Parenting

A Place for Me to be Reborn

It didn’t matter that it was hard or that my husband wouldn’t be awake or care at all. It didn’t matter that the past few years had been so hard I felt a massive wall between me and God……. because at that moment, he cracked the wall and was allowing me in. I got ready for the mikveh, b’simcha. Wanting to reconnect. Wanting to cleanse. Wanting to get rid of the impurities in my life and be born anew, ready to face the world in a clear and true way with Hashem and my husband beside me.

Immersion during the 9th Month of Pregnancy: A Growing Custom

Dr. Ilana Chertok recently articulated an active goal of The Eden Center. “In addition to Halakha (Jewish law) and Mesoret [...]

Wet Dreams and the Puberty Talk

“I have a 12 year old son who is very resistant to talking about any topic related to sexuality. I [...]

Women Immersing on Erev Yom Kippur– What Are You Talking About?!?!

Women immersing on Erev Yom Kippur– What are you talking about?!?! There is a tradition of women immersing in the [...]

Riling Up Emotions

As a young girl learning about menstruation for the first time, my favorite book on the subject featured a double-page [...]

“Mummy, How Do You Make a Baby?”

(Note: although this article refers to mothers and daughters, much of it applies for fathers and sons!) I was waiting [...]

Are Our Children the Students of HBO and Netflix?

Who is teaching our children about sexuality? What can we do to learn to be more responsible and approachable parents [...]

Why We Need to be Vaccinating our Children Against HPV

And if that’s not enough, there is always medical journals, the CDC, the FDA, the Israeli Ministry of Health, the WHO… all of whom are invested in offering the HPV vaccine for free to young girls in order to potentially save their lives. So, when the permission slip comes home with my 8th grade daughter, I will enthusiastically tick the ‘yes’ box.

From Mom and Dad with Love–Ten Marriage Tips to our Engaged Child

Mazal tov! Your child is engaged and amidst the hustle and bustle of choosing gowns, wedding hall, flowers and caterer, [...]

Going to the Mikveh Friday Evening

There is an expression in Hebrew: “Al Rosh Haganav Boer Hakova” – on the burglar’s head is a burning hat, [...]

Tefillot Before your Erev Yom Kippur Tevilla

Immersion before Yom Kippur We traditionally immerse 3 times. Here is one possible framework to use for an immersion on [...]

Reflections on my First Tevilla on Erev Yom Kippur

On Yom Kippur eve, amid the hustle and bustle of logistics and preparations, I took a moment for myself and [...]

Book Review: “Where Did I Come From?”

Where Did I Come From?’ By: Peter Mayle Illustrated by: Arthur Robins Designed by: Paul Walker Published by: Lyle Stuart [...]

Parshat Tazria as a Tool to Teach Niddah

It is always difficult to know how and when to raise the idea of niddah with children, but this week’s [...]

The Birthing Brachot

This week’s Parsha, Parshat Tazria, begins with the purity and impurity laws of a yoledet, a woman who gives birth. [...]

On Modesty, Sexuality, and Watching Girls’ Bodies, Part 2

[Adapted from the new book, Educating in the Divine Image: Gender Issues in Orthodox Jewish Day Schools, by Chaya Rosenfeld Gorsetman [...]

On Modesty, Sexuality, and Watching Girls’ Bodies, Part 1

[Adapted from the new book, Educating in the Divine Image: Gender Issues in Orthodox Jewish Day Schools, by Chaya Rosenfeld Gorsetman [...]

Waters of Separation: For my Daughter at the Mikveh

Introduction to Waters of Separation Three days before her wedding in May 2013, Hannah and I had a list [...]

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