Mazeltov!

Finally, the big day! We gathered at the Temple for Evan's Bar Mitzvah.

My brother, Jay, and Evan. So very proud of his boy!

Each of the family members had a special role in the ceremony. I read the Translation of Haftarah. Henry and Alice were responsible for assisting with the Torah as it was returned to the Ark. After Evan conducted the Torah Service with one of his mentors, his mentor returned the Torah to the Ark and Henry and Alice were to shut the curtain. However, the Torah slipped from it's stand and started to fall to the floor. An audible gasp came from the audience but Henry saved the day. It's true! Henry quickly grabbed it and returned it to the Ark before any harm was done.

I'm sure this story will be told many times at future Bar Mitzvahs - Elise's cousin, Alan, told me he was going to write an illustrated children's book entitled The Goy Who Saved The Torah. Ha, ha..
Henry and Ethan - yes, Henry is wearing a yamaka. Even though he's not Jewish, it's a sign of respect for the boy... oops! I should say for the man who is being Bar Mitzvahed. Ethan will have his own Bar Mitzvah this Fall.

Unfortunately, photos weren't allowed during the ceremony. Suffice it to say, Evan was amazing. He was calm and confident, with a sure voice. There was no doubt that he was ready for this step in his life. Listening to Evan as he read the Torah, which is a scroll hand-written in Hebrew with no vowels, was so special.

Evan, with Alice and Katie. Alice was so excited to have a girl cousin to play with. The two of them had great fun.

Alice with Len. Jean and Len are like 3rd grandparents to Alice and Henry.

Henry and Ethan - didn't take long for them to become friends.

There were about 100 people in attendance, 29 of us as family from all over the U.S.

Following the ceremony, we were ready to celebrate! Off to the harbor to board the St. Nicholas for a whale watching cruise and dinner.

Alice and Jill. Yet another special cousin that the kids had such fun with this week.

Ahhh... that looks like a relieved Mom! Elise did such a great job helping to prepare Evan for his Bar Mitzvah. She deserved a smile that big.

Alice and Alan. These two were good buddies. Alan is the jokester of the group, ready with a joke, riddle, or song to make you smile. He brought out lots of those Alice smiles this week.

The food was lovely!

Several of Evan's friends were also on the cruise.

We were ready to do some whale watching.

The inside of the cabin was so nice, with lots of available binoculars and comfortable seating.

And then, what did we see? Not whales, but blue sky! Almost as exciting. This was our second blue sky of the week and it was like a miracle. It only lasted about an hour, but it was much appreciated on this special day.

Then... we saw whales! Okay, my photos stink. But trust me - we saw lots and lots of whales! I believe the Naturalist estimated 10 to 15 Baleen Humpback Whales.

You would see a spurt of air then the whale would rise a little bit. This would happen four or five times. Then, wait for it, wait for it.... the tail! It was so exciting. They would flip their tail high in the air and dive deep for more food. They would then be gone for about 5 minutes before resurfacing.

The Baleen Humpback Whales are 45 to 50' long; weigh 60,000 to 80,000 lbs; eat 2,000 lbs of herring or krill a day; have tails which are 15' across; and have the longest flippers of any whale at 15' long each.

Alan, showing Alice a close-up of a whale. Oooh...

My Mom and Elise.

It was a fantastic day - from the Bar Mitzvah to the whale cruise. And it just kept getting better if you ask Alice, because every single relative came back to the house afterward, and she got to play with her favorite guy.

We're so proud of you, Evan!