happy Hanukkah

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Hanukkah? Today? What??

Okay, so this year I was a little taken back that chanukkah was starting already as in today. Last year it was weeks, later, and actually fell in line with the schools winter break. Sunday was actually my real wake up call, as Aba and I were debating what to do during the 4 1/2 hours we had to be away from the house for showings, and Aba was like lets get Hanukkah presents, and I was all we have plenty of time, um no, I was informed we had 2 days, so off we went, and burned a hole in our credit card (a small hole, but still a hole is a hole).

This was not my idea of fun shopping, the first store we went to we all went inside and Aba and I tried to hide things in the cart from the kids (yeah, that went well). Then I took the kids to the car while Aba paid. Overpaid, and forgot a key item that was to difficult to hide in the cart. Once he got to the car and unloaded, I checked the receipt, and found such a problem!! So back in the store I got to go.

At the next store, it was decided, I would go and do the shopping, and Aba would stay in the van and entertain the kids. That went better, except that the store made a vast mistake in the doll aisle. All of the dolls were bigger than the doll clothes. And since Miss B really wanted this gift, and I was trying to make do with what I could find in the stores (1/2 because I thought it would be cheaper, and 1/2 because I needed gifts now not in 3 weeks) that simply wouldn't do.

So off to a 3rd store, the toy mecca, I figured if anyone had what I needed at this point they would . Well, they were out of duplos, and I mean o-u-t. But I did find the dolly supplies I needed and now we are good to go. (I can't find a picture online - how odd... But it is a 12 inch You & Me doll with hair).

And what happens, when you rush? and your house is for sale? Kids find things. Aba walked in on J playing with Baby B's toys which we had stealthily hid (in the toy store bags in our closet). Baby B has claimed one of J's toys and screams when we take it from her (which I have had the joy of doing 3 times now - it is the first thing I wrapped yesterday when I got the chance). With that much fuss from little miss happy, Aba has decided we will just give it to her, and he is off yet again sometime this week for a 8th gift for J.

This is not how we like to do Chanukah's but with the house sale, and packing, and chanukah being so early this year, things got all a-mush. I will tell you later how I want to do things around here for Birthdays and Hanukkah, to prevent this last minute credit card using rush, another time.

Piles of halloween candy sitting around?

We have tons, and have decided to repurpose it into....

Cookies!!!

Simply take your favorite chocolate chip recipe and substitute in whatever candy you have instead of the chocolate chips. We used a cup of Reeses peanut butter cups chopped up and a cup of assorted Peanut m&m's, regular m&m's, reeses pieces, mini m&m's, and candy covered kisses.

it was a super halloween!!!!

Sukkot is here, yet we have no sukkah

Which shouldn't surprise me in the least actually. Aba works. Alot. And he has friends which build these great magnificent sukkahs that can hold 100 people. And inevitably these friends ask for his help, and he always obliges. Aba also helps the rabbi build the shuls sukkah. So that means we have no time to build a sukkah of our own.

But every year while helping friends build there, loaning out our extension cords and heat dishes so they don't freeze in their sukkahs, allowing them to borrow our folding tables and chairs so they have enough seating for their guests, we go with out. Even if Aba did have enough energy to actually build us a sukkah, we would have nothing to put in it!

This year with our house being for sale I guess it would be kinda odd. I mean if a Goyam were to come and look at our house and we had a roofless shack built outside...

But every year Aba tells me of how our Sukkah will look next year. It will have walls to keep the wind out, tons of branches and greenery on the roof and walls, a table and chairs, heat dishes and lights. It sounds wonderful, and every year the vision gets grander in his head. Now I will just have to wait until the year when work does not force him to work through the holidays, the Rabbi does not need help, and friends to not call to borrow our sukkah supplies. And someday we will have a sukkah of our own.

Off on Safari...

I am off on a safari, complete with wild animals; roars heard in the distance and growls of complaint. I will be up at dawn and not rest till well after dark.

A dangerous journey awaits me, one that includes a 3 day trek through the wilderness visiting places unknown, places without (gasp!) an Internet connection, places I have never seen.

My fellow adventurer? Auntie LaLa. She should brace herself for this will be like no other experience she has ever had. I am still not sure if she is crazy or not to volunteer for this trek.

Wish me luck, strength, and courage to make it through, in one piece, in my Safari west to Sun Diego with 4 kids and a minivan.

What a fathers day!

We started off the day with a 2 1/2 hour drive to some "gold medal" waters. 11 mile to be exact. Fishing as a family is not my idea of fun, but you know what it wasn't about me yesterday now was it. It was about Aba. And he loves fly fishing. So while I am sitting at the edge of the river with Baby B in a back pack and yelling calmly keeping J and B out of the water, then in the shallow areas (only as deep as the knees) N and Aba are having a great time fishing. N managed to only hook himself once! He was so proud, and proudly exclaimed that to Aba at the end of the day. What he forgot to mention is that he hooked himself once, B once, J once, and me once, along with countless trees and bushes that he had me untangle for him.

And we got pictures. Lots of pictures. And strangers got pictures. Every time N would get a fish on the stream of cars driving by the river would slow to a crawl and cameras would come flying out! I have no idea who these people were, but I wouldn't be surprised if he ends up on web pages and scrapbooks across the country! ( I don't know if it was the fact that a young boy was fly fishing, or the fact that a young boy and his dad were fly fishing together on fathers day.

Anyways happy belated fathers day to all the dads out there, hope you had "tight lines" too!!