And in a flash, it was over. After a year of planning, stressing, kvetching and kvelling, the day my family had been looking forward to is officially behind us. My daughter’s Bat Mitzvah was truly one of the most amazing memories in my life. My friend whispered to me at our reception that this would be one of the 10 best moments ever and you know what? She was totally right. I remember lots of memories from my life so far and here’s just a few…something tells me I’m going to have a lot more than 10 moments to share.
1. 1984-1986 – High school performances with my lifelong friends who got to celebrate with me at Becca’s Bat Mitzvah as we laughed and reminisced by the chocolate fountain I never did get to try.
2. September 11, 1992 – The first moment I met my husband – I had just moved into Manhattan and I had been set up on a blind date with him. He rang the bell, I opened the door and there he was. This super cute guy who was funny, smart and was really into me. The rest as they say is history.
3. December 24, 1995 – The night we got engaged – my husband pretended to get us pulled over by a cop. He made me get out of the car, he opened the trunk and there were dozens of roses and a box with a diamond ring. If you’re wondering what happened next, I said yes and we raced to both our parents houses to share the great news.
4. August 18, 1996. Our wedding day – truly a fairytale experience. I remember the rabbi re-telling the story of how we met and saying how we were fated to be together (the yiddish saying is Ber-shert). Best reception ever at Temple Israel in Lawrence. We never did get invited to another affair there and I was totally bummed because I always wanted to taste their food.
5. Our Honeymoon in Italy – I never will forget the two weeks we shared traveling from Venice to Florence to Rome to Positano. Sure it was stressful – like the time I left my father in law’s video camera on a water taxi in Venice, or the morning I made my husband drag our suitcases through the train when they announced a track change in Italian, but overall, it was also filled with romance, laughter, great wine and some of the best dishes and desserts we had ever sampled in our lives.
6. July 1998 – Moving into our first house in New Rochelle. We thought it would be a “starter” house but instead, it has become the one place our kids will fondly remember as their childhood home.
7. April 4, 1999 – Giving birth to Rebecca Drew – it took over 36 hours but it was well worth the wait. A beautiful baby girl who continues to amaze us year after year.
8. May 13, 2002 – The birth of our beautiful son, Dylan – who arrived three weeks early while I was coordinating the finales of CSI, The Amazing Race and The King of Queens.
9. November 2010 – My husband and I celebrating our 40th birthday with close friends and family at Mickey Spillane’s in Eastchester.
10. May 12, 2012 – Rebecca’s Bat Mitzvah – she chanted like pro, amazed us all and looked so beautiful. Plus the day couldn’t have been more picture perfect – 77 degrees, sunny with an absolutely gorgeous setting at the Surf Club. I am so proud of everything our daughter has accomplished so far and can’t wait to see what life holds in store for her.
So there you have it – 10 moments I will never forget. Much more to come. Good thing I don’t get my son’s Bar Mitzvah date until next year!
Role Mommy 3.0