Mom Offers Computer Camp
All these years I thought that my kids were wasting their time and their brain cells while they were glued to their video games and electronic devices. As a good parent, I constantly nagged them to do something more productive, like read a book, ride a bike, or help me fold the towels. Thankfully, they chose to ignore my advice, (although I still resent having to do all the laundry). Without their savvy technological skills that they developed at an early age, I’d be lost these days. You see, I recently made the monumental transition from a PC to a Mac, which is the equivalent of being dropped from an airplane into a foreign country where you don’t speak the language and can’t ask for directions to the nearest bathroom or coffeehouse without sounding like a total moron. Continue reading
Tops 10 Excuses for Not Making Dinner Tonight
1. It’s summertime. I’m on vacation.
2. The dog ate the brisket.
3. I’m cleaning the oven.
4. The freezer is frostbit.
5. Consuming two pockets of sunflower seeds in the dugout at the baseball game is sufficient protein. Plus, dirt provides daily requirement of minerals.
6. Everyone ends up eating a bowl of Captain Crunch anyway, so why bother?
7. I ate a late lunch, and I’m still full.
8. I was so busy looking for new chicken recipes on Pintrest that I lost track of time.
9. Leftover pizza.
10. There’s always Shabbat.
Best Beach Reads Summer 2012
It’s summertime, and you know what that means. Sending your kids away to camp so that you can enjoy a few peaceful weeks to yourself.
Kidding! (Well, maybe not).
The lazy days of summer are the perfect time to catch up on your reading, even if your vacation involves floating on a noodle in the E. coli contaminated (albeit picturesque) Lake of the Ozarks. My TBR list involves a little bit of everything…chick lit, romance, thriller, serial mystery, YA novels, comedy, and Jewish historical titles that will make you laugh, cry, contemplate the meaning of life, or all of the above, depending on your mood. Google these titles to find out more, and get ready to escape reality for awhile, at least long enough to forget how many days left until school starts again. With these page-turners, don’t forget to reapply sunscreen.
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Moms Lust Over 50 Shades
C’mon, am I the only mom who has not read 50 Shades?
I swear, everywhere I go, women are getting excited about erotica—dubbed romantica—like teens used to gush over Twilight. When I was in the middle school office signing out my daughter for an orthodontist appointment, a retired sixth grade language arts teacher asked out loud if I had read it yet. (She thought the writing was repetitive). At a recent soccer game, my in-laws quizzed me about S&M. Awkward. The other day in water aerobics where the average age is 77, they blushed about bondage in their bathing suits. TMI from ladies who cover their hairdos with shower caps. Continue reading
Imas on the Bima Seeks To Balance Personal and Professional Lives
As hard as they may try, moms who are rabbis or cantors can’t leave their work at the office. It’s impossible. These St. Louis Imas on the bima are so fully dedicated to both their clergy life and family life that their cup runneth over, literally, and hopefully the blessings that they bestow come back to them tenfold.
After all, these working moms redefine multitasking by what they can accomplish in one day, such as run a full marathon in the morning, officiate a funeral in the afternoon, read a story to their children at bedtime, write a sermon at night, and blog about it the next day. If it wasn’t for their supportive husbands, yoga sessions, silent meditations, and out-of-town retreats at the Institute of Jewish Spirituality, their hectic schedules that require them to lead a Shabbat service on Friday, conduct a bar or bat mitzvah on Saturday, and teach religious school on Sunday, would be their demise instead of their destiny.
Obviously, they don’t get weekends off, either. After devoting so many years to religious studies and helping people, it seems only fair that they be recognized for a job well done.
Maybe this Mother’s Day they’ll get to sleep in.
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Career Day Spotlights Working Mom
Typically, my children don’t ask for my advice on anything—except maybe, “Does this meat taste better with honey mustard or ketchup?†So I jump at any opportunity to share my opinion with someone who actually appreciates it. Continue reading
Mishegas Mom Offers Organizational Advice
Thanks to Mom Colored Glasses for featuring me in your inspiring, information-packed website–a great resource for parents. Read my Q&A here.
Teenagers vs. “Terrible Two’sâ€. It’s A Toss Up
Being a teenager is tough, and so is parenting one. Think about it. Moms go through pre-menopause around the same time their children go through puberty, and that means a household full of mood swings, raging hormones, sugar cravings, weight fluctuations, bad hair days, forgetfulness, exhaustion, and inability to focus due to habitual multi-tasking. (Not a good time for a husband to have a mid-life crisis). Scientific studies prove that neurological changes in the brain peak at certain stages in life, including the time parents are raising their teens, so I’m not making this stuff up. Continue reading
Food Pantries Collect Halloween Leftovers
Is it just me or is Halloween getting old? It used to be that I looked forward to making a big pot of chili and cornbread and then greeting ghosts and goblins with a caldron filled with mini chocolate bars. Now every time the doorbell rings, I’m annoyed that I have to take off my reader glasses, put a book mark in between pages of Tina Fey’s “Bossy Pants,†and drag my butt off the couch to hand over candy to a 10-year-old wearing gym shorts and a Nike t-shirt who brags that he’s dressed like a fifth grader (because he is one). Continue reading