When my husband and I were newly married, for about the first 10 years or so, we lived a little bit over an hour from his Grandma Frech. What would be a short drive for us now that we live in Dallas, seemed like a trek back in those days. Visits to Grandma’s house were never spontaneous. We planned them weeks in advance, and rearranged our whole lives in order to be able to spend time at her house. Often... Read more

She was absolutely still this morning during the Consecration, attention riveted on what was going on at the altar. With her feet planted on the seat and her hands on the back of the pew in front of us, she hardly breathed or blinked as the bells sounded and Father prayed. Just as I was beginning to feel proud of how well my 3-year-old paid attention in Mass, she whispered, ” I’m a dog.” “What?” I whispered back, almost afraid... Read more

My youngest daughter climbed into bed with me this morning while I was still sleeping. She slipped beneath the covers and curled her body into the curve of mine. I woke up to her chirping voice singing a made-up song of happiness as he tiny fingers skipped along my own. Her hand swiped the hair from her forehead. She rolled onto her back and regaled me with a tale of her best friend “Abblie” and their adventures with Barbie dolls... Read more

I had this whole build up planned that I was going to do here – building to a crescendo…but I don’t so that well, so let’s start with the big stuff and work backwards 1) The Visitation Project is on iTunes! Oh my gosh! How cool is that? Now we’re not just wherever you are, we’re whenever you are too! (The picture is also a link to the TVP page on iTunes!) 2) All of this awesomeness means that I’m... Read more

My visit with my college roommate ended yesterday (tell you about that later.) I drove her down to Houston so that she could see friends and have a couple of meetings before she flies home. I’m not as young as I used to be, and doing that 4 hour drive twice in one day was completely exhausting. Which is why I stopped at the Whataburger in Corsicana, Texas…because I was tired and needed to stretch…and they have that A-1 burger... Read more

Once upon a time, on a whim, we drove from Texas to Washington DC because we wanted to eat at her favorite diner on New Year’s Eve. There was a time that I undertook the most harrowing journey ever, just to spend a weekend hanging out with her in Houston. She was my college roommate and my Girl Scout buddy. She’s been my voice of reason, and the kick in my a** when I needed one. She’s my untiring supporter, loudest cheerleader,... Read more

I’m a person who tells, the kind of girl who overshares everything. It’s why I have a blog. It’s why my husband sometimes wishes that he owned a muzzle. I’m famously bad at keeping my own secrets. (My friends’ will go to the grave with me.) I share news, good and bad, the moment that I know it to be true. Except for the time that I didn’t. This time I listened to the quiet request of my husband and kept something... Read more

A year ago, Stephen’s wife was diagnosed with leukemia. He did what musicians do, and set his experience to music. Now that she’s on the road to recovery, and they have “Baby Sylvester” due in late October, they’ve decided that the time has come for him to share what he wrote with the world. Being creative is the easy part, sharing it with the world can be expensive. That’s why he, and the rest of The Sylvester Band, have taken... Read more

Last week, we requested full and complete copies of Ella’s medical records from every doctor or hospital she saw in the last eighteen months. Last night, we received the digital copies of her complete file (including notes) from the neurologist who finally diagnosed her as having “Abnormal Muscle Movement.” Dr C was the mad genius whose frenetic energy made me nervous and unsure about his ability, but beneath his mad scientist air was a very perceptive man. He had a lot... Read more