In Which I Scholé In My Coupé

Usually when my DH gives me the afternoon to go read (or just drink a cup of something in peace) I go and visit the nearest chain caffeine-providing establishment... you know, the green one... with the coffee. But I'm sorry to say it's been getting more and more sketch at these places - at least the ones around me. So today, I took my reading to the car:

It's more comfortable than it seems... warm seats, quiet environment. I won't necessarily say that it's cleaner (as my picture clearly attests - *ahem*), but at least it's *my* dirt.

On the docket today was Every Sacred Sunday and Know and Tell

Every Sacred Sunday
Today was the 15th Sunday in Ordinary Time and because we had a party to go to later, we went to an earlier Mass at a different church. My children love this church because the walls are huge, floor to near-ceiling stained glass:

Photo by Juan Tamayo

I barely heard a word from the service (some days are just like that) but that's why I appreciate this journal. It has all the readings printed for me, with a place to write down notes (should I hear anything from the homily). The words I heard today focused on God's action: God calls us, God loves us - and we respond! Hopefully in the affirmative.

Know and Tell - Chapter 3: Principles of Narration
Principle #1 - Use high quality literature. Serving our students the literary equivalent of dry oatmeal benefits no one.
Principle #2 - Read it once. Don't interrupt. You may ask a question when the child is finished, but it is better to leave the student in a place where they know they have forgotten something than to "help" them fill in those details.
Principle #3 - Review previous narrated material regularly. Ask "What did we read/learn about last time?" Also do end-of-term assessments (approx every 12 weeks).
Principle #4  - The narration must be the child's (see Principle #2). When you ask questions, you disrupt the child's thought process and they become dependent on *you* to supply the questions again and again.

I also started Chapter 4: Building Fluency
Narration as an educational practice should begin at age 6, and not before. You can welcome them as they come naturally (and make sure to let the student know what they are doing, "What a great narration! I can see just what you're talking about!") but do not make them a requirement before age 6. Also, do not expect too much for the first year or two (!). The best lines about this came here:

"With a new narrator, almost anything can happen... In fact, the average six-year-old on the couch can dash an educational theory to pieces in a matter of moments, or so it would seem." 

Or this gem...

"If you think of narration as a child's oral "picture" of what she has heard, you can compare her progress with that of a budding artist. The enthusiastic two-year-old gripping a crayon in her fist is happy to be getting color or lines on paper. In the same vein, beginning narrators should simply be encouraged to use words--their own words--to "tell." If the result is as impressive as a two-year-old's scribble, that is what you should expect." (emaphasis mine)

Cheers to scribbles and babble! How did you scholé this week?

PS - I don't really have a coupé... but did you know that the word coupé comes from the French couper, "to cut (in half)" and was used in the 19th century to describe a shortened carriage that had no backseat? It was first applied to a closed 2-door automobile in 1908.


via GIPHY

How to Love Lent

But first, How NOT to Love Lent:

1. Decide that it's a season of moaning/groaning/general unhappiness

2. Decide to give up chocolate IF I HAVE TO.

3. Ignore any and all posts on the internet that try to convince you otherwise

I have done all of this, so I can attest that this easy 3 step method WILL WORK if your goal is to be unhappy for the next 46 days.

I, however, do not want to be unhappy for the next month and a half - I want to get closer to God. So let's try something else shall we? 

How to Love Lent: 

1. decide to write a blog post with that title and see if it can help 

(oh look I'm doing well so far!)

2. research ideas for ways to observe Lent with children

(My general attitude is quite toddler-tantrum-like anyway, so this might help me as well)

3. Enter a couple giveaways on Instagram, cause hey, who doesn't like winning stuff?

I have to admit, it's only Ash Wednesday - but these steps seem to be working so far, so maybe at Easter I'll let you know if it's a foolproof plan to Lent Lovingness.

In the meantime, this is what we'll be doing as a family and also what I'm going to try and do:

1. go to Mass a little bit more - always the number one way to observe the season, no? Starting of course with today:

We got our ash on... Well, most of us anyway.

A post shared by Sara Rooney (@rooney.sara) on Feb 14, 2018 at 9:37am PST

2. Complete a Jesus Tree - I was hesitant to do this again, not because we didn't enjoy it last year (we loved it!), but because I thought the wee girl would find it boring to repeat the activity. But after printing it all out and putting it on the wall, she seemed excited, and also like she didn't even remember it from last year. Ummm... so I guess that makes it like brand new?

3. Lent Dice - I admit it. This is mainly how I'm getting around the whole give up sweets for the whole 40 days business. Every day we roll the dice and see what we're doing and who/what we're doing it for. So really, every day I have only a 1 in 6 chance of having to give up chocolate! (I'm terrible, aren't I?) The kids are really excited about the "rolling" aspect of the dice... we'll see how we all do at "doing" the thing on it.

