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My Daybook :: April 8, 2011

Apr 8, 2011 | , | 7 Comments

Outside my window… The weather has been crazy lately.  Last week it got up to a nice and warm 70 degrees and yesterday we woke up to snow on the ground!  It melted pretty quickly, but continued to snow and hail throughout the day.   It cracked me up when I heard the hail start coming down once again and the boys laughing and running out the front door.   I looked out the window to find them wearing their swimming goggles and trying to catch the hail with their mouths!

I am listening to… the Truth and Life Dramatized Audio Bible with my children.   We love it!   I do wish that I had the actual set of CD’s (versus the Audible Download that I have) since I would really love to be able to skip around to the various readings, for our Jesus Tree Bible Study.   Hopefully next year.   In the meantime we are just enjoying listening to it from start to finish whenever possible.

I am thinking… about the potential government shutdown.  Will my husband be going in to work on Monday or will he be one of the “non-essential” employees forced to take unpaid leave while Congress tries to come to an agreement on the budget?  We are still praying that this doesn’t happen, but if it takes a government shutdown to defund Planned Parenthood it would be worth it!

I am thankful… that I was able to find my old boss’s daughter through a Google Search (using only her first and maiden name) this past weekend, after getting a phone call from him asking for help since he had been evicted from his apartment.  He is 94 years old and currently in a retirement home with Dementia. (He was able to remember my maiden name and contacted my parents.)  She flew up on Monday and stayed with our family while we helped her move his belongings out of his old apartment on Monday and Tuesday.

From the kitchen… Lollipops leftover from my niece’s birthday party!

My girls decided that they wanted to save their Lollipop for Easter and I keep hearing them singing this song:

All of our children were singing this song the day after the party: 

From the learning rooms… My three oldest completed their first (of two) botany lapbooks for this school year last week.   They turned out great and I am hoping to post some detailed pictures soon.

Living the Liturgical Year at Home… We just started praying a novena for our Holy Father, whose birthday is coming up on April 16th.   We are still observing Lent and getting ready for Easter… Checking the day’s off of our Lenten Calendars, reading bible stories and adding to our Jesus Tree, offering sacrifices and removing thorns from our Crown of Thorns or adding beans to the jar, and working on our Last Supper Puzzle which is almost finished!

I am creating… a plan for Chiquita’s 6th Birthday on the 20th…  So many ideas and so little time!

I am reading… an excerpt from our local paper (which I ran into town this morning to pick up!) about my little brothers Kevin (16) and David (15 – who is also my Godson!) ::

(Kevin’s) 82 at the District 6 Golf Invitational on April 1 was no April Fool’s joke as the Chieftains’ golf team placed second in the tournament, four shots behind St. Mary’s.    Chieftain golf fans have become so accustomed to (Kevin’s) consistently superb play that shooting an 82 had to be some kind of joke, but it wasn’t.   (Kevin’s) little brother David, fired a 76 to place second on the individual scoring card…

Pondering these words… from a quote found in the spring issue of Soul Gardening, an inspiring little journal that was just sent to me as a gift from Rose’s Godmother.   I LOVE it, and it was just what I have been needing this week!

God’s presence or absence is known by the effect of suffering on us, especially by the effect of the small sufferings of every day, such as the “slights” which literally corrode those who try to endure them in their own strength.  But in those whom Christ abides, it is Christ who suffers every humiliation.  For them there are no psychological scars:  the humility of Christ clothes them in His majesty and crowns them.  Crowns them with thorns, it is true, but what other crown could any thinking person wish to wear today?  And what other would not be ludicrous?   ~ Caryll Houslander

Noticing that… I really love Twinkle Toes’ hair short.   We had it cut this past Saturday, right before her cousins birthday party, and it turned out so cute!

Towards personal care (and exercise!)… We had planned on putting the boys in baseball this Spring (and they did try out and attend the first practice), but due to some drama and problems with our local Little League we ended up changing plans.  After searching for an alternative, I found a Fencing class that had just started last week.    I thought this would be perfect, especially since the boys have been studying the Middle Ages this year!

Captain was very excited, but Rascal was a little nervous.  After hearing a little encouragement from The Professor, he started looking forward to the lesson.    When we arrived, the instructor took one look at my boys (who are small for their ages) and thought they might want to just observe to see if they were still interested in participating, or perhaps join an earlier afternoon class with younger children.   I convinced him to let them give it a shot and he said they could try out the first part of the class, which was on foot work.  “Don’t worry about filling out the forms… They won’t be using any weapons today.”   Or would they?!?  😉   He was quite surprised at their coordination (they were in Hockey after all) and at how quickly my boys learn.

