This afternoon, my boys and I headed down to the beach for a little down time from the moving prep madness. As we hit the sand, Yonah exclaimed, “Big Water!”. It was sweet and brilliant, but I couldn’t help but think of how much my mother would have loved that moment. In that way, […]

Here’s the thing about newborn babies. They’re fantastically hard work, they sap your energy and the pay stinks. But then they do one adorable thing, and suddenly it’s all sunshine and lollipops. Take me, for example. Not five minutes ago, Kivi smiled at me and laughed for the first time. My heart, of course, […]

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, in 2009 55% of mothers (including those with infants) were out in the workforce. So, I guess you can now consider me one of the majority. Yesterday, I was offered the fantastic position of the Director of Admissions/Marketing and PR at the Jewish day school in Cherry Hill. […]

The other day, Renee staged an intervention: Enough with the single stroller. If I kept up pushing Yonah and wearing Kivi in the sling, I would end up looking like quasimodo by the time I hit 30. So off we went to Babies R’ Us to finally pick up a double-ride for my dudes. […]

One of my favorite writers, Ann Lamott, published a journal she kept the first year of her son Sam’s life. The book is called “Operating Instructions” and is a must-read for new parents, along with anyone who thinks laughing is a good thing. I also recommend it for high school kids as a potent […]

One way that young children acquaint themselves with the world around them is through their sense of taste. Discovering something new, their automatic impulse is to pop it in their mouths to see if it makes for a decent snack. This can provide plenty of mini-adventures for parents who have to dig out all […]

A curious convergence has occurred my family upon the birth of Akiva. It seems that at the precise moment my little guy entered the world, his older brother turned into a full-fledged almost-two-year-old, complete with mini-tantrums, a propensity for trashing whatever room he’s in, dead-on parroting ability, and an actual opinion of his own. […]

Months ago when I was still in Israel, my friend Batsheva told me about her son, a lively, charming little boy with an easygoing manner. That is, until her daughter came along. Once lil’ sis put in an appearance, her once-docile son turned into an angry, demanding, tantrum-throwing, baby-smacking masochist. And that was after […]

So why did we choose Akiva?

First of all, in my humble opinion, it’s a beautiful name. Luckily enough, Rabbi Akiva ben Yosef, my son’s namesake, also happened to be The eminent Torah scholar of all Jewish History. A story I heard about him a few years ago is actually one of the things […]

L.B. is L.B. no more. This morning at his bris, we announced his name: Akiva. His namesake is Rabbi Akiva, one of the great Torah scholars in Jewish History. While I would love to wax poetic about why we chose the name right now, I have a houseful of hopped-up kids clamoring for french […]