Sound advice from an 8 yr old

My 7 yr old daughter and 5 yr old son got married this morning. (On kids terms, relax!)

About 10 minutes later, I overheard my 5 yr old son declare that he wanted to marry someone else.

Then came 8 yr old wisdom:

"You can't change now. You are already married. You can't marry 2 times. Once you're married, that's it."

Wish we all understood this simple fact.

God bless,
Mary

Cheerios fly and Rice Crispies too!

I truly believe there is more cheerios and rice crispies in my vacuum than in my pantry currently.
My baby boy has quite an arm! Takes after his Daddy! To think he is only 10 months old...well, at least we can play some mean family games of baseball. We have enough players at least!

Just sayin'.
God bless,
Mary

Food for Thought

There are 2 things that I wanted to post about that I found particularly inspiring today. The first is St. Benedict's 12 degrees of humility:

Famous for his work on the 12 degrees of humility, Saint Benedict proposes the following for those who want to advance in the spiritual life. The degrees of humility are given below:

The first degree of humility, then, is that a man always have the fear of God before his eyes (cf Ps 35[36]:2), shunning all forgetfulness and that he be ever mindful of all that God hath commanded, that he always consider in his mind how those who despise God will burn in hell for their sins, and that life everlasting is prepared for those who fear God. And whilst he guard himself evermore against sin and vices of thought, word, deed, and self-will, let him also hasten to cut off the desires of the flesh.
The second degree of humility is, when a man love not his own will, nor is pleased to fulfill his own desires but by his deeds carried out that word of the Lord which said: "I came not to do My own will but the will of Him that sent Me" (Jn 6:38). It is likewise said: "Self-will hath its punishment, but necessity win the crown."
The third degree of humility is, that for the love of God a man subject himself to a Superior in all obedience, imitating the Lord, of whom the Apostle said: "He became obedient unto death" (Phil 2:8).
The fourth degree of humility is, that, if hard and distasteful things are commanded, nay, even though injuries are inflicted, he accept them with patience and even temper, and not grow weary or give up, but hold out, as the Scripture said: "He that shall persevere unto the end shall be saved" (Mt 10:22). And again: "Let thy heart take courage, and wait thou for the Lord" (Ps 26[27]:14).
The fifth degree of humility is, when one hides from his Abbot none of the evil thoughts which rise in his heart or the evils committed by him in secret, but humbly confesses them. Concerning this the Scripture exhorts us, saying: "Reveal thy way to the Lord and trust in Him" (Ps 36[37]:5). And it said further: "Confess to the Lord, for He is good, for His mercy endures forever" (Ps 105[106]:1; Ps 117[118]:1). And the Prophet likewise said: "I have acknowledged my sin to Thee and my injustice I have not concealed. I said I will confess against myself my injustice to the Lord; and Thou hast forgiven the wickedness of my sins" (Ps 31[32]:5).
The sixth degree of humility is, when a monk is content with the meanest and worst of everything, and in all that is enjoined him holds himself as a bad and worthless workman, saying with the Prophet: "I am brought to nothing and I knew it not; I am become as a beast before Thee, and I am always with Thee" (Ps 72[73]:22-23).
The seventh degree of humility is, when, not only with his tongue he declares, but also in his inmost soul believeth, that he is the lowest and vilest of men, humbling himself and saying with the Prophet: "But I am a worm and no man, the reproach of men and the outcast of the people" (Ps 21[22]:7).
The eighth degree of humility is, when a monk doeth nothing but what is sanctioned by the common rule of the monastery and the example of his elders.
The ninth degree of humility is, when a monk withholds his tongue from speaking, and keeping silence doth not speak until he is asked; for the Scripture shows that "in a multitude of words there shall not want sin" (Prov 10:19); and that "a man full of tongue is not established in the earth" (Ps 139[140]:12).
The tenth degree of humility is, when a monk is not easily moved and quick for laughter, for it is written: "The fool exalts his voice in laughter" (Sir 21:23).
The eleventh degree of humility is, that, when a monk speaks, he speak gently and without laughter, humbly and with gravity, with few and sensible words, and that he be not loud of voice, as it is written: "The wise man is known by the fewness of his words."
The twelfth degree of humility is, when a monk is not only humble of heart, but always lets it appear also in his whole exterior to all that see him; namely, at the Work of God, in the garden, on a journey, in the field, or wherever he may be, sitting, walking, or standing, let him always have his head bowed down, his eyes fixed on the ground, ever holding himself guilty of his sins, thinking that he is already standing before the dread judgment seat of God, and always saying to himself in his heart what the publican in the Gospel said, with his eyes fixed on the ground: "Lord, I am a sinner and not worthy to lift up mine eyes to heaven" (Lk 18:13); and again with the Prophet: "I am bowed down and humbled exceedingly" (Ps 37[38]:7-9; Ps 118[119]:107)

