Home

by | Dec 29, 2022

{pretty, happy, funny, real}

Sep 6, 2012 | , | 15 Comments

~ Capturing the context of contentment in everyday life. ~


{pretty}


Rose had so much fun playing catch with her sister the other day.



{happy}


The kids are all very happy with their science journals this year (the original journal for the boys and the junior journal for the girl) and super excited to be studying Swimming Creatures.   I just ordered this Sea Life Alphabet Coloring Book to add to the Alphabet Path for Snuggles, which he can color while he sits in on his older siblings science (we read the text aloud all together) and participates in the extra activities!  


{funny}


Every school has a class clown… Right?!?


{real}


Have I mentioned yet that our little Bud frequently sleeps with his eyes open?  So strange!  It’s like he’s watching me to make sure that I don’t try and set him down or leave the room…  I’ve read that most babies will outgrow this by 12-18 months.  I sure hope so!


Visit Like Mother, Like Daughter for more pictures of contentment

The Big Day

Sep 6, 2012 | , , , | 8 Comments

Please tell me I’m not the only mother that cried when her children went in to get their braces put on their teeth…  I felt so silly!   Still, how are they possibly old enough for braces?   I’m not ready for them to grow up yet!  
Of course, I took pictures before, during, and after their appointment to share with you all.  Speaking of which, Twinkle Toes asked me which color rubber bands I had on my braces, when I first got them…  I couldn’t remember and she commented that, “It’s too bad your mom didn’t have a blog when you were little, so you could go and check!”  So, for the record, Twinkle Toes opted for “Screaming Pink” and Captain choose “Midnight Blue.”  🙂 
Before:
During:

After: 

  Smoothies from the Orthodontist!

Curious Siblings…
Special Treats
During their appointment, while I was at the store stocking up on Ibuprofen and Mouth Wash, I decided to surprise Captain with a few new lego minifigures.  Twinkle Toes’s surprise should be delivered by the UPS man any minute!  🙂   
(I love it when I pre-order new books.  This one will also be arriving tomorrow!  I would have had it by now, but I ordered it so long ago I had to update my credit card information…)
Bud wasn’t sure what to think…
… but he always has a smile for his mama!

Time for me to go mop the floors…  They just somehow looked clean in that video from the other day!   We’ve decided to cut back on the cleaning lady to (partially) help with all the extra dental expenses… (I’m sure I looked like Snuggles when we added up all the charges!)  I am sure going to miss having her help, even if she was only coming six hours a month!  Still, it will all be worth it, and it’s such a blessing to be able to do this for our children.   God is good!

Just for Fun

Sep 5, 2012 | , , | 7 Comments

I had to share this little video clip with you all, of our little Bud crawling. He does crawl on his hands and knees when he’s on carpet, but usually prefers to slide along on his tummy on the tile and wood floors. He can get around faster that way too.

In this video he is crawling towards me, but the other afternoon he actually “ran” away from me, giggling the whole time, when I went to try and take one of his older brothers toys away from him. The little stinker!

Back-to-School :: 2012-2013

Sep 5, 2012 | , | 8 Comments

Today was the first day of our new school year!  Despite my efforts to keep our extra activities to a minimum this week, it just wasn’t meant to be… Today we ended up with one last Dentist Appointment for Captain, tomorrow morning Captain and Twinkle Toes will be getting their braces put on, Friday the boy’s will be serving a special Mass in honor of Our Lady, and Saturday (on Our Lady’s Birthday!) we are finally having our Mother/Daughter Tea Party – which I will be hosting at our home!   I was a little overwhelmed last night thinking about it all, but I’m trying to focus on one thing at a time,and  praying that it all falls into place…  Sure enough, our first day went as well as could be expected (for a first day), and we are all very excited about the new year!

Captain :: 6th Grade   ~   Rascal :: 5th Grade

   
Twinkle Toes :: 3rd Grade   ~   Chiquita :: 2nd Grade
 
Snuggles :: Kindergarten   ~   Rose :: Pre-School

As usual, the kids all woke up to find Schultütes filled with snacks and school supplies, along with another “Patron of Students Treat” tied to the top.   The sizes aren’t very consistent, and Twinkle Toes’ looks more like a slice of pizza rather than a cone, but I was focused on the quantity, and not so much the quality this year.   And, thankfully, I was able to assemble and fill them all in less than an hour and a half.   Sometimes I wonder what I was thinking when I started all these “traditions” in our family… I sure wasn’t thinking that someday we’d have seven kids!  😉  Still, I think that it is worth the extra effort for all the smiles and excitement from the kids… Such a fun way to start each new school year!

