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Then he said, “In truth I tell you, unless you change and become like little children you will never enter the kingdom of Heaven.” ( Matthew 18:3  NJB) The perfect New Year’s resolution for mothers would be to try and obey this request from Christ. Surrounded by kids, mums especially love this verse becomes it validates the charming qualities we see in our children in a society which tends to overlook the powerless and extol those who are rich and powerful. Most reflections on this verse also focus on our kids’ virtues, virtues Christ extolled throughout His life on earth — such as humility, vulnerability, dependence on others, and the beautiful ability to trust and love others unconditionally without censure. However, the most pressing question triggered by this verse is:  How is it possible for  adults to change and become like little children? I can see the wisdom of Christ’s request, and I have the power to alter ...

image-  Nancy Noel, The Butterfly. When I first started to mother, I was determined to raise committed Catholic Christians and so I tried too hard. I had the mistaken notion that my kids were blank slates and I personally had to teach them everything. I assumed the role of the teacher, the resident expert. However, God had to shake me out of this arrogant stance by humbling me in the face of my children’s unique, innate spirituality.  Kids have a pure, open relationship with the heavenly Father and Mother Mary. continue

I have always heard the mother is the heart of the family, especially a stay-at-home mother with a crew of kids, who also helps with a hobby farm. So why was I not missed when I spent hours locked in the chicken coop? You must first understand that even if this was a subconscious belief, I behaved as if a mother   was the most important member of the family. It took a drastic experience to shake me out of my arrogance. God has a sense of humour and will use any and all experiences to teach us. continue reading

I have always heard the mother is the heart of the family, especially a stay at home mother with a crew of kids, who also helps with a hobby farm. So why was I not missed when I spent hours locked in the chicken coop? You must first understand that even if this was a subconscious belief, I behaved as if  I  was the most important member of the family. It took a drastic experience to shake me out of my arrogance. God has a sense of humour and will use any and all experiences to teach us. continue

I have always heard the mother is the heart of the family, especially a stay at home mother with a crew of kids, who also helps with a hobby farm. So why was I not missed when I spent hours locked in the chicken coop? You must first understand that even if this was a subconscious belief, I behaved as if  I  was the most important member of the family. It took a drastic experience to shake me out of my arrogance. God has a sense of humour and will use any and all experiences to teach us. continue reading

Did you get a load of this  New York Post article ? A New Yorker named Wednesday Martin just wrote a memoir called  Primates of Park Avenue , due out June 2. The book chronicles her experience with Upper-East-Side women who wear motherhood like an assault rifle. According to Maureen Callahan's article about the book, these moms pay $400 an hour for play-date tutors, enroll 3-month-old infants in music classes, and time pregnancies so their children will be the oldest ones in class. Loyola Press offers a  rosary kit  for children ages four and up. They sent me a kit and asked me to share my thoughts. So, I turned right around and shared the kit with some families (including one family with a son who has developmental delays), and asked what  they  thought. The  Loyola Press  rosary kit includes 61 prayer cards, 1 lacing string, 4 Mysteries of the Rosary cards, and a diagram explaining how to pray the rosary. Join me at Praying with Grace f...

The most fascinating mother I like to consider is the mother of Jesus. The Bible tells many stories involving Mary, which means the Holy Spirit invites us to contemplate her role in the Christian story. The wedding feast at Cana (John 2:1-12) is my favorite scriptural encounter with Jesus and Mary. Today's video explores why. Jan Cossiers [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons Not all of my Christian friends are entirely comfortable with the idea of asking Mary to pray for them, but the Bible shows Mary's intimate relationship with--and unparalleled faith in--her son. People who have been in love know that meeting the mother of their beloved is a big deal. Whether that momentous first encounter turns out to be splendid or horrid, the ongoing relationship with the beloved's mom has a deep and lasting effect on the two lovers. Lovers of Jesus and readers of the Bible can't avoid encountering Mary. Jesus pays close attention to her, even when it seems he doesn'...

