A Blessed Woman's Daybook - June 29, 2009

Outside my window....

Well it's hard to tell, I really need to wash the downstairs windows! Another practice in patience! All in God's time.

To Live the Liturgical Year...

Today we celebrate The Feast of Saints Peter and Paul.

Catholic Culture states

"A moving custom is practiced in rural sections of the Alpine countries. On June 29, when the church bells ring the "Angelus" early in the morning, people step under the trees in their gardens, kneel down and say the traditional prayer the "Angel of the Lord." Having finished the prayer they bow deeply and make the sign of the cross, believing that on Saint Peter's Day the blessing of the Holy Father in Rome is carried by angels throughout the world to all who sincerely await it. "

I Am Thankful For...

My family and the gift of homeschooling. I'm so thankful I said yes to God's call!

One Of My Favorite Things...

Playing cards with my kids. Buck and Honeybee are loving Battle and Go Fish. The House Cat and Snuggle Bug are enjoying Hand and Foot and Rummy

I Am Creating...

My computer savvy husband helped me create a spreadsheet to organize my research for next years school books. It's been sooooo helpful. Thanks honey. I have a spreadsheet for each of the older girls. I have columns for Subject, Title, Curriculum, Price, Comments, Amazon/with shipping, Cath Swap. Looks like I'll be using a mix of CHC, Seton, Saxon, Emmanuel (MODG).

Can't wait to get the books ordered. Each of the girls sat with me and helped me to choose their curriculum. It was our first time to do it this way. It just reminded me of how they are getting older too quick!

My Picture Thought...

Buck playing cards with a good friend.

GO FISH!

Friday Fun - Celebrating Our Godson's Birthday!

Today we were blessed to spend time with one of our godson's. It was so good seeing him and his family and celebrating his 3rd Birthday with them.

We all had fun making these easy "fish plates."
May we always strive to be "Fishers of Men!"

So Thankful For....

The gift of such a wonderful husband and father to our children.

Friday Fun - Homemade Play Dough

To make homemade play dough you'll need:

1 cup flour

1/2 c. salt

2 tsp. cream of tartar

1 cup water

1 Tbsp. oil

food coloring

(I normally double the recipe)

Mix all of the ingredients (except food coloring) together in a non stick pot.

Stir over med/low heat until the mixture forms a ball in the pot.

Mold dough with hands and cut into sections. You can double or triple the recipe to make lots of different colors. Add food coloring. Tip: Use disposable plastic gloves to work the color in. The homemade play dough is so much easier to work with than store bought!

Honeybee had fun making shapes.

Buck made sharks and ships

SnuggleBug made a lady on a path.

The House Cat crafted this pretty flower.

And of course we made an image of The Sacred Heart, since today is The Feast of the Sacred Heart of Jesus. I forgot to replenish the red food coloring after Buck's birthday cake. I don't think our Lord minds that it is green :)

Sacred Heart of Jesus, Have Mercy On Us.

A Rose of A Grandmother

It's hard to know where to start with this post. So much has been happening - I'm still trying to digest it all. My May was spent recovering from surgery hoping to be up for our trip to Myrtle Beach to see our niece graduate from high school. She is such a miracle child - A brain cancer survivor! We had a great time staying on the beach and seeing family who we rarely see.

The hard part of it all was that God decided to take my sweet grandmother to her eternal reward while I was so far away. I'm so happy for her. She was such a special lady - full of love of God and family. I loved visiting her in the summer and helping out on the farm. It was so different from my day to day routine. Even though I was one of 25 grandchildren she made me feel like I was the only one. I'm sure each of her grandchildren would say the same for themselves. She loved to tell me about Jesus and how she lived for Him. At night she would write in her diary and then read from the Bible to me. She wasn't Catholic, I doubt she ever knew anyone who was, but she was one of the most Christian people I've ever known. I have vivid memories of her reading the 23rd Psalm to me. It always spoke to me in ways I couldn't understand. Now with my training in the Catechesis of the Good Shepherd I see why. I only wish I could put the emotions in my heart to words.

Her eight children all came together for the visitation. Only God knew that He would also call one of them home that same night. My mom took her brother back to his hotel after the gathering. He hadn't been feeling well and had told his wife that he just wanted to go and be with his mama. God heard this request and took him too. It was his 68th birthday.

They had a double funeral the next day. I can only imagine how difficult this was for the siblings. The hardest part of it for me was being so far away from my mama. I'm her only child and so wanted to be there to comfort her. However, I know God has His reasons and that's that.

Now a special cousin of mine has been diagnosed with a fast moving cancer and given a couple of months to live. Please keep him and his family in your prayers. He is the son of my aunt who lived with my grandmother. May this prayer remain on my lips "Jesus, I Trust In You!"

My sweet mama brought this rose home to me from my grandmother's casket. It is a perfect image of her - soft, sweet smelling, feminine, BEAUTIFUL CREATION OF GOD!

I'm in the mood for Pickin' and Eatin'

PickYourOwn.org is a great site for those of you wondering which fresh fruits and veggies are locally grown for hand picking. They also have lots of tips on canning, storing, picking, etc.

What to look for and when:
March - April: Asparagus
May-June: strawberries
June- July: cherries
June-August: blueberries, blackberries
July-September: peaches, figs, tomatoes, green beans
July-October: raspberries
August - Figs, Fall raspberries start, early apples
September-October: apples and grapes
October: late apples, Pumpkins
December: Christmas trees

I'm on the lookout for a strawberry field to take the kids to. We are trying to shake the beach blues and I think this would be the perfect sweet idea. If any of you know of a good one nearby let me know. (North Central AL) Have a blessed weekend :)

Wondering where we've been?

Honeybee age 4