Domestic Vocation

Moving Day

2011-01-19T10:04:00.000-05:00

I've done it. I've moved this blog to WordPress, and I'll delete it eventually. For commenting, please go to the new site for Domestic Vocation.

Wordless Wednesday: Little Leaves

2011-01-05T15:11:00.000-05:00

From our last hike in the Fall. Who could be hiding behind those little leaves?

It's just the three people I love most, that's all.

Thinking of Moving

2011-01-04T16:54:00.002-05:00

I have already made the move for my Soccer Mom blog, and I'm thinking of moving this one, too.

If I do, I promise to post a link and let you know.

Thanks!

Seven Quick Takes: Almost a New Year Edition

2010-12-31T12:24:00.004-05:00

Thanks as always to Jen, the hostess with the mostest. She hosts the Seven Quick Takes at her blog, Conversion Diary.

1. Our family life is never going to stop being busy. I used to think, "If I can just get through X, then life will calm down a bit."

I now know that is crazy-talk. When life slows down, it'll mean the girls have flown the nest, and then I'll be sad. I'm going to try to embrace the craziness and not freak out that I have to leave my Hobbit Hole again this week.

2. Little Girl asked to play basketball with her older sister this winter. It's a really small league of homeschoolers - at least the basketball season is - and before I mailed in the check that was double the amount it usually is for a sport's season, I asked her, "Are you certain you want to play?" (She's not really the sports/competition type.) "Oh, yes!" she assured me.

The other day, she said, "I feel bad because I decided I didn't want to play basketball after all and now it's too late." Yup. Too late. She'll play another season of sports that she really isn't interested in playing but that she asked to play because the real thing she wanted was to do something with her sister and this is the best bet because Big Girl can't suddenly join up with dance and be in Little Girl's class and so we're all going to ENJOY the basketball season and Little Girl will thank God Almighty in Heaven Above that the season is only six games long including any potential playoffs.

3. Thanks to the lovely Jen, we also have patron saints for the year. I informed Travel Man that we'd be doing this. First, it's good to know your family. Second, we now have the amazing wall set up in the spare room for the Communion of Saints. We put our family and friends, plus any people we're praying for (priests, religious, whatever) in the Church Militant level. We put our beloved dead in the Church Suffering level. Finally, when we know a saint well enough, we put them in the Church Triumphant level. This will give us four new family members to put in Church Triumphant. Little Girl got Therese (the movie) for Christmas, and St. Therese will go up soon. Big Girl did a report on St. Francis, as well as read all about St. Gianna Molla, last school semester, so we're going to print pictures of them and put them up, too. It's really going to be cool, and a nice way to get to know the many saints in the Church.

(For a short explanation of the Churches Militant, Suffering, and Triumphant, see this Wikipedia article.)

4. I got St. Charles Borromeo, who is patron against abdominal pain and intestinal difficulties. This is extremely humorous to me. Here's why.

5. For Christmas, Travel Man decided that I needed new clothes, and more than the "I think I'll get a new pair of jeans and watch for those pretty sweaters to go on clearance." (I was breaking down about the jeans when Big Girl announced loudly that I had a rip in the backside of my older pair. I've been wearing longer sweaters since then.) He took me out on a shopping and lunch date yesterday and we bought several nice things for me. I'm wearing one outfit on Sunday to a Baptism we're headed to. I'm VERY excited. And grateful. I'm the last one who gets clothes most of the time, and it was neat to be out shopping just for me, even if I was a little uncomfortable with it being all about me.

6. This week, I kept looking at my desk, thinking that it really needed to be cleaned off. So this morning, I dumped an entire extra-tall mug of peppermint-mocha coffee all over everything, including my camera and the new external hard drive and the iMac's keyboard. (Okay, so it sloshed UNDER the external drive. But still…) The camera seems to be working fine, and it smells really yummy, and the keyboard is working fine, as well. Hard drive didn't really get yucky, and the papers were mostly trash-bound, anyway. So now my desk is almost totally cleared off.

I recommend going with a less-stressful method, though.

7. How about a fun music video? This church does some neat things as openings for their services. They did a really awesome thing for Father's Day, and this was for one of their Advent services (though I doubt they called it that).

Merry Christmas, and happy new year!

Wordless Wednesday: Hark!

2010-12-29T00:36:00.001-05:00

Merry Christmas!

2010-12-27T10:35:00.002-05:00

In your celebration of this Blessed Christmas Season …

… don't forget the most important Gift we have received.

'Tis Christ, the Lord.

Jesse Tree: December 25 - Merry Christmas!

2010-12-25T00:00:00.000-05:00

(Note: This is a series of posts from 2008.)

Merry Christmas! Above is our last Jesse Tree Ornament, which we'll hang this morning.

1 And it came to pass, that in those days there went out a decree from Caesar Augustus, that the whole world should be enrolled. 2 This enrolling was first made by Cyrinus, the governor of Syria. 3 And all went to be enrolled, every one into his own city. 4 And Joseph also went up from Galilee, out of the city of Nazareth into Judea, to the city of David, which is called Bethlehem: because he was of the house and family of David, 5 To be enrolled with Mary his espoused wife, who was with child.

6 And it came to pass, that when they were there, her days were accomplished, that she should be delivered. 7 And she brought forth her firstborn son, and wrapped him up in swaddling clothes, and laid him in a manger; because there was no room for them in the inn. 8 And there were in the same country shepherds watching, and keeping the night watches over their flock. 9 And behold an angel of the Lord stood by them, and the brightness of God shone round about them; and they feared with a great fear. 10 And the angel said to them: Fear not; for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, that shall be to all the people:

11 For, this day, is born to you a Saviour, who is Christ the Lord, in the city of David. 12 And this shall be a sign unto you. You shall find the infant wrapped in swaddling clothes, and laid in a manger. 13 And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly army, praising God, and saying: 14 Glory to God in the highest; and on earth peace to men of good will. 15 And it came to pass, after the angels departed from them into heaven, the shepherds said one to another: Let us go over to Bethlehem, and let us see this word that is come to pass, which the Lord hath showed to us.

16 And they came with haste; and they found Mary and Joseph, and the infant lying in the manger. 17 And seeing, they understood of the word that had been spoken to them concerning this child. 18 And all that heard, wondered; and at those things that were told them by the shepherds. 19 But Mary kept all these words, pondering them in her heart. 20 And the shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God, for all the things they had heard and seen, as it was told unto them.

Gospel according to Saint Luke, Chapter 2, Verses 1-19

Jesse Tree: December 24

2010-12-24T00:00:00.000-05:00

(Note: This is a series of posts from 2008.)

Theme: Jesus is the Light of the World

1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 The same was in the beginning with God. 3 All things were made by him: and without him was made nothing that was made. 4 In him was life, and the life was the light of men. 5 And the light shineth in darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it.

Read the rest:

John 1:1-14

Jesse Tree: December 23

2010-12-23T00:00:00.000-05:00

(Note: This is a series of posts from 2008.)

Theme: Jesus is Emmanuel

22 For the Lord is our judge, the Lord is our lawgiver, the Lord is our king: he will save us.

Read the rest:

Isaiah 7:14, 33:22

Jesse Tree: December 22

2010-12-22T00:00:00.000-05:00

(Note: This is a series of posts from 2008.)

Theme: Jesus is King of the Gentiles

8 Ask of me, and I will give thee the Gentiles for thy inheritance, and the utmost parts of the earth for thy possession.

Read the rest:

Psalm 2:7-8, Ephesians 2:14-20

Jesse Tree: December 21

2010-12-21T00:00:00.001-05:00

(Note: This is a series of posts from 2008.)

Theme: Jesus is the Radiant Dawn

6 He hath set his tabernacle in the sun: and he, as a bridegroom coming out of his bride chamber, Hath rejoiced as a giant to run the way: 7 His going out is from the end of heaven, And his circuit even to the end thereof: and there is no one that can hide himself from his heat.

Read the rest:

Psalm 19:6-7

Jesse Tree: December 20

2010-12-20T00:00:00.000-05:00

(Note: This is a series of posts from 2008.)

Theme: Jesus is the Key of David

22 And I will lay the key of the house of David upon his shoulder: and he shall open, and none shall shut: and he shall shut, and none shall open.

Read the rest:

Isaiah 22:22

Jesse Tree: December 19

2010-12-19T00:00:00.000-05:00

(Note: This is a series of posts from 2008.)

Theme: Jesus is the Flower of Jesse

1 And there shall come forth a rod out of the root of Jesse, and a flower shall rise up out of his root. 2 And the spirit of the Lord shall rest upon him: the spirit of wisdom, and of understanding, the spirit of counsel, and of fortitude, the spirit of knowledge, and of godliness.

Read the rest:

Isaiah 11:1-3

Jesse Tree: December 18

2010-12-18T00:00:00.000-05:00

(Note: This is a series of posts from 2008.)

Theme: Jesus is Lord

2 And the Lord appeared to him in a flame of fire out of the midst of a bush: and he saw that the bush was on fire and was not burnt.

Read the rest:

Exodus 3:2, 20:1

Jesse Tree: December 17

2010-12-17T00:00:00.000-05:00

(Note: This is a series of posts from 2008.)

Theme: Jesus is Wisdom

6 I made that in the heavens there should rise light that never faileth, and as a cloud I covered all the earth: 7 I dwelt in the highest places, and my throne is in a pillar of a cloud. 8 I alone have compassed the circuit of heaven, and have penetrated into the bottom of the deep, and have walked in the waves of the sea...

Read the rest:

Sirach 24:2, Wisdom 8:1

Jesse Tree: December 16

2010-12-16T00:00:00.000-05:00

(Note: This is a series of posts from 2008.)

Theme: John the Baptist

6 And John was clothed with camel's hair, and a leathern girdle about his loins; and he ate locusts and wild honey. 7 And he preached, saying: There cometh after me one mightier than I, the latchet of whose shoes I am not worthy to stoop down and loose. 8 I have baptized you with water; but he shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost. 9 And it came to pass, in those days, Jesus came from Nazareth of Galilee, and was baptized by John in the Jordan. 10 And forthwith coming up out of he water, he saw the heavens opened, and the Spirit as a dove descending, and remaining on him.

11 And there came a voice from heaven: Thou art my beloved Son; in thee I am well pleased.

Read the rest:

Mark 1:1-18

Jesse Tree: December 15

2010-12-15T00:00:00.000-05:00

(Note: This is a series of posts from 2008.)

Theme: Mary

28And the angel being come in, said unto her: Hail, full of grace, the Lord is with thee: blessed art thou among women. 29 Who having heard, was troubled at his saying, and thought with herself what manner of salutation this should be. 30 And the angel said to her: Fear not, Mary, for thou hast found grace with God.

31 Behold thou shalt conceive in thy womb, and shalt bring forth a son; and thou shalt call his name Jesus. 32 He shall be great, and shall be called the Son of the most High; and the Lord God shall give unto him the throne of David his father; and he shall reign in the house of Jacob for ever. 33And of his kingdom there shall be no end.

Read the rest:

Matthew 1:1-18, Luke 1:26-38

Jesse Tree: December 14

2010-12-14T00:00:00.000-05:00

(Note: This is a series of posts from 2008.)

Theme: Joseph

18 Now the generation of Christ was in this wise. When as his mother Mary was espoused to Joseph, before they came together, she was found with child, of the Holy Ghost. 19 Whereupon Joseph her husband, being a just man, and not willing publicly to expose her, was minded to put her away privately. 20 But while he thought on these things, behold the angel of the Lord appeared to him in his sleep, saying: Joseph, son of David, fear not to take unto thee Mary thy wife, for that which is conceived in her, is of the Holy Ghost.

Read the rest:

Matthew 1:18-25

Jesse Tree: December 13

2010-12-13T00:00:00.000-05:00

(Note: This is a series of posts from 2008.)

Theme: Solomon

5 And the Lord appeared to Solomon in a dream by night, saying: Ask what thou wilt that I should give thee.

6 And Solomon said: Thou hast shown great mercy to thy servant David my father, even at, he walked before thee in truth, and justice, and an upright heart with thee: and thou hast kept thy great mercy for him, and hast given him a son to sit on his throne, as it is this day. 7 And now, O Lord God, thou hast made thy servant king instead of David my father: and I am but a child, and know not how to go out and come in. 8 And thy servant is in the midst of the people which thou hast chosen, an immense people, which cannot be numbered nor counted for multitude. 9 Give therefore to thy servant an understanding heart, to judge thy people, and discern between good and evil. For who shall be able to judge this people, thy people which is so numerous? 10 And the word was pleasing to the Lord that Solomon had asked such a thing.

Read the rest:

1 Kings 3:5-14, 16-28

Jesse Tree: December 12

2010-12-12T00:00:00.000-05:00

(Note: This is a series of posts from 2008.)

Theme: David

26 And David spoke to the men that stood by him, saying: What shall be given to the man that shall kill this Philistine, and shall take away the reproach from Israel? for who is this uncircumcised Philistine, that he should defy the armies of the living God? 27 And the people answered him the same words saying: These things shall be given to the man that shall slay him. 28 Now when Eliab his eldest brother heard this, when he was speaking with others, he was angry with David, and said: Why earnest thou hither? and why didst thou leave those few sheep in the desert? I know thy pride, and the wickedness of thy heart: that thou art come down to see the battle. 29 And David said: What have I done? is there not cause to speak?30 And he turned a little aside from him to another: and said the same word. And the people answered him as before.

