Gloriae Dei Cantores – Sounds from Heaven
I’ve always loved music, pretty much any type you can imagine (except for polka, hardcore rap, and some improv jazz). As a kid, I grew up listening to Neil Diamond, John Denver, Anne Murray, Gordon...
View ArticleWhat is the Gift of Tears?
A few years ago, I read an article about the gift of tears and was immediately intrigued. Most comments centered around people who said they weep freely at Mass when they never used to, or they...
View ArticleFearless – Live with Love, Not Fear
I’ve lived most of my life in fear – of everything. As a child, I was afraid of spiders, heights, the unknown, changes, a new school/classroom/teacher, making new friends, trying different foods,...
View ArticleCoping and Thriving With Apert Syndrome
Maybe you’ve known about Apert Syndrome for a while and have been slowly preparing yourself for your child’s arrival. Perhaps it was unknown to you prenatally, and you were completely taken aback when...
View ArticlePadre Pio: A Timeless Saint
St. Padre Pio has always been one of my favorites. Even before his canonization, I felt a strong affinity toward his life and spirituality. I suppose part of it was due to my parents’ love of...
View ArticleSuffering Is An Act of Love
“I’m a nurse, and I’ve seen children suffer senselessly. It’s far more merciful to allow them to die than to suffer.” “If we humanely euthanize pets, why can’t we do the same for people? I see...
View ArticleWhat I Wish I Knew…
I love our dog, Lily. This may seem like a random thing to write about in the midst of otherwise spiritual posts, but Lily has truly been a blessing to us from God. I always think about how dogs are...
View ArticleThere’s No Such Thing As Balance
I hate the word balance—at least the way our modern culture defines it. For most of my adult life, all I’ve heard (or read) is about how to balance work and family life or finding balance when life...
View ArticleAdvice Worth Ignoring
I’ll admit something – I usually take good advice, even if it’s unsolicited. I guess it’s because I’ve always known that I don’t know everything. But Dr. Ray Guarendi’s newest book, Advice Worth...
View ArticleCelebrating Advent and Christmas with Children
One of the many perks of attending the Catholic Marketing Network and Catholic Writers Guild conferences this past summer was meeting authors whose works I was previously unfamiliar with. As we...
View ArticleGetting Special Needs Children Involved in Art
Art can be a great form of therapy for children with special needs, especially those who have difficulties with communicating in the verbal sense. When words can’t be used to communicate or express...
View ArticleAdvent with Saint Teresa of Calcutta
Most people are familiar with the newly canonized St. Teresa of Calcutta, mainly because she was such an iconic figure during her lifetime. Many have openly shared their experiences meeting her...
View ArticleLearning to Trust God with Psalm 37
Do you ever find a particular Scripture worming its way into your heart? Or perhaps it’s a subtle tap-tap-tap. Maybe, as in my husband’s case, it’s a giant brick hitting you over the head. No...
View ArticleThe Grace of Imperfect Motherhood
I’ll be the first to let anyone know that I am not a natural mom. In fact, I never grew up around babies in my small family of origin, and I never babysat. I didn’t like babies, and I certainly didn’t...
View ArticleThe Bittersweet Changes of Parenthood
I’m not a naturally maternal person. Growing up in a small family, I wasn’t exposed to babies and toddlers on a regular basis – and I was fine with that. To me, babies squirmed and smelled and really...
View ArticleCome, Holy Spirit!
In Dr. Kevin Vost’s newest book, The Seven Gifts of the Holy Spirit: Every Spiritual Warrior’s Guide to God’s Invincible Gifts, he illustrates with eloquence yet practical relevance the Thomistic (St....
View ArticleA Powerful Prayer
A friend and fellow author, Shane Kapler, mentioned his newest book, Marrying the Rosary to the Divine Mercy Chaplet, and for some reason I didn’t fully grasp what this meant from the title alone....
View ArticleMaking Sense of Innocent Suffering
“I feel that abortion is often the moral, ethical choice. There are many situations where an abortion is an unselfish, loving, motherly act that prevents the child from a short or long life of pain and...
View ArticleYou Can Help the Poor
As Catholics, we believe strongly in caring for all people and creation, which is evidenced in the Catholic social teaching doctrine. Among the concepts of solidarity, subsidiarity, caring for...
View ArticleThe Strangers at the Manger
If anyone is familiar with Lisa Hendey, s/he knows that Lisa is a Catholic powerhouse. For over ten years now, Lisa has been evangelizing internationally through her speaking engagements, book...
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