a succah in the garden

we never build a succah before for succot. actually we tried last year, but it crashed four seconds after we had finished it, so it doesn't really count. but this year we were better prepared. we haven't exacty been eating out there, though. it's crazy hot here, much warmer than the usual end of september.

so we build a succah and i made some garlands with old paintings like i when i did these birthday buntings.  i was trying to get the kids in on this too, but they were in this "couldn't care less about decorating the succah" mood. so i ended up doing it myself. anyone ever tried that? to prepare for a perfect kid creativity moment just to find oneself pretty alone doing it. next year, i guess.

anyway, we're off to the beach to bbq with friends and cool down, even if the water is really hot too (the water really is 30 degrees celcius, francesca, and because you asked, i can tell you that i know this, not because i am carrying around a thermometer, but because it's a part of the weather report in the summer. the water temperature :).

ps: those hearts are actually from our christmas decoration stash. thought hearts were pretty universal symbols and could work in a succah as well. thumbs up for mixing up traditions and culture :)

summer sun setting

the sun sets earlier now, the light is warm and glowing by late afternoon. we have the craziest sunsets in the garden too. the sky all purple and pink in the horizon.

this is the best time of the year. still hot, but the breeze is lovely and in the evening you feel the temperature dropping. still no need for long sleeves or blankets, but just enough to feel lighter.

the water is hot too, almost 30 degrees celcius. i like it like that. we have sukkot coming up. more holidays, more time at home and time spent with family.and most likely also a lot more time spent at the beach, soaking in these last days of real summer sun and blue sea.

wishing you a lovely week.

back in july

just sorted through photos the other day and found these from a couple of month ago. we celebrated a birthday for a dear friend on the roof top terrace in tel aviv.

as we tend to do when we have had an amazing time with friends, we promised ourselves to arrange more times with friends. in denmark that was easy, and now we are back we are trying to keep up to that promise.

yesterday was yom kippur, though, so no weekend get-togethers with friends this time. i miss yom kippur in tel aviv. out here on the countryside you don't really feel the difference, where as in tel aviv it's quite spectacular.

corner view - seven

corner view is back. it took me by surprise. but that won't stop me.

some of you might have noticed that i have a thing with feathers. and recently i have been pleasantly surprised to see feathers pop up every where in the blogosphere. cause really, who can get enough feathers?

here are seven i received while in denmark. i like seven. in fact i like most uneven numbers. my favorite is three, but 5,7, and 9 are pretty good too. i'm pretty indifferent to 1, though. and even numbers don't do it for me. maybe 8, because it's a cool shape, but 2 and 4 are pretty boring. now you know.

oh, and i got the feathers from the kids. they have noticed that i have a thing with feathers too, and they proudly bring me any feathers they find. i must admit that not all of them take my breath away, but generally i love it. that they notice what i like and treasure, weather it's a flower, or sea glass, stones and shells from the shore. it's good to know how to enjoy the little things you come across along your way.


that said, i will now get myself to tel aviv. hopefully i will be able to enjoy a cup of coffee and some other city delights along my way.

happy corner viewing - check them all out via the amazing theresa who is hosting it while awesome jane is away.

grand scales

we have been celebrating rosh hashana - the jewish new year. lots of fun, beach, bbq, dinners, garden and pure relaxation.

today a new week begins, and i'm off to ikea (wish me luck). pictured above are the wall when entering the exhibition of the dead sea scrolls at the israel museum in jerusalem, and the sun setting at our local beach. sometimes grand scales sooth the eyes just right. have a wonderful week :)

jarred up

little pretty fish at the beach and my mom's homemade fig jam for a pancake and mango breakfast. it's mango season and we are picking them in the garden of D's brother. they have the biggest tree ever, so full of huge, sweet mangos you cannot believe it. and those pancakes were made with eggs from our coop. our fig tree is still tiny, no figs yet, so the figs were bought at the market in jerusalem, where we went last week. it's season too, and these were incredibly dark, juicy and sweet.

ps: don't worry: the fish got back into the water after a little while.

family shots

one afternoon in denmark, shot by my younger brother. for quite a few years he has been documenting daily life - things, views, buildings, people etc - via his phone camera. i love his shots, and i have tried to make him share on flickr. but so far he's only sharing with friends on facebook. big sigh.

anyway the little brother took these and that's why i make a rare appearance here. with new bangs and colored nails. i never use nail color. not because i don't like it - i love it - but husband really doesn't like it. in the weird really grossed-out way. i am thinking he must have been kissed and hugged too much by some distant aunt with way too much nail polish and red lipstick in his childhood and it traumatized him (he doesn't like lipstick either, though not to the same extent) .of course, i could still put it on, but it's just not the same when your love looks at you with this "yikes" shadow in his eyes. life sure is hard.

anyway, in the weeks i spent alone in denmark i polished my nails all the time. the dark blue from chanel, which was a gift from a friend this spring, was used quite a lot. i had to get it out of my system, you see :)

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way back before the summer started, i kept on saying that i would catch up soon on my blog reading and commenting. this "soon" is still hanging in the air. i really have not been very active online. but it might be that  time is coming back. kids are starting kindergarten these days. and i have a month before i go back to studying.

so, see you soon :)