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Parenting
The gift of imperfect parents
by Danielle Bean When my son Eamon was about 2 years old, we sat near the window together, watching a lightning storm. When one especially loud clap of thunder boomed in the sky, he turned to me with large eyes. “Papa!” he gasped. In our…
Let the little children come
“Hi, Jesus! I love you, too, Jesus! Mmm …” my oldest daughter blows Jesus a kiss as we drive past a Catholic church on the way to a play date. Normally, I initiate the ritual, but she does it on her own today. The motion is natural to her,…
Celebrate St. Patrick’s Day the Catholic way
According to television and the internet, St. Patrick’s Day was made for the 21-and-over crowd and is best celebrated with green beer. But, if you’re reading this, there’s a good chance you’ve got children or grandchildren. And since you’re…
8 keys to keeping kids Catholic
A teacher and catechist shares her hard-earned wisdom
How to Raise a Compassionate Child
Nine practical ways to help children grow into considerate, grateful, generous, empathetic, and successful adults.
Can Media Rules Be Too Strict?
Q. We have made the conscious decision to limit our family’s exposure to media. Our teens (16, 14, 13) do not have cell phones, their access to a computer in our home is limited to school-related purposes, and our television is locked with…
Prayer aware: Five ideas to help your children become more attentive at family prayer time
Many people ask me how I get my children to pay attention during family prayer time. They admit that their own children drift off during family prayers even after a minute or two. They wonder how they can encourage their own children…
Ways to be a pro-life family
January marks the 46th anniversary of Roe v. Wade and the annual March for Life, so it's a natural time to promote respect for life from conception to natural end. But what does it mean to “respect life”? What does it mean to be “pro-life”?…
How to Get Teens to Stop Texting, Start Talking
Q. For years, my husband and I looked forward to having grandchildren, and when our grandkids were little, it was a truly wonderful time. We used to have them at our house and would spend time together baking cookies, reading to them,…
The father provides
by Susie Lloyd The tiny plane dropped from a leaden sky as the young flight student struggled to keep it steady against the erratic wind. He sailed over the telephone wires which he could see, and doing so, he narrowly missed a fence which…