Here’s the Story – The PJ Library in Greater Washington Blog
PJ Library Blog
Reflect and Prepare for a Sweeter Holiday Season
Welcome to the new school year. I love seeing all the back-to-school photos that families are sharing on social media! I hope you and your children are adapting well to the transition from summertime to fall routines. In addition to a new school year, it’s now a new Hebrew month: two nights ago, Elul began […]
Lessons from the Olympics
I love the Olympics. Every two years, it feels like the world comes together in celebration of excellence and hard work. From the Opening Ceremony with the joyful Parade of Nations and emotional lighting of the Olympic torch through the many different competitions, it’s an exciting time! We are in the middle of the competition, […]
Celebrating Freedom and Jewish-American History
We are excited to share ways to come together as a community to celebrate freedom and the history of Jews in America. Head to the Capital Jewish Museum’s open house on July 4th to learn about Jewish Revolutionary War history and create an activity bag to use while waiting for the fireworks to begin. Share […]
Shavuot Traditions Are Perfect with Children
Every year, my kids and I look forward to Shavuot (feast of weeks). Staying up late reading and eating ice cream has become a treasured tradition in our family. Shavuot celebrates the receiving of the Torah at Mount Sinai and the first fruits of the late spring harvest. It is a holiday about food, setting […]
Yom Ha’atzmaut from Afar
Each year, the people of Israel commemorate three holidays that highlight the fragility and the resilience of the Jewish people: Yom HaShoah (Holocaust Remembrance Day), which starts Sunday, May 5th at sundown; Yom HaZikaron (Israel’s Memorial Day), which starts Sunday, May 12th at sundown; and Yom Ha’atzmaut (Israel’s Independence Day), which starts on Monday, May […]
Clearing Out the Personal Chametz Before Passover
For millennia, during Passover (the Festival of Freedom), Jewish people have been commanded to clean any traces of chametz (leavened products such as bread) from our houses to remember the Israelites’ liberation from slavery in Egypt. Today, many of us take this time as an opportunity to clear out the pantry for the holiday, do […]
Increasing Purim Joy Through Giving
Last month, I shared about the joy that comes with the Hebrew month (or in this leap year, months) of Adar. This month, we have multiple opportunities to increase in joy even more by celebrating Purim and in other ways. We have a great list of family-friendly events leading up to and on Purim (which […]
Summer Family Fun Checklist
Judaism values many things, but one of the highest is valuing time as sacred. While this can mean marking the holidays yearly and Shabbat weekly, it can also mean carving out time as a family that is sacred — without the interruptions of work, school, electronics and other distractions. Summer can be a great time […]
Sharing Love and Kindness
You probably know (or will when it’s February 29 th!) that this year is a leap year, when the Gregorian calendar adds an extra day in February. Did you know it’s also a leap year on the Hebrew calendar? This means there’s a whole extra month added in the early spring to keep the lunar […]
Helping and Hoping for a New Year of Peace and Growth
Turning the page on the calendar to a new year is a natural time to mark the growth and changes in your family and to connect with the cycles of nature! Tu B’Shevat (“the birthday of the trees”) is an annual holiday connected to agriculture in Israel and around the world. This holiday is celebrated […]