![Read, Pray, and Please Make This Go Viral!]()
by Catherine | Jun 21, 2014 | Everything Else
Faithful blog readers, remember my dear friend, Amanda Teixeira? Back in December, we wrote a series on the cross of infertility. (If you didn’t have a chance to read it, head on back to read Amanda’s words. She does such a great job of explaining what it’s like for a couple to carry the cross of infertility.)
This last week, Amanda and her husband, Jonathan, happened to be in town for a family wedding. Even though their visit was super jam-packed with other obligations, people to visit, and things to do, they were gracious enough to head down the road to Lincoln and pay us a visit. It was so nice to be able to catch up and hear all about the latest in their world. (If you want to keep up on what the Teixeiras are up to, head over to their great blog, TRUEGOODANDBEAUTIFUL.)
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| Aren’t they adorable? This picture makes me smile ear to ear. |
Let me cut to the chase. I need your help, and Amanda and Jonathan would love it if you could help, too! You see, they have discerned that God is calling them to adopt a precious baby. You can read about their posts on adoption here.
So, how can we help Jonathan and Amanda to help their dreams come to fruition?
1. Spread the word!
As Amanda wrote on their blog,
“…pursuing designated adoption versus agency domestic adoption is significantly more affordable. As in one-third to half of the cost. It involves locating a birth mother on our own or via family/friends connections and then going to our agency to set up the legal paperwork and proper counseling to facilitate the adoption.
The hardest part of this type of adoption is locating a birth mother. We plan to make an adoption video/profile and set up some sort of social media campaign to let others know we desire to adopt and are looking for any connection to a birth mother out there. If you have any connection at any time to a birth mother discerning adoption, LET US KNOW!”
Do you know of a birth mother discerning adoption? Please pass along Amanda and Jonathan’s information!
2. Share our treasure
I can’t say it any better than Amanda did:
“This can be the scary part for some adoptive couples out there. Since Jonathan and I already fundraise our of income this portion isn’t that frightening. We know too many generous and kind people to be afraid of fundraising. We also have watched God provide for our needs time and time again in the most random ways. If adopting is God’s will for our family – the money will come some way or another.
“Religion that is pure and undefiled before God and the Father is this: to care for orphans and widows in their affliction…” James 1:27
Sure, we could simply rely on grants, tax credits, and personal budget/savings to do this adoption. But we feel an actual calling to involve others. In our self-sufficient society, we feel God asking us specifically to make ourselves vulnerable in this way. To expose our needs to others – for judgement, generosity, kindness, cruel comments, etc. I have no idea as to what people will think but we are being obedient to God in this, so I can’t care what people think.
This adoption isn’t just a means of growing our family. It can be a way to bring The Body of Christ together in a powerful way to answer God’s call to care for orphans. Who are we to prevent others from being able to answer this call in a concrete way by supporting our adoption efforts financially? For most, this will be the only way they ever have to care for an orphaned child in an up close and personal way. Through financially supporting us, they are giving a child a family.
We aren’t sure exactly how we will pursue fundraising. There are TONS of ideas out there in books, blogs, and on Pintrest. Once we become home study approved, we will take more concrete steps to put together a fundraising initiative.”
Stay tuned as to how Amanda and Jonathan will formally fundraise. In the meantime, if you are interested in helping them “bring The Body of Christ together,” you can contact them here.
3. Pray, pray, pray
Keep those prayers coming! Nothing is impossible with God. May God’s will be done in His perfect time for Amanda and Jonathan. We pray that God’s will is for them to become parents of a precious baby through the ultimate generosity of a birth mother who chose them as his or her parents.
Thank you for reading a little about Amanda and Jonathan’s story. They will continue to share updates and information about ways we can help on their blog. Become a subscriber to Amanda and Jonathan’s blog TRUEGOODANDBEAUTIFUL to stay up-to-date. I’ll keep sharing news and updates here, too. In the meantime, keep those prayers coming, prayerfully discern sharing your treasure, and pass along their information to any possible birth mothers. Thank you for helping my dear friends!
Holy Family of Nazareth, pray for us!
![Life’s Too Short for Mommy Guilt]()
by Catherine | May 30, 2014 | Everything Else, Family, Marriage
Jim Gaffigan is right. It is amazing that mothers have anyone to talk to! He lays out his brilliant case in Dad is Fat:
“Motherhood is filled with executive decisions, and with each decision comes possible conflict with kids, husbands, and other mom friends. With these other mom friends, there are so many opportunities for major disagreements and awkwardness. Let’s say that a woman starts with twenty friends when she finds out she’s pregnant. There is going to be awkwardness with, let’s say, six of those friends because they have no interest in babies or are jealous she is pregnant. Then four won’t agree with how she behaves during the pregnancy. She’s too uptight, too casual, or not available enough as a friend. We are down to ten friends. Then there are the decisions of how the baby will be delivered, breastfeeding, circumcision, blanket or no blanket in the crib, and whether or not to return to work after the birth. These topics turn out to be more divisive than opinions about politics and religion. After a couple of kids, there might be one good friend left. And that friend is never available because she has too many kids herself. I’m amazed mothers have anyone to talk to. When a man finds out he’s going to be a father, it barely covers more than twenty seconds of a conversation with his male friends. ‘I heard you two are expecting! Congratu…Who do you think is the best quarterback in the fourth quarter?'”
Oi vey. As if motherhood weren’t tough enough, now we have the digital age intruding. Everyone has an opinion on every single itty bitty little facet of mothering. If you’re somehow connected to social media, someone will come along (if they haven’t already) and tell you how you’re doing it all wrong. The digital age makes it so much easier for the smug know-it-alls of the world to let you know that you’re an idiot. If we’re not careful, this tendency can bleed over into the world of mommy friends, and it can be downright toxic if we let it. The steady build-up of mommy guilt creates a crazy mama.
 |
| I don’t think she had mommy guilt. She had more important things to focus on. |
I’m still a rookie in the world of parenting, but I’ve learned to own one thing: life is too short for unnecessary mommy guilt. (Note: Guilt is a good thing. If we have a well-formed conscience, guilt is God’s way of setting off alarm bells to STOP whatever we’re doing because it’s bad for us. Unnecessary mommy guilt is the huge load of self-imposed guilt we have for not parenting the way someone else thinks we should.) I don’t parent the exact same way as my own mother, my sister and sisters-in-law, or my dear friends. Philip and I have figured out the brand of parenting that’s working for our family, and we keep reinventing things or making it up as we go. There will always be the people telling us that we’re doing it wrong or that we should rethink something. Of course, there will always be areas that I need to work on as a mom. So long as I’m human, there will be room for improvement. God, my conscience, and family do a bang up job filling me in on my shortcomings. Unless mommy advice is coming from the Holy Spirit or a sweet loved one with my family’s best interests genuinely at heart, we keep rolling with the punches.
I’m learning to own my role in this family. A big part of that is figuring out what makes me me–for better and for worse. That means spending a lot of time asking God to reveal my strengths, weaknesses, habits, vices, and virtues. It means humbly accepting my limitations and asking for an extra heap of grace on the days when my capacity to serve isn’t meeting my family’s needs. It also means seeking absolution in the confessional for all of my failings. Beyond that, letting go of unnecessary mommy guilt is one of the best things I’ve done for our family.
Everyone will have different versions of mommy guilt. Letting go of mommy guilt around here looks like this:
Naps
I love sleep. A good nap is more precious than gold for this lady! If the kids’ naptime rolls around, and I’m feeling like I’m not going to make it to dinner without losing my mind, I lay down. I may lose out on some valuable time to get some housework done, but the nap replaces the crazy lady with the short fuse with a happy mama. In my experience, the guilt associated with crazy lady with the short fuse is not worth the dusted family room. When my pillow beckons me, I give in.
Congratulating myself for breastfeeding all three babies (no matter how long)
I tried breastfeeding all three kids, and my record is 5 months with Harry. I plan to breastfeed any future kiddos we may be blessed with, and I’m still hopeful that I can make it longer with future babies, but I’m not going to breastfeed at the expense of my sanity or the peace of the whole fam. Yes, absolutely, breast is best, and breastfeeding moms are huge heroes in my book. However, I’ve learned that attaching breastfeeding to my self worth as a mom does more harm than good. Ironically, when I let go of all of that, I was able to breastfeed for the longest amount of time. Here’s to hoping we will be blessed with more babies and that breastfeeding goes swimmingly. If it doesn’t, I’ll remember that how I feed my babies is only one part of mothering.
