It has been a while since I have been able to sit down and write. Preparing for a low-key Bar Mitzvah sure has taken up a lot of time – between making sure everything is going as needed at the right time to trying to finish some needed things off in time, time has sure contracted and as the days grow shorter and a halachic hour is getting shorter, it seems to have affected the speed of the hands on my clocks as well!
Last night I went through some pictures that were almost 13 years old. As I went through the folders on the computer and my husband and I walked through Memory Lane, he told me it was enough to make him cry. He was sad when thinking about the past, how all the boys are growing up and thinking that in the not so near future they will almost be all grown up. I told him that the boys are just becoming to Be. Our oldest is just becoming to be his own real self, who he really is going to be. Yes, each boy has shown their own personality right from the beginning, but they have been busy learning and growing. Now, our oldest is just starting to be his own person. We still need to continue to guide him over the next several years, but it is going to be a different kind of guidance.
One of the boys put on Shabbos music a little while ago and we were all in the kitchen making various food for Shabbos, I know that one day I will be doing this by myself again and I will not be looking at one boy making dough and I will not be seeing flour flying all over the room in order that the dough not stick to the counter, on the floor, clothing, air, and who knows where. However, today said boy made amazing knishes and even cleaned up after himself.
Not everything as been able to have been done school wise for the last few weeks for my oldest for he has been busy practicing his laining and preparing for his speech. He also has SAT math and vocabulary that he has been working on and yes, it has been a lot, however in less than 2 weeks his load will have lightened up a bit. Boys are finishing up selling all their popcorn and my oldest even did his first sewing project on the sewing machine – they are making a tallis in Boy Scouts. He sure did a great job! Even I learned something new by learning how to sew button holes with my machine.
In the meantime, I am enjoying all the wonderful chefs and the delicious smells in the house today. They are sure turning into wonderful cooks. We are almost done cooking and are going to spend a few hours cleaning, writing Dvar Torahs and showers!
Wishing everyone a restful Shabbos.