Israel is not so far away...

At the wedding reception we had a table with greeting cards and asked our friends and family to fill out a card and write a date on the back. On that date during the next year (this year, our first year away) we would open the card. We have gotten some really lovely messages and we look forward to those days when we get to open another card at breakfast. Last week one envelope read:
TO: Jen & Paul, Far Far Away

But Israel is not so far away. Especially if you have Skype. Now, this might sound like a Skype advertisement but I assure you they are not paying me for this. I wish they were. Every evening as we are making dinner Paul and I check to see who is on Skype. The usual suspects include our parents, Paul's brother, my cousin (though she never answers), my grandparents and 2 or 3 friends. We talk to those people quite often.

Moral of the story: if you miss us you should get on Skype! It makes the Atlantic seem like a puddle. For example: this weekend my mom and I had a one hour sewing lesson/date and my brother gave me a hug all the way from California! I had lunch/dinner with Greg in Brazil, a drink with my dad in Ohio, a chat with Jill in Wisconsin, with the Vaca family in Connecticut, with Alexandria in Florida, and coffee with my grandparents in Wisconsin.

Granted, it would be nice to sit next to my mom for the sewing lesson or actually feel my bother's arms instead of the hard computer monitor; but Skype is leaps and bounds above letters, phone calls or emails. And it is infinitely better than silence.

Assuming we had unlimited vacation time and money this is one example of why it is difficult to physically cross the Atlantic to see everyone: Paul might make it, but I'm not THAT strong of a swimmer. Haha, just kidding. Paul is having one heck of time trying to get home from a bachelor party right now. His "trip" home will end up being about...Sunday at 7pm until Wed at 3am - plus an 8 hour time change. You can do the math. It was not supposed to be this way, but this is how the mother nature, the human body and airlines work. Paul will write about this later and you'll understand what I mean.