Ari's Brit Milah

April 23rd - the 8th day of Ari's life - we hosted a Brit Milah ceremony at the Center for Jewish Life in Scarsdale. Family & friends joined us to celebrate and nosh. Mom, Dad, Manda, Josh & Lavi worked hard to get everything prepped and set for the celebration. I held the baby and waited with nervous energy. As much as it was a joyous occasion - it isn't the easiest day to get through. As a first time mother - the anticipation of what was going to happen to my little boy pained me - but Ari took it like a champion. The actual Bris took mere seconds - with just a little yelp from Ari - and he was comforted by a nice amount of sweet red wine. We can already tell - he takes after his father :)

Ari - Brit Milah

The long wait is over...

Our son has arrived. Ari Lev Ben-Zvi was born on April 16th at 3:42pm - weighing in at 7.4 oz & 19.5 in. long. We are so thrilled and overjoyed to meet the new member of our family. Lavi and I spend hours staring at Ari - marveling at his features and soaking up the mere fact that he is our son. It is taking a while to sink into the reality that we are truly parents now...but it is a fact that we are relishing the thought of. We are enamoured with our baby and it is the best feeling in the world!

Ari - Week 2
Ari - Week 1

So this is what Labor is all about...

On Saturday night - Lavi and I sat down to watch 'The March of the Penguins'. A beautiful story focused on nurturing parents and the beginning of life. Something must have kicked in and triggered a maternal response, as at 4:08 am on April 16th (Sunday morning) - I went into labor. I was awoken to my water breaking and announced to Lavi that the time had arrived. Lavi had come to bed a mere 30 minutes before and I apparently sleepily told him in a dreamlike state 'Don't get too comfortable'. I guess somewhere in lalaland - I knew what was coming. By 5:00 we were admitted to the hospital and by 8am I think I had the epidural going strong. By 1:30 I was fully dilated and I began pushing. Lavi was a marvelous coach - constantly providing cold compresses and ice chips to a parched and exhausted wife. The experience was totally different than what we had expected - but all was smooth and relatively standard. We could not imagine at that point - how the next few hours and days would feel. The start of parenthood is an awakening that opens your eyes and hearts bigger than you ever thought possible. I don't think we can even imagine how much bigger our hearts can grow as our lives take a new turn.

Ari - The Birth