Dear College Me,

As a 30-something whose name has changed from “Annie” to “Mommy,” I’ve been reflecting about our experience over a decade ago.  College.  There is no other time like it.  You’re free from the ever-watchful eyes of the parents you left back home and you...

To say that school-related decisions this year have been extremely difficult would be an understatement. Between in-person, on-screen, and homeschool, parents might feel like there is no good choice. Nevertheless, choose we must. With deliberation and discernment, ever...

HAPPY NFP AWARENESS WEEK! Perhaps you haven’t heard about this rarely-discussed method of family planning. But what if I told you there’s a natural and effective way to plan your family by understanding a woman’s fertility instead of medicating it? Every year during th...

A dear priest friend died suddenly last night, and it’s led to a day of reflection about his impact on my life and the lives of so many others.  News of his passing started a social media blitz of stories filled with his dry wit, unwavering service, and spiritual fathe...

God can use anything to reveal truth to us…even a piece of cheesecake!

Let me explain.

My first three children came along very quickly.  We started referring to them as the “annual baby” after I gave birth in 2012, 2013, and 2014.  The “2014 model” came in just under the...

A strange phenomenon happened to me recently.  When praying the rosary, I became disappointed if the day called for meditation on the Glorious Mysteries.  The stories of Jesus’ early life (Joyful Mysteries,) those of his ministry (Luminous Mysteries,) and those of his...

“They told her she had to text a naked picture of herself to a boy if she wanted to stay in the ‘cool’ friend group.”  This is what the mother of a 13-year-old girl told me last weekend during her daughter’s Confirmation retreat.  When her daughter refused to send the...

If you have a few children under the age of ten, I’m willing to bet my current predicament will resonate with you.  When “hand washing” means running fingertips under water; “keep your hands out of your mouth…and your nose…and your pants” are phrases repeated more ofte...

A Refection on Catholic Ministry and Parenthood

“Doesn’t it sometimes feel like we’re just building sandcastles against an incoming high tide?” my husband asked me as we sat preparing a teaching on God’s existence for our youth group.  He had a point.  Here we were, try...

I feel kind of funny describing my family as “big.” Several of my friends have twice the number of children I do, and so my five-child family pales in comparison. Nevertheless, when I venture into public with my four young children and pregnant belly, strangers inevita...