SERVING OUR LORD-A LOOK INTO OUR HOLY MASS

Today was Jeremy's first time to serve as an Acolyte at Mass.

Acolyte: One who assists the priest at Mass. One who has received the highest of the four minor orders in the Catholic church, being ordained to carry the wine and water and the lights at the Mass

Our Pastor asked Jeremy to serve as an Acolyte about a month ago.  Jeremy studied for the position, wrote a letter of intention to the Bishop and went through a formal blessing by our Bishop at the Cathedral.

We feel truly blessed that Jeremy can serve our Lord in this way.  

The kids and I were just elated to see our Daddy dressed for Holy Mass

Disclaimer: I normally would not take photo's during Mass, but with it being the First Holy Communion Mass, a lot of pics were being taken and I could take a few here and there without disturbing those around me

 Here is Jer and his great friend, Felix (also an Acolyte) before Mass began.

 I just had to take a couple of pics of my handsome boy.....one with our beloved,  Monsignor Hart (our Pastor)  I thanked him for asking Jeremy to serve in such a special way

 Being an Acolyte, Jeremy served as a Eucharist Minister during Holy Communion.  He was in our section of the sanctuary!  He said each of our names as he handed us the precious Flesh and Blood of our Lord Jesus.  Since Nicholas is not quite old enough....Jeremy leaned down and gave him a special blessing as he made the sign of the cross on Nicholas' head.  Jeremy is such a strong spiritual leader for our family!  We are so blessed to have him as our daddy

 I got to hold my friend, LeAnn's 3 month old baby (Carson) the ENTIRE Mass!  It was awesome!  A mother never forgets how it feels to hold a little one in her arms (my smallest baby is now 7).  I rocked Carson to sleep with the "mommy sway" and snuggled him as he slept....of course I smelled his little head a few times too

There is my friend, Gisele, who signs for the hearing impaired at our Mass.  She is a beautiful and wonderful person.  There is nothing more peaceful then hearing the beautiful prayers sung during Mass, while watching Gisele gracefully sign the words

The priest, deacon, Acolytes, and Altar boys turn and reverently turn towards the Altar and bow before they leave the Sanctuary.  How beautiful and powerful our Mass is.  It is truly the Perfect Prayer

Today was a very special day for us.  Not only was it Jeremy's first time serving our Lord in such an intimate way at Mass, but it was also the First Holy Communion Mass and our dear friends' children were making their first Holy Communions.  Among the children receiving this Sacrament, was little sweet Sophia Marie, Chuckie, Sophie, Lauren, and Ava.....wonderful children of couples that are dear friends to us!   We all went and celebrated after Mass with a big party at the Mira's house

How pleased Jesus is for this day!  How intimate a relationship He is able to have with His little children.  All of the children, dressed up so importantly, were very excited to receive their Father too!

CREEPY CRAWLIES IN THE SPRING

Nicholas and Madison were going crazy over all of these caterpillars that they found in the front courtyard flowerbeds.  Savannah is the photographer......she was a little afraid to touch the creepy crawlies!

 Look at my pretty Madison

 What is she hiding?!?!

 Wow, there are more than we can count

 Look at those sweet little boy hands.....a little muddy with dirty fingernails!

The kids were fascinated!

They were so proud of their find.....Savannah is quite the photographer! A beautiful spring day. These are times that I would have forgotten about already.  This is why I blog!

GRANDPA'S LAP

We went over to my parent's house today to help with my nieces while my sister and my parents had appointments.  My dad was sitting with Nicholas explaining how this old pocket watch worked.  Nicholas was fascinated at what Grandpa had to say.

 See how it opens up to tell what time it is, Nicholas?

 It was so sweet and enduring.  I never want to forget these times with my dad. That is how he always was with my sister and I.....always gentle and kind.  He loved to teach us things and he always took time for us.

Even though, my phone was on silent and the flash was off, they realized that I was photographing them so they smiled for this one.  Look at that proud grandpa!

I love you, Daddy

BIKE ACCIDENT

We went on a family bike ride tonight!  What a fun time we had!  I have not been on a bike in a few years and was a little afraid, but I did pretty good......I guess like the old saying goes...."You never forget how to ride a bike!"

Our sweet Nicholas, being a little boy likes to try and make skid marks as he rides his bike down the street.  Well, he was making some skid marks and had a fall!  Poor little man.  He was so brave and barely cried.  I knew that it hurt a lot!  Here is a picture of the horrible wound and of my little sweetheart.

