The Winners This giveaway has turned out to be my favorite one ever. If you haven't been back over to read the comments . . . do it. They are so, so, so sweet. I wish you could all win. I really do. But instead, I just let random.org pick me five winning...

Seven Quick Links, Quotes, Major Awards, and Times I Made Facebook Mad
Okay, it's Seven Quick Takes time . . . - one - Are you a Catholic and a woman and a blogger? Do you want to come to my house and work on getting a little better at all three? Well, good news. We're throwing a conference. Well, mostly I'm just hosting and giving...
In Which the Biathlon is the Awesomest Sport in the Olympics, Obviously
Figure skating and other spinny judged sports might be getting more attention, but I am confident in my conviction that the Biathlon is really where it's at. Here's why . . . --- 1 --- You have to be pretty much the perfect athlete to succeed at biathlon. Biathlon is...
This Party Ain't Over, Some of Us Just GOT Here!
--- 1 --- Contrary to reports you may have heard . . . the blog is not dead. Maybe it's different than it used to be (it is according to Waltzing Matilda). Maybe it's not what teenagers are doing (it's not according to this guy). But, I'm not a teenager, and I'm okay...
Naysayers Gonna Naysay: 7 Quick Takes XXXI
update: I've edited this post to remove links and references to other people's articles, for fear of having misrepresented the positions expressed within. You're stuck with just my opinion now! --- 1 --- I have witnessed a lot of back and forth recently about the...
Theology of the Zombie: 7 Quick Takes XXVIII
--- 1 --- So, this happened during a family rosary in the car this week: All: . . . He will come again in glory to judge to living and the dead . . . Jack (11): What about the living dead? Will He judge the living dead?Me: Zombies? Well, since that issue isn't...
The Duke of Whales: 7 Quick Takes XXII
--- 1 --- Me: Hey, remember when we watched the Royal Wedding? The Duke and Duchess are having a baby today! Bobby: What's he the Duke of? Me: Wales, I think. Bobby: The Duke of WHALES? How does that work? well, something like this, I'd imagine As it turns out he's...
Splenda is to Eating as the Pill is to . . . : 7 Quick Takes IV
--- 1 --- Two of my boys can say they were named for a Pope, but only one can say that a Pope was named for him. (Sorry Gus!) When Gus was a toddler, a priest once remarked to me,"If you didn't want him to give you trouble,you probably shouldn't have named him...
I Was a Good Guy THIS WHOLE TIME: 7 Quick Takes II
--- 1 --- My sister and her two little girls are visiting from Iowa this week. Hooray for cousins! Is Frankie finally surrendering? I doubt it. My sister's baby likes to really rub it in by being super-smiley and charming AT ALL TIMES. The other kids are...
Balloonford?: 7 Quick Takes
If you usually read my blog, you'll understand how much of a challenge "quick" takes are for me. Let's see how I do . . . --- 1 --- Happy Chair of St. Peter! In this house we celebrate the fasts AND the feasts, so we always look forward to the feasts in Lent, and...
Notable and Quotable
Hey All, For today, you get a roundup of how things sounded around my house this week and the important lessons we learned. 1. I am not an acceptable substitute for Julie Andrews.Anita (3) in the car: "Mom, could you not sing? I'm trying to hear Mary...