kisses in jerusalem

neshikot - kisses - from the jerusalem market back in august. i don't really like them, but they do look pretty.

we're on the last days of our vacation. there's fall in the air. middle eastern fall. meaning we're pulling out the long sleeves for the evening. i don't mind this change. it feels good.

happy weekend.

we'll be here

it's succot vacation and we're off for the beach. tent, food and towels are packed. i suspect  lot of jumping and tent full of sand. sounds good, no?

enjoy the rest of your week, succot celebrations or not.

oh so quiet

yom kippur is almost over. it's been quiet as always.

in tel aviv yom kippur is magical, the streets filled with people, bikes, talking laughter. there's no music, no traffic, no sounds of modern world. only people. here in the countryside there's not much difference from any other holiday. but then again. even here there's always the sound of a car, traffic, bits of sign from a car radio, a television through an open window. but not today. it's really just oh so quiet.

wishing you a wonderful new week.

after the zoo

at the end of a long day in the jerusalem zoo with the sweetest aunt. hanging, hiding and cooling off with "artik".

last time i was in the jerusalem zoo was when little D was only a couple of months old and the older boys not even two. i remember being tired from running after the twins, trying to get them interested in the animals when they'd much rather just run or climb around.

with that in mind i felt a bit sorry for all of us new parents that are trying so hard to get out and about with the little ones, giving them great experiences and adventures. really, most of the time a not-even-two year old just wants a playground, a stroll, a park, beach or maybe - and really simple - home. i know they learn and experience when we take them to museums and zoos and all the other things, but really, it is just so much better to do these kind of things with children that are a bit older and participate, ask questions, have opinions, and really remembers.

moens klint

it had been years since my last visit to moens klint. i've been wanting to go for the last few years when visiting denmark, but just never seemed to get around to make the two hour drive down south from copenhagen.

this summer D and i finally went. just the two of us, leaving the boys back home with my family. it was awesome! and the weather was sun and rain, gray sky, dark clouds changing to blue sky and brightness every moment. and i like that.

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we celebrated rosh hashana, the jewish new year, a couple of days ago. i hope this year will bring some goodness to this part of the world, but i'm honestly not so sure it will happen anytime soon. which is so sad. i truly wish that a miracle will happen and two states will live side by side in peace. if i could decide palestine would be declared a state today. not that it would do anything about all the challenges on the ground, but at least in theory we'd be moving somewhere.

happy new year.

shades of gray

did i tell you that it rained a lot in denmark. yes? ok, well, but it really did rain. a lot. in fact i'd say grey was a bit of a theme this summer in denmark. but grey can be pretty. i like grey.

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funny thing, that grey sky and heavy clouds makes a of green. i am always surprised at the lush greens in denmark. the parks, gardens, fields, forests. we have a few months here in israel, by the end of winter, around march and april, sometimes even into may, where it seems green here. but that's only because the last month of summer and fall is so dry, so dusty and the surface of the earth so burned, that it seems like magic when the world gets colorful again after only a few months of cooler weather and rainy days.

when i get home to denmark i remember what green really is. because it's all around and in all shades. even august, or maybe especially in august, if the summer has been so generous on water as this summer was.

....right now, this second the cats we have outdoors just interrupted me. too much excitement on the terrace. turns out they were playing with a mouse. why do they have to do that? i get that they have to go for the mice. that's what cats do. fine. but the playing around first, sitting watching the mouse, then pushing it with a paw to make it move, only to catch it, then let it go again. just eat and move on. no?

and now we're at the wild outdoors that is my garden: for the last couple of days we've had a tiny porcupine showing up. i'm not a specialist, but i'd say it's a baby and it's close to being the cutest thing ever. we fed him snails this evening (sorry snail lovers, he seemed really hungry and he asked for snails). 

by the way, we still only have one chick in the coop. still waiting, impatiently, for her (she's got to be a her!) to get some sisters to play with.

wishing you all a wonderful weekend.

days in denmark

look at that sweater! and the rain clothes! hard to imagine now when we're back and the heat is on. as in really hot.

i'm getting cold feet re the dog. not sure if we're really ready for it. the boys have been busy getting back in to every day life and didn't talk about it either.

we do have a tiny chick in the coop, though. so cute, so sweet. crossing our fingers that we'll soon have more (honestly, we deserve it! the rooster out there wakes some of us - me! - up at 4 or 5 in the morning. i need at least 6 chicks to melt my heart enough to forgive him).

wishing you a wonderful weekend. here it's soon getting started.