4. Above All - so I actually did win one of those giveaways on Instagram that I alluded to above! I find it highly amusing because I had already made a deal with myself that I wasn't going to buy any new devotionals. (I was/still am feeling really guilty after the dismal completion of the one I bought for Advent: I did 2 days of it and then it became a dust catcher.) But I half-jokingly prayed, "God, if you want me to do something special then you'll have to make it happen." And well, we know how that prayer (often) turns out. So, consider this my plea for accountability - help me do more than just 2 days in this thing! (And no, I will not allow 3 to be good enough.)

As I shared before, I want this Lent to be more about God and less about what I think I'm missing out on. I hope that by doing these things with my family, we'll accomplish just that.

What will you be doing for Lent this year?

Things Not to do the Morning of your First Day of Co-op - a 7QT

We here at Wild Goose Academy are still finding our groove on this whole "home education" adventure... the rhythm is starting to fall into place - though we still have trouble with the concept that we can't go outside to start our "Play Block" until we've put on clothes, and we've already made some curriculum "adjustments" (tossing aside a curriculum is counted as just an adjustment, right?). But generally overall, things are working out just nicely. We do homeschool on Monday and Tuesday, the wee girl goes to preschool on Wednesday and Thursday, and Friday was "field trip" day.

That is until yesterday, when we started homeschool co-op!

Now, logistically, I was thinking this would be a piece of cake to do - since on Wednesdays and Thursdays we have to get out the door by 8:15 to get the wee girl to preschool, but on Fridays co-op doesn't start until 9:30 and it's literally a few blocks down the road. To my (inexperienced? ever-optimistic?) mind this was a whole extra hour of time in the morning to get ready!

However, as I learned yesterday, this really doesn't mean much. So here are a few things NOT to do in the morning before going to co-op.

- 1 -

If it is a feast day - as yesterday was (Happy belated Michaelmas, y'all!) - do not think you can read all the bible stories from your children's story bible that have to do with angels. There are more in there than you think! And chances are your child will want to know why certain angels have swords (easy. Because they fight the devil) and others have blonde hair (ummmm....) and you just don't have time to tackle all that.

While we're at it... why do Gabriel's wings look like they could use a lint roller?

- 2 -

Regarding said feast day, don't think you can start preparing dinner for it at 8:30am, even though you are thinking to yourself "Well, all the squash is doing is just roasting in the oven..." It *might* have been possible at 7:30 when you're brain was in a slightly better frame of mind and you could have pulled out the recipe to make sure you were following it *correctly* - but, news flash, it's now 8:30 and the kids still aren't dressed (nor are you), breakfast hasn't been cleaned up (or entirely eaten - little dude, get back to the table), oh! And you haven't fixed everyone's lunches yet! Or taken a shower. And the kids are now fighting over that cute little Archangel Michael you bought. You're bound to mess something up or burn the squash.

Or in my case... both.

- 3 -

St Kateri could have been a bit more helpful...

Which brings me to my third point - don't give out "surprises" the morning of co-op. I loved that little angel sitting on our table before the kids came out to the kitchen. Yay for liturgically-themed table decor! But I neglected to remember that there was only 1 of them... and I have 2 kids.  Normally, this kind of math doesn't bother me in the slightest. There will always be instances where one kid gets something that another kid doesn't, and better to learn that lesson early. However, again, teaching that lesson before co-op is *not* the best use of your time. Getting the kids dressed, and their hair/teeth brushed is much more on point.

- 4 -

Don't think you can pack 3 lunches the morning of co-op without at least a little bit of prep. Especially if there are students in the co-op with a food allergy. As they say, a stitch in time saves nine. Plan ahead by at least washing the grapes the night before. Or figure out how you're going to carry 3 lunches and snacks. Or both! This will not only save you time, but also precious counter space as you will not be tearing out all your lunch bag options at the same time as you are searching for a place to let your grapes dry.

- 5 -

For the sake of the other members in your co-op, try not to let personal hygiene be the first thing that gets bumped when you look at the clock and realize it's 9:25am. Cleanliness is next to godliness after all, and if you're not going to be punctual, at least you can have clean teeth. (Sorry co-op members)

- 6 -

OK, now it's 9:30, you're dressed but your hair/kitchen/teeth are just a mess. Try not to take this out on your wee girl by yelling "SHOES!!" at her repeatedly. It isn't exactly her fault that you're all running behind, and now your yelling is only making her flustered. She will only respond with how all 4 year-olds respond: with more foot dragging and (probably) doing something to make her little brother mad... like, say, taking his hot chocolate while he's not looking and drinking it all. Cue the 2 year old brother meltdown when he realizes his cup is empty.

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(If I were on the receiving end of this, I might be flustered too)

- 7 -

One thing, nay 3 things, you *can* do once you've realized you've gone astray: Repent - rejoice - repeat. Truly, things did not start to get better until I prayed (out loud!) "Jesus, this morning has been a mess. I'm sorry. Please redeem this day." And He did! Our first day of co-op was great. It was so exciting to see the wee girl make connections between what we had been working on all week and the lessons we did in co-op on Friday. She made a great sand painting to boot. And the little dude did just great in the nursery (despite his still sensitive mood from his sister's hot chocolate-pilfering) - even making me look (dare I say it?) good by impressing the nursery teachers with his alphabet-singing-while-hand-washing and staying in his seat for *all* of lunch. (Now if he would just do that at home!)