Read the rest:

1 Samuel 17:12-51

Jesse Tree: December 11

2010-12-11T00:00:00.000-05:00

(Note: This is a series of posts from 2008.)

Theme: Jesse

1 And the Lord said to Samuel. How It long wilt thou mourn for Saul, whom I have rejected from reigning over Israel? fill thy horn with oil, and come, that I may send thee to Isai the Bethlehemite: for I have provided me a king among his sons. 2 And Samuel said: How shall I go? for Saul will hear of it, and he will kill me. And the Lord said: Thou shalt take with thee a calf of the herd, and thou shalt say: I am come to sacrifice to the Lord. 3And thou shalt call Isai to the sacrifice, and I will show thee what thou art to do, and thou shalt anoint him whom I shall show to thee. 4 Then Samuel did as the Lord had said to him. And he came to Bethlehem, and the ancients of the city wondered, and meeting him, they said: Is thy coming hither peaceable? 5 And he said: It is peaceable: I am come to offer sacrifice to the Lord, be ye sanctified, and come with me to the sacrifice. And he sanctified Isai and his sons, and called them to the sacrifice.

Read the rest:

1 Samuel 16:1-13

Jesse Tree: December 10

2010-12-10T00:00:00.000-05:00

(Note: This is a series of posts from 2008.)

Theme: Samuel

1 Now the child Samuel ministered to the Lord before Heli, and the word of the Lord was precious in those days, there was no manifest vision. 2 And it came to pass one day when Heli lay in his place, and his eyes were grown dim, that he could not see: 3 Before the lamp of God went out, Samuel slept in the temple of the Lord, where the ark of God was. 4 And the Lord called Samuel. And he answered: Here am I. 5 And he ran to Heli and said: Here am I: for thou didst call me. He said: I did not call: go back and sleep. And he went and slept.

6 And the Lord called Samuel again. And Samuel arose and went to Heli, and said: Here am I: for thou calledst me. He answered: I did not call thee, my son: return and sleep. 7 Now Samuel did not yet know the Lord, neither had the word of the Lord been revealed to him. 8 And the Lord called Samuel again the third time. And he arose up and went to Heli. 9 And said: Here am I: for thou didst call me. Then Heli understood that the Lord called the child, and he said to Samuel: Go, and sleep: and if he shall call thee any more, thou shalt say: Speak, Lord, for thy servant heareth. So Samuel went and slept in his place.

Read the rest:

1 Samuel 3:1-18

Jesse Tree: December 9

2010-12-09T00:00:00.000-05:00

(Note: This is a series of posts from 2008.)

Theme: Moses

1 After this there went a man of the house of Levi; and took a wife of his own kindred. 2 And she conceived, and bore a son; and seeing him a goodly child hid him three months. 3 And when she could hide him no longer, she took a basket made of bulrushes, and daubed it with slime and pitch: and put the little babe therein, and laid him in the sedges by the river's brink, 4 His sister standing afar off, and taking notice what would be done. 5 And behold the daughter of Pharao came down to wash herself in the river: and her maids walked by the river's brink. And when she saw the basket in the sedges, she sent one of her maids for it: and when it was brought,

6 She opened it and seeing within it an infant crying, having compassion on it she said: This is one of the babes of the Hebrews.

Read the rest:

Exodus 2:1-10

Jesse Tree: December 8

2010-12-08T00:00:00.001-05:00

(Note: This is a series of posts from 2008.)

Theme: Joseph

23 And as soon as he came to his brethren, they forthwith stript him of his outside coat, that was of divers colours: 24 And cast him into an old pit, where there was no water. 25 And sitting down to eat bread, they saw some Ismaelites on their way coming from Galaad, with their camels, carrying spices, and balm, and myrrh to Egypt.

26 And Juda said to his brethren: What will it profit us to kill our brother, and conceal his blood? 27 It is better that he be sold to the Ismaelites, and that our hands be not defiled: for he is our brother and our flesh. His brethren agreed to his words. 28 And when the Madianite merchants passed by, they drew him out of the pit, and sold him to the Ismaelites, for twenty pieces of silver: and they led him into Egypt.

Read the rest:

Genesis 37:23-28, 45:3-15

Jesse Tree: December 7

2010-12-07T00:00:00.000-05:00

(Note: This is a series of posts from 2008.)

Theme: Jacob

21 And Isaac besought the Lord for his wife, because she was barren; and he heard him, and made Rebecca to conceive. 22 But the children struggled in her womb: and she said: If it were to be so with me, what need was there to conceive? And she went to consult the Lord. 23 And he answering said: Two nations are in thy womb, and two peoples shall be divided out of thy womb, and one people shall overcome the other, and the elder shall serve the younger. 24 And when her time was come to be delivered, behold twins were found in her womb. 25 He that came forth first was red, and hairy like a skin: and his name was called Esau. Immediately the other coming forth, held his brother's foot in his hand, and therefore he was called Jacob.

Read the rest:

Genesis 25:1-34, 28:10-15

Jesse Tree: December 6

2010-12-06T00:00:00.000-05:00

(Note: This is a series of posts from 2008.)

Theme: Isaac

1 After these things, God tempted Abraham, and said to him: Abraham, Abraham. And he answered: Here I am. 2 He said to him: Take thy only begotten son Isaac, whom thou lovest, and go into the land of vision: and there thou shalt offer him for an holocaust upon one of the mountains which I will show thee. 3 So Abraham rising up in the night, saddled his ass: and took with him two young men, and Isaac his son: and when he had cut wood for the holocaust he went his way to the place which God had commanded him. 4 And on the third day, lifting up his eyes, he saw the place afar off.5 And he said to his young men: Stay you here with the ass: I and the boy will go with speed as far as yonder, and after we have worshipped, will return to you. 6 And he took the wood for the holocaust, and laid it upon Isaac his son: and he himself carried in his hands fire and a sword.

Read the rest:

Genesis 22: 1-14

Jesse Tree: December 5

2010-12-05T00:00:00.000-05:00

(Note: This is a series of posts from 2008.)

Theme: Abraham

1 And the Lord said to Abram: Go forth out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and out of thy father's house, and come into the land which I shall show thee. 2 And I will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee, and magnify thy name, and thou shalt be blessed.

Read the rest:

Genesis 12:1-3

Jesse Tree: December 4

2010-12-04T00:00:00.000-05:00

(Note: This is a series of posts from 2008.)

Theme: Noah

5 And God seeing that the wickedness of men was great on the earth, and that all the thought of their heart was bent upon evil at all times,

6 It repented him that he had made man on the earth. And being touched inwardly with sorrow of heart, 7 He said: I will destroy man, whom I have created, from the face of the earth, from man even to beasts, from the creeping thing even to the fowls of the air, for it repenteth me that I have made them. 8 But Noe found grace before the Lord.

Read the rest:

Genesis 6:5-8, 13-22, 7:17, 23-24, 8:1, 6-22

Jesse Tree: December 3

2010-12-03T00:00:00.000-05:00

(Note: This is a series of posts from 2008.)

Theme: The Fall of Man

1 Now the serpent was more subtle than any of the beasts of the earth which the Lord God had made. And he said to the woman: Why hath God commanded you, that you should not eat of every tree of paradise? 2 And the woman answered him, saying: Of the fruit of the trees that are in paradise we do eat: 3 But of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of paradise, God hath commanded us that we should not eat; and that we should not touch it, lest perhaps we die. 4 And the serpent said to the woman: No, you shall not die the death. 5 For God doth know that in what day soever you shall eat thereof, your eyes shall be opened: and you shall be as Gods, knowing good and evil.

Read the rest:

Genesis 3:1-7, 23-24

(Pictures are of our home-made ornaments.)

Jesse Tree: December 2

2010-12-02T00:00:00.000-05:00

(Note: This is a series of posts from 2008.)

Theme: Adam and Eve

7And the Lord God formed man of the slime of the earth: and breathed into his face the breath of life, and man became a living soul. 8 And the Lord God had planted a paradise of pleasure from the beginning: wherein he placed man whom he had formed. 9 And the Lord God brought forth of the ground all manner of trees, fair to behold, and pleasant to eat of: the tree of life also in the midst of paradise: and the tree of knowledge of good and evil. 10 And a river went out of the place of pleasure to water paradise, which from thence is divided into four heads.

Read the rest:

Genesis 2:7-9, 18-24

(Pictures are of our home-made ornaments.)

Jesse Tree: December 1

2010-12-01T00:00:00.000-05:00

(Note: This is a series of posts from 2008.)

Theme: Creation

God createth Heaven and Earth, and all things therein, in six days.

1 In the beginning God created heaven, and earth. 2 And the earth was void and empty, and darkness was upon the face of the deep; and the spirit of God moved over the waters. 3 And God said: Be light made. And light was made. 4 And God saw the light that it was good; and he divided the light from the darkness. 5 And he called the light Day, and the darkness Night; and there was evening and morning one day.

6 And God said: Let there be a firmament made amidst the waters: and let it divide the waters from the waters. 7 And God made a firmament, and divided the waters that were under the firmament, from those that were above the firmament, and it was so. 8 And God called the firmament, Heaven; and the evening and morning were the second day. 9 God also said: Let the waters that are under the heaven, be gathered together into one place: and let the dry land appear. And it was so done. 10 And God called the dry land, Earth; and the gathering together of the waters, he called Seas. And God saw that it was good.

11 And he said: Let the earth bring forth the green herb, and such as may seed, and the fruit tree yielding fruit after its kind, which may have seed in itself upon the earth. And it was so done. 12 And the earth brought forth the green herb, and such as yieldeth seed according to its kind, and the tree that beareth fruit, having seed each one according to its kind. And God saw that it was good. 13 And the evening and the morning were the third day.14 And God said: Let there be lights made in the firmament of heaven, to divide the day and the night, and let them be for signs, and for seasons, and for days and years: 15 To shine in the firmament of heaven, and to give light upon the earth. And it was so done.

16 And God made two great lights: a greater light to rule the day; and a lesser light to rule the night: and the stars. 17 And he set them in the firmament of heaven to shine upon the earth. 18 And to rule the day and the night, and to divide the light and the darkness. And God saw that it was good. 19 And the evening and morning were the fourth day. 20 God also said: Let the waters bring forth the creeping creature having life, and the fowl that may fly over the earth under the firmament of heaven.

Read the rest:

Genesis 1:1-31, 2:1-4

(Pictures are of our home-made ornaments.)

A Babe is Born!

2010-11-29T15:13:00.002-05:00

Head over to Sarah's blog and wish her happy anniversary. And ... congratulate her on the birth of her first son. What a fantastic present! How on EARTH will her husband top that she gave birth to his first son for their anniversary?

Anyway, babies are always a welcome gift in this world. Go tell her hi!

"[A] shoot shall sprout from the stump of Jesse, and from his roots a bud shall blossom."

2010-11-17T00:45:00.002-05:00

A few years ago, I'd heard about a tradition called the Jesse Tree. It seemed like a neat idea: each night during December, you read a bit about our salvation history, working your way through the Old Testament, and see how God worked throughout history from Creation through the Fall and up until Christ came into the world. And each day, after reading your Scripture, a child could hang an ornament on the tree.

Really, it's a beautiful thing. And it really reinforces the idea that at no time was God absent from our lives. At no time did He forget His promise to Adam and Eve: that one day, Someone would come to set the world to rights again and redeem mankind.

It's something that can get lost in the whole Christmas preparation. Goodness knows it's tough to even focus on the true meaning of Advent when we have Christmas trees up in stores on November 1 and Thanksgiving decorations on clearance before November 10. Really, Advent has been completely lost to the greater part of our culture. We move from Thanksgiving to Christmas season.

But Catholics ought to know better. And, if we're paying attention to our readings - daily or Sunday-only - we'll be reminded of the fact that we are about to enter Advent, the time we prepare ourselves for the coming of Christ. Not just as a Babe in the manger, but at the end of time. Thus, our readings focus on the Last Things: Death, Judgement, Heaven and Hell.

Doesn't quite jive with "Jimgle Bells," does it?

But Advent is important. Advent is the time when we take stock of ourselves and try to make ourselves presentable to the King. We ought to be paring back, focusing on what's important: Christ's coming. Because we don't know when He's coming back, but we need to be ready. We're going to hear Jesus tell us that in Noah's day, there was eating, drinking, and merry-making among the people who were about to be wiped out. We're going to hear John the Baptist warn us to repent, to avoid imitating the brood of vipers who rest easy, thinking their salvation is secure without any more effort than calling themselves children of Abraham. Then we'll hear Jesus praise John the Baptist, and call us to look to the Old Testament prophecies to see the foretelling of His coming. And, finally, we'll hear of Joseph's obedience to the Lord - and of his trust in God's providence.

Funny, but until this moment, I hadn't thought to look at all of Advent's readings at once that way. But look at that message!

