J and K Adventures: Bat Mitzvah

Kathy here: Saturday June 29th was the day of Kayla's Bat Mitzvah. Kayla is the daughter of Mitch and Amy. Amy is Jeff's cousin on his father's side. (there is another cousin Amy on his mother's side--very confusing). Also attending were Dennis and Laurie and Megan and Maia and Carrie and Nate. I had been to Temple with Jeff before so was a bit familiar with the process. Kayla had to pretty much lead the Shabat service and recite lots of passages in Hebrew and give a little speech about the theme of her readings. The service lasted an hour and a half. Kayla did a great job and didn't mess up at all (as far as I could tell--Hebrew is a very difficult language!) Her theme was female equality and both the Rabbi and the Cantor were women. It really was a lovely service....very solemn, with a touch of humor.

After the service, everyone was ready to party. Amy and Mitch spared no expense and there was a big veggie/fruit/cheese and cracker table and an open bar before you even entered the reception room. The guests descended like locusts and lines were long for both food, drink and snacks. The focus of the event was on the kids though, and they had a soda/candy station and lots of fluorescent items to wear. The DJ set up had 2 dancers, a master of ceremonies and a DJ. They had kids and adults out dancing and playing games the whole night. The only time the music stopped (or quieted down) was during dinner. Dinner was a choice of prime rib and fixin's, pasta bar or Mediterranean fare. A great time was had by all, and Jeff and I even had occasion to use our dancing lessons and demonstrated the "east coast swing". Of all of us, Maia had the most fun. I think she danced the whole night and never missed a beat!