Verne Treyton Parks baptized

Jen & Jr asked us to be God parents to baby Trey. We are also his big sister, Ady’s, God parents as well and is a huge honor. We’ve been praying for the little one for months preceding his birth and for good health for his mommy. Pregnancy and labor is never easy, but is well worth it. This little fella is such a good baby. Welcome to the church, little one!

Suffering

I threw my back out this wk. Ever since my second pregnancy my SI joint can slip out of place and I’m in agony for weeks-even with chiropractic care and self stretching. Last time this year was when I caught a falling patient. 

One thing I’ve learned as a Catholic is to “offer it up”. You can pray for healing, but while you’re in the midst of suffering you more deeply understand the suffering of the Passion of Christ. 

“Pain and suffering have come into your life, but remember pain, sorrow, suffering are but the kiss of Jesus – a sign that you have come so close to Him that He can kiss you.” -Mother Teresa

Now I rejoice in my sufferings for your sake, and in my flesh I am filling up what is lacking in the afflictions of Christ on behalf of his body, which is the church (Colossians 1:24).

St. Mother Teresa of Calcutta

"The fruit of silence is prayer, the fruit of prayer is faith, the fruit of faith is love, the fruit of love is service, the fruit of service is peace."

— St. Mother Teresa of Calcutta

Bye Bye Baby

My babies are growing up.  I celebrate the little milestones with them, but mourn the loss of their youth at the same time, especially with the youngest.  We have been giving away a lot of “stuff” to our church’s ‘store’ who give all proceeds back to the community.

*When we moved here we had two stools in front of the bathroom sinks. Now there is none to trip over as both girls can reach their tooth brushes and sink. 

* No more training wheels or baby bike seat. Those went to a friend of mine last month as Felicity is now 40# and that’s the limit. She took one more ride with me and looked HUGE compared to last year.
* No more barrettes.  The girls don't want the colorful, cute barrettes they once loved.

I’ll finish later. Someone needs morning snuggles and breakfast. 💖

MOLD!!!

Window frame after spraying with bleach mix, before scrubbing . 

Bleach, scrubbed, air dried over night. 

Elizabeth has been coming upstairs every morning with the sniffles. She insists on an allergy pill. Last summer she was tested for allergies and found one of her allergies was mold/fungus, mild, but still present.

The last ppl who owned our home didn’t take good care of it or know how to use the air exchanger in the wintertime apparently. The basement bedrooms get a build up of condensation in the corners in the winter. Every morning we turn on the exchanger, open the drapes, and it goes away. I truly believe the previous owners didn’t do this.

Anyhow, I checked her sleep number bed for mold (common per the internet) and didn’t find any. Shampooed her mattress and carpets. Vacuumed like crazy. Still - sneezes and scratchy throat in the morning.

I opened the windowsill and this is what I found. It became darker once I sprayed it with a water/bleach mix. I scrubbed all 4 windows, ledges, hinges, etc like crazy with a toothbrush and rinsed with clear water. I’ll let dry fully today and repoly everything. I’m hoping this helps her sniffles. I didn’t tell her what I did so as to assess her allergies w/o her knowing. But already this morning she sounded better, less blowing of the nose and watery eyes.  I’ll also wash her drapes as well to rinse away any lose spores, but I pray that we found the source. I know I needed to get this done before winter so I could work inside and outside the window and allow it to open and air dry before doing the polyurethane. Now to check Felicity’s today. I may just end up putting plastic on their windows this winter to avoid the humidity all together!

Glad we caught it now, but totally feel like a MomFail that I didn't think of this before now!

Saint Monica-Pray for Us

Saint Monica (c.331/2−387)^[1] (AD 322–387)^[2], also known as Monica of Hippo, was an early Christian saint and the mother of St. Augustine of Hippo. She is remembered and honored in in the Catholic and Orthodox Churches, albeit on different feast days, for her outstanding Christian virtues, particularly the suffering caused by her husband's adultery, and her prayerful life dedicated to the reformation of her son, who wrote extensively of her pious acts and life with her in his Confessions. Popular Christian legends recall Saint Monica weeping every night for her son Augustine.

On my right hand I wear a simple gold band my husband bought for me. 2 years ago I was able to see a relic of St. Monica.  Her constant dedication to her abusive husband and wayward son inspired me as she prayed for them and thy both came to love Christ. It gives me hope that if she can do it in her situation, I can become the wife and mother God wants me to be. I rarely take this ring off as a constant reminder of my devotion to God and my family and hope that St. Monica prays for us wives and mothers in our very important jobs here in earth. Thank God for a woman like St. Monica. 

Prayer

"A soul which does not practice the exercise of prayer is very like a paralyzed body which, though possessing feet and hands, makes no use of them."
— St. Alphonsus Liguori

Quote

“He who does not count on God, does not know how to count.”

