I Wouldn't Choose This Lens, But It Has Sharpened The Image. Here's Why.

We are vacationing in Israel. Today we visited Machane Yehudah, the food market in Jerusalem. If you've ever stepped inside you might be wondering why on earth we would venture there on the eve of Passover, when we didn't need to shop. 

But it was precisely the chaos of it that drew us into the fray...... 

Why We Need to Stop to Admire the View.

( Please note this was previously published on my blog, when it was just a month old in April 2012 and Jonny's health details relate to that time- the message however, I think is timeless!)

As we approach Passover, I have been thinking about the story of the Exodus from Egypt, which we are going to retell next week at our Passover table. These slaves from Egypt were to spend 40 years journeying in the desert. Their goal was to reach Israel. But for many of them, the trip through the desert would take their whole lives and I wondered if  any of them ever stopped  for a minute to admire the view.

Her Majesty's School of Stress Management.

On my window sill in the kitchen stands The Queen. Grey haired, tiara in place, with a fixed smile day and night. You might be surprised that I display something that kitsch there and amused to know that she waves. 
          All day! 
Yes, my Queen is solar powered. On her handbag (purse) is a solar strip, that keeps her going longer than the Ever Ready Bunny. 
And why is she there in perpetuity?

10 Essential Thoughts to Help Us Understand How to Help Children with Special Needs: Josh's Story - Part 2

The Rubin family

Last week I posted part one of a talk by Nancy mother of Josh, a child with medical and emotional issues, and learning disabilities. She spoke to our synagogue community  about what it is like to be Josh and how his lack of a social life is one of the most challenging pieces of his world to navigate. She explained, 
Most children's weekends are packed with birthday parties, play dates and sleepovers.  Children with disabilities have very few of these.  I can count on one hand the number of birthday parties, play dates and sleepovers combined that Josh has been invited to in the last several years.  

Nancy  also talked about how parents have to be resilient when these painful situations arise. 

 ...rather than wallow in our pain, we as parents of children with special needs, stand up, brush ourselves off, and think about what we can do to make our child's life as happy as it can be.  

At the end of last week's  post Nancy posed a crucial question.

So what can we do to be sure all of our kids feel part of our community?

In this week's post, Nancy suggests 10 ways we and our children can be involved in making the world for children with special needs a little bit easier and a little bit happier.

7 Ways to Help a Child Deal with a Parent Being Seriously Sick

My 12 year old son Jacob, has been inspired to start his own blog. This is a post he wrote for it, without help of any kind. He wants adults to know how they can help children like him, who suddenly find themselves in a situation where someone they love very much is very sick and has to have major surgery. 

He also wants to bring comfort to other children by letting them know they are not alone in having these feelings. 

If you would like more information about Jacob's blog, please email me at gilly@bringingbooksofcomfort.org or leave a message for him below! -Gilly

About a year ago, my dad had something called Trigeminal Neuralgia. He had something going on with a nerve in his face, and had to have brain surgery. 

As an 11 year old child, I was scared. 

I couldn’t handle it on my own. I needed some things to help me feel better: