Lucy and Ethel AKA Teresa Tomeo and yours truly. 🙂
Coming up this morning: 9:39-9:56 AM EST I’ll be chatting with Teresa Tomeo on Catholic Connection with Ave Maria Radio about families and Lent and my new book: Bringing Lent Home with St. John Paul II.
You can listen Live here.
UPDATED:
And now (after the show) here is the MP3 (archive) of the show. You can listen in any time right here.
God bless!
Donna-Marie
Ash Wednesday is February 18th!
Are you ready?
I have written three family Lenten books which are in my series with Ave Maria Press.
You can get all three for only $8.00 right here!
That’s a savings on already low priced books that are packed with inspiration and Church teaching to guide your family through Lent. Consider purchasing a few sets to give as gifts to relatives and friends.
Here is what the publisher says about them:
The Bringing Lent Home series gives families with young children a no-hassle resource for daily Lenten reflection and observance. Author Donna-Marie Cooper O’Boyle, EWTN television host and bestselling Catholic author, presents a beloved saint in each booklet and offers the witness and wisdom of their lives to show families how better to pray, fast, and care for the poor during Lent. Bringing Lent Home booklets can be used during any of the three lectionary cycles and are designed for families with children younger than thirteen.
1) When traveling out-of-state to do some speaking and book signing, I happened to be behind this gentleman at the airport. His shirt caught my eye. It was such a nice sight!
2) When it comes to clean laundry, did you know that white distilled vinegar is supposedly as good or better than bleach?
(My daughter, Chaldea’s artwork above which she sells at her Etsy site.She has illustrated several of my books.)
According to a recent article, “The acetic acid in white distilled vinegar is so mild that it will not harm washable fabrics; yet is strong enough to dissolve residues (alkalies) left by soaps and detergents. Adding just 1/2 cup vinegar to the final rinse will result in brighter, clearer colors.”
I think I will do a load of white laundry later today and try out the vinegar! Check out the article about 10 uses for the white vinegar here.
3) A recent sentiment from Pope Francis caught my eye. “It gave us consolation and hope to see so many large families that welcome children as a true gift of God.” (Pope Francis, Wednesday’s General Audience, Vatican City, (Zenit.org)
4) I just happened to catch an excellent and powerful episode of EWTN’s “The Journey Home” about Steven W. Mosher, President of the Population Research Institute and former Secular Humanist.
It was great show. Steven Mosher is the author of several books including: A Mother’s Ordeal: One Woman’s Fight Against China’s One-Child Policy. Mosher says he had a confrontation with evil in China as he watched late term abortions being performed due to China’s one-child policy. He was an atheist at the time. He soon became an agnostic and later on…well, you will see in this program. He does amazing work. Here is the show right here and his website here.
5) And, finally, just for fun, this short Huff Post news video about longevity caught my eye. A 109 year old woman shares her big secret to her longevity. You might laugh when you learn what she says you should avoid if you’d like to live a long life! Here’s the video.
Ash Wednesday is February 18th. Are you ready?
A Family Lenten Guide!
My new Lenten book: Bringing Lent Home with Saint John Paul II was recently released. Here’s a description from the publisher:
This timely new addition to the Bringing Lent Home series focuses on the life and wisdom of recently canonized St. John Paul II. Designed by Donna-Marie Cooper O’Boyle for families with young children, it offers a variety of prayers and practices for each day of Lent.
This family guide to prayer and Lenten devotion is the perfect way to deepen a family’s observance of Lent while also learning about St. John Paul II, beloved pope for more than thirty-five years (1978 -2005) and one of the Church’s newest saints. Structured around a daily quotation from St. John Paul II, a story about his life, and practical suggestions for living the threefold call of Lent–prayer, fasting, and almsgiving–this useful booklet takes the worry and the work out of planning the family’s Lent and can be used with any of the three Catholic lectionary cycles. Parents can enhance their own daily prayer by using the booklet’s reflections for parents. On Sundays, families focus on the themes assigned to that Sunday of Lent, and Cooper O’Boyle suggests a project for the week ahead.
