Entering into the Santa vs. Non-Santa or St. Nicholas camps can be as heated as to Harry Potter, or not. This is not that post. Honestly? I don't concern myself with whether families choose to celebrate the jolly man in red or not. Their family, their culture, their choice. My beef has always been with kids who tell mine they're wrong for believing in Santa. Or, worse yet, parents who tell me I'm doing it wrong. I'm pretty sure we have better things to do with our time. In our house we celebrate both men and it has been an evolution of love and celebration. Here's how we do it. It wasn't until we had kids that we chose to celebrate the feast of St. Nicholas. Quite honestly, it … [Read more...]
6 Tips to Capture Your Disney Vacation on Film
**This is NOT a sponsored post. Just sharing our experience!** We spent a week at Walt Disney World and Universal, thanks to my parents. What an adventure! After scouring Pinterest, I learned that there was no post, anywhere, that could really walk me through planning an entire trip to Disney. Throughout the series, I shared our days at the parks, tips and tricks, taming the souvenir beast, money saving ideas, things we learned and photos we captured. They're all linked below. Enjoy! Day 1: HDYDI - Plan a Multi-Generational Disney Vacation Day 2: What We Wore to Disney Day 3: EPCOT: A Mom's Guide Day 4: Magic Kingdom: Plan a Visit That's Fun for All Ages Day 5: The Wizarding World … [Read more...]
HDYDI: Plan a Lovely First Communion Party
Yesterday I shared my ten gift ideas and left you with a chance to win more than $300 worth of First Communion goodness. Today? Today, we talk parties. Later this week, I'll share the sacramental love. With six kids and as the self-proclaimed birthday junkie, I adore a good party. What can I say? I'm a southerner. Hand me some sweet tea and a slice of cake and I'm yours. Some of you have asked how I do it. I'm making good on that promise. Please know that throwing parties and planning celebrations are my love language. I really dig the details. You might be the kind that books your favorite restaurant and calls it done. And that's okay. We all have different gifts and this one … [Read more...]
Was This Our Best Lent Ever?
As a Protestant, there was one thing that really intrigued me about Catholics. They took Easter and the 40 days preceding it, seriously. Maybe I should share that whole journey from Protestant to Catholic sometime? I don't know. Maybe. What say y'all? Fast forward almost 19 years and here we are. Another Lent in the books. How was yours? Did you walk away changed? The same? Indifferent? Worse? I think I'm all those things, and then some, this year. We were certainly more purposeful in our celebrations, as a couple and as a family. There was the painted churches tour, for one. That one's been on the bucket list for a while. The kids did our PFA … [Read more...]
HDYDI: Tour the Central Texas Painted Churches
The Central Texas painted churches are famous, but not so famous that they're a touristy hotspot. Don't you love discovering hidden gems? This Lent, our family decided to make a day-trip pilgrimage to see five of them. We prayed a decade of the rosary at each, taking people's prayer intentions with us. It was a really beautiful day with only minimal sibling rivalry. <-- the true miracle of the day! Yes, you can take an "official" tour through the Schulenburg Chamber of Commerce. But with no room for the tour guide to "step on" our van (unless riding strapped to the top was an option) and with the need for flexibility with six kids, we flew solo. The painted churches are a beautiful, … [Read more...]
