creative jewish mom

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.

Chanukah Menorah Craft Using 3D Paper Stars

And at the very last minute just before lighting the 8th candle, I came up with this paper chanukah menorah craft using my favorite little 3D paper stars that I have been obsessively folding this chanukah.....because one you start, seeing them fill a jar or wine glass is so very satisfying! And then you can use them anytime you need a bit of color, which I've done at the base of a centerpiece this Chanukah, and at the base of a decorative chanukiah......and then of course you can get out the glue and also make a fun piece of wall decor, or get out the needle and thread and string them all together (I may try this next year.) What ever your fancy, folding tiny paper stars is a great winter activity for the whole family, 10 years and up (or so) and great to take on trips as well. And I just realized that with Tu B'Shevat coming up, well we can use these tiny stars to craft for that as well! Okay, lets get started!

3D Origami Paper Stars - A Perfect Winter Craft

Once again these tiny paper stars have stolen my heart, and with just a bit of practice I am making them in less than a minute per star! Which is great because truly the more the better! I keep mine in jars and sprinkle them where ever some color and cuteness is needed for any celebration......and then of course I scoop them up and save them for the next time! Of course you can also get out the needle and thread and make delicate mobiles or garlands or even bunting cake toppers.....there are so many ways to use these stars. The last day of Chanukah and the coming days might just be a great time to stay indoors and get the family making stars, together, or take some paper strips along on your next trip, as these would be a great activity for in the car or on the plane. Not for small children, but great for reluctant teens, speaking from experience! Okay, lets find out how to make some stars!

5 Keys to a Creative Language Classroom

Above: Amazing painted cardboard props or wall decor inspire anywhere! I can only take credit for choosing this fabulous photo, which is courtesy of Ksenia Chernaya from Turkey and via pexels.com

Whether you are a parent who wants to help their child learn a new language, a tutor or private language instructor, or a classroom teacher, all the tips in this article can be helpful. Learning a language is always a challenging process, especially if you try to keep young learners busy in a typical classroom. There are common problems like attention span and focus as the students explore the new rules, practice their pronunciation, and face any grammar difficulties. As a rule, young learners will look around and do their best to find something creative that can get them inspired. The only solution here is to design a creative language classroom that will hopefully reduce mental blocks that will help the students stay focused and inspired!

DIY Multi-Colored Plastic Bag Pom Poms

This Chanukah I am busy making multi colored plastic bag pom poms which will hang from the light fixture over the dining room table. And with 8 nights to celebrate hanging something new for the 4th night tomorrow is totally great! This is not the first time I've made plastic bag pom poms, but these are the smallest and most compact ones I've made, as In the past I was going for something large. Now I need something festive to hang together with some golden metal dreidels, and these are perfect. I'm actually loving them so much that I'll be making some more shortly, and phew, in the end I did actually do some crafting for Chanukah! The house is full of decorations that have been made in past years and I didn't really need anything new, but just had to do something! Okay, lets make some plastic bag pom poms!

How To Make Multi-Colored Plastic Bag Yarn Or "Plarn"

Hopefully wherever you may live plastic bags are not something that are so easy to find, but if you are like me, and live somewhere where plastic bags are still plentiful, unfortunately, well the best thing is to craft with them! First of all, there are a few ways to make "plarn" but I'm going to show you the method I use, as it's fairly quick to make and quite honestly becomes a bit of an addiction. Heavy plastic bags are great for fusing projects like I've taught you here, but the light weight bags (mine are from the grocery store and the vegetable store) used for food, and even light weight garbage bags will do the trick as well, and are in fact the best, since you can get quite a bit of "plarn" out of one bag. 

Check out all my plastic bag crafts right here, and then collect those bags and start using them to make yarn! To keep it from getting tedious, start a ball of yarn, and then simply add to it each time a plastic bag comes into your life! In the past I made balls of plastic bag yarn in solid colors, but this week I decided to make multicolor plastic bag yarn as it is perfect for the plastic bag pom poms I'll share with you shortly! Okay, lets get to it!

Can Travel Make You More Creative?

Above: Old Town Square, Prague, view from clock tower

There are few more deeply enriching experiences than travel. Those who are blessed with the time and resources to experience different cultures have a diverse worldview which truly does affect how we view the world and our place in it!

Research repeatedly indicates that traveling can positively affect your daily mood and overall mental health positively. But can it also make you more creative? Spoiler alert - the answer to this seemingly rhetorical question is a resounding yes, but let’s explore the reasons behind it.