New Year's Eve

I know, you think all the painkillers have damaged by brain but, NO!, it really is New Year's Eve...tomorrow, the first Sunday of Advent, begins the new Liturgical Year. So, because it was on the calendar and my leg was feeling well enough to travel, we set out.

First stop, Sisters of the Redeemer, about 40 minutes south. Today is the First Saturday so they have their monthly rosary at 1:15. How beautiful to share prayer with the lovely Sisters in their beautiful chapel. How blessed to have nuns and a priest to chat with after. Wonderful, prayerful afternoon.

I've never seen a statue of Our Lady cradling Baby Jesus - beautiful!

nursing and educating...my kind of window!

Saying goodbye for now to our friends, we headed back into the city. Confession seems like the perfect thing for New Year's Eve and we just so happen to know a wonderful monastery that is a great place to seek God's forgiveness. I was slightly sad to not get our "favorite" priest but after having the discussion I did, I know it was Jesus, regardless of the man who was sitting in His place.

I so need a house on this hill.

My penance was to do three acts of kindness for my kids/husband over the next week or so. #1 was simple...let the little ones light candles in the shrine room. We all had a nice, quiet time of prayer and headed back down the hill.

The chili that I had put in the crock was ready when we arrived, cornbread quickly made, we had a wonderful family dinner. DH is playing bingo with them while I write up some lesson plans (and a blog) so that I can be truly quiet tomorrow (I didn't finish the cards or wrap the gifts...I'm on a delay with this leg). I feel ready to enter into the hopeful season that will end with the birth of Our Savior. What a wonderful, peaceful season!

So grab your Advent calendar, pray, reflect, and just be still as we all wait. Definitely worth it.

Happy New Year, everyone! We are blessed.

Our Lady, Conceived Without Sin, Pray for Us!

Today is the feast of Our Lady of the Rosary. It's one of those special days around here. Three years ago, our family attended Mass together, I remembered #1 served, then after Mass I knelt before the Tabernacle while our pastor conferred to me the investiture of the Blue Scapular of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary:

Investiture with the Blue Scapular

Celebrant: Lord Jesus, You chose to share our human nature. We humbly ask You to bless this scapular made in honor of the Immaculate Conception of the Most Blessed Virgin Mary. Grant that those who are clothed in it lend themselves to moral renewal among people. And may this, Your servant, invested with the scapular, through the intersession of the Virgin Mary Immaculately Conceived also deserve to be clothed in You, who live and reign forever and ever. Amen.

The celebrant sprinkles the scapular with holy water and places it over the shoulders of the recipient, saying: Sister, receive the Blue Scapular, from now on a sign of your belonging in the Confraternity of the Immaculate Conception of the Most Blessed Virgin Mary, that by her help you may divest yourself of “the old man.” May God grant that you may wear it cleansed of every sin and free of all stain, and thus pass into eternal life. Amen.

My protector...not sure if she comes out when I exercise so that she may shield me or to extend blessings to all those who pass by. Probably both :0)

It seems, as is proper, that the Holy Spirit is around for all the little and big things in life...to guide me as I walk, often losing my way. As a woman, wife and mother, though, Our Lady has a special place in my life. She points the way always to her Son and she helps me to hear when the Spirit is only a whisper. How blessed we are to have such a loving Mother in heaven!

This morning I attended Mass alone but was surrounded by others who had come for many different reasons, I'm sure. How blessed we all were to participate, as is custom here on Saturday, in the novena to Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal.

"O Mary, conceived without sin, pray for us who have recourse to thee."

She's not done! Is Mary ever done being kind and helpful to us? This coming week ends with the 100th (!!!) anniversary of the Miracle at Fatima. Three young shepherds who were visited by the Blessed Mother as she entrusted to them messages from heaven. One of the simplest and most powerful is to pray the rosary daily for peace. Let's all pledge to pray at least one rosary every day between now and Friday, to show our love for this most gracious of all mothers. She who leads us always, happily, to her Son.

Our Lady of the Rosary, pray for us!

Happy Feast Day/Week

We are lucky enough this month to not only have a birthday but also two Feast Day celebrations...the latter usually falling in the same week! Klondike bars all around...

