My Daybook :: The Second Week of Advent

by | Dec 13, 2013 | Advent and Christmas, Christmas 2013, Daybook, Puzzles, Snow, Wise Men Adventures | 11 comments

Outside my window… 
After all these years, my husband finally talked me into hiking the mountain in our back yard to watch the sunset! Totally worth it… (and hopefully all the poison oak is buried deep beneath the snow!)

I am thinking…        
about my inbox. It is overflowing with emails and I can’t possibly respond to them all… I’m trying to let it go and hope everyone understands.

I am thankful… 
that I survived yesterday. Here is a peek at our busy day from the photos I posted on Instagram and Facebook! 🙂

First Day out of the house since Thursday night – Yep… Our road is still packed with snow/ice in areas.

Three cleanings done and three to go… (They were willing to squeeze in one more!!!) And so thankful that the Orthodontist was able to reschedule our oldest from yesterday to today! I think we might just hang out here for awhile before heading back to the dentist’s office… 8am-1pm is a long time for little ones to behave in waiting rooms!!!

Our baby girl is having her first dentist appointment today! She is doing great!

Survived seven dental/ortho appointments, no cavities for anyone, convinced them to book six more back-to-back appts one day in June, fed the kids lunch, picked up groceries, now the two oldest girls and I are getting haircuts while I enjoy a Candycane Mocha!

Before and After – 6-8″ cut off plus layers…  My hair feels so short! 

Learning all the time 
the boys made sure to keep up with their math lessons while waiting at the Dentist!

Celebrating the liturgical year 
so many feast days!  This week we are celebrating the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception, the feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe, and the feast of Saint Lucy!

We are also continuing to count the days of Advent with our various Advent Calendars and Jesse Trees.   A couple days ago we read about The Ten Commandments from The Catechism in Pictures.  

I gave this book to my husband for Father’s Day earlier this year and actually have a half finished post in my drafts folder with additional pictures… I should finish and post it sometime. It is such a gorgeous book!

Adding an ornament to our Jesse Tree

He is getting to be such a big boy all of a sudden… 

From the kitchen… 
lots of soup!  The Beefed-Up Barley Soup my mom suggested when we were out shopping last week was so yummy!  Perfect for these cold and snowy days after an afternoon sledding!

And here was our view from the dining table the other day during lunch!

I am working on… 
finding a few more stocking stuffers.  I think the comments from this post might be a good place to start.

I am creating… 
Santa Lucia’s Braided Bread, or at least I will be soon!

I am going… 
to pull out another Noah’s Ark puzzle!  The kids, especially Snuggles, have had so much fun working on this puzzle.  I think they assembled it, and reassembled it, three or four times the other night alone!

I am hoping… 
that our pipes don’t freeze again… That made for an interesting Monday morning.   The weather has been so crazy for here, with lows around 0-8 degrees.  Tonight we are expecting freezing rain, and tomorrow freezing fog.  It doesn’t look like I’ll be going to town again anytime soon.

I am praying… 
for Jenn, especially today!

A simple centerpiece for our dining table with Advent candles from past years. 

I am reading… 
Come, Lord Jesus: Meditations on the Art of Waiting.

Pondering these words…
from St. Augustine of Hippo:

He was created of a mother whom he created. He was carried by hands that he formed. He cried in the manger in wordless infancy. He, the Word, without whom all human eloquence is mute. 

I am listening…  
to my husband read a story each evening after our family rosary.

We are still listening to Advent at Ephesus and Adventus.  We also just started listening to Mater Eucharistiae, the beautiful Mañanitas CD from Sister Servants, and Matins for the Virgin of Guadalupe!

Oh!  Today the kids were also listening to Fresh Flowers in Winter while they worked on our Our Lady of Guadalupe Puzzle once again.  We had to start on something new since we finished the Noah’s Ark Puzzle so quickly!

Around the house… 

the Wise Men are still searching for Baby Jesus! Here are the places they have been found the past few days.

Dec 7th – The kids started our new puzzle last night! With the help of the Wise Men I have a feeling it isn’t going to last the rest of Advent… or even the rest of today!
Dec 11th –  The Wise Men were lost so they purchased a map in The Shire…  
Dec 12th – “Look! There’s Our Lady… but who’s the guy with all the roses?”

