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by | Dec 29, 2022

My Daybook ~ May 26, 2009

FOR TODAY: May 26th, 2009

Outside my Window… (or rather my front door!) their is now an abandoned nest. All five of the little birdies learned how to fly this weekend, much to the excitement of my children! They were able to peek through the window panes and watch them take off. I still can’t get over HOW FAST they grew! It seems like just yesterday I was lifting a little one back into the next, and now they, all five of them, are so big!

My youngest brother is in this picture too…
He spent the night this weekend.

I am thinking… that I wish I would have been able to get a couple good pictures of the baby birds (We figured out that they are House Finches.) in their nest… It was just not meant to be. I was able to get a couple pictures of the daddy and momma birds, while perched at the top of a nearby tree.

I am thankful… that, even though one of the gifts I ordered for my soon to be sister-in-law’s Bridal Shower Saturday night didn’t arrive on time, I was able to find some cute bowls off her registry and a darling apron (my brother suggested an apron! lol!) at the last second.

From the kitchen… On Sunday morning, before heading to Mass for the Ascension, we had Ascension Pancakes for breakfast. The Pancake represents the earth Jesus walked on; the fresh strawberries represent the blood Jesus shed; the chocolate syrup represents the roads Jesus traveled; The whipped cream represents the clouds our Lord ascended into; and the sprinkles represent the sweetness of life in Heaven. They were SO yummy!

From the school room… The boys will hopefully finish up their Language Arts workbooks this week… We’ll see! However, we will definitely be doing Math all summer. I keep telling myself that just one lesson, 4 times per week, won’t be too bad at all. Right?! While we are finishing up, I am hoping to organize and declutter the school room to make some room for all the new books that are on the way. 🙂

Living the Liturgical year at Home… We are still celebrating the Easter season using The Garden of the Good Shepherd: A Sticker Calendar to Count the Fifty Days of Easter. This week I am just drawing from last year’s plans, and adding in a few unrelated activities. It counts! This coming Sunday is Pentecost… Here are some ideas for celebrating that I posted last year.

I am creating… a blog post!! Can you believe it?? I just haven’t had the motivation lately for blogging, and I do apologize to those of you who keep checking in and are wondering if I’m ok… I’ve had plenty of things to blog about, but, by the time my children go to bed and I usually sit down at the computer, I’ve been wanting to either go to bed myself, read a book, or watch a movie.

I am going… to be so happy to finish Garden of the Good Shepherd this coming weekend!!! WAHOO!!! Seven weeks is a LONG TIME!!!!

I am wearing… Caladryl on my feet, legs, stomach, and neck. Ugh! Have you ever had poison oak?? It is miserable!

I am reading…the Spring 2009 issue of Mater et Magistra. I was so excited to see that one of the articles was written by my brother-in-law!

I am hoping… to find a Tux for Rascal this week. I am starting to run out of time!

I am hearing… lots of questions from my boys, while they work on their English, and the girls singing songs from Seven Brides for Seven Brothers in the living room.

Around the house… lots of projects. I spent yesterday deep cleaning my girls room, yet again… A project that needs to be done every couple months in seems. Hubby spent the day working on stripping the old paint off the deck railing so it can be repainted. It’s a big project, but it needed to be done and will look so nice once it is painted!

One of my favorite things… is the new sofa on the porch! (The one we got last month.) I LOVE IT!!! This past weekend we ordered a side table and another chair/ottoman to go with it. I’ve really enjoy sitting out there reading while the children play in the yard, or during nap time, or really ANYTIME!

A Few Plans For This Week

  • Baseball practice tonight and a game on Friday.
  • Friday morning will we be attending Mass and Benediction.
  • My boys opted to miss their game on Saturday for a Young Hunters Day, which they’ve attended in the past and really enjoyed.
  • We also will have a few little friends spending the night on Friday, while their parents celebrate their 10th Anniversary!! My children are SO excited!
  • Mass again on Sunday… and I think that is it, so far!

A picture thought I am sharing:

~ Meagan’s Bridal Shower ~

The tables all looked so pretty!

JoAnn, Mary, Meagan, and Me

The rest of my sisters–Jennifer, Jamie, and Julianna–couldn’t make it to Meagan’s shower since they all live out of state.

To see more Daybook’s visit Peggy!

Ascension Thursday Picnic

In honor of Ascension Thursday (which technically has been moved to Sunday in our diocese) we had a picnic dinner on our hill outback! I didn’t have a chance to go to the grocery store prior to our picnic so I made do with what I had in the kitchen, but no one seemed to mind.

