The Keeper of the Keys

All Hallows Eve - 2011

2011-11-03T20:22:00.000-04:00

This year's cast of characters:

(minus Dani - she went with friends and I forgot to snap a photo of her before she left :( She was the Hobbit, Sam - a very tall Sam! )

Joseph as Prince Caspian

Charlie as A Racecar Driver

John Paul as Inspector Gadget

Sophia as Princess Leia

Therese as Perry the Platypus as "Agent P"

(apparently there's a difference btwn Perry and Agent P)

Happy Halloween from our characters to yours!

Cancer Help

2011-08-04T11:17:00.000-04:00

If you know of someone who has cancer or "had" cancer - or if you'd like to PREVENT cancer, take a look at Dr. Andrew Saul speaking on cancer. He was one of several experts interviewed for the film "Food Matters" (available instantly on netflix or you can watch it online for $5).

Go here to watch what was edited from the film. [scroll down to where it says "Andrew Saul on Cancer"] I believe they said that they had 40 hrs of footage which they had to condense to 80 minutes for the film.

This week I've begun juicing. And I know many people who are - I don't think it's a fad either. I believe people are very informed and the veil between the public and the food industry is being lifted.

Let me know what you think.

Lolek's Storytellers Presents: "The Princess Bride"

2011-07-27T19:59:00.000-04:00

If you remember from a post in the beginning of June, Dani has been working on The Princess Bride to perform for charity(s). She found the script online and created a screenplay from it (tweaking as needed), directed it and starred as Inigo Montoya. The performance was this past weekend - July 22nd and 23rd - with three showings. Total amount of donations raised... $1700; an increase of over $700 from last year's Puss in Boots.

Dani, as this project is her vision, was requested to come up with a name for our group. We really wanted to involve John Paul II since he was once an amateur theater actor and a prolific writer of poetry and drama for the theatre - and most especially since he was beatified this spring. And then the name "Lolek" came to me; it's nice and obscure. Lolek was Karol Wojtyla's childhood nickname. Dani came up - after many ideas - with "storytellers". She loves how JPII is our patron for a children's drama group. We have a website in the works as well.

There were so many fantastic kids who auditioned for the play that Dani had to write in some parts! We had a dad (father to the grandson; who the story was read to), three thieves (from the Thieves Forest), and a messenger "Myra" who informed Buttercup of Westley being captured by the Dread Pirate Roberts.

And words can't emphasize enough how amazing this performance was - people were really blown away. When it's available (after editing) I'll post some video.

These head shots below were in our programs of the main characters and were done a week before performance. Here Inigo's hair isn't curly and he doesn't have his scars. All the kids' performances were fantastic and we were told time after time how the casting was perfect!

Dani as Inigo Montoya...

Therese as ... not Buttercup.... rather the Albino :)

Rehearsals at the (old) rectory....

The Building of the Stage

Assembling the stage and wings at the parish hall...

Drilling and securing the casters

Finishing Touches...

First Rehearsals in the Parish Hall on the New Stage...

Offer me anything I ask for...

You can see here how black fabric was stapled to the front of the stage (and steps later on). Black tabbed curtains were on sale at Lowes for under $6 ea. I love frugal finds like that!

Candid Shots of our Tech Week

You can see the tribute to Lolek (John Paul II) in a poster in the boy's room.

A meeting of the minds!

A little down time

Westley takin' it easy

A little thumb war with Fezzik

Inigo caught wielding a broom instead of his sword

One of our thieves... and our "secret entrance" (tree) to the Pit of Despair

Backstage youngsters kept quiet on sleeping bags and quiet games/books/DSs....

Scenes during the performances (in no particular order)

Taken by a talented photographer - father of some actors

Cast and Crew

The Princess Bride

2011

And John Paul is now Eight!

2011-06-13T18:07:00.002-04:00

Happy Birthday Buddy!!
It seems not so long ago we just celebrated your birthday!

One of the gifts we got John Paul was a t-shirt from "Despicable Me" with two of the minions - it said:

"I am here just to annoy you"

That pretty much sums up John Paul (or so his sisters say!). It's his job. Really.

We LOVE you, John Paul! You are my sweet, sweet boy. I can't imagine my life without you!

Happy Birthday!

Therese is now Eleven!

2011-06-09T08:55:00.000-04:00

My lively girl is now 11 - I ask again: Where does the time go?

I surprised her with a muffin cake in the morning... (fyi, because of my mistake, do not place candles into hot/warm muffins ;)

St. Francis - her favorite saint

so giggley!

so silly

so beautiful

so creative

Sisters...

Happy Birthday to my sweet girl! We love you Therese - you light up our lives!

'Round here...Busy, Busy, Busy!

2011-06-06T10:51:00.006-04:00

*our school year is winding down - only 2 more weeks to go.

*summer production of "The Princess Bride"..... underway - Last year (and I can't believe I never posted about it), Dani worked all year long on a script of "Puss in Boots" and wanted the homeschool group to perform it. You have no idea how much I thought that would NOT happen ;) But we jumped in and did it and it was a wonderful, wonderful experience - raising over $900 in donations which went to a local crisis pregnancy center and to CRS for Haiti.

This year Dani and I came up with a name for her group. After going through many possibilities - and me really wanting a JPII reference - Dani came up with "Lolek's Storytellers"! For those that may not know, Lolek was John Paul II's childhood nickname and he also was very much into acting in his youth. He even wrote "The Jeweler's Shop" which was made into a movie - EWTN has shown this recently.

The Princess Bride is going to be so fun, and we're all very excited!

Here are some shots of last year's performance:

The cast and crew of Puss in Boots - 2010

Dani presenting Cindy, the director of The Hope Center, with the donated funds and a picture. Cindy also came to see the play and is looking forward to this year's production of The Princess Bride.

*On Father's Day (of all days), Dani and I leave for L.A.!! Well, Alhambra to be exact. We're going to a Mother / Daughter retreat at the Carmelite convent where my sister is a novice - on the verge of a 2nd year novice. The retreat is Monday - Thurs. and then we'll have a "family visit" from Thurs. - Sunday. For the family visit, my parents and brother and his family will fly out on Thursday - so we'll all be together!! WE ARE ALL SO VERY EXCITED!! I can't imagine how ecstatic my sister must be! I haven't seen her in almost 2 yrs. - whereas I used to see her several times a week. It will be different, but beautiful!

