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tel aviv

Israel Trip, Part 2- An Afternoon With an Israeli Mother In Pictures
BloggingParenthoodPhotographyTravel

Israel Trip, Part 2- An Afternoon With an Israeli Mother In Pictures

by Jill September 24, 2015
written by Jill

When the Vibe Israel team asked me what I most wanted to do in Israel, I thought for a few hours, then I knew exactly what.

I wanted to meet a local mom, and I wanted to photograph a small part of a day in her regular life.

Okay, sure, Jerusalem would be cool, the Dead Sea would be rad. But when do I have the opportunity to connect with a mother a half a world away, and document her in a way that is so meaningful to me, and hopefully to her?

Read Part 1 here

The journalist in me wanted to report on how similar and different motherhood is between her and me. The photographer in me craved new spaces and fresh faces. The blogger in me wanted all of YOU to connect with this woman and family the way I was hoping I would (and did).

Esin lives in Tel Aviv, in a small apartment, with her husband and 2 young children- a boy named Yuval, and a girl named Bar. They are currently building their dream home, which Esin is itching to move into for many reasons- one being that she’s an interior designer, and really looking forward to putting personal touches on her own space.

Though her current (adorable) apartment is certainly not lacking…
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We began our afternoon together with some divine Israeli takeout- the really yummy, healthy kind, I’m told. Hummus, falafel, dried fruit and nuts, and some cookies that Esin made out of probably 20 lbs of butter. The unhealthy part of the meal, but I wasn’t complaining.

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Or, a friend of Esin’s and straight up hilarious person, joined us, too. Her family lives too far from the city for me to meet her children that day, but I’m really happy she at least got to hang out with us and chime in.

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I did get to meet Or’s girlfriend for a short time who was pregnant and just had her baby yesterday! (Congrats Or and Ellie!)

We talked for over an hour, comparing cultures and questioning each other like we had just met at summer camp and wondered what the other’s town was like. We came to the conclusion that we are really quite similar in so many ways, from work-life balance struggles to how we are combining the internet, motherhood, and what we love to make a living.

Or does marketing for baby brands and products, and she blogs for a large Israeli parenting site. As for Esin? Here’s a little more about what she does, in her own words:

I am an interior designer, working from home. Mostly I design spaces and apartments and houses for families with kids, while paying attention to functionality and design. On my blog, I write about styling and about the process and the choices that I take with the family. It’s important for me that through my writing my followers will get to know me and my style. 

I could write about these women and our conversations all day, but I guess I should get to the pictures. There are a lot of them. Get your scrolling finger ready!

After our lunch wrapped up, it was time for Esin and I to head out and pick up her children from school.

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I laughed because Esin lamented that they must pass by this snack shop every day on their way from Yuval’s school, and every. day. he begs for a treat. I KNOW YOUR STRUGGLE, ESIN.

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Between pickups and the apartment, there were a few carseat battles and Esin apologized more than once for her “messy” car. It was like I was home with my people.

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The children were delighted to arrive back. I think this could have been because there was a plate of buttery cookies on the coffee table. Not sure.

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Universally, toddlers just want to get naked.IMG_4374IMG_4366

While Yuval and Or took up a lively game of ping pong..

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I poked around and took more pictures. I was quite nosey, and in love with Esin’s decorating.

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You can not escape minions.

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She had strict instructions from me to not clean. I wanted to capture real life. Isn’t real life the most beautiful?

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I asked Esin to answer a few questions about motherhood for me.

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Do you think it’s easy or hard to be a parent in Israel? Why?

For me, its easy to be a parent in Israel!! First, we live in a warm country, our winter is short so we have a little bit rain and then a long summer with a lot of outdoor fun days with the kids. Tel Aviv is the biggest city in Israel, but compared to big cities around the globe, its very small, so everything is close and safe (more quality time with my kids), for example, my parents live 5 minutes walk from us, my husband’s work is 15 minutes drive from our home, and the beach is 5 minutes drive (my kids are crazy about the beach and the sand). 

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What’s your biggest fear as a mother? 

 My biggest fear as a mother is that my children won’t feel safe to tell me everything (good or bad). I would like to know all about my children and what they are going through so I can help them when they feel needed and be happy for them when they are happy.

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What are you most proud of as a mother? 

Mmmmm… nice question!  I think that I’m most proud of the values that I’m giving them. I would like my children to be caring and polite. 

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What was my takeaway from this? As cliche as it sounds, we have so much in common. The differences were there, of course, but through all the cultural barriers and the horrific and hilarious Google translations for words that were lost, we were mothers in a fast-paced world. We have technology at our finger tips, but we struggle to find the time to balance everything. We want the best for our kids, and we wonder sometimes what that is. We wrestle toddlers into car seats, and we have sippy cups on our floor boards.

We are driven by love… and a healthy dose of humor.

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I hope you all loved getting to know Esin, her family, and Or today! Tomorrow, part 3 of my Israel posts will be about overcoming the fear I had before I went- on more levels than just the “OMG, a 13 hour flight?!” fear. Hint: postpartum anxiety lost this battle.