I love that it sells for only $2.95 each! Here’s a recent review as it appears on Amazon:
“Donna-Marie is such a blessing and gift from God for busy moms who are looking for creative, inspirational, practical ways to bring their family together, to grow in faith, hope and love during the grace-filled time of Lent. She is a wise mentor and faithful friend whose books like this one truly help parents, as the primary educators of their children in the faith, to guide their little saints to heaven. I’m thrilled she wrote this book and look forward to using Bringing Lent Home with St. John Paul II this Lent with my family! I’ve used her previous two books, Bringing Lent Home with Mother Teresa of Calcutta and also with St. Therese of Lisieux, as guides in years past with my husband and three young boys, and it is prayer and family discussion time that everyone looks forward to each day, including our four-year-old! It’s a perfect guide, because it offers a fresh idea each day for prayer, fasting and almsgiving, and helps us stay focused on the purpose of Lent and growing in our relationship with God and serving others. The book being available this year is great timing, as we’ll be able to learn more about our beloved St. John Paul II and have him as our companion during Lent, and leading up Divine Mercy Sunday, which this year will mark the one year anniversary of him being canonized a Saint. We have so much to learn from these holy men and women that God put on Earth to serve as bright lights and witnesses for us in how to live the faith, and Donna-Marie invites the learning at just the right pace and helps us to apply it to our lives in a meaningful way together as a family!”
Here’s a review on Epic Pew.
You can find this book available for purchase on the “Books” page of this website.
Donna-Marie is such a blessing and gift from God for busy moms who are looking for creative, inspirational, practical ways to bring their family together, to grow in faith, hope and love during the grace-filled time of Lent. She is a wise mentor and faithful friend whose books like this one truly help parents, as the primary educators of their children in the faith, to guide their little saints to heaven.
I’m thrilled she wrote this book and look forward to using Bringing Lent Home with St. John Paul II this Lent with my family! I’ve used her previous two books, Bringing Lent Home with Mother Teresa of Calcutta and also with St. Therese of Lisieux, as guides in years past with my husband and three young boys, and it is prayer and family discussion time that everyone looks forward to each day, including our four-year-old!
It’s a perfect guide, because it offers a fresh idea each day for prayer, fasting and almsgiving, and helps us stay focused on the purpose of Lent and growing in our relationship with God and serving others. The book being available this year is great timing, as we’ll be able to learn more about our beloved St. John Paul II and have him as our companion during Lent, and leading up Divine Mercy Sunday, which this year will mark the one year anniversary of him being canonized a Saint.
We have so much to learn from these holy men and women that God put on Earth to serve as bright lights and witnesses for us in how to live the faith, and Donna-Marie invites the learning at just the right pace and helps us to apply it to our lives in a meaningful way together as a family!
[As seen on Amazon, by Julie Malchow]
Are your kids making long Christmas wish lists? Are you trying to figure out ways to get them and to keep them focused on what’s really important?
It might seem like an impossible undertaking, knowing full well that the lopsided messages of the culture are constantly bombarding us. Kids know all about the latest gadgets and toys and exactly where they can be purchased!
Of course, there will always be Christmas wish lists. But, how about making another kind of list this Advent season as well? Sit down with your family and list some things you’d like to do to help others. A wonderful added bonus is that while you’re at it you’ll be growing in your faith life too. Doing Works of Mercy is indeed a win-win situation because when you are helping others you will earn graces for them and for you AND you will grow in holiness when done with a humble heart. God has it all figured out!
And, then, after you’ve made your list, endeavor to carry the acts of love and kidness out during this season of HOPE.
It helps a great deal to pause and take a moment to capture your young ones’ attention. Get them excited about giving and about making crafts and pausing to pray, asking Jesus to come into their hearts more fully this Advent season.
Have a look here for some simple coloring pages to the more elaborate yet not too complicated crafts you can do with your kids to keep them focused on Advent.
Do you have your Advent wreath out? It’s never too late. Well, actually it is if you take it out in February. 🙂 But, don’t worry if it’s not out yet or if you haven’t found replacement candles. Try to work on that as soon as you can. You might find the candles at your local Hallmark store (I have purchased them there) or at a religious store. You can also buy them online. You can have the kids draw a wreath or you can construct one from colored papers if you don’t have an Advent wreath and you can explain what the purpose of the wreath is.
