May 23-26 (Pilgrimage Pt 4, last part)

From here on out, I don't have journal entries yet, so I'm going on memory and our itinerary. Since I'll use this later to update my journal, the days might be a tad bit longer, but I promise they're not very long days.

See the person on the end? Church of Beth Phage

Wednesday started with a group photo on the roof after breakfast. Our hotel has a great view, so it ended up being a nice picture. Boy, did I have a raccoon tan from my sunglasses by this point though. We left for Beth Phage (the house of the palms) and the Mount of Olives to walk the Palm Sunday road. The church is controlled by the Franciscans and represents Jesus' triumphal entry into the city on Palm Sunday. There were beautiful murals and there's a stone that's remembered as Jesus' stepping stone onto his mule (the factuality of this is questionable, however). My favourite mural was on the back wall: it shows Jesus on his donkey and people laying down cloaks and palm fronds for him to walk on. The reason I like it is because the last person is in the process of pulling off their cloak, and when a priest was asked who it was, he responded that it could be anyone, you or me. We walked down the Palm Sunday road, with beautiful views to Dominus Flevit, where Jesus wept over the city of Jerusalem. We read the gospels and saw the tree from which the thorns for his crown came. Youch! Those thorns are LONG and nasty looking. The church has a beautiful picture window that overlooks the city, with metal designs and is shaped like a tear drop. We ended at the Garden of Gethsemane and the Church of the Agony or the Church of All Nations. This was James' favourite church last year because of the mural on the front of the church, which really is gorgeous and which I couldn't get a good picture of. The gardens have old olive trees, whose roots are said to be the same as those which Jesus would have walked through. Inside the sanctuary, the altar is built around the rock Jesus is believed to have offered his last prayer that night on (the "take this cup" one). It was a beautiful, dimly lit church. The doors were beautiful tree designs and the gates outside had some great metalwork. We headed to Caiaphas Palace or St Peter in Gallicantu next. We saw the dungeons and prisons, which show evidence of human cruelty. Some believe Jesus was held in the dungeons overnight. The church was beautiful: it had a wonderful stained glass gross on the ceiling that was breath-taking and there was a second church underneath the first. There was another model of the city during Jesus' time outside as well. We had lunch at the Notre Dame Center (they had couches!), just salads to save our appetite for dinner at Iyad's house in Jericho that night. We walked home through the Old City from the New Gate to the Damascus Gate. It was a nice walk, and you can really get a feel for the city. We went back to the hotel to rest before we left at 5 for Iyad's house in Jericho. His family was so kind and welcoming and the food was fantastic! Stuffed grape leaves (OMG why haven't I eaten these before), pastry-wrapped meat, rice and chicken and a very spicy spinach pastry as well. We all exchanged prayer partner gifts and my prayer partner was Jim, a Lutheran pastor who got me a tiny Jerusalem cross for the baby's baptism. So sweet. Then we headed inside to watch a hilarious show: West Bank Story. Think West Side Story as a comedy, set in Israel/Palestine with two fast food chains (Kosher King and Hummus Hut). It's pretty hilarious, and apparently available on Netflix: Go get it!

Touching Golgotha

Thursday was our last day, and our earliest. We had to be ready to leave at 5:45 in the morning. Gah! I woke up at 4:30, freezing cold from our air conditioner which was on super cold mode somehow. I again heard the call to prayer, but for the first time I didn't find it beautiful; all I could think was "Only 40 more minutes of sleep!" Despite the early hour, we were ready to head out at 5:45, and the chill in the air was welcome compared to the heat later in the day. I even had to wear my jacket as well as my head scarf. I'm sure I cut a very serious, religious figure walking the Via Dolorosa with my panda ears on my hood :) We walked all the stations, doing readings from the Way of the Cross book we were supposed to have read before hand (I'm not sure this is the name, but I can't find my copy right now). We were too early for most of the chapels to be open; in fact, I don't think we went into any of them, but it was so nice to walk without the distractions since the Via Dolorosa runs right through the souk. There were very few people out, none of the stores were open, and you were actually able to focus on the story. We ended in the Holy Sepulchre, where the last 5 (?) stations are located. At this point, we were able to see Golgotha/Calvary and touch the stone, through a little hole under the altar. We finished the stations and had some free time. Dad was very gallant and offered to anoint our headscarves once we were outside, since the women shouldn't enter without their heads covered. It was still a bit chilly, but Iyad brought us warm bread to munch on, which was delicious. We headed back to have a leisurely breakfast (a whole hour!) before leaving at 9 am for Emmaus. It felt weird to have done so much so early in the day, but also nice. I didn't eat much, since the bread was more than my usual breakfast, but it was nice to relax a bit. We left for Emmaus, which is mentioned in Luke. The story is that two of the disciples were traveling to Emmaus after Jesus' death and met a stranger on the road. The long and short is that the stranger is, of course, the risen Jesus, but he isn't revealed to them until he breaks bread with them. We had Eucharist at a Byzantine church's remains in Emmaus-Nicopolis (apparently there are four Emmauses) and after got to look around at the ruins a bit. There was a baptismal in the shape of a cross that looked like a full submersion one; kinda like a small version of my grandma's sunken tub. There was also a lizard. I tried to share my dried cherries, but it ran away from me. We headed back to Jerusalem to get our last lunch together at the Petra Restaurant (beginning and ending in Petra!) and had a lovely lunch. I don't remember the dish's name, but it's rice and meat all cooked in a big pot and then they turn the pot over. It was wonderful and extremely filling, plus they brought out watermelon and then ice cream at the end of the meal. It was hard to say goodbye to people, but we expected to see most people around the hotel since many were staying until the next day at least. We went straight from lunch to St. George's Cathedral since Mom was looking for a deacon's stole. No luck with the stole, and it took us forever to find the Cathedral, but we did find it eventually after a lot of walking. It's a very beautiful church and campus for a college. There was some debate over Hezekiah's Tunnels after we got back from the Cathedral, but we opted not to soak ourselves (I honestly thought the water was only ankle or calf deep, not up to your hips!) we saw Zedekiah's Caves instead. It's actually one big cave, and it's neat to see; I've always loved caves and caverns and even though it was humid, it was cool inside. It was also close to the hotel, which was convenient since we were all tired. We came back and rested after this since we were pretty exhausted: James was starting to get sick again, I had yet to feel better and Mom still had her Minnie Mouse voice. Dad, miraculously did not get sick. I crashed pretty hard, falling asleep while reading my book and I'm relatively sure this is the nap from which I "awoke" to tell James he had shekels in his hair. We had dinner at Azzahra's again, but I got lentil soup while everyone else went with the pasta. It was enough food for twice as many people! They brought out dessert again, a cinnamon-roll like thing, but way better than any cinnamon roll I'd ever had. I was stuffed, but I did sneak the roll back to our room to munch on later. :) We went to sleep early since we had another early morning planned: we were going to Masada!

That's James and me, inside the cistern!

