Trust! Faith! Hope!

There are moments that take me back, in awe of God's love, his wisdom, his mercy.  We find that our trust has to be complete and without limitations.  But that's harder to do, sometimes to say.  Can I say that I totally TRUST.? That I and my family say;

"I give ALL this to you, my God.  Take it/this from me.  I am on my knees with my arms stretched out in total submission to you."

I can say this, yet there are so many moments that I don't.  That I fall back to old habits. 

Why am I rambling on?

Because our family, people we love/adore, are in place of crisis.  Crisis?

Well from the outside looking in, all this, this 'stuff', what's happending.  It is considered a crisis, suffering.  And yes, there is suffering. 

I've been reflecting on what my spiritual director just recently asked me.

"How do you handle the trials of life differently than others?" 

I place my trust and lay my hopes in Jesus.

The words just spurted out. In midst of troubles (I write the word loosely), there is the complete acknowledgement that there is GREATER suffering going on, much greater then ours.  We are fall into seasons of trials.  How then do we get by?

Okay, where am I going with this?

It involves a fire:

This past Tuesday, my SIL and her family lost their home, all their belongings, most if not all of their pictures, and precious memories; in a fire. 

In a matter of minutes the fire, smoke, and water took EVERYTHING.  Their eldest daughter, our goddaughter, is an accomplished artist and writer; her notebooks, her manuscripts.  Things she's been pouring her soul into...gone.

One of the younger kids began to to give her mom sweet little pieces of needle point.  Little scraps of cloth that she would take and sew a lovely note or a tiny picture...gone.

Another daughter, a savvy sewer, her creations.  Most of these items are probably gone. 

Gone are are ALL of their school curriculum and school work.  Think of how long it takes to find the books that work?  Years of collecting sentimental books.  Many Catholic ones. Yes, they are a homeschooling family.  Gone.

My SIL says, "But hey stuff, it's just that.... stuff." 

Still, the place they find themselves in is not easy; it's frustrating and they have a challenge ahead of them to regain 'normal'.  It'll be 4-6 months before they can return 'home'.  As a family with 7 children, the concept of 'home' has changed.  Even the baby feels it.

And yet still.

Buy the grace of God, no was injured!  Buy the grace of God, they will get through this.  We rejoice in this!

In an email update she just wrote:

"We have love, faith, and hope in God that nothing can take that joy from us. He has blessed us so far and above what we could ever ask, and we trust his hands will guide us through all this and we will be stronger by it."

Trust! Love! Faith! Hope!

 

It's what guides and comforts. 

 
In what's happening to them.  In still praying for my FIL, in his fight against cancer.  This week seemed especially difficult for him.  Praying for a brother of mine, oh the suffering he endures to escape his situation. 
 
All this, and more, looks like a crisis. 
And it is... to some extent.
 
But like my SIL stated, "We have love, faith, and hope in God."  And with this, there is lots of JOY! 
 
We have an abundancy of joy!
 
Rose will be making her First Holy Communion on Sunday! 
And she'll be turning 8!
Two sweet new babies will be baptized into the Church this weekend.
Family and friends are serving and giving of themselves in droves!
My little brood are healthy and sweet and still so innocent!
Their is love in my home!
 
Yep, God is SO good!!!!
 
So so good.
 

Would you please offer your prayers for my SIL and her family? 

For all the other families they are meeting in similar situations? 

Please continue to pray for my FIL

&

my brother.

 

~ Thank you ~

 

♥

May God reward you

♥

First Holy Communion :: Day Three

It's quickly approaching.  The very day Rose will recievie Jesus in Holy Communion.  She's beginning to get nervous.  Though there isn't anything to be nervous about.  Each time she see's Fr. Steve she tells him, "See you on Sunday".  At first he was confused about what she was refering too.  Now he chuckles and says he wouldn't miss it.  Very cute.

We continue with our novena.
Opening Prayer::

Very soon I will receive Jesus
for the first time in Holy Communion!

I can hardly wait!
I must get myself ready.
I must make my heart ready for Jesus
to come to me in this special way.
I will make my heart a beautiful garden.
I will fill it with flowers to please Him.
When He comes into my heart He will be very happy.
He will see how much I love Him!
I will work very hard to make many flowers for Jesus.

Dear Mother Mary and good Saint Joseph,
please help me get ready to receive
Jesus in Holy Communion!

Day Three::

The flowers I will make in my heart today for the garden of my heart are forget-me-nots.
I will make them by visiting Jesus.

