Repeated

I haven't blogged much lately.  I rarely spend much time on my computer besides doing the budget and the blog app on my phone no longer works.  Also my camera broke, and while the camera repair shop "fixed it" in a bandage approach, it's still difficult to get the battery & card out to charge and get pictures from it.

I miss blogging. I love journaling in my journal and leaving something behind for my family so they know me on a different level. I want them to know me, not just remember me.  Here is my journal, here is my online journal as well to let my family:friends just how special they are to someone.

Lately I've heard this in 4 different spots; The Shack (book & movie), 7 Secrets of Confession book, Bible  study, & The Best Lent by Matthew Kelly. What is "this"?: sin is it's own punishment.  Here I saw God as throwing down lightening bolts of punishment when I screwed up. Turns out I was the one turning away from him, as if turning away from the sun and my own shadow attached to me as my punishment.  When I reconcile with him, I turn to face him again and I no longer face my shadows.

Why do Catholic women wear chapel veils at Mass?

The veil is meant to be an external sign of a woman's interior desire to humble herself before God, truly present in the Blessed Sacrament. As women, we are symbols of the Church - the Bride of Christ - and "the veil is meant to be a visible reminder of the perfect submission of the Church to the loving rule of Christ."

For 2000 years, Catholic women have worn some kind of head covering in Church. Though the particular reasons for doing so have varied (for example, modesty in the time of St. Paul), this practice has always focused on the transcendence of the place - the church, the very dwelling of the Real Presence of Christ in the Eucharist. Having been given this magnficent Gift by Jesus himself, every Catholic church holds something not found anywhere else: the true, living presence of our Bridegroom, hidden under the appearance of bread and wine.

"The veil is a visual sermon, ... a public proclamation before the Lord that He IS the Lord and that we love Him and that we are ready to obey him. It's a totally counter-cultural statement proclaiming obedience in the midst of a culture that is totally permeated with this attitude of 'I will not serve.'"

The veil is a sign of the great dignity inherent to a woman, who has the potential to receive life within herself... both human life and the supernatural life of God. This is an important message the world needs to hear, now more than ever!

Read more about the Theological Significance of the Veil.

Lent

Longtime Childhood Friend Gone :(

Ryan James LaBine

            Ryan J. LaBine, 34, Rush City, formerly of Nashwauk-Keewatin area died Saturday, February 4, 2017 in Rock Creek, MN.  He was born on May 14, 1982 to Michael LaBine and Suzanne Erickson in Hibbing, MN.  Ryan was employed as a maintenance mechanic for Polaris in Osceola, WI.  He graduated from Eveleth Technical College completing a two year program in maintenance mechanic training. Ryan attended and graduated from N-K High School in 2000. He was a member of the Dirty Riders ATV Club, he loved the outdoors, hunting, fishing, snowmobiling, boating and riding his ATV.  Ryan was such an outgoing, easy to get along with man who could always make you smile.

            He is survived by his wife, Jena LaBine, Rush City, MN, two children, Nolan (12) and Meranda(9) LaBine, both of Rush City, his father, Michael LaBine, Keewatin, MN, mother, Suzanne  Erickson, Coolidge, AZ, his grandmother, Theresa LaBine, Hibbing, and two nephews, Devin Eskeli and Caleb Hunt. 

            He was preceded in death by his grandfather, Dennis LaBine, grandmother, Jean Jensen, and grandfather, Mason Kirk.

            Funeral services for Ryan will be 11:30am, Thursday, February 9, 2017 at Dougherty Funeral Home of Hibbing.  The Rev. Mr. Richard Johnston will officiate.  Visitation will be from 10:00am until the 11:30am funeral service at the funeral home on Thursday.  Arrangements are with the Dougherty Funeral Home of Hibbing.

New Diet: low FODMAPs for Me.

Over the last few years my gut had been getting worse.  I went gf a few months before conceiving Felicity and felt SO much better.  But over the years I have been cutting out more and more foods that appeared to give me stomach pains.  The difficult thing about a food-elimination diet is the time it takes (irritating foods may cause distress anywhere between 1/2 hr to days later).  I have been following these guidelines of the low FODMAP diet for 5 days now and this is the best I've felt in years.  Last month I was convinced I had liver or pancreatic cancer because of the constant pain.  The Blood tests showed otherwise. (Praise God). I had cut out all dairy, sugar, gluten and still felt icky. 

