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.

Ask and you shall receive

September 19, 2020
By Rita Buettner
Catholic Review Filed Under: Commentary, The Domestic Church

God knows what is best for us. He knows when the timing is right and when we are ready for what we are asking for.

Berger Cookies, skating through virtual schooling, and more (7 Quick Takes)

September 18, 2020
By Rita Buettner
Catholic Review Filed Under: Blog, Commentary, Open Window, Uncategorized

We might not have milk or pasta, but at least we have Berger cookies.

Half a year ago

September 13, 2020
By Rita Buettner
Catholic Review Filed Under: Blog, Commentary, Coronavirus, Open Window

It’s been six months since our children were last in a school, six months since I went to my office for the workday, and six months since I’ve interacted in a normal way with people outside my immediate household.

Starting school, solving an egg mystery, and more (7 Quick Takes)

September 12, 2020
By Rita Buettner
Catholic Review Filed Under: Blog, Commentary, Open Window

~1. Reading and writing and where is the log-in code~ The other day one of my colleagues who’s also a virtual learning mom asked me how online learning was going. I told her I was excelling at all of it, handling everything beautifully, and not finding it stressful at all. “It turns out that I […]

A time of blessings and beginnings

September 8, 2020
By Rita Buettner
Catholic Review Filed Under: Blog, Commentary, Open Window

Today as we reflect on the birth of the Blessed Mother, my sons are beginning the school year.

Origami creations, gearing up for virtual school, finches, and more (7 Quick Takes)

September 5, 2020
By Rita Buettner
Catholic Review Filed Under: Blog, Commentary, Open Window

Every now and then, when the children aren’t on screens and they don’t feel like reading or dodging the mosquitoes in the yard, they don’t know what to do. That’s when the magic happens.

Celebrating brotherhood

September 1, 2020
By Rita Buettner
Catholic Review Filed Under: Blog, Commentary, Open Window

Nine years ago today, we flew home from China with our new baby boy and introduced him to his big brother.

Signs of fall, a clean kitchen floor, and other fun from our week (7 Quick Takes)

August 29, 2020
By Rita Buettner
Catholic Review Filed Under: Blog, Commentary, Open Window

The very first leaves are starting to drift off the trees. But I am really sorry to see summer end—and not just because school is starting again.

Setting a positive attitude for remote learning

August 26, 2020
By Rita Buettner
Catholic Review Filed Under: Blog, Commentary, Open Window

I’m trying to bring a positive attitude to online schooling this fall.

Birds on the nest and end-of-summer fun (7 Quick Takes)

August 21, 2020
By Rita Buettner
Catholic Review Filed Under: Blog, Commentary, Open Window

The birds are taking such meticulous care of their eggs, and then the next thing we know the egg is broken on the cage floor.

A taste of summer: Strawberry muffins

August 19, 2020
By Rita Buettner
Catholic Review Filed Under: Blog, Commentary, Open Window, Recipes

I want to hold onto summer for as long as I can, but I can feel it slipping through my fingers. So, I’ve been making strawberry muffins.

A peachy season, a coffee crisis, a reorganized pantry, and other summer fun (7 Quick Takes)

August 15, 2020
By Rita Buettner
Catholic Review Filed Under: Blog, Commentary, Open Window, Recipes

It’s peach season, and the peaches that made their way to my kitchen counter seemed not quite ripe enough for a peach cake. But sometimes you just really want peach cake—and you realize you have time to make one.