Just a few days till Passover. Plan ahead so you don’t drive yourself crazy. Passover TipsI’ve come across so many wonderful ideas, resources and activities! I’m just going to make a list of them all. Send a free Passover e-card from the Reform Judaism site. Personalized Passover Place Cards – This woman offers loads of downloadable (not free) Passover images for place cards and she has one free downloadable Seder plate coloring image. Great for little kids.  Or just use her ideas and make your own.| Jews of Color Initiative has a long list of events and resources New for 2 ..read more

Time to plan where you’ll have Seder!  At a community Seder, someone else’s home, or your home? Rarely are community Seders on the FIRST night of Passover. But if you don’t have time or an invitation it’s a lovely, easy way to share the event. Here’s a list of Bay Area Community Seders compiled by the J-weekly. Bless them for compiling this! It takes a lot of time! Are you a guest? Ask what you can bring – a side dish, another Seder plate (ready to go)? If there is nothing to bring, consider a hostess gift – kosher chocolates or wine are good options, as are flowers. Are YOU hosting? Well ..read more

It can be a challenge to have everyone from your neighbor’s toddler to your great uncle coming to your Seder. Will people be bored? Will they get hungry? Will the kids wander from the table eliciting grumbling from other guests? Come discuss ways to engage different ages from infant to school age to teen to adults. As well as people of other faiths and cultures. We’ll cover: Interactive games How to bring in the non-Jewish family & friends Food during the Seder Haggadahs for different groups 15 Steps to a complete Seder How to cut your Seder time down to manageable Date:   Thursd ..read more

A Jew may ask their spouse to agree to have a “Jewish” home. But what does that mean? To a non-Jewish loved one it may mean simply that some of the people in the house say they are Jews. But our partners deserve a more in-depth answer. One Jew may say, a Jewish home has Jewish ritual objects – a menorah, Shabbos candlesticks, a ketubah on the wall. Another may add, but you need to do Jewish things in a Jewish home like observe Shabbat weekly or build a sukkah on Sukkot or recite the Shema before bedtime. Yet another will say we must act like Jews, give tzadakah, attend synagogue, refrain from ..read more

(Image: Rabbi Jonathan Prosnit of Beth Am teaching kids) You’ve no doubt heard the saying, ‘When in Rome, do as the Romans do’. This phrase dates back to the 4th century of the Common Era, but has remained in use because it continues to be relevant. When do you do things “your way” and when do you bow to the customs of a new/foreign place/practice? Rabbi Larry Milder recently wrote to his congregation on Minhag Hamakom Is a Jewish Value — It’s a common experience. You go to another synagogue, and notice that some ritual is done differently than the way you are accustomed to beha ..read more

(Image: Camp Tawonga) Here we are on the brink of March! In a flash it will be full-blown spring. Gregorian Calendar vs. Jewish CalendarTomorrow is Leap Day. We only get one every four years. I feel like there should be something special done on February 29. Interestingly this is also the year we get two months of Adar on the Hebrew calendar. No messing around with a mere day when you can add an extra month! Here’s a good explanation of why and how it works. I suggest an extra good dessert. Jewish Summer CampWhen my kids were in elementary school one February another mom comment ..read more

A couple often breathes a sigh of relieve when they decide what their target is – THIS is the religion we want for our child. But I want that sigh to be both for the joy of having a shared goal and for accepting that you can’t actually determine your child’s future religion/culture/identity. Every child deserves a foundation and that is what you are now aiming to do. But remind each other that your child will surprise you again and again and their religious choices may be one of the surprises. So, you say, what’s the point! What are we to do? Your children are watching you with love and admira ..read more

This week’s Torah Portion is T’rumah and is about the building of the Tabernacle in the desert. This could be read at face value as a rather boring set of building instructions. But we are never limited to the simple meaning in Torah. Rabbi Josh Weisman of Temple Beth Sholom in San Leandro sent this beautiful message to his congregation.  I invite you to read it and to consider how you relate to the intimacy it suggests each human has with the Divine. *** You are the sanctuary!This week’s Torah portion begins a long series of descriptions of the design of the mishkan, the portable de ..read more

I’m hoping that you’ll join me in the next couple of months for online events. The two coming up are focused on raising children. BUT please tell me what other topics you’d like to discuss. (Jewish) Life with ChildrenWe made plans and agreed how to raise our kids, but things have happened – can we change? We never made a real plan; is it too late? I have come to hate our lack of decision, now what? All of these are reasonable states of mind when you’re raising children. Let’s talk about it. No plan fits every family, but there are guiding principles. THIS PROGRAM IS A WEEK FROM TONIGHT, PLEASE ..read more

Let’s think about babies and toddlersThe first three years of life are rarely remembered by the child. But by four or five years of age memories are beginning to “stick”. You really get a long neutral period to figure out what you want to incorporate into your home life. What will you teach your child about their Jewish identity or their parent’s Jewish identity? I know that the Jewish partner is often at a loss to articulate exactly what “raising a Jewish child” or even “some Jewish aspects” means to them. Here’s a great way to help your Jewish partner have hands-on exploration of Jewish life ..read more