![Jane’s 6th Birthday Party]()
by Catherine | Feb 6, 2016 | Family
Jane has always loved her birthday, so it came as no surprise when she started talking about her party master plan several months ago.
“Mom, this year, I’ve decided I want to have a poor party.”
“What’s a ‘poor party,’ honey?”
“Well, instead of presents, I want my friends to bring food for the poor, and then we’ll go around and deliver it to them.”
Yeah. I cried. That was SO not how I dreamed of my birthday party at six years old! My little kindergartener didn’t want presents; she wanted to use her special day to bless others. Between the hormones of pregnancy and all of the sweetness, I just couldn’t handle it!
We talked about how we could put her plan into action and have a little fun with her classmates at the same time. We decided we’d have a Friday evening pizza and cake party at the local indoor playground for Jane’s kindergarten class and their families. Instead of presents, we’d ask everyone to bring a donation for the food pantry to leave at the door. After pizza and cake, the parents could visit while the kids ran amok and burned off the sugar!
Jane was also very, very concerned that everyone got a special treat bag. She selected pink baggies with purple stickers that she signed. Since she has a birthday so close to Valentine’s Day, it’s easy to find her favorite candies with pink and purple wrappers. As a final touch, she got an assortment of holy cards of favorite saints/prayers from the Catholic bookstore in town, and she stuck one in each bag.
Walt was very happy to help with this project!
I’m slowly learning how to not be a perfectionist and let the kids do their own thing when they can. I’m very proud of Jane and Walt for doing this project together!
We arrived early at the indoor playground to set up the party room. The boys were happy to entertain themselves while we set things out.
The guests started arriving with all of their food donations and handmade cards for Jane. Is there anything more adorable than a handmade card from a kindergartener?! So sweet! Jane can’t wait to drop off the donations from her classmates at the food pantry.
First, the food:
Cheers!
Then, a magical moment: Mrs. C., Jane’s kindergarten teacher, entered the party scene! Oh my word, the shrieking and hugs from the little kindergarten girls! What an amazing woman to come on a FRIDAY NIGHT (at the end of a busy Catholic Schools Week, no less) to her student’s birthday party! We love you, Mrs. C.!
Jane and Mrs. C.
The cake and blowing out the candle with Harry’s help
Play time!
The playground has a carpeted indoor track (notice all of the “ONE WAY” signs?) for the kids to burn off steam around the play structure with wagons, trikes, and cozy coupes.
Harry did not struggle to keep up with the big kids
The kids gave high fives to the dads when they circled the bend
Harry *so* desperately wanted to be a part of the big kid action inside the play structure, but the employees kept telling him he was too little. Poor buddy! It didn’t stop him from sneaking in a few times, though.
Jane with her classmates (and a few siblings!)
Jane’s class (and a few siblings) with Mrs. C.
We probably had 25-30 kids and a dozen adults at the party. Everyone seemed to have a wonderful time and went home WORN OUT!
On the ride home, Jane declared, “This was the BEST BIRTHDAY PARTY EVER!” Music to this mama’s ears. Mission accomplished! Love you, Jane Louise!
![Jane's 6th Birthday Party]()
by Catherine | Feb 6, 2016 | Family
Jane has always loved her birthday, so it came as no surprise when she started talking about her party master plan several months ago.
“Mom, this year, I’ve decided I want to have a poor party.”
“What’s a ‘poor party,’ honey?”
“Well, instead of presents, I want my friends to bring food for the poor, and then we’ll go around and deliver it to them.”
Yeah. I cried. That was SO not how I dreamed of my birthday party at six years old! My little kindergartener didn’t want presents; she wanted to use her special day to bless others. Between the hormones of pregnancy and all of the sweetness, I just couldn’t handle it!
We talked about how we could put her plan into action and have a little fun with her classmates at the same time. We decided we’d have a Friday evening pizza and cake party at the local indoor playground for Jane’s kindergarten class and their families. Instead of presents, we’d ask everyone to bring a donation for the food pantry to leave at the door. After pizza and cake, the parents could visit while the kids ran amok and burned off the sugar!
Jane was also very, very concerned that everyone got a special treat bag. She selected pink baggies with purple stickers that she signed. Since she has a birthday so close to Valentine’s Day, it’s easy to find her favorite candies with pink and purple wrappers. As a final touch, she got an assortment of holy cards of favorite saints/prayers from the Catholic bookstore in town, and she stuck one in each bag.
Walt was very happy to help with this project!
I’m slowly learning how to not be a perfectionist and let the kids do their own thing when they can. I’m very proud of Jane and Walt for doing this project together!
We arrived early at the indoor playground to set up the party room. The boys were happy to entertain themselves while we set things out.
The guests started arriving with all of their food donations and handmade cards for Jane. Is there anything more adorable than a handmade card from a kindergartener?! So sweet! Jane can’t wait to drop off the donations from her classmates at the food pantry.
First, the food:
Cheers!
Then, a magical moment: Mrs. C., Jane’s kindergarten teacher, entered the party scene! Oh my word, the shrieking and hugs from the little kindergarten girls! What an amazing woman to come on a FRIDAY NIGHT (at the end of a busy Catholic Schools Week, no less) to her student’s birthday party! We love you, Mrs. C.!
Jane and Mrs. C.
The cake and blowing out the candle with Harry’s help
Play time!
The playground has a carpeted indoor track (notice all of the “ONE WAY” signs?) for the kids to burn off steam around the play structure with wagons, trikes, and cozy coupes.
Harry did not struggle to keep up with the big kids
The kids gave high fives to the dads when they circled the bend
Harry *so* desperately wanted to be a part of the big kid action inside the play structure, but the employees kept telling him he was too little. Poor buddy! It didn’t stop him from sneaking in a few times, though.
Jane with her classmates (and a few siblings!)
Jane’s class (and a few siblings) with Mrs. C.
