Family Get-Together

Cute Pictures:

Prince William & Princess Catherine

Elizabeth & I watched the Royal Wedding this morning. I love weddings and always get teary-eyed, especially at the vows.
I loved what the Honerable Richard said. Today is the Feast of St. Catherine of Ciena. Regarding weddings: Marriage is intended to be a way in which man and woman help each other to become what God wanted for one another. Beautiful.

A visit to see Grammy & Grandpa Ely :)

Trading a Bounce for a Smile

Hahaha, it's almost like she pauses for me to "take the picture". My smiley girl.

Happy 64th Birthday, Dad

"Someday you might know what I'm going through,
When a miracle smiles up at you.
I loved her first."
I think Dad & Elizabeth have already met in heaven. Happy birthday, Dad. We miss you.

Christ's Chore List

After doing some research, making an initial template, and trying it for a few months, I've finally temporarily finalized (yea, I said that) my weekly chore list. It's really helped me to not be overwhelmed on Saturdays and when I would try to do it all with the hopes of being able to relax and enjoy my family on the weekends.
I debated whether or not to blog this, but I looked at numerous other blogs, so I figure...why not post what worked for me? And actually, Elizabeth and I get most of our chores done in the morning before work so we can focus on dinner and walks w/ puppy after work.
Sunday:
Cut coupons
Make weekly menu
Empty compost buckets

Monday:
Shake out rugs
Mirrors & windows
Microwave
Groom Dog

Tuesday:
Garbages
Kitchen drain
Water Plants

Wednesday:
Dusting
Ironing

Thursday:
Stove top
Fridge – inside & outside

Friday:
Sweep & mop kitchen
Bathroom: sinks, toilets, floors
Water Plants

Saturday:
Laundry
Vacuum crevices of house
Scrub tubs & shower

Monthly:
Bathe dog
Wash dog's linens
Fridge drawers & door shelves

(I never dusted pictures before until I saw someone else post it. I then went to my pictures and saw what they were talking about -- ewww! Who knew picture frames needed to be dusted...I do, now.)

Honey, I think we need to add a little color to your wardrobe. :)

David was kind enough to add a tension rod in the mudroom so that I can hang clothes right out of the dryer and avoid wrinkles. But I noticed something 1/2 way through folding the white load. Hmmmm.

Little Bits Pics

Your Mama wore this same outfit, Little One!

My Unsupported Sitter:

Season's Last Shamrock Shake

And you wonder why spring is such a glorious season...it's the Shamrock Shakes! Why not post this in March? Because I got the last one last week -- First week of April. (Do you notice the small halo around the top?) And now they even put whipped cream and a cherry on top, BONUS! Mmmm, see you next year Shamrock Shake! Until we meet again!

Bireiki

I have such a hard time with Friday meals during Lent because I'm allergic to fish/seafood and I have a spouse who can't just eat a green salad with me for dinner. (I'm not blaming. I can understand that women can live off of rabbit food better then men.) So I'm always on the lookout for tasty vegetarian dishes. Last night was perogies & vegetable soup. I do try to have one meatless dinner a week year-round.

Here's a new dish I found in my Parenting magazine:
6 thinly sliced red potatoes (I left skin on)
6 sliced zucchini (I used 3 zucchini and 3 yellow squash - prettier coloring)
6 sliced Roma tomatoes
EVOO (extra virgin olive oil)
Mix: 6-8 pressed garlic cloves, the sliced whites of 3 scallions, & 1.5 T oregano or marjoram.
Brush a shallow baking dish w/ EVOO. Layer 1/2 potato, zucchini, & tomato slices, brush w/ EVOO. Sprinkle on 1/2 the scallion & garlic mixture. Repeat layer and bake for 45 min to 1 hr @ 350. The last 15 minutes - top w/ mozz cheese. This is a dish called Bireiki - a Greek lasagna. Yum! And it was something we both enjoyed.

Life After Death Prayer

This was my daily reading. A nice addendum to the Stations of the Cross post I did recently did.
Thank you, Lord for the assurance that Christ loves me and that after Good Friday, there is always an Easter ... that after death, there is a resurrection ... and after the cross, there is an empty tomb. Hallelujah! I need never fear death for you walked ahead of me and wait to welcome me eternally into your presence. Thank you for the gospel of salvation through Christ our Lord, to the Glory of our Lord. Amen

