My appearance on EWTN's Live show!

You can see my very recent appearance on the EWTN Live show here: http://bcove.me/dxy3qqmc Fr. Mitch Pacwa and I speak about my new book Catholic Mom's Cafe as well as my brand new series on EWTN coming up - with the same title Catholic Mom's Cafe!

Sixth stop along my blog tour!

Book Review: Catholic Mom’s Café: 5-Minute Retreats for Every Day of the Year

By Donna-Marie Cooper O’Boyle, to be released May 9, 2013, Our Sunday Visitor, Huntington, Indiana, Paperback. Available from Our Sunday Visitor, Amazon, Barnes and Noble, and Catholic  book stores. Autographed copies are available at Donna- Marie's website HERE.

Reviewed by Jean M. Heimann, M. A. Theology, wife, mother, freelance writer, and oblate with the Community of St. John.

In her latest book, Catholic Mom’s Café: 5-Minute Retreats for Every Day of the Year, Donna-Marie Cooper-O’Boyle offers busy Catholic moms a wonderful way to grow closer to God by rejuvenating their prayer lives. She provides 365 days of devotions based on the virtues of faith, hope, and love that are brief enough to be enjoyed in just five minutes.  Each meditation consists of four parts: Ponder, which is the reading of a Scripture verse or quote, Offer, which entails offering yourself to the Lord through an activity or idea, Pray, which consists of the recitation of a few short prayers related to the theme, and Savor, which is a final thought to ponder and carry with you throughout the day.

As I read through each day’s meditations, I found myself uplifted and inspired by the words of wisdom and also by the diverse and appealing range of themes presented. Each brief meditation is power-packed with spiritual nourishment and is certain to help moms grow in holiness. I especially enjoyed those meditations that focused on prayer and shared stories of the lives of the saints and quotes from the saints. While these meditations were written primarily for moms, at times, it seemed to me that many of them were almost general enough to apply to most women—even those without husbands and children.

In summary,  Catholic Mom’s Café: 5-Minute Retreats for Every Day of the Year  offers busy mothers a quick and simple method of meditation and prayer to help them grow spiritually, while remaining attentive to their families.  These prudent and pithy meditations are ideal for helping busy women rejuvenate their prayer life. I am looking forward to contemplating each of these daily devotions over the course of the coming year in order to grow in the theological virtues of faith, hope, and love, and develop a more intimate union with God.

Please see this post here at the "Catholic Fire" blog: http://catholicfire.blogspot.com/2013/04/book-review-catholic-moms-cafe-5-minute.html Please feel free to leave a comment on Jean's blog and share through social media.

Fifth stop along my blog tour!

Mom's Cafe

This is from Woodeene Koenig-Bricker:

  

I've long admired Donna-Marie Cooper O'Boyle, ever since I learned of her decade-long friendship with Mother Teresa.  I never thought I'd get a chance to meet her, but God works in mysterious ways.  Not only do I get to meet her, I will be a guest on her upcoming EWTN television series called "Catholic Mom's Cafe"!

 

Donna-Marie has written a simply marvelous book with the same name (almost): Catholic Mom's Cafe" 5-Minute Retreats for Every Day of the Year (Our Sunday Visitor, 2013). When I had a chance to see a copy, I promptly turned to my birth day and chuckled with it was all about not worrying.  I think I have a PhD in worry, so the irony was not lost.

 

 

I've always loved daily devotionals and this little book is just my cup of tea (all puns intended.) Each day provides a quote from the Bible, an inspirational quote, a short but pithy meditation, a prayer and a thought to carry through the day. It's the ideal length for meaningful insight but not so long as to become another chore. It's the kind of book that would make a great gift for a new mom, a seasoned mother or even yourself!

    

Donna-Marie also has a great blog at CatholicMomsCafe.blogspot.com. (Disclosure:  I am an occasional guest there!) as well as a Facebook page at facebook.com/CatholicMomsCafe. Lots of good stuff there...and not just for moms!

 

The book will be out soon and I've got it on good authority that you can get an autographed copy at her website. They will be available at Our Sunday Visitor, Amazon, Barnes and Noble and Catholic bookstores as well.

 

And in case you are interested, here's link to the upcoming TV show and one of Donna-Marie's guests. :)

See Woodeene's blog post here: http://woodeene.blogspot.com/2013/04/moms-cafe.html?spref=fb to leave a comment or share through social media.

Fourth stop along my blog tour!

From Ebeth:

Catholic Mom's Cafe: A blog book tour

 Prayer life getting a bit dry?  Maybe you would like something new to read and get ideas to ponder about faith.  I know that there have times when I've searched for a new resource to help me along a dry and just plain boring time in my prayer life.

