Quick Takes: Proud Mama Edition

And in the nick of time….

1. I am one proud mama! At the wonderful Bioethics Defense Fund event this evening, my younger daughter gave a short testimonial to those in attendance. It was her first shot at public speaking, and she did an amazing job! Poised and eloquent. I think the girl may have found her calling!

That's my girl!!

What an honor that our beloved Bishop Thomas Olmsted was in attendance:

Why, yes! That is the same red dress I wear to every event now!

2. The week started out fantastically as well, with an awesome blogger meet up last Sunday! Alison from Matching Moonheads flew in to town, and Danya (He Adopted Me First), JoAnna (A Star of Hope) and I got to have a fun girls' lunch together! As usual with these blogger meet-ups, we could have gabbed for hours!!

Life is good when you blog!

3. Loved the fact that sweet Alison, above, who looks like she is about 19, has her Ph.D (as does her dear, fresh-faced husband)! We've got a highly educated group of Catholic blogger ladies around these parts, as there are at least two more Ph.D's in our midst (I'm thinking of Stacy at Accepting Abundance, and Wheelbarrow Rider). You go, girls! Who says we devout Catholic women are uneducated, unenlightened and oppressed?

4. What do I do now? I had a few more quick takes semi-prepared, but they are just too dang depressing to include with the joyful stuff. I don't wanna include them anymore! So, as my (then) six-year-old said happily when in the middle of a family play with his cousins, I might go random….

5. My favorite sport is baseball. I love baseball. I love it so much that the very first research paper ever I wrote was on the history of the Negro Leagues. (The second one I wrote was on the history of demonic possession! I should post that one on the Bubble, but I don't want to scare y'all!)

6. My elder daughter has this quote from Saint Augustine on her facebook page, which I love:

I have read in Plato and Cicero sayings that are wise and very beautiful; but I have never read in either of them: Come unto me all ye that labor and are heavy laden. 

His yoke is easy, His burden is light. Thank you, Jesus.

7. I love bamboo sheets. Have you ever heard of bamboo sheets??? Neither had I, until I bought some a few years ago. It is like a foretaste of Heaven to sleep on those sheets. They are calling me…. See ya!!


Thanks to Jen for hosting!

Catholic bloggers, this one's for you!

Fellow Catholic bloggers: If you have ever thought of giving up your blog in frustration*, there are some pretty important people who think you should keep going. Like, oh, these two men:

Blessed John Paul II

The Internet causes billions of images to appear on millions of computer monitors around the planet. From this galaxy of sight and sound will the face of Christ emerge and the voice of Christ be heard? For it is only when his face is seen and his voice heard that the world will know the glad tidings of our redemption. This is the purpose of evangelization. And this is what will make the Internet a genuinely human space, for if there is no room for Christ, there is no room for man. --  Message for the 36th World Communications Day (2002)

Pope Benedict XVI

Without fear we must set sail on the digital sea facing into the deep with the same passion that has governed the ship of the Church for two thousand years. Rather than for, albeit necessary, technical resources, we want to qualify ourselves by living in the digital world with a believer’s heart, helping to give a soul to the Internet’s incessant flow of communication. (2010)

Is that enough to keep you blogging? I thought so! And the wonderful Brandon Vogt has published a new book just for us, which will help us build upon what our beloved popes (and other great Catholics) have said:

The "New Media" is all the social networking stuff we use now, such as blogs, facebook, podcasts, YouTube, mobile media, Twitter, interactive websites, etc., and The Church and New Media features chapters by many New Media innovators, each tackling a different aspect of how best to proclaim Christ's truth across the digital continent.

