Home

by | Dec 29, 2022

Catholic New Media Awards

Aug 20, 2011 | | 2 Comments

I just recieved an email from a friend letting me know that Catholic Cuisine and Shower of Roses are both on the ballots for the Catholic New Media Awards.  I had no idea!

Thank you to those of you that submitted nominations!

Voting began on Wednesday, August 3 and ends this coming Friday, August 26 with winners to be announced at CatholicCon on August 28.

Catholic Cuisine is listed in this category:
  • Best Group Blog

Shower of Roses is listed in these categories:
  • Best Blog by a Woman
  • Best Written Blog
  • Most Informative Blog
  • People’s Choice Blog

I was disappointed to see that most of my own favorites are missing…   However, there are lots of other interesting categories, including some new ones this year, and many great Catholic bloggers and websites listed.  

Click HERE and vote today!

{pretty, happy, funny, real}

Aug 19, 2011 | , , , , , | 11 Comments

Capturing the context of contentment in everyday life. 


I had this post half finished Wednesday night, but wasn’t able to finish it for some reason – as I frantically tried to figure out what to pack in the event that we were evacuated, and pray for the safety of our home, church, and neighbors.   Even though it is Friday, I am going to post it anyways.  

{pretty}

Yesterday we woke up early to attend a beautiful Latin Mass offered in our home by my brother-in-law, went out to breakfast, then took a road trip to a gorgeous lake – before heading home with pizza and shortly later were alerted to the smoke that could be seen from our home.   What a day! 
{happy}

Taken earlier this week, right after my 20 week Ultrasound!
So happy that we have a healthy, beautiful, baby boy.   Not so happy that I am so much bigger than I was at this stage in my last pregnancy… And here I had thought I was “HUGE” back then!  {Ha!}
{funny}

Our “Announcement” on Facebook, courtesy of Chiquita (age 6)

{real}

 The boys and I drove down to town last night to see the other side of the ridge.   As of this morning the fire had increased to 425 acres, but is 40% contained.   Hopefully it will be completely contained soon!

My parents own a little 24-hour self-serve car wash in town, and I was so surprised to see that it had been blocked off and turned into a command station!   I called my Dad and laughed when he answered the phone “RR fire department.”  I said “No kidding, we are looking at your car wash right now.”  He responded “What?!  Why?!”  Apparently he had no idea! 

Thank you all so much for your prayers!

Visit Like Mother, Like Daughter for more pictures of contentment!

Please Pray!

Aug 19, 2011 | , , | 16 Comments

“Six fires in (our little town) are threatening homes. 
A column of smoke can be seen across the valley.”

   

Please pray for us!   

UPDATE: Thank you all for your prayers! The fire closest to our home has grown to over 300 acres. However, at this time, it doesn’t look like our home is in danger.  What a blessing and comfort it has been to have Father here to bless our home/property, and call the Carmelite Nuns for additional prayers! Please continue to pray for those whose homes are threatened, and for those fighting the fires. God bless!

My Daybook :: August 15, 2011

Aug 16, 2011 | , , | 10 Comments

Outside my window… the sun is starting to set on this beautiful feast of the Assumption.

I am thinking… about my little one.   Will we be welcoming another baby girl, or perhaps a boy, this coming New Year’s?!?  Tomorrow morning I have my next ultrasound, and we just might find out!   I really don’t have any idea this time around.  At first I thought it was going to be a boy, due to my nauseousness, but now that it has almost gone away, I am not sure. . . Any guesses?  🙂

I am thankful… that my husband’s brother will be back tomorrow night for a few more days!   His visit to our home was broken up by a quick little trip (across the country) to give a retreat at a Carmelite Convent.  The kids can hardly wait for his flight to arrive.   Tomorrow is going to be an exciting day!

From the kitchen… Berry Cobbler with homemade whipped cream, our favorite dessert for the feast of the Assumption. We also have a big bowl of Blackberries that we picked this morning, alongside our walking trail!  Yum!!

