November Overflows
Probably my longest post yet. Might end up my longest post ever.
I spent last weekend at Notre Dame (tricky thing for a BC alum to admit), enjoying the fall conference of the de Nicola Center for Ethics and Culture, which was presented in conjunction with the biennial Catholic Imagination Conference. I reunited with many of the friends I’ve gained from the MFA program at UST and rejoiced in their company.
The panels I attended inspired, encouraged, and challenged me. Through many of them I realized how much I’ve learned in these last three and a half years of study and how much more there is to take in. This program is more than another MFA; there is something powerful happening here. I’m so grateful to be a part of it.
Some updates
Last time I shared that my picture book is available for pre-order. I’m happy to share free printables I created for those ordering the book as Christmas gifts. They’re also available at my website.
Publication is scheduled for February, so one of these cards can be printed and given with a flower press or other flower-themed craft (there are five affiliate links right there to help!).
Soul Garden: A Catholic Mother’s Collective (that’s an affiliate link, too, FYI), is also now available for pre-order. What began as a paper journal by women for women has become a large-format collection of stories, essays, and more that “aims to strengthen the heart of the mother, which is to strengthen the heart of the Church and of society itself.” The very first piece I had published years ago was printed in this journal; it’s also present in this volume, which is an honor and a joy.
A little more about the book:
Among the nine chapters are “Nurture”, about caring for the children and the other people God places in women’s lives; “Ponder”, which considers the lessons, blessings, and challenges of motherhood; “Dwell”, which suggests ways to create a beautiful home, regardless of a woman’s budget; and “Fiat”, in honor of the Blessed Virgin Mary as the model woman.
The book officially releases next week, November, 15, and would make an excellent Christmas present for the moms in your life.
It’s a book, but it can also be given as an invitation to slow down, regroup, and care for the soul. Pair it with a candle, a journal, extra-special tea, or a box of chocolates.
What I’m reading
I had the delightful opportunity to read an advance copy of Melissa Ferguson’s new novel, The Perfect Rom-Com: A Romance Novel for Book Lovers, which is out next year. As with her other novels, a total joy. Clean, funny, moves well. Much better than turning on the TV when you want to unwind, if you ask me.
What my kids are reading
Just as the Thanksgiving episodes are arguably the best holiday episodes of Friends (save “The One with the Holiday Armadillo”), Thanksgiving-themed picture books are some of my favorites. Our two favorites are A Plump and Perky Turkey by Teresa Bateman, illustrated by Jeff Shelly and Thank You, Sarah: The Woman Who Saved Thanksgiving by Laurie Halse Anderson, illustrated by Matt Faulkner. There I go with the affiliate links again!
Something I love
Last year our school switched to I:55 book fairs. Oh. My. I’d be happy to have just about any of these books on our shelves (the ones we don’t have already). The parents who took the lead on this do a phenomenal job each year. Our library gets to be even more magical. Nowhere else can I tell my kids to go in and pick whatever they want to read. The organizers keep it open during parent-teacher conferences, too, which makes for great early Christmas shopping. What a gift to us all.
What I’m creating (knitting, lettering, embroidery, etc.)
I asked for a subscription to a quarterly yarn membership last year for Christmas, but waited until the fall to activate it. When the package arrived—with yarn, pattern, and some little extras—I was floored. Gorgeous deep green yarn, a pattern that’s right at my level, and a project I will get a ton of use out of. I just love working on this.
Where my work is
Word on Fire: “Rod Dreher Examines Our Need for Wonder and Works”
CatholicMom.com: “What My Son Taught Me About Work as Prayer”
Word on Fire: “Dracula and a Country Priest Have Something to Say About Good and Evil”
Formed: A video filmed a few years back for the Catholic Moms Summit is available on Formed. As mothers, the craziness of life can get in the way of moments of rest and renewal. In “Yes, You Can Have a Restful Advent,” I offer three pieces of advice to incorporate moments of rest into the busyness of motherhood in any season, but especially in Advent.
What I’m working on
Five years ago, I created a list to help select books for gift-giving. I love when people ask me for recommendations this time of year! You can find that list written out with links here or as a video here.
This year, I’m leaning into the whole “eight” thing and will post eight lists of eight books each on the eighteenth of this month. It will also include affiliate links, which supports my work (and my buying more books!).
A quote to sit and sip with
The work which involves the labor of the Fine Arts is ordered to beauty: insofar as it is beautiful it is an end, an absolute, self-sufficient; and if, as work to be done, it is material and enclosed in a kind, as beautiful it belongs to the realm of the spirit and dives deep into the transcendence and the infinity of being.
The Fine Arts therefore stand out in the genus art as man stands out in the genus animal.
—Jacques Maritain, Art and Scholasticism