We had our picnic dinner all ready for when hubby got home from work.


Everyone was very excited!

It is traditional to eat some sort of bird since Jesus “flew” to heaven.

I served Chinese Chicken Salad and Rice.

Since fruit represents Christ, the first fruit of all men, I served Strawberries.

However, the Italian tradition is beans and grapes… Perhaps next year?

All I could come up with for dessert that somewhat resembled clouds….

…were these simple Mini White Chocolate Pudding Pies. They were delicious!

My children were thrilled to each get there own Sparkling Ice!


These sparkling, carbonated drinks were chosen for their “rising” bubbles!

Captain feeding Snuggles a little bit of pudding…

I always love seeing my older children helping their little siblings.

“Mom, no more pictures!”

I stopped… for awhile! 😉
The camera came back out when a couple visitors arrived!
Even though we see deer daily, the children still get excited every time.
We all had such a great time!
I hope to make this an annual tradition for our family.


Now if I can get to the store, I think we will have Ascension Pancakes on Sunday after mass!

On the Job

Hubby just emailed me a couple pictures he took up where he’s been working… Isn’t it beautiful?!

Small Successes: Vol. 18

I’ve been wanting to participate in Faith and Family Live’s Small Successes for months, but that was one small success that has been put off till now!

  1. I survived snack bar duty Tuesday night at Little League AND found someone to watch our three youngest children (at the last second) since I had to be in the snack bar and hubby (Asst. Coach) was on the field with the boys. Even though the smells of hotdogs, chili, and hamburgers did make me feel sick for the rest of the night (bleh!!), I did NOT throw up!
  2. Found a dress for Chiquita (who will be the flower girl in my brother’s wedding next month), which the bride loves and also met out requirements. (I can’t believe how immodest most flower girl dresses are now!! Yikes!!)
  3. I ordered all of my boy’s schoolbooks for the upcoming school year! Now if we could just finish the current school year, that would be a huge success… =)

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

Game Ball

Rascal has been making such great improvements in Baseball this year.

At the beginning of the season, he was easily frustrated since he had a tendency to hit the ball directly to first base and then get tagged out…  (Not to mention he is the smallest and one of the youngest boys on the team.) Well, he started hitting the ball just a little bit sooner and hasn’t been getting tagged out anymore.  The other night he was awarded the game ball for, not only not being tagged out, but scoring the most runs for the team!!

Good job Rascal!!

Requiscat in Pace!

Yesterday morning we attended the funeral of a kind older man from church, Mr. Ralph Denman. My boys both loved Mr. Denman, and have been serving Mass and Benediction with him on Friday’s since they were 5 years old. He was an excellent role model to my boys, and will be missed dearly.

My husband was telling me that, on the day Ralph died, he seemed to know that he was going and dressed in his best suit. That brought tears to my eyes, and shows just a bit of his wonderful personality!

My two youngest brothers served the Funeral Mass and a friend of ours put together this great video. At the end of the video Father sings a beautiful song while incensing, which always makes my cry: In Paradisum.

In paradisum deducant te angeli,
in tuo adventu
suscipiant te martyres,
et perducant te
in civitatem sanctam Jerusalem.
Chorus angelorum te suscipiat,
et cum Lazaro quondam paupere
aeternam habeas requiem.

May the angels lead you into paradise,
may the martyrs receive you
in your coming,
and may they guide you
into the holy city, Jerusalem.
May the chorus of angels receive you
and with Lazarus once poor
may you have eternal rest

Updated to Add:

Our friend Marc just sent me the clip of “In Paradisum” from the above video. Thanks Marc!

Garden of the Good Shepherd ~ Week 6

Garden_detailI sort of dropped the ball last week, with our activities to go along with The Garden of the Good Shepherd: A Sticker Calendar to Count the Fifty Days of Easter, since we were so busy and I was not feeling my best… My children are still just as motivated though, so hopefully we can finish out these last 2 weeks if I keep it simple enough. =)

The theme for this week is:

“Oh, What a Beautiful City!”

This week, in addition to drawing from last year’s list and a few of Charlotte’s ideas, I’ll be adding some of the upcoming feast days into our activities as well.

36. The City Gate : Read Revelation 21:9-14

37. The Temple : Read Revelation 21:22-25

  • Make Cathedral Cookies or Church shaped Stained Glass Window Cookies
  • Hand paint Stained Glass Cross Shaped Suncatchers.
  • Play the EWTN Kids Build-a-Church Activity. (To get to this, sign into EWTN kids–it’s free!–then go to The Diego’s house, then to Javier & