The Sound of "S"

Mr 6 yo has really been struggling to remember his letters and the sounds that they make.  A couple of weeks ago I pulled out my yellow phonics flashcards and started teaching him from the beginning.  

No matter how hard he tried, however, he would never get the "s" card right.  For the longest time he couldn't even recall it was the letter "s", let alone what sounds it made.  Last week, slightly exasperated by my futile attempts to get him to remember this letter, I said, "Son, the day that I lift up this card and you can tell me the name of the letter and the two sounds it makes, I'll bake you a cake."

Okay, let me just tell you that you NEVER say things like that to someone like Mr 6 yo.  Today, a day when I had an unexpected appointment in the morning and an appointment in the afternoon, he decided to get it all right; and boy did he hold me to my word.

I tried to tell him that I didn't have a cake mix so I couldn't make him a cake.  He suggested pear pie (which we've never had before, but he claimed he loved it).  "Sorry," I said, "no pears.  How about some brownies?"  That didn't go over at all.

Next thing I know he's pulling out the cookbooks and looking through the dessert sections, occasionally pointing out a recipe or two.  Eventually he came to a recipe that I did in fact have all the ingredients for and could make before I had to leave.   God and he were holding me to my word, it seemed.

So I put together this chocolate banana cream pie and when I got a look at his face this evening, I knew it was all worth it.  Thank God for a boy who made his mommy keep her word!

A B See - T is for...

Trains!  This was a picture I took while I was doing a family photo shoot.  One of the boys just loves trains and he wanted to know if I would take a picture of them for him.  He even set up the shot for me!

Do you want to join in the photo fun?  Click on the image below.

And So It Begins...

The ever changing front hall tree...I am grateful that Advent is here because I was really getting tired of all the fall decorations we had up.  For Advent we decided just to go with some simple pine cones and evergreen sprigs in our purple-covered basket.  Ms 15 yo cut out a paper advent wreath to fancy things up a bit and we will add a new flame each week.  

This day also marked the official start of the season known as "you may now begin to talk to me about Christmas lists".  Prior to today, I just can't deal with discussions about who wants what and what ideas I should give to whom.  As is our tradition on this first Sunday in Advent, the kids all pick their sibling grab bag name and make up their lists and we discuss any gift ideas we have for others.

This year will entail some creative shopping and many more homemade gifts.  I also like the idea of supporting small businesses, so whenever I can, I hope to buy things from others, like myself, who are trying run a small business.  If you like this idea, you can check out our Goat Milk Soap Shop for great Christmas gift ideas :)

As we do every year, we hope to make this a peaceful time of preparation.  I'm sure, however, that like all of the other years, it will be a time of frenzied preparation.  I just pray that I can maintain some semblance of peace within myself as we prepare for the coming of the Lord!

 

7 Quick Takes November 25, 2011

--- 1 ---

Never underestimate the desire to learn something new!  My father, who is in his late 60's never painted anything before (other than walls, that is).  When he retired a few years ago, he decided he wanted to learn to paint so he taught himself.  This is just one of his many paintings!  I am definitely impressed.  If you'd like to see his other works, you can check them out here.
 

--- 2 ---

We spent the day yesterday eating, driving and being with family.  It was a wonderful time, but quite a few of us came home with stomach aches.  After getting up this morning, I guess it must have been from all the rich food and not the flu.  Thank you, God, for that.  We had breakfast with my parents and then moved on over to the in-laws to enjoy all of the usual Thanksgiving goodness!

--- 3 ---

I have to go to Wal Mart today and...I am afraid.  I'm not going to buy presents, because I just don't like to be that organized for Christmas yet.  Instead I have to go buy food because I didn't have time to go on Wednesday.  The good news is that the food section will probably be deserted while everyone is fighting it out over by the toys.  I'm just afraid of what I'll find at the checkout!

--- 4 ---

It is so good to have Ms 19yo back home for the weekend.  She spent some time on Wednesday getting used to looking at Mr 6 yo without any front teeth.  She commented to him that he could now sing the "All I want for Christmas is My Two Front Teeth" song, to which he replied, "Nope.  I can't have them. They're already in the garbage."  After a small pause, I replied, "No, son, she means your NEW front teeth."

