Well, we made it. Break out the bubbly, install the baby gates, Noam is 1 year old. To celebrate this momentous occasion, Don and I went to buy Noam a bath seat. (For the record, we went to buy a push toy that he can hold onto and walk behind, but ever the practical parents, we got him a bath seat). Up until now, Noam has been bathed in our bathroom sink. Let's note that he has slightly outgrown that option.
Our bathroom is not the most, shall we say, architecturally brilliant. The door opens into the toilet and the tub is squeezed into a corner behind the toilet making it impossible to reach the faucets from outside the tub [fun exercise for your imagination: how does a fully-dressed parent give a child a bath/shower when s/he can not reach the faucets from outside the tub?] And with those obstacles in mind, we have decided to promote Mr. Wiggles to the bathtub because the sink just doesn't seem like the smartest option at this moment in his life.
And so, I wish Noam Eliezer a very happy first birthday. You're moving into the big league now.
Tuesday, October 12, 2010
Sunday, October 10, 2010
Life in Jerusalem
Some of you have requested this post - and so I will try to oblige. Here's the question - What in the world do we do with our time over here? Here's my attempt at an answer:
You'll notice that it's taken me 9 weeks to try to come up with a coherent response to this question. As it turns out, we had no predictable schedule for the first 8 weeks here. Actually, the only thing that I could predict with remarkable accuracy, was that we would be at the Wolfson Medical Clinic every Sunday morning between 8 and 9 for the walk-in hour. Let me take pause for a moment to give a shout out to the Wolfson Medical Clinic for being completely BRILLIANT. They have a walk-in hour every single morning. You just show up and see a doctor - no wait, no nurse, no messy bureaucracy. It's clearly the best invention since sliced bread as far as I'm concerned.
With that said, our schedule did start in earnest one week ago. And so, with an entire week of predictable life behind us, I will now tell you all about our weekly schedule. Our day begins at O'Dark:30 as Mr. Noam wakes each morning just before 6am. Once he stirs, Racheli is quick to get dressed and get her day started as well. Hadara grumps out of bed and is dressed by around 7 and breakfast is served. Racheli leaves for school with our next door neighbor, Lia, each morning by around 7:30. They walk to school (together with a parent) together each day, chatting all the way. Some mornings, Hadara joins them and is dropped off at her friend Ruth's house in exchange for Ruth's big sister, Chava, who joins Lia and Racheli on their walk. Hadara then goes to school with Ruth. Other mornings, Debra takes Hadara and Noam both to their respective schools. Hadara skips to the gate each morning. Noam is received as if he's Norm from Cheers. Every morning when he shows up, all the teachers call out, "NOAM!!!" and he scuttles in with a smile. It's really very sweet.
Once the children are at their three separate programs which are no where near each other, Don and I get to work. So far, I only have to be on-site at Mandel Jerusalem Fellows one and a half days/week and the other days are spent doing site visits, reading, writing, and researching [the savvy reader will understand that to mean doing laundry, shopping for groceries, dealing with repairs, cleaning the house, and attempting to get my work done after nightfall]. So far, Don only has to be on site one day a week. His other days are spent doing site visits, reading, writing, and researching [the savvy reader will understand that to mean doing site visits, reading, writing, and researching].
Two days a week, the kids come home at 4pm. Three days a week, they come home at 1:30/1:45. And on Fridays, Hadara and Racheli finish by noon, though Noam has no school. When we remember which day which child is supposed to be picked up at which time, one of us usually makes it there and we have a fun walk home. Racheli's favorite days so far are Sundays (when she has Self Defense class) and Tuesdays (when she takes a dance class). She describes school and first grade as "boring." Hadara says that she loves school (where she is the oldest in her class and is the king of the castle) and Noam still goes with a smile on his face.
The weather has just started to shift and I bought umbrellas for the girls today in anticipation of the puddle jumping which will soon be upon us.
The best part of living in Jerusalem so far has been breathing fresh air again. Our windows are open all day and all night. The kids play outside every day before and after school. We spend time at the park on a regular basis. And I love to sit outside in the evenings with a cup of tea and a husband with a smile on his face.
You'll notice that it's taken me 9 weeks to try to come up with a coherent response to this question. As it turns out, we had no predictable schedule for the first 8 weeks here. Actually, the only thing that I could predict with remarkable accuracy, was that we would be at the Wolfson Medical Clinic every Sunday morning between 8 and 9 for the walk-in hour. Let me take pause for a moment to give a shout out to the Wolfson Medical Clinic for being completely BRILLIANT. They have a walk-in hour every single morning. You just show up and see a doctor - no wait, no nurse, no messy bureaucracy. It's clearly the best invention since sliced bread as far as I'm concerned.