Masada is one place that Dad said we absolutely had to go to if we were in Israel. He told me he'd always wanted to take Mom there, and wanted to take me since I was born. It was definitely incredible. We drove a long way, Iyad had set up the taxi for us, recommending that we take the audio tour once we were there. It was a beautiful, scenic drive along the Dead Sea. Our driver stopped to let us take pictures, and took some pictures of us all together too. We got to Masada and I think I shocked our driver by wanting to take the stairs instead of the elevator (he ended up asking what I did at hotels and seemed confused when I said I took the stairs up to 7 flights). We watched a very dramatic video introducing us to the history of the site and got our tickets for the cable car. Yes, I wanted to walk up the Snake Path, but that probably would not have been a good idea, although Dad pointed out that they had added railings along the edges since he'd been there. We opted for the giant cable car instead. On the way up, there weren't that many people and it was a quick ride, which was good. I really don't like being stuck with no way out of a situation and up in the air is about as "no way out" as you can get. We picked up our audio tours, and Dad got attacked by a bird when he pulled out his cheese sandwich from the hotel. Ok, attacked is a strong word, brought on by my own terror of birds, but the bird landed on his arms and definitely wanted some of that bread! It was kinda surreal to see a black bird of some kind, obviously wild, tamely perched on Dad's arm. Dad also had little luck with the audio tour; his switched to some other language halfway through, so James had to go return it. Other than that and the heat, it was lovely. We started following the audio tour and went in order up to number 11. It took a while, but we saw beautiful views of the Dead Sea and awesome ruins and heard about the stores of food Herod used to keep there. In fact, when the rebels holed up at Masada, they used the food stores that were almost 100 years old to feed themselves! We could see the remains of the Roman encampments and the siege ramp they built (apparently there's a way to walk up via the ramp as well). James, Dad and I walked down to the Northern Palace, or rather hiked down. It was quite a ways, and I thought there'd be a little more to see than there was, but it was still neat to do. Although I did have to stop and rest on the way back up. The whole trip was a LOT of walking and it was fine earlier, but as the day crept toward noon, the temperature kept rising. We kept hydrated and decided to shorten our trip, only seeing the things we considered highlights. We saw columbarium towers which were later used at dovecots and saw the Byzantine church's remains, which had walls decorated with pottery shards to make patterns. It was beautiful. But, for me, the highlight was the cistern on the Southern end that you could walk into! It was 60-some steps down, and the steps were enormous; we had to go down one at a time, and sideways. But it was soooo cool! It was enormous! I can't even imagine how much water it would hold and how long it would last; and it was only one of the big cisterns there. Going up was much harder than going down, but I did make it. At this point, we'd been up on Masada for a little more than three hours (We had told our guide 2.5, oops). We had seen what we wanted to see, and had an awesome time. It was a bit eerie at points: the lots that were found that showed the last men to kill the others and themselves, the stories of the Romans entering to find barely a living soul (2 women and a handful of children were the only survivors). It's hard for me to imagine myself in a situation in which death would be better than capture, although I know there are situations like that and I don't doubt that it was the case for the rebels. On the way back we stopped by Ein Gedi, just to take pictures with the sign that proclaimed it was the lowest point on Earth, but had a relatively uneventful, yet beautiful, drive back to our hotel. It was a great trip and I'm so glad I got to see it. We hadn't had lunch yet, so while Dad took a nap and I propped my eyes open, James checked out some restaurants. It was difficult to find one since it was Friday and Shabbat was about to start. We did find a hamburger place in the newer part of the city that was open til 4 (it was almost 2) and opted for a cab this time. Again, cab drivers don't seem to have a requisite knowledge of where things are, and we were dropped off in the vicinity of the restaurant, on the correct street at least. We finally found it (I think numbers are different there too, done by block or something) and had a nice, filling lunch. I could have probably done with a smaller burger, and James was a little sad about the lack of cheese, but we were in a Kosher certified restaurant. It was still delicious, and the bathroom (unisex) had the most awesome sink: just a flat slab of some red shiny stuff in place of a sink and counter. We had a nice meal and managed to grab a cab back to the hotel, or rather to Herod's Gate. Exhausted again, we all fell asleep before dinner. Maybe we should have done more, but we were all so tired. We had dinner at Azzahra's again, pizza for everyone but me, I had the spaghetti bolognese, which was different from Italian bolognese and delicious and huge (and I ate it all!) and more baclava for dessert. The music was middle eastern pop (I'm guessing) and I got the waiter to write down some artists' names for me because mom and I really enjoyed it. In fact, the man at the table next to us asked if he could copy the names too since he'd been Shazam-ing the music on his iPad. It was a lovely meal, and our waiters definitely recognized us. I guess we tip nicely, because they were all very nice to us, though I think they were amused that we kept coming back; after all, it was close to the hotel, didn't bother James' stomach, decently priced and delicious! We didn't want to risk finding a new place with only mediocre food our last night.

We were picked up at 7 am the next morning. James and I were flying out at 11, and Mom and Dad left at 1. James got pulled out for extra questioning as we were entering the airport. I really thought they wouldn't have a problem with him leaving the country, but we were all prepared for this happening. It was less intense than the last time, especially since I could see him and knew where he was. Plus, the guard who was asking questions was a lot nicer and didn't seem to hassle him, just asking who packed our bags, and if the ones in the back were all ours, and if they'd been under our supervision since being packed, etc. We had been warned about airport security at Ben Gurion by both Iyad and Mark, but were pleasantly surprised. I don't know if it was just that it was early (we arrived before the screening was open) but we had a great experience. Since we were leaving from different sections of the airport, and had to go through different security lines, we said goodbye to Mom and Dad before entering security, promising to call and text each other. We were a little confused since there was a sign saying to wait for an official before entering, but then another woman breezed right by the line forming, so we followed her lead, and everyone else followed us (apparently, there was supposed to be an official, but he was in the bathroom...for like 20 minutes). Our checked luggage got scanned through an xray machine that literally sent the luggage flying after it was done with it. Luckily, all the fragile items were in my carry on, and I still had a lot of room in my checked bag too. We checked in, checked our bags and got our boarding passes and headed off to the next security line. We went through that security and were surprised (and pleased) that James could keep his water all the way up to the gate. We were warned that the tiles we got might set off the scanners, but we had no problems and no one asked us any questions at all, despite being told to expect a lot of questions. We just breezed right through and poked around a few shops before getting a chocolate croissant and settling in to wait at our gate. We were there 3 hours early and had almost 2 hours left to wait after going through security. I settled in to read, and we finally boarded our plane. A really NICE plane. A really EMPTY plane. It was great: no one in our row and barely any people around us. In fact, James could probably have had a row to himself if he wanted. The food was terrible and I was starving, which wasn't a good combination (and none for purchase) but I did get to watch almost all three of the LOTR movies, which I'd been wanting to do for a while. So I didn't get any reading or journaling done, though I did sleep for a bit. Our next flight from New Jersey was a pain. We had to go through customs, and had very little time to do so. We finally go through customs with our bags and rechecked them, getting to our gate with our McDonald's (only slightly palatable option) with plenty of time. Only to discover our gate had changed to an entirely different part of the airport. So we had to backtrack down one wing to another wing (on the end of each wing, darn it) and only when we were almost there was an announcement made. Thank God we had a smartphone with us, or we would have been scrambling (by the way, the gate attendant had no clue and was completely unhelpful). Turns out that despite our plane being "on time" we still sat on the tarmac for about an hour before taking off, but after being told to turn off our phones. We couldn't let our ride know we were going to be late; but luckily she checked our flight online since we were over an hour late. *Sigh*. And the plane was gross to boot. Luckily we had no one in our row and I crashed out before we even left the gate, only waking up to eat the gross little meal, but it was an all over unpleasant, uncomfortable flight with no complimentary movies/tv (despite it being 5 hours long) and the attendants weren't even that pleasant. But, we were almost home. When we finally arrived in Orange County, we picked up our bags and called our ride, who was already there, yay! We finally got home to our puppies, who were so happy to have us back, and almost immediately crashed out in our own, queen-sized, comfortable bed! It was great to be home.

Aftermath: I got better within a few days, James was no longer sick, Mom and Dad both got really sick and had matching codeine cough syrup prescriptions. We woke up between 4 and 6 am most days, but adjusted relatively quickly. I get tired really easily, but I'm managing to rest a lot, which is good. We're finally recovering, and I've already got my photos sorted out. All that's left is to finish my journal, and then put the scrapbooking supplies away for the next 5 years or so ;) Eventually I'll get around to it, and it won't be as long a scrapbook as Ireland, so hopefully I'll get it done sooner rather than later. We also discovered that we have a dove nesting in the rafters of our balcony. I'm not sure why she's there, since Pippin tends to try to attack birds, but apparently she and her mate had a few uninterrupted days to build a nest. Now we're just working on keeping Pippin from popping the screen door out when she sees the dove (she's already done it once).

