Bris Mania

Attempts to live-blog Gabe's bris today were probably ill-conceived. For example: What do you type when the mohel makes the cut? "Gabe says 'Waaah!'" Actually, that's not fair to Gabe: He was AWESOME. Cried for about five seconds before settling down. I don't even want to credit the various creams, injections and food he was given to numb the pain -- well, not give them ALL the credit. But we had figured that Gabe's personality would be conducive to dealing with the bris.

I think it's important to boldface-name (Is that a verb? I think it is) the attendees: Margery, Dan, Suzki Suzy, Pops Gary, Grammy Carolyn, Grandpa Barry, GG Lil, Aunt Emily, Uncle Mark, Uncle Seth, Aunt Linnea, Uncle Benjamin, Great Aunt Nechama, Great Uncle Billy, Great Great Aunt Edith, Billy's mom Sylvia, cousins Sandy and Marisa, cousin Vivian and more.

Friends in attendance included college pal Meryl Perlman, Fordham friends Kristin Connelly and Abby Gaunt, Book Clubbers Brook Gesser (and Sadie!) and Lori Goldberg, longtime friend Julie Sturm, and celebrity pal-of-187 Hicks Rachel Sklar.

Special thanks to Rabbi Leonard Sharzer, who did a phenomenal job as Gabe's mohel. We'd recommend him to anyone having a bris! And thanks to Congregation Mount Sinai in Brooklyn Heights for opening their doors for us on this special occasion.

So you might be wondering: What, no detail on the bris itself? Suffice to say cuts were made, winces were made, prayers were made and a new little Jewish boy was named: "Gil Kalman" (Gabe Kalman), for Margery's grandma Gertrude and Dan's grandfather Kalman. In Hebrew, "Gil" means "Joy," and we hope Gabe is filled with it throughout his life.