So there you have it - feel free to learn from my mistakes! We're all about real-life education over here. *wink* There seem to be some other homeschool related links over at Kelly's, so pop on over and continue to get educated!

What's That Bright Thing In The Sky? - My Sunday Best - 05

Three years ago, when we took my sister and brother-in-law to Scotland for their very first trip to the UK ever, we had the most gorgeous weather... beautiful blue skies with white fluffy clouds, and hardly a drop of water to be seen (unless of course, you were looking at a river or loch). It made for dramatic landscapes and was truly stunning. So much so that my husband and I commented on it nearly every day, "You guys are getting the *best* weather here! Truly!"  After we got home, we continued to talk about it. It was that remarkable.

Fast forward three years... and last week, we arrived here with my parents for *their* first ever trip to the UK and... alas. The weather has not been as "show-offy."

In a much more typical Scottish fashion, it has rained nearly every day we have been here - sometimes all day, sometimes just on and off - but regardless, gray and cloudy 24/7. Really, the kind of weather one is much more likely to expect in Scotland. So I'm not complaining, I'm just sharing all this as a preface for my MSB picture:

Same-o same-o skirt and top. Bump: 20 weeks

Pardon the grimace, but it's bright out! Sun! Yay!! (Ouch!!)

A Blessed Corpus Christi to you! In a funny coincidence, we celebrated Mass at a church with the same name as our home parish: Holy Spirit. Half-way around the world and same name. What are the odds of that?

On our way to church, I told the wee girl that while the name of the church would be the same as our church there were probably going to be some things that were different too. So she suggested that we play a game: she would look for all the things that were the same, and I would look for all the things that were different. Honestly, I would have been more interested to hear about all the things that she noticed that were different - especially since the only thing that she said was the same were the "colors". (The colors where, honey? The ones the priest wore? The flowers? She wouldn't elaborate, so I guess we'll never know...).

So, would she have noticed the priest was African? That the music was accompanied by organ?  That we spent time in Adoration before the Blessed Sacrament and chanted in Latin? Or that the walls were decorated with mosaics? There were so many things that struck me as different, especially when I tried to imagine the view from her perspective and experience.

It was a good game to play I think. It got me thinking about the things I still need (and want) to learn (the Latin prayers being first and foremost), and about the things that I want to teach the kiddos. The amount of "material" (for lack of a better word) that is part of our faith really is overwhelming. I hope the kids and I always find that to be a source of inspiration rather than a cause for despair.  At the very least, I know that when things get to be "too much" I can always fall back on the Eucharist - the real and true presence of our Lord - always present to us and helping us to get home. Corpus Christi is a good day to celebrate indeed.

My MSB is a day late and a dollar short, but that just means you all can see everyone else's posts over at Rosie's! Do stop by and share the love. :)

Living in Bodies and a My Sunday Best

I guess when you think about it - our bodies are really important.

Get used to that outfit folks. I'm currently 17 weeks preggo
and it's just about the only Mass-worthy outfit I gots, so
you're going to be seeing a lot of it

Earlier this week, I picked up my copy of The Catholic Catalogue (my first actual, physical, non-internet reference for how to live like a Catholic), with the intention of reading up on the Ascension which we celebrated today.

Instead, I found myself in the beginning of the book reading about the sign of the cross. You know, that quintessential hand movement that makes Catholics stick out like sore thumbs at any ecumenical prayer meeting or that football players sometimes make after a touchdown? It seems so basic to Catholicism. So fundamental. And yet...

Can I share this in my most quiet, private voice?

I've always had such trouble with it. Not inside the church, of course. It's quite easy to make the sign of the cross when you're standing with a hundred or so others who are making it with you. But outside. With others. Certainly with non-Catholics, but oftentimes with Catholics as well. Heck, we don't even make it at dinner before we say grace. (Which, as you can guess, will now change as a result of this post.)

"But why?" you may ask. "Aren't you, sort of, a cradle Catholic?" Well, yeah. Sort of. I've spent more time in a Catholic church than any other. But you know what the real deal is?

(Lean in close please... cause I'm not really wanting to say this out loud.)

It makes me feel like a fake.

It's a pious action, and I fear it makes me look more pious than I am. It feels like a "holier-than-thou" motion when in the company of Catholics and non-Catholics alike.

So this was my frame of mind when I ran across this passage in The Catholic Catalogue:

"I remember as a teenager sometimes wishing for a disincarnate, less bodily Christianity. I wanted to belong to a church that was less ancient, more modern, less strange. I worried when my parents made the sign of the cross in mixed company that people would think they were superstitious, or uneducated fools. I wanted God to be a private matter. I wanted him to live in my heart, not on my head. Being Catholic was embarrassingly bodily, and I knew that public expressions of religion, like the sign of the cross, were considered poor taste." (emphasis mine)

This woman got me! She might be coming at it from a slightly different place, but she nailed it for me: being Catholic is embarrassingly bodily. From making the sign of the cross, to fasting from meat on Fridays; from using rosary beads while praying, all the way to practicing Natural Family Planning (NFP) instead of using contraception - the Catholic church insists that we are not to ignore how our bodies play into our spirituality (and more than that, it provides guidance on what a holy use of our bodies looks like).