Choosing Philip
This culture wants me to choose my kids over my husband, but I won’t because I know I can’t if I want our marriage to be in top form. In order for me to be a good mom, I choose to be a good wife first. No mommy guilt in this department means regular date nights, no kids allowed in our bed, a regular bedtime routine for everyone (remember, I love sleep!), and lots of making out. Lots and lots of making out.
Asking For and Accepting Forgiveness
When I screw up (ask the peanut gallery how often that happens), I’ve learned to both ask for forgiveness and accept it. I make it a regular point to ask the kids for forgiveness when I screw up–yelling, nagging, being too strict, the list goes on… Have you ever asked a 2-year-old for forgiveness and heard their sweet little voice say, “I forgive you, Mama”? The hard part is believing them when they say we’re forgiven and resolving to make a change.
There’s always the temptation when I leave the confessional after hearing the words of absolution to think, “Nah. I’m such a wretch. There’s no way God forgives me for that.” Stewing in guilt is a slap in the face to God who offers us His Divine Mercy. It’s some sort of twisted power trip that only ends up making me bitter for being a wretch. So, when I go to sleep, instead of stewing in whatever ways I screwed up as a mom that day, I believe in my kids’ words of forgiveness (even if they don’t completely understand how I screwed up), and I resolve to do better the next day–praying that God will give me a huge heap of grace to actually change. More often than not, I end up asking for forgiveness for the same things every single day. When I complained to a priest that I keep bringing the same things into the confessional over and over again, he said, “Well, I suppose it’s better than bringing in a bunch of new sins!”
Asking For and Accepting Help
The silly, younger me soldiered on through the tough times with so much as thinking of asking for help. “Only the weak do that! I’ve got this.” Silly, silly, silly me. Somehow, I thought accepting help from people offering it would be imposing on them. It wasn’t until I miscarried our baby, Thérése, that God taught me the great healing that comes when we allow others to be the Body of Christ to us. I realized it was healing for me to receive their love during that time, but I learned another thing. People love us, and they have a genuine need to show us that love. When we constantly shrug off their genuine offers to love us through loving acts of service, that’s not brave or admirable; it’s actually selfish. If we’re going through tough stuff, people want and need to help. (Now, don’t get me wrong, there’s such a thing as the intrusive sorta folks. I’m not talking about them. I’m talking about the dear woman in your parish who brought you that delicious home-cooked dinner after you had a baby or the neighbor who put a gorgeous planter of annuals on your front stoop after learning that your father died.) God made us body and soul, and it’s a good thing for us to exercise giving and receiving the spiritual and corporal works of mercy. The only reward for the self-appointed supermom who soldiers it alone day after day is exhaustion and self-pity.
 |
| How exhausted self-appointed supermom feels |
A writer over at Yahoo shared a story about how she was having one of those mornings with her kiddos. When another mom asked her what was wrong at school drop-off, she regaled her with the play-by-play of everything that had gone wrong that morning. The concerned friend kindly asked her how she could help. The author calls this offer of help the “‘nice’ mom gesture that kind of irks me.” I had to reread the article to make sure I understood correctly. Another mom saw her need for help, went out of her way to offer assistance, and the frazzled mom’s reaction was something like, “How DARE SHE think I can’t handle this!”
The old me was totally the indignant frazzled mom. The new me is still frazzled, but when there’s an offer of help on the table, I’m able to say, “YES! Please! I’d love some help!” What the old frazzled me didn’t get was that the moms who are offering their help aren’t doing it out of some charity for me. (Besides, even if they are, the good news is that I’m still getting help, right?! Joke’s on them!) In my experience, the mom friends who are the first to offer help are also willing to accept it. I learned that they accept their own limitations, empathize with another mom’s need for help, and strive to be good friends by giving and receiving. With the mommy yoke temporary lifted off of our shoulders every now and then, we come back refreshed and ready to pay it forward with the other mamas around them. If I knew the author of that article, I’d tell her to start accepting offers of help before they disappear. If we’re honest, we know that we could use some help every now and then. Besides, the people who love us need to be needed, and it’s good to let them love us!
Are You Ready to Let Go Of Mommy Guilt?
