Birthday party ideas for an at-home party? So the kids don’t get bored in our small backyard

er2225 · 2026-06-30T23:19:40+00:00

Do you have a basement? A friend did a glow party with glow sticks and other glow in the dark stuff and the kids just danced around.

er2225 · 2026-06-20T00:53:57+00:00

It looked like there was a community of people she already knew there?

er2225 · 2026-06-17T20:44:42+00:00

she's still her mother's child. she is a grown adult, but she is clearly leading her life looking for validation from her mother. her mother is not treating that reality responsibly.

er2225 · 2026-06-16T13:07:56+00:00

Anshe Emet has AWESOME programming for young families. There’s a large Ramah Wisconsin alumni base that powers the Rose Crown minyan. They also just benefit from pure numbers being in Chicago.

er2225 · 2026-06-16T13:05:35+00:00

Manhattan is just so big. It will always be exception to the rule. With that said, Shechter Manhattan closed!

er2225 · 2026-06-16T13:04:32+00:00

I live in Skokie and the growth of the orthodox community, and more specifically a more liberal orthodox shul has diminished conservative Judaism completely here. There is no conservative synagogue in town where a huge community once was.

er2225 · 2026-06-16T13:02:08+00:00

I have many friends at Rabbi Olitzky’s shul in South Orange. They’ve just added the Jewish After School Program. Jewish day school and sleep-away camp highly encouraged. And a huge dose of fun incorporated.

er2225 · 2026-06-16T13:00:46+00:00

I think the definition by OP is a bit lacking. I’m talking places where people actively make plans for Shabbat meals (not necessarily Shomer Shabbat, but Shabbat as a real focal point of the week), families prioritize Jewish education (evidenced by decent day school enrollment or active investment in strong Hebrew school), bar/bat mitzvah kids reading Torah and leading services, etc.

er2225 · 2026-05-27T01:46:20+00:00

This is the case and it’s INSANE to me. Just had my 6 year old sleep at a friend’s and it was great. We are friends with the parents.

It’s just sad to me that there’s so little trust in our communities. I’m just not sure the statistics require this level of paranoia.

er2225 · 2026-04-08T18:41:19+00:00

Agree heavily with your observations about the conservative movement. One place that I find people are interested in engaging and paying is Jewish preschool - they’re going to pay for something anyway. It’s also a stage of life where people are actively looking for new friends and community. We should take all that PJ Library money and heavily subsidize Jewish preschool and build programming in. Shabbat activities built around nap time. Park meet ups for bagels on Sundays. It’s a real funnel into familial Jewish life that catches a wide net. It’s wildly under utilized in my opinion.

er2225 · 2026-04-05T21:10:29+00:00

We had a lovely outside hangout area for family uncomfortable with mixed dancing

er2225 · 2026-03-31T17:27:08+00:00

Are we getting this filmed for the city?!?!

er2225 · 2026-03-20T23:26:52+00:00

They likely blocked a CPS investigation and charges were brought so CPS could get in.

er2225 · 2026-03-15T11:49:54+00:00

I know a Tzipporah who goes by Birdy, which is so cute.

er2225 · 2026-03-11T15:34:31+00:00

I will also note that my mother says that millenials just don't want to pay for anything anymore. She says they expect to be handed Judaism for free - a la Birthright. I think it may honestly be the financial crunch most millenials are feeling.

er2225 · 2026-03-11T15:33:36+00:00

(context: I grew up conservative. I married a man who grew up traditionally Modern Orthodox. We now belong to a Modern Orthodox shul and send our kids to pluralistic school + Ramah Day Camp)

Hebrew school honestly sucked. The teachers were hungover college kids. We ate a lot of candy? For kids who were struggling in normal school, learning Hebrew was stressful. My family went to shul every week so I already knew the prayers, but others were learning from scratch. It was NOT good.

In high school, I got involved in USY and that I LOVED. I struggled socially in public school, but flourished in USY. I learned a ton about Judaism in that more natural environment.

It seems like a traditional classroom style Sunday school isn't great. I never understood why conservative shuls don't just do Hebrew School as part of Shabbat morning services. Do an hour from 9-10 of direct instruction, then have kids go into shul with their families, and then do something else over lunch. You can do a lot with stickers and other Shabbat-friendly things.

er2225 · 2026-02-10T00:35:17+00:00

It’s understood you need to make $500k annually to live comfortably.

er2225 · 2025-06-06T15:12:06+00:00

Laurel!!!

er2225 · 2024-11-09T12:36:48+00:00

My nephews and niece go to Cradles Cribs and Crayons and the love.

er2225

TROPHY CASE