Thank You...

For always, always, being there... xoxo to the "maxiest" of grandmas. In loving memory. 

8/4/1920-5/16/2013

...

Shabbat Shalom

Connect. Love. Touch.

"Pain gets more intense when you’re afraid and try to keep it at bay and then pull out of it,...it really denies freedom.

We need a boundary around our experience. We need to know that pain is contained & can be housed & it won’t be limiting our whole being.

That we can get a hug and drop into our body. And when we drop into our body, paradoxically, typically pain is less." -paraphrased,Matthew Sanford

Connect. Love. Touch.

The Greatness of This Day

Student led conferences. Learner profiles, formal assessments, and great stories by לוי 

Be Encouraged

Our G+ community wants to bring you positivity, so we created the “Be Encouraged” section. A place to find thoughts and meditations. Perhaps a place to find a new focus. We believe in Post Traumatic Growth...

Sign in to join here. 

Our Daddy Is Invincible!

"Our daddy is the bravest man we know. We are so glad that he is here to see us grow" 

 Our Daddy Is Invincible! is a book for children and families explaining life after a traumatic brain injury. Written by the wife of wounded veteran LtCol Tim Maxwell, USMC, author Shannon Maxwell puts together a much needed resource for our families, helping to put into words and pictures what so many of us are trying to say to our kids: Everything is going to be ok, and daddy is still daddy. Read the full digital book here.

If you know a family dealing with combat injury, consider purchasing a copy as a gift to send to them. Parents with young children, this may be a good read to sit and share with your child. Remember, it's not about recreating what used to be, but finding the new normal. Thank you Shannon for giving all of us a tool to begin a few very important conversations. 

A Place for Veterans

Over 100,000 members of our community in Williamson county are veterans and family members of veterans. 

It currently takes 393 days for a veteran’s disability claim to be processed in central Texas, which means these families are without VA healthcare and financial support for over a year. 

It is going to be critical for the community to step up and support our military heroes and their families to fill this gap, especially as more troops arrive home from the Middle East. 

Heroes Night Out has helped our family, and can extend their assistance to others with your support.

For us personally, they have sponsored supplies for Echo, and they have helped to connect Spc. Marco V. with a new dog trainer in the area when the initial service dog agency had long forgotten their agreement to train him. Heroes Night Out provided family respite care to help us have fun together again, an expense many veteran families do not splurge on when awaiting VA to compensate for disabilities keeping them jobless. Heroes night out has also provided a centralized place to find out how to apply for veteran benefits, meet with other veteran peers comfortably, provide support to spouses and family members with meetings and events, and more. 

We are grateful for the community and support they have provided us... do consider them in your giving during their Drop and Give $10 campaign. 

"When our perils are past, shall our gratitude sleep?"

- George Canning

Mazel Tov!

Our last child reached a milestone, one which all of our children have gone before him in every 3rd grade year and reached, receiving their Siddur. He has worked toward this goal learning Hebrew and reading some of the most important prayers we know in our tradition. I cannot believe how quickly this time has come about. We loved gathering together with everyone to honor the students just starting out and preparing a foundation for their future. Of course, I cried just to be there, and experience our last Kabbalat HaSiddur, well for a little while at least. Grateful to our Rabbanim and leaders, teachers and community, for bringing us to this occasion. With a full heart...

Show Your Love

Writing, curating, and upkeep here takes many hours and financial resources. Consider showing your appreciation and making a donation. As Maria Popova over at Brain Pickings says it "donating = loving."  xo- Amber

Donating = Loving