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Relationships
Marriage at the dinner table
Food can bring couples together. Here's how.
Helping A Suffering Spouse
I was in labor with my fourth child when I had my first panic attack. I was lying on the bed in triage, calmly answering routine questions from the nurse. In my mind, however, I was fretting about the delivery, remembering the rapid arrival…
Saintly Marriages: The Good, The Bad & the Holy
The saints are our cheering section in heaven, rooting for us to finish the race and win the victor’s crown. They can show us how to be better people, better Catholics, and better husbands and wives. Although many saints come from the ranks…
Blessings & Struggles of Being a Caregiver
It was a Sunday afternoon when my eldest daughter, Ella, came upstairs to tell me in a worried voice, “Grandpa says he’s going to town. I told him that it was too dangerous, but he won’t listen to me.” I went downstairs dreading a…
Marriage Wisdom
Thirteen years ago I was a blushing bride dreaming of her happily ever after. After enduring a rigorous pre-Cana boot camp, I thought I knew a lot about love and marriage. I knew squat. Since then I’ve learned a lot — mostly the hard way —…
Father, Forgive Them
It is strange the way a cruel word can inflict a wound that won’t heal. Behind us at the pizzeria last week were a quartet of old ladies playing cards, and in the corner a group of teenagers clustered in a booth. At my table I was…
Beloved Dog Teaches Lessons in Life & Death
Q. Our family dog, Rory, is nearly 15 years old. When we got him, our children were seven, five, three, and a newborn. They have virtually no memory of life before we brought Rory into our family. He has been a great pet. His presence in…
When Should Teens Begin Dating?
Q. My 13-year-old daughter is begging me to be allowed to date. She claims all the other kids in her eighth grade class are allowed to go out with their boyfriends and girlfriends, and she is the only one who isn’t permitted to socialize…
Keeping Connected With Your Spouse
The day Paul and I said, “I do,” was one of the happiest days of my life. I thought it was strange to talk about growing more in love, as my friend Fr. John said during our wedding homily. I couldn’t imagine loving my husband any more than…
How to say “I do” every day
14 ways to perk up your marriage