On the kibbutz with Sarah Tuttle-Singer and the kiddos.
I’m sure you were all waiting with bated breath, but I’m happy to announce that I’m back. What, you didn’t realize that I was gone? I, the faithful editor of Kveller, took the show on the road for a few weeks with a trip to Israel. The plan was to introduce my daughter, Mika, to her great grandparents in Tel Aviv. (And to escape the country for Mika’s 2nd birthday as to avoid having to actually throw a party.)
I’d like to share with you the 10 things I learned during the trip:
10. The 11(!) hour plane ride isn’t quite as hellacious when armed with a boatload of snacks, an iPad, and brilliant tips from you Kveller readers.
9. El Al doesn’t mess around. I survived a 15 minute inquisition about why I was going to Israel. By the end, I also began to wonder.
8. Strangers love to tell you what you’re doing wrong when it comes to child rearing. Especially in Hebrew.
7. Israelis know how to throw a mean birthday party and it usually involves a crown of flowers.
6. Kids get constipated when they travel. It’s not pretty. Eating tomatoes helps cure the problem. Eating hummus does not.
5. Toddlers don’t like to do the same things as adults when on vacation. For example, waking up and reading the newspaper in a leisurely manner. A good common activity we learned is sitting on the beach–beers for Mama and Aba, bucket and shovel for Mika.
4. Kids like being around other kids. Especially cousins. This made traveling with 30 Israeli family members especially enjoyable…for Mika.
3. Yom Kippur in Israel is pretty amazing, the stillness of a country without a single car on the road is something to behold.
2. There are tunnels that run beneath the Western Wall. And they’re cool.
1. And now most importantly, I learned that Kveller blogger Sarah Tuttle-Singer is a real live (awesome!) person and she really does live on a kibbutz. Who knew?! I guess her rabbi really did find her vibrator too.