Prepare, for Christ is coming. Judgement will be upon you when you least expect it. Do not think that just because you sit in that pew every Sunday you're safe. Examine your life and repent! None of this is new information: the Scriptures clearly tell us of God's plans for us all. And imitate Joseph, humble and obedient to God, even when he didn't understand the entire plan. Take Jesus into your heart as your own, just as St. Joseph did.

This is a great reminder for adults. But for children, how do we help them focus on the real meaning of Advent? How do we help them prepare properly for Christmas?

The Jesse Tree has been our answer to this dilemma.

There are plenty of different sites for Jesse Tree activities, and the readings can vary from place to place. The important thing is that they all do focus on the preparations God made for His people for the coming of the Savior. Symbols, too, can vary. Each ornament tends to be a symbol of the reading for that day. Our family uses this site's information for our readings, and the girls chose a symbol for each reading from the list given there. We made bake-able play-dough so they could create their own ornaments, as well. (Originally, we used a branch and paper ornaments, but I could see that they wouldn't last very long.)

For the tree, I set up our Christmas tree, which is pre-lit, and put absolutely nothing on it. Each evening, one of the girls reads the verse and the other hangs an ornament up. And, slowly, the tree starts to fill up. (We add no other decorations until Gaudete Sunday, which is when the whole house gets the Christmas treatment.)

Because of these readings each night, the girls have begun to see the connection between the Old and New Testaments. And they stop and contemplate God's mercy each evening. It's like an antidote to the rest of the world, who all seem to be rushing at Christmas at breakneck speed and who will throw the whole thing out on December 26.

Which, incidentally, is only the second day of Christmas. But that's a whole other post for you.

If you're looking to really get your family honed in on the true meaning of Christmas, then the Jesse Tree is for you. It doesn't need to be elaborate, either. You could make paper ornaments and a paper tree to hang on a wall or on your refrigerator and tape the symbols up. You can find pre-made ornaments online to print, color, and cut out. Some even come with reflections ready to print!

Or, if you want to come back here each day in December, you can find links to the readings we use, as well as a picture of the ornament my girls made for our tree. Posts will come up automatically throughout December.

Cross posted at Just Another Day of Catholic Pondering.

UPDATE: If you'd like the readings we use, all ready to go in a PDF file, just head over here and download away!

Wordless Wednesday: Birthday Edition

2010-11-10T08:44:00.004-05:00

Happy 235th Birthday, United States Marine Corps. Thank you for your service.

The Lord bless thee, and keep thee.

The Lord shew his face to thee, and have mercy on thee.

The Lord turn his countenance to thee, and give thee peace.

-Aaron's Blessing

Saving Our Children's Purity, Part II

2010-11-10T07:50:00.001-05:00

I started with Part I here, which might be helpful to read first. Because of the deeply personal nature of this post, I previewed it with Big Girl and obtained her permission to post it as it appears for you below.

**************************************

"Do you want to sit down?" I asked her as she stood by our bed.

She sighed. "Yes. This could take a while."

And so began the torrent of tears. Big Girl is going to a NET Ministries presentation with the youth group from church, and I'm going to a Moms' Night Out. So Travel Man is taking Little Girl on a date. She wants to go see Megamind.

Unfortunately, we'd told Big Girl that we probably wouldn't go see it because it's expensive to go to the movies (all four of us) and we've been kinda spendy for the last few months. So she's upset that she isn't seeing a movie she wants to see, but Travel Man is taking her sister to go see it.

But that's the tip, and it was abandoned almost immediately for the more pressing issues: that we aren't letting her have a boyfriend or a cell phone or to go on a "date" with a boy she likes.

I had to really, really think about this. Because there's something WRONG with a 12 year old having a boyfriend. (The cell phone thing, we determined pretty quickly, was a battle she knew she wasn't going to win, but she wanted to vent about it since she thinks everyone sees her as a total freak for not having one.) That, and she was tired of school. It's hard in seventh grade, suddenly there's a lot of history and writing and these are both new - at least in the quantity that they're coming in.

But, back to the boyfriend thing. It's WRONG, for sure, but I couldn't put my finger on it. On the fly, I prayed my favorite prayer to pray when I'm in trouble and need immediate input.

"HELP!!!"

It's actually quite effective.

Travel Man had handled the movie thing already, and I suddenly had my answer for the boyfriend issue.

"If you have a boyfriend now, what's left for later?"

"Huh?"

"If you start dating now, at 12, and you have a boyfriend, what's left to happen later, say, in four years?"

"I have a deeper relationship with him later."

Oh, horrid words! She has NO IDEA what that means to a 16 or 17 year old boy!! She's so innocent!

Trying not to cringe, trying not to pull punches, I finally realize that I have to let her have the information I didn't really think I'd need to share with her for years. But, let's face it: she's not me. She's not, at 12, the size of her nine year old sister. She's not bespecled, she has no acne. She isn't a "carpenter's dream." She's not so socially awkward that she sometimes hides from people she knows in public so she doesn't have to say hi to them. She is BEAUTIFUL and smart and funny and confident and outgoing and did I mention beautiful? (Protecting her innocence might be a real nightmare for my poor husband.)

When I was 12, boys ignored me. Unless it was to throw gypsy moth caterpillars at me. I liked being ignored better.

Not Big Girl. She's amazing. She's who I wanted to be at 12. And now I see God's wisdom and protection in the late-blooming nature of my whole life.

I have to tell her that the "deeper relationship" very often turns to sex. Girls lose their virginity. They have babies. Her aunt delivered a baby for a mother who was my precious Big Girl's age. The culture is a cesspool, and even though I do everything I can to protect her, and even though she obeys me without question when we're walking through the mall and I order the girls to "look down quick!" so we can run a gammet of disgusting pictures and displays in shops, stuff is there. And it seeps in. And for boys, it is FAR worse! I try to explain as best as I can without details, that the visual makes boys' and men's brains fire like mad. Her dressing modestly protects not only her, but also the boys she knows. That it's scary-hard for those boys who want to remain pure for their future wives because the cesspool is EVERYWHERE. I get frantic (partly to snap her out of her hysterics, partly because, dammit, I've been holding this in for years): I can't walk through the mall without eight six-foot by four-foot signs of women in their underwear being plastered in front of SANTA CLAUS AT THE MALL! I can't check out at Wal Mart without magazines discussing things that children should never see! I don't mention that I'm sick of pedophiles designing clothes that try to make my innocent girls look like hookers. But she starts to see a little.

I explain again:

"Honey, if you start dating now, you have a boyfriend now, in four years, if you want to show your love, what's left? Where do you go?" Now she's just staring at me, wide-eyed. "Honey, those boys are so pressured now ... "

Here I turn to my patient husband, who's been listening to me try with all my might to help her understand what I'm protecting her from without actually going too far.

"Honey, it's worse now. How bad was it for you when you were a boy?"

"Awful. And now is just as bad, and I'm an old married guy."

I turn back to my wide-eyed daughter.

"Big Girl, sweetheart, those boys are so pressured into thinking that the way you express that deeper love is to give up your virginity. That is so dangerous for so many reasons, but let's remember the most important is that it puts your very soul in mortal danger. After being with someone for three, four years, you WANT to show them how much you love them. But you can't get married when you're 16."

She's already said that she wasn't going to do that. But I know better. Sadly, I know better.

"When you wait to have a real boyfriend until you're 16, then when that three or four years go by and you want your love to be deeper, then you're *ready to be married*! And that's why we don't want you to have a boyfriend. Because you need to save that special time for when you are ready, emotionally, to have a boyfriend."

At this point, she was starting to feel a little overwhelmed. She started getting silly, laughing a little, and changing the subject. I pressed her for an answer, though. "Even if you don't totally agree, do you at least *understand* our reasons now?" She did.

And, at 11:45 PM, she skipped upstairs to go back to bed.

Saving Our Children's Purity, Part I

2010-11-08T10:31:00.005-05:00

Our family is weird by today's standards. In more ways than one.

The first oddity is our undying devotion to the Catholic Church and all she passes on to us from God. Yes, all. No, we don't think women priests are a good idea - it can't even be done. No, we don't think that contraception is okay sometimes. No, we don't think that abortion is okay in the cases of rape and incest - those babies are not guilty of anything. No, we don't think that homosexuals are able to get married. Yes, we love our priests and bishops and the Holy Father. We pray for them all, and we obey the Church, even when it's hard. That not only makes us weird in the general world out there, it also makes us weird to a lot of Catholics. That makes me a bit sad, but that's life, you know?

Next comes our strange decision to keep our kids with us at home and teach them here. Homeschooling is more accepted than it was 15 years ago, and I am so grateful for the parents who fought so hard to ~~gain~~ reclaim our right to be the primary educators of our own children. The Church teaches that all parents are their children's primary educators, and when I applied for the religious exemption in our state, I referred to this right in my explanation of why I'm homeschooling. It's a God-given right for me to teach my children, to have them educated how I see fit, in order that they gain Heaven.

Even though homeschooling is not frowned upon by most people any more (thanks, Tebow family!), we are still looked at askew sometimes by parents who cannot imagine having their children around them 24/7.

Me? I like my girls. I love having them around, and it's not because I want to shelter them. They're really neat people. They're funny and smart and witty and great to be around. I feel a little bad for parents who don't like being with their kids. I feel bad for the kids, too, because if your parents don't like you, who will?

But anyway, we are weird for homeschooling. We do things like have school in our PJ's sometimes, or take field trips that last a week, like when my parents took them on a field trip to Washington, DC. Or take tours of old churches as part of school. We read Shakespeare and the kids make my husband and I act out the balcony scene in Romeo & Juliet, or the scene in Juliet's tomb, with me lying on the couch while my husband pretends to stab himself and die on the living room floor. Because doing that while your third-grader cheers you both on is really not very normal. (It should be. Lemme tell you what, ladies. Try acting out that balcony scene with your husband and then try containing yourself until the kids are in bed! WHEW!)

We're also weird because we shelter our kids from a lot of things we feel they aren't ready for. Things that are now considered normal for kids to have or do. While they do have access to a computer for schoolwork, both girls have parental controls on the internet browser that limits where they can go. Neither of them are allowed on YouTube to just watch videos, even of stuff we think might be okay. (You NEVER know what those "related videos" will be!) They are not allowed to have Facebook accounts, which is not a big deal for the nine year old, but does make the 12 year old look strange to her friends.

They don't have cell phones, either. Oh, there have been times when they're away all day on a Youth Group trip or a dance rehearsal where we'll loan them a phone (Travel Man has a work cell and a personal cell). But they don't have their own. And they won't for a long time. We've said to them both that we'll start the discussion when they turn 16 and start doing things like drive and work. Until then, they'll live. Heck, I didn't have a cell phone until I was in my 20's, and I lived. I'm sure they won't implode.

This is actually something we've had to really explain - not to other parents, usually. The ones who say anything are usually the ones who lament the day they bought a cell phone for their child. The ones who have no regrets don't usually try to persuade us; maybe we look like we just don't care what they think. But to the kids, and especially to Big Girl, who is blazing the path and has to be the first one to ask for everything.

The thing is, there is an unrestricted internet on that phone. And texting. And calls to who-knows-who. Frankly, I don't let them just call anyone on the house phone, or just start sending emails to just anyone. (As a matter of fact, the kids are white-listed on their email accounts. Each new address sent to or received from must be approved by a parent first. Permissions can also be rescinded.) But with a cell phone, that's impossible to control. Not only can I not control much who's called, I cannot control who is sending messages to my girls. And, while at 12 and 13 that's probably not a concern, I know what happens when hormonal teenagers have cell phones with video, still cameras, and an unlimited texting and messaging plan. And why take the risk of exposing them to any of that early? At this point, neither of them have enough sense to know who should have their phone numbers. I know they'd give them out to everyone they're friends with!

Now, it's super-hard to protect their purity when we go out. I'm not even talking about the mall, where we avoid an entire section to avoid Victoria's Secret's gigantic soft-p*rn window-display posters. I'm talking about walking between Spencer's and a T-shirt place where my kids have almost nowhere to look without taking the chance of them seeing something vile. I'm talking about Wal Mart's checkout line where Cosmo sits, usually without the blinders, proclaiming that it has great ideas for … well, you know. But while Cosmo is still out in front on the smut parade, even the more tame magazines display big headlines about being sexy and the gossip magazines talk brazenly about hook-ups, shack-ups, break-ups, and babies out of wedlock as though it's all peachy-keen, hunky-dory, good and healthy stuff.

And teen girls are being pressured to start dating earlier and earlier. You're a loser if you don't have a boyfriend when you're 12. If you're not getting to go out alone with that boyfriend by 13 or 14, you're just really a weirdo. Don't forget to wear that sexy outfit! Lace leggings and a miniskirt! Yippee!

*barf*

This Culture of Death is trying to dress my girls like hookers, push them into dating early, and then will throw condoms at them and tell them that they just can't help themselves because they've got hormones and stuff and gosh if you love him then why not it's just sex and everyone does that eventually get that virginity thing out of the way and have you seen Sex and the City yet?

*double barf*

Well-meaning people have asked me, "What's the big deal? To her, having a boyfriend means they sit together and like each other."

I had to think a lot about what that means. Not to her, but for real. What, in real life, does it mean to have a boyfriend? Where does it lead? What is the reason people date? Do I even WANT her dating, or do we want more of a courtship situation? There is something I don't like about it, but I couldn't quite put my finger on it.

