6 years ago today we held our daughter, Ava Therese FuBin Farmer, for the very first time. You can click here to watch a moving short video of the journey. Below is something I wrote while in China in the midst of that journey about Ava and her special intercessor: [Read more…]
You Are So Busted!
April 16, 2012 by 9 Comments
Photo by Joia Farmer
This actually happened this morning. Our 10-year-old was ready for school early (miraculous in and of itself) and I caught him on the couch with his rosary in hand, quietly praying the Divine Mercy chaplet!
Here’s how it happened. [Read more…]
Ava’s Gotcha Day
August 21, 2011 by Leave a Comment
5 years ago today we held our daughter, Ava, in our arms for the very first time in the Golden Resources Hotel, Chongqing, China. There is much more that makes family than just blood. What an incredible journey it continues to be! We are thrilled to share this short video we compiled of the journey to China shortly after our return.
Joia @ CatholicMom.com
August 11, 2011 by Leave a Comment
Joia was recently interviewed by Lisa Hendey, founder of of CatholicMom.com. A HUGE thanks to Lisa for the article.
The musicians who live in my house probably dream sometimes about having a mom as cool as Catholic rocker Joia Farmer. This amazing mom of four, a pro-life advocate, musician and speaker has done an amazing job of using her God-given talents to spread faith and joy to so many. I’m happy to share my recent conversation with Joia and hope you’ll enjoy and purchase her music to support her fantastic apostolate.
Read the whole interview (concert video included) by clicking here…
The Beautiful Gifting of Food
May 25, 2011 by 1 Comment
I have a confession that could get me into trouble. By outing this secret, I could bring chaos into my household, break our budget, and make my husband very unhappy. So…Here it is (lean in close):
Get ‘Er Done
April 21, 2011 by Leave a Comment
Over the years we’ve experimented with different charts and systems to get our kids motivated to do household chores, with varying degrees of success for them and difficulty for us. We have now discovered a great website that actually has our two 5-year-olds and our 9-year-old obsessed with pitching in. They can’t wait to log in and check off the chores they’ve done and they’re constantly looking for other chores to accomplish. This system strikes a nice balance between “you get paid an allowance just for being a member of the family” and “you do the chores or else [insert terrifying threat here]”. It’s easy to set up, easy to modify, easy enough for even 5-year-olds to use, and it’s FREE! Check out www.myjobchart.com .
As it says on their website: Using an innovative job chart that is based on technology, positive feedback, and mutually determined rewards, myjobchart.com helps parents help their children be responsible and develop a good work ethic.
Baby Simon’s Dance Video
April 12, 2011 by 1 Comment
Check out this kid’s moves! Not bad for 10 months old. And, yes… he’s ours.
Kids at Mass
April 12, 2011 by Leave a Comment
Getting Kids Ready for Church
I come from a family of five kids and I have four kids of my own, so I know the hassle of getting ready and out the door on time for church on Sunday morning (or, in reality, trying to be only a little bit late). It is tricky, and often, we roll into Mass in a bit of a frenzied state of mind, hoping to distract the kids enough for an hour or so that we don’t disturb the people around us… or even, if there happens to be Sunday school for the younger ones, have some time of prayer ourselves. Seems crazy, doesn’t it? The “source and summit” of our Christian lives, and we just hope to make it through.