With that said, our schedule did start in earnest one week ago. And so, with an entire week of predictable life behind us, I will now tell you all about our weekly schedule. Our day begins at O'Dark:30 as Mr. Noam wakes each morning just before 6am. Once he stirs, Racheli is quick to get dressed and get her day started as well. Hadara grumps out of bed and is dressed by around 7 and breakfast is served. Racheli leaves for school with our next door neighbor, Lia, each morning by around 7:30. They walk to school (together with a parent) together each day, chatting all the way. Some mornings, Hadara joins them and is dropped off at her friend Ruth's house in exchange for Ruth's big sister, Chava, who joins Lia and Racheli on their walk. Hadara then goes to school with Ruth. Other mornings, Debra takes Hadara and Noam both to their respective schools. Hadara skips to the gate each morning. Noam is received as if he's Norm from Cheers. Every morning when he shows up, all the teachers call out, "NOAM!!!" and he scuttles in with a smile. It's really very sweet.
Once the children are at their three separate programs which are no where near each other, Don and I get to work. So far, I only have to be on-site at Mandel Jerusalem Fellows one and a half days/week and the other days are spent doing site visits, reading, writing, and researching [the savvy reader will understand that to mean doing laundry, shopping for groceries, dealing with repairs, cleaning the house, and attempting to get my work done after nightfall]. So far, Don only has to be on site one day a week. His other days are spent doing site visits, reading, writing, and researching [the savvy reader will understand that to mean doing site visits, reading, writing, and researching].
Two days a week, the kids come home at 4pm. Three days a week, they come home at 1:30/1:45. And on Fridays, Hadara and Racheli finish by noon, though Noam has no school. When we remember which day which child is supposed to be picked up at which time, one of us usually makes it there and we have a fun walk home. Racheli's favorite days so far are Sundays (when she has Self Defense class) and Tuesdays (when she takes a dance class). She describes school and first grade as "boring." Hadara says that she loves school (where she is the oldest in her class and is the king of the castle) and Noam still goes with a smile on his face.
The weather has just started to shift and I bought umbrellas for the girls today in anticipation of the puddle jumping which will soon be upon us.
The best part of living in Jerusalem so far has been breathing fresh air again. Our windows are open all day and all night. The kids play outside every day before and after school. We spend time at the park on a regular basis. And I love to sit outside in the evenings with a cup of tea and a husband with a smile on his face.
Noam meets the stairwell
On 10-10-10*(see below), Noam Eliezer Seeman got moving. He planted two hands firmly on the second step, pushed himself up, hoisted a chubby little leg in the air, wiggled it up onto the bottom step and POOF he was up one stair. He was so shocked that he looked around to see where he ended up. I don't think that he really believed that he'd managed to start climbing the staircase. So he started all over again. Super grip with hands glued to the stair, knee flung up above shoulder level (really, did he just get his knee that high?!?) until it lands on the right step, and then I-think-I-can-I-think-I-can-I-think-I-can POOF, he's on the second stair! This is how it continued for the next 3 minutes, until Mr. Noam managed to climb all the way to the top of our winding, cold, Jerusalem stone, if-you-fall-backwards-you're-going-to-split-your-head-open staircase. And once he got to the top, his face lit up and he started to clap for himself.
I'm thinking that perhaps now would be a good time to install a safety gate.
*(October 10th, 2010),
I'm thinking that perhaps now would be a good time to install a safety gate.
*(October 10th, 2010),
Scarlet Fever
Seriously? Scarlet Fever? You have got to be kidding me. Hadara woke up on Thursday morning with Scarlet Fever. Does that even still exist? She had swollen hands and ankles with a crazy rash and a flaming sore throat. We took her to the doctor, got her on penicillin, and *voila* no more scarlet fever. I am, yet again, blown away by the magic of modern medicine.
And with that said, someone in our family has been sick/injured for the past 8 weeks straight. We've done double ear infection, random virus, oral herpes, smashed lip after flying off of seesaw, smashed forehead with pretty shiner after some unexplained sandbox accident, bronchitis, sinus infection, croup, a few colds, and our crowning glory - scarlet fever.
I officially declare that the Seeman Family has fulfilled our quota for the year. We're done. Or else I quit.
And with that said, someone in our family has been sick/injured for the past 8 weeks straight. We've done double ear infection, random virus, oral herpes, smashed lip after flying off of seesaw, smashed forehead with pretty shiner after some unexplained sandbox accident, bronchitis, sinus infection, croup, a few colds, and our crowning glory - scarlet fever.
I officially declare that the Seeman Family has fulfilled our quota for the year. We're done. Or else I quit.
Monday, September 27, 2010
Racheli's first day of Kitah Aleph
There is a close up of the back of Racheli's head in the middle and her teacher, HaMorah Eti, is the last woman in the video.
September in Israel
September in Israel - Firsts
September 1, 2010
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| Hadara's first day of Pre-K |
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| This little lady skips into school every morning with a big smile on her face. She loves it! |
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| Noam starts Mishpachton (Daycare) |
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| Racheli's first day of First Grade |
But at the end of the day, everyone is tuckered out.
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