The second one is:

"Consider this: whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows bountifully will also reap bountifully. Each must do as already determined, without sadness or compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver." (1 Cor. 9:6-7)

Just some food for thought!

God bless,

Mary

33 is coming-4 more days

My b-day is coming up and I am pretty excited about it! For some odd reason, I have been waiting for this special number b/c I know that something big will happen this year. Don't ask me how I know, it's just something that has been on my heart for a very very long time. Ya know how there are things in life that you wholeheartedly know and believe, those great inspirations from the Holy Spirit? This is one of them. I'm not sure if this big thing is good or bad but nonetheless it is big and I have no idea what it will be.

Oh how I LOVE surprises!

My hubby was thrilled to tell me early in the week that he has my present already! He said I will LOVE it and he wants to give it to me NOW but I told him to wait till my b-day-day. Of course I answered him to what it might be....let's see...a Nanny?!?!? A cruise!???!? A date with my him!??!! Self -washing and self-folding clothes??!! Oh, I know...it has to be the best coffee ever made-he signed me up for a year to get biweekly shipments...

I have no idea and I love not knowing and waiting to be surprised! :)

God bless,
Mary

Summer Pic #9

Summer Pic #9

"Flowers for Mommy!"

God bless,
Mary

Rainy day/Super humid day Tip

Dump out all the books you have off of their bookcases in a big pile. You'll be surprised how much the children enjoy them! It's like their new books to them and they will play library! Have them organize by size or by content (ie: animals, abc's etc...), or classify them by hardcover, chapter books, electronic books etc...

Guess what my children are doing right now! At least I know I'm all set for a good 1/2 hour! :) Off to figure out what I can tackle in that time frame...

God bless and have a wonderful day!
Mary

Summer Pic #8

Summer Pic #8

"I love you, A/C!"

God bless,

mary

Summer Pic #7 (from yesterday!)

Summer Pic #7

Title: "My sensory learning child"- her own unique way of cleaning up a spill.

God bless,

Mary

Who was lost has been found!

Praise God! Luke has been found! This was posted on their facebook page:

"LUKE'S BEEN FOUND!!Please join us in prayers of thanksgiving and praise.Message from his family: Luke Dillier was found this afternoon, Monday July 26th. He is safe and back at home with his family. Luke was identified by a DART Police officer who had just 5 minutes before seen one of the fliers our community has been posting. The family wishes to thank the entire community and the police officers for their support, love and prayers that brought Luke home safely to them. God Bless"

Thank you God! I can only imagine the turmoil the parents felt.

God bless,
Mary

The big 1-0

My husband and I are getting somewhat close to our 10 year Wedding Anniversary. What an awesome celebration our marriage and party afterwards was!!! (People still talk about it! I'm not kiddin'!) It really does feel just like yesterday! Then again, what an awesoem 10 years we've had-6 kids, lots of fun, lots of trials and we made it through them all. What a gift our marriage is-thank You, Lord for my husband :)

I would really like to celebrate our anniversary in style-big time.
Anyone have any ideas out there? It may have to be with our children since babysitting is scarce these days... but that's okay!

