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Rita Buettner

Rita Buettner is a wife, working mother and author of the Catholic Review's Open Window blog. She and her husband adopted their two sons from China, and Rita often writes about topics concerning adoption, family and faith.

Rita also writes The Domestic Church, a featured column in the Catholic Review. Her writing has been honored by the Catholic Press Association, the Maryland-Delaware-D.C. Press Association and the Associated Church Press.

An Adventure in the Kitchen

July 13, 2023
By Rita Buettner
Catholic Review
Filed Under: Blog, Commentary, Open Window

There wasn’t quite enough for another double-crusted pie, but I could maybe make a tart.

Sink or swim

July 5, 2023
By Rita Buettner
Catholic Review
Filed Under: Commentary, The Domestic Church

God is waiting patiently for each of us, loving us right where we are, recognizing that our path is uniquely our own.

Robotics camp, cousin time, an Orioles game, and a bari sax (7 Quick Takes)

July 3, 2023
By Rita Buettner
Catholic Review
Filed Under: Blog, Commentary, Open Window

Our boys have been participating in a robotics camp—one as a counselor and one as a participant. I had the chance to visit the camp briefly for a competition, and I was struck by how amazing it is to see your child move into that kind of leadership role.

“Are You Catholic?”

July 2, 2023
By Rita Buettner
Catholic Review
Filed Under: Blog, Commentary, Open Window

Was I wearing a crucifix? Had a rosary slipped out of my purse? Then I realized she was looking at the reusable grocery bags I had brought along.

Hooray for July

July 1, 2023
By Rita Buettner
Catholic Review
Filed Under: Blog, Commentary, Open Window

July is the cherry on the top of the ice cream sundae. It’s summer at its summer-iest. It’s when we will finally welcome the hotter days, when—if we’re doing it right—the children will start complaining about being bored, and when we will realize which popsicle flavors no one likes because that’s all that’s left in the freezer.

Make an eagle cheese ball and watch your party soar

June 27, 2023
By Rita Buettner
Catholic Review
Filed Under: Blog, Commentary, Open Window, Recipes

As it turned out, though, we didn’t need a superhero to make our eagle cheese ball.

Car-buying advice from my father

June 21, 2023
By Rita Buettner
Catholic Review
Filed Under: Blog, Commentary, Open Window

The other day John and I went car shopping to replace our minivan. We went to a couple of dealerships to look around. At the second one, we decided to buy a car. Purchasing an automobile is not my favorite thing to do—and I know I’m not alone. Many people do not enjoy car shopping. […]

‘The winner is you’

June 16, 2023
By Rita Buettner
Catholic Review
Filed Under: Commentary, The Domestic Church

The whole grocery store trip is a different experience when I remind myself how blessed we are to have all we have – and even what a gift the time in the store can be itself.

Shopping and a lesson in trust

June 14, 2023
By Rita Buettner
Catholic Review
Filed Under: Blog, Commentary, Open Window

I’ve been looking for a new shirt or two, but the styles I’m finding are so unappealing. I don’t need a shirt with a zipper or things dangling off of it. It doesn’t need to have puffy sleeves or have a longer tail in the back. But I also don’t want it to be boring. […]

A First Communion, the school year ending, and a happy potato (7 Quick Takes)

June 10, 2023
By Rita Buettner
Catholic Review
Filed Under: Blog, Commentary, Open Window

~1~ Two of our nieces made their First Communions this spring—one in New England and one here in Baltimore. We missed the one in New England, but I managed to get to the Mass in Baltimore where our niece received Jesus in the Eucharist for the first time. It was wonderful to be with her […]

The day a tractor-trailer hit my van

June 4, 2023
By Rita Buettner
Catholic Review
Filed Under: Blog, Commentary, Open Window, Uncategorized

The driver had been driving a tractor-trailer. He was trying to turn into a parking lot across the street to make a delivery when the flatbed ripped into the side of our van.

The Beauty of Mass in the Gym

May 28, 2023
By Rita Buettner
Catholic Review
Filed Under: Blog, Commentary, Open Window

Our church is under renovation, so we will be celebrating Mass in other parish spaces for a while. What I’ve been surprised to discover is how much beauty I find in the liturgies held in our temporary spaces.

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