Ever since our oldest children were very little, we have been implementing an old monastic custom in our home by providing special treats, representing each of the "O Antiphons" on the days leading up to Christmas. The O Antiphon prayers begin on December 17th and end...
My girls made sure I had treats for the feasts of St. Nick and St. Lucy too. It IS possible to make gluten-free, grain-free, egg-free, dairy-free, sugar-free shortbread cookies! This is the second year they have made them for me and they are such a nice little treat...
It's time for this year's list of "Christmas Gift Ideas" and another "Sleighful of Giveaways" from my amazing and generous sponsors! Despite our big move last month, I somehow managed to pull it together at the last minute with some help from my children!! Now I need...
Advent begins in just two weeks! Advent always varies in length from 22-28 days, beginning with the Sunday nearest to the feast of St. Andrew the Apostle (November 30th) and embracing four Sundays. The first day of Advent can fall as early as November 27th or as...
“The world's thy ship and not thy home.”― Saint Therese of LisieuxIt was so hard to say goodbye yesterday before driving back to our new home in Idaho... knowing that this could most likely be the last time all our children would be together at our home in Oregon...
While I'm sharing pictures of our home, and what it looked like when we first purchased it back in May of 2000, here are some that we had taken for the real estate listing. I shared these on my personal Facebook page when it first went on the market, but want to...
The feast of St. Nicholas is just a few weeks away! On December 6th our children always wake up to find that the letters they wrote to the Holy Child and/or St. Nicholas have been taken and their (sometimes new/replaced) slippers have been filled with...
Our Martinmas celebration is simple this year but we are reading a new picture book that was sent to us from Pauline Books & Media: The Sword and the Cape: A Tale about Saint Martin of Tours. We also pulled out Snow on Martinmas to read again as well and...
Pope and Swiss Guard Set • Vaulted Cathedral Cake"For even now miracles are wrought in the name of Christ, whether by His sacraments or by the prayers or relics of His saints."- St. AugustineAfter attending the early morning mass at the Carmelite convent near our...
We are working on unpacking and settling into our new home. What a crazy month it has been! I'm hoping to share some pictures here on the blog, and I'm also working on putting together my pre-Christmas giveaways, but first I want to share a little about a couple new...
Father in heaven, grant me the grace to appreciate the dignity which you have conferred on me. Let me realize that not even the Angels have been blessed with such a privilege—to share in your creative miracle and bring new Saints to heaven. Make me a good mother to all my children after the example of Mary, the Mother of your Son. Through the intercession of Jesus and Mary I ask your continued blessings on my family. Let us all be dedicated to your service on earth and attain the eternal happiness of your kingdom in heaven. Amen.