*Softball. Rec-ball came to an end in May. Dani, Therese and Sophia all played (T & S on the same team). We didn't put the boys in anything, though we did throw around the idea of putting all 3 of them in baseball or flag football. I wasn't that excited to be pulled in any more directions. Looking back though, I wish we would've put them in baseball. It would've worked. I think it's important that boys do *something* as a team sport. Anyway, I digress...
When this season was coming to a close, I must admit I was going to miss watching Dani play. She was the starting pitcher and has come such a long way since the fall (when she began taking lessons) - just so fun to watch! Then an opportunity landed in our laps...
Paul was at a local sporting goods store and was talking with the owner. Through their discussion, he told Paul how he is the coach for a travel ball team and that they were looking for a pitcher. We were invited to a practice the following night to check out the team, while the head coach worked with Dani and checked her out :)
So now she's on the team - the Panthers - and is having the time of her life! They've had two tournaments so far coming in 2nd place both times. Our Saturdays are all-day softball tournaments and our week packed with practices, but it is so worth it - not only to watch Dani and the girls play (they are very good!), but to see Dani doing something with which she has a passion.

Rec ball team at their team party - Blue Lightning. Not a stellar season, but it was fun!

Dani pitching for the Panthers

That's my girl!!

Panthers on 3 - 1, 2, 3....

Panthers!

~Second Place~

And this is what little ones do at the end of a long day of softball....

So glad I have my Melaluca products to get her white uniform clean :)

*Trying to work out tennis lessons for Therese and Sophia. A friend of mine offered to have them come to her house once a week so she can instruct them with her daughter and another friend. These are some of my girls' best friends :)

*Therese takes horse-riding lessons and won a week of summer horse camp for raising the most money for charity. That's at the end of this month.

Way to go, Therese!

Taking home 1 First Place and 2 Third Place ribbons from the horse show

Bobbing for apples...

... much easier without the helmet ~

Next year we'll add Sophia too :)

*Hopefully we'll be able to squeeze in some pool time ;)

*My garden re-seeded itself! Yippee!! I was procrastinating the planting of tomatoes, peppers and cukes, when Paul informed me that it looked as though there were tomato plants in the (box) garden. I walked to the garden and lo and behold, most everything reseeded - with the exception of peppers, I think. My basil is everywhere!! What sorts of things grow in your garden?

*Birthday month is upon our household (plus Father's Day). I don't know how I'm going to be able to make it all work with how busy we are - God's grace and Publix bakery, I suppose!

What is it with Blogger and posting videos? Some post and some don't! :( Bummer.

School Work

2011-05-20T09:52:00.001-04:00

These days - towards the end of our school year - Charlie is more eager to "do school", but it's got to be on his terms...

If he doesn't feel like doing his ABC flash cards, he'll just draw his famous-'round-here people....

or if he's in a bendable mood, he'll write his name . . . .

Gash in the forehead. Scooter accident. Could've used stitches, but I did an "at home" job [Gotta love butterfly bandages and New Skin!]. It was only a quarter inch long, and, well, he's a boy. All boy! (notice the scrape on the nose from a previous day? - he's got a new long stripe down his belly now too. Last night he was climbing a baby pine tree at the ballpark and must have scraped it all the way down!). And I could've made sure to avoid the scooter incident had I been a good mother and made them always wear their helmets! I slacked on the scooter helmet rule. I admit it. Not the bike or rollerblade rule - only the scooter. But no more!

First Holy Communion!

2011-05-09T15:56:00.000-04:00

John Paul made his First Holy Communion last Saturday. Such a glorious day in his life. He was beaming!

With his banner...

He had St. Giuseppe Moscati, St. John Bosco, Blessed Pope John Paul II and St. Padre Pio

My favorite!

Little Ham :)

With his proud parents!

Had to have some pure John Paul-ness!

His beautiful cake

And he had to have the "Jesus piece"

Charlie swipin' his cash :)

His gift from Grandma and Grandpa (plus a Bible)

I still need to take pictures of his gifts from us.

May 7, 2011

"I am the Bread of life"

Sheep to Shawl - Part I

2011-04-15T15:22:00.001-04:00

Last Saturday I took the kids to a little festival a few minutes north of us. It's Sheep to Shawl!

We saw a blacksmith demonstration [which is cool in and of itself, but Sophia's new poem for recitation is about a blacksmith - so all the things she learned and saw here made the references in the poem very visual and easier to understand]

The coal reaches a temperature of 3000 degrees

See the rectangular hole in the back of the anvil?

...this cutting tool (wedge-shaped) is used to cut off the metal - (shown in photos below)

What he's spinning is the fan for the bellows...

...it really gets it hot!!

Now you can see here how the wedged tool allows him to cut the metal hook off - actually he's basically scoring it - next....

...he snaps it off at the cut.

There's something so "cute" about the little curl at the end of the hook - but I wouldn't tell him that!

We didn't stick around for the "finishing touch" - when you have little ones, it's tough to stay for long tutorials! It was really cool though!

Very bizarre-looking sheep indeed!

And I don't know if there are different types of sheep (I assume there are) - but these definitely don't look like the ones we pass by on little farms 'round here. If you are "sheep savvy", please leave a comment to educate this uninformed blogger!

Oh, but the sweet babies!!! Little lambs are so cute. Not a fan of sheep, but the babies.... darling!

The kids were excited when they grazed one of the lambs - they really stayed inside their little huddle.

Below, you'll see why...

"No. Not me! Don't pick me!!!"

Helga chooses her sheer(ing) victim...

Feisty little sheep... needed a gentleman to help hold her down.

snip, snip

Nearing the end now...

a little off the top...

40 minutes later.... and, voila! A sheered sheep!

Tools of the trade

For the record, I don't think her name was Helga.

Evening of Fine Arts

2011-04-12T14:39:00.009-04:00

Here are some videos of the girls' performances on March 28th. John Paul also performed - playing the piano and reciting his poem "The Owl and the Pussycat" - but I failed in taping his poem and the video of him playing piano won't upload (though the others do upload). Darn it. It's so cute too - his very first performance and all. Bummer.