Some of my favorite chapters in the book:

Fr. Robert Barron, priest and intellectual, discusses the "Digital Dialogue With the Unchurched". I need to watch his YouTube videos from beginning to end, to learn the basics from this master of reasoned debate. Among other things, Fr. Barron describes in his chapter what he calls "the four YouTube Heresies":

The Meaning of the Word "God"
Biblical Interpretation
Scientism
Religion and Violence

As someone who has found all four "heresies" in the comment boxes of my own blog, I found myself nodding in agreement as he discussed each one, particularly Scientism. I'm flying by the seat of my pants most of the time, but Fr. Barron is a true and learned philosopher. Some have described the Bubble comboxes as a "battlefield", but what happens on this blog is nothing compared to the resistance, hostility and attack that Fr. Barron encounters. And yet, he responds in charity and truth, with logic and clarity, every time. I want to be like him when I grow up.

Jen Fulwiler's chapter was another favorite, a) because I adore her, and b) because her story is a the quintessential tale of conversion via the New Media.This influential woman of God would not be Catholic today if it were not for her encounter with Catholic blogs. Let's be honest: Catholic blogs and websites may be the only places most folks will encounter authentic Catholicism and not simply the "mainstream" media's caricature if it.

A personal anecdote which illustrates the point: One of our regular commenters, a high school senior named Chelsea, lives in what she has described as her "lovely little liberal bubble", where she has never encountered anyone in her real life who is pro-life or unashamedly Catholic. She came to my blog after seeing a small link on a liberal blog that intrigued her: A liberal person had become an orthodox Catholic. As she puts it: "And I clicked on it, then another, then another." She ultimately landed in the Little Catholic Bubble, where she encountered Catholic people engaging in reasonable discussions who were not "apologetic" about being Catholic.

In her words:

Through this, I have learned just about the last thing that you would expect a Quaker girl from Jersey to learn about and respect: The Catholic Church and its ideas. And you know what? I understand it more now, and I honestly do like some -- not quite all -- but some of the ideas.

Non-Catholics need not worry, as Chelsea would be the first to tell you that she is not converting. ;) But how gratifying to know that by encountering faithful Catholics through some easy blog clicks, Chelsea has been able to get a clearer, more positive picture of the Catholic Church. Remember, bloggers: You never know who's reading and how they're being affected by your words.

Anyway, there is so much more to Vogt's book, and if I had room, I'd go through each chapter. (For example, I appreciated the frank discussion of a pet peeve of mine: all the horrible and ineffective parish websites out there! Parishes, get on board the New Media train! You don't want to lose people when they stumble across your ugly, cumbersome site! And on a high note, I was so impressed to read how Texas A&M's Catholic Center has used New Media to become the largest campus ministry in the nation! Lauren and Lisa, I know you are proud of your fellow Catholic Aggies!)


The complete list of the featured contributors and topics is as follows:

– Cardinal Sean O’Malley, O.F.M. Cap. with the book's Foreword
– Archbishop Timothy M. Dolan with the book's Afterword
– Brandon Vogt on “the digital continent” and New Media’s benefits and dangers
– Fr. Robert Barron on engaging the secular online world
– Jennifer Fulwiler on blogging her way from atheism to Catholicism
– Marcel LeJeune on using New Media to connect young adults with the Church
– Mark Shea on the benefits and perils of blogging
– Taylor Marshall on using New Media to unwrap ancient truths
– Fr. Dwight Longenecker on ecumenical dialogue through New Media
– Scot Landry on New Media in the diocese
– Matt Warner on New Media in the parish
– Lisa Hendey on growing online community
– Thomas Peters on faithful online activism
– Shawn Carney on how the world’s largest pro-life movement was built using New Media

Lest you think anyone is out to make a buck here, 100% of the royalties from the book will be used to establish school computer labs and computer literacy training throughout the Archdiocese of Mombasa, Kenya. So even in buying this excellent book, you are helping your brothers and sisters in Christ in the developing world.

And please, even if you don't buy the book, be sure to check out the amazing list of resources designed to help every Catholic (including priests and parishes) navigate the New Media, here. In fact, the entire website is worth your bookmark!

