Belated 2015 Retrospective: What we've been up to

Hello 2016!! [Yes, I know, I'm a little behind.] Hello friends who might still be reading my blog!! I've gone a long time with very intermittent posts. It's been kind of a long blogging break. I'm ready to come back, but don't expect frequent posts. I'm taking my time, and heck, life is busy as a working mom of three small children who still wants to "do all the things."

But let's start this year off with a nice big update with lots of pictures. I'm killing two birds with one stone here. I never got around to doing Christmas cards this year (something that hasn't happened in forever--I even managed to do them the year Silas was born) and I haven't been sharing much on this blog for many moons, so a big update is in order.

So here's a 2015 recap:

BIRTHDAYS

We always celebrate birthdays, but each year is different. For the twins' fourth birthday we decided to have a party for them with friends who had similar aged kiddos. We made it extra fun by having a bubble party. Lots and lots and lots of bubbles. The weather cooperated (thank goodness because no plan B) and everyone had a great time in our backyard. Bubbles, the water table, pizza, and cake; lots of friends, great weather, no gifts. Simple and fun. The boys loved it!

Ethan with little bro Silas checking out the various bubble wands.

We had some interesting bubble wands. I think Ethan was
the only one to figure out how this one worked.

Peter and Ethan spending time at the water table.

The dads were in charge of the bubble machine.

Silas turned 2 this year!! It's so hard to believe my baby is 2 already. He has changed so much in the last year and his language has just been exploding since his birthday. My philosophy on birthday parties is to do a party for birthday #1 and then keep it small until they are old enough to start asking or noticing that other kids have birthday parties. But, we had to cancel Silas' first birthday party due to sickness, so we made up for it this year. My parents came, his godparents were both able to make it, and a few others friends as well. We still kept it simple (because that's how we roll) and I think a good time was had by all.

Opening a few gifts

Silas loves babies!! Here he is with Baby Mikey.

Birthday cupcake!! 

TRAVEL AND VACATIONS

A bit of travel again this year. I had the usual professional conferences this year which took me to Denver in February and then a little closer to home in October for a regional meeting in Louisville.

The boys and I took a long weekend in late May to go to Atlanta to visit family. In addition, I took Silas one day and ventured up to Greenville, SC to visit college friends and celebrate my godson's First Holy Communion. Peter and Ethan enjoyed spending a day with Nanny and Papa.

Brotherly love in Hilton Head, SC

As a family we ventured down to Hilton Head Island once again to meet up with my family for a vacation. It was a bit dreary for most of the week, but we still managed to have fun on the beach one day, the pool another, took a long walk and collected sea shells, visited the Children's Museum, and took the twins to play their first ever round of miniature golf.

Chris had the opportunity in November to go on a retreat. He didn't have to go too far (our diocesan retreat center near Danville, KY), but I'm sure the break was nice for him.

SCHOOL

Peter and Ethan started in the Pre-K class at their daycare this past August. They both have been doing great. The daycare has been great from very early on teaching letters and numbers, days of the week, calendar months, and a few other things, all in a very fun and natural way. So it has been an easy transition to starting to learn in a slightly (they are only 4 after all) more formal way. The school is using "Handwriting without Tears" and the boys have learned so much. They weren't writing much of anything prior to August. Now they can write their names and all the letters in the first half of the alphabet. They are writing numbers and practicing different writing strokes. It's been a really great program so far.

Silas is in the same school, but not doing any formal learning yet. His classes this year do calendar stuff and draw and color and do fun crafts, but it's all very organic, just as when the older boys were in those classes. He has had great teachers who love him which makes it so much easier to leave him (and his brothers) there each day.

Peter, Silas, and Ethan in December following
their Christmas Concert at the daycare

OUR "FAITH"-FUL PURSUITS

Chris and I now both have commitments at our church's Adoration Chapel. He's had his for many years now (every Tuesday at 6 AM). I used to have an hour but had to give it up during my pregnancy with the twins. This year I jumped back in and have the privilege of spending an hour with Jesus every Monday night.

Chris also took a leap of faith this year and went on the Men's Cursillo weekend in November. I wasn't sure if he would enjoy it or not, but he seemed to. I was so glad to have been able to get a sitter for the last day of his retreat so that I could attend the Closing Ceremony. 

I haven't been on a retreat in a long while but I have been working through my novice lessons for the Benedictine Oblates this past year. I've been rather slow going through them and I don't always fulfill all the obligations of an Oblate, but I'm trying. It's a work in progress. The Novice Director has been great and I love getting his feedback on the lesson answers I send him. I'm almost done, have decided on my patron saint (I'll save that for another blog post), and I think we have a date set for Final Oblation. We're all going to take a day trip up to St. Meinrad's for it in April. It should be fun!

