I find myself outside with my son playing “soccer” with a rock as the soccer ball on our driveway as we wait for the school bus. My 6-year-old has a look of panic and despair on his face when I score another goal, tying the score. I stop, look him in the eyes and say, …
Welcome to the new and improved raisingsmallthingswithgreatlove.com ! I have been working on updating my blog for awhile and am so happy to finally share it with all of you! I have spent a long time (I am not that tech-savy) designing my new website and hope you all enjoy it. It feels so good …
Happy Holy Week! This is probably the most unprepared I’ve felt for it in years. I will be the first to admit that I did not have the most fruitful Lent. I still made some small sacrifices and did some spiritual reflection, but ultimately, I ended up meeting God where I was at when I …
January, 2024: “Please God, let us get the news that we need to hear right now in order to help her. Whether or not it is what we were expecting to find out.” I find myself saying this prayer in the waiting room of the doctor’s office. We had been there for close to two …
Do you ever get frustrated watching a movie or reading a book at the main character’s decision in a critical moment? And then to make up for the disappointment, do you imagine yourself making the right choice instead of the mistake the character made? We all like to believe that we would make the right …
What does an adventure look like for you? Admittedly, I have never been a very adventurous person. I blame my anxiety. I do a lot better with pre-planned trips with lots of time to prepare the details, or just sticking with a routine. That doesn’t mean I don’t like going on adventures every now and …
Yesterday was one of those days. You know which ones I’m talking about. A ton of stuff on the schedule with some surprises tucked in. My husband’s car needed an oil change so he left early to drop it off. My daughter woke up with a headache, but after taking some medicine and laying down …
If you are like me then I am sure when you realized Valentine’s Day is also Ash Wednesday, you sighed a little and got disappointed. While the beginning of Lent is an important time for Catholics, it doesn’t mean we can’t be a little thrown off by the timing of it this year. I realize …
A while ago I had posted the following on my social media pages: “We say the words, “come as you are” and “all are welcome,” but are we providing the resources and support to back them up and truly let everyone come to mass and feel seen? I’m going to be completely honest and say …
Isn’t it amazing how two people can have completely different opinions on the same situation/thing? Something that is really important to one person may not even be on another’s radar. Someone might be excited about the rain while another is wishing for sunshine. This past week has been a snowy one in Iowa. On Monday …
Happy New Year, Everyone! 2023 Reflection 2023 started off with illness, and contained a lot of it for our family! We ended the year recovering from COVID (2nd time in less than a year) which means we began this year in recovery too. Hoping that our immune systems will be stronger this year (please?!). But …
I’ve recently been feeling like a leaf blowing in the wind. My life was in a good rhythm; we had a good routine down and plans for the future. We were still attached to the tree, if you will. Suddenly, everything changed and I’m at the mercy of God’s plan, not my own. But, then …