There is always going to be someone out there telling you or just making you feel like you’re a complete failure as a mother. Remember this: you have no idea what’s going on behind closed doors in that woman’s life. Besides, even if her life is as perfect as it looks from the outside, her family’s needs are not your family’s needs. So long as we’re honest with God about our shortcomings and are asking Him for the strength to keep giving it our all everyday, there’s nothing to fear, shame, or stew in. Look in the mirror, know that God entrusted your children’s souls to you, and that you are exactly the woman He is asking to faithfully form and guide them until you give them back. That’s all there is to it. No more comparing or keeping score.
Allow the beautiful women you surround yourself with to build you up and be a blessing in your life. Build them up. Accept their help. Be generous in your offers to help them. Better yet, make your offers specific to your friend’s needs so that they’ll be less likely to turn them down. Remember that she’s best equipped to raise her family and you’re best equipped to raise yours. When you find those friends who are equally present for you during the rough patches and the good times, hold onto them tight. They’ll help you keep fighting the good fight and remind you to let go of unnecessary mommy guilt along the way. Listen to them. Believe them. Life’s too short for mommy guilt.
Go, play with your kids. Take breaks. Accept help. Give help. Keep romancing your husband, and make sure he’s #2 only to God. Your kids will thank you for it later. Ask your kids for forgiveness when you screw up (and you will), and be sure you actually accept their forgiveness. Pray for the grace to do better tomorrow. God won’t be outdone in generosity. With Him, all things are possible, and He’ll release you from all of that silly mommy guilt you’re hanging onto.
Mama Mary, pray for us!
![Life's Too Short for Mommy Guilt]()
by Catherine | May 30, 2014 | Everything Else, Family, Marriage
Jim Gaffigan is right. It is amazing that mothers have anyone to talk to! He lays out his brilliant case in Dad is Fat:
“Motherhood is filled with executive decisions, and with each decision comes possible conflict with kids, husbands, and other mom friends. With these other mom friends, there are so many opportunities for major disagreements and awkwardness. Let’s say that a woman starts with twenty friends when she finds out she’s pregnant. There is going to be awkwardness with, let’s say, six of those friends because they have no interest in babies or are jealous she is pregnant. Then four won’t agree with how she behaves during the pregnancy. She’s too uptight, too casual, or not available enough as a friend. We are down to ten friends. Then there are the decisions of how the baby will be delivered, breastfeeding, circumcision, blanket or no blanket in the crib, and whether or not to return to work after the birth. These topics turn out to be more divisive than opinions about politics and religion. After a couple of kids, there might be one good friend left. And that friend is never available because she has too many kids herself. I’m amazed mothers have anyone to talk to. When a man finds out he’s going to be a father, it barely covers more than twenty seconds of a conversation with his male friends. ‘I heard you two are expecting! Congratu…Who do you think is the best quarterback in the fourth quarter?'”
Oi vey. As if motherhood weren’t tough enough, now we have the digital age intruding. Everyone has an opinion on every single itty bitty little facet of mothering. If you’re somehow connected to social media, someone will come along (if they haven’t already) and tell you how you’re doing it all wrong. The digital age makes it so much easier for the smug know-it-alls of the world to let you know that you’re an idiot. If we’re not careful, this tendency can bleed over into the world of mommy friends, and it can be downright toxic if we let it. The steady build-up of mommy guilt creates a crazy mama.
|
| I don’t think she had mommy guilt. She had more important things to focus on. |
I’m still a rookie in the world of parenting, but I’ve learned to own one thing: life is too short for unnecessary mommy guilt. (Note: Guilt is a good thing. If we have a well-formed conscience, guilt is God’s way of setting off alarm bells to STOP whatever we’re doing because it’s bad for us. Unnecessary mommy guilt is the huge load of self-imposed guilt we have for not parenting the way someone else thinks we should.) I don’t parent the exact same way as my own mother, my sister and sisters-in-law, or my dear friends. Philip and I have figured out the brand of parenting that’s working for our family, and we keep reinventing things or making it up as we go. There will always be the people telling us that we’re doing it wrong or that we should rethink something. Of course, there will always be areas that I need to work on as a mom. So long as I’m human, there will be room for improvement. God, my conscience, and family do a bang up job filling me in on my shortcomings. Unless mommy advice is coming from the Holy Spirit or a sweet loved one with my family’s best interests genuinely at heart, we keep rolling with the punches.