I don't know how I stumbled upon a low FODMAP diet, probably one of my many "abdominal pain" google searches.  Mainly they explain that you that you go on the diet for 4-6 wks and then slowly re-introduce irritating foods.  I was SO surprised to find out that the soy, peas, beans, cauliflower, garlic, onions, I was eating were making my insides churn and causing such pain.  The good thing about this diet is that I don't have to avoid the foods altogether.  I can have the moderate and high FODMAP foods, just in moderation.  I haven't officially been Dx with IBS/IBD, Crohn's disease, or anything of the sort, technically.  I'm so tired of going to doctors, paying a hearty co-pay and bill, and have nothing to show for it.  Sometime you have to be your own advocate.  Scratch that--ALWAYS you must be your own advocate.

I'm constantly reminded that we eat to live not live to eat.  (But if I could a donut occasionally, I'd be one happy camper!). It's a weird diet.  Grapes are good, but raisins are bad. Maple syrup is good, honey is bad.  Dry wine is good, sweet wine is bad. Most white cheeses are good, processed or yellow cheeses are bad. Mainly fructose is the culprit, but also fermentable foods.  And anything that gives the average person wind (cauliflower, cabbage, beans) reels havok on IBS sufferers guts.

FOD·MAP 

ˈfädˌmap/

noun: FODMAP

1. one of a group of compounds thought to contribute to the symptoms of irritable bowel syndrome and similar gastrointestinal disorders. The term is used mainly with reference to a diet that is low in these compounds (which are mainly carbohydrates).

   
   

Origin

early 21st century: acronym from fermentable oligosaccharides, disaccharides, monosaccharides, and polyols .

Home by Choice

• Based on the way his parents treat him, a child will form certain expectations on how others will treat him.
• Children judged to be securely attached to both parents exhibit the most confidence & competence.
• Believe in personality change and healing for the un-nurtured self. Confront the wounded child.
• Insecurely attached children often become aggressive, hostile, or uncooperative with peers, retreat from others, or become passive/withdrawn.
• Give kids time & attention!!
• If a child isn't raised with love, time, and affection they won't have the emotional resources to give that to their kids.
• One study showed that moms who chose to work were, “lonely, only children.” Their homes were filled with tension and frequent episodes of martial strife. Most women did not have a close relationship with both parents.
• Psychologists found a relationship between the presence/absence of nurture in childhood and the desire to have children.
• One study showed women who identified with their fathers (and not their mothers) often became careerists, especially if they rejected their mother's traditional lifestyle.
• Careerists withdraw not because they don't care, but because it hurts to care.
• Ruth Josselson, “Finding herself” says “the most important task facing women today is the formation of identity that a woman bases her sense of herself as well as her vision for the structure of her life.”
  Working women: identity was based on connections vs career.
• How can a mom maximize those hard, but sweet years of child rearing (the summer of her life).
• A woman can flourish her first/talents during her years at home: gardening, exercising, writing.
• “Any man who works 40-60 hrs/wk and commutes has little time after functioning as husband and father to pursue his own interests.” Mom can. And she can take time to help with those household chores the husband lacks time to do.
• Make birthdays & holidays special, memorable, happy. Take turns telling the b-day person what they mean to you.
• What about you who were un-nurtured, who feel isolated & alone? You may struggle with depression or have a hard time organizing your day. What do you do if you feel overwhelmed.
• Friendships with other women are the antidote for depression.
• Therapy does not heal the soul. Psychiatry & psychology were effective at diagnosing human ills, but could it exercise the soul? No. Ask God to make you whole.
• In one study 80% of husbands felt their relationship lacked intimacy if the woman worked full time.
• When a woman is at home, men need to have emotionally and physically accessible wives to feel secure.
• “Men need a sensitive woman who can get to the heart of the matter. We men dance around personal issues. We're competitive and don't' probe the way women do.”
• Nurturing our husbands: mend have physical strength, but they do not possess our emotional strength.
• We never outgrow our need for our father's blessings. Children, esp boys, need to hear “I love you” and get hugs from Dad.
• Men tend to struggle with careers in their 20's & 30's only to turn toward relationships in their 40's & 50's. While women establish family and friend connections in our 20's & 30's, then begin to focus on productive ventures outside the home in our 40's & 50's.

