parenting

This Land Is Your Land?

Elicia Brown
06/07/2011
Elicia Brown
Special To The Jewish Week

My long-legged 9-year-old clambers onto my lap, her eye-rolling cynicism suppressed for the moment. Together we wait, staring at the computer screen’s still image of an Israeli flag, listening as the sentimental strains of a symphony rise up. But when a disembodied voice explodes in song, Talia joins in, belting out the Hebrew words with a gusto she usually reserves for Broadway show tunes, her torso swaying from the effort. My daughter is caught up in the love and hope and dreams of “Hatikvah.”

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When Readiness Chooses You

Deborah Grayson Riegel
02/18/2011
Deborah Grayson Riegel
Special to the Jewish Week

My ten-year old daughter Sophie paid homage to my recent birthday with the best-worst birthday toast I could imagine: “Happy Birthday to the world’s greatest mom – and to the world’s best grandma one day!”

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The Battle Hymn of the Jewish Mother

Deborah Grayson Riegel
01/21/2011
Deborah Grayson Riegel
Special to the Jewish Week

How dare she. How dare a mother deny her children playdates, television and even bathroom breaks until they had mastered their musical instruments. What kind of mom-ster does this?

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Planned (Single) Parenthood

Single mothers bridge the world of play dates and real dates. It can be an emotional balancing act.

Elicia Brown
Special To The Jewish Week
12/07/2010
Faith Tomases and daughter Julia. “You should really get married,” the 8-year-old informs her mom. photos by michael datikash

It is a brisk afternoon in early November, and Faith Tomases has dressed accordingly, moving stiffly beneath layers of warmth, her long chestnut hair swept beneath a black beret. But watching Tomases’ daughter Julia, one would expect an entirely different climate.

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To Yeshiva or Not, That is the Question

Melissa Chapman
11/02/2010
Melissa Chapman
Special to the Jewish Week

Eleven years ago, when I got married- all heady from wedding gown fittings, arguments with the photographer and the fact my husband, a very secular Jew, agreed to celebrate our union in a most Orthodox, Jewish way -- the word “yeshiva” would not have been a blip on my radar screen.

If you had asked me whether or not I’d be inclined to send my kids to yeshiva, a haughty cackle would have emanated from deep in my throat: “no, are you crazy?”

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Birth Announcement For Kveller

Submitted by Julie Wiener on Tue, 09/28/2010 - 17:54

 A week and a half ago I mentioned here that Kveller, a new Jewish parenting website was due to arrive this fall.

Well, I am pleased to see that it seems to have emerged from the womb sometime last week. While I am not privy to the labor-and-delivery details (Ob-gyn or midwife? Natural or C-section?), from what I can see the newborn is attractive and in good health — and, with hundreds of articles and listings, already has a lot to say.

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The Perfectionist’s Dilemma: When is Good Enough Good Enough?

Deborah Grayson Riegel
06/25/2010
Deborah Grayson Riegel
Special to the Jewish Week

I wanted my newborn twins’ homecoming to be perfect. But four days after Jacob and Sophie were born, my husband Michael and I were permitted to bring our robust seven-pound son home while our daughter, a dainty four pounds, had to stay in the NICU for a few more days. With one baby in arms and one left behind, our return home was far from perfect. I would quickly learn, however, when perfection would be critical -- and when good enough was good enough.

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