 Five years ago, I was invited to participate in my first blog Book tour and it was one of  Donna-Marie Cooper O'Boyle's books, a few years later I got to meet her in person at a Catholic Media Network/Catholic Writer's Guild conference in Philly, what a very genuine and kind spirit she is!  Reading her other books were a joy, so this time when Donna-Marie asked me to participate for her newest book, how could I refuse!

Each book Mrs. O'Boyle writes is a true spiritual journey into a mother's heart.  She, as a mother, knows just what we go through and need to sustain us through thick and thin times in the raising and nurturing of a family.  In her new book, Catholic Mom's Cafe, Donna-Marie provides moms with a daily 5-minute retreat, and in just 5 minutes she packs in words of wisdom, a prayer, and something to think about.

When I received "Catholic Mom's Cafe" I began my preliminary scan; the table of contents, acknowledgements, and I usually flip through the contents of the book to get the feel and guesstimate how long it should take me to read the book for my review.  What I discovered at the first scan is that this book is one I will take with me during the day and read it during violin lessons and piano lessons, during a 15 minute break at work and possibly during a boring school meeting, shhhh!!

The book is a retreat book for the entire year with each month a concentration of one of the three theological virtues, Faith, Hope, and Love.  Each day is divided up into four sections: Ponderis a scripture verse or a quote, Offer is Donna-Marie's thoughts on the Ponder, then we Pray prayers that are provided in the front of the book, such as: Act of Faith, or Act of Love, and other prayers that she lists for easy reference and then a final thought to Savor throughout the day.

 This book is a real treat and I know that I am going to enjoy taking a daily break and be inspired, pray, and ponder my motherhood and my life in light of Holy Scripture and our Holy Mother....and I know you will too!

Please look for autographed copies of the book are to  purchase at Donna Marie's website: www.donnacooperoboyle.com. Also, you can purchase Mom's Cafe through the publisher: Our Sunday Visitor, at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and their local Catholic bookstore.

Check out Ebeth's post here to leave a comment and/or share through social media: http://acatholicmumclimbingthepillars.blogspot.com/2013/04/catholic-moms-cafe-blog-book-tour.html

Third stop along my blog tour!

From Kathy Schiffer:

The Catholic Mom’s Lament: “There’s No Time to Pray!”

My story is every mother’s story: 
My children are grown, but oh, how I remember those days of math homework and spelling bees, Cub Scouts and softball practice, teacher conferences and playdates and lunch on the run….  Some days, it seemed there was barely enough time to throw dinner on the table before rushing off to one more event in our school-centered lives.

How could I ever find the time for meaningful prayer?

That’s why it was such an honor to be invited to participate in the Blog Tour for Donna-Marie Cooper O’Boyle’s new book, Catholic Mom’s Café:  5-Minute Retreats for Every Day of the Year.

I mean, maybe some days—cuddling with a fussy baby, braiding a little girl’s hair, cleaning up a spill—I couldn’t make it to daily Mass, or linger over a chapter of the Gospel of John.  But on the busiest of days, I could commit to five minutes!

That’s all Donna-Marie asks of you.  She skillfully weaves little “POPS” into a mom’s busy day.  POPS, that is, are four aspects of the Catholic spiritual life:   Ponder, Offer, Prayer, and Savor.

Donna invites the reader to “Ponder” a short passage:  perhaps a Scripture verse, an excerpt from the writings of Pope Pius XII, or a poignant quote from C.S. Lewis.

And then in “Offer” comes what may be the most relevant advice for a mother’s day.  Here, Donna looks at how a mother’s daily activities in the home are themselves a form of prayer.   By approaching the day with an attitude of service, by teaching her children to love their heavenly Mother, by planning ahead, by following the example of the saints, by nurturing her children and handling small details, a woman shows love and serves her heavenly Father and her earthly family.

In the third section, “Pray”, Donna-Marie suggests a paragraph (or a single line) which, spoken from the heart, is a fitting ejaculation for a busy mom.  She encourages mothers to pray, first, her quick meditation; then to append an Act of Faith, Our Father, Hail Mary, and Glory Be.  Sound advice for all of us—mothers and not!

And lastly, we “Savor” the peace we’ve found from these few minutes of prayer and meditation, strong in His love, secure in our roles.

Thank you, Donna, for helping those of us who are “too busy” to hone in on what really matters.  Prayer needn’t last an hour; we can make a mini-retreat in just five minutes a day.

 *     *     *     *

For more information about Catholic Mom’s Cafe, check out Donna-Marie’s blog dedicated to Catholic Mom’s Cafe (both the book and the TV series), or at her Facebook page. 

Autographed copies of the book are available for purchase at Donna-Marie’s  website; or you can purchase through the publisher (Our Sunday Visitor), at your local Catholic bookstore, or on-line at Amazon or Barnes & Noble.

See this post here: http://www.patheos.com/blogs/kathyschiffer/2013/04/the-catholic-moms-lament-theres-no-time-to-pray/ and feel free to comment or share it through your social media.

God bless!
Donna-Marie