So what new (and newish) Hanukkah books are out that might need to find a place in your home library? I previewed these three and recommend them all. Grover’s Eight Nights of Light Written by Jodie Shepherd, illustrated by Joe Mathieu, this paperback was published in September 2017. (It’s also available as a Kindle, but then you wouldn't get all the goodies inside.) According to Amazon, it’s for ages 3-7. I was prepared to be skeptical. But they had me from the beginning. Before I even looked at the story, I discovered two pages of stickers (I love stickers!), Hanukkah gift cards, … [Read more...]
Hanukkah Lights, Lights, Lights!
One of the core concepts of Hanukkah is light – the miracle of the lights lasting for eight days, the light in the gloom of winter, the menorah in your window to share the miracle with the world. So do you have a menorah and candles that bring you joy? If not, you can remedy that right now! (Admission: we don't have a menorah that uses oil. Yet. But I'm looking.) Choosing the right menorah* When our girls were young, I searched and searched for a menorah that reminded me of the one I’d grown up with – a traditional brass menorah with Lions of Judah flanking the sides. Then we got another … [Read more...]
Celebrate Olive Oil During Hanukkah
While most of us light candles to celebrate Hanukkah, we know that the miraculous oil that lasted for eight days came from olives. If you have kids and grands who enjoy discovering “how” things work, like our little ones, teach them more about growing olives. Allison Ofanasky’s book, “Harvest of Light,” takes you through the steps of how an Israeli family harvests olives to be processed into oil. The story is told from the daughter’s perspective of gathering and sorting the olives to pressing then and then, finally, using that special light to light their menorah. How to bring oil into our … [Read more...]
Hanukkah Kitchen Fun
I’ve pulled together a few of my favorite and super easy Hanukkah kitchen ideas to share with you. Enjoy! A super simple one is to get Hanukkah cookies cutters to use with breakfast pancakes. When the kids are six and up, they can help cut the shapes. Hanukkah starts Saturday, December 24th. Pretzel Rod Candles My daughter made these cute pretzel rod candles a few years back. Delish and easy to make. Here’s what she did: Dipped pretzels into melted chocolate (melted in Mason jars in a slow cooker in a water bath), Placed them on parchment paper. Drizzled them with melted … [Read more...]
Hanukkah DIY Gifts
A great gift to give your children is to encourage them to create presents for friends and family, instead of buying them. Think simple, loving, homemade. Hanukkah starts on Saturday, December 24th. Here are three ideas: Goodies in Glass Jars If you save jelly jars, you’re in luck. Or you can pick some jars up at a hobby store. Depending on their size and shape, fill them with: Mixed candies Hot cocoa mix Honey Individual spices (e.g., cinnamon sticks or bay leaves) Spice mix (with recipe ideas that go with that kind of spice mix) One year, a friend gave me ingredients to … [Read more...]