Our first bakers Monday!

And I am cheating by linking to an older post called Janet's Bread. Today (Sunday the Solemnity of Corpus Christi) we enjoyed a lovely day at a park after Mass. There, another family from our parish joined us in a feast of whole wheat rolls, and watermelons.

We toyed with the idea of hitting the transportation museum as well, but as I had lesson plans calling to me, (incomplete lesson plans) we headed for home and now at 10:07 pm, I am finished three children's lesson plans with only four more to go so I am cheating with an older post about one of my most favourite recipes - Janet's Bread. So without further ado I bid you to click here and enjoy, for the first time or as a repeat!

Diane - I am working on that review - but for some mysterious reason Prince Caspian, as in the book, was re-read several times the past month and suddenly no-one, not a soul, knows where it has disappeared to. So tomorrow I will be pleading with Saint Anthony to assist us in this endeavor and, as I am a quick read, I hope to have the book devoured in short order so that I can do a good job comparing the two! It has been a few years ( quite a few) since I read the book so I feel I need to refresh my memory in order to better answer some of your questions regarding it. I am quite looking forward to it. If you have not read any my other reviews I will put a link up tomorrow sometime so that you can see the type of review I try to accomplish when I do one! Read more!

Corpus Christi

"The Solemnity of Corpus Christi commemorates the institution of the Holy Eucharist, paralleling Maundy Thursday (Holy Thursday) commemorating Our Lord's institution of the Eucharist. Corpus Christ was introduced in the late 13th century to encourage the faithful give special honor to the institution of the Holy Eucharist to the Blessed Sacrament. The official title of this Solemnity was changed in 1970 to The Body and Blood of Christ (Latin: Sollemnitas Sanctissimi Corporis et Sanguinis Christi); and it is still on the Roman Missal’s official Calendar for the universal Church on Thursday after Trinity Sunday; however, where it is not a day of obligation (as in the United States) it is usually celebrated on the Sunday following Trinity Sunday."

To continue reading click here.
Read more!

Future blogging....

I never like to blog if I don't think that I have something of value to share or at least something funny that might put a smile on a readers face. I have been doing a little research about how to make one's blog a worthwhile read and one that friends/readers will want to come back to again and again, while also being able to reliably find new posts.

Having a bit of a format can help a writer find something useful to say on a regular basis as well as form self discipline in writing habits. So I am thinking of a schedule to follow. Bakers' Monday with a favourite recipe, Virtuous Tuesday with a post on living out a virtue within family life, Easy Wednesday with something funny from the peanut gallery Photo Thursday with a favourite pic or two posted, Family Friday - something from one of the kids is shared... but for that I will need my favourite technician to help me get my scanner up and running again. (An instrument I have been lamenting the loss of for quite some time. ) Open Line Saturday - questions are welcomed and answered... This schedule is not etched in stone, simply some ideas that I am thinking of using.

If any of my readers have an idea for a theme for one of the days of the week, feel free to leave it in the comment section. (And I am hoping you will have some ideas!)

God Bless Read more!

Official Review of Prince Caspain....

Emma (five) "It was AWESOME!"

Nathaniel (seven) It was fun but I didn't like the kissing part.

And neither did Emma, apparently, as she hid her face during the "kiss" but her eyes were glued to the screen in all of the action scenes.

So Prince Caspian is a success as an action movie but leave out the romance please.... as per the peanut gallery. Read more!

Outside my windows...

beautiful:
-adjective

1. having beauty; having qualities that give great pleasure or satisfaction to see, hear, think about, etc.; delighting the senses or mind

fragrance:
–noun

1. the quality of being fragrant; a sweet or pleasing scent.

blossom:
-noun

1. The condition or time of flowering: peach trees in blossom.

invisible:
-adjective

1. not visible; not perceptible by the eye
2. withdrawn from or out of sight; -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Combine these various definitions together and you have what I am experiencing each time I pass by or sit near an open window today. A beautiful fragrance of blossoms that are invisible to my immediate view but that is giving me great pleasure so that I just want to sit and inhale for long periods of time. Read more!

Whether to post or not to post a negative comment...

The dilemma as to whether to leave or allow the publishing of a negative comment is one that I have had to grapple with. The questions I ask myself are;

1) "Will this comment offend my readers?"

2) "Can anything positive possibly come of this negative comment?"

If I conclude, usually with my husbands calm input, that nothing positive can come of the comment or that it is so hateful that to post it will simply be inflicting hate and pain on my readers - it gets bumped.

Here is a delightful and informative post that will enlighten us all on how to deal with such comments. To read click here. Hope you enjoy it as much as I did. Read more!

Jelly Beans...

My husband has a favourite brand of jelly beans and a few days ago I picked up a small bag of them for him. To help me make my escape to the local Wal-mart so as to stock up on birthday goodies for the upcoming teen celebration he cheerfully distracted 3 years old Elsa with the bribe of sharing his special jelly beans!

Upon getting home I asked Elsa if she had enjoyed the jelly beans.

"Yes! I DID!" She exploded with a huge grin.

"Oh, and are there any left?" I queried.

"Nope!"

"Not even ONE jelly bean, you didn't save me any?" I teased.

"Well, I tried to... but I just ate 'dem all. " she sighed with a shrug of helplessness.

Those jelly beans... they just overtook her little taste buds and disappeared, each and every one of them, into her little tummy! Read more!

It's official...

WE HAVE ONE MORE TEEN IN THE HOUSE!

It is a joy to watch your transition from a little boy to young gentleman as well as your efforts to be true to God and to your faith. We all love you Noah even if you did find it necessary to remind us at 12 am that we had a new teen in the house.

"Happy Birthday!"

Read more!

Excuse me? Did I hear that correctly?

While we were watching a coloured version of the Three Lives of Thomasina I remarked, 'I saw this when I was little' to which my 11 year old son replied:

"You mean this movie is that old?"

As I glared at him, my 10 year old daughter added:

"Well, two of the children are in Mary Poppins and that movie is very old!"

Excuse me while I schedule my geriatric check up.... Read more!

Ain't that just the truth though...

This pic borrowed from Danielle Bean.

Read more!

Fair?

Anyone who has said God is fair has not sat at the dining room table trying to gather the last ounce of energy from the bottom of your toes so as to be able to prepare dinner whilst you watch the five year old being chased by the three year old as they both scream in ecstasy "ENERGY, ENERGY, ENERGY!"

Now if you will excuse me - I think I will go eat some dark chocolate chips for some badly needed energy! Read more!

Best Friends

Thanks Noah for showing such a cute video! These otters reside in the Vancouver Aquarium in BC Canada. Read more!

Strawberries & tornadoes...

Strawberry season is upon us and so, it appears, is the tornado season as well and we have just had a tasting of both and the strawberries come out on top.

Wednesday threw us a bit off our game plan when we spent the afternoon picking about 15 lbs of strawberries after our regular co-op home school group. Typically we would come home and each child attack a math lesson followed by our 3 pm chores. Instead, we gorged on strawberries and prepared strawberry shortcake for dessert.

Thursday morning I awoke with a severe headache and a somewhat jaundiced attitude that did not improve as I strolled through the house trying to regain the momentum we had attained earlier in the week. Finally I declared it was a cleaning day and, as such, a school holiday. This was received with mixed feelings as you can well imagine...

No school VS c l e a n i n g.

None the less everyone rallied and by about 4 pm I was well satisfied and we called it a day and I headed out to do a few chores with Hugo. I was struck by the pattern of the breezes and felt unsettled by them. Each time I entered a building and then came out I was impressed by the increasing humidity. Despite the almost continuous shifting breeze, there was a stillness to the air that bothered me.