So, dear bloggers, when your family or friends gently tease you for the time you dedicate to your blog (what, that only happens to me?), please remember (and remind them!) that your efforts are fully supported and encouraged by Mother Church!

(Well, so long as your efforts are balanced, and so long as you are not addicted, which is another topic in the book… ha ha ha….)

Happy blogging!




*This happens to me, oh, about once a week!






.

Prayer buddies, info, and random thoughts...

Before I dive back into some meaty topics, a few things:

1) Happy Easter! Jesus Christ is truly risen! Yep, it's literal, and if He did not truly, literally rise from the dead, then our faith is in vain, and we are the most pitiable of men, as St. Paul says. Thankfully, He did rise, and we are not putting our faith in a work of fiction. More on that, soon…

2) I can now reveal that during this Lenten prayer buddy season, I have been praying for Second Chances! I have adored this woman for a long time, and have been so inspired by her courageous witness to Church teaching on reproduction and sexuality, even when she was facing her own pain of secondary infertility. I have rejoiced watching her new baby boy grow into the most gorgeous little man. That last round of photos nearly sent me over the edge! It was an honor to pray for her intentions this Lent, and I will keep her and her beautiful family close to my heart.

3) I discovered that a most amazing new blogger was praying for me! She is Patiently Waiting…Kinda, and I am so grateful and humbled to have been the recipient of her most powerful prayers! I cannot wait to get to know her better, and to follow her journey to motherhood, via pregnancy or adoption. You can bet I will be praying for those intentions, dear Patiently Waiting!

4) Shhhh, don't tell him, but I found a perfect gift for my son who is graduating from high school next month: Two books by Dr. J. Budziszewski (with whom I am currently obsessed --more on that later): 

Ask Me Anything: Provocative Answers for College Students, and Ask Me Anything 2: More Provocative Answers for College Students.

I ordered both today. I have a particular interest in helping college students stay grounded in truth, considering the blather they (including my daughter) are exposed to on most campuses, often without ever hearing a reasoned argument from the other side. Professor Budziszewski is an antidote to that. Oh, and his How to Stay Christian in College looks amazing, too.

5) For some inexplicable reason, I have always wanted my blog to look like an ice cream parlor or a candy store. I change the colors from time to time, but they will always be candy/ice cream themed. Yay!

6) Finally, I make a plea to all bloggers (except for TCIE, who is exempt) to remove word verification from their comment requirements. Perhaps I am ADD, but I become almost despairing when I type out a quick comment, ready to click and fly, only to be confronted with a new and cumbersome step. For those willing to take the courageous leap to rid our blogger community of the scourge of word verification (a cause that Sew and Lauren have already championed), I salute you! (Plus, you will get a lot more comments!!)

Blessed Easter to all!

Danya had her baby girl! *UPDATED*

Prayers of thanksgiving for Danya, her husband, and their new baby girl! The little princess was born this morning, weighing 8 lbs, 9 ozs, and measuring 21 inches! Mom and baby are doing just fine! Thank you for prayers!

UPDATE: You can head over to Danya's blog now to see sweet Vivian Dianne!!

May God bless and keep her!!

Just Curious: International readers?

I love that blogging allows us all to connect across this great, big beautiful world! I know the Bubble has a few international readers out there, and I'm just curious: If you are not reading this blog from America, where in the world are you (literally, ha ha)? And, how did you find the Bubble?

Anything else you'd like to tell us about yourself, please do! I'm so glad you are here!

A couple of quick notes -- UPDATED with photo!

First, prayers are going out for our dear Hebrews who is having her surgery today! She had such a horrible experience recovering the last time, so please pray that this time she is spared that agony!

Next, Patiently Waiting has had her baby boy! Noah was born on his due date, weighing 8.8 pounds, measuring 19.5 inches. He is "perfect in every way"! Praise God and blessings to the family!

Noah

I am sorry to be inciting you to envy...