 Prayer for My Children

Dear Mother Mary, in your motherhood of Christ you have become Mother to us all.  Praise God for this great gift to us!  Today I place all my children again under your mantle of loving care.   Please protect and watch over them with your motherly compassion.   Bless their spirits, that they may come to know, love and serve the Lord.  Guard their minds to be ever pure and focused on the true, the good, and the beautiful.

O Mary, in the Scripture it is written:  “A joyful heart is health for the body” (Proverbs 17:22).  Please guard my children’s hearts that they will be obedient to the Lord and so will be content, joyful, and true.  Bless their bodies with health and strength.  Preserve in their souls the image of God they received in Baptism.  May they grow to their full potential.  Always, Mother Mary, protect them, preserve them, and watch over them in your maternal care.

Finally, dear Mother, please help me also to be a good wife to my husband and a good mother to our children.  Please supply where we may be lacking, and protect our children from all evil.  Amen.

Queen of the Most Holy Family, Pray for us!
Good St. Joseph, Pray for us!
Jesus, Mary, and Joseph, I love you; save souls. 

Inspiration for the New School Year

Sep 4, 2012 | , , , | 8 Comments

I shared the link to this beautiful homily over on my Facebook page a week or so ago, and was going to add it to my last Daybook post as well.  I changed my mind and decided it really deserved a post of it’s own, that way I’ll be able to find it easier when I need to listen to it again in a month or two.  😉  

It is so inspiring and encouraging – just what I needed to hear as we begin our new school year!   

 Note:  Here is a link to the conditions for sharing this sermon.  I just offered three Hail Mary’s for the priests that preach the sermons at Audio Sancto, and ask you all to do the same.  Thank you! 
Prayer for Homeschoolers
Dear Lord, bless me in my decision to homeschool my children. Grant me the grace of peace and determination in this awesome endeavor. Lead me to the proper materials for the instruction of each of my children, so that their individual talents and skills will be nurtured and they will grow in intelligence to the fullness of their abilities. Give me the strength to persevere when the weight of being teacher, mother, wife, and housekeeper seems too much to bear. Help me to maintain my household and family school, knowing that there will be times when one or both may seem to suffer, but confident that you will assist me in restoring harmony to both in good time. Allow me the contentment of heart and knowledge that the proper formation of my children’s minds holds importance far above many of the callings of this world. Bestow on me courage to overcome the criticisms of those who disagree with me in this effort, keeping ever mindful that the growing of my children in knowledge and grace will be for your glory, and the trials I must endure are for my personal sanctification. Amen.

Prayer to Our Lady for Homeschooling Parents

Blessed Mother, as you so humbly and graciously accepted God’s will to bear and raise His only son, and to guide him in wisdom and virtue, help me in the instruction and education of my children. Pray to your Heavenly Son to grant me the grace and strength to assist in their learning, overcoming tiredness and discouragement. Assist me in the management of my home, so that I may be able to keep order and peace, despite the challenges of schooling within it. Intercede for me, imploring Our Heavenly Father to bestow upon me wisdom, not for my own sake, but so that I may form my children’s minds and hearts, so that they may grow into strong adults, helping to shape the world for His glory, and ultimately inheriting the kingdom of heaven. Call upon your heavenly angels to stand by my side, with their great intelligence, to help me understand that which I am instructing, and assist my children in learning of same. We humbly ask this through you beloved Son, Our Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.


May the most just, most high, and most adorable will of God
 be in all things done, praised and magnified forever.

Happy 9th Birthday, Twinkle Toes!

Sep 4, 2012 | , , , | 3 Comments

This past Thursday our oldest daughter turned nine… NINE!!!  The last of the single digits!  Where has the time gone?!?  It seems like just yesterday (November 25, 2002 to be exact – which is a special day for us, and easy to remember) that I prayed that if I happened to be pregnant (I thought I might be) that we would be blessed with a daughter.   A few months later I couldn’t stop the tears, when they told us that our first baby girl was on her way.  I was so happy!   The months of bed rest were worth every minute, and we are so blessed to have her in our life.  
As I mentioned the other day, the birthday girl requested a “Camping” and/or “Waterslide” theme, so I did my best to combine the two.   You can see a few more pictures of her cake in this post.   She loved it!!! 


