Developmental update

I have received a few requests to give an update on what the kids are up to these days. Thank G-d, they both seem to have new milestones nearly every week.

Adina has finally begun her language explosion! Every single word out of our mouths is repeated by her sweet little lips. Her favorite words (following suit as a good 2 year-old) are "No!" and "Self!" She wants to do absolutely everything all by herself, and she's actually getting pretty good at most things. She's mastering getting dressed, putting on socks and shoes, peeling bananas and oranges, and all sorts of other things. She also thoroughly enjoys the commands she's learned from our disciplining Libby (the dog). The second Libby makes a peep, Adina is the first to say, "No barking Bibby!" (She's still working on her L's...). One day, as I put Adina in her crib for naptime, Libby started barking. Adina began screaming, "No barking Bibby, no barking Bibby!" She wouldn't settle down until I went in her room and told her that Libby was sleeping now too so she wouldn't bark anymore. Adina also likes to assert her independence by using the "Stay" command on her parents. If she's getting into something she's not supposed to, or wants to accomplish something on her own without interference, she sticks out her hand and says, "No, stay Mommy! Stay!"
All of her new language has also helped her become quite proficient with her manners. Adina is getting very good at using "please" when she wants things and then says, "Thank you Mommy" or "Thank you Aba." For some reason, manner words sound so much cuter coming out of little mouths...
She also loves her role as a big sister. Whenever Ze'ev is sad, she leans into his face with a big smile and says, "Hi Ze'ev! Smile Ze'ev :)" Whenever he is in a giggly mood, she has found that bonking him on the head with toys brings out a good old belly laugh. Since it's all done in good fun, and everybody involved is happy and having a good time, I usually allow this. Sometimes, however, I have to draw the line. This morning for instance, Adina decided to bonk him on the head with the heel of her plastic dress-up shoes. While it did elicit the desired laughter from her little brother, I took the shoes away before the heel ended up in an eye or she accidentally hit him a little too hard.

Ze'ev is becoming quite mobile. He hasn't figured out the proper crawling technique yet, but between rolling and "creeping" (the army crawl), he can get basically anywhere he wants. He has also found lots of new foods that he loves - including hamburgers, cholent, bagels, and basically anything we give him that he can gum.
Ze'ev also seems to have quite an affinity for music. The minute he hears a note, he starts dancing. Sometimes, when I hold him on my lap he bobs back and forth and starts singing, as if he's asking for music. The minute I start singing back to him, he gets a big smile on his face and dances very enthusiastically.

Last week we had quite the snow here in Seattle. Ze'ev was too young to enjoy it, so he stayed bundled up inside, but Adina ventured out with some friends on the first morning of the big
snow...



















She enjoyed keeping the snow pants on halfway and biting into her apple...























Ze'ev hung out inside...
























This is a picture of Adina being a big girl getting ready to go to play group in the morning...
Today she was not very happy to see me come to pick her up. I walked in the door and she said, "Stay! Bye bye Mommy!" and ran off with her friends...

Wonder of the World

In the large pile of mail awaiting us upon our return to Seattle, each of the kids received a free gift from the "PJ Library." For the month of December, each child enrolled in the program got a different cd based on their age group. Ze'ev's cd was Neshama Carlebach's "Every little soul must shine." I know that as a singer she is quite controversial in the Orthodox community, but I have thoroughly enjoyed her songs over the last couple weeks. She has accompanied me during many hours of cooking and cleaning. Two songs in particular have touched my soul. I feel my heart smile each time I hear them.

The first is called "Wonder of the world." The music is quite beautiful, but I couldn't seem to find it online. The lyrics are -

The Great Wall of China is mighty long
And nothing compares to the Taj Mahal
But I don't need to sail the seven seas cause
You're the only wonder of this world for me,
You're the only wonder of this world for me...

Machu Picchu reaches to the sky
And the Roman Colosseum, you won't believe your eyes
But there's nowhere that I would rather be cause
You're the only wonder of this world for me.


