Chris and Erica met in Mississippi. Erica was in her second year of Teach For America and Chris was running the Sunflower County Freedom Project. They were married in Indianola, Mississippi, in 2004. They welcomed Miriam Frances in November of 2007; Robin Arielle arrived in December 2009. Erica ordained as a rabbi in May of 2008 and the family moved to the Washington, DC area. Chris is working on his next book, a history of race in Washington, DC and Erica is a rabbi at Temple Sinai in DC.
Erica and Miriam had a wonderful week-long visit in Coronado with the grandparents. We also loved to have a chance to see cousin Chase, a giant who is seven months older than li'l Miri. Here are some highlights.
Hanging out with Grandpa Bill and Grandma Jean
Walking and eating a whole lot!
Seven Months old!
An ordination party for Erica and a welcome to Coronado party for Miriam. Here we are with our good friend Bill Lemei.
Fun on the floor!
A visit with Uncle Ben, Aunt Megan and Cousin Chase!
Faithful readers of this blog have probably been wondering where we have gone. Where are the postings of all of our adventures? What has the Asch family been up to? Why can't we get it together enough to post something? Well, your long wait is about to be rewarded. We apologize to our adoring public for taking such a long break from blogging and promise to dedicate ourselves to posting more regularly in the future. Our absence has been caused by a very busy last month and limited internet access. Here, at last, is a summary of what we have been up to with some slide shows (we have so many pictures!)
1. Visiting Mississippi We went down to the Magnolia State (it is like coming home) to see some of Chris' Freedom Project students graduate from high school. Mark and Tiffany treated us to some fabulous Delta hospitality, while Chris drove all around the state promoting his new book with various talks. A highlight was his talk at the Indianola Public Library, which was filmed by C-SPAN's book TV. Erica and Miri got to visit the Greenville synagogue for services on Friday night, and the Silverblatts hosted a party in honor of Erica's ordination. We also visited with Michelle, Chris, and Marian, and spent some time relaxing on the porch with Laura Gardner. It was a great trip!
2. Visiting Boothbay and Attending a Wedding After a packed Delta trip, we headed to Boothbay in Ocean Pines for a little R and R. Unfortunately, Erica took that a little too literally, coming down with a sinus infection and staying in bed all day long. She recovered in time to attend Andy and Brian's wedding in Annapolis. It was great to see so many HUC friends and for them to meet Miriam for the first time. Unfortunately, Miri was a little fussy during the ceremony so Chris had to leave -- and he and Miri almost literally ran into his elementary school hero, quarterback Roger Staubach. We partied the night away and returned to Silver Spring to try to unpack before...
3. Getting Ordained After five long years of study Erica became a rabbi on May 31st. It was great to have the whole Seager clan (Jean, Bill, and Ben) as well as Chris' mom, Margery, there for the ceremony. It was especially lovely to see Rachel and her daughter Pardes, who made the big trip all the way to Cincinnati for the occasion. Rachel was Erica' s roommate in Israel during her first year of study and was there from the beginning of the journey. We had a great time celebrating!
4. Settling into our new place We have finally managed to settle into our new place in Silver Spring. Chris welcomed five interns to the USPSA, while Erica made some baby food and went to the pool with Miriam. The cats had fun roaming around the neighborhood and getting a chance to be outside. We are meeting our neighbors and fixing up the house. Maybe now we will have time to post some more!!
