Berries 09 - Let the pickin' begin

One of my favorite summer past times is picking berries. There is nothing like the full color and flavors of berries right off the bush. Yesterdays excursion yielded almost 12 lbs of blueberries and 5 lbs of raspberries.







One of my least favorite activities is patiently freezing the berries. But when it is done, it was well worth it.


Our frozen booty preparing for a road trip ;)

When our babies aren't perfect...

It is unfortunate but Lavi did not pass her pre-evaluation for dog therapy. As many of you know or have seen, she is more of a "You work for me, Bitches" kind of dog. Although her regal demeanor is one of the things we love about her, it is probably not the best trait to have when you visit sick old people and kids. She tends to grace you with a second of two of general interest but after that you are on your own...not really what they look for when trying to comfort strangers. She is also not a fan of things that make strange noises...thank you Grandpa Rod and your remote controlled duck driving jeep :)...which could be a problem in a hospital room.

Guess she will have to stick to what she does best.....sleeping and looking so darn cute.

Namir Memorial Art

We are very lucky to have an animal hospital, Dove Lewis , that offers services to help those dealing with the loss of their pet. I first attended a Pet Loss Support group, which was a great way to openly talk about Namir and my feelings about his end of life. Then this past Sunday, they offered a Memorial Art program that allowed us to use our creative skills in the healing process. I made this wall hanging. I think it captures his spirit.



I encourage all of you to take advantage of these type of services if available.

Mom's Bat Mitzvah weekend

Mazel Tov to the Bat Mitzvah girl...she is now a woman!



After "many" years, mom decided it was time to officially have a Bat Mitzvah and to read from the torah. Technically, she was already Bat Mitzvah when she turned 13, but it was not custom for the girls to read from the Torah back in those days. For all you not in the know (I just learned this myself), once you turn 13 you are considered a Bar/Bat Mitzvah and now an adult in the community and allowed to read from the Torah, which is considered a mitzvah (in short - a worthy deed). Therefore, most kids take the opportunity as soon as they can...others wait 40+ years.

Mom, along with 10 other adults, studied for many months leading up to this day. It was wonderful to see everyone's families in the synagogue to support them on this momentus occasion.

Here's mom with her most avid study partner, Suri.



We attended Friday night services, where mom and her group lead the candle lighting.







Saturday was the big day and luckily the weather cooperated.



Alex and Brandon participated in the tallis service. She wore Brian's tallis (prayer shawl worn on Shabbat) during the service.





After the service, we had a beautiful party at the house with mom's friends and family.





We are all very proud of her hard work.
Great Job Mom!

Block Party Pig Roast

Although it did not start until 3, you could smell the pig down the street all day. You could tell Lavi knew something was up. When she finally was able to drag us down there, she found heaven - in a pig!





She tried to wait patiently for her turn.



And finally her daddy pulled through - with the tastiest morsel of all...the snout. This was not her first snout. She frequently gets her snout fix from the pork vendor at the farmer's market. But this was by far the best!





All is well in Laviland!