hullo

this was supposed to be a monday book. then it turned into tuesday book.

but here it is wednesday….

and yet still…

OUTSIDE MY WINDOW:

morning is breaking. birds are chirping. but it is wet and cold.

WHAT I AM THINKING

and

WHAT I AM THANKFUL FOR:

that last night the walls might as well’ve been paper-thin. because all i could hear was the drip. drip. drip. of water falling off the eaves and hitting a shovel or something…that sound in turn climbed inside my brain and manifested itself into what i imagined a very loud paddle ball game might sound like. or perhaps chinese water torture.

i am so easily annoyed at repetetive  noises when trying to sleep. usually limited to ticking clocks…and snoring husbands…but the sweet smell of the baby’s clean head and a wave of tiredness was enough to make it all bearable.

i felt like such a ninny after…imagining all those poor japanese souls…amidst utter devastation…and me in my warm bed. with warm fuzzy socks. blankets piled high. the heater(if needed). my loved ones all safe and snug…and i thought about how thankful i was. thankful for too many things to count. and thankful MOST especially for God’s grace. because regardless of what…should He deem it necessary to send such pain and devastation this way…i pray that i would still feel the same :thankful.

FROM THE LESSON PLANS:

i wouldn’t bore you with those details were you my worst enemy….textbooks. textbooks. textbooks. TONS of library books. art and pottery classes. sports and CHORES. that is pretty much our home-education in a nutshell these days. (oh, and pre-packaged science kits.God bless the folks who put such things together.

FROM THE KITCHEN:

a picture of  our belated (sunday)st. patrick’s day feast: corned beef, cabbage, carrot, mango coleslaw(not irish, i know) and mashed potatoes.

warm oatmeal with butter and honey for breakfast.

and probably some typical stand-bys this whole week  for dinner: spaghetti with salad and bread, hamburgers, etc.

at least one nite my husband and i will sneak away to dinner somewhere…like lovers do…we have this system where we text/flirt during the day and then when he’s almost home i am ready to jump and in the car and run away with him…even if only for an hour or so. it’s so much fun…i highly recommend it if you can manage.

I AM WEARING:

jammies still. it’s early.

i am smiling as i think of the words: leggings are not pants. leggings are not pants.

I AM CREATING:

some baby things for a baby dear. vintage barbie clothes. and some sewing for the house…aprons, pillow covers, etc.

I AM READING:

a whole slew of dr. seuss books we’ve never read before.

the sermons of st. francis de sales for lent given in 1622

the life of JESUS CHRIST and Biblical Revelations taken from the visions of anne catherine emmerich

and everything that rises must converge by flannery o’connor(which is extremely disturbing, yet very alluring at the same time.)

AROUND THE HOUSE:

monday mayhem.books. papers. fabric. snippets of life strewn here. there and everywhere. yes, i know it’s tuesday. so there is bit of tuesday mayhem along with it. and now what with it being wednesday and all….well, you get the picture!

the laundry is under control thanks to my new system, which is simply: at least one load when i wake up and one load before i go to bed. and hopefully a few loads in between. i have come to a harsh realization that the laundry monster is only tamed by keeping it slow. steady and constant.

given the crummy weather and general gloominess outside i might just declare this whole week a holiday and snuggle in bed/watch old movies.

i can do that, you know…i am the principal.

I AM GOING….

to get off this computer…my new toy…a sweet little laptop. mama’s new friend for schoolwork and helping daddy with invoices. and all sorts of necessary things.

I AM PRAYING….

for my kids. especially the teens. it’s a tough. tough. world. and i don’t envy them one bit.

for my mama and her continued healing. for her mama.

for my daddy and his mama.

for an upcoming Rachel’s Vineyard retreat, a ministry my mama is involved in

and always: for the intentions and needs of all my relatives, friends(blog and otherwise), benefactors, enemies, and ALL Catholic people…

there is so. so much to pray for…when something pops in my head…i address it then and there…because i feel like God is putting it there for a reason.

A FEW PLANS FOR THE REST OF THE WEEK:

celebrating St. Joseph with friends today. we are attempting this program, with a bit of tweaking on our part

some meal planning and a trip to trader joe’s is seriously in order

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY….

from St. Francis de Sales on the qualities faith should have:

when the Saviour said: woman, how great is your faith, was it because this woman’s faith was greater than ours? Certainly not as regards its object, because faith has for its object the truths revealed by God or the Church, and it is nothing else but an adhesion of our understanding to these truths which  it finds both beautiful and good. consequently, it comes to believe them, and the will comes to love them. for just as goodness is the object of the will, beauty is that of the understanding. in our day-to-day life, goodness is coveted through our sense appetite and beauty is loved through our eyes. in our spiritual life, it happens in the same way in regard to the truths of faith. these truths are good, sweet and true, and are not only loved and desired by the will, but are also valued by the understanding because of the beauty it finds in them.

they are beautiful because they are true; for beauty is never without truth, nor truth without beauty. moreover, beautiful things which are not true are not really beautiful either. they are false and deceitful.

wishing you, many, truly beautiful and good things, friends.

happy wednesday!

heart speak

here i am. strength flickering from a busy week. big kids needing rides all over. job searching. resumes. algebra II. laundry.

ashes. ashes. mom falls down. after being carried away to mountaintops. fiercely seized by satan and falsely shown magnificent looking things like: knitting groups. field trips and countless other distractions. comparing them to what seems little. poor. and insignificant.

i will deliver them over to thee, he lies. that father of lies.

if kneeling down though wilt adore me.

graciously i accept strength and the consolation of angels.

it is a tenet of our universal faith that we experience a passion of our own.

i wouldn’t have it any other way, would you?

i cannot imagine living passionless.

stripped of pride i humbly accept that so many things remain undone.

a WIP basket of dreams. careful. easy stitches. nothing complicated.

nothing that i can’t pick up and set down without thinking too much.

what do these stitches say? they say i didn’t have time for anything else.

these mama moments pass all too quickly.

and i don’t want to miss a thing.

after all it’s not every day that there will be hummingbirds to rescue and nurture back to health with sugar water.

or those impromptu long walks where we stared at the sky amazed at the grandeur of the clouds.

and how about inhaling the sweet smell of rosemary in bloom….

so many beautiful things are calling out to behold and see during this holy season of lent.

with eyes lowered yet they remain always on the prize.

frail and in need of help: i seek only HIS grace and love.

hoping and praying that we may bear some fruit during this time of fasting and praying in secret.

coming out now again only to share what the heart speaks….of burdens made easy. and a yoke that is light.

happy weekend, friends.

hope all is well with you and yours.