DAD'S FISHING/GIRL'S WEEKEND

Jeremy has been of town for a week fishing in Alaska

(Here is a pic Jeremy took on his phone, looking so handsome with one of his prizes....not one of the big ones, but he just looks so cute and genuinely joyful out in the wild.....that I had to post this one)

 Here is another pretty fish.....same kind.  I think that these are the prettiest colored fish in the river.  Look at the beautiful greens that run together with the pretty orange accents.....God really has an Eye for color....He did really good with His festinating and stunning wildlife.

Jeremy and his dad....they look just alike!!  And they are both such GREAT men!!  I am so blessed to have them in my life.

WHAT DID I DO WHILE JEREMY BRAVED THE WILDS OF ALASKA

So this weekend (after a great first week of school), we had a little sleepover party (each girl had a friend stay over night)  I took the girls shopping at the mall, out to dinner, and then back to our house for some much needed giggling and movie watching......with a LITTLE sleep at some point.

HERE ARE JUST A COUPLE OF PICS

 Savannah and her friend, Kileigh sipping on milkshakes at Red Robbin after trying on clothes at Savannah and Kileigh's favorite store, Justice

 For the first time, I DROPPED Madison off at the mall with her friend Gianna to shop while we went across the street to shop at some other stores and eat dinner.....they LOVED it!!  So grown-up!!

WHERE WAS NICHOLAS?

Well, he was my super handsome and sweet date that night!!  He hung out with me and helped me drive the girls around town.....Then we got to campout together in my room.  He is such a thoughtful little boy

AFTER A LONG NIGHT OF LISTENING TO JOYFUL GIRLY GIGGLES

I got myself slowly out of bed when I heard Savannah and her friend up and wanting to go outside.....didn't we JUST go to sleep, I thought?

Well, Saturday morning was in full swing, so I got dressed and did what I HAD to do......I took all 5 kids to Starbucks for breakfast

So, picture this.....

 I have all 5 kids with me at Starbucks...in line......each kid ordering one by one.....line backing up behind us!! I am trying to hurry them all along....but after telling me that they all knew what they wanted, it turned out, that they did not all know what they wanted!!  At this point, I break into a cold sweat, totally wanting to just run away!!! 

You know that everyone in there wanted to throw their coffees at me....(well, if they had coffee...they didn't have any coffee b/c they were stuck waiting behind ME in line!!!)  Anyway...I kept apologizing and everyone was very kind to me (at least they pretended to be okay with it)

Here we are taking up all of the comfy chairs in the entire place (you know these chairs are a hot commodity in Starbucks....I had to just let it go!!)  Humility is a hard virtue to practice!!

Here is Madison and Gianna (in their matching tie dye shirts...being a girl is so much fun...I love matching!!)  They sat on the OTHER side of Starbucks from the rest of us "visiting" like 2 young ladies.....Madison said that she NOW understands why I absolutely LOVE meeting my girlfriends at Starbucks so much!!  Frappuccinos make girl time even better!!

Then I drove everyone home....it was a successful venture indeed! Everyone had a great time, and for that, I am truly thankful!!

Well, I just brought Savannah home from a birthday party a little while ago and now I finally sit in the silence of another late night, remembering all of the happenings of this past week and feeling really happy AND exhausted....it is way past bedtime and all of my little ones are fast asleep, as they are completely tired.  I have to wait until the stillness of night to really look back on all of the Grace that poured down on me in my service as a mom and how thankful I am to be a mom

All in all It was a very blessed weekend, even though it came with very little sleep!! I am happy that the kids had fun and we are ALL so happy that our daddy (my best friend and the love of my life) will be home early tomorrow morning before Holy Mass (he's on an all night flight from Alaska)  I am making his favorite breakfast casserole to celebrate.....it's a surprise!!

DAILY STUFF THAT GOES ON AT OUR HOUSE

LOOK AT THIS CUTE PIC OF MY 2 BOYS

Everyday when Jeremy gets home from work (and it is not dinner time yet) he and Nicholas have this "very boy" tradition where they raid the refrigerator of any and all leftovers (strait from the fridge....no warming these leftovers up....eating it cold, directly from the tupperware with a fork).  Nicholas looks so funny....he is always putting on a show and bringing smiles to our faces

LOOK AT THIS PIC

WHAT'S DIFFERENT IN THIS NEXT PIC?

CAN YOU SEE WHAT IS NEW?........YES!  THE PEANUT JAR MOVED FROM ONE SIDE OF THE SPAGHETTI BOWL TO THE OTHER!!