You can take a moment each night all throughout Advent at the dinner table to pray as a family.
How about your creche? Do you have it out and decorated with all of the figurines? You can pause beside it each day to say a family prayer for Advent. Tangible items such as an Advent wreath, a creche, and a Jesse Tree will all help to draw your children’s minds to the holy and off of the secular, even for a time. All efforts to create a holy atmosphere in your home–your domestic church will surely help.
Here’s some wonderful information from EWTN about many Advent and Christmas traditions.
Here’s some information at Catholic Mom. And, some coloring pages here too.
The Catholic Toolbox gives lesson plans for Advent here.
I love this: Fifty Advent Acts of Kindness and how to orchestrate that in your own household. It even includes real cute stuff to print out and hang up to aid you on your journey of giving with the kids through Advent.
Again, I suggest that you make your own list! It will be a lot of fun to do with the kids. Just sit down and do it! Make your list–maybe not fifty things, but perhaps 25 or even 12. Just write them down and endeavor to do them. It’s as simple as that. Keep the kids focused on Christ’s love by doing charitable Works of Mercy all throughout this holy season!
Well, this was just a few starters for now to get you going. Please share your ideas about how to keep your kids focused on the Advent season and the real reason for this season in the comments below. I’ll also add some more ideas later. Right now I have to get ready to go on the radio and talk about this subject! See you later!
Take advantage of these CYBER MONDAY sales on a variety of my book titles on special sale TODAY and ALL week! Scroll down to see amazing savings. Get your Christmas shopping done today! By the way, there is more information about each book on the “Book” page of this website.
The NEW ANGELS FOR KIDS is 20% off today! It makes a wonderful Christmas present for children and adults alike.
Angels for Kids
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Special discount paying button ($3.00 OFF per book!):
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MOTHER TERESA AND ME: TEN YEARS OF FRIENDSHIP (First Edition) Great inspirational gift for Christmas gift giving!
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CATHOLIC SAINTS PRAYER BOOK (Hard cover edition) Where else but here can you get a book of this quality (sturdy hard cover and beautiful illustrations inside) for only $5.00? Excellent for anyone on your Christmas list–child, adult, man, or woman. I have gifted this book to many a child and many an adult.
Inspiration and wisdom from 32 popular saints! Prayers, bios, patronages, and quotes
Special paying button: ONLY $5.00 per book!
A seventy-six year old woman leaves this very beautiful review on Amazon.
“This book offers not only prayers, but inspiration focusing on the important role and thus the responsibility we share as women. I just wish I had this book to read and ponder before, when I was younger. I think/ know that I would have done some things differently. But even at my age (76), I have received great benefit in reading, praying, and absorbing it’s content.”
Speaks to ALL Catholic women: single, married, mothers, and consecrated Religious, $7.95
I thoroughly enjoy my work and ministry of writing and speaking about the Catholic faith and God’s amazing love for us, as well as meeting the countless fascinating people along the way throughout my travels.
One such captivating encounter occurred in an airport as I was traveling to do a speaking event. I ended up chatting with a woman (I’ll call her Sally) who shared a remarkable story with me. It happened as I was about to make my way through the airport security and Sally, who was one of the airport staff indicated that my suitcase was a tad overweight. While that was not what I wanted to hear, being that it was a bit of an inconvenience to quickly try to figure out how to reconcile the difference in the weight while stuffing some of the extra things into my carry-on so I wouldn’t have to pay an extra fee (and knowing I’d be stuck lugging that around all day traipsing through a few airports), it gave us a little chance to chat. God has a way of providing these unplanned and totally unexpected opportunities!
Somehow Sally and I got to talking about the faith and about God’s love. The woman suddenly seemed compelled to tell me that her daughter Chelsea has autism. Sally explained that when her daughter was not quite three years old she was only just beginning to toddle around, being a late walker. One day when they were out, all of a sudden her little daughter started to toddle faster and faster—she shot off to almost running. Chelsea seemed to be on a mission and her mother couldn’t keep up with her! But, she knew she had to chase her because Chelsea seemed like she was headed for trouble!