Ice

E's first time not holding onto mom or dad.

F's first time on ice with real skates.  Couldn't get a good selfie--she wouldn't let go of me.

Time Stops

Have you ever seen one of those shows where the video is sped up?  Traffic zooms so all you see are streaks of red and yello lights.  The busy streets of places like New York are just a blur of people, pedestrians obeying street lights, all melding into one blur. Nature videos sped up so it shows grass grow, a flower grow, blossom, and die, and the sun rising a setting in a few seconds on screen.

This is how I've always felt when an intense life event occurs.  It's as though time has stopped for me and those affected and we're just standing in the middle of it watching the world go by.  It happened when my great grandma died.  It happened when Dad died. It happened when I gave birth to both of my daughters and as I lost my third.  It doesn't always have to be negative.  Yet my heart cries out for the rest of the world, "SLOW DOWN! Don't you know what could happen to you?"

I'm surprised when it happens, and when it doesn't.  I'm reading a book by Matthew Kelly and when he writes of the time he was diagnosed with cancer it made me realize this dazed feeling he described has happened to me and I can recall each and every time.  It's a very close-to-God moment and must be what heaven is like.  Better is one day in your courts than thousands elsewhere

.

Message from a Miscarriage & Pregnancy Loss Support Group:

As 2016 comes to an end, many of you may find this time very difficult, as though you're leaving a part of you behind...
Your babies will always be part of you, they will always be remembered & they will always be loved.
I'd like to wish you all a gentle New Year & hope that 2017 brings love & smiles to each & every one of you ♡
Mel xo

Ballet Lessons

Jump! She actually got some air!

Pointing her toe

The class she joined has jazz, tap, and ballet classes all rolled into one.

Natural Treatment for Plantar Warts

My 3 yo had a plantar wart on her foot.  Instead of treating it at the dr's (oh the drama, I could only imagine!) I researched natural alternatives.  What worked?  Banana peel, placed inside towards the skin, held on with a bandade.  We did this every night for a week.  3 wks later it turned black, died, and disappeared.  She has a tiny scar in its place, barely visible to the eye.

My Child Did Exist

Being "Religous" is OK

I love my religion.  There has been a few digs against the Catholic religion and, if appropriate, I defend it.  I shouldn't have to, but I do.  Why is it ok to talk down about one religion or "being religious"?  Religion is just the path you take to God, and everyone's path is different.  I respect that. I   found that I LOVE that in the 8 1/2 years I've been Catholic that I've never heard a priest, or any lay person, talk down ANY other belief or religion.  Rant over...can you tell that an old friend of mine posted an anti-pope article on fb recently? However she tore him up one side and down the other without reading the article.  He said he believes in evolution, but that in the sense that bodies, animals, and plants change in order to accommodate their environment--not that we came from monkeys. He also considers the Big Bang to have occurred, but that God did it.  Of course I cannot share this on fb, so I spew this on my own on-line journal, because I can without sarcastic comments. I figure if you love God, pray, help others, follow the 10 commandments, and treat your neighbor with kindness and don't look down your nose at anyone, you are to be appreciated & respected.

Myrrh EO

Here's my top 8 Ways to Use Myrrh Essential Oil:

1. Rub 1 drop over the thyroid daily for thyroid support. 
2. Rub 1 drop along with a bit of fractionated coconut oil over cracked or chapped skin. 
3. Place 20 drops of myrrh in a 10ml glass roller ball and top with fractionated coconut oil. Rub over stretch marks 2x daily to reduce their appearance. 
4. Place 20 drops of Myrrh, 20 drops of Frankincense and 20 drops of Sandalwood in a 10ml glass roller ball and top with fractionated coconut oil. Rub a few swipes on the feet 2x daily for healthy cell support. 
5. Diffuse 2 drops Myrrh and 2 drops Lavender to help reduce stress. 
6. Rub 1 drop Myrrh and 1 drop Breath over the chest for occasional congestion.
7. Add a few drops to a cold compress and apply it directly to any infected or inflamed area for relief. It can help reduce swelling and inflammation.
8. Add one or two drops of the oil to your daily lotion or moisturizer. This mixture can help reduce the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles, particularly when used daily. 

