“ And in many ways, all of my characters are defined by their attitude to death and the possibility of death.”- J.K. Rowling Hallowtide, the three days of All Hallow’s Eve, All Saints Day (or Hallowmas), and All Souls Day, is an ancient part of the Christian Year. Before becoming Catholic I thought of Halloween as morbid and I couldn’t understand how to celebrate All Souls, or the Day of the … [Read more...]
Archives for October 2015
Liturgical Living at a Glance: November 2015
I’m always trying to figure out how to make it easier for families to observe the Christian Year because we felt so overwhelmed when we first started that journey (which is why we wrote the book we wish we had then). I thought it might be helpful for our family to have resources compiled for the month ahead so that we can plan in advance which special saints days we want to observe and I hope … [Read more...]
Can You Pray the Rosary with Little Kids in the House?
This post is sponsored by Chews Life. Mothers of young children are always being told how important the Rosary is as a spiritual devotion to help them raise holy families. And I totally agree. The Rosary is powerful! It is amazing. The problem is, the Rosary is hard to pray when you’ve got lots of little folks waking up before dawn and not leaving you with a quiet moment until everyone … [Read more...]
10 Ways to Climb Out of a Really Bad Day of Mothering
You know those mornings that just start out all wrong? Whatever your expectations were.....they don't come to pass. Maybe you're woken up at 4:30 am by a child who just refuses to go back to sleep. Maybe you set your alarm and dragged yourself out of bed early to spend some quiet time with your cup of coffee and prayer only to hear little feet pitter pattering stomping like elephants down the … [Read more...]
This Week’s Miscellany: Vol. 141 (and Giveaway winners!)
It finally happened! After five weeks we got a REAL date night. Woohoo! We wandered around Waco, ate at the beautiful Hippodrome, and then went to see Yo-Yo Ma shred the cello. It reminded me how important it is to make time for date nights and just us evenings with little ones and while living in community. We both adore having other grownups around and having other farmies over for meals … [Read more...]
How to Prep for a Stress-Free Advent {Advent Candle Giveaway–Sponsored Post}
This post is sponsored by Toadily Handmade Beeswax Candles. It's been a stressful year for our family. Job changes, selling a house, moving our three kids across the country, and transitioning to a new town. I still feel like my head is spinning from the move even though we've been in TX a whole month. And I find myself longing for Advent--my favorite time of year. Advent (this year it … [Read more...]
This Week’s Miscellany: Vol. 140
Gwen displaying her usual joie de vivre. How I love this girl. Just another typical week at the farm over here. Lots of fun, dirt, and compost toilets. I haven't even had a chance to wonder if moving was the right decision for us. Because we're having too much fun. The only thing I worry about is what in the heck we're going to do after this year! But I'm trusting that we'll figure that … [Read more...]
How a Family of Five Got Rid of Half Their Stuff
When we wanted our life to change from Daniel's 9-5 and our urban homeowner life to an agricultural internship on a farm halfway across the country, we knew that part of the deal would be moving into a two bedroom 650 sq ft apartment significantly smaller than our little starter home. So we started decluttering. Big time. And ended up getting rid of half of our stuff. How many things have I … [Read more...]
What to Do on a Whirlwind Trip to Albuquerque (with Kids in Tow!)
So many stops on our 6.5 week road trip around the U.S. deserve their own posts. I'm not sure if we'll ever get a chance to cover all our travels, but today we're spilling about Albuquerque, NM! As a Florida girl through and through, I was surprised how much I loved experiencing the Southwest. I've never spent any extended time on that side of the country and it really is amazing. It's fierce … [Read more...]
This Week’s Miscellany: Vol. 139
Girl meets goat. Farm life is treating us well, friends. In the Liturgical Year: We baked a big Michaelmas feast for everyone at the farm on Tuesday. It was a blast. The blackberry crumble was the crowning glory. But we also had fun roasting two geese that the farm had raised last year and had been in the freezer waiting for the perfect moment to be gobbled up. They had already been skinned … [Read more...]