... but look who I met!!!!

Yes, that is who you think it is! It is Jen from Conversion Diary!!!

She had a layover here in town, and we got together for a blogger meet-up at the airport (there aren't many people I'd get up early for, but Jen is one of them). I think we chatted for over two hours over breakfast, but it seemed like ten minutes! She is every bit as wonderful as you'd think, not to mention that she is six feet tall and drop-dead gorgeous. (I am grateful that she allowed us to sit for the photo, ha ha!)

I could have talked to her for several more hours. It was like meeting an old friend, but for the first time.

I LOVE HER!!!

I was excited to learn that Jen is the cover story for the current Envoy Magazine. Listen up, people: You must read this story! I read the article after we parted, and I learned so much that I hadn't known about her journey from "cradle atheist" to devout Catholic. So compelling, and now I have a million more questions to ask her. I cannot wait for her book, which is in the final stages of editing.

The meeting came and went too quickly, but I'm thinking this won't be the last time we connect. :)

Life is good, oh yes it is!

(Can you tell that I had a good morning?)

Three Quick Opportunities for Sanctification, and a new blogger to introduce!

1) Dust. That's all. Dust.

I live in the desert. Being "in the desert" has incredible spiritual meaning; it also has a lot of dust!! Which reminds me that "dust" has incredible spiritual meaning, too. I resolve that when I look upon the dust which surrounds me (as a bad housekeeper), I will ponder my own mortality, knowing that I was made from dust, and to the dust I shall return. That is humbling!  

And when I bring myself to get the Swiffer and face that lovely assortment of dead skin cells, dust mite corpses/feces, and tiny clothing fibers, I will recall to mind that even the most loathsome vocational tasks are infinitely valuable if done in humble obedience, for love of God. 

2) Pulling myself away from my blog, and turning towards my family.

May I ever remember that I am primarily responsible for ten very specific souls: my husband's, my eight children's... and my own soul, which is sanctified when I lovingly and attentively fulfill my vocational duties for the first nine.

3) Losing large, crucial pieces of clothing into thin air. Like, oh, my only decent black skirt which is a staple that I cannot live without since it took me months to find one that I liked, and a brand new blue sweater that I have only worn twice and could not possibly be anywhere except somewhere in this house!!!

I must not be attached to material things, nor be concerned with what I wear. I must also realize that having to spend more money (aaackk!) on clothes that I shouldn't need is yet another lesson in detachment, and a reminder that I am not ultimately in control. 

One quick thing before I go back to more contentious topics: There is a new Catholic (secondary) IF blogger on the block! Nicole is the relative of very dear friends of mine, and she also happens to be the President of Delaware Right to Life. She's been thrilled to find the IF Catholic bloggers, and I hope you will give her a warm welcome! She's over at Mom & Then Some.

Thoughts to ring in the New Year!

I wanted to end/begin the year with a joyful post, because the Good Lord knows that I have lots of controversy waiting in the queue! ;)

First, I am so grateful for all the wonderful friends I've made this year in the Bubble! "Bubble" is a fun and fanciful blog name (sometimes repeated derisively by detractors), which to me refers to community. I am in love with our little community here in cyberspace -- all those who cherish Mother Church as I do, as well as those who challenge her. I am so humbled by your presence here! Thank you!!

Second, one cannot go wrong by quoting G. K. Chesterton on New Year's Eve (or any other day of the year), so here's a fitting entry for December 31st:

With all the multiplicity of knowledge there is one thing happily that no man knows: whether the world is old or young.

Lastly, today's Gospel reading is from St. John the Evangelist, one of my all time favorite saints. He was Jesus' best friend, "the beloved disciple"; he was profoundly Eucharistic; he was the only Apostle present at the foot of the Cross; and, at Jesus' command, he took Mary into his home after the Crucifixion. John's Gospel is my favorite, and my favorite verse comes from one of John's epistles ("perfect love casts out fear" 1 John 4:18). I even named one of my sons after John the Evangelist. Today's Gospel reading is one we all know and love, and perhaps the most sublime and glorious passage of the New Testament:

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God; all things were made through him, and without him was not anything made that was made. In him was life, and the life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it. 

There was a man sent from God, whose name was John*. He came for testimony, to bear witness to the light, that all might believe through him. He was not the light, but came to bear witness to the light. 

The true light that enlightens every man was coming into the world. He was in the world, and the world was made through him, yet the world knew him not. He came to his own home, and his own people received him not. But to all who received him, who believed in his name, he gave power to become children of God; who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God. 

And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, full of grace and truth; we have beheld his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father. 

(John bore witness to him, and cried, “This was he of whom I said, `He who comes after me ranks before me, for he was before me.’”) And from his fullness have we all received, grace upon grace. For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. No one has ever seen God; the only Son, who is in the bosom of the Father, he has made him known. (John 1: 1 – 18)

God bless you all in 2011! Happy New Year!!

*John the Baptist, another incredible St. John! :)

Inspired night!! And, my first blogger meet-up!!

What a great night! 

Dean and I were one of several couples to co-host the Bioethics Defense Fund's annual event. As usual, we were beyond inspired! 

Our dear friends Nik and Dorinda are attorneys who travel the country (and world) speaking at law schools (and now medical schools), educating the students about about the full range of life issues, from a legal perspective. (The vast majority of law students have never even heard of the Natural Law, pro-life perspective.)

They also are in the trenches, drafting legislation and shaping law on abortion, human cloning, egg harvesting, euthanasia, etc. I wish I could do justice to what they do and where they go, but trust me, it's beyond impressive, very effective and worthy of every ounce of support they can get. They are virtually the only attorneys in the nation doing this work full-time, and their impact is huge! 

Check out their site. They are true professionals, tireless warriors, and they operate on a shoestring.

Their presentation was ushered in by the most amazing video, which gave me chills. You should watch! It's only a couple minutes long. My friend Corey and his team produced it through his company, StormWind Studios. (Yes, we have an amazing Catholic community here in Phoenix!) Check it out:

And, if that weren't enough, this year's honorees were EWTN's Mother Angelica (who, of course, could not be in attendance) and Raymond Arroyo! Here is Raymond, graciously posing with me, Dean and our little guy.

And just when I thought things could not get any better, I met a blogger at the event!! You know her as the frequent (and excellent) commenter, JoAnna! My first blogger meet-up!! And, as fate would have it, dear Danya (HE Adopted Me First) was on hand as well, so we got a blogger picture to show you all! The tall beauty with us there on the left is LaToya, a brilliant young woman (and on-fire convert) who is soon to start her own blog (hint, hint, LaToya!). She has a lot to say, and I want to hear it. 

Oh, and she's single, too. Yes, I had permission to say that! ;)

LaToya, Leila, unhappy Matthew, JoAnna, Danya!**

(No, JoAnna and I don't have small black beads for eyes, but I guess that's better than the redeye that was there before I fixed it??)

Basically, it was pretty much the best night ever!  :)


**Alishia (a Catholic Phoenix blogger, along with JoAnna), how did we not get you in this picture???

New blog, new Catholic (to be!)

It is impossible to be just to the Catholic Church. The moment a man ceases to pull against it he feels a tug towards it. The moment he ceases to shout it down he begins to listen to it with pleasure. The moment he tries to be fair to it he begins to be fond of it.   -- G.K. Chesterton

A-hem.

I would never be so presumptuous to claim Monica ("Do You Speak Swiss?") as our first Bubble Convert -- her brother Marc deserves the credit for relentlessly debating gently guiding her toward Catholicism.

However, when she started commenting here just a few months ago, she was a deist and a skeptic, with no inclination toward Catholicism. Just sayin'.  :)

Monica has unveiled her newly designed blog today, and she has posted her conversion story, which you can read here.

