Unless otherwise specified, all writing here on my blog is my own original work. If you refer to something I've written here, please be sure to give me proper credit.

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Friday, April 30, 2010

Kids Say the Darndest Things


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Oops! I goofed slightly last week. I should have included The Prophet for the Hail Mary comment, too. I forgot that he also said "Play with us sinners." Maybe it was something in the way we were teaching the boys...

Here's another from The Prophet:
When he was five years old, he was sitting at the table w/ a baked potato. He took his fork & put it into one end of the potato, held it up, & said, "Look, it's a punch lifter." After a few seconds, I realized that he meant it was a punch "ladle."

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Thursday, April 29, 2010

Small Successes


"It’s important for moms to recognize that all the small successes in our days can add up to one big triumph. So on Thursday of each week, we do exactly that."

1) I ironed all of my clothes that were hanging in the basement (some that have been down there for a LONG time!), then took them upstairs to my closet.

2) I taught The Saint how to go down the stairs. He sits & slides down each step on his bottom.

3) For The Archangel's birthday, I made the Shark Attack cupcakes from the Hello Cupcake cookbook. Whatcha Think?





Your turn. Share your successes & check out more at Faith and Family Live.

Wednesday, April 28, 2010

A Thankful Woman's Book of Blessings


Judy over at A Thankful Woman's Book of Blessings, hosts this meme every Wednesday. Simply list five things (or a prayer or any thoughts) for which you are truly thankful this week. Voicing my thanks helps put my life in perspective & realize that, no matter how bad things might be, there is still MUCH good surrounding me.

Before I post my thanks, I'd like to ask prayers for Casinodad's best friend from childhood (& best man from our wedding). He is in the hospital w/ pancreatitis (sp?), a severely damaged esophagus, & kidney failure. He's on a ventilator & will be for the next 2 weeks to a month. They are keeping him sedated for now, also. Needless to say, Casinodad is very worried about him.

On to my thanks...
1) I am thankful that Judy is back online. I've really missed her daily post from her blogs. Welcome back, Judy!

2) I am thankful The Prophet is finally feeling better. We thought he just had allergies, but it turned out to be a sinus infection also. After just two days on antibiotics, he's almost back to his old self & definitely sleeping better!

3) I am thankful for the dear, sweet residents at the nursing/rehabilitation center where I work on Saturdays. Last Saturday, one of the residents (who is blind & mostly deaf) was having a bad day. She came to visit me up front & said I always help cheer her up. I'm thankful I was able to be there for her.

4) I am thankful that we've had two fairly productive days of school this week. I sat down over the weekend to make up our plan for the last five weeks of school so that we know how many lessons we need to complete each week. So far, the boys have been fairly cooperative!

5) Above all, I am most thankful for all that God has given me...my life, my family, my friends, a roof over my head, & plenty of food.

Wordless Wednesday - Easter 2010

Friday, April 23, 2010

Kids Say the Darndest Things


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WOW! This has been a busy week. I've not posted anything since last Friday. Hopefully I'll be back on track next week.

Here's my post for Mystical Rose Design's weekly Blog Hop. Click the above link if you'd like to see more.

We started saying prayers w/ the munchkins from the very beginning. Even when they were just infants, I would rock them at night & say prayers out loud for them. The Saint knows exactly what to do & as soon as we sit in the rocker, he puts his hands together & says, "A-NAN," (his version of "AMEN.") We're working on the Sign of the Cross w/ him, but for some reason he can't past his forehead. He just keeps hitting it w/ the palm of his hand.

Once The Archangel started saying them w/ us, it was always cute to hear his words for the prayers. For example, when we got to the Hail Mary, instead of saying "pray for us sinners" he would say "play with us sinners."

Friday, April 16, 2010

Kids Say the Darndest Things


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The Archangel has had a little trouble understanding figures of speech lately & taking them quite literally.

For example - We were having an issue w/ him not treating his siblings very well. We talked to him about being nice in return, even if they were not being nice to him. We used the phrase, "Killing them with kindness." His response: "Does that mean you put love in your hand & punch them?"

Also - When we went to the zoo last week, I told the munchkins that Lawgirl was going to "tag along" with us. He said, "That means she would run towards us & tag us to come along w/ us."

Perhaps I should add some figures of speech to his school lessons...

Check out Lucy at Mystical Rose Design for more of Kids Say the Darndest Things.

Saturday, April 10, 2010

Book Review - Sharing Christ's Priesthood

As a reviewer for The Catholic Company, I periodically receive materials to read, listen to, etc. & then share w/ my blog readers. My latest is a review of the book Sharing Christ's Priesthood by Mike Aquilina. (You may recognize his name from my September review of his book Fire of God's Love: 120 Reflections on the Eucharist.)

"A priest is someone who stands as a mediator between God and humanity."
(from the Introduction pg. 9, "What is a Priest?")

There are six sessions to this Bible study, each exploring a different aspect of the belief that we are all priests, whether we are lay people or ordained clergy. They are writen for individual or group use. Each session starts with a chapter or two to read from the Bible & questions to guide your reflection on that passage. The rest of the session alternates between reflections, smaller Bible passages, & questions. "In Practice..." is the final section w/ questions to help relate your life to the Bible readings.

I had a little trouble getting into this Bible study, although I DO NOT blame the author or the book itself. I think with all my family responsibilities this time of year, I just wasn't able to focus on it as well as I would have liked. I do plan to revisit this book in the summer, once school is out & I can devote a bit more time to it.

So, what did I like about it? I liked the layout & reflection questions throughout the sessions. Many times, I find reflection questions too deep for my tired mind! These questions, while very thought provoking, were pretty easy for me. The section beneath the questions explores the answers in a bit more depth. With the exception of the "In Practice..." section, there is space to record your answers.

By seeing how the priesthood has developed in Scripture through the years, we can gain a better knowledge of how the call to the priesthood effects all of us. With this being the Year of the Priest, what better way to celebrate than to see the priesthood in our own lives.