May 20-22 (Pilgrimage Pt 3)

At Jacob's Well

We were staying in Jerusalem, but we didn't start the next day in Jerusalem.  On Sunday, we spent about two hours driving to St. Matthew's Episcopal Church in Zababdeh, which is in the West Bank. We switched busses once we were in the West Bank, for reasons that I'm not entirely sure of, but there was a different (Palestinian) license plate, and it gives work to people in the West Bank. We needed our passports, but we were never checked at the check points. The service and sermon were mostly in Arabic, though some parts were in English. We weren't the only English speaking group there; a group from England was there and a few people from Santa Barbara. Our guide said he'd never seen other non-locals there. I had a hard time with the sermon since it was in Arabic, and English is difficult enough for sermons for me, but it was neat to hear the multi-lingual service overall. After the service, one of the British women came up to talk to James during coffee hour and asked if we were seeing sights of meeting people. James said a little of both and the woman replied "Well, WE think people are more important." To which James had no reply. I had been standing off to the side and decided at this point not to join the conversation since holding my tongue with rude people is becoming more and more difficult. Before lunch, we could do some shopping from some local families: hand embroidery and olive wood carvings. Lunch was provided by a local family's restaurant and I really did try to like it. It was a soft break that was soaked in olive oil, stuffed with cooked onion and almond slices and a TON of sumac. This was accompanied by a chicken leg with crispy skin and cucumber/tomato salad and yogurt. After church we headed to another Greek Orthodox church that's built over Jacob's well. I don't remember the name of the church, but it was amazing! The current head priest came into the job when his predecessor was murdered by settlers. However, he finished building the church (actually physically doing the work, not just the plans) and painted all the icons in the church himself. Prolific is the only word to describe how many icons were in the church. It was so bright and cheery and colourful: the icons were gorgeous and the whole church just seemed like a happy pace. It helped that even though the priest looked like Rasputin (most Orthodox priests look like Rasputin to me) he was quick to smile and laugh. He laughed when all the women had our heads covered and said we looked like Russians, but he appreciated the devotion. He was almost impish in fact, especially when he told us that he "stole" the capitals on top of the pillars, with a laugh of course. He took us down to the well and anointed all of us with holy oil (nard) and allowed us to take photos, which was against the rule. We drew water from the well, which was SUPER deep and all got to take a sip: nice and cool. He also had icons and his own hand-painted icons for sale. They were quite expensive, and we didn't know what we would do with them, but they were definitely beautiful. We had some free time to look around the church and we found the previous priest's tomb (you could see his skull, like a relic) and the icon associated with his murder (nothing gory, but a bit unnerving). My mom wanted a photo in front of the church with dad and the priest was locking up and jumped into the photo! A total surprise, but it just seemed like he was a happy and sweet guy, something I think is often lost in the seriousness and severeness of the Orthodox tradition. Iyad took us out for knaffeh (like we made in Jordan) but I had to pass :( Back to Jerusalem and our guest speaker on an Israeli perspective. It was an interesting talk and he definitely conveyed the complicated nature of the topic, but again the bias of the trip showed. Mom and dad went into the Old City after dinner while James and I stayed in to journal and write postcards. Plus, I was having bad allergies and problems breathing with light-headedness, so staying in was best for me. They almost got caught in the Jerusalem Day celebration/demonstration, but luckily only caught the tail end with the police.

Iconostasis in the Greek section of the
 Church of the Nativity

Mom's birthday was an awesome day! As predicted, it was LONG. We left at 6:30 am because Iyad had managed to get us a real treat: we would be able to celebrate mass with the Franciscans in the Church of the Nativity! This is not a typical tourist thing and I have no idea how he managed it, but I was very grateful. The church is controlled by three denominations: Greek, Armenian and Franciscan, each with their own church and each with their own time in the grotto prior to it opening to tourists. The churches were virtually empty since we were there so early and it was amazing to celebrate mass (in Italian) in the grotto. Last year, James and the kids had to wait two hours just to walk through and spend a few seconds there, but we were lucky enough to be able to spend the entire service there. We had communion right next to the manger and were able to venerate the star, which is over where Mary gave birth. (Another truth and Truth thing). Iyad took us to walk along the wall, the "separation barrier" built in the West Bank around Palestinian neighbourhoods. It was very much like the Berlin Wall with graffiti and slogans and art on it. It was interesting to learn more about the situation, especially that US tax payer money is going to help pay for the building, which can explain a bit of the animosity sometimes shown on television (though honestly, we felt no animosity anywhere in Israel or the West Bank). Iyad then took us to Shepherd's Fields and we were able to go down into a first century cave like the shepherds would have lived in. The church there was beautiful and had great acoustics so we sang some Christmas songs. We shopped for olive wood gifts at the co-op and had lunch at Ruth's Field Restaurant which included a great dip (I think it was that eggplant one) and the best falafels I've ever had. I was sad we each only got one.We ended the day early due to a schedule change, going to the Israel Museum after lunch, which houses the Dead Sea Scrolls. Seeing the building they were in was cool since it was designed as a jar like the scrolls were found in, but since James and I had seen the actual scrolls at different times, we weren't that interested. Some of the replicas weren't done very well either...but the model of ancient Jerusalem was awesome! A little like Legoland's miniature cities, it was neat to see where we were staying in relation to the first century city and all the different sites we'd see. We rested at the hotel til 4, then headed into the Old City for some shopping--hard sells, but I got a set of Muslim prayer beads made out of agate; one of the things I really wanted to find while we were there. We headed back for dinner, but had reservations at 8:45 at another restaurant that had pizza since the food was making James sick for some reason. On the way we stopped at the post office, which was an interesting experience with people cutting in front and super expensive stamps. Mom got a cake at dinner with "Happ Birthday Anne!" on it :) and the hotel manager was our speaker on Islam that night. It was an interesting talk, but he was very tangential, so it was a little hard to follow, and I was glad I'd already learned quite a bit about Islam before. We had to duck out at 8:30 for our reservation, but it was totally worth it. The food was delicious and the service was amazing! Dad and James split a pepperoni pizza and mom and I split a caper and green olive pizza. It was Italian-style, with a thinner crust and very, very fresh. After dinner, they brought out baclava for us. So good, and free of charge. And James didn't get sick, which was the whole point. It was at Azzahra Hotel and Restaurant and if you're ever in Jerusalem, I would highly recommend it. 