If you happen to be a friend on facebook, then you can see all the videos there ;)

Sophia's poem, "The Children's Hour" / Therese playing "Minuet in G Minor", Bach

Therese* singing "I Whistle a Happy Tune" from The King and I / Sophia playing "Red River Flows Gently"

In addition, Therese recited an (long) excerpt from "Paul Revere's Ride" - and did wonderfully!

*Apologies for the blurriness in this video. I used my SLR camera and you can't zoom in/out or focus once recording has begun. Again, bummer.

84,000 Novenas for the Pope’s 84th Birthday!

2011-03-30T09:14:00.001-04:00

Will you join me in giving the Pope a huge gift for his birthday? Pope Benedict XVI is celebrating his birthday on April 16th and I’m joining up with praymorenovenas.com to get 84,000 people to pray a novena for the Pope’s 84th birthday.

On April 8th, we will begin praying for nine days leading up to and ending on the Papa Benedict’s birthday. The Pope prays for us everyday so it’s time to return the gift to him on the anniversary of his birth.

And when you sign up below, you are given daily email reminders each day of the novena! I don't know about you, but I LOVE that - I'm bad about remembering novenas and often have to play "catch up" ;)

84,000 Novenas is a lot! So, I’m going to need your help. I want everyone who reads this blog to do the following to help with this birthday gift!

+ Sign up here
+ Join the facebook event and invite your friends here: http://on.fb.me/eE2Xs7
+ If you have a website, post about it there!
+ Email your friends and family and get them praying too!

I’m sure the Pope will love that we are all praying for him! Please help us reach our goal of 84,000 novenas for the Pope!

Remember to sign up to pray here

Belated

2011-03-29T13:40:00.000-04:00

Happy Birthday to our second daughter, Danielle! Her birthday was on March 13th, and sticking with my "slacker status" it's here a couple weeks late.

15*15*15*15*15*15*15*15*15*15*15*15*15*15*15*15

Happy birthday, Dani! You are a very beautiful young lady, inside and out!

May God be with you at every moment as He molds you into who He wants you to become.

WE LOVE YOU, DANI GIRL!!

Happy Birthday !!!

2011-02-22T23:04:00.000-05:00

Happy Birthday to our sweet boy!!!

We love you Joseph!!!

Two Decades Under Her Belt ~

2011-01-25T09:55:00.000-05:00

And the following begins a slew of photos where kids just can't let me take a picture of them without looking like a bunch of... well, I'll let you just take a look:

really?

Awww - now that's what I'm talkin' about!

sweet!

Sophia embroidered this for her sister...

okay, not bad - actually pretty good...

nice, Dani...

See? You'd expect a 14yo could keep it together...

John Paul had been "tearing up" at the occasion...

But we got him back to his goofy-self!

Then it dawned on me that John Paul wasn't in there! (he was having one of his moments)

Seriously? Charlie is about to book it....

Joseph is hiding behind Dani - on purpose.

Well, I suppose the important thing is that they all had FUN!

Happy Birthday Kayla!

We LOVE you and pray for you always ~

The Enlightenment

2011-01-23T11:03:00.001-05:00

I don't know what it is with boys and flashlights... but I think it is adorable!

The three boys were playing Hide-n-Seek last night. They were the seekers (with headlights) while their sisters hid.

I had been out picking up dd from a practice and when we drove up, it was soooo cute seeing those little lights shining in the blanket of night - spying their sisters in the bushes.

Of course, they're just watching a movie in the photos here. But still ... made me smile :)

Snow Days - 2011

2011-01-18T08:17:00.000-05:00

We had our first White Christmas in Atlanta since the 1880's (or something like that) - and this is what it looked like Christmas night. It was so beautiful. It snowed the entire day!

Then last week we had a snowstorm that shut down the city for days. The schools 'round here were out ALL WEEK! It started last Sunday night and Monday we had an official SNOW DAY!! This doesn't happen very often here, so it's a huge treat for the kids...

SOPHIA

CHARLIE

...love the smile on his face the whole way down :)

Kids of all ages...

JOHN PAUL

JOSEPH

As the snow becomes iced-over, that's when the real danger hits here in the south. There are still places with snow and ice.... but the city is back in full swing.

I loved the 'time off'. We schooled that week (only taking Monday off), but we didn't have to (couldn't) go anywhere. No activities at all. That's rather nice :) Plus being able to just do things around the house that seem to take a back seat to a busy life. Staying on top of laundry... that's a huge thing 'round here! And that's why I love being snowed in. Close together. Just being. Soaking up the kids!

(Another) Belated Birthday Wish

2010-12-08T22:03:00.001-05:00

It seems most everything here on my blog is belated these days.

Charlie, the baby, my baby, turned FOUR on the 3rd. So very bittersweet. I suppose this means I'll need to change his age on my sidebar now. Someday :)

He is our gorgeous, busy boy! Busy, getting into anything and everything!

Happy Birthday Cha-wee!!! You are so loved!!

All You Holy Men and Women

2010-11-19T10:25:00.000-05:00

A few weeks later I'm finally getting around to this post!

As last year, we had our All Saints' Party for our Little Flowers'/ Little Women's Hospitality Group.

Here are all of our little saints! (And yes, we've grown a bit since last year)

Sibling brothers....

Happy Birthday! (a day-late post)

2010-11-13T10:58:00.000-05:00

I can't believe you're NINE, Sophia!

It seems like you were just turning 7!

Time is just moving too fast these days...

Sophia with her guinea, Agnes (Aggie)

Such a blessing you are to us!

We love you :)

HAPPY BIRTHDAY SWEETHEART!!

Pray (with update)

2010-11-05T18:36:00.002-04:00

This sweet family is awaiting the inevitable. Liz has made it to 41 weeks carrying her 7th child. She is so thankful for the extra time with her son, Jedidiah Joseph. You see, Jedi has Trisomy 13 - life outside the womb won't happen for this little guy.

Today she's in labor.

Waiting.

Please drop by

Liz's blog

Leave her some words of comfort and peace.

Let her know you're praying.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
UPDATE

He is perfect in every way!

