In one of the Catholic NFP Facebook groups I’m in, many of the members and I had a lengthy discussion about what it means to be open to life. (I’m going to assume that most of my readers are familiar with that term; if not, there is a good overview by Jennifer Fulwiler here.) During the course of the thread, we came up with what we call “The Open Door Analogy” as a way to explain what it means to... Read more
The first time I heard it, I dismissed it as madness. “There are lunatics on both ends of the spectrum,” I told myself. Then, I saw the argument propagated again… and again… and again. In fact, I saw it a number of times on assorted sites, including my own personal blog, put forward by several different people. “Rational people can’t seriously believe this,” I thought, flabbergasted. “Not in 2018 with a plethora of scientific evidence to the contrary.” Sadly, it... Read more
Earlier this week, my husband and I celebrated the fifteenth anniversary of our joint conversion to the Catholic Church, and in honor of that anniversary, I decided to repost our conversion story. I was born to lifelong Lutherans (ELCA) who, of course, baptized all their kids Lutheran. I was baptized on December 28, 1980 — a date which I realized, soon after my conversion, as the Feast of the Holy Innocents. I sometimes wonder why I wasn’t baptized sooner given... Read more
In Flanders fields the poppies blow Between the crosses, row on row, That mark our place; and in the sky The larks, still bravely singing, fly Scarce heard amid the guns below. We are the Dead. Short days ago We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow, Loved and were loved, and now we lie In Flanders fields. Take up our quarrel with the foe: To you from failing hands we throw The torch; be yours to hold it high. If... Read more
If you’ve read my blog for a while, you’ll know it’s no secret that I’m a big fan of Ask A Manager, a career-advice column written by Alison Green. I discovered her blog in 2008 while looking for tips for revamping my résumé, and I was immediately hooked. Green’s advice is very rarely off the mark, and her scripts for difficult conversations are superb. She has a knack for distilling complicated situations down to a few essential points, and then... Read more
A few days ago, during a discussion on Facebook about infant baptism, I read a comment along the lines of, “I had no idea that Limbo had been repealed and was no longer doctrine!” I explained that Limbo never had been doctrine in the first place, but that only lead to more confusion. As a result, I decided to create this post as a way to lay out the facts for easier reference. Limbo is (allegedly) a state in which... Read more
1. As I wrote in my earlier review, I loved Jennifer Fulwiler’s newest book “One Beautiful Dream,” and I also loved her appearance on the Fountains of Carrots podcast. The episode is so good and well worth a listen! 2. Did anyone else get books for Mother’s Day? Here’s what I scored: I’m only a few pages into “Write Smart, Write Happy” but I’m liking it so far. Of course, Austen is always a good bedside read, and this edition... Read more
Syttende Mai is the Norwegian Constitution Day (the National Day of Norway) and is an official national holiday observed in Norway on May 17 each year. It’s a big deal up in North Dakota where I was born and raised, due to the large population of those descended from Norwegian immigrants, like me. There are usually lutefisk suppers (can’t stand the stuff myself, but I adore lefse and rommegrot) and parades sponsored by the local Sons of Norway lodge and... Read more
Liz, who blogs over at St. Dymphna’s Daughter, asked me to write a post about the holiest person I’ve ever met. I thought long and hard about the people in my life, and as it turns out, I know a lot of holy people! It was a tough decision to narrow it down to just one person. However, as I thought and prayed about the people I love and who have blessed me with their love and friendship, one particular person... Read more
Alison over at Ask A Manager wrote a fun post today with some fun tidbits about her mother, and I thought I’d follow suit by sharing some favorite memories I have with my mother: We had fun watching TV shows together. In particular, I remember watching Dr. Quinn: Medicine Woman, Little House on the Prairie, Anne of Green Gables, and Rescue: 911 (ironically, she later became an EMT), and America’s Funniest Home Videos . She bought me a box set... Read more
The Catholic Working Mother
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