I've been praying since my Big Girl was born about how to answer these questions - and questions about growing up and human sexuality - because I needed to be ready with good, clear answers with reasons behind them that I could explain. My answer had to be more than "No," and "Because I said so."

I was finally confronted with having to give answers recently, and I'll share those answers with you in Part II.

(UPDATE: Part II can be found here.)

Wordless Wednesday: Vacation Adventures (Part I)

2010-10-27T09:39:00.002-04:00

I did manage to rescue him and get him home safely. More pictures later, I'm sure.

Seven Quick Takes: Birthday Edition

2010-10-15T11:26:00.011-04:00

Many thanks to Jen, our hostess with the mostest, for organizing the Seven Quick Takes Fridays for us! Stop by her blog and see other Quick-Takers.

~one~

Today marks my older daughter's twelfth birthday. It is so amazing to me that she is already twelve. How can it be? It doesn't seem that long ago that we took these pictures:

And now I've got this girl:

Unbelievable. She's a young woman now.

~two~

She's also a really kind and sweet young woman. I love that about her. She hides it a lot, and has a tendency - like her mother - to be sarcastic. But under that rough exterior is a gentle soul who loves people and does her best to help them. She strives to be closer to God, but doesn't wear her faith on her sleeve. It's a private and deep faith, probably deeper than I realize.

~three~

My Big Girl is also a funny kid. One day, I was describing a child on her soccer team who hadn't played before this season and was unsure of herself. Our conversation went like this:

Me: When she's on the field, her body language is all nervous and stuff. She looks like she almost hopes the ball doesn't come by her, and when it does, her body language is all like, "HERE COMES THE BALL!!!! WHAT DO I DO, WHAT DO I DO!!??!!??"

Big Girl: Um, maybe her body language needs to use its inside voice.

She slays me. And I'm not usually astute enough to write down what she says.

~four~

She, on the other hand, has great confidence on the soccer field. She's been playing since she was almost three. (They let her on the team because they were starting a week or two before her birthday, and the first game would be after she was three.) That season, she spent a lot of time picking flowers and running after butterflies. She also spent a whole game pushing people because after she'd come to us on the sidelines in tears over being pushed, we told her that a little pushing was okay in soccer, as long as you weren't trying to push anyone over. From that moment on - which was more than half the game - she spent her time running up to opposing players, one after another, and pushing them.

She has matured a bit in her soccer games.

This season, she has desperately wanted to play up in the front line, maybe even as a striker, but her skills in that position are not as good as some of the other children, and her defensive skills are very, very good. (She tends to go where a player is headed, knowing instinctively where to go to best cut him off. She's been doing it for years, triangulating her position on the field defensively.) So her coach keeps her on defense. She is excellent, but unhappy. Well, not unhappy; just less happy than she'd be on the front. But she doesn't complain to her coach about it. She plays the position because it's where her team needs her. And I'm really proud of her for that attitude.

Each season, the team votes on the player who is Most Christ-Like. Each child picks two people, and the one person with the most votes wins. She's never won, and we hope she has a chance this year, but in my book, she is Most Christ-Like on the team this season.

~five~

I bought her a birthday present back in March or April. I've been hiding it, and have been completely crazy with excitement over it. I'm going to video her opening her presents, and I'm thinking about putting it up here. I expect her to think we are the Best Parents Ever at the end of today.

~six~

Considering I'm making her do schoolwork today, and being a little mean to her about it because she is Dawdling Like a Pro, saying we'll be named Best Parents Ever tonight is a tall order.

I am THAT confident about her present.

Last time she named us Best Parents Ever was for her tenth birthday, when we bought her an iPod Shuffle. She had been begging for an iPod, and we kept saying, "You're not old enough yet." We'd already decided on the Shuffle for her birthday and had it hiding in our room since late February. (I kid you not. I shop this way all the time. I've had my parents' Christmas gift picked out and purchased - except for what was made this weed - since January. When I see the deal I want on something I'm going to get for someone as a gift, I jump on it.)

This was the result:

~seven~

Tomorrow, we'll be leaving for vacation. (Yes, again.) My parents are taking my girls to Alexandria, VA, and we're going to National Harbor, MD (just across the Potomoc). We'll meet up for a day - maybe two - during the week. Then it's off to another Fourth Degree event for the Knights of Columbus on our way home. The girls are going with us, and we all have fancy-schmancy dresses to wear to the black-tie dinner. I needed to get clothes appropriate for the dinner for all three of us, and after buying my amazing husband his own tuxedo, the budget was tight. Well, the tux, plus the fact that both girls grow like weeds and needed new Fall clothes AND shoes.

So anyway, we went to Goodwill. I used to scoff at people shopping there. I have to say, Goodwill stores don't look like much. But that's okay, because I got over myself and started to go for the kids' clothes. And then I found stuff for US!

I bought three dresses (pictures will come, I promise!), and I spent under $10 on them all. Including tax. The little shrug I bought to wear with my dress cost more! The shoes for the girls cost more. The pantyhose I bought for the three of us cost more!

Plus, I also found a Liz Claiborne turtleneck sweater for $3.50, and I bought a new white turtleneck for myself - Land's End - for $3. I hadn't bought a white turtleneck for myself since 1984. (Seriously. I'm not kidding.) That old turtleneck is now going to be put to use on Halloween.

But that's my next Quick Take.

Have a blessed week!

Homeschooling History

2010-09-22T23:12:00.004-04:00

My girls are both using Catholic Heritage Curricula this year, and I really like their history programs. Each are writing summaries of the things they are learning about, and they are both researching in the library and in our nifty new encyclopedia set. (I bought the 2000 edition of the World Book Encyclopedia, minus a couple of books, for $5 at our local branch.) Between the World Book and Maureen Wittmann's resource, I'm doing well in getting books for them to read.

*********************

In the first quarter of fourth grade, Little Girl is researching our home state of Virginia. Each week she writes a little more about the state. So far, she's done three essays on the things she's learned. I have helped a bit with structure, and this week I helped a bit with sorting out the precious little (and slightly confusing) information we could find about early missionaries in Virginia. But by and large, she has written these essays on her own. She's occasionally asked for help in creating a decent sentence out of her new knowledge, and I have, naturally, made some corrections. These are all normal for her age. (Any notes within their essays, I have included as smaller text in italics.)

Here are her three essays that she's done so far on Virginia:

I. Virginia

The first people that lived in Virginia lived here in the fifteen-thousand BC, they lived here till the beginning of the sexteen-hundreds. At least, that's what the scientists say, they actually could have lived here longer, or shorter. By about 1200 BC the woodland culture began. Now, a chief or head-man would lead a village. ARound that time they learned to dig up clay from the wet riverbank to make what archaeologists call woodland pottery. Later on, people from England came to Virginia and made a settlement called Jamestown.

In his early tweties, John Smith traveled all over the middle east and Europe. He sailed across the Atliantic Ocean and ended upin Virginia. He named the town he found Jamestown. When more people, later on, lived in Jamestown, there was more farming done. But, the farmers did not do the sowing, the watering, the weeding, or any other important gardening things. They had slaves that did the work for them instead of doing the work themselves. The people that lived in Virginia had slaves for a long time, until Abraham Lincoln made a new law that made slavery illegal. Virginia has a nickname, like other states, and Virginia's nickname is "The Old Dominion." It was made a state in 1776, and the state flower is the Dogwood. The state tree is the flowering dogwood.

(You can see here that I didn't do a lot of correcting and adjusting. I wanted her to feel good about finishing her first really big research project. We talked about ways to improve it the next time, but I mostly left this one alone.)

II. Virginia Part II (How Virginia Became a State)

Before Virginia became a state, the British ruled the thirteen colonies. A group of people gathered together and discussed independence because they did not like being ruled by a king. Some of the people were Benjamin Franklin, Thomas Jefferson, and John Adams. The committee wanted someone to write a Declaration of Independence. Thomas Jefferson was the one instructed to write it. He began his work on June 11th 1776. After finishing his final draft, the other people in the committee edited it and gave it to congress on June 28th. On July 2nd, congress voted for independence before releasing it to the public on July 4th, or, Independence Day.

In 1882, John Adams wrote a letter to Timothy Pickering that, at the beginning, read:

"You inquire why so young a man as Jefferson was placed at the head of the committee for preparing a declaration of independence? I answer: It was the frankfort advice to place Virginia at the head of everything."

III. Taking a Look at Virginia's Early Missionaries (You see here that her title has even improved! I didn't even mention this to her, but she might have picked it up from my lessons with her sister.)

In 1526, Dominican friar Antonio de Montesinos said mass near the future Jamestown. Friar Antonio also brought back Indians to Spain. One of the Indians was later baptized as Don Luis de Velasco. Later, in 1570, Don Luis de Velasco helped two priest and their companions on a mission to Axacon. The priests were named Fr. Segura and Fr. Luis de Quiro. Their trip was not just them but seven other Jesuits and three Indian boys. That means there were thirteen all together on the mission. The priests and their companions landed and fortunately got a warm welcome. They later built a log chapel and started a mission with the help of Don Luis. Unfortunately, Don Luis betrayed them and helped the nearby Indians kill everyone in the mission but one Indian boy. After that, missions stopped until Virginia became a colony. Maryland was a colony at the same time as Virginia, but it was especially for Catholics. People in Maryland supported new missions in Virginia, because it wasn't a good place for Catholics until 1786, when Thomas Jefferson wrote a statues allowing Catholics to be free in worship. Many years later, on July eleventh, 1820, Pope Pius VII created the Richmond Diocese.

(I admit that I think I corrected, while typing, a couple of spelling errors. I think she wrote "compainions" and "fortunally" in there. But she did spell out the numbers as I typed them!)

The next set of writing she'll do is about the states Catholic shrines and/or missions. Might be interesting since our parish itself was a mission parish at one point! In fact, because Catholics comprise such a small part of the population in Virginia, this is actually still considered mission territory! What will also be nice is that in October we'll be at the Basilica of the Shrine of the Immaculate Conception in Washington, D.C.

*********************

Big Girl has a different task this year. Though she, too, is studying American history, hers is much more in depth - as it should be for a seventh grader! Every week she has a new set of topics to research, and she writes not only a summary of the topic, but she also writes shorter essays on sub-topics that relate to the main one!

Her first week was about Indians in North America. She read in Christ and the Americas about the Aztecs and wanted to learn more about them. Here are her three essays from the first week of history:

The Aztecs

The Aztecs were an interesting culture. They had different habits than we do now. The women stayed home and cleaned, while the men gathered the crops, or worked in the fields. Women's clothes were a sleeveless blouse, with a skirt, while men wore only a loincloth & a tilma.

In battle, the Aztecs fought to capture, not to kill. While fighting Aztecs would only midly wound their enemy, then take them as prisoners. Later, they would sacrifice the prisoners.

As for religion, the Aztecs were very gory, because they would cut the heart out of a living man, then throw the body in a ditch. There were many Aztec gods, mostly gods of harvest & of plants. They made sacrifices almost every day.

Mostly, the Aztecs ate tortillas with vegetables. However, they also ate mean, and drand chocolate drinks. They also raised dogs & turkeys for food.

So, the Aztecs were different, but not all in a bad way. To them, we would be weird, too. After the Spanish Conquest, the Aztecs died out. However, we know they were an interesting race, and that they were brave & strong.

The Aztec Gods

The Aztecs thought highly of their gods. There were sacrifices almost every day. Over 100 people died each sacrifice. This cut down the population greatly. The Aztecs thought if they didn't sacrifice, the sun wouldn't rise the next day. There were many gods, many of which had to do with nature. The gods were worshipped until Cortez arrived. The Aztecs built HUGE stone monuments to the gods the size of cathedrals! Once a sacrifice took place for 4 days and 4 nights! 80,000 men died that night. The priests would cut out a victim's hear, place the heart in a statue of a god's mouth, and throw the body in a ditch.

Hernando Cortes

Hernando Cortes was sailing to mexico. When he got there, he found the Aztec Civilization. The emperor, Montezuma II, feared he was a god, &, having had a bad treatment in the past, came back to avenge himself. The year was 1519. Cortes had actually come for wealth and riches. Though he arrived on Good Friday, he was battling the Aztecs by the end of the year. The Aztecs, after they found out he wasn't a god, were angered because he wouldn't leave.

The first battle raged, then both sides, Spaniards and Aztecs backed away. The fights continued for over a year, until the Spaniards prevailed. But it still took a lot to win. Cortes even took Montezuma II hostage for a time. Later, however, Montezuma II died of battle wounds. So in Tenochtitlan, future Mexico City, the Spaniards defeated the Aztecs. He ended the brutal sacrifices. And, he is now remembered throughout history.

The second week brought us to the Vikings: first explorers of the New World. Notice how she has gotten the hang of grabbing your attention with a title and the opening lines.

Let's Go A-Viking!

Vikings were not like Haagar the Horrible. Nor were they like the Minnesota Vikings. Many of the presumptions we have about Vikings are incorrect. First of all, they did not have horns on their helmets. And, though barbaric at times, the Vikings had a softer side: family life.

The Vikings usually had arranged marriages, but women had more rights than women of other cultures at the time. They had a right to money, land, and could divorce their husband whenever they wanted.