We probably had 25-30 kids and a dozen adults at the party. Everyone seemed to have a wonderful time and went home WORN OUT!
On the ride home, Jane declared, “This was the BEST BIRTHDAY PARTY EVER!” Music to this mama’s ears. Mission accomplished! Love you, Jane Louise!
![Our Romantic Getaway]()
by Catherine | Jan 26, 2016 | Marriage
Philip and I had the most wonderful, relaxing, romantic getaway a few weeks ago! There are so many pictures and things to share. Let’s see if I can do my best to wrap up the trip in ten minutes with just my very favorite things…
We had our very first all-inclusive resort experience at Excellence Playa Mujeres. After our stay, I’d love to make this trip an annual tradition! I can’t recommend that resort highly enough! The accommodations, the food, the entertainment, the beachfront location, the hospitable staff…I could go on and on.
Our room was gorgeous and had a beautiful view of the ocean. We were greeted by these sweet swans when we checked in.
While unpacking, one of the bartenders from the poolside bar near our room brought us this cute coconut monkey with a mango mojito. Philip took one for the team and drank it for the two of us since this prego couldn’t!
What did we do while we were there? Mostly this.
The resort had these wonderful bed cabana things on the private beach. They were so comfortable and provided this pale lady with plenty of shade. When we weren’t at the beach, we lounged poolside, sipping our favorite drinks (mango mojitos and banana mamas) and reading.
We loved the food at the resort. Our favorite restaurants were the French and Indian spots. Although I couldn’t enjoy the alcohol of the all-inclusive experience, I most definitely DID enjoy the food! It was a prego’s dream!
We only left the resort once during our 5-day stay, and that was to go to Mass on Sunday morning. What a gift to be able to call up the concierge, find a Catholic church 15 minutes away, and get to attend Mass. The church, María Estrella del Mar, was a beautiful, beachfront open-air building surrounded only by glass on one side.
Before Mass began, the parish priest asked those in attendance if they could participate as readers. Philip read the 2nd Reading. The universality of the Church shone through when we realized that those in attendance represented many different countries, but we celebrate the same Mass throughout the world, so we were able to participate without hesitation with the same familiar prayers, gestures, and same Jesus in the Eucharist. What a gift!
After Mass, our taxi cab driver gave us a tour of the parish. As it turned out, our driver, Manuel, is a Catholic himself, and he knew a lot about the church. Here’s Manuel with Philip in front of a statue of Martín de Porres. (Manuel’s last name is Porres, too!)
In addition to driving his taxi, Manuel does some photography. He took us around the building and offered to take our pictures. Here we are in front of an image of Our Lady of Guadalupe.
Up the hill from the church is another beautiful open-air area dedicated to baptisms. All of the chairs and pews are made of a saline-resistant wood.
In addition to enjoying our time eating, drinking, and relaxing by the water, we: watched different evening entertainment each night (pop star show, fire show, opera singers, traditional Mexican singing/dancing) and indulged in our first couples massage. It was such a treat to get to lay on my belly since the table had a special area for my belly. I’m usually a stomach sleeper, so that was awesome!
We spent little pockets of time throughout our stay working through a “Family Board Meeting.” We got the idea from this podcast episode of Messy Parenting. A “Family Board Meeting” is simply a chance to get away with your spouse to discuss your family’s goals for the year and beyond. The three key parts of a Family Board Meeting are 3 A’s:
- Away
- Alone
- Affirm
It was so nice to be able to spend part of our time alone and away discussing our family’s goals for the year and beyond. Our favorite part of the meeting was how we ended our time at the resort. Before we checked out and got into the car to go to the airport, we brought some frozen drinks back to our room’s patio. Then, we did the “Affirm” part of the meeting–telling one another all of the things that we noticed and admired the other person doing in the past year that we want them to know we saw and appreciated. It was the perfect way to end our time at the resort.
With the exception of some rain on our first night, we had nearly perfect weather our entire stay. As we wrapped up our Family Board Meeting and headed to the airport, the storm clouds were rolling in. It made it a lot easier to leave paradise with storm clouds overhead!
When we got home, we were greeted by a plethora of crafts, pictures, and dictated cards from the kids. They were *very* well taken care of by their favorite sitters and gave us the play by play of all of the fun things they did when they woke up the next morning. It was wonderful to get away for a bit, but it was nice to be home again with the little ones!
We don’t know if the kids were more excited to see us or the souvenirs we brought them. Harry especially loves his wooden snake!
![Remembering Thérèse]()
by Catherine | Nov 29, 2015 | Faith, Family
November 5th marked the 3-year anniversary of the day our Baby Thérèse went to heaven. That day, we wanted to do a few special things to remember and honor our family’s little saint.
First, we took a family trip to the cemetery where Thérèse is buried. We arrived just as the sun was beginning to go down.
To our pleasant surprise, the cemetery had recently redone the area dedicated to babies. It was absolutely beautiful!
Before leaving their roses behind, each of the 3 kids gave Thérèse little updates on what’s new in their worlds. We’re not sure what Harry said, but his face was very animated, and he used a lot of hand gestures! Afterward, we said a few prayers together as a family.
Leaving their roses at the statue of St. Rachel weeping for her children.
We wanted to start a new tradition this year that would both honor Thérèse and celebrate life. We were inspired by our friends who have a similar tradition to honor their daughter. We looked at the birth records in the newspaper to find out who had the first baby girl born on November 5th. I asked my very talented friend Rakhi to create a beautiful custom print of a quote from St. Thérèse of Lisieux with a pink rose border. (Check out Rakhi’s Etsy shop, Signs of Love by RakstarDesigns!)
We put the print in a beautiful frame and mailed it to the family with a card assuring them of our prayers. I like to imagine the print in the baby’s nursery as a reminder that we have countless opportunities to love and serve each other. Hopefully Thérèse is somehow blessing that family the way she has blessed ours.
We love you and carry you with us everyday, Thérèse.