Learning all the time… Decisions, decisions. Our new school year is about to start and I have a few decisions that need to be made.   There is a new homeschool charter school available in our area, and my husband and I think it might just be the answer to some of our prayers.   With another new baby arriving this year, and 4-5 children in “school”,  I had really wanted to look into a tutor to help out one day a week, but financially it is just not a possibility at this time.   With this charter school I would have a lovely woman (I met her today) coming to the house for 4 hours a week “to help make my job a little easier” plus an allowance to use towards the children’s education!   Of course I already have most of the books that we need for the year, but I can use the allowance towards the various consumables I still need, in addition to paying for all the extracurricular activities (like Hockey, Fencing, Ballet, etc) that our children wouldn’t otherwise be able to participate in this year.    Do any of you belong to a charter school?  If so, I would love to hear about any drawbacks that you have noticed…   With the “first day of school” coming up on September 6th, we need to make a decision pretty soon!

Living the Liturgical Year at Home… Happy Feast of the Assumption!

I am creating… We just mailed out the cutest birthday party invitations to all of Twinkle Toes’ little friends.  She will be turning 8 at the end of this month, and decided on a Tea Party to celebrate! It should be lots of fun!!  Now I just need to get on with making all the decorations and favors!

I am wearing… flip flops!  What was I thinking wearing flip flops while walking and picking berries?!?  I really need to get a new pair of walking shoes soon!   Do you have a favorite pair ?  I’d love some suggestions!

I am reading…  the pdf download of Beyond the Pilgrims.  After finishing up our plans for American History, I ran across this little booklet.  I really didn’t need it since I had already planned out our year, but I have enjoyed reading it, especially all the interesting little known facts about the Catholic Church in American that are included.  I thought it was worth the $4.50 that I spent to purchase it from St. George Books, and we will definitely be incorporating some of those facts into our timeline!

Pondering these words… from today’s reading in Divine Intimacy:

“O most Blessed Virgin Mary, assumed into heaven, I beg you to purify my senses so that I may begin to enjoy God even while I am on earth.”

Noticing that… I am feeling quite “lived in” at the moment, especially with this active little baby kicking and rolling around all the time.   I love it!   Yesterday Snuggles grabbed my shirt and quickly peeked up saying “Hey!  I don’t see a baby in there?!?”   I can’t wait until he is able to feel this little one moving too…   Soon!

Towards personal care… As I mentioned already, we went walking this morning.   I’m gaining weight much quicker than I would like this pregnancy, and really need to find more ways to be active.

Around the house… I still have a couple boxes of books that I would love to pass on to new homes before school begins!   I created a page with all the remaining books (I just haven’t updated the pictures), reducing the prices on almost all of them by about 40-50% (some are even free).   Please take a look and let me know if there is anything you might be interested in.  Next I hope to tackle all the excess clothing from my girls’ bedrooms to post on ebay!   I’m just not sure there is enough time left to get to it all this summer!  

Also, Thank You to everyone that participated in the Online Curriculum Sale Blog Hop!  I was so pleased with all the participation, and perhaps we can make it an annual event.  🙂

I am hoping… to finalize my plans for Wreath IV of Little Flowers this coming week, in addition to responding to some of the emails waiting patiently in my inbox.   With company coming again, it might not happen! 😉

I am praying… for Lucy Mae, in addition to a number of personal intentions for my extended family.

One of my favorite things… My new Catholic Daily Planner!   I love, love, LOVE it!!!

A few plans for the rest of the week:

  • Movie Night with my little sister, one of the twins, before she takes off for ROME!!  
  • Welcome home the other twin, who will be home from Hawaii for a few weeks before heading off to Texas! 
  • A sneak peak at our precious little one, and perhaps the answer to that little question – Boy or Girl! 
  • Another visit from “Uncle Father”

A Picture thought I am sharing:

Our little Chiquita, passing out Sweet Bread at the Saint Anthony’s Festa we attended this past weekend
I have so many other pictures I’d love to share, but my sister will be arriving soon and I need to get off the computer!   Good night and God blessl! 

On the Eve of the Feast of St. Clare. . .

Aug 11, 2011 | , , , | 5 Comments

I have been looking for any excuse to make this cake!   With my brother-in-law visiting (who we haven’t seen since his Ordination and First Masses, over three years ago), and two other dear local priests joining us for dinner (one of who is celebrating his birthday tomorrow!!) I decided we had the perfect reason!  Oh, and it was a HIT!  Even my husband, who doesn’t really care for peanut butter, loved the cake!!

Of course, I just had to top it with 33 candles for Father…  

Thirty-three is such a great age, isn’t it?! 😉 

Happy Birthday Father!!