The main occupation of a Viking was farming. They grew barley, oats, rye, fruits and vegetables. They raised cattle, goats, pigs, sheep, and were even fishermen!

For recreation, they liked rowing, swimming, skiing, wrestling, and horse races.

The Vikings liked poetry, so that's why we have sagas. They also painted and crafted boats.

As for religion, Vikings were polytheists, but there were 3 main gods: Odin, king of the gods; Freya, goddess of agriculture; and Thor, god of war. The Vikings also had Valhalla, life after death, where you could fight all day and feast all night. Later, Lief Ericsson led them to start to convert to Christianity.

Vikings came from many places. They came from Sweden Denmark, and Norway. They Swedes invaded Western Russia, Eastern Belarus, and Eastern Ukraine. The Danish invaded France, the Netherlands, and parts of England. The Norwegians invaded England, Ireland, Scotland, the Isle of Man, and Lindisfarne. The Vikings also helped unify France and England.

The Vikings first used Latitude and Longitude, and also discovered Greenland and Vinland, now called North America.

In spite of what popular culture says, Vikings were not all about fighting. They cared about family and harvest too. People think all they did was pillage and burn villages, but the Vikings also wrote poetry, painted, and made ships, which they considered art. Even today, we use their invention, Latitude and Longitude.

Leif Ericsson

Leif Ericsson was a Viking. He was the son of Eric the Red, who found Greenland. Leif was born around the year 980, in Iceland. Around 985, Leif's family sailed to Greenland. Around 999, Leif went back to Iceland, then to Norway, where he became a Christian. Leif then traveled around his father's tribe, preaching Christianity. In the year 1000, Leif sailed to a land that another had seen while sailing around. When he got there, he built a house for each of his men, a shed for their ships, and cut logs to bring back to Greenland where wood was scarce. On the way back, he rescued 15 men, who, in thanks, gave Leif their cargo which made Leif rich.

Eric the Red

Eric the Red was the Viking who found Greenland. When he was 10, his father was outlawed for manslaughter. Eric moved with his father to Iceland from Norway. After his father died, Eric killed several people & was exiled for 3 years. He then found Greenland, & persuaded others to come to this new land with him. His son Leif, in later years, found Vinland. Eric, after a fall off his horse, feared bad luch & stayed in Greenland until his death around 1000.

This week's topic is being spread out. Since our family is taking a trip and we'll have two short weeks, I split her work between those two weeks. Our topic this week and next is the Spanish exploration of the New World, as well as saints like Blessed Juniperro Serra. Here is her essay on the book she read about Ponce de Leon:

Ponce de Leon: The Man Who Found Florida

The year was 1513. Juan Ponce de Leon was on the deck of his ship when he heard a shout. "Tierra!" a sailor cried. "Land!" Juan looked and saw a thing, black line on the horizon.

Now, before you read more, here's some information on Ponce de Leon. He was a Spanish knight who fought the Moors. he went with Columbus on his 2nd journey to the New World. There, he fought Indians. Later, he went back and found a peninsula which he named la Florida, or the Land of Flowers.

Juan decided to tell King Ferdinand and Queen Isabel of this new land. After he told the king and queen, he went to Hispanola, where he was attacked by Indians. Wounded in battle, he retreated, but later died of his wounds. Juan inspired many others to explore Florida, including Panfilo de Narvaez and Hernando de Soto.

Juan Ponce de Leon will always be known as the man who found Florida.

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You can see a definite progression here, I think. I'm so proud of how well both girls' writing is going, and I'm proud of how well they are dealing with all the research and reading that their history program is demanding this year!

I'll do my best to post more of their writing throughout the year.

[image sources: colony of Virginia map, Aztec sacrifice, Vikings, Ponce de Leon]

Related:

Something to be Proud Of (or "Why I Use Catholic-Based History and Science Curriculum")

Wordless Wednesday: Tiny Dancer

2010-09-22T14:45:00.006-04:00

Okay, so she's not very tiny any more. But she's my Little Girl. I took these portraits of her in her ballet costume from last school year. The recital was in May.

Something to be Proud of

2010-09-21T19:06:00.003-04:00

I've been asked a couple of times about why I insist on a Catholic curriculum, especially when it comes to history and science. Not often, but I was thinking about this recently.

The biggest reason I've stuck with Catholic-based history and science is because I want my girls to be proud of their Catholic heritage.

When I was in school - and it was public school - there was little discussion of the Catholic Church. But the few things that my history classes taught me about my Church in history included that we were the aggressors in the Crusades, Luther was heroic for standing up to a Church that sold indulgences (and let you buy your dead relatives out of Hell - I don't recall if Purgatory was mentioned), and the Catholic Church persecuted scientists like Galileo and Copernicus (and that the Church was and is, in general, anti-science).

When I started educating my girls, I wanted to have a Catholic perspective in education. I wanted them to have a Catholic school at home, basically. And it was then, reading their elementary school textbooks from Seton, that I learned the truth about many things I thought I knew from my public school history classes.

The Crusades were less about attacking Muslims than they were about helping pilgrims make safe journeys to and from the Holy Lands. And, incidentally, the Holy Lands were Catholic places before Mohammed came along and started terrorizing people. (Yes, I used that word. I mean it. Conversion by the sword has never been a part of Catholicism, but it is called for specifically in the Koran.)

Luther disregarded doctrines within the Catholic Church that he didn't like much, and his separation was not heroic. It tore the One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church in half. The separation of the Orthodox Church was bad enough. But Luther was a monk! He broke his vows and lead people away from the Church. Indulgences were never sold (not by decree or permission from the Church, anyway; if it happened, it was done by rogue priests who were abusing their positions and vocations). And an indulgence isn't about "getting someone out of Hell." That's impossible. And purgatory is about as misunderstood as indulgences are. (For a good explanation of indulgences, I recommend Catholic Answers' site. Most Catholics couldn't explain them to you, which is why, when I mentioned to my father this tidbit of information, he couldn't explain why the description in my textbooks were wrong. So I offer two links: the first is a primer on indulgences, and the other debunks some of the myths about this ancient - and current! - practice of granting indulgences. Trust me, it's worth the read to have a better understanding of the idea.)

And the most surprising thing I've learned is that not only has the Church not persecuted scientists, but She's had quite a few in her own clergy! (Here is an excellent summary on Galileo, the ignorants' favorite example.) I didn't know until quite recently that Gregor Mendel was an Augustinian priest!

But my girls know these things. They're learning them as we learn about the famous people who make up our Western Civilization's history. They're learning that the first religious ceremony in what would become the United States was a Catholic Mass. They're learning that Florida, Mexico, South America, and the western areas of the United States were explored by Catholic nations and had countless missions dotting the wild frontier. They're learning that there were brave priests and sisters and brothers and nuns who came to this country to serve others and set up schools (long before the government was in the business of education) and offer hospital care and feed the poor.

What they're learning is what I did not learn until I was an adult.

To be Catholic is to have something to be proud of. Our Catholic heritage is rich. It's full of amazing people and wonderful discoveries and moving tales of charity and love and forgiveness. (Read some of the stories about the French Jesuits who were tortured by the Indians and begged to be sent back to be missionaries so they could save souls. Read about those who came after them and became martyrs, not because they were cruel or slave-masters, but because they would not abandon their Lord. And then read about the conversions that were made possible by tireless religious who risked their lives to share the Good News with those who had never heard it before!)

So what I am giving my children - what they gain from studying science and our history from a Catholic perspective - is something to be proud of. They'll hold their heads up when they say they're Catholic because they will have learned the truth:

The Catholic Church has done some pretty wonderful things. It's like a well-kept secret, but I'm determined to let that secret out!

Seven Quickies: Back to Homeschool Edition

2010-09-03T08:15:00.000-04:00

I'm actually writing my Seven Quick Takes ahead of time! Mark the calendar! Prepare for the apocalypse! Hide your women and children!

(Oh, thanks to Jen, our lovely hostess!)

So let's get started!

~one~

We sort of started school this week. I want to start Monday (yeah, I know it's Labor Day), but the library is closed ... because it's Labor Day! Sheesh! So since Big Girl has research to complete to be able to write her history papers for the week, we started looking things over this week. And so we've started easing into school, starting yesterday. We've been to the library, and we'll go again tomorrow afternoon, plus we pulled out the Math-U-See books to start brushing up on where we left off.

~two~

Do you know that I resisted using Math-U-See because of the spelling? It's annoying. Great program, but I hate the stupid spelling. Please use proper spelling and grammar!

~three~

Both Big Girl and Little Girl have a lot of research for history. Big Girl has a new topic every week, and Little Girl will be researching our home state of Virginia for the first quarter of school. Should be interesting. To add to the CHC history curriculum, I bought The Book of Time from Sonlight. I think they are the NEATEST books! Basically, it's a blank timeline in a spiral binder. As you get closer to modern times, you get fewer years per page. Big Girl is going to be transferring in her dates from last year's history, and Little Girl will be starting her book this year. Wish I'd seen them earlier! Poor Big Girl ... she's got a few hundred dates plastered all over the walls of our spare bedroom!!

~four~

I want those dates down, too! I want to create a wall of the Church. I found the idea in A Year with God. The wall with the pictures and holy cards will be divided between the Church Militant (those of us on earth), the Church Suffering (those souls in Purgatory), and the Church Triumphant (those souls in Heaven who enjoy the Beatific Vision). At the head of the Church Militant, right at the top, will be a picture of our Holy Father, Pope Benedict XVI. Pictures of bishops and cardinals will be below that, then pictures of priests we know (hey, Father K!), and then our friends and family. The Church Suffering will include our friends and family who have died, as well as more famous people (like Pope John Paul II and G. K. Chesterton). The Church Triumphant will have holy cards and pictures of those Saints and Blesseds the Church has declared to be in Heaven.

Note for non-Catholics: Catholics do not believe that Saints and Blesseds are in Heaven because the Church says they are; we believe the Church declares they are in Heaven when there is miraculous evidence - or, sometimes, when someone has been declared a martyr. In short, things are not true because the Church says it. The Church says it because it is true.

For more information on Purgatory and Sainthood, please see this list of articles on Mary and the Saints, as well as the information here and here on Purgatory. For more from Catholic Answers on Purgatory, you can see this search result. More can be found on all things Catholic at New Advent's excellent online Catholic Encyclopedia. I like Catholic Answers for the concise explanations that are apologetic in nature and a little more accessible to those who are just looking for some good information. They get into some depth, but you can't beat the Catholic Encyclopedia for really super-duper, in-depth, cross-referenced information on anything and anyone having to do with the Church and Church history.

~five~

Our schedule is totally insane! I've got (at least through October) two days each of dance and soccer, plus Mass during the week. Plus all the normal insanity. I have a feeling I'm going to be using my crock pot a LOT this coming year. And maybe forever more. I wrote out my menu plan for September, though, which takes a load of pressure off me. I found that when I keep a menu, my grocery budget stays within my limits. When I stray from it or forget to write one for too long, I get to 5:45 and start thinking, "I'm hungry. Kids are hungry. Husband is hungry. What will we eat!?" And I did one new thing. I started a separate calendar for the dinner menu and put it on my iMac's calendar. Then I published it through MobileMe so it'll show up on my iPod (and future iPhone), as well as on the other family members' calendars. As long as they subscribe. I hope they do, so they stop asking me what's for dinner. (It's not like it was a secret. I keep the menu on the refrigerator, for cryin' out loud!)

~six~

How about a little movie?

I don't know about you, but I feel better!

~seven~

I have a special intention. Could you please keep it in mind when you pray? Don't worry. God knows.

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Have a blessed weekend, and enjoy Monday's day off. Unless you're not off. Then, sorry. I've been there. Come to think of it, I'm *still* there!

You're Not Helping, Google!

2010-09-01T11:02:00.004-04:00

So I posted just a few minutes ago how I'm looking for a study guide for Humane Vitae and the second page of search results looks like this:

I'm guessing there's not much out there.

Humanae Vitae

2010-09-01T10:46:00.002-04:00

I'm planning on reading Humanae Vitae with my seventh-grader this year in conjunction with her quarter-long study of St. Gianna Molla. I, myself, only read the encyclical a couple of years ago, and I'm trying to work through some Theology of the Body materials, as well. So in light of that, I'm looking for a study guide on HV that I can use with a 12 year old.

In my searchings, I found a guide by Priests for Life, which looks good but probably would be way more than I need with my daughter. Then I saw this article at the bottom of the first page of search items on Google.

Basically, it's an ultra-Traditionalist (probably a St. Pius X) priest who is discussing how while Humanae Vitae certainly did come to the right conclusion, it's bad for couples and the Church. What really cracked me up is that he could NOT get away from the Mass in the Ordinary Form (which was originally called "Novus Ordo" because it was a new form of the Mass). I found it kind of amusing (and sad) that all things lead back to the Mass. All the ills of the Church can be traced back to Mass in the venacular! No one can be seriously prayerful at such a Mass! Priests have no dignity of vocation any more! (I'd like to see my very-holy pastor's reaction to that!)

Please remember breakaway Catholics in your prayers. They need Mother Church, and Mother Church, naturally, wishes for them all to come home. Just like she wishes for all Christians to come home.