Trusting God's Will

Psalm 139:13-16

13 For you created my inmost being;
    you knit me together in my mother’s womb.
14 I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made;
    your works are wonderful,
    I know that full well.

First reading: Rev 11-12

RV 11:19A; 12:1-6A, 10AB

God’s temple in heaven was opened,
and the ark of his covenant could be seen in the temple.

A great sign appeared in the sky, a woman clothed with the sun,
with the moon under her feet,
and on her head a crown of twelve stars.
She was with child and wailed aloud in pain as she labored to give birth.
Then another sign appeared in the sky;
it was a huge red dragon, with seven heads and ten horns, and on its heads were seven diadems.
Its tail swept away a third of the stars in the sky
and hurled them down to the earth.
Then the dragon stood before the woman about to give birth,
to devour her child when she gave birth. 
She gave birth to a son, a male child,
destined to rule all the nations with an iron rod.
Her child was caught up to God and his throne.
The woman herself fled into the desert
where she had a place prepared by God.

Then I heard a loud voice in heaven say:
“Now have salvation and power come,
and the Kingdom of our God
and the authority of his Anointed.”

Today: our Lady of Guadalupe

Today is the Feast Day of Our Lady of Guadalupe!  On this day back in 1531, our Blessed Mother appeared in Mexico to a 57-year old peasant named Juan Diego.

According to the earliest reliable account of the story, Juan Diego was walking near what is now Mexico City (Tepeyac Hill) when he came upon an apparition of a “maiden” whom he soon came to recognize as the Virgin Mary. Mary appeared to be wearing the dress of an Aztec princess. The sash tied around her waist was a symbol of pregnancy, indicating that she was with child. 

When he told the archbishop, he asked for a sign to prove what he had seen.

Upon returning, Mary instructed Juan Diego to climb to the top of the hill to gather flowers to bring back to the bishop. Reaching the crest of the hill, Juan Diego found Castilian roses, which were neither in season nor native to the region.The Blessed Mother arranged the flowers herself in Juan’s tilma (a burlap-type cloak) and instructed him in his native language to open the cloak only upon return to the bishop.

When Juan Diego arrived back at the bishop’s residence, he opened his cloak and the flowers fell to the floor. Left on the surface of his tilma was the image that’s come to be known as “Our Lady of Guadalupe."  Several million Aztecs were converted to the Catholic faith by the power of this image in just under seven years.

A shrine that was subsequently built on the spot where the original tilma can still be seen is one of the most popular pilgrimage sites in the world today.

As Patroness of the Americas, may she watch over our country & us all.

Our Lady of Guadalupe, pray for us. 

Prayer of the Day

Dance Lessons

Elizabeth has been begging me for months to take dance lessons. Even for her birthday I bought her ballet slippers and a leotard. It wasn't until we stopped at a dance studio to buy Nutcracker tickets for her and I that I realize they had dancing for little girls. The owner recommended a 45 minute weekly class that taught all different types of dance.  Come to find out her co-teacher was also be her last-year's (8th grader) prayer partner from school.   So we signed her up, and of course like she does with everything she gets nervous the day before, can't sleep at night, and hangs on to me when we get there. She's an outgoing little girl, and I know she'll do just fine.  I end up feeling like the bad mom that while she's crying into my sleeve I'm pushing her into the dance studio.  There's 9 other little girls there. They invite her to sit down. She refuses. Her co-teacher she loves & adores is late. "Come on, God.  Help Ali to get here safe."  After 15 minutes Elizabeth is bending, prancing, and galloping with the rest of them.  She knows "Rose" a first grader from school.  They come out when they're done and she ALL smiles and pink-cheeked.  "Mom, can I come again next week?!"  

Sometimes God presses us to do uncomfortable things.  "Should I tell that person I'm here for them?" "Should I start a new job, volunteer more?"  "Should I move, should I stay?" This was a good reminder for me that when He presses us, he'll be with us the entire way, His face pressed against the glass and his heart filled with pride saying, "YOU CAN DO THIS!"  

Phil 4:13  I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me. 

Happy Thanksgiving