New Years in New Jersey

Last weekend I took Lauren to New Jersey to spend Rosh Hashanah with Norm's family. She had not seen her Nanni and Pop-Pop Paul since they were here for her birthday in April, had not seen Aunt Suzi and her family since Sam's bar mitzvah 18 months ago, and had not seen Aunt Michelle for a year longer than that.

It was time.

Our early morning flight on Saturday was just that. Early.


We arrived in Newark without a hitch (this child did not eat or drink a thing, nor did she get up once during the entire flight), and drove straight to Wong's, their family's favorite Chinese restaurant, where teetering trays of crunchy noodles and sauce awaited ravenous guests.


Not to mention Norm's favorite - BBQ spareribs.


Safe to say Fran and Paul were pretty thrilled to have Lauren there.


Balancing spoons was one way to pass the time while waiting for our main courses.



After dinner, the goal was to keep Lauren up so she would remain as much as possible on California time. So Fran took the two of us to her community clubhouse for a rollicking Saturday night event.


Karaoke.

Only about a dozen residents were there, but that just meant there was even more room for Lauren to fully utilize the dance floor during their performances.





I had actually never done karaoke before, but finally felt like I was in an environment where nobody would care how off-key my voice may be. Despite her initial trepidation, Lauren came around and agreed, but only if she could select the song and perform it with her mama. Who was I to deny her?




She got so into it, she wanted to stay and sing some more (her next choice? Beyonce's "All the Single Ladies (Put a Ring on It)"). Alas, it was getting late and we had to get home.

The next day was crammed full of family activities, including Lauren's favorite new game involving marbles (the name escapes me).


Not to mention a visit to the park down the street.


Where she made plenty of new friends, including this guy.


Aunt Michelle then arrived, bearing special gifts, including two beautiful bracelets,a book, and Lauren's very own bongo drum from Jerusalem (don't even get me started on the bounty of presents she also received from the rest of the family - suffice it to say she felt very spoiled).


Then it was back to the clubhouse for a fun-filled hour with Michelle and I in the pool.



Pre-dinner, they did some drawing and played cards.


Suzi, Sal, and the boys arrived, and we all sat down for our first Rosh Hashanah meal.






Of course, after such a long day, we all felt a little punchy and the giggles inevitably set in (not just for Lauren).





Monday morning, we dressed in our New Years' finest, and headed out to services at a local high school auditorium.



Three hours and a couple of family portraits later, we were ready to let loose and have some fun.



First stop: Suzi's house, to meet their new pup, Lily.


Then back to Fran and Paul's house, where 18 were hosted for a late afternoon lunch.


Lauren was in charge of the kid's table, which included 5-year-old Blake and her brother, 7-year-old Harry.

The spoons made an encore appearance.


Paul led the blessings for the wine and challah.




Then Fran ladled out both vegetable and chicken soup with matzoh balls.


Fresh roast turkey, brisket, noodle kugel - the list goes on and on. It was a veritable smorgasbord of Jewish comfort food, and we all gladly indulged.


Except, of course, 6-month-old Ruby, cousin Nomi's adorable little girl, who was content to be passed around and loved on by everyone.




Tuesday morning saw us heading back to the airport for the flight home. It was a whirlwind trip, but we had a lot of fun and and it made me truly happy to have Lauren reconnect with so much family.

A tremendous start, we are sure, to what will no doubt be an amazing year.