Monica, I know I speak for all the Bubble dwellers when I say that our hearts are full of joy for you, and you have our prayers as you prepare to enter the Church.

Deo Gratias!

Thanks, Sew!!

I was so surprised to receive a little package in the mail the other day, and I laughed out loud when I saw what was inside!

It doesn't get much better than this!!!

A new blog to introduce!

My dear friend, Elisabeth, has "revived" her blog. I have never read it before today, but I want her to continue. 

Elisabeth is one of my two IF Catholic friends who were the catalyst for me to go looking for Catholic IF info, which led me to the Catholic IF bloggers who inspired my own blog. (Got that?!) The other friend you already know: Danya of HE Adopted Me First.

Please go visit Elisabeth's blog, A Catholic Nest in a Secular Tree. She is a recent convert (I hope she will write on her conversion.... it is one of the most powerful I've ever heard, from Planned Parenthood to Theology of the Body), and is an amazing teacher of the faith. She is also a blushing bride of almost two years. (I was a bridesmaid when she married one of her RCIA students, YAY!)

And because she will find sisters here who know the depth of her pain, I especially recommend her post called Mourning Motherhood.

Welcome Elisabeth!

Is having eight kids "sketchy"?

For many reasons, I don't normally talk about my family on this blog. I'm making an exception today. 

During the Big Blog Blow-up of 2010, there were many comments left on many different blogs, some of which were about me. I thought I would address one that caught my attention.

It went like this:

Personally, I think having 8 kids is sketchy - how do you really mother/father each one? How do you give each one the love and attention they deserve to become well-adjusted adults? Or is it just some sick tally to show the world how full of a family you can have/juggle? However, MY belief is just that - MINE. And I still love the Duggars, as completely different as they are from me! (Ha ha!) God loves our children, ALL of them. 

As I know there are many Americans who echo her feelings, I want to address her points, one at a time.

Here we go:

"Personally, I think having 8 kids is sketchy"

Sketchy. Just to be sure, I looked up the word in the Urban Dictionary and came up with some definitions that might possibly apply here:

-- Someone or something that just isn't right

-- Something unsafe 

-- Someone or something that gives off a bad feeling

-- Questionable

-- Creepy

-- Not kosher

-- Just generally something or someone that you don't want to be associated with

So, a happily married couple with a bunch of kids is... [fill in the blank with one of the above]. Ouch! Really?

Big families used to be seen as a blessing, a good, attractive, fun, warm fuzzy thing, a picture of hearth and home. Now, thanks to our Planned Parenthood societal ethic, a traditional, large, intact American family is seen as...sketchy. We've fallen a long way in a short amount of time. I actually find that so sad.

"[H]ow do you really mother/father each one?" 

This question is kind of vague. If you are talking about the practical matters, think of it this way: How does someone take care of a bigger house as opposed to a smaller one? Or, how does someone take care of a bigger garden as opposed to a smaller one? Et cetera. It's really just a matter of shaking off the things that are not as important and doing what needs to be done. The essentials of a happy life are pretty simple, actually.

"How do you give each one the love and attention they deserve to become well-adjusted adults?"

Your question implies that children in big families are at higher risk of being maladjusted adults. It begs the question: Is there a real correlation between family size and a happy, productive adulthood? Are the generally smaller families of today doing a better job raising children than the larger families of past generations? Personally, I don't find that today's young adults are any more functional, mature, honorable or virtuous than those of the past. I'm not blaming that on smaller families, because I don't believe that the number of children per family is the issue at all -- family size is no indication of one's virtue, functionality or success.

As far as love and attention, I'll answer with one of my favorite quotes: "Anyone who says you can't love your eighth child as much as your first has never had eight children." If my children are starved for love and attention, it's hard to understand why every one of them (except the baby, who cannot yet talk) desires and repeatedly requests another sibling.