At first glance, these words can sound kind of cheesy, but what touches me is how true they are. Each child is such a wonder! I watch my children growing and learning and I feel so blessed to have these absolute wonders living in my house, spending day after day with me. I don't have to get on an airplane or cross time zones to marvel at G-d's creation. They inspire me more than any vacation or "wonder of the world" ever could.


**~**~**~**~**~**~**~**~**~**~**~**~**~**~**~**~**~**~**

The second song literally made me cry the first time it played.
I was taken aback by the emotion, so I asked Yoni to listen to it with me and see if he had a similar reaction. As the song began, Yoni quietly nodded and explained to me that when Adina was hours old, he played this song for me in the hospital and sang it as I held my baby girl. I had no tactile memory of this experience, but apparently I remembered on some level.
Independent from that experience, it just so happens that the week I listened to this song was the week of Parasha Vayechi where this pasuk is found. And the meaning is beautiful on so many levels...

הַמַּלְאָךְ הַגֹּאֵל אֹתִי מִכָּל-רָע, יְבָרֵךְ אֶת-הַנְּעָרִים,
וְיִקָּרֵא בָהֶם שְׁמִי,
וְשֵׁם אֲבֹתַי אַבְרָהָם וְיִצְחָק, וְיִדְגּוּ לָרֹב בְּקֶרֶב הָאָרֶץ.

Hamalach hagoel oti mikol ra yevarech et han’arim vikareh bahem sh’mi
V’shem avotai Avraham v’Yizchak v’yidgu larov b’kerev ha’aretz.

Translation:
May the angel who has delivered​ me from all harm bless these lads. May they carry on my name and the names of my fathers, Abraham and Isaac, and may they grow into a multitude​ on earth.



*Parasha Vayechi - weekly Torah portion
*pasuk - line

Together Again.

For seven weeks, the children and I traveled the breadth of the country, spending time with family and friends. Yoni had a 2 1/2 month deployment, and rather than stay home without him for such a long time, we decided to let the grandparents, aunts, uncles, and cousins have a good time with the kiddos in Aba's absence. Being away from home actually made the time pass extremely quickly! Before I knew it, we flew back home with only a couple days left to await Yoni's return.

While he has gone on short trips before, this was the first time (in Adina's memory at least) that he has been away for a significant period of time. As an adult and a Mom, I quickly adapted and learned how to deal with his absence. I missed him and thanked G-d every day for Skype, but we went about our lives. One of the hardest things about him being gone was watching Adina miss her Aba. She is too young to understand where he went and why. She is too young to realize that his absence was finite, and with G-d's help he would be returning home soon. Thankfully, kids are resilient and distractable, so it didn't upset her constantly. But those moments when she saw his picture and reached out her arms, with all her heart, craving a hug from her Aba... those moments I will never forget.

And the day he came home, all day she sat in his arms. Each time she woke up from a nap or a good night's sleep, within two seconds of opening her door, I heard, "Aba huggie? Yea? Aba!"

There is so much to take away from this experience.

First of all, I love observing the purity in her emotions. As a two year-old, every single feeling in her little body comes out in action. Her hugs are filled with love. Her cries resonate a deep sadness.
As we grow up and mature out of this innocent "wear emotions on your sleeve" phase, sometimes emotions get too good at hiding. We are taught to act with proper decorum according to a given situation, and train ourselves to keep emotions on the inside.

From my daughter, I learn that it's ok to jump up and down when something is really exciting. It's ok to run and give a big hug to someone you haven't seen in a long time. It's ok to sit down and be sad if something is disappointing.

Maybe this very trait is why little children are so distractable. Once they have expressed the emotion, they can move on. It doesn't fester. I miss Aba. That makes me sad. But, oh - look at that fun slide over there - let's go play!

If as an adult, we allow ourselves to acknowledge and express each emotion, life could attain a beautiful balance...