Any ideas? I'd love to hear them!

God bless,
Mary

That odd question answered!

I got it!
This is why my son asked me this question. (hint: Pause my playlist music!)


God bless,
Mary

Summer Pic #6

Summer Pic #6

I title this one "Team Uniforms"

Not only is my hubby enthralled in the sport of running and lots of it but our kids have shown a big interest in it the past year. Here they are all dolled up and ready to get their running sneakers on for Daddy to time their 2 laps at the local high school. Just about each Sunday morning after mass, they go out and practice. They really do enjoy it.

Our big run that they really look forward to is the kids run (1/2 mile) on Labor Day. They did it for the first time last year...and this year they are at it again! Even my almost 4 year old (in about a month!) has finally completed 2 laps w/out stopping on a HS track-that is half a mile! She is quite small (well, both of my girls are! Sweet and simple. Tiny and precious. Whatever you want to call it! :)) and that is HUGE for her little legs to do! But she was determined...anything that her older siblings can do, she can do too.

There is quite a lot of determination smushed in with some good competition in our family!!!

God bless,
Mary

Look who woke me up at 4am/Summer Pic #5

Summer Pic #5

I title this one: "Catch me, catch me if you can!"

Yes, I did indeed take this pic early this morning. I really did not get out of bed until 6am but this cute little guy was tossing and turning from 4-6am. As you can see, there are other feet in the pic. That's right, we have early risers in our household. Those loud voices and energy filled bodies do not mix well with a sleepless Momma and esp. when the Daddy is running 20 miles rihgt now (eeeeeek!!! No thanks!) It's a miracle that I can function at the computer right now. Good ol' coffee. Works every time.

God bless,
Mary

Summer Pic #4

Summer Pic #4

I title this one "RIP little guy".

This poor little guy was found in our backyard. Not sure what happened but my kids were a bit sad to see it laying on the grass (where they play) upside down nonetheless. We all stared at it to see if it was moving or breathing but nothing. Nada. RIP little guy.

God bless,
Mary

Summer Pic #3

Summer Pic #3

I title this one "Look what I found! Now, let's go fishin'!"

It was quite hard to decide what picture to use for today. There were 3 pics that I had to choose from and I think this one ranks #1! This is my kid #1 holding up his VERY LONG and quite gross worm! I have NEVER EVER seen one this long before, have you?!?!

The other 2 pics are below...

I love this one-it captures my kids behaving well and sharing well! They must have colored in those coloring books for 45 minutes. That is huge for them! (Making momma proud! :)

This picture is one of all of my kids, minus the baby and I, carrying cans of food into the seminary here in town. They love to do this and I love to declutter those cans, esp. of chicken noodle soup! Even my little ones, 2 and 3, were carrying a can in each hand. Oh, what the brothers must have thought as they saw my 5 coming into their seminary!

Happy Summer and God bless,
Mary

Small Successes- It's Thursday!

Here we go again! :)

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

For me, this week:

1. Yesterday, I decided not to do the dishes and do the fast and furry clean up while my little ones napped. Instead, I sat on the rug with my older ones and played Legos. We played and played and it was really fun! So fun, we played right through snack time- for a whole hour! Thank You God for reminding me that these moments are fleeting and to take time to sit and enjoy them :)

2. I was able to get to my Bible study last night. I have not gone in a very long time due to sick children and busy summer schedules but last night I made it and now I am energized for tackling the rest of the week!

3. Ya know, it drives me nuts that I have to sit here and think about what I can write down for a small success. You too?

Reality is, every day is a success--every little thing I do...I woke up, drank coffee, said my morning offering and prayed, took a shower (uninterrupted, thank you), packed my hubby's lunch, changed 2 diapers, picked out an air conditioner for my hubby to buy at lunchtime today...

-that is my morning so far today!

So, yippee for me :)

God bless,
Mary

Summer Pic #2

Evidently, I am not good at keeping to my word on pics, huh!?
But! I did remember last night, it was just that it was late, really late, to think to post at that hour. So...bonus! I get to post 2 today :)


Here is one for yesterday:

Summer Pic #2

I title this: "Even girls like Legos!"

God bless, Mary

p.s. stay tuned for later in the day - my summer pic post :)

Don't underestimate teenagers!

There's a lot of talk about teens lately that I have been reading and so I thought this video would be a great addition.



God bless,
Mary

Feast of St. Mary Magdalene

Happy Feast day!

I did not know she is the patron saint of:

apothecaries;

contemplative life;

converts;

glove makers;

hairdressers;

penitent sinners;

people ridiculed for their piety;

perfumeries;

pharmacists;

reformed prostitutes;

sexual temptation;

tanners;

women

...did you?!?!

I absolutely love the way Jesus treats Mary Magdalene. With such deep love, gentleness, kindness, AND forgiveness...but He also states to go and sin no more. He forgave Mary Magdalene and showed her the way to true and lasting happiness. Jesus showed that she had dignity, no matter what she has done. That she is worth so much to Him. That she is worth something!

May I imitate Jesus in the way I treat my children. May I treat them with great love, gentleness, kindness and forgiveness and teach them to sin no more. What a big task! Mother Mary, guide me and lead me and my children to be pleasing to your Son, our Lord Jesus Christ.

St. Mary Magdalene, pray for us!

May God bless you,

Mary

Summer Pic #1

I love photos!!!-taking them, editing them, looking at them, posting them.

So, for my blog, I have decided to add a picture of the day for each day left in this summer.

Yup, the summer is flying by soooo fast and we are having tons of fun but I want to remember these days!

Summer Pic #1

I title this one: "Rain Rain go away..."

Need I say more?

God bless,
Mary

How about some happy news?

It's great to read or see some good news going on in the world!
God bless,
Mary

Weekend Fun Pics

We went to the beach over the weekend on Sunday and it was a blast, as always. There was a Nature Center little museum there and my kids always enjoy that too. We ended it with a picnic on the beach with PB&J, pretzels and granola bars, and H2O. It was terrific! Simple and fun and made my kids very happy and us too! :)
The kids (and hubby!) all fell asleep on the ride home. Wiped out from fresh air, water, laughter and fun.
I love the beach.
No doubt about it.
Good times!

God bless,
Mary

Not enough stones&rocks at our house, I guess

*Note to self:
When shaking the beach sand off of boys' swim trunks, make sure you empty out their pockets too before bringing inside ready to put in washing machine.

Just sayin'.

God bless,
Mary

Wow! This is great!

How did I not know about this sooner?!?!

Thanks Sam!

God Bless,
Mary

Ice Pops for breakfast

You know you've given a little too many ice pops this week when you find your 8 yr old and 2 yr old playing in the den with the 2 yr old eating an ice pop at 5:54am.

Your 8 yr old goes on to tell you that he woke up saying his throat hurt and that he needed an ice pop and so not to wake you, the momma up, he gave him the ice pop.

And that was at 5:40am.

Kudos for my oldest helping out!!!, but...I know it's going to be a long day, folks.

God bless,
Mary

They keep coming around

And my kids are so very happy about this! Please stay a while and keep my kids entertained :) And tell the others to come too, ok?

God bless,
Mary

Staying home with the kids is so worth it

to see the smile and joy of accomplishment of my kid #2 opening a can of Spaghetti O's for the very first time all by herself!

And then watching her proceed to open my can of soup, all the while saying "Why isn't this woorrrrrrrrrrrrrking?" And then it splats ALL OVER THE KITCHEN, in her hair and on my back. And then not loosing it, but looking at her with a smirk on her face and I smile and giggle and she asks "Why are you laughing?" And then I say that "sometimes in life you just need to laugh! "Ha! It's all over me and in your hair too!"-I said back to her. Then we both laughed and she cleaned it up without being asked.

Good enough reason?

I didn't think so, so how about these reasons:

Of course that is just one small reason why staying home is soooooo worth every effort, every smile and every tear, every bit of not getting the latest fad or latest toy, every bit of seeing your older child reading a book to a younger one just because, every bit of hearing your child singing along to "Don't worry, be happy", every bit of watching one of your children run to grab a small toy out of the hand of the babe before he chokes on it, every bit of being the very person your child runs to everytime they fall or need a snuggle, every bit of being the very person your crying child runs to when they don't want to share but have to, every bit of reading "Good Night Moon" and "The Fierce Bad Rabbit" 10 times every day; every bit of teaching them over and over how to add 2 and 2 or how to spell C-A-T or how to say a prayer to St. Michael the Archangel....
and that's just the beginning of why.

B/c basically, my life is for you, my children. All I do is b/c I love you, my dear children, my dear husband. I may not the be the best patient and calm Mom, but my love for you is deep and I will always pray and trust God that he will provide for us, and provide the graces for me to keep trying and trying to be the best Mom for you.

Because you are totally worth it!

You are the reason I am a Mom and I thank you!

Wow, deep thoughts, huh!? That came outta nowhere! I can be pretty mushy!
God bless,
Mary

So holy, the goats even kneel!

My older 2 kids went to a Franciscan Camp last week. They loved it! It was the 3rd time for my oldest and the first time for my 2nd oldest. They did everything from arts and crafts, games, races, to gardening, baking and feeding the chickens and goats. Talking about goats, check out these funny pics!

I laugh when I look at them b/c I think-wow, this place is soooooooo holy that even the goats are kneeling!!! When I told Sister this, she giggled and told me the real reason was because they were getting so old that their hooves hurt them while the ate the hay.

But I still think its b/c it is such holy place!!!

God bless,
Mary

Cheerios

We have a thing for Cheerios in our family...if you did not suspect that yet. (Hint Hint: my blog name!!!)
So, here is a photo to prove it:I'm not sure what is cuter-is it the cheerio stuck on my baby's face or his dimple?!

God bless,
Mary

Where's my girl?

Remember I told you about my kid #5 and his love for Mother Mary? Well, the other night all the kids were asleep except my (once again!) 2 year old and he kept mumbling something while in his crib. It started as a gentle mumble increasing into a yell.

Daddy went in to see what was up and he said very passionately "Where's my girl? Where's my girl?" to my hubby.

Daddy was totally confused until my little guy said "Where's my girl?! Ya know, Mary!"

We have these little figures of all different Bible characters and one is Mary that I found at the dollar store, except they did came separately AND bonus! they were only a dollar! :) Bargain -yeah! This is the Mary he was talking about! How cute, huh?!

God bless,
Mary

Bandaids and Ice-Pops

FYI-2 things that Mom didn't tell me about mothering and to stock up on (big-time).

The 2 things that you can't just give out one, but to all children around to make them all happy b/c you know if one child has a boo-boo---there is bound to be more boo-boos on more children, right? And if one has a sore throat, there is bound to be more sore throats, right?

Here are the 2 thing:

1-bandaids

2-ice pops

Any other ones? Please let me know so next time I go shopping I can buy adequate amounts! :)

Don't you agree?!
God bless,
Mary

Odd Question of the day

Kid #1 comes to me and asks "Mom, do you speak whale?"

????
You should have just seen the look on my face!

God bless!
Mary

Opposites Attract

I phoned my hubby at work to see how he was doing and if he was awake.

You see, last night was one of those nights. I think 3 of my kids have strep throat (and who know how many more as the week goes on) so you can imagine what my night was. Then times it by 10. It was that bad. Really.

I was able (THANK YOU GOD! really-- THANK YOU GOD!) to take a nap this afternoon so I feel refreshed and awake but I was wondering how my hubby was doing.

He answered his phone cheerfully and well, very awake.

I said "Did you take a nap in your car at lunch or something?"

"No," he said "I ran! Those endorphins are great!"

Once again...opposites attract!
ha ha! LOL!

God bless,
Mary

Kateri feast day

Got that from here. Happy Feast day of Kateri Tekawitha!

Here is some info on her. My kids LOVE her! She is one of my girls' favorites to dress up as (VERY EASY and very easy to find at consignment stores or garage/tag sales too!), esp. for our homeschooling group All Saints Day party!

We will be making lots of Indian head-dresses with construction paper and have a pow-wow...or something fun and cool like that! And of course today, I am sure there will be lots of dressing up as Indians.

We will also be listening to this today from Glory Stories! We love Glory Stories!

REALITY check: Today we are filled with fevers, sore throats, ice pops and great Indian head dresses, and not to forget lots of coffee for Momma so I can keep going and going and going...! :)

Oh what a night last night was...c'mon coffee-get workin'!

God bless,
Mary

Vacation Pics

B/c we all know pics are the best! So, here ya go...

Here is the pic on our way trucking across the very very wide state of PA. It was not a nice scene but did clear up-Thank God!

This was our 1/2 way stop, playing at a school playground. It was about 11am and there was no one to be seen. It was a ghost town big time! It was such a cute pretty town too. What a shame no one out there to enjoy it but my loud crew!
I love this picture of 3 of them on the see-saws! It is so cute, don't you think?

It was a total of 11 hours but worth every heartache. I thought it was going to be a good vacation, but turned out to be a GREAT one! It did take me till Wednesday (that is Saturday till Wednesday morning:4 plus days-ouch!) that I was in a mood-I was just totally wiped out from just packing and the stress of getting 8 people ready for 7 days camping (albeit in a cabin but still!). It was early Wednesday morning that something clicked and I thought to myself: "What am I doing? I am ruining our family vacation! I have to change my mood. Lord, help me" or something like that. So, I changed and the week just got better and better. We arrived and to my childrens' delight was a bunch of horses! They loved them so much, feeding and petting them.



Isn't this the COOLEST thing for kids?! Mine spent TONS of time playing on it:
Here we are in our cabin, our very small cabin. We are told it can hold up to 9 people. Let it be known it is only for sleeping! It was very hard for us all to be up and around in the cabin. There was a loft which we called the "attic" or "playroom" and that kept only the smallest of attention. The great thing was that after 12noon lunch there was constant sports and games that my kids loved to play and swing sets and pool, toys galore. It was perfect for them! Perfect for us!

Yeah, I know I'm such a bad mom putting my kids to work! (Heee heee!) they had to keep up w/ their chores even on vacation! I let it go for about 2 days and I was stressing out-uh, that mood I was talking to you about, those dishes added to it. BUT ANYWAY, my kids were not too upset and just did them-I think we gave them a bribe too. Hey, treats always work good :)


There are more pics but I don't have the time to post them all right now! Here is a great pic of the JULY 4th fireworks that we saw on our way home! It was sooooo cool-we stopped for a little potty break, my oldest got out to run into the hotel and as we waited, we heard very very loud booms and of course all the kids woke up (argh!) but what a delight! Right on the other side of the bushes were their town fireworks so we got front row seats! It was really great!

I'm off to sleep now.
Good night and God bless,
Mary

He is so melancholic!

You know how there are just certain things that make you wonder and be in awe of your spouse. You know those things. Those things that sometimes even make you go a little nutty? Those things that made you wild in attraction when dating may become just the things that drive you nutty and (a different!) wild at times?

My hubby. He is the best. He is driven with the utmost passion about certain things in life (its a good, no...a GREAT thing those things include me (yay!) and our kids (double yay!). I believe I mentioned it before but once again I am in awe of his running. He is training for his first (I say first b/c I have a feeling this running deal will last for a loooooooooong time) marathon.