St. Thérèse, pray for us!
![When I Knew Spiritual Direction Was Making A Difference]()
by Catherine | Nov 9, 2015 | Faith, Family
After talking about it for years, I finally started getting serious about finding a spiritual director as part of my revised Mother’s Rule of Life for 2015. What’s a spiritual director? Simply put, a spiritual director helps his/her directee along their way toward sainthood. To learn more, read about spiritual direction here.
I wanted my spiritual director to be a priest so that we could start our monthly meetings with confession. In terms of personality, I wanted the priest to be:
- Faithful to Church Teaching
- Down to earth, relatable
- Knowledgeable about the vocation of marriage–its blessings, challenges, and everything in between
- Experienced with working with married people
- Willing to challenge me and ask the hard questions
In addition to praying, I asked good friends who know the priests in our diocese who they thought would be a good fit. Then, I created a short list of good and holy priests who might be willing to work with me. When I talk about experience with spiritual direction, people ask me how I “got him” (my spiritual director). I usually say, “I’m shameless. He didn’t know me. I just called and asked him.”
I knew our monthly meetings (we’ve been meeting for 9 months) were helping me to grow in sanctity, but I don’t think I knew exactly how big the changes were until the other week. I was talking with Philip on the phone when kindergartener Jane came up to me, touched my arm, and said out of the blue,
Philip was out of town for a long weekend at a medical conference, so I was distracted by our conversation and opportunity to chat for a few minutes on the phone. It wasn’t until I had put the kids to bed that night and had a quiet evening ahead of me that Jane’s words sank in.
“Mama, you don’t yell at us anymore.”
So simple. So direct. So matter of fact.
I don’t yell at the kids anymore.
Wait.
(Cue the tears.)
I don’t yell at the kids anymore!!!
It’s one thing when you start to notice yourself kicking yourself less for your parenting mistakes. It’s another when your little one tells you that you’ve kicked a vice in the butt. I don’t know about your kids, but mine are very honest about these kinds of things. Sometimes, they’re painfully honest.
That night, sitting on the couch, wiping away the tears as I realized Jane was right, I realized something else: spiritual direction was the reason why I wasn’t yelling anymore.
Before I started spiritual direction, I wasn’t very good about scheduling confession on a regular basis. With a monthly meeting for spiritual direction on the calendar, I had a guaranteed scheduled confession every month. This was exactly what I needed to start magnifying where I was struggling and work with Father on how to overcome (or at least wage a more convincing battle against) my sins. Yelling at the kids was one of those sins that I was embarrassed to keep bringing with me to my confessions month after month.
After confession, when we talked about whatever issues I wanted to bring up, I often shared how discouraged I was with how often I was losing my temper with the kids. Father is a great spiritual director for me because he allows me to see my sins, but he doesn’t allow me to beat myself up unnecessarily over them. He encourages me to fight against them, to struggle with them, but he reminds me that I can’t let the struggle ruin my joy.
“but he said to me, ‘My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.’ I will all the more gladly boast of my weaknesses, that the power of Christ may rest upon me” (2 Corinthians 12:9).
At our last meeting, we started with an opening prayer and confession as usual. Afterward, I told him that I’m seeing the fruits of spiritual direction in my day-to-day life. I shared the story of Jane telling me, “Mama, you don’t yell at us anymore.” As my confessor, he knows as well as I do that I still struggle with controlling my temper and restraining my tongue from discouraging the kids, but he also knows that it’s not happening with nearly the same frequency or severity. That’s the beauty of having a spiritual director who is also my confessor. He knows my struggles, he works alongside me to help me to see how I can do better, and he sees the difference the graces make in between our meetings. Perhaps the best part is the sweetness of finally getting to share a baby step victory toward conquering a big sin in my life. I can’t begin to explain how awesome it was to have him look at me with tears in his eyes and say, “I am so happy for you.”
Isn’t that what true Christian friendship is all about anyway? As Christians, we believe that love seeks the other’s good, and our ultimate good is eternal communion with God in heaven. With that definition in mind, imagine if all of our friendships were like a relationship with a spiritual director. A true friend is someone who can help you to acknowledge your imperfections, love you as they pull you up when you fall, and celebrate with you as you grow.
![I'm Baaaaaaaaaaack!]()
by Catherine | Nov 1, 2015 | Faith
At the end of July, I decided it was time to take a step back from blogging for 3 months.
The break was very fruitful and exactly what I needed. Thank you for all of your prayers while I was away!
In case you missed the exciting news, I am thrilled to officially share on my blog that I am pregnant and due March 31, so that puts me at 18.5 weeks. We’re almost halfway there! Yay! Unfortunately, I’ve been battling some pretty significant “morning” sickness this pregnancy, so we’ve been in survival mode around these parts, and I wouldn’t have been blogging much even without my announced break.
In addition to growing this baby that we’re so excited to meet, I’ve been keeping busy doing the wife & stay-at-home mom thing and taking care of the home front. Beyond that, I’ve spent other time starting a new women’s group at the parish, dedicating more time to planning our GodTeens meetings, and strengthening my real life relationships with regular play dates and girl time.
I honestly didn’t spend a whole lotta time discerning what to do with this blog until the last few weeks. It was easier for me to put it out of my sight and out of my mind. As the end of my 3-month hiatus approached, I have had more and more people contacting me, asking me to return or suggesting various topics that they’d like me to write about. After thinking about it long and hard and asking God what He thinks about all of this, a few thoughts:
- I’ve missed blogging, but I haven’t missed feeling tethered to it.
- I’ll be writing less frequently, but (hopefully) make up for the infrequency with more focused, passionate writing.
- Realizing that I can walk away from blogging at any time for any reason brings me peace.
- Conversely, realizing that my homecoming can be whatever I want it to be brings me peace. “It’s my blog, and I’ll blog whenever and however I want to!”
