A neighbor once offered to take care of my baby when I went out. "Don't worry," she assured me. "His crying won't bother me." Since I don't ignore crying babies whether they are mine or not, I didn't agree to watch the neighbor's baby the next couple of times she asked me. I might have enjoyed a … [Read more...]
Where Are the Parents?
January 20, 2008 by
Seven teenage girls have been arrested for settling an illegal outpost, and held in jail for over two weeks. Yitzhak Kadman, the director of the National Council for the Child, has called for their release. The girls, most of whom are only 14 years old, broke the law but did not commit a serious … [Read more...]
FLYing and landing
January 17, 2008 by
I discovered Flylady when I was pregnant with my fifth child. She took the best of SHE, imbued it with her own unique style and transferred it from a filebox to the internet.Flylady immediately got rid of SHE's biggest problem. She says that the index cards made you feel guilty, and guilt keeps you … [Read more...]
For those with low housekeeping standards: She Got Up Off the Couch by Haven Kimmel
January 2, 2008 by
If you are depressed about your housekeeping standards, you might take comfort from the memoir She Got Up Off the Couch by Haven Kimmel. It's the sequel to "A Girl Named Zippy." Zippy's father decides to lower the ceiling to save heat, and his family is so impressed by this improvement (". . . we … [Read more...]
Fitting Housework into Life
January 2, 2008 by
When I had only two children, born eighteen months apart, I didn't spend a lot of time on housework. My oldest enjoyed scattering toys around the house, crumpling any paper he could find, and biting his baby brother when I got distracted for a moment. My husband and I developed a system to manage … [Read more...]
A cure for insomnia?
December 3, 2007 by
This morning she explained, "That way is a faster way to close my eyes." … [Read more...]
Two children go missing from gan; found safely three hours later
November 28, 2007 by
According to the local paper, two children aged 3.5 and 4 disappeared from gan (preschool) without anyone realizing. At around 11 AM, the ganenet noticed that they didn't return to the gan after playtime in the fenced area outside. After a thorough search of the premises failed to locate the … [Read more...]
A Creative Solution for Unruly Teenagers
November 24, 2007 by
In the excellent book On Writing Well by William Zinsser, the author suggests improving your writing by imitating other writers you admire. My most recent post on cooking is modeled on Frugal Journey, Raanana Ramblings inspired my post on Efi, and the following is the kind of story that Rafi would … [Read more...]
A Reward for Efi
November 20, 2007 by
One of our favorite alonim, called Mibereshit, comes in a gan or an elementary school edition. The gan version has a regular feature about a boy named Efi and his family. Efi has lots of problems but his wise parents help him resolve them through a discussion about the weekly Torah portion.Last week … [Read more...]
Mothering and the Teaching Profession
November 15, 2007 by
I recently met a lawyer who quit her job after the birth of her third baby. If she had to do it again she told me she would become a teacher, despite the low salary and status. She wants a profession that allows her to spend time with her children. There is a lot of talk of making teachers more … [Read more...]
Recent Comments