Rabbi's Help

"Rabbi's Help"
An elderly Rabbi is walking down the street one
day when he notices a very small boy trying to
press a doorbell on a house across the street.
However, the boy is very small and the doorbell
is too high for him to reach.

After watching the boys' efforts for some time,
the Rabbi moves closer to the boy's position.

... He steps smartly across the street, walks up behind
the little fellow and, placing his hand kindly on
the child's shoulder leans over and gives the
doorbell a solid ring.

Crouching down to the child's level, the Rabbi
smiles benevolently and asks, "And now what,
my little man?"

To which the boy replies, "Now we run!"

"WHY?"

I have come to learn that when people ask "Why?" They are not asking for the Truth.  They are just wanting to know "why?" has this messed with what they consider "their normal".  



 

Life Just Moves Too Fast

 I remember as a kid when people actually sat on their porches and waved as people went by.  In Greensburg whenever you past another car you waved hello whether you knew them or not.   People planted gardens and shared their harvest.  Things were just slower back then.  You visited people and people visited you.  I miss those days. 

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/10/28/magazine/the-island-where-people-forget-to-die.html?pagewanted=1&_r=0

We need to get back to this!

Shalom!!!

How Would You Like To Walk Across This Bridge?

 

I don't think so!



That's Us!

Funny!

Thought this was cute!

Conversations With My Dad

I talked with my Dad yesterday.  He told me he has furnitures disease.  He chest has dropped into his drawers. His pecks are now man boobs.  He has hit the metallic age.  He has silver in his hair.  He has gold in his teeth.  He has titanium in his knees and lead in his butt.  LOL! 

Have a blessed day!!!

My Response To What We Did On Halloween When Asked

"We treat it like all other days.  Halloween is pagan and we don't mix good with evil.  Yeah, we don't eat from that tree." 

LOL, sometimes I crack myself up!!!

How To Be A Father

There’s only two short lines you need to know. It’s the first dialogue there is between a father and his son in the written Torah:

Then Isaac said to his father, “My father?”

And Abraham said, “Here I am, my son.”
 

I read a great article By Tzvi Freeman at Chabad.org on How To Be A Great Father  You can check it out on the link above.

Enjoy!!!

House Cleaning

Bah Hahahahaha

Harper's Ferry, West Virginia

Can I just tell you I enjoy taking day trips off to some quaint little town and examining the jewels that makes that town shine. So, to my surprise when I received the Southern Living magazine October issue I was flipping thru and I come across an article about Harper's Ferry, W. Virginia.

When I was in high school we lived in Maryland and my parents would go on day trips and Harper's Ferry was one of the places they enjoyed visiting. Now that I am older, day tripping has become a passion of mine. There is just something about getting out with family. I look forward to the connection that happens with my husband and children. Anyway, I was so excited so I tore out the article saving it in hopes of visiting soon. And wouldn't you know it, weeks later we had a inicident that happened over Homecoming and well let's just say we needed to get out of this one horse town, at least for the day. So we traveled up the Northern Virginia back roads making our way West Virginia. We were traveling along these small back roads and came to an intersection and we made a left and next thing we knew we were in West Virgnia and we were driving along the river and it is breath taking. Pictures do not give it justice. And of course it is Fall so you can only imagine just how beautiful it is. If you have never been, it is a must see. So we park our car and take the shuttle bus into town. There is a small fee but worth it. We walked and walked and walked. We stopped by the fudge shoppe and let's just say I now know why she is featured. My oldest son bought the peanut butter fudge. Wow!

While there you can walk across the bride and hike up the mountain to see this view. Well, we ran out of time. Okay, it was the end of the day and we were tired! Let's just tell the truth!

If you ever get a chance to go out there. Enjoy!  I would love to take a trip in the Spring.  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Love these kids!!!

Backyard Bliss

I was just about to go start on some sewing when I had to let the cat out the backdoor (for the umpteen time today). Anyway, when I really looked Isaw just how pretty the backyard had become this Fall. When Chip and I were designing our house we live in now our boys were five and four years old at the time. (Our daughter didn't arrive until a few months before we moved in.) We were so busy at the time of construction and we kept telling the boys this will all pass as soon as we moved in. Boy were we naive. They are now 14 and 13 and I still feel like we are moving in high gear. Anyway, we moved in and the backyard was nothing but ugly Virginia pines that were beaten with an ugly stick, repeatedly. If you look really close to the left side of the first pic below you will see the ugly Virginia pines still in our neighbors yard. And well, with small exception of a few hardwoods, I mean a few and one dogwood I felt blessed. Well, we wanted a backyard that our kids could play in. So, we hired a man to cut them down, smooth out the yard and dig out right behind the deck to make two levels. The builder when they landscaped the yard left it so as soon as you stepped off the steps of the deck you walked on an angle. FUN! By the time our landscaper had finished his part, our backyard looked like a war zone. Our neighbors kept asking each other, "What are they doing?" I just kept saying I promise when we are done you will like it. We fenced it in with a six foot wooden privacy fence and began our work.

 

 

Where our landscaper cut out for two levels we built a retaining wall. We had never done this before but I knew if a professional could do it , we could do it. I don't know if you remember back in early years of 2000 when a heat wave and then drought hit on the East Coast. Well, that was the day we started. 95 degrees and higher. What were we thinking? Yes, that was the day my husband picked to start our project. Well, he shoveled the area to lay the stone block and we went to work laying sand and laying stones one after another all summer long in the heat. The ninety five and higher heat. We spent more time on laying down a stone block and removing it to level out the sand underneath than I care to even talk about. We fussed, we fought, let me just tell you we knew if we made it thru that we knew we could do anything. Well, it paid off. After much planting and sowing of grass seed. This is our backyard now.

My husband says he built this wall twice. You may also notice we started something. Both of our neighbors on each side of us cleared their backyards of ugly Virginia pines. The other funny thing about this retaining wall. When we finished the wall we didn't have steps until the following year and we didn't have an idea of what we were going to use for them. We just happened to be out and about one Saturday and dropped by a nursery and they had these steps, a perfect match. Oh, back to what started this blog. The pics below.

 

 

And you know what we found out when we finally finished the backyard and it was ready for the kids to play in. They don't like to play outside. Isn't that a fine howdy do?

Oh well, my husband and I enjoy it. Even if it is us just sitting on the deck looking out at what Elohim enabled us to do.

The Essence of Friendship

~Great Advice on Friendship from Aish.com Rabbi Kalman Packouz~

"A businessman in ancient times from the Land of Israel who was accused of being a spy. After being condemned to death, the man requests 30 days to return home to put his affairs in order and to say good-bye to his family. The judge laughs at the ridiculous request; the man responds that he has a friend who will stay in jail in his place until he comes back -- and if he doesn't come back, his friend will die in his place.

This the judge had to see. So, they send for the friend. Sure enough, he agrees to stand bond in place of his friend all the way up to the noose.

The businessman returns home, puts his affairs in order, says good-bye to his family and returns with plenty of time to spare. Unfortunately, there is a storm at sea and he is delayed. He arrives shortly before the time he is to be executed. He runs to the town square where his friend is already at the gallows; he screams, "No, it is I who is to be executed!" And his friend yells back, "No, you're too late!" They create such a commotion and confusion that the king calls for them to be brought before him.

Each presents his case and then they begin to argue with each other about who is to be executed. Finally, the king stops them and says, "I will pardon you both on one condition -- that you make me a third friend!"

What is the essence of friendship? Loyalty. A true friend is always there for you. The Hebrew word for friend is "chaver" -- from the word "chibbur" which means attached, joined. A true friend is someone whose love is unconditional, who will be there for you always. The very foundation of friendship is loyalty.

A true friend does not condone wrong behavior and immoral choices. However, he is there to support, to reprove, to help his friend get his life back on track. He cares enough about you to tell you when you are wrong, but he does it with love and in a way that you can hear. A true friend will help you grow as a human being and to reach your goals.

One would not choose a surgeon just because he seems to be a nice guy. Choosing a friend is serious business; friends influence your life -- and come with responsibilities! Know what traits you want in a friend before seeking friendship. Be careful of committing to a friendship haphazardly. Make sure you choose the right friends!

How does one make a true friend? First, be careful who you choose to be your friend. If friendship implies commitment and loyalty, you should select your friends carefully. A friend can help you elevate yourself in life or he can bring you down. Know the character and history of someone before making him a friend.

Ethics of the Fathers gives the following advice: "K'nei l'cha chaver" which translates as "Buy for yourself a friend." Obviously, one cannot buy friendship -- although I did have a college roommate who always told me "Friends stay friends longer when they give gifts" (problem was, he always wanted to be on the receiving end...).

However, friendship does take investment. The best vitamin for acquiring a friend is B1. If one wants a person to be his friend, then he has to give the commitment and loyalty in order to get it in return. (It is much like marriage.) One must watch out for his friend's best interest and to be there for him. By the way, if you want to see who loves you and is concerned about you -- look at who cares about your children. If your friend cares about your children, he really cares about you!

THE A-Z of FRIENDSHIP A Friend....
Accepts you as you are     Believes in you     Calls you just to say "HI"     Doesn't give up on you     Envisions the whole of you     Forgives your mistakes     Gives unconditionally     Helps you     Invites you over     Just "be" with you     Keeps you close at heart     Loves you for who you are     Makes a difference in your life     Never judges	Offers support Picks you up Quiets your fears Raises your spirits Says nice things about you Tells you the truth when you need to hear it Understands you Values you Walks beside you X-plains things you don't understand Yells when you won't listen, and Zaps you back to reality         Shalom!!!

Sandy Storm

Well,  we are hoping the power doesn't go out.  We are not in her path but we are getting rain and some wind.  All three of my children got out of school.  Unfortunately, my oldest got called into work. He works at a grocery store.   He is the only one, I understand, who does the carts right.  I am concerned he will be the only one pulling in carts in this rain and cold.  I pray he has a good attitude though.  Well, I better head upstairs and start on some brisket, carrot, celery soup.  It is getting chilly around here. 

Shalom!!!

 

 

Update~    We didn't lose power.  Thank you Abba!!!  Charlie did end up pulling in carts and everytime some cashier would complain Ms. Allison would point to Charlie and say "he's out in a hurricane pulling in carts and freezing cold, stop complaining."  LOL!  He did have a good attitude about it.  Funny thing Charlie noticed that Ms. Allison seemed upset everytime he would pass by the customer service desk.  So, he eventually stopped by and asked why.  Her answer, "we are open so people can come get necessities and people are buying junk food."  She finally saw one woman buy some toilet paper and she stopped and thanked the lady.  Too funny!

 

 

Six Steps to Letting Go of Anger

A great article.  The Jews have this great wisdom and understanding that just amazes me.  On step 2 where you allow yourself to grieve she says "The Jewish laws of mourning are a wise system of graduated grief. In those first stages, the mourner doesn't respond to greetings and he remains at home. It's simply too early to offer comfort when the wound is so fresh."  The jews have this custom that when someone passes away that for seven days no words of comfort are said.  Remember when Job lost all and his friends sat with him for seven days.  It gives time to reflect and absorb and place this hurt where it needs to be.  I love reading articles from Aish.com.  Enjoy and let go of the anger and find Peace!

 by Ali Begoun

http://www.aish.com/sp/pg/Six-Steps-to-Letting-Go-of-Anger.html

Shalom!!!

Yom Teruah Feast September 18, 2012

We had the best time at our friends house for Yom Teruah.  We gathered together with like believers and we had a feast.  I brought Canneloni and Lemon Icebox Pie.  Which was devoured by all. I will have to post the recipes on Our Kosher Kitchen for all.   My friend calls me quite the chef.  LOL! We had the best time.  Unfortunately, it was cloudy so we couldn't see the New Moon here, but it was already sighted in Israel so we knew we were good to go. 



Sighting the New Moon then blowing of the Shofar

Praise and Worship later in the evening


We hope you all had a blessed Yom Teruah!!!

 

The Joy of Aliyah by Jamie Gellar

What is Aliyah?  In Hebrew it means ascent, to go up, to ascend to Israel.  I am sure you  have heard of Jamie Gellar.  She is Jewish and lived in NY. Her website is www.JoyofKosher.com.  She is the best-selling author of the Quick & Kosher Cookbook series and co-founder of the Kosher Media Network. Her and her family have immigrated to Israel.  They have gone home.  I don't know what our day will be like when we one day get to go home, but this is pretty awesome.  Her husband has always wanted to make Aliyah and they finally did it.  Mrs. Gellar has documented by short video's her family's ascent to Israel.  It makes me cry for the day that He returns and brings the rest of us home.  Enjoy!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

         

          

"Final Episode but not the end" ~ Jamie Gellar

The Color of the Lorax

So, I have heard that tumeric is great for your face. People from India eat of lot of tumeric and the women use it on their face as a mask.  I found a recipe for tumeric, honey and yogurt. I didn't have any yogurt but I had whole milk kefir.  Kefir is better for you than yogurt so I knew I was good to go.   I mixed it together, put it in a glass container and off I went to take my bath and relax with a face mask.  I smear it on my face and my arms and start to rinse off my hands and realize my hands and arms are yellow.  YELLOW!?  Oh no.  I grab my rag and wipe off my face and arms.  I then grab soap.  Well, something in the soap interacts with the tumeric and it turns a really weird orange.  Like blogger orange.  I start to panic.  What am I going to see when I look in the mirror.  In fifteen minutes I need to be out the door and run errands.  So I let out the water and as it is draining I realize that the tub is orange.  OH NO!!! My husband is not going to be happy with me.  So I call to my daughter and ask her to bring the tub cleaner and scrub brush and of course she is all like "what did you do?" She can tell in my voice something is wrong.  I won't say a word.  "Just bring me the cleaner",  I ask. Well, that did not work.  Nothing, it did nothing!!!  I do not like bleach and the only reason I have it in my house is because of the litterbox for our kitty. But I am so thankful for bleach. So I ask Anna Caryn to bring me the bleach. "Mom, what did you do?" she asked.  "Just bring me the bleach and maybe I will let you see",  I tell her. She brings me the bleach and I let her see the tub.  "MOMMMMM,  you are in trouble!!!!"  she begins to tell me and laughing at me at the same time.  So I poured some in and swished it around and YES!!!  It worked.  Oh my, am I so happy. Let's just say because of bleach I am still married.  Okay, that may be taking it a little too far because my husband is the most gentle man I have ever known.  But that was not fun.  So, now I know where the Lorax gets his color from.  He must eat alot of tumeric or bathe in it because I kid you not that was the color of my tub. 

 

Shalom!!!

Spilled Milk

Pretty!

Shotgun shack redux: mortgage-free in 320 square feet

This lady shares how they actually did it.  Their home is 320 sq. ft.  Could you do it? 

80mph Storms

On the 29th of June we were settled into bed and I was checking Facebook one more time before turning off the Ipad. I noticed one of my husband's friends in Maryland makes a comment about bad weather and staying safe.  But I really didn't pay attention to it.  Because just the day before I was watching the weather channel and the top guy was saying that even though we were having 100 degree weather it really wasn't producing severe weather.  So I wasn't concerned.  But as I began to turn off the Ipad, I thought I would check the radar just to make sure everything was okay.  I what I saw amazed me.  We had this huge storm system coming our way and would be at our door any minute.  It was a bow shaped.  I remember from when we lived in Alabama for some years.  A part of tornado alley.  That when something is bow shaped that means strong winds.  And sure enough the radar was showing 80mph winds.  Normally when we get bad weather we all head to the basement, but it wasn't tornadic so we didn't make the boys come with us.  So I told Chip that I was going downstairs just in case and Anna was coming with me.  Chip said he was coming but the boys was staying in their beds.  So we headed down and next thing we knew it hit.  It was lightening so bad it was like morse code out there.  And the winds just never stopped.  It hit the house and you heard it.  Finally JD comes down.  Nothing ever bothers this boy.  So I asked, "why did you?"  He said, "when my bed started shaking I knew it was time to go."  Wow!  Then Charlie came down.  We were down there for maybe 30 to 45 minutes.  It just seemed like it wouldn't end.  I have never in all my life been through anything like that.  And I lived in Louisiana and went through a hurricane, and Alabama and tornadoes, but this was different. We lost our power for about two days.  I couldn't believe that this was also in Ohio and came all the way and kept its strenght to Virginia.  I am just thankful the only thing we had was some fencing and one piece of siding that had to be fixed.  Then the following weekend we had bad weather and then the weekend after that we had a microburst in town.  It destroyed one building and knocked a house off its foundation by 10ft. Unbelievable.  And  I recently read an article on CNN that we should expect more extreme weather from now on.  That doesn't surprise me.  Considering the mess America is in..   

Come back soon!

We The Tiny House People (Documentary): Small Homes, Tiny Flats & Wee Shelters

I think this is great!  We need to simplify our lives.  We have become a nation of McMansions, bigger is better and keeping up with the joneses.  My husband and I continually talk about selling our house and moving onto a couple of acres and building a small house.  Only what we need.  I am tired on keeping up with all this stuff.  Tiny House People.  I don't know if I would go as small as some people of chosen to do.  But it gets you thinking.  Enjoy!

           

Distraction of My Favorite Kind

I am trying to read/study the torah portion for this week and this is continuously going on outside my office window.  There are three of them fighting over the feeder.  Lol!  They are so cute!

 Come back soon!

OCD

The other day I was at Wegman's checking out and the cashier looked at how I had arranged the food on the belt and asked if I had OCD. She even said, "your house must be really clean".   I try to arrange everything on the belt so it goes faster.  I thought this was funny coming from someone who works at a grocery store and had to ask the gentlemen before me if the fruit he was purchasing was an apple or a pear.  Huh?!   LOL!!!

Husband and Wife

Just as it should be.

Blessings!

Brulee

This is Brulee, our dog. 

Isn't he cute?

In The Land of Goshen

 I just wanted to share few pictures we took along the way to Goshen Pass for when we were Immersed.

 Beautiful countryside on the way there.

  

 JD crossing a swinging bridge.  We decided on our way home that we would stop off and just for fun go across the swinging bridge. It crossed Maury River around Goshen Pass. And just as we walk up to it, three dogs come up to the other side.  Two of them kept crossing back and forth while we would try to cross.  But the sign above the bridge says to walk carefully not run as to not cause the bridge to sway.  It was kind of funny.  Because one dog would not cross it.  I guess he was too scared and he would sit on the one side and whine for his two dog friends. 

Charlie coming back.

                                           

Anna Caryn

This is me when I tried to cross but I didn't like it so I took this pic and turned around and we were done. See my finger?

Wild life we met on the way home.

Butters

I don't normally write about products I use but I just came across Out of Africa Shea Butter.  I bought the unscented in the tin, shea butter lip balm and the body lotion tropical vanilla scented made with pure unrefined shea butter. 

I love the unscented for my feet.  It has done wonders for my dry feet.  The body lotion, the scent is like being on a tropical island.  I have spent several days in the yard and got quite pinkish/red.  I put lotion on later that night and I haven't had any peeling.  Peelings, wo, wo, wo, peelings.  I peel all the time after getting too much sun.  But with this lotion I haven't peeled once.  And the lip butter.    It really is like butter when you put it on. Not that I wear butter.  It just melts on contact. And  I know butter.  I come from a woman that used to lick the butter wrappers.  Paula Deen has nothing on my mother.  You can order online straight from the company http://outofafricashea.com/index.html or you can do a search on their website of where to buy some where close to you.  I found mine at Vitamin Shoppe. 

I also have to tell you about Inesscents Creamy Cocoa Butter Sudanese Coconut  & Vanilla scented.  Oh, my goodness.  If I could bathe in this stuff.  It actually smells like my homemade chocolate buttercream icing.  Which I haven't made in awhile.  But that is for another blog.  This butter is so creamy.  It can be used all over, I even use it for my lips.  I have to hide it from my son. He actually ran off with it the first time I showed it to him.  I feel bad because he has eczema too.  I got it at Whole Foods or you can order it online at http://www.inesscents.com/store/home.php?cat=2  

Enjoy!

Windy Day

Did someone leave the fan on upstairs, like on hurricane force winds high?  Because it is a windy day.  Like we used to have two pink rafts in our pool,  the neighbor called and the dog is now in their backyard, or is that a cow that just flew by kind of windy day. 

Screaming On Shavuot

So on Shavuot, Chip and I decided to make enchiladas. The recipe says to fry the tortillas for a few seconds on each side. So, I am on the second to last one and the spring loaded tongs slips out of my hand and splatters grease everywhere... and I didn't really realize this at first.  All I know is Chip starts screaming. So, I start screaming and there we are just screaming at each other. All I remember is that I am looking at him wondering why are we screaming? Then I realize he is staring at my face screaming and I think "OH NO, I must be hideous because I must be burnt but I can't feel anything, but why can't I feel anything, OH NO, my face must be gone that is why I can't feel anything". He just had this look of horror on his face. And we are just standing there screaming at each other. And then out of the corner of my eye I see our three children sitting at the table staring at us like we have just lost it. What is the one thing you tell your children when something bad happens "Don't panic"!. Yep, that is Chip and I. We use to be cool. . . That was a long time ago.

 

 

There Was Light In Goshen

Just this past Sunday we decided that we wanted to be immersed.  So we headed out to Goshen, VA.   My husband, me and our two boys had been baptised in the church years ago.  Our daughter just wasn't ready.   But it is different now.  We wanted to be immersed in a river.  Living waters.  So we headed out early Sunday morning and took a beautiful drive westward.  My husband and I had been to Goshen many years before and just loved it.  So we knew it would be a great place to go, besides the name is so fitting.  We got there a little after lunchtime.  It wasn't  too crowded.  We were just concerned about how cold the water was going to be. I wish I had actual pictures of the immersion but we were thinking we would all go out at the same time.  But once out there is was a little more difficult than we thought.  We had to get to deeper water and the bottom of the river was all rocks.  Slippery rocks.  So Chip, Charlie and JD went out first to find the perfect spot and then when they were done Chip and JD would come back and Chip would take me and Anna out.  JD stayed on shore with our shoes and car keys.  It was so slippery and we ended up climbing/swimming over rocks .  And it was not really all that cold.  Or it was just we on a mission and was not being deterred by chilly waters.  Chip had immersed first then led the boys and then Chip led me and then Anna.  It was great!  Charlie kept saying I feel so clean. Lol!   The drive was gorgeous.  We were at Goshen Pass on the Maury River.  Another funny thing!  No one paid any attention to us.  We thought people might be staring at us, but no!  We had a great time.

See all the rocks!

By the way this was not taken by me but I wanted to show how nice it was!

Blessings!!!

Groundhog???

Sitting at my desk the other day, this caught my eye.  What is that?  So I grab my phone and took a picture. 

 So I take a couple more.

Totally didn't expect to see this little dude. 

  Isn't he cute.  Then it was like he stood up to pose.