What am I cooking? Spaghetti and Meatballs. What am I reading? Interior Castle by St. Teresa of Avila. I’m ashamed to say that I’ve never read it. So far, excellent. What are my weekend plans? I plan to watch a lot of football, and maybe hold a mini-family party in honor of Gus’ third birthday. I included his photo in honor of the event. Does he look like a young version of Will Ferrell? What are my prayer intentions today?... Read more
Consider the surface of a lake, above which the sun is shining. If the surface of the lake is peaceful and tranquil, the sun will be reflected in this lake; and the more peaceful the lake, the more perfectly will it be reflected. If, on the contrary, the surface of the lake is agitated, undulating, then the image of the sun can not be reflected in it. It is a bit like this with regard to our soul in relationship... Read more
The following was shared with me by a friend, and I have it pinned up right next to my desk – I hope that you find it helpful as well! “A Child’s Advice to His Parents”, by Judge John D. Montgomery My hands are small. Please don’t expect perfection whenever I make a bed, draw a picture, or throw a ball. My eyes have not seen the world as yours have. Please let me explore it at my own level... Read more
…that school starts again for my first-grader tomorrow morning. It’s been great to have my big kid home for 2+ weeks, and all of us have benefited from some quality family downtime! Happy…that said first-grader and his 3 year-old sister will have a bit of a break from each other. These two really know how to push each other’s buttons, and it’s getting old! Here are a few pictures from our Christmas break – hope yours was as refreshing and... Read more
Our home has been doing a major nutritional overhaul in the past weeks. We’ve gone from all things processed and chemical to whole foods and more fruits and vegetables. We’re trying to eat out less and eat in more, consuming more nuts and whole grains and even making our own bread. Many of the Builders have been a great inspiration to us in this endeavor–we’re just slow on the uptake and finally got the message! It really took me sitting... Read more
Our readers are such a wonderful source of frugal, practical creativity, so here is something to think on: We have a large basement which we use for storage, it also has the boiler, etc, and some shelving. The floor is painted concrete, the walls are exposed cinder block, it is fairly dry unless our neighborhood floods, the lighting is kind of depressing. As mentioned in the previous post, we bring bins of toys down there, which has made it an... Read more
Well, Mrs. Claus is happy today. All that stuff that had been piling up around her house has been sleighed on over to my place, and she can relax and take it easy for a while I drown in piles of toys. I have to say, we are in much better shape this December 26 than past years, many of our relatives have learned that with six kids in the house the greatest, most generous gift they can give us... Read more
Our Christmas is so full, with activities and visitors and food and fire engines, that it can be hard to find the Christ Child at the center of it all, but when we just focus, He is there in the midst, and it is beautiful. Read more
What am I cooking? On this busy day of preparation before Christmas I am enjoying silence as my older two children play outside and my babies nap. We spent the morning peeling pomegranates for our Christmas salad, baking and freezing Christmas morning waffles, making the gravy for our Christmas Roast, and listening to Christmas music. Amidst the hustle and bustle, my children chattered with excitement about Christmas Eve and Christmas morning. Amazingly, my mind was clear and I thought of... Read more
In the midst of all of the gift-giving this Christmas season, I was reminded the other day of what my children really want for Christmas. A couple of days ago, I had the blessing of an hour alone with my son, just the two of us with some time to go and do whatever we wanted. We decided to have lunch at our favorite sub shop and then to go and paint a Christmas ornament at a pottery place next... Read more
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