To be honest, this was one of the aspects of Catholicism that drew me back to the Church - it forced me to get out of my head. When I have to physically go somewhere and talk to someone to confess and repent, then forgiveness no longer feels like a mind game. (And, on a related note - it then also happens! Prior to returning to the Catholic church I hardly ever thought about confessing my sins - because, honestly, who ever wants to think about that? - and so, I didn't.)

But this is also the aspect of Catholicism that is the most uncomfortable - because when I use my body to, say, make the sign of the cross, I am immediately communicating to others that I'm playing by different rules. My whole self shrinks back from sticking out like this. I'd like to call it "being sensitive to others" or even "showing by example how to not let ritual get in the way of authentic prayer" - but we all know it's fear. So maybe, maybe, if I remember that the sign of the cross *is* a prayer in of itself; maybe if I remember that "to make the sign of the cross is to say yes to God, yes to the Blessed Trinity, yes to the passion of Christ and the forgiveness of sin" then maybe I can put this fear aside, and step into this reality of new life and being clothed with Christ. Because that is what I really want - from the top of my head, to the tips of my toes.

Brownie points to you for reading to the end - if for no other reason than to find out why in the world I considered this a "My Sunday Best" post... well, isn't it obvious? Bodies, clothes, Catholicism... it's all related, right? Right? Well, should you disagree, head over to Rosie's to see what a real MSB looks like. And thanks for letting me ramble.

Get Ready for Lent, cuz Surprise! It's here!

I'm approaching Lent with a strange mixture of (happy) anticipation and dread this year. I think it might be because last year's Lent, even though it was the first time I had really ever observed it, seemed to go so well. Now that we're doing this a second time around, I wonder if I'll be able to rise to the occasion.

Ha ha. Pride. You nasty bugger you. Well, at least now we know one thing I'll need to be confessing this year...

(This was going to be a post for JEI, but since it looks like that may not be happening anymore, will you consider saying a prayer for Alicia and her family? This post is offered for her.)

What has worked for you or your family to make Lent meaningful?

Last year, on each Friday of Lent I packed a picnic lunch and took the kids to our church to do our own little Stations of the Cross. We would look at the picture for each station, I would explain what was going on/say a prayer to go with the station and then move on. By the end the wee girl was able to identify almost all the people in the pictures, so I think that was meaningful? I certainly gained an appreciation/awe for all that Jesus endured out of love for us. I'm going to try and do it again, but since this year the little dude is well...2 instead of 1 and *far* more mobile, I'm wondering how it might go down. Ah well, it's church right? He couldn't get into that much trouble could he? #famouslastwords

This year we're also going to try Nancy's Jesus Tree. The little girl is *still* talking about how she misses her Jesse tree - though I'm quite sure that's just because she misses the lights - so we'll see how this one goes over. (And if you read my last post - we're doing the paper one people! Definitely not the felt one. Though if anyone wants to go ahead and make me a set of those I would totally be on board with accepting it. :) )

What’s your go-to meatless meal?

Honestly? Taco night with refried beans instead of meat (we love these (not an affiliate link. Just FYI)) and then fish nuggets with broccoli. But I do have a few other easy meals, like this Sweet Potatoes with Beans and Greens or the Red Lentil Coconut Curry with Spinach below (it's easy! Promise! The ingredients list just looks long because of all the spices.)  Should you be interested, you can also find a list of all my "Friday Abstaining" meals here.

Print Recipe

Wild Rice Bowl with Red Lentil-Coconut Curry and Spinach

Source: thekitchn.com

Serves: 4

Ingredients

• 1 cup wild rice (or brown, I use brown)
• 2 tablespoons ghee (or butter or coconut oil)
• 1 medium yellow onion diced
• 3 cloves garlic minced
• 1 teaspoon minced ginger (or a 1/4 tsp dried ginger, if using add with other spices)
• 1 cup red lentils
• 1 tablespoon red curry paste (like this one)
• 1 tablespoon tomato paste
• 1 tablespoon curry powder
• 1 teaspoon coriander
• 1 teaspoon turmeric
• ¹⁄₂ teaspoon cayenne powder (optional)
• 3 ¹⁄₂ cups vegetable broth
• 2 cups baby spinach leaves tightly packed
• 1 (15.5-ounce) can coconut milk
• ¹⁄₂ cup Greek yogurt
• ¹⁄₄ cup cilantro leaves (lightly packed) to garnish

Directions

1. Prepare the wild rice according to the package instructions. Most wild rice takes about 45 minutes to become tender; you can also make it a few days ahead so it's ready when you need it.
2. While the rice is cooking, heat the ghee in a large saucepan with tall sides over medium-high heat. Add the diced onion and cook until lightly golden and soft. Add in the minced garlic and ginger, and sauté for another 2 to 3 minutes. Add in the red lentils, red curry paste, tomato paste, and spices, and cook until fragrant. Pour in the broth and bring to a boil.
3. Once the lentils and broth reach a boil, reduce to a simmer, cover, and cook for 15 to 20 minutes, or until the lentils are soft. Before serving, fold in the fresh spinach leaves, and pour in the coconut milk. At this point, taste the curry and adjust the seasoning according to your liking; add more salt or cayenne, if needed.
4. To serve, divide the wild rice equally into 4 bowls. Top each bowl with the curry, a dollop of yogurt, and fresh cilantro leaves. Serve immediately.