Chelsea was running straight toward a disheveled homeless man who was sitting on a sidewalk. Sally feared what most mothers would fear when their little wobbly child was toddling almost out of control. First of all, she didn’t want her to fall and get hurt so Sally quickly ran after her daughter who was now in danger of falling off the curb.
Secondly, Sally was very worried about what could happen if her clean little girl got too close to the dirty disheveled stranger. Sally quickly picked up the pace.
Before she could catch up to her daughter though, her sweet innocent child had thrust her little arms around the man in a great big spontaneous warm hug. This mom was passionately retelling the story to me that morning at the airport and explained how she was totally beside herself with mixed emotions. She was naturally worried about her daughter falling and getting hurt as she tried to catch up with her and then she was even more intensely worried because not only did her daughter get close to the man, her little one had hugged a dirty stranger! At first, Sally could not quite grapple with these emotions. But, she stood there stunned and also quite impacted by the occurrence and what happened next.
Sally continued with her story and I intently listened as I continued to sort out my belongings, now over on the side of the line of people at the airport. Sally explained that as soon as she reached the man and Chelsea, the man immediately looked straight up at her and with tears in his eyes and streaming down his face, he told Sally that her precious little girl had not simply made his day. He slowly and clearly articulated that she had made his LIFE! He went on to say that he could not even remember the last time he had been hugged or even touched for that matter. He said he was absolutely sure that he would never forget the beautiful gesture that day—the warm miraculous hug of love. The innocent little girl unknowingly had changed this man’s life forever. I suspect this mom was changed forever as well because I noticed how passionately she recounted this story to me as tears glistened in her eyes. I was very touched as well upon hearing it.
I had no doubt that God had arranged these beautiful encounters—the little girl and the man, as well as Sally and me. Now, I can tell it to you! Sally gave me permission to retell her story, knowing that I am a writer who loves to inspire and encourage.
Mother Teresa, whom I was so very blessed to know, preached often that we don’t need to do extraordinary things to please God and to help others. Rather, she taught that we should do ordinary things with extraordinary love. That beautiful “ordinary” little girl’s innocent hug became an extraordinary life-changing experience for that man who no doubt is someone whom Mother Teresa would consider to be, “Jesus in the distressing disguise of the poorest of the poor.”
Mother Teresa lived her life to serve the poor and the needy, seeing Jesus in everyone, wholeheartedly living the Gospel of Matthew of “Whatever you do to the least of my brothers you do to me” (Matthew 25: 40).
Let’s learn from Mother Teresa and that sweet innocent child who allowed Jesus to love a complete stranger through her.
How might we show a gesture of Christ’s love to a complete stranger today or soon? Opportunities are awaiting us—ready to unfold. We need to simply open our hearts and our eyes. God will do the rest.
[This story was the subject of the recent “Real Life Dose” newsletter.]
You can see it here too.
One day about seven years ago my friend Lisa noticed something strange poking up in her yard. She bent down and took a closer look and decided she should dig it up to find out what it could be. To her surprise it was a statue of Saint Joseph the Worker who had been buried face down!
Lisa’s discovery: Saint Joseph the Worker
Yes, she was aware of the popular practice of burying a statue of the poor over-worked saint when one was trying to buy or sell a house. But, how long was this statue in the earth? She wondered because she knew she had not buried it. She was quite curious to learn the origin of this mysterious Saint Joseph statue.
Lisa decided to ask the previous owner of the property who happened to be a member of her family. It was her mother-in-law, who, by the way, was not Catholic. Her mother-in-law explained that she had certainly not buried the statue in all the thirty years that she lived in the house.
The plot thickened! How did it get there? How long had it been in the ground? But, Lisa wasn’t able to find out any more information about the origin of the uninvited guest.
Lisa, a practicing Catholic scrubbed the layers of dirt off of the newly discovered statue and upon seeing his attractive colors and design decided to give him a proper place of rest and honor on her night table where he would keep watch over her and her husband throughout the years to come.
