Catholic Mom's Cafe: Coming up this week end on EWTN's Bookmark show!

Catholic Mom's Cafe: Coming up this week end on EWTN's Bookmark show!: From the EWTN's "Wings" newsletter:                                 BOOKMARK CATHOLIC MOM'S CAFE AND ROOTED IN LO...

A Worthwhile Use of Time!

A Worthwhile Use of Time!

When "Rooted in Love" came onto my path, I'd recently made the difficult decision to leave a well-fitting office job to work at home to better provide needed flexibility for my children. Donna-Marie's book became a warm hug during this transition, welcoming me back to the hearth and offering rich food for thought in determining my future course. I especially appreciate the many personal stories Donna-Marie includes, from a tenuous airplane flight that provided an opportunity to share her faith with a frightened passenger, to other ordinary moments that turned extraordinary from just a kind word or a smile. Donna-Marie is a welcomed reminder in this despairing world of the power women behold when we embrace our vocation of nurturing others and, thereby, present the face of Christ. I am so grateful for this treasure of a book, and to Donna-Marie for taking pen to paper and opening her soul for our benefit.

[As seen on Amazon]

God bless!

Opportunities for Grace!

I wholeheartedly believe that God allows us umpteen opportunities for his grace each day. All of the challenges and frustrations we face can be beneficial occasions to turn to God and ask for his grace for ourselves and for the people we are dealing with. No matter what is happening around us and within us, we always have recourse to prayer. Prayer is a gift that can never be taken from us. As long as we are conscious (and even if not our hearts may be praying!), whatever is happening in our lives, we always--and I mean always--have recourse to prayer.

page 70, Rooted in Love 

Excerpt from Rooted in Love

The driving forces behind prayer are faith and the love of God. Love will overcome our times of dryness or even laziness in prayer. Our perseverance in prayer will reap the rewards of heaven. St. Alphonsus Liguori tells us, "Those who pray are certainly saved; those who do not pray are certainly damned!" (Del gran mezza dello preghiera). Maybe we had better step up our prayer lives!

[page 56, Rooted in Love]

God bless!

Radio coming up!

I hope you'll join us! RADIO coming up: 5:30 – 6:00 PM Eastern (4:30-5:00 p.m. CST)
WPYR 1380 AM
Faith and Good Counsel Show
http://catholiccommunityradio.org/

God bless!

New Review

"I received Rooted in Love for Christmas. I can't speak highly enough about it. Filled with words of comfort as well as, uplifting, practical spiritual direction, it is great book for any woman who would like to reflect about her vocation as a Catholic woman. In fact, if I could write a letter to my daughters about what it means to embrace their calling as Catholic women, it would say everything that this book says and so, I am buying them each a copy! The Authors' trials and tribulations as well as her friendship with Mother Theresa and other spiritual giants enrich every page with words of wisdom and consolation. It is an easy read, Personal, practical, and uplifting. The discussion questions make it a great book for woman's circle's or book clubs. I agree with the comment that says, "this is a book that is much needed for our time and that it belongs on the book shelf of every Catholic woman." God Bless Donna Marie Cooper Boyle."

[As seen on Amazon.]

God bless!

"Rooted in Love" Retreats!

Are you craving a time to reflect about your God-given vocation as a Catholic woman? Get in touch with me and let's talk about setting up a "Rooted in Love" retreat during this Year of Faith for yourself, your Catholic women's group, or parish.

Contact me at: DMCOBoyle@aol.com. I'll look forward to exploring with you how I might be able to serve you.

God bless you and yours!

Rooted in Love segment with Teresa Tomeo

http://avemariaradio.net/archiveListen.php?file=cc_20121227_2 

Teresa Tomeo and I began our chat this morning about my book, Rooted in Love at about the 13.17 point in this archive link (for December 27, 2012).

Check it out!

God bless you and yours!

Rooted in Love Blog Tour: Day # 11

My first exposure to Donna-Marie Cooper O’Boyle was when I was pregnant with my second child. She had found my blog and asked me to review a book of hers. When she found out I was pregnant, she sent me a delightful package that had in it, among other things, a copy of her lovely pregnancy prayer book, Prayerfully Expecting (which I love!).

Donna-Marie has become quite the well-known Catholic personage since then, and she’s the host of the EWTN show Everyday Blessings for Catholic Moms and the author of a dozen books, including her latest, Rooted in Love: Our Calling as Catholic Women.