First up...

Ahhh, #1 son. Every penance surrounding this child includes more talk of St. Augustine than St. Dominic, if you know what I mean. Still, it feels right. Like God can work minor (or much bigger) miracles in this child, if I can only release him to the work of the Holy Spirit (while gently pointing him in the right direction, of course). It is a balm to me when he prays his rosary without fail. I know, even if it's not helping him, it's helping someone. That is a wonderful thing.

Today is Blondie's feast. This one we got right...at least so far.

Of course, she's not some other-worldly Saint...she's six. Still, she has a sense about her that comes from beyond this place and time. Whether she learns from the older ones or knows herself, she is firmly footed in the things not-of-this-world (when she's not being 6, lol). It is lovely to talk to her about God. It makes me think of our call to be childlike and trusting.

It's been interesting around here yesterday and today. I find myself in the middle of a bout of bronchitis, complete with almost complete laryngitis. Listening to the Story of St. Clare at dinner, how she and her sisters in the convent led an almost completely silent life of prayer and then remembering that the end of my pregnancy with this little one found me again without a voice...

My dear friend texted today, "maybe it's a blessing in disguise." I think she's right. It's frustrating and limiting (many moments to offer up!) but also calming and quiet. It allows my kids to speak to me at length without my interrupting. That can open up all sorts of little and big insights. It's nice to have a reason to have nothing to say (and an opportunity to work on that skill). It also gives me a rare opportunity (because my mouth is not moving) for contemplative prayer...much needed. What a blessing to slow down and be quiet!

So, asking for the graces of their Name Saints, we will continue forward with these two with whom we have been so greatly blessed. It will be interesting to see where the Holy Spirit leads and how they choose to respond. I will be doing my best to be there with my rosary in hand and my mouth (for the most part) closed.

We are blessed.

The crows

We have had an abundance of new life around here, from the avian world anyway! The latest was a sweet mama mourning dove that made her nest in our second floor window box.

For at least two weeks, she sat patiently on two beautiful white eggs. I know because, while she didn't leave often, she did fly off sometimes when I was watering the plants out there. She always returned before too long, back to her nest to tend those eggs.

On Friday, we finally saw a little beak peeking out from under her feathers. One of the babies was here! What a sweet little guy he was too.

So tiny, so fragile, so defenseless. I took this picture this morning because the kids, who check every morning to say hello to mama, let me know that she wasn't there. Where was she? Why did she leave? Would she be back soon?

DH went to the car to get something and came in the door with anguish covering his face. He said a big crow had flown out of the box when he walked by. Going to the window, he confirmed the tragedy by witnessing the sprawled, lifeless body of tiny baby bird.

I'm not trying to liken our family to these birds in that I know crows, for whatever reason, felt an instinct to attack and kill this little one. I know that the mother, if she returns, won't feel "sad" because she's a bird and lacks emotion. Still, I can't help but have a deep sense of warning in all of this. We are full-up with defenseless baby birds here and the crows most certainly waiting.

I suppose I'm more in tune with the threats because I've begun reading the Manual for Spiritual Warfare by Paul Thigpen. It brings into rather sharp focus all of the ways Satan is waiting to grab our souls and turn them, subtly or not so, from Our Heavenly Father...many times with our help! I believe what he says and I do feel the importance of being prepared for battle.

There is a difference between being afraid (which is unnecessary because God is so much more powerful than Satan) and being watchful. It is a big challenge trying to guide our kids through this world. I know we will fail to be vigilant all the time and I pray that our attention doesn't waiver when it is essential for them. I pray that Our Lady will wrap her mantle around our little ones and keep them safe. I pray that when temptations come, they will be mature and learned enough to recognize Satan's empty promises. We just came back from the Divine Mercy Chaplet at church...perfect. Jesus I trust in You!

We are blessed.

Praying

There has been a lot, A LOT of drama around here lately. Luckily from outside our humble abode but, nonetheless, it still creeps in at the worst moment. DH, being who he is and having been with me for a long time now, created a "bumper sticker" just for the last few days...