 Poor baby boy!

While we were getting ready for bed, we talked about how awesome our Lord is and how He has already begun to heal his precious knee, through what Nicholas was already feeling in his leg (swelling, throbbing). Nicholas asked Daddy and I to bless his wound.  I love Nicholas and his sisters look to Christ first......they should and He will always hear them because He is our Father!  He loves us and wants us to depend on Him for everything. 
Jeremy and my prayer for our children....over EVERYTHING ELSE (success in career, health, etc...) is that they will ALWAYS stay close to our Lord and look to God first!! Trust in Him and depend on Him.  Our Lord will never disappoint us! 

Thank you, Jesus for giving Nicholas and his sisters that faith in You!  PLEASE help them to hold tight to it throughout their entire lives!

After a bath, a blessing, some Motrin and "Boo Boo Juice" he felt much better!

BLESSED FAMILY EVENING

We are finishing up our school year and so we saw it fitting to have a school family picnic....which of course since we homeschool, the school IS just our family, so it was rather easy to organize!

The idea was actually brought on when I saw our palm branches from Palm Sunday sitting in my kitchen.  Since they are blessed, we cannot just throw them away....they need to be burned (the ashes used in Ash Wednesday Services in the Catholic church are actually the burned palm ashes from Palm Sunday's blessed palms).

So, we will burn the palms in the fire pit as a family activity this evening.   It was be a special time for our family.
The weather was perfect.....a little breezy and cool when the sun went down.

 After we burned our palms we talked about the significants of the palms and why we burn them with the kids.  It was a beautiful teaching opportunity for Jer and I.  We have been blessed with such a beautiful and rich faith!

 After we burned our palms, we brought out some hotdogs and roasted them for dinner.  It was truly a blessed dinner!

Here is Savannah roasting her hotdog

 There is Max, WATCHING Savannah roast her hotdog

 There are my boys!

 My sweet Madison

My Family!

Nick is a GREAT chef!

Mid-bite!

 Savannah thinks that hers tastes great too!

Madison's is perfectly browned!

Even Max got a taste at the very end!

After a wonderful family dinner, we had a great time just sitting around and visiting, playing "I Spy" and just laughing a lot!

ST. LOUIS de MONFORT (Words from the heart of a Saint)

"Jesus, our Savior, true God and true man must be the ultimate end of all our other devotions; otherwise they would be false and misleading. He is the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and End of everything. 
"We labor," says St. Paul, "only to make all men perfect in Jesus Christ."
 For in Him alone dwells the entire fullness of the divinity and the complete fullness of grace, virtue and perfection. In Him alone we have been blessed with every spiritual blessing; He is the only teacher from whom we must learn; the only Lord on whom we should depend; the only Head to whom we should be united and the only model that we should imitate. He is the only Physician that can heal us; the only Shepherd that can feed us; the only Way that can lead us; the only Truth that we can believe; the only Life that can animate us. He alone is everything to us and He alone can satisfy all our desires. We are given no other name under heaven by which we can be saved. 
God has laid no other foundation for our salvation, perfection and glory than Jesus. Every edifice which is not built on that firm rock, is founded upon shifting sands and will certainly fall sooner or later. Through Him, with Him and in Him, we can do all things and render all honor and glory to the Father in the unity of the Holy Spirit; we can make ourselves perfect and be for our neighbor a fragrance of eternal life". 


MY HUMBLE THOUGHTS

I read these beautiful words in one of my prayer books before Mass this evening and just had to share them!! They are awesome and true!  This is my beautiful Catholic faith!! I want to remember these words everyday!  St. Louis De Monfort and other holy people who have gone before us have such a beautiful way of talking to and about our Christ! I learn so much from reading their holy thoughts and inspirations!


Thank you, Lord for blessing the world with these wonderful saints, from whom we can learn so much! I am striving to love You more perfectly as they strived throughout their entire lives!  Lord, please give me the grace to achieve this intense faith and love, Amen!

NEIGHBORHOOD PICNIC AT THE POND

What beautiful weather we had today for our neighborhood picnic!  The rain yesterday cooled the air and the sun today just brightened everyone's day!