- God has used this blog for a lot of good, and so long as He’s able to keep using it to bless others, I’ll keep writing. Thank you to the readers who took the time to reach out and remind me that this blog has somehow been a helpful ministry.
- I think I’ll be a better blogger after my little break because I know I’ve been living (or trying to live) exactly The Life I Need to become the person I’m supposed to be. God has done big things for me and my family during my three months away, and I see now how I can better use this little space to glorify Him. As soon as this blog stops doing that, well, then, in the words of Flannery O’Connor, “to hell with it!”
I look forward to getting back to The Life I Need, and I hope I’ll be seeing a lot of you in the comments and the blog Facebook page.
St. Thérèse, pray for us!
![I’m Baaaaaaaaaaack!]()
by Catherine | Nov 1, 2015 | Faith
At the end of July, I decided it was time to take a step back from blogging for 3 months.
The break was very fruitful and exactly what I needed. Thank you for all of your prayers while I was away!
In case you missed the exciting news, I am thrilled to officially share on my blog that I am pregnant and due March 31, so that puts me at 18.5 weeks. We’re almost halfway there! Yay! Unfortunately, I’ve been battling some pretty significant “morning” sickness this pregnancy, so we’ve been in survival mode around these parts, and I wouldn’t have been blogging much even without my announced break.
In addition to growing this baby that we’re so excited to meet, I’ve been keeping busy doing the wife & stay-at-home mom thing and taking care of the home front. Beyond that, I’ve spent other time starting a new women’s group at the parish, dedicating more time to planning our GodTeens meetings, and strengthening my real life relationships with regular play dates and girl time.
I honestly didn’t spend a whole lotta time discerning what to do with this blog until the last few weeks. It was easier for me to put it out of my sight and out of my mind. As the end of my 3-month hiatus approached, I have had more and more people contacting me, asking me to return or suggesting various topics that they’d like me to write about. After thinking about it long and hard and asking God what He thinks about all of this, a few thoughts:
- I’ve missed blogging, but I haven’t missed feeling tethered to it.
- I’ll be writing less frequently, but (hopefully) make up for the infrequency with more focused, passionate writing.
- Realizing that I can walk away from blogging at any time for any reason brings me peace.
- Conversely, realizing that my homecoming can be whatever I want it to be brings me peace. “It’s my blog, and I’ll blog whenever and however I want to!”
- God has used this blog for a lot of good, and so long as He’s able to keep using it to bless others, I’ll keep writing. Thank you to the readers who took the time to reach out and remind me that this blog has somehow been a helpful ministry.
- I think I’ll be a better blogger after my little break because I know I’ve been living (or trying to live) exactly The Life I Need to become the person I’m supposed to be. God has done big things for me and my family during my three months away, and I see now how I can better use this little space to glorify Him. As soon as this blog stops doing that, well, then, in the words of Flannery O’Connor, “to hell with it!”
I look forward to getting back to The Life I Need, and I hope I’ll be seeing a lot of you in the comments and the blog Facebook page.
St. Thérèse, pray for us!
![Taking A Break]()
by Catherine | Jul 29, 2015 | Faith
I’ve had this nagging feeling for a few months that the blog is getting in the way. It’s taking up a lot of mental energy and free time. While my readership has grown, the feel of an online community has not. It has felt selfish to pour out so much of myself into this little online space when I’m feeling tugged elsewhere. I’m starting to see how the tugging I have felt has been the Holy Spirit.
Recently, I have been asked to participate in a few ministries within my parish. These invitations have been the perfect opportunities for me to give an enthusiastic, “YES!” The more time I invest in these ministries, the more I see how God has a bigger plan for me that may or may not include The Life I Need.
So, I’m going to take a 3-month break from blogging. I’m going to make a clean break to make the discernment process easier. Come All Saints Day (November 1), maybe I’ll come back sporadically. Or (gasp!) maybe I’ll hang up my blogging hat altogether. Maybe I’ll realize that I need to continue writing but focus my efforts elsewhere. Who knows!
In the meantime, the blog Facebook page will be inactive. If you’d like to see pictures of what we’re up to or read little updates, I’ll be posting to my personal Facebook and Instagram pages. I hope I’ll see you there. Even better, let’s meet up for coffee or dessert!
![Put It To Work 37]()
by Catherine | Jul 27, 2015 | Faith
Another week means another opportunity to swap prayer intentions and start “putting them to work” for one another! (Are you new to the blog and aren’t sure what this series is all about? I explain what “put it to work” means in this post.)
Here are my prayer intentions for this week:
- For Philip’s parents as they celebrate their wedding anniversary this week. That God may continue to bless their marriage!
- Continued prayers for Harry. At 23 months, he hasn’t been producing words. Our pediatrician referred us for a hearing test through the local special education office to rule hearing loss out. Unfortunately, Harry failed the hearing test and we are having a follow-up with an ENT. Although the hearing test was done with a relatively unsophisticated machine that over refers patients, I’m concerned about the possibility that Harry might have significant hearing loss. Please keep Harry and the ENT in your prayers as we sort things out in the upcoming weeks.
- A special intention
Your turn! What prayer intentions can I “put to work” for you this week? As always, I will add them to my prayer journal and pray for you by name throughout the week–especially during my morning prayers. Please share your intentions in the comment box below, on the blog Facebook page, or send them to me via the blog contact form. Thank you in advance for your prayers.
Have a great week!
![7QT: What I'm ________ing]()
by Catherine | Jul 23, 2015 | Family
7 things I am currently ________ing:
-1-
Reading
Heather King’s conversion story, Redeemed: Stumbling Toward God, Sanity, and the Peace That Passes All Understanding
So. Much. Truth. Heather’s writing hurts me exactly where I need to hurt. Have you ever encountered a writer who did that to you? I read Heather’s story, and I realize, “I need this hurt to convict me; not just to hurt, but to make me want to change.”
