Richard John Neuhaus, 1936-2009 Father John Neuhaus died this morning. What a remarkable life he lived in the service of Our Lord, authetic religious freedom, and the “weakest and least”. His leadership in the Evangelicals and Catholics Together ecumenical effort has changed the face of Christian unity in the United States. From First Things Editor Joseph Bottum: “Our great, good friend is gone. “Fr. Richard John Neuhaus slipped away today, January 8, shortly before 10 o’clock, at the age of... Read more

Have you ever had one of those parental moments when your heart jumps to your throat because one of your children may be in danger? I’ve had a couple, like the time when Maria decided to hide silently under the desk in C’s room and I couldn’t find her for a few minutes, or the time when C was a toddler and climbed on top of his dresser/changing table and it tipped over. Those were scary moments, but I think... Read more

NRO reports that Fr. Richard John Neuhaus is very ill: His friends and family are keeping vigil and he was administered last rites shortly after midnight. Fr. George Rutler, who gave him the Catholic Sacrament, says that “he is not expected to live long” and suggests “that it is appropriate that prayers be offered for a holy death.” Fr. Neuhaus has come close to this moment before and been back. If it’s his time: Go in peace. He’s a man... Read more

A long time ago, a reader asked about our system for dealing with clothing. Ours is an elaborate one, and will take several posts to fully explain, but I wanted to begin with something that we are focusing on at home right now: the laundry system. One difficult thing about laundry, like other housework, is that it never feels “done” — you can get all of your clothes put away, but unless you are naked while you do it there... Read more

I’ve been quasi packing my Christmas gear and wondering how folks out there handle the transition of seasons from Christmas to ordinary time?  As of right now, we are planning to keep up the tree and door wreath until the official end of Christmas this Sunday.  Down went our candles in the windows yesterday.  Down goes the lit garland around our door today.  If you were to look down our street, you’d have a hard time believing Christmas was just... Read more

Multiple times I have had to explain that I am taking this wallpaper down because it is ugly. Gianna (age 4.5) just cannot understand how anything with flowers and the color pink can possibly be ugly. Stripping wallpaper is one of the most awful, time consuming home-improvement tasks. In light of this fact, I believe it is sinful to wallpaper your home. Someday, someone is going to have to take it down. It will be a terrible experience for that... Read more

I hope you all had a wonderful time with family and friends over the holidays. I haven’t been online much these past few weeks because, like MaryAlice, we have been experiencing “Saturday Everyday” for the past few weeks. No school schedule, no gymnastics, no morning routine, none of our staples that keep us grounded. We have had some wonderful family time, but I am ready to get our life back in order. It all begins today, the first work/school day... Read more

While the Catholic Mom blogosphere is filled with posts about the wonderful twelve days of Christmas, and how Christmas isn’t over, and how we can keep celebrating, I am all partied out! We are so blessed that my husband’s job gives him time off (“Paternity Leave”) when he has a baby, so he will be home with us for a few weeks. We are also blessed that our new baby has an easy temper and that I have recovered well,... Read more

German telecom has the AWOL family out of the loop for this Christmas season and into the new year. But I had 40 minutes of internet today and wanted to thank everyone for the lovely posts and comments of the last few weeks, and wish you all a blessed new year. Oh, and to (of course)give a hollar to MaryAlice’s amazing family. Read more

An uplifting reflection from Opus Dei: I shall never tire of repeating that marriage is a great and marvelous divine path. Like everything divine in us, it calls for response to grace, generosity, dedication and service. (Conversations, 93) Christian couples should be aware that they are called to sanctity themselves and to sanctify others, that they are called to be apostles and that their first apostolate is in the home. They should understand that founding a family, educating their children,... Read more