What I Did (Not) In School Today

   Slept through alarm; was awakened by ten-year-old son.

   Noticed we received the predicted 4-6 inches of snow. This was a total surprise to me.

   Prayed (among other things) that we wouldn't drive each other crazy stuck in the house.

   Checked t.v. news to see how bad storm/roads were. Saw that all area schools were closed.

   Tried to talk self into ditching schoolwork for the day and 

           a. watching old movies and eating junk food

           b. cleaning out linen closet

           c. working on talk I'm supposed to give at upcoming curriculum

               share

           d. going back to bed and reading Perelandra all day

           e. all of the above

   Decided smugly that we would have school, even though public schools wouldn't.

   Let dog in and out back door 15 times. 

   Wiped up melted snow from dog 15 times.

   Gave thanks that kids didn't want to go outside. Less melted snow to clean up. (Except 

        Sam who cleaned up his own melted snow at my insistence.

   Prayed with the kids. Prayed that Sam and Paul wouldn't burn themselves lighting candles.

   Read the final chapter of Prince Caspian to my boys.

   Listened to Sam, Paul, and Patrick read their respective books aloud.

   Gave Nick Government test.

   Went over math with Mary.

   Made and ate lunch.

   Read and discussed Catechism lessons with Sam, Paul, and Patrick.

  Supervised afternoon chores.

  Let kids watch bake brownies, build a fire,and watch Bean's Holiday while I cleaned in  

     kitchen.

  Realized not so smugly that we really didn't get much done.

  Comforted self with the thought that school kids got no schoolwork done today.

  Reminded self that we had some good discussions about faith, and what careers the boys

     would like to pursue someday. They all want to be scientists.

  Thanked God that we can enjoy being stuck in the house together. Except for the 18-year-old.

   

   

   

  

Fight FOCA Postcard Campaign

If you're able to get your hands on some of these

postcards, please fill them out and send them to your elected officials in Congress. We received these at our church, and they are awaiting tomorrow's mail.

Or you could simply send a letter to your congressmen asking them to please vote

against FOCA. As many of us know, FOCA

is the most radical pro-abortion legislation to date.

It would remove all protections for the unborn, and make abortion so-called rights a national entitlement.

Parental involvement laws would be swept aside, Catholic hospitals would be required to perform abortions, and American taxpayers will be funding abortions here and abroad.

For more information about FOCA, click on the  Fight FOCA widget in the sidebar. If you're

in Indiana, you can email representatives from the legislative action center page of the

 Indiana Catholic Conference website. Please do what you can to help stop FOCA from being

signed into law.

My Favorite Book and A Close Second

I recently finished reading for about the hundredth time (only a slight exaggeration) my all-time favorite book. The title is Karen, and it's a memoir, written by Karen's mother, of her family's 

striving to help her overcome the challenges of cerebral palsy. This might not sound very interesting, or unusual, except that Karen was born in 1940, and at the time of her diagnoses

of cerebral palsy, it was very common for parents to put cerebral palsied children away in institutions, or even shut them away in their homes. Miracles abound in Karen's life, starting with her survival of premature birth and low birth weight before NICU existed, through her learning to read and write, and her determination to learn to walk. This is a very warm, at times funny yet

very moving story. It was on the best-seller list after it's publication in (I think) the '50's. 

The sequel, With Love from Karen, continues the story of the family's struggles and triumphs. 

I can't recommend these books highly enough. If you're feeling depressed, reading them will truly lift your spirits.

Longing for Spring

Every year I seem to start longing for spring a little earlier in the winter. Thankfully, the darkest part of the season is slowly giving way to a more spring-like light, helping to lift my mood (everyone in our family tends toward SAD right after Christmas). Watching our amarylis grow has helped bring a little spring into the house.

(someone forgot to put away the Nesquick as usual)






For some reason I'm not able to post the final picture of our beautiful amarylis, so I'll add it later.

Faith & Family Live! : Powerful Pro-Life Ad

Thanks to Anne for sharing this:

Faith & Family Live! : Powerful Pro-Life Ad

Posted using ShareThis

Happy Birthday to Dawn!

Dawn is one of my favorite bloggers, a fellow Catholic homeschooler (although her blog and homeschooling put mine to shame),
and a great organizer and nature lover to boot!

Star and Crown cookies

It seems that I'm always trying (and usually failing) to cook, bake or create something to celebrate a feast day or Holy Day. I
must admit that I didn't even remember yesterday was Epiphany until we got to Mass. We did manage, though, to bake cutout sugar cookies of stars and crowns. Thank goodness our oven was fixed a few days ago!

Happy Epiphany!

  Our priest, Father Widman, put the following in the bulletin for this week:

             'To many, the Twelve Days of Christmas is a delightful and nonsensical rhyme set to 

              music. Considering its historical origins, the song had a very serious purpose when

              it was written and meant a great deal more than a simple repetitious melody with

             pretty phrases and a list of very strange gifts. 

             In England, during the period of 1558 to 1829, Catholics were prohibited from any

             practice of their faith, private or public. To avoid persecution and certain death, 

             Catholic  leaders created this musical allegory as a teaching tool to instruct young

             people in the meaning and content of the Christian Faith. The hidden meanings, listed

             below,  were understood by those of the Christian Faith.

                               Partridge in a Pear Tree = Jesus Christ, Son of God

                               2 Turtle Doves = the Old and New Testaments

                               3 French Hens =  Faith, Hope, and Charity (the Theological Virtues)

                               4 Calling Birds = the Four Gospels Which Sing the Song of Salvation

                               5 Gold Rings = the Five Books of the Pentateuch (first five books of OT)

                               6 Geese a Laying = the Six Days of Creation

                               7 Swans a Swimming = the Seven Gifts of the Holy Spirit (I've also seen it as

                                                                          the Seven Sacraments)

                               8 Maids a Milking = the Eight Beatitudes

                               9 Ladies Dancing = the Nine Fruits of the Holy Spirit

                              10 Lords a Leaping = the Ten Commandments

                              11 Pipers Piping = the Eleven Faithful Apostles

                              12 Drummers Drumming = the Twelve Points of Doctrine in the Apostles' 

                                                                                Creed'

  I know some people refute the historical correctness of this story, but I still find it fascinating. My only question, which I guess I should askFather about, is why would Catholics feel the need to 

make a secret "catechism" of beliefs that all Christians in England at that time would have agreed upon. Whether the Twelve Days of Christmas was really written in this context, or not, the symbolism makes it much more meaningful.