Sometimes the prodigal’s jealous brother needs more healing than the prodigal. Rachel Balducci shared at Edel that motherhood helps her to work on her humility. The lower she stays to the ground in humility like a child, she says, the less likely her puffed up pride will cause a big tumble.
It’s a beautiful thing to read Heather’s journey from brokenness toward healing and forgiveness. I admire her courage and humility in this spiritual memoir.
-2-
Watching
Underwater Dreams
I suppose it’s not an -ing since I only watched it once, but I’m still thinking about the film and its message.
The movie chronicles a rag-tag high school underwater robotics team from Arizona. Despite their poverty and lack of resources, they were able to win the national robotics competition, defeating MIT and several other universities. After the team wins the competition, the documentary follows the team members’ lives. Despite their natural aptitude and hard work, their undocumented status makes it difficult for them to flourish.
The film got Philip and I talking about immigration and what our country needs to do to fix the problem presented in the film. Should illegal immigrants receive in-state tuition? Should it take 10 years for a young man who wants to join the U.S. Army to become a citizen? I won’t pretend to have all of the answers, but I do know this: too many Americans take the opportunities made available to us because we were born on this soil for granted.
Still chewing on a lot of it and praying for wisdom for our country’s leaders. Both of the major political parties need to make compromises to heal this wound.
-3-
Listening
This Inspired Life by Kristin Sanders (podcast)
I’m so glad to have found yet another podcast put out by a faithful Catholic. I started listening last week and started all the way back at Episode 1. I’m 10 episodes in, and I’m definitely keeping this podcast on my playlist. Kristin interviews various guests in the Catholic world, and the topics are wide ranging. To give you an idea, in the first few episodes, Kristin and her guests have discussed: talking to kids about sex, creating an Etsy site, women in the Church, child development, loving as Christ loves, and adoption. Kristin isn’t afraid to ask difficult questions (the ones I really want to hear the guests answer!), and she allows them to unspool their complete answers. The podcast doesn’t feel rushed at all. It feels like a casual conversation with a good friend over coffee. This Inspired Life is my new laundry folding and dish washing soundtrack!
-4-
Listening
Building Bridges Podcast with Cristina Trinidad & Jenna Guizar
Building Bridges just started last month, and I’m so glad I discovered it via a Catholic Women Blogger’s group. I had the opportunity to meet Jenna at Edel, so it’s fun to get to hear her chat it up with Cristina on the podcast.
I’ve only listened to 2 episodes of Building Bridges, and I’ve really been enjoying it. Episode 1 was an introduction to Cristina and Jenna. In Episode 2, the girls interviewed Charity Craig who blogs at The Wounded Dove. Charity shared with the girls how God was able to take her husband’s affair and turn it into a gift of healing. When faced with her husband’s infidelity, her first instinct was to be angry. Then, God helped Charity to consider what parts of herself she needed to work on to help heal herself and her marriage–not that she was responsible for the affair (that was her husband’s choice), but that she knew she had parts of herself that needed fixing. Through God’s grace, Charity and her husband were able to reconcile and are happily married. Charity’s story is a beautiful look at how marriage can mirror God’s faithfulness when we go astray.
Looking forward to listening to more!
-5-
Exploring
Lincoln’s wonderful trail systems
-6-
Savoring
My boy who still likes to play dress up and imagine
-7-
Anticipating
Philip’s ribs that he’s making for dinner club
Salted
Rubbed
Vacuum Sealed
Ready for their bath
In the immersion circulator to cook to juicy perfection for a few days
Get in my belly! Gotta love a man who can make some delicious ribs!
* * *
To read more 7QT posts, head over to Kelly Mantoan’s blog, This Ain’t the Lyceum!
![7QT: What I’m ________ing]()
by Catherine | Jul 23, 2015 | Family
7 things I am currently ________ing:
-1-
Reading
Heather King’s conversion story, Redeemed: Stumbling Toward God, Sanity, and the Peace That Passes All Understanding
So. Much. Truth. Heather’s writing hurts me exactly where I need to hurt. Have you ever encountered a writer who did that to you? I read Heather’s story, and I realize, “I need this hurt to convict me; not just to hurt, but to make me want to change.”
Sometimes the prodigal’s jealous brother needs more healing than the prodigal. Rachel Balducci shared at Edel that motherhood helps her to work on her humility. The lower she stays to the ground in humility like a child, she says, the less likely her puffed up pride will cause a big tumble.
It’s a beautiful thing to read Heather’s journey from brokenness toward healing and forgiveness. I admire her courage and humility in this spiritual memoir.
-2-
Watching
Underwater Dreams
I suppose it’s not an -ing since I only watched it once, but I’m still thinking about the film and its message.
The movie chronicles a rag-tag high school underwater robotics team from Arizona. Despite their poverty and lack of resources, they were able to win the national robotics competition, defeating MIT and several other universities. After the team wins the competition, the documentary follows the team members’ lives. Despite their natural aptitude and hard work, their undocumented status makes it difficult for them to flourish.
The film got Philip and I talking about immigration and what our country needs to do to fix the problem presented in the film. Should illegal immigrants receive in-state tuition? Should it take 10 years for a young man who wants to join the U.S. Army to become a citizen? I won’t pretend to have all of the answers, but I do know this: too many Americans take the opportunities made available to us because we were born on this soil for granted.
Still chewing on a lot of it and praying for wisdom for our country’s leaders. Both of the major political parties need to make compromises to heal this wound.
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Listening
This Inspired Life by Kristin Sanders (podcast)
I’m so glad to have found yet another podcast put out by a faithful Catholic. I started listening last week and started all the way back at Episode 1. I’m 10 episodes in, and I’m definitely keeping this podcast on my playlist. Kristin interviews various guests in the Catholic world, and the topics are wide ranging. To give you an idea, in the first few episodes, Kristin and her guests have discussed: talking to kids about sex, creating an Etsy site, women in the Church, child development, loving as Christ loves, and adoption. Kristin isn’t afraid to ask difficult questions (the ones I really want to hear the guests answer!), and she allows them to unspool their complete answers. The podcast doesn’t feel rushed at all. It feels like a casual conversation with a good friend over coffee. This Inspired Life is my new laundry folding and dish washing soundtrack!
