Despite being raised in active Jewish households, my husband and I, as single Jews in Southern California, found our own levels of observance waning. However, on our very first date, as we both realized that we may have finally met each other’s bashert, our conversation turned from the here-and-now to our possible future together. One thing was for sure: we both firmly intended to raise our children with a strong Jewish foundation.

Before we knew it, we were holding our beautiful baby boy in our arms, and quickly became absorbed with his immediate needs: feedings and diapers and too little sleep. That is when I found PJ library. It offered us the perfect path forward. As we began receiving wonderful Jewish children’s books in the mail, we have introduced our son to the magic and warmth of so many aspects of our Jewish faith. And, in the process, my husband and I have rekindled our own roots as we reminisce about our early childhoods!

We are now members of our local temple, and every couple weeks I bring our son to Gan Katan where, through our own PJ library community, we have met other like-minded parents. At home, my husband and I are raising a voracious bookworm! We read stories about the three C’s (cows, caterpillars and cats with hats), and take a singular delight in sharing with him all the Jewish books we’ve already received from PJ library. We look forward to many more years of free Jewish books that will bring us closer together as a Jewish family