Joy in the Mundane

Laundry is a mundane experience for me, 29 years of marriage and 8 kids have made for doing lots and LOTS of laundry through the years. Today, however, I was met with Joy and a feeling of warmth and appreciation as I did my laundry.  My daughter Jessica recently came home for a visit from Vancouver, where she lives and works as a nurse.  She brought lovely homemade quilted purse bags filled with fun girly things for her sisters, who both have birthdays this month and an abundance of unexpected, but much appreciated gifts for the family from Costco, which included a multitude of groceries, toiletries and laundry soap. Not only laundry soap though…but, also fabric softener and that is where I found my great JOY  today.

 Jessica has always been generous. It just really struck me how very thoughtful her gift was, as I was doing laundry today. I LOVE fabric softener, especially the good quality, yummy smelling ones, but I rarely buy it, because it is an unnecessary expense. Jessica knows that and so she bought me a gallon! JOY is not the feeling I usually have when greeting my laundry pile, so this was a wonderful gift, that I will be thinking of with JOY for weeks to come.♥

Independent thinker…

The term independent thinker is almost always used in a positive context, but can it have a dark side?  I think so!

I was with a friend recently and noticed how her young son looked to her for answers. We were teasing him about coming home with my brood and he looked intently at his mom, searching her face for approval.Though, It was only a moment‘s glance, it was one that I shall not soon forget, for it spoke volumes.  He looked to his mom, (his authority figure) to see if the proposal was agreeable to her.  How peaceful all our homes would be if that were the norm.

It made me think and ponder... Do I look to my authority figure, ( my husband and even still my higher authority; God and the Church) to help me make my decisions?  Did God intend for us to live and think independently?  Is He not more pleased when we look to Him and to the Church, the authority He established for us (1 Tim 3:15) when making decisions, especially big ones? Knowing the Bible, Church norms and ourCatechism (for Catholics) is key. We can't live by a  Truth that we don't know. 

Obviously, we have to teach our children to make their own decisions (though most of them have NO problem with that). Equally important though, if not even more so, is establishing boundaries for them and teaching them to stay within those boundaries. If they cannot, they will not be able to be  "independent” from the burden of following their peers opinions and feeling the need to “fit in” regardless of the moral impact. I think it is always best to be “dependent on Him” and by guiding our children to follow boundaries that we have set up as their authority, we help them on their journey.

Starting our day with a Saint, The Daily Readings and a Prayer…

I moved my main computer into the school room this year. It has made life easier for all. It’s one less thing to leave the school room for. We have been starting our day off with the daily readings and Saint of the day. With a click of my mouse, I can be at the these great sites that I found this summer!  I have them paged in my favorites under a special tab called, "everyday". It took me awhile to realize I could make new tabs in favorites, it makes navigation SO much easier.  There is an audio button for both the Saint of the day, and the daily readings so we “listen” instead of read. It is another voice besides mom’s. We both enjoy the change. Don‘t get me wrong… I love giving them mommalies (as they call them), but the break is nice for all.   I usually do a google search in images for the picture of the saint that we are listening to. Those visual images are so helpful. There is also an explanation video for further thought for the daily readings, if time allows. Several times we have done this on the laptop, at the table right after breakfast, so that my older daughter can join us before she leaves for her college classes.  I recommend starting your day this way...with a saint , the daily readings and a prayer.

There are several choices for sites out there, we use:

Saints: http://www.americancatholic.org/features/saints/bysoddate.aspx

Daily readings:http://www.usccb.org/bible/readings-audio.cfm

"Inspiring Others to Grow"

 We found out just 2 weeks ago that My son Chris won second place in a national music contest for the Catholic Daughters of America. He won first place locally and statewide.

My son David won first place at a local and state level for his poem.

 

Way to go Chris and David!

Inspiring others to grow was the title they both wrote about.

Inspiring Others to Grow

by David Neal

It is hard for me to know,

How to inspire others to grow.

I can be kind and loving to all.

Maybe, that is all I need to know.

Until we meet again...

I have spent the last week in Texas, where I came to meet my new grandson and to help out while the family adjusts to having 4 children. 

 Just a year ago, my grandbabies lived just down the road. I saw them several times a week. Nana’s house was one of their favorite places and we looked forward to every visit. They were there with my son and his lovely bride for every holiday and never missed a birthday or any little celebration. My children, though older, were my grandchildren’s playmates. It was sweet!

And then that day came... My son was offered a great job opportunity in Texas. It was a long way from home! I know that if at some point a job opens up,  they will want to move back, but for now, it is difficult.

  Life gets complicated when the kids grow up, especially when they move far away. Texas is too far and cost prohibitive to come home very often… even for the holidays.

