It’s the time of year when mothers start to get excited about school. Before you actually start the work is the ideal to time to share school plans, because once you’re underway the enthusiasm can wear off a bit. So here are my plans for the coming school year, starting with Mr. Boy. I’ll cover the girls’ plans in two or three subsequent posts. High School. Oh My. The boy starts 9th grade, which means the college-prep clock is ticking... Read more
I live in a relatively small house. Not Third World Shack small, but the square footage per person makes most first-world “Small Houses!” fans gaze longingly at off-site storage options. I have friends who squeeze way more children into way less space, and friends who do it the other away around. We’re happy with where we fall on the real estate spectrum, grateful for what we have and making the best use of it we can. CNN, on the other... Read more
You were probably thinking, “I already think about sex enough, thank you very much.” But how well were you thinking about sex? If your sex-thinking needs improvement — perhaps it needs more rigor, thoroughness, or clarity . . . consider signing up for Family Honor’s online college course, The Truth and Meaning of Sexuality, Love & Family: Cultural Implications. The Fall 2014 session begins August 15th, and registration closes August 8th. My husband and I took this course together, and here are... Read more
I’m back from conference-land and that means it’s time to talk about Transgendered Nuns. When I got the head’s up on this story a few days ago, I had one reaction and I’m sticking to it: This isn’t complicated, kids. That is, unless you are sucked up into our hyper-ventilating, panic-addicted culture, and just desperately need something Shocking! to ooh and aah over. Otherwise, you can do the Catholic thing. We’ll do the Catholic thing: 1. Doesn’t matter what your... Read more
A little update from the Midlands Homeschool Convention, where I’m making my home-away-from-home this week: 1. Saturday Specials: Free Exhibit Hall Admission for everyone, and $20 family day passes for the workshops. Worth a look. Lots of vendors of interest to any parent — educational toys, books, colleges . . . good stuff. 2. The Catholic Exhibit just plain rocks. Why yes, we are the coolest thing there, though admittedly the Kapla blocks people are a pretty close second. And... Read more
See you there! Read more
It’s NFP Awareness Week. Perhaps you aren’t aware of NFP at all. You should be. It’s the first line of recourse for infertility, and among the most effective. For avoiding pregnancy, it’s pretty simple: 100% of contraceptive failures occur on days when you’re fertile. If you are serious about not getting pregnant, you’re pretty much asking for a wiggly, cuddly little surprise if you insist on ignoring your fertility and just hoping the factory did a bang-up job with your... Read more
My book is up on the block today at Simcha Fisher’s NFP Week Giveaway extravaganza. Go enter now, and you can also try for the sauerkraut-making kit and 13 other great prizes. Tomorrow, the good sports will be asking, “Since I didn’t win that one copy, should I just spend the $7 on my very own?” Yes, I think you probably should. Classroom Management for Catechists is for you if: You teach religious education. You do some other activity that... Read more
It’s NFP Awareness Week. You might be thinking, “I am aware of how wonderful, marriage-building, and personally-affirming NFP is. I love, love, love NFP. Doesn’t everybody?” Well, no, not everybody loves, loves, loves it. But if you have a serious reason to avoid pregnancy, it’s still pretty much your best bet. (There are a few cases where the 100% method is better. Very few, but they happen.) Likewise, if you are trying to conceive, NFP should be your... Read more
Serendipity is following a link to the Lectio Divina site by transitional deacon Ian Van Heusen. The blog is here. Hard not to like a place with posts — good ones, true ones — about things like “learning to die.” Yes. This. Beautiful. Go look. Read more
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