Open Hearts Project March 12, 2011

 

Please join us for a friendly informational meeting about project Open Hearts, Open Homes, a respite program for Israeli teenagers affected by terrorism and/or war. This is a joint program between both the JCC on the Palisades and the YJCC in Washington Twp. You won’t be committing to anything by attending this meeting aside from an hour of your time and hopefully some interesting conversation. If you have any questions you can contact Steven Mark at smark@yjcc.org or (201) 666-6610 ext. 244.

Thank you

 

 

Emanu-El Delicatessen February 26, 2011

Send our love to soldiers in Israel February 25, 2011

Our Challah Project in the press February 17, 2011

Have a look….

 

Irit’s traditional Purim Party February 13, 2011

Challah Project/Noga Sher February 11, 2011

Me…. Baking Challa? Who would of thought?
Well, I admit, when I first saw your inviting mail for the challa project baking, I raised my eyebrow….
Me baking Challa?  This is my husband’s job ( he is a professional pastry-cook) and my job is usually eating it. ( with just plain butter is the best J )
I thought is this an attempt to make me more religious…. ????  I couldn’t help remembering the rabbi’s wife just before I got married lecturing me how every mother and daughter should light shabbat candles and bake a challa.….( yeah… right…)  But then I was charmed  by the idea that the challot (plural for challa in Hebrew) are meant to be given to others to welcome them to the community. what a great initiative! , why didn’t I think of that?
Well great purpose I thought I am in, the evening we made the challot was a lot of fun, I got to meet new Israeli members of the community and had the chance to find out the secrets of making a challa without being around my husband and his mess while he is in the kitchen. It seems that years of practicing on braiding my daughters hair, did not give me any advantage on succeeding with braiding from 6….( so I guess I can add: it was challenging as well).
But the best part of the project (aside from eating a fresh home made challa  with butter of course) was to see the faces of the people who received the challa and their warm words of thankfulness.
Great experience, I am proud to have part in it. Thank you very much.
Waiting to host at my place too.

Spa Day at Chabad February 6, 2011

Chabad Women’s Circle invites you to the annual “Spa for the Soul” – A day of Relaxation, depth, Beauty and Spirituality for the Jewish women.

The day, 10:00 am – 2:00 pm,  is full with a verity of workshops, Kabbala classes, spa treatments, gourmet lunch and more.

Every women will enjoy the spa treatments, the workshops, lunch and get a gift to take home.

Please register at: www.ChabadLubavitch.org

Satisfaction/Yael Chamay February 4, 2011

  Satisfaction: the contentment one feels when one has fulfilled a desire, need, or expectation

  

  2 o’clock in the morning and I am sitting in the sofa waiting for my challah to finish baking, it is already Friday.

  You might think I am crazy, especially if I need to go to work in just a few hours.  You see, during my day my brain

  is busy and full of noise, work noise, traffic noise, kid’s noise, husband noise, house noise. So I find that when the

  entire world in sleeping I am entitled to create my own noise, well more like my own silence.

  I don’t do this often (stay up so late) but when I do, it somehow gives me a sense of satisfaction, accomplishment,

  silence…….. funny enough just from this little corner of comfort I hear my son snoring, my husband joining the snoring

   chorus, my daughter talking in her sleep and me, laughing at how funny it all sounds. I decide to just go to each room

  and give everybody a kiss as they sleep.

  I walk to the boys room maneuvering not to step on the clothing that is thrown on the floor, I just stand there

  watching them, so amazed at how beautiful they are, how their bodies full of energy rest for the night and how in

  just a few hours they will fill the space with smiles and commotion. I kiss them on the forehead and pray to G-d so

  he can forever protect them and guide them.

  I continue to my daughter’s room but she is not there…… she is in my bed next to my husband, what a precious

  moment, she is resting her head on her father’s shoulder, he snores and she is having a full conversation for which

  I cannot understand a word. I slowly walk her to her bed, tuck her in, and kiss her also on the forehead, praying to

  G-d to watch over her and give her infinite blessings.

 

  I glance at my husband from the door as I am tempted to wake him up so he can share with me this moment,

   luckily for him the timer of the oven beeps, reminding me that the challah is now ready. And if I wake him up he

  will for sure think that it is time for some “midnight action”. Thank G-d for the oven beep…….

   As I stand all alone in the middle of the night, the silence after all the noise, the midnight life that a household

   experiences when nobody is watching, a silent prayer that only a mother can share with “Bore Olam”, the smell

  of Shabbat in my house, and the smile on my face as I go to sleep just for a few hours.  It all gives me a sense of

  satisfaction.