 It started bright and early with Jeremy towing our friend's HUGE smoker down to the pond (Boys just love this kind of equipment)

 There were a number of fun activities....including pond golfing, bean bag toss, fishing, bike riding, and of course....lots of eating

There is Madison exploring around the creek

Look at these adorable cupcakes that my neighbor made.  They tasted GREAT too!

 The fire department came out to visit with us and have a bite to eat....those firefighters took a lot of time answering questions and showing the kids all of their equipment...wow, it is amazing how prepared they are for ANY emergency

 Madison was the only one of my kids who were brave enough to try on the jacket

 There are Savannah and Madison both holding the "Jaws of Life"  The fireman had to help because it was so incredibly heavy!

There's Nick....all three listened intensely to everything that was said.  The firemen ARE truly our community heroes.....I grew up saying a prayer every time I saw an emergency vehicle or heard sirens.  

We have always done this with our kids as well.  It is a beautiful practice not only for the sake of keeping our local heroes safe, but also teaching our children to respond in prayer to any situation....they have even been the ones who lead the prayer now that they are getting bigger and Jeremy and I just love hearing their little voices asking their Father in Heaven for help. We always try and thank policemen, firemen, military persons when we see them for keeping us safe.  The fireman today said that he could not see himself doing anything else....It truly is a calling, not just a job!

BOY SCOUT BIKE RALLY

The boys set up a little bike workshop in our driveway this morning.  Today was the annual Boy Scout Bike Rally!! Nicholas and Daddy were so very excited about it!!  They had to make sure that both their bikes were up to par to handle all of the trails that they were going to explore.

Here are the 2 bikes in the workshop

 Daddy's oiling the chain to ensure a safe and smooth ride

 "Turn the peddles, Nick while I oil up the sprockets!" Daddy explains....

LATER.....(After a short Nick and Daddy Donut breakfast date) THE RALLY BEGINS!!!

 Very patriotically, the rally begins with a Flag Ceremony
Look at Nick's little salute.....he's the one in the yellow shorts (I love those tiny fingers)

 Let's start the riding now
(Nicholas and Bryson starting on the journey)

 Towards the end, all of the boys stop for a quick picture together

Here is Nick before it is time to go home.....what a fun morning with Daddy!

It was such a special day for my boys

HORSEBACK RIDING TRIP/with a little bit of Nick added at the end

Savannah's Mary's Angels group had their end of the year trip horseback riding today.  The weather looked grim but held out for a very enjoyable afternoon at Benbrook Stables

 

 The car ride to the stables was almost an hour so of course we stopped off for a treat at 7eleven for slurpees and beef sticks.....what the REAL cowboys eat!

 Precious friends (Savannah and Abby) waiting for their turn to ride

 Savannah is so little compared to this HUGE horse.....Even with the steps!

 She finally made it all the way up and strapped in

 Savannah and her horse "Bert" waiting to start their hour long ride

 Savannah and Maggie laughing because their horses kept kissing each other

Maggie was yelling, "They are getting married!"........Such sweet little girls!

 There she goes off on her journey

 Bye Bye Savannah!!  And with that, she rode into the sunset (Well, the afternoon rain clouds)

 It has been an hour and she is returning with a huge smile on her face

 Now she wants a horse of her very own and to be a REAL cowgirl......or at least take horseback riding lessons at the ranch near our house....on their horses

The Mary's Angels troop!! These young ladies are our future Christian wives, mommies, and maybe even a couple of nuns!

But for now......they will just be little girls who just have fun being silly!!

This pleases our Lord so much

Jesus said, “Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these.” Matthew 19:14

Did you notice Nicholas in the first pic but in none of the rest.....Well, he came with us while Madison and Daddy were working up at church.  He hung out patiently while Savannah and the other girls rode the horses for 2 hours (2 shifts of 1 hour each) and then sat at dinner with all of the moms and girls for 2 more hours!!

He never complained, never misbehaved.....he was such a gentleman....in fact he initiated prayer for the group before we ate our dinner with everyone.

I am just in love with my sweet little boy

 Without Nicholas expecting anything or asking for anything....We rewarded him with a truck carrier that he has been eyeing in our gift closet.

He did not behave to earn anything....he behaved because it was the right thing to do and it pleases Jesus.  We are very thankful for him and for our precious girls too.

Thank you, Jesus for entrusting us with these little souls.....we pray to return them to You some day

(On another note....I hope that he never grows out of these dinosaur jammies)