In front of the Dome of the Rock

Tuesday was a very, very hot day. Especially since Monday had been chilly. We saw the big sites of the three major religions today. We started at the Western (wailing) Wall. We had to have a head covering (James borrowed Mom's hat) and tuck any crosses into our shirts. We split into men and women to go up and pray. We were able to stick our prayer into the wall. I wonder what happens to the older prayers: if they clean them out or what happens. When we walked in, a group of women was singing. I guess a holiday was coming up, because the Torah arks were out on the men's side and there was a lot of yelling and singing. Some men were singing and dancing on our way out, and the girls on the other side of the barrier were dancing too. Dad and James had picked up some yamakas they offer for men to use. It wasn't too crowded yet, which was nice. Jews pray at the Western wall instead of the southern wall (which is also still intact) because it is closer to the location of the holy of holies. Next we got in line to go up to the Temple Mount (forbidden by the Chief Rabbi because of the holiness of the site) where the Dome of the Rock and Al Aqsa Mosque are. Ever since 2000, when an unannounced visit by Sharon sparked the second intifada, the sites are closed to visitors. They're still gorgeous to see: the gold dome and the blue and green Turkish tiles. The stonework is lovely too; we saw a gorgeous equivalent of a pulpit. We had entered into Jerusalem through the Dung Gate, and on our way to Lion's Gate, we stopped by the Basilica of St. Anne's and the pools of Bethesda, which were said to have healing properties (though I would not get in that water...) The ruins by the pools were gorgeous; I've always found ruins have a very haunting, beautiful quality to me. St. Anne was Mary's mother, and I learned a new factoid: the term "immaculate conception" actually refers to the conception of Mary, not of Jesus. Jesus' deal is called the "virgin birth," but in popular culture nowadays, immaculate conception is used to refer to Mary's conception of Jesus. It was a lovely church, again with good acoustics so we sang a bit before having lunch at Pasha Restaurant. It was a nice restaurant, with the typical mixed grill we always seem to get preceded by the little dishes with toppings/stuffings for pita bread. We got a yummy donut hole -like dessert: very airy and sugary. We went to the Church of the Resurrection or the Holy Sepulchre after lunch. This church is controlled by SIX different denominations: Greek, Armenian, Roman/Francisan, Coptic, Syrian, and Ethiopian, however the keys are controlled by a Muslim family to avoid disputes. The church houses Calvary, Golgotha, the Stone of Anointing, the location of the empty tomb, and Joseph of Arimathea's tomb. It was originally built by St. Helena, Constantine's mother and was built over by the Crusaders later. We had a gospel reading by an Ethiopian priest in their section of the church (very small) and saw various different chapels (though not Golgotha since we'd see that our last day during the Via Dolorosa), even seeing the Armenian, Greek and Coptic priests walk through on their rounds with incense and heard the bells, which were beautiful. We heard about the Holy Fire that sprouted from one of the pillars long ago, and how the tradition is kept alive during Easter with the holy fire from the Edicule, built over the location of Christ's tomb (Truth and truth, remember). We also saw a first century tomb, though no one but dad and me went in, which is believed to be the tomb of Joseph of Arimathea. Not the one he gave to Jesus, but the one he was actually placed in. It wasn't as well preserved as the one under the convent, but it was neat to see. After this, some people departed for Vespers at another church, but my parents and James and I stayed to get in line to go into the Edicule. I was confused until recently, when I read that the actual cave that was believed to house Jesus' tomb was carved away by a Muslim ruler in an attempt to quash Christianity. Either way, it seems the Greek Orthodox control the Edicule, or at least while we were there. There was a large Russian tour group ahead of us, and boy were they pushy. I was shocked and more than a little disappointed at the rudeness in such a holy place. You'd think of all places to be respectful toward your fellow humans, it would be here, but no such luck. We were pushed around a bit, but eventually got to go in and see the tiny little room that has what looks like a coffin, but is (I think) an altar and pray for a minute, before walking back out. The priests leading people through were communicating via cell phone, and it was kinda funny to see a priest in full Greek Orthodox garb (remember, it reminds me of Rasputin) on a smart phone. Mom and dad got some shrouds and some candles afterward and lit the prayer candles in the holy fire to take back to St. Luke's. While they were doing this, we saw a Greek Orthodox priest with a sprayer of water walking along the prayer candles and putting them out. Which was odd, to say the least. Mom anointed the shrouds on the stone of anointing, where Jesus' body was anointed before burial. James did the same with a shroud of Veronica he got for his prayer partner. I thought the stone magically/miraculously smelled like the oils, but James later explained that pilgrims actually use their own oils and it's the combination of all of these day after day. This was after he'd finished laughing at me of course. We took a leisurely walk through the Old City souk, running into Mark on our way back. We had dinner at Azzahra again, since James just can't seem to get used to the food, even though he likes the taste. Poor guy. Pepperoni for the boys again, but  shallot, green olive, basil and artichoke hearts for mom and me this time! Yum! It was hard to believe that we only had 3 days left before leaving after this, but it was drawing nearer to when we were leaving, and only 2 days until the pilgrimage was over and the group would disband. 

Galilee (Pilgrimage Pt 2)

We left Jordan the morning of the 16th, heading from Amman to the border crossing at King Hussein Bridge. When we finally got to the border crossing, we had to take our luggage to be x-rayed, then put it back on the bus, drive a bit further and get off again for the actual passport control. We all waiting in line based on our visas and had our passports checked and our irises scanned. That took at least an hour. Then, after unsuccessfully trying to cross the bridge in our bus, we had to go back to passport control and switch ourselves and luggage to a shuttle bus. The shuttle bus had no a/c and was swelteringly hot. We crossed the bridge and had to sit on the Israeli side for at least 45 minutes waiting to get the all clear; they must have looked under the bus with mirrors at least 3 separate times. Finally, we got to passport control on the Israeli side. Again, we had to take out luggage to be x-rayed and go through metal detectors and answer questions. I made it through without any problems, but when I looked over, I saw James' stuff come through the x-ray, but no James. I had no idea what happened to him and was starting to freak out. No one seemed to know what had happened to him. He finally appeared, pissed off, but ok. Apparently, the guard questioning him decided he didn't look like his passport photo and took him aside for more questioning. I can understand that a little; after all he didn't have a beard when his passport photo was taken almost ten years ago. Still, when he gave them his driver's license (which does look like him), they said that wasn't him either and had him take off his shoes and patted him down, felt the soles of his feet and waved him over with a metal detector. They wouldn't believe him that he was there for a pilgrimage. He wasn't in a good mood when they finally let him go through the metal detectors, but apparently they tend to profile young men as activists. After another hour in line, James got questioned again before getting his tourist visa. We finally me Iyad, our local guide and got on the bus to Nazareth. We were at least two hours late, but the convent had lunch ready for us when we got there around 2:30. We had to change some things around, but we saw the Roman Basilica of the Annunciation, where the Roman Catholics believe the angel Gabriel appeared to Mary with the news she was pregnant. We were lucky and got a tour of the archaeological site next to the basilica, which included a little museum that housed the earliest found "Ave Maria." It also included a grotto like the one where Mary would have lived. It was interesting to hear our guide talk about it because it had an impact on the birth story. The "stable" was really a back room of the cave, where animals were kept, as opposed to the front room where people slept. We had some free time and I managed to cut open the bottom of my toe on a protruding pipe. Unluckily, I was wearing flip flops, which led to the cut, but luckily I wear flip flops often and have calluses that prevented the cut from being too deep. I am also up to date with my tetanus shot, so I was good. We raided a pharmacy and then found sumac in a spice shop. We headed back for dinner: soup, salad, rice, turkey, gravy and fresh fruit. It was delicious.

At the Jordan River

Feral Kitties!

Thursday was another long day: on the bus by 7:15 ready to go to the Jordan River to renew our baptism vows. We went to a spot no other tourists go to, which was really nice. We renewed our vows and I waded out into the river to get water for people, including a large bottle full for Wallaby's baptism. The water was cool and refreshing. We went to Capernaum, where Jesus' headquarters for his ministry was located. We saw the synagogue and Peter's house (a church is built over it, with a window in the ground you can look through to see the house). This was also our group's first encounter (of many) with feral kittens: they were playing down in the ruins of the synagogue and were so cute! We headed to the church at the Mount of Beatitudes, which was a beautiful octagonal church. James hadn't been able to go in last year, but we were able to do so this time; it was a truly beautiful church with mosaics and stained glass and a gilded dome. The views from outside of the Sea of Galilee were also beautiful. We saw a lot more of that after lunch as we headed out for a hike to the actual "mountain" (it was more like a hill) to have Eucharist. It was HOT, but it wasn't too bad of a hike. I stopped plenty to take pictures because the scenery was so gorgeous. Mark also stepped into a cave where it's thought Jesus preached from. The amplification of his voice (we were quite a ways away) was amazing, and you could definitely understand how Jesus could preach to so many people; it was a natural amphitheatre (ruined only by the 18-wheelers driving by on the road). After that we went to the Primacy of Peter church, right on the Sea of Galilee (also more like a lake...apparently the Gospel writers exaggerated a bit). We picked up some rocks and a seashell from the sea, but the highlight (for me, at least) was seeing a hyrax, which I'd only seen in the zoo before! We ended the day with a boat ride on the "Jesus boat" on the sea (there were HUGE catfish in the shallows) and I managed to sleep a bit on the bus ride back. After a bit of a rest, James and I went over to the Church of the Annunciation again, but got to go inside this time. We arrived right before they closed the doors to tourists. When we walked into the church, we were just walking up to the altar area (which is in the grotto) and this beautiful singing and chanting begins. It was so eerie, but so beautiful. Apparently there was a French mass going on, and that's what we were hearing, but the timing was amazing. We walked around, heading up to where they were having the mass and looked at all the mosaics before heading back for dinner. I did not feel like eating any meat; for the rest of the time in Nazareth, I somehow became a vegetarian--I just wasn't interested at all. After being assured tomorrow would be less busy, I agreed to not stay at the convent (I was feeling pretty sick) and I realized that my belly had popped out overnight: I barely recognized myself in the mirror from the day before.