SOME MORE ACTIVITIES

MADISON AND HER FRIEND AVA HANGING OUT PLAYING "CUPS"

(Videographer: Savannah Lustig)

"SELF-IES"
MADISON TAKING PICTURES OF HERSELF

(This DOES happen almost daily.....she is such a photographer.  She has her camera ALWAYS nearby to capture a moment....even her own...the trendy term for these self portraits is "selfies"

(she is just so beautiful)

SPECIAL BREAKFAST FOR THE FIRST DAY OF SCHOOL

Crescent Sausage Casserole....a family favorite.  I TOTALLY forgot to snap the pic before we ate!! Not as pretty now that we ate off of it......but the spicy sausage was SO YUMMY!!

MY SPECIAL BREAKFAST FOR THE FIRST DAY OF SCHOOL

I love my "Triple (shot) Venti Skinny White Mocha....with Whip cream" (of course...the whip offsets the non-fat)

I must admit that I have a skinny white mocha EVERY morning.  My sweet love, Jeremy makes me one with our espresso machine.  They are so good!!  He always puts it in a "world's Best Dad" mug?  Huh....Weird

When Jeremy goes into work early.....I drive like a crazy person up to Starbucks and grab one before prayer time.  It just makes me so happy in the morning!

Well, those are some of the things that are great about my life!  My family and all of our little quirks.

SAVANNAH
Oh...I did not mention anything specific about Savannah....she is amazing and she is always in the middle of all of the family action, sporting a HUGE smile on her bright and sweet face. She is just so joyful!!

(Here are a couple of typical Savannah moments....these snapshots  pretty much define Savannah)

 There is Savannah pretending to be a mannequin at Old Navy with her friend, Kileigh

 There is Savannah pretending to eat a giant burger plastered outside on a window of a restaurant....Nicholas is there too, but it was Savannah who thought that it would be a good idea to run up to it and "fake" eat it!!

This is Savannah getting out of the car to go into her sweet friend Kileigh's house, for Kileigh's 11th birthday party.....Before she got out of the car, she was crying a little (trying to unsuccessfully hold back her precious little tears) because she was nervous about being around all of the other girls......Savannah is just such a jovial girl!! She is an absolute ham!!  BUT there is a side of Savannah that not many people see......her little heart is so very fragile and she is so shy in crowds of kids.

Savannah and I said a prayer that Jesus would comfort her and allow her to enjoy the party and maybe even meet a new friend (she was afraid that she would not know the other girls)  I didn't walk her in, as we both know that, that makes her cry.......I just prayed as I drove away, knowing that she was walking in, so unsure and nervous.....a mommy's heart is heavy as she drives away leaving her little one who is worried.
"Please Lord Jesus, deliver my little Savannah from this nervousness that she is feeling, so that she can relax, enjoy herself, and just be a carefree little girl"

Guess what, she had a fabulous time!!  She knew almost all of the other girls at the party and she even shared a sweet conversation with another little girl that she would like to invite over to play sometime!  Our Lord is so incredible!

Well, there are all of my first loves!!  I feel like the luckiest girl in the world......Ya know, I think that I just might be!!

SUFFERING

Blessed Mother Theresa once said, "When Christ draws us close to Himself, the thorns on His crown will pierce our forehead as He leans in to kiss our cheek"

At times of suffering, it is easy to see Christ there with me, like a Gentle and Loving Father, holding His little daughter.  Reading these words of Blessed Mother Theresa, give me so much joy and peace.  Of course with Christ comes His Blessed Wounds.....He tells His apostles this in Sacred Scripture!!  Why would I expect anything different?  It doesn't mean that suffering is always palatable, without some tears and sorrow.

Suffering can be so painful and hard to understand, but I see it's unmistakable value in my relationship with our Lord and with the world.  Suffering reminds me that our earthly minds/bodies are broken and imperfect in so many ways and that this life is SO limited in time and space.

I have been feeling ashamed to admit that it makes me sad to think that some of my sufferings are only to worsen as time goes on and are not expected to get better while on this earth.

Because I am so human and can only wrap my head around a little bit of what I see and know as a little child, it is hard for me to be totally okay with the idea that some of my crosses last a lifetime. I am not  talking about a suffering of illness in this case.  I am talking about a different kind of suffering...one that is very painful to my heart and to my soul.  It is a suffering that is effecting someone that is so dear to my heart, that my heart breaks every time I think about him.

I am ardently praying to see the virtue that our Lord is wishing for me to practice in this situation.  I have faith that He is with me.  I have faith that it is His Strength, not mine.....Thank God, right?!?  I feel like a baby, having a fussy fit......whining about what is happening because I cannot make it better for myself.....I, like a baby, only see the reality of my feelings....not anything beyond the end of my own nose.