Yesterday, Sunday, he ran 18 miles! Yes, you heard me right. 18 miles! What a nut, huh? I told you he has mucho passion about things-which as you can see includes running. Okay, that is not the only thing that is amazing to me but the fact that he ran it at 4:45am-starting time- AND that he ran it WITHOUT AN IPOD! Did you hear me? This man of mine took his running time to THINK! Oh my dear. I am so NOT melancholic. This is completely, totally, absolutely 100% odd to me.

I cannot imagine running 18 miles. AND I cannot imagine running 18 miles without anything to listen to but the birds. Don't get me wrong. I love the outdoors, I do indeed love the sound of birds. But both those things mixed with running and 18 miles is soooo not me. Give me a camera and nature, my awesome comfortable walking sandals, a water bottle, and an IPOD or portable CD player or even my phone to call my long lost friends. Now I am all set.

Good thing opposites attract, huh?!
I thank God for this difference b/c God knows just what we need. If it was not for his melancholic tendencies and those times for him to think, who knows where we'd be. He always has a way to make sure I am thinking straight and brings me back to reality in my little life of sometimes crazy spontaneity.

God bless him!

God bless you too!
Hope you are enjoying the summer-we sure are!
God bless,
Mary

Oh no!

My 2 year old said "My tongue is falling out!"

ha ha!

Then one of his siblings told me the real truth, "Mom,he's just saying that so he can get some tylenol."
ha ha!!!

God bless, Mary

She sings He says

At bathtime last night, I was singing to my 2 year old munchkin:

As I sang "Twinkle Twinkle" he says "No, Momma, sing 'E-ma-coo-lit Marwee"
so I sang it.

Then I started to sing "Mary had a little lamb" and he says "No, Momma, E-ma-coo-lit Marwee!"

So I sang it.

I began to sing "ABCDEFG..." and he says "Momma! E-ma-coo-lit Marwee!"
so I sang it.

Mother Mary, I know you were so happy! Even my heart rejoiced with such love for you to see my young baby (err...son) love you. May you be ever close to my little guy and guide him in the right ways. He loves you so!

Queen of the family, pray for us!

**Oh, how could I forget to mention?!?! You will also find my little guy saying "Hail Mary, full of graces!" soooooooooo cute (and soooooo true!)!

God bless, Mary

Jesus, I will hide in You, my Peace

God bless,
Mary

Random stuff

We've been quite busy lately. We were on vacation last week-our first 'real' vacation since, oh...we've had our honeymoon almost 10 years ago! Our other vacations were always super short and we (the parents) were always so tired that once it was over, we felt we then needed to go on vacation! :) I had some auto-posts so that's why I did not mention vacation. When (ha!) I get time, I will try to post some pics. We had an unbelievably awesome time. All 8 of us. It was so great, so worth going back. So, we're planning to go again next year! We thank God for the gift of our family vacation. It enriched our family and our marriage. I could go on and on about it and maybe I will one of these days...It was just incredible.

So, now that I am back, it is camp week and my older 2 are at camp and I am home with the younger 4-what a difference!

These are some things that have been said or witnessed or just thoughts floating around in my head this week:

I am finding myself saying quite often "Why can’t you play nicely together? All I want to do is to leave this room to put the baby to sleep and you play nice. Why can’t you just play nicely with one another?"

AND "How come you are crying...again?!"

Why does my 2 yr old literally charge into my legs? He gets a pose, pauses, then looks at me and away he goes charging into my legs?!!?

Why are my plants’ leaves broken in half?

My (almost!) 4 yr old says “Mom, see this? This is a car with blah, blah, blah and this is the important part-these here are the guns. See Mom?” (What? gimme a break, she has brothers!)

I say "Let’s vacuum everybody!" So, we do. And then we eat lunch. Well, I guess it is: let’s vacuum again. (why do I do these things to myself?! When will I learn?)