I know, right? He's such a brilliant mind sometimes...lol. Truthfully, though, it's one of those ahem moments because, today, I was praying to be pleasantly surprised and what do you know...

Group Projects

The only group project I have ever been successful not a complete failure with is marriage/parenting and I'm sure there are plenty of people who would like to have a dissenting opinion on my handling of those as well (see "mom" below). So, when I tried my best to dance away from a group project last month and it ended up back in my lap earlier this week, well, let's just say it was the last thing I wanted to deal with just then.

That isn't entirely true. I love the project. I believe in the project. I know there is a complete and total need for the project. Which is why I went ahead and did my best work, even if no one would ever see the result. (I was praying to be pleasant...I had already acknowledged failure)

Yes, ahem, I misjudged that situation. It wasn't a barn-burning success but it was a success. It achieved the purpose it was meant to and we even had support that I hadn't counted on (I was pleasantly surprised)

My Mom 

I love my mom, truly. However, having raised her own five children, she has a keen sense of where she made the mistakes and she is not shy about pointing out where I need to alter course. It's funny, actually, because I consider myself a fairly well-raised child but, whatever. There are days, like when she's been away, that I don't want to jump back in and listen to her commentary about anything and everything.

I know that's the wrong way to approach this (she's my mom and she's turning and 80 and, well, time is of the essence). So, I called her up this morning and asked if we could take her to lunch at the local restaurant that was again running the Summer $0.99 kids meal deal (I was praying to be present and pleasant). 

What a wonderful lunch we all had. The kids had fun catching up with Grammy and I even got the information I needed to plan the very important birthday celebration next month. Yay. 

Being the weird homeschoolers 

Today was the closing Mass for our parish school. The auxiliary bishop was presiding and, even if he wasn't, I do like school Mass because the kids usually take away something good from the homily.

I'm never thrilled with walking into a school Mass, though. My top two went to school for a few years before we pulled them out to educate them at home. It was never the school, it was totally me. Still, there are people on the other side who don't get the whole departure and take it personally. If you know me, you know I'm not a socially competent person. This situation makes it soooo much worse. Still, I wanted to go, so we did (I was praying to be pleasantly surprised).

We walked in and #1's best friend from first grade ran up to say "hello" and catch up. After that, one of the teachers stopped by to greet us. There were warm smiles from a few families we knew when we were there every day. It was a pleasant surprise. It was also a fantastic homily and a great Mass with the bishop. Triple bonus.

You may notice there are no photos of my day. I think the biggest grace of the last 12 hours has been the ability to just "be" with my kids. There is a kindness to vacation. No pressing schoolwork or activities; just time to spend with one another talking, listening and being. 

Today is World Priest Day so, if you haven't, please say some prayers (or a rosary, chaplet, whatever you'd like) for these men who dedicate their lives to bringing Christ to others. 

Now, since you've been patient, something to look at:

Because, without priests, we will starve to death

Patron Saint of parish priests...and all-around brilliant man

I just liked it a lot because it's easy to be led astray in all well-meaning (and, you know, he's a "Great" after all)

      
 We are blessed.

Please Pray

I was working on a long, important blog but then it became more about me and less about what was important. So, let me just ask straight...

Please pray for my dear friend and her family. Her youngest brother (he was in his early 20's) fell from a ladder yesterday and suffered severe head trauma. He died this morning.

I beg prayers because I know what it's like to lose someone at this time of year but mostly because I have no idea what it's like for a mother to lose her child.

Thanks.

for if he were not expecting the fallen to rise again, it would have been superfluous and foolish to pray for the dead. But if he did this with a view to the splendid reward that awaits those who had gone to rest in godliness, it was a holy and pious thought. Thus he made atonement for the dead that they might be absolved from their sin. 2 Maccabees 12

Holiday Stress Relievers

I was listening to the homily this morning and Father was talking about "all the stress people have this time of year". I admit that we are blessed with my husband's job and the opportunities we've been given so that accounts for much of the stress I'm sure others might encounter. I had to shake my head at the rest. I wonder what the stress is all about. Most especially if people are choosing to do so much that it makes them stressed...