Around the house… I hired a woman to paint our old oak dining room hutch and the little electric fireplace which we were just given by a friend.  They were picked up on Wednesday and should be done this next week. She just emailed me to ask if I would like to have the mirrors taken out, or not.   Oh, I don’t know!!  I am kind of thinking it might look better without…   What do you think… Mirrors or no mirrors?

On keeping home…  I don’t think I am going to get anywhere near 40 bags this Lent (I’m only up to 10 right now).  However, after a little inspiration from Charlotte, I did tackle one of the racks in my closet.    Taking everything out, really does make a difference!  I boxed up the skirts and dresses that I hope to fit back into someday, bagged up a bunch more to donate, and hung the rest back up in the closet.   I probably should go through them again and get rid of a few more, but at least it’s a start and I actually do have some clothes that fit!

Before:

After:

One of my favorite things…  clean de-cluttered spaces, even if we only have a few of them in our home!

A few plans for the rest of the week:

We are looking forward to tomorrow.  The girls have their very first Ballet class, followed by lunch with the other women that live on our street!

A Picture thought I am sharing:

Rose with her Daddy, taken at the coast a couple weeks ago

The Last Supper :: Another 1,000 Piece Challenge!

Apr 6, 2011 | , | 10 Comments

Last Advent we enjoyed putting together the Our Lady of Guadalupe Puzzle so much that we decided to work on another one this Lent.   We choose this beautiful Last Supper Puzzle also made by SunsOut. Once again we opted for the 1,000 piece puzzle, even though there are 500 Piece and 2000 Piece options.  It’s been perfect!  Very challenging, but not at all impossible, and quite a bit easier than the last one.  Our four oldest children are really enjoying working on it each day while we listen to chapters from the Truth and Life Dramatized Audio Bible New Testament, and pretty much whenever they have a few extra minutes!

At this rate, I don’t think they will have any problem finishing by Easter!  

Easter – Pentecost :: From the Archives

Apr 4, 2011 | | 7 Comments

Our Easter Celebrations

Easter Fun with Food






 

Easter Candy

Easter Books and Baskets

We really enjoyed making our Paschal Candle using the lovely kit made by Illuminated Ink.   In the past years, I have always just decorated a pillar candle with Candle Decorating Pens or Decorating Wax.  Last year we even used a printable candle wrapper from Homeschool Goodies:

Other Easter Crafts

The Fifty Days of Easter ~ The Garden of the Good Shepherd

Last year Charlotte and I came up with weekly Good Shepherd Garden Parties to coordinate with The Garden of the Good Shepherd: A Sticker Calendar to Count the Fifty Days of Easter.    I have created a page with all of the links to the menus, our parties, and more, here:  

 


Other Good Shepherd Activities

Divine Mercy Sunday


Additional ideas can be found in my Little Flowers post for the Virtue of Mercy!

Ascension Thursday


Pentecost Sunday


 
Reminder:  All original photographs on this blog are protected by copyright and may not be downloaded and/or reposted without prior permission.   Thank you! 

Links for April :: Month Dedicated to the Blessed Sacrament

Apr 4, 2011 | | 0 Comments

April 12th ~ St. Faustina :

April 16th ~ Pope Benedict’s Birthday! :

Favorite picture books about our beloved Holy Father:

*Be sure to sign up and participate in the 

April 16th ~ St. Magnus:

April 16th ~ St. Bernadette: 

April 23rd ~ Feast of St. George (New, Trad.):

*Since the feast of Saint George falls on Holy Saturday this year, and since we have so many other family traditions on Holy Saturday, I don’t think we will be making our dragon cake this year.   I think I might make a Taco Dip Dragon instead, if anything.  We will have to come up with another reason to make a dragon cake this year! 

April 25th ~ Feast of St. Mark (New, Trad.):


April 29th ~ Feast of St. Catherine of Siena (New):

Divine Mercy Sunday ~ John Paul II 

Catholic Cuisine: Recipes for April ~ Month Dedicated to the Blessed Sacrament
Feasts and Seasons :: Our April Book Basket

And here is the link to Easter – Pentecost :: From the Archives.

Happy Lætare Sunday!

Apr 3, 2011 | | 4 Comments

Rejoice with Jerusalem and be glad for her, all you who love her… 

This Sunday is traditionally called Lætare Sunday from the opening words of the Entrance Antiphon.  Today the strictness of the Lenten liturgy is interrupted with words that speak to us of joy!