Wordless Wednesday: One, Two, Three ... JUMP!

2010-09-01T08:47:00.002-04:00

From a recent swimming party at our home. Notice that girl on the far right...she totally faked everyone out!

Chesteron versus Rand

2010-08-24T11:17:00.002-04:00

It's taken me most of the year to read it, but I'm finally wrapping up Chesteron's What's Wrong with the World? (which was a Lenten read). At the same time, I've started reading Ayn Rand's Atlas Shrugged. The differences in their view of mankind is pretty stark.

Chesterton holds great hope for Man, and I think a lot has to do with his faith. He sees possibilities for Man to straighten out his act, to get right with what he was created for, which is to know, love, and serve God in this world and to be happy with Him in the next.

Rand, on the other hand, has such a skewed view of Man that it's frightening. Even her protagonists are frightening. Everyone is selfish, including the great capitalists she sees as heroic. Everyone is also extreme: there are no middle-of-the-road people, no one who sees Chesterton's middle ground between unfettered business and unfettered government. To Ayn Rand, people are either in favor of business being allowed to run any way it pleases or they are "looters": fleas on the backs of the poor dogs who work for everything while they suck the lifeblood from productive members of society.

While I can definitely see Rand's point about government interfering too much with business (and who couldn't, looking at the events of the last two years?), she's too extreme in her views. Her definition of depravity in Atlas Shrugged is put forth as this:

"The most depraved type of human being ... (is) the man without a purpose."

But the sexual encounters in the book are pure rape fantasy. Talk about mixed-up ideas! By the way she wrote in this book, I get the distinct idea that she hated women - a lot. The only "good" women are those who shun emotion as much as possible (though it's also a quality in the "good" men, as well), attach love to nothing but what they can do or produce, and pretty much act like men. But not men as authentic Catholic teaching might show as an example to follow - men who honor family and commitment to family, who sacrifice for the good of others, who see benefit in both this world and the next in charity. Rand sees good men as those who put their production and business above all else. What else is there but to be productive in this life? Man who sees his purpose in serving others is weak.

But as I read this book (and I'll say now that I'm only just into part II, so please don't give me spoilers), I see Rearden as a weak man, a selfish man, someone who is lost. I see Dagny as someone who is denying her created beauty in order to be more like a man. And I see an author who yearned for beauty but did not know where to find it. Her idea of morals was quite messed up, as you can see from these quotes:

"My philosophy, in essence, is the concept of man as a heroic being, with his own happiness as the moral purpose of his life, with productive achievement as his noblest activity, and reason as his only absolute." (appendix to 'Atlas Shrugged')

"[T]he only real moral crime that one man can commit against another is the attempt to create, by his words or actions, an impression of the contradictory, the impossible, the irrational, and thus shake the concept of rationality in his victim."

She rejected Communism, and yet these ideas about Man's only real moral achievement being what he can produce is an idea embraced by Communists (and other extreme parties like the National Socialist Party of Germany). Unproductive members of society are immoral? They aren't worth helping or having about?

I'm certainly not saying that it's just fine for an able-bodied person to be a mooch. If you're able to do something, then by all means, please try to do it! There is a difference in the man who seeks, but cannot find, work who collects unemployment and the man who does not seek work and is happy to collect his unemployment rather than look for work.

Again, Rand's characters are all extremes. No one can even comprehend the others' point of view, let alone see anyone as decent on the "other side" of things. And no one holds a combination of beliefs. It causes plenty of conflict, which I suppose is a good thing in a novel, but it also creates a situation that doesn't mirror real life.

I could get into the government portion of it, which, sadly, is starting to look less fantastic and more like what goes on in Washington these days, but I'll try to leave that for the Soccer Mom blog (which is where I try to keep politics, generally).

Chesterton, though, sees business as something else. Consider this quote:

"There have been household gods and household saints and household fairies. I am not sure that there have yet been any factory gods or factory saints or factory fairies. I may be wrong, as I am no commericial expert, but I have not heard of them as yet." - ILN Dec 18, 1926

As far as views on religion, Chesterton blows away Rand's idea that reason and religion are incompatible. (Not that he was the first ... I have to wonder if Rand ever heard of St. Thomas Aquinas!)

"If there were no God, there would be no atheists." - Where All Roads Lead, 1922
"The Christian ideal has not been tried and found wanting; it has been found difficult and left untried." - Chapter 5, What's Wrong With The World, 1910

"The riddles of God are more satisfying than the solutions of man." -Introduction to the Book of Job, 1907

And I love that Chesterton had no patience for big government OR big business:

"Too much capitalism does not mean too many capitalists, but too few capitalists." - The Uses of Diversity, 1921
"[Capitalism is] that commercial system in which supply immediately answers to demand, and in which everybody seems to be thoroughly dissatisfied and unable to get anything he wants." - "How to Write a Detective Story." The Spice of Life

"Business, especially big business, is now organized like an army. It is, as some would say, a sort of mild militarism without bloodshed; as I say, a militarism without the military virtues." - The Thing

I'm finally into a part of the book where I seem to be seeing less of the character development (which, hopefully, means fewer of the dreadful sex scenes) and more of the search for a way out of the increasing control of the government, which is taking control of more and more by decrees and orders and quickly-passed laws that no one seems to know the meaning or consequences of. So perhaps I'll finally see more of a reason to root for our protagonists, and be able to put behind me their dreadfully cold personalities. (Rand seems to extoll the idea that making one's self devoid of emotions is a worthy goal in life.)

“He liked to observe emotions; they were like red lanterns strung along the dark unknown of another's personality, marking vulnerable points.”

The idea that emotions are nothing but a liability is a pretty sad one. I wonder what she was like, Ayn Rand. Was she as unhappy as her writing seems to suggest? What I keep seeing is someone who had all the longing for God that we Catholics know we're made for, but who denied that it was Him that she longed for. She denied His existence! How sad for her. I pray that she was able to find Him and accept God before the end of her life, even if it was private and in the last moments of life.

[Ayn Rand quotes' source]

[Ayn Rand quote on emotions source]

[Chesterton quotes' source]

The Face of Love

2010-08-18T10:50:00.005-04:00

Pioneer Woman is having a photo contest in which the theme is "love." I already shared one entry I made to the contest, but I thought I'd share the two other submissions I've made so far. All of my submissions are from 35mm (not digital) cameras! LOL! I just really thought of these pictures when I was choosing my first submissions.

To see other submissions (and a funny bit about that second picture of my grandparents) click through to my Flickr page.

Pioneer Woman's Newest Photography Contest

2010-08-16T10:54:00.002-04:00

I've entered myself in PW's latest photography contest/assignment. The theme this time is "love," and I immediately thought of this picture. It's from when Big Girl was brand-new and Travel Man took a night feeding for me. When he didn't come back to bed, I went looking for him and found him asleep on the daybed next to the crib. I snapped this picture (and managed not to wake them!), but didn't know how it turned out until the film came back from developing. (Remember those days?)

Took this with my old Minolta Freedom camera. It's a point-and-shoot with an auto-flash, which I covered with my hand when I snapped the picture.

I also have several pictures at the ready for entering on the other days of the contest. I specialize in taking pictures of "love," since I take so many pictures of my family.

Perfect Intellect and the Blessed Virgin Mary

2010-08-11T15:07:00.002-04:00

Our family prayed the Rosary last night, and while meditating on the Sorrowful Mysteries, I tried to ask God to help me develop certain qualities - ones that would help me be a better imitator of our Lord and His Blessed Mother.

I was meditating on the Agony in the Garden, and I thought about how I need to learn to submit to God's Will in my life. I need to be less selfish - less of a control freak - and trust God. This is what Jesus did during His Agony; He submitted Himself to the Will and the Plan of the Father.

As I meditated more, I thought of His Blessed Mother's submission to the Will of God. Her assent - her fiat - was perfect. Her will was in union with God's. Submission was a pleasure for her, and this was helped by the fact that her soul did not carry the scars of Original Sin. For an explanation of this important doctrine of the Catholic Church (called the Immaculate Conception), Catholic Answers offers, in part, the following:

The Immaculate Conception

It’s important to understand what the doctrine of the Immaculate Conception is and what it is not. Some people think the term refers to Christ’s conception in Mary’s womb without the intervention of a human father; but that is the Virgin Birth. Others think the Immaculate Conception means Mary was conceived "by the power of the Holy Spirit," in the way Jesus was, but that, too, is incorrect. The Immaculate Conception means that Mary, whose conception was brought about the normal way, was conceived without original sin or its stain—that’s what "immaculate" means: without stain. The essence of original sin consists in the deprivation of sanctifying grace, and its stain is a corrupt nature. Mary was preserved from these defects by God’s grace; from the first instant of her existence she was in the state of sanctifying grace and was free from the corrupt nature original sin brings.

When discussing the Immaculate Conception, an implicit reference may be found in the angel’s greeting to Mary. The angel Gabriel said, "Hail, full of grace, the Lord is with you" (Luke 1:28). The phrase "full of grace" is a translation of the Greek word kecharitomene. It therefore expresses a characteristic quality of Mary.

The traditional translation, "full of grace," is better than the one found in many recent versions of the New Testament, which give something along the lines of "highly favored daughter." Mary was indeed a highly favored daughter of God, but the Greek implies more than that (and it never mentions the word for "daughter"). The grace given to Mary is at once permanent and of a unique kind. Kecharitomene is a perfect passive participle of charitoo, meaning "to fill or endow with grace." Since this term is in the perfect tense, it indicates that Mary was graced in the past but with continuing effects in the present. So, the grace Mary enjoyed was not a result of the angel’s visit. In fact, Catholics hold, it extended over the whole of her life, from conception onward. She was in a state of sanctifying grace from the first moment of her existence. ...

(For the exact definition, broken down bit-by-bit with explanations, see the Catholic Encyclopedia at the New Advent site.)

Because Mary was conceived without Original Sin, she was in a better position to accept God's Divine Will and to align her own desires with His. Instead of her judgement being clouded by the aftereffects of The Fall, she was able to remain without sin throughout her life.

Which led me to ponder further...

When Adam and Eve were created, they had an enlightened intellect. In other words, they had innate knowledge of God and His Will. They could freely choose to accept or reject this (and we all know how that ended up), but they knew full well what that Will was. It was the sin of Pride that led to the Fall, hence "Pride comes before the Fall." But, make no mistake, they were smart enough to know what they were doing. Our intellects are not clear, they are not complete. Our intellects are like broken bones that are not quite healed properly. We are weak, our souls are weak, and our wills are weak. Anyone who thinks they are different is wrong, for even Saint Paul lamented that he was unable to avoid sinning (Romans 7:15).

But Mary - she was preserved from Original Sin, pre-emptively given the very Salvation that Christ Jesus would offer to us all. This is a basic belief that the Church has held since the earliest days of Christianity. Catholic Answers points to St. Irenaeus' writings in the Second Century:

"Consequently, then, Mary the Virgin is found to be obedient, saying, ‘Behold, O Lord, your handmaid; be it done to me according to your word.’ Eve, however, was disobedient, and, when yet a virgin, she did not obey. Just as she, who was then still a virgin although she had Adam for a husband—for in paradise they were both naked but were not ashamed; for, having been created only a short time, they had no understanding of the procreation of children, and it was necessary that they first come to maturity before beginning to multiply—having become disobedient, was made the cause of death for herself and for the whole human race; so also Mary, betrothed to a man but nevertheless still a virgin, being obedient, was made the cause of salvation for herself and for the whole human race. . . . Thus, the knot of Eve’s disobedience was loosed by the obedience of Mary. What the virgin Eve had bound in unbelief, the Virgin Mary loosed through faith" (Against Heresies 3:22:24 [A.D. 189]).

"The Lord then was manifestly coming to his own things, and was sustaining them by means of that creation that is supported by himself. He was making a recapitulation of that disobedience that had occurred in connection with a tree, through the obedience that was upon a tree [i.e., the cross]. Furthermore, the original deception was to be done away with—the deception by which that virgin Eve (who was already espoused to a man) was unhappily misled. That this was to be overturned was happily announced through means of the truth by the angel to the Virgin Mary (who was also [espoused] to a man). . . . So if Eve disobeyed God, yet Mary was persuaded to be obedient to God. In this way, the Virgin Mary might become the advocate of the virgin Eve. And thus, as the human race fell into bondage to death by means of a virgin, so it is rescued by a virgin. Virginal disobedience has been balanced in the opposite scale by virginal obedience. For in the same way, the sin of the first created man received amendment by the correction of the First-Begotten" (ibid., 5:19:1 [A.D. 189]).

So if the Blessed Virgin Mary was without sin - and without the broken-ness that comes from being born with Original Sin on one's soul, does this mean that she, too, had a perfect intellect, as Eve did before the Fall?

If you know, please, point me towards some information on this. It's fascinating to me that Mary might have had the same perfect intellect that our First Parents had!

Wordless Wednesday: Ingalls Homestead

2010-08-11T13:16:00.003-04:00

Anniversaries and Times and Seasons and Prayers

2010-08-10T13:47:00.004-04:00

This Saturday is our anniversary: 17 years! My sweet husband likes to add, "16 of them happy," with a wink, making a reference to my two agonizing pregnancies.

