Pregnancy
Bearing the Light Himself: An Advent Reflection
In our parish adoration chapel, a German leaded-glass window glows softly in the afternoon light. Its warm colors shift across the floor as if alive, but it was a small detail, almost easy to miss, that recently captivated my prayer. The Blessed Virgin Mary stands in the center of the window, robed in sparkling blue…
Read MorePostpartum Care for Mom
Life changes profoundly during postpartum after the new baby arrives! The entire family dynamic is reshuffled. If it is the first child, the husband and wife become parents. A single child becomes a big brother or sister. The current baby becomes an older sibling. Schedules change; sleep patterns are disrupted; visitors come and go. The…
Read MoreThe Sufferings of Miscarriage
Miscarriage is a hard topic. The loss of an unborn child is experienced by many couples and yet, each loss remains entirely unique. It can feel hard to know what to say or do to support a mother and father who’ve miscarried. It can feel hard to do “the work of grief” ourselves. Thankfully, the…
Read MoreA Story of Cycles, PCOS and Hope
Lying on a restaurant bathroom floor is not how I saw myself helping my mom spend her birthday but that’s how it went. As my mom sat next to me putting cold paper towels on my head, I laid in the fetal position with terrible cramping. I have always had awful cramps. From the time…
Read MoreThree Marian Images of Pregnancy
There is a temptation to grow weary of the familiar. We see so many images of the Virgin Mary that they can begin to blur and lose significance. There’s also a temptation to tire of the familiarity of domestic life, especially in a culture that devalues interiority and motherhood. Perhaps in rediscovering the art we…
Read MoreMorning Sickness and Self-Care
Author Marilyn Shannon offers pregnant women common sense self-care strategies that can help reduce morning sickness. In her booklet, Managing Morning Sickness, Marilyn, along with her daughter, Rosemary Shannon Imrick, who ‘field-tested’ of some of the suggestions, draws from medical research, her counseling experience, and her understanding of human physiology and shows that taking vitamins…
Read MoreSt. Philomena Novena & Pregnancy Intercessor
Young St. Philomena has been such a powerful intercessor. She’s actually the only saint who was canonized on the grounds of intercession alone. While miracles have been reported regarding a whole span of requests, she’s known as the patroness of pregnancy, babies, infants, and youth. It’s unsurprising, then, that she’s taken a special place in…
Read MoreThree Marian Images of Pregnancy
There is a temptation to grow weary of the familiar. We see so many images of the Virgin Mary that they can begin to blur and lose significance. There’s also a temptation to tire of the familiarity of domestic life, especially in a culture that devalues interiority and motherhood. Perhaps in rediscovering the art we…
Read More11 Hilarious Toddlers React to Pregnancy
Kids already say the most ridiculous stuff, but compound that with the sensitive subjects like sex, pregnancy and nursing and the results are gold. We asked for some of your best toddler reactions to pregnant women, and you delivered.
Read MoreWhen Pregnancy is Complicated
From the Family Foundations archives **** The Braxton-Hicks contractions began three or four months into the pregnancy, compounding Lydia Bardua’s exhaustion, dizziness and nausea. Her doctor couldn’t find anything wrong, so he told her to relax and hydrate, relax and hydrate. Lydia heard her doctor repeat that advice often, but it was hard for the 34-year-old to…
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