High Holidays Activities

Here are a bunch of links to things I have done over the years with my munchkins for the High Holidays- hope it is helpful to you!

  

My Rosh Hashanah Activity Pack 

My Rosh Hashanah Activity Pack for Toddlers

My Yom Kippur Activity Pack

My Sukkot Activity Pack

My Six Days of Creation Activity Pack

Rosh Hashanah

Yom Kippur

Sukkot

Simchat Torah

Wishing you all a wonderful week~

Always,

Getting Organized! by guest blogger Chana Rachel Schusterman

The Power of Using our G-d Given Talents (and Helping Our Children Recognize Theirs.)

There are twelve months in the Jewish calendar.  The talent of ORGANIZATION is the sixth, corresponding to the month of Elul (August - September.)

For people who have this talent, it is essential that life has a sense of order.  This order  allows them to take action to reach their potential.  Excellent tools for the utilization of this talent are lists, a personal calendar and planned systems.  Having an organized space in which to live and work gives a sense of tranquility. This peace of mind allows them to take charge of daily life in a purposeful way. Utilizing this talent, a person can be like a  CEO who knows where the company is headed, how to get there and how to be on top of the details needed to make it succeed. This person knows how to throw away what doesn’t work in order to make space for what is needed. He / she  loves to grow and develop and is not afraid to fix what is broken or begin anew.

We can be role models to our children by helping them to feel organized. We can let them know the plan when we go out together.  If we see that they thrive on knowing what’s next, we can help them to feel orderly by making their own lists. By being calm when they make a mess, we can encourage them to trust their ability to fix it and have the courage to create their own method of organization.  

Tools For Developing Your Sense of Organization:

1.  Make lists and check off what you have accomplished.
2.  Throw away what doesn’t work in order to make room for what does work.
3.  Never be depressed.  Believe that you can fix the mistakes you have made.
4.  Be willing to let go of old habits that are not positive.  Work on yourself to grow.

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The Kabalah of Organization:

The talent of Organization represents the ability to fix or develop ourselves and our relationships.  The ability to be a good manager includes a magnetic sense of what to draw close and when to let go.  

The month of Elul is the last month of the year which beginning with Tishrei (whose first day is Rosh HaShanah, the anniversary of the creation of man).  At the beginning of the year, we make resolutions on how we will connect with G-d and accomplish our purpose in the world.  When we come to Elul, we need to take stock of the year that has almost ended. We utilize this last month to fix our mistakes and reconnect with G-d in preparation for the coming new year. During this month, G-d shines his qualities of  love and mercy into the world. This strengthens our ability to prepare for the new year.  The letters of the name ELUL have many meanings in Hebrew.  The one that is most well known is Ani L’Dodi, V’Dodi LI.  (I am my Beloved’s, and my Beloved is mine.)

The tribe connected with this month and talent is Gad.

Chana Rachel Schusterman is a Jewish spiritual counselor and coach. If you would like to contact her, please email me at Jewishmontessori18@gmail.com.

Listen Up... by guest blogger Chana Rachel Schusterman

The Power of Using our G-d Given Talents (and Helping Our Children Recognize Theirs.)

There are twelve months in the Jewish calendar.  The talent of HEARING is the fifth, corresponding to the month of Av (July-August).

Individuals who have this talent are able to stay present, “tune in”, and pick up the nuances of every situation.  They are acutely receptive, absorbing the details of their surroundings. They do this naturally and intuitively. They listen, hear nuances and experience how these details fit into the whole. It is as if their love of music enables them to hear each instrument and appreciate how it is part of the magnificent music of the entire orchestra. In relationships they seek harmony and look for the good in people. They have big hearts and want everyone to be happy.  

We can be role models for our children by “tuning in” and pointing out what is good in the world.  We also need to be good listeners to hear and validate what they want to share.  Sometimes we need to help them use their minds to balance their hearts.  This balance will increase their sense of inner harmony.

Tools for Developing Your Sense of Hearing:

1.  “Tune in” to the present.
2.  Don’t jump to conclusions.  Listen and pay attention to details.  
3.  Be receptive  to what is positive and harmonious.
4.  Understand what you experience by using your mind as well as your heart.

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The Kabalah of Hearing:

The sense of hearing is receptive, integrating knowledge through the heart.  A person with this sense tunes in with a deep understanding.  

Twice each day, morning and night, Jews say “Shema Israel, A-donai E-loheinu, A-donai Echad.”  (“Hear O Israel, the L-rd our G-d, the L-rd is One.”) (These words are also written on parchment in the mezuza which we place on our doorposts, and in the tefilin that Jewish men wear on their heads and arms.) This profound meditation (see chabad.org for more information) is a meditation on the Oneness of G-d. The first word, ‘Shema,’ ‘Hear’, means that we are to tune in with all our hearts to the Oneness of G-d.   