Sometime in the past year or more I agreed to co-chair the Vocations Committee at our parish. The main thing I've been working on with that is a Vocations Crucifix Program where different families host the crucifix each week and pray for vocations. It's been a great experience and the committee and I are hoping to expand our work over the coming year.

WRITING

Well, as you know I haven't been writing much on this blog this year. Most of my writing here was in January and February and then my posting took a serious nose dive for the rest of the year. But that's okay, breaks are good. Besides some "7 Quick Takes" posts and "Small Success Thursdays" I did manage to do two reviews this year. One was for Catholic Sistas on the planner being sold there (check it out HERE) and the other on a new e-Book on the Jesse Tree (check it out HERE). The Jesse Tree book was fun to review and then I used it with the kids this year. Here are a few quick pictures:

Boys hard at work coloring their ornaments

The boys' Jesse tree ornaments: three sets, different ribbons for each kid.

Our Jesse Tree with some of the ornaments

At Catholic Sistas I still maintain a once-a-month spot and I spent 2015 putting together interviews with religious men and women as part of the Year of Consecrated Life. If you're interested in seeing what I've been doing over at CS:

My Year of Consecrated Life posts.

A book review of Soul of Christ: Meditations on a Timeless Prayer by Sr. Marie Paul Curley.

A book review of Life from our Land by Marcus Grodi.

By the way, I highly recommend both of the books listed above.

I also volunteered this year to be a part of the Gospel Reflection Team for 2016 at CatholicMom.com. I was given one date to write a reflection for and submitted that back in September. I'm excited to have this tiny opportunity to branch out a bit more, especially for such a big, well-known website!

During this year long blogging break, I have been considering starting a new blog and leaving this one up as an archive. For the moment I have discerned to keep this one going, but a part of me wants a fresh start. That being said, God has made it clear that now's not the right time, so I'll wait. I anticipate there could be a change here sometime in the next year or so. We'll see what God has in store.

MORE PICTURES

Something I can't really do in a Christmas letter is include a bunch of pictures. But I can here!! So here's some other highlights of the year in pictures. 

A trip to the local children's museum early in the year.

The boys LOVE helping with the laundry.

And fighting over the small vacuum to clean under the kitchen table.

A visit to a local orchard and pumpkin patch in the fall.

Pumpkins!

Halloween superheros and a tiger.

All Saints Day party, Peter as St. George, Ethan as St. Michael.
Costumes made by me, something I've NEVER done before.

Silas attended the All Saints Day festivities as St. Isidore the Farmer.

This is how some people "help" mom out.

The Birthday Boy (Dec. 2015)

Christmas Eve, everyone in Christmas jammies!

Merry Christmas!!
Christmas Day Mass, 2015

Cheating a little with this one: Jan. 2, 2016,
my very first 5K!!

From our family to yours, we wish you many blessings in 2016. 

Tuesday's Awesome Mail Delivery

Tuesday I shared on Facebook that I had received two packages in the mail that day. I took a picture of the two items I received and then my iPod died. So I couldn't post the picture. So I left everyone hanging in suspense. Aren't I nice? Haha!

I was so excited to get home on Tuesday and see some packages on the front stoop. Here's what I found when I opened them all up:

It was an exciting day!

I'm so excited to get Jen Fulwiler's book, Something Other Than God. I've been reading her blog now for a long time and following the drama of her book writing. And I'm always so fascinated by conversion stories. So I've been looking forward to reading Jen's for almost as long as she's been talking about writing it. I'm anticipating several very late nights as I try to squeeze in time to read it between when the baby goes to bed and when I do. Maybe one day I'll figure out how to hold a book while nursing. Um, yeah ... probably not. One way or another, this book is near the top of my reading list at the moment.

My other fun package was the pretty Maya Ring Sling that also arrived on Tuesday. You all know that I also write for Catholic Sistas, which grew out of a Catholic online community I am a part of. I was looking for a used ring sling and one of my Catholic Sistas offered me this one. Totally free! Can you believe it?! I'm so grateful and so touched by this awesome community. One day I will reciprocate in some way. Don't know how or when, but I trust God will take care of the details.

So for those of you who are friends with me on Facebook and saw my mysterious status update, this was the reason for my excitement! A new book, hot off the press by one of my favorite Catholic bloggers and a new ring sling from a wonderful Catholic friend. It was Catholic gift Tuesday here!

A Weekend Overview

We had a great weekend here in central KY. The weather cooperated for the most part.

The boys' school was closed on Friday for an in-service day, so we took the opportunity to use our Zoo Membership for the day. We don't have a zoo here, but the one in the larger city north of us is really nice. We managed to spend a few hours there and not get rained on, despite the almost constant rain during the hour long drive up. Luckily it was clear at the zoo and we enjoyed our time there. The boys loved the elephants and got angry when we tried to move on. But they soon realized that there was more to see. Bubbles especially!! Yes, I said bubbles. Any sort of water is considered bubbles and they LOVE bubbles. So all the waterways separating people from animals was thrilling.