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Listening
Building Bridges Podcast with Cristina Trinidad & Jenna Guizar
Building Bridges just started last month, and I’m so glad I discovered it via a Catholic Women Blogger’s group. I had the opportunity to meet Jenna at Edel, so it’s fun to get to hear her chat it up with Cristina on the podcast.
I’ve only listened to 2 episodes of Building Bridges, and I’ve really been enjoying it. Episode 1 was an introduction to Cristina and Jenna. In Episode 2, the girls interviewed Charity Craig who blogs at The Wounded Dove. Charity shared with the girls how God was able to take her husband’s affair and turn it into a gift of healing. When faced with her husband’s infidelity, her first instinct was to be angry. Then, God helped Charity to consider what parts of herself she needed to work on to help heal herself and her marriage–not that she was responsible for the affair (that was her husband’s choice), but that she knew she had parts of herself that needed fixing. Through God’s grace, Charity and her husband were able to reconcile and are happily married. Charity’s story is a beautiful look at how marriage can mirror God’s faithfulness when we go astray.
Looking forward to listening to more!
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Exploring
Lincoln’s wonderful trail systems
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Savoring
My boy who still likes to play dress up and imagine
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Anticipating
Philip’s ribs that he’s making for dinner club
Salted
Rubbed
Vacuum Sealed
Ready for their bath
In the immersion circulator to cook to juicy perfection for a few days
Get in my belly! Gotta love a man who can make some delicious ribs!
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To read more 7QT posts, head over to Kelly Mantoan’s blog, This Ain’t the Lyceum!
![Put It To Work 36]()
by Catherine | Jul 19, 2015 | Faith
Another week means another opportunity to swap prayer intentions and start “putting them to work” for one another! (Are you new to the blog and aren’t sure what this series is all about? I explain what “put it to work” means in this post.)
Here are my prayer intentions for this week:
- For all of the prodigal sons who feel so lost and unworthy that they’ve forgotten they have a home in Him
- For all of the prodigal sons’ older (and younger!) brothers who jealously make justice their god instead of extending the Father’s mercy to the son who returned home
- For Harry. At 23 months, he hasn’t been producing words. Our pediatrician referred us for a hearing test through the local special education office to rule hearing loss out. Unfortunately, Harry failed the hearing test and we are having a follow-up with an ENT. Although the hearing test was done with a relatively unsophisticated machine that over refers patients, I’m concerned about the possibility that Harry might have significant hearing loss. Please keep Harry and the ENT in your prayers as we sort things out in the upcoming weeks.
- A special intention
Your turn! What prayer intentions can I “put to work” for you this week? As always, I will add them to my prayer journal and pray for you by name throughout the week–especially during my morning prayers. Please share your intentions in the comment box below, on the blog Facebook page, or send them to me via the blog contact form. Thank you in advance for your prayers.
Have a great week!
![The Diocese of Lincoln Presents: Date Night]()
by Catherine | Jul 19, 2015 | Faith, Family, Marriage
I’m thrilled to be sharing an upcoming event with all of you!
This year, the Diocese of Lincoln’s Office of Family Life and Evangelization began hosting a monthly “Date Night” for married and engaged couples. It’s a chance for us to get a night out on the town, eat some complimentary hors d’oeuvres, hear a great speaker, and meet others who are fighting the good fight.
This Friday, July 24th, our friends, Mary and Joe Mulka, are the guest speakers presenting at Date Night. Philip and I met Mary and Joe through our parish when we signed up for GodTeens. I think I died when I realized their names are MARY AND JOSEPH. Never again would I forget! Could they be any more adorable? They are a wonderful, faith-filled couple, and I hope you can come to hear their message.
Mary and Joe
The Mulka Family
This Friday’s Date Night topic is family prayer, and Mary and Joe will be talking about their own experience. It will be an opportunity for couples to hear how a real family is weaving prayer into the craziness of daily life. As Mary told me, their talk, “is based on our testimony and how we came to realize that prayer and communication is essential in marriage and then flows into our family life. It is more based on personal experience then theological information.”
I am so grateful to Mary and Joe for stepping out of their comfort zone to reach out and share a little glimpse into what trying to live out the faith looks like in their house. How cool that the Diocese is providing us an opportunity to get to be in the same room as so many like-minded couples who face the same day-to-day struggles and are persevering together!
Catholic author Matthew Kelly likes to call the Catholic laity (non-clergy) a “sleeping giant.” There are far more members of the Church that are not priests or religious brothers and sisters, and most of us are floundering in our call to live as intentional disciples of Jesus. As the sleeping giant, most of us don’t realize the power God is giving us to transform our culture through the gift of our vocation to marriage. All of us (not just the clergy and religious!) are called to sainthood.
Kudos to the Diocese of Lincoln’s Office of Family Life and Evangelization for creating this monthly Date Night to awaken the sleeping giant. Not only will we walk away with some practical advice and tools, but we’ll be reaffirmed knowing that we’re not alone. We’ll be encouraged to better live out our vocation of marriage in our unique, irreplaceable roles as husbands and fathers, wives and mothers.
If you haven’t already, pick up the phone and call your sitter for Friday. You won’t want to miss this one! We’ll see you at
Ploughshare Brewing Company (16th & “P”) at 7 p.m. for some fun and fellowship! If you can’t make this one (boooooooooooo!), the next scheduled Date Night is Friday, August 14. For more information, click
here.
![My Edel Recap]()
by Catherine | Jul 17, 2015 | Faith
Plenty of other “real” bloggers have already given their beautiful recaps of the Edel Gathering. You should read some of my favorites for a better picture of what the weekend was all about:
Since I’m just a fake blogger, I’ll spare you the rest of the play-by-play of the weekend. Besides, getting there was half the fun! Instead of a summary, I thought I’d share some of my favorite moments and takeaways.
