Hila's birthday

So La-lee turned 4! On the due date of our 5th! But no sign of a birth yet.

Which is good as it gave me time to focus on her and all the others.......

Helen really wanted to come and visit (from Haifa) and though I was tired and said initially to myself NO MORE visitors, we really felt she should come.

So Shai and Ethan together with Helen caught a train from Haifa to Beersheva and then a bus to us.

Hila didnt know about it and was so happy!
That happened right after she opened her presents.

Here she is wrapped up in her own blanket (Kai and Tess have their own) and this is perfect for winter, to wrap herself in when she is cold, in the lounge or in bed! She loved it.

Here she displays what she got from Granny and Grandpa in SA. Its Noah's ark and she loves to play with Duplo, so they can be part of her Duplo farm etc....

Amitai gave her beads, she also loves to make bangles and necklaces.

We made her a clock cake, with the time pointing to her age.
Here she is with Shai and Tess.


Our Eritrean, Tanzanian and Indian women came with their daughters and together with Karen's daughter, Hannah (who turned 3 the next day) we had one big LOUD party!
The girls had fun dressing up, the boys went on bikes, motorbikes etc and to the sandpit.

By evening there was an amazing sight as thunderclouds rolled in, and it started to rumble and lightening flashed! We had our first rain, not floods but enough to feel the excitement of rain in the Negev and how lovely to see the canyon light up in the flashes of lightening!
The smell of the rain also was amazing!

And then.... 40 weeks pregnant I had a house full of noisy kids! (am I nuts?)
2 of Karen's girls needed to sleep over the next night and with Helen's boys you can imagine the balagan! But it was fun!

Note Hila peeping from behind Tali, Amitai waiting his turn to bath, examining Abba's screwdriver in the meantime and Helen bathing Ethan in the sink (as our other shower was blocked that night!)

I am recovering still! :)

Happy memories!