We saw the new Africa exhibit where you can get pretty up close and personal to the lions. We missed the feeding of the giraffes, but got to watch all three of them out in their habitat and the baby giraffe was running laps. A running giraffe is very awkward looking. They just don't look like they know how to coordinate their legs. Maybe it was because it was a baby, I don't know. The two adults could have cared less. The manatees were the biggest hit for the boys, oh and the lizards in the reptile house!! Definitely the lizards.

The boys fell asleep in the car almost immediately after we left the zoo. A good indication of a successful day.

Saturday we kept things a bit slower. We did go out to visit a family friend at a nearby nursing home. We hadn't been there in a while. The boys loved Bosco, the facility's dog and the fish tanks were a big hit. The staff were so surprised to see how much the boys had grown since we were last there. It was a nice visit. Again, the boys nodded off briefly on the car ride home.

Finally on Sunday we started the day by attending Mass. Got a bit of a shock when we got to church and couldn't find parking and then no available seats once we got inside. This was just a normal Sunday and we had no idea why it looked like a Christmas or Easter Mass. Turns out it was the "Back to School Mass." No announcement or anything had been made, so we got stuck having to split up. Someone was nice enough to give up their seat for me (there was no way I was going to stand for an entire Mass and was so grateful someone finally let me have their seat!). Hubby ended up standing back in the narthex. So yeah, nice surprising way to start off your Sunday.

That afternoon I took the boys to our local Arboretum for the Tomato Festival. I didn't know what to expect, but had a good time. And the boys actually ate some tomatoes! Totally shocked me. Especially Peter. I think he liked the little paper cup for sampling. He wouldn't try the tomato when I handed it to him, but once I gave him the little cup he ate them all up and asked for more. We tried a ton of various heirloom tomatoes, the boys got tomatoes painted on their hands (I didn't think they'd stand for face painting), I picked up some information on gardening in KY, and tried some tomato appetizers from some local restaurants.

In addition to the Tomato Festival we also went and visited the Children's Garden where the boys enjoyed the misting area and got to make a tomato puppet. I had never been in before (it's only been open a year or so) and there was a lot to do. Had I known there was a water area to wade in I might have been more prepared (not that my boys will go into water right now). As the boys get a little older that will be a great place to visit again.

A great weekend, through and through. Only regret is that I have no pictures. Sorry. I checked the camera on Saturday and the battery was dying and I didn't bother changing it. I know, I'm lazy.

A Sweetest, Nicest, Beloved, Welcoming Award!

I mentioned a little over a week ago that I was given a blog award. I was stunned, to say the least. But here now, finally, I am getting around to sharing the award and all the things that go with it. So I am pleased to present, the Liebster Award:

I was given this by Nancy who blogs at The Breadbox Letters (among other blogs and places she writes). I love her blog and if it wasn't her granting this award to me, she'd surely be on my list. And I want to quote Nancy in what she said about this award:

What is the "Liebster Award," actually?  The award is given to up and coming bloggers who have fewer than 200 followers.  From what I understand, liebster is German for: "sweetest," "kindest," "nicest," "dearest," "beloved," "valued," "endearing," and "welcoming."

This award is supposed to be fun. So along with receiving it, there are a few things that I have been asked to do. Here are the five "simple" rules for accepting the award:

1. List 11 things about yourself
2. Answer the questions that the nominator has posed for you.
3. Nominate 11 up and coming bloggers who have less than 200 followers
4. Create 11 questions to ask the nominees
5. Go to the page of each nominee and tell her about her award

Simple, right? Hopefully! I always struggle a bit with these kinds of things (listing things about yourself and coming up with questions for others), but I'm going to give it a try. So here are 11 things about me:

1. I almost never wear make-up. I do for special occasions, like a wedding or a formal dinner or something, but generally, no, I don't. The last time I went to use my make-up (in November) my foundation pump was actually clogged up by the dried up make-up. Maybe I should use it a bit more often.
2. I'm shy and very quiet around new people or in large groups. I have to know the person or persons really, really, really well for me to be more open. Or have a glass of wine in hand.
3. I often worry that people find me unfriendly due to #2 above.
4. I am a musician (sort of), BUT ... I do not sing, I don't know much about choral music or Broadway musicals, and my classical listening preferences are usually for instrumental music, not choral music. Why do people always assume I am a singer?
5. When I was a kid I wanted to be famous. Famous at what? No idea. Just famous. I really had no clue when I was a kid.
6. I am in awe of writers who can write about an experience that was difficult, exhausting, traumatic, or demanding and make it sound funny. To all you who can make readers laugh through your difficulties, I tip my hat to you. I admire that kind of witty writing.
7. I love York Peppermint Patties. LOVE! If you ever need to get on my good side, just come by with a bag of those.
8. I find coming up with 11 things about myself very difficult. I wonder if that makes me a boring person or just a person with a horrendous memory?
9. I started writing sometime during elementary school (around 4th grade, maybe) and kept it up until sometime around 10th grade. I always wanted to be a writer, but my focus changed around that time. I guess I've been trying to find my way back the last few years.
10. I tend to write most of my blog posts at night and have them post the next morning. Except for this one. I'm once again home sick, so I'm using my time to do this post.
11. I used to always read fiction, but now I almost never do. These days I prefer to read things that challenge me, make me think, or help me grow as a person. I think that's why I like reading blogs as much as I do.

