Need Vacation!?

Many many people are overworked and in need of a vacation.

This article in today's New York Times, however, says that clergy are especially in need.

Members of the clergy now suffer from obesity, hypertension and depression at rates higher than most Americans. In the last decade, their use of antidepressants has risen, while their life expectancy has fallen. Many would change jobs if they could.

It's true. I know so many of my colleagues and friends who have a hard time separating work from life.

But "many would change jobs if they could"?

I might be tired out and I might be ready for the vacation that is coming up next week, but I do love my job and all that it entails.

Does this look like a rabbi-mama that needs a break?

Taking that sentence out of the equation, though, it is an interesting and powerful article. What is also interesting to me is that the rabbis I know are all buzzing about it. (Oh, and clergy parents, like my mom, who called to check if I'd seen the article.) Are our congregants reading it as well? No one would begrudge us a vacation, but how would they feel if our vacation coincided with their family event?

Either way, I'm headed out on a little family roadtrip soon. I'm sure that it will be interesting, to say the least, and perhaps not restful at all. I am hoping for a lot of fun, though!

I'll let ya know how it goes!

Rainbow Pudding Pops

I was inspired by these two posts and thought that these Rainbow Pudding Pops would be a fun activity.

And they were. Pretty easy, too. Just make up a batch of instant white chocolate pudding, divide into separate cups, color each cup, and then make rainbow-ish layers in a clear cup (well, it doesn't have to be clear but if it's not, how can you see your layers?!) and stick a popsicle stick in the top. Freeze. Sounds simple, doesn't it? In practice, MUCH more complicated to get those pretty layers. I can't quite imagine how those other bloggers got such pretty lines. Also, I used two boxes of pudding and ended up with very small pudding pops. But that's okay because my children didn't even finish these smaller ones in one sitting. So it was fine.

Loading up the cups:

Pretty rainbow-ish pops ready for the freezer!

The last one, just a mishmash of the leftover colors...

But the verdict? They were yummy and the kids were pretty happy about the whole thing!

Oh, and I haven't even started my High Holy Day sermons. So this is um....procrastination posting?

Love is in the Air

The Homeshuler has challenged some of the Jewish bloggers to tell everyone their favorite Jewish love song in honor of Tu B'Av. Tu B'Av is a relatively unknown "holiday" in the Jewish calendar. Coming fast on the heels of Tisha B'Av (the 9th of Av), Tu B'Av (the 15th of Av) is completely its opposite. It is a Jewish "love" day - young unmarried girls would dance in white dresses and sing in the vineyards of Jerusalem. Less than a week after the mournful day of Tisha B'Av, Tu B'Av offers a respite, a reminder that life goes on, that love goes on, that we must endure and continue to celebrate. It is a chance to be joyous and silly after weeks of preparation for mourning.

So...it's a perfect day for love songs.

I'm not great at the whole "what's your favorite song" question. It usually happens to be whatever I'm listening to! So I had do quite a bit of thinking.

First, I thought of the Song of Songs. After all, it is the most well-known, beautiful, ancient (Jewish) love song ever written. Here is a lovely rendition of Dodi Li....from my friend Marci's congregation! (With practically her whole family singing!) This was a totally random find, by the way, when I searched for versions of this song, which was sung at my wedding.



Then, I thought of Erev Shel Shoshanim, always a favorite.



Then, I totally cheated and saw Midianite Manna's post - a Broadway song! Good thinking!

This is one of my favorite love songs....written by Richard Rodgers, one of the greats...and, since he's Jewish, it qualifies for Amy's meme!



Whew. This was tough! What's your favorite love song?

Last year on Tu B'Av, I was celebrating my brother's Aliyah! Mazel tov on one year in Israel, little bro!

Not-So-Secret Summer Sundays

Most rabbis I know have a dirty little secret:

We love Sundays in the summer.

Because most of us, for most of the year, have a little thing known as Sunday School. So every Sunday, we're up at the crack of dawn with our enthusiastic smiles on, ready to impart Jewish knowledge and wisdom to the next generation....

But in the summer, we get to experience Sunday mornings. Lazy and delightful.

So today, I made chocolate chip and blueberry pancakes (not together, but separately), drank a cup of (decaf) coffee, read the newspaper, and then we went to a pool party sponsored by my younger kids' day camp. Wonderful!

What is better than popsicles at the pool?

P.S. This is late for Robin's Summer Stock Sunday and early for Tracey's Best Shot Monday.

Grumpy

Some days are just like that.

Summer Camp Highlights!

Now that we've returned home, most of the laundry is done, our mosquito bites have started to heal, and camp is slowly becoming a memory for my kids...so I share with you now some of the highlights of our 2 weeks at OSRUI...

We got to hang out with the amazing Dan Nichols. He worked with all the different kids around camp in smaller groups and he did a big concert for the whole camp. It was awesome! When David was little, he would sing Dan's songs and call him "MY Danny Nichols." Pretty cool to get them together again....

We spent Shabbat afternoons at the waterfront...

We met the frog that lives in the Tzofim ark. On Shabbat morning, I even got to pick him up and move him so we could carry the Torah without disturbing him.

We got to feed the goats. Every day. All the time.

There were puddles to stomp in.

And then a fan to dry off the wet feet...

Some of us got to fly high on the "flying squirrel" at the Alpine Tower.

Some people got to ride around in the stroller all the time.

And I got to spend Shabbat with my husband and family!

A great time had by all....looking forward to next summer already!

I'm (a little) less certain

As you may know, I'm a big advocate of Jewish summer camp. I think it's so great for kids to go away for a few weeks, gain some independence, learn something new, and have the opportunity to immerse in Jewish identity.

My kids LOVE camp.

But today, this conversation made me a little less certain about, um, the other parts of the summer camp experience.

David, with a huge smile: Hey, mom, yesterday I got to second base and then a home run!
Me: Oh, were you playing kickball? or baseball? What sport?
David: Fart baseball.

Hmmm.....

(Oh yeah, then I asked him to smile and instead he showed me his lunch...)

Time to go home from camp....hard to believe it's been 2 weeks!