Friday’s live radio broadcast of the Jennifer Fulwiler show
- Jen Fulwiler and Hallie Lord are just awesome. It was so much fun to watch her in her element, talking with the show guests and broadcasting right in front of my eyes. I am so grateful for her and Hallie Lord’s “YES!” to God when He asked them to create Edel. What a dynamic duo!
Hallie and Jen during their live radio broadcast
- Hallie Lord talked about being reckless vs. living life according to God’s will while hosting a women’s conference on her due date.
- “God is not reckless…discern His will…When God calls you to do something hard, you get signal graces, but He doesn’t take away the burden or the cross; He sends people to help carry it. God can give us the strength to do things ourselves, but sometimes He forces community upon us.” I’ve been prayerfully discerning doing something that my spiritual director is helping me to work through. In our discussion about discerning God’s will, he said I can’t let my analysis paralysis stop me from hearing what God is asking of me. Instead, I need to keep making decisions, knowing that sometimes they might be the wrong one. With all of this in mind, I heard Hallie say, “If I discern that i made the wrong decision, God is still there.” YES!!! I don’t think she had any idea how much those simple words blessed me. I allow fear to stop or paralyze me so much instead of just saying, “Here I am, Lord. I might make mistakes, but I’m trusting that You’ll be here to get me back to where You want me to be.”
- Listening to Mary Lenaburg, one of my favorite bloggers from Passionate Perseverance, talking about her family’s trip to Lourdes
- For the first seven years of her daughter Courtney’s life, Mary said she “tried to fix her.” “At Lourdes,” Mary shared, “God gave my husband and I the word ‘acceptance.'” I don’t think there was a dry eye in the place. When I finally met her later that weekend, I had to give her a huge hug and thank her for sharing Courtney’s story with us. Mary is one of the most beautiful souls I’ve ever encountered.
Catching up with my college gal pal and dear friend, Amanda Teixeira, at the crazy shoe cocktail party
- After we had caught up, it struck me that the girls we were in college probably wouldn’t recognize the women we are today. As I told Amanda, I loved the Amanda I knew in college, but I’m so glad to see today’s Amanda–the best version of Amanda I’ve ever seen. Watching a longtime friend journey from heartache and despair to a place of genuine peace and contentment is a beautiful thing to behold!
Saturday morning’s stroll through the farmer’s market with Amanda
Saturday afternoon’s talks:
- Haley Stewart: “You can’t believe the lie that you are alone here.”
- Instantly, my brain made the connection from this quote to an interview I had just listened to on the Fountains of Carrots podcast with Auntie Leila. Auntie Leila was talking about the deep loneliness and isolation she felt during the early years of motherhood. As only Auntie Leila can, she shared how she looks back at that time as a blessing. “Sometimes I look back and I think, in a way, the loneliness that I experienced was good for me because it helped me to be friends with the lonely Jesus.”
- I love that. The lonely Jesus. The Jesus all by Himself in the Garden of Gethsemane. The Jesus denied and abandoned by His friends. The Jesus unrecognizable on the road to Emmaus. Jesus knows what it is to feel alone. He doesn’t want it for us, and He is with us in it. He sends us community to get us through the journey. “It is not good that the man should be alone” (Genesis 2:18). We need each other, and Edel is all about helping us to realize that there’s a real, tangible body of people who are right in the trenches with us.
Haley Stewart
- Another gem from Hallie Lord: “Stop living in the wreckage of the future.” I think I wrote down everything Hallie said over the weekend. So. Much. Wisdom. I need to stop imagining the worst for everything and just surrendering to the moment, to whatever God is asking of me right now.
- Rachel Balducci of Testosterhome‘s talk on motherhood. A few of my favorite pearls:
- “You are a flawed human being with human children.” Yup. Why do I forget that?
- “The devil was doing a great job…’nobody’s kids are as crazy as this.'” I thought I was the only one who had those thoughts!
- “Make peace with the children God has given you and the chapter of life that you’re in.” Dang. I could chew on that one for a lifetime. Why did God give me exactly these children? What does this chapter of life require of me right now, and what do I need to let go of?
- Her mantra: “That doesn’t work for the family Balducci.” I’ve already started stealing that to be, “That doesn’t work for the family Boucher.” If it works for them, great, but it doesn’t work for us, and that’s okay.
- Realize that what God is doing in my soul at this moment He can’t do with anyone else. Don’t waste it!
- Cultivate humility to keep me low to the ground like a child so that I don’t have too fear to fall in my pride
Rachel Balducci
- Kelly Mantoan of This Ain’t The Lyceum‘s talk on how to rock motherhood:
- I have 2 choices: Accept the reality of my vocation OR see the daily tasks as shackles. (You know you’re hearing truth when you hear it like a dagger to the heart. “You hardened heart is what shackles you, not your daily tasks.”
- “If you can’t find joy where you are, you won’t find joy anywhere.”
- Fill in the blank: When Satan uses your _____________ (pick a vice: pride, anger, gluttony, etc.), you pray for ______________ (pick a virtue: humility, meekness, temperance, etc.).
- Perhaps the most quoted phrase from the weekend: “Blessing yourself is like punching satan in the face.”
Saturday evening Mass at St. John the Baptist Cathedral. I’ve got to share some pictures of the stained glass windows another time!
Saturday evening:
- Singer Audrey Assad’s talk. “Pruning is one of God’s love languages.”