I’m learning to own my role in this family. A big part of that is figuring out what makes me me–for better and for worse. That means spending a lot of time asking God to reveal my strengths, weaknesses, habits, vices, and virtues. It means humbly accepting my limitations and asking for an extra heap of grace on the days when my capacity to serve isn’t meeting my family’s needs. It also means seeking absolution in the confessional for all of my failings. Beyond that, letting go of unnecessary mommy guilt is one of the best things I’ve done for our family.
Everyone will have different versions of mommy guilt. Letting go of mommy guilt around here looks like this:
Naps
I love sleep. A good nap is more precious than gold for this lady! If the kids’ naptime rolls around, and I’m feeling like I’m not going to make it to dinner without losing my mind, I lay down. I may lose out on some valuable time to get some housework done, but the nap replaces the crazy lady with the short fuse with a happy mama. In my experience, the guilt associated with crazy lady with the short fuse is not worth the dusted family room. When my pillow beckons me, I give in.
Congratulating myself for breastfeeding all three babies (no matter how long)
I tried breastfeeding all three kids, and my record is 5 months with Harry. I plan to breastfeed any future kiddos we may be blessed with, and I’m still hopeful that I can make it longer with future babies, but I’m not going to breastfeed at the expense of my sanity or the peace of the whole fam. Yes, absolutely, breast is best, and breastfeeding moms are huge heroes in my book. However, I’ve learned that attaching breastfeeding to my self worth as a mom does more harm than good. Ironically, when I let go of all of that, I was able to breastfeed for the longest amount of time. Here’s to hoping we will be blessed with more babies and that breastfeeding goes swimmingly. If it doesn’t, I’ll remember that how I feed my babies is only one part of mothering.
Choosing Philip
This culture wants me to choose my kids over my husband, but I won’t because I know I can’t if I want our marriage to be in top form. In order for me to be a good mom, I choose to be a good wife first. No mommy guilt in this department means regular date nights, no kids allowed in our bed, a regular bedtime routine for everyone (remember, I love sleep!), and lots of making out. Lots and lots of making out.
Asking For and Accepting Forgiveness
When I screw up (ask the peanut gallery how often that happens), I’ve learned to both ask for forgiveness and accept it. I make it a regular point to ask the kids for forgiveness when I screw up–yelling, nagging, being too strict, the list goes on… Have you ever asked a 2-year-old for forgiveness and heard their sweet little voice say, “I forgive you, Mama”? The hard part is believing them when they say we’re forgiven and resolving to make a change.
There’s always the temptation when I leave the confessional after hearing the words of absolution to think, “Nah. I’m such a wretch. There’s no way God forgives me for that.” Stewing in guilt is a slap in the face to God who offers us His Divine Mercy. It’s some sort of twisted power trip that only ends up making me bitter for being a wretch. So, when I go to sleep, instead of stewing in whatever ways I screwed up as a mom that day, I believe in my kids’ words of forgiveness (even if they don’t completely understand how I screwed up), and I resolve to do better the next day–praying that God will give me a huge heap of grace to actually change. More often than not, I end up asking for forgiveness for the same things every single day. When I complained to a priest that I keep bringing the same things into the confessional over and over again, he said, “Well, I suppose it’s better than bringing in a bunch of new sins!”
Asking For and Accepting Help
The silly, younger me soldiered on through the tough times with so much as thinking of asking for help. “Only the weak do that! I’ve got this.” Silly, silly, silly me. Somehow, I thought accepting help from people offering it would be imposing on them. It wasn’t until I miscarried our baby, Thérése, that God taught me the great healing that comes when we allow others to be the Body of Christ to us. I realized it was healing for me to receive their love during that time, but I learned another thing. People love us, and they have a genuine need to show us that love. When we constantly shrug off their genuine offers to love us through loving acts of service, that’s not brave or admirable; it’s actually selfish. If we’re going through tough stuff, people want and need to help. (Now, don’t get me wrong, there’s such a thing as the intrusive sorta folks. I’m not talking about them. I’m talking about the dear woman in your parish who brought you that delicious home-cooked dinner after you had a baby or the neighbor who put a gorgeous planter of annuals on your front stoop after learning that your father died.) God made us body and soul, and it’s a good thing for us to exercise giving and receiving the spiritual and corporal works of mercy. The only reward for the self-appointed supermom who soldiers it alone day after day is exhaustion and self-pity.
|
| How exhausted self-appointed supermom feels |
A writer over at Yahoo shared a story about how she was having one of those mornings with her kiddos. When another mom asked her what was wrong at school drop-off, she regaled her with the play-by-play of everything that had gone wrong that morning. The concerned friend kindly asked her how she could help. The author calls this offer of help the “‘nice’ mom gesture that kind of irks me.” I had to reread the article to make sure I understood correctly. Another mom saw her need for help, went out of her way to offer assistance, and the frazzled mom’s reaction was something like, “How DARE SHE think I can’t handle this!”
