Sukkot Preparation Odds N' Ends

Sukkot is getting so close now and I'm excited! Since we are traveling for Sukkot there are many things to prepare. I packed my suitcase already just so it would be out of the way and I won't have to think about it anymore until it's time to load the van.

Today I delivered the goats to the goat sitter then mom and I made a huge batch of veggie juice and green smoothies. We are going 100% raw for a few days before and after Yom Kippur. Since she is trying to improve her health and I'm trying to keep mine we thought it was a good time to insert a bit of a fast before a fast followed by another bit of a fast. :) Though right now I'm craving cheese and corn chips, I'll resist the urge and drinking my peach, blackberry, spinach, banana, and swiss chard smoothie, which by the way is quite delicious!

Tomorrow dad and I will drive to either Biggs OR, or Portland to pick up my niece Rachael who will be keeping the feasts with us. I'm very excited to be including her. She will miss 3 weeks of school so my job through out the feast is to make sure she stays caught up on homework in between high days and Sabbaths. I pray that by including her, Torah observant lifestyle will affect her life positively in the long run.

So somehow between now and early Tuesday morning we have to pack the last minute stuff like ice chests with food for the road and fresh produce from the garden, and yes, of course we will take our Champion juicer...I'll be juicing each day whether in a hotel or a sukkah. Perhaps I will sew on the last of my buttons for the new jumper I made while dad is driving.

The bright side of all this busy-ness is that we have Shabbat to rest on and Yom Kippur as well. Two days to set aside all busy plans and preparations and focus on Yahweh. During this season, extra days off from work are SO appreciated!

Then there is my poor cat Flavia, she doesn't get to keep the feast with us this year :( Last year we took her to the mountains with us and even though she hated the drive she enjoyed the stay. This year the amount of miles we have to drive, I decided would be harder on her than being separated from the family. She thinks she is a person after all, sleeps on the bed, watches tv, and she likes me to watch her eat several times a day. Sometimes she won't touch her food unless I stand there and watch, it's crazy! Also she is best friends with our dog who gets to come to the feast...it's just not fair being a cat I guess. Hope she eats while I'm gone.

Anyway after 2 and a half days of driving we should reach our destination in Indiana, Yahweh willing.

May Yahweh bless your Yom Kippur and Sukkot!

Something new

These days I have been preparing for Sukkot. Our family will be traveling to Indiana to meet with some brethren there. I'm so excited about the trip and being the goosy girl that I am I just had to have some new clothes for the trip! One thing you learn really fast when you dress in modest dresses all the time(not to mention, natural fibers) is that there is no where convenient to shop especially in a town like Moses Lake. So I decided to order a few unsewn jumpers and a dress online. After my order arrived and I examined the lovely cut-outs, I started thinking about the insides of all my other homemade garments which begin to fray after being washed once. I knew the only answer was to buy a serger so I headed to town the next day and bought a Bernina 1150.The store had to order it and while I waited for it's arrival I learned how to operate the same machine at the store. The funny part of it is that I had ordered the garments unsewn to save money but then here I am buying a new serger! Dad did reassure me that since I've been sewing since I was 10 years old that it would be a good investment so I went ahead. After my new little treasure arrived I set to serging my garments. It's so unbelievable!!! Every edge that I've sewn...and I was just smiling the whole time knowing that the insides of my clothes would look as nice as the outsides even after being washed. I've officially renamed my serger "the happiness machine" lol! Mom says I'm totally spoiled but I don't care...just look at the inside of my dress!