If you visit Liz and Jedi here, you'll see a picture on the left sidebar - one which Liz sketched a few months ago. Pretty amazing when you compare it to the photo above! Not surprising though, since she (along with others) were praying a novena to Bl. Mother Teresa - a beautiful signal grace (with many more in store)!!

Please keep them close in prayer as they prepare to meet their next hurdles.

Blessed Mother Teresa of Calcutta,
pray for us!

Finished Product

2010-11-03T23:56:00.001-04:00

Upon arriving home from our All Saints' Party (post is coming) we were very excited to see our much anticipated package on our kitchen island...

If you remember this post from last week, you saw the nightgowns Erika made two of my girls. She did say she packages them nicely, but this was beyond my expectations. She even added a Holy Rosary CD.

And a personal note to the girls...

The only information I gave Erika was a clothing size (7/8... 10/12) and my girls' heights. And this is what she created!

Here is Sophia...

a bonnet

beautiful lace trim...

and bloomers for a completed look...

And here is Therese... who isn't into it as much as her younger sister:

but willing, to please her mama :)

Sophia has been in hers since the night of receiving it, and wears it all. She tells me how comfy it is...

and when I hug her, I don't want to let go. She is so comfy to hug in her new gown!

"Thank you, Mrs. Rowland!"

To order your own pioneer gown for your daughter(s) for a nice Christmas gift, you can visit Erika here and email her (click on the Modest Like Mary photo on the right to see her work and get her email).

Many blessings to you and yours Erika!

Trick or Treat ~ 2010

2010-11-03T22:58:00.001-04:00

Charlie as Spidey (third son to wear this one :)

Joseph... The Lone Ranger ~

Joseph exclaimed that he is going to be the Lone Ranger every year. That must come from my side of the family.... somewhere :)

Popeye the Sailorman...

~ John Paul ~

and Popeye's better half... Olive Oyl...

~ Sophia ~

Therese as...

Scooby-Doo!!

Dani as The Nutty Professor

of the Jerry Lewis variety...

half Buddy Love...

half Professor Julius Kelp

"Oh, Popeye!!"

These two were so adorable! You should've seen them trick-or-treating, arm in arm with the vintage Popeye theme song playing through an iPod and speakers, spewing off lines. And walking around, straight out of the cartoon! Too cute! I just wish I would've taken video.

And the crew...

Whew! Another one down!

Ha!

Prairie-Style Nightgowns

2010-10-28T09:41:00.003-04:00

Are you looking for a different yet beautiful gift for your daughter? Well, I found an idea for you and I'm willing to share it ;)

In the north Georgia mountains lives Erika, who is a member of our homeschool group [I don't believe I have every met her IRL but I sure would like to!] . She approached the group offering her services to make pioneer-style nightgowns.

In Erika's own words:

I will make them with love and to the desire you have in mind for your daughters. I find my time creating these nightgowns brings me closer to Our Blessed Mother. I want you to find joy in them for years to come, so we will work together to make them special.

Isn't that beautiful?

She also mentions on her blog:
I am not a professional seamstress, so any flaws are considered character and homemade charm :)

Here are the finished gowns which Erika made for my girls...

So beautiful!

If you order the nightgown, I believe the nightcap/bonnet comes with (which you can see on this page). I asked her to make the bloomers as well.

You can contact Erika at

ErikaRowland@mac.com

My girls are super excited! Especially Sophia :) I'll post pictures here when I receive them!

Thanks and many blessings to you, Erika!

Easy Wreath

2010-10-19T09:48:00.002-04:00

This is such a simple idea with beautiful results. Makes me think, "Why didn't I think of that?!!".

Great to do before the leaves get too dried out and crunchy :)

h/t: The crafty crow (button on my sidebar)

Holy Moly! A Post!

2010-10-17T10:34:00.004-04:00

I know. I know. Can we just move on to what I came here to share?

A couple weeks ago our neighbor's twin girls had their 5th birthday party. At first I was thinking I'd just let Therese and Sophia go, that is until I got the scoop on what kind of theme it was going to be!

A firetruck party!!

It beacons boys, no?

They got to explore the firetruck...

Joseph was in heaven! We didn't think he'd let the truck leave without him - but he showed such control ;)

Goofy faces from goofy boys...

Therese dreaming of the day she can have a Firetruck Wedding...

They also got to gear up in firemen's wear...

Look out little ladies...

So cute!

or shall I say "fireperson's" ...

...shooting water from the big hose...

pure joy!

and a ride around the neighborhood - sirens blaring, by-standers staring ...

Can you tell that it was cake time? ...

This was a fantastic party - one that I'll never be able to top for my crew!

Slacker

2010-08-28T10:11:00.000-04:00

Don't get excited - I'm simply acknowledging that I am a slacker!

What's My Line? - Guest, Archbishop Fulton Sheen!

2010-08-03T17:04:00.000-04:00

This is really awesome - seeing Fulton Sheen on What's My Line? :)

Summertime Reprieve

2010-07-13T23:09:00.004-04:00

Funny how we take everyday things for granted. For instance, this morning I woke up and took a nice warm shower. Not too short, not too long. Then I headed to the kitchen to brew my coffee. I turned on the faucet and ... trickle, trickle, trickle. Stop. What?!!! Did the water dept. come and shut off the water? I think we paid the water bill. No, I'm pretty sure we paid the water bill.

Let me go check to see if there's a shut off notice on the front door. Nope. No notice. [About this time I'm finding it bizarre that I took a shower only minutes ago and now hardly a drop was to be found. I should also add that I was so very thankful that I actually took a shower first!] Next I checked our water bill. That's up-to-date, so no worries there. Then I looked to see if there were neighbors in alarm. Not really. So I called the water dept .- knowing that I was in good standing with them ::wink:: - to find out if something happened to cause this water outage.

Seems that someone plowed into a fire hydrant only 10 - 15 minutes before I called. Rumor has it that this person was texting - which is now against the law while driving in our state. I asked the nice lady if she knew how long it would be and she basically told me not a clue, the crew was on their way. Great. My nice neighbor who gave me the tidbit about the rumor also gave me a gallon of water - just so I'd have my cup of coffee. So sweet :)

I can not tell you how many times I turned on the faucet. Not because I was checking to see if it was back on, but rather out of pure habit! I'd get a bit of jelly on my fingers - rinse my fingers off ::oh yeah, that's right!:: Clear a cereal bowl from the breakfast table - rinse it out ::gees!:: Wash my hands off ::gosh, I forgot again!:: Run a BATH (a bath!!) for Therese - come on Therese, you can take one in my tub - turn knobs on tub ::crap!!! duh! chuckling to myself::

Get the picture?

This went on for 6 hours.

There were plenty of times that I did turn it on just to see if it actually was back on. Just thought you should know that.

But it was all worth it in the end. All the jesting by Dani - "You just can't get it in your head that the water's out!" - all the flushless potty breaks ::yikes::- it was worth it.

Some fella from the dept. had to flush the hydrant for, oh say, an hour - to get rid of air in the lines (?). What ever, that doesn't matter. But what does matter are these happy kids...

John Paul right where the action is!

All the kids from the cul-de-sac

Charlie still debating whether this is something he wants to do

He's getting closer to the action!

Not sure if the workman was positioning the water upward because he was supposed to or if he was doing it for the kids enjoyment.

You can see how it's spraying upward now, unlike the flowing into the street in earlier shots

Charlie decided to join in after all

It was so worth every arid minute!

CatholicToTheMax

2010-07-10T22:37:00.000-04:00

20% discount on all online orders @ Catholic to the Max. Just enter the code: Summer10 for your 20% off. Don't forget, like I did!

*above shirts only $5

Exclusive

2010-07-10T21:39:00.000-04:00

Do you have a large family? Would you like to network with others who appreciate the beauty of God’s plan for children, families and society? Why not join a growing community, meet others of like mind and values, and share your stories and experiences in raising a large family!

To join a great online forum for large Catholic families you can sign-up here. It's like Facebook for large families! It's a project of Human Life International (HLI).

From their "Advice" tab:

Every parent of a large family has been on the receiving end of insipid and even snide comments from complete strangers with regard to family size. It’s important to remember that as annoying as they may be, these are little missionary opportunities, so it’s important to keep a sense of humor about them, and to turn away even the confrontational person with a smile. Depending on the general tone of the comment and the commentator, we have started to have fun with our responses, and to that end, have collected some of our favorites from other large families.

While shopping in a grocery store, a passing comment such as “You have your hands full!” might be met with “Not yet!” or even a confused “Isn’t that what the carts are for?”

Or to the ubiquitous “Are they all yours?”, one might wryly respond “No, we left the rest of them at home.”

“Are you done yet?”
“Not until we get an ugly one!” **how can you not LOVE this one!? Heehee :)

Let me know when you join by requesting friendship!

4th of July Celebration

2010-07-05T10:06:00.001-04:00

The Fourth of July falling on a Sunday just throws everyone out of whack, don't you agree? Confusion as to when the official day will be celebrated with city fireworks to "it's Sunday so can't buy alcohol" (not a biggie, but still something to consider... preferably ahead of time )

We ended up going to a nearby parish (the one which my mom and dad belong), meeting my parents and other families to sit on the open lawn. This parish really does an amazing job with the 4th festivities. There's a DJ (line dancing, hula hoop competition, etc.), grilled food for a small price, face painting for the kids, and tons and tons of families with their blankets, chairs, tents and tables dotted on the lawn.

Kids riding their bikes, skateboards and scooters on the round-about (which was blocked off - :-), lots of ball and frisbee throwing. Just real vibrant! It's really awesome!

Grandma and Grandpa :)

Daddy :)

ooey gooey blue frosting....

Face painting...

so serious...

"I 'post to be a dwagon"

My absolute favorite shot of the night...

FIREWORKS!!!!

Hope your 4th was just as awesome!

God bless America!

Cup Station

2010-06-26T08:33:00.001-04:00

With many kids, we go through tons of cups per day. So much so that the majority of the dishwasher was cups / glasses - even the bottom rack! I first remember hearing some ideas toward this problem at a Smart Martha seminar, but more recently I went to a friend's home and she had this on her kitchen counter:

I loved this idea, and more importantly my friend said that it works out so well for them!

I will tell you that this system is working beautifully. They're still getting used to it [one child in particular can't seem to rmbr], but mostly it's been great!

I came up with the template on Word - the kids got to choose their color and the type of font [b/c we all know it's all about the FONT!]. Well, Charlie had no choice on the font but he's not complaining ;) I printed it on photo paper for more vivid colors and then laminated it.

It stays on the counter right below the cups and next to the fridge. So from breakfast to dinner, that is the cup they use all day. It's somewhat prolonging the dishwasher run-time. And that works for me ;)

Cake

2010-06-14T12:04:00.002-04:00

John Paul said he wanted a shield and sword on his cake - I went with that, but it morphed into something very meaningful [thank goodness that Dani had recently had her nose in this book which sparked this idea] ...

The coat of arms for Pope John Paul II is intended to be a homage to the central mystery of Christianity, that of Redemption. It mainly represents a cross, whose form however does not correspond to any of the usual heraldry models. The reason for the unusual shift of the vertical part of the cross is striking, if one considers the second object included in the Coat of Arms: the large and majestic capital M, which recalls the presence of the Madonna under the Cross and Her exceptional participation in Redemption. The Pontiff’s intense devotion to the Holy Virgin is manifested in this manner, as it is also expressed in the motto when he was Cardinal Wojtyla: TOTUS TUUS. One cannot forget that right in the territory of the ecclesiastical Province of Krakow one can find the famous Marian sanctuary of Czestochowa, where the Polish people have been nurturing their filial devotion to the Madonna for centuries.

Pope John Paul, pray for us!

St. Anthony, pray for us!

7-Up

2010-06-13T15:31:00.005-04:00

My handsome son...

He called this one his "fancy smile" ... ;)

We are so very blessed by God

with you in our family,

John Paul!

We love you so much.

Happy Birthday Buddy!

Now I'm off to go change a few ages on my sidebar :o)

All Fingers Up!

2010-06-07T14:09:00.002-04:00

Because she's TEN today!!!!!!

Daddy and I call you our Silly Heart - and yes, we call you Theresey-Poo or just plain Poo as well! You are a beautiful soul Therese Agnes - we are so proud of the young lady you're becoming. You always make us laugh - usually because you're laughing :)

Happy Birthday Beautiful!

