My 2012 year, gangnam style

Ready? Set? GO!!!

Salsa

The year 2012 roared to a start with January hosting the annual Salsa ball, at Candela Salsa club. I was crowned as the queen of the ball and danced my little tootsies off. I got a crown, an embarrassing dance in front of the whole salsa crowd and a gift certificate to a restaurant that expired before I could use it.

Salsa Queen of the Ball 2012

I attended a Salsa Purim party

The Dev-il wears Prada?

And continued to dip and twirl.

Dipping….very important when eating, I mean dancing, salsa.

Blogging

This year I met my new TOI family of bloggers.

TOI bloggers unite (that’s me, top second from the left)

We had been having so much fun together that I really think at this point it’s irrelevant who else is even laughing at us or with us.

We had three blogger events, the first one I summarized by comparing the three very important aspects of my life: blogging, jogging and snogging. Amen!

A few of us were invited to to speak to a group of Taglit Alumni about Israel. I was one of those who spoke about my experience making Aliyah twice.

Taglit Alumni meets TOI bloggers

I made it to the top of the popular blogger’s list when I wrote about Jewrotica‘s new site being launched: Hold the Shmaltz, it’s Jewish Erotica

Look who’s popular!

And we bloggers just love being together, even if many times it’s virtual instead of personal.

Me and Bengay.

Yihiyeh Beseder Benji Lovitt

Me and Sarah.

Watch the ear babe!

Laura, Zahava and me.

Zahava, Laura and me. 50 shades of….highlights?

Friends

As I told my friend Milly, I have received a lot of people’s phone numbers this year, mostly male, but the most exciting number I ever got at a bar was hers.

Milly and me

I love my friends.

They are what make life so much more colorful and exciting. I have work friends, salsa friends, blogging friends and party friends. But one of the great things about friendships are the moments we share and the way we all tolerate each others differences so well.

Let’s not forget that I have 322 new Facebook friends this year. How will I ever fit everyone into my schedule?? Oh right. It’s Facebook.

We have been friends now for 28 years Chava and Daniel!!! With my sis Miriam and her husband Danny

Yardena, I have known you for 22 years.

Yardena, we met at the age of 13 during our first Aliyah, on a tiyul, where we complained for an entire day straight to each other. Love you.

Leora 28 year friendship, and going strong.

And Einat, a new but good friend:

Einat and me

I had a chance this year to meet an amazing woman, Alumah, whom I had the honor of celebrating with her 10th birthday (as she calls it): ten years since she was given a second chance at life after being on a bus blown up by a terrorist.

Riding the bus for the second time

Alumah and me

Fashion

My unwavering commitment to constrictive footwear will continue in 2013. What can I say? Don’t judge me until you’ve walked a mile in my stilettos.

My strappy two toned stilettos.

Benji Lovitt, can I borrow those? They would make my calves look awesome!!

Benji Lovitt and I wear practically the same shoes

I had some good hair days:

My good hair day.

Some bad hair days:

Bad hair day.

I wore polka dots.

And faux fur.

Faux fur is NOT murder.

(Ironic since I wrote an article about the price we pay for wearing fur during the same time period that my profile picture showed me wearing this vest)

Men

I have been seen in 2012 with a lot of different men. The ones that I was romantically involved with are still hidden in my closet.

Let me just clarify who these OTHER men are:

Yossi Ben Lulu, an amazing trainer who has no pity or mercy on me. Maybe that’s why we get along so well?

This is Yossi Ben Lulu my trainer.

One of my favorite photographers, Igor Farberov.

Igor, you always make those pictures of me look so sexy!

Shai, a great DJ and good friend of mine. He always helps me ease into my weekends by playing the line at the toy bar Thursday nights.

Shai, play that funky music white boy.

Hoffman needs no introduction. I mean, it’s Hoffman!

Hoffman, it’s only fun to party when you are there!

Yoni and I study together. He always tries to set me up with his friends.

We study together. But girls, if you want, he’s single.

Family

March doesn’t usually offer anything that exciting except for my sister Deena Malka‘s birthday, of course. And yet, this year we celebrated the joint Bat Mitzvah of my little sister and my niece who are both the same age. There we were, four generations come together to celebrate the Jewish rite of passage for my sister and niece. What a special moment it was. Btw, I love my Bubby!

The Bubs and the Devster

This year, my kids are the ones who know how to make me smile and make me stress. They seem to bring out the worst and the best in me, to make me work like crazy and then to contribute the most pleasure and happiness to my life. They have grown to the point where they can make me laugh so hard, sometimes until I can’t breathe. They have developed their personalities, and their skills, for example: ballet, tai kwon do, soccer and just overall cuteness. I am a lucky mom.

My parents and siblings are so amazing to me. What would I ever do without them??

Colgate commercial?

Running and Training

I am still running which brings the tally up to 3 years plus.

This year, I ran in the Jerusalem Marathon:

Feeling the victory of finishing the 10K in Jerusalem through hail and crazy winds.

I ran the Tel Aviv marathon:

I started weight training:

Bench pressing 70 kilos.

I must confess that I find that I walked less this year than I did in the past. That’s what happens when you buy a car. I am a bit more vegan and I am really trying to drink more….water.

Personal Changes

We experienced war this year.

My mothering was challenged. I faced the reality of being a single mom with five kids while bombs were falling and I wrote about it here: Mothering alone during wartime.

I had a dry spell, and I don’t mean in my writing.

I studied hard to complete my bookkeeping course and in between studying, I wrote my fastest blog post ever! We’re talkin’ five minutes flat: I could complain but I won’t

I challenged my religion with Sam, over coffee.

I finally gathered up the guts to publish my article about the challenges I have faced in my life and how the miracles we wait for in our lives we ultimately need to create for ourselves: Creating our own personal miracles

I didn’t post a fat pic of myself in the post so I will do it here. (Gulp!)

Lots more of me to love??

I traveled to the Philippines for work and had a chance to meet my coworkers of three years whom I had never met:

Where’s Waldo?

I got to play badminton with our GM of the branch there (I suck), to midget wrestle, dance on stage, salsa in the Chihuahua mexican bar owned and run by a guy from Texas, and to witness a Buddhist temple in the airport in Thailand. Can anyone tell me where I can find a Minyan??

Me in the Manila street market:

Should I still put on sun screen?

I dated A LOT of men:

Wow! Now that’s a lot of balls!!

At work this year I was promoted to Manager of Facilities, even though in Israel there is no such title or position and if I try to translate it, it ends up sounding like I manage the playground swings (Menahelet Mitkanim).

My hair went lighter (not loving it), my thighs got stronger and my biceps got bigger. My lipstick went subtler, my nails darker, my earrings bigger and my skirts shorter.

But most importantly, I learned to make peace with my past. My favorite of all posts edited by my favorite of all editors Elie Leshem.

After all, what’s a few bygones between friends?