Halloween is over. All Saints Day and All Souls Day are passed. We're in November. Has it hit you yet? In the blink of an eye we'll be sitting down to Thanksgiving dinner. Advent will sneak up on us and then BOOM, it'll be Christmas! If you're like me, you've just realized that the holidays are right in front of us. And you probably haven't ordered your Advent candles, yet. Well, you're in … [Read more...]
Book Review and Giveaway from Catholic Family Gifts!
I am always trying to find good Catholic children’s books for my kids, but it’s trickier since our local Catholic bookstore recently closed. I was so excited when Catholic Family Gifts contacted me about doing a book review and giveaway! Catholic Family Gifts is the online extension of a family-owned Catholic store located in Illinois and they generously sent me two books to review (one which … [Read more...]
Cloth Diapering: The Basics (and a GIVEAWAY from Ecological Babies! NOW CLOSED)
I’ve had a few pregnant friends ask me for the low down on cloth diapers, so I thought I would do a post about my experience with them accompanied by some links to good resources if you're interested in cloth diapering. And local business, Ecological Babies has offered a GroVia AIO in the brand new Woodlands print (which is just adorbs) as a giveaway for you. Hurrah! When I was pregnant with my … [Read more...]
Trendy Traditions Rosary Giveaway Winner (and Ballerina Overload)
And the winner of the Our Lady of Guadalupe rosary giveaway is.......Sarah O.! Expect an email from Trendy Traditions, Sarah, about personalizing your rosary, etc. Thanks, Trendy Traditions for a fantastic giveaway prize! And watch for an awesome cloth diaper giveaway this week, friends. Along with a post about everything you ever wanted to know about cloth diapers. Well...maybe not … [Read more...]
Getting to Know Mary (And a GIVEAWAY from Trendy Traditions! NOW CLOSED)
Daniel and I both agree that getting to know the Blessed Virgin Mary is one of the most grace-filled aspects of our conversion to Catholicism. It was not so long ago that the idea was absolutely unfamiliar to me. I grew up in the Protestant tradition which, in my experience, completely ignored the Mother of God except during Christmas time when we were sure to mention that she was “just a regular … [Read more...]
Giveaway Winner!
....and the winner of the clothbound Penguin Classic edition of Pride and Prejudice giveaway is........ Comment #27: Mandy! Mandy, shoot me an email with your address and I'll have a copy sent to you from Amazon. (haley.s.stewart(at)gmail(dot)com) I hope everyone had a wonderful Mardi Gras and Ash Wednesday! … [Read more...]
GIVEAWAY! (NOW CLOSED): Penguin Clothbound Edition of Pride and Prejudice
Well, it's high time for a giveaway! Due to the flu bug hitting our house, Lucy getting pneumonia, and Benjamin having asthma attacks...it's been a pretty lousy past few days. We're still kind of under the weather and Lucy is still coughing, but I think we are at least on the mend. But wow, with two sick kids and a sick mama...mark down yesterday as a big, fat mothering fail that included tears, … [Read more...]
Wanted: Your Natural Cold Remedies
Ironically, I'm a little bit awesome at going through childbirth without meds, but I'm a complete baby when it comes to dealing with the excruciating condition of having a cold. I think Raleigh's final words in this clip kind of sum it up: That little Tenenbaums reference was for my big brother who HATES Tenenbaum references. Just a little sibling banter. Cute, right? First Benjamin got … [Read more...]
O, Christmas Tree!
This morning we continued the family tradition of going to the Bavarian Christmas Tree Farm in Monticello to cut down a Christmas Tree with Daniel's parents and sister. Benjamin was been asking to go cut down a tree since last Christmas when he looked like this: My, he's precious in that photo! I think he's gotten much sneakier and sillier over the past year as you can see: Sweet … [Read more...]
Last Chance to Win Beeswax Candles from Full Moon Apiary!
The Full Moon Apiary Beeswax Candle Giveaway (two candles) ends tonight at midnight! Enter by commenting on the original post (one entry for a comment, subscribe via email or RSS and leave a second comment letting me know for a second entry). And Benjamin insisted that I share this video with you which he describes as "so hilarious!" Thankfully, Benjamin slept until 7 this morning. … [Read more...]
