[please excuse the ramblings here... I'm really, really tired. It's been a long day]
Yes, I was actually there! I packed up Grace and drove several hours to Atlanta to get a chance to hear some of my favorite bloggers talk about how to use the "new media" to reach their little corner of the world for the Lord.
Unfortunately...
...Grace refused to cooperate.
She was a sweet baby, of course, but she decided that shouting "ahh!" and "hey!" repeatedly was the best thing she could possibly do.
All.Day.Long.
Nothing could deter her from her task, it seemed. Nursing... cheerios... the amazing light up toy... books... nothing.
So, I got to spend most of my time in the lobby, as she crawled all around (she's baby #7... my standards are greatly lowered) and chased her stroller.
Oh well... there's always next year, right?
I can't really give a decent report on how the actual conference went (since I had that "I'm-stuck-in-the-lobby" thing going on) Still, there were highlights!
Lino Rulli, host of The Catholic Guy... Grace shouted "hey!" and waved at him first. (he was very gracious and never showed even the slightest irritation at having a baby babble next to him!)
Amy Welborn? I got to sit behind her family at Mass (and let me tell you, her little boys are so cute!) I did get the brief opportunity to tell her how much I have enjoyed reading her blogs over the years... and to tell her husband, Michael Dubruiel, how much my whole Bible study enjoyed his book The How-to Book of the Mass.
I also had the pleasure of meeting Rachel Balducci from Testosterhome, who was incredibly nice to talk to. A very gracious lady. Turns out we have some mutual acquaintances! (It's a small world after all...)
And last but not least, I was able to talk to Mark Shea. I love his blog, and his books By What Authority? and Making Senses of the Scriptures are incredible. (and if I weren't so tired at this moment, and were able to get my thoughts together, I'd give them a proper write-up) I was thrilled to see that he had a 3-CD set of talks that he gave for Catholic Answers, and snatched that up to listen to on the ride home.
Oh.My.Goodness.
They are wonderful!
I loved all three of them, but the one that affected me most was his talk on "Behold Your Mother." I believe I have mentioned here (I know I have on the 4Real Learning forum) that after having gone through the Catholic/Evangelical/Catholic route in my spiritual life, I have a mental block when it comes to having a true devotion to the Blessed Mother. I KNOW it's sad. I have absolutely no problem turning to other saints to ask for their intercession, so WHY would I have this block concerning her? I'm not sure, but I have been asking the Lord to help me with this.
Mark Shea's talk on "Behold Your Mother" is worth the price of the entire CD set. If you can't wait for his book on Mary to come out at the end of the year, you might want to check out this series.
ah... the over timer just went off... coffee scones are out and ready for breakfast tomorrow... and I'm going to check on the kids, turn off the lights, and GO TO SLEEP.
3 comments:
I came so close to going but decided that I couldn't at the last minute. Sounds like a great time!
So sorry I didn't suck it up and introduce myself to you. I was the fellow mom with the baby and two little girls (I was there with Heidi Saxton) in the lobby. Grace is beautiful and you seemed SO CALM about the whole thing (maybe I did too, but I ASSURE you, I was SCREAMING in my head!).
I wish we would have met. I think I remember seeing you when I was yammering away with Rachel (I lived in her hometown for three years and we knew a lot of the same people). It is a small world, after all.
God bless!
Post a Comment