.: At the Waterslides :.
Thursday afternoon was the perfect day to go to the waterslides.  The weather was warm, and we were able to avoid the weekend crowds.   The last time I took the kids to these waterslides was when Twinkle Toes was a newborn and Hubby was off fighting a fire – too young for any of them to really remember what it was like.   We all had a great time!
 I felt like a kid again, racing the birthday girl down the slides!  
It was SO. MUCH. FUN!!!!   
Hubby & I took turns taking Snuggles and Rose.   Snuggles LOVED the slides, but Rose wasn’t quite sure… She’d ask to go, and then say “Whoa…. whoa…. whoa… whoa… WHOA…. WHOA… whoa… whoooaaaa…” the whole way down.  Then she’d take a 30 minute break before asking to go again.  It was so cute!  

Everyone was starving by the time our passes ran out, so instead of heading home to roast hotdogs and those marshmallows pictured above, we headed to the pizza parlor.   Yummm….. 

.: Time for Cake :.

.: Birthday Gifts :.

Twinkle Toes’ main gift was the trip to the waterslides, but she also was very excited to open a few more gifts at home, after blowing out those nine candles. 
Her older brothers “spent” the last of their Summer Bingo tickets to purchase a little American Girl Pet (from Costco) for her and her dolls.   She was beyond excited!  

She also loved the sweet letter from her little sister. 
Twinkle Toes also received a living room set to furnish that “one empty room” in her dollhouse.   In addition to some new clothing, books, and a nightlight.  
We ended up not having time to pitch the tent and sleep outside, so instead I moved the coffee table and the kids all slept in the living room under the stars! 

A Camping Themed Birthday Cake

Aug 30, 2012 | , , | 13 Comments

We are celebrating another birthday in our home today!  Twinkle Toes is 9 years old!! 

For this birthday she requested a “Camping” and/or “Waterslide” theme.  We are going to have both!  As soon as we get home from another Dentist appointment this morning, we are headed to the lake/waterslides with a picnic lunch.  After that we’ll come back home, pitch a tent in the backyard, roast hotdogs and marshmallows, and open gifts.  It’s going to be a fun day!  

I wasn’t at all prepared to make a cake last night…  My goal was to try and come up with a cake using only ingredients/supplies that I already had in my cupboard.  However, at 9:50pm last night (just after the cakes finally came out of the oven to cool) I realized I was completely out of powdered sugar and couldn’t make frosting.  Thankfully our little local market stays open until 10pm and I made it just in time!
I was so happy with how the cake turned out.  Isn’t it cute?!?

  
Cake Supplies:
2 – 8″ Round Cakes
2 – 6″ Round Cakes
2 cups milk chocolate frosting
1 cup green frosting

For the Tent, Bed, Pillow, and Sign:

*Originally I thought about using a couple toaster pastries for the tent, but since I had the yellow fondant leftover from the sign, I decided to use that instead.  I thought it looked cuter for a little girl’s cake.  I did use the pop tarts to help shape the fondant though, draping it over them in a tent shape to harden.
(I also used the leftover yellow fondant, a dab of frosting, and some brown jimmies to make a couple sunflowers to place at the base of the tent)

For the Trees:
milk chocolate for tree stumps (I used Hershey bells, sliced)
tree shaped cookie cutter

Ladybugs, Butterflys, Camp Fire, Marshmallows and Roasting Sticks:
red hots & black icing for ladybugs
black food decorator pen for ladybug spots
butterfly sprinkles
black M&M’s (or candy pebbles) for fire pit
silver sprinkles
red and orange sprinkles for fire
2 pretzel sticks
2 mini marshmallows

(My initial inspiration was found here and here)

Happy Birthday Twinkle Toes! 

{pretty, happy, funny, real}

Aug 30, 2012 | , , , , , | 3 Comments

~ Capturing the context of contentment in everyday life. ~

Here are a few more pictures from this past Sunday!  These were all taken on my phone. 

{pretty}

I purchased a few new things from the Sunflower Smiles collection for the girls “back-to-school” pictures, with my Gymbucks last month.  Chiquita will be getting this dress, but I gave her the headband early, to wear on Sunday, since it matched Twinkle Toes old sweater so nicely. 

{happy}


Watching the seagulls fly around the parking lot.  So captivating, those seagulls!

{funny}
Bud’s hair… No matter what I do, it’s extra thick and always wants to stick up down the middle! 
{real}

Our sweet little Rose…
Hubby mentioned that the lyrics from this Sound of Music song fit her so well, especially the other morning during Mass.  She can be such a stinker!
“Unpredictable as weather…”

*Twinkle Toes’ veil can be found here (Modesty Veils website no longer active), and here is the link to Amy’s free pattern for the veil Rose is wearing, which she gave to my girls.

Visit Like Mother, Like Daughter for more pictures of contentment

Let’s Travel Back to the World of the Vikings!

Aug 29, 2012 | , | 5 Comments

*This post has been sitting in my drafts folder since the fall of 2010…  I’m just going to post it now as is.  

What the Boys Read:
Who Were The Vikings
Vikings: Dress, Eat, Write and Play Like the Vikings
Leif the Lucky
Viking Raiders
Viking Ships At Sunrise

Our Family Read Alouds:
Founders of Freedom  Excerpts (suggested in Connecting With History Vol 3) Read by Dad & Mom during Dinner
Twelve Bright Trumpets Various Stories Read by Mom
Son of Charlemagne (with Hillsides Study Guide) Read by Daddy
Beorn the Proud (Living History Library) Read by Mom

Added to Timeline:
800 – Charlemagne is crowned Holy Roman Emperor by Pope St. Leo III
861 – Norsemen discover Iceland
903-935 – St. Wenceslaus, martyr and patron of Bohemia
962 – Pope John XII crowns Otto I the Holy Roman Emperor
c. 1000 – Leif Ericsson discovers North America

Crafts:
Make Viking Ship from Crayola

Worksheets and Coloring Pages:
Viking Worksheet (for my younger students)
Color Viking Warrior in Dover Coloring Book Knights And Armor (boys)

Other Reources:
BBC – Vikings
Nova Online

After studying the Vikings, Captain added the Playmobil Viking Longboat to the top of his “Christmas Wishlist”…  I was so disappointed to see that the Viking line had been discontinued! (Updated to add: He was very excited on Christmas morning.)

My Daybook: August 29, 2012

Aug 29, 2012 | | 21 Comments

Outside my window…
it has been chilly, though not as cool as it was over at the coast this past Sunday, with a high of 55.   We were very glad we had checked the forecast and wore sweaters.  Here in the valley it has been around 80 during the day and dropping to the 40s at night.  It’s definitely starting to feel like autumn.

I am thinking…        
about my kid’s teeth.  I took the four oldest in for Orthodontic evaluations last week and both Captain and Twinkle Toes are in need of braces now.  Twinkle Toes is the most urgent, and if she has braces, in two phases – beginning right now for a year and then again in a few years – we should be able make room for the teeth that have nowhere to come in, and avoid pulling permanent teeth and oral surgery in the long run.   We then found out, yesterday morning when I took them to the Dentist for Cleanings and Exams, that they both need quite a bit of Dental Work before the braces go (Captain needs four fillings to correct defects in four of his molars, and Twinkle Toes needs quite a few sealants.)  They also had the impressions made at the Orthodontist yesterday morning.   If everything falls into place, their braces are scheduled to go on next Wednesday!

I am thankful… 
that the Dentist and Orthodontist are both willing to work with us and allow us to make small interest free payments each month, with larger payments at tax time.  Still, we are really nervous about the cost.  It isn’t exactly in our budget…  I’m also thankful that the only cavities that were found, happened to be on Rascal’s last couple baby teeth, and those should be falling out sometime this year!

Learning all the time… 
Yep… It is definitely time for our family to seriously consider any options we might have for Dental Insurance.

Celebrating the liturgical year… 
today is the feast of the Martyrdom of St. John the Baptist.   We don’t usually do much to celebrate this feast in our home, since we have a birthday tomorrow, but we will read a short story at dinner time as usual.   Still, there are so many cute ideas from some of the other contributors over at Catholic Cuisine… One of these years I really need to try a few of them!

From the kitchen… 
Gluten-free Carrot Cake made with Spice Cake Mix. Yum!!!

I am creating… 
plans for our Little Flower’s Mother/Daughter Tea.  Since we meet through the summer to complete Wreath IV, we decided to have our tea on September 8th, our Blessed Mother’s Birthday!

I am working on… 
being creative with our budget and looking for areas we can cut back.

I am going… 
to try really hard to limit our trips to town to save on gas.  This means that the boys won’t be able to play hockey this year, but they are very excited about taking a Lego Robotics class instead, which will be just once a week and only 5 minutes from home.

I am hoping… 
that we are able to enjoy our sunflowers for at least a little while before it starts getting too cold.   It’s taken them all spring and summer to finally bloom.

I am reading… 
about one of my little brothers!  There was quite the article in the paper this past weekend about him, and one of my neighbors dropped it off for us to read.  If you’d like to check it out you can do so here:  Different Strokes

I am praying… 
for a special intention.