As an experiment, I emailed the quote to my oldest child, who is away at college. I didn't prompt her or tell her where the quote came from. I only wrote, "Tell me what you think." She had no idea this was for the blog when she wrote her response, which came within minutes. Please remember, this is an unfiltered, honest response to what could be seen as an attack on the family she loves:

Excuse me???? Who said this???? This is the dumbest thing I've ever heard in my life. I tend to think I get too much attention sometimes, seeing how I get attention from 9 other people rather than just 2 parents. This is just ridiculous...and how does one become a "well-adjusted" adult with mommy and daddy giving them every single bit of their attention to them??? What the heck???

Intrigued, I decided continued the experiment with the next four children as they returned from school and activities. None of them knew that the others had seen the quote, nor did they know where it came from. I asked each privately, "What do you think?" 

First, my twelve-year-old son:

That's stupid! It's really not that hard to raise eight kids. It's not as hard as it seems! {Okay, I laughed internally at that part!} It would be more fun to have even more kids. More kids makes it more fun.

Next, my sixteen-year-old daughter:

I think it's ridiculous. I think it's the most stupid thing I have ever read in my life, because it's so not true!   

Then, my seventeen-year-old son: 

Wow, that is totally uninformed. I mean, how many siblings did this person have? Was he or she an only child? It's not as hard as it sounds, really. {I was surprised that two of my boys said this!} I mean, if you have parents that were raised well.

Finally, my ten-year-old son:

{His jaw dropped open as he read.} Ohhh....Is this a joke? {I tell him no, then ask again what he thinks of it.} I hate it! I just don't like it! It's obnoxious! Who is this lady? She's wrong! {He also volunteers to physically defend his family, but I will leave that part out, ha!}

(I would ask the three youngest children, but thankfully they wouldn't even understand such a statement. And, they are too busy playing with each other.) 

"Or is it just some sick tally to show the world how full of a family you can have/juggle?" 

If were trying to impress the world with a "tally" of something, it wouldn't be children. It would be cars, or houses, or career promotions, or vacations...anything but children. Having many children is worthy of scorn these days, as I daresay your comment illustrates. 

"However, MY belief is just that - MINE."

Quite true, but it's a mindset that is held by many others, so I appreciate the chance to address it. (And since it sounds so similar to the "your truth/my truth" issue, I will take the opportunity to direct readers here.)

"And I still love the Duggars, as completely different as they are from me! (Ha ha!)"

I love them too! But I'm interested to know how they escape your judgement, since their "sick tally" of juggled kids is more than twice the number of mine?

"God loves our children, ALL of them."

Amen! There's something we can totally agree on! 

We love our non-blogging husbands!

Danya's DH            Sew's DH            my DH

No blogger meet-up yet for me, but my dear husband got to be at a blogger husband meet-up!!  It's a start! 

(And isn't that the sweetest sign?? Props to Danya's man!)

How to hack into someone else's blog and have a nervous breakdown to boot!

While the amazing, beautiful drama of Sew's baby reveal was going on today, a side drama was occurring behind the scenes. 


Here's a how-to for creating a similar drama in your own lives:


Step #1: Get an email from a blog friend who shall remain nameless (don't worry, I won't blow your cover, Jenny from All Things). She has recently updated Sew's post to let the world know that Sew is having a girl!


Step #2: Receive another email from the same blogger, saying: "You should pretty up the post!! I couldn't make it pretty from my phone!! Make it pink or something! If you want to... I'll give you the log in info!" {First mistake: My brain reads "blog" instead of "post"}


Step #3: Get excited at first, but then worry about what Sew might think. Respond via email: "Would she kill us?"