After dinner we will be enJOYing a Strawberry Boston Cream Cake that we picked up on the way home from Mass. However, if I had seen Charlotte’s post earlier, I would have opted for Laetare Sundaes!  We might just have to make some to go along with the cake.  I also better call up a couple of my siblings to see if anyone wants to stop by. . . We opted for a small cake, but I want to make sure we don’t end up with any leftovers!  🙂

I pray that you are all filled with JOY on this beautiful Lætare Sunday! 

A Candy Shoppe Birthday Party

Apr 3, 2011 | , | 5 Comments

My precious little niece is turning one this week, and this afternoon we headed over to her home for the “Candy Shoppe” birthday party her SWEET parents hosted for her!

It’s hard to believe that it has been a year since she was born – all 3 pounds and 6 ounces of her – and how much she has grown since they brought her home and she met her cousins.  She is still so tiny (I think she is about thirteen pounds right now) and such a cutie!   Perhaps you can all say a quick little prayer for her, as she has still been undergoing lots of testing and has another operation coming up this year.  She is such a little fighter though and we are all so blessed to have her in our life!  God is good!!

The birthday party was super cute and we all had such a great time.   (I think my sister-in-law needs to come and plan my next party for me!)   My kids were practically speechless when they saw all of the SWEETS & TREATS and so thankful that we made an exception for family birthdays on this years sacrifice of giving up treats for Lent, and that tomorrow is Sunday!   (They will still probably have quite the stash to save for Easter!) Anyhow, here are some pictures from the party:

~ Cupcakes and Cotton Candy~ 

~ The Beautiful Birthday Girl ~ 

~ Birthday Gifts ~

We all enjoyed watching Uncle Brian my niece open her gifts.  I just LOVE her sweet little smile!!!  My children were very excited to give her the blocks that they had picked out, and I just fell in love with the little Cloth Forest Peek-A-Book book that my Dad & Mom included with their gift.
~ Cousins ~

~ Making Cotton Candy ~ 

~ Picking treats from the Sweet Tooth Factory ~ 

~ Taking Care of that Sweet Tooth” ~ 

Rose wouldn’t leave our house without her new toothbrush. . .  I guess she knew that she would be needing it after all those SWEETS & TREATS! Aunt Meagan loved the idea and asked her why she didn’t bring it up before the party so she could have added toothbrushes to the treat bags.   😉 

Happy Birthday little one!    
We love you!! 

“It’s so easy, it’s like taking candy from a baby. . .”

Apr 3, 2011 | , , | 3 Comments

At least that was what my Dad was saying as he tried to take Rose’s Cotton Candy from her this afternoon! 

She was not happy about that! 

I wonder if the person that came up with that phrase ever actually tried taking candy from a baby… 

Rose eventually forgave her Grandpa for teasing her, and even offered him a bite, just as long as he (or anyone else) didn’t try to take it out of her hand…  

And that went for her Momma too – who just wanted to get “one quick picture without the cotton candy stick.”     

Life is so rough, when you are one! 

I’ll be back with a few more pictures from my niece’s first birthday party. 
It was absolutely adorable!! 

Creating our Paschal Candle for Easter

Apr 1, 2011 | , , | 5 Comments

A couple years ago (at the same time that I purchased our Stations of the Cross Grotto Kit), I ordered a lovely Paschal Candle Kit made by Illuminated Ink as well.   We never did have a chance to make it that first year, and last year I waited until my children were in bed on Holy Saturday night before taking it out of the box.   After looking at the supplies and directions, I put it back in the box and printed out the quick and easy paper Pascal Candle Wrap for our Candle from Homeschool Goodies.   This year I was determined to finally make our own homemade Beeswax Paschal Candle.   I am so glad that we did!  Didn’t it turn out beautiful?!?

 
A couple weeks ago, I left a comment on Illuminated Ink’s Facebook Page sharing a picture of our completed Stations of the Cross.   (I always love it when people share pictures and/or links with me after they have made one of the projects I have shared here or at Catholic Cuisine, so I thought I would do the same.)  After an email directly to Illuminated Ink, mentioning that I would be making their Paschal Candle next and asking if it would be easy to modify the kit for the current year, she said that they had changed a few items in the kit, making it much easier, and offered to send them to me.   Thank you Illuminated Ink!! 
 
 
On the left you can see the original kit supplies (a template for cutting out the wax embellishments, and colored beeswax), and on the right you can see the new water decal replacements.   
 
 
After warming up the beeswax sheets with a hairdryer, we began rolling our candle. . .  Notice anything wrong with the following pictures?  Despite the wonderful directions, and the new materials, I still managed to goof it up!  🙂
 
 
Yep. . . We were rolling the candle the wrong direction. Oops!
 
We then very carefully, unrolled the candle, using the hairdryer to soften and re-flatten the beeswax sheets.
 