Icon in the Church of the Annunciation
(Greek)

Friday was much more relaxed. We headed to Zippori in the morning, which had been the capital of Galilee in the first century, and would have been where Joseph and Jesus would have plied their trade. Which probably wasn't carpentry: the actual translation is "master builder" and there's almost no wood in the region, but plenty of stone, so they were most likely stone masons. The ruins were neat, but my favourite part was the Nile mosaic, which showed the measuring of the Nile to predict the prosperity of the coming year. It was so neat to hear the explanation and see the corresponding parts of the mosaic. I was having a real problem with the heat, but Anne noticed and wet down her overshirt to put over my neck, which really helped me cool down. The Greek influence was strong: mosaics portrayed centaurs, Amazons, Dionysus and all the writing was Greek. They had enormous cisterns to accommodate the entire town and some of the houses had their own private mikvehs (ritual baths, private ones were a rarity). There was also a crusader fortress and you could see the recycling of the time: one of the stones used was an empty sarcophagus. I didn't go to the top because of the heat, but Dad headed up there to see the view. We then headed to Shefa-Am'r, whose population is a mix of Muslim, Christian and Druze. I would have liked to hear more about the Druze religion, since I'd never heard of it, but we went to an Episcopal church and the rector gave a long, uncomfortably political speech (for me, at least) and then sang for us and showed us the cultural centre the Diocese of LA helped build and the parish hall. My blood sugar had crashed and I was more than ready for lunch, and what a lunch it was. It was more like a feast fit for a king; they just kept bringing out dishes! My favourites were a fried cauliflower, chicken tenders in a honey glaze and a fresh cucumber-tomato salad. After stuffing ourselves, we had ice cream at a famed establishment. We headed back to Nazareth, getting dropped off at Mary's Well (where we were supposed to go the first day) over which a Greek Orthodox church is built. Even though they were having a baptism, they allowed us to go in and see the well, with a beautiful icon that shows Mary with the baby in her womb (I think our guide said only two of these exist). Dad got some water for us; it was pretty good water. It was the only well in Nazareth, so it would have been where Mary had gone to draw water. It wasn't too bad a walk, but I'm glad it was downhill and we weren't carrying our family's water supply. After dinner, we took Mom and Dad over to the church, since they hadn't seen it yet, but we left for Jerusalem the next day, so we tried to get some rest.

Monastery of St. George

Got him!

(Last day of this post, I promise!) We headed to St. George's Monastery on the Mount of Temptation in Jericho. We were waylaid for about an hour by a cycle race that was passing through; just hanging out in the bus, watching people in fan-powered gliders with seats go by. It's believed that this mountain is where Jesus went after his baptism and was tempted by the devil. We had to take a cable car up to the monastery and then hike up even farther. I can't imagine how the old monks who lived in caves up there reached them, but the mountain was riddled with tons of caves where monks had gone to live like John the Baptist. Women had to cover their heads while in the monastery and no pictures were allowed in the church, but it was beautiful (like most Greek Orthodox churches seem to be). We saw the cave that's venerated as Jesus'; the concept of truth and Truth is very different here than at home. It's as though the veneration itself offers some Truth to the legend, even though it might not be factually true. We had lunch with a very friendly cat who kept rubbing against my legs. On the way to the Dead Sea (YAY!) we stopped at a shop and to see the Tree of Zacchaeus. We got an hour to float in the sea and it was amazing! You walk out to about knee height, then squat down and sit back and boom! you FLOAT! You can actually sit completely upright in the water without touching the bottom! It was soooo cool! There was plenty of the therapeutic mud/clay to rub on ourselves. It really does make your skin smoother, and Dad and I mudded ourselves up good. James was a bit reluctant, but I got him a bit! I could have stayed forever, but the saltiness started stinging my skin after a while (especially my legs; I probably shouldn't have shaved the night before...) and I got some water in my eye, which was horrible! I guess my skin is just too sensitive since no one else's skin had started stinging yet. In my search for the clay, I even found some cool little crystals. I'm not sure if they're salt crystals or what, but the were beautiful and clear. We took quick showers and headed back to the bus. We stopped by the Wadi Qelt, which overlooks the road the good Samaritan story refers too. It was a beautiful view and we read the story and took pictures before heading to Jerusalem! Our driver dropped us off at the Damascus Gate and we walked to Herod's Gate, which is right across from the hotel. He showed us the post office, a spice shop, an educational (English) bookshop, coffee shop, etc. Two twin beds in our hotel room again, but the view makes up for it: we could see the Dome of the Rock and the walls of Jerusalem; it was gorgeous! We were pretty exhausted, so we headed to bed right after dinner and a real shower.

The view from our balcony!

Jordan (Pilgrimage Pt 1)

I want to do justice to the trip, so I think I'll post a few days at a time. If you're interested in more photos, check my facebook page as I'm uploading them (I can't believe I'm uploading photos in a timely fashion!)

After about 24 hours door to door, we arrived in Amman, Jordan on the night of the 12th. I had started my pregnancy journal (which will include the trip journal) on the plane, and James' sniffle had developed into a full blown cold, which he courteously passed onto me. I passed it to my mom and, now that they're home, mom passed it to dad. We should buy stock in kleenex; James was able to medicate with sudafed, theraflu, his codeine cough syrup, but I was left with ricolas and lots and lots of kleenex. We met up with mom and dad in London and when we got to Amman, we were met by a guide/driver with Mark's name on a placard. He breezed us through customs; we felt like important diplomats. It was great: we handed him our passports and he took care of everything while we got our bags. Mark met us at the hotel and we went to Jafra cafe for dinner. James and I had lamb kofta with tahini sauce, which was delicious, but a huge portion. The taxis were a bit terrifying--besides merging into traffic circles without slowing and pedestrians just walking out in front of cars, no one seemed to know where our hotel was. Apparently, it used to be called the Taiki two years ago, and they recognize that name, but not the Ramada. This was a problem we had multiple times. We finally solved it by getting the hotel to write on the back of a business card; giving the address didn't help. 

Jerusalem in the Madaba Map

Dad and I at lunch in Madaba

Sunday was mother's day and James had gotten me a cute card with a little pair of socks in it! It was so sweet. Mom and dad went to church, but we slept in. When they got back, we decided to go to Madaba, which has a mosaic map of the area. The map was amazing: I could identify Jerusalem, the Dead Sea and the Jordan River. The church itself was filled with beautiful icons. We had shawermas for lunch and then our driver took us to Mt. Nebo. Mt. Nebo is the site where Moses first looked into the promised land, and is also considered to be where he died; it's now a memorial. The basilica was closed for renovations, but they had some mosaics out and the valley view (with the Dead Sea) was absolutely gorgeous. We were taken to our guide's "friend's" mosaic factory, where we were shown a demo of the mosaics being made and given the sales pitch of course. James was used to this from his trip, but it was an uncomfortable experience. We had a nap at the hotel and then headed out to dinner, taking the recommendation of the front desk and going to Reem Albawady Restaurant. It was all outdoor dining, under a pavilion tent and they brought out blankets to cover our shoulders. I had lentil soup and meat beraks (?), meat wrapped in triangular pastries. We also got some mixed grills (kebabs) to share. It was so much food, and then they brought our watermelon slices! I also felt the baby move for the first time!!! It felt like an elbow being dragged along inside my stomach; a bizarre and wonderful feeling. Since then, I've been feeling little kicks on and off, getting more and more regular, especially since getting home!