And now for the questions Nancy asked in her post:
1. If you won a trip to anywhere, where would you go?
I would go to Europe somewhere, not sure where exactly, but it would definitely be in Europe.
2. What is your favorite childhood memory?
One year my dad read James and the Giant Peach to my sister and I, a little bit each night. I always loved that! Years later when the movie came out (and I think we were already adults by then), he gave us each a copy of the newest edition for that Christmas. That was very special because usually my mom handled all our Christmas gifts, but this one he went out and did totally on his own. I'm not sure my mom even knew about it until we opened them Christmas morning.
3. What is your favorite season?
Fall
4. Favorite kind of music?
Instrumental chamber music, usually wind instruments. Mozart, Beethoven, Reicha, Danzi, and many others.
5. If you could spend tomorrow with one canonized saint, who would it be?
St. Gianna Beretta Molla. I think I could use the advise and perspective of another faithful Catholic mom who worked outside the home.
6. What is your favorite Scripture? (either chapter or verse, or a whole book)
I did a Bible Study once on the Gospel of John. I don't know it as well as I would like, but I find John fascinating because it has so many layers. Specifically, I love John chapter 6. I don't know how anyone can read John 6 and not see the Eucharist there. Beautiful!
7. If you were dressing up for an elegant evening out, what would you wear? ...
I'd probably have to go shopping if it was something really elegant.
8. ... and where would you like to go?
Oh! Well, if I get to choose ... probably a symphony orchestra concert and a nice dinner out.
9. Who has modeled the Christian life for you, or taught it to you, in an inspiring way?
I think this is hands down my husband who has always left me in awe of his knowledge of the faith and his humble ways.
10. What is your favorite poem?
"I'm nobody, who are you ..." by Emily Dickinson. Thus the title of this blog.
11. How do you like to relax and wind-down?
How I *like* to do this versus how I actually do this are two different things. I tend to veg-out in front of the TV when I am in need of winding down. I wish I could just pick up a book or something instead.

And now, my list of 11 nominees. In some cases I don't know how many followers these blogs have. If they have a widget listing followers it's pretty easy, if not ... it's a bit impossible to tell. So whether these are all "up and coming" blogs or not, I don't know. In any case, these are some blogs, in no particular order, that I enjoy and I'm happy to nominate for the Liebster Award:

Pass the Flu Bug Please

Meagan

Candid Catholic Living

The Confused Homemaker

Percolating Petals

My Favorite People

Cheerios and Lace (hasn't been updated in over a year, but she writes really well and it's such a pretty blog. Hopefully, she'll come back one day.)

Franciscan Mom

Fear Not Little Flock

Theological Librarian

Lox Populi

Phew!! That was harder than I thought it was going to be! Many of the above blogs are friends of mine, some I discovered through Facebook, and a couple I discovered years and years ago when I first started reading blogs and I still follow them. I'm not sure what the definition of "up and coming" is supposed to be, but all these blogs had less than 200 followers on any sort of Following widget they had up on their blog. If they did not have any sort of follow widget, then I added them anyway. Just because.

So, to my blogging friends who I've nominated for this prestigious Liebster Award, I hope you'll participate. If you don't feel you have the time, to write a post like this, please accept the award anyway. I know I have many busy mamas on the list above. And here are the 11 questions I am asking of you (though I'm stealing a few from Nancy, because she asks good questions), should you choose to participate:

1. What is your favorite prayer?
2. What volunteer activities are you involved in?
3. What do you like most about having a blog?
4. What is your favorite childhood memory?
5. What most makes you smile?
6. What is your favorite religious icon, statue, or other image?
7. If you could spend tomorrow with one canonized saint, who would it be?
8. What is your secret favorite indulgence? ...
9. ... And, do you have to have a hiding spot in your house for it?
10. Who has modeled the Christian life for you, or taught it to you, in an inspiring way?
11. Chili: beans or no beans?

And with that, I am done. Thanks to Nancy for the Liebster Award. This post took a long time but it was kind of fun, too. Now I'm off to let my 11 nominees know that I have bestowed this award on them as well.

Saturday Smiles, no. 14

God's love blesses me in so many ways. Despite a very busy week, lots on my plate, and feeling like I was always behind on something ... several things also came together for me.