Our chores finished, Hugo and I returned home to a simple dinner of chicken strips, fries and left over veggies. Due to the number of strips and fries one needs to cook in order to feed ten, we ate in shifts. Since we had already done so much cleaning the supper chores were quickly completed and we all went our separate ways. I to my room to tidy it a little and listen to some online talk shows and most of the children outside to play in the back. The breeze began to pick up and before long could really be called windy and I soon called the children in. We settled in for the evening and shortly the little ones were asleep and older children were reading in their rooms while Hugo and I watched the first disk of the seventh season of 24.

Despite the rapid development of the plot line, I was somewhat distracted by my still pounding head and the steadily increasing lightning. There was little thunder but the lightning was almost continuous. Anyone who has watched the opening scene of Twister will remember the continuous lightening strikes and somehow the movie has been able to convey well the very atmosphere in the shifting wind that proceeds this type of weather. This was how it was last night.

Finally close to eleven we shut off 24 and I decided to check the forecast. We were under, not a tornado watch, but a warning. I called Hugo who turned on his scanner, and we learned almost immediately that we were within miles of a tornado but were unsure what direction it was heading. However, it was moving at about 46 miles an hour. Quickly we changed back into our clothing and got the children up telling them to dress quickly. I grabbed Emma, soundly asleep, off her bottom bunk and Hugo grabbed Elsa off our bed. Everyone else shepherded themselves downstairs where we huddled on the couches, Emma and Elsa still dreaming their dreams.

With the scanner in the background we prayed a decade of the Rosary and called our only neighbours to warn them. Thankfully we learned the tornado was moving away from us but listened helplessly as it headed to nearby Greensboro. More smaller tornadoes were reported and we sent the children to bed while we stayed up until 1:30 listening to the scanner until we were certain all danger was passed. In the morning we learned the tornado that hit Greensboro was an F3 and thankfully only one life was lost and miraculously only a few people were injured. Some from cars overturning in the highway, and another when a building collapsed.

Tonight we are again with that ominous stillness to the air but, as of yet, the sun is shining and the clouds are few. We are under a severe thunderstorm warning but so far, not a tornado warning. Let's pray it stays that way.

Sadly the strawberry season is no where as near as long as the tornado season. If only we could reverse that somehow, eh?

(Correction, initial reports were that the tornado that hit Greensboro was an F3 but it has been downgraded to an F2, to read more about it click here. My three older children, who all live in Gaston County, slept through the sudden severe weather band that lead to another twister (Also an F2) that left a 7 mile path of damage through the county at about 2 am. An F3 touched down in the Clemons area. To read more click here. Note these links may stop working in a day or two.) Read more!

Fr. Leo Patalinghug

The following was written by Fr. Leo Patalinghug whose blog, Food for the Soul, I have added to my favourite links. He spoke last fall at our Eucharistic Congress here in Charlotte, NC. Shortly thereafter I signed up to his weekly emails, Food for the Body, Food for the Soul and I thought I would share some of the contents of this weeks with my readers.

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There is no doubt the mother is the heart of the home. She, by God’s grace, transforms the societal institution of the family unit into a real loving, caring family – the primary building block of society.

As the secular calendar celebrates Mother’s Day this Sunday, May 11, moms will share in the celebration of Pentecost. While I fully realize Mother’s Day is NOT a religious holiday, I can’t help but see how grace transforms this secular holiday into a religious one. After all, is not motherhood a gift from God! And have we forgotten that one of mom’s roles is to help the child she carried in her womb to become a saint? Every Sunday should be a Mother’s Day! But this Sunday is a uniquely special one, because it coincides with Pentecost – the outpouring of the grace of the Holy Spirit and with our Blessed Mother in the same room where Jesus gave us the Eucharist!

Scripture scholars will note how the Blessed Mother’s presence almost invites the Holy Spirit. Mary, by her beautiful and immaculate faith, invited the Holy Spirit to take root, dwell in, and incarnate in her womb at the Annunciation. She could have said no to Archangel Gabriel, but she didn’t! Her surprising pregnancy was no accident, but a gift of the Holy Spirit! Mary’s maternal beckoning at the Wedding Feast of Cana inspired Jesus to exercise his power and to call forth the Holy Spirit to make the first miracle: changing water into wine. She was there at the foot of the cross when Jesus said, “Father, into Your hands I commend my Spirit.” She was in the upper room at the first Pentecost, when the Holy Spirit, as tongues of fire, came down upon her and the apostles and enlivened the faith of Jesus’ believers!

