the nature of the wound, but even so I am impressed. For as bearucraticaly messed up as Israel can be, their ERs are truly and properly efficient. So in the end I am truly grateful that Y will be fine, his stitches come out in 10 days and he probably won't remember a darn thing. But I can't help feeling a little guilty that it happened. Particularly since there are some people who I know who have never had stitches in their whole life!
OK M is awake I am off!
Monday, May 14, 2007
Never Say, "Never!"
I always thought that was an old wives tale. I always told,"Never say, "Never" it will come true. If I had known how true that would be I would have picked different things to say "Never" about. But lucky me G-d has a sense of humor. I have spent my life saying, " I never wanted to: Get married, have kids, be religious, live in Israel, the West Bank, Jerusalem.........." Now some would say that these are things I can control and that is true, but somewhere along the way my husband convinced me that getting married was a great idea, particularly to him! And that having kids would be fun and to set a good example, we should be religious. And if we are going to be religious we may as well live in Israel,......and just so we would know that G-d has a sense of humor, he gave me twins,...................Well you get the picture. Although I do admit that living in the West Bank was %100 my idea and I have never regretted it. So what is the latest, "I never.......," Well that would be living in Jerusalem. Ugggghhhhhhhh..............................................
So what happened? I'll tell you. Last Wenesday D. went to sign the final contract on our wonderful new apt. and found out that they could not go through with it and that they needed to sell it. So I found out Thursday morning and I guess D. found out Wed. night. We have been in a state of shock and disbelief to say the least and in between a lot of stressing I am trying to be positive. We thought we had a lot of options at least for a temporary solution, but as it turns out, the only viable one is to live in Jerusalem. We are going to rent the Kollel apt. for a few months until we can figure out what to do. Our apt. here is already rented so there is no way to renew or extend the contract, there is nothing else for rent in the neighborhood we want to live in and we can't even agree about where to look for anything else. Nothing else even seems to make sense.
Now on the one side I hate Jerusalem, I hate being it, staying it and do anything there, short of few touristy things. On the flipside, living the apt. will actually accomplish almost everything we want. It is: In our price range, close to the Kollel, about a 1min. walk, close to the zoo, a great view out back, close to a park, another kollel couple is right down the street, the street it is on is a dead end, so minimal traffic and we deffinitely have our pick of grocery stores and all services are just minutes away. And to top it all off, it is a 4 bedroom apt. Of course it is a small, outdated, apt. Although it does have heat and air. We can't really settle in because it is temporary so most of the bedrooms will just be packed with boxes........
Really the bottom line is we just have to look at the positive, at least I know who was living there before. It was D. basically we will just be moving in with him. And hey, I know that G-d has a sense of humor! Do you think if I said," I never want a billion dollars, a house, a sail boat and a motorcycle for D." that we might get them? Does reverse psychology work on G-d? Some how I am thinking, "no." But it would be worth a shot.
Oh and to top it all off, did I mention that the kids have all had chicken pox! I am soooooooo lucky! Of course the good news, I will never have to worry about it again now.
Also, Y. is starting to walk as long as he has something sturdy to push like a foot stool or chair. I have video of it that we will try to download soon.
OK Y is up, so off to get him before he wakes up M.
TTFN
So what happened? I'll tell you. Last Wenesday D. went to sign the final contract on our wonderful new apt. and found out that they could not go through with it and that they needed to sell it. So I found out Thursday morning and I guess D. found out Wed. night. We have been in a state of shock and disbelief to say the least and in between a lot of stressing I am trying to be positive. We thought we had a lot of options at least for a temporary solution, but as it turns out, the only viable one is to live in Jerusalem. We are going to rent the Kollel apt. for a few months until we can figure out what to do. Our apt. here is already rented so there is no way to renew or extend the contract, there is nothing else for rent in the neighborhood we want to live in and we can't even agree about where to look for anything else. Nothing else even seems to make sense.
Now on the one side I hate Jerusalem, I hate being it, staying it and do anything there, short of few touristy things. On the flipside, living the apt. will actually accomplish almost everything we want. It is: In our price range, close to the Kollel, about a 1min. walk, close to the zoo, a great view out back, close to a park, another kollel couple is right down the street, the street it is on is a dead end, so minimal traffic and we deffinitely have our pick of grocery stores and all services are just minutes away. And to top it all off, it is a 4 bedroom apt. Of course it is a small, outdated, apt. Although it does have heat and air. We can't really settle in because it is temporary so most of the bedrooms will just be packed with boxes........
Really the bottom line is we just have to look at the positive, at least I know who was living there before. It was D. basically we will just be moving in with him. And hey, I know that G-d has a sense of humor! Do you think if I said," I never want a billion dollars, a house, a sail boat and a motorcycle for D." that we might get them? Does reverse psychology work on G-d? Some how I am thinking, "no." But it would be worth a shot.
Oh and to top it all off, did I mention that the kids have all had chicken pox! I am soooooooo lucky! Of course the good news, I will never have to worry about it again now.
Also, Y. is starting to walk as long as he has something sturdy to push like a foot stool or chair. I have video of it that we will try to download soon.
OK Y is up, so off to get him before he wakes up M.
TTFN
Wednesday, May 02, 2007
The Great Ikea Myth
A few days ago I read an article titled the Great Ikea Synagogue. The story went on to discuss the new owners of Ikea in Israel are Haredi Jews (in secular terms, Ultra Orthodox), how they had put in a synagogue so that men could pray there. (Men are required to pray(daven) 3 times a day.) So now, it would not be necessary for men to leave the store to daven, they could make a minyan( quorum of 10 men) right there in the store! It was complete with Torah, prayer books and other religious objects. All printed neatly with the word Ikea on them. Now I have only been to Ikea once in my life and that was when we were here in 2003. It seemed exciting and impressive and every year in my mail box comes their pretty, glossy catalogue and I look over it lovingly, not unlike we did with the Sears Catalogue when we were kids at Christmas time. All those toys...................Well now they are grown up toys like couches and book cases and kitchen gadgets.
Well yesterday I got to play hooky with one of my good friends who needed a day off. Her kids are 12-9 and had art class so she could not take off with them, instead she took off with me and my kids. After running a few necessary errands, we were off to Ikea. The Disneyland of Israel.
Now, Americans here love Ikea because the furniture looks like American Style furniture and Israeli's love Ikea because they now have more disposable income and love having somewhere flashy to spend it. And well, since Ikea is European, I guess they feel at home shopping there as it is a European store.
So we arrived at the store and dropped S. off at the kiddie care center. After registering him, he was off with out so much as a good-bye. After all they had wooden trains, a huge plastic ball pool and T.V.! Certainly more exciting than hanging out with mommy and crew. We loaded the twins in the cart and I headed off to shop while my friend waited for D. to meet up with us as it was his early day. I was so excited, everything new and shiny and fancy. Until I got to the bookcases which is one of the things I was really after. And here is where fantasy turned to reality. *Note: For those of you who love Ikea, read no further as the rest of this is blasphemy. The quality of the book cases was so poor, even the higher end stuff I would not have spent that kind of money for. This observation continued through out the store, the furniture was expensive and made with cheap material and gave me the impression that it would seem worn out the first time my kids sat on it. This is not to say that we walked away empty handed. For who could resist fancy do dahs and kitchen gadgets we weren't aware of that now we cannot live with out! Actually that last part is not true, we bought kitchen shears which I have been wanting for awhile as I hate the fact that I open S.'s icepops with the same scissors I use to open all our packages from the states, etc. Yuck! And we bought a new can opener this wil be our third one since Jan., I hope it works althoug it seems to be MIA and I am hoping it is with our friend. And we bought two insulated tote bags which I think will work for long bus trips. And finally we found little 3 shekel toys for the kids. Because all in all they behaved really well. An hour later our free time was up at kiddie care and it was time to collect S. Just in time for me clean up the mess he made in the bathroom.....but that is another story. He was not ready to go, but finally decided that seeing his abba was a pretty good incentive. Off we went to find the gang. We finished the kitchen gadgets and headed up to the kids area with toys and flashy bedroom furniture. For us it was like being kids again, cute little tea sets and wooden train tracks. So I feel we did pretty well by only spending 9 shekel in that dept. Check out time arrived. Uh oh, how do we get to check out? We saw it when we came in, but now how do we get there? Ikea is set up like a maze, complete with arrows on the floor to follow to be sure even the most disciplined shopper won't miss a thing, in fact one may go in circles a couple of times trying to find the way out and there by ensuring that you might have passed up on that nifty little bobble the first time and the second time you passed it looking for the bathroom, but surely not the third time as you look for the way out. And the other dissapointment, now as I said before this store is owned by religious Jews. There are not ONE, but TWO places to buy lunch and a place that sells fancy pre-packaged cookies. Although both of the places are kosher, they were kept at a minimal supervision. A level so low that the owner of this place would not eat here himself. This was a huge dissapointment as we expected to take the kids to dinner there. For about half the population the level of Kashrut is acceptable, but for people like D. and me it was not enough. Normaly I don't have a problem with this. The fact that this store and its restaraunts are owned by someone who would not eat in their own establishment bothers me. D. says it is a matter of economics as most people don't care. But I bet most of you would not go out to eat in a resaraunt where the owner would not eat the food in their own place and that is how I feel. So with our curiosity satisfied and our urge to buy fancy doo-dah's placated we were off to find dinner. It was a fun trip and a good time was had by all, but I think for now I will stick with the fancy catalogue pictures and go to local quality retailers who will deliver and put my furniture together for me. And the next time I need a fancy doo-dah and an hour of free baby sitting I know right where to go.
