AboutKendra Tierney & Catholic All Year Hi and welcome! My name is Kendra. I’m a forty-something mother of many living just outside of Los Angeles, CA. I started this blog in 2013 because a lady yelled at me in church, and I figured people would want to know about...
The husband is reading The Lord of the Rings aloud to the kids, and I find myself struck again by the beauty of the friendship between Frodo and Sam. Sam's constant selfless devotion, Frodo's (eventual) trust and reliance . . . it's just all so touching. And a deep...
The secret part is step number four, which involves understanding that not all kids start reading as early as you've been led to believe. But since there are five steps that I've followed to get my kids reading, I figure we should probably start with number one. 1....
Scroll down to the end for the big winners of last week's giveaway! The kids have been doing most of the cooking around here this summer as I was super-pregnant-with, then snuggling-with baby Mary Jane. I figured we'd share another recipe today. This time brought to...
Most of the posts you're seeing on the blog these days were scheduled out in advance before baby Mary Jane arrived, because life in the Tierney house has taken a turn for the crazy-pants crazy. (More on that below.) But I want to share some current events and I was...
It's easy to sometimes feel like motherhood isn't compatible with true Christian works of mercy. After all, not many of us are able to manage the kind of charitable activities that our sisters called to single life or religious vocations might be able to do. I have...
Hiya, and welcome to another edition of Answer Me This, the internet's favorite virtual cocktail party, where we all answer the same six random questions and get to know each other a little better. And now for THIS WEEK'S questions, to answer THIS WEEK . . . 1....
Hey! Been wondering what the week has looked like around here? No? Too bad. Here goes. 1. This week in modern conveniences . . . We were without air conditioning from Sunday through Thursday. In the Valley. In July. But we survived. Pope Francis would be really proud...
Welcome to the return of Answer Me This! Here are THIS WEEK's questions . . . 1. Any big plans for the summer? Well, I'm having a baby. And while that's not exactly an unusual occurrence around here, it's still the biggest thing I've got going. We usually spend...
Superman (although born pagan and raised Methodist) has a very Calvinist ethos. Dude is SAVED, right? Once and for all.* Superman's heroism is predestined. But not Daredevil. His friends, and even he himself, aren't always sure whether he is doing the right thing. He...
Hey all! We are back home after a truly amazing ten days of family fun and hands on history on the East coast. I've got a bunch of upcoming posts I'm excited to share with you, including the big trip recap, my latest Netflix binge watch, and the beginning of a new...
Every year, during the first three days of Holy Week, we do a big declutter and donate. This is how I get motivated . . . We Can Do It! Here's why it works for us . . . 1. Since it's tied to a big event - Easter - I can't "forget" about it, or put it off forever....
But then again, maybe you wouldn't. I watched a LOT of Irish movies over the past few weeks, in the hopes of finding a few to recommend for a fun St. Patrick's Day family movie night. But I found that many them made me want to throw myself into the pit of despair....
I have mentioned that I have watched quite a bit of Netflix streaming during this blah part of my current pregnancy. I didn't set out to find Catholic characters on TV shows or anything. My very scientific method of selecting series to watch is to just click on shows...
Hey, I've (finally) got my first OB appointment today. Who wants to guess how far along I am and how many very small people are in there? *I* think twelve weeks and one person, but I really don't know for sure. I wasn't charting. I'm against charting. And now . . . I...
I've missed you guys! Pictured: This was not MY funeral. This was the funeral of Brian Urlacher the hen, who was found dead on Boxing Day, and was buried with due reverence by her caretaker Bobby, with supervision by Frankie. But, whew, yesterday was the first day...
Well, for those of you who are just dying of curiosity over which photo we went with for the Christmas card this year . . . it was the rocks one. In case your card got lost in the mail, here it is in blog form: And in case you couldn't read that, here's the...
I get plenty of questions about how to introduce our Catholic faith to preschoolers and little kids, but so far, none about how to help guide older children as, hopefully, their faith matures and becomes something that they take some initiative for themselves. So...
Every year, I see rabble rousing Christian websites trying to get folks to boycott businesses that use Happy Holidays in their advertising. Obviously, I support people's right to do as they please with their own money. But as for me, I'm not a boycotter to begin with,...
My friend Kelly is hosting Seven Quick Takes today, so I'm back on the link-up wagon. -one- The Quotable Cranky Frankie Frankie (3): a mornin mama Me: mornin Frank Frankie: No! I'm Frankie! Me: <whispering> Good morning Frankie. Frankie: No! Not like...
I am so, so late to jump aboard the Once Upon a Time train. Not as late as I was for Doctor Who, I guess. But still, Once Upon a Time has been on the air since 2011, and I only started watching it last month. I had heard of it. I knew Haley liked it, but . ....
-- 1. Pumpkin Picking -- We had Frankie's birthday party last weekend and the husband has been out of town this week, so our first chance to get pumpkins was Thursday. I suppose it's just as well, because I've learned the hard way what happens when you carve pumpkins...
And I want you to come with me. The good folks at Netflix Streaming invited me to join their team and write monthly about Netflix shows. So, since I was already doing that for free, I said okay. Once a month, I'll be regaling you with thoughts about movies and TV...
In my post about how we do and do not shelter our kids, I mentioned that we choose not to shield our kids entirely from pop culture influences. As with most things, we try to find a middle ground. We don't have cable, but we do have Netflix. They mostly don't listen...
Hey! We're back in LA! Home again, home again, jiggety jig. Can I just say, quick, that looking at this illustration makes me think I've got to come up with crazier chores for my kids. These children walked somewhere, purchased an animal that is bigger than they, and...
We're home! Thanks to Monica of Equipping Catholic Families, who brought us diapers, snacks, Tylenol, and, best of all, company, when our flight to Paris was canceled and we got stranded in Toronto for a night and a day on the way over. Thanks to Catholic...
I have once again been honored by a Liebster award, that most flattering of all chain letters. This time by Tammie of TTE Designs. I'm trying to talk her out of some of her amazing handcrafted jewelry for my upcoming Mother's Day giveaway, so here goes . ....
I had intended to write up a few posts in advance of the new baby, and schedule a couple each week. But that hasn't happened. Instead, this is my tenth post in as many days. Apparently, the new plan is to make you all so sick of reading my blog that you'll be grateful...
--- 1 --- So it was kind of a big week, blog-wise. Between guest posting for Haley at Carrots for Michaelmas, impressing Heather from Mama Knows, Honeychild with my (admittedly hilarious) moustache party food tags, and my wildly popular (for me) handmade Jesse Tree...
Call the Midwife should have been perfect for me. It has everything I like about shows going for it: it's old-timey, British, and on Netflix streaming. Plus THIS show has nuns (Anglican not Catholic, but in full habit!) and people having babies. I love nuns. I have...
