About Us

Welcome to our blog! 

Tiny Flowers of Grace was born out of our friendship and inspired by our mutual love of St. Therese of Lisieux. As many of you may know, she saw herself as a "little flower" of Jesus who gave glory to God simply by being her beautiful little self, alongside all of the other flowers in Jesus' garden. We love the image of being God's beloved tiny flowers, striving for sainthood in our own authentic and genuine ways.

St. Therese wrote, "Everything is a grace because everything is God's gift. Whatever be the character of life or its unexpected events-to the heart that loves, all is well." Through all the joys and sorrows of life, we want to recognize the grace in everything-just as St. Therese did. With that in mind, we hope to write and share our own experiences and insights. Knowing us, this means you will most likely find everything from light-hearted and fun to deep and reflective, with topics such as faith, vocation, culture, and physical and mental health-just to name a few.

From St. Joan of Arc to St. Terese of Calcutta to St. Gianna Beretta Molla, we know so much beauty and diversity exists in "God's garden." We also hope to foster deeper community and connection where we can all support one another on our journey. So no matter who you are or how you found us, we are so happy you're here!

Introducing Natalie...

As with most introductions, a common tendency is to first write what we "do." Actually, the first sentence I wrote when trying to introduce myself was to state my job. I quickly deleted that and then went to my other common identifiers - where I am from and where I live. Again, I deleted that too. So, where to begin? I believe St. Teresa of Calcutta gives the best introduction...

“By blood, I am Albanian. By citizenship, an Indian. By faith, I am a Catholic nun. As to my calling, I belong to the world. As to my heart, I belong entirely to the Heart of Jesus."

So, in following her lead...By blood, I am German, Irish, and Norweigan (I think?). By citizenship, an American. By faith, I am a Catholic. As to my calling, I belong to the world. As to my heart, I belong entirely to the Heart of Jesus."

Why do I like this introduction? St. Teresa names the identifiers we can see, but she puts the most important one at the end; the one that is at her very core - her heart belongs to Jesus. She is a child of God. While I am still working on the "belong entirely to the Heart of Jesus" part, I know that my job, citizenship, ethnicity, etc. do not supersede my identity as a child of God. 

So, my name is Natalie and I am a child of God. Ok, now that I have established that, here are the other details about me....I am a Director of Religious Education and Religion teacher at a Catholic elementary school in Pennsylvania, a Southern California native, former blogger (if writing a few blog posts about 4 years ago counts), a believer in the Catholic faith with a heart for studying and living the teachings of the Church, a newlywed, a coffee and chocolate enthusiast, and a HUGE fan of St. Therese of Lisieux, which is the Saint that inspired the title of this blog. Not only do St. Therese and I share the same birthday, but I like to think we have been friends for many years. Her teaching on the "Little Way" continues to inspire and challenge my faith. 

I have known Caitlin since we served together in Billings, Montana with the Jesuit Volunteer Corps/Northwest. That's right, we are ruined for life (i.e. the obligatory JVC motto)! For about 10 months, Caitlin and I lived in a community with 4 other people. Needless to say (if you have ever lived in an intentional community), it was difficult, but God was so good in bringing Caitlin into my life. While my service year rattled my faith in a lot of ways, Caitlin was a faithful companion on the journey and encouraged me to stand firm in the faith. After our year of service, we found ourselves on different parts of the map. Despite the distance, Caitlin and I have remained close friends for about 6 years now. I know St. Therese has played a role in that. Each year, we pray the novena to St. Therese for various intentions and find the welcome reminder that, wherever we might be, prayer always connects us. I consider her my soul sister and I am very excited to write this blog with her.


Introducing Caitlin...

For as long as I can remember, I have always disliked talking about myself. In school, I dreaded the moment when you'd have to go around and say a fun fact about yourself because a) total introvert over here! and b) I always wished I had something to share that made me seem more adventurous, bold, or brave. I think this may be part of the reason why St. Therese of Lisieux found me and why I have developed such a great devotion to her. As "The Little Flower", she has been teaching me to embrace and love all of what I consider my ordinary "littleness." 

In one of my favorite passages in her autobiography, Story of A Soul, she writes, "I understand how all the flowers God has created are beautiful, how the splendor of the rose and the whiteness of the lily do not take away the perfume of the violet or the delightful simplicity of the daisy. I understand that if all flowers wanted to be roses, nature would lose her springtime beauty and the fields would no longer be decked out with little wild flowers. So it is in the world of souls, Jesus' garden. He has created small ones and those must be content to be daises or violets destined to give joy to God's glances when He looks down at His feet. Perfection consists in doing His will, in being what He wills us to be."

So here goes my "little" introduction!

Hi, I'm Caitlin! As a clinical social worker, I have found so much purpose and joy in serving and advocating for others, most recently as a counselor for women facing crisis pregnancies and as a mental health therapist for youth in foster care. However, after my husband and I welcomed our first child, Josephine, in August of 2021, I am now loving the transition to being a stay-at-home mom and home-maker in my favorite city of Chicago. In addition to painting (watercolor is my favorite), writing has always been a creative outlet for me. I am also a huge fan of live music, chai tea lattes, reading, and Divine Mercy.