All about me...: Today is the Bat Mitzvah!!!

We woke up at 6:30am.

No time to waste.

The Glam Squad had arrived.

Time to get beautified.

...and here we are, still at the house, all gussied up. Everyone was ready to go to Temple to listen to Miss Zozo read from the Torah.

So excited!!!

Beautiful Zozo and Sweet Miss Remi

We aren't allowed to take pictures during services in temple, but when the photographer was taking his portraits after services, I snapped a few too. Here's the beautiful Bat Mitzvah, Zoe Scarlett, and her family, (our family) with the Torah.

Zoe, Lisa and the Torah.

Three very precious things.

Zoe did a great job! The Temple was so cool. Very laid back. During the Friday service, the Cantor had a bongo drum accompanying his singing. I told Lippy (Cousin Lisa) that her Temple was all 'Birkenstocks and Bongos', and I loved it. Our family was honored and invited up to the beamer (pulpit) for some readings, and blessings. And for one portion of the service, this Temple has a "Family Torah Reading" portion. I think most people just go up and have the Bar or Bat Mitzvah read a little sermon of sorts, explaining what the passage really means. Not my cousin, the theater major. Her whole family went to the beamer and performed an entire homemade family production. They were seated at a table, kinda like on "The View". They explained to the congregation their take on the Torah reading, their perception. Their story was filled with love, laughter, and a bit of seriousness too. It was something I personally had never seen before, and I enjoyed it very much. Religion shouldn't be intimidating, or boring. This was neither. I loved it!

After the actual Bat Mitzvah service was over, we went back to the cousins' house, with the photographer, for family portraits. Once there, we all were ushered to the front porch for our photo shoot. As we lined up, tall, short, little, big, young, old ...my son, Mr Gorgeous, was in the back next to me. He kept fidgeting like a 4 year old who consumed too much sugar. I gave him the look and he said, "What Ma? There's a bee on me!" I looked around, saw nothing and told him to stand still. Simon (the photographer) had gotten us situated again, and was ready to take some pictures when all of a sudden Mr G starts flailing his arms around like an orchestral conductor... He was hitting bees. We all ran away. Some of us, not as fast though...BIL got stung on his head, and Cousin Zach was stung twice!!! Poor things.