Throne Room

Meital seems to have a new favorite room in the house. ever since she figured out that she can get a prize for using her potty and keeping her underwear dry, she spends half the evening in the bathroom. It seems that she tries to go pee every two seconds until she manages to do it right and earn her prize. Only after that can she leave the bathroom for loner than a minute and play normally.

Raising a Progressive Jew

Sometimes, I know that I must be doing something right.
Meital likes to take one of her long necklaces, wrap it around her arm and fingers and tell us that she's putting on her tefillin.
Ask her who wears tefillin, and she'll tell you "Ima, Abba"

I thought I would share a sneak peek at the final paragraph of an article, chapter of the book I'm writing with you. feel free to share any thoughts you might have.

"Unlike in English, each Hebrew word serves as a nexus in a web of interconnectedness of related words using the same root or mishkal. Each word thus has the potential to become highly nuanced with layers of implicit undertones and associations. The Hebrew word עקרה captures the feelings of being hamstrung, uprooted, and utterly destroyed that a person suffering from infertility experiences. It also encompasses the hope promised by the impermanency of the current situation and the possibility of future offspring."

"I'm a Chicken"

This morning Meital put my mittens on her feet like socks and announced that she was a rooster. She walked around the house going "cock-a-doodle-doo" until it was time to put on shoes and leave for gan.

"My decision is not to decide"

I'm starting to think that the difference between a posek (Jewish legal decisor) and an academic is that an academic has the luxury of choosing not to decide, especially on tough ethical questions.


(bonus points go to anyone who knows the reference in the title)

Bathtime

Meitl sure is getting to be independent! Last night, when she heard the water running for her bath, she decided to climb in all by herself with her clothes still on!

Tonight, when she heard it was bathtime, she took off all of her clothes by herself as she walked toward the bathroom, then darted away and had to be persuaded to actually come get into the tub.

Noah's Ark

We did a number of fun things with my parents while they were in town, but in particular I have a recommendation for anyone in the LA area with a small child or an interest in art: The Noah's Ark exhibit at the Skirball Museum. It was a lot of fun for all of us. The art was amazing, and there were lots of fun things for the kids to do, including climb on all sorts of things and play all sorts of games relating to animals and the building of the ark.