So, I went through my day and I listened. Sometimes that clears things up. Walking out of Mass with our dear neighbor, I heard her ask #1, "I just read that St. Bernard asked Jesus what was the hardest thing He suffered while on earth and Jesus said, 'carrying My cross'". We all agreed that the weight of the wood, holding all the sins of humanity for all eternity must have been quite a burden. Thanks to God that He was willing to do that for all of us! How grateful and full of joy we should be to know how very much we are loved, having done nothing but existed as a result of His abundant love!

We came home, hung out a while, then walked back to church for Family Rosary. When I walked in, I asked the dear woman who runs the rosary if she was dealing with holiday stress and she said, "no, a few years ago I decided we would be having a simple Christmas...giving things to others in need, not so much for ourselves. Wouldn't it be lovely just to spend the whole time in church, staring at the crib?" Indeed, what a blessing that would be! I am so thankful for this woman in my life. A mother of five grown kids, she has been there and is so mild and gentle. I am so amazed at her faith and her knowledge of what is truly important.

Wait, I forgot...It was the feast of St. Nicholas today! Well, it was a stretch to get everyone through their shoe loot, fed and dressed for 9 AM Mass but we made it. St. Nick gifted everyone with some great National Geographic books and some tasty fruit (except for #1 who got a ginger root because she's starting to cook fancy things ;0))

papaya

the boy loves his chocolate coins!

They also each got a special shirt that reminds them God gave them special talents (or challenges) ;0)

Fast forward a few hours...we just got back from the Family Advent Retreat. What a great bunch of information presented in such inventive ways. We patterned it from Look to Him and be radiant which is chock full of amazing tools for catechesis. Take a look at Holy Door post!

The Holy Family pre-prayer

Crowns and family trees to make

Reading scripture about the star in Bethlehem

Everyone helping out

We shared a great meal, had a lovely prayer service with the Holy Family and worked our way through the stations. Towards the end the little ones were wearing thin and there was definitely stress involved in coaxing them into carseats and beds...still, it was so worth it. What an amazing day filled with God's goodness. I'm writing some lesson plans and heading to a peaceful sleep. Wishing you a joyful week (how could it not be with Tuesday??).

We are blessed.

Thankful...Part Nine

I guess it's actually part 10 since I had two threes but it seems trivial to jump ahead.

Today I'm feeling much better and I am thankful for that. I credit the "magic elixir" I whipped up on Monday.

sorry it's sideways

That's right...mushroom sauerkraut soup. I did not spare the juice this time- three cans! (Blondie said, "it's really puckery") and it did the trick. The Slovaks did a lot of manual labor back in the day and couldn't afford to be sick. I'm sure this came out many times during the winter to drive out the bugs. It was also good practice for me to get ready for Christmas Eve.

Ah, Christmas Eve. I can't wait but I'm not rushing it, either. I have a few more days to tidy up the house and then we're settling in for a month of prayer, fasting and quiet. Few outside obligations and lots of family time. I'm so happy to have worked to get to this point. I am thankful to have an Advent that will be family-centered as we wait for the Holy Family to make it to Bethlehem and begin the celebration of the Savior's Birth!

Today we're finishing up our classes and getting ready for Thanksgiving. I heard a marvelous homily yesterday from Archbishop Chaput about giving thanks, not just for our family, friends and life, but thanking first the One from whom all of those things came.

Happy Thanksgiving early since tomorrow is a busy day. Go to Mass first thing to make sure your vision is properly directed then spend the day in thanksgiving to God for all of His blessings in your life.

From the Marian Fathers...

Most Merciful Lord, gathering for this meal of thanksgiving
we offer You, as our Creator, our thanks and praise
You who teach us to love without limit
You who teach us to forgive without counting the cost
You who teach us to give without seeking return

May we honor You through our words and actions
every day, every moment.
May we worship You through our lives with others,
lived in kindness and tender care.

May we fully realize what St. Faustina came to know:
that in our thankfulness, true earthly joy resides
that in Your love for us we find the heavenly harvest
that strengthens our souls, until we reside in You forever.

Praise and glory to You, Merciful Lord,
now and forever. Amen. 

We are blessed.