Hold your children close mommas they grow up so fast. Grandmas if your grandchildren live close, enjoy them. One never knows when life will take a turn. I do not know when I will see mine again. There is no date to write on the calendar. It is open ended... God bless and keep them until then.

Faith like that

Recently , there was a tragedy in our lives. A dear friend was killed while fighting for our freedom. He is a hero and will be forever remembered for his sacrifice. He left behind a beautiful wife and two small sons. He had a close knit family, who loved him dearly. He will be greatly missed by all who knew and loved him.

The community was in shock at the news. When something like this happens, your body kicks into panic mode and you desperately want to help, but there is nothing you can do.

It had been just 2 hours since we had heard the tragic news, when my teenage daughter received a text from a friend that some youth were organizing a Rosary at a nearby church. My daughter decided to join them in prayer and I tagged along. There were several pews of young people up front and a few families scattered throughout the large church. We sat in the back, not wanting to interrupt the Rosary , that they were clearly in the middle of. I strained to hear, and couldn’t hear them announcing the mystery, but we prayed along the best that we could. After the final Glory be, I went and greeted one of the girls who was leading. Because I couldn’t hear well from the back, I asked if we had prayed the joyful or sorrowful mysteries. “No”, was the reply. Was it the Luminous, the Glorious? “NO”, she said, “we prayed the Rosary”. So I hadn’t missed the decade announcing, there wasn’t any. I pondered the faithfulness of these young girls who didn’t know the logistics of praying the Rosary and yet in their great love and desire for good, they did what they could. I believe it’s Faith like that God wants from us. We may not always do it perfectly, but Love makes up the difference and what a difference love makes!

We love you Mat! It was your great faith that gave you the courage to give your all in everything you did. You rode on the wings of faith and out of love for God and man were willing to give it all. Now you are with Him. Pray for us and we will pray for you, until we meet again.

Lord give us courage to give our all like Mat did and to have... a Faith Like That! 

A Great website!
http://www.saintmichaelusa.org/

https://www.imdb.com/list/ls052120407/?ref_=tt_rls_2

Singing The States by region

I like to teach my kids things that are difficult to remember through song. I usually make up a hokey tune and we sing it again and again until they remember. I have several "catecism tunes" that I will post at a later date.

Fun in the Snow!

It is our tradition to go sledding at least once a year. If the snow doesn't come to us, we go to the snow. We went up to Tollgate on Sunday for some fun in the snow...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iqIlM27s3kI

Our Christmas Card Rosary

We have now prayed our yearly "Christmas Card Rosary." We were joined by my nephew Paul this year who stopped in for a visit. Each year after Epiphany, we divide our Christmas cards into piles of 10. We then say our Rosary and reverse the Hail Marys so that the group begins the prayer and the leader (with his pile of cards) ends the prayer saying "Holy Mary Mother of God pray for ______now and at the hour of their death. "We insert the names (however they sign the card) into our prayer. It is a wonderful close to Christmas. We have looked at all of our cards again and remembered and prayed for our love ones by name. We thought of this about 15 or more years ago and have done it every year since.

Annie getting ready to ride in the carriage! She was early(imagine that) for a friends birthday party and her grandparents had rented the carriage as a surprise.

Epiphany 2012

On Epiphany, it is our practice to have a family over for a big breakfast after Mass.One of our courses is Muffins with medals and money planted inside. After breakfast, we have a reflection and usually a song as the kings are placed in the manger scene. This year we had John playing the Saxophone and Blase on the Bongos. The younger kids joined in with tamborines and we all helped to sing. After prayer we pick a saint for the year that will be a "star to guide us"  closer to Christ, by emulating his or her life and learning about them and asking them to pray for us. Here is a link to writings by some of the saints that we picked this year.

 St Margaret Mary Alacoque

http://www.saintsbooks.net/books/St.%20Margaret%20Mary%20Alacoque%20-%20Letters.pdf

St Benedict

http://www.saintsbooks.net/books/St.%20Benedict%20-%20The%20Rule%20of%20-%20Latin%20and%20English%20Edition.pdf

St Elizabeth of Hungary

http://www.saintsbooks.net/books/The%20Count%20of%20Montelembert%20-%20Life%20of%20Saint%20Elizabeth%20of%20Hungary.pdf

St Thomas Aquinas on The Gospel of St Matthew

http://www.saintsbooks.net/books/St.%20Thomas%20Aquinas%20-%20Catena%20Aurea%20-%201%20-%20The%20Gospel%20of%20Matthew%20-%20A%20Commentary%20on%20the%20Gospel.pdf

St Bonaventure on the Life of St Francis

http://www.saintsbooks.net/books/St.%20Bonaventure%20-%20The%20Life%20of%20St.%20Francis%20of%20Assisi.pdf

St Faustina's Diary

http://www.saintsbooks.net/books/St.%20Faustina%20Kowalska%20-%20Diary.pdf