Well yesterday I got to play hooky with one of my good friends who needed a day off. Her kids are 12-9 and had art class so she could not take off with them, instead she took off with me and my kids. After running a few necessary errands, we were off to Ikea. The Disneyland of Israel.
Now, Americans here love Ikea because the furniture looks like American Style furniture and Israeli's love Ikea because they now have more disposable income and love having somewhere flashy to spend it. And well, since Ikea is European, I guess they feel at home shopping there as it is a European store.
So we arrived at the store and dropped S. off at the kiddie care center. After registering him, he was off with out so much as a good-bye. After all they had wooden trains, a huge plastic ball pool and T.V.! Certainly more exciting than hanging out with mommy and crew. We loaded the twins in the cart and I headed off to shop while my friend waited for D. to meet up with us as it was his early day. I was so excited, everything new and shiny and fancy. Until I got to the bookcases which is one of the things I was really after. And here is where fantasy turned to reality. *Note: For those of you who love Ikea, read no further as the rest of this is blasphemy. The quality of the book cases was so poor, even the higher end stuff I would not have spent that kind of money for. This observation continued through out the store, the furniture was expensive and made with cheap material and gave me the impression that it would seem worn out the first time my kids sat on it. This is not to say that we walked away empty handed. For who could resist fancy do dahs and kitchen gadgets we weren't aware of that now we cannot live with out! Actually that last part is not true, we bought kitchen shears which I have been wanting for awhile as I hate the fact that I open S.'s icepops with the same scissors I use to open all our packages from the states, etc. Yuck! And we bought a new can opener this wil be our third one since Jan., I hope it works althoug it seems to be MIA and I am hoping it is with our friend. And we bought two insulated tote bags which I think will work for long bus trips. And finally we found little 3 shekel toys for the kids. Because all in all they behaved really well. An hour later our free time was up at kiddie care and it was time to collect S. Just in time for me clean up the mess he made in the bathroom.....but that is another story. He was not ready to go, but finally decided that seeing his abba was a pretty good incentive. Off we went to find the gang. We finished the kitchen gadgets and headed up to the kids area with toys and flashy bedroom furniture. For us it was like being kids again, cute little tea sets and wooden train tracks. So I feel we did pretty well by only spending 9 shekel in that dept. Check out time arrived. Uh oh, how do we get to check out? We saw it when we came in, but now how do we get there? Ikea is set up like a maze, complete with arrows on the floor to follow to be sure even the most disciplined shopper won't miss a thing, in fact one may go in circles a couple of times trying to find the way out and there by ensuring that you might have passed up on that nifty little bobble the first time and the second time you passed it looking for the bathroom, but surely not the third time as you look for the way out. And the other dissapointment, now as I said before this store is owned by religious Jews. There are not ONE, but TWO places to buy lunch and a place that sells fancy pre-packaged cookies. Although both of the places are kosher, they were kept at a minimal supervision. A level so low that the owner of this place would not eat here himself. This was a huge dissapointment as we expected to take the kids to dinner there. For about half the population the level of Kashrut is acceptable, but for people like D. and me it was not enough. Normaly I don't have a problem with this. The fact that this store and its restaraunts are owned by someone who would not eat in their own establishment bothers me. D. says it is a matter of economics as most people don't care. But I bet most of you would not go out to eat in a resaraunt where the owner would not eat the food in their own place and that is how I feel. So with our curiosity satisfied and our urge to buy fancy doo-dah's placated we were off to find dinner. It was a fun trip and a good time was had by all, but I think for now I will stick with the fancy catalogue pictures and go to local quality retailers who will deliver and put my furniture together for me. And the next time I need a fancy doo-dah and an hour of free baby sitting I know right where to go.
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