- Watching a bunch of women dance and sing karaoke
- Delicious cosmos
- Getting to meet so many of my favorite people that I had previously only “known” online
- Meeting Jen Fulwiler, buying her a drink as a thank you for the weekend, and our chat. I thanked her for her ministry and said I am such a fan of her blog, her book, and her radio show. I said that I was the blogger from Nebraska who had stolen her friend Rachel’s idea to create a Dinner Club for Underachievers. “Oh! We were just talking about you today on the broadcast!” I think I peed my pants. (Again.) As it turned out, the foundress of Dinner Club for Underachievers, Rachael Escandon, was AT EDEL, and I met her a few minutes later. I was blown away by her graciousness and how easy she was to talk to. Jen Fulwiler, you’re a gem!
Nevermind that I was gross from not getting to shower or change into my formalwear. I GOT TO MEET JEN FULWILER!
- Meeting Rachael Escandon, foundress of the Dinner Club for Underachievers. Rachael was also the winner of the crazy shoe contest with her boots that had real chips and guacamole with tiny bottles of tequila. I want to go to HER dinner club! The girl must know how to throw a party!
- Meeting Hallie Lord
- I gushed and went on and on about how much I loved her blog, her book Sex, Style, and Substance, and her ebook to spice up your marriage. I thanked her for her “yes” to create Edel with Jen and for being such a source of blessing in my own life. I think I peed my pants (again) when she asked ME if we could take a selfie together and then I had to sheepishly ask if we could take one on my phone, too. What a doll!
Me & southern belle, Hallie. Someday I’ll bring a real camera places so that I can take good pictures!
My roomie for the weekend, Julie Nelson, who I now affectionately call “Auntie Julie”
- Jule co-hosts the radio show Catholic Women Now! with Chris Magruder. We “met” when Julie asked me to be a guest on the show to discuss our saint coin reward system. I was so excited to get to be her roomie for the weekend. Despite all of the time we spent together, Julie and I managed to go the entire weekend without taking a single picture.
- After the festivities Saturday night, Julie and I chatted until about 3 am!
- It was such a blessing to hear Julie’s wisdom and learn about her experience of raising a family while supporting her husband’s career as a physician. I felt like I had hit the jackpot with my very own personal mentor for the weekend!
- Gaining “Auntie Julie” as a friend is definitely one of my favorite memories of Edel
* * *
From beginning to end, Edel shattered all of my original expectations. I walked away from the weekend knowing that satan is lying when he tells me that I’m alone in this Catholic wife and mothering thing. Edel taught me that NOW is my time to figure out what God’s doing in my soul and what He wants me to do with it. I’m exactly where I’m supposed to be with exactly the people who He sent me. No more surviving these years with young children; it’s time to thrive and encourage others along the way. I just need to get out of the way and listen to His movement in my life in the ordinary day-to-day.
He’s here, I’m listening, and I’m ready to start rebuking fear.
Here I am, Lord. Let’s do this thing!
![7QT: On the Homefront While I Was at Edel]()
by Catherine | Jul 16, 2015 | Family
When I thought about leaving town for the Edel Gathering last Friday through Sunday, I didn’t worry for one second about leaving home. We had Jane when Philip was in med school, so the kids got used to not having Philip around much. Now that he’s in practice and has a more normal schedule, they’ve gotten used to having special time with Daddy.
I left for Edel early Friday morning (Philip took the day off to be home with the kids), so I ended up telling the kids Thursday night before we put them to bed that I was going to be out of town for a few days. Even though Philip and I have taken quite a few long weekend trips away from the kids, this was the first time I was going to leave them by myself. It felt WEIRD. I know they love me, but I was anticipating a, “Welp, see you later,” like they gave me on their first days of preschool. These kids don’t struggle with separation. Not this time, though. I’m going to blame exhaustion and the heat on their very emotional reaction. Jane started crying, that got Walt crying, and then Harry got in on the action. “But, Mama,” Jane said, “you better teach Daddy how to do all of the things you do!” It was like she forgot how he has always helped with everything around here (and more often than not does a lot of it better than I do!). Exhaustion tends to get the best of the Boucher girls. Philip really is THE MAN when it comes to his parenting and general domestic skills.
Fair warning: This is going to be one of those annoying posts when I’m that girl who goes on and on about how awesome her husband is. You’ve been forewarned!
So, other than cry their eyes out (not even a tear), what did they do while I was away? Well…
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Friday morning, Philip invited his sister, Maddy, to join him and the kids on a trip to Omaha to visit the Henry Doorly Zoo.
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For lunch, they went to B&G’s, an old-school diner with legendary loose meat sandwiches and root beer floats.
Jane & Maddy
Creepy smoking clown art
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Bathtime
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Saturday morning trip to Pioneers Park
Enjoying their room to roam free
Posing with the statues
I love Jane’s pose with her big sun hat
Feeding the geese
I love this picture even though it distorted the kids’ faces
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A stop at the nature center
Finding the Queen Bee
Checking out the stuffed animals
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Jane got a goose egg. “She just hit her head on a pole,” Dr. Phil nonchalantly explained. No biggie.
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Saturday night, Philip decided to have some of our friends and their 3 sweet kiddos over for dinner. He made pulled pork sandwiches with homemade BBQ, our friends brought sides, and Philip made peach crisp with vanilla ice cream for dessert. This guy.
Kiddie table
Sprinkler fun with friends
So, yes, I’m spoiled rotten. Philip and the kids had a grand ol’ time while I was away. These are just the things he took pictures of, but they did much, much more. I’m so very grateful for how he went above and beyond to make it a wonderful weekend for them. Surprisingly, the kids actually still missed me despite all of the fun they had with Daddy, and they greeted me with their biggest hugs and kisses upon my return. It’s good to be home, but I’m so glad they had such a great weekend with Philip.
If you’d like to read more 7QT posts, head on over to Kelly Mantoan’s wonderful blog, This Ain’t the Lyceum. (People, I’ve always been a big fan of Kelly’s, but ever since meeting her at Edel, I’m hooked. I’ll be writing more about her talk at Edel next week.)
I’m slowly learning how to not be a perfectionist and let the kids do their own thing when they can. I’m very proud of Jane and Walt for doing this project together!
