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

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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 →

Then James and John, the sons of Zebedee, came to Him and said to Him, “Teacher, we want You to do for us whatever we ask of You.”  Mark 10:35

Photo Courtesy of Pixabay.com

I’ve been talking to my kids lately about how they ask for things. I explained that if they word their request in a certain way, they’re more likely to have success. I was clear that I wasn’t teaching them to be manipulative, just helping them to see that how they word things matters.

No matter what angle I used, they just weren’t getting it. I finally created a script for them to follow. Continue reading →

“You cannot serve God and mammon.” Mt. 6:24

When I looked up the word “mammon” on Wikipedia, the phrase “Associated with the greedy pursuit of gain” jumped right out at me. I’m a stay-at-home mom. So I know I’m not sacrificing my principles by working at a sleazy job just for the great salary. Nonetheless, something inside of me said I was still guilty of serving mammon. Continue reading →

Plant your roots in Christ and let Him be the foundation for your life.     Colossians 2:7

Prayer Path with a mole tunnel running underneath.

I spent a lot of time at the Prayer Path last month, spring cleaning after that crazy winter. We finally got it looking great when some moles started burrowing everywhere, creating tunnels underground that left raised soil meandering all through the labyrinth.

I was so frustrated! I was ready to drop dynamite down their holes like Bill Murray’s character in Caddy Shack. Then a friend pointed out the good the moles were doing. Continue reading →

And if your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one of your members than to have your whole body go into Gehenna.    Matthew 5:30

On April 26th, 2003, the outdoorsman, Aaron Ralston, had his right hand crushed and trapped under an 800 pound rock while hiking through the Bluejohn Canyon in Utah. He hadn’t told anyone where he was going; he wasn’t hopeful of being found. Continue reading →

… be persistent whether it is convenient or inconvenient; convince, reprimand, encourage through all patience and teaching.  2 Timothy 4:2

Photo courtesy of Pixabay.com

When my MOSAIC Moms Group meets every month, we report back on the progress we made on the “One Small Goal” we set for ourselves the month before. The supportive accountability is supposed to inspire us. Sadly, even that hasn’t helped me achieve any of my goals lately.

Consequently, I was bound and determined to make progress on this month’s goal: Relentless Love. No matter what my kids did, I wanted to be like God and love them through it, no matter what, relentlessly, indefatigably.

I was actually making headway until I lost it with Zack last Thursday. Continue reading →

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Jean!!!

Thank you to everyone who participated in the contest to win a copy of Chicken Soup for the Soul: The Miracle of Love, with my story “No Compromise Date Nights.” I LOVED reading about your favorite dates! In fact, they were all so amazing, I couldn’t choose the best. So I put names in a bowl, like last time, and had my husband draw the winner (Jean, John wants you to know you should be indebted to him :).

Again, thank you to all who shared about their own “Miracle of Love,” and to all my readers who fill me with such love and joy always!