Dear Jesus,

When You were a child like me,
You loved to visit the Temple and pray to God, our good Father.
I want to make visits with You because I love You so much!
Today I will try to visit You, in my heart at least,
if I cannot visit You in Church or in the Adoration Chapel.
I will try to be just like You, Jesus.
When I visit You, it will be a very special forget-me-not
for the garden of my heart.
I hope you will like my forget-me-nots, Jesus.
Sometimes they are very hard to make.

Dear Mother Mary and Saint Joseph,

please help me to be able to visit Jesus today.

Draw a picture of yourself making forget-me-nots in your heart for Jesus:

(Margaret has shared this novena here for all.. Thank you Margaret!)

First Holy Communion Novena :: Day Two

Yesterday was our day 2 for the novena Rose is praying.  In addition to praying the novena, Rose is trying to make this into a spiritual bouquet...one that she hopes to present to Jesus on Sunday.  The day of her First Holy Communion and 8th birthday.  It'll be a big day for her.  And a busy day for me. 

The flowers I will make in my heart today for the garden of my heart are lilacs.

I will make them by not getting angry.

Dear Jesus,

When You were a child like me,

You were always very gentle and did not get angry.

I want to be gentle and patient just like You were.

Today I will try very hard to not get angry at

home, at school and at play.

I will try to be just like You, Jesus.

Each time I keep from getting angry and raising my voice,

it will be a beautiful lilac for the garden of my heart.

I hope You will like my lilacs, Jesus.

Sometimes they are very hard to make.

Dear Mother Mary and Saint Joseph,

please help me not get angry today.

Draw a picture of yourself making lilacs in your heart for Jesus.

(The novena was shared by Margaret and you can find it here)

First Holy Communion Novena:: Day One

Rose and I started this nine-day novena that Margaret first shared 4 years ago!  We are praying as a family; making a promise to help her along her nine days. 

Opening Prayer Before Each Day:

Very soon I will receive Jesus

for the first time in Holy Communion!

I can hardly wait!

I must get myself ready.

I must make my heart ready for Jesus

to come to me in this special way.

I will make my heart a beautiful garden.

I will fill it with flowers to please Him.

When He comes into my heart He will be very happy.

He will see how much I love Him!

I will work very hard to make many flowers for Jesus.

Dear Mother Mary and good Saint Joseph,

please help me get ready to receive

Jesus in Holy Communion!

Holy Guardian Angel, help me to do my best each day!

Day 1 Prayer:

The flowers I will make today for the garden of my heart are roses.

I will make them by being kind to others.

Dear Jesus,

When You were a child like me,

You were always kind to everyone.

I want to be kind to others just like You.

Today I will try very hard to be kind to everyone,

at home, at school, and at play.

I will try to be just like You, Jesus.

Each time I do something kind for someone,

it will be a beautiful rose for the garden of my heart.

I hope you will like my roses Jesus.

Sometimes they are very hard to make.

Dear Mother Mary and Saint Joseph,

please help me to be kind to others today.

Draw a picture of yourself making roses in your heart for Jesus.

{Pretty,Happy,Funny,Real}

{Pretty}

Divine Mercy Sunday

It was beautiful!

He IS beautiful!

{Happy}

Happy Easter!

{Funny}

The end of lobster fishing.
We have a enough lobster to last us quite a while.
This is Rose, she liked talking and playing with the them....
odd kid ;-}

{Real}

part one

My little boy is growing up fast. 

 He's literally growing out of his pants every two month, he reads all the time (oh you don't know what a leap forward this is), he has taken his role as a Guardian of the Altar very seriously. 

Max has some come a long way!

Part II

This past week Lucy and one of her dearest friends spoke in front of the first year confirmation class from our parish.  Neither of the girls attend the classes; in fact our young friend isn't a member of our parish.  But during the last week of Lent the girls felt called to speak to the young ladies from the classes.  They wanted to share their love for Jesus, their love of prayer with the group. 

Lucy and S.A approached the director of the confirmation program and 'pitched' him their idea. 

Thank you Mr. F.G! 

Thank you for saying yes to the girls and giving them their very first taste of speaking and publicly sharing their faith. 

The girls were nervous,

but prepared.

The girls were excited,

yet wanted to connect with their audience.

They want to come from a place of love

and not be 'too adult' like.

They weren't!

In front of the Tabernacle, with the Holy Spirit leading their words; they spoke from the heart.