I tend to have had, well, enough of all this “be a happy Catholic woman” stuff. Maybe I’m just still too jaded, maybe I’m overdue for confession (well, I certainly am), or maybe I am just unworthy, but it seems the market is saturated.

So I appreciate someone who keeps it real. I tend to begin Donna-Marie’s books with a feeling of “here we go again, brace yourself.” I don’t know why I always have this attitude, because I know without a doubt that:

1. Donna-Marie is just as human as I am.

2. Donna-Marie is neither judgmental nor nasty.

3. I am sure to at least like the book, because I’ve enjoyed all the others.

Over the years, as I’ve watched Donna-Marie become something of a superstar, I’ve been amazed that she seems to remain–I can’t think of another word for it–little. She still replies to my emails. She still seems to interact with people in various places (like the comboxes and Facebook conversations). She seems to have taken to heart the idea of smallness and humility within her own calling to be a Catholic public persona.

And that is what comes out in this book, that feeling of our shared humanity and how our woman-ness draws us to love.

My one sentence summary of Rooted in Love: it’s great.

And I have this to say about Donna-Marie Cooper O’Boyle after having read this book: she’s an even tougher cookie than I thought.

In this book she shares pieces of her past and her struggles that I have never read nor heard from her before, and they opened me to her message in a way that I wouldn’t have been otherwise.

The book is a journey and it’s a gentle look at where you might be now and where God would have you go (hence the “calling” reference in the subtitle).

It’s neither sappy nor inaccessible, which I’m always sort of afraid of when I see these sorts of titles float my way.

Rooted in Love is the combining of Donna-Marie’s life experiences with the wisdom of the Church and Church teaching in a way that even jaded me could enjoy and like.

All in all, a good gift idea for that woman in your life. And then, after you’ve bought her copy, buy a copy for yourself.

You’re sure to find Rooted in Love at your local Catholic bookstore. Lacking that, you can can purchase it online atAquinas & More Catholic Goods, Ave Maria Press, Barnes & Noble, or Amazon. [Editor's note: and also at www.donnacooperoboyle.com. Autographed copies available there.]

As seen here: http://snoringscholar.com/2012/12/rooted-in-love/   

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Advent blessings to you!

Rooted in Love Blog Tour: Day # 10

E komo mai! (Welcome!) to our stopover for Donna's book tour!

It is very exciting to be able to participate in this book promotion because Rooted in Love: Our Calling as Catholic Women is simply a very special book!  

For those of you who may not yet know Donna-Marie Cooper O'Boyle, she is a prolific and a very devout Catholic author.  All of her books are written in her unique and thoughtful manner.  She speaks to her readers through her books in the same personal way that a friend would.  One will find that reading her insight into Catholic womanhood is the next best thing to speaking to Donna one on one.  I cannot recall reading another book in recent times where the author seems to understand one so well.  She answers  concerns and questions that I feel most of us as Catholic women may have.   Rooted in Love surpassed my expectations.  It is a book I will read over and over again. I will keep it on my special shelf of books which I keep the Catholic "reference books".  I have had the pleasure of reading most of Donna's books.  She really opened up about private life, concerns and crosses in her newest book.  I also found her writing to be quite humorous in a gentle way.  Rooted in Love was written by a devout Catholic woman for Catholic women who want to grow more deeply in their love with their faith.  It amazed me that such a small book was packed full of good advice, prayers, tips on evangelizing in our daily life, appropriate quotations from the Catechism of the Catholic Church, saints, her own special friends like Blessed Mother Teresa and Servant of God, Father John Hardon, S.J.  and so much information to guide a Catholic woman in the path of sanctity.

Mahalo nui loa Donna!

Oh, and I almost forgot!   You can enter to win a copy of Donna's newest book. All you have to do is send me an email and you are entered! The deadline is December 17th. Email:  estherjoeysmom(at)gmail(dot)com.

You can also purchase the book at:  

Ave Maria Press, Amazon and Barnes and Nobles . This book would make a terrific gift to all the women on your gift-giving list. [Editor's note: autographed copies available at author's website: www.donnacooperoboyle.com]

As seen here: http://hicatholicmom.blogspot.com/2012/12/rooted-in-love-blog-book-tour.html
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Advent blessings!