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Do you count Sundays as being part of Lent?

I'll have to defer to Kendra of Catholic All Year for this one, as I had no idea this was even a question! I just figured that your fast continued on Sunday because, well, it's still Lent. But nope. Read all about it here. (Really! It's quite informative)

What will you be doing for Lent this year?

Flyin' solo - My Sunday Best - 01

There's nothing like a good link up, amirite? This is one that I've watched from afar but hesitated to participate in because even though I understand its purpose (to encourage each other and build community around "getting thyself to Mass") - there were so many other reasons for me to not participate. Number 1 mainly being I have little fashion sense and number 2 being I have at most 3 outfits that I cycle through. Oh, and the whole awkward selfie thing.

But then I read this post from Alicia, and after reading it, I turned to my husband and said, "If I ever were to participate in a My Sunday Best linkup, this would be the only reason why." In it she says that she "participate[s] in My Sunday Best so other moms online can feel less badly about how their kids are behaving at Mass.  So they can see that other people only have a handful of Mass clothes that work– and it’s okay." The important part is that we're there and "Just like the invisible benefit of eating broccoli, going to Mass helps us in ways we can’t immediately see.  It gives me the grace to be a better mom and wife.  It gives the kids graces too.  Even if none of us completely heard the whole homily."

So count me in as part of the bloggers who won't be sharing fashion tips, but (may) regale you with tales of their children's antics!

Relaxing after mass - me in my outfit and the wee girl in her pj's - cause that's how we roll

Black cardigan - older than dirt - got it at Target
Red top - Do you like it? I love it. I got it at Ross
Jeans - Silver jeans co.
St Theresa of Calcutta medal - our wonderful Deacon John

This Sunday my husband was on a business trip, so I brought my littles all by my little self. But not before anxiously texting a friend: "I'm flying solo today. Can we sit next to you?"

Alas. She didn't get the message in time.

So we sat in the back next to some other friends of ours - even though they were sitting in the chairs in the back. Our family has a rule that we do not sit in these seats (anymore). These are the overflow seats and they're not bolted down - so hopefully it should be clear why I avoid them with my 4 year old and my 2 year old - even when Dad is there to help wrangle.  But I figured having 2 extra people around to keep the kids from getting out of line would make up for the moveableness of the chairs.

Only barely.

Things started out well - even though both children immediately pushed the chairs around so they could sit on the floor in-between chairs while nibbling on their Cheerios. The wee girl was remarkably self-contained and grabbed her coloring pages and crayons and kept to herself for more than half the Mass, leaving me to keep the little dude in line. But just like every week, things started falling apart after the homily: little fights for each other's cheerios, toys or water, trying to wander off, not staying in line when walking up for the Eucharist, then not returning to our seats afterwards (instead deciding to run to the doors and LICK the windows on them. Blergh!) Then when we finally got back to our seats, the little dude told his "big isser" that they should play "Hide Seek" and he started to count LOUDLY to ten... over and over again and he just wouldn't stop. Our saving grace was that a sweet baby behind us was also getting rowdy - and being a baby - was far more cute about it.

But then it was (finally) done and the children (and their mother) were finally free! (It does make me wonder if that's why we really say "Thanks be to God" at the end... ok, just kidding!)

But here we are done! (Thanks be.) Do feel free to click on over to Rosie for more.

12 in 2016 (a photo year-in-review)

Taking a page from HouseUnseen (cause I saw hers first) and also Revolution of Love and recapping my year with a picture a month. I tend to think my days/weeks are pretty boring, and then I do something like this and find that, "Hey! I'm not that boring after all!" Or at least, not by my standards. (Which can be pretty low. Ha!)

The little dude turned 1! I could hardly believe a year could go so fast. (Now to prep myself for saying that all over again, when in a month, he turns 2).

Lent came early in 2016 - and turned out to be the blessing of the year. I hosted a small group of women at my house and we went through the Blessed Is She Lent devotional together - the friendships formed there have grown through this year and I'm so grateful.

Joyfully celebrated St Patrick's day (with bangers and mash... cuz that's Irish, right?), Easter, and also Grandad's arrival. Not pictured here: little dude's first bike ride with Mommy, and our multiple trips to the Children's Museum. (Multiple.)

Little dude was getting much better at walking, apparently - as I kept seeing more and more photos of him like this rather than on all fours or just plain seated. Other memories not posted: Waffledagen, St George's day, Divine Mercy Sunday

Held our first Blessed Brunch on the feast of the Visitation. It was a lovely morning brunch with quite a few more ladies than I expected!

Took the kids to their first fast food restaurant ever - Amy's Drive Thru - I got kinda excited. Also began Camp Catholic, which turned out to be a great experience!

It was now really getting warm here! We continued doing Camp Catholic stuff and also added the Read the World bookclub to our weekly activities.

More library trips, more trips to the park, more "field trips"... and then the wee girl went and started preschool (Wah! Yay!)

Warm weather lasts a looong time here in California, so there were more trips to the beach and hanging out with the neighbors. Our side yard was overrun with cherry tomatoes. No really. Overrun. And I went away for a weekend to the Setting the World On Fire conference down in Altadena. What else?... Oh yeah! And Amy's Drive Thru picked up my picture from up above and stuck it in their IG feed for a day. #15secondsoffame

October brought us a little rain and a visit from Grammy and Poppy! I attended a one-day retreat with the musician Sarah Hart. The kids played in puddles and piles of leaves. Halloween came and the wee girl finally understood the concept of dressing in costume... so she dressed in her Merida costume from the year before, the wee dude dressed up as the bottom half of BB-8 (because he doesn't get dressing up yet himself) and I wore cat ears. But most importantly we got candy.

For the 3rd year in a row, we went to the Aquarium for the wee girl's birthday. Holding to tradition, she looked, but refused to touch the sea stars. Grandad-dad returned for another visit (and also got a "dad" added to his name, courtesy of the little dude). Advent started...

...and ended! I know this picture is fuzzy and my hair's a mess but I just love it anyway. My little dude... our first real tree... the nearly 2 year old bicycle that the wee girl still won't ride (even with the snazzy new saddlebags on it). It's a beautiful mess. I hope for more of it in 2017.

Thank you for reading and blessings on your new year too!

When God knows your "word" before you do

With the end of the year approaching, my mind is starting to look back and take stock. I'm not one to do resolutions (ever) but this year I tried something new: I chose a word to guide/inspire me in 2016. That word was LEARN.

Kind of a nice idea, yes? So open... so wise... so mature. What a good word for me to pick! Yet as I look back on my year, it makes far more sense to say that God gave me this word, and He used it to prime me to accept and seek out new learning opportunities... opportunities that (of course) He had already picked out and planned for me. I can only imagine him in heaven chuckling, "So that's how she wants to approach 2016? With a "word"? Hmmm, let's give her a good one then, shall we?"

Man plans and God laughs.*

But it has been a good year, full of learning. One of the best examples was participating in Camp Catholic this summer - an online "summer camp" with a great tag line: "Don't let your faith life take a summer vacation!" I wish I could remember now how I stumbled across it. Camp Catholic was organized by a non-profit called Catholic Extension - they've been around since 1905, supporting and strengthening churches in the poorest areas of America. So I probably saw it on Instagram, or maybe on Facebook... regardless, I remember being especially drawn to it because so many of my friends were posting pictures of how they were taking awesome vacations, or doing really fun activities with their families and, well, we didn't have any fun trips or special activities on the docket. (It's a natural consequence of getting ready to knock down your dilapidated detached garage to build something a bit more... *ahem* water-tight.) So yes, that means I was comparing and probably a little jealous. Good thing going to confession was one of the activities planned for Camp Catholic! 😉

When I considered whether we should join, I was reminded of my "word". Since the whole spirit of the Camp was to deepen our faith in Jesus and increase our understanding of the Catholic church, it seemed silly to pass it up - so, we joined:

During the 2nd week of Camp we learned about the liturgical calendar: about the seasons (Advent, Christmastide, Lent, Eastertide, Ordinary Time) and the colors associated with the different seasons of the church year. Camp Catholic created a neat infographic about it and we still keep it up on our refrigerator. I also learned that we are woefully short of green-colored clothing.

We had our first "field trip" for a feast day - celebrating St Junipero Serra's day on July 1st. Cline Cellars, a winery in Sonoma, has a small museum with reproductions of all the California missions, and a rather creepy looking mannequin of Fr. Serra too.

I think it's the slightly cross-eyed expression that unnerves me.

We had lunch on their grounds, rang a bell that used to hang in one of the missions, and bought a bottle of wine to commemorate the event (because winery. Can't pass it up!)

Keeping my phone at the ready to snap pictures for Camp actually helped me grab some fun shots too...

On left: my daily reminder to turn to God (week 3),
Top right: my neighbors (week 6); Bottom right: favorite saint (week 5)

Like I mentioned, every week they provided really useful infographics on topics ranging from "What is that thing up on the Altar?" to "Sisters vs. Nuns" (Hint: it's not the newest MMORPG) and "Everyday Catholic Devotions" And while I would really like to say that all of these were for teaching the children... well, we already said my word for the year was LEARN, didn't we?