Great job girls!!!

~ Capturing the context of everyday life ~

Every Thursday, over at Like Mother, Like Daughter!

A Divine Mercy Sunday ::

O salutaris Hostia
Quae caeli pandis ostium;
Bella premunt hostilla,
Da robur, fer auxillium.

Uni trinoque Domino
Sit sempiterna gloria,
Qui vitam sine termino
Nobis donet in patria. Amen

What a blessed Divine Mercy Sunday we had!  Gifted by the priest, deacons, and parishioners of Guardian Angel Catholic Church.  This little church, hidden in the midst of the projects, holds gold.  A wealth of faith, led by faithful priest. 
 

 On this day, the community gathered within her doors. 

Together, as a church, we knelt before our Lord of lords.

 

Down in adoration falling,

This great Sacrament we hail;

Over ancient forms of worship

Newer rites of grace prevail;

Faith will tell us Christ is present,

When our human senses fail.

To the everlasting Father,

And the Son who made us free,

And the Spirit, God proceeding

From them Each eternally,

Be salvation, honor, blessing,

Might and endless majesty.

Amen

 

We followed in procession.

We followed Him

 

Our 3 priest

led their flock around the projects of Pacoima.

Singing hymns of praise

 

Until we reached each home

Praying the Chaplet of Divine Mercy.

We were welcomed by these families

who not only opened their doors to us;

but also opened their homes, their hearts, to Him.

Imagine the onlookers as he passed?

Those that couldn't or wouldn't come out?

We prayed for YOU too!

We offered our little sacrifices for YOU!

We were there for YOU too!

♥ HE was there for YOU ♥

So many of us felt the healing of His mercy.

We were covered in what only He can offer!

In this short afternoon

watching my son

among our friends

In his presence!

Oh the JOY!

His mercy!

Endless!

Thank you, Guardian Angel parish.

Thank you, to the Society of Guardian of the Altars,

and their director, Mr. M. Feliz

Thank you, Mary Santos for your lovely pictures and your gift of photography!

Thank you, Fr. Steve and Fr. Freddy!

Please pray for these holy priests.

Thank you from the bottom of all our hearts

Thank you!

Holy God, we praise thy name;

Lord of all, we bow before thee;

All on earth they scepter claim;

All in heaven above adore thee.

Infinite they vast domain,

Everlasting is thy reign!

 

Hark, the loud celestial hymn;

Angel choirs above are raising;

Cherubim and Seraphim,

In unceasing chorus praising,

Fill the heavens with sweet accord:

Holy, holy, holy, Lord!

Easter Cookies

It's been months since I've baked these cookies. 
They are great, yummy, but can be time consuming.  Easter Sunday was a good reason to return to the icing. 

It took me a while to get into the groove.

I almost quit.

But I'm glad I didn't...

...and so were the kids!

To bad I couldn't get the camera to focus. 

Have I mentioned that I've been without a camera since New Year's Eve?

Yep, the camera is nicely tucked away inside my pocket.

That pocket being my snow pants.

Which, of course, are safely put away;

in a box, in Big Bear Lake ;-/

Back to the cookies.

I use 3 different and loyal recipes for the cookies.

This one, that one, and this one.

(A note on these 3 blogs... I LOVE LOVE LOVE them.  I've tried many of their recipes; and they've been awesome, yummy, goodness.  Really! 

 So check them out.  Look at their beautiful creations, and enjoy)

Back to my post....

I also have a great, can you believe tasty, royal icing recipe.

But instead of sticking to what I know works, I tried a new recipe.

It looked promising.

It came from a trusty source.

But it, or I, failed.

It never hardened the way it needed too.  See the purple "He is Risen" cookie at the bottom right?

  Poor cookie didn't survive Cecilia's little fingers.

I need to not try new things on such important dates.

Once they are in a cute bag, tied with a pretty ribbon around it,

and placed in an Easter basket.

 

No one notices the imperfections anyway

~ ♥ ~

My cookie baking break continues;

 until Rose's First Holy Communion.

A short two weeks from now.

Happy Easter!

Head over to Catholic Cuisine for a link-up party!

Alleluia!

It was a blessed Easter Sunday!

As soon as we got back from morning Mass I gathered the kids to take some pictures. 

 Our camera is still in Big Bear!  Ugh!

But I have Lucy's little camera for shots.

What is it with kids?

