Motherhood, Careers, and Guilt at Tzohar Panel

This article appeared in the "In Jerusalem" supplement of the Jerusalem Post on March 25, 2016. Balancing motherhood and careers, with the help of Tzohar By Hannah Katsman Since the early days of the kibbutz, Israeli mothers have been working outside the home. Yet the conflict between motherhood … [Read more...]

Single Motherhood in the Orthodox Community

Image via Wikipedia The phenomenon of Orthodox single women who choose to have babies on their own has been around for a while. Gilit Chomski of Ynet interviews some of the mothers, as well as rabbis who have ruled on the subject. A few passages in the long article that stood out for … [Read more...]

Empathy, Mother-Guilt, Shabbat, Career Skills, Anger, and Idleness

RaggedyMom showed me this CNN story about developing children's social maturity. In a  fourteen-year study, the preschool children of mothers who described a picture using emotional language showed more empathy and better social skills when they got older. It is important to encourage children to … [Read more...]

More Frugal Strategies, Breastfeeding in the Summer, and Haveil Havalim, and Childcare Choices

I wrote about keeping babies hydrated in hot weather at Green Prophet. Squawkfox compiled a list of the best frugal advice from 41 bloggers, dividing them into categories and adding eye-catching graphics. You can see them all here. And in the spirit of frugality, Batya at me-ander presents the … [Read more...]

Tandem Nursing: Guest Post at Mommy News Blog

I have a guest post up about tandem nursing at the Mommy News Blog. Although my daughter is wearing a kippah in the accompanying picture, it's not meant as any kind of feminist statement. At five years old she no longer wears one. Anyway, now you all know how "radical" I am/was. … [Read more...]

Dr. Hanna Katan: Large Families,Yes. Demanding Careers for Mothers, No.

Ynet interviews Dr. Hanna Katan, religious Zionist mother of thirteen and gynecologist with a sub-specialty in fertility. Katan considers a large family to be the ideal and has served on a committe to encourage secular mothers to have more babies. Her own mother raised eight children and served as a … [Read more...]

Around the World in Eighty Clicks: Why I Love Being a Mother

I was flattered to be asked to participate in "Around the World in Eighty Clicks," founded by Katherine at Her Bad Mother and David at It's Not a Lecture. The idea is for bloggers from eighty different countries to give five reasons why they love being mothers. Like Katherine, I don't love … [Read more...]

Guest Post: Breastfeeding and the Working Mother

Commenter Ariela shares her experiences as a nursing mother of five. This is a picture of me and my daughter Noa nursing our babies. I am combining two of my greatest pleasures, reading and breastfeeding. One of the things I love about breastfeeding it that it "allows" a busy mother of 5 to take … [Read more...]

Do you wish you belonged to the "other" group?

Lily left a comment on a recent post suggesting that "working mothers" and "stay-at-home" mothers often wish they were in the opposite category. I know I occasionally fantasize about picking up a briefcase and closing the door behind me each morning, leaving someone else to deal with the mess and … [Read more...]

Do kids care if your house is dirty?

If my mother hated cleaning, she never admitted it to me. But she didn't research or think much about cleaning techniques, like she did with other aspects of homemaking.She was fussy about guests, who were never allowed in the kitchen; she had me for serving and clearing. I didn't mind much, except … [Read more...]