#6 became a Christian person this weekend and was officially named after his great-grandfather and 2 great saints. Sr Philomena, my high school catechism teacher and all time favorite nun, used to say that being Catholic was more than our religion, it was also our culture. “It is the way we welcome babies..” she would begin her talk on Catholic culture. He was welcomed this weekend by our family and closest friends. Thank God for our good friends and relatives... Read more

#3 lives most of his life incognito, changing costumes and personalities, peeling off one layer and assuming another. From mild mannered boy to crazy-eyed wild child, he flits back and forth, not really one or the other. The truth that is him rests securely in the middle, but he enjoys playing with the extremes and testing out who it is that he wants to become if only for a moment. #3 turned 8 this week without a lot of hoopla,... Read more

For the last two and a half weeks, I’ve been high. I’ll admit it. Hello, I’m the Mom, and I’m addicted to sniffing baby heads. Don’t call for an intervention yet, most women are baby head addicts. We’re built that way. I looked it up, and there are all kinds of pheromones coming off of my new guy’s noggin that light up all the pleasure centers in my brain. It makes me want to hold him and smell him and... Read more

It occurred to me this afternoon that we don’t need any textbooks. All we need is an Animaniacs DVD or, better yet, YouTube. I’m serious here. If your children just memorize these clips they’ll have learned a year’s worth of info and you can be done with the school year in the first day. Two if they’re slow. Anatomy U. S. History and Geography World Geography World History English Literature Health Math German And for Theology….The Simpsons, of course You’re... Read more

Does that make me a good parent or a bad parent? Read more

Welcome to our sweet baby #6 born on the feast of St Ignatius of Loyola. May he, too, grow to be a man of strong faith. Praise be to God who has given us this child! Read more

for childbirth. #6 has decided to give into his mother’s pleas and make his arrival within the next day or so. Please pray for a quick and easy labor and a healthy baby! Read more

By JIM MYERS World Washington BureauPublished: 7/25/2009 4:10 AMLast Modified: 7/25/2009 4:29 AM WASHINGTON — Armadillos, marshmallows and American liberty. U.S. Sen. Tom Coburn managed to connect those three in a speech Thursday on the Senate floor to explain how he traps armadillos that visit his yard in Muskogee and what Americans could learn from their fate. “They’ll ruin a good yard ’cause they like grub worms,” the Oklahoma Republican said in remarks on federal spending that could be described... Read more

3:00 AM The lightning flashed and the thunder shook our windows. Then our bedroom door slowly opened and the silhouette of #3 paused in the open doorway, tousled and sleepy, wearing his too-big pajamas and clutching his pillow. My wild child reduced to a mere slip of a boy. It crashed again and he flew to my side of the bed. “Can I sleep with you?” Without waiting for a reply, he scrambled over me and settled into the empty... Read more

And for my beloved Computer Guy Read more