I can feel God's love through the many friendships I have. I'm amazed that I can "hangout" with a group of women I've only ever known through the computer screen and have a great time! Even if we were talking business. But our Catholic faith brings us together, binds us in a way that I've never had a friendship bound before, and our common love for God and Jesus makes our mission and our friendship just work. What an amazing gift God has given me in these friendships with other faithful Catholic women, most of whom I may never meet in person. At least in this life.

And I do have some pretty awesome friends right here at home too. We too are bound by our common Catholic faith as well as the pain and grief of infertility and pregnancy loss. I got together on Friday evening with a few of these women to have a little mom prayer time together. We ended up mostly talking and not getting to the prayer time, but that's okay. We will the next time.

All of this just reminds me that I can often find God's love around me in the people He places in my life, no matter how busy life gets. Near and far, my friendships with other Catholic women consistently remind me of God's love for me.

Thank you God for the amazing friendships you bring into my life!

Vacation Update

We left at noon on Friday Sept. 14 and returned home about 8pm on Sunday September 23. Nine and a half days away! It was a long time to be away, but definitely a fun time.

Visiting with family, visiting with friends, spending time at the beach, the pool, and just taking it easy. All of it was great! I loved that we got to see so many people in the course of this trip!

The boys travel pretty well, but they certainly do get tired of sitting their car seats for long periods of time. We tried giving them some breaks, but you can only do that so much before you've added on a few too many hours to the trip. So there were some rough moments, but it was all worth it.

That first Friday of travel we stopped in Asheville, NC to stay the night with my cousin and his family. It was the first time I got to meet his two teenage daughters. We had a great time visiting and catching up.

The Saturday we drove an hour south and stopped in Spartenburg, SC to visit with Hubby's aunt and uncle and one of his cousins. We had a lovely lunch and it was fun to take a break and visit with them. The boys got to play with some new toys and were very intrigued by the cat.

We got to Hilton Head Island in time to stop for dinner Saturday, then picked up some milk at a grocery store, got checked in to the condo, and put the boys to bed. We were exhausted.

I posted some pictures last Wednesday and I have several more that I hope to get off my camera soon. The boys had fun and it was great to see them interacting with my family. They also decided that this was the week to start walking!! They still prefer crawling to get around, but we do have walkers!! Peter has gotten quite good. He can stop and regain his balance, he can turn around, and he can walk a fair distance on his own. Ethan isn't far behind. And they love it too! So much laughing at themselves and what they are doing. It's a hoot to watch!

Our trip back was done in two parts as well. We left Saturday morning and headed to Columbia where we stopped for lunch and to pick up some Gamecock gear (watch for pictures). We drove another hour north and met up with my college roommate for an hour of visiting. Then headed to Greenville, SC from there to stay the night with some other friends from college. We had a great time visiting with everyone. We all went to Mass together Sunday morning, took some pictures of the kids all together (their 3 and our 2), and then hit the road for a long drive back home.

Other interesting events of the week:

• Cutting my finger on my razor that first Friday night
• (Wasn't using it, just reaching in my bag for something else. Razor had no cap on it.)
• The touch screen on my phone stopped working 
• (Don't call or text me, not worth it)
• Walking boys!! 
• (Yes, I know I already mentioned that one ... but hey, can you blame me?)
• Enjoying Nutella gelato! 
• (I want to try the pizza cone next time. And more gelato!)
• Watching the boys fascination with babies and animals grow
• The immediate love the boys had with the Cocky pillow pets Peter's godparents got for them. 
• (They both wanted to hold them the whole drive home on Sunday.)
• Trying to find a fast food place that serves spaghetti in areas where there are very few food options 
• (KFC needs to start selling spaghetti, just saying.)

I'm sure there is much more, but it's hard to remember everything. Hopefully I'll be able to grab some time tomorrow evening to get the pictures off my camera and will be able to share a few here soon!

And as much fun as this vacation was, it is definitely nice to be home!

Saturday Smiles, no. 11

St. Aelred, patron saint
of friendship

The power of friends really showed itself to me this week. I love how God places people in your path that are always the right people for the right time. God knew what he was doing when he made us creatures that desire companionship. Friendship is a big component of that.

So going back to Saturday when I had my talk, the focus of the talks that day were basically on friendship. With those talks on my mind, more so the deacon's talk rather than my own, I went into the rest of the week thinking about friendship. Then two things happened this week.

First, I ran into an issue (one I don't want to expound on here) and was rather angry about it one evening. I had been told one thing and then found out another and was not happy with the situation nor the position it put me in. I went to an online group of women that I trust completely and consider friends (although I've only met a handful of them in person) and used their patience and friendship to vent about it. I wasn't expecting anything from them, I just knew that they would let me vent, not judge me, and offer prayers for the stress I was dealing with. I got prayers, sympathy, no judgement, etc. and much more. I got some assistance and reassurance that I wasn't expecting! I suddenly felt relief for the first time that evening and felt like the problem may solve itself easier than I had anticipated.

Wow, what a great feeling that was!! These ladies were just the friends I needed at a time when I really needed that love and support. And they may just have solved the problem for me. That's still to be seen. But the point is: I felt so much better!! I was assisted in my need by a group of friends in a way that I probably would not have been able to do on my own.

The second thing is directly tied to the talk I gave on Saturday. I gave that talk in my role as a volunteer leader for the Cursillo movement in my diocese. Our Cursillo movement has a men's weekend coming up in December and we usually always struggle to get enough attendees to hold these weekends. This time, however, we are already getting more candidates than I usually have this far out from the weekend. This can be attributed to the power of friendship. Each candidate must have a sponsor and the sponsors really seem to be praying for their friends hard. One sponsor told me he has been working on some of his friends for two years now! He has several of his friends already signed up to attend.

I'm amazed at the response so far! Only through a trusting, deep friendship are we able to pray our friends into attending these weekends. I told the group on Saturday that our goal is not to get our friends to come to Cursillo, but to bring them closer to Christ. Cursillo is just a bonus. Right now we have lots of people who have been brought closer to Christ and now want to do more.

Only through true friendship are these things possible. And true friendship has to be based on something. I believe when a friendship is based on God and faith it can know no bounds.

Thank you, God, for the power of friendship. Help me and all my friends to continue to deepen our friendships with each other and especially with you and your Son, our Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.

What made you smile this week?

Pink, Pink, Pink ...

PINK!!!

Not something I see much of around here with two boys in the house. Not unless I'm wearing it!

But I'm getting an opportunity to relish in a bit of pink this summer. Two new nieces this summer, Ethan's Godparents had a baby girl in June, two other friends adopted baby girls just in the last two months, and another friend is due to have a baby girl in the next couple weeks.

So yeah ... lots of pink. I'm loving it!

Saturday morning I met up with five friends for a small baby shower brunch for the mom-to-be. It was a special time, as all baby showers are, but this one was especially special. Why so special? All six of us sitting around the table have suffered through years of infertility and/or pregnancy loss. Yet, there we sat, six women with 7 children between us, one on the way, and 4 babies in heaven.

Infertility group? What infertility group?

[Seriously though, having a child doesn't "cure" infertility. A post for another time.]

In many ways this little brunch was almost a celebration of all the miracles we as a group have received. I'm so happy for these friends of mine who have longed for children for so long and are now all mothers or soon-to-be mothers of such wonderful, special children. And so much pink everywhere!

I think Peter and Ethan will have lots of good little Catholic girls to choose from. Many, many years from now. Of course.

Saturday Smiles, no. 7

How did I recognize God's presence in my life this week?

One morning as I pulled out of the driveway to head to work I was startled by the presence of a huge spider web in my way. It was strung up between a tree on one side of the driveway and a tall bush on the other side. From the window of my mini van I could see the thin threads stretched across the driveway just barely above my eye level. In the very center, directly in front of me was the the intricate, complex spider web. I was startled by the perfection of it and the incredible place it was hanging. Something like this amazes me, that a tiny insect could create such perfection. I don't think it is an accident, I think God created the creatures of the earth to astound us in their beauty and the things they can create. Nature has such an awesome way of showing us how awesome God is.

It also made me sad because I knew it wasn't quiet high enough to clear the top of my van. So I was the only one who got to marvel at God's awesomeness that morning.

Second, I have recently connected with another Catholic blogger that happens to live in my same city. We've been emailing and it has been fun. We've even found a few things we have in common and I find it amazing that God used the blogging world to introduce us. Thank you, God!

What made you smile this week? How were you most aware of God's presence in your life? Share in the comments or link up your own "God moment" post from your blog by clicking the button below and filling out the fields that appear. Don't forget to also include a link in your blog entry back to this one, please. Thanks!

Image source morgueFile

Saturday Smiles, no. 6

Peter has a lot to smile about too!

I have had a LOT to smile about lately! God is truly wonderful. I am seeing Him bless many people in my life in extraordinary ways. And it makes me almost giddy thinking about it. But what about me?

I actually have a hard time seeing the blessings in my own life. Thus the reason I am even doing these posts, to help make me be more aware of God's presence in my life.

As I contemplated what I could write about this week so much came to mind: the wonderful things happening in the lives of some of my close friends; the joy of meeting my new niece and seeing the joy she is already bringing to her parents and siblings; the fun of spending time with family just sitting around chatting, catching up, and watching the little ones play together; the fun of meeting new friends and seeing how God is blessing them and their families; or witnessing friends coming together to help out a friend in need.

So many choices! I decided I couldn't choose just one.

Instead I see all of those things and plenty of others as one big blessing. God is working in the lives of my friends and family and I get to watch. I get to see what God is doing in other people's lives and it blesses me as well.