The old me was totally the indignant frazzled mom. The new me is still frazzled, but when there’s an offer of help on the table, I’m able to say, “YES! Please! I’d love some help!” What the old frazzled me didn’t get was that the moms who are offering their help aren’t doing it out of some charity for me. (Besides, even if they are, the good news is that I’m still getting help, right?! Joke’s on them!) In my experience, the mom friends who are the first to offer help are also willing to accept it. I learned that they accept their own limitations, empathize with another mom’s need for help, and strive to be good friends by giving and receiving. With the mommy yoke temporary lifted off of our shoulders every now and then, we come back refreshed and ready to pay it forward with the other mamas around them. If I knew the author of that article, I’d tell her to start accepting offers of help before they disappear. If we’re honest, we know that we could use some help every now and then. Besides, the people who love us need to be needed, and it’s good to let them love us!
Are You Ready to Let Go Of Mommy Guilt?
There is always going to be someone out there telling you or just making you feel like you’re a complete failure as a mother. Remember this: you have no idea what’s going on behind closed doors in that woman’s life. Besides, even if her life is as perfect as it looks from the outside, her family’s needs are not your family’s needs. So long as we’re honest with God about our shortcomings and are asking Him for the strength to keep giving it our all everyday, there’s nothing to fear, shame, or stew in. Look in the mirror, know that God entrusted your children’s souls to you, and that you are exactly the woman He is asking to faithfully form and guide them until you give them back. That’s all there is to it. No more com
paring or keeping score.
Allow the beautiful women you surround yourself with to build you up and be a blessing in your life. Build them up. Accept their help. Be generous in your offers to help them. Better yet, make your offers specific to your friend’s needs so that they’ll be less likely to turn them down. Remember that she’s best equipped to raise her family and you’re best equipped to raise yours. When you find those friends who are equally present for you during the rough patches and the good times, hold onto them tight. They’ll help you keep fighting the good fight and remind you to let go of unnecessary mommy guilt along the way. Listen to them. Believe them. Life’s too short for mommy guilt.
Go, play with your kids. Take breaks. Accept help. Give help. Keep romancing your husband, and make sure he’s #2 only to God. Your kids will thank you for it later. Ask your kids for forgiveness when you screw up (and you will), and be sure you actually accept their forgiveness. Pray for the grace to do better tomorrow. God won’t be outdone in generosity. With Him, all things are possible, and He’ll release you from all of that silly mommy guilt you’re hanging onto.
Mama Mary, pray for us!
![An Organized Move]()
by Catherine | May 23, 2014 | Everything Else, The Homefront
Sorry for the blog silence for nearly a month! Things have been just a TAD busy lately. We’ve had all kinds of excitement that I want to catch you up on. For now, I’m limiting myself to writing about our big move!
Last Saturday, we moved out of our very first home in Omaha. Poor Monty was (and still is) so confused!
Philip’s parents generously took the kiddos for us so that we could focus on the actual moving. One of the movers took this pic of me, Philip, and Monty before we hopped in our cars to Lincoln. We couldn’t have asked for better weather on moving day–70’s and sunny! Ahhhhhhh!
The movers were AWESOME! They were fast but took such great care of our things. They kinda made me feel like a hoarder, though, when I saw how FULL the truck was! It’s a good thing God gave these guys the ability to pack things with Tetris-like precision because that’s a talent I don’t have.
However, the movers were glad to see that there was a method to the madness inside of the truck when it came to unloading.
When we started packing months ago, I searched Pinterest and the web for an organization method to this move. Per usual, I stole what I loved and made up my own combination of what I found. My organization system required:
- A huge stack of construction paper with multiple colors (from Costco)
- Shipping labels
- Black Sharpie markers
After we knew the layout of our new home, we designated a color for each room, and I made several keys. I separated the key by levels of the house (upstairs, main level, and basement).