It is almost as if Mary, as a mother, has a real influence in inviting the Holy Spirit into her home. Mothers have that same power! Just looking at Mary’s relationship with the Holy Spirit, we can use those scripture passages I mentioned to offer our moms a beautiful reminder of the spiritual privileges she possesses in her motherhood.

Consider how the conception of your child was not just a physical work between two people who love each other. It was no accident but the work of God’s procreative Spirit in that particular and unique act of love. The annunciation of every pregnancy is not just a biological reality – it’s a reality of the Holy Spirit too!
The Wedding Feast of Cana shows a mother’s influence, especially when it comes to celebrating well! Moms are always so concerned about whether or not children and guests will get enough to eat and drink. That concern for bodily comfort and sustenance can also be transformed into a thing of grace, especially when moms consider the spiritual hungers of children. In other words, are God’s children, i.e., your children, getting enough spiritual nourishment? If not, go ahead and beckon Jesus to make miracles so that true celebration can occur!

Sadly, I’ve also seen mothers in very tragic situations, having to bury their own children. Mary’s concern for Jesus, at that moment of His death was the prayer that His Spirit would go to God in Heaven. Mothers, in their own way, pray that same prayer as Mary did at the foot of the cross. I realize that all mothers want their children to grow up, be healthy, and live long and prosperous lives. But the ultimate mother’s prayer is that her child gets to Heaven. As Mary at the foot of cross shows us, ultimately, the best thing mothers give to children is a relationship with the Holy Spirit!

Mother’s Day Sunday and Pentecost are a perfect combination! So, when we pray for the gifts of the Holy Spirit to come into our hearts and homes, let’s make sure we ask a special blessing on our own mothers. After all, moms and the Holy Spirit have something in common: they both want to nourish their children with the love of God, with the joy of Faith, and the strength to climb the mountain to Heaven!

To all of the mothers out there at our Grace Before Meals Family – thank you for saying “YES” to life, and may you have a “Blessed Mother” Mother’s Day! Read more!

Some of our Favourite Authors...

Myself, I am rereading one of Dorothy L Sayers mysteries. I love Lord Peter Whimsey and I think I have read all of the mysteries that he has solved, some with the assistance of Harriet Vane and others with the assistance of Charles Parker but all of them with the assistance of his loyal Manservant - Bunter. I believe my favourites are Gaudy Night and the Busman's Honeymoon. I will divulge nothing of the details as after all these are mysteries!

The children also seem to have as affection for English authors: one of them being Brian Jacques author of the Redwall series. But my children's interests are diverse and a few of them have strayed into the path of Madeline L'Engle with Anna having been the first to discover her. The first title that she consumed was a Wrinkle in Time.

Almost everyone has heard of C.S. Lewis's Narnia Series, but did you know he also wrote some science fiction? On Anna's 2007 Christmas wish list was Out of the Silent Planet, the first of his space trilogy.

And obviously we count among our classics Little Women, Little Men, Eight cousins and, of course, all of Jane Austin's many novels. I was working my way through Emma again until our well worn copy disappeared - probably into someone else's pile of "must re-read books"! We even have a copy of the six hour video series of Pride and Prejudice. I am barely scratching the surface of our varied reading adventures, so stay tuned as part of my experiment is the hope of reviving my blog Catholic, Classic and Current Books and Movies. Expect to see some regular posting there soon. Now, after posting some pictures of some of these great titles, I am off to NETFLIX to enjoy some Instant Viewing and watch the fourth Episode of Have His Carcase. Read more!

Don't I have enough kids already...

...without trying to take someone else's while entering the zoo?

