Life and Times

All quiet, not any more

2011-03-28T22:32:00.005+02:00

Its been a long while since we've used our family blog to update folks on the goings ons of our growing tribe: facebook came along, we moved to Texas, Adam became a doctor, Baby Bodhi was born, and I went back to work outside my house (sometimes). I am going to make a real effort to use this medium to share our photos and some tales as I've learned that we can make books from this source, as well, and since we aren't much for baby books I think we can optimize this way of communicating to make us all happy. So, here we go. What we've been up to the last while, and what we are up to soon.

Adam: Super Dad. He is really amazing in this role. He wakes up smiling, mostly, to greet the singing boys in their shared room to start the day. His job starts immediately, no coffee or commute to ease into his day. Once they are up, he is on! Adam usually puts their breakfasts together, gets Naz's lunch ready for school (today he went off with strawberries, apple slices, yogurt, and some Hebrew National hotdog slices). He an d Bo dropped Naz off at school, and then he and Bo are of to pass thier days with playdates, shopping, library story times, and naps naps naps. He is exhausted, no doubt, at the end of these days, but I think he's having the time of his life. It shows, he just had to put a new notch on his belt: he's gotten even thinner chasing these kids around. They love him, too. Dada is now the preferred story reader, bath giver, and band mate. Its ok, they are all so happy. This year continues to be such a gift.

Naz: Toddler Exquisite. He sings, loves his brother (mostly, although we are seeing more and more of this roughhousing that could be translated as too tough play), keeps us up do date all day long of what is going on, Mama, Bo woke, or Dada, Naz peeped. Never a dull moment. He loves his garden school where he is planting his summer crop: peas, watermelon, and maybe an artichoke? I forget. He is using his own green potty more and more, and is SO proud and surprised when something comes out. Such a joy.

Bodhi: Baby fat and happy. Ah, this baby is so so delish. His big cheeks, monster thighs. He wants to be wherever his brother is. He follows him around, crawling as fast as his fat legs will take him. He smiles almost all of the time. Still not sleeping as awesome as we'd like him to be, but all in good time, right? He likes to play with his brother's toys, and really anything he can get his hands on. Loves to play, and to quote his Pops who shares his birthday seems generally, "just happy to be here".

Sera: working. Well, I do that a fair bit. I am loving my job, really loving it. Its been a long time since I've loved what I do this much. I love my boss, she takes this stuff super serious and is incredibly capable. I am learning a lot from her. I am traveling a fair bit: Oklahoma, South Carolina, Kentucky, Boston, NYC, and Chicago this spring. I am reading the history of Texas, am really enjoying learning more about the complicated history of this wild place we get to call home for THREE MORE YEARS. And yes, I just bought a 1964 Vintage Shasta because I decided I needed a hobby, so here I go!

Life is smiling on us, we feel it, everyday. I will do my best to keep writing regularly here so the narrative that goes along with the seductive photos of our life lures you to visit us. We miss having people over for dinner every week, for meeting folks in the park for a barbeque, and having folks close enough to just drop by. I hope some of those days are on the horizon, its all we are missing: kindred close at hand.

Let us know when we can put the tea pot on for you, we miss you~

Naz meets his family

2009-05-21T14:34:00.010+03:00

Naz's first trip over the big pond, if you will, was a big hit! March was quite a month as we packed in as much as we possibly could. New baby passport in hand, we traveled 26 hours door to door, each way, to spend time with all six grandparents, to meet the Bonds-Pate side of the family, to see beloved friends, and of course to eat fish tacos!

We started with a few days in Houston with Mimi and Pops, otherwise known as Adam's parents. A friend of Miriam's hosted a delightful babyshower for us, and even though I was extremely jet lagged, Naz did great! He cooed and smiled, I think he even pooped for them. Then we packed everything up and headed to Austin.

In Austin we spent time at Nana and Sampa's house, otherwise knows as Sam and Connie (Sera's Step-daddy and Mom). We had such a heavenly time relaxing, going for walks to the farmer's market, spending time with friends, and eating a taco everyday.

Then the aunties and uncles blew into town for a big music festival, South By SouthWest. Naz took in his first full day of music in style, sleeping through two punk shows. He again wowed the crowds as people approached us all day asking if they could take a picture of this adorable baby decked out in his tye-die and noise reducing headphones. A great day!

Nana turned 32 while we in town, and so we all spent some time celebrating our Mom, wife, and Nana. There was a bowling party, a sushi dinner extravaganza, and a pictureque night by the pool sipping wine, eating steak, and listening to Jordyn and Joel play guitar. We miss our families so much, and nights like that one are what we conjure up on days we are feeling particulalry far away and alone. It was really special.
And just in case you thought all of that might be enough, the third set of grandparents came to town: Grandpa and Grandma Bonds! It was the first time Naz was meeting them, and he was so excited (he told me so). We spent two days together walking by Town Lake (which is really a river, but who is counting???) and eating ribs! We miss you and can't wait to see you both again this fall.

I would be completely remiss if I didn't include this yummy picture of my favorite Mom, besides my own obviously, Erin. Here she is loving my baby, as I have loved hers now for 12 and 10 years (is that possible???). Thank you for inspiring me to be a Mom, Erin. I hope I can do this even half as gracefully as you do!

And here is Naz with his new friend, Leilani, who came to Austin to do some COHI work with me while I was stateside. So loving!

Here we are, in line at security starting the 26 hour return trip. We miss you all, can't wait to see you soon!

Going Dutch

2009-05-12T07:40:00.007+03:00

For Passover holiday this year we decided to return to Adam's ancestral home place: Amsterdam. Adam's mother was born here and for a reason that continues to escape us, her family decided to leave to move to Canada???? Well, had it not been for that move there would have been no Adam, so I can't complain too much, but we are seriously considering a return trip for this Rosenbloom-Bonds clan for an extended period of time as we found we, well, loved it. All of it: pickled herring sandwiches, the green green parks spotted throughout the town, water at every turn, trains and buses running on time with special space allocated for strollers, and of course, the relaxed atmosphere of Europe in general.

The streets all have several lanes: two for bikes, to for cars, two for pedestrians, and two more for the trains. Needless to say one can't wander aimlessly too much, and it took us a while to get used to having to look before we crossed so many times, but we made it.

We rented a flat directly across from Oosterpark, here is the signing pointing the way to our house.

Here is the front yard, gorgeous....

The view out of our windows was of the onion domes atop the spires of a local Museum with the trees blooming pink and purple buds. Here is a pic of Naz and I enjoying a sunset from the kitchen window.

People keep asking us, so what did you do in Amsterdam? And sheepishly we admit that we walked, and little more. Here is one of the many streets we enjoyed, just wandering but far from lost!

I mean we ate great food, mostly at the flat where we cooked and packed picnics, we saw some art, we checked out coffeeshops, Adam saw Boby Dylan. We visited old friend we love and miss. Here are Meike and Olva, our Dutch friends we met in Tibet and shared a car with for 10 days on our way to Nepal.

We spent as much time with these two as we could. They fed us brilliant homecooked meals, as well as some impressive Indonesian. They also were kind enough to give up thier own bed one night so we could stay with them after we'd missed our flight back to Israel, oops! I am including this because many aspects of thier life are inspiration for us in settling down one day: thier hallway lined with books is just one!

Naz worked hard pushing out his first two teeth, learned to sleep in the stroller, rode the trains, and melted hearts. Here are some images for you to consider, with some brief notes to clue you in to thier contents:

Here Adam introduces Naz to our first coffeeshop. Really, we really just had coffee!

This is Adam's family friend, Dafna, who met us for a lovely breakfast one day. Really, she looks like a Rosenbloom, doesn't she?

Here we are walking in the sunshine with our good friend Natalie Kapp who came to spend the weekend with us, taking a break from Geneva where she lives these days. Was delicious to see her, thanks so much for coming, Dr. Kapp!

Adam and Naz enjoyed so much time together, here they are getting ready to take a shower washing of the day's grit and grime (ahahahhaha, right).

We tried lots of new foods, including some spinich that Naz is sampling here at a cafe at Oosterpark.

Starry Night, anyone?
Dad and son enjoying a train ride to check out the tulips in the countryside.

Tulips, windmills, and Mom. What a great combo!

One of our many afternoons spent enjoying a beer and some herring at a cafe in the warm spring sunshine.

We will leave you with this gorgeous smile from our little wonder. We had such a perfect trip, and we really do hope to be able to live in Amsterdam someday soon. Shall we reserve a room for you now?

Lots of love,

Adam, Sera, and Naz

Our first war

2009-02-04T12:46:00.009+02:00

It seems I've been swept away by the not only the thundering sound of rockets, but also by the power of motherhood these last four months and you haven't heard much from me here. That may be preferable as I have a hard time following a train of thought through to its natural end these days. I call it "milk head", and I am high, high, high on it! That said, the war here is too hard to talk about most days being this close to us, and so we are just trying to get through with open hearts and as little fear as we can muster.

Naz is growing literally before our very eyes. Each morning when I wake, he seems bigger than the day before. He is rolling over, sometimes, now, and often reaches out to touch my face while nursing. The sweetest moments are passing between us, and I cannot believe how much I love this motherhood gig. The best thing going, really.

As for our "other" lives, outside of parenthood (is there such a thing anymore?), Adam is in his surgery rotation now and comes home each day with tales of staples, colons outside of bodies, and other magical feats of medicine. I am busy, busy with COHI and loving what 2009 is already bringing us.

I am trying to find a way back to the lines I find myself crafting as I sit, watching him. Its my fave pastime, and that's a good thing as I do it so often. I love to watch his small hands pawing like a kitten on my chest when he nurses, breath slowing for us both, as we quiet ourselves for naps. I revel is his daily successes like finding his feet, reaching out for things he wants to know more about, his smile growing with each day just like his mind and body. I sometimes, in my weaker moments, wonder how many years are between me and a full night's sleep (what is that?), but do my best to remind myself that these moments are fleeting, never to return. That grounding thought is enough to bring me back to the moment, and breathe him in. His sweet small, bottomless eyes, wondrous giggle, and deep, slow sleeping breathes. I love this boy of mine, thank you for coming to join us.

This blog does not have a very hopeful title, I am afraid. But it is the reason that we spent a month+ up north seeking refuge from rockets hitting literally too close to home. Luckily, we had a place to go while Israel and Hamas battled it out in Southern Israel in the month of December-January. Our midwife and friend, Mindy, and her husband, Avner, so kindly opened their home to us and we gratefully accepted. Here are some super cute picures of these gentle people hanging out with baby Naz.

Don't feel to bad for us, though, as the daily quality of life greatly improved. Adam was able to do most of his surgery rotation at a hospital in Haifa and received one-on-one training most days. Here he is napping with Naz after one of his early morning shifts.

Naz and I enjoyed the greenery of the Galilee, and Shula, sadly for us, found a new home on the Moshav where Mindy and Avner live. A family asked us if they could have her, we thought long and hard about it, and in the end why would be take her to a studio apartment in Harlem when she could live in this dog's paradise with no fences???

Our friend Alex brought a woman who would soon become his fiancee, Alyssa, to visit. Alex and Alyssa, we can't wait to see you this fall for your wedding!

Election day was monumentous for us, even here. I found myself singing the National Anthem with a warm heart and wet eyes, tossing Naz into the air, and squealing, "Barak Obama is YOUR Presdent!!!!" The most American mean we could come up with was McDonald's and so we did, yes we did, and then we all promptly got sick. Worth every moment. It was a historic day I will never forget.

At the end of the day, loving my family like this is what gives me hope. That is what we all need right now: hope that a kinder day will prevail and this madness will stop. Until then, we are blessed beyond measure to have a safe, loving place to go.

Thank Mindy and Avner for letting us into your home.

Until next time.....

Adam, Sera, and Naz

Six weeks and a day

2008-11-13T14:14:00.002+02:00

It seems sometimes he's been with us forever, and then a moment later as though he just arrived. Naz and his parents are truly enjoying their ride together as a family so far. Its so much fun to just watch him, which is what we do almost all of the time as of late!

Our days have a bit of a routine to them. In case you are interested, here is what they look like:

6:30 am Adam's alarm clock goes off for what will be the first of many notifications that its time for him to start his day. At about this time Naz and Sera usually rouse themselves for the last of the nursing sessions taking place in the quiet of the family bed. Shula patiently waits for someone to let her outside.

7 am Adam heads to the hospital while the rest of us start our day. Shula chases cats, birds, and the dogs behind the house who jump the fence. Sera and Naz make coffee, change diapers, listen to some relaxing world music, and enjoy one another. Naz is truly his father's child as he wakes every morning smiling. Its wonderful.

Until about 10 am Naz nurses, Sera puts him in various position on her body to find something that comforts him. Shula goes in and out and in and out of the house hoping Sera will see her bored expression and take her for a walk. About this time at the hospital Adam has successful poked several patients as he spends his mornings practicing his blood draws. Hopefully around this time Naz falls asleep either on his own (praise God) or on the boob.

Afternoons Until around 1 Naz, Shula, and Sera enjoy a mostly serene scene at home. Then as the light shifts, so does the mood it seems. Naz has enters his fussy phase (please let this be a stage and not his way of being all of the time, every afternoon for the rest of his life!) when nothing satisfies. He moves from sleep to feeding to crying every twenty minutes or so from around 2 until 6. Sera nurses seemingly non-stop. Shula is done being patient and starts trying to herd us to the front gate. Adam is in class for an hour every afternoon, and then he studies for a bit before coming home around 4.

4-6 We head to the smelly dog park with Shula in tow. Naz is in his Baby Bjorn as we can't seem to master the Sling quite yet. He fusses, falls asleep, nurses, looks around, and sighs. Adam and Sera hang out talking of their days that seemingly from Sera's perspective look more and more routine. Shula runs, runs, eats trash, chases other dogs, and gets treats.

6-7 Shula and Naz eat. Adam and Sera cook and get ready for Naz's bath. It is usually during this hour that Naz puts on his greatest vocal performance of the day. Truly impressive. We do our best to "om" him through it, knowing that the bath is where he settles down. Adam is the nightly bather and they love this time together. Lots of cooing sounds can be heard coming from the room, and Sera slams her dinner, some water, and prepares to head to bed with Naz after the bath.

7 pm onward Sera and Naz nurse in bed for what is pretty consistently 12 hours now, with a few breaks for diaper changes, burping, and some slight fussing. Adam studies, does laundry, dishes, talks on the phone, and watches the Daily Show. Shula waits for us to call her in for the night, where she will take up her slumber on the couch waiting for it all to start again.

There you have it. Life as we know it today. We look forward to the day that he can tell us what he needs with words, or at least a gesture we can recognize. For now, we are all just finding our way. Sometimes when I look at him I think it would be really scary to have only been here for six weeks and not to be able to understand anything that goes on around me. Maybe that is why he cries sometimes, I have no idea. We are doing our best to reassure him that we love him, that we are so glad he is here, and that he is safe. We should all be so lucky to have someone tell us that everyday, right?

Check out www.nazrosenbloom.com for the latest pics of our little man engaging in such amazing feats as taking a bath and sneezing!

From us.....

Naz's debut

2008-10-09T12:51:00.006+02:00

We headed up north to the birth center a few days before his arrival. This allowed for plenty of time to settle in, and enjoy one another as we passed our last few days as a duo. Here we are at the beach the day before labor started.

Naz Menno Rosenbloom
Born October 1, also Rosh Hashanah and the Eid (last feast of Ramadan!)
Named after the city where he was born, Nazareth, and Adam's mother's father whose anniversary of his death was today.
Weight at birth was 8.8 Ibs and length as 22 inches

The labor was everything I'd ever hoped it would be: deeply hard, gratifying, and raw. Adam was a rock and was with me contraction for contraction for all 30 hours. We labored at a birth center in the Galilee and were attended by two midwife friends of mine here, they were amazing. The hours we labored we walked in the gardens, danced to music prepared by my sister (awesome mixes of Bruce Springsteen, Pat Benetar, and other such inspiring faves to me), and spent lots of time in the water in the tub at the birth center. Everything I'd ever wanted. We really had a great time.

However, after 30 hours of long, hard labor I was stalled out at 7 centimeters (for about 8 hours) and little Naz had not even entered the birth canal. We all decided it was best to transfer to the private Arab hospital in Nazareth. Upon arrival I decided with calm and contentment to have a cesarean as the idea of laboring with an epidural for some mystery amount of more hours with little hope of moving him down was too much for me. So, Mindy our midwife and I headed into a surreal, uneventful surgery and Adam awaited the arrival of Naz to join him in the nursery so he wouldn't be alone. Given the circumstances, as lovely as it could be. Really.

Here is the view from our hospital room, Nazareth.

Being in the hosptial was hard, I won't lie. People in and out of the room every hour, an incredible amount of pain, and a great sense of isolation as it was just Adam, the babe, and I. Every once in a while folks would drop by and each times I felt my spirits soar. But I needed to get out of there, so I checked myself out three days early and we headed back to the birth center.

We returned to the birth center for some water and cranial/sacral therapy, and to try to catch up with all that transpired in our bodies and spirits in the last week. We arrived home in Be'er Sheba last night to a clean house, a stocked fridge, and meals that keep arriving provided by our friends in Adam's program here. What a wonderful community we feel apart of.

Thanks for the love, keep it coming. We are doing well all in all. The current focus for us is that I am having some trouble nursing while doing my best to not get swept under by the emotions and hormones shifting inside of me. A full time job, both. Adam's family is here, and I can't even describe how helpful that is. Let us know when the rest of you will be cruising by, we can't wait to see you!!!!

More to come, promise!

Wedding video

2008-09-20T17:51:00.001+02:00

Hi folks,

We've recently received this incredible wedding video as a gift from Adam's brother, Jonas, and his truly talented wife, Nava. I hope you enjoy it; what an incredible day it was~

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xT0evGD4K34

The grass is always greener in Vermont

2008-08-07T22:30:00.004+03:00

I write these sad lines on the runway of Burlington International Airport, as we wait. Rain, rain, rain is the theme of the last week or so here in Vermont, and it won't let me go it seems as we wait, again, for the rain to pass so the plane can fly. That said, wow.....it sure is green here!

Adam and I passed a leisurely week + a few days with his family at their farm, Hyde Away, in Vermont. It is currently the third wettest summer on record, which makes for raging rivers, lush greenery, and jungled gardens. We had a wonderful time, even making it up to Montreal for a day to enjoy a tea shop, bagels, and the required stop at Schwarz's smoked meat counter.

Several of our friends who are somewhat local to the area, as well as some extended Rosenblooms who were close at hand, joined us for a baby shower. And it showered, and showered, and showered! We painted onezies, ate tasty treats, received henna tattoos, and even watched a birth movie. Our kind of party.

I sit here on the run way waiting to go to NYC, Adam has already flown west and spent a night of debauchery with friends in Las Vegas. We will reconvene for a brunch with friends in NYC on Sunday before heading later that day to Israel, via Rome. So, there is more to come of our adventures this summer but I wanted to post some of the baby shower pictures here for your viewing. Yes, I am getting bigger by day and this wee one is a tad bit antsy as it doesn't stay still for long! Eightish more weeks to go until we meet it, and I am enjoying the last few weeks of round, full Sera before I become an official member of the Mothering Tribe.

There are a few other images compliments of our wedding photographer, Orah Moore, and a one year wedding anniversary gift from the Rosenblooms. It was really fun! Hope you enjoy them, and the glamor that pregnancy CAN be.

Enjoy the pics, and more to come soon!

Tight as ticks

2008-07-10T21:29:00.000+03:00

Hello gentle readers, I have a tale or two to tell of my recent adventures to the hills of Arkansas. Yes, spending time with the red-neck kin there always proves entertaining; full of meat, water, and pyrotechnics. I am including some pictures here for your to get a sense of what the place looks like; gorgeous really. And at the end I have a story to tell you all of a small girl and her lucky fur. Read to the end and you shall be rewarded with a chuckle or two.

For the American 4th of July, i.e Independence Day holiday, I flew all of 1.5 hours to my east to join my clan in Arkansas. It was a super quick trip: 35 minute flight from Austin to Dallas, and one hour from there to Little Rock, for three short days. My proud papa gathered me at the airport whisking me away to his house just north of Little Rock in a rural community called Caddo. There we passed a nice afternoon pondering how it is that only 1/2 of his mother-in-law's double wide trailer was delivered. Where, indeed, was its mate? All in good time, I am sure.

We headed that evening an hour 1/2 north to our family farm in central Arkansas in a town aptly called, Clinton. Arkansas, like much of the Mississippi delta region, continues to find itself battling rising waters in rivers, creeks, septic tanks and the water keeps coming. This makes for a green wonderland, but also one too wet for its own good. Farmers are really struggling and there wasn't a vine ripe tomato to be found!

Here is a photo of the waterfall directly behind my grandmother's house. It was just outside my bedroom window and I felt a bit as though I was at a spa as I was lulled in and out of sleep by its melodic mantra of wetness.

Here is an action shot of my Macgyver like father cutting the brush so his expansive daughter and her girth can get a good view of the water. Thanks dad.....

Water was definitely the theme of this most recent trip to the Ozarks. I grew up swimming in this wondrous lake: Greer's Ferry. Its one of the largest man-made lake in the US and this summer its even bigger. The water was up so high (how high was it, you ask??) that when I started each swimming session last weekend I started next to a picnic table surrounded by pine trees, swam over a massive parking lot, and then finally out to the buoy. I learned to water-ski, scuba dive, and fish on this lake and it holds a special place in my heart. Part of me feels like I am home when I am there. Does a body good to have a few such places in the world to return to.

My dad is a real life cowboy, for those of you who haven't had the good fortune to meet him yet. He hosts a massive rodeo, in collaboration with the neighboring ranch, each Labor Day: The National Chuckwagon Races. You can visit his website here to see some action shots: http://www.southforktrailrides.com.

Here is one of his trusty companions seen eying me for more tortilla chips. I was sharing my chips with her, and she was really enjoying them. Its pretty funny to listen to a horse eat tortilla chips.

One of the tasty treats that I look forward to the most when I am in Arkansas with my Dad is eating local meat. And when I mean local, I mean its from our land. My Dad's baby brother, Dan, still has a hearty cattle herd wandering the place and these burgers seen here are a product of his efforts. Well, of the cow's efforts, really. Can't say the hot dogs were local. I mean, is there even such a thing given the true nature of a hot dog? Anyway, the baby seemed to enjoy its first sampling of a Bonds-grown burger, and its mother certainly did, as well.

When I am in Clinton I stay at my grandma Betty's house. My grandfather, Herman, passed away about 10 years ago. There are many photos of the two of them and their years together gracing the walls of the house where my father grew up. This is one of my faves. I like to think of them as cartoons sometime defying gravity, escaping falling Acme anvils, scaling mountains in a single bound, and looking at each other with little hearts coming out of their eyes. We miss you grandpa.

Here is a pretty picture of my pop, my step-ma, my grandma, and me. My family was so nice to me when I was with them: telling me how healthy I look, cooking my fave foods, and humoring me by letting me watch the swimming Olympic trials. GO DARA TORRES!!!!! She is my new hero and I have a photo of her I am going to take to my birth with me. If she can break TWO American records at age 41, making her 5th Olympic team, I can birth this baby.

Ok, you've done well. You made it to the end of the blah blah blah blog. Now for the tale of the little girl and her lucky fur.

I went to Greer's Ferry Lake each day at least once to ease the burden of the extra 20 pounds I am carrying these days. Its phenomenal how much better my whole being feels after spending some time surrounded by water, weightless. On most of these visits I was the only person at the beach due to some powerfully majestic thunderstorms passing through. Ah, sweet solitude.

Something you may not know about me is that I ADORE swimming in big open bodies of water during thunderstorms. Really, I do. I know, not the safest smartest idea I've ever had considering I am now responsible for another body currently in residence in its own large, naturally occurring body of water, but I couldn't resist. Floating on my back, the water meeting the sky and the clouds, hearing only my own heartbeat, breath, and thunder; I am fully at peace. Anyway, on one of these serene visits to the lake, my solitude was broken by the arrival of a small girl.

She was about seven or eight years old, I am guessing. Her parents were pretty busy chasing her younger brother in his under-roos up and down the shore, so she was free to play in the water as she desired. And apparently all of her own accord, she brought along something very special.

She and I started chatting innocently enough when I was taking a break from swimming out the buoy and back to the shore. We were chatting about how her father had "lost" the boat, so she was bound to the swimming area this summer. I asked where he had put the boat, if he'd lost it. She didn't seem impressed with my wit, and remarked that he'd had to sell it. All the while she was playing with what looked to my untrained eye as a piece of plain black fabric.

Once I had won her confidence with my empathy regarding her restricted summer plans sans watercraft, she beckoned me closer, whispering, "Do you want to meet my friend?"

I replied with abundant curiosity as one can never have too many friends, "Sure, where is she?"

The little girl looked at me as though I was pretty dim witted, "Um, right here." She gestured to her shoulder where she has laid out the piece of thick blackness and was petting it. "This is my pet; my lucky fur".

Now, reader, I am sure that you are all having the same reaction as I did at this point. One mixed with hilarity, curiosity, and sheer wonder. Please feel free to laugh out loud as I could not do at this point as I didn't want to hurt the feelings of this sweet young thing who was clearly enamored with her new and lucky pet fur.

While all the while lovingly, adoringly stroking her pet, she told me tales of their adventures together and of her undying love for this special friend of hers. During the entire soliloquy I am holding my mouth tight, and my inner voice is cackling, open-mouth laughing, at the scene unfolding before me that can only, dear readers, take place in Arkansas and seemed so natural when shared through a thick southern drawl.

So, when I couldn't hold it together any longer, I excused myself from the scene and returned to my laps. When I was about 40 yards away from the girl and her pet, I (as was anyone within earshot) was stunned by a soul piercing scream coming....."MY LUCKY FUR!!!!!!!"

I quickly reversed my direction and swam as fast as this I could, dragging this big ole pregnant lady (and if I do say so myself, I can still set a good pace even with this weight around my gut) body with me. When I reached the little girl, she was inconsolable, and her father (beer and cigarette in hand) was saying the well intended but inappropriate things, "Hush up, I will buy you a new one from the feed store" and "It ain't that lucky if you done lost it!".

It seems, fair reader, that she had dropped her lucky fur in the lake, and it had sunk to the bottom. Never to be seen again.

At this point I couldn't hold it in at all and was openly, blatantly laughing. Thanking the angels around me for this bit of social satire helping to ease my own discomfort with my own family that I was feeling. What a great trip this could be, if I could just laugh through it rather than being so disturbed by it all! A profound realization for me, really, it was.

So, our young heroine is standing on the beach, encased by storm clouds both above and within. I timidly approached, giggle and all. I offered her the consolation that perhaps it was time for her lucky fur to bring some luck to someone else, attempting to appeal to her benevolent side.

"NO!!!!! THAT WAS MY LUCKY FUR AND I WANT IT BACK!"At this point, I have to admit, my sentiment changed, as did my perspective. I realized that this was not just a young child having a meltdown in our midst, this was my future. As I teeter on the edge of motherhood, I find that I have these kind of daily musings now: damn, that could be my child...fill in the blank: screaming inconsolably over something as seemingly insignificant as a piece of black fur, punching that kid over there, demanding a new Elmo toy at the top if her lungs. Whatever. Wow, this is my future.

That said, let us return to the tale of the lucky fur. The young girl, swaddled in her brightly colored beach towel, cried, gazed longingly at the lake, and mourned the loss of her friend. I really felt for her. But no one else seemed to. Her father had returned to his beer and his buddies, and her little brother was still chasing the waves in his panties up and down the beach. She continued to cry, and even about thirty minutes later when I was leaving the lake, she was still whimpering.

The next day when I went back to the beach to swim, I saw the little girl. She was laughing, riding her bike with her mother. She seemed fully recovered from the trauma of the previous day, and to have come to terms with her loss.

This is the image I want to take away with me. As ridiculous and light as the idea of a girl and her lucky fur are to me, and as thankful as I am that this comical gem landed in my lap at the time it did, I want to remember that she got over it. She moved on. We all do.

This child growing in my belly will have its heart broken. It will loose things, friends, pets, dreams, and hopes. But if I do my job well, it will move on to love again, and to make room in its heart for others. For perhaps, a lucky fur of its own.

We should all be so lucky!

And your reward for reading all the way to the end: a picture of me and my growing motherhood.

Happy trails, everyone!

Life in Austin, ahhhhhhhhhh

2008-06-23T23:06:00.000+03:00

Adam and I've both been here now for two whole weeks, and boy oh boy, are we enjoying it. We've already been visited by both of our families, and some long lost friends from the arctic: Minnesota, really. Here are some pics of us enjoying our families, friends, and the fun & sun of Austin. More to come, rest assured.....

Adam and my bro, Zack, playing WII boxing. Its actually really fun, and a good workout!

Adam's sis, Nancy Pants, my sibs, Jordyn and Zack, getting rowdy out at my folks' place in Austin's hill country. This is what the heat does to you!

Two of the three of our dad's were together for Father's Day for a brunch and dinner party. Here is Sam, Sera's step-dad, reading a card.

Adam's folks and Adam here opening his father's day gifts.
Watching the Lakers get pummeled, it was glorious.....

Pretty feet and fishes in the hill country.

Adam hard at work studying for his USMLE exam.

Nature's fly catcher, otherwise known as a jar full of sugary water to drown the poor things in. This is what we do to pass time sometimes in these parts....

This is the view from the back patio at a local joint, Oasis, on the lake here in Austin. A great place for sunset viewing!

And our Nordic kindred who came to visit, Nicole and Jeff. Was so great to see you too, we miss you already. Thanks for making the time to come see us, it means a great deal.

So that about brings us up to speed. The bump and I are now 28 weeks along, can you believe it! And so you don't all start freaking out about flying etc, I gently remind you that we have plenty of time to get home and have this baby. But for now, we are loving our time in Austin and together before the arrival of the wee one.

Hope to see many of you soon, love from us!

Change of scenery

2008-06-11T22:15:00.000+03:00

Adam and I arrived safely, and somewhat soundly here in the land of Oz: Austin, Texas. We feel as though we've landed on another planet. One where people speak the same language that we do, where you can order a meal and the waiter doesn't yell at you, and has huge cars cruising the highway as if gas prices weren't rising everyday!

Before we both headed away from our sandbox, Adam made sure to honor his last exam and to make certificates for everyone who attended the ethics course he led this last semester. He can be seen here giving out one of the fancy certificates to one of his classmates.

He is now settling into his "job" this summer of 8-10 hours a day of studying for his Step One USMLE exam. To be fair, he took his first practice exam yesterday and already scored a passing grade, so its just a matter of scoring as high as he can so we can have some control when it comes time for him to place into his residency in 2010. Go Doctor Adam!

I arrived stateside about two weeks before Adam to get some COHI face time with our dedicated Board of Directors, staff, and some volunteers. Here are some of us at the Board retreat in upstate NY.

I then went to NYC where I packed in as many meetings as I could, before getting the flu. I just can't do what I used to able to do before this little one joined me. All in all, though, I had some wonderful meetings and things are moving right along for this little, fledgling organization. COHI is full of Geminis so we had a group birthday party while I was in NYC, as well. What a great way to kick off a new year!

Adam and I are now in Austin. He is studying, and I am doing a fellowship for NARAL Texas Pro-Choice. I will continue to fill my day with my COHI related work, as well, but I am starting to look forward to a year+ from now when I will be stateside for a good chunk of time and would like to perhaps get into politics a bit. So I am trying that on this summer, we will see how it feels.

We'd love to see you all this summer, but I recommend you wait until Adam's exam is over: July 25th, so he can play, too. This is the view out his back porch while he studies, so don't feel too badly for him!

We hope that all is well in your corners of the world, and lets meet up soon!

Sera, Adam, and the bump

Tempura baby

2008-05-14T19:11:00.000+03:00

Adam, baby, and I spent an hour last night with an OB/GYN in the plush suburb of Be'er Sheba called Omer. Its where most of the professors and doctors live and it feels a bit like southern California with big stucco houses, green lawns, and big cars. All the same, we went there to visit Dr. Maymon, one of Adam's professors in the reproductive unit in school for a private ultra-sound. Let me explain a bit....

Israel does more genetic testing than any other country. Reason: lots of inter-marriage in the Bedouin community, and closely related gene pools in the Ashkenazi Jewish populations. Both communities are strongly urged to do genetic counseling and testing BEFORE marriage. Either way, all OB/GYNS require this special, 3D, ultrasound at 20 weeks of gestation. These factors make Israel, especially the southern part where we live, a fascinating place to study genetics. Or so I am told by all our geeky medical student friends.

We were not so hip to do this since we are minimalists when it comes to intervening in this pregnancy, but its the only ultra-sound our midwife, Mindy, requires. Additionally, this test isn't covered by insurance. Ironically, most of our prenatal, delivery, and postnatal care within the mainstream system (blood tests, ultrasounds) isn't covered by insurance although we bought the special "pregnancy package". When we complain about this additional, significant cost we are often presented with the suggestion that we should just become citizens of Israel. Then all of our problems would be solved, right? Ha, not quite. Anyway, I am getting away from the story.

So, off we went to Omer last night.

We arrived at the residence of Dr. Maymon, with his office behind his home. It was certainly the most western office we've encountered here so far: bookshelves with lots of medical books, pictures on the wall of babies he delivered, and a coffee machine! In the back room, with nice soft lighting, was this amazing ultrasound machine complete with flat screen TV on the wall facing the table the patient lies on so she can watch the whole thing in full-on technicolor and 3D.

The test was about an hour long, and we did not find out the sex of the little one. Gentle reader, you will have to keep tuning in to find that out. But we found out just about everything else. If our baby were a trading card, here would be her/his stats:

97% for weight according to gestational age
It has lips, eye lenses, and a nose (that looks like Adam's)
It has two kidneys
It has all four limbs that are all well above 50% for length according to gestational age
The fetal position during the exam was vertex (its head was on my left side)
The spine was anterior (towards the top)
The umbilical cord is inserted in the middle of the placenta (where it should be)
There is the right amount of amniotic fluid
It has ten fingers and ten toes
It weighs a bit more than 1 pound

What we learned about our baby from watching it on the screen: it doesn't like to be seen, it kept hiding its face and turning away from the belly camera; it is SUPER long, could be an Olympic swimmer or NBA star; and it is super mobile. That explains my incredibly sore belly. We also saw it scratch its face; so cool.

So where this leaves us. Mindy is happy as it seems our little one is seemingly very healthy so we are free to move forward with planning for our water birth. We still have a very elusive due date. According to some measurements from this test, the baby is at 20 weeks and 5 days of development. Then according to others, like the length of its leg bones, its at 22 weeks and 5 days. We are confident it will arrive just when it means to, and not a moment before. But we are sorry for those of you who are trying to plan travel to be here as it could be as early as September 22, or as late as October 5. All we know is, it will come to meet us when it chooses. And we will do our best to wait, patiently and gracefully.

Here are some pictures of our deep-fried baby (my sister says the pics look like the baby is being batter fried, I tend to agree). These are likely to be the last images we see of our little one before we meet her/him in the flesh. Enjoy!

Birth of two kinds

2008-05-07T15:27:00.001+03:00

I feel as though I witnessed a birth last weekend. Not to the growing baby inside of me that stars in the last few lines and photos of this blog posting, but to a project we've been working on since 2004. COHI was finally able to host and sponsor the first meeting of Israeli and Palestinian midwives as part of our coexistence work in the mid-east last week. To say that I was humbled, moved, and inspired would not do the experience justice. I want to share some of the photos with you, there will be more published on the COHI site soon, but please take a few moments to bask in our success.

I served as the facilitator for the weekend's activities, and while this was a great honor, it was also a great challenge. We spoke together in English as this is our shared language. But many of the midwives from both groups don't speak English often and so there were some funny miscommunications. As the excitement mounted, women were speaking over one another and so we resorted to the old "talking stick" protocol. But as we were in a birth center, we used a fetascope as it was closer at hand.

Here is our token man, he is used to this role in these settings. He tends to disappear all day, running errands for us, and then shows up when chores need to be done. What a man, what a man. He can be seen here washing up the day's tea cups at the birth center after the first day's event.
Mindy, the Israeli coordinator for this project as well as our midwife and COHI Board member, can be seen here hugging two of the Palestinian participants. This is the sentiment that exuded from everyone present all weekend. It was heavenly, really.

The workshop over the course of the weekend paired up midwives from both groups to present on protocols regarding all aspects of labor and delivery in their countries. It was a great place to start the conversations between the women and to keep things focused on midwifery. Here are two midwives, one from each group, demonstrating some positioning options for delivery. Truly supporting one another!
Below you will see the entire group, minus one of the Israeli midwives who was called to a birth early in the am. I hope that the friendship, partnership, and goodwill established through our first few days together continues to grow, proving that peace is indeed possible in this part of the world, and women just may be the ones to make it so!

Adam and I stayed on for a day so we could do our scheduled pre-natal with Mindy. I thought you might enjoying seeing some of what our process involves, and the place where the baby will hopefully make its debut.

Here is our midwife, Mindy Levy, who is also a dear friend and COHI Board member, checking my blood pressure. It was just where it is supposed to be.

Adam working through the various positions that the baby takes as it moves through the birth canal. Lots of work for that little baby!

I have a a tipped uterus, meaning that my pregnancy is in the front of my body rather than in the middle. Mindy is modeling for us how my uterus is extending out over my pelvis right now, but as the pregnancy progresses it will straighten out. This is why I am showing so much, so early.
Adam checking my proteins, again, right where they should be. Reminds me of checking the chlorine levels at the pool all of those years. The scientist in him really enjoys this part of the appointments, I think.

This is the garden out back from the birth center, where should I feel up to walking during my labor I can wander around. Not a bad place to bring a new life into the world, eh?

This is the size of our baby as of now: 19 weeks, plus a few days. See the cell phone placed next to the picture so you can get the scale. No, the baby isn't making a call.

You can see here Mindy measuring what is called the fundal height. As it is, when I lie down the majority of the pregnancy disappears due to the tipping action of my uterus. We measured me both lying down and when I stand up. When I stand up, its significantly larger. All the same, I am where we should be with this, as well. Or I should say, the baby is where it should be!

So there you have it, an update on all of the excitement that we've joined in over the last week. I am set to fly away in less than a month to the US, and Adam will join me there in early June. We can't wait to see many of you quite soon, and we will post any news about things from our sandbox should we have the chance.

Love from us,

Adam, Sera, and the bump

Holiday meditations: aquariums and downward dog

2008-04-25T10:10:00.000+03:00

Adam and I are still cleaning the sand of the Red Sea from our clothes and backpacks as we bask in the wonder of our most resent holiday. We returned late last night from a week in Dahab, Egypt, on the Red Sea. Our bodies, minds, and hearts are all the lighter as a result and we've found a new place to return to someday with our growing family for more of the same. All of this only five hours away from our humble routines here in Israel. We won't stay away long, that is for sure!

We left our home in Be'er Sheba and headed to the bus station here early last Friday AM. We both left with a great sense of purpose and pride as I had spent the previous day helping our neighbor though her first labor. She succeeded on all counts in the natural delivery of little Alice Nell. I was acutely aware during this labor of what is approaching on the horizon for me! Adam completed his Neuroanatomy exam last week, and is totally engrossed in his new system: the reproductive system. Appropriate, no? So, well aware of where we will find our selves in four+ months, we headed off on our last international holiday sans children.

This week is Passover, and there is always Shabbat to consider when planning for over-land border crossings (Shabbat is a weekly holiday here in Israel for the sabbath where most things including public transport and borders close from sundown Friday through sundown Saturday). So we have to be sure to reserve our tickets, arrive early, and be patient as the place will be packed. Riding buses in Israel is not for the faint of heart, or for those with a fear of pushing. I cease to be amazed with the hostile disregard for other's space, safety, and the polar opposite of this westerner's idea of order that individuals arm themselves with as we board buses here. Sadly, I shamefully admit to partaking in this madness, as well. It overcomes me as I get in line and wait for my seat: I put on my game scowl, sharpen my elbows, and prepare to take no prisoners.

That said, we made it on to the bus in plenty of time (we always do, in spite of the urgency with which people push and shove) and just to help you get a sense of what this experience does to me in spite of my deep breathing and well intended goal of not getting cranky, here is a photo adam took of me once we reached our seats. Looking tough, eh? Really, I was just cranky.

Dahab is only five hours from our doorstep in Be'er Sheba~amazing! The drive through the desert looks a lot like this the whole way: rock, sand, sandy rocky mountains. And then, all of a sudden, there is water!!!!

We arrived in mid-afternoon. I took my first of many naps, and Adam went to wander a bit to scout things out. This is a pic of Dahab from a hill just outside of town. A small-ish place teeming with ex-pats running hotels, dive companies, and the like. That part was unexpected. We stayed in the only Bedouin-owned hotel in town, it was amazing. Its called the Bedouin Moon Hotel, and we highly recommend it.

Here is the view from our hotel room. We would sit out on our patio in the evenings, watching the light slip away enjoying the cool evening air. Most evenings we walked about 30 minutes through town for dinner, after the last call to prayer broadcast on some serious sound systems by the local Mullah at the city's mosque.

The week passed in a deepening state of relaxation for us both. Adam spent his week underwater, reading his first non-medical books in over a year, and eating an impressive amount of chicken Kabob. He would try to describe to me his experiences during his underwater jaunts. He told me it feels like being on the inside of an aquarium; with full mobility. Being able to go up, down, sideways, front, backwards; a feeling of full physical expression.

Adam also joined me for a few yoga classes and he expressed a feeling of more mindfulness on his breath underwater thanks to the instruction in from the local Yogi. He looked like a different person as we were leaving: relaxed, renewed, and standing a bit straighter!

I spent my time in yoga for a few hours each day, reading wonderful books, and napping either by the pool or in our gorgeous hotel room with a view of the Red Sea. The yoga sessions were every morning and each afternoon for two hours. We did a great deal of breath work, mediation, and lots of good stretches and openers for hips and backs. There were only four of us, students, and so we received a great deal of personal attention

We enjoyed one another so much. The quality time we were able to share was just what we needed. Lots of laughing, talking, and also time to recharge on our own. Perfect.

So that brings you all up to speed on the adventures of Adam and Sera in Israel. Adam heads back to class and I head up north for meetings and lectures tomorrow. The next trip takes us across the pond to NY and Texas, touching down briefly in Vermont, Vegas, and Arkansas. Hope to catch some time with you all this summer while we are on that trip, but Adam will have his head to the grindstone with his first board exam at the end of July. We are expecting great things.

And for those of you who are interested, here is a pic of me and our bump~ beaming. We are 18 weeks along now, and feel great!

Lots of love from us,

What we were reading material

Sera: Best Buddhist Writing 2007 an anthology, Harry Potter and The Half-Blood Prince, and Three Cups of Tea by Greg Mortensen

Adam: Gynecology and Obstertics text book, Dress Your Family in Corduroy and Denim by David Sedaris, and The Universe in a Single Atom by the Dalai Lama

Pin-up bride, vermont style

2008-04-14T12:53:00.000+02:00

So, rumor had it that Sera and Adam made it into the magazine, Vermont Bride. Well, its true! And our spread has been posted to the most recent issue. Here is the link, and you are looking for the "Love Story" section, scan down and you will see the anti-bride, bride, Sera, in all her glory (compliments of her gorgeous dress by Nancy) and the full story of our love, wedding, and the rest.

Enjoy, some of you will see yourselves there, as well!

The honeymooners, + bump

LINK: http://www.vermontbridemagazine.com/lovestory.html

Spring pilgrims to the Middle East!

2008-03-29T17:44:00.000+02:00

Blessed by many visitors the last weeks, we have several pics to tempt the rest of you to plan your trip on over to the sandbox. So, without my usual rambling, here are our tales of adventure for your consideration.

Leilani Johsnon, a dear friend of ours from BU and a COHI staff member, dropped by to see the project here and Sera's growing bump. She brought lots of books, pretty stationery, and pelvic models. We, in turn, arranged a tour for her of the entire country by way of local midwives and their homes. Here is a photo journal of her quick trip through the region, and all the new friends she made along the way.

This is what Adam's life looked life, the pilot, for the last few weeks as he drove us all around, and still managed to get in a great deal of studying. Thank you, honey, you're the best!

Here are Adam and Lei out for a hike at Mitzpe Ramon, about an hour away from our place in Be'er Sheba. Its already bloody hot here; hat and sunscreen are required parts of our daily attire.

Sera, looking very mid-east dramatic here with our growing bump. Quite a view, eh?

Here is a model of Masada, the great site of on of the Jew's last stands against the Romans. It is in the middle of the desert, and one can imagine that they thought they were quite safe. The city was complete with a swimming pool, if you can imagine, filled through underwater aquifers that they tapped into.

Here is a sideways shot of what remains of the real castle at Masada. You can hike up the mountain at sunrise to catch the color and drama. Or, you can take a gondola. Guess what we did????

Lei and Adam in the Dead Sea. Lei is holding a ten pound tuperware container full of Dead Sea mud that they filled up, and sits in our shower for late night facial parties and daily scrubs. Its nice to use the local products, you know.

Accompanied by her trusty side kick and world traveling friend, Lisa Morgan, Sera's mom, Connie, made her first jump over the pond to land in Israel. They chose a great time of year: spring, Easter, and Purim. Couldn't ask for a more festive time of year to visit the holy land. The landscape is green, presenting the illusion of a country that can actually support its watering needs. The historic Christian sites were full with Christian pilgrims from as far away as Cote D'Ivoire reminding us that the Christian world is colorful and diverse. Lisa and Mom found both Israeli and Jordanian food, architecture, men to be quite nice to look at, so there was lots of oohing and ahhing along the way.

Here is Lisa, thank goodness for Lisa. She had a full agenda of sites to see, and thanks to her we made it to all kinds of places we wouldn't without her guidance. Thank you, Lisa!

And here is Lisa with posing for one of many shots with pretty local men. Ah, to be single and in the mid-east....Just kidding, honey.

The Church of the Beatitudes, where Jesus gave his sermon on the mount. Sadly, as most of my Christian training came through Monty Python movies, I just kept replaying that scene from "Life of Brian" where they get in a fist fight at the sermon on the mount because they are talking during the sermon, and that hilarious, "Blessed are the Meek, oh isn't that lovely. Its good, because they really do have a hard time of it" uttered in a deep, working class northern British accent.

Looks relaxed, eh? There were many such shots....

A nice view of the old city in Jerusalem from a neighborhood across the street where we found some shade to relax and wait for Lisa to return from Bethlehem.

My mother travels with a complete pharmacy, so don't worry kids, we were safe from just about anything that could've ailed us. Here she is a bit delirious in our hotel room in Petra, Jordan, giggling about how many drugs and such she had with her. Always prepared, thats my Mom!

This is the opening scene as you walk into Petra. Its breathtaking, surreal, and mind blowing all at once. I felt a bit like I was walking through a birth canal, but thats the midwife in me talking.

Then you encounter staggeringly enormous structures such as this one carved directly into the sandstone. An entire city, of which little is known of the inhabitants except that they once ruled the trade routes from Persia through the mid-east to Africa.

This one is at the top of a 6 mile climb. Amazing.

Here we are at the top, it was a wonderful hike, view, and we reached the top by 10 AM. We then headed down and enjoyed a marvelous buffet at a cafe at the bottom of the hill. A nice reward, to be sure.

We bid farewell to Lisa at the border as she headed onto Egypt. Mom and I headed back to spend some quality time in Be'er Sheba, resting, and watching Monty Python. Mom, thank you for coming, we had such a wonderful time with you. We are so thankful for you, for all that you do, and for all that you are. Can't wait until the next time when you come to meet your grand baby. She/he is such a lucky kid to have a Nana Connie.

And for those of you keeping track and with the interest, here is 12 weeks+, ultrasound II. There won't be another until 32 weeks, barring some kind of need, so enjoy it. Look, it has arms!!!!
Hope the rest of you will consider dropping in. We are headed back to the US for June-early August, and then we will most likely be here all through fall, winter, and spring until July of 09 when we head to the US for Adam's final year.

Lots of love from us and our bump, happy trails!

Baby busts a move

2008-03-03T20:36:00.000+02:00

For those of you interested and keeping track, here is the first (and to date, only) photo of little baby Rosenbloom (its the smudge on the left). We will not be finding our the sex or doing any genetic testing, so this may be the only in-utero glimpse we get of this little one before its official debut in late September. We will see how things go; keep those fingers crossed for the quiet, calm, water birth we dream of.

Sera is still struggling to find grace in food, but is doing much much better. Lots of growing taking place inside, but can't be seen or really felt yet. Her waistline is starting to disappear, though. With the exception of nausea nd the general feeling that her body no longer belongs to her, things are well. She is looking forward to enjoying food, an upcoming 10-day pre-natal yoga retreat in Egypt, and cooking again.

Adam is thriving, as always, here in med school la-la land. He aced his neuroanatomy test last week, and can be seen here playing the role of ex-pat West Wing extra pitching to Senator Brownback of Kansas at a fancy hotel in Jerusalem. In between bible thumping and roll calls, he managed to make it out to our neck of the woods to talk to the King of Jordan, mediate mid-east peace, and talk to a bunch of no-name med students. And of course, in person, he didn't breathe fire (those politicians are so smooth). Adam made a pitch to revive the Global Health Corps Act of 2005, offering young doctors the opportunity to work abroad in developing countries on behalf of the American government in return for academic debt relief. He seemed open to the idea, so if the Global Health Corps ever comes to be, you all know who to thank!

Spring is springing here, we are enjoying the longer days, and green (even if its just weeds). Sera's Mom, good family friend, Lisa Morgan, and COHI's Administrator (one of our fave people) Leilani Johnson are all on their way to our home in the next two weeks. Can't wait to see you all, yeah!!!!! We are overjoyed to show some hospitality to those of you who are so generous to us so often in our lives.

More to come, but thought you might be itching for an update. So consider that done. Checking it off the proverbial list....love from us, and little growing baby, too!

Sera and Adam

Passing time

2008-02-14T12:03:00.000+02:00

Not much to report from the sandbox as of late, and thats mostly good, right? Oh, there is that news that we are seven weeks pregnant!!!! No pictures to share on that end, yet, unless you want to see me sitting around complaining about how crappy I feel. I will spare us all that visual.

Adam is hard at work, in fact we found out recently that he is in the TOP 1/3 of his class! I am slaving away for COHI, labor of love that it is, and trying to enjoy food these days. A challenge to be sure.

Just thought I'd post some pictures so you can SEE for yourselves what it is we do to keep ourselves busy during the winter here in B'7. Not much, giggle giggle. That said, enjoy, and we hope to have more adventures to report soon, when the sun shines again with compulsive regularity, hallelujah!

Here is Adam working hard on a puzzle that was a gift from some friends of ours in NY state. Its a 1000 piece Tibetan Mandala. I though, cool, this should take all winter, right? Something for us to do nights. WRONG....

Completed, three days in total. The man is MAD for games, I tell you. Who knew????

Here is a meeting in our back yard of the production committee for the Ensler play we are doing here to raise awareness, and hopefully a bit of money, about violence against women. Yes, it was cold. But colder yet in our frigid house!

Architecture in this town of ours is just straight up freaky. I mean look at this building. Its just a building on the main plaza, nothing special. But with some really strange and surreal, I dare say post-modern and I would if I knew what that means, design. Just adds to the far away feeling I get living here sometimes. Really, the set of star wars is what this place looks like most days. Minus the extra moons and suns.

This winter has been very short on the much needed rain that the Negev requires to survive. Here you can see Adam contributing to the water shortage as he tries to raise the grass seeds he planted from the dusty earth. Good luck, there buddy.

Don't ask. I think it was a day after an exam, the beer started flowing at like noon and this is at like 10 pm. We are pretty hard up for entertainment here, so we have to make our own.

Sera at a meeting in Ramallah with some of the Palestinian midwives, they are such wonderful women. Such a blessing to know and work with them.

Adam giving a presentation of something having to do with....um, the heart, I think? Either way, did I mention that he is in the top 1/3 of his class? So proud!

The best of it

2008-01-12T08:14:00.000+02:00

What I mean by this is the US, and what I am referring to specifically is Austin, Texas. If I am going to be in the US, this is a damn good place to rest my feet. I spent the month of December living large in Austin thanks to the generosity of my parents: facials, pilates, vespas, fish tacos, live music, even some quality public television viewing. Was able to visit lots of friends, as well, although not all of you, sadly. Spent time with the Ma and Pa Bonds in Arkansas, my bro Zack, and the parentals Rosenbloom even dropped by for an extended stay upon their return from a cruise to the Antarctic. Wonderful month it was and here are some pretty pics of how we passed the time in this land of milk and honey (and ribs!). Enjoy....

Here is Adam and my parent's God son, Owen, connecting through legos. Adam is such a mad gamer, who knew? Seriously, I brought a 1000 piece puzzle to Israel and he completed the whole thing in three days! No wonder his brain does so well with micro-biology and such. Here they are making a super big scary spider. Weird.

Adam, myself, and our friend, Bethany, the night before she moved from Austin to Portland, Oregon. Yeah for another reason to go to Oregon! Happy trails, Bethany.

Me and Erin, one of my most special friends who I see all too rarely. She is living and working in Austin these days with developmentally challenged kids, and raising two of the most incredible young women I know.

My favorite kids EVER, Cassie Rae and Zoe, seen here with their Vespa driver. These are my friend Erin's girls that I've knows since they were tiny, tiny and I can't believe how grown up they are! Totally amazing kids, I should be so lucky.

Here is my mom in her cute coat from Adam's sister, Nancy's, place of employment in NYC: Rag and Bone. Her employers are so impressed with Nancy and her sense of style that a new coat aptly called, The Nancy, will hit stores soon. Thank goodness for sisters with style!

Adam had been in the country for less than 48 hours when I made him get in the car so I could drive the ten hours to Arkansas so we could spend Christmas with the Arkansas side of my family. We had some good books on tape, enjoyed some road-side bar-b-q and Starbucks. Upon arrival we were greeted by a real, authentic Christmas dinner complete with cranberry sauce, pecan pie, and dressing. We spent some quality time with my Dad and my Grandmother: she and I looked through old photos dating back to when she lived in Czechoslovakia and Adam watched Oprah with two ex-Marines and my Dad. Then 48 hours later, turned around and drove back the 10 hours to Austin. Adam, you are a good good sport!

This is the view from my Grandmother's front porch. This view brings me home, every time. Its wonderful that there are some things in life that remain constant. Thank goodness for them.

All I need to say here is, what the hell? Yes, I am from the South and this is what some people spend their time working towards. Imagine!

We were able to pass some time, albeit brief, with some of our buddies passing through town. Here are Phil and Alicia, Adam's debate partner from high school and his divine fiancee, who live in DC. They are getting hitched in Austin in March, hope to be there with you!

Mom and Sam did some very fancy holiday party rounds this season. Here they are all dolled up for a holiday fundraiser for a local children's hospital, "Austin's Dancing With the Stars". They are gorgeous, no?
On a sunny Saturday (is there anything other than that in Texas in December?) we headed out to hill country to this phenomenal weekend house and a holiday party. The event was attended by many of Austin's art-elite, as the home is owned by the Director of one of Austin's premier art museums, and two of his business partners. It has three bedrooms, spread out at the corners of the house to maximize privacy. The main room, seen here, is a huge screened in porch with an indoor fireplace, and an incredible pool with a rope swing separates the buildings. The space inspires open, rustic, and industrial vantages points from which to view the live oak trees surrounding the structure. Lovely, lovely, lovely.

Hurray for family size popcorn, its as big as my head!

Here is the happy family enjoying round 245 of breakfast tacos. Ah, Austin.

Here I can be seen playing the role of an internet kiosk. Can I help you? Please enter your password....
My folks dug out not only a Menorah for me to use for Hanukah, but a ceramic Christmas tree that my mother painted and fired in her previous incarnation as a domestic goddess. We put them side by side in Austin and every night lit the Menorah as the lights on the little Christmas tree came on. I would say the prayers in Hebrew, light the candles, and my mom would say, "hocus pocus" as her contribution for something to say for, I guess, the lighting of the tree?
Every trip back to the US is now full to the brim of glutenous culinary experiences. In Austin, a must-see is Artz Ribs. See me here stuffing my face with delicious ribs, dripping with sauce and lots of fatty goodness. I was mostly successful at eating a taco everyday and there is an entire blog dedicated to those tacos in the works, check your local listings.

Every winter my Mother's older brother, my Uncle Jay and his wife, Mary, drive their RV down from the arctic in North Dakota to "winter" in south Texas. I was lucky enough this year to be around as they passed through and was able to spend some time with them. My Aunt Mary made, by hand, my baby blankets when I was little. Isn't that amazing?

Here are Adam and one of his best buddies, Alex, who came all the way from Winnipeg to spend New Year's with us. Yes, we are getting some nice US-sized bellies on us. Time to head back to the middle east to enjoy our fresh produce, humus, and diet totally void of things processed. But it tastes so good....
How sweet is this: my Mom teaching Adam to texas two-step. I love this one. Thanks, Mom, for loving my husband so much. It makes me so happy.

So that about wraps it up. We are back in Israel, where life is a little less pretty all around, but its home. Adam is back at school working hard, and I've already been to Cairo and back for a conference. We are looking forward to some upcoming visits, and to welcoming spring when she arrives none too soon for this southern belle.

We hope that you all had a bliss-full holiday, with lots of laughter, good eats, and whatever moves you. May 2008 be all you wish for it to be, and more!

Us: Adam and Sera

Big apples, thankful giving, and mustaches

2007-12-02T20:18:00.000+02:00

Some pics of some of who and what we've been up to since early November. Sera covered over 1500 miles of the east coast speaking on behalf of COHI, shared precious time with some of her fave folks, and ate a taco or burrito almost everyday. Adam attended a mustache party while remaining committed to his daily mediation on medical education and holding down the fort in Be'er Sheba. The happy couple will be reunited stateside in Austin in just 19 short days. We aren't counting or anything. Stay tuned for more news from the front.....

Halloween passed in full force in Be'er Sheba with a Mustache Contest and Party. The men in Adam's program all shaved their faces clean and then refrained from shaving for three weeks. The contest was held on Halloween when the contestants groomed their facial hair and donned a costume maximizing the affect. Here are some of them looking, well, sketchy.

From DC Sera went to NYC where she stayed with Helen, Sean, and little happy Ezra. Here are mom and baby: bliss seems to be their regular state of existence when both are fed, dry, and snuggled up to one another. We should all be so lucky!

Brad, Brad, The Chocolate Man, was in NYC while Sera was there. They are seen here after being briefed by a local pan-handler about the importance of a certain electronic sign in Union Square. Yes, we then paid the obligatory dollar for this little piece of wisdom.

North about an hour of NYC Sera visited Sarah, Mike, and Reily enjoying an inner sense of calm these days. There seems to be a power in motherhood that inspires a greater sense of purpose, contentedness, and grace in my friends these days. What a gift, and I feel so blessed to have glimpsed this in you sharing in the glow of it for a short while.

Sera spent a bit of time in this Tibetan Buddhist Monetary outside if Ithaca, NY. While she was in attendance hunting season began. While sitting, the sound of gunshots peppered the air. A surreal experience, really, providing a profound glimpse into sound, seasons, and perception.

Sera passed day full of thanks and giving with Joel's family in West Hartford. In attendance: Nancy Rosenbloom, Sera and Jordyn Bonds, Eric and Joel Roston, Karen and Madeline (Eric's family), Karen's parents, and another couple. The weekend was hosted by Bonnie and Jay Roston and it was wonderful!

Here is the dining room, isn't that tree in full force outside the window incredible?

No holiday is complete without boardgames. Here are Joel, Jordyn, Jay, and Nancy playing Monopoly. The game went long into the night, and I don't remember who won. I do know that Nancy surprised everyone with her cut-throat ways and her ability to broker deals. I always say that this little lady is more than she appears!

Adam passed Thanksgiving in Be'er Sheba with a deep-fried Turkey, 75 medical students and their families, and a lot of good cheer. This dinner was hosted by our neighbors, and you can see here many of the exhausted medical students gorging themselves and having a good, good time.

On Sera's way back down south to DC she was in Boston where she spent some time with some incredibly committed COHI supporters who also happen to be some of her fave people. Here she is eating her vegetables like the good girl that she is.

She also glimpsed the lighting of the Christmas tree in Rockefeller Center. She also enjoyed a night with Jojo (recently transplanted from Venezuela), Nancy, and Sweet Honey in the Rock at Carnegie Hall. Soul food, for sure!

The capital steps

2007-11-11T17:23:00.000+02:00

Sera arrived in DC for her first step of the east coast speaking tour for COHI. Our families, parts of them anyway, joined her for the awards ceremony and a few days of Pate-Rosenbloom-Bonds fun in this lovely capitol city. Here are some pics for your review. Next stop: NYC!

Sam and Stephen, two of three of our dads.

Sam, Sera, and Connie (Sera's Mom)

Sera's gorgeous siblings, Jordyn and Zack

The family minus Connie and plus Sherwood and Andrew

Connie, Stephen, Miriam (Adam's Mom) and pretty Zack

Sera and her her broken clock award. Don't worry, BUSPH is sending her a new one!

Again, the family minus Connie plus our Arkansas friends Andrew and Sherwood.

NPR, ah, Sera and Adam's holy shrine.

The Pates surprised the family with tickets to The Police that were playing just across the street from BUSPH awards dinner. We totally rocked out, it was soooooooooo cool!

Birthday Boy turns 27!

2007-10-30T21:44:00.000+02:00

Its true, Adam is 27 years young! We had a fabulous dress up party last Friday night where everyone came all dolled up. Here are some pictures for your enjoyment. We also put out photos from the wedding for folks who wanted to attend, but couldn't be there. You will also see here the Tibetan Prayer scarves from the wedding made another appearance~ always a hit!

I encourage you to pay special attention to the disproportionate number of mustaches here. The medical students are having a mustache party, and the judging will take place next week. Cast your vote!

Here are some of the evening's lovely ladies. The one on the far left, our neighbor Alice, is 4 months pregnant!

Some of the men and their facial hair....

Adam's brother, Jonas, and his wife Nava came down from Jerusalem for the party. Thanks for coming, you two!
Adam and his trick candles.....

Happy birthday, Adam. May all of your wishes come true!

Tired dogs

2007-10-21T19:51:00.000+02:00

I am referring here to our feet, of course. We covered miles and miles of sand in the last few days: up to Bet Shemesh for Shabbat, all around Jerusalem, over to Ramallah, and back to Be'er Sheba. We love Adam's weekends when he isn't drowning in something mundane like Cardiology and we took full advantage of that this weekend. These days won't last forever, or so the third year medical students keep telling us, so we are living them up.

Adam and I's friend, Laura, is in the country visiting from DC. A good friend of hers, Tamar, lives up north near Jerusalem and they kindly offered to host us on their quiet mokshav (a variation of a kibbutz) where we were wined and dined.

There is a real advantage to hanging out with women about to give birth: they are nesting and HAVE to cook until they just cook anymore! Tamar is 71/2 months pregnant, is simply radiant, and channels Martha Stewart. I am talking about homemade pumpkin lasagna and chocolate cupcakes with marshmallow fluff inside. Oh, did I mention the espresso machine with fancy foamed milk? Those of you living in corners of the world where you can pop over to a cafe on any given day and find such luxuries won't understand what it does for a spirit to have such warm, comfortable, fall foods arrive seemingly out of nowhere. We also did some wandering on the Israel National Trail that runs head to toe of Israel, enjoying a pleasant fall day here. Sans any changing leaves or maple syrup but enjoyable just the same.

We also did some wandering around Jerusalem, lots and lots of wandering. Here are some cool pics of what happens to an ancient city when Tommy Hillfiger comes to town. Could be worse, for sure! Its the price we pay to have some fashion available to us that didn't just wander in from some recently dissolved eastern block state.
We went from Jerusalem to Ramallah for a meeting with COHI's Palestinian Coordinator for the coexistence project I am working on here. Its a super modern city full of helpful people, wireless internet, and dudes on the corner selling tea. Here is a shot of the downtown artery leading to-away from the city center. The photo was taken from a comfortable watering hole for resident ex-pats, of which there are many: Stars & Bucks. Nope not kidding. God Bless America and our addictions.

So after an uneventfully pleasant day in the West Bank we motored back to Be'er Sheba, and boy were our feet tired! On a totally different note, I've decided that I need a hobby so I am taking up photography. From now on I will be posting some artful pics on the blog every once in a while. Your constructive critiques are welcome.

Until next time.....may the road rise to meet you!

Wedding pictures are up!

2007-10-06T18:40:00.000+02:00

You can now see all the beautiful pictures of the Vermont extravaganza on Flickr...

Follow this link to see them for yourself!

Enjoy!

In Memory of Our Jed

2007-09-30T07:53:00.000+02:00

Many of you know that we suddenly lost our dog, Jed, on the evening of September 24th. Thankfully, it all happened very quickly which kept his suffering to a minimum. Jed was a radiant, joyful friend who lived life to its fullest everyday. Welcoming adventure, change, and the unknown with equally enthusiastic wags of his tail and and open heart.

Jed Jayron Dubrovnik Bonds-Rosenbloom. Jed, after our pretend President on The West Wing; Jayron, because he was full of attitude; and Dubrovnik, a city in Eastern Europe famous for its trash streets like the ones of B'Sheba that he loved. Jed joined our happy family less than one year ago after he'd followed home one of the students in Adam's program. A reformed street dog, on his better days, and always a lively, hilarious bundle of fun.

Adam read somewhere, "I hope to be the kind of person my dog believes I am". This is the memory we want to hold of Jed; to mirror the courage, happiness, and love he saw in us everyday.

The night Jed died we had a house full of friends as news traveled of this sad news. We buried him that night in our yard, and shared Jed stories late into the evening surrounded by people who cared about him. These same friends started a fund at the local "Humane Society" in his honor. If you would like to contribute, please let us know.

Here are some of our favorite pictures of Jed. We miss you, Jed, and will hold you close in our hearts, doing our best to live life the way you did: full, to the rim!

Jed and his friend Adam, snuggling, on the front porch of our house in the afternoon sunlight.

Jed's "post-op" headgear and his Godfather, Jon Mendelson, who brought him some of his favorite toys such as his squeaky porcupine. Thanks, Jon.

Adam is convinced that Jed was a fish in a previous life. A pastime ensured to induce a state of ecstasy in him was playing in mud puddles and any body of water big enough to get his face inside. Here is an action shot the first time he swam in something larger than a puddle at the dog park, a real lake. He thought he was in heaven!

Jed was a desert dog, as you can see in this picture. He loved wide open spaces, and if you didn't pay close attention he would slip away and blend in. This is the Jed we will remember; a lover of adventure, of all things new, and of course, of garbage and cats!

Akuna Matata: No worries

2007-09-15T12:23:00.000+02:00

Notice that in this picture there is only one set of lonely feet. Adam didn't get to join me on this trip. After traveling to Israel from the US for an action packed 30-hours, I boarded a plane into the heart of Africa for the first time. Destination: Tanzania.

Sitting here in my sunny living room in Be'er Sheba it warms my heart to reflect on my good fortune over the last few months. Who am I kidding, its been a wild, exhausting, incredibly gracious summer for Adam and I. When thinking about the trip to Tanzania, it presents itself in two different parts. So I will do the same for my dedicated readers so as to facilitate a gentle flow or narrative and imagery. Without further delay...

PART ONE: WORK

What brought me to Tanzania just a few weeks after our big wedding party was COHI's Summit for Women and Children's Health. I had the good fortune of joining a team of women's health professionals from the US, Latin America, and the Mid-East for three days of service work followed by an international conference highlighting the work of COHI's partner organization in Tanzania, FLEMAFA. You can visit th COHI website to see more photos and to read about this successful and moving week we shared. Here are a few pics to give you a sense of what we were doing in Kisarawe District, Tanzania where 22 women die each day due to childbirth related illness and complications.

The first day of orientation in Dar, at the Palm Beach Hotel.

From left to right: Faridah Mgunda, Executive Director of FLEMAFA, local TBA, Me, and another local TBA. The TBAs had brought a woman in labor to the health facility where this photos was taken. COHI's field team assisted in the delivery of this health baby boy who was named Ahmed after one of COHI's team members. What a gift!

We found sometime to play while working, and here we are shaking our booties to some AWESOME Tanzanian pop music at Ahmed's birthday party at our guest house in Kisarawe. Our friends decked out Mindy in the local garb, see the head-dress here she is sporting. She is getting down here with Karinje, Faridah's son who just completed his first year of medical school in Tanzania.

Here is a shot of Mindy Levy, home-birth midwife in Israel, leading a discussion of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) in delivery at the conference hosted by COHI and FLEMAFA in Kisarawe.

We headed to the base of Mt. Kilimanjaro to send the climbers for women's health on their way to successfully reach the summit. This is the group at the bottom of that very, very big hill.

PART TWO: PLAY

I was greeting in Dar by my good friend Bob (we met while we were both living in Vietnam) who's spend the summer in Nairobi. He spent the first few days with the growing COHI group before he headed back to Nairobi to fly to Berlin where he is in school. He we are in Dar on the beach. Lovely city.

Below is the view of Kili as you fly in from the North. I was sitting on the plane next to a 60 year old woman who was planning to sky-dive onto the summit. Can you imagine? All of COHI's climbers made it successfully to the top, you go gurls!

I was way way way too tired to climb the mountain after the wild summer I'd had, so I went on safari with Mindy. Our guide, a Masai named Jacob, taught us so much and kept us safe from the wild animals, and our desire to wander off into the Serengeti to join them. Here are some pics of what we saw.

After returning to Arusha to meet the euphoric and smelly climbers at the bottom of the mountain and celebrating their triumph with them, Mindy and I spend a few days in Zanzibar. Gorgeous and bubbling over with history, we wandered the streets checking out the spices, shops, and spent a day on Slave Island trying to get our head around the tragedy that had transpired on this small island.

This is the view from one of the cells that held slaves as they waited to board the ship that would carry them away from their homes.

Did you know that Freddy Mercury from QUEEN was from Zanzibar? This is the view from the patio at Mercury's, a restaurant he opened there. Great fish tacos!

And here are some pictures of life in Tanzania. It is such a gorgeous, kind place. I encourage you all to visit, and to go see the animals, WOW. COHI may be making the climb an annual event, so keep checking if you'd like to join us in 2008.

Our honeymoon, eh?

2007-08-21T23:04:00.000+03:00

We spent the first few days as a formally married couple cleaning up after the best hippie wedding EVER! In that time we spent some more times with friends and family, seen here are JoJo and Kate giving us one of our seven daily blessings that is Jewish tradition and drinking some tasty tea in Burlington!

We decided our first adventure would be to the Maritime Provinces in Canada, Sera's new country of citizenship (whooooooop!). Adam planned the entire trip, and I (Sera) really had no idea where as I was going. As a typical American I knew next to nothing about Nova Scotia and New Brunswick citing Neil Young, Anne of Green Gables, and hockey as my main points of reference for all things Canadian. So after cleaning up the debris left at HydeAway Farm we hopped in the VW Golf and headed north.

First stop: Montreal, Quebec. My mother, step-father, siblings, their significant others, some of my mom's friends from Austin, and some friends of ours, as well, were awaiting our arrival to initiate the honeymoon festivities. We zoomed through Vermont's back roads where we were the only car at the border crossing (imagine it!) arriving in Montreal just in time for a brilliant summer sunset. Mom and Sam, as is true to their general way of being in the world, had made reservations for us all at a boutique hotel in the old city of Montreal. Our VW chariot was whisked away by the valet parkers as we transformed ourselves from the dirty hippies we are to the clean cut children of privilege that we also are. Classical music greeted us as we opened our door to our inviting room with hard wood floors, exposed brick, and a view of the river. WOWOWOW! Adam slipped right into his new role as husband by gently bossing around the hotel staff to undertake such tasks as making dinner reservations for us and finding a spa for massages. Ah, the "honeymoon card", we would play it many times on this trip.

We enjoyed a few days in Montreal with my family: eating incredibly well, lounging in our private hot tub, getting more time with friends in Montreal, and having lots of quality time with my siblings which is a rare occurrence. Adam's sister Nancy even joined us for one especially racy night on the town where we sampled the local brew of Absynth over ice with sugar and all! No ears were cut off in the process. We are so thrilled that our siblings enjoy one another so much, and that we had a night of debauchery together before we headed away the next day.

From Montreal, Adam's itinerary took us through Quebec City on our way to the hippie music festival in Antigonsish, Nova Scotia. The thing is, Canada is much like the objects you see in your rear view mirror: much larger than they appear! What he thought was 12 hour drive was much closer to 20, especially considering the hurricane strength winds we encountered at about 2 am in the second worst thunderstorm I've ever seen (the first prize winner appears later in the story). But I am getting ahead of myself.

Quebec City is a quaint town on the St.Lawrence river. We had the good fortune of hearing live bagpipes while wandering the streets at dusk and enjoying a cute little cafe in the old quarter. After, we jumped on the trans-Canada and moved our way east. So, at this point in the story we have a truly awesome thunderstorm blowing in. Adam is sure that Antigonish can't be as far as the signs are saying (yeah, right....) and as it is high season, there is not a hotel room vacancy in the province. The VW holds her own, as does Adam's ability as an endurance driver, and at about 5am we pull over to the side of the road, emotionally and physically exhausted, and pass out. Cold.

Awakened a few hours later by a warm sun on our faces, we rouse ourselves, and get back on the road. At this point in our trip, I witnessed yet another shift in Adam's demeanor seemingly a result of his new marital status. He decided we needed to supplement our primitive camping supplies with an inflatable air mattress. Hmmm, I thought, that seems a bit indulgent. But ok, if you want it, Adam, go ahead. Off we go to the festival with a bag full of yummy food for camping, lots of water, and a new "grown-up" air mattress.

Upon arrival at the festival, we quickly found our friends which wasn't tough because we in nowhere land Canada and there were around 2000 people there. We pitched the tent, complete with the plastic flowers decorating the honeymoon suite we carried around with us throughout the journey and enjoyed three days of hippie heaven: live music, drum circles, cooking food and tea over a camp stove, a swimming hole complete with naked dread-locked earth mamas, with tee pees and tie-dye flags surrounding us.

Mother Nature decided to remind us periodically throughout our journey that as blissed out as we can feel on a day full of honeymoon goodness, She can rock your world in just a few moments of power. We were humbled, deeply, several times on this trip as we found ourselves in the middle of blustering winds, thick sheets of pounding rain, mere feet between us and righteous daggers of lightening, and deep darkness surrounding us. Many days of our trip were spent ringing out our clothes and waiting for our belongings to dry in the soft Nova Scotia summer sun. What else did we have to do, anyway. It was fine by us to slow down, soak up the sun, and thank our lucky stars we'd made it another glorious day.

We bid farewell to our hippie kindred and headed North to Cape Breton National Park. Our campsite overlooked the ocean where we watched whales breach, storms blow in and out, and one another breathe deeply relaxing into our heavenly days. We hiked, ate lots of lobster, drank tea, and loved every moment for all that is was: perfect. The park is close to a Buddhist Monetary I'd been pining (Bad Buddhist!) to spend some time. We went for a day visit and made an offering of a Kata from our wedding, praying for contentment, grace, and health for us all. I felt so at home, I wept a bit as we left hoping that someday life clears some space for me to spend to know this place better. Someday.

On to Halifax and our pool side room on the Harbor front. Days here passed walking in the public gardens, eating more lobster, and watching the world do its thing. Its a lovely little city with what Adam keeps telling me is mild weather as we contemplated the decision that will meet us one day when we decide where he will hang up his Dr. sign and make his living. Wow, that day seems a long ways away.

We then headed down the home stretch making for the Supper Ferry that would carry us home. In Yarmouth Bay we rejoined our American compatriots as we drove our little VW (the only non-SUV on the boat!) into the belly of this nautical beast. Upstairs where we watched whales swimming by, there was a casino, three movie theaters, and two restaurants.
This is a serious ride! Needless to say, the time passed quickly and before we knew it we were back at US customs where are always so warmly welcomed by guards who want to know everything about us and why we went to such places as Egypt, Jordan, and Israel. Welcome Home!

The soundtrack for the trip was our wedding music that Adam thoughtfully burned to four discs before we headed out, and we danced our way through the Martimes reliving the moment by moment euphoria every married couple should be so lucky to hold near and dear to them.

It seems like a long time ago and already so many miles have been added to the journey. Reality has snuck back into our lives as Adam studies, Jed plays, and I work. What a brilliant life we tread; everyday is a honeymoon for us.

More to come.....

A perfect wedding

2007-08-21T22:43:00.000+03:00

Its true, it was perfect in every way. We would happily walk you through each step, each breath, with the hope of finding ourselves there again on this picturesque July day in rural Vermont, but we feel we would fail in adquately conveying the fun, the love, authenticity of the blessings bestwowed upon us, and the warmth in our hearts as we looked around that day to see so many loving faces glowing back at us.

We will let the photos speak for themselves. Thank you to those of you who travelled so far to share this experience with us, and for those of you who were not able to make it~ you were there in spirit, we felt you!

Keep checking here and the wedding website for updated information about where you can post your photos of the weekend. We are still trying to come up with that solution.

Much love,

the newlyweds

Wedding tutorial

2007-07-01T10:47:00.001+03:00

We had the pleasure of joining Adam's brother, Jonas, and his new wife, Nava, at their wedding outside of Jericho over the weekend. This was the most truly religious wedding I've attended. It was beautiful and authentically holy in every way. I am including a few photos here so you can see what an Orthodox wedding in Israel might look like.

Hope to see many of you at the second show scheduled for the Rosenbloom-Pate-Bonds World Wedding Tour 2007: Hydeaway Farm, Vermont!

The view, not bad, eh?

The banquet hall before we all arrived and spilled our wine!

Nava, as is Orthodox tradition, received all of the female guests before the official ceremony under the Chuppah. She made blessings and thanked everyone for coming. Her sisters are standing around her, in green.

While Nava was outside on her thrown, Jonas was inside with the men signing the Ketubah (the Jewish wedding contract) and presiding over important religious discourse. Adam serveed as Jonas' Shomer and was with him all day: starting at 3 am to eat before fasting, serving as the anti-coordinator to ensure that he and Nava did not see one another during the day, and doing his best to keep Jonas relaxed. Here Jonas is reading about the ritual and tradition of the Ketubah surrounded by male members of his and Nava's family.

The group of observant Jewish men who sang the family down the isle.

Adam walking his Grandmother to the Chuppah.

The proud parents, walking Jonas down the isle.

Jonas, Nava, and their families under the Chuppah. This makeshift tent represents the first house the couple creates together, and the coming together of their families.

Nava, her Mother, and Miriam, circling the groom seven times, as is tradition.

Nancy, Adam's sister, and the two of us. Smiling.

The next couple to be standing under the Chuppah on this wedding tour, see you there!

As an Arab travels, as a bird flies....

2007-06-17T13:01:00.000+03:00

A total of 20 hours travel over the course of two days, covering no more than 200km. To share some time with our dear friend, Sarah Chynoweth (we call her "B" to avoid confusion), there is little we wouldn't do. Equivalent time spent en route could deliver us to Beijing, Seattle, or Sydney. In exchange for such a block of time we decided to spend our weekend travelling as the Arabs do, an analogy for as the birds fly. I say this because while the map presents a clear path, it was infinitely longer than it appeared to be. The Arabs in this part of the world are burdened with bad roads, suspicious border guards, road blocks that were not there the day before, and borders opening and closing at random. Hurry up and wait, hurry up and waiting, hurry up and wait. A truly direct path from Be'er Sheba to Amman and back again clearly does not exist. Now we know....

We started our journey at 6 am on Friday, tired from a night of low flying helicopters and booms in the night. Such as it is sometimes here 18 miles east of Gaza City. During our bedtime ritual of NPR we learned that the Palestinian Authority disbanded its government in Gaza. Hmmmmm, we thought. Wonder what the West Bank will be like tomorrow? I have to be honest here and say that during the course of that night was the first and only time since moving here I have tasted fear in my mouth. Things quieted down by 4 am and Jed and I went back to sleep. Adam, of course, slept through the entire thing. Here he is, smiling, on the Jordanian side of the border. Clearly, he had a good night sleep behind him!

The day was much longer and way more expensive than we anticipated. Suffice it to say that on days when our company includes eight, nervous Japanese tourists, we feel like we could've planned our day a bit more adventurously (and probably mapped a cheaper route, as well). We arrived in Amman after too much time spent at the border watching the diplomats blow through the lines around 5 in the afternoon. Seriously, no more than 200km. Here is the view of Amman from our hotel, downtown.

After a luxurious bath on our swanky hotel room (thanks Mom and Sam!) we rang up B and headed out for dinner. Adam had been to Amman before and recommended a picturesque Lebanese restaurant: Fakrlel-Din. We dined on goat, chicken (yes, I am back on the meat again) and of course humus, olives, and red wine from Mount Nebo. Here is a picture of the three of us.

"B" is in Amman with The Women's Commission for Refugee Women and Children. She is conducting an assessment of the almost 1 million Iraqi refugees struggling to survive there. It is being characterized as one of the current most dangerous refugee settings due to the total absence of services there. As you can imagine, the majority of our time spent together was spent talking about her work in Jordan, COHI's work here, and Adam's brilliance at school. She is doing amazing things, and is a true leader in her field these days. Its marvelous to see her shinning while ensuring women are being addressed in Iraq, and elsewhere. I am honored to call her my friend. To learn more about what B is seeing, visit: www.womenscommission.org/fromthefield/jordan/061507.php.

Mid-day on Saturday (not even 24 hours after our arrival in Amman) we started our journey back to the border. This time we were taking our lives into our own hands, the bull by the horns, as they say, and planned to travel by buses and local taxis. Little did we know, we were about to miss the first border crossing by 20 minutes (it closed early) and the fun would really begin. Lots of time spent, and money as well, trying to find a way to get across the border and a taxi to take us there. And that was just the beginning of another 11 hour day!

Finally across the border (four hours later) we waited for Shabbat to end and the buses to start running again. After an over-priced taxi to Jerusalem, we decided to pass the reamaing three hours in a Georgian restaurant. Amazingly good food, and some cool bottles and flags, too. Adam studied, I read a "Choose Your Own Adventure" book about Tibet with 22 different endings, and we longingly watched the sky for the first three stars to appear and for Shabbat to end.

One more long bus ride home, and we arrived safe and sound to be showered with kissed by our canine companion. Upon arrival we found a few nervous messages from friends and family members about the breaking news in Gaza. We made some quick phone calls before we collapsed, to reassure everyone that we are well, and things are much calmer than the news is making it out to be. Quiet night, sweet dreams.

A long but pleasant journey to a city no further than the distance between Boston and Hartford. Twenty hours. Incredible. Whenever I forget that I live in a war zone, I will just hit the long road to Amman and travel like the Arabs do: slowly, as the recipient of a great deal of suspicion, yet smiling and enjoying the ride.

Palandrome birthday

2007-06-10T19:11:00.000+03:00

Its true, Sera is now 33 years old. We passed the weekend of her birthday with friends on Lake Kinneret, also known as the Sea of Galilee. It was a wonderful weekend: good food, lots of loud Israeli techno-musich (why bring such nonesense into nature, I will never understand), and lots of water as a birthday honoring Sera shouuld feature.

Here are the pics: funny Israeli campsite, "water hike" through a stream bed, and us sitting around the lake enjoying.

May this year be one of health, calm, laughter, and grace for us all!

A Day in Her Shoes

2007-05-16T12:30:00.000+03:00

Here is a Mother's Day fundraiser that we hosted at our house to raise some money and some support for the four first-year medical students heading to Tanzania this summer for COHI. The event was catered by the Ethiopian bar two blocks from our house. Delicious!

We played a "reality" game at the event where participants assume an identity of a woman in Tanzania, complete with an education, health history, and socio-economic status. As the evening progresses the players are dealt "chance" cards, after which they all have to make decisions in order to survive. It was fascinating to watch as humanitarian workers such as the night's guests would sell their kids to the local war lord in order to have food for the next round. Great time had by all!

Biogas, China, and the Bedouin

2007-05-16T12:19:00.000+03:00

One of the projects I am currently trying to get some funding for at BUSTAN is to help Bedouin women safely and abundantly power their homes focusing on Biogas technology. Long story short: put human, animal, and other organic waste into a fiberglass dome buried into the ground with some kind of fancy machinery on top and you get usable, clean energy!

Last week I took a delegation from the Chinese Embassy on a tour of BUSTAN's projects in the Negev. The Chinese are currently the global masters of Biogas technology and are sending two local graduate students to China to learn the technology to bring it back to the Negev and help Bedouin women become environmental leaders in their communities using this new technology. Here is the group complete with two dudes from a local community called Dimona who worked on Biogas technology in Liberia, as well as my collegue and friend, Julie Cwikel, who runs the Center for Women's Reserach where I am currently a Public Health Scholar-In-Residence.

A very strange day, the weather was blustery picking up dust and spreading it all around. You can just barely see the electric plant in the background, yet the unrecongized village where these people are standing has no power.

I find myself questioning the relationship between the Bedouin, development workers like me, the powers that Be, and modernization. Its a quandary I find myself in a great deal if I am really questioning (and I hope that I am) what I am doing trying to help the women I am working with. I haven't found a confortable answer yet, but would love to have you all down to show you what I see and hear what you have to say about it. Perhaps you can be the one to provide the insight I crave...hurry! I feel I might be going a bit mad! You can tell by the look on my face in this picture, don't you think?

A very late Seder

2007-05-14T17:03:00.000+03:00

While we were busy enjoying our generations of privilege, having not recently been enslaved in Egypt, Jews around the world celebrated Passover. We were truly reaping the joys of tourism, all things old and dusty, and lots of men named Mahomound in this land of the Pharaohs. Passover is the time of year when Jews and their friends come together for a long, relaxing dinner (called a Seder) when the elders retell the story of the Jews and the Pharaoh, the parting of the Red Sea, and the eventual walk through the desert leading Moses and the Jewish people to the land of Israel.

We joined some of our other Jewish kindred and a few not of The Clan who had also journeyed to Egypt over Pesach (the Hebrew work for Passover) to celebrate with a Seder last Shabbat (friday night dinner that is a weekly tradition for Jews around the world to mark the Sabbath). The dinner was complete with Matzaball soup, bitter herbs, a leg of lamb,and way too much wine.

The way these Seders usually look is that folks settle in around the table and each person has a reader to follow along with. The kind of Seders we especially enjoy are those where the retelling of the challenges of the Jews in Egypt are equated with those of all of the enslaved, struggling people of the world. This one was no different.

We sang spirituals, clapped our hangs, shouting, "Pharaoh, let my people go!", read from a Buddhist article about the spiritual symbolism of the parting of the Red Sea and the personal transformation of the Jewish people that was required before Israel and its milk and honey were able to appear. There was lots of wine drinking, way too much eating, and lots of honoring of those who toiled before us to clear our path as Jews, and as members of humanity.

Adam and I like to take time during this holiday to reflect on those still struggling each and every day against current day Pharaohs like the Janjaweed in Sudan, those living the daily terror of the on-going war in Iraq, those living in poverty, and the current discontent in my region of the world. We try to spend some time talking about what we can do in the coming year to support the liberation of people everywhere, and this year was no different. We look forward to honoring this tradition throughout our lives together. Seeing how people, civilizations, and governments deal with rebellious folks like Moses demanding that injustice, slavery, and oppression cease and that the current day Pharaohs, "Let my people go!"...Viva la revolucion!!!

Bustan: an orchard overflowing with diverse abundance

2007-04-29T10:52:00.000+03:00

I've finally landed a job with a local NGO (this is Sera speaking, Adam doesn't have time to get a job) called Bustan. I am serving as the Development Coordinator for this group focusing on environmental justice in the Negev. I have a great deal to learn as plants aren't really my thing, although my Dad cringes to hear me say it. I am expecting a full list of tips and secrets from all of the green-thumbs in my life as a shared result of this new professional endeavor of mine and your secret knowledge of all things green and growing.

Last week I journeyed with a group of about 30 to a small village called Tel Sheva. Tel Sheva is home to around 22,000 people and is the second poorest community in Israel. Its just about 10 minutes from Be'er Sheba. Bustan is involved with a traditional garden and teaching site there run by a local Bedouin woman. Here are some photos, and I am waiting for suggestions from you farmers, activists, and big thinkers for how to raise some money for projects like this one committed to women's empowerment, greening the Negev desert, and environmental sustainability.

The garden itself is a circle, merging ancient and modern gardening techniques to maximize irrigation and accessibility of the plants.
Here is a dramtic photo of the cracked earth. This is not an uncommon site here in the desert, yet all kinds of beings continue to survive, even thrive. Magic, to be sure.

This is Mariam, a local Bedouin entrepreneur working closely with Bustan. It is Mariam's family farm on which all of this greening is taking place that you are seeing here. She has started a small business marketing organic soaps, teas, oils, and other beauty products. Quite a go-getter! Here she is leading a workshop on soap making to visiting volunteers and other curious seekers who just dropped in for the the day to learn something from this wise lady.

A true professional: sealing deals for her products while working in the garden. An inspiration to women everywhere!
This is how she makes the soap, here it is being poured into a mold. It will be cut, after it hardens, and wrapped, taken to market, and sold. Bringing a soothing sense of joy and aromatic pleasure to its new owner.
No experience is complete for me without tea, and thankfully the Bedouin are as into it as I am. Note the sugar, so so so sweet.

Here are the quarters that the volunteers enjoy while spending time on the farm with Mariam and her family. Volunteers come from around the world to spend time with Bustan working on any number of projects. This is one of them that seems to be very popular with the ladies.

Somehow, there is water. I have not learned the secret yet for how the local inhabitants know how to find it. But I've added that to my list of things to master before I leave this incredible part of the world.

So that was my first trip to the field with Bustan. Please check them out on-line: www.bustan.org. I am hoping that I will be able to help this small, energized organization secure the funding it needs to continue to support local communities, and the women living there. I am taking suggestions, if any of you have ideas, and please, pop over for a visit. You won't be sorry that you did!

As it is clear that I am getting back to my hippie roots, I leave you with this quick video. Take the time to watch this, its worth it. Sending each of you a multitude of hugs from us, until next time...

Springtime renewal in the north

2007-04-20T10:12:00.000+02:00

Hello gentle readers,

We took an inspirational day trip to Haifa and up north near Nazareth yesterday to visit with my midwife friends and to see the greenery of spring outside of the Negev. We felt renewal happening all around us: wild flowers, oak tree forests, magnolia trees, jasmine plants, and a birth center. It all smelled and looked so sweet.

Here are some pics of this picturesque city by the sea, Haifa. The gorgeous garden shot is of the Baha'i gardens. Baha'i is the most recent religion to claim its holy sites on this plot of land, nice of them to find a place other than Jerusalem to do so, eh? That place already has too many bidders! The Baha'i have their primary temples and shrines in Haifa, as well as a very impressive Hall of Justice reminding me of saturday morning cartoons, bat caves, and the wonder twins. None of the later to be found on the Baha'i grounds in Haifa, sadly.This night shot is of Haifa and a sliver crescent moon. Don't know if the simple majesty of the evening is visible to you through this photo. All the more reason for you to pop over for a visit.
After a lunch of Chinese food, yes, strange I know, Chinese food, we traveled up to Mindy's place. When we leave Be'er Sheba we try very hard to eat food we can't find here. So yesterday, Chinese it was.

Mindy lives just a stone's throw away from Nazareth in a little village, Bet La hem. Yes, you've most likely heard of a more popular hamlet by that name boasting a famous, or infamous, native son. After a nature hike and history lesson led by Mindy's hubby, Avner, we learned that there are archaeologists in the region who assert that this hilltop is the authentic birth place of one Jesus Christ (can you imagine if there had been more than one?). Considering Ma and Pop Christ could've reached Nazareth from here by donkey in about a half hour it really is quite probable. But, oh my Lord (pun quite intended), that would change everything and we can't go and do something as reckless as that in this day and age. So, a quiet, charming little place this Bet La hem remains.

Here are some pics of my friend Mindy Levy (home birth midwife) and her new birth center. Both gorgeous, as you see here. Home birth midwives here in Israel are still a relatively new option for delivering moms and many work in hosptials, as well. Midwives are the primary folks in charge on brith in any setting in Israel and I am slowly making my rounds, meeting as many of them as I can. I am working closely with Mindy and her Palestinian counterparts to secure some funding to help both groups come together and share their insights gains through their success and struggles supporting women throughout their pregnancies.

Here is a painting given to Mindy for the birth center by one of the fathers whose wife's delivery she atteneded and a new birthing stool crafted for the women who labour with her made from some sweet smelling local variety of wood.

Here is the birthing pool. The room itself is equipped with soothing lighting and private garden outside. The cobalt blue tiles help to inspire a sense of calm clearly helpful for women in staying focused on the task at hand. I really wanted to fill up the tub and get in myself right there and then, but fought the urge. This is the main lobby where Mindy will host trainings, etc. She is getting offers from local pre-natal yoga teachers and such who'd like to use the space, as well. I hope to be able to use this space while I am in Israel over the next few years to host some workshops between the Israeli and Palestinian midwives. See how comfortable Adam seems here, maybe the dream team of an OB/GYN and midwife are not out of the question. Who knows!

Here is the kitchen where families using the facility for deliveries can cook while they are there.

Here is the back patio and garden. Imagine a laboring lady slowly walking through her contractions out here, inspired by the natural landscape to open and let go. The view in the other direction is of an expansive valley, green and lush this time of year.

Here are Mindy and I out front of the center. The center is just down the street from her house, as well. What a set up!

Another great day, to be sure. We have so many of those here. I hope that wherever you are today, perched, reading these words, that spring has sprung and that hope, birth, and warmth are renewing you. Take care!

The Tale of Many Muhamouds

2007-04-12T15:22:00.000+02:00

Salaam Alekum! Welcome to the retelling of our adventure to Egypt. The irony that we journeyed TO Egypt during Passover when Jews around the world celebrate our release from slavery in Egypt is not lost on us. We feared that by journey's end we might indeed find ourselves in some kind of slavery in a surreal seaside resort over-run by Russian women seeking love in the arms of Egyptian men...but wait, I am getting ahead of myself. I hope you enjoy the story I am sharing here, The Tale of Many Mahamouds, and I will get to its telling now so as not to squander any more of the good reader's time.

Free to fly, we did almost just that in a matter of speaking giddy with the fact that we were indeed leaving Be'er Sheba. We boarded a local bus with our travel companions, Colin and Mook-lan, in Be'er Sheba heading to the border town of Eliat, Israel. As all of the students in Adam's program were also on holiday, there was not a day we did not run into someone, somewhere, and the bus down to Eliat was our first attempt at distancing ourselves from our friends in the hopes of "blending in" as best as four white kids can do in the middle east. The bus ride being uneventful, we passed the night with seaside sushi, a long walk on the over-developed beach, and slumbered sweetly in our bunk beds in the over-priced hostel.

Jolted from our dreams, there was a knock on the door at....6AM!!! What??? We are on holiday!!! It was a student from Adam's program wanting to know if we cared to join them at this unholy hour to cross the border before the rush of...Jews hurrying back to Egypt for Passover? We were a bit confused about the concern to beat the rush, so we rolled over and went back to sleep. Waking at our leisure we had a nice breakfast, stocked up on nuts and fruit for the long day of bus travel ahead, and got a taxi to the border crossing. The taxi driver, upon learning that we were heading to Egypt, mimicked the negative concern we'd heard voiced by so many of our brethren living in Israel: Egyptians are dirty, they will rip you off, they will harass you to no end, and they don't understand service. These warnings could easily and quite appropriately be said about Israelis, as well. Or any of us, really. But I have to admit that I was weary in the sense that I didn't feel up to fighting off droves off men looking to take advantage of my dollars and body. Luckily, this (in addition to all other fears) were completely unwarranted.

We crossed the border with no trouble at all, even scored a bag of peanut M&Ms. The first of many hilarious haggling dances began as I completely blew our chances of getting a reasonably priced van to Cairo. This was a clear and direct result of my complete inability to add, not my failure to get a good deal. I blame most of this on Arkansas schools. But in this case it was all my bad. Adam was covertly whispering the current sum that I was aiming for but I was too secure in my well honed third-world economic diplomacy to listen too carefully. I was so thrilled to be back in the World of Haggle that I misheard him. This resulted in me easily securing for us a car at 3 times the appropriate price. I then humbly stepped down as the group negotiator and walked away to let the others give it a go.

Eventually transportation was secured and we set off to Cairo. Six hour drive, and this bird was flying. The beauty present during all hours of this trip was apparent immediately as we came up over a hill just minutes from the border crossing and saw this citadel. This was to be the first of many magical, ancient, and delightful inspirations our imaginations would enjoy on this journey. Enter the first Mohamed, driver extraordinaire.

An uneventful, in the sense that all went smoothly, drive to Cairo delivered us to a city full of color, sound, smell, and the artistic. Architecture fusing colonialism and middle-eastern mediums, wide open promenades, majestic gardens smelling of jasmine, modern skyscrapers stretching protectively over mosques grounded in simplicity are all sights common in Cairo. Cleaner than the Asian capitols we've grown used to, we reveled in the safety of tap water one can sample and still live to tell.

We were befriended by the second Mohamed to enter our narrative working as a local artisan at a papyrus factory. We were invited to his brother's wedding the following evening, but due to the scam that he pulled to get us to present our passports in order to purchase 12 bottles of duty-free booze for him we didn't make it to the nonexistent matrimonial soiree. All is well that ends well, a lovely evening stroll led us down the Nile by moonlight that evening to sleep soundly before journeying to the Pyramids and Sphinx the following morning.

Our privilege seeped out of every pore as we awoke bubbling with excitement. It mixed with the unavoidable, copious amounts of perspiration one produces on a day like this. Basking in the 95 degree shadow of the greatness of the Pyramids and Sphinx: the last remaining wonders of the ancient world. These structures are all you've dreamed of, and all the discovery channel told you they would be. First visible while still amidst the hustle and bustle of Cairo proper, one's imagination begins to take over questioning intent of the who, how, and why of these piles of stones.

Globalization is present at every turn: Pizza Hut and KFC, right there a stone's throw from the Sphinx herself; Egyptian tour guides speaking Japanese fluently; and a night-time laser light show playing four times a day in different languages. All of this seems a natural progression, however, once you arrive in lower (which is really upper as the Nile flows north towards the Mediterranean) Egypt and see the blending of Egyptian hieroglyphs, Greecian columns, European longitude and latitude recording the distance from here to there, and the rest of the world's imprint in the temples and ruins. A powerful day passed into another as we considered the impact and longevity of our own civilization. A day not one to be forgotten, to be sure.

The next leg of the journey passed in the belly of a first-class tourist train. A private cabin on the tourist train with 2000 other travellers. Throughout the trip we moved in a modern day caravan, never being anything close to alone. We were told this was for security reasons. Personally I think it was something to do with the innate feeling that all beings (much like camels or sheep) move in packs and should be encouraged to do so. Either way, traveling throughout this trip was mostly comfortable, convenient, and even somewhat efficient. This brings us to Aswan where we were greeted by our tour guide, Mohamed. Here we were to spend two FULL days "templing". I will spare you the dusty details and summarize by saying that to get Adam out of bed at 3AM to travel for four hours by bus to see an old, stone building was easy due to the grandeur of the experience each day. Has to be seen first hand to be understood. Nonetheless, here are some pictures:

Enter our Nile captain, you guessed it: Mahamoud. He guided us for two days of total bliss down (or up, rather) the Nile on a small sail boat. Paradise found. We enjoyed the company of two young women: Christie from Zimbabwe and Alison from South Africa, as we watched Egypt float past us. Mohamed cooked such delicacies each day as falfael, salad, dahl, and a variation of french toast using pita. Simple meals on his camping stove on the boat were some of the best meals we enjoyed the entire trip. Made with love, they were divine. Here is the captain and his crew, a picture of the boat, The Love Boat, and some other visuals from the floating part of our journey:

Mahmoud delivered us to another Mahmoud (we CURSE his name, but I am getting ahead of myself again) in Luxor. The highlight of this stop was the night-time, laser light show at Karnak temple. Sounds indulgent, tacky, and reeks of Pink Floyd but it was brilliant and I am totally serious. Imagine the setting sun over the Nile, a pink sky fading into dark. You are standing with the smallest amount of tourists yet, only about 100, as you wait for....well, you don't really know what you are waiting for. Then a thundering "CLAP" of symbols announces the beginning of an hour and a half walking tour through this enormous temple city built by Egyptians and Greeks. You are not led by a human guide in the flesh, but rather an epic voice looms over you joined in chorus by softly dramatic light guiding your way. Amazing. Like walking through an episode of something on PBS or the discovery channel. Highly recommended.

Now the Mahamoud who sent us packing from Luxor deserves a special line here cuz we are still a pit pissed at this guy. We are heading from Luxor to a beach side town called Hergada on another tourist bus in yet another caravan to be greeted by another Mahmoud in Hergada who will get us onto a ferry to wiz across the Red Sea the following morning delivering us to Sharm Al'Sheik. HAHAHA, not what happened. It is possible this Mahamoud made some errors as he was clearly smitten with sweet Mook-lan and maybe he overlooked something???? Whatever it was, we ended up on a local bus that broke down in the middle of the desert. Not an issue there, because somehow another bus was there to take us all along. But there were already passengers on that other bus and so three of the four of us had to squeeze onto the way back "seat" which is a liberal description of a piece of plywood. The fourth member of our party had to sit five inches away from an AC vent that wouldn't shut off. Then a movie comes on. All one can tell from the first few moments is that some violent Americans are killing people with dark skin. This presents all of us (although we don't admit this until much later) with the nightmare image that keeps our parents up at night: four Jewish kids on a bus surrounded by Arabs when a film comes on the screen depicting gun-crazed, scantily dressed Americans killing "arab terrorists" for no good reason. But all was saved, it was just an old Jean Claude Van Dame movie entitled, "Universal Soldier". Don't rush out get it folks, let me save you the trouble: it blows.

Anyway, many, many hours later we are dropped off at the bus station in Hell on Earth: Hergata, and yes....you guessed it. No Mahamoud to get us. Luckily, Colin speaks fluent Spanish and befriended a couple from Columbia who were often members of the same tourist caravan as we were. We saw them at the bus station, they guilted their driver into taking us someplace, and off we went to the waiting arms of yet another Mahamoud.

Hergata, skip it. Not much to say except its the first place I've ever seen where middle aged women (Russian, all of them) came to sleep with young Egyptian men. Quite a switch as its usually the other way around, and it was strange to see. Our "take away" from Hergata is that Russia must be pretty rough, and especially short on quality men, to inspire this sort of migration of Russian ladies. Weird.

So here we are, roughly 14 hours from Be'er Sheba, and we are told that the ferry we are here to meet that will cut 10 hours off of our journey home...isn't running! For 16 days!!!!!! Can you hear us Mahamound in Luxor, do you feel the needles of our voodoo doll with your name on it poking holes in your heart??? So, we rent a bus, and start our long journey to Suez and then back to the border. Luckily, not much to say. It want pretty fast, we had lots of fruit and nuts, even scored some cheeze pizza. After leaving Hergata at noon that day we arrived at the Israel border just before midnight.

Wish I could now say we were welcomed in, but as it is with life here, a veil of suspision, pessimism, and negativity descended on us as soon as we reached the Israel desk at customs. I get it, they have their reasons, but we LIVE here. BY CHOICE!. Whatver. The final Mahamound, and I kid you not, was the taxi driver who carried us back to Be'er Sheba to arrvive just after three am.

Wonderful holiday, one of the best we've ever had. Should you be interested in going yourself, give us a call. We can't wait to get back, the wacky Jews that we are. Take care, and we hope you enjoyed the tale of our many Mahomouds.

What we were reading
Adam: Narcissus and Goldman, by Herman Hesse
Sera: Dark Star Safari, from Cairo to Capetown, by Paul Theroux

Magical Mitzpe Ramon

2007-03-13T08:37:00.000+02:00

After months of longing, we finally piled ourselves into a rental car and headed out for the weekend to go camping! We headed southeast an hour and a half from Be'er Sheba to a magnificent hole in the ground called Mitzpe Ramon. Camping in a foreign country brings up all sorts of issues one takes for granted when you are in a familiar place. For example, we didn't know where to buy firewood. Trees not being in abundance here in the middle of the desert, we headed to the local Bedouin market and almost got the car towed in the process. Needless to say, we left empty handed. The desert contiued on with its standard fare of sand, a bit of green as its spring here these days, and rolling hills. And then, all of a sudden, you come around a corner, and here it is: Mitzpe Ramon Canyon.

Contiuing out of town, undettered and commited to reach a campsite by sundown. Arriving in the park, we passed the government issue campground advertising an authentic "Bedouin Experience" with covered campsites, full plumbing, hot showers, and a vending station. We wanted to rough it, so on we drove. We continued a ways, pulled over, and set up camp. Here we are enjoying ourselves, in the process of gathering firewood from the dead shrubs in the area.

Much to our surprise, around sunset a camp ranger showed up to tell us about all of the rules we were breaking: dog not on a leash, disturbing the shrubs, fire without a permit, and on it goes. He was nice enough not to give us a ticket which at that point would have totalled several hundred dollars. Sadly, we packed up our wilderness camp and headed back to the government issue camp site. Foiled again! So we passed a night under a blanket of stars so full its hard to imagine there is room for them all. Awoke early to make some tea, and head out into the wilderness.

We hiked, camped, and enjoyed a hot summer day in March. Lovely. On the way home we happened by a secret lake and enjoyed a brilliant spring sunshine, while Jed took his first full dip and swim in the water. He was running around with such joy, everyone in the park was at full attention watching Jed enjoy his time at the lake. We caught an inspirational spring sunset, seen here, with trees and flowers blooming all around.

I am also including here a photo or two from a sculpture garden just outside of Be'er Sheba where we took Jed to wander around yesterday. The land around town is green and serene. Soon, it will be a big dust bowl again, but for now, its lovely.

Its amazing how much ground one can cover with a car. Donations are currently being accpeted for Sera and Adam's "Buy a Car" fund...send your checks today! For those of you planning a visit while we are here, this is a great time of year. We will keep the tea pot on for you, hope to see you soon...

A day at the beach

2007-03-04T20:20:00.000+02:00

Israel has beautiful, publically accessible beaches that run the entire length of the country. Buses are the primary mode of transport for us these days, and a train every once in a while, but we were lucky enough to rent a car compliments of Ma and Pa Rosenbloom a few weeks back and headed to the beach!

The city you see off in the distance there is Ashkelon. This beach was about thirty minutes from Be'er Sheba, and we were so so so sosososososososoos happy to see it!

This was Jed's first glimpse of the biggest puddle he's ever seen, and he loved it. He loves the water, and as you can see here, his mama loves him.

Hello? Hello, is there anybody in there? He's a digger.

The boys, lounging on the beach. Those shapely legs behind Adam belong to our roomie, Colin.

Havilah sleeping, Jed keeping an eye on everything. Too cute, eh?

Our house, in the middle of our street

2007-03-04T18:13:00.000+02:00

Adam worked hard to find a house that Sera would feel "at-home" with and succeeded on all counts. The house is an 8 minute walk from Adam's school, a ten minute walk to the train station, and conveniently located close to the gym, a produce stand, and the dog park. All by chance, but isn't that just Adam's luck? Here are some photos of our lovely home:

Here is the front of our house, the gate, and two clementine trees. We live in the tallest house on the block, and the only one with a blue gate. Third house on the left after the garbage heap. If you saw it, you'd know exactly what we mean.

Here is the kitchen. Funny enough, we did not paint the hippie flowers on the cabinets. Clearly, this house was meant for us.

This picture shows the upstairs loft, the front door underneath, and the hallway going back to the bedrooms, yoga room, and bathrooms. The man you see there is Stephen, Adam's dad, and that lady squating there is me, Sera.

The back porch, we spend lots of time out here with temperatures averaging well above 80 degrees nine months out of the year. We eat most of our meals out here, and with the wonders of wireless internet we can even do crossword puzzles and post blogs outside.

Daily rituals

2007-03-04T12:56:00.000+02:00

We thought you might like to see some pictures of some of the what, who, and the where filling our days here. Hopefully this will help you get a sense of what our daily lives look like here, until you come to see it yourselves, of course!

This is the dog park where Jed plays, splashes in toxic puddles, and chases little Ethiopian kids. This dog park is only about five minutes from our house, so Jed is a regular there. Lots of folks have dogs here in Be'er Sheba, and there are also plenty of strays to be found roaming about. We spend a good amount of time here, at least twice a day, feeling super lucky it is so close and has grass instead of dust for him to roll around in.

This produce stand is about two minutes from our house. Most of the produce is grown here in Israel due to impressive systems of tapping underground aquifers and the draining of the Red Sea. Luckily, produce is incredibly cheap here and we are eating lots and lots of it. We are here once a day, usually, and are now such reliable customers we get to shop on credit.

Our local coffee house, owned and operated by a couple consisting of a white Israeli, a black Israeli, and a newly arrived gorgoues baby. Thus the name "Black and White". Its like coffee shops in the US in the sense that we get mochas and lattes, its full of students hard at work until late into the night, and they play pop music. Its unlike the coffee shops in the US in that they let Jed come in and roam around, and these fancy beverages cost us about a buck a pop, cheap cheap, as they say.

A typical night at our house, dining on our table and cushions we shipped from 'nam. We like to have people over for dinner, and do so a few times a week. In this photo are Adam, Colin (our rommate from Whitefish, Montana), Havilah (from a family of 8 home-schooled kids hailing from backwoods Oregon), and Heather (from Cochrane, Alberta). We were dining on homecooked grilled salmon, miso rice, local Israeli red wine, and one of Colin's famous salads.

Adam hard at work, studying on our back patio being kept company by his faithful sidekick, our young Jedi. Contrary to popular belief, he does study quite regularly. Here he is pondering the complexities of something that most of us don't care at all about as long as it stays far away from us. Thanks Adam, for learning about this so that the rest of us don't have to.

Home for the holidays

2007-02-22T16:04:00.000+02:00

Again, please forgive the time lapse. It is february and I am posting this stuff now, so I am going to indulge in some time travel...won't you join me?

Adam and I boarded the same plane early in the am on December 22 to travel to Vermont to spend some time with our families. We never get to travel together, so this was a real treat for us. We tarried longer than desired due to "weather" in NYC, which was mostly ok with us as it allowed for several rounds of tacos and burittos. We arrived in Vermont, where it was raining! In December! No snow to be seen anywhere....strange.

The next day my sister and mother arrived, and so there we were, the first offical gathering of both of our families. We spend a few fun filled, action packed days together planning, planning, and planning some more for the upcoming summer wedding. It went mostly very well, and I only cried once, which I hear is pretty good as far as wedding planning goes. Really though, Adam and I are thrilled that our families enjoy one another so much. And amazed at their generosity in throwing this party for us. Hope you can all make it, its going to be something!

The ladies of both families, plus Adam, then traveled to Boston where Connie, Sera's mom, flew back to Austin, and the rest of us met my Rabbi, Lev Baesh, for my formal conversion on december 26th. What an incredible experience, from beginning to...I'd say end, but I feel it was just another beginning. I've been working with Lev for well over a year now on my conversion. He agreed to lead me through this experience via email, as he lives in New Hampshire, and I wasn't having any luck finding a Rabbi in Communist Vietnam (taste the sarcasm??). The process was rich, and full of adventure for both Adam and I as we led a Passover Seder in Hanoi, honored Shabbat with all kinds of different folks around, and did our best to honor the holidays in the midst of that crazy Communist coutry, lacking much of anything in the way of God. So, Lev arranged for my mikveh to take place at this phenonmenal place in Newton, MA, called Mayyim Hayyim. A mikveh designed with water, women, and the sacred in mind, to be sure. The ceremony was truly a milestone in my life I will never forget, and always remeber with a deep appreciation for the moments that Adam, Judaism, and Lev came into my life. Blessed, on all counts. So, now I am formally a member of the tribe, and am looking forward to walking my path as a Jew with a hightened sense of compassion, community, and history, than before.

We then headed back to Vermont, Adam went skiing, I read books, made soup, and we all relaxed. Adam and I drove up to Monreal for New Year's where we enjoyed a night with friends, sushi, and were in bed at 12:07. Here we are, all dressed up, at the tasty sushi place toating the new year!

Then it was back to Vermont, wrapped up the remaing wedding stuff, and back to Be'er Sheba. On seperate planes, of course!

Hanukah

2007-02-18T19:45:00.000+02:00

A bit belated, as its February and I am just posting this now, but....we had a Chanukah party and it was great! We lit candles, had a smashing of a success of a white elephant party, and ate lots of latkas...wish you all could've been there with us. Here are some pics of us and the party...

Happy Hannukah, and may there always be miracles!!!!

Valentine's Day weekend

2007-02-18T16:34:00.000+02:00

We are constantly pinching ourselves, Adam and I, that is...I don't know if Jed does this, to be mindful of how lucky we are. Well, the last weekend was just another luxurious example of this. We were treated to a heavenly weekend of feasting and fun in Jerusalem by our parents, thank you parents! It was wonderful in every way, and I am feeling a bit "hung-over" about it as I sit here in our office at home posting this now....sigh.

As weekends start here on Thursday, Adam met me after his courses ended on Thursday night. I went up early in the AM on Thursday as I had a meeting in East Jerusalem where I hope to be spending much more time working with Palestinian and Israeli midwives. We went out for a glorious and indulgent dinner of sushi (what a treat!), and while we were at the cafe we ran into some friends of the Rosenbbooms, Yael and Ron, and their kids. Adam's mom worked with Yael at the Israeli Consul General in Houston, and they were celebrating their daughter's 18th birthday. Made us feel like we really live here, now that we are bumping into people we know.

We spent the night in a lovely hostel right in the center of things off of Jaffa Street in Jerusalem, and got up early to go wedding ring shopping with an old friend of Adam's, Tamar, who lives in Jerusalem. We think we've probably found what we are looking for, but won't ruin the surprise! We then mozied on over to the swanky Inbal Hotel where we were hosted by the Houston Jewish Federation for the weekend. WOWOWOWOW, wined and dined like we were somebody special! Felt grrrrrrrrrrrrreat! We had Shabbat dinner in a formal dinning room where all the students had to go around the room and introduce themselves to the 260-thick Houstonian delegation. Adam intoduced me as his fiancee, and we got a big round of applause and "mozel tov". It makes me smile just thinking about it. Jonas, Adam's brother who lives in Jerusalem, joined us there for the weekend, as well. Its great to see them together, they enjoy one another so much.

Saturday we rose somewhat early, ate a tasty breakfast, and strolled out into the brilliant sunshine to enjoy a day at the Israel Museum. Full of all things old and Jewish. Also a few exhibitions of random modern and classic art thrown in for good measure. The dead sea scrolls are on display in this strange building that is designed to feel like a clay jar. I felt like I was in "I Dream of Jeanie". A great day, to be sure. Then we headed back, checked out, got on the bus, and headed back to Be'er Sheba.

One more treat was in store for us, though: we passed Condi's motorcade as she was arriving from the airport. Straight from Iraq. Times like this make me breathe deeply in appreciation for this place we are calling home these days. Lucky, lucky, lucky.

More to come, stay tuned....

Why we are here and what we think about it

2007-02-18T16:20:00.000+02:00

Well, we've been here now for what somedays feels like a very long while and on others a quick breath. In truth, it adds up to about 6 months. Some might ask why it is that we decided to come live here for the next three years while Adam persues his dream of becoming a doctor. Well, to start with, we just aren't ready to move back to the US, and the program here is fabulous as it allows him to keep learning in an international context to best serve in Kartoum or Kabul or wherever we go from here. Additionally, living here allows me, Sera, to keep working on an international scope and to live close enough to a conflict zone to be able to commute. Not too many other parts of the world where I'd be able to do that. So, here we are: Be'er Sheba.

Israel is an incredibly interesting place to be, and the real thing is way better than any book I've read! I had no idea of the diversity in population: on our street alone we have a family from Tunisia, a "spy" and his extended family relocated from Gaza, an extended Bedouin family, a handyman who grew up on a kibbutz, and some other med students. The demographics, geopgraphy, and politics will keep us learning for at least the four years we are here. We are loving it more and more, day by day, and are feeling really blessed to call this part of the world home for a little while.

What we love about Be'er sheba: our friends, our house, the weather, the cheap produce, and the lively atmosphere ensured by our current geographical location of 18 miles east of Gaza. What we could love more about Be'er Sheba: a bookstore, a taco bar, a yoga studio, and a clean dog park.