We are alive with all the excitement of the 50 anniversary celebrations around here as well as just returning to some normalcy given all the street closures due to President Trump’s visit. Thank G-d for kind parents, although the school bus was canceled multiple times this week, my daughter still made it to school (and back too.) Crafting Jerusalem ...
The Koren Mahzor for Yom Haatzmaut and Yom Yerushalayim a Review
The Mahzor Texts
It makes sense to have a review of the World Mizrahi Koren Mahzor for Yom Haatzmaut and Yom Yerushalayim on a site that was created to support a fundraiser for Mizrahi's youth movement, Bnei Akiva. There are all kinds of good things about this mahzor. The main purpose of the mahzor is to have an organized collection of the prayers said by most congregations for Yom Hazikaron, Yom Haatzmaut and Yom Yerushalayim. In the commentaries near the prayers are discussions about issues that come up with these contemporary holidays- can one say Hallel? ...Kotel Pop-Up Card for Yom Yerushalayim
My daughter made this Kotel pop-up card in her art class this year for Yom Yerushalayim. She agreed to share it here. In the scheme of pop-up cards, it is not all that complicated a pop-up card to make. This is basically a tab style pop-up card. You can see how to make these types of pop up cards in this WikiHow post. A Little Kit? She is considering ...
Kotel Bencher covers and cupcake wrappers
Since it is Yom Yerushalayim, I thought I would take the opportunity to mention that we have Kotel bencher covers and matching digital cupcake wrappers available in the shop. Take a look and let us know what you think. Feel free to look at some of the other designs as well. Enjoy!
What are the 70 names of Jerusalem?
My daughter, aged seven, decided to add her own question to her homework this week. And so, she wrote in her notebook: What are the names of Jerusalem? I liked her question and asked her to see how many names she could come up with. There are actually seventy. I think this is a fun activity or at least an educational activity that can be fun. What ...
Kid Made Marshmallow Kotel
The idea of building the kotel or Beit Hamikdash out of Marshmallows is not the most original idea in the world. However, we did do a few additions that were fun, and you can too. Food Coloring Glorious Good Coloring First off, for our marshmallow kotel, we used food coloring to add a stone-like touch to the "bricks." We also used leaf shaped sprinkle ...
What Color was the Menorah on the Arch of Titus?
The depiction of the Romans bringing the spoils of war, including the Temple Menorah and its vessels to Rome, on the Arch of Titus is a depiction that for many Jews symbolizes the loss of the Beit Hamikdash and of exile in their minds eye and in their hearts. This arch celebrated Titus's victory over the Jews, the destruction of Jerusalem and the holy ...
Teaching Jerusalem one footstep at a time
In honor of Yom Yerushalayim, Jerusalem day, and as part of the Mitzvot Unplugged series, we are pleased to welcome, Joanna from FunInJerusalem.com, a website that helps families explore Jerusalem and its environs. Take a walk down the small alleyways of the Old City of Jerusalem and you may be wondering how you can experience such an Old City in a m ...
Kol HaOt – Illuminating Jewish Life through Art
We are happy to have a guest post from Kol Haot as part of the Mitzvot Unplugged Series. A fuller version of this post appeared in the Lookstein Journal Jewish Educational Leadership: The Arts in Jewish Education A short note, although i have never participated in the series, many years ago I visited David Moss's Jerusalem studio with my parents and my ...
Cupcake Wrappers for Celebrations
Remember the Purim cupcake wrappers? Just wanted to let you all know that they've been joined by a bunch of new wrapper designs. This time, these designs match with some of our bencher designs. That means they could be used in conjunction with a bencher order, or alone at a family celebration. Note the Kotel design is particularly useful for Yom Yerusha ...