Making New Year's Resolutions, sort of

I am not usually one to make New Year's resolutions. In fact, I generally consider January 1st to be an interesting change but never feels "different" in the way that Rosh HaShanah does for me. But this year, in the last week of December, I came across the 101 in 1001 challenge. The idea of creating 101 things to do in such a lengthy period of time (1001 days) is more interesting to me than making loose resolutions that I may or may not keep in a year. I had a number of ideas for my list but many of them involved my husband and family. So I convinced begged invited my husband to join me in the challenge. Together we made a list of 50 things to do in 1001 days, and then we each made a list of 51 more personal things. Some of them are simple: Take our vitamins every day (#7), kiss a child every day (#2), some are fun: watch one movie together each week (#23), change the CDs in the car once a month (#34), some are big projects: organize our closet (#44), organize the basement once a month until it's done (#29)....some are private!

My personal list is somewhat similar -- a mishmosh of difficult and simple things that I hope will change my life, make it different, make it more interesting, more beautiful. Here are 13 of my 51 in 1001...

1. Go to gym once a week. One week each month, go 2x a week. (this is actually 2 separate ones)
2. Keep track of all the books I read.
3. Make sure I'm in more of the pictures.
4. Attempt one month each year of the 365 Photos Challenge.
5. Execute one crafty project every three months.
6. Buy bottled water no more than 1x a month (use water bottle).
7. Use travel mug at least twice for every 6 visits to coffee place.
8. One month each year, no Starbucks at all.
9. Start a vegetable garden.
10. Attempt to have a neighborhood block party.
11. Do the Printz Award Challenge (read six of the Printz Award winners)
12. Make soup once a month.
13. Use slow cooker 3x each winter.

What are some of your goals? I think this challenge is so powerful because of the length of it. I am keeping the list posted in my kitchen, inside a cupboard, divided by daily, weekly, monthly, yearly tasks.

Stay tuned for updates on my 101 in 1001 progress...
See more Thursday Thirteen here.

A great existential problem...

This week is a backwards Works for Me Wednesday at Rocks in My Dryer, where we get to pose our question to the Internet and it will be magically answered (I hope!)...

So here's the great existential problem I have today...

How do you keep the toys organized?
How do you keep all the pieces together so that the toys can be played with in their set?
How do you keep all the legos together, the puzzles together, the Little People together, the trains together...I have separate bins but when they get put away, they often get all mish-moshed together (that's a technical term, btw)
How do you get the kids to put them away in the right places without having to pick them up on your own? (A terrible controlly sort of thing that I try to avoid doing...and then about once a week or once every other week, I do a major re-sort of all the toys.)

Help me, O Wise Internet!
(And help other people here...)

And...Stay tuned...beginning next Monday is the All-Green, All-Trees, All-Week Celebration of Tu B'Shevat, the Birthday of the Trees! (With at least one great giveaway....maybe more!)

I want to be like Dad...BSM

Obviously, our children want to be like us. They want to do what we do and have what we have. I know that my children (all of them!) think my Blackberry is the coolest toy in the house. There is great power here. Even without realizing it, I have taught them something about what I value. Do I teach them that the Blackberry takes Mommy away from them, or do I teach them that it helps us connect to the people that we love? I hope for the latter, and I think I'm doing alright when my 2-year-old just want to call his grandparents whenever he takes my phone. But it is an awesome responsibility knowing that these little people emulate my every move.

My husband loves to play video games. Therefore, my children want to play with the controllers. These controllers, they know, are important in some way. They don't know exactly what they do, but they want them!

Here is Yael, enjoying the controller that her dad has let her play with, while in th background, he plays his game.



Just for good measure...I did a little editing of another one of these shots. What do you think?



For more Best Shot Monday, go here.

Stay tuned...beginning next Monday is the All-Green, All-Trees, All-Week Celebration of Tu B'Shevat, the Birthday of the Trees!

Catchy Title Here...and Five Places I've been This Week

I was so blessed to spend most of the weekend with NFTY (North American Federation of Temple Youth)'s Chicago and Northern regions this weekend at Olin-Sang-Ruby Union Institute. I love spending the time with the teenagers and seeing how much fun they have together in a Jewish setting.

But I'm exhausted! In many ways the teenagers are *exactly* like dealing with preschoolers and toddlers. Someday that's a post, eh? How teenagers and toddlers are alike. But seriously. You have to be incredibly specific with your instructions. They don't like to hear no. Sometimes they pout. Etc....

I'll be more interesting tomorrow, I promise!

---

Five Places I've Been This Week (besides Camp!)

