Last night, as I lay in bed stroking my 6-year-old daughter’s hair, she rolled over and asked, “do you think you will maybe have time to play with my new plastic dolls with me tomorrow?” It wasn’t a frustrated or annoyed question, but her tone with these types of questions has recently shifted from a hopeful request to a hopeful request tinged with skepticism. After all, her skepticism is merited, the next 24 hours have now gone by and I... Read more
Periods of complete exhaustion are inevitable for a mother. Her nursing baby makes quality night sleep impossible; her exuberant toddler requires constant vigilance; her preschoolers need activities; her school-aged children can entertain and help themselves but challenge her mind with questions as they approach the age of reason. Just that is enough to make her head spin, because she wants to do it well, with love. All the while, her home has to be cleaned and maintained, food must... Read more
As the mother of a crying baby who I walked to the back of the church last Sunday, I found this article compelling. Do crying babies belong in Mass? You be the judge. Read more
What am I cooking? Pasta with meat sauce and a batch of meat balls were made all at once, so I have dinner for 2-3 nights this week. I used to cook larger batches of food and then freeze them, but have gotten out of the habit recently. I need to bring back some of those recipes – lasagna, Mexican casserole, chicken with rice (much yummier than it sounds!), and big batches of grilled chicken are some of our old... Read more
Pictures taken exactly .002 seconds apart. Read more
Dear friends ~ It is hard to believe that school will begin again in just 3 weeks for my 2nd-grader, and I know of some schools that will begin even sooner! We just returned from a 2 week vacation, which is making us feel especially crunched for summer break time, and I’m not feeling confident that my son will be ready to hit the books again in just a few short weeks. Getting up early is not the problem –... Read more
William McGowan: Life and Faith in Hell’s Kitchen – WSJ.com. Read more
Faith & Family : Features : Got Stress?. I thought that this was wonderful, and I am going to share it with many people. I have also been keeping a mental list of things that I don’t have to worry about, and helping any worry-prone children do the same. For example, I no longer have to worry (as I did for the first 20 years of my life) about whether I will meet/marry someone wonderful. I no longer have... Read more
T minus 22 days until we depart with a very unloved part of my son–his tonsils. While tonsil removal has been on the decline in the last two decades, I will say with certainty–He needs them out! Every cold, every illness goes straight to his throat. Just yesterday he awoke with a cold and two of the most swollen tonsils you’ve ever seen. I thought about taking a picture of them to share with you, but then changed my mind.... Read more
If you love Jane Austen, and ardently admire Charles Dickens, but always sort of wish that one were more like the other, meet Elizabeth Gaskell, and the BBC mini-series North and South. A love story set with themes of changing society and labor relations, with hot fight scenes between the proud main couple, and baskets brought to consumptive working class friends, the whole thing is exquisite. Available on instant download from Netflix, perfect for when your husband is working late,... Read more
Building Cathedrals
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