Step #4: Receive another email saying: "She's fine!! Her post was blue yesterday!! Just make the word girl pink and BIG!!!! And whatever else!!" {Second mistake: My brain translates "whatever else" to mean, "Do whatever you want!"} The blogger proceeds to give me Sew's secret password which gives me unlimited access to the sacred, untouchable Sew Infertile blog. It's like accessing the Holy Grail. Blogger ends email by saying: "Happy decorating!! :)" This further encourages me.


Step #5: Get more excited, as I have just last night started to play around with some advanced blogger template designs. Remember seeing some super cool backgrounds! I could find a baby girl background! This is the internet equivalent of decorating someone's locker!! Hmmm, then start to get worried again, knowing that I do not have Sew's permission to mess with her blog. But trust unnamed blogger implicitly that Sew won't mind.


Step #6: Send another email to unnamed blogger (aka Jenny): "But if i mess it up, I am so blaming you!!!!!!!"


Step #7: Crack Sew's blog wide open, realizing the incredible power I now hold in my hands. I am awestruck at the responsibility. Can I bear it? Will I be worthy? I proceed with great reverence and trepidation.


Step #8: Begin to meddle around with new blog backgrounds, fonts and colors. Realize pretty quickly that something has gone horribly wrong. Start to wish it was yesterday. Also realize that I have only about a half an hour before I leave for a swim party. I don't have much time to make this right.


Step #9: Send another (now panicked) email to blogger friend who got me in this mess: "[I use a bad word here for which I am now ashamed] I think I messed it up!!!!  I hope she doesn't kill me!!!  The background didn't work right!!!!!!"


Step #10: Notice that Sew uses a Shabby Blogs application, and I have transposed a Blogger background without first understanding that the two are not compatible and one must be removed or things look messed up. Have no idea how to remove the Shabby Blog background. Continue to panic.


Step #11: Email blogger again, with the following rapid-fire cries of desperation: 


"She uses Shabby blogs, that's why!  It is not compatible with what I did on blogger so now she is going to kill me!!!!!!!"

"And I have to go to a swim party now!!!  I am going to die!!!!"

"How do I get shabby blogs gone???"


"don't tell her it was me!!!   i'm scared!!!"


Step #12: Email blogger again, demanding her phone number (secretly thrilled that I get to talk to Jenny, er, unnamed blogger, for the first time)!


Step #13: Receive number and call blogger. What a sweet girl! Soothing, calm voice, just what I need, as I am FREAKING OUT!


Step #14: Did I mention that I had a deadline and was trying to get out of the house? And did I mention that Sew's blog (unbeknownst to her) is lying open on my screen with all its innards exposed like an open-heart surgery patient with his chest cut open? And I am the only surgeon? And I can either cure the patient or kill him? And I have never done a heart surgery before? And this is not just anyone's blog, but SEW'S BLOG??? Did I mention that????


Step #15: With blogger on the phone, supporting me, walk through various possibilities to cure Sew's blog. Almost delete her entire template (and possibly her entire blog?). Think that computer illiterate people should not be allowed secret passwords to iconic blogs.


Step #16: Twenty minutes later, after going through too many off-the-cuff experiments on Sew's blogger guts, we figure out how to rip her Shabby Blog out of her widgets. With moments to spare before I have to leave (and before Sew gets home to find her blog in a shambles), I click the blogger background into place and feel a six zillion pound weight lift from my shoulders. I was like Jack Bauer defusing a nuclear bomb with .0003 seconds to spare.


Step #17: Go to swim party and tell Danya all about it. 


Step #18: Come home and notice that several commenters have complimented Sew's new blog look! Sew herself has emailed unnamed blogger to tell her she likes the new background. RELIEF!!!


Step #19: Unnamed blogger tells Sew to watch for my next post. This is my next post, and it's the first time Sew will hear what really went down and who did it. As of this moment, I don't believe she is even aware that I was involved. Or that I have lost ten years off my lifespan from the stress.


Step #20: Realize it was all worth it!!! I would do it all again if it meant showing Sew how honored and thrilled we are to welcome news of her new baby GIRL!!!!