Messy Family Podcast : Catholic Conversations on Marriage and Family

"Failing to plan is planning to fail." – Ben Franklin

Your family is your own little corporation and you are president of the board. Well, maybe not exactly, but you and your spouse are the partners in running your home, and how can you do that effectively without a plan? Once a year, it's a good idea to get away, dream a little, and make a plan. A Family Board Meeting isn't about success or failure; it's about being unified as a couple in your vision and goals for your family.

"Do or do not… there is no try." - Yoda

Show Notes: • Three Questions for a Frantic Family by Patrick Lencioni • Beginner's Guide to Goal Setting from Michael Hyatt • Family Mission and Vision article on the Art of Manliness

"Musical nourishment which is 'rich in vitamins' is essential for children." ~ Zoltan Kodaly, music educator

Music is a powerful tool, and an absolutely unique vehicle for ideas, emotions, and stimulation. As parents, we need to train our children to recognize music that is good and music that is not worth listening to. By exposing our children to lots of different types of music, we can help them to make judgments and choose what is good. We can't underestimate the importance of music in our culture and in our home.

"Music is a moral law. It gives soul to the universe, wings to the mind, flight to the imagination, and charm and gaiety to life and to everything." ~ Plato

"If your brother sins against you, go and tell him his fault between you and him alone. If he listens to you, you have gained your brother." - Matthew 18: 15

As married people, we each have a duty, a solemn obligation to help to get our spouse to heaven. Sometimes we help them by being a cross for them ☺, but sometimes we need to help our beloved by pointing out things in their lives that need to change in order for them to grow in virtue. Here, we're not talking about a difference in values – most of those are not moral issues – but correction regarding sinful patterns of behavior or vices that need to be rooted out. How do we do this? How do we know when to speak up and when to just pray or be silent? How do we get the courage needed to have this conversation with love?

"My grace is sufficient for you, for My power is made perfect in weakness." - 2 Corinthians 12:9

"A lovely thing about Christmas is that it's compulsory, like a thunderstorm, and we all go through it together." – Garrison Keillor

Thanksgiving and Christmas are times of great joy and celebration, but can also be times of unprecedented stress and conflict. Buying gifts, traveling to see extended family, and keeping traditions are all important aspects of the holidays. How do Catholic families enjoy this while also keeping Christ as the center of our holidays? How do we love our families while we are striving to keep the peace and make everything perfect for our kids? Listen in as we discuss these challenges and the ways that we have dealt with them in our household.

Show Notes: Shows we referenced and ideas for Advent and Christmas

• Our podcast on Visiting Family
• 9 Things to do to make a more meaningful Advent
• Dynamic Catholic's best Advent ever

"The light shines in the darkness and the darkness has not overcome it." - John 1:5

"With great power comes great responsibility" ~ Ben Parker (Spiderman's Uncle)

As Catholics, we have a great blessing in the clarity and beauty of the Church's teaching on contraception. Using the natural rhythms of a woman's cycle to regulate birth is a way that couples can use the reason of science as they are informed by the light of Faith. NFP is a gift, but it's also a challenge! It's hard to deny our bodies when our culture is telling us that we deserve every comfort as well as instant gratification. In this podcast, we talk about the gift of NFP, but also the reality of the cross of denying ourselves. Listen in and tell us what you think!

Show Notes: Links and resources we mention in this podcast.

• Humanae Vitae
• Dr. Janet Smith
• Couple to Couple League
• NaProTechnology (Creighton Model of NFP)
• USCCB on Natural Family Planning
• Theology of the Body Institute