Quote by Elizabeth Ann Seton

“The accidents of life separate us from our dearest friends, but let us not despair. God is like a looking glass in which souls see each other. The more we are united to Him by love, the nearer we are to those who belong to Him."
— St. Elizabeth Ann Seton

Goodbye Father Don

Last night we went to a prayer service (wake) for our friend, Father Don Braukmann.  He was diagnosed with ALS December 2017 and (thankfully) died of a heart attack July 17, 2019. He told us he watched a friend/parishioner die of ALS and prayed that, of all things he would die from, that God would spare him from this disease. Well, he got it. BUT he was spared that last leg of ALS that is the worst; mentally cognizant but physically trapped in your own body. He was in a power wheelchair, able to type on his weekly caring bridge post, in a nursing home due to his level of cares needed. We brought him lilacs (his favorite) and chocolate milkshakes. He blessed Elizabeth’s first communion crucifix. He loved dogs, but was also fond of our chickens. :) Last night singing “I’ll fly away” and closing prayer, we did a group rosary with the knights of Columbus. Felicity finally saw his body in the casket and it hit her hard—this was her friend.  During the rosary I had a vision of Fr Don in heaven, Mary’s hand on his shoulder and Jesus’ scarred hand holding Fr Don’s. Fr Don always had a quick remark for everything and I heard him say, “wow, that sounds great up here,” referring to the acoustics of our rosary heard up in heaven.  Fr Don went to seminary with Bishop Robert Barron. Here’s the bishop’s email I received today: “Friends, today we celebrate the feast of St. Mary Magdalene. Our Gospel says that Mary came to the Lord’s tomb early in the morning on the first day of the week. Let’s place ourselves there: it is still dark—just the way it was at the beginning of time, before God said, "Let there be light." But a light is about to shine, and a new creation is about to appear.  The stone had been rolled away. The stone, blocking entrance to the tomb of Jesus, stands for the finality of death. When someone that we love dies, it is as though a great stone is rolled across them, permanently blocking our access to them. And this is why we weep at death—not just in grief but in a kind of existential frustration. Undoubtedly, Mary Magdalene thought that a grave robber had been at work. The wonderful Johannine irony is that the greatest of grave robbers had indeed been at work. In the book of prophet Ezekiel, we hear this: "I will open your graves and have you rise from them." What was dreamed about, what endured as a hope against hope, has become a reality. God has opened the grave of his Son.”

New Fav: COLD BREW COFFEE

3 Key Steps to Better Cold Brew at Home

• Get the grind right. Cold brew requires a specific grind. A larger grind — something closer to the coarseness of raw sugar — keeps the brew from getting bitter overnight. If you’ve got a small home grinder, it’s best to grind the beans in batches.
• Use a higher ratio of coffee to water. This recipe uses a ratio of 1 ounce of ground coffee to 1 cups of water — making it easier to scale this recipe up or down. Drip coffee uses about 1/2 ounce of coffee per cup.
• Strain slowly. The Toddy System that Starbucks uses to brew and strain their coffee relies on gravity to gently remove the cold brew from the grounds. To replicate that at home, you’ll need to strain the cold brew gently through cheesecloth and a strainer. Avoid pressing or squeezing the coffee grounds, as that extracts bitter flavors. Work in batches to strain as gently as possible. You might be asking yourself, Can’t I just strain the coffee with a coffee filter? You could, but it slows the straining process and occasionally the paper filters tear, creating more of a mess than anyone should have to deal with before coffee.
  
  Beyond the fact that this method makes for a longer-lasting brew that can be prepared in big batches, cold brew coffee also tastes downright incredible. The cold steeping process makes a smooth, mellow cup of coffee that has very little acidity or bitterness.
  
  I make mine in small quantities often - 2 cups @ a time - so I use my French press.

Meditation if the Day

"If we do not risk anything for God we will never do anything great for Him." — St. Louis De Montfort

MEDITATION OF THE DAY

"An excellent method of preserving interior silence is to keep exterior silence. . . even in the world, each one of us can make his own solitude, a boundary beyond which nothing can force its way unperceived. It is not noise in itself that is the difficulty, but noise that is pointless; it is not every conversation, but useless conversations; not all kinds of occupation, but aimless occupations. In point of fact, everything that does not serve some good purpose is harmful. It is foolish, nay, more, it is a betrayal to devote to a useless objective powers that can be given to what is essential. There are two ways of separating ourselves from almighty God, quite different from one another but both disastrous, although for different reasons: mortal sin and voluntary distractions—mortal sin, which objectively breaks off our union with God, and voluntary distractions, which subjectively interrupt or hinder our union from being as close as it ought to be. We should speak only when it is preferable not to keep silence. The Gospel does not say merely that we shall have to give an account of every evil word, but of every idle thought." — St. Alphonsus Liguori, p. 44

Locks of Love!!

Oh these girls!!  We went in for hair trims and they both decided to chop off their pony tails to donate. F: 6.5". E: 7.5".  Not enough for a wig, but the uncolored hair would be good to make extensions out of to cut the costs of the prosthetic wigs.  Good job, girlies!

A Lesson About Life

An elderly Cherokee man was teaching his grandchildren about life.
He said to them, "A fight is going on inside of me; it is a terrible fight and it is between two wolves.  One wolf is fear, anger, envy sorrow, regret, greed, arrogance, self-pity, guilt, resentment, inferiority, lies, false pride, superiority and ego.  The other is joy, peace, love, hope, sharing, serenity, humility, kindness, friendship, empathy, generosity, truth, compassion and faith.  This same fight is going on inside of you and inside every other person too."  

The grandchildren thought about it for a minute and then one child asked his grandfather, "Which wolf will win?"  

The old Cherokee simply replied, "The one you feed."

October: the Month of Miscarriage, Stillborn, and Infant Death

October 15th a day of remembrance for pregnancy loss and infant death, which includes, however is not limited to, miscarriage, stillbirth, SIDS, and the death of a newborn.

Tonight, October 16th our Catholic Church celebrated our little saints in heaven, including our boys, "Darren" & "Baby Brooksie".  Darren left our home, but not our hearts, 11/18/2016.  The following month we lost a baby to miscarriage.  Even though we took nearly 2 years to name him, we officially named him this month: "Gerard". Gerard is the patron saint of unborn babies & expectant mothers.  

Every year our church celebrates this day.  I've never allowed myself to go, so this was our first as a family.  Last night at mass each family lit a candle and brought it forward for their babies.  It was a beautiful way to celebrate and grieve together.  

Father Chuck (father of 7 children himself) made these points in his homily: God's mercy is beyond our understanding.  Jesus tells us, "trust me."  Our Lord's ultimate goal is to bring us all home, some just make it home sooner than others.  

Helen Keller said, "The best and most beautiful things in the world cannot be seen or even touched - they must be felt with the heart."

Until we meet again...

Letting Go

If you lend only when you expect to receive, what kind of graciousness is yours? For sinners also lend to sinners, expecting to receive something in return. But love your enemies and do good to them, and lend when there is nothing to expect in return. Then will your reward be great and you will be sons and daughters of the Most High. For He is kind towards the ungrateful and the wicked. 

»Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful. Don't be a judge of others and you will not be judged; do not condemn and you will not be condemned; forgive and you will be forgiven; give and it will be given to you, and you will receive in your sack good measure, pressed down, full and running over. For the measure you give will be the measure you receive back.

This passage came at just the right time. This summer I gave away a majority of my baby stuff to a friend who was surprised with a beautiful addition to their family and to the Pregnancy Lifecare Center. I did hold on to my cloth diapers (because they were SO expensive and also held sweet memories of diapering my babies) & strollers (because Felicity can still fit in them). When I found out two friends of mine were in need of some items I still possess I hesitated. These were mine, my memories, my just-in-case-there’s-another-one.  It’s hard. These are MINE. “No they’re not,” I hear in my mind. “They’re mine. I let you use them and now you share.” Is it God speaking or my guardian angel? Likely. But I bought them with my money. “I gave you the money,” I hear. OK God. You love a cheerful giver. But what if they don’t appreciate the gift? What if they’re misused or not use at all. “It’s just stuff. Gifts are given w/o strings attached.” 

Why let material possessions rot away for just-in-case when they could be used by some little bundle now?  I can always buy more if I need. Why not bless others? Thank you, God. Let me be a blessing to others are you are a blessing to me. 💗

Quote from Pope St. Gregory the Great

"When we attend to the needs of those in want, we give them what is theirs, not ours. More than performing works of mercy, we are paying a debt of justice."

— Pope Saint Gregory the Great

Time Marches On

I work with people of all ages, and the conversations I have with them m got me thinking about ‘time’ and how fast or slow it goes.  To a child summer is SO LONG that they’re ready to go back to school.  In my minds eye I see a child, bursting with energy, running full speed ahead whilst time is dragging them down, holding them back as if a grandfather clock on a string, tied around the child’s middle.

To an elderly person the seasons and years go by so fast they can’t recall the year. This isn’t always due to dementia...sometimes it does go by so fast.  My minds eye again sees an elderly gentleman, cozy in a recliner, as a cartoon alarm clock like something you would see in Looney Toons show, bouncing around the room with its second hand spinning like a top.

So where is it, where we are actually living our timeline equally, marching at a steady pace neck and neck with our time clock?  While raising my young children many people tell me, “the days are long, but the years are short”. Or “these are the best years. Enjoy them!”  Are we so caught up in like and busyness that we forget to live, to pray, to just be?  I don’t know the answer. Maybe all my many questions will be answered when I get home someday, but then again once I get there will it matter?

What is Pride?

What is pride? It is the inordinate love of oneself at the expense of others and the exaggerated estimation of one's own learning and importance.

Well that's humbling!  Praise the Lord!

Felicity is Five and Feelin’ Fine