There is an entire world around me, but I can only see what I grasp in my hands.  Our Lord, like a tender Daddy, sees way more than His baby girl does, as He rocks me in His lap.  He sees things way beyond where my under-developed eyes can see.  What does He see...... He sees Heaven!  He knows that this world is absolutely a speck compared to Eternity.  He knows that one day, my eyes will be opened and I will understand everything!  He cannot wait for that day, as He sees me sadly struggling with my limited knowledge (as all of us mommies and daddies do with our children)

Jesus, I know that you do not want to see me hurting, and I want You to know that as I am hurting, I realize that there is more than I can see.  I want You to know, Dear Jesus, that I love You with all of my being, and that I trust You with everything.  I will try and be strong to prove to You how much I am trusting in You.  I will try not to question my crosses, and I have faith that this very beautiful and special cross is one that will sanctify me and bring me closer to You...my Life's Delight!!  I am sorry that I cry, but it just hurts so much, Father.  I feel You with me in my tears, in my confusion, every step of the way.  Please Dear Father, guard me from any doubt that You are here with me....I SO don't want to disappoint You in that way....not when it really matters this much (in these difficult times of suffering)  
As I am writing this post, I just realized that I have always prayed to long for that of Heaven and to let go of things of this earth, I see You answering this prayer as You are showing me the aires of this life and teaching me to grasp Heaven with all of my heart.  With this suffering, I have no choice, if there is to be any hope for mending my pain.....Thank you Jesus for revealing this to me
Love, your little child, Kerry


I want to share a quote (below) that comes from a blog that I read a few years ago written by a very courageous girl who was fighting an illness.  These words have given me so much strength and have rang true so much in my own life.....She is in Heaven with Jesus now.....

"Once upon a time, a plain and ordinary girl was asked by the God that she so desperately loved, to walk through a long and hot fire.....And He was with her every step of the way"

I absolutely cannot read that without my eyes filling with tears.....it touches the very core of my soul, for I know that each blessed word rings true in my heart!!

I love you my Dearest Jesus....my Delight

SOMETHING THAT MADE ME SMILE

My kids are so helpful and always happy to lend me a hand.  Being that we homeschool, it is a wonderful opportunity to teach them how to cook.  They LOVE cooking lunch and I feel that they are benefitting so much from this learning tool.  Nicholas loves to make Mac n Cheese  (he makes other things as he is my true chef, but Mac n Cheese is his absolute favorite) We keep a beautiful bottle of holy water on the stove and just adding a drop blesses everything we eat!!  "Blessed Mac n Cheese", as Nicholas calls it!!

He prepared it for lunch for he and his sisters and was so sweet to offer to help me clean up after they had finished eating......

I gladly accepted his offer to help and asked if he would put the remainder of the Mac n Cheese in a tupperware to save for later.

This is what he put it in

The innocence brought total joy to my heart!!  

"Now......how much Mac n Cheese is left in the pot?"  "Now...where did you find the BIGGEST tupperware in the entire house?"  I don't think that I have even seen that plastic bowl in at least 6 months (it is a good 2-3qt tupperware)!!

I had to post this because it was just a "little happy" that I wanted to remember forever.  He was trying so hard to please his mommy, which in turn, pleases our Lord Jesus so much!!

I know that our Lord looks down on me and He sees me the same situation as little Nick.  There our Lord watches......as I sit here thinking that something is SO MUCH MORE than it really is.  He must smile all of the time at our innocence!  I just love to think about it!

Thank you, Jesus for loving us so much as only a Father can!!

And.....Thank you for Nicholas

NICHOLAS AND VANCE

Nicholas had his sweet friend, Vance stay over night and I just had to post a few pics of these cute little ones.

 They built a "menu castle" when we went to Snuffers for dinner

Here are the 2 of them, like little men, visiting after a complicated and exciting game of "boats"  

I was sitting watching them swim from a little ways away so they totally forgot that I was there.  during this conversation, they are totally trying to decide whether or not the "pinky" is a real finger.....

Let's listen in.......

"People don't call it a finger, though....they call it a pinky", one of the boys says...."Ah, but they call this one a 'thumb' and it's a finger", the other boy retorts, "But the thumb has a FINGERNAIL!!"

Both boys are quiet and just look at each other for a minute....then they went back to playing boats!

That was the final comment in the finger debacle.  I guess that made the decision for them......Nobody brought up the fact that the "pinky" has a fingernail too, but when you are a little boy, I guess that it just doesn't matter.  Playing boats is more fun!!

SISTER SURPRISE

Sisterhood is a special relationship like no other.  Sisters are connected in their hearts.  They have experienced a duplicate upbringing, while each of their experiences with that upbringing, being totally unique.

This particular morning, Savannah came down the stairs just gleaming with a super bright smile.......She had made Madison's bed as a special surprise!  Now all she had to do was wait for Madison to walk into her room and notice.  Savannah could barely stand it (she was so excited).  Finally we hear scampering down the stairs,  into the kitchen, where Savannah and I stood waiting...."THANK YOU SAVANNAH!!!", Madison exclaims with a huge grin on her face!  What a sweet moment that was.  I captured it with a quick pic of the girls hugging.  They have such a genuine joy in their hearts when they show virtue towards another......why wouldn't they.....that is how our Wonderful God created us!  I never feel so alive as when I am helping another.......