Gathering Resources

I hope this doesn't wind up becoming a tedious step by step series of events but I promise it will get more interesting with time.

We are gathering our resources now and plan to get in touch with Nefesh B'Nefesh as well as other organizations to help us plan this out.

Our time line for making Aliyah is 2-3 years. I know that may seem like a long time but I think that once we arrive on the ground in Israel, we will be glad that we took our time planning it all out so that we don't miss any major steps or details. For example, we plan to already have a bank account open and ready to use with a large amount of savings in it before we ever arrive, as well cell phone service who we found out that we can get started with a sim card from Talk 'n' Save This way we can contact family and friends to let them know we've arrived safely.
We also plan to have a place to live secured and a job ready and waiting for my husband. We will also try to get a car secured ahead of time if at all possible.

Shortly after we have arrived we also plan to file for name changes. I will be changing my name to my Hebrew name which is the name that you see here on this blog. We will also change my husband's name to his Hebrew name (both first and last names), my eldest son's last name, and my middle son's last name.

Ahead of time, we plan to get rid of and sell most of our things that we know that we do not plan to keep or take with us. Anything that we want and cannot take with us on the day of our departure, we plan to have someone trustworthy to us ship the rest of it to us. We will have it all boxed up, addressed, and ready to go ahead of time so that that designated person/party will only have to drop them off to be shipped. We will even provide the money to them so they won't have to pay out of pocket.

My husband, children, and I plan to take a "pilot trip" to Israel either in 2011, or 2012. We'd prefer to see the area and confirm our choice of where to live ahead of time. Not to mention so that the kids can see where we will be moving too and hopefully to ease any anxieties that they might have at that time. We also will be visiting the schools while there so that both we and the children can see what school will be like for them over there. This way they can get a first hand taste and feel of what life is like over there. Luckily, it's become very Americanized in Israel and so there will be several things that our kids should recognize which I hope will help make acclimating to such a new place to live, a little bit easier.

Another important part of planning Aliyah is realizing the enormous language barrier that needs conquering. So my husband and I are both beginning to learn Hebrew and hope to be fluent in speaking it by the time for our departure day arrives.

I also want to mention that the things that my husband mentions on his blog are also things that cross my mind quite often. Especially with regard to our children and what we hope that they will grow up and accomplish. I worry about their ability to be successful in this world. Especially when they can't even manage to put their own clothes into their laundry bin instead of throwing it into the floor. I also worry about their safety at school and in public as they get older. If anyone was to find out what religious preference our family keeps, it might not bode well for their safety nor ability to get jobs and such. I figure it's only a matter of time before people around here figure out what we are and begin to demonstrate their ignorance and hatred of Jews. Especially since my husband wears a kippot and I cover my head with head scarves(tiechels) and snoods(cauls). It's bad enough that we get dirty and confused looks every time we go anywhere. I suppose they think we're muslim or something. I don't know.

Living in Israel will prevent all of that and will ensure the safety of our family. As well as the freedom to observe our religious traditions and preferences.