Thankful...Part Seven

First and foremost, DH has returned from retreat (cue the Angelic Choir!)...he thanked me for allowing him to go on such a wonderful weekend. I know what he meant...I went an entire two days with no contact, allowing him to pray and think and talk and just be - always a father and husband but not a father-and-husband-in-the-moment for that 48-hours. As much as I dreaded it, it turned out to be a good exercise for me as well. Lots of trials (I think the total was two milk spills and one urine spill - Blondie "forgot" to go to the bathroom) but I kept my cool for probably 98.6% of the time. A new record for me ;0) A lot of Mercy from above and around me. Thank you to everyone who was praying!

I'm also thankful today because, after DH took everyone to see the top three sing at Mass (read: let me sleep and get ready alone because I did back-to-back Masses yesterday) we went to have our Christmas pictures taken. I know, it's not Advent...I didn't say I put up the tree; I said we had pictures taken. That means the cards will go out next week and my Advent will be free from another duty and thus open to prayer and peace. Amen.

Ahh, my little cuties.

Most importantly, today is the Feast of Christ the King...like of the Universe (and everything). Sorry, sometimes Douglas Adams just pops into my head. This Gospel gives me such peace.

My kingdom does not belong to this world

Peace because I walk around most of the time feeling like I live on the wrong planet. The things people think about, say, find important...I don't get it. Not because I'm a superior mind...it just seems like I look at things in a way that isn't shared by many of my fellow men.

A fitness studio, called Mecka, next to a Catholic church...anyone else think that's funny?

Every time I hear those words from the gospel it makes me realize I am not on the wrong planet, I'm just choosing the other-than-mainstream-society-path. A good reminder on perspective from Fr. Humberto's blog:

Conversation with Christ: Lord Jesus, you are my king and your kingdom is truth. Form my mind to know all things in relation to you. Form my heart to judge all people in relation to your love. Free me from the deceptions of pride and self-love. May only your love reign in my heart!

Resolution: This week I will reject all internal judgments of others that are based on hearsay. I will replace them with prayers for those persons, giving them the benefit of the doubt and entrusting them to the care of the King.

Let God care for His kingdom and all who dwell in it. Support those we don't understand with prayer for His help and guidance. Sounds like a good start to Thanksgiving week.

We are blessed.

Moving through the world

I'm in a different place these days. I feel a bit like a hermit, going through my day and interacting with those in my immediate vicinity but not reaching out much. I hope those who are far away (but in my mind and heart constantly) understand. I hope they can feel the prayers that are included for them as I pass through my day.


I have mentioned that this has been a failed "Saturday" experience. I run with #2 while DH deals with the rest until we get home. While not the worst, and not the best, today is a good example of what our schedule has been...

8 AM :Everyone has breakfast together

9 AM : I head to CMU with son and DH heads to CCD with the rest

9:30: DH and Mr. G drop off supplies for soccer end-of-party

10:30 DH takes kids from CCD to soccer

Noon - Soccer ends, party commences

12:30: We leave CMU, home for lunch

1:30: DH home with 4, takes boys to Blue Knights

2:30: Grammy shows up to sit little two and I head to church with #1 for wedding

3 PM : #1 serves wedding

4 PM: distribute worship aids in downstairs church

5PM: We attend Vigil Mass as a family, #1&#2 serve

I know how many people around me have these or worse schedules each weekend so I'm not really complaining. I'm simply saying that this will not again be our choice. It's kind of crazy, after a full week, to spend a whole weekend day running from place to place. That leaves Sunday for errands, wash, etc. and we say "no" to that so it ultimately means I'm behind on Monday. Thanks but no thanks...so, the winter will bring a much-reduced load. We are choosing to re-prioritize.

In the meantime, I've managed to work out a routine that helps keep me centered and sane. It gives me enough time to rest before running off to the next thing. God has blessed us with good Saturday weather for the most part so I drop the dear boy off to his building and take the 10 minute walk to the library. Like today, I usually manage three of five decades of the rosary and reach the steps with 10 or so minutes left until it opens to finish the last two. Perfect.

I have 2+ hours so I usually wander around a bit before I sit down to work.