Asking my kids about camp (FYI-they are at the same camp):

My 7 yr old DAUGHTER says “Mom, it is so great. There is this girl in my group and she has a pink headband. And we went to the clubhouse and made necklaces. Tomorrow we are tie dying our shirts. There are 2 pools and one is cold and one is warm. My counselor is nice and I stood by her while we all fed the goats. I was a bit scared. There are boys in our group too but I like to be with the girls. And I’m going to wear pink tomorrow too. Oh, we need to wear our bathing suits again, OK Mom? There were chicks there and I did not pick one up but I was near them. They are so cute. Mom? Did you hear all that?”

Then my 8 yr old SON answers “It was really good.”

Oh, it's Small Success for Thursday already!
1. I am so glad I have finished all the laundry from vacation only to start again. Oh well!
2. I have made time for daily prayer. Daily. Prayer. This is huge for me! ya hoo!
3. I had held my composure in heated times with my kids. Well, a good chunk of times, not all the time. I am so human. Good thing for confession.

Adios!
God bless, Mary

these are a few of my favorite things

at least here is ONE of my favorites! Have you seen this before??? I just LOVE it! If you can't read it - I don't think many, if any, can so here it is:
Here is a link that you can read a lot better than my "mug shot" (heee heee!)
God bless,
Mary

I am a genius!

I got it! I am a genius!

I have found a way to keep my kiddos hydrated with water during these hot summery days. It is a cooler filled with water and a bunch of ice cubes. Put it on the counter then "wa-la"-it is at their height and they drink till their hearts content :)

YES! I am a genius!

God bless,
Mary

The greatest pets EVER~!

It worked!
They became butterflies! We did not kill them! Yahoo! :)

My kids were so excited to wake up today to 3 live butterflies and still 2 cocoons...2 more to see become butterflies (we hope they did not die). They are so pretty with black, orange and yellow on their wings, and they are able to watch them close up :) What an amazing gift for them to see life change from caterpillar to butterfly...it is a great analogy to life on earth to eternal life.

Someday we will become something much much more beautiful!

I highly recommend getting this-soooooo worth the money. (and soooooo easy to take care of!)
God bless,
Mary

Happy Feast of St. Maria Goretti

My girls LOVE this Saint-esp. my oldest. She is a true role model for girls (and women too!). Do you know about this saint?

October 16, 1890Maria Goretti was born in Corinaldo, Italy to Luigi Goretti and Assunta Carlini.

Then on July 5, 1902, Maria was mortally wounded by her neighbor, Alessandro Serenelli, who attacked her with intent to do something very bad to her (if you get my drift....uhm...). He was 20 years old. In her struggle, she told him of the truth that what he was to do was a terrible sin, and that hell would be where he would end up. She did not hesitate to tell the TRUTH, costing her her life.

Then on July 6, 1902 Maria died at the age of 11 years, 9 months and 21 days, after forgiving this man, Alessandro. Did you get that? SHE FORGAVE HIM! What a saint!

She was a martyr before her 12th birthday-wow!

The really cool thing is that one night he had a dream or vision of Maria and she was gathering flowers and offering them to him. With that dream, his life changed. When he was released after 27 years (he was sentenced to 30 yrs), his first act was to go to beg the forgiveness of Maria’s mother.

Oh, St. Maria Goretti, pray for us!

On June 24, 1950 Maria Goretti is declared Saint!

She was so very chaste and pure and beautiful too, such a role model for us girls and women today.

May we imitate her love for God and for neighbors.

St. Maria Goretti, pray for us!

God bless, Mary

Rain? I like this type of rain!

I know...yet another video but this one is totally great!!!



God bless,
Mary

Some funnies

Why did the computer go to the chiropractor?
It had a slipped disc.

What keys can't you put in a lock?
Piano keys.

Ha ha!!
God bless, Mary