In last week's Matzav Haruach, Rabbi Ben-Zion Elgazi's column is devoted to fasting on Yom Kippur. I liked his approach to breastfeeding so I am translating it here. You can find the original Hebrew text in this article I contributed to the blog of the Israeli Association of Certified Lactation … [Read more...]
Bullying over Breastmilk Storage
A nurse in a Jerusalem hospital returned from maternity leave and placed expressed breastmilk for her 7-month-old son in the staff room's refrigerator. One day she found a sign (pictured above) asking not to store expressed breastmilk in the refrigerator. Her complaint went all the way up to … [Read more...]
Last-Minute Rosh Hashanah Greetings
How have your Rosh Hashanah preparations been? After a lot of typical pre-holiday anxiety I just realized that I don't have so much cooking left. When I asked my husband what simanim (symbols) he wanted to see on the table, he said, "Apples and honey." So I decided not to stress about making a lot … [Read more...]
Kids Pay the Price of Free Gan
On August 27, under pressure from last summer's social protests and the Trachtenberg committee, Israel implemented free education for all 3- and 4-year-olds. This has been in the works for many years. Until this year, the government provided free kindergarten for 5-year-olds, and a (relatively) … [Read more...]
Exclusion of (Breastfeeding) Women in Beit Shemesh and Hod Hasharon
Public breastfeeding is in the news again, after a nursing mom was asked to leave a café in the Sharonim mall in Hod Hasharon. Tal Eisenberg asked a waitress to find her a comfortable seat to nurse her baby. Tal then overheard the shift manager asking the waitress whether Tal was nursing, and … [Read more...]
Surprises from the First Day of School
Did summer feel short to you? For the first time in history, Israeli schools didn't start on the first of September. Starting on the 27th of August gave us back five extra days of vacation during the last school year. My vacation went like this: New York niece came for 3.5 weeks, husband and son … [Read more...]
How to Tell If Your Date Might Be an Abuser
If you or your children are dating, you may wonder how to spot an abuser. In this guest post, Daniella Levy tells us the warning signs. People tend to believe that violence is a random, unpredictable disaster. “It was totally out of the blue!” “He was always so nice!” “There’s no way we could … [Read more...]
Getting Support for Teen Crises
This post is dedicated to the memory of "Ricki", a teenager with Down Syndrome who died in her sleep this week. Blogger RickisMom wrote about the challenges she and Ricki faced bravely in her blog Beneath the Wings, which served as a resource for moms of teens with disabilities. May the family be … [Read more...]
Why My Maternity Ward Locks Up Infant Formula
Much ink has been spilled about NYC Mayor Bloomberg's support of breastfeeding. In today's guest post, nurse and lactation consultant Noa Hirsch Choritz explains how keeping formula with medications serves the needs of both breast-fed and bottle-fed babies. New York City Mayor … [Read more...]
Explaining Death to Children (Plus Notes on 9 Av)
In honor of the nine days of mourning leading up to the commemoration of the destruction of the Temple on 9 Av, which we observe this Sunday, I share this email from a reader. A very close friend of ours died about a month ago and last week our rabbi's adult son died.there has been talk of funerals … [Read more...]
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