Week 17 at the Citadel in Amman

James and I at the Temple of Hercules
Citadel, Amman

Monday was a long day too. I woke up with James' cold and didn't have my allowed medication list with me, so didn't take anything (the internet is evil and scary). We got the ok from Mark to skip the dinner that night and made reservations for the cooking class (more on that later!). When mom and dad got up, we went to rainbow street and walked around, but it was early and pretty empty. We found a pharmacy and a supermarket and ended up heading to the Citadel afterwards. So neat: Roman temples, a Byzantine church, Umayyad complex and mosque, Bronze Age cave. We wandered around and saw mostly everything. There were the ruins of the Byzantine church, which was beautiful, and the Umayyad complex was huge. We heard the noon call to prayer from multiple mosques while wandering through the complex. There were the remains of a colossal (30 m tall) statue, just the fingers and elbow and the Bronze Age tomb was neat. The temple of Hercules just had some columns left, but it was still beautiful. We headed back to the hotel and took a nap before heading to Beit Sitti, a homemade cooking experience we found in the seatback magazine on our flight from London. I am thrilled that we did that: it was definitely a major highlight of our trip. We had some issues with the taxi: with 5 of us, we had to split up: mom, dad and Susan in one, James and I in another. First the hotel concierge told us we could fit 4 of us in the back of the taxi (yeah right), then it took another 5 minutes to find us a taxi. Then our taxi driver stopped to get coffee and cigarettes on the way there (with the meter running!). When we finally arrived, my parents weren't there! I was worried, and after a while, Maria (our host) called the hotel--they were back there. Apparently their driver didn't know where it was (surprise, surprise) and drove them up and down, all over, until they finally had him take them back to the hotel and they got another taxi. We made a delicious four course meal: tabbouleh, an eggplant dip (moutabbal I think), siniyet kafta (lamb kofta!) and knaffeh for dessert. The hands on experience was so much fun, and we even have recipes now! The tabbouleh was made with the tiniest bit of bulgar, tons of fresh parsley and lemon, garlic and tahini. It was delicious and so fresh tasting. The eggplant dip was divine: the eggplants were roasted in an open flame til black and crispy and mushy inside. We just used the inside and mixed it with spices and deliciousness. It was topped with a spice called sumac (yes, related to poison ivy, but not poisonous) that had a citrus-y taste to it. The lamb was better than the restaurant: mixed ground beef and lamb, topped with fried potato slices and tahini sauce. The dessert was good, but I didn't get to eat more than a bite: it was layered noodles, goat and mozzarella cheese and noodles, topped with simple syrup. The bite I had was great, but goat cheese is unpasteurized and on the "to avoid" list, so I didn't want to risk it. What really made the experience was the people. Southern hospitality has got nothing on these people; they are so kind and welcoming. In Israel, I often felt the hospitality was because they wanted to sell you something, but it Jordan it felt much more genuine. The women who helped us cook were so sweet and kind and wanted us to feel at home and told us we now had family in Jordan. She also helped us catch a cab that knew how to get us to our hotel. We all got certificates, and I was named head chef (Hajjeh) of the night! James also noted that the top of my belly button has started to poke out!

At Beit Sitti with our certificates

Grand Tombs

Dad in front of the Treasury

Tuesday was a VERY long day, and our last in Jordan. It was the official start of the pilgrimage--our trip to Petra! Mom wasn't feeling well and decided to stay at the hotel and dad had managed to wrench his knee, so he was having a hard time. We had a 3.5 hour drive there and someone on the bus kept asking for the air to be turned off; I thought I was going to die. Petra was amazing and fulfilled all of my Indiana Jones wanna-be-ness. We entered through the canyon, the Siq, which was gorgeous and nice and cool in the ehat. The colours were breathtaking and even the natural formations were amazing. Our first glimpse was of the Treasury through the canyon (very Indiana Jones!) and when we actually saw the whole of it, it was just astounding. The ornately carved edifices are almost exclusively tombs, but when Petra was rediscovered, the explorers found Bedouins living in the caves and assumed they were the descendants of the Nabateans and asked them what the difference structures were. They responded with their own legends and traditions, giving rise to the djinn blocks, the Treasury, Pharaoh's Daughter's Palace, etc. The Bedouins lived there all the way up to 1989. While we were listening to our guide in front of the Treasury, we saw a proposal! It was so sweet! We walked the entire length of the city, seeing tons of tombs, both royal and common, houses and even the remains of a Byzantine church that had beautiful mosaics. My favourite were what our guide called the Grand Tombs, up on the hill which were beautiful and intricate. I was able to take some amazing panorama shots with mom and dad's camera. Dad had to turn back early because of his knee, so James and I left the church early to catch up with him, which we didn't manage. I was so overheated at this point that we had to stop multiple times for me to rest. I get exhausted so easily nowadays and I keep overestimating what I am capable of doing--it involves a lot of resting. My original plan had been to take a carriage back through the Siq, but after seeing the carriages go over the uneven cobblestones, dad and James refused to let me get on one of them. Even if I weren't pregnant, I probably wouldn't have taken a carriage despite my exhaustion because they weren't treating the horses really badly. We caught up with Dad right outside the Siq and after getting back on the bus, we found out we'd walked 10 kilometers (6.2 mi)!! And we could say we walked the entire thing! I can't remember walking that far in one day before, and a shower never felt so good. One good thing was that I definitely slept well that night, and didn't even wake up during the morning call to prayer at 4:30. It was an exhausting day, but it was so cool to finally see Petra! 

The next day we headed off to Nazareth! Check back for the Galilee adventures tomorrow, and remember to check out facebook for more photos!

Fails-Kitchen and DIY

Some fails. Don't worry, the last one has a happy ending.

I love buffalo chicken ANYthing. I think my love affair began with a buffalo chicken dip one of James' relatives brought to a party. I could have eaten nothing but that all night and been perfectly happy. Since then, I've been accumulating buffalo chicken recipes to try. I don't make it often since Hubby isn't a spicy-foods lover, but he relented and let me try a buffalo chicken mac'n'cheese recipe I found. I don't want to link to the recipe since I'm pretty sure the result was due to faulty ingredients.

The first thing you have to understand is that I never had Kraft mac n cheese until I was 13. My mom always made macaroni and cheese that was more like a casserole. She made it the way my grandma made it, and my grandma made it the way Papa's mom had made it. Cook the noodles, mix with some cheddar and bake in a casserole dish. If you're Papa, dad or me, add A1 (or HP) sauce and enjoy. Yum. This is one of my top comfort foods, placing second only to schnitzel. And now I lost my train of thought and want macaroni and cheese....where was I? Oh yeah, James doesn't fancy this dish as much as I do. He prefers a saucier dish, which I usually do too, so we've had to compromised and I've learned to accept (and maybe even like) Kraft mac'n'cheese and hotdog nights.

We halved everything since it was just the two of us, and it still made enough leftovers for at least another meal. There were some things I would have changed: it smelled delicious while cooking, but didn't have much spice or buffalo flavour, so I would probably double the sauce (and kill James, according to him). We also definitely skimped on the chicken, but I hadn't realized we only had one chicken breast left when we started cooking at 8:30, and didn't feel like running to the store. I left out the panko because I really don't understand that topping for mac'n'cheese, and had to leave out the blue cheese for obvious reasons :( It ended up alright, but it was mediocre at best. I also burned the butter when trying to make part of the sauce, so that probably didn't help.

The problem was the reaction we both had. My stomach ache yanked me out of a pleasant dream the next morning. Hubby said he thought he was dying in the shower. I thought it was just my tummy, since my digestive system is finicky at the best of times. I've just learned to accept that and deal with it, but James tends to have a cast iron stomach. I went over the recipe again, trying to see if it was something in it. If it had just been me, I would have assumed that I should have taken a lactaid, but there was nothing in there that should have bugged us; I'm relatively sure something was up with one of our ingredients or we did something incorrectly/undercooked something. It's unfortunate since the dish had some great potential. If you have a recipe for buffalo chicken mac'n'cheese that you've tried, please pass it along, because it still sounds delicious to me...though it might take James a bit longer to warm up to the idea of trying it again.

My DIY fail was spectacular. And no, there are no pictures. I read this blog post on Delighted Momma and was thrilled. Those of you who know me know that I have digestive issues; I've been to many doctors, had every procedure short of invasive surgery, and no one can figure out what is going on with my stomach. My symptoms match Crohn's, but no one can confirm it since no doctor has been able to see visual signs of inflammation. And my body decides to be normal when I'm having tests done. And since going off birth control last July, my skin seems to have reverted to the middle school complexion I never had. I can control it with benzoyl peroxide, but was told it wasn't safe during pregnancy. I figured I'd give this home remedy a whirl. After all, it can't hurt, right?