  I didn’t stay up for much longer, I made sure the lights are off; the doors are locked, and that the alarm is set for

  5:30am.  It is my time to sleep,  next to my husband joining him on the never-ending snoring choir, and believe it

  or not……. yes the snoring part after so many years together……… 100% SATISFACTION.                                 

    XOXOXOXOXO

A Winter Vacation January 20, 2011

A winter trip

So winter vacation came and with a lot of planning we are set to go.

3 families and 3 cars loaded to the roof with ski equipment, coolers, blankets, gadgets and smiles that can light up any dark sky.

You would imagine that once on the road the goal was to drive straight to Vermont (about 3 ½ or 4 hours drive) but as organized as we are, we planned a stop at COSTCO and purchase all the food needed to feed this bunch. Oh boy ……. Let the kids out of the car and into Costco……. Result: 8 kids stacking all sorts of things on to the carts. “We need cookies, how can we not get this chips” as they put stuff into the cart, Shiri and I took them out.  An hour later we are on our way. But an hour later into the road trip….. ” I need coffee, I need tea, I need to pi, and can we stop?” So we pulled at the rest stop .

Finally, we arrived.  The view was amazing, white powder dressing up the trees, the roofs filled with snow; you can clearly see the ski trail.

We rented a very nice house that can accommodate all of us. Everybody grabbed something and we ventured inside , the kids ran in as I make a silent  prayer  for a clean environment ( you never know what you get when you rent a house from a website). To my surprise it was exactly as the pictures but only with one surprise.

The owner of the house was a cow collector, yes I said COW, I am not kidding they had cows in pictures, cows as stuffed animals, kitchen gadgets, door stoppers, cow vacuum cleaner, cow broom, cow dust pan, cow wall paper, cow pillows, cow light switch, entrance cow, cows on top of the fire place, even a cow manikin in the middle of the living room (that Ron was scared of so Shiri had to turn it facing the wall). It was a cow invasion.

I declared myself the designated cook, I am the only member of the crew that is not ski friendly ,I needed to get some office work while on vacation plus I was going to take ONLY ONE SKI lesson just to have it checked on my bucket list. I was pretty happy with the indoor cow environment.

I have to admit I was petrified of taking the ski class, I am a control freak and the day of the class I was getting the butterfly on my stomach feeling. How will I stop, what if I fall, what if I need to pi in the middle of the mountain, what if I am so uncoordinated  that I will not learn at all. STOP ! Think positive, you can do it, one class what is the worst that can happen? Think of something else!!!!!!!

I am happy to report that I took the class, my mind was set to nail it, I did not fall, I did not freak out, I did not pi at all. I was so surprised and confident, it felt SO GOOD.  Learning to ski…. CHECKED

We spent 5 days in the cow house, eating like pigs (I fed everybody from schnitzel, hamburgers, matzo ball soup, pasta & deli sandwiches with the help of my sous- chef Shiri). Tal even made cookies, yummy .

At night we played Pictionary and found ourselves screaming the answers before the sand clock completed the minute.  A shesh besh  match between fathers & sons was the highlight. The fathers thinking that they have more experience and can conquer any opponent ( ha ha ha) , kids putting on a Kippa to win the match ( luck is needed at this point) . My husband losing the game to and my son   …… priceless.

As the trip came to an end and with sad faces to go back home, we all bonded, friends & family, we had a great time. The cows did not follow us home (thank G-d).

Next trip ….. Laufer’s/ Sofer’s please lets pick a tropical location  xoxoxo.

From any family trip you will always get great memories, and with time these are the stories that your kids will remember and cherish forever.

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Achinoam Nini coming to NYC December 28, 2010

Hi everybody , 

We are starting the new year in NYC on January 10, 2011, with a concert at the City Winery, 155 Varick street between Spring and Vandam, at 8 pm.
A very classy place.
we are doing an acoustic set featuring a very talented young pianist by the name of Hila Kooilk.
 
Always exciting to play in the city of my childhood. So strange, as I sit in my home by the sea in Israel, with three children and 20 years of career behind me  and dreams of peace in the middle east before me, that once upon a time I was a little girl that called NY home and wandered her streets with a mixture of confidence, wonder and longing in my dark eyes… (that much hasn’t changed! …)
 Whoever is in the big apple, we would be so happy to see you…!
 
Until then, happy new year and may only good things come your way.
 
Love
AchiNoam
 
www.noasmusic.com
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Noa-Achinoam-Nini/163405727003160#!/event.php?eid=167615626614945
http://www.citywinery.com/about