In her short life – she was only twenty-four when she died – St. Thérèse of Lisieux discovered profound truths, truths that I have stumbled on as well. Thérèse is my soul mate, perhaps the soul mate of many mothers. “ Everything is a grace. Everything is the direct effect of our Father’s love – difficulties, contradictions, humiliations, all the soul’s miseries, her burdens, her needs – everything. Because through them she learns humility, realizes her weakness. Everything is a grace because everything is God’s gift.  I have recently discovered that my spirituality is very similar to that of St. Thérèse the Little Flower probably because I have lived with children under the age of 18 for 33 years.  I think that many mothers can relate to this saint as well. She lived  the  little way   like all people who are not rich and famous but want to serve God their loving Father through their littleness and simplicity. She chose to stay as a child i...

"Those who love to be feared, fear to be loved, and they themselves are more afraid than anyone, for whereas other men fear only them, they fear everyone."  St. Francis de Sales We've all come across those who seem to "love to be feared".   Most of the time, we just turn away and ignore their chest thumping.  Sometimes, we want to stand toe-to-toe and let them know what's what; especially when we see injustice. No matter how we decide to react to these persons who cross our path, we should try to remember that behind the bravado is really someone who is fighting a battle from within. Those who "love to be feared" choose to cling to the inclinations that we've all inherited as the result of the fall in the Garden of Eden.  They've developed a deep distrust of the world and have forgotten that it is God who is in charge. They take on the world with an "It's me or them." attitude.  They forget that God's ...

"How can we better manifest our faithfulness than by being faithful amid distractions. Alas! Solitude has its temptations, and the world has its trials; but through all we must have good courage, because help from Heaven is ever nearest to those who put their whole trust in God, and who earnestly seek His Fatherly help with humility and patience. Be not distressed, then, at the little vexations and troubles that a multiplicity of domestic affairs bring upon you. No! rather be thankful that..... To read more, visit The Sincere Gift

A Wet Sunday Morning by Edmund Blair Leighton In the following piece of advise, St Francis talks about what is required for our Sunday obligation in which we receive Jesus in Holy Communion.  The last bit of counsel for married couples was quite interesting. "There is no danger in doing all sorts of good and necessary tasks and in working on the day when one has been to communion.  In the primitive  church when everyone went to communion everyday, do you think that they sat their with their arms folded for the rest of the day?  And St. Paul, who generally said Mass, went on earning his living by the work of his hands. To read the rest, visit The Sincere Gift

I love Marie Barone in the sitcom Everybody Loves Raymond . Sure she’s a bit meddlesome. Admittedly she’s even a tad overbearing. Maybe she’s even off-putting to some. But her motivation is pure. She’s committed to her family. She really never puts herself first—even if we are led to believe that she does. If we are really paying attention, her scheming is done to ensure that her family is safe and sound and well-fed. No matter what, it is always important that they eat. As a mother of three sons, I get how my own feeling of peace is tied to the care and feeding of my boys—and so I instinctively understand why Marie is forever handing food to whomever walks through the door. “Are you hungry, dear?” she asks while handing over a plate—without any regard to the answer. Now, as my own sons grow older and the prospects of one day becoming a mother-in-law myself become a real possibility, I take note of mothers-in-law in a new way. And Marie Barone is at the...

I have always heard that the mother is the heart of the family, especially a stay at home mother with a crew of kids, who also helps with a hobby farm. So Why was I not missed when I spent hours locked in the chicken coop? You must first understand that even if this was a subconscious belief, I behaved as if  I  was the most important member of the family. It took a drastic experience for God to shake me out of my arrogance. Ten years ago on a very cold winter day, I decided to go with my husband to the barn. I bundled up in Michael’s extra set of warm boots and coat. Since I am a size 2 in women’s clothing and he is an X-Large in men’s sizes, I looked quite comical trudging after him to the barn. We divided up the chores and rushed to finish them as quickly as possible because the wind was fierce.My last task was to water , feed and gather eggs from our laying hens. Michael passed in the bucket of water that he had hauled for me and then left me ...

I have recently discovered that my spirituality is very similar to that of St. Thérèse the Little Flower probably because I have lived with children under the age of 18 for 33 years.   I think that many mothers can relate to this saint as well. She lived  the   little way   like all people  who are not rich and famous but want to serve God their loving Father through their littleness and simplicity. She chose to stay as a child in they eyes of God, performing all of her duties with love and obedience, no matter how small and insignificant they were.  Matthew 18:3: and said, "Truly, I say to you,   unless you turn and become like children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.    I like to say that a child, frog and tree are holy because they are who they called to be without a mask or false persona or large ego. St. Thérèse said,    “Holiness consists simply in doing God's will, and being just what Go ...