When it comes to family fun (fun that celebrates and nurtures your Catholic faith), do you consider yourself as adventurous or overwhelmed? Do you think of yourself as creative or clueless?

Usually, I have my feet planted squarely in the Overwhelmed and Clueless camps. But, with her new book, Sarah Reinhard has introduced me to a couple of new and exciting realms of possibility: the Adventurous and the Creative.

As The Catholic Foodie, I think it’s obvious that I love to cook. As a matter of fact, one of my great joys in life is looking through cookbooks. I love cookbooks because they inspire me with delectable ideas, and they equip me with encouragement and an arsenal of practical tips. Sometimes I even imagine the bible as the cookbook of life.

I have often wished for a “cookbook” for kids. No, not the kind that shows kids how to cook… Rather, the kind that shows me how to have fun with my family in ways that bind us closer together with each other and with the Lord.

Kids grow up way too quickly. As my kids move from one phase to another, I frequently find myself wishing for a cookbook for family fun. Thanks to Sarah Reinhard, I now have one!

Catholic Family Fun: A Guide for the Adventurous, Overwhelmed, Creative, or Clueless

Catholic Family Fun is filled with fun, practical tips and more inspiration than you can shake a stick at.

I’m serious.

There are silly activities, storytelling, craft projects, meals to cook and share, outdoor adventures, places to go, saints to celebrate, ways to serve, and ways to pray. And all of these activities are broken down by prep time, duration, and cost… just like a “real” cookbook!

I had the privilege of reading the draft of this book before publication. Pauline Books & Media asked me to read it and, if I liked it, to write a promotional blurb for the book. [As if I wouldn’t like it!]

Here’s what I wrote for them:

“Families are so busy today. We are always on the go. Even with the best of intentions, family fun time can easily get swallowed up by all the ‘must-do’s’ of life. It seems like there is no time for having fun together. Yet, having fun together is exactly what we need in order to grow in love and to keep our family close. My own family needs a healthy dose of fun on a daily basis. But if you’re like me, sometimes I’m at a loss for new ideas. We end up doing the same old things together, which can drastically reduce the fun-factor for all of us.

We need something different, something new. What we need is inspiration and a bunch of great ideas. And that’s exactly what we find in Sarah A. Reinhard’s Catholic Family Fun: A Guide for the Adventurous, Overwhelmed, Creative, or Clueless.

Sarah A. Reinhard has a knack for getting to the heart of things. In simple and plain language, Sarah shares with us a multitude of good, fun, and practical ideas for families to grow in love together. And she shares these ideas with us with a dose of ‘Yes, you can do this’ encouragement. Catholic Family Fun gives me the extra boost I need to make room in my busy life to have holy and wholesome fun with the people who are most important to me, my family.”

Readers and listeners of The Catholic Foodie should know Sarah Reinhard well. She regularly appears on The Catholic Foodie podcast with her Mary in the Kitchen segment. She also writes about marriage, motherhood, the Catholic faith, books, and life on a farm at her blog: snoringscholar.com. She is also a frequent contributor to other blogs, podcasts and websites (in addition to The Catholic Foodie) such as: Catholic Mom, Faith & Family Live, and Catholic Writers Guild. Sarah lives in central Ohio with her husband and their three children.

Personally, I am blessed to call Sarah my friend. One day about two years ago she emailed me with an idea for a segment for The Catholic Foodie… something about Mary and a kitchen. I love Our Lady dearly, and I love kitchens, so I said Yes! From that one email a new friendship was born. We have met in person only a few times. But we have spent lots of time talking, emailing, and collaborating on different projects. Today I am blessed to call Sarah my friend. And we are all blessed by her reflections in her Mary in the Kitchen segment on The Catholic Foodie podcast.

You can listen to Sarah and me discuss the book on the last episode of The Catholic Foodie (Holy Week, The Eucharist, and The Sacramental Principle).

As you can tell from the endorsement I wrote for this book, I do highly recommend it for all Catholic families. In addition to the book, Sarah is also regularly posting new activities for family fun, and reflections too, at the book’s website. She also has additional information about the book on her blog at SnoringScholar.com. Finally, you can join in the discussion about the book, and even pick Sarah’s brain on the Catholic Family Fun Facebook Page.

If you’re family needs a healthy dose of Catholic Family Fun, there’s no better resource that Sarah’s book. Check it out today!