Living
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Perhaps It’s Time to Flip Over Some Tables
I begin this post with a bit of trepidation. The truth is, I don’t want to come down on the wrong side of things, because coming down on the wrong side of things would mean finding myself in a battle against Jesus and His Church — which is not my intention. No Siree! To be clear, my beef is not, nor will it ever be, with the Church Christ established. My beef is with the people who are trying to destroy it from within: the abusers, the careerists, the wolves in sheep’s clothing. I write this after a few days of wrestling with the reality of a Cardinal in the…
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Staying Peaceful in the Midst of Chaos
Let’s be honest. Having kids can push us to the very edge of our physical, spiritual and emotional limits. I guess what I’m trying to say is that parenting ain’t for sissies — let’s take a moment to let that sink in. If we don’t take the time to face that reality, we just might not make it out alive. This is serious stuff, people, and we need to have each other’s backs when the days get long. We need to share the things we’ve learned along the way. So this is my attempt at sharing a few good coping mechanisms for keeping our stuff together when we’d rather just…
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Ireland and Connecting Our Kids With Their Story
This year we will make the last of our family pilgrimages before we reach the next stage of our lives: children in college and finding ourselves absolutely broke for the next twenty years. Ha, Ha. The truth is, we are likely broke now, but we’ve decided to ignore that reality and finish the “Trilogy” of family pilgrimages before our kids have grown too old to have the time or desire to travel with us anymore. We knew that Italy, Spain and Portugal, and Ireland had to make the top of that list — not because of their appeal to tourists, but because of their deeply Catholic roots. There are plenty…
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Seeking Out Community
Summer is in full swing, and for us Midwesterners that means making the most of the beautiful weather and packing our summer with parties and get-togethers. Honestly, it can be exhausting — but it’s the best kind of exhausting. It’s the kind of exhausting where we get a chance to catch up on each other’s lives and have deeper conversations about ourselves and our families and the things that matter most to us. It seems many of our get-togethers, as of late, have included conversations about the desire to live an intentional life — to not get stuck in the weeds of life, but to live our lives with purpose.…
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How to Deal With Turkeys
I love getting outdoors — with all the fresh air, lovely scents and amazing beauty — honestly, there are few things as restorative as time outdoors surrounded by the beauty one encounters in nature. But anybody who has spent any time outdoors, also has to acknowledge that the rewards of getting outdoors, has mixed in with it the hazards of stinging insects, biting animals, sunburn, dehydration — I could go on, but I won’t. The point is, it’s not always going to be a pleasant experience and I’ve learned to accept that these nuisances serve as great reminders that we’re not in Paradise, yet. I guess you could say I…
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Why It’s Important to Just Be
Two years ago I wrote about a hilarious mishap that happened to our family while taking a hike before sunrise. Sure, the backdrop was Florence, which is pretty extraordinary, but the point of the post was that quality time can happen anywhere — absolutely anywhere — and you don’t need to go off to far off places to make those moments happen. In fact, I think that it’s imperative that you go out of your way to find little family adventures in your own neck of the woods. And these moments don’t require exotic, “insta-worthy” locations or piles of money to make it happen. Any backyard barbecue or fire pit can…
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The Day Mary Inspired Me with the Perfect Prayer
How’s your May going? Ours has been full of birthdays and family visits and lovely weather and it’s been quite enjoyable. Sometimes I find myself just surviving May — like I almost die in the middle of it — but this May has been a little less hectic. I think it has something to do with having another driver in the home. So yay for teen drivers! This post is scheduled to publish on my oldest son’s birthday. I have to say, he is turning out to be a wonderful young man, and I can’t help but think that it has something to do with the way he entered into this world. Bear…
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It All Comes Back to a Theology of the Body
Once upon a time, I traveled around the country giving chastity talks. For some reason, as I sat down to write a conclusion to the two previous posts on NFP, one of the more unique chastity talks I ever gave came to mind. Let me set the stage for you. We were invited to give a talk at a Catholic college in Louisiana. It was a mandatory talk for all the fraternities and sororities on campus. That in itself made for an interesting setting. We were pleasantly surprised by the incredibly enthusiastic frat boys, who came running up to fill the front rows of the room. They were just so…
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The Elephant in the Room…An Honest look at NFP (Part 2)
This post won’t fully make sense without reading part 1. So click here for Part 1, and then come back here. I realize that a post like this might make somebody feel guilty about their choices in life. That is not the goal of this post — not at all. There is absolutely zero value in beating yourself up over choices you have made in the past! We all need to make peace with our past, go to Confession when necessary, and move on. That being said, we have to address the elephant standing in the room right now. It’s a big elephant, worth billions of dollars, around the world…
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Why, Yes, We Do Know What Causes That. An Honest Look at NFP (Part 1)
I’ll never forget the moment that I first was asked that question, “Don’t you know what causes that!?” It was at the Chelsea Flower Show in London — and it stands out in my mind because it was one of those rare trips without our kids in tow. We had even managed to secure tickets to the Chelsea Flower Show on the opening day. Believe me, this was not an easy feat. This was no ordinary flower show. It was extra fancy. I mean, look at the fancy people walking through these gardens. The Queen of England even showed up with different members of the royal family — so believe…
