I have regressed. I make my son breakfast during the week and bring it to him in his room, where he starts his virtual school day at his desk. I make lunch — usually leftovers from the night before. I shred last night’s chicken into a salad, and another day, the beans and tortilla chips…
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Kids & Family
Parenting
Staying at home with two young boys, live streamed drawing time is my savior
Two weeks ago — I believe this timeline is accurate, though time has now lost all meaning — when I went to pick my oldest son up from school, he was…
Passover
Let my people know: this is the first time I’ve had to plan a seder
How long does a seder really have to be? “No, we can’t just say ‘They tried to kill us, we survived, let’s eat!’” I tell my daughters. There’s some…
Religion
Coronavirus forces b’nai mitzvah ceremonies online
“It was a little different. It was weird,” 13-year-old Reuben Friedman said of his March 19 bar mitzvah in San Francisco. He did his Torah reading from a…
Parenting
Trading a frazzled Shabbat for one that makes me grateful
Every Friday night, when our kids were younger, I’d make Shabbat dinner special. We’d eat in the dining room, and use my fancy dishes. I’d up my game in…
Mixed & Matched
Is it OK for my Jewish daughter to visit a Christian Sunday school?
Dear Dawn: My daughter is 4 and we are raising her Jewish. My husband’s Christian parents attend a very progressive Presbyterian church. We have all…
Passover
New haggadahs: nationalism, artistry, the environment and more
The Passover seder is the most widely observed Jewish ritual, by Jews and non-Jews alike. That fact alone makes the haggadah, the guidebook to the seder,…
First Person
My family's life under quarantine in Israel
When our seventh day of quarantine began with a knock on the door from a guy in a hazmat suit, it was almost a relief finally to have a visitor in the…
Parenting
My 7-year-old has a new B-U-R-N-I-N-G passion
We have a new family hobby, and it’s spelled C-H-A-R-G-R-I-L-L. Or “dolphin.” Or “girlhood.” Or “mortify.” Those are all top-scoring pangram solutions to…