Brit Milah

NQR except for the cutting...
Yesterday was Amit's Brit Milah. Inbal initially wanted to go with a medical mohel (one who is a doctor and has been trained as a mohel as well) but the price was prohibitive. Inbal didn't want the whole party who-ha atmosphere usually associated with a brit. So she got the name of a highly recommended mohel who when told there might not be a minyan said that the mitzvah of doing the brit outweighs the mitzvah of having it done with a minyan. And yesterday afternoon, in the presence of Rotem (who was the "sandak" and held the baby during the ceremony) Inbal's good friends, Naama, Simone and Yael, and me, Amit joined the ranks of the Jewish men before him.
It just dawned on me that Inbal's three friends represent three periods of her life. Yael is a childhood friend. They literally grew up together. Simone and Inbal went to school together in Canada and did their army service at the same time. And Inbal met Naama when she started working in Israel after she returned from university in Toronto. Interesting. But back to the brit. The mohel was very nice and didn't appear to be judgmental. Amit is doing fine. A few tears but handling it well. The mohel should be back for a check-up today and then nothing. Nothing meaning none of the stress related to Amit's first few days and breastfeeding difficulties or stress related to the brit -- when, who, where, etc.
So now everyone can settle into a routine of enjoying Amit.

Grandparenthood -- Who Knew?

There's a Yiddish expression about humans making plans and God laughing at them.
So Inbal's due date was May 30th and I had planned to go to Israel on the 26th. Inbal had her baby on the 19th. The process had started a few days earlier.
Needless to say, I changed my flights. I left on the 19th at 11ish p.m. (Toronto time)and arrived at Heathrow at 11ish a.m. local time the following morning. Since my next flight from Heathrow to Tel-Aviv didn't leave until, again, 11ish p.m. on the 20th, I had many hours to pass. I visited every duty-free shop at least once, read a book, and most importantly, managed to stretch out on some benches and grab a few winks. I arrived in Israel at 4:30 a.m. on the 21st and was very glad to find Rotem waiting at the airport. He drove me to Inbal's to drop off the luggage and take a quick shower and then we went straight to the hospital to see Inbal and the baby.
Amit (pronounced "uh-meet" with the emphasis on the second syllable) is adorable, delicious. He has a full face and doesn't have the scrawny wrinkled look often associated with newborns. We are all busy adjusting to one another -- Amit to being in the outside world where he has to take affirmative action to be nourished, Inbal learning to read Amit's signs and cries, and me to staying up later than 8 p.m. and waking up frequently during the night.
But it's all good.
As I write, I feel tired so I'm going to lie down for a bit. We've all got to nap when we can...

Further Update

Last bit of binding hand-sewn. So all planned baby blankets are done.
Finished cutting out the circles, squares and triangle and fused all.
Next on the agenda (after lunch) is to sew over them in a serpentine stitch (just in case the steam-a-seam isn't that long lasting), audition pick up sticks for corners, sew down word rectangles, maybe bead their binding, and attach centre love birds circle, and also maybe free-motion Stephen and Dee's names and wedding date in said circle.
But I can see the light at the end of the tunnel.
Also envisioning Jojo and Warren's chuppah while I patchke with this one.

Where was I?

So I have finished quilting all of the baby quilts (4). I did the binding on two of them by machine by sewing the binding onto the back and then folding to the front and sewing down. The third one, I decided to do after work one day and inadvertently sewed the binding to the front so that one I have to hand sew. Bummer. I seriously considered ripping the binding and resewing it but didn't have the heart to do it. The fourth one I finished quilting this morning, have cut the binding strips and will finish, hopefully, this afternoon. This completes the baby quilt portion of my pre-trip tasks.
I have washed and pressed all the additional panels/fabrics and will take with me to Israel and maybe make some baby blankets there.
I have washed all of Devora's diapers and baby stuff. Now I just have to sort through it. Probably on the weekend, Victoria Day weekend so we have an extra day.
Hope to get to Stephen and Dee's chuppah tomorrow and/or the weekend.

So I'm doing OK, I think.

Update

Third baby blanket quilted.
Chuppah words shuffled and final arrangement decided upon. Circle, square and triangle paths marked.
Sample fabrics sorted -- one bag ready for FAT ladies to pick over then the rest going to Textile Museum for garage sale.

Goals for this week:
1. Bind baby quilts
2. Stephen & Dee's Chuppah:
Prepare circles, squares and triangles, fuse and sew down.
"Pick up sticks" between words and at corners
Attach words (with beads??)
machine embroider names and date
Ribbons?
3. Diapers
Finish washing and sorting Devora's donation
4. More baby blankets
wash panels
check how much batting is left
order microfleece/minkee
5. Jojo & Warren's Chuppah
think about design and fabrics

Not too ambitious, eh?