The month of Av is the saddest month of the year.  The destruction of the Holy Temple in Jerusalem by the Romans in 70 AD took place in Av.  The Temple was rebuilt and again destroyed, again on the 9th of Av, by the Babylonians. The 9th of Av is a day of fasting and mourning for the many tragedies that took place on that day.  We pray and look forward to the rebuilding of the Third Holy Temple in Jerusalem, which will be the center of G-dly revelation and world peace.

Chana Rachel Schusterman is a Jewish spiritual counselor and coach. If you would like to contact her, please email me at Jewishmontessori18@gmail.com.

Kids Art Display & Lego Storage

A good friend of ours (who was homeschooled and just graduated from NYU) gave my kids her very treasured and very large Lego collection that she played with as a kid. 

Now there must be hundreds and hundreds of pieces of Lego and up until now we were just keeping them in a large storage bin that the kids go rummaging through to look for whatever it is they need.

My husband had this tool box and so we dumped out the entire bin of Legos on the floor and got to work. We (the kids included) put all the regular Lego building blocks back into the storage bin. We then went on to divide the specialty pieces into the tool box (windows, doors, Lego people, flowers, hats, tools, wheels, very tiny pieces and any other pieces that are different). 

 Its a whole new world for them now as they can see what they have and it works. I have seen numerous Lego storage idea's online (stored by color, types of pieces etc.) but I knew that when my kids clean up, there is no way they are sitting and putting each piece back in the right color box or whatever. So this works for us.

On another note, my daughter LOVES arts'n crafts. She LOVES drawing, painting, coloring, gluing, stickers, you name it. And I find myself putting her stuff all over the house and it is getting a bit much. 

So after much Pinterest searching and inspiration, this is what I came up with:

I took the empty wall in her room and using 2 wooden frames (without pictures or glass), a clip board and a piece of bamboo, hot glued regular wooden pegs onto them and voila- her very own art gallery.

Here's a closer look at the bamboo... it is very inexpensive where I live and we have tons of it around our house.

I have a busy week ahead, hope you are enjoying yours~

Always,

A Conversation with the Handyman

This morning we had a handyman come over to fix up a few things around the house.

Of course he had an audience of all the kids watching in awe as he stood on his huge step ladder to change some really high light bulbs.

After he was done with everything, he asked me the ages of the kids and said he has four kids of his own, ages 20-26.

I told him that most people tell me that this stage that I'm in right now (raising little ones) is the EASY stage and it just gets more challenging... and then asked him what was his opinion on that.

You know what he told me? He told me that it is what you make of it. If you smother your kids and try to control every move they make, yes, it is going to get more challenging. But if you let them be who they are and make their own mistakes, you will find that most of the time they will turn out okay.

Another thing he said was, "always be there for them, no matter what" because if you're not going to be there, they are going to find someone else to be there and not always will that someone be the right one for them. He also said that in his experience, don't TELL them how to act, SHOW them. Be a role model in every sense of the word. Your kids see how you handle every situation and if you handle it with class and tact, that is what they will learn. If you just get frustrated and angry, that is what they will learn too.

Have I met his kids? No. But that 10 minute conversation we had as he was headed out the door really resonated with me. It is nothing I havn't heard before, but just thought I would pass it on as it is just so true.

No one comes into your life by chance. Not even the handyman:)

Have an absolutely awesome week~

Always,

More summer fun and some preps for the school year...

 Giant bubble fun... 

Mix 12 cups water, 1 cup dish soap, 1 cup corn starch and 2 Tbsp baking powder.

Let it sit for at least an hour. The longer you let it sit, the better the bubbles. Give it a good mix, get some fun bubble wands, sit back, relax, and let the kids have a ball:) 

Take a bunch of crayons, line them up on a piece of paper, tape them down. Get a hair dryer and blow close to crayons and watch it melt. Kids thought this was AWESOME. 

Now as a very proud New Yorker, and growing up in the city, my knowledge of gardening was very limited. A good friend of ours helped us plant a garden and the kids have been LOVING it. 

I love the fact that they can actually SEE where it comes from, hence when making a bracha, it makes sense. They see the tomatoes growing from the ground, hence, "ha-adama". It's a very cool, hands on approach to teach kids the correct blessings on foods as opposed to just coloring pictures of foods with the same bracha.

Here is our tomato plant. This tomato was picked and eaten by my daughter just seconds after I took this photo. 

