Today is our last day of our Spring Post Bat Mitzvah vacation. The weeks leading up to May 12th were a flurry of preparations. Rebecca chanted Hebrew late into the night as I filled boxes with the supplies we would need for the ceremony and party in Boston. We arrived in Boston a few days before the big event which gave us time to go see Toni for haircuts. I'd been thinking a lot about cutting my hair short again and there is only one person I would go to for such a drastic change. She did not disappoint and with no fanfare at all she began cutting away until there were piles of seven inch long hair all over the floor.

Once the business of haircuts was over (Lily had a trim and Rebecca had just a whisper of her ends removed) we were able to head over to Amy's for dinner where she fed us enough fried chicken to feed a horse. Or a pug. Or a cow. Insert hungry animal of your choice. Being at Amy's house is like being with family. The children tease and play like cousins, always assured that they are loved.

The weekend was a whirlwind of joy. The service was beyond my expectations. Rebecca, my girl who worries, led the congregation in prayer as if she had been doing it her whole life. When she was just a toddler we would bring her to Tot Shabbat and so in many ways her entire Jewish identity was formed in that room and so it was fitting that she should become a Jewish adult in that room as well. Rabbi Rim and the Cantor Beth, gave Rebecca a beautiful gift with their love and teaching. She is a stronger person for having experienced this journey with them and I will be forever grateful.

Saturday night we had a party. It was very do-it-yourself, so Amy and I were there several hours before the party setting up. It was an easier party than our going away party. It was held in the same room with many of the same people, but there was less of a sense of ending with this party. By now we have been gone four months and have learned that unlike the old saying, you really can go home again. Our friends continue to exist in A-town, ready to welcome us back into their arms. There is no better feeling, I swear it!

On Mother's Day Amy and I went to the junk store and ate nachos. It was our third year of sharing this wonderful tradition and I hope we can do it for a forth.

Since Monday the girls and I have been on the cape with my folks, decompressing from a thrilling and exhausting weekend. Rebecca and I nursed colds and we even made it to the beach a few times. It's been the perfect elixir to our fatigue and so when we get into the car tomorrow for our long drive back we will be fortified with rest and snacks.

As I write this Lily is singing a song about how she misses her friends and dogs back home. This must be the place.