A Lake Retreat Away, Prepping for School, & Thoughts on Pope Leo's Address to Online Evangelizers
Common Threads #3
The Common Threads is a weekly newsletter where I give a peek into what’s happening in our home and in my heart—what we’re reading, cooking, planning, thinking and praying about, as well as what we’re learning as the seasons of life shift.
These are the everyday rhythms that quietly shape our family life and my own interior life. Just a few threads I like to share that might tie us together.
Hello there!
This past weekend, my family and I went on a three-hour trip to visit some friends at their lake house. We’ve visited them a few times, and I am always in awe of the life they live: set apart in a small lake community with forest all around them, close to the water, a swimmable Koi Pond encasing their back patio.
It’s incredible. (It doesn’t hurt that they own a landscaping company…their surroundings, impeccably beautiful.)
The air is fresher there…it’s like time stands still.
My kids love going to visit them. My oldest daughter told me over and over again how she wished we could just move there—all of them agreed! Part of me wishes we could, but the other part of me that realizes I am no country mouse. I am town mouse, through and through.
Still, there’s something so magical about starting and ending the day by the water.
It’s a gift that when given we relish completely.
Though we’re not moving to the lake anytime in the near future (or ever), we sure did enjoy the quiet out there. I love watching my kids have the time of their lives, fishing and swimming off the dock. Getting away, even for just a few short nights, felt like a retreat. It was the perfect cap to the summer.
Prepping for School
Full planning and prep mode continues on for me as our first day of homeschool inches closer. Remember when I said there was only 17 days to go? Yeah, down to 4 now! This time of year always catches me in a conundrum: half of me pines for the long, lazy days of summer to remain…while the other half of me is filled with excitement and hope for our new year. Trying to savor these last couple of days before we begin.
The kids aren’t entirely convinced school is beginning since their hybrid doesn’t start until the end of August…but it’s happening!
And can you believe it…we’re entering into our 5th year of homeschool!
5 years is quite a feat considering the fact that I always said I would never homeschool my kids. I didn’t think it was for us.
Boy was I wrong.
Back in 2020, when we made the decision to pull our firstborn from school, we never anticipated this is where we’d end up: happy, thriving homeschoolers.
This year we’ve got a 6th, 4th, and 3rd grader in the house, as well as a pre-k kiddo, and a tiny tot who will be in joining in on whatever fun and learning he can. (It’s exciting and intimidating at the same time.)
Right now, I feel like a mother about to have a baby: I’m nesting every inch of our homeschool space in hopes that it will bring the order and magic we need and want to our first days back. I love the energy that comes with a new school year! (February me always laughs at August me.) I wish I could bottle up this feeling and save it for myself when the lull of winter sets in and we’re all exhausted from “routine” and the day in and day out of schooling.
I really enjoy prepping this space in our basement. We’ve been pulling it together for the past two years after schooling in our kitchen and in the dining room for years. Having a designated school room or basement is by no means necessary, but it has definitely been nice to cultivate this area. Being able to place school things in the school area, rather than having it in our main living space, clears up the clutter and chaos a bit in our home.
Faith in the Everyday
Shifting to something I’ve been wanting to share!
Do you want to be inspired to greatness and grow in your faith?
Learn about the saints.
Each story of the saint is a reminder of the uniqueness of the human person, and how when we respond to God’s call we become more of who we are created to be—not less!
One beautiful and simple way to learn more about the saints is to listen to a podcast that recounts their lives. I highly encourage you to listen to the podcast called The Saints by the Merry Beggers. This daily podcast brings the saints to life with award-winning actors, writers, and sound designers. (It’s for kids and adults alike!)
Every time I listen to this podcast with my kids, we are all fully engaged. Just about every story moves me to tears and provokes such great conversation between me and the kids about faith, love of God, and what it looks like to respond to his call—especially when there is great suffering and trials involved.
We have listened to the episodes on Saint JPII, (soon to be saints) Pier Giorgio Frassati and Carlo Acutis, saints Zelie and Louis Martin, and right now we’re enjoying the episode on Venerable Emil Kapaun.
I hope you take the time to listen! It will bless your heart and family!
At the Table
One of my favorite childhood memories is standing next to my mom when she was making dinner. I particularly liked the nights when flautas were on the menu. I’d sit there, begging for her to give me some of the chicken she fried up before it was even in the tortilla. Perfectly seasoned, it was one of my favorite meals she made. I can still taste it. Now, as an adult, I lament the fact that I cannot perfectly recreate her meals. She has a real gift with slowly, lovingly cooking…and me? I’m just in a rush to get dinner on the table. (See those slightly burnt ends? Rushing.)
Still, I try.
Here is the recipe for flautas that I’ve been making for my family. It’s not perfect like moms, but it’s pretty good.
Pope Leo’s Address to Catholic Media Influencers and Evangelizers
As I’ve mentioned before, about 3 years ago I walked away from my social media, podcasting, and writing online. I got to the point where it was interfering with family and my soul, and I just needed to put it down to be fully present to them and to myself. I needed to put first things first back then, and I am so glad I did that.
Starting up again online with writing and sharing has not felt totally organic. Sharing my thoughts and hearts publicly again makes me feel a bit like a fish out of water…I sometimes struggle with doubts, and it’s very easy to want to retreat again.
But I am heartened and encouraged not only by the fact that Pope Leo has welcomed more than a thousand people to Rome who engage in online media and evangelization, but also by his recent inspiring words to them.
With regards to generating and creating “content” online, this is what he had to say:
“It is not simply a matter of generating content, but of creating an encounter of hearts. This will entail seeking out those who suffer, those who need to know the Lord, so that they may heal their wounds, get back on their feet and find meaning in their lives. Above all, this process begins with accepting our own poverty, letting go of all pretense and recognizing our own inherent need for the Gospel.”
This is what I hope to do, above all, on here.
I hope to create an encounter of the heart.
I hope to share with you the love of the Lord. He is my greatest friend.
And I hope that my words may somehow encourage you, uplift you, and point you to directly to him.
He is Goodness and Beauty itself, and he calls you by name.
Much love,
Please may I just say---what an utter blessing discovering your Substack has been. In this disparate and scattered world, it is such a joy to be able to discover how the mothers of our world do what they are doing (if that makes any sense; speaking as a girl still in college, in her early twenties)---that terribly important work. I can only imagine the battlefield that representing the faith and your values etc. might be online, but I do want to earnestly tell you that the way you've described your renewed foray into writing feels so very accurate. Your work is needed---certainly as long as you feel comfortable to share it. Thank you!