--- 5 ---

He was on a roll this week, it seems.  The other day the kids were sitting at the table working on their school work when the conversation went something like this:

Ms 13 yo (who was taking a math test):  What does a billion look like?
Mr 11 yo (taking the same test):  I'm not supposed to be helping you.
Ms 13 yo:  I wasn't really asking anyone in particular.
Mr 6 yo:  What?  Were you talking to God?

I love that kid's brain!

--- 6 ---

Our big plan for the weekend is to somehow get our family Christmas card picture done. This is really the only time we'll have everyone together but we are competing with the weather, the earlier darkness and hunting season.  In addition, I'm on a quest to take a picture this year of all of us, which means I have to be in it.  The joy of being the photographer means that I usually am not in the pictures, but alas, this year I feel the calling to take the entire family.  We'll see how it works out.

--- 7 ---

I'm really looking forward to Mass this Sunday.  A triple header:  The first Sunday in Advent, the new Mass parts and the Feast of the Miraculous Medal (a special day to me because my grandmother died on this feast day and she was very devoted to the Blessed Mother).  Hope you're looking forward to it, too!  Have a great weekend.

 

For more Quick Takes, visit Conversion Diary!

Happy Thanksgiving!

A Hot Chocolate Experiment

Some friends of ours gave us some Mexican hot chocolate awhile back.  My son happened to find it in the freezer and since it was a grey and dreary day, we decided to give it a try.  First, we had to boil some milk...

 Next, we broke up the chocolate pieces that they gave us.  My son was tempted to eat those by themselves, but we held him back!

After we boiled the milk, we put both ingredients into the blender.  I learned that hot liquid squirting out the top of the blender, no matter how hard you're holding the top down, is still hot...and messy.  After that I turned the speed down and it didn't squirt out quite so far...

After a few minutes of blending, and wiping up, we poured it into a mug...
 

and gave it a taste test...

The cinnamon taste in the hot chocolate took us all by surprise, but most of us agreed that after a few sips, it really did taste good.  

Our other favorite hot chocolate recipe involves the blender, too, but only during the initial powder stage so it is much harder to get it to fly all over the kitchen (although not impossible).  We really enjoy this recipe, so I thought you might, too.

All Natural Hot Chocolate Mix

2 1/2 c powdered milk

2 c sugar

1 c cocoa

2 tsp cornstarch

1/2 tsp salt

Combine all ingredients into a food processor (though a mixer works fine if you don't have a food processor) and mix until no lumps or visible bits of brown or white can be seen.  Store in a container.

To mix:  combine 3 tbls mix with 6-8 oz of hot water.

Of course, add some "squirty" whip cream or add marshmallows to make it even more fun!

Enjoy.

A Pioneer Woman Review

This past weekend, instead of doing the things I was supposed to be doing, I sat on this couch:

and read this book:

and I am so glad that I did.  Last week we were at the library and this book was propped up on top of one of the shelves.  After perusing it, I decided to give it a try; after all I love people stories, and even more than that, I love a good love story.  This seemed to be both, so even though I knew I had a lot to do, I checked it out anyhow.

Wow...what a good writer she is!  I'm officially a fan now.  Between reading this book and checking out her blog, I've discovered we have a lot in common!  We both:

1.  Love the wide open country even though we never thought we could.
2.  Both our husbands drive pick up trucks and we love to look at them in jeans, cowboy boots and a hat :)
3.  We both love photography
4.  We both homeschool

I think that list right there makes us potential BFF, if only we lived in Oklahoma.  I felt those wide open spaces calling to me as I read...

Really, though, I was captivated by her style of writing and the way she made her story so engaging.  One of the comments on the back of the book says, 

"This story helped remind me just why I fell in love with my husband...and why I'm still mad crazy about him."

I have to agree.  As I read along with this story, it reminded me again that I am so lucky to have my own cowboy (one forced at this point to live in the midst of suburbia) who loves me and our children with a passion.  Now that is the sign of a good book...one that you can relate to your own life and walk away from feeling good!

If you need a break this weekend, run to the library and check out this book!  Watch out, though, you just might not know what hit you :)

My First Hunt

I surprised both myself and my husband this afternoon by telling him that I wanted to go out hunting with him.  

 

There was truly a momentary look of shock on his face.  Why?  Because first, I'm not fond of sitting in the cold and 2nd, I'm not fond of sitting...still that is, especially for 2 1/2 hours. 

So off we went to sit in our humble abode, my hubby and me.  I with my Canon, he with his gun.

We sat, and we sat, and we whispered a bit, and I got cold and he got sleepy.  I decided to use my weapon to fire a few shots.  Here is what I got...the view from my room....

Here is my husband checking out the scenery for any signs of life...this is before he got sleepy.  He wondered aloud, "I wonder how many deer get to live because of sleeping hunters?"  Good question.

And then it happened, I spotted a doe in the field up ahead.  We watched her for awhile, then we saw two others come to join her.  Well, darkness was closing in on us, so I suggested that my husband crawl through the field to see if he could get closer before he ran out of light (you know, me being the experienced hunter that I am).

 

 That's him, inching his way up the field.  He got pretty far before he lifted up his bright orange cap at the wrong time.  Ms. Doe spotted him and let out her cry of alarm.  They didn't run too far away, but then darkness set in and we had to leave.  It was pretty exciting and, even though my toes were numb, I'm sure glad I went.  It's good to do things like that with your husband every once in awhile :)

7 Quick Takes November 18, 2011

--- 1 ---

We originally saw this cartoon on someone's facebook post but I was able to find it again here.  Anyhow, Mr 6 yo absolutely fell in love with this and said that we should go on a campaign to protest stores that have their Christmas stuff out already. He told me that we should print this picture out, put it on a stake and pound it into the ground in front of their store.  (Well, he wasn't quite that articulate, but that is what I gathered from all his hand gestures and "boy" sounds :)  I think the Lord has big plans for this kid!
 

--- 2 ---

I am always impressed by homeschooling moms who can do things I can't do.  One of my favorites is Lacy over at Catholic Icing.  She is so crafty and, well,  I am not!  She put together a Mass response book for children for the upcoming changes in the Mass.  I've printed mine out, have you?

--- 3 ---

In addition to the book work we do around here, we also try to teach our kids about being entrepreneurs.  Sure it takes longer for the payout, but there is something very fulfilling about seeing all of your hard work pay off.  This week, Ms 15 and Ms 17 yo were working together to finish off our goat milk soap website.  Ms 15 yo staged and took the pictures while Ms 17 yo put the pages up.  Now all we have to do is promote, promote, promote....After you're done reading here, why not go check out all the great work they did!

--- 4 ---

This year I'm all for supporting small businesses in my Christmas shopping.  Why give money to China when we can support people who are working hard right in our own communities (or at least our own country).  It might take a bit more thinking and searching, but I think it will be worth it.  Support small businesses...support America :)

--- 5 ---

Last weekend I was out perusing a craft fair when I came across this lady who hand-painted absolutely gorgeous designs on Christmas tree ornaments.  We were having a fine conversation until I mentioned that we don't put up our tree until right before Christmas.  She commented that we must buy a real tree.  "No," I replied, "we just like to keep Advent as Advent and Christmas as Christmas."  Let's just say the conversation ended rather abruptly.

--- 6 ---

We have one more week to figure out how we are going to change out "Touch of Fall" basket to and Advent basket.  As I stated in #2 above, I am not that crafty and sometimes creativity eludes me, so as of yet we don't know what to put in our basket that represents the time of preparation for the coming of the Lord!  I'm trying to find ideas for some kind of Advent "calendar" that could utilize the basket and the mirror above it.  Any suggestions or links to ideas would be greatly appreciated.

--- 7 ---

What are your plans for Thanksgiving.  Ours are the usual...driving and eating.  Really, if we aren't eating something then that usually means we are driving in the car to the next place to eat.  I am truly thankful that we have family close enough to drive to and spend the holidays with.  Thank you, God, for all of the countless blessings you have given me and my family.  May you all have a very blessed Thanksgiving, too!
 

For more Quick Takes, visit Conversion Diary!

 

What About Your Kitchen?

In our previous house, it seemed that I spent most of my day in the kitchen.  In this house, I don't.  I'm not quite sure why.  Maybe it is because my older girls are doing more cooking than they used to.  In fact, right now, Ms. 15 yo is starting a crock pot lasagna recipe we just found that is very yummy!  