Pondering these words…
from St. Rose of Lima, whose traditional feast day is tomorrow:

“Without the burden of afflictions it is impossible to reach the height of grace. The gift of grace increases as the struggles increase.”

I am listening…  
to Liberty Kids.   The kids are watching an episode in the living room.  We recently cancelled our Netflix subscription, but thankfully we do have the whole collection on DVD.

Around the house… 
Bud sure loves to crawl and explore.  His latest favorite thing to do is pull books off of the bookshelves.  I’m thinking he got the idea from his godsister – that little Cupcake Cutie, who is going to turn one already this weekend!

One of my favorite things…  
Gymboree’s beautiful sweaters for my girls!  I’m trying to decide between the Gem Button Cable Sweater or the Butterfly Button Diamond Knit Sweater to give Twinkle Toes for her birthday.  (They are on sale right now, plus I have an extra 25% off coupon!) Poor girl, she usually ends up getting mostly “back-to-school” clothes and new books on her birthday each year! Not that she minds… 😉

This week’s plans…

  • Dentist Appointments & Orthodontist Appointments Tuesday Morning
  • End-of-Summer Ice Cream Social and Park Day Tuesday Afternoon
  • Mom’s Night Out Tuesday Night
  • Celebrate Twinkle Toes’ 9th Birthday on Thursday
  • Friday morning Mass
  • Older boys attending a friend Birthday Party Friday night
  • Saturday Morning Grower’s Market
  • Sunday Mass
  • Hubby has an extra long weekend for Labor Day!!!

A little peek at my day…


Our Family

Sean & Jessica, Captain-25, Ranger-23, Twinkle Toes-22, Chiquita-20, Snuggles-18, Rose-15, Bud-13, Grace-8 and Joy-6 (blog nicknames)

A Little About Me

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.

My Other Blog: Catholic Cuisine

Please Visit My Sponsors…

This Week's Popular Posts

Shower of Roses Affiliate Links

All About Spelling
All About Reading
All About Reading Giveaways
As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

Our Advent & Christmas Books

Shower of Roses Gift Guides

Looking for Something?

looking-back

  • ▼2026 (1)
  • ►2025 (31)
  • ►2024 (41)
  • ►2023 (30)
  • ►2022 (48)
  • ►2021 (48)
  • ►2020 (57)
  • ►2019 (61)
  • ►2018 (90)
  • ►2017 (128)
  • ►2016 (148)
  • ►2015 (172)
  • ►2014 (227)
  • ►2013 (238)
  • ►2012 (308)
  • ►2011 (297)
  • ►2010 (313)
  • ►2009 (486)
  • ►2008 (564)
  • ►2007 (148)

Posts About:

Shower of Roses Alphabet of Saints

A Papal Unit Study & Lap Book

Shower of Roses Easter Gift Guides



All Saints Party Printables

All original photographs and written material are ©2007-2025 Shower of Roses. I'd love for you to link back to me, but please do not copy or take content from this blog without permission. Click here for my Copyright Terms & Conditions. Thank you for visiting!

0 Comments

Prayer of Mothers

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.


Our Family

Sean & Jessica, Captain-25, Ranger-23, Twinkle Toes-22, Chiquita-20, Snuggles-18, Rose-15, Bud-13, Grace-8 and Joy-6 (blog nicknames)

A Little About Me

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.

My Other Blog: Catholic Cuisine

Please Visit My Sponsors…

This Week's Popular Posts

Shower of Roses Affiliate Links

All About Spelling
All About Reading
All About Reading Giveaways
As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

Our Advent & Christmas Books

Shower of Roses Gift Guides

Looking for Something?

looking-back

  • ▼2026 (1)
  • ►2025 (31)
  • ►2024 (41)
  • ►2023 (30)
  • ►2022 (48)
  • ►2021 (48)
  • ►2020 (57)
  • ►2019 (61)
  • ►2018 (90)
  • ►2017 (128)
  • ►2016 (148)
  • ►2015 (172)
  • ►2014 (227)
  • ►2013 (238)
  • ►2012 (308)
  • ►2011 (297)
  • ►2010 (313)
  • ►2009 (486)
  • ►2008 (564)
  • ►2007 (148)

Posts About:

Shower of Roses Alphabet of Saints

A Papal Unit Study & Lap Book

Shower of Roses Easter Gift Guides



All Saints Party Printables

All original photographs and written material are ©2007-2025 Shower of Roses. I'd love for you to link back to me, but please do not copy or take content from this blog without permission. Click here for my Copyright Terms & Conditions. Thank you for visiting!