Welcome to Lent March 2, 2022By Rita Buettner Catholic Review Filed Under: Blog, Commentary, Open Window Two years ago, on Ash Wednesday, we went to Mass as a family. It was a beautiful service on what was otherwise a relatively ordinary winter day.
Fondue for dinner, an ice storm, and general musings (7 Quick Takes) February 27, 2022By Rita Buettner Catholic Review Filed Under: Blog, Commentary, Open Window ~1~ Sometimes when I run out of ideas for dinner, we make fondue. It requires a little prep—cutting up vegetables and meats and preparing the broth, but then John takes over the pot and handles the cooking. It always feels fancy and special, but there are never leftovers. I wonder whether people will expect dinner […]
Making the most of the journey February 23, 2022By Rita Buettner Catholic Review Filed Under: Blog, Commentary, Open Window, Uncategorized This weekend, my sons and I road-tripped to New York to see my sister Maureen and her three youngest children. Spending eight hours on the road for about 36 hours together might seem a little intense, but I would drive further than that for the chance to hug my sister. We had a fantastic weekend. […]
Surprise! A birthday road trip with Shamrock Shakes (7 Quick Takes) February 19, 2022By Rita Buettner Catholic Review Filed Under: Blog, Commentary, Open Window One of my favorite writing techniques is to give myself a designated period of time to write and see how quickly I can go. I am currently racing to complete these quick takes before my sister Maureen and niece finish baking brownies for my nephew who turns 13 today. Here we go! ~1~ We are […]
Trying to catch the bus February 16, 2022By Rita Buettner Catholic Review Filed Under: Blog, Commentary, Open Window We’ve never missed the bus, but we’ve come close.
Daisies for the window, ripe bananas, and a special moment at Mass (7 Quick Takes) February 13, 2022By Rita Buettner Catholic Review Filed Under: Blog, Commentary, Open Window The other day while I was grocery shopping alone, I saw a sweet pot of daisies.
Picking out the carrots February 11, 2022By Rita Buettner Catholic Review Filed Under: Commentary, The Domestic Church God steps in and eases our burdens in small ways we might not ever see. That’s how much he loves us.
Got it? February 9, 2022By Rita Buettner Catholic Review Filed Under: Blog, Commentary, Open Window Last week, a few of my colleagues were talking about a work project that just kept hitting walls—little ones, big ones, sometimes confusing ones. When we finish it, we joked, we will have to celebrate. I love marking small wins. When we finally get through it, I said, I’ll treat everyone to coffee. We managed […]
A roaring celebration for the Year of the Tiger (7 Quick Takes) February 5, 2022By Rita Buettner Catholic Review Filed Under: Blog, Commentary, Open Window ~1~ Xian nian kuai le! Gung hay fat choy! Happy New Year! The first time our family celebrated Chinese New Year was 2010 when we were new parents. That was the Year of the Tiger—the Gold Tiger. This year is the Year of the Water Tiger. It feels pretty special to be celebrating the Year […]
I spy an angel February 1, 2022By Rita Buettner Catholic Review Filed Under: Blog, Commentary, Open Window The snowy shape was there for days before I spotted it.
Frosted Flakes, my new godson, Ann’s foot-longs, and more (7 Quick Takes) January 29, 2022By Rita Buettner Catholic Review Filed Under: Blog, Commentary, Open Window ~1~ The Year of the Tiger starts Tuesday, Feb. 1, and I am not sure I am ready. But don’t worry. I will be. I may have ordered a 40-inch inflatable tiger today. What will we do with it? I don’t know. But I just have a feeling that life might be a little more […]
The Death of a Priest January 23, 2022By Rita Buettner Catholic Review Filed Under: Blog, Commentary, Open Window A priest’s name popped up in my social media feed, and it rang a distant bell. The post shared that the priest had died, apparently by suicide. Oh, no. How devastating for his family and for his community. Losing someone you love to suicide brings so much pain, so many questions. Something else was bothering […]