No matter if I'm in the kitchen cooking or baking, or just walking through it, a messy kitchen is another thing that just drives me crazy.  I just can't stand to walk in there to do something and see dirty dishes in the sink, food on the counters or the stove looking a mess.  I think the best thing that ever happened to us in the kitchen was the day our dish washer broke.  Before that day, the dirty dishes would stack up in the sink because no one would empty the clean dishwasher until the afternoon.  Now, someone is assigned to wash dishes after each meal.  Others are assigned to wipe counters, put the food away and sweep the floors.  This insures that the kitchen will be clean after each meal.

A clean kitchen puts a smile on my face.  A happy mom means a happy household :)

Another thing I learned about the kitchen was from my mother after one of our moves.  She helped me organize the cabinets and drawers into related areas.  I must confess that prior to that I had never really given it much thought.  Now, whenever I organize a kitchen, I make sure that all of the items we need for meals are close to the table, all the pots, pans, lids and cookie sheets are close to the oven and all of the items I need for baking are in one section.  

That is the part I love the most about all of this.  In one corner of my kitchen I have all of the main ingredients I need to bake, as well as my mixer, utensils and all of my cookbooks.  Since I love to bake, I LOVE my baking center!  It makes it so much easier and faster!

So what does your kitchen look like?  Is it organized?  Is it clean?  Does it make you smile when you enter it (or at least not frown)?  I hope you answered yes to all of those questions.  If not, what are you waiting for?  Happy organizing!

A B See - S is for...

 Snake.  We saw this snake trying to get its lunch while we were in Michigan this past summer.  It was fun to watch it trying to get up the concrete wall without losing the fish.  Sad to say that it dropped the fish right when it was almost to the top.  Both the snake and the fish were never seen again.


To join in the A B See fun, click on the image below.

A Rite of Passage

Ms 12 yo turned into Ms 13 yo last week and with it came a rite of passage...that of being allowed to read the Fairy Tale Novels by Regina Doman.  In our house, once you turn 13 your older sisters happily hand over their copies of the first three books "Shadow of the Bear", "Black as Night" and "Waking Rose".  Ms 13 yo, however, was allowed to read "Shadow of the Bear" a bit early because we went to Minnesota this past summer to see the premiere of the movie.

Seeing as how she just turned 13 at the end of the week and today is only Sunday and she is already finished with the book shown in the picture, you can imagine that the posture seen above was one that was seen quite frequently over the past few days.  Like the rest of us, she didn't stop until she finished them all!  They really are that good!

Now that she is done with the books, I'm sure she'll be reminding me that the second part of this rite of passage is that she gets to join the Fairy Tale Novels Forum.  Like her sisters before her, she will be venturing into fun discussions, creative adventures and the opportunity to meet a lot of new people.  The girls have met some really great people from all around the world through this forum, and with her sisters to keep an eye on her, I'm sure she will enjoy herself.

If you or your children haven't read Regina's books, we all highly recommend them!  You can find out more about them here.  The kids involved in the forum have also begun a magazine that you can check out here.  It is a very well-produced magazine that offers the kids a great chance at writing and creativity.

Overall, I'd have to say that our involvement with Regina and her books has been a very positive experience for our family.  I hope you enjoy them, too.

 

Thank You!

Many heartfelt thanks to all of the men and women who have served, and are serving, our country to keep us free.  May God bless them all and may the souls of the faithful departed rest in peace.  May God have mercy on our country!

Words of Wisdom from St. Paul

1 Tim 6:6-8:  There is great gain in godliness with contentment; for we brought nothing into the world and we cannot take anything out of the world; but if we have food and clothing, with these we shall be content."

I read those words yesterday and I stopped and thought about how far I must be from contentment and, therefore, godliness, because I do have food and clothing, and even a nice, warm, dry house and yet I find myself not being content.

At times I think more about what I don't have, or what we can't do because we don't have the money, or what I feel we need, and I fail to be content with all of the things that God has blessed us with...so much more than just food and clothing.  Really, if I believe what St. Paul is saying, all I need to feel contentment in my life is food on my table (and we're even more blessed because we have food on the table three times a day, not just once!) and clothing to keep us warm and covered.  If I can feel content with just that, then I will have great gains in godliness.

