With Rosh Hashanah coming in just 24 days, it’s time to think of how we want to celebrate this year in our homes. Some of my favorite things: Rosh Hashanah Bingo Game – for ages 2-9 + intergenerational play. Get yours from Amazon – free shipping with Amazon Prime – before they’re gone for good. This year, they’ve already been shipping to New York, California, Virginia, Canada, Hungary, and more. Jewish Family Celebrations by Arlene Rossen Cardozo – my copy is falling apart, because I’ve consulted it so many times. Pinterest.com/JewishHolidays board for Rosh Hashanah to remind me of fun … [Read more...]
Last-Minute Passover Seder Tips
Yes, you can make a Passover Seder – even at the last minute – by simplifying, going for the basics, and enjoying what you can do. While I didn’t grow up with impromptu, thrown-together Sedarim (plural of Seders), in my adult life . . . well, sometimes that was our only choice. In grad school, my husband and I went to class, took the bus home, hit the grocery store at 5 pm, came home, cooked, and started our Seder at 9 pm. But we had one. (And we took a picture of the table; warms my heart to this day that we pulled it off.) So my philosophy has always been to do what you can that honors … [Read more...]
Grandsons’ Passover Seder Faves – Part II
In last week's post, we talked about our #1 way of engaging kids in the Seder with the Passover Seder Steps Follow-Along. This week, we promised to share another enhancement we have added to our Seder to keep things lively - and to teach the story of the Exodus. #2 - Exodus Reenactment Aside from using the Passover Seder game at the table, we were looking for a way for everyone to get up from the table. We wanted people to be able to move, physically, from place to place. So we set up a reenactment of the exodus from Egypt. To build Pharoah into the story without being too scary, we … [Read more...]
Grandsons’ Passover Seder Favorites – Part I
There are two (well, really three) parts of our Passover Seder that our grandsons love most, aside from the gefilte fish. We all know that kids hate to sit still when they don’t have a role in the Passover Seder. And let’s be honest – there are plenty of adults who aren’t keen on page-after-page readings from the Haggadah, either. For our Seder, we’ve created several add-ons to a typical Haggadah that bring the Seder to life. (We will share the second major add-on in next week’s blog post.) #1 – Passover Seder Steps Follow-Along – to use with your Haggadah Created for kids 4 – 10, the … [Read more...]
Color All Around – Sukkot Recipes and Crafts
Sukkot began on October 4th and ends the evening of October 11th What to do with this wonderful week ahead of you? As Anita Diamant says, “Sukkot is an opportunity and excuse for a seven-day picnic.” Here are a few things you can try to bring the holiday to life. Eat one or more meals outside. Decorate your eating area with fall leaves, branches, little pumpkins, squash, apples, and other harvest symbols. Plan a family outing to a farmer’s market to find recently harvested fruits and veggies. Make a harvest-themed centerpiece; simply group your farmer’s market finds with … [Read more...]