reading about parenting spiritually and loving my friend’s new book
I’m wracking up the holiday gift giveaways for you!! And this one, well it’s one of my favs. My girlfriend Laura is remarkable.
We met through a girlfriend Lydia’s blog and realized we lived not an hour from each other. And that our children were similarly aged. This is before we each had our third, born one day apart!
She sweetly came over to our house and as the kids played in the inflated–slightly deflating–pool in back we talked and talked and talked. And marveled on how we could have kept going but for the pottied-in swim diapers and gaspingly wet children.
Beyond our similarities, I quickly came to admire a difference between us. Her writing abilities and style are well beyond the realm of this humble blogger. She is gifted. She is a real writer who has honed her craft beautifully. And this book//oh I needed to have these words in my life right now with three kids under five!!//it’s well written.
Her writing reminds me of my creative writing undergrad companions. When the lens through which they viewed the world was truly and thoroughly as a seeker of ideas, a translator of visions, a go-between from our experiences to our conversation.
Laura’s book, Everyday Sacrament, does this. She goes between parenting in all its unholy glory and pairs it with our religious experiences to put into words how they relate. She interlaces the spiritual and the poop.
The layout of the chapters means I can float with her from a vexing parenting airline trip to how it relates to one of the seven sacraments: acts instituted by God to give grace, His love, to us. I really needed to hear this. We aren’t great about going to mass during the week, and beyond basic prayers with the kids I often feel like my spiritual well would only be replenished if I were a contemplative nun. Or if I could just GET AWAY from them. Instead of realizing the grace is there. It’s inside them, waiting for me to be open to feeling it.
I will never look at my infrequent showers the same//paired with baptism//I’m missing out on a chance for daily newness!
Not will I take my fertility for granted. Her poignant waiting to conceive and loss of one baby hits hard. She makes me feel like I’m right there with her in that dark wanting and shaking. I cried off and on during those moments!
The read is quick, the stories unforgettable, and the humor will have you chuckling and then outright HaHAHAHa’ing to yourself and those around you.
Gift it to yourself or your dear friends this Christmas. Every mom needs to read it, and every dad needs to have heard her tell him about it.
Link here to buy it. Right now Liturgical Press is running a brief sale of 30% off!! Grab while the grabbing is hot.
Or be my lucky winner. Raffling a copy your way. Goooooood luck!!
This book looks so amazing!!
So, the least accessible sacrament to me would be Holy Orders…I mean, I haven’t ever even witnessed it.
The most? Marriage. Living it in and out daily. Followed by Eucharist, followed by Reconciliation.
The sacrament thst is least accessible to me is Holy Orders & Anointing of the Sick. I have been to one mass when my BIL took vows to become a Doninican Brother but thst was at least five years ago and my BIL is now at Conception Abbey. As for Anointing of the Sick, I can only think of one mass growing up in which the preist did the Anointing of the Sick during mass. Other than that I have never witnessed this beautiful sacrament. The sacrament that feels most accessible to me is matrimony.
My dream item from your shop, minus leggings, would have to be your contour burp cloth for my constant spitter.
This looks like a good read for sure.
Would love to win the book! The least accessible for me would be confession… for some reason it’s impossible to figure a way to go regularly the way we can attend mass with all the small children! Agreed with the commenter above- living marriage every day! The most accessible and definitely the one that needs the most love and care to work!
A book on recognizing the sacraments in every day? Sounds like it would be a great read to help make every day special.
I agree with Gina that Holy Orders is least accessible – I know the least about it. The Eucharist is definitely the most accessible to me, followed by Confession….which I need to get my butt to before Christmas.
Also I love your knit blankets, especially the swaddles knit on a diagonal.
Out of the Sacraments I can receive, I feel , as a parent, that the least accessible CAN be Confession. It can be hard to round up, dress etc. 7 kiddos at 5:30 AM to drive over an hour to Mass and try to make it early enough for Confession. But, on the same token it’s all in how much we make it a priority. Still, I feel it’s the hardest to access. The other 2 are a tie for being the most accessible. Marriage because it’s right there every single day, in the small moments of self-sacrifice, dying to one’s self and giving to your spouse, and really even to your family. That is the true living out of the sacrament of Marriage, as well, as of course the unity of intimacy that completes the Sacrament. The other one I feel is so easily accessible is the Holy Eucharist. In our day and age we are so blessed to have the ability to receive so frequently, more than in ages past. A huge blessing and grace!
This books looks so awesome. I would say marriage is the most accessible for me followed closely by Eucharist. Least accessible probably holy orders and then confession would be the one I don’t access as often as I should.
Those plush minky blankets are calling my *aherm* my baby’s name. I might be caught snuggled up in it though…
All of the children’s leggings are adorable – it’s hard to pick a favorite pattern!
I love the Foxes in Red and Teal baby blanket (it matches our son’s nursery!) and the Dove Elk leggings.
I think marriage and the Eucharist are the most accessible sacraments to me, since I experience them every day and at least once a week (respectively). I would like confession to be more accessible — or rather, I know it’s available and I would like to make the time to go more often.
I guess Holy Orders is really the least accessible, given that I’ll never be a priest! 🙂
Marriage and Eucharist are the most accessible. Confession is one that I dont access as much as I should.
Im dreaming for one of those baby blankets!
Unfortunately, the least accessible for me right now is Confession. I wish I could get there more often. Most accessible? Marriage. But that could always use a bit of work too. 😉
I LOVE the large lemon blanket! So cheery!!
Most accessible- Baptism. Least- Eucharist? Confession?
Large minky blanket!
I agree with Sarah that the most accessible are marriage and the Eucharist. I’m trying to decide about least accessible… Holy Orders seems obvious since I’ll never be ordained, but it was so beautiful and moving to witness a good friend’s ordination that I don’t feel removed from it. I wonder what Laura’s take on it is in her book!
This book looks like it will be a gift to many mothers. Thanks for letting us know about it!
most accessible – The Eucharist
least – Holy Orders?
Holy Orders would be the least accessible. Marriage the most!
Pick a dream item? Easy, the wool knit baby blanket!
This book sounds so amazing and timely! Love that you both live near each other and were able to get together! So fun 🙂
Wool double cowl scarf – beautiful!
I thin the most accessible is the Eucharist and least Holy orders. I love the very cute fox blanket!
This book is on my Christmas list! Eek!
Marriage and Eucharist are the most accessible sacrament to me and I am working harder to not take them for granted and be more deliberate when I see/receive them.
The least accessible is Anointing of the Sick. I’m a convert and this is still the sacrament I know the least about. I have never seen it performed or needed it myself. I understand it in theory, but I have yet to see it in practice. If that makes sense.
And you know I adore me some baby leggings. But I also adore the bibs. Next time we have a baby, I’m buying those. I have a feeling that they will be life savers
For least accessible, I’d say Holy Orders, and most accessible would be the Eucharist.
My favorite etsy shop item would be the scarves
Least accessible would have to be holy orders. Followed by reconciliation, I still get nervous going into the confessional but after I fee like a weight has been lifted.
Most accessible would be the Eucharist. I love the consecration at mass.
Dream item would be the bibs. I love them!
Least accessible sacrament would have to be Holy Orders. Most accessible, other than marriage (which I do everyday) it’d have to be the Eucharist
At the shop I love those modern block toddler blankets!
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