P.S.  If it has been extra quiet around here, now you know why…  We have been really enjoying our company, the extra blessing of daily Mass at our home, and not to mention we’ve had daily swimming lessons the past two weeks! It has left very little time for anything else.  I hope you are all having a wonderful week!

A Medieval Knights, Dragons and Castles Birthday

Aug 5, 2011 | , , | 11 Comments

This year Captain choose a “Medieval Knights, Dragons and Castles” theme for his birthday celebration!  I thought it was a perfect theme, especially since we had just finished studying the Middle Ages this past year for History.   

~ Decorations ~ 

I enjoyed making birthday banners for our recent Lego and Nesting Doll birthday parties, so I thought I would try and make a Medieval Banner too!  I downloaded a “Black Knight” font and created signs using the letters for “Happy Birthday” centered on an outline of a Knights Shield.   (Here is a pdf copy of my document.)   I then made a slightly larger Knight Shield to be used as a template for the background color.  (template here)   I was able to get three Shields out of each 12×12 piece of green or blue glitter card stock.   

I punched a small hole into each corner, running white/silver ribbon through each card.   

Originally I had wanted to order Goblets from Oriental Trading, but due to the cost I decided to try and make our own.   I found some plastic wine glasses at the dollar store, and purchased some acrylic gemstones.   

I decided to have each of the kids decorate their own Goblet during the party as a fun activity.  They loved it! 

In the end I think they turned out cuter than the other option, and so much less expensive! 

~ A Medieval Feast ~ 

Captain is our meat lover, and he said he would be completely happy with just a “feast” for his birthday present, “since food is getting so expensive!”   He is such a sweetie!!  Here was his feast:

.: Medieval Feast Menu :.

Manchet (Fine White Bread)
A Variety of Meats and Game (Drumsticks & Meatballs)
Grapes
Corn on the Cob
Mixed Herbs and Greens Salad
Stuffed Eggs
Block Cheese with Swords
Olives
Baked Beans*
Wine (Sparkling Red Grape Juice)

*not exactly medieval, but a favorite of the birthday boy!

~ Castles, Knights and Dragons Candy ~ 

As you all know, I love candy molds!   I purchased the Dragon and Castle molds for this party.  (They both required a lot of melted candy, and the smaller version of the castle would have probably been perfect.) Originally my plan was to create Red and Green Dragons, and Grey castles with Black doors.

I ran out of time to prepare, so I ended up letting the kids each make their own!  The boys choose red and orange dragons and the girls wanted to make pink castles, mixing the white and red chocolates together.   They turned out cute, and total proof of how easy these are, if my kids were able to make them on their own!

Other molds that would work great for this party theme are the Friendly Dragon Candy Molds, the Dragon And Dungeon Candy Mold, the Friendly Dragon Pop Candy Molds,the 2-Inch Castle Chocolate Mold and the Knight & Mount Chocolate Mold.

~ Slaying the Dragon ~ 

A couple days before the birthday, I stopped by a local party shop (for some plastic cocktail swords) and found this cute dragon pinata at an affordable price.   I had to get him!

We went to the store and I let the boys choose “Medieval Themed” candy!   We decided on the following:

The Three Musketeers  (3 Musketeers)
The Duke of York (York Peppermint Patties)
Gold Coins (Rolos) 
Sir Tootsie of Roll  (Tootsie Rolls) 

This was a special treat, and the children all had so much fun with the pinata!

If you missed the short video of our little Rose trying to “Slay the Dragon,” you can find it in this post.  It still makes me laugh!   She is so fun!  After the head was chopped off, she picked it up and chased her brothers, saying “Rargh!!!!!”

~ Birthday Gifts ~ 

Captian’s main birthday present was the Catan: Cities and Knights Game Expansion for his Settlers of Catan board game.  He was so excited!!  In addition, he also received some discontinued Playmobil toys (Treasure Transport and Jousting Equipment) that I ran across at a local toy store and a few books on Explorers.  (Am I the only one that uses birthdays as an excuse to purchase more school books? 😉   He also received his first very own pair of Hockey Skates, picked out by his Daddy.   They should come in handy this coming year, since the boys are hoping to be able to play a season of hockey.   
~ The Castle Cake ~ 

 

I’m sure there won’t be too many more years where Captain will want a “themed” birthday party… Despite the little bit of extra work, it is so worth the effort to make these childhood birthdays full of special memories for him.   He is growing up way too quickly!  