It's hard to believe we've really been married for 17 years now. December will mark 20 years of being together as a couple. That is half my life.

Time is a funny thing. When we're young, it crawls by so slowly, you wish for Superman to come along and speed things up a bit. A school year to a first grader is an eternity. And that's not surprising since one year is 1/5 of his life! As a child in elementary school, going from Christmas to Christmas takes forever (especially when the purple and pink candles come out - it's doubly slow then!), but as adults, it seems to sneak up on us a little faster each year. My anniversary seems to be just a few weeks back, but here it is, mid-August again!

If we think back on our lives as children, we see how hard it was to wait for anything we

wanted. We looked forward to being older, getting to do more things, and those years of waiting were dreadfully long. Big Girl, for example, is one of the few children in her age group at church who doesn't have a cell phone. She's been asking again and again when she can get one. Now this is a topic Travel Man and I talked about when we first started seeing teens with cell phones. We had decided that until the girls are working, they don't need one. Scratch that. Make it this: Until they are DRIVING, they don't need one. Period. And even then, maybe they only need to borrow it sometimes.

So our answer was this, "When you turn 16, we'll start talking about it." (Notice that independent clause: start talking about it.)

This elicited the following reaction:

"WHAT????!!!!????" (Please imagine it starting at a high pitch and rising as the one-syllable word becomes something more like a long note sung.)

See, Big Girl is nearly 12, and four years before the discussion even starts is 1/4 of her life. To us, it seems like it's just around the corner. To her, it's NEVER GOING TO GET HERE.

About the only way that helps me understand this idea of time when I'm dealing with little girls - or, really, not-so-little girls - is to think about being with my husband.

It's been 20 years since we started dating. Half my life. And, frankly, I barely remember what it was like without him. A little bit, but not a lot.

Basically, it's like ... forever. It's as though he's never not been such an intregal part of my life.

Imagine how much more our little annoyances with waiting amuse God, who is Eternal. No beginning, no end. A day is like a thousand years. How He must chuckle at our indignant answer when He tells us to wait before He answers a prayer.

"WHAT????!!!!????"

I'm sure that Him asking us to wait for something is in our best interest, but we are like children: we can't see it.

When I pray, I must remember that there are three answers to my prayers:

Yes. We like this best. It is when we pray for something that is beneficial to us - to our souls, especially - that we get this answer. Of course, being our Father in Heaven, God also likes to give good gifts to His children. Not all "Yes" answers are purely for our spiritual benefit. Some are just because we're getting a nice present from Daddy.
Wait. We like this, but not nearly as much as "Yes." After all, we're like our own children, who when they are told they must wait until Christmas morning to open presents Grandma sent last week (and Christmas is three weeks away), sit and stare longingly at the presents under the tree, occasionally begging again to open it now. But sometimes, the wait is worth it. And sometimes, we aren't really ready for that "Yes." Oh, we think we are. We're very grown-up, you know. But what we are, sometimes, is that 12 year old asking for permission to drive the car. The 12 year old thinks she's a great driver. We happen to know a bit better.
No. This is the answer that so few people like to talk about, and none of us really like. Oh, sure, deep down we understand that God has other things in store for us. Better things. But no child likes being told no. Even if you're asking for a pony and you live in the middle of suburbia. Even if you're asking if you can bring home the baby bear you found rummaging in the trashcan outside your rural mountain home. But God, being a Good Father, knows what's best for us. He has to tell us "No" sometimes.

What's really tough for us, as His children, is seeing the difference between God's "Wait," and His "No." Sometimes we are certain that He's said no. And we whine about it. We cease actually praying for our intention, but instead complain. Now, if it's a "wait," often there is a reason, like Christ perfecting the Samaritan woman's request, testing her motives and faith. As a mother, I do this sometimes, making sure that my children have good intentions behind a request, or even that they really do want the thing they're asking for.

God is the perfect Father! He will do the same for us. However, just as I will know the girls really want what they're asking for by listening to them ask (politely) again, God will also allow us to ask him repeatedly for our intentions.

However, if instead of polite requests I get whining and complaints, I am WAY less inclined to give in. Ever. Can our reaction to our children be that vastly different than God's?

So, I remind myself here that I must approach my petitions to God with reverence. I must always remember to take a good look at my own motivation for asking. Is it for good reasons? Am I asking for something that will be spiritually beneficial, or am I asking for the equivalent of a pet bear cub?

And, when God's answer seems to be "no," I must also re-evaluate and see if my petition is, indeed, appropriate. If I'm asking Jesus for a pony while I'm living in an apartment or for a pet cat that I'm terribly allergic to, I need to accept His "no" and move on. But if it is, I should do as Jesus instructed and persist, purifying my motivations and faith along the way. And I need to remember that just like it's 1/4 of Big Girl's life before we even begin discussing a cell phone, God's time is not my time, and His ways are not my ways. I might have a bit of a wait until I hear "Yes" from my Father in Heaven.

[image source]

Homeschooling and Organization

2010-08-09T16:04:00.003-04:00

I used to be an organized homeschooler. I need the organization, but when I worked part-time from home while we worked on our debt snowball, I became a kind of molecular opposite of organized. Our school work started to suffer, and when it came to a breaking point, my husband and I made the decision that I'd quit. That was last year, and October 1 will be the anniversary of Mommy's Freedom Day; however, I never did get reorganized. I seemed to be in so many different places in the girls' school subjects that I made a hodge-podge of the end of the school year. There are subjects we just plain didn't finish. Others subjects became a "read-it-yourself" study.

So I'm a little trepidatious about the new school year. Little Girl will be in fourth grade, which is still not too bad as far as scheduling and work load, but Big Girl is starting seventh grade. Middle school is firmly underway. And I have to help her be ready for high school and beyond.

So I've spent the last few days working on her first quarter lesson plans, and I'm ever so glad I did it this early! She's got some heavy-looking research, a lot of writing, and a need of some science materials I wasn't expecting just yet. (A bunsen burner? A plate balance? Seriously??)

All day today, I've been touching up the girls' lesson plans and making copies of materials they'll need to use all year. I am determined to be better organized and to be a better teacher. My laziness as their teacher has helped make them lazy as students. And I'm not doing them any favors this way!!

Next for me will be looking for movies and books that will help them along. I've got a terrific book by Maureen Wittmann, For the Love of Literature, that will help me locate wonderful books to make the girls' learning more fun. If you're working on a literature-based education, this is a fantastic resource to have.

I made a few unexpected changes to our homeschool:

First, I changed Little Girl to Catholic Heritage Curricula. I'd read about it and thought it looked more appropriate for Big Girl, who is a very kinetic learner and needs to be able to make choices within some structure to feel good about school. I've often said that she is probably a prime candidate for a Montessori education, if only I weren't so completely not wired to provide it. (Seriously, I have a degree in education and was taught about the method and how to teach with it. I am not able to wrap my brain around it in any meaningful way.)

I was surprised at the accessibility of the books, and decided to use the same program with Little Girl starting now. We went over her school books today and talked a bit about how things will work, and we're both excited. Whereas Seton focuses very strongly on basic skills to achieve academic success, CHC works a little more organically. Seton is very workbook-intense, while CHC is more project-based. CHC probably leans a little more towards a Whole Language approach, but still has enough basic drills and memorization to make me feel confident that the girls are going to learn things in an organized manner.

Second, I have made a big change in religious education curricula. One of the subjects I've always loved from Seton has been their religious education. I still used it, even when I wasn't using anything else from Seton, for both girls - until this year. I knew I needed to get Big Girl out of the workbooks and into something different. So I decided I wanted to start her in the Faith and Life series this year. My plan was to leave Little Girl in the Seton books until seventh grade, as well. Until I got a good look at the books, that is.

Faith and Life, while still very careful to cover the faith in depth, has a wonderful layout and a flexible structure. It's designed for a classroom in a parochial school, but is easily adapted to home or even Sunday school classes. I am totally sold on it. I've made plans for all kinds of art projects for both girls that tie into the lessons. It's going to be great!

I'm adding something big for Big Girl this year.

We'll be reading Humanae Vitae together. Seriously. I'll let you know how it goes, but it makes me nervous.

The only thing that hasn't gone to the CHC curriculum choices remains math. We're sticking with Math-U-See for as long as I can see right now. The hands-on has been good for both girls. My biggest regret is that we are really badly behind in Math. I have to make a commitment (and stick to it) to cover a lesson every week or so. I think we'll be on a better track with it, and I've got plans for giving them some activities to work on their math. There are a couple of apps on the iPod that I've downloaded for them, and they actually enjoy them! I'm sure I'll discover more as time goes on, but these were not too spendy and they've helped the girls shore up their basic facts knowledge.

So there we are, ready for school to start. Well, ready except for about 100 pages of copies I still need to make. Thank God Sam's Club has boxes of copier paper and I own an all-in-one printer!

Wordless Wednesday: High Tea at Anne Hathaway's Cottage

2010-08-04T09:34:00.003-04:00

While visiting family in South Dakota, we had an opportunity to have High Tea at the Anne Hathaway Cottage in Shakespeare Garden, Wessington Springs, SD.

Even the men attended! (We needed seven of us for the tea, and one of the ladies who volunteers there - and is friends with Travel Man's grandparents - completed our party of eight.)

In Which I Prove I Cannot be Trusted to be Mature

2010-08-03T10:16:00.002-04:00

Okay, so I write this great post about being a good wife and building up your husband, and my follow through is this video, found via this post by Simcha.

I'll also repeat her warning about the video because it's funnier than anything I'd think of writing (just like most of her posts):

(WARNING: video shows a female bare back, and has a bleeped-out swear word. If you are likely to be upset by that, then for the love of mike, please do not click on the link.)

In Which I Have an Off-Site Post

2010-08-03T08:32:00.004-04:00

Sarah at Just Another Day of Catholic Pondering asked if anyone wanted to do a guest post. Funny how her request came just after I had been feeling like I had something important I wanted to talk about to someone.

I'm honored to be a guest poster at her fine blog. (Please check her out regularly if you don't already!)

Here's the beginning of my article, but please click on over to her blog for the rest:

Early in my marriage, I heard some advice that I scoffed at (a bit) initially. “Never, EVER say a negative thing about your husband in front of another person!”

“Never?” I thought. “Seriously?”

At the time, we were in network marketing, and some of the women I admired had decided to take this advice to heart. So I decided to try it, too. ...

She's even got some nifty pictures to go along with it!

Seven Quick Takes: What I Did on My Summer Vacation Edition

2010-07-23T11:59:00.006-04:00

Jennifer is our lovely hostess for Seven Quick Takes Friday! Head over to her blog for lots of Quick Takers, including much more interesting writers like Simcha, who has a themed list that is pretty much Made of Awesome.

Here we go, with my list of seven neat things we saw/did on vacation!

1. No vacation of ours would be complete without me taking at least one picture of clouds and/or fog. I have dozens. This is the first picture in our vacation set on iPhoto, so you see I did not forget just how important the fog pictures are.

2. We were with my mother-in-law for this vacation, and spent Independence Day with her. We sat up on her little rooftop balcony and watched the fireworks over the trees.

(Big Girl is at an age when this is the face she makes in every. single. picture. I take of her. Just wait until she tries dating! These babies are coming out again. She'll regret her constant photoboming!)

Inexplicably, the finale took place low to the ground, and so this is the best shot I have of the fireworks finale.

3. For Little Girl's birthday, Travel Man's grandmother arranged for us to have high tea at the Anne Hathaway Cottage at Shakespeare Gardens in Wessington Springs, SD. The garden was in full bloom, which only adds to the quaint charm and beauty of the cottage. I did not get lucky enough to snap any pictures of the three garden snakes that were there. I was nice enough not to snap pictures of my mother in law when she saw them, either. And Big Girl was smart enough not to try to pick them up - even though they are non-poisonous - in front of her grandmother.

4. We went to De Smet, by way of Huron. There we saw the World's Largest Pheasant.

Travel Man quipped, "I want to build a pheasant in our yard 1 inch bigger, then set up a sign that says, 'Huron is lying.'"

I love my family.

5. Did you know that De Smet is the last place that Laura Ingalls Wilder's mother and father lived? It's the tiny town's Claim to Fame. EVERYTHING there is connected in some way to the Ingalls family. We went there to see the Ingalls Family Homestead and all of the other neat stuff connected with the family. It was interesting and worth the price of admission.

We saw a sod house.

It is not like a Hobbit hole.

We saw Ma's House.

I was surprised that the volunteer (college boy) did not have the answer to a teenaged girl's question as to why it's called "Ma's House." She asked if they had separate houses. (Ah, the Divorce Culture's effects!) Neither really "got" that it's Ma's house because Pa built it for her: everything in that house was made to make her life as easy as he could make it. He built it out of love. He built it with his own hands. It was for her, and it was hers.

These days, that doesn't happen much. You go and buy a house that someone else built. Not quite the same effect.

By the way, have you ever thought how soft we are these days? Could you live like the Ingalls Family? I couldn't.

6. Did you know that De Smet is named for a priest? And they have a big statue of him in town!

7. Travel Man had a business trip to Indianapolis the week after we were scheduled to be in South Dakota, so we decided to tag along and be tourists while he worked hard to supply us with all of our comforts at home. (He's my hero!)