Today the beauty of this city just struck me...the doors and arches of the library

the tower of the Cathedral of Learning (the tallest education building in the US). Today I was fascinated at the window air conditioning units in the tippy-top floors. I have been known to drop one out a window. Glad I don't work there!

The interior of the library is equally stunning.

How good God is to give me the time to walk, pray, and appreciate the gifts He has given to so many talented artisans. What a relaxing (and much-needed) break in the middle of our busy lives.

Oh, don't feel too badly for DH. In two weeks he will be gone for 2 1/2 days on retreat while I finish up the last of our crazy Saturdays!

We are blessed.

We are home!

Another successful pilgrimage and facing another week exhausted (a big week, too) but all thanks to God, we are here, safe, and fulfilled from our journey.

More later. A few pics now.

The very holy two...in front of the Saint JPII relic/shrine

To be fair we were in the church about 4 hours over 2 days...it was a lot for a little guy

Freedom from Fear...beautiful

Sleep well, everyone. Can't wait to tell you all about our grace-filled journey.

We are blessed.

“The Lord gave and the Lord has taken away; /blessed be the name of the Lord!” (Job 1:21b)

Today is the feast of St. Joseph Calasanz, a modern-day Job if you will. He did wonderful work educating poor children and in the end was rewarded with investigations, demotions and ultimately, the suppression of his order. His response was that of Job, the Lord gives and takes away. What an amazing gift to see that when you are dealt life's inequity. 

For me, this week has included one family of friends moving out of our immediate vicinity and a teacher who, after five years, chooses the week before classes to announce she resigned. The first was OK, the latter...not so much. I don't look forward to telling the little person who has known and loved this teacher for half of her life that, "well, that's just what adults do sometimes." Nice.

So, I'm working on my attitude. Perhaps I will pray to St. Joseph of Calasanz tonight to give me a more charitable heart. If that fails, St. Monica joins us tomorrow so I can pray with her for the strength of my little ones to keep the faith and fight the good fight, regardless of what life hands them. I'm so grateful that we have so many wonderful examples in the Saints to turn to in pretty much any situation.

We are blessed.

Five on Friday - trip planning

As I've said, this is how I plan for a trip...I spend the week before doing everything else then I pack like a mad person the night before. Don't know why but it works for me. Here's what we were doing instead of packing/cleaning/errand running.

1. More growing...

The garden was watered from above this week and it's been pushing forth even more growth. I wish all the green tomatoes were red but patience is not my strong suit. In the meantime, this little man has been quite patient (for a 3-year-old) waiting for his crop to come in.

His first "baby" carrot. I promise you it is the cutest thing ever...they all think this is how baby carrots are made! So sweet. The best part is that he gave it to DH and since DH is a sucker for his kids, he ate it and didn't hate it! Fantastic!

2. More science

This week the older three had day-long science camp at the Science Center. It's always interesting down there. The drop off/pick up is the worst I've seen and definitely not conducive to people with little ones in tow. My favorite part of the week was Blondie having a full-out melt down after which, the kindly mother-of-two beside me, having heard enough, leaned down and attempted to show screaming child the "octopus on my key chain" (I guess because she knew much better how to control my child?)

it looked like this with two eyes (I was grateful it wasn't #1 who I'm sure would have said, "clearly you are mistaken because this has too many legs to be an octopus!)

I held my tongue at first then bit it when Blondie turned her head away and huffed in response. My tongue was bleeding when the lady beside the well-meaning-lady said "well, I guess not today!". Sorry. It was just that kind of day.

We made it through the week reasonably well and even took a trolley ride to pick everyone up on Wednesday.

3. Back to the future

Traveling with only #s 4 and 5 in tow is kind of like going backward 6 years. I don't know how people send everyone to school and miss out on the helpers all day. Truly. Just buckling people into and out of the car seats is a huge deal. Thankfully, it was only a week and I did enjoy the private time with my babies. The last free lunches of the season, lots of pool time, and watching them interact was a blessing. I am also very grateful to have my helpers return for the trip!