After reading that passage, I almost couldn't go on to finish the chapter as there is so much to meditate on in just those two verses.  However, I pushed ahead to see what else I was needing to hear and came up with the following points:

1.  "The love of money is the root of all evils"  which probably means that I shouldn't spend so much time worrying about it!  My focus must be more on the things I read next...

2.  "Aim at righteousness, godliness, faith, love, steadfastness and gentleness."  Now there is enough to keep one busy for quite sometime.

3.  "Be rich in good deeds."  If #2 doesn't keep me busy, I can just add in a full measure of good deeds and I shant have to worry about ever having time to worry about anything else.

St. Paul gives us the key to a good life in one chapter:  Be content with the simple things like food and clothing, aim at being virtuous and keep yourself occupied with good deeds.  While I know that he lived in a world far different than our own, these words are timeless and are good things to strive for.

The Importance of a Clean Bedroom

Before you run and get your children to read this post, let me just tell you that I am talking to YOU!  I am talking about the important reasons of why you should keep YOUR room clean - the first of which is, if you don't keep your room clean, why should your child(ren)?

"Really?", you ask.  "There are important reasons why I should keep my room clean?  What exactly do you mean by 'clean'?"

Let's tackle the whys first.  I will never forget a friend of mine who has 7 daughters tell me that one of her top priorities was to keep her bedroom clean and neat so that her husband had a "haven" (a.k.a. a place of rest and peace) to go to when he needed to escape all of the hormones.

I realized what wisdom there was in that.  I started thinking about it, not just in regards to my husband, but myself, too.  Quite honestly, my husband walks into the bedroom, changes, lies down, falls instantly asleep, gets up and leaves the room.  That is the extent of his time in the bedroom.  If he needs to escape, he finds a tree stand.

If you have a husband, however, who enjoys retreating to a room in the house, or can't stand to walk over piles to get to his bed, then maybe you should consider tidying up that bedroom.  You don't even need to spend money on it to decorate or change things if you don't want to.  Simply having a neat and tidy resting place is all that is necessary.

I believe the rules concerning bedroom neatness should be:

1.  No piles of papers, boxes, bins etc. unless they serve a useful purpose (i.e. you have no dresser and your clothing is stored in a bin).

2.  No clothing lying around on the floors; dirty or clean.  Hang it up, put it away or throw it in the dirty clothes (which, by the way, should be contained somewhere where it doesn't have to be looked at all the time).

3.  Bed made every day.  It really only takes about 5 minutes and it really makes the room look so much more pleasant.  Do it within the first 15 minutes of getting up and you don't have to think about it again!

4.  Try to keep the room as clean as possible.  There is a difference between neat and clean.  Neat is good on a daily basis; clean should be taken care of on a relatively regular schedule.

I have this thing about waking up to a mess.  If my room was messy and I had to wake up to that every day, it would surely set the day off on the wrong foot.  I suppose there are people who don't notice messes, but I am not one of them.  If the last thing I saw before I fell asleep and the first thing I saw when I woke up was a messy room, I would not feel very peaceful and certainly not joyful.  

A prayer corner somewhere in your bedroom is a nice idea, too.  It can be a simple collection of books on your headboard or nightstand (only if it is a neat collection, though) or it can be a chair and table or kneeler in a corner.  I have a friend who has a lot of children who turned a small walk-in closet in her room into a prayer haven.  No matter what it looks like, a place where you and/or your husband can retreat to to be with the Lord for some peace and quiet is a good thing.

If you are prone to a messy room, take some time to ponder the positive effect a nice, clean, orderly room  might have on the dispositions of you and/or your husband.  It is a simple and inexpensive thing to do to bring some added peace to your lives.

7 Quick Takes November 4, 2011

--- 1 ---

I am probably way behind the times, but we just discovered window crayons.  I think it is the best $4 I've spent in a long time!  We've been going around decorating all of our windows, glass doors and mirrors.  Just think of the possibilities:  holiday designs, seasonal designs, scripture verses, inspirational messages, lot's of hearts and I love yous!  The creative side in us has been coming out and it's been loads of fun!

--- 2 ---

Here was Mr 11 yo's contribution to the window decorating.  He put this on the window by our school table.