 

I'm half a world away from my family, my home, my routine. This trip was a HUGE leap for me. I couldn't have dreamed of doing this even a year ago. My anxiety wouldn't have let me. But today? I am here. And I looked down as I waded through one of the 7 wonders of the world at the two bracelets I absentmindedly slipped on my wrist this morning to discover this. Fly, Warrior. Indeed. (Fly bracelet from @averyandaustin and Warrior bracelet from the #warriormomcon by @mantraband) #warriormom @postpartumprogress #vibeisrael #vibemommies

A photo posted by Jill Krause (@babyrabies) on Sep 5, 2015 at 6:46am PDT

September 24, 2015 2 comments
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My Trip To Israel, Part 1
BloggingParenthoodPhotographyTravel

My Trip To Israel, Part 1

by Jill September 23, 2015
written by Jill

Man, I’m overwhelmed right now.

To start, my blog has been down, off and on, for over a week, thanks to some kind of hack and malware. I’m so sorry if you got a warning when visiting here last week. I’m told by my host that it’s really, for real, totally fixed now. Seriously. They mean it. They better mean it.

I lost my first post about Israel, and I have SO much to tell you all about it! I don’t even know where to start.

I’m going to re-cap what I said in that post that was lost, I guess.

Basically, did you know I went to Israel for a week at the beginning of the month? I did! And it was life changing. Just beyond anything I’ve ever experienced.

So here’s how that came about. I got an email from Vibe Israel last spring, asking me to apply for a “mommy bloggers” trip. They could only bring a very small group of mom bloggers from around the world, so I thought my chances were really slim, and I was REALLY scared to actually get accepted. But I applied anyway.

And after a couple months of waiting and an interview, I got the email with the invitation. Eeep!

Why was I scared and why did I decide to go? I’ve got a whole other post for that coming up.

Who else went?  from the US- Jamie and Janessa, from the UK- Amanda, and from Australia- Kelly.

What is Vibe Israel all about? What was their intention in arranging this trip? This video explains it far better than I could.

To sum it up, it wasn’t for political or religious reasons. Vibe Israel is a non-profit dedicated to working with influencers to highlight the Vibe of Israel in all aspects.

Where did we go, what did we do? Here’s a rundown in pictures. I’ll elaborate more in future posts:

Day 1 was a travel day, ending with dinner in Old Jaffa in a building from the time of the Crusades.

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Day 2 was Jerusalem with a group of Israeli mothers and a phenomenal female tour guide (one of the very few women offering tours of Jerusalem).

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Photo by Tamar Avara

Then a traditional Shabbat dinner with 2 families in a Tel Aviv home (this was SO special!).

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Day 3 began with a visit to the first children’s museum in all of Israel (and a REALLY spectacular one, at that).

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Photo by Shani Sadicario

Then the Dead Sea!

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Photo by Shani Sadicario

Day 4 started with a visit to Google Campus Tel Aviv to meet and talk to local entrepreneurs and start ups focused on women and families.

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Photo by Shani Sadicario

Then an afternoon with my “Israel Buddies”- two moms who welcomed me, and talked with me in one of their homes for hours. I’ve got an entire post coming up just for this!

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Then dinner on a rooftop in Tel Aviv with 3 powerful and inspirational Israeli women and mothers.

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Photo by Shani Sadicario

Day 5 began with a visit to the Sarit Shani Hay design store, where we met with the designer herself, and got to play with all her creative designs. I NEED this massive alligator for our playroom!

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Photo by Shani Sadicario

Then it was time to drive north. We stopped at a kibbutz that’s home to adults with special needs, and those who need a little help in life. It’s a working organic farm!

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Photo by Shani Sadicario

We collected food and made a delicious dinner with Paula Rosenberg, an Israeli TV personality and natural lifestyle champion.

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Photo by Shani Sadicario

Day 6- After waking in our historic and stunning hostel in Nazareth, we took a walking tour of the city. This was the day a HUGE sand storm covered the country. It was pretty crazy.

ShaniNazerethWalkPhoto by Shani Sadicario

After that, we headed to a children’s boutique- Tuty- to chat with local child and baby brands.

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Photo by Shani Sadicario

And finished it off with an interview with a large newspaper! Did you remember the part about how we started the day walking through a humid city drowning in sand?

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That night we played with Mamanet, a sports organization solely for mothers, where they play something very similar to volleyball, except you throw and catch the ball instead of bumping and spiking it… which didn’t help me much at all. (But it was fun!)

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Day 7- A few of us walked through the local market in Tel Aviv, or “the shook.”

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Then it was off to the Daniel Rowing Center (had you any idea that Tel Aviv has a thriving rowing community?)

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for a final farewell cocktail party.

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Photo by Shani Sadicario

That last picture is me hugging Vibe Israel Founder/CEO Joanna Landau. It was an emotional goodbye. I so admire her and all the women on team Vibe Israel.

I feel like I have family there now. One that I fully intend to visit again soon.

I plan to blog about my trip for the rest of the week, and I’d love to hear if you have any questions you’d like me to try to answer for you! Did you know Israel is the #4 country to raise children, according to a 2015 poll by Internations, and the US isn’t even in the top 20. Why do you think that is? I don’t have the answers, but I have some theories I’ll try to get into in the coming days.

Look forward to a LOT more pictures, too! That is if I can finally finish editing them all.

Here’s a peek at what’s to come tomorrow- An afternoon in the life of an Israeli mother.

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September 23, 2015 12 comments
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