As we packed each box, we slapped a sheet of construction paper on the side of the box that corresponded to the room it was going in. (Red = kitchen, Pink paper = Girl room, Orange = garage, etc.) Then, we put the white label in the middle of the box with its contents. We were as specific as possible on the contents to make unpacking less of a treasure hunt!
On moving day, I taped the laminated keys on the truck, garage, front door, and entryway.
Then, I taped laminated signs on each room with the corresponding color. That way, as the movers unloaded the boxes, all they had to do was find the color on the box and find the corresponding color room, using the key and signs as their guides. Here, you can see the pink sign on the door with the boxes stacked inside with their matching pink labels.
Make sense?
It helped this crazy lady, and the movers kept saying that it was the easiest move they had ever done. Yay!
When the movers packed the truck in Omaha, I asked them to load the red boxes (kitchen) last so that when we got to Lincoln I could focus on lining those shelves and getting the kitchen ready first. The organization paid off because I was able to work nearly uninterrupted while the well-oiled organization system did its thing. Also, we had a professional cleaning company come that morning so that we could focus on unpacking instead of cleaning. Lesson learned: professional movers and cleaners are worth every single penny!
Obligatory selfie in front of the house on moving day.
Nearly a week later, we’re feeling settled and are loving our new home.
Cheers to our new chapter! (Courtesy of the previous owners. Aren’t they the sweetest?!)
![Why You Should Oppose LB485]()
by Catherine | Apr 4, 2014 | Everything Else, Faith
The Nebraska Catholic Conference opposes LB485, and my goal in this post is to share why. After reading this post, whether you are Catholic or not, I hope you will be opposed to LB485 if you are a champion of religious freedom.
First, what is LB485?
“Legislative Bill 485, in the form of Amendment 1771, would add ‘sexual orientation’ and ‘gender identity’ as protected classifications for purposes of the law used to punish employers (of 15 or more employees) for decisions deemed to be discrimination in hiring, firing and terms and conditions of employment. In addition, it would apply the same prohibitive standard to all contractors and subcontractors of the state and political subdivisions regardless of the number of employees.” (Taken from the PDF “Background Information on LB485 from The Nebraska Catholic Conference”)
Why is this a problem for religious liberty?
LB485 does not make the essential distinctions that the Catholic Church makes when it comes to sexual immorality. The Catholic Church teaches that it is not in and of itself sinful to have same sex attraction. In other words, someone should not be unjustly fired “just for being gay.” (I have all kinds of problems with the phrase “being gay,” but I’ll save that for another time.) While the Church does not teach that it is sinful in and of itself to have same sex attraction, it is sinful when one acts on that same sex attraction.
Catholics are taught in the Catechism of the Catholic Church paragraph 2358 that those with same sex attraction “must be accepted with respect, compassion, and sensitivity. Every sign of unjust discrimination in their regard should be avoided.” The argument I’m reading everywhere that “the Nebraska Catholic Church thinks you can be fired just for being gay” is malarkey. (By the way, there is no “Nebraska Catholic Church.” It’s just the Catholic Church.) If the Catholic Church really taught that we ought to unjustly discriminate against those with same sex attraction, we’d all be rightly outraged.
We need to make an important distinction that LB485 does not. While Catholics are called to never unjustly discriminate against someone with same sex attraction, Catholics uphold the never-changing tradition of the Church that “homosexual acts are intrinsicially disordered” and that “under no circumstances can they be approved” (Emphasis mine. Catechism of the Catholic Church, paragraph 2357).
Hate the sin. Love the sinner.
LB485 doesn’t allow for that distinction. By using the umbrella terms “sexual orientation” and “gender identity,”
“This proposed law to prohibit and punish discrimination based on “sexual orientation” extends far beyond unjust discrimination based on any employer’s mere belief that any applicant or employee is sexually attracted to persons of the same sex. It extends legal protection and state governmental affirmation to public activities intended to endorse, promote and facilitate sexual conduct (i.e., lifestyle activities) outside of marriage between a man and a woman. Employers who, because of their religious and/or moral convictions, do not wish to accept or affirm lifestyles that involve sexual conduct outside of marriage between a man and a woman will be subject to state-imposed punishment for claims of discrimination.” (Emphasis mine. Taken from the PDF “Background Information on LB485 from The Nebraska Catholic Conference”)
In practice, this means that Catholic parishes and schools in Nebraska would no longer be protected by their morality clause when it comes to “sexual orientation” or “gender identity.”
When I became an employee of a Catholic school in Nebraska, part of my contract asked me to sign a “morality clause,” meaning that I agreed as an employee of that Catholic school to abide by Catholic Church Teaching. If the school learned that I somehow violated Church Teaching, they would have the right to fire me under their morality clause.
Under LB485, religious and private organizations following adherence to Church Teaching on sexual morality in their workplace and employment practices would be subject to legal action and penalty.
A Catholic school in California is already experiencing legal scrutiny. St. Lucy’s Priory fired Ken Bencomo for violating the school’s morality clause when pictures from his “wedding ceremony” to his same sex partner were published in a local newspaper. Mr. Bencomo is firing the school for “wrongful termination in violation of public policy, violation of the state Labor Code and breach of contract.” Lawsuits like Mr. Bencomo’s will continue coming in against religious and private organizations trying to uphold their own moral codes. St. Lucy’s Priory and other private or religious organizations will be forced to choose under legislation like LB485: violate your conscience or face legal punishment. Just laws do not force individuals to violate their consciences.
Nebraskans, please join me in opposing LB485. Call or e-mail your state senator, and urge them to oppose LB485. To find your state senator, click here.
![Consignment Shopping RULES!]()
by Catherine | Apr 3, 2014 | Everything Else, The Homefront
When I found out that my favorite area consignment sale was happening this week, I asked my girlfriend Kelly to watch the kiddos for me so that I could shop. Having a gal pal that stays home with sweet kiddos that love to play with my kids is such a blessing! Thanks, Kelly! You’re the best. 🙂
Thanks to Kelly, I was able to be at the consignment sale as they opened the doors to the public. I was ready and raring to go with my two empty laundry baskets and cross-body purse so that I could be efficient and hands-free!
I’m still relatively new to this consigning stuff, so indulge me as I share my pictures. I can’t get over how great the clothes are for the price!
Check it out. Here are my two overflowing baskets:
Let’s get a little closer so that you can better appreciate the sheer quantity.
And the second basket:
It’s not just about quantity, people. Let’s look at a few of my favorite pieces up close and personal.
Here’s a skirt from The Children’s Place with the tags still on it.
A Ralph Lauren romper for Harry. The only way I’m buying something Ralph Lauren for my baby to crawl in and vomit on is if it’s a gift or second-hand! $3. THREE DOLLAH, people!
Harry scored a “Future Freshman” Sesame Street Husker outfit, too. Can’t wait to see his chunky legs crawling around in it this summer!
OshKosh overalls are always a favorite at this house!
Harry’s new Baby Gap lobster swim trunks. Pass the sunblock!
Here are a few pics of the kids’ clothes grouped together.
I bought Jane:
Shirts: 14
Skirts: 2
Shorts: 6
Pants/Leggings: 3
Dresses: 1
Jammies: 2
I got Walt:
Shirts: 18
Shorts: 9
Jammies: 4
Swim Trunks: 2
Swim Shirt: 1
Do you think he’s into Cars? I only got him two Cars t-shirts, but I indulged on the swim trunks and swim shirt!
I got Harry:
Rompers/onesies/shirts: 12
Overalls: 1
Shorts: 4
Jammies: 1
Swim Trunks: 1
I’ll have to fill in the gaps with things like socks, underwear, jammies, swimwear, etc., but I got almost all of the 3 kids’ spring & summer clothing needs met in 2 hours.
The best part? This is the pricetag for all of those clothes:
That’s 65 items of clothing!
$253.20 / 65 = $3.90 per item
So, yeah, most of my kids’ clothes are second-hand, but I DON’T CARE because we’re saving buckets of money. Most of the clothes that I purchased at the sale were from The Gap, Carter’s, The Children’s Place, or Gymboree. We still buy some stuff new from nice stores so that they can be passed down from one child to the next (coats, shoes, etc.), but I’m quickly learning that most clothes don’t survive one child’s wear–at least in my family!
Questions for you:
Do you go consignment shopping? Do you have any tips or tricks to share? Do you sell at consignment sales? How does that work? I’ve never been on the selling end before. How do you handle clothing storage at your house? Do you have a system for rotating things out seasonally? Share your wisdom, friends!