Grandma Candy & Grandpa Gary Come to Dinner

Stations of the Cross

Every Friday during Lent the church has the Stations of the Cross. We got a babysitter because we wanted to really meditate and take in the Stations.
It is a beautiful devotion consisting of prayers and meditations before each of 14 crosses or images set up in a church or along a path commemorating the events of the Passion of Jesus. We try to go every year. It's one thing to ask our Lord to forgive us of our sins and recall that he died for us on Calvary, but it's another perspective to realize that my sins put the stripes on his back. My lying & swearing put the nails into his hands and feet. My gossiping pierced his heart. My hardened heart dug the thorns into his scalp. And I lose it when he meets his mother, weeping like a child. An innocent heart, sent to die like a thief. There is a moment of silence when he dies. Here, I bawl.
According to the Catholic Encyclopedia, “the real aim of Lent is, above all else, to prepare men for the celebration of the death and Resurrection of Christ…the better the preparation the more effective the celebration will be. One can effectively relive the mystery only with purified mind and heart. The purpose of Lent is to provide that purification by weaning men from sin and selfishness through self-denial and prayer, by creating in them the desire to do God’s will and to make His kingdom come by making it come first of all in their hearts.”
So I implore you, take this time to humble yourself, spend time in prayer, thanking God for sending His only Begotten Son to teach us and to Jesus for accepting the Will of the Father and taking the cup that was given to him. Maybe give something up for Lent and fill it w/ something else to devote time to God.
http://onlineministries.creighton.edu/CollaborativeMinistry/stations.html

Email: Garbage Truck Driver

I received this as an email from a good friend of mine. Figured I'd share it, too.
Law of the Garbage Truck
One day I hopped in a taxi and took off for the airport. We were driving in the right lane when suddenly a black car jumped out of a parking space right in front of us. My taxi driver slammed on his brakes, skidded and missed the car by inches! The driver of the other car whipped his head around and started yelling at us. My driver just smiled and waved at the guy and I mean he was really friendly. "So", I asked "Why did you just do that? The guy almost ruined your car and sent us to the hospital!"

This is what my taxi driver taught me what I now call "the law of the garbage truck."

He explained that many people are like garbage trucks. They run around full of garbage, full of frustration, full of anger and full of disappointment. As their garbage piles up, they need a place to dump it and sometimes they'll dump it on you. Don't take it personally.
Just smile, wave, wish them well and move on. Don't take their garbage and spread it to other people at work, at home or on the street.

The bottom line is that successful people do not let garbage trucks take over their day. Life is too short to wake up in the morning with regrets, so love the people who treat you right and pray for the ones who don't.

Baby Food Update

Elizabeth and I made baby food peas today. I have the baby food attachment on my Kitchen Aid and it is WONDERFUL! It shelled all the peas and made for a creamy baby food. I didn't realize how hard the shells were until I washed everything out and had all the shells (emptied of their pea contents) in the bottom of my sink. I love Kitchen Aides. Thanks T&H for the awesome wedding present!
I froze my pea cubes and looked at my previously-made yam cubes. (I want to wait to introduce solids, so Itty Bitz hasn't even tried the cereal or the yam cubes I made last month). As I inspected my yam cubes, I noted that they were crystallized -- on their way to freezer burn. I removed them from their cheap freezer bag & vacuum packed them, since we won't be using them for another few months or so. I hate to do all that work for them to go to waste.
So, for those of you who are planning on making your own baby food, I'd suggest vacuum-packing or using a really good brand-name freezer bag to avoid freezer burn. I'll be vacuum-packing from now on.

My Supported Sitter

Miss Little Bits is working on her trunk control. Still slightly 4-point sitting, but she's getting better.

In My Big Green Tractor

We went to a home show last weekend and swapped kids so that we could bring our nephew Mark with us to "test drive" tractors. He tried them all. It was cute. He would jump up, correctly position his balloon I attached to his wrist (similar to checking his mirrors), don his seat belt, and start steering. I forgot how much energy little boys have at this age, but it was fun!

"My Pretty Irish Girl"

I always sing this to Elizabeth. It is from "Darby O'Gill And The Little People" (1959) A little late on the St. Patty's Day post, but it's never too late to post a pretty Irish girl.
Oh, she's my dear, my darlin' one
Her eyes so sparklin' full of fun
No other, no other
Can match the likes of her


She's my dear my darlin' one
My smilin' and beguilin' one
I love the ground she walks upon
My pretty Irish girl

Ady's Request:

You bet your buttons we will!

Elizabeth's First Big-Girl Book

Elizabeth & I finished our first book(s) together: Alice's Adventures in Wonderland & Through the Looking Glass (2 books put into one). We read the whole thing together -- granted she was asleep for some of it, nonetheless we did it. It took a month because sometimes she wouldn't sit still and preferred something with pictures. I have always LOVED Alice's adventures and always wanted to read the book. It's very dream-like and Lewis Caroll had such a wonderful, child-like imagination. A Classic! I have always liked the two movies and Tim Burton's newest Alice starring Johnny Depp (even though they combined the "Red Queen" and the "Queen of Hearts" incorrectly...I'll forgive them because the Bandersnatch & Cheshire Cat were so cool) was beautiful and creative.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pAwR6w2TgxY