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Danielle Bean
Danielle Bean, a mother of eight, is editor-in-chief of Catholic Digest and Faith & Family. She is author of My Cup of Tea, Mom to Mom, Day to Day, and most recently Small Steps for Catholic Moms. Though she once struggled to separate her life and her …
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Rachel Balducci
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Arwen Mosher lives in southeastern Michigan with her husband Bryan and their 4-year-old daughter, 2-year-old son, and twin boys born May 2011. She has a bachelor's degree in theology. She dreads laundry, craves sleep, loves to read novels and do logic puzzles, and can't live without tea. Her personal blog site …
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Rebecca Teti is married to Dennis and has four children (3 boys, 1 girl) who -- like yours no doubt -- are pious and kind, gorgeous, and can spin flax into gold. A Washington, DC, native, she converted to Catholicism while an undergrad at the U. Dallas, where she double-majored in …
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Posted by Danielle Bean in Homemaking on Friday, November 12, 2010 9:00 AM
I almost decided not to write this post.
Every time I write about something even a little bit frivolous that makes me happy in my homemaking, I am sure to hear from a few disappointed readers.
There are more important things to write about. Of course there are.
There are holier things to write about. Of course there are.
There are brainier things to write about. Of course there are.
But I can’t help but think that there is no shortage of people in the world who look down their noses at “little women” who find joy and satisfaction in caring for their homes and families. I like the idea of Faith & Family being a place where moms and homemakers can come and share the small joys and satisfactions of their vocations without fear of being labeled brainless or materialistic.
I can accept the fact that some women might roll their eyes at a post about scented candles. I just want the eye-rollers to accept the fact that, for some of us, homemaking is important business. It’s not all about scented candles, of course, but little things like that are a part of it.
Women tend to be natural caregivers, nurturers, and homemakers. Not all women excel or even enjoy all of those things, but many do. It’s why you see gangs of us squealing over pink crocheted booties at baby showers, why we swap cookie recipes at the playground, and exhaustively research things like cloth diapers. It’s important to us. And I think, within reason, that’s how God intends it. Our nurturing instincts and attention to detail are some of God’s greatest gifts to women. To the world, really.
So today, I am here to say: I love my Entenmann’s scented candle I picked up at Rite Aid for $5.99 yesterday.
I like to clean my kitchen after dinner, wipe the counters, dim the lights, and light my Cinnamon Coffee Cake candle because it smells heavenly and helps me enjoy the fact that I am doing my best to provide an inviting, warm, and comfortable home for my family.
That’s not a small thing, that’s a big thing. An important thing. Just like the other quiet, unseen, hundreds of small ways mothers nurture and give to their families every day.
Any little thing that makes us pause to appreciate that is no small thing at all.
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I love candles too,with the winter coming soon and the dark evenings drawing in there’s nothing better than a soy scented candle.I believe that a soy scented candle is alot better for our health and the enviroment.Think of our childrens future.
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