creative jewish mom

Craft Schooling Sunday Returns Next Week!

Dear Friends, my usual break from Craft Schooling Sunday for the month of December somehow became a two month hiatus, but the party will return next Sunday and I look forward to reconnecting with everyone, and hope to see you then!

Top 10 Gifts To Encourage a Passion For Writing in Kids and Teens

While of course this blog generally focuses on crafts when it comes to creativity, I am happy to write about encouraging a passion for writing in kids and teens, as any creative outlet is a wonderful thing! And of course writing can go hand in hand with art or music, and is all in all a very important skill at the least, and quite possibly a life enhancing passion! As with anything, writing takes practice and developing a love for writing might be something that takes a bit of time as well as some encouragement. If you have kids or teens in your life that are very language focused, namely first of all they love to read more than anything else, they are great candidates to become writers. From personal experience I can say that my children who spent hours with their nose in a book became teens with strong writing skills.

Okay great, now that you've identified a potential writer, or heard from them that they are interested in writing, how do you encourage them? A first step might be to find some good books on the topic and why not give washingtoncitypaper.com a go to find everything you might need. Of course there isn't one way, but some gentle coaching together with a meaningful gift or gifts might just have the impact you are looking for. As we all know, no great writer is born overnight, so don't forget to follow up down the road to see how things are going. But first, lets think about that perfect gift to help encourage a passion for writing in kids and teens, and I've got ten ideas to get you started, so keep on reading......

Origami Apples Craft

Origami is one of my favorite crafts, whether actual traditional size, or giant size which I generally go for, so with the Jewish holiday of Tu B'Shevat and all things fruit coming up in a few weeks, I thought I'd get started by trying out some origami apples that I've yet to tackle! The charming thing about these apples is that while one sided they are dimensional, and stand up on the page, unless you force them to be flat with glue, but why do that? Use them on a garland or wall hanging of some kind, and while you won't want to show off the back, it is nice that they have dimension!

Add some details with a paint pen, or not, and enjoy! No go make a bushel, here's how......

Rich Jewish History And Great Options For Work or Study In Hamburg

I'll admit Hamburg was not on my radar whatsoever, and thinking about traveling to Germany has a heavy emotional side to it given the history of the Holocaust. That said, after being asked to write an article about Hamburg I found out some jaw dropping Jewish historic information that truly surprised me. I thought I knew about Jewish history in Europe, but was actually missing a huge piece of the puzzle, which is Hamburg! Now I would love to visit Hamburg and experience the rich Jewish history, and I just read it is a recommended destination for modern architecture buffs, which is also a huge interest of mine. In the meantime, I'll keep on reading this post, which talks about the 30 Jewish heritage sites in Hamburg, who knew? Additionally, Hamburg is an international tourist destination spot, because of its beautiful location on the sea in Northern Germany, with many attractive harbor areas and a famous and historic port. Ah yes, and it is close to my beloved Sweden, so maybe I could visit on the way to that Swedish summer on the lake........ Okay, lets learn some more, shall we?

DIY Rustic Wooden Wedding Sign

When my dear nephew Rafi asked me to make a rustic welcome sign for his wedding in Israel (because the bride was dreaming of one) my first reaction was, hmmm, never done that maybe I'll just do it on the computer and make a mounted print? Except given the rustic wedding venue that might totally flop, yikes. Then I thought why not do a computer created decal and apply it to wood? A good option but ordering that decal, not so simple in my location, and potentially costly. Okay, then how about DIY decal sheets to print at home? An option but also needs to planned way ahead to account for shipping of those sheets. In the end, silly me I realized that designing the sign on the computer, and then transferring the design onto a piece of wood, and then painting it truly would be the best solution. And so, presenting to you my first ever DIY rustic welcome sign, with the artist's easel that I also happened to have, and which needed its own makeover as well.

Want to make one too, let's do it!

The Tenth Of Tevet And The Yarzheit Of Rebbi Nosson of Breslev, Ukraine

Yesterday was the Tenth of Tevet, a minor (yet very important) fast day on the Jewish calendar, and the yarzheit of Reb Nosson of Breslev, so I'm reposting this to share with you once again.