Sharing a trolley seat

Sharing a pb&j and chatting about everything

4. Trip prep my way...

I've already explained that I don't get logistically ready for the trip until just before. If you're wondering, I spend 30% of the time getting physically ready (hair, pedicure, and long walks) and 70% spiritually ready. I took the little ones to Mass downtown on our trolley ride to get the big ones Wednesday. We scored a bishop(!) for Mass which always makes my day. I also took 3 AM Adoration on Thursday morning. It is tough to lose the sleep but the grace that flows from spending time with Our Lord in the stillness of the night is irreplaceable. 

5. This city

I am a traveler. I enjoy seeing new things and taking my kids along to see things and people that I love who are far from here. Still, there is no place that makes my heart sing like the 'Burgh. It is home and it will always be, no matter where I roam. I am blessed to have this be home for my kids as well. Settling here with my amazing husband and raising our family here has been a huge gift.

We are blessed.

{Adoration, Petition, Intercession, Thanksgiving}

I've been thinking that I don't take enough time to think about my prayers. We go through the day, we pray sometimes, we talk about praying sometimes, sometimes it's planned, sometimes not (I know that punctuation is wrong...forgive me). I want to try to be more deliberate in my prayer...at least some of the time.

So, let's start a little "Catholic" week wrap-up, shall we? Take the four types and see if you've covered them this past seven days. If so, great! If not, try to purposefully add some of the type you missed next week.

Adoration

This week started with the feast of Corpus Christi (The Body and Blood of Our Lord) so this week was an A+ in the Adoration category. Mass and exposition followed by a procession down our main street. Now, that is a level of adoration I wish we could achieve every single Sunday.

 The Blessed Sacrament leaving the church

 Processing...DH got to help hold the canopy that sheltered Jesus!

Petition

Today, we were blessed to take part in the Annual Global Rosary Relay for Priests at our home parish. It started as a small gathering of friends and, by the power of the Holy Spirit, grew into something more. Just the act of putting together the map that showed all the places that would be praying helped cement the "One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church" to my kids. They would find a sticker and say "Wow, I can't believe people in insert country are praying the rosary today too!".

 

We accepted our leg of the relay, were blessed to be joined by one of our priests who delivered the Apostolic Blessing, recited our rosary, and passed it on to the next country. What an amazing feeling to know that the globe was literally blanketed with prayer for our priests. God is so good!

Intercession

It seems to me that there is never an end to people/situations that could use prayer...babies who are sick (and their parents), adults who have lost their way, peace in the world...I love the Saints, especially those who are the "go-to" for things...St. Anthony (I was just agreeing with a friend that said he never lets us down), St. Gerard (for all those moms-to-be) or St. Anne (for all those already moms), Sts. Joachim and Anne (for marriages and parenting). We recently learned about St. Medard who is the patron Saint against bad weather. Imagine all the great help we have in heaven :0) Of course, never forget Our Lady...the best person to ask when it comes to asking help from the Father.

On Tuesday, I was reminded that this is a wonderful two-way street (well, I know that with a very dear friend but I realized it's true with others as well). After Mass, a lovely husband of a couple we know at church said "I'm praying for you." I said, "I know and I can feel that because there are days when I say it aloud,'someone is praying for me right know', because I know the kids will live to see tomorrow." Yes, I was joking about the last part but we all laughed because, having been there, they knew! What a blessing to have others who are watching over you and asking intercession for your trials. That is an amazing blessing. Both to realize and to receive. 

 Thanksgiving

I would be willing to bet this is the one I do the most often. We try to instill it in the kids by talking about "what I'm thankful for" each night during prayers. Not surprisingly, at this point in time, many nights include "dinner" and "mom and dad". Today, in the heat, we are all very thankful for the blessing of a cool home. We will be keeping those in prayer who lack such a luxury.

I am finding that in my life, giving thanks in all things, trial and blessing, is the key to a less-stressed existence. When I get wrapped up in what society thinks I should do, think, and look like, I can move to panic attack with surprising speed. Slowing down and thinking about the One who is there, in all things, to help me and guide me never ceases to provide calm or, at least, peace of mind. 

This week, try to concentrate on these types of prayer...do you do a lot of petition? Try to add a little thanksgiving. See if you can cover all four, every day. 

 We are blessed.