Today we sped through the entrance of the zoo as we have prerequisite "Cuteness Pass" that all members of the zoo carry and that five year old Emma solemnly held out for the gate attendant to examine. Then catching glimpse of a short brunette in the corner of my eye caused the instant reflex of my calling out: "Come along sweetheart!" while my head turned to catch up with my words.

A startled six year old stared at me while she clutched her mothers hand who, thankfully, just grinned at my goof up! I apologized and hurried to catch up with my own gang, err family! You would think the prospect of counting eight heads for the next 2 hours would have satisfied me, without my feeling the need to add a ninth! Read more!

What does God think...

Lately I have been patiently and sometimes not so patiently dealing with three year old Elsa as she insists on "doing it meself" no matter how many times she has to to do it before she gets it right.

I watch her thinking how much easier it would be if she would at least let me show her the right way. Recently as I heaved a heavy sigh I had an image of God's perplexed face as He watches me day after day trying to do it my way and getting frustrated when my day doesn't go as I thought it should have. I wonder if He too is heaving a heavy sigh.

I am resolved, once more, to try and get my direction from Him, instead of trying to do it all alone, my way. Read more!

In Honour Of Mary...

MAY FEELINGS

Thanks to j. a. varela for sharing this video with us. Lets all work together to share this across North America during Mary's month. Read more!

Some New Blogs I am checking out...

There's a mum feeding a huge troop over at "Feeding the Masses" and I figure I need to find out if she has the same problem as I do and it's not tripling and quadrupling the recipes - its finding a pot large enough to handle that many ingredients. As to containers for the leftovers - I ask what leftovers? I found her through "Beautiful Day "where I like to drop in now and then and watch little Madeleine grow. Beth also lead me to another cooking blog - the "Cookin' Sisters" and can one ever get too many recipes? So I have added them to my links as well.
I have also added Minnesota Mom 'cause I drop in there now and again to see how they are doing in Minnesota. And my one of my teenage daughters' favorite blogs is Far Beyond Pearls an endearing blog about the struggles of raising a large family sans Dad most of the year 'cause he is away, months at a time, serving our country and helping to keep us safe. Currently Dad is home and apparently the baby, Penelope, is having trouble accepting him as part of the family. I don't often fully realize the sacrifices our Military families make as a whole, while the mum or dad are overseas protecting our country; so reading this blog helps me to remember this.

There are so many worthwhile blogs out there and I wish I could list them all - but to be honest I don't have a lot of time to read many blogs as tempting as it is to leap from blog to blog. Hopefully over the next few months I can keep adding more. I am hoping to post more regularly - umm where have you heard that before, eh? But I am trying a little experiment the coming weeks and if it works - you will see more posting. If it doesn't, I will not need to announce its failure as it will be obvious. Read more!

Tis the season...

... for these cute fuzzy things. Or something almost like it. And Elsa has a decided passion for them. Which means she wants to share them with everyone special to her. Which includes me. UGH! Don't get me wrong - I love how fuzzy they look, from a distance and better yet on a branch - not crawling up my 3 year olds bare arm. And definitely not in my wooden recipe box, no matter how much Elsa's pet needs a house.

Clearly I am getting old because there was a time when caterpillars, in our family, settled for margarine tubs with holes punched in the tops for their homes. Whereas this generation is moving into condos, err, aquariums on the front step. Or if they are lucky enough to fall into the hands of a great real estate agent, like Elsa, they get their own house; aka the aforementioned wooden recipe box.

But with that house comes a shower, ala the front garden hose... so when I heard what sounded like my hair dryer wafting through the dining room window that is just above the hose; imagine my relief to learn it was simply a neighbor blowing dust off the side walk, and not Elsa playing hair dresser to her sopping wet caterpillar.

Later I was treated to a Barbie doll head floating past the corner of my eyes, decorated with a flower and stuck not on a body, but rather a stick... dripping wet. A funeral procession for the caterpillar perhaps? I don't think they do well in the shower.

Yes... tis the season and the burning question is how many caterpillars will survive it and Elsa's passion for them??? Read more!