Chocolate Fix

Fair warning -- I don't want anyone who reads my blog to be shocked to find a recipe on it. I received an email on one of my lists for the following cake and want to save the recipe and know I'll be able to eventually find it if it's on my blog.

5 MINUTE CHOCOLATE MUG CAKE

4 tablespoons flour
4 tablespoons sugar
2 tablespoons cocoa
1 egg
3 tablespoons milk
3 tablespoons oil
3 tablespoons chocolate chips (optional)
A small splash of vanilla extract
Microwave safe mug

Add dry ingredients to mug, and mix well.
Add the egg and mix thoroughly.
Pour in the milk and oil and mix well..

Add the chocolate chips (if using) and vanilla extract, and mix again.
Put your mug in the microwave and cook for 3 minutes at 1000 watts.
The cake will rise over the top of the mug, but don't be alarmed!
Allow to cool a little, and tip out onto a plate if desired.
EAT ! (this can serve 2 if you want to feel slightly more virtuous).

And why is this the most dangerous cake recipe in the world?

Because now we are all only 5 minutes away from chocolate cake at any time of the day or night!

I tried it and it was delicious without chocolate chips.

IMHO, it require modification. Instead of using a mug, I will use 4 greased ramekins for 4 individual servings. And the microwave time will have to be adjusted accordingly. The sugar can be decreased as well. And maybe half and half oil and applesauce. And maybe nuts. Hmmm.

Progress Report

nursing cover finished
flannel blankets and burp cloths finished
one baby blanket quilted
one baby blanket half-quilted

More of the same tomorrow

Members' sale -- Part One

Yesterday evening, Menachem and I went to Fabricland because I needed thread to finish three baby blankets. I also bought boning to finish a nursing cover I am making for Inbal. I bought the thread and boning but because I took Menachem with me, I came home with four yards of adorable flannel, several baby panels and baby fabric. I didn't buy batting and backing fabric because I think I am going to make my future baby quilts with only two layers, the second being Minkee or microfleece which I may just order from Wazoodle since I am so happy with my first order from them. Guess what I'll doing this weekend...

Mind changing prerogative

Since it is a woman's prerogative to change her mind, I've changed mine about Stephen and Dee's chuppah. I just couldn't get the words to line up in a pleasing manner so I put them, in order as per the blessing, around the perimeter, put the bird circle in the centre and am connecting them with circles, triangles and squares. I haven't ironed anything or sewn anything down yet (because I may change my mind yet again...) but I'm leaning heavily on this configuration.

On the baby blanket front, I've got two of them sandwiched and pinned. I was going to do one, quilt it and then start on the next but alas, I do not have the right threads. I hope to get another blanket sandwiched and pinned tomorrow.
That will take care of my baby blanket commitments. But Fabricland is having a members' sale (50% off on anything not already on sale) so I may just buy some more panels, fabrics, batting and thread and whip up or at least have the materials for a few more baby blankets.

And since I was planning to get fabrics for Johanna's chuppah this weekend, the sale is right on time!

Kentucky Derby or something

I am assuming that all the recent horse-related movies on TCM (Turner Classic Movies) had something to do with an important horse race. And in keeping with that theme, I am in the final stretch of Stephen and Dee's chuppah. The elements are ready, more or less, it's just a matter of figuring out how to configure them on the fabric. The circle with birds turned out nicely, I think. I thought a circular element would offset the rectangular shape of the tartan and words. The dilemma is where to position everything. I have put the tartan words one below the other down the length of the right hand side. (The chuppah is 60" wide by 72" long after I finally had the courage to cut the fabric's length). I have positioned the circle about 2/3 in from both the top and the left hand side. I am now cutting up 1 1/2"-ish squares, circle and triangles and perhaps "pick up stick strips" to connect the circle to the rectangles. My dilemma is the rectangles. If I leave them in the order they appear in the "sheva brachot", they are not visually pleasing. If I shift them around so I can some kind of a curve, either from large to small in he middle and back to large or from small increasing in increments to the largest, it looks much better but isn't true to the text. Since I doubt that either the bride, the groom or their respective families will care, I will do the visually pleasing. And maybe put a binding on it. With rings to attach to the chuppah poles since the banquet hall has no chuppah frame.

Then I am going to try to get started on the baby quilts during the week before and after work.

Next weekend, I will get fabric for Johanna and Warren's chuppah. I think theirs will be much easier since I pretty much know what I want to do and how to do it. It's just going to be B-I-G. The chuppah frame is 96" square! I am planning to do a central panel and "frame" it with light and airy sheer-ish fabrics which can be removed after the wedding.

I look forward to finishing these projects so I can think about other things.