Spring Softball Season

2010-05-28T10:53:00.001-04:00

Dani's softball season is now over - she played 16U (under). Our park doesn't have a 14U because there aren't enough girls to make up teams for both age brackets, so they combine 14U & 16U. I don't like that at all but unfortunately there isn't anything we can do about it. Luckily she was on a team filled with nice girls and nice, encouraging coaches.

This team, The Redbirds, finished the regular season with only one loss putting them in 2nd place. The first place team lost one game as well, but since they lost against another team and beat us they took first. Does that make sense?

But The Redbirds took First Place in 2 tournaments! They were such a fun team to watch! Never a dull moment!

Way to go Dani Girl!

Congratulations on a great season!

Little Flowers Tea Party ~ 2010

2010-05-24T22:35:00.003-04:00

Last year was our first (small) tea party for our Little Flowers' Girls Club. You may remember if you go down memory lane ;)

This year was equally as beautiful - if not moreso - but not so little. Our group grew from nine girls to twenty-one. I think we (core members) were a bit nervous to have such a large group after having a relatively small one, but wow!, what a blessing it was this year. All those beautiful girls and moms! We moms were so glad to be among such helpful, faithful, positive women! I always enjoyed ~~our~~ the girls' meetings.

It was a stellar year to say the least.

A Southern Tea

Tea Time

Some of my favorites

Game Time

The girls gave overviews of each virtue study in this wreath III.

Memory Game

Craft Time

Glittered-n-Gemmed picture magnets

Enjoying Friend Time

A Beautiful Time

Garden, Pitching Mound, & Deck Addition

2010-05-20T11:50:00.002-04:00

Yes, Paul has been a busy boy. And he will continue to be for a good while :) It's all good though. He really does love all these home projects!

About a month ago, Paul made a raised garden bed. We've got tomatoes, cukes, [green, red, sweet banana] peppers, cilantro, spearmint, stevia, and one watermelon (which I'll have to move... I forgot from childhood just how much they spread out). We have a couple bean plants which I don't think made/will make it. I'd also like to plant some lettuce, but can't seem to find any. I think it's too late to start them from seed. What do you think?

actually, the garden is so much bigger than this in just over one week!

After re-reading the directions on the cucumbers I found out that they were supposed to be 6-9' apart, not inches - which I did. LOL - Oh well, we'll see how they do ;)

now there are teeny weeny little tomatoes :)

Paul also made a couple of 50 gal. rain barrels - made of heavy food-grade plastic. He bought them for $20 a piece and then bought a spigot and other supplies at the hardware store. He also bought a pump which will hook up to the spigot and will pump a sprinkler! It's quite awesome. Not bad considering that Home Depot wants over $100 for the ones which they sell.

Pitching Mound

Still a work in progress, this pitching area is perfect for not only pitching, but also for hitting practice. Paul bought the high impact net on eBay and attached it to the 4 pine trees.

I should take some updated pictures - because now, there is some astro turf on the mound with a pitching rubber (a friend of ours is the baseball athletic director [that's my title, not sure the correct one!! LOL] of a nearby college and he gave Paul some more netting - yet to be put on top to prevent balls from going over - and this astro turf). It's nice to have friends in high places :)

Okay, here's an updated picture:

Dani has been working so hard at pitching, and this is the perfect place for her to do her drills. At her last game on Saturday she pitched an inning and she did AWESOME!! I was so proud of her that it brought tears of joy to my eyes - because she's worked so hard and really proved herself! She was so happy (that she got a chance to pitch after all the hard work) and confident after that game. It was great!

Deck Addition

Here are the supports for the posts which will be going up (sometime) soon. We've been in our house for 4 years now and Paul (and helpers) put an addition on the deck about a year after we were here. So our back deck has one part which is screened in and then a step down onto the original addition (this is where the grill is). But we've never had steps! So one of Paul's projects was to add steps this year (yay!). You know it just can't be that simple though, right? We brain-stormed and came up with taking the deck all the way to the end of the house ending up with very few steps versus many steps. We're even considering using composite material for the top of the railing ledge and black aluminum posts.

On top of all these projects there has been lots of yard work; putting mulch/pinestraw down, planting, pulling weeds, and rearranging some things.

Hope y'all have had fun playing in the dirt!

Forgive Me

2010-05-06T15:26:00.001-04:00

But I just had to add some of these "doctored-up" photos.

Oops, forgot to take a picture before cutting!

And Sophia's godparents...

Thanks for bearing with me and all the photos!

;)

Creations

2010-05-03T23:33:00.001-04:00

~Play-Doh~

John Paul's 'Batman'

Joseph's 'Spidey'

Therese has been studying early American Explorers this year. In reading The Travels of Henry Hudson, Therese chose to sketch this page from the book:

At only 9 years old, Therese is showing great work! Don't you agree?....

First Holy Communion

2010-05-01T00:19:00.000-04:00

Last Saturday, the 24th, was Sophia's First Holy Communion. I don't think she could've been more excited! What a beautiful time in the life of young girls and boys.

Sophia with Fr. N

not loving the blue bucket so much...

but am loving this face!

It was raining out, so we were forced to

take photos on the porch.

Sophia with her godparents...

We are so proud of you and share your excitement.

God bless you Sophia! We love you!

Happy Birthday to You Too!

2010-04-20T11:33:00.001-04:00

Carmen!!!!

We love you!! 12? Really?
Ceci's sister and our awesome neice/cousin!

And of course, this was from the same album that is 3 yrs old. I lost some folders which are on an external hard drive. I just have to get them back on my computer!

Happy Birthdays!

2010-04-16T23:17:00.000-04:00

To our niece and cousin, CECI!! Happy 15th!

I can't believe this photo was taken almost 3yrs ago! Whew!

And happy birthday to our German Shepherd, Pope Benedict!

Idea found at Catholic Cuisine

I used a lemon cake mix with this frosting recipe - only because I couldn't find the frosting I bought a few days ago.

Easter Takes

2010-04-06T23:42:00.002-04:00

Easter Blessings from ours to yours!

It Started...

2010-04-01T11:26:00.002-04:00

... last Tuesday evening. A week and a half ago.