Wrong. I haven't had the guts to drink it as recommended, so I can't comment on the digestive properties Delighted Momma claims. I did find some organic, unfiltered (but not raw) apple cider vinegar at Trader Joe's and figured it should work as well. I was cleaning up the bathroom, so decided to sponge the vinegar on my face and set the timer for 20 minutes. My face felt a little flushed, but I wasn't concerned since that's par for the course right now. James came home 5 minutes later and I apologized for smelling like vinegar, but he asked what had happened to my face. I checked the mirror, and my face had turned BRIGHT RED. Worse than the worst sunburn I ever had. And it followed the line of where I put the vinegar, so around my eyes was still super pale. I looked like a bad tanning bed experiment. It was terrible. I immediately washed my face with cold water, but it didn't seem to help. My face had felt flushed, but not burning, not anything that would have suggested this level of reaction. I sponged some milk on my face, and that helped cool my face, but I'm not sure it had any reaction on the redness. I would have used yogurt, but I only had peach yogurt, and I didn't really want to experiment further that day. Within 20 minutes, my face was almost back to normal. I reread the post, and followed a link at the bottom about using the vinegar topically, and sure enough the mistake was my own. You're supposed to dilute the vinegar, 1 part to 3 parts water. I also decided I would find the exact brand in her picture (available at Fresh & Easy) just in case the non-raw thing had something to do with it.

I made up a batch and have been using it 1-2 times daily on my face and chest and it has definitely made a difference! My skin is softer, and my breakouts are fading and less red. I don't know if it's the vinegar, but I think it is. (I skipped a few days and noticed a change again--not for the better). All I know is that that one bottle will last me quite a while and I will continue using it. I'd rather use a home remedy like this than medications, pregnant or not. I would definitely recommend this for someone who has mild/moderate breakouts, but I would stress diluting it!! (Of course, my skin tends to be super sensitive, so *shrug*)

See, I told you one of my fails had a happy ending! And remember, if you have any buffalo chicken recipes, please share them with me! Or any recipe, really. I can't wait to cook more!

16 Weeks

16 weeks! Only 1 month til the halfway mark! Crazy!

We've been busy, busy, busy here. We're cleaning/re-organizing the house. The three big boxes that were sitting unpacked in our bedroom have finally been put away! We only have three boxes left to unpack in the kitchen now! I went through my closet to see what I could and couldn't wear and ended up storing a lot of my clothes, though a few should work for a little longer, if not through the whole pregnancy. My shoes have been unpacked, though a lot of those have been stored too. I also went through all my bags! I packed up a lot of them since there's not a lot of room in the closet, but kept some of the smaller ones out, as well as my small suitcase for shorter trips.

James is going through all the paperwork we've saved and figuring out what we need to keep and what we need to shred. I've been slowly putting things away and gathering a little pile of things that will go to Israel with us. My new purse arrived Thursday afternoon so I've been trying to pack up things in there to see how they fit. Despite warnings about the water bottle pocket being small, it holds a small Nalgene or contoured Nalgene-like bottle fine. My new phones have arrived and neither have worked properly, but since we're leaving in 6 days (eee!) there's no point in getting another since I'll upgrade 4 days after we get back. I still have to go through  my iTunes, since I deleted my previous playlist. I have some new songs (Alan Doyle!!!) and some new audiobooks. I also discovered a nook giftcard I've had since Christmas but hadn't used and finagled two new books plus a short story from it; hopefully that will get me through at least the flights there.


How far along:  16 weeks
Total weight gain:   -1, according to the doctor (my scale says anywhere from -12 to -1 on the same day)
Maternity clothes:   Yep, although some of my stuff will last a while longer
Stretch marks:   No changes
Sleep:   I'm still tossing and turning, and I freak out when I wake up on my back, but I'm feeling much more rested
Best moment this week:   Meeting the new OB
Miss anything:   All those foods you can't eat, especially sushi and blue cheese
Movement:   A feeling that something was pushing out against my stomach and some more of those bubbles. The doctor isn't sure it's movement, but they were weird feelings
Cravings:   Toast with butter, peanut butter and honey. Mmmm
Queasy?:   Nope
Gender:   The ultrasound is schedule for June 1
Symptoms:   Pretty much the same
Belly button in or out?:   In
Wedding ring on or off?:   On
Happy or moody?:   Moody, but happy is a mood too
Looking forward to:   The pilgrimage of course! And the 20 week ultrasound!

James and I met the new OB yesterday afternoon. He was great! I instantly felt more comfortable with him that with Dr. Boyd; he was nice, and funny, and James confirmed that initial feeling; he said he liked him as a doctor too. He did an in-office ultrasound to confirm dates (still due October 16) and when we asked about the insurance part, he basically said he didn't care if he was paid for it or not; he's an OB because he loves doing it, not for the money. He has two offices, and we'll probably keep driving to the farther one because he's there Friday afternoons, which is perfect for us. He sent the authorization for the June 1st ultrasound and I authorized the transfer of records, so hopefully I won't have to see the old OB again.

And my dreams have been crazy lately! I've had four I can remember just this week! I dreamed that you could find butterbeer dresses, named so because of their colours: yellow dresses with a cream/ivory lace overlay. They were really beautiful, and if I could sew, I would definitely make one. Empire waist, not cut too low and really cute, slightly puffy sleeves. (I'm having a real problem finding maternity tops that aren't super low cut). I had another dream that we nicknamed the baby "Wallaby" until s/he was born, for lack of a name other than "Baby." I also dreamed that James came in one morning and asked me to get him a travel-sized toothpaste for the trip. I honestly thought I was awake for this, but when I asked James about it, he said he hadn't asked me anything. This morning, I woke up super early for me (6:30) and couldn't get back to sleep. I was watching the Today show and looking up information about our trip, with one dog curled up on each side of me, and I must have dozed off. The next thing I knew, I was at the airport for our flight, waiting for James to get there. I boarded the plane, and Al Roker was on the same flight! The flight was cancelled due to mechanical problems with the plane, and Al Roker gave me 2 free round-trip flights, plus tickets to my choice of Broadway shows. Then I had to find a different flight to London, and get our checked bags. Then I woke up. I've always had weird dreams, but I rarely remember them. James also said I sat up and said something weird last night, then laid back down; I have no memory of this, but this also isn't a rare occurrence, although usually James wakes me up laughing. I'm going to use the time on the plane to start keeping a journal; I've been meaning to, but something else always seems to come up.

That's it for week 16; I can't wait for what's still in store!

I really like these belly and chalkboard shots James is taking

Is Baby L a BOY or GIRL? Old Wives' Tales;
B: 2, G: 7, ?: 1. Ultrasound in June!

Belly zoom-16 weeks

   

DIY-ing (picture heavy)

I've been DIYing quite a bit lately, crafting my little heart out. Especially since crafting exploded and it's all organized again. Then, in Coronado last weekend I found a whole box of supplies! Amazing! Why didn't I take these with me? There was a whole little compartment box of beads! I've had some successes: the fishtail friendship bracelet, the proenza schouler-inspired knockoff and some gifts that I can't post quite yet. I thought I'd share some photos of my recent craftiness, along with tutorials if I had them and some tips I discovered while making them.

Embroidered watermelon coasters (also in pink)
Tutorial adapted from a Joann's flyer

I found these coasters on one of those "Crafting with Joann's" flyers and decided to try it out. I had some pink, white and black yarn at home, and picked up some green and red on sale. Make sure you use the plastic embroidery circles that have 4 holes in the center, otherwise the yarn/needle doesn't go through. Then, glue some felt onto the back, and presto, you've got watermelon coasters. Lazy daisy stitch for the seeds. I imagine you could do this with almost any fruit, even cutting the circle into different shapes


  

Knitted headphones to keep them from tangling. And they're fun!
Tutorial here. This is a good yarn stashbuster

I found these knitted headphones on Pinterest a while ago (see the tutorial for hers) and decided to give it a try. I had this yarn leftover from an impulse buy. I loved the colours, but never found anything to use it for. Since the stitch is basically an icord made around the headphones, I needed some practice and used the yarn and an old set to practice. Since then, I bought some sock-weight yarn on Knitpicks, but I think it's too rainbow-y for me. Besides, looking at my two test-runs next to each other, I actually prefer the thicker weight yarn (and the colours). I'm horrible at icords, but I think the heavier weight hides mistakes a bit better. You do need double pointed needles for this project in an appropriate size (I think I used a bit smaller than the yarn recommended)

Fishtail friendship bracelet: I used this tutorial

I've always loved how fishtail braids looked, but never learned how to do them. Those of us with fine hair don't usually bother learning all those neat little hair tricks and updos other girls learn; we rarely have the bulk for them. I wish I did, but they just don't look the same on me. Anyways, I saw a fishtail braid on Pinterest and got to thinking, "I wonder if you could make a friendship bracelet with a fishtail pattern?" Since I wasn't sure if it was like french braiding, I didn't know if it was possible. Google to the rescue! I found this lovely tutorial and used that. It's pretty simple, and she even adds a trick for keeping the loop at the top from tangling, which can be used in other projects too. Since then, they've posted a quicker version, using only 6 strands, but I really like the look of the other better. Just remember what order your colours are in, since mine got tangled up pretty quickly. I'm loving the peaches and dusty pinks and purples I used in this; I've really been into peaches, oranges, and dusty pinks lately as well as creams and ivories. I might just have to make another...


