This morning when I opened our apartment door to go to Mass we could barely get out because there were two large white garbage bags blocking our way. Peering through the thin plastic I could see that there were little boy clothes and shoes inside. More money saved at the hands of our generous neighboors -hooray! Then, after Mass concluded, a mother of eight children approached our family and handed my excited three-year-old a smaller plastic bag which contained a... Read more
Happy Solemnity of the Annunciation, dear friends! Here are some thoughts on this beautiful Feast Day: 1) For those looking for another crafty idea that you can save from year to year, here is an idea for the “Annunciation candle”: Take a pillar candle and make a little hole in one side. Then, cut out a small picture of Jesus and place it inside the hole. Cover the hole with a small piece of cloth or tissue, and use two... Read more
What am I cooking? A roast chicken, rice and green beans. What are my weekend plans? We are headed to NYC to visit dear friends from Princeton and dear friends of theirs, who have now become our friends. Did you follow that? The friends of friends, who are now our friends, blog here. Melinda is gracious as can be, a gem in the hospitality department (she entertained our entire family at her beach house without ever having met us!!!), and... Read more
Yesterday I spent my day overwhelmed with gratitude for the gift of my oldest girl. Gianna turned 7, and the day brought back a flood of emotions regarding her birth and the gift of life. Gianna was our rainbow baby, a bright colorful reminder of God’s greatness in an otherwise dark and stormy time. Born after the death of our first daughter Therese, Gianna’s birth was filled with tears of gratitude, not sorrow, and with the sound of an infant’s... Read more
Our big boys enjoy the tradition of adding dried beans to a mason “sacrifice jar” for the extra sacrifices they make during Lent and have a good handle on what constitutes a sacrifice for Jesus. The baby, not so much. Incredibaby addressing Daddy: “Can I put a bean in the rack-fice jar?” Daddy: “Why? What did you do?” Very sincere 2 year old: “I finished all my dessert!” Read more
I am sure that many of you have seen this column in the New York Times which reports the American Academy of Pediatrics updated advice on rear facing car seats. We got similar advice from one doctor somewhere along the way, to keep the child rear facing as long as possible and to use height and weight rather than age as a guideline for use of car seats and boosters. We are pretty intense about our carseats, but we have... Read more
“The field of battle between God and Satan is the human soul. It is in the soul that the battle rages every moment of life. The soul must give free access to the Lord so that it may be fortified by Him in every respect and with all kinds of weapons; that His light may enlighten it to combat the darkness of error; that it may be clothed with Jesus Christ. To be clothed with Jesus Christ it is necessary... Read more
What am I cooking? Irish Brisket! When cooking brisket it is very important to start cooking the brisket at least 12-24 hours in advance. I cook my brisket in a slow cooker for 18-20 hours in a broth of beer (GF of course, although a Guinness Marinade would be delicious as well!), enough additional water to cover the brisket, peppercorns, garlic, 1/4 cup of brown sugar, parsley and salt. The last 2 hours I add potatoes, cabbage, and carrots. What... Read more
Today when a stranger saw our three men and little lady, she gasped and smiled, “That must be one spoiled little girl.” “Yes,” I responded, “though you can only guess who’s doing the spoiling.” Brothers. 3 of them. Oh, how they love their little sister. Read more
Many of us Builders are a bit out of touch right now due to Spring Break, illness, and the normal activities of daily life, but we just wanted to ask our Building Cathedrals family to join us in lifting up the people of Japan in prayer. A friend of mine lived for years in Japan with her husband, who is Japanese, and has shared the following information and prayer requests with us: “I humbly ask for all of you to take... Read more
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