Catholic Parenting – Page 11 – Perpetual Adoration

January 24, 2015

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Turning Off The Idiot Box

When I was growing up, the one order we heard most from my mom was, “Turn off the TV and go outside!” If we didn’t immediately do what she said, she would rush over to the television, turn it off, and again order us to go outside.

October 25, 2014

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A Hazmat Suit for Devout Catholics

BOO! Since Halloween is quickly approaching, I thought I would write about a deadly disease that’s scarier than the Ebola virus — a disease that has infected hundreds of millions of people worldwide. While everyone should be afraid of this disease, very few people seem to care about it. If they had full knowledge of its devastating consequences, they would be petrified and would wear the equivalent of a hazmat suit to protect themselves from the disease.

August 30, 2014

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A Catholic Town Jester

Recently my daughter Maria purchased a write-it-yourself children’s book for her four-year-old daughter, Grace. The book came with some stickers of characters you would see in an animated movie about a castle and a royal family. The characters included a king, queen, princess, wizard, town jester, and prince in shining armor.

April 21, 2014

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An (Almost) Irresistible Offer

The year was 1993. One of my cousins had recently gotten engaged and her dad told her and her fianc? that he had a proposal for them. He was willing to pay them $20,000 if they were willing to agree to have a small wedding that only included immediate family members. The offer came after the wedding invitation list had grown to more than 400 people. While the groom was interested in accepting the money, the bride put her foot down and insisted that they follow through with the traditional wedding they were planning.

October 19, 2013

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A Stubborn Relative

About 20 years ago, when one of my relatives was going through some tough times, I tried to get him to commit to praying a rosary every day. (For the purpose of this article, I’m going to call him “Jim.”) Over a period of six months, Jim and I met on three separate occasions.

August 17, 2013

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New Rules for Digital Dating

As I mentioned last week, during the time I was growing up in the 1960s and ’70s, we had limited access to telephones. Most of the communication that occurred between couples who were dating was in person. Parents were able to exercise a reasonable level of control over the amount of time their teenagers spent on dates by limiting the use of the family vehicle and by imposing curfews.

August 10, 2013

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The New Rules of Dating

August 3, 2013

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Why Do Some Girls Date Deadbeats?

There is a frequent occurrence at my home that involves my three youngest daughters, Mary (21), Christine (19), and Teresa (17). They regularly engage in long discussions about the boys they come into contact with. Of course, the first piece of information they always share with each other is whether a new guy is “gorge,” which is short for “gorgeous.”

June 15, 2013

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The Seven Pillars of Fatherhood

Earlier this month, the Administration for Children and Families (ACF), which is a division of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, announced an $800,000 grant that is designed “to disseminate information about good fatherhood parenting practices by building research and practice knowledge and capacity” and to “increase positive father involvement in the lives of their children.” (Reread what I just quoted and see if it makes any sense to you.)