October is the Month of the Rosary . . . Sometimes I imagine Saint Bernadette, eagerly and devoutly praying the rosary at the feet of Our Lady. She reverently hold the beads, she carefully recites the prayers, her heart and her mind full of Mary's love for her son...
Let's be random and rambling today, shall we? 1. My drafts folder is empty. I wrote and scheduled about two months' worth of posts before I had Mary Jane. Then, since she was born, I've been writing about one new post per week, to mix in here and there, and that's...
If you are like many people who follow me on Facebook or Instagram, you are wondering what is up with my kids wearing uniforms for homeschool. I know. I know. It seems somehow un-homeschoolish, doesn't it? Maybe not wanting to stress about if you and your kids are...
Something I get asked about quite often is what we're doing with our kids to help to raise them to have an understanding of and an appreciation for our Catholic faith. It's a tough question, but a very important one. Whether our kids are homeschooled, or go to...
Just going to pop in quickly here to introduce you to the newest member of the family . . . Mary Jane Tierney. She was born at 3:08am this morning, July 25th, her due date, the Feast of St. James. 8lbs 3oz, 21 inches long, not much hair to speak of. Looks exactly like...
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...
Knowing just what is required of faithful Catholics can be confusing. Especially in this time of blogs and social media. Blogs can be a really great way to learn about our faith, but it's easy for bloggers (even yours truly) to make it seem like particular practices...
We're out of town, so I thought I'd take this week to share with you some of the tips and tricks I use on PicMonkey to make this blog prettier. This is installment two of four, see Lesson 1: Using PicMoney to Make Good Photos Great and Bad Photos Pretty Good....
Today is the feast of St. Joseph the Worker. And I just happen to have a mailbag question that is particularly well-suited to the day. Let's get to it, shall we? the question: Dear Kendra, Hi! First, I enjoy your blog very, very much. I am on my way into the Catholic...
I'm really excited to share with you the lovely work of some very talented artists, just in time for Mother's Day. And they have each generously offered to give away a little something to one of YOU. Give it to your mom, or keep it for yourself. I'll never tell. There...
So . . . it's spring, and that means decision time for a lot of folks on how to school the kids next year. Of course, you can always change your mind. We did. Our oldest son went to our parish school for a couple of months, before we decided to give homeschooling a...
Tomorrow is the feast of St. Joseph, and it's a biggie. St. Joseph's Day on March 19th and the Annunciation coming up on March 25th are both solemnities. Note for 2017: Because March 19th falls on a Sunday this year, the celebration of St Joseph's Day is officially...
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...
I'm turning the blog over today to reader Sarah Kaye, who has had an Advent to remember this year as she and her family learn to cope with a diagnosis of celiac disease and what that means for their Catholic faith, particularly reception of the Eucharist. With 0.5 -...
It's the million-dollar Christmas question, right? And I've been asked it many times in the lead-up to Advent and Christmas: Do our children "believe" in Santa Claus? But . . . I don't think it's the right question. Hang in here with me. Seriously, let's look at what...
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 . ....
I am on a ridiculous (and completely unintentional) streak of two weeks of almost daily blog posts. We can't keep this up forever. I'm trying to stop. Really I am. But there's been all the guest posting and sponsored posting to tell you about. And Frankie was grumpy...
I've got good news, and I've got good news. First, the good news. Remember a few months back, when I hosted an amazing giveaway for a Monastic Immersion Weekend? I had an anonymous sponsor, and asked that you would all pray for her intention, which was very dear to...
Today's Seven Quick Takes are brought to you by the letter . . . F. - one - I'm at Blessed Is She today, sharing some thoughts about observing the feasts and the fasts on the liturgical calendar. You can read the post here, and sign up to receive the daily emails...
It's mailbag time again . . . Question: Hi Kendra, I love your blog and have especially enjoyed your posts on NFP this week. I have a question I was hoping you may be able to help me answer. I haven't been able to find an answer in the Catechism and keep...
Ahoy, you landlubbers! And a very warm welcome to Answer Me This . . . the internet's favorite virtual cocktail party* in which I ask six totally random questions and we all answer them and get to know each other a little better. Isn't that nice?*this statement...
Our last stop was Paris. After our flight to France was delayed by a day, Air Canada offered to slide our return date one day as well. Since we were staying in so many different cities and hotels, there really wasn't a way to shift the whole trip. So, we decided to...
But first . . . Chartres! If you like Gothic, get thee to Chartres. It's a masterpiece of French Gothic architecture. The present cathedral was begun in 1194 and dedicated in 1260, sixty-six years! But if you saw it, you'd understand. Every inch of it is carved. It's...
Welcome to another edition of Answer Me This. Here are this week's questions: 1. Do you hate happy clappy church music? Will you all throw me out of the club if I say that I don't? I know I shouldn't like it. Intellectually, I understand that the jazzy...
Before you rush out the door to the dollar store to put together an Easter Basket, here are a few ideas for lovely and edifying Easter gifts that you can make happen in a hurry. And sometimes for nearly free! Printables Shining Light Saint Printables! Just a word of...
Frankie here. My favorite pastimes include throwing things away in the trash can, getting my fingernails clipped, and banging on stuff in quiet places. But a very close fourth is finding Goldbug in this book. So when the fine folks at Quirk...
When my eldest son was in preschool, I made the mistake of handing the buck to the Pope when it came to some of our parenting practices. When Jack would ask why he couldn't watch a particular show that his friends were watching, I'd say, "Well, we're Catholic and...
But if, on the other hand, you have NOT already taught your kids everything they need to know about their faith, if you MEAN to teach them stuff, but sometimes don't get around to it, if you'd LIKE to teach them stuff, but don't know where to start . . . I've got...
A couple of weeks ago, I wrote about how we were able to start celebrating the liturgical year in our home only by taking baby steps. And I mentioned how overwhelmed I had felt reading the first book I found about the celebrating the liturgical year in the home....
