ARIES      The first sun sign in the Zodiac
                        Adventurous and energetic
                        Pioneering and courageous
                        Enthusiastic and confident
                        Dynamic and quick-witted

        TIGER      Earth tiger, magnetic, romantic, independent, aggressive, courageous

FIRST ENTRY in the EDEN DIARIES 1st May 1998

Dear Eden,

Today you are a month and three days old. We love you. You are a sweet baby, everyone who has seen you says you are very cute, and of course, we agree!!!
You spent the first 17 days of your life in Intensive Care , Meir Hospital, Kfar Saba, where you were well taken care of by the expert nurses and doctors who saved your life. You had swallowed meconium and developed respiratory problems after birth.

You were on a breathing machine for over a week. Dad and I sat by your side every day, talking to you, watching you, praying for you. All the family prayed and willed you to get better. After 17 days, which seemed to us like 17 years, we were finally allowed to bring you home, a tiny, red-faced baby 3kg bundle with slate-grey eyes and a fixed stare, long fingers and black new-born hair.

You came home in the days of HAMSIN, the unbearable heat and humidity which was not so pleasant. You cried for most of your first day home, but we took it in our stride and did everything the nurses taught us - changed nappies, gave you a bath, fed you (Similac, I am afraid, as during your stay in Intensive care I wasn't able to express enough milk).

In fact, we are quite proud of ourselves as we are managing quite well on the whole. We love to watch you - you pull lots of strange faces, you stretch and twist and jerk about, but when you are sleeping you look like a little cherub.

It's fun deciding what to dress you in , you look adorable in everything, but my favourite is pink, even though it's not very original for little girls.

You do tend to cry a lot during the day but you calm down when we pick you up, and we play you Stefan Grapelli jazz violin which calms you down too. Right now you are half asleep on my knee. It’s a lovely feeling to see you quiet and content.

We hope you will grow up to be healthy, at peace with yourself, independent and as beautiful as you are now. We will do our best to be good parents though we are not so sure how. We will try to help you to be independent, confident and happy.

Love, Mum