Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make straight your paths.   Proverbs 3:5-6

Photo Courtesy of Pixabay.com.

As I drove Zack to Youth Group a few weeks ago, he and I hit a snag while planning his upcoming birthday celebration. Now that he’s entering high school, his and his brother Mason’s relationship has shifted. Where they were once joined at the hip, shared all the same interests, and finished each other’s sentences, they’re paths are now diverging. The love and bond are deep and everlasting, but things on the surface have changed.

The issue was: Zack wanted just his same-aged-friends to go to the local amusement park for his birthday. Yet, he was deeply distraught about excluding his brother. The seven-minute-drive to the Parish Center was not long enough to solve the problem. I dropped him off saying we’d talk more about it when he got home. Continue reading →

Published on CatholicMom.com

He had him (Peter) put in prison under the guard of four squads of four solders each… Peter, secured by double chains, was sleeping between two soldiers, while outside the door, guards kept watch on the prison.   Acts 12:4 & 6

Photo Courtesy of Pixabay.com

I went to the bank a few weeks ago to cash some checks. What I thought would be a five minute errand turned into an hour of deep confusion and stress. Continue reading →

“What no eye has seen, nor ear heard, nor the heart of man imagined, what God has prepared for those who love him.” 1 Corinthians 2:9

Photo Courtesy of Pixabay.com

In summers past, I made all the plans and kept them a secret from my kids. I just called everything an “adventure.” I thought it would be more fun for my kids that way. Plus, it made it easier for me if something got canceled, or the weather didn’t cooperate. I could easily make new plans, and my kids would be none-the-wiser.

Now that they’re older, I’ve been giving them the choice: I can keep things a surprise, or I can tell them if they want to know. Their reactions have been interesting… Continue reading →

The more I called them, the farther they went from me.   Hosea 11:2

Every year, the amusement park near us has a Town Day. The rate is drastically reduced for us residents. We always go and stay together as a family until the park closes. It’s one of my favorite days of the summer!

Now having a teenager and a tweener, I knew the landscape was shifting. But I was tightly clutching onto the idea of spending this outing as a family, one last time. I wanted to satiate my craving for making fun, family memories together.

Sadly, I set myself and my family up for failure. Continue reading →

Your eyes have seen my unformed substance… Psalm 139:16

Photo Courtesy of Pixabay.com

Working on Kindness Projects this summer, Mason and Zack asked if they could volunteer at the local nursing home last Tuesday. Of course I said, “Yes!” So off they went, on a beautiful summer day, to spend an hour-and-a-half helping the elderly in whatever way there were asked. I was so proud of them!

But summer days are long. During the course of the rest of the day, they did several things that frustrated me, blinding me to their earlier kindness and selflessness. It took until the next day to figure out I have a real vision problem. Continue reading →

I’m thrilled to announce that Amy Newmark, the editor of the Chicken Soup for the Soul books features my story, “No Compromise Date Nights,” in her July 8th/9th podcast “Keeping Love Fresh as the Years Go On.”  Continue reading →

Published on CatholicMom.com

The fervent prayer of a righteous person is very powerful. James 5:16

Photo Courtesy of Pixabay.com

My friend, Jess, gave me twinkle lights for my back deck for my birthday. She knows that’s my summer sanctuary. She wanted to add to its serenity.

The cool thing about the lights is: They’re solar powered. The only effort I had to invest was to wrap them around the deck posts, and then stake the little solar panel in a sunny spot.

As we sat having drinks with our neighbors that evening, the most magical thing happened: As night started to fall, surrounding us in darkness, those little bulbs started to glow, transforming the dark with little twinkles of light. Right when we would have had to end our time in my oasis, we were wrapped in just enough light to continue on.

It got me thinking… My mom is an awful lot like those twinkle lights. Continue reading →