First the Bagel, now the Mohel

Day Zero, home of 101 in 1001

Printz Winners (Young Adult Fiction Prize) (I'm taking a challenge to read at least 6 of these)

Sweater into Purse

Red Rock Guitar Outfit - how cute is this!

from my del.icio.us. Where have you been?

Plagues in Haiku

God said, “hey Moses!
My people are suffering,
go down to Pharaoh.”

Moses and Aaron
were sent to meet with Pharaoh.
(They seemed a bit scared)

Aaron threw his rod
and it became a serpent
Pharaoh laughed a bit.

He called his wise men
they threw down their rods also
and they became snakes.

The rod of Aaron
ate up the other serpents
and Pharaoh was mad.

In return for this
God turned the Nile to blood –
the first of the plagues.

Seven days went by
“Now the frogs,” God said to Mo.
Frogs here, everywhere!

Pharaoh begged for end
the frogs were really a prob
so God relented.

Still pharaoh said no
even after the frogs died
his heart was hardened.

So God turned to bugs
the dust of earth became gnats
lots and lots of ‘em

But plague number three
didn’t succeed more than two
and Pharaoh said no.

Next came swarms of flies
and many really dead cows.
Plagues four, five, failed too.

Boils came on their skin
then came the terrible hail
ruined all of the crops.

Each time he refused
Pharaoh was a stubborn guy
but God was moreso.

What happens next?
Stay tuned for next week’s Torah portion for the rest of the plagues…

See more Haiku Friday here.

Shabbat Shalom!

Happy Anniversary, Mom & Dad

Today is my parents' 38th wedding anniversary. In honor of them, I present 13 things about Jewish weddings.

1. First, you gotta get engaged. The engagement can be celebrated at an engagement party/announcement party, known in frum circles as a "vort". The parents of the bride and groom may sign an agreement, called "tenaim" or, in most modern circles, probably not. An old custom is for the mothers of the bride and groom to break a plate together to symbolize that their children will no longer be eating at their tables. Also, it symbolizes the unbreakable nature of the engagement.

2. There are restrictions in the Jewish calendar as to when a wedding can take place. No weddings on Shabbat - from Friday sundown to Saturday sundown. Traditionally, Jews have been prohibited from getting married during the period of the Omer, the days between Passover and Shavuot. In addition, the three weeks before Tisha B'Av (usually August) are also considered prohibited. Most of these restrictions are eased by Reform and some Conservative rabbis because these are considered "semi-mourning" rather than full mourning periods. For more information on this, go here. On the upside, Tuesdays are considered auspicious days to get married, as is Rosh Chodesh, the new moon. The month of Elul, preceeding the High Holy Days, is very busy but also considered a good time to get married because the name Elul is an acronym for the Song of Songs phrase "I am my beloved and my beloved is mine."

3. It is customary for both the bride and groom to go to the mikveh, the ritual bath, before their wedding. Read more about my experiences with the mikveh here.

4. Before the wedding, a marriage contract called a Ketubah is signed. (This is in addition to a civil marriage license.) Historically only the groom signed the document (and still the way things go in the Orthodox community) but most modern Jews choose to view the ketubah as a more egalitarian document. Many ketubot (plural of ketubah) are beautiful pieces of art that the bride and groom later hang in their home. My favorite thing about the ketubah is that even in the past, it was always considered the property of the woman, and was her insurance that is her husband wanted a divorce, she would receive back her bride price (goats...).

5. After the signing of the ketubah, it is customary to veil the bride, a ceremony known as the bedeken. The groom himself places the veil on his bride, to ensure that he is marrying the right woman. This tradition stems from Jacob's experience with Leah & Rachel in the Torah.

6. Traditionally the bride wears a white dress and the groom a white garment called a kittel. The kittel is also worn on Yom Kippur, and symbolizes personal purity. On the day of one's wedding, it is a chance to start fresh, and considered an opportunity for personal repentance.

6. Bride and Groom stand together under a chuppah, a marriage canopy that symbolizes the home they are about to create. It is probably the most recognizable symbol of a Jewish wedding.

7. There is a custom among many Jews that after walking down the aisle to the chuppah, the bride makes seven circles around the groom, to symbolize the protective circle of their marriage. Modern interpretations of this custom have the bride making 3 circles around the groom, the groom 3 around the bride, and 1 circle together.

8. The wedding ceremony itself is actually 2 ceremonies joined together. Wine is blessed and rings are exchanged (traditionally only the bride receives a ring but many couples exchange rings now). Rings are required to be unbroken circles, traditionally unadorned, to symbolize the never-ending circle of their love.

9. A Jewish wedding can be performed by any Jewish adult. A rabbi isn't exactly necessary. Civil law requires an officiant, however, who is licensed to perform marriages, and rabbis do fit the bill. In addition, a rabbi is likely to help the couple view their wedding as part of the whole of the Jewish community.

10. The Sheva Brachot, or Seven Blessings, are really considered the heart of the wedding ceremony. Asking for abundant blessings for the bride and groom, the blessings are usually sung beautifully and can provide an opportunity for involving friends and loved ones as readers in the ceremony. They are also repeated during the Grace after Meals at the wedding meal and traditionally at seven dinners for seven nights after the wedding. (The couple is usually hosted by friends and relatives each night, the dinners are known as sheva brachot.)

11. The final piece of a wedding ceremony is the breaking of the glass. The custom has many rationales. I like a few of them: the broken glass reminds us the brokenness of the world, even in the midst of our happiness; reminds us of those who wait for a day as happy as this one; defines the unbreakable bond of the couple; the thousands of pieces of the glass are the number of times by which the happiness of the couple will be multiplied.

11. After the ceremony, the couple gets a few moments of seclusion, known as yichud. It's a chance for the couple to connect, eat (traditionally they've been fasting all day), and share a few moments alone before the rush of the festive meal to follow!

12. Many consider the first year of a couple's married life to be special. Some follow "sweet" customs, such as dipping their Shabbat challah in honey each week instead of the customary salt. It is a chance to begin their lives together!

13. Every Jewish wedding is unique, and every community has its own customs and standards. Attending a Jewish wedding? Don't hesitate to ask questions. One great resource for attending all religious experiences is How to Be a Perfect Stranger: The Essential Religious Etiquette Handbook.

Happy Anniversary, Mom & Dad! May this year be the best yet.

See more Thursday Thirteen here.

Bake at the Drop of a Kippah*

Frume Sarah told me I'm one of "those moms"...meaning I'll bake cookies at the drop of a kippah*, I guess;-)

I do like to bake, and my family and friends have come to expect it of me. Feeling a need for sweets? Just hint to me and I'm likely to bake you a batch of cookies. Cold Shabbat afternoon? Let's bake cookies!

How do I do this easily?
1. I always have on hand all the ingredients for this recipe of cookies (below). Anything else I might not be able to bake. I also keep at least one box of cake mix and cupcake papers handy always. I buy the cakemixes on sale when I catch them. (I also keep pudding mix on hand, helpful when you need to use up some milk.)

2. I keep my stand mixer (isn't that one over there a beautiful color? mine is white.) on the countertop, tucked behind our water filter system. It's accessible and I don't have to lift it up from a cabinet or dig it out from behind other appliances I don't use as often as I should.

3. I have perfected this one recipe. No one seems to mind that I make the same over and over again because they're *darn good*! What makes them so good? I have taken a recipe from the back of a Nestle Chocolate Chip bag and edited it...I use half butter and half margarine (although this actually depends on what's in my house), I use all brown sugar in place of the white...that's about it. Plus, I beat and beat the sugar and butter (see below) and I use parchment paper. And I made a few other comments in the recipe below.

Ingredients:

* 1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
* 1 teaspoon baking soda
* 1/2 teaspoon salt
* 1 3/4 cups packed brown sugar
* 1 cup (2 sticks) butter or margarine, softened
* 2 large eggs
* 2 tablespoons milk
* 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
* 2 1/2 cups quick or old-fashioned oats
* 2 cups chocolate chips
* 1 cup coarsely chopped nuts (optional - I never use them)

Directions:
PREHEAT oven to 375° F.

COMBINE flour, baking soda and salt in small bowl. Beat brown sugar and butter in large mixer bowl until creamy. (I find this is a key step too. I put it in my Kitchenaid mixer and start it going and then let it go and go while I sort out the rest of the ingredients. The longer the better.) Beat in eggs, milk and vanilla extract. Gradually beat in flour mixture. Stir in oats, morsels and nuts; mix well. Drop by rounded tablespoon onto ungreased baking sheets - line with parchment paper for best results.

BAKE for 9 to 10 minutes. Take them out when they look slightly underdone (but not raw in the middle) and then make sure you cool on baking sheets for 1 minute or even longer, they will finish cooking nicely this way. Then remove to wire racks and trust me, they won't last long.

I also have one of these toys which I just got recently and love for its ease! Why did I never have one before!?

What works for you?


*Kippah is the Hebrew word for skullcap, worn by Jews.