Jewish Mom Link Up- Me Time

I am really excited to be a part of the Jewish Mom Link Up hosted by Shaindy over at Happily Hectic.

My contribution to the link up is going to be talking about "Me Time."

Over a week ago, I began to develop a really bad headache in the front part of my head. I took an aspirin and relaxed but it didn't seem to go away. The interesting thing is, I rarely get headaches, so this was a red light for me. I hoped it would go away by the end of the day, but it didn't.

The headache lingered on for about 4 more days, and when lots of water and no medication was working, I got a little worried as I began to think the worst, G-d forbid. I told my husband that if I woke up on day number 5 with this dull headache, I was going to the ER to get an MRI.

Low and behold, the next morning it was still there.

The funny thing is, I am a pretty calm and laid back person, but I was beginning to freak out just a little bit.

We have a very good friend who is a doctor in the ER where we live. My hubby suggested we call him before we do anything. I spoke with him and he asked me a bunch of questions and after hearing my answers, he put any "worst case scenario thoughts" I had at ease.

He did tell me that before going the medical route, I need to get a deep tissue head, neck and back massage as well as visit a chiropractor right afterward and to call him the next day with a follow up.

We are very blessed to live in a place where many of our friends are massage therapists, so I made an appointment with a good friend for the next day as well as a great chiropractor for right afterward.

My massage therapist told me that the muscles along my spine were as hard as "the chains holding up the Golden Gate Bridge" and my neck was so tight she literally broke a sweat loosening it up.

My chiropractor "cracked" me back together again and I went home and had a really good night sleep.

Needless to say, the next morning I woke up and on a scale from 1-10 (my previous headaches were either 9 or 10) this was barely a 1, meaning it was ever so slight... and as the day moved on, it gradually disappeared.

Yes, just like that.

I called our ER friend and told him. He laughed and said he thought that was the answer. He also told me that as much as I think I can just keep going and going and going, the body will ultimately catch up with us.

He also told me that for my physical health, I need to take an hour a day and do nothing. Lay down, relax, stop whatever I am doing and just put my feet up.

Whether we work full time, homeschool, stay at home mom, work part time, whatever, it is an actual necessity to take some Me Time every day.

Everyone has their own way of doing this, but not only do we need it, we absolutely deserve it.

Don't let your body have to notify you to stop like mine did. Do it a favor and let it recharge for a little bit each day. There are many ways we can do this and different things work for different moms-

I hope that after reading this post you can look at your day and build in a time slot of "Me Time" so you know you have this time every day to let your head and body recharge.

What are you currently doing to give yourself Me Time?

Have a great week everyone, and enjoy the Link Up,

Always,

My Tu B'Shevat Activity Pack

My Tu B'Shevat Activity Pack

{Click Here to download and print}

Wishing you a wonderful week,

Always, 

Tu B'Shevat Activities and Curriculum

It's almost Tu B'Shevat! 

Here are a bunch of fun activities and links for you to add to your 

Tu B'Shevat Curriculum, enjoy!

My Tu B'Shevat Mini Book

{Click Here to download and print}

My Mitzvah Tree

{Click Here to download and print}

A Montessori Tu B'Shevat Activitie:

Classic seed planting

Happy Tu B'Shevat and have a fabulous week!

Always, 

Jewish Lullabies, Book Sets and Chumash Tutoring

Here are some fabulous Jewish resources that I personally use and love- each comes highly recommended by yours truly and loved by all of my kids- I hope they are helpful to you!

{Click Here to Purchase}

{Click Here to Download the App}

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These are beautiful soft Jewish Lullabies. I play them for my little ones at bedtime and it really sets such a calm and relaxing mood for them making bedtime so much easier. Here is a link to get an idea of how the lullabies sound:

Really soft, serene and relaxing. So great to calm the energy at the end of the day.

Mish and Mush

{Click Here to visit their site}

{Click Here to purchase books}

{Click Here to buy the App}

I have mentioned many times before how much we love reading in our house. Now that my 6 year old is starting to read by herself, she is constantly looking for books at her level to read. We received a bunch of books from the amazing folks over at Mish and Mush. My kids LOVE these books. They are perfect for them to read by themselves, the illustrations are adorable, the messages are all meaningful and based on Torah and the kids learn so much from each book. I cannot recommend these books enough. They are from Australia but find out if your local Judaica store carries them, or you can buy them HERE. The App is also adorable, as I mentioned in this post. Your kids will love them, my kids really do!

