If I don’t remember if I said “Mashiv Haruach” do I need to repeat Shmoneh Esrei?

Question:

If I don’t remember if I said “Mashiv Haruach” do I need to repeat Shmoneh Esrei?

Discussion:

We all know that starting on Shmini Atzeres we add the line of “Mashiv Haruach Umorid Hageshem” to davening. If a person forgets to include this line he must repeat the Shmoneh Esrei. However, if he remembers before he started the next bracha (Atta Kadosh), he is allowed to insert it where he is up to and continue from there (S.A. 114:5-6).

The question that comes up is what is the halacha if one does not remember saying it, does he have to repeat the davening? If a person says morid hatal during the summer months, then even if he does not remember saying “Mashiv Haruach” he need not repeat the davening (S.A. 114:5). For Ashkenazim that generally don’t say morid hatal the halacha is that until 30 days have past we assume that he said what he is accustomed to saying. Therefore he must repeat the davening. One way to avoid this problem is to repeat the line of  michayei maysim atta… hageshem 90 times. Doing this makes him accustomed to the addition (ibid 8) The Chasam Sofer says that one should say it 101 times to make accustom himself to it. The Mishna Berura says that one should preferably follow the opinion of the Chasam Sofer (M.B. ibid 41).

Summary:

For the first 30 days we assume that the person said what he is accustomed to saying so if he is unsure if he added “Mashiv Haruach” he should repeat the tefila. If he said morid hatal then he should not repeat Shmoneh Esrei. To avoid this issue it is advisable to say from the words michayei maysim until hageshem 101 times (or at least 90) in order to accustome himself to the change. 

Can I wash my child's dirty clothes on Chol Hamoed?

The laws of Chol Hamoed are complex and one can not make comparisons from one law to another. Therefore, a rav should be consulted on every issue.
 Question:Can I wash my child’s dirty clothes on Chol Hamoed?
Discussion:One should start Yom Tov with enough clothes for his children (M.B. 534:7). However, if one runs out of clothes for their child then they may be washed on Chol Hamoed.
Until what age does this apply?There is a dispute among the poskim in this matter. According to Rav S.Z. Aurebach zt”l and ylc”t Rav Elyashiv shlit”a this heter applies until the age of 6-7. According to Rav Scheinberg shlit”a it depends on the child. Does this child go through a lot of clothes or not. If he does then the age is until bar\bas mitzvah. If he doesn’t then it is until 6-7.
Does one have to wash the clothes in private?There is a dispute as to whether one must wash children’s clothes in private. The Rema (534:1) says that one must wash them in private, therefore one should not use a laundromat. However, the Aruch Hashulchan (534:8) says that everyone will see that it is children's clothes so there is no problem of maris ayin. If one must use a laundromat a rav should be consulted.
 According to Rav Moshe Finestein, if a person is traveling out of town one need not bring all of the child’s clothes with him if it is a big bother. However, there are opinions that hold one must bring all of the child’s clothes when travelling out of town if he does not do this he may not wash the clothes on Yom Tov (Shut Hagavad Mi’Debritzin Siman18). 

One may not add in any adult clothing even if he is washing a full load of children's clothes.

At what age is it appropriate for a child to fast on Yom Kippur?

Question:
Are children obligated to fast on Yom Kippur?
Discussion:
There are two categories of children that we will discuss here, a child under the age of nine and a child above the age of eleven. One is not obligated to train a child under the age of nine to fast on Yom Kippur. The age of chinuch for fasting is nine years old for a strong child and ten years old for a weaker child (S.A. 617:2). However, some people have the custom of training a child to fast part of the day even if he is younger then nine (Shut Chekrei Lev 109). Once a child reaches the age of nine (or ten), his parents are obligated to train him to fast part of the day. For example he should start the fast at night and eat breakfast later then he would normally eat. Every year the child should fast longer until he is 13 (or 12 for a girl).
If a child’s health is endangered by the fast he must eat or drink immediately.

There is a dispute among the poskim whether a child older then eleven should fast the whole day or not. Therefore, if a child is weak one may rely on the lenient opinion. The Mishna Berura (617:9) says that in today's times all children are considered weak (unless we know that the child is strong) and therefore do not have to fast the entire day.

If a child does eat on Yom Kippur and bentsches he should say Ya’ale V’yavo. If Yom Kippur is on Shabbos, like this year, he should also include R’tzei. However, if one left out either addition bentsching is not repeated (M.B. 618:29).

Summary:
A child under the age of nine need not fast at all on Yom Kippur. Some people have the custom to train the child to fast part of the day. Once a child is over the age of nine (or ten if he is weak) he should begin to fast for part of the day. A child over the age of eleven need not fast the entire day according to the Mishna Berura. However, other poskim disagree and say that such a child should fast the entire day