The girls and I had a walkabout in downtown Indy one day and went to the Children's Museum on another day. (I posted a couple of other pictures here.) Here are some neat things just from Indianapolis.

St. John the Evangelist Catholic Church: oldest parish in Indy. Former proto-cathedral. Not wreckovated. Full of Awesome. (And the Real Presence is the main Awesomeness, but this church has Confessionals. The old kind with the curtains. I was in love.)

Outside the Indiana State Museum was this sculpture. RUN, GIRLS! RUN!!! RUN AWAY!!!

*ahem*

And, finally, one more picture from the Children's Museum. Van Halen fans (and David Lee Roth fans, as well) might recognize this car:

From these videos:

Happy weekend, everyone!

The Puppy in Our Pool

2010-07-22T15:44:00.002-04:00

I'm cooling off after mowing the lawn, goofing off on the computer while the girls swim outside. Suddenly, I hear weird animal-like noises from outside and the door opens as Big Girl strolls into the half-bath near the door.

"Um, what's that noise your sister is making?"

"Oh, we're pretending she's a puppy, and she's howling because I walked away to go to the bathroom and she doesn't know where I am."

"So ... she's crying like a puppy."

"Yup. Because I'm in here and she doesn't know where I went."

Why do they need an actual pet when we can have this kind of fun?

PS: Little Girl howled the entire time Big Girl was in the house, plus a little extra for good measure. Just like a real puppy might whimper at you when you come back as if to say, "See how scared I was? You are so mean!"

My kids are awesome.

Wordless Wednesday: Indianapolis Children's Museum

2010-07-21T10:54:00.004-04:00

Outside the museum:

Lucille (yes, the Lucille):

James Hetfield's '53 Skylark (he's got a matching guitar and amp, too):

Glass sculpture that's five stories high:

View from under the sculpture (I'm planning on blowing up at least one of these for the girls' room):

I was told that this was the best children's museum in the country. There's no denying it's definitely the biggest (five stories filled with exhibits, displays, hands-on, a planetarium, and a children's theater).

But the level of cool there is unmatched. In addition to the items above, they've got exhibits on Barbie (complete with a #1 Barbie doll and a lot of memory-inducing displays!), Etch-a-Sketch (it's 50 years old now, and there are some people who make more than stairs on them), and the exhibit on rock stars' guitars and cars (I saw two guitars that were Elvis', the Axe Guitar from Gene Simmons, one of Jimmy Hendrix's, etc., plus some really beautiful cars and a checkered John Deere). This isn't even counting the ongoing dinosaur exhibit with actual paleontologists on hand who answer questions about the actual dinosaur bones they are extracting from rocks in front of you!

Sometimes, bigger is better.

WANT!

2010-06-25T12:01:00.002-04:00

I want to make one of these. I already have most of the buckets, I think.

Target Dollar Spot, I love you!

Seven Quickies: Hobbity Edition

2010-06-25T11:32:00.001-04:00

Thanks, as always, to Jen for hosting! She's away at a retreat this week, but even THAT didn't stop her! What a gal!

Here we go...

~one~

We have been anything BUT Hobbits this summer. I've been running all over, and I have only a week to be ready - no, six days - for our trip to South Dakota. We'll be on the road for HOURS by this time next Friday. Here's a run-down of what we've been doing in June:

We went on vacation to Massanutten from June 4-11, except we left early to...
Stay with our friends in Northern Virginia for the IHM Conference on June 11-12. We left on the 12th after Saturday's Vigil Mass so we could...
Drive Little Girl to a vacation with her younger cousins in Tennessee, during which time we played hosts to our God-Daughter, who is only 18 months older than Big Girl. Alas! Travel Man put on his super suit again and I...
Was up early and had him at the airport by 6:20 on Tuesday morning. So, really, it was *me* hosting God-Daughter, as well as the pool party/sleepover on Wednesday (during which the gaggle of 11-13 year olds stayed up until 5 AM!). Then...
I picked up Travel Man at the airport on Friday afternoon, and we left straight from there to Tennessee again where we would switch children and come home on Saturday.

Whew! And we're leaving July 2 for South Dakota and then stopping for Travel Man's business trip in Indy on our way home from that. Two more weeks away.

What was I thinking when I planned all this??

I don't think I want to go anywhere until our trip to DC in October. So let's hope that we can avoid unnecessary travel so I can decompress from my travel-induced stress. I need to be in my Hobbit Hole for certain amounts of time, you know!

~two~

Oh, and to make my two weeks at home more enjoyable, I've been sick - with what I think was that intestinal thing from Christmas 2007 - all week. Yesterday, I was so excited when my stomach growled and I was hungry. It hadn't growled for three days, despite the fact that I had barely eaten all week. Without going into icky details that I know you don't want to hear, let's just say that I seem to be on the mend. Just in time to pack for our next trip. Yay.

~three~

We're going to South Dakota for a really neat thing, though. Travel Man's grandparents - who both turn 92 this year - celebrated their *70th* wedding anniversary in January! Now, we naturally wish to celebrate with them, however, we also did not really want to brave the snow South Dakota tends to have. And, let me tell you, we got SOCKED here in Virginia, and they got it worse by them! So we arranged to go visit them in July, when it's much less likely to snow. It also makes packing easier, since we're pretty sure we don't need anything much heavier than our windbreakers for the trip.

But, think about it ... 70 years. It's so amazing! I hope I live long enough to see 70 years with Travel Man.

~four~

My girls are both getting so grown-up. My family and friends are now saying, "Wow, look at Big Girl - she's a young lady now!" and "She's like a small grown-up!" Part of Big Girl's sudden transformation was her decision to get her hair cut. She went for a heavily-layered shag, sort of like this:

Shocking, I know. I haven't got a single decent picture of her new hairstyle. She's been pretty much in the pool all month. I'll try to remedy that.

Now, the other part is that her clothes, while very modest, are more revealing (being Summer clothes and all). And then there's the moment when she put on her swimsuit this Summer and poor Travel Man had a bit of a shock over what THAT looked like. Yup, young lady.

But she's still my baby. So there. Nyah.

~five~

Little Girl was quite compliant about taking only one dance class last year. Turns out that she was the ONLY girl in her level to have only one class. (One mother said, "Wow. I've never heard of someone in this level getting away with one class. How'd you manage that?" I looked right at her and answered, "I said no." Why don't other people think of that?)

Anyway, at her recital, she was so stunning, and did such a wonderful job, that after the recital was over, Travel Man pulled me aside and said, "She *needs* to be in more dance classes. Let's try to make it happen."

She is currently in a Tap Workshop for Summer to prepare for going back into a tap class this Fall in addition to her ballet. She is beside herself with happiness, and even is thinking about asking if she could do a number in the recital with one or two friends from the studio. She's got her new tap shoes, and she's already happily bopping through the house showing us the new things she picked up in her first workshop.

~six~

Big News for Travel Man! He is going to a workshop tomorrow to learn how to perform his duties as Grand Knight! As of July 1, he will be Grand Knight for his council, and I am so proud of him. The current Grand Knight is going with him to the training, not because he needs to be there, but because he's a nice guy and remembers how lost he felt when he went the first time. I really like our Grand Knight. He's a good guy and has a real servant's heart. Travel Man says he learned a lot from him.

~seven~

Time for some video fun.

Wordless Wednesday: Yumpin' Yimminy!

2010-06-23T10:44:00.001-04:00

The girls had a fabulous time swimming on vacation. They now wish we had a diving board for our above-ground pool.

Old Blog Post

2010-06-20T14:30:00.004-04:00

Back when I had one blog, I posted this piece for Father's Day. I thought I'd share it again.

Imagine, if you will, a Mother's Day card that talks about mom being a bad housekeeper. "You keep us fed, even if the house is a disaster. Happy Mother's Day!"

Or how about this one? "Moms are great for being sure that we are clothed and fed, even if we have to make our own lunch. Happy Mother's Day!"

That's no good for your mom? How about this? "We always knew right from wrong, Mom, because you were around..." (inside:) "...to nag us to death! Happy Mother's Day!"

Okay, what about mom's cooking? "Happy Mother's Day to a woman who knows how to put dinner on the table..." "...as long as it's takeout! Sorry you burn the water when you boil it! Happy Mother's Day!"

Imagine the uproar over Mother's Day cards like this! 60 Minutes would have an expose about how gender discrimination has creeped into the most innocent of holidays: Mother's Day. We're supposed to be honoring our mothers! What's this garbage?

But gender discrimination has, indeed, creeped into the most innocent of holidays. It's here on Father's Day.

Allow me to give a few examples of some of the cards I found at Hallmark while looking for Father's Day cards.

First, a card with three cartoon panels on the front:

First, a young man asking his father, "Dad, can I borrow the keys to the car?"

Father: "Ask your mother."

Second, same young man asking his father, "What time should I be home tonight?"

Father: "Ask your mother."

Last, same young man asking his father, "Dad, what do you think?"

Father: "Ask your mother."

Inside: "Happy Father's Day to the ultimate authority."

ha. ha. ha.

Stroll on over to my other blog (which has become more the political outlet for me), and then don't forget to call your dad today!

Happy reading, and happy Father's Day to all the dads out there. You are appreciated, and you don't deserve that kind of treatment. And there are a lot of us out here who are trying to help you get the respect you deserve back again. Keep fighting the good fight, men!

Happy Father's Day

2010-06-20T14:10:00.003-04:00

For Father's Day this year, the girls made a T-shirt and I purchased an olivewood statue of St. Joseph that was carved by Christians in the Holy Land.

This was followed by a well-deserved nap.

Later tonight, we're going to see Toy Story 3 and then watch Nate cook with fire!

Happy Father's Day to the best Daddy I could ever have asked God to give to my children!

IHM, Washington, DC, June 2010

2010-06-16T11:45:00.003-04:00

Travel Man and I are blessed to have some very good (and very kind) friends in the DC area who host us annually and then watch our girls while we go to the IHM Conference in Chantilly, VA, each year. I've got copious notes which I MUST transcribe ASAP.

Because I forgot my IHM notebook and they're all written on the back of coupons I printed from MyPoints just before our vacation. So they're very valuable notes in more ways than one. I'll pass on the spiritual value to you, but if you want the monetary value, leave me your email and I'll invite you to MyPoints so you can print off coupons (and earn points towards free gift cards for exciting places like Wal Mart and Home Depot and the iTunes store).

Wordless Wednesday: In Which I Reveal I Can't Sleep Late on Vacation

2010-06-16T10:30:00.000-04:00

I was up for the sunrise most mornings on vacation. I don't know why. I can't get up early if I try most days at home, especially if I need to be up.

Ah, well. Here are a couple of sunrise shots, taken from our (screened-in) balcony in our vacation unit. Others can be seen here, at my MobileMe gallery.

In Which I Try a How-To

2010-06-16T10:07:00.000-04:00

A nice commenter said that perhaps I'd try my hand at some how-to stuff.

Obviously, a stranger. I sometimes feel like I'm simply stumbling through life. But I do manage to hold on, and I try hard to maintain a positive attitude.

I've been working on an idea for my first how-to, and I'll be updating soon with that post. First, though, I have to get through this week, wherein I am without Little Girl and Travel Man, but am hosting my niece and (for tonight) two other girls. Big Girl wanted to have a pool party/sleepover in honor of her Big Cousin's visit, and so there we are. Only thing we're missing is that we can't go to Mass tonight; it seems Father is out of town and he didn't even okay it with me. Hmph!

So watch this space for a how-to. And have a blessed weekend.

Rest in Peace, Mr. Linkletter

2010-05-26T16:50:00.003-04:00

What a life he had. Adopted, you know. By a family so poor he once said, "the Depression made no mark on me."

I think the best part of the above-linked story is this:

In 1998, Mr. Linkletter joined Cosby to co-host the first episode of "Kids Say The Darndest Things." At the end of the show, Cosby revealed that the entire studio audience was composed of adults who had appeared on Mr. Linkletter's "House Party" as children.

In an interview with the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences Foundation, Mr. Linkletter recalled the moment as one of the happiest in his life: "It was like going to an orphanage, and they said, 'These are all your children.' "

Wordless Wednesday: Hiding

2010-05-19T09:46:00.001-04:00

More Wordless Wednesday posts can be found at the W.Wed. main site.

Wordless Wednesday: The Moon isn't Made of Green Cheese...

2010-05-12T12:10:00.002-04:00

...it's made of Oreos!

Welcome to third-grade science, where subject matter is edible!

After the Argument

2010-05-07T08:39:00.002-04:00

Apologizing isn't as hard as you think. Most of the time, the other person is ready to do the same. They might lack the courage to be so humble. So be brave, step up, and say "I'm sorry."

You just might be surprised at how easy it will be.

And if you still lack courage, seek it in Confession, which is a fine way to first find forgiveness for your anger, and then gain the graces necessary to be as humble as you must be to apologize without excuses or justifications for your actions.

Be not afraid.

Wordless Wednesday: Sun-Dappled Mountains

2010-05-05T09:26:00.002-04:00

I took these as a storm was rolling in. I loved how the sunlight was illuminating parts of the mountains! (Note: I didn't retouch these at all, it was just that pretty.)