 {Click Here to visit the site and for more Information}

Now this recommendation is for older kids (7+) who have started to learn Chumash. If you have been following my blog for a while, by now you know that I truly believe that a true education is not about feeding kids information. It is about giving them the TOOLS to figure things out by themselves, and teaching them HOW to learn.

My oldest son has started learning Chumash. His comprehension is off the charts. Tell him a story and he will repeat it back to you word for word. Explain a concept to him and he will get it right away. But he has had a hard time being able to open up a Chumash, translate the words and put them into a sentence.

Along came Rabbi Levi who is the brains behind The Shreiber Method. He sits with my son via Skype once a week and teaches him HOW to learn Chumash. He shows him how to break up each Possuk (sentence) and where a pause or a coma needs to go. He shows him how to translate the words and then put them together to understand what it is saying. My son actually came over to ME on Shabbos and asked to go over the Possuk he had done last week with Rabbi Levi to show me how he did it all by himself. He has actually grown to LOVE learning Chumash and looks forward to his tutoring session every week.

For those whose kids are just starting to learn Chumash, I cannot recommend The Shreiber Method enough.

Contact Rabbi Levi HERE and see for yourself how he will awaken this incredible love for learning Chumash in your child.

There are so many wonderful Jewish resources out there and I look forward to sharing them with you.

Have a wonderful week!

Always,

 

Chumash Shemot and the Hebrew letter TET

The Hebrew Letter TET Activity Booklet

{Click Here}

Montessori Inspired Activities for Chumash Shemot

{Click Here}

Have a fantastic week!

Always, 

Thank You Hashem Unit and the Hebrew Letter Chet!

 Here is a Chet Activity Booklet: (for Activity Booklets on the letters Alef-Zayin, Click Here)

 {Click Here to Download and Print}

And here is a mini Unit on "Thank You Hashem" to remind our sweetie pies (and ourselves!) that everything we have comes from Hashem and how we should always be happy with what we have. Enjoy~

A Thank You Hashem Activity Booklet

{Click Here to Download and Print}

Here are some wonderful Jewish Books and Songs on Thanking Hashem and being happy with what we have:

Have a wonderful week,

Always,

Getting to know Ourselves and our Kids

The other night my hubby and I were sitting on the couch, feet up, both doing work on our laptops when suddenly he looks up at me for a few moments and goes, "Now it all makes sense. This is you. I totally get you now."

Someone had sent him this info graph:

I've never considered myself an introvert as I thought introverts were anti-social and shy, two qualities I can say that do not describe me. But after reading up on Introverts, I am proud to say that YES- I am indeed an introvert!

My hubby, the absolute extrovert (introverts often marry extroverts) never understood how my idea of date night is making pop corn and watching a DVD together on the couch in PJ's. I could not think of anything more enjoyable! To him, its getting a babysitter and having a night out on the town. We have been married almost 10 years and although he clearly see's that I am not a quiet person, it was difficult for him to understand how I just love being home.

Now having discovered this, I now see very clearly how one of my kids is a textbook introvert. I could not understand how he is super social when kids come over or when at the park playing with other kids. But yet he is just so happy staying at home playing by himself. It didn't make sense that he was a loner as he really enjoys the company of others but on the other hand, he also thrives on being by himself. This little kiddo is my little introvert! So instead of thinking something is wrong or strange that he likes his quiet time so much, I now know that not only does he enjoy it, he NEEDS it.

Discovering these things about ourselves and our kids really helps in our entire approach to raising them. 

My in-laws were just here visiting and my very wise mother-in-law (who raised 11 amazing kids) was telling me how wonderful it is to get know the talents and qualities of your kids to help them become the best people they can be.

Having tapped into this, I now see how one of daughters needs organization around her. She keeps her bedroom neat and tidy and does not do well if things are out of place. This helps me help her in her day to day activities and it also helps me understand her certain moments of frustration. 

One of my sons is a very visual person. When he talks to me, he needs me to look at him and answer him with YES, not 'uh huh.'

So for those of you who know me, yes, believe it or not, I'm an introvert. I love being around friends and family and enjoy social events, but I need my time alone like people need air to breathe. 

It also explains why I love writing this blog so much.

Wishing you all a wonderful week!

Always,