We were getting ready for the girls' softball game and Therese wasn't feeling 100%. Come to think of it, she hadn't been feeling great starting early afternoon. She came in from playing outside feeling really tired and worn out - and took a nap.

So, off we went - all of us - to their game. We took Therese suited up in uniform thinking that if she felt better she could play. On the way to the field Charlie was saying, "I need to go to the doctor." Whatever. I didn't pay much attention to that repeated phrase. At the park we informed the coaches that Therese wasn't feeling well and that she most likely wouldn't be playing. Just a minute later we knew she wouldn't be playing when she told me so pathetically that she had to lie down.

We left Dani with Sophia so Paul could drive us back home and he would go back to the park. Well, as soon as we got in the truck we heard Charlie say again, "I need to go to the doctor." But this time he looked a little green. Two seconds later... his dinner was all over the front of him. Shouldn't have had refried beans with those tacos. John Paul and Therese were on either side of Charlie - all the while Charlie was tossing his cookies, John Paul was screaming frantically because he was so grossed out and didn't want Charlie to aim towards him!! All I could do was crack up. It was so comical. And there sat Therese... my queasy-not-feeling-well-at-all Therese - her window down, head out. At first I thought she was losing it, but she was just trying to breathe good fresh air in - and laughing all the while because of the chaos John Paul was creating! Luckily we're only 7-8 minutes away from the park!

Paul had to take Charlie out of the truck with him still in his carseat. It was that bad.

It was a regular barf-o-rama. Almost a repeat of Christmas/New Years.

It took approximately 5 days to get over.

Sunday... Palm Sunday. Next up... Joseph. He was totally out of commission. Paul was out of town. At first I thought we weren't even going to go to Mass. But then I thought I'd just take the three middle kids and leave Dani with Charlie and Joseph. So, off we went, Therese, Sophia, John Paul and I.

During the second reading I looked down at John Paul.

"How are you feeling?" I asked.

"My tummy hurts," he replied.

Oh NO!! I had to plan an escape. I was envisioning, yet again, the scene in Stand By Me. We weren't even on the end of the pew(!). I would have to climb over people, leave the girls by themselves (no biggie) and weave through and climb over all the people in the (packed) narthex.

We made it to the bathroom. And nothing. Nothing happened. But I knew we couldn't stay. That wouldn't be prudent.

We headed back to the pew to signal the girls that we were leaving (Me? You want me too? Should I come?) With a not-so-discreet exodus during the long Passion gospel, we made our way back through the sardine-packed narthex and finally outside. Whew!! We made it! My dignity intact!!

So here I sit. Holy Thursday. Joseph, the 5yo, is still laid out on the couch. This is day 5 for him. I'd just like my spazzy little fellow back! Chicken soup made twice. Not much being eaten. Even by those who aren't sick anymore or haven't been yet - I think they've had enough of this junk and have lost their appetites.

Softball practices and games missed. Baseball practice missed. It's been beautiful here this week (yesterday got to 77 degrees. today should reach 83) - and the sick ones just want to play. (as an aside: you definitely know when little boys are feeling better!!! LOL) I suppose we're in good company though - it's been hitting lots of families 'round here.

It's Holy Thursday. No Holy Week activities. No going anywhere. I'm not sure what this means for us for Easter Sunday!

On another note, don't forget to begin your Divine Mercy novena tomorrow!

I pray you all have a wonderful Easter filled with joy, love, life and good health!!!

How Smart is Your Right Foot?

2010-03-28T09:26:00.000-04:00

Received from an email:

You have to try this - it takes 2 seconds.

I could not believe this! It is from an orthopedic surgeon............

This will confuse your mind and you will keep trying over and over again to see if you can outsmart your foot, but, you can't.

It is pre-programmed in your brain!

1. While sitting at your desk in front of your computer, lift
your right foot off the floor and make clockwise circles.

2. Now, while doing this, draw the number '6' in the air
with your right hand.. Your foot will change direction.

I told you so! And there's nothing you can do about it!

Peacock and Dove

2010-03-27T17:33:00.002-04:00

I can't for the life of me remember why I had Sophia make a peacock. Weird.

Therese's dove is definitely because of learning more about the Holy Spirit/Christ's Baptism.

You can find the crafts here and here.

Dani Girl

2010-03-21T11:10:00.001-04:00

Here is the photo shoot which I requested last week. I really needed some updated pictures of Dani and she was happy to oblige.

Our dog, Hannah, loves apples. I described just how much in this post.

See how patient she is - not discreet, but patient. The kids have to literally tell her to back off because she's so in their face.

Silly girls

Our fourteen year old sweetie! What a great kid :)

Hoping

2010-03-17T10:23:00.000-04:00

You'd think this was an inspirational post, right? Wrong. Well, I guess it could be - sort of.

Always in search of a perfect, standard chocolate chip recipe, I came across one this morning at Cooking on Clover Lane. I'm going to have to give it a try.

2 1/2 sticks of butter

1 1/4 DARK brown sugar
1 c granulated sugar

2 eggs

2 tsp. vanilla

Cream together.

Then add:

3 2/3 flour

2 T. corn starch

1 1/4 tsp. baking soda

1 1/2 tsp. baking powder

1 1/2 tsp. salt

a bag of semi sweet chips

Mix together.

Put in freezer for an hour.

But don't forget to eat the dough before it freezes. That's the best part.

Bake at 350 for about 10 minutes. Give or take.

But for today, it's just three leaf clover cookies. Green, of course!

Weekend Whirlwind

2010-03-16T09:44:00.001-04:00

~ Birthday Wishes ~

Saturday was Dani's 14th birthday! I never got around to posting her birthday post (shameful!) so it's going to be part of this bits-n-pieces post. Sooooo...

HappyBirthdayDaniGirl!!

We love you so much and are extremely proud of the thoughtful, helpful and beautiful young lady you are today! May God continue to bless you abundantly.

I lost many of my pictures - I have to take a birthday shoot. But I only like doing those outside; it's been very rainy here for the last 5 days.

Photo shoot has been requested!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

~ First Confession ~

Sophia made her First Confession on Saturday. She was so very excited. We have always opted to take the kids ourselves instead of doing it with the parish's "retreat" - which is just a fancy word for all the kiddos making their First Confession :) I think they do busy work (color) while waiting to make their First Confession - that's what I've been told.