During our Passover trip to the Ukraine, we had the opportunity to the gravesite of the very great Reb Nosson, the student of Rebbi Nachman of Breslev. This was my second trip to this special location, and while this time winter still had its grasp on the area, the beauty and peaceful countryside location was just as lovely as I remembered. You can see my recent posts showing the Old Cemetary In Bratslav, The Soliterman Family Mill In Bratslav, and Mass Holocaust Gravesites In Bratslav, to get an even better look at our visit.

The Ukraine is a very interesting country, with lots of rich (and sad) Jewish history, and while there is prosperity in cities like Kiev, the countryside often looks as though time has just stopped.The small city of Bratslav is one of those places, sparse and empty, which makes the location that much interesting, and while it is a 2.5 hour drive from Uman, and a 4 hour plus drive from Kiev, it is well worth the drive. Just be prepared for tons and tons of potholes in the road, which slows down the journey.

To quote Wikipedia: "Rev Nosson of Breslov (January 22, 1780 – December 20, 1844), whose name was Nosson Sternhartz, was the chief disciple and scribe of Rebbe Nachman of Breslov, founder of the Breslov Hasidic dynasty. Reb Nosson is credited with preserving, promoting and expanding the Breslov movement after the Rebbe's death. Rebbe Nachman himself said, "Were it not for Reb Nosson, not a page of my writings would have remained."

For more information about Reb Nosson, you can refer to this post from Wikipedia. And now, won't you join me as we look around a bit?

5 Ways to Increase Your Financial Stability as a Parent

After you have kids it can feel like exactly the wrong time to try to get financially stable. There are so many new demands, money-wise. However, that's all the more reason to find a strategy that will allow you to establish the security that your family needs. Small kids have smallish financial needs, while big kids have big financial needs! The years truly pass by so very quickly, so coming up with a plan when your kids are still babies is the best possible thing to do. Okay, take a deep breath, and lets consider the options.

5 Ways to Achieve Your New Year’s Goals & The Tools You Need To Make It Happen

Do you have a goal (or more likely goals) in mind for the new year?

As we welcome a new year, we all look for ways to improve ourselves and our lives. Call it a fresh start or call it a do-over from last year—it is always positive to be searching for new avenues for self improvement. However, while setting goals is a lot easier than making real, lasting changes to your lifestyle, you do have to start somewhere! I'll admit, I primarily use Rosh HaShana, the Jewish new year as the time of year for self growth, but why not use the lunar calendar new year as well, as incentive to make changes?

To get you started, I’m going over a few of the most common New Year's Resolutions and highlighting products that can hopefully give you a bit of an extra boost. Whether you are ready to shed a few pounds or work through your reading list, I’ve found some of the best solutions to help you reach your goals, and I've picked out some great products and strategies to help you succeed. Okay, lets get started, no time like the present!

DIY Plastic Bag Pom Pom Cake Toppers

Looking for a festive cake topper idea in a pinch? How about plastic bag pom pom cake toppers? I'll admit, this was truly a last minute idea as I had made the pom poms to hang from our dining room table chandelier but hadn't quite gotten around to it, so I quickly stuck skewers into the pom poms and voila a festive cake was born. I'll admit that these toppers would be more successful on a high cake rather than my chocolate chip cookie cake, but with the cake placed on a cake stand, and some red rose petals on the table to add more color, it worked. After the birthday party I removed the skewers and got one of my teen sons to hang the pom poms where they added a festive touch for the week of chanukah together with some golden wire dreidels. While I've been doing the more sophisticated look in our dining room lately, loving the return of some fun color via a great recycling craft, so the pom poms may just stay for Tu B'Shevat and then Purim!

6 New Year's Resolutions for School Students in 2023

It is true, that in our family and community, Rosh HaShana, the Jewish new year, is the most important time for us to think about how we will make the coming year an even better one. While Jewish holidays occur according to the Jewish calendar, which is a lunar one, as opposed to the gregorian calendar that is a solar one, in Israel all business matters and secular schooling is according to the gregorian calendar, so many may use the gregorian new year as a reminder of sorts regarding all those resolutions we made according to the Jewish new year 3 months ago!

As 2022 slowly winds down to its final days, many of us are already thinking about our choices and how we can improve. So, as we move into 2023, many people will be setting new year resolutions and working towards them. You especially don’t want to be left behind if you're a student, as this is your time in life to blossom! However, if what’s stopping you is the inspiration to set goals, then consider reading the 6 helpful new year resolutions shared in this article.