Monday, May 31, 2010

In Flanders Fields

In Flanders fields the poppies blow
Between the crosses row on row,
That mark our place; and in the sky
The larks, still bravely singing, fly
Scarce heard amid the guns below.


We are the Dead. Short days ago
We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,
Loved and were loved, and now we lie
In Flanders fields.


Take up our quarrel with the foe:
To you from failing hands we throw
The torch; be yours to hold it high.
If ye break faith with us who die
We shall not sleep, though poppies grow
In Flanders fields.

Tuesday, May 18, 2010

Making a Comeback

It is quite possible that the enormous headache I am dealing with today could be from the number of potential blog posts I have floating around in my brain. With the end of the school year, dance, volleyball and only one more trip on the horizon, I may actually have time to put thoughts to paper, or keyboard, sometime in the near future. Until then...

Friday, April 23, 2010

My New Favorite Picture



Check out more "sweet" pictures of Pope Benedict XVI at Anna Arco's Diary. A special thanks to Faith and Family Live for sharing the link!

Tuesday, February 16, 2010

Lenten Motivation

"If Jesus Christ be God and died for me,
then no sacrifice can be
too great for me to make for Him."

-C T Studd

Wednesday, February 10, 2010

Not Getting A Lot of Sleep

Why am I on my blog at 1:15 in the morning?

My brain will not stop, which means I can't sleep.

We found out yesterday that we will be in a new house next week. So I'm constantly thinking about furniture arrangements, new curtains, how to pack all of this stuff...

I have a 3 day volleyball tournament this weekend that is out-of-town, which requires extra planning since now I will have the baby while Tom stays home with the big girls to pack. Plus, there are the 12 middle school girls that I will be worrying about all weekend.

Family is coming in 3 weeks for Tom's promotion.

I'm falling behind on everything else and I can't stop thinking about it. Did I mention that February was turning out to be way too busy even before we found out about the move?

Oh, and Maire still doesn't want to sleep longer than 2 hours at any one time so I'm exhausted through all of this. Needless to say, I need to scale back on anything that does not immediately benefit my family. Simplify, simplify, simplify.

If you don't hear from me until after Easter, you know why.

Monday, February 1, 2010

Praying for Donuts

SECONDS after telling the 2 year old that she was not behaving and would not be getting a donut after Mass, this is what we saw...


Tuesday, January 19, 2010

A Middle of January Daybook

Outside my window: It is still pretty dark. I think all of the snow has melted in our back yard, so it must be time for another storm.

I am listening to: Nothing. The girls are all still sleeping and Tom is downstairs working. All is quiet up here.

I am wearing: Navy blue sweatpants and tshirt from the high school volleyball team I coach and tennis shoes with my hair pulled back in a pony tail. I just finished working out with the Wii.


I am Thankful for: a husband who ignores my stupidity when I am feeling bad about myself and tries to refocus my thoughts to the positive.

I am Planning: EVERYTHING. Really trying to get the family’s act together with schedules and activities instead of just surviving from day to day.

I am reading: Signs of Life and Total Money Makeover but not making much progress on either

From the kitchen: I am trying to tighten the belt on groceries this month, so we’ll be emptying our cupboards and freezer. It’s all about using what we already have.

On being Healthy: Increased exercise, decreased snacking, those are the goals and I haven't been doing very well. Tom bought a new workout "game" for the Wii that I did for the first time this morning. Definite potential for getting the job done. I also need to focus on getting more sleep at night.

I am Thinking: about how tired I am and why do I never get anything I want done. Maybe one of these days I will realize it’s not about what I want, but what He wants.

I am Creating: A space to CREATE!!! We are PURGING quite a bit in the house (we should have done this long ago!) and I am getting a new craft space. The ideas are FLOWING on what to do with it.


On my iPod: I recently received a new iPod Touch. I have not spent a lot of time getting things on it yet. A little Christmas music to get through Christmas Eve dinner and Christmas morning, but I am really looking forward to customizing it and learning from my last iPod.

In the Learning Baskets: The letter R and Winter books are filling the baskets this week. I haven't been doing everything I want with the girls and I am letting it get me down.

Towards Rhythm and Beauty: The focus is all about establishing SCHEDULES in order to establish rhythm in our house. Again, there are many struggles in this area of my life. Just have to keep trying.

To Live the Liturgy: We don't have much planned this week. I am VERY EXCITED about a mom's bible study beginning next month at church.

I am Hoping and Praying: for converted hearts; brand new babies; PATIENCE; comfort to those lives touched by the tragedy in Haiti

In the Garden: All of the snow is gone out back and we've had some really nice days, but I'm trying not to get my gardening wheels spinning too fast because we most likely have plenty of snow to come still this winter.

Around the house: Cleaning, organizing, PURGING!!! We finally put away all of the Christmas decorations last week. Current projects include rearranging girls' room, switching out sizes in the closets, reorganizing the basement, getting rid of general clutter.


On Keeping Home: So much learning needs to be done on my part. It really is embarrassing.

One of my Favorite Things: little girls all tangled up in my bed, sleeping soundly


The Children: Isabel and Alexis went ice skating for the first time this weekend and did suprisingly well, especially Alexis. Afterward, I said that was all I needed, a ballerina AND a figure skater. Bring on the sequins!
~Maire slept for 6 hours last night. And that is all that I need to say about that :)


A Few Plans for the Rest of the Week: Maire's 9 month pictures this afternoon, volleyball practice and then our first tournament of the season this weekend. This coach is a little nervous, both for the girls and herself.


A Picture Thought I’m Sharing:





See more Daybooks here.

Friday, January 15, 2010

The Trouble Tree

The Trouble Tree

-Author unknown

The carpenter I hired to help me restore an old farmhouse had just finished a rough first day on the job. A flat tire made him lose an hour of work, his electric saw quit, and now his ancient pickup truck refused to start.

While I drove him home, he sat in stony silence. Upon arrival, he invited me in to meet his family. As we walked toward the front door, he paused briefly at a small tree, touching tips of the branches with both hands. When opening the door, he underwent an amazing transformation. His tanned face was wreathed in smiles. He hugged his two small children and gave his wife a kiss.

Afterward, he walked me to the car. We passed the tree and my curiosity got the better of me. I asked him about what I had seen him do earlier. "Oh, that's my trouble tree," he replied. "I know I can't help having troubles on the job, but one thing's for sure, troubles don't belong in the house with my wife and children. So I just hang them up on the tree every night when I come home. Then in the morning I pick them up again."

"Funny thing is," he smiled, "when I come out in the morning to pick 'em up, there aren't nearly as many as I remember hanging up the night before."