But these are exactly the topics that I wish I had known more about when I was younger, so I really hope that when the wee ones get to be not-so-wee Camp Catholic is still around to do with them. Because regardless of whatever "word" they can come up with to guide their years, I'm sure this kind of education can always be worked in somehow.

Did you have a word for this year? Or will you be choosing a word for 2017?

Our Jesse Tree Stories & Ornaments (This year, at least!)

Why mention that it's only for "this year", you ask? Well, a couple reasons:

1. The length of Advent is different from year to year. I've always known that Advent is the 4 Sundays that precede Christmas - but it never really dawned on me until recently, that this means the number of days in Advent can (and does) change from year to year. This year Advent is 28 days long - the longest it can possibly be - and that's because Christmas itself is on a Sunday. Next year though, Christmas will be on a Monday, which will mean that the season of Advent will only be 22 days long. So next year 6 of our ornaments will have to be cut from the rotation. Which ones will they be? Decisions, decisions. (Glad I have a year to figure it out.)
2. I reserve the right to change my mind. It's a work in progress! Already there are ornaments/stories that I don't like and want to swap out for ones that I do. (What do we call this? The woman's perogative? 😉 ) For instance, last year I made a baby Moses in a basket-boat ornament, which I actually really like! But in terms of story-telling, it makes much more sense to just tell the story of Moses at the burning bush (and use that ornament) and add another ornament/story in somewhere else.

Since this isn't a crafty how-to kind of post, I'll cut right to the chase. Wherever possible, I'm reading the story from the Jesus Calling Bible storybook, but when that fails then I'm just reading the story straight from the Bible. My audience is a 2 year old and a 4 year old though, so pictures really help, and I really like the artwork in the Bible storybook.

First Week of Advent

Sunday - Isaiah 11:1-10 - the Jesse tree stump
Monday - the Creation story - world
Tuesday - Adam, Eve and first sin - apple
Wednesday - Noah and the flood - ark
Thursday - God's promise to Abraham - field of stars
Friday - Abraham offers Isaac - ram
Saturday - Jacob & Esau - 2 twins

Second Week of Advent

Sunday - Jacob's ladder - the ladder (duh!)
Monday - Joseph - many-colored coat
Tuesday - Moses - burning bush
Wednesday - the first Passover - lamb
Thursday - God gives the 10 Commandments - 2 stone tablets
Friday - Samuel anoints Saul as king - crown
Saturday - David and Goliath - slingshot

Third Week of Advent

Sunday - Elijah and the widow - oil jar and sack
Monday - the story of Ruth - heart
Tuesday - the calling of Isaiah - tongs with coal (I still have to make this one!)
Wednesday - Jeremiah - tears
Thursday - Jonah - whale
Friday - Daniel captured by Babylon - plate of veggies
Saturday - Daniel and the lions' den - lion

Fourth Week of Advent

Sunday - Gabriel appears to Mary - lily
Monday - Mary visits Elizabeth - rose
Tuesday - John the Baptist - seashell
Wednesday - Joseph, protector of the holy family - hammer
Thursday - the wise men - star
Friday - Jesus, creator-redeemer: John 1:1-18 - ChiRho
Saturday - Jesus, born in a stable - manger

So there you have it! Does your family do a Jesse Tree? Are there stories/ornaments that I really should have included that I missed? I would love to hear your thoughts!

That Time I Spent $10 on a Grasshopper - a 7 Quick Takes

Sometimes I know exactly what I want to do to celebrate a certain feast day. For instance, St George's day we do pretty good at. Food? Check. Coloring pages? Check. Library books? Check. Funny YouTube video of St George and Dragon that will give my daughter nightmares for the following week? Well, um... yeah. Check. (Sorry about that one honey!)

And then there are days I think I have figured out, but when I go to execute... it turns out to be more than anticipated.  The nativity of St John the Baptist (June 24) was just such a day.

- 1 -

I actually began thinking about this day waaay back in May. (In a departure from my normal 5-6 day lead time.)

Proof.

But as you can see, I didn't get very far in my thought process. So I did some research...

- 2 -

What I really love about this particular day is its cosmic connection to the calendar. We know from Luke 1:36 that when Gabriel announced to Mary that she would have Jesus, Elizabeth was already 6 months pregnant with John.  So that would make John and Jesus' birthday roughly 6 months apart too. Both John's and Jesus' birthday are celebrated shortly after the summer and winter solstices, respectively. Thus after Jesus' birthday, the days get progressively longer and after John's birthday, the days get progressively shorter. A very real and cosmic way of depicting how John said, "He must increase, and I must decrease." (John 3:30)  I find this super cool. What I don't find too cool (or even comfortable) was John's diet and wardrobe: he lived in the wilderness eating locusts and honey, and wearing a shirt made of camel hair. (Classy.) This little cartoon makes it all look really cute though:

- 3 -

But back to the story. Up until a week before JTB's day I was still thinking I would make some kind of cake with honey in the shape of a grasshopper... which the more I thought about it, the more I feared it would end up on CakeWrecks. So I ditched that idea in favor of something that I wouldn't have to make myself... hmm.... honey... what dessert uses honey? Ooo! I know! Baklava! And I'll decorate them with those plastic grasshoppers you can find everywhere. So with that plan solidly cemented in place a full 7 days in advance (go me) - I went about my week.