One of my favorite things…  
This week’s plans…

  • Celebrate the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception!
  • Tutors on Tuesday and Thursday – both canceled due to hazardous weather and driving conditions. . . 
  • Dentist, Orthodontist, and Hair Appointments on Wednesday. . . 
  • Celebrate the Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe!
  • Celebrate Santa Lucia Day! 
  • Cut down our Christmas Tree, weather permitting. . . 
  • Prepare for the birthdays next week! 
A little peek at my day…

Preparing a fun brunch for my kiddos in honor of “A Woman Clothed With The Sun” 
— Happy Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe!

11 Comments

  1. Rachel

    Your hair looks beautiful! That is a good cut. Very brave of you to go for all those appointments at the dentist, we are all due a check up and I have been putting it off….

    Reply
  2. Unknown

    Jessica, I am curious how the tutoring situation works. While I no longer homeschool our older three, I plan to with my 3 youngest girls and trying to plan ahead. Do they work with all the kids and what do you do when the tutor comes? Thanks so much!

    Reply
  3. Jessica Gordon

    I have two tutors that come three weeks out of each month. They are both such a blessing!

    One tutor comes on Tuesdays for three hours – she spends 1 to 1 /12 hours with my six year old (working with PAL – Primary Arts of Language). After that she spends about an hour teaching the oldest two boys 2 (and sometimes 3) lessons of Math. If there is extra time she will review any mistakes the girls have made in their Math lessons/tests.

    The other tutor comes for 5 hours on Thursday afternoons. She also begins with working with Snuggles (PAL) for an hour, and she also teaches the boys 2-3 lessons of Math (plus reviews any mistakes from their past lessons/tests). She will also work with the girls as needed, edit any papers that have been completed (from IEW/Student Writing Intensive), and also help in any other area needed (last week she reviewed Chemistry lessons with everyone).

    Reply
  4. Anonymous

    Oh My Goodness, How wonderful for you all to sit at the table and see out to the lovely Deer~~and the sunset..Gods Beauty for sure…Blessings to you all as you continue to give your readers much Joy~~Ro

    Reply
  5. Anonymous

    beautiful sunset… and the feeling of being "nestled in waiting" for Christ comes through in your photography =) the orange sun made me smile. and your little one praying is a
    powerful witness of love

    Reply
  6. admin

    Such a beautiful daybook, thanks for giving us a glimpse of some of the joys you experience. :o)

    Question: What are (and were do you get) the math papers your son is using? The sheets look like a fantastic way to keep math problems in neat order. Is it a Saxon product? (We use Saxon, but 2nd hand textbooks so I've never actually shopped for new Saxon materials).

    Thanks!
    Becky up near PDX (chilly, but no lovely snow)

    Reply
  7. Jessica Gordon

    Oh, yes! The "Mixed Practice Solutions" graph paper (that you can see in the picture) from Saxon is so awesome! It can be found with other reproducible recording forms in the back of the Tests and Worksheets Workbook for each text. The section of the workbook includes the following recording forms: Facts Practice, Lesson Worksheet, Mixed Practice Solution (we use this daily), Scorecard, and Test Solutions (we use this for every test). I have a pdf file that I print, rather than photocopy the workbook pages, and I'll email it to you. It can also be downloaded here.

    Reply
  8. Robina

    love the hair. definitely let the emails go. thanks for the soup recipe. I have had the oddest cravings for all kinds of soup lately. that's a first for me, but healthier than my usual Five Guys cheeseburgers and ice cream.

    Reply
  9. Eliana

    Such a sweet picture of your little one praying! And your new haircut is really cute! Have you tried keeping a faucet running a trickle of cold water during the night? We've done that before in really cold temperatures and I think it helps.

    Reply
  10. Jessica Gordon

    Yes we've tried that… I actually stayed up most of last night doing dishes and keeping the laundry going, while baking and cleaning for the feast today… Apparently that didn't keep the pipes from the well to the holding tank from freezing (they have probably been frozen since last week), and I successfully ran the holding tank dry. Basically we are now without water once again and didn't have any luck thawing the pipes today. 🙁 Please say a prayer they thaw soon… It's been a challenging day without water.

    Reply

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Sean & Jessica, Captain-23, Ranger-22, Twinkle Toes-20, Chiquita-19, Snuggles-16, Rose-14, Bud-12, Grace-6 and Joy-4 (blog nicknames)

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Hi! I'm Jessica, a Roman Catholic wife and home educating mother to our nine children. I was home educated myself, along with my eleven younger siblings. I have a special devotion to St. Therese, through whom I have been given much help and many blessings--the beautiful "Shower of Roses" that she has sent my way! Here I will record a few of the blessings I treasure. Please remember that what you see here is just a little glimpse at our lives, so please say a prayer for us, as we continue to strive for holiness.

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