--- 3 ---

As I was going over this post checking for typos and awkward wording, I noticed that I had left this quick takes spot empty.  Yikes.  Instead of trying to rearrange everything, I thought I would just say, "Happy First Friday" and "Have a great weekend" in position #3 instead of #7.  Don't stop reading, however!  There's still 4 more great quick takes to go! 

--- 4 ---

The other day in this post I mentioned about our tradition for praying for deceased family and friends.  I was looking for a fresh way to do it and came up with this:

I know it is hard to read, but I combined our old tradition of praying for one person a day with the window crayons.  I wrote the eternal rest prayer and each day we will add the piece of paper with the name of the person we are praying for.  If you look very carefully, you can kind of see the words and the little rectangular dark spot.  Okay, so not every picture turns out the way you want it to :)
 

--- 5 ---

We have a very busy weekend around here.  If you are reading this and you live near (or even kind of near) Batavia, IL, we will be at Holy Cross church for a craft fair.  We'll be at the table with the great smelling, all natural, goat milk soap.  Stop by and visit us!  Mention this Quick Takes post and you can choose a free bar of soap :)

--- 6 ---

Also going on this weekend is a great community event.  A number of years ago, a friend and I began a Free For All event where people dropped off all of their clean clothing or children's items and then people could come and take whatever they wanted...for free, of course!  Well, it worked okay on the dropping off part, unfortunately not enough people picked up and we would end up hauling A LOT of extra clothing to the nearest donation place.  Friends of ours have revived this event and now it is huge and serves over 300 people twice a year.  It is an awesome thing to behold.

--- 7 ---

On the "A Plan for Joy in the Home" front, the talented young lady who has been working on the layout of my book has been besieged by computer problems, which actually excites me because maybe all the difficulties means that this book is going to be help a lot of people!  Please pray for this endeavor so that we can get it to print soon!  

 

For more Quick Takes, visit Conversion Diary!

A B See - R is for...

Reflections of the fall foliage.

Join the ABSee Meme by clicking on the image below!

Happy All Souls Day!

November is truly one of my most favorite liturgical months.  I love the Holy Souls and I love the idea of having an entire month dedicated to praying for them.  Usually we take the names of family and friends who have died, including the most recent ones first and then choosing others to fill up the entire month.  Every day we pray for the soul of a different person.

I would usually just print out a calendar page for the month and write people's names on each day, but this year I think we'll "spice" it up a bit and just write out names on pieces of paper and pick one from a container every day.  I'm trying to come up with an idea for a container that would represent a soul but so far I haven't had much luck :)  Any ideas would be appreciated!

Especially during this month don't forget the prayer of St. Gertrude.  Our Lord dictated the following prayer to her to release 1,000 Souls from Purgatory each time it is said.

"Eternal Father, I offer Thee the Most Precious Blood of Thy Divine Son, Jesus, in union with the masses said throughout the world today, for all the holy souls in Purgatory, for sinners everywhere, for sinners in the universal church, those in my own home and within my family. Amen."

Have a holy day!

Happy All Saints Day!

This past weekend, my husband and I took St. Elizabeth of Hungary, St. Juan Diego and St. Methodius to the All Saint's Day party that our parish was putting on.  This was the brain child of one of our priests, who below, is telling a "Holy Ghost" .

We had the privilege of seeing the most beautiful lady in the world while we were there.

In addition to Father's Holy Ghost story, there were five other little skits that were going on throughout the afternoon.  They included:  

• Saints Alive - where we got to meet St. Patrick and Blessed Pier Giorgio Frasati
• The Happy Death of St. Monica
• The Tragic Stories of Dr. Frankenstein, the Wolfman and Count Dracula - this was a good one where the narrator told us why these three bad guys went bad when, if they had stayed with the sacraments, their lives would have turned out differently.
• Attack of the Grim Reaper
• The Epic Battle

In addition, they had eight different crosses carved into eight different pumpkins.  We walked from pumpkin to pumpkin learning about the crosses and getting candy.


The last part was playing games in the gym.  Games like:

• Pin the Sacred Heart on Jesus
• Pin the Immaculate Heart on Mary
• St. Martha's Cake Walk
• Find the Crosses with St. Helena
• Building the Tower of Babel
• Toss the Ring Around Mary

 

.

And many others.  It was a fun-filled afternoon with a variety of different activities to keep everyone interested.  The kids had an enjoyable time and so did we!