We currently only have one priest (our fabulous pastor) at our parish, thus the line was long - good, but long. Father told everyone to say the Act of Contrition by themselves in line before entering the confessional to help speed things up a bit. I thought this would've thrown Fia who is one for crossing all her t's and dotting all her i's - but surprisingly she was fine with it. Come to find out, since it was her First Confession, Father let her say her Act of Contrition. I thought that was so sweet of him. So thoughtful, knowing she had prepared for this special day!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

~ Visit from Chris ~

My brother was in town for a quick visit on Saturday from Houston. He was here attending a Pediatric Cardiology convention. He was published in the medical journal (to capitalize or not? - is it the or rather a medical journal?) last year (or maybe even in 2008, I can't recall) and he was chosen among many of the contributors to come speak at this conference. I'm also unclear on the numbers but it was maybe close to a thousand who were published and then out of those they chose 10 - 20 to come speak. Anyway, he was one of the few chosen. At the beginning of his profession, he is proving to be quite the brilliant doctor. We are so very proud of him!

And no post about my brother would be complete without a picture of this sweet guy,

Can't wait to meet you Lil' Ben!!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

~ Celebration ~

And Sunday was a small celebration for Dani's b-day. Nothing fancy - grandparents and some good friends came for dinner. Paul made some (awesome) pizzas and I made some ~~hockey pucks~~ ~~cheeseburgers~~ chocolate chip softball cookies. Dani wanted a cookie cake and Paul had the idea of making them softballs. They turned out awful in my book - they were so very hard, you couldn't even cut them with a knife. Seriously! I baked them way too long. I wanted to make sure they were done because they were so big - they didn't look like they were browning much. Bad mistake. You know they're awful when kids won't even eat them! LOL!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

~ Illness ~

Looks like we're on the brink of the sniffles 'round here. Again. Charlie and Joseph both woke up many times Monday night. I worry about Charlie since he gets all asthma-like. A bit unsettling for this mommy. I suppose being out in the freezing cold last night for softball practice didn't help matters much. Where in the world is the warm weather!!!!???? I'm done with winter! Done.

Hope you had a nice weekend.

What's Cookin'?

2010-03-11T20:50:00.000-05:00

What do you plan on cooking this St. Patty's Day?

Instead of the corned beef that I've made in the past, we're just going to do Reuben Sandwiches and Colcannon. I really like these reubens - the deli meat is so much better than the stringy fatty corned beef you find at restaurants - although more authentic, they don't make a very appetizing meal. At least not around here. Paul pretty much requested these, and that's saying something... he never requests anything! Anyway, it's got to be a very quick meal because we've got lots of "activites" on Wednesday nights - it's got to be something not only easy but doable after school, before 4:45 AND Irish! I may have to thrown in either green milk or maybe green milkshakes :)

Tonight I made this and boy, was it goooooood :) Love making something different!

Coincidence...

2010-03-10T15:53:00.001-05:00

... is a word God made up for when He wants to remain anonymous. As in this amazing story:

March 9, 2010 (40DaysforLife) - I know you're familiar with the old saying, "God works in mysterious ways." Please sit down and read this whole story. Our God of mystery has outdone Himself this time!

A young woman in Indianapolis, Indiana - we'll call her Erin - woke up, saw her kids off to school, dropped her preschoolers at a friend's house, and noticed that she was late for an appointment ... at Planned Parenthood ... for an abortion.

So Erin picked up her phone and called to see if she could still come in. She thought she was calling Planned Parenthood. In her haste, she dialled a wrong number.

Instead of Planned Parenthood, she got Joseph, who was answering the cell phone that's being used by ...

... get ready for this ...

... 40 Days for Life in Indianapolis!

Joseph took a deep breath and tried to be as calm as possible. He took Erin's name and number and simply said that a counselor would call her back.

So Elizabeth, the counselor, called Erin. Elizabeth begged her not to hang up, and then explained that she had not reached Planned Parenthood. Asked if she was a Christian, Erin said "yes." So Elizabeth told her God's grace was at work in this "wrong number" situation. (cont. reading)

Quiz

2010-03-10T08:53:00.000-05:00

Go here for an observation quiz. I think my score was 17/25. The only one I cheated on was the lugnut question. I asked Paul and he was wrong. So technically I don't think that counts as cheating. ;)

Shedding Some Light (and Warmth!)

2010-03-09T23:44:00.000-05:00

FINALLY! We've had 2 unbelievably gorgeous WARM days. Back to back. Monday and Tuesday. And even though it just happened - I can't believe it! I can barely remember what it's like to feel warm!

So in order to take it all in and rejoice in the new found warmth we took the classroom outside! Is that not so cool?! I was getting really excited. Nice blankets/parachutes spread out on the front dried-out, dead bermuda grass that gets all over everything, but mostly the dog, who brings it inside just to get all over the house all over the hardwood floors where it looks as though you havent vacuumed in weeks, but in reality you just DID!! ::sigh::, ahem... lawn. Like I said, I was really getting excited. That sun was beckoning us like it never has!

I don't know what it is about my boys, but they have this flashlight fetish! What is that all about? They go into a flashlight freakout frenzy if a) some sibling has a flashlight and he they don't b) there's only one working flashlight or none at all c) there are no batteries or d) similar to 'a', but it's a neighbor kid whose got the flashlight and boy wants a flashlight, but because of 'b' or 'c' is unable to aquire a working flashlight.

Why Charlie has this flashlight is beyond me. It's daytime and a pretty bright one at that (did I mention it was warm?). I'm sure it's a badge of honor of some sort. Actually it was probably to tick Joseph off. That's our only working flashlight presently :)

I had to pry it from his little hand before he clubbed someone (me) over the head with it!

I have to include the comedy of the outdoor school a bit. There was whining by Charlie who couldn't mark in Dani's notebook. There was Sophia complaining and having issues over a buzzing wasp/crawling spider. There was Joseph who was sent to his room for not behaving :( The sun was too bright for Therese's eyes, so she opted to read in the shade. And Dani left to go read by herself somewhere. I think I was the only one in the front yard for a good bit! LOL

Oh Well! I surely enjoyed my sun shiny day!

Hope it was sunny where you are!!