BABY GRAHAM RELEASE 3 now known as AVRAHAM
Smiley Baby (Chol HaMoed Sukkot 5767)
As you can see from the photos, Avraham continues in the family tradition of being a very smiley baby! Take a look!
Bris (Circumcision)
The Bris took place Monday July 17th 2006/Tammuz 21st 5766 at the South East Hebrew Congregation, 10900 Lockwood Drive, Silver Spring, MD, 20901. This is Rabbi Winter's Shul in White Oak.
It is customary not to invite anyone to a Bris but anyone can attend without an invitation. Appropriate dress for a Bris would be smart casual. According to traditional Jewish custom, women should not wear pants (trousers) and should cover their necklines, arms above elbows and legs above the knee. Men should not wear shorts and should wear a head covering (yarmulke, kippa, kuppel or hat). Married women should also wear a hat if they don't usually cover their hair.
Shalom Zachor
This took place at our home on Friday evening at 9:30pm. It is not customary for people to travel long distances to this, so we imagine that only people that live or are staying nearby will attend, especially since Jews are not supposed to drive on the Sabbath.
Birth
Details of the bris will follow, as will pictures and more news, at this web site - please check here for more details as they emerge. In keeping with Jewish tradition, the name will be announced (and possibly decided) at the Bris!
The Grahams - Barry, Esti (Kim), Shira Leah, Naphtali Tzvi and Avraham
OLDER NEWS
NAPHTALI TZVI GRAHAM
At 2:30pm Eastern Standard Time on Sunday 15th Kislev 5765, November 28th 2004, the Bris took place as planned, and our baby was given the name Naphtali Tzvi. He was named after his great-great-great-great grandfather, Naphtali Hirsh Kuczynski of Kutno, Poland ("Hirsh" is Yiddush for the Hebrew "Tzvi"). He was a talmid chocham, a Torah scholar, and at least one son was a student of Rabbi Yisrael Yehoshua Trunk of Kutno, author of "Yehoshuat Yisrael" - "Salvation of Israel".
BIRTH ANNOUNCEMENT OF OUR SECOND CHILD, B"H
Mazal Tov! Baby Boy Graham was born Sunday 8th Kislev 5765, November 21st 2004, in Silver Spring, MD - at 6:07 Eastern Standard Time. He is 6 lb 11oz. Look at the pictures!!!
SHIRA LEAH
So why did we name our baby girl Shira Leah? She’s not named after any relative. By the way, we always use both names, Shira Leah - not Shira.
We wanted to give thanks. G-d has been very kind to us. We were married only 13 months before the birth of our child, and we have been very grateful to G-d for allowing us to find our basherts, our destined partners, so "early" in life, when we can really appreciate all the blessings we've been given thus far. We were so excited that our firstborn was born on Shabbat, the Sabbath, and we wanted to truly sing G-d’s praises, as we do on Shabbat. In our prayers the rest of the week we make many requests of G-d. But on Shabbat, we only sing His praises.
As our child was born, on Shabbat, healthy, perfectly formed, and mother and baby were both healthy, we realized our requests of G-d were granted. So as we say in Tehillim (Psalm) Pay-Tet () 5 ) (or 89:2-3): Chasdei HaShem Olam Ashira – Of G-d’s kindness I will sing forever – L’Dor VaDor O’Deah Emunat’cha B’Fi – I will make your faithfulness known to every generation with my mouth. Ki Amarti, Olam Chesed YiBaneh – For I said, The World is built on kindness.
As the world is built on G-d’s kindness, we are obligated to sing G-d’s praises for the kindness he has bestowed upon us. Hence, we sing Shira, our daughter’s name.
Leah, our righteous matriarch, merited to give birth to 6 of the 12 tribes herself. She was also the first person in TANACH (the Bible) who publicly said THANKS to G-d, in the naming of her fourth son, Yehuda. Through Ruach HaKodesh (Divine Inspiration) both Rochel and Leah knew that 12 sons were to be born to Yaakov by his 4 wives, and were to serve as the progenitors for Klal Yisroel (the Jewish people). When Leah had her 4th son, she publicly thanked G-d for giving her more than her fair share.
As Leah merited so much by her prayers and her actions, we felt it was a fitting name to add to our song, our Shira, as further thanks to G-d.