 
At this point I was thinking that I probably should have just left it as a short and fat candle, and modified the rest of the directions to fit on what I had to work with. . . Thankfully it all worked out in the end!
 
 
Much better!   It was a bit challenging to roll, thanks to all the creases from rolling the opposite direction, but I saved the best pieces for the outside of our candle and you can barely tell.  
 
 
This time, when we measured two inches from the bottom to add the gold cord, we had plenty of candle remaining to add the rest of the decorations!
 
 
Next, using a damp cloth, we applied the Alpha Omega and Gemstone decals.
 
 
“Christ yesterday and today (vertical bar of the cross)
the beginning and the end (horizontal bar of the cross)
Alpha (A, above the cross)
and Omega; (Ω, below the cross)
all time belongs to him (2, upper left quadrant)
and all the ages: (0, upper right quadrant)
to him be glory and power (1, lower left quadrant)
through every age for ever. Amen.” (1, lower right quadrant)
 
 
Looking back at the original supplies that came with this kit, I was SO thankful for the amazing, and super easy to apply, water decals!   What an excellent idea.   I really couldn’t imagine trying to cut out all of the tiny pieces from the colored beeswax sheets… What a job that would have been!

The final step was to add the 5 rhinestones – these represent the 5 grains of incense that a priest will insert into the candle at Mass – held in place be the 5 “nails.”

 

“By his holy and glorious wounds may Christ our Lord guard us and keep us.” 
 

It is so nice to have our Paschal Candle all ready for Easter!   You still have time to order this kit if you’d like to make one for your home.  There are currently some kits available at Holy Heroe. 

 

“May the light of Christ, rising in glory, dispel the darkness of our hearts and minds.” 
 

Small Successes :: Getting Ready for Easter!

Mar 31, 2011 | , , | 6 Comments

“It’s important for moms to recognize that all the small successes in our days can add up to one big triumph. So on Thursday of each week, we do exactly that.”

~ 1 ~ 
The other day my mom (I love that she reads a few blogs now, including mine!) wanted to know why I didn’t include a picture of the new Easter Baskets, which I had been telling her about,  when I posted some Catholic Easter Basket Ideas.

Yes, I am very excited about our Easter Baskets this year!   Every year when the Spring Pottery Barn Kids Catalog shows up in our mailbox I fall in love with the Easter Baskets.   Every year they are way out of our budget!  So this year, knowing that I needed to get at least a few new Easter Baskets (some of the “affordable” baskets I have purchased in the past need to be replaced), I decided to try and improvise.

I was so excited when found very similar white wicker baskets 50% off at Michaels – only $8.49 each!  I then was able to find a couple of the liners I wanted at a great price on ebay, ordering the remaining liners directly from Pottery Barn (the prices for monogramming have actually increased since I purchased mine, and most of the small liners have sold out).   They are perfect!     I just need to find a few brown wicker baskets for the boys…  It will be so nice to have baskets that my children will be able to use year after year!

Here is a picture of the back of Twinkle Toes and Chiquita’s new baskets.   They have their names embroidered on the front in Bright Pink (TT) and Purple (C) thread.

After the fact, I was thinking how neat it would be to sew your own basket liners and mail them to Catholic Embroidery for personalization – perhaps with the child’s patron saint symbol, or a catholic quote!  
Rose’s basket has cute little fabric flowers and her name is embroidered in Green on the front.  I think, for her, I want to start a tradition that I read about in a sweet little book that was illustrated by my Godmother:
“If you have a young daughter, consider this heirloom idea.  Each year on Easter, tie a different pastel ribbon in your daughter’s hair.  After Easter is over, tie the ribbon on her basket.  When she gets older she will have a basket full of beauty and memories.” 
~ 2 ~ 
The kids and I nearly ruined made our family Paschal Candle for Easter yesterday!   Despite all my mistakes, it turned out beautiful.   I can’t wait to share some pictures once I get them uploaded!  
~ 3 ~ 

I also found beautiful Easter Dresses on sale for my older girls with matching headbands.   (They will make perfect dresses for their Little Flowers Tea Party later this year as well!)   It’s so hard to find pretty spring/summer dresses with sleeves lately, but these will work great with a little white top underneath and a cardigan if it is cold.  Now I just need to figure out Easter outfits for the other four children and myself. . .   Here is a sneak peak at the colors.  

  

Well, I have to run. . . It is gorgeous outside and we are off to the library and to drop off four boxes (a big success!) to Goodwill.  Hope you are all having a great day! 

Stop by Faith and Family Live to read more of this week’s Small Successes.

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

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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

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Looking for Something?

looking-back

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Shower of Roses Alphabet of Saints

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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!