- 4 -

Come Thursday (the day before the big day), I figured it was time to go out and get that baklava and grasshoppers that you can easily just pick up anywhere that sells... you know... baklava and grasshoppers. Shoot. Where did I think I could just do that? I didn't have any luck at Target. So I headed to Michael's thinking I could at least get a few grasshoppers there. We scoured the whole store looking for the green little things, with E constantly asking, "Mommy? Where are the grasshoppers? Is this a grasshopper? Mommy? Is this a grasshopper? Mommy? Where are they?? OOHH!! Look! Dory! and NEMO!!" The Little Dude meanwhile was growing more impatient with every minute he was strapped into the cart - so when I finally found a tube that had plastic bugs in it - including one measly little grasshopper - I decided that was good enough and I threw it in the cart and headed up to the checkout to pay for it.

$10.86

Ten freakin' eighty-six. For a grasshopper. Well, for a grasshopper and 13 other plastic bugs, that now I will find strewn all over the house and will forget that they're not real, so when I see them I will scream and freak out until I see they're plastic and then I'll feel silly and will silently curse myself for thinking that buying this tube of craptabulous stuff for $11 was the good and right thing to do. For the kids. *sigh* Well baklava shouldn't be too hard to find, right? One failed trip to a store, and 3 phone calls later... yeah, sure. Not hard at all! (Bangs head on table.)

- 5 -

However, John the Baptist's birthday was celebrated and even enjoyed! In the morning the wee girl and I colored these pages of JTB both with, and without, locusts. The wee girl is also on a bit of a Lego kick these days, and wouldn't you know it? I found a retelling of the story of John the Baptist on YouTube - done with Lego!

She didn't like it. (Of course.)

- 6 -

And dinner didn't go too badly either, if you ignore the fact that I fried the microwave. (Pro tip: insert food before turning on microwave.) I even did a little decorating!

If this counts as "decorating." And yes, that's a party hat on John.

- 7 -

So... best laid plans and all that. At least I'm prepared for next year.

Yeah, buddy. That's where you will stay for the whole year so I don't lose you and have to shell out another 10 bucks.

I'm a little late in posting my 7QT so when you click over here, you'll have a lot of (much better) blogs to read! Don't forget to say hi :)

Geeking out over veggie burgers

Confession: sometimes I do this "liturgical living" thing because I'm lazy.

Allow me to explain. Ever since we started to suspect that our diet might be having an impact (of the negative variety) on our family's health, I've been using tools like "Plan to Eat" to do meal planning. But as anyone who's ever planned meals will tell you, no matter how many apps, tools or articles you have, sometimes meal planning is just plain hard and/or boring. It's a chore.

So one of the ways I've countered this is with themed days - Meatless Mondays, Fish-on-Fridays, leftovers-on-Wednesday, Sunday Roasts. (We tried Taco Tuesdays, but that one didn't really stick...

...unless you mean to his face. Then it stuck very well.)

The "Fish-on-Fridays" one is the expressly Catholic one in the list, as Canon law says that "Abstinence from meat, or from some other food as determined by the Episcopal Conference, is to be observed on all Fridays" (Can. 1251) - and for some reason fish is not considered "meat".  So, with Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays pretty much figured out that just leaves Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays to plan. (Genius, right? ;) )

BUT that paragraph goes on to say that "Abstinence from meat... is to be observed on all Fridays, unless a solemnity should fall on a Friday." And yesterday, was just such a solemnity - The Solemnity of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus!

"Come, and have hamburgers to celebrate."

(I'm terrible. Sorry. But this solemnity is a truly beautiful one - even if the paintings for it are so kitschy - as Fr. Jim Martin said so well.)

And here's where I'm lazy. Once I figured out that we could have meat on Friday I dreaded the thought of planning and cooking something - so I suggested to the husband - why don't we just go out to eat instead? This is often easier said than done with little children, so we decided fast food would be the way to go. And we were both totally on board with that until we remembered - eating hamburgers often results in us getting sick. (We're not really sure why.) So that sent us back to square one. Until we remembered this:

Also known as "Vegan Heaven"

Yes, Amy's Drive Thru - where everything on the menu is vegetarian! (Or vegan, if you so desire). The way I figured it, is that since it was a solemnity we should be celebrating and that can easily be done without meat. Just going out makes it special enough, right?

We brought our own pages to color:

Say, "Vegan CHEEZE!"

The wee girl and little dude LOVED it. I've never seen her eat pizza so fast! Both of them could hardly be contained in their seats, they were dancing around so much. And best of all? Paul and I felt perfectly fine afterwards! You guys, we went to a fast food restaurant and didn't get ill! I can see us going here a lot more often.

Amy's Drive Thru: "Runs on Love" ...and us? On the Sacred Heart.