Every day and night the small peculiar figure stood guarding from his new post on the night table. Lisa was reminded of Saint Joseph each time she observed the statue on her nightstand—that mysterious gift she never once asked for nor did she ever expect to suddenly come into her life the day she spotted a bit of it poking up through her front yard. But, there he was in all his splendor, inside her home now—a constant reminder to Lisa to offer her heart up in prayer.
Lisa one day decided to pray to Saint Joseph and ask for his help in the family, especially during particular trying times. She recalled, “I often looked at the statue of Saint Joseph there on my nightstand and I often thought about his prompt intercession in answer to my prayers.” She continued to beseech him in prayer.
Many seasons passed in that busy household. Along with them came the strains, joys, and challenges of raising a family and navigating life. Life was very busy. Yet, through it all, Lisa was developing a quiet yet steady relationship with this humble yet powerful saint—even if she didn’t fully recognize that it was happening at the time.
It would be years later that Lisa realized that the illustrious saint had truly been watching over her and her family. Perhaps the one thing that Lisa deeply yearned for, but could not totally articulate or even ask for since it didn’t seem to be a possibility, was for her husband to share the beautiful Catholic faith that she possessed.
Lisa explained, “I thought it would be impossible. With his strong United Methodist roots and strong family ties—that conversion to Catholicism would be near to impossible.” She didn’t expect it to happen. She certainly didn’t want to coerce him, nag him, or push her husband into something he didn’t desire for himself. Lisa simply went about her days setting a humble example in remaining faithful to the teachings of the Catholic Church—going to Mass, praying, and partaking in the sacraments. She hoped that someday her innermost wish could come to fruition—please God! Then, she’d push it from her mind and simply pray for what was best for them, their marriage and their family. Lisa would leave everything to God to ultimately decide.
Lisa began a novena to Saint Joseph which she has since kept up almost perpetually. Thanks be to God, Lisa’s prayers were heard and her husband came into the Church! Lisa feels quite sure that Saint Joseph has been responsible for many other wonderful helps to her family and most especially for her husband’s conversion to the Catholic faith!
I love Saint Joseph and consider him to be a hero. I have written about him in some of my books and have often recommended that people ask for his untiring intercession. He is a powerful saint—a wonderful friend to have. I heartily encourage you to call upon him often. Saint Teresa of Avila expressed that Saint Joseph has never failed her.
Don’t be afraid to call upon dear Saint Joseph for help in your family.
And you never know…Saint Joseph might possibly decide to just show up unexpectedly in your life as he did for Lisa!
Prayer to Saint Joseph from my book Catholic Saints Prayer Book
Dear St. Joseph, you were an ordinary man, a humble carpenter. But you were a prayerful, holy soul, the foster father of Jesus, a model for us all. Please guide me in my own journey through life, and help me be aware of God’s specific call to me. Help me to see that in my own life God is calling me to greater things for His glory. Please pray to the Blessed Trinity for me to be granted the graces I need most. I pray that I can be faithful to my state in life, totally trusting in God’s divine providence for me. St. Joseph, pray for all who invoke your aid. If it is God’s holy will, please grant me (here mention your request). Amen.
Prayer composed by Pope Saint John XXIII (1958-63)
O glorious Joseph! Who concealed your incomparable and regal dignity of custodian of Jesus and of the Virgin Mary under the humble appearance of a craftsman and provided for them with your work, protect with loving power your sons, especially entrusted to you. You know their anxieties and sufferings, because you yourself experienced them at the side of Jesus and of His Mother. Do not allow them, oppressed by so many worries, to forget the purpose for which they were created by God. Do not allow the seeds of distrust to take hold of their immortal souls. Remind all the workers that in the fields, in factories, in mines, and in scientific laboratories, they are not working, rejoicing, or suffering alone, but at their side is Jesus, with Mary, His Mother and ours, to sustain them, to dry the sweat of their brow, giving value to their toil. Teach them to turn work into a very high instrument of sanctification as you did. Amen.
You can see this article here at ICL too.