A Knight’s Castle Cake Tutorial

Aug 5, 2011 | , | 6 Comments

I am almost finished putting together the post from my son’s Medieval Birthday Party, but first I thought I’d post a quick “tutorial” for his cake.  (Birthday morning post: Hear Ye, Hear Ye!)  I wasn’t planning on posting this at all, but since I had a few requests (a couple moms who would like to make it for their sons, and another mom who would like to use it for an End of the Year Blue Knights Party next year – which is a great idea, by the way!) here you go.

I was really just winging it, when I made this cake… Plus I didn’t even get started until 9pm when I ran to the store for a couple last ingredients – which explains the really dark pictures – but my kids all LOVED it (especially the birthday boy) and it was worth the effort!

Supplies:

2 – 9×13 Cakes
1 batch of Rice Krispie Treats
Buttercream Frosting 
Black Color Mist
Sugar Cubes or Mini Marshmallows
Green and Blue Decorating Frosting
Blue Sparkle Gel Frosting
2 StackerMallows
12-18 Pretzel Sticks
Milk Chocolate Rocks
Large Cake Board or Platter

Stack two 9×13 cakes, trimming the 4 corners at an angle. 

Prepare one batch of Rice Krispie Treats, spreading evenly on a large cookie sheet.   When slightly cooled cut in to 4 equal pieces, rolling the rectangles into 4 round “towers.”

Frost the Rice Krispie Towers and Cake, attaching the towers to the 4 corners of the cake.  Here is the recipe that I used for this cake, which was just enough:
Buttercream Frosting

1 c. butter
1/2 c. shortening
1/4-1/2 tsp. salt (to taste)
2 tsp. vanilla
2 lbs. powdered sugar
1/2 c. water

Cream first 4 ingredients until well blended (3 minutes) on medium speed. Add sugar and water; beat until well blended. Keeps indefinitely in refrigerator.

* Please ignore the bamboo skewers sticking out of a couple of the towers… I thought about placing flags on each tower, and then changed my mind! 😉   They would be perfect for a Blue Knights Cake!

Spray the cake with Black Color Mist, creating a stone like appearance.  I only had one can of mist, and for this cake two would have been much better.   You could also just opt to dye your frosting grey to keep things simple.  

I was really starting to worry at this point, since it wasn’t looking too great! lol! 

Add Sugar Cubes around the top of the cake and towers.   Mini Marshmallows would work great too, but I wasn’t sure how the grey color mist would stick to them, so I opted for the sugar cubes.   (These were not eaten, by the way!)  The color mist was sticking nicely… at least until I ran out! 

Next I created doors with a couple StackerMallows and chocolate cookie icing, and a “moat” in front of the castle with Green and Blue Decorating Icing. I added a little Blue Sparkle Gel to the top of the water as well.  Using Pretzel Sticks I created a little bridge across the water. 

I then placed Milk Chocolate Rocks around the rest of the castle.  Aren’t they so cute?!   They are delicious as well!!   (I found mine at WalMart, but it looks like Amazon carries some as well.)

All that left was adding some Knights and Dragons, which of course were “fixed” in the morning by my boys…

…in addition to adding a couple more little “decorations,”  like this ladder for example! 🙂 

Links for August :: Month Dedicated to the Immaculate Heart of Mary

Aug 4, 2011 | | 3 Comments

Monthly Dedication ~ The Immaculate Heart of Mary

August 4, Feast of St. John Vianney (New):

*As a little gift, since I never was able to finish some sets of these to sell as a fundraiser for my Little Flowers group, here is the Fiddleback Vestment Pattern I created!  Happy feast of St. John Vianney!! 
August 8th ~ Feast of St. Dominic (New):

August 11th (New) and August 12th (Trad) ~ Feast of St. Clare:

August 12th ~ Feast of St. Jane Frances de Chantal (New):

August 14th ~ Feast of St. Maximilian Kolbe (New):

August 15th ~ Feast of the Assumption (New, Trad):

August 18th ~ Feast of St. Helena (Trad):

August 21st ~ Feast of St. Pius X (New):



August 22nd ~ Feast of the Queenship of Mary (New):

August 23rd ~ Feast of St. Rose of Lima (New) and August 30th (Trad):

OTHER RESOURCES:


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 (3)
  • ►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 (3)
  • ►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!