As a lot of you know, my mom and dad are taking James and I on a pilgrimage to Israel with their cathedral in just a few days (we leave this Friday! EEE!). I got to thinking about money and such. I hate those money belts that you wear under your clothes, but there are certain places that aren't the safest for a traveller's wallet. I decided it would be pretty cool to make a little secret safe out of a chapstick tube and went through quite a few trying to figure out how to make it work. What I was planning on doing, after some google searching, was to pop off the bottom, take out the tube, pop the bottom back on, and glue in the actual balm part, with only about 1/2" left, so it still looked like a usable chapstick should someone open it up. Well, that didn't work...the bottom kept falling off and wouldn't stay on. So instead, I just left out the balm and glued the bottom on, trusting that no one would actually try to open it. It's pretty easy to make: just get some pliers under the the bottom and pry off, then cut the stick that's attached to the balm. Push it up through the tube, and clean out the tube by running a paper towel through it (not kleenex!). Glue the bottom back on and voila!

Chanel-inspired bobby pins: tutorial here

Honestly WTF is my favourite DIY site ever. Not only do they have picture tutorials (so important for a person who learns by doing), but they also include links showing you where to buy the materials they used. They're generally knockoffs of designer stuff since they're a fashion blog too, and a lot cheaper than the actual thing. I saw these and knew I had to make some! I had all the supplies I needed since I have a bit of an obsession with pearls; they are my birthstone after all. I also love hair decorations: clips, pins, combs, etc. But I hardly ever use them. So I've made these and I'm waiting for the perfect occasion to wear them now! This one's a bit tricky when you start wrapping, but they end up looking really nice. The only thing I needed to buy was some wire. I think I used 20 gauge wire, and my pearls are a bit smaller than the ones they used, but I'm saving my chunky pearls for a different project.

Tutorial here

This is one I would never actually wear, but I felt like trying. I have so much embroidery thread that it fills a giant freezer ziploc bag, and I can't even zip it anymore. Actually, I should probably go through it and divide it so I can actually close it. Anyways, I got some wire and I'm not a huge fan of hot pink, so I used a gray-purple that I like. In retrospect, I don't think I like the colour; it's too gray for my taste, but it does kinda make it look like metal, I guess. Anyways, here's my take on a knock off of an Anthropologie necklace ($48 there!) Since I had the thread, I ended up spending about 3 dollars for the 16 gauge wire I used, which could make 6 or more.

Tutorial here

Remember those wish bracelets people used to make with hemp? I had such a cute choker a friend made, with seed beads in all the colours of the rainbow and held together with a safety pin. I have no idea what happened to it. I found a tutorial for one and decided to try it. I never had figured out how to braid the beads in, and I had some silver beads left over from a different Honestly WTF project I wanted to try. I used  crimps and a clasp on the end, and as you can see, my sides aren't quite even since you have to guess where the middle would be. I also like using cord (cotton or leather) much better than hemp, and prefer the braiding to the macrame (I have nothing against macrame, just against hemp).

Tutorial here

I found Chic Steals through a DIY fashion blog week at another site I check out. She had made these adorable Dolce and Gabbana inspired sunglasses, which I plan to make. But I also found this cardigan clip she made. I loved the idea, especially since with a burgeoning belly it's not advisable to wear button up cardigans anymore. Since I can move the clip, I can move it up the cardigan as needed, but it'll also keep it closed when I want it closed. My mom gave me a ton of lace hem tape in all colours, so I picked up some stiff felt and some cute pearl buttons and clip on earring backs. I couldn't find shoe clips anywhere. I did my lace a bit different, but I like how it turned out. I'll have to make another soon!

Kate Spade for $1.40! Tutorial here

I scour craft sites that pull from all over the web and saw these Kate Spade knock off earrings. I loved the idea of the wood and paint juxtaposed together. Again, hers aren't the colour pink I like, but I have a large collection of nailpolishes. After a quick trip to Michael's revealed that they did not have wood furniture buttons, I found them at Joann's (I wish we had a Hobby Lobby here!). I messed up the first batch: do NOT use tape when painting, even with nailpolish, invest in painter's tape. I was pretty happy with how they turned out, but when you put them on, the little back of the button makes them stick out. The real ones lie flat. I tried to figure out a way to saw off the back, but other than using a sanding block, I couldn't figure it out, so I have some work to do to figure it out, but I will get it...eventually. I do however, love how they turned out, especially the second from the right in front. Oooo sparkly!

Ah, my beloved prescription sunglasses. I bought these almost four years ago (no significant vision changes) and wear them ALL THE TIME since contacts really bug my eyes. I did not choose them for the rhinestones, but the shape of the glasses...unfortunately they were ridiculously expensive. I had a lovely sales associate at Lens Crafters who offered me his last family and friends 50% discount, which made them slightly more affordable, but they remain my most expensive wardrobe anything. (my wedding dress cost more, but that's about it). After 3-4 years of rough wearing, including puppy bites (oh yes, you can see her tooth marks), a lot of the rhinestones have fallen out. It wasn't pretty. But Michael's has Swarovski crystals that are pretty much a perfect match! The largest and smallest in their variety pack matched the small and medium holes on my glasses. I can't find the teensy tiny rhinestones, but they're much less noticeable than the others. You can barely tell where I glued them in! Almost like new!

Adapted from this tutorial

This Honestly WTF has been on my list forever, but between the wood mouldings and the spray paint I'd need to buy, it's been on the back burner. Plus, I just don't wear jewelry that big; I prefer understated pieces. But I loved the scroll-y, swirly look. I was at Michael's, wandering through the scrapbook section, looking to decorate my phone case and saw these 3D stickers that were perfect! They were also half priced! Perfect! I bought them, scraped off the sticky part and spent some quality time with Dad's dremmel tool (which is on a long-term loan to me) and ended up with this necklace. Much smaller, colour-blocked (kinda), but with the same feel as the other (no danglies, I know). Plus, I had enough stickers left over to make matching earrings. I still have some left over, so I'll have to find something to do with them. I personally LOVE how it turned out, and will definitely wear it more than I would the original.

Tutorial here and here

The neon trend. It's like the worst of the 80's have come back to haunt us. I never liked day-glo, even though I love pretty much everything else from the 80's. Anyways, I've been wanting to make another woven chain bracelet for a while (I still can't believe they retail at ~$380!). And I wanted to try it with a thicker set of thread. I still love the one I made for me, with the peachy-pinks. This time, I used 24 strands total, and still wrapped twice in each link. I like how it turned out; the bracelet has more structure this way and the colour combination isn't that bad. This is probably the closest I'll get. Honestly WTF is where I first saw the idea, but for some reason, I could NOT get it from their tutorial, so I used the one at Studs and Pearls instead, though I do use bobby pins to help thread through the links. Because of how thick my strands were, I had to work with them a bit more to get them tight and looking nice, but I think it was worth it in the end. We'll see if I ever wear this bracelet, but I have a shirt I think it would be perfect with...


Well that's my crafting for now. I have a lot more in store, including a yarn-wrapped bowl, a Shamballa-inspired bracelet, a collage bracelet I've been working on for over a year, this amazing pearl haircomb and of course, the sunglasses I mentioned. That's just a few of the bookmarks I'm working through. I love having something to work on at night like this. Now, my closet is in shambles since I had to pack up most of my clothes that I can't wear anymore, and I haven't actually put up the ones I can wear. Then I have to shower, take some baby bump pictures and get to cleaning up the house for our house and dog sitter. Plus begin packing up some stuff! Busy, busy weekend. Hope you all have a relaxing Saturday!