To Blog Or Not To Blog

it's almost 1:00 a.m. in the holy city of zefat. it's been a week since i blogged. i haven't had many comments lately and was beginning to think that noone was reading my blog.

a girl friend sent me an ad about a group of women who were planning to make a website for religious women. they were looking for blogs about homemaking, living in israel, cooking and child rearing. i sent them a copy of my recent blog on shabbat.

i don't know if it's what they're looking for but, who knows? they only wanted 500 words but they got the entire blog. i hope it wasn't too sardonic for them. it did deal with taking care of my grandchild, waiting for the washing machine repairman, and my shabbat menu.

the kids want to have shabbat meals here again this week. they want to invite gal's sister and hubbie, too. this of course, includes sahar's newborn cousin, baby orel. i have to do a major clean up job tomorrow, right after i come home from the senior's center. the house is trashed. we have had ash storms for days and everything is covered in thick grey dust. my lovely, clean windows are all streaked and filthy again.

I've had a virus since last week and i still don't feel 100% myself, yet. i've kind of stuck to the strict part of the south beach diet all week and it's been pretty hard. i've eaten a ton of eggs, low fat cheese, yogurt and meats. i've finished all of the almonds and hit the salted sunflower seeds pretty hard, too. i even, ate a can of dried coconut strips. they were highly caloric but at least, i didn't succumb to any sugar.

i finally weighed myself today. it wasn't as catastrophic as i thought. i really am determined to knock off these extra 12 pounds once and for all. i want to fit into my clothes again. i'll never get back to my size 10 outfits, but i want to stop looking 9 months pregnant. that would be so nice. i think my stomach is slowly beginning to shrink.

on tuesday night, my son made a seudah at his father-in-law's shul in my father's memory. it was the 6th anniversary of his passing. i brought two types of deli, potato berakas, chumus, eggplant salad, dill pickles, turkish salad and boiled eggs. i also bought dried dates, 3 types of peanuts, dry roasted peas and watermelon seeds. i baked 2 chocolate loaf cakes and 2 honey and date loaf cakes. zvi said the sephardi men loved the cakes. i used only brown sugar and whole wheat flour. go know!

i don't know why my baking has been so well received lately. last friday, i made a dozen carrot cake muffins and a banana-date cake. it nearly all went. zvi even asked for some banana cake on sunday morning. usually, i freeze most of it after shabbat. there was only one muffin left over on monday. even the toddler asked for more cake.

i don't have much left in the freezer so i'm going to have to shop at the supermarket tomorrow. i just need to plan the menu. everyone eats chumus, lettuce salad, cooked beets, cooked sephardi tomato relish, potato salad, israeli salad and eggplant salad. i haven't made tahina lately. it's become expensive but it does go well on my diet. i can also make cookies with it. if i do make the cookies, i'll need to buy sesame seeds, too. i'm also all out of eggs. i must have gone through about 50 eggs last week.

i do have a honey loaf cake in the freezer and half of a chocolate one, so maybe i can get away without baking. maybe, i'll make barbecue style chicken wings and potted chicken meatballs. i am out of white rice and i don't think this is a brown rice crowd. of course, i'll need more potatoes. i'd like to make a noodle kugel for a change. i can't believe that i'm actually, making shabbat meals again this week.