 Our strawberry bush- this strawberry still needs a few more days, but these are the most amazing, sweetest strawberries you have ever tasted.

Our pineapple. Now you can understand why we say "ha-adama" on pineapple:)

Beets..

Now back in this post I began working on our continent boxes. It's a good thing mom and dad were world travelers before we met and got married and between my hubby and me we have a some great photos of ourselves from all over the world. 

I went through these photos and took out a bunch and put them in each continent box. The only continents we both didn't get to were Australia and Antarctica. The kids love seeing photos of us in these places, it makes it very real to them. 

Here is what we have so far, as I find things, I add them to the boxes:

~Israel~

(okay, Israel is not a continent, but it's our land so it deserves it's own box:)

* a map

* Take Me to the Holy Land (you can get it here)

* Personal photos of mom and dad in Israel

* Photos and pictures of various places and events that happened

*Israeli flag

* Miniature Menorah and Shekel and Silver Jerusalem

* Israeli Soldiers

* A police pin

* A Tanya printed in Israel

~Antarctica~

 * A book on Antarctica which I got here

* 2 books on Penguins

* A book I made with images I tore out of an issue of the National Geographic

* Photos of Jewish scientist David Wakil lighting the Menorah in Antarctica

*Some cute miniatures: scarf, hat, snow flake, iglue, sled. sweater. snowman and polar bears. I know we have some penguins somewhere, just have to find them:)

~Asia~

* Russian money

* Photos of my husband in Russia

* Photos of famous Rabbi's from Russia as well as Yeshiva boys learning in Yeshiva's in Russia

* Book on Asia

* Photos of Thailand and China

* A Tanya printed in Jordan

* Miniatures of 2 Asian people and a fan

(my husband spent time in India, we are trying to dig up those photos:)

~Europe~

* Book on Europe

* Photos of mom and dad in various countries in Europe

* Photos of Menorah lightings around Europe

* Tanya printed in Italy and France

* A Picture Book of Anne Frank which you can get here, with photos of mom at the Anne Frank House in Amsterdam

* Book on Raoul Wallenberg, he helped the Jews in WW2

I have Australia, Africa, North and South America and will post photos when I get a chance.

The nice thing is that you can just keep adding things as you find them.

The kids LOVE the continent boxes. They can take one and sit down and go through the photos, play with the miniatures, read the books, and all the while learning so much. I hope to make some more boxes like these but in other subjects. 

And on one last note, some wise words from my dear father-in-law...

Wishing you a good week and an easy fast,

Always, 

Our Days of Summer...

Here are a few fun things we have been doing this summer, in no specific order...

Hope you are enjoying yours~

Here is New York City... notice the Empire State Building and Central Park:) The kids worked on this for at least an hour, by themselves, while I sat on the back porch and drank my coffee while chatting with my best friend in NY. 

Don't underestimate the power of free play- the more time you give your kids to play by themselves (without you having to entertain them) the healthier it is for them and you.


Here is a our tent/fort that we have started working on... will post more photos as we go along. This is under out Avocado tree which is producing Avocados by the hundreds now.

The Avo's...

  
Remember our cute (and super easy) bird feeder we made here? Well, here's our little friend enjoying a snack. We have refilled it with bird seeds a few times since.

Kids made their own doll houses out of Popsicle sticks. We used a hot glue gun for immediate drying, but you can use regular glue and paint it the next day once dry. We made all the walls and roofs separately and then glued them all together. Mom was just the supervisor and hot glue gunner. They did everything else by themselves.

Kids made their own puppets. The boys made astronauts. My big guy drew and colored his own rocket. He asked me to make him the astronaut. He colored it. My daughter made a princess and ballerina. It's pretty much just making a picture on card-stock, coloring it, cutting it out and gluing a craft stick to the back. Voila. A whole puppet theater:)

I cannot get enough of this chalkboard paint. You can see what we did with it here, but I am all over the place with it now:) I made labels for inside my pantry, the bathroom, you name it, I am loving it!

Here is a fun sign I made for the kids playroom:

I painted a cookie sheet (I had to paint it a few times over a few days to get rid of the streaking) and used green acrylic paint for the border. I am using this chalk pen which is so great. It goes on smooth and wipes right off with a wet rag. 

 ...and a little something I made for myself to stick in the kitchen. It's nice because I can change the inspirational quote whenever I feel I want to. I just took a picture frame, removed the glass and painted the cardboard inside it with the paint. You can probably paint on glass with it, though I haven't tried it yet. Will let you know how it works!

And that is how we are enjoying our lazy days of summer. 

Looking forward to getting back into the water after Tisha B'Av. 

May you all be safe and well during these 9 Days.

Always,