My kids are pretty good about posing for pictures.  But, I have to admit this time I really had them wait for a loooong time.

Look at my Max!  He's is such a poser!

As are these two cuties.

Early morning, the table waited for the kids.

Their basket filled with cookies and a few little gifts.

Then,

after finishing up some last minute appetizers at home, we headed off to the cousin's house.

Max is considered part of the 'big' kid group.  So, he got to help hide eggs for the little ones.

A job he takes very seriously.

On a serious note. 

When you yell for the kids to get ready and come out for the hunt.  You better watch your distance.  They jammed out of the house so quick, if I had been any closer; I would've been taking this picture from the ground. No kidding.

The race for the eggs was on!

After the young ones had their hunt, the dads took their turn to hide the eggs.  We need their height and strength for some 'real' tough hiding spots. 

Poor kids, it's so hard for the 10 and above age group...

I mean, look where they hide these eggs!

Having kids climb trees!  Tough dads!

Lucy didn't mind though.

But, I didn't see her climbing ant infested trees either.

We all laughed, ate,

played basketball, ate,

spent time with one another, oh and

ate!

May the blessings and grace that comes from the resurrected Christ be with us, always!

Alleluia!  Alleluia!

There is a linky party over at Catholic Cuisine...check it out!

An Easter Octave Daybook ::

Outside my window...

So sunny and warm today. Another beautiful day God has blessed us with.  The weather has been so mixed this winter here.  In one week we'll have temps into the mid 70s; only to drop to the low 60's and rain.  So odd!

I am listening too...

Kids playing, though they should be picking up their rooms.  Birds are chirping away outside.  They must feel the presence of spring because it sounds like a party outside.

I am thinking...

That giving the kids, and I, an extra week off of school was a 'great' idea. 

I am hoping...

For a peaceful week!  Every week has been busy and I feel more like a taxi driver than a mom right now.  It's all good though. 

I am praying and rejoicing...

"This is the day the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad. Alleluia!"

I am grateful for...

~ My family! 
~ The singing voice of Lucy and Cecilia!  There is nothing better than hearing your 5 year old sing loud praises to Jesus, "Jesus, oh how I love you!"
~ Long hikes, a good trained dog, sincere conversations with my mother, the support of my brothers and sisters....
~ I'm just so very grateful for this blessed life, even with it's ups and downs!

Plans for this week...

• cleaning up the craziness that is 'that school room'.
• a field trip to the Getty with our co-op.
• music lessons
• tball, softball, and track practices
• setting up our Garden of the Good Shepherd board and work of some plans for it

Picture to share...

We used Charlotte's shared idea of 'cracked eggs'.  They came out great!

O God, who have bestowed on us paschal remedies, endow your people with heavenly gifts, so that, possessed of perfect freedom, they may rejoice in heaven over what gladdens them now on earth. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever.

Holy (Maundy) Thursday

Letter of the Holy Father To All the Priests of the Church for Holy Thursday 1986

"Here we are again, about to celebrate Holy Thursday, the day on which Christ Jesus instituted the Eucharist and at the same time our ministerial Priesthood. "Having loved his own who were in the world, he loved them to the end."(1) As the Good Shepherd, he was about to give up his life for his sheep,(2) to save man, to reconcile himself with his Father and bring him into a new life. And already at the Last Supper he offered the Apostles as food his own Body given up for them, and his Blood shed for them."

~ Bl. John Paul II

(you may read the rest here; and I highly recommend that you do)

Our 2012 plans

An early roast dinner for tonight

 Liturgy of the World at our Parish

Making our new Paschal Candle

Here is a post from 2010 of our plans.

May the start of the Paschal Triduum be a blessed day for each of you!

 

"But if I washed your feet...then you must wash each other’s feet." (John 13:14)

Lace, lace and lace...

Rose's First Holy Communion is fast approaching so we are trying to get ready little by little for it.  Her dress was purchased a few months ago, but I knew I wanted to make her a new veil for the special occasion.

Today she and I picked up the material from JoAnn's.  She had a chose of lace and trims, with my 'encouragement' of course.  I think she did very well with her chose.

We are going to use the scalloped edge, shown in the picture, for the front and we got a simple trim for the back.  I was going to make this for her, but my SIL has been making veils for a while now.  She has the hang of it and offered to do this for her goddaughter.

How could I say no.

Plus, her veils are a thing of feminine beauty!

Since we were on a roll I did choose another fabric for Lucy.  A surprise for her.