I guess what I am saying is that my close moment with God this week is just knowing that He is working in other people's lives and blessing them. In return I feel blessed just to know them. I may have moments when I am down and I know I've had plenty of moments when I don't feel God's presence in my life at all. But I don't lose faith because I see him working elsewhere. And that brings me joy and plenty of smiles.

What made you smile this week? How were you aware of God's presence in your life? Share in the comments below or write your own blog post and link it up here using the inLinkz form below. Please also include a link in your post back to this one.

7 Quick Takes Friday, vol. 45

~1~

We have a stander! One of the boys has started standing for a few seconds at a time. He doesn't always get his balance right away and falls on his butt. But other times he manages to balance himself enough to stay standing for just a few seconds. I find it amazing to see him stand completely on his own. He seems so unsteady, not balanced at all, and yet there he is ... standing.

Now walking ... I think it'll still be some time. But it's coming! Watch out world!

~2~

And while we're on the subject of babies, I have to report our recent successes in the food arena. First, both boys will now take and hold their bottles on their own. Thank you, Lord, my life has gotten infinitely better! Peter took to it pretty quickly, Ethan had a harder time. He'd eventually take the bottle from us and hold it himself, but when we first gave it to him he just broke down into hysterical sobbing until one of us picked it up and held it for him until he was ready to take it (which was usually half way through the bottle, plus he couldn't get the last ounce or so on his own either, so essentially, we were still holding it for him for most of the time). But now! Oh, wow! Now we can just place the bottles on their trays and they take care of it themselves! Seriously, with two of them, this truly makes a huge difference in my life!

Second, they are starting to use a spoon. Sort of. We still put food on the spoon for them and hand it to them and hover over them as they attempt to put it in their mouth, but they are doing it. Peter is funny with it. He loves holding his own spoon and has become quite adept, i.e. I don't hover quite as much. He takes the spoon from us, eats the food off of it, and then throws it on the table so we can fill it back up for him. I know I shouldn't laugh because I certainly don't want to encourage that behavior, but it is so hard. I find it hilarious!

~3~

On a totally different note, I recently discovered a new blog and I love it already. You must check out The Breadbox Letters. I love the art work she uses in her posts and the quotes she finds from a variety of saints, not to mention the reflective pieces she writes which are very insightful. After reading less than a dozen posts on this blog I'm already hooked. I really loved this post, Be Led Gently, which quotes St. Teresa of Avila. It's beautiful. If you're looking for a blog that can be inspiring, has beautiful pictures, and is a quick read, check this one out. 

~4~

Hubby got a new computer recently. Finally! His old one was soooooooo slow. I hated using it. Of course, all our picture software is on his computer which is one of the reasons I don't post pictures as much as I would like to. But now it'll be so much faster. Yay! I think he finally has everything transferred over and the picture software is ready to go. I just looked through the pictures on my camera and realized I never posted the cute-as-can-be pictures of the boys in their sneakers. They are coming! I promise! I can't tell you how many times the people at their daycare tell me how cute the boys are in their little sneakers. Pictures coming soon!!

~5~

In addition to this Quick Takes post, I also compiled a Quick Takes post for Catholic Sistas for today. It's another interview with one of our ink slinger. A fellow Kentuckian, too, though we've never met in person. Go check it out. It's a fun post. 

~6~

Have you checked out my new Saturday Smiles link-ups I've been hosting? So far I have one follower participating, but I'd love to see more. And spread the word too. It's super easy. It's a great opportunity to reflect on the week and write about something, anything, that made you aware of God in your life that week. Write up a post and then post the link on my Saturday link-up. I've made it easy by putting in the inlinkz widget too. I hope you'll come join me on Saturday!

~7~

I hope everyone has a great weekend! I'm excited to be spending it with my family. I'll get to meet my new niece, see a cousin I haven't seen in a few years, hopefully catch up with some old high school friends, and meet up with some online friends for the first time. I can't wait!

For more Quick Takes, check out Conversion Diary.

Saturday Smiles, no. 4

Lonely Tree
Photo from  http://www.freedigitalphotos.net/

For some reason I have felt a little heavy around my heart this week. Nothing has specifically happened, I think it is just more a fact of lots of little things weighing on my mind and also on my heart. I don't know that you would guess by looking at me that I have felt this way at all this week. I'm generally a cheery person and try to put forward a positive attitude. Part of my Irish heritage, I guess. 

Even with a lot on my mind and a heavy heart, I can still see God working in my life. Sometimes in very unexpected ways. I was approached this week by a friend who is only a few months out from her first miscarriage. She was hit by a flood of emotions this week when another friend of hers had a baby. She wasn't expecting it and is, of course, happy for her friend. But it is distressing to get hit with those emotions and that sense of loss so expectantly. I knew exactly how she felt. And I'm glad she reached out to me. 

