As my husband Daniel and I have been sharing photos of the bounty from our urban garden, I've gotten lots of requests for a backyard farm tour. Your wish is my command! One of the biggest selling points of the house we bought two years ago was the giant backyard. After a great experience doing an agricultural internship for a year on a working farm (yes, that farm where we lived with no … [Read more...]
Growing in Marriage: What I Learned from the Old Couple at Confession
Although I had mentioned to my husband wanting to go to Confession the night before, my day had been growing busier. I became distracted with this and that--laundry, paperwork, groceries-- and had almost forgotten my intent to go. As the hour drew near, my husband said, “Didn’t you want to go to Confession this afternoon? I’ll go, too, and we can take turns holding Baby Gwen.” "What would I do … [Read more...]
Grace in the Sign of the Cross
You're in luck. While my post partum brain struggles to form coherent sentences and present you with anything worth reading, my brilliant husband comes up with insightful beautiful reflections despite being sleep deprived from having a sweet newborn in the house. He is the best. Enjoy! “Never leave your house without making the sign of the cross. It will be to you a staff, a weapon, an … [Read more...]
Introducing the Hens!
And now, the post you've been waiting for! A chicken virtual meet and greet! You have been waiting for that, right? Ahem. Apparently there's a nesting instinct that takes over pregnant women as they approach their due date. Instead of starting a painting project, organizing, or attacking the dire laundry situation, this phenomenon prompted me to do super unnecessary things like convince my … [Read more...]
Ode to My Wedding Ring on Our 7th Anniversary
My wedding ring is just a white gold band, no diamond or precious stones. Daniel and I couldn’t figure out the whole engagement ring AND a wedding band thing. (Why? I still don't get it!) So a sweet thin band is all I have and it’s exactly what I wanted. When we were discussing rings, I was concerned about blood diamonds and worried I would lose a fancy bejeweled ring (I cannot keep track of … [Read more...]
A Picture of the Incarnation on My Kitchen Floor
During this pregnancy (my third) my mood swings have been unreal. One minute everything is rosy and the next I find myself sobbing for no reason. And if I wait too long to eat or don’t get enough sleep, I am sure to be an insane hysterical basket case. The worst meltdown occurred for really no reason at all at about halfway through the pregnancy. We put the kids to bed, then Daniel ran some … [Read more...]
The Definition of Sexy
Dear Madly-in-love Newlywed, Your definition of sexy is about to change. It might take two years, it might take ten. And you’re not going to believe a word I say in these blissful days of butterflies in your stomach at the sound of his voice. It’s going to sound mundane and boring to you now, but just file this away. What’s your definition of sexy? Getting surprise flowers from your beloved? … [Read more...]
The Feast of St. Andrew, Nov. 30th
Tomorrow is the Feast of St. Andrew. Daniel whipped up this fabulous meal of Tahini Tilapia for our celebration of St. Andrew (a fisherman) a couple of years ago and it's still a staple at our house. And since November 30th is on a Friday this year, how handy that it's fish for us Catholics, right? The following is drawn from a post on Feast!, our woefully neglected Christian Year blog, that … [Read more...]
Our Favorite Breakfasts
Breakfast has always been my favorite meal of the day. Maybe because I love eating anything I can cover in butter and jam. When I was a little girl, my parents would take me to Cracker Barrel and I would amaze bystanders with the sheer volume of biscuits a tiny 4-year-old could eat. Having a child with a severe gluten allergy has significantly diminished my biscuit consumption, but I still love … [Read more...]
By the sea…
To celebrate my sweet mum's 60th birthday, we went on a little trip to the ocean to eat at a restaurant built over the water (because it was a dry county in days past). We haven't been there since the building was rebuilt after being destroyed in a hurricane. Now, why you would want to build your restaurant in the exact same place it recently fell into the ocean in a state that gets hurricanes at … [Read more...]
