Room Mom Winterizes Holiday Party
Ever since my kids started elementary school—almost a decade ago—I’ve done my part as a room mom. I take my volunteerism seriously. After an hour in a rowdy, germ-infested, overheated classroom, I automatically pop two aspirin and drench my extremities in Purel instant hand sanitizer. One of my most challenging jobs as a room parent is to plan the school holiday celebrations throughout the year, including the fall (formerly Halloween) party, the winter (formerly Christmas) party, and the Valentine (still politically correct even though named after a saint) party.
This time of year, most parents are usually sensitive about respecting different religious beliefs and understand the need to keep the festivities wintry as opposed to Christmasy. Still, every December, I encounter one or two moms who try to sneak a little controversy into the agenda. Continue reading
Get the Spin on Popular Dreidel Game
My dreidel collection seems to grow every year. The last time I counted, I had 67 four-sided tops in all sizes and colors. During the eight days of Hanukkah, I keep these inexpensive little toys in a decorative bowl on my coffee table right next to the stack of Everyday With Rachel Ray magazines. Continue reading
Modern Bar Mitzvahs Play The Name Game
The other day Jack had the nerve to ask, “Mom, did you buy my Hanukkah presents yet?†I starred at him in disbelief. Doesn’t he realize that I just forked over $300 to get our dog’s teeth cleaned? Or what about the check I wrote last month for his basketball registration? He must think that money grows on trees, and those brand new black suede boots in my closet were free. Continue reading
Hanukkah Books Capture Hearts of All Generations
If I had a quarter for every time someone advised me, “Ellie, you should write a book,†I would be…let me think here…I need my calculator…about $5.25 richer. Actually, one of my New Year’s resolutions is to finish a children’s picture book, get it published, and sell my soul to amazon. com. Continue reading
The PJ Library Invites Families To Snuggle With Books
Do you know what I miss most about my early childhood? Footsie pajamas. Even to this day, I envy toddlers who go to the grocery store in their cozy, flame-resistant sleepers with rubberized grippers. I also have fond memories of snuggling under the blankets before bedtime and having my dad read to me the same Curious George book over and over again. To me, comfy pajamas and imaginative stories go together like, well, peanut butter and jelly, or latkes and dreidels. Continue reading
Meaningful Mitzvahs Are A Big Hit With Teens
Mitzvah projects are as unique as the Hebrew school students themselves, and it’s hard to say who benefits the most, the giver or the receiver. With a keen awareness of social justice and diverse skills and interests, today’s young Jewish people are eager to choose a tzedakah project that goes beyond collecting money for a charity. Sure, they can donate a percentage of their monetary gifts to many worthwhile causes, such as Mazon, which fights hunger worldwide, but they also are eager to give their time, talents, and energy to help those in need. Continue reading
B’nei Mitzvahs Give New Meaning To Tzedekah
Who says kids today are lazy and self centered? Uhh, maybe I did, but never mind. Ask any typical hormonal, pimply pre-teen preparing for a bar or bat mitzvah and he or she will show you the contrary. Consider, for example, the relentless demands on Jewish 13-year-olds who are about to embark on symbolic adulthood. To start with, they diligently practice their Torah portion; study their Haftarah; write a personal interpretation of the weekly Torah portion, called the D’var Torah; and put up with their mothers who obsess for a whole year over everything from the guest list to the dessert table. Continue reading
Everything I Need To Know, I Learn From My Dog
Sometimes the most important lessons in life come from unexpected teachers, such as my dog. I’m not the only philosophical pet-owner who writes about canine inspiration, so here’s my take on what my six-pound apricot toy poodle named Luci teaches me. Continue reading
Motherhood: It’s Not What It Used To Be
Raising children isn’t what it used to be. That’s because young people today aren’t who they used to be. To give you an example, in my mother’s era, penny candy cost just that—a penny. Today’s generation, on the other hand, thinks the Dollar Store is a bargain. In fact, some kids have their own credit cards to pay for their king-size candy bars. Continue reading
Moms On The Go Join the Races
Moms these days are always on the run. We run errands. We run to the grocery store. We run after our children, constantly. We run around the house looking for misplaced math homework and lost car keys.
Moms are always on the go. We go to work, and we go workout. We go to appointments, and sometimes we go crazy. We go to baseball games, and we go to soccer games. We go to birthday parties, and we go to bar mitzvahs. We go shopping. Once in awhile, we go out to dinner. Sometimes we go too long and forget to go to the bathroom, but that’s another story. I could go on and on. Continue reading