At the time, the conversation made me sad, and still does. I know how she feels and I hate that she has to go through that. I also hate that it recalls those same emotions in myself as well. Those feelings that never really go away, but get somewhat easier to deal with over time. When she then expressed her gratitude to me in being able to find someone who understands what she is going through, I was hit with the realization that this is part of God's plan for me.

God has given me the chance to help others through my own experiences. If nothing else, I am that person who can listen and just understand. I don't even have to say anything. Sometimes a listening ear from someone who has "been there" is all that is needed. I'd gladly give back my experiences with pregnancy loss, but I can't. And if I can't I'm glad that my experiences can be the thing that helps someone else feel not so all alone.

This may seem like an odd thing to post as a "Saturday Smiles" post. But I smile at this because I know that is using our hurts, both mine and my friend's, toward a positive. I still wish that neither of us had to go through the pain of miscarriage, but through it I can see God's love for us as He uses our hurts to help support each other.

And that makes me happy to be a child of God. I know that God grieves with us. And I know He can bring good even out of pain and sadness.

What made you smile this week? How were you aware of God's presence in your life? Share in the comments below or write your own blog post and link it up here using the inLinkz form below. Please also include a link in your post back to this one.

7 Quick Takes Friday, vol. 40

~1~

Before the boys afternoon nap on Thursday, Peter had carried a small, plastic toy hammer up with him that I had put on their dresser.  So when I got them up a couple hours later, I handed the hammer to Ethan to occupy him while I changed him.  Peter, I discovered, is very attached to that hammer.  When I placed Ethan down on the floor Peter, who had already been changed and was on the other end of the room, spotted the hammer and made a beeline toward Ethan.  I could see his eyes fixed on that hammer.  Ethan meanwhile had no idea that the object he was crawling around with (clanging against the hardwood floor) was now the object of his brother's affection.  Just as Peter got within reach, Ethan innocently turned a different direction.  I laughed as I watched Peter stop while his eyes followed the movement of the hammer.  This happened a couple more times and was quite the site!!  Ethan was clueless.  So cute!!  Finally, Ethan decided to pull himself up on the changing table, but he had to let go of the hammer.  He put it up on the shelf, let go to pull himself up on his feet, and Peter made his move.  He reached up, grabbed the hammer, and crawled away.  The whole show was so funny!!  And to top it off, I don't think Ethan even realized that the toy hammer had disappeared.

~2~

Although I haven't been writing as much on the blog as I would like, I am still writing.  Just not here.  I recently put up my last interview on the blog that serves as an employee newsletter of sorts at my work.  Before leaving for my sabbatical I did several interviews for the series I was doing on "What we're Reading."  The last one is what I finally up called "What we're Reading: from Sonnets to Manga."  I really enjoyed doing this series and hope to continue doing it when I return to work in July.  It's been fun to talk to people who work in a library about what they are reading.

~3~

I also have posted a few new posts on my sabbatical project blog.  If you're interested in those, you can check it out at Music Recitals Project.  I wrote up a couple at the end of April and another one just yesterday.

~4~

I've also been working on some posts for Catholic Sistas (watch for one from me coming on Monday).  Do you read Catholic Sistas?  If so, we would love for you to come "like" our Facebook Fan Page.  And while you're at it, come follow Catholic Sistas on Twitter as well: Catholic_Sistas.  And, spread the word, please!!

~5~

I am so lucky!!  I have a great community around me!  Some friends of mine and I made plans for next week to have a girl's night out.  How many groups of friends plan to go out together and have the plans start with evening Mass?  I CAN NOT wait until next Wednesday!  So much so actually, that for most of THIS Wednesday I thought it was that night.  I was so disappointed when I realized I was a week off. 

And then I got a call this week from another friend.  She invited me to go with her to a MOMs group gathering.  This MOMs group is at our parish, but I have never attended.  I usually work, so it's not something I can attend.  Since being home on sabbatical I thought about it, but I haven't yet made room for it in our schedule.  But this was an evening thing!!  A gathering at a member's house to say a Rosary together followed by socializing.  That just sounds so wonderful to me!!  And I'd be able to meet other moms from our parish.  Unfortunately I realized that the night in question won't work for me.  Sad again!!  But I hope this group will do it again and I can have another chance to join them.

~6~

You know what is lacking from this blog?  Pictures!!!  I'm sure you're all wondering if I ever take pictures of my two boys.  Well, yes, I do.  The problem is getting them off my camera to use.  Actually, the problem is time.  I actually have several pictures on the camera that I'd love to share.  The boys are getting so big!  They are 11 months old now.  Where has the time gone??

~7~

Finally, a question for all of you married readers: Are you and your spouse involved in any ministries at your parish together?  Like both on the same committee or whatever?  I would like to become more involved in my parish again and would like to do it with my husband.  I have some ideas, but I'm curious what others do.  Pre-Cana classes?  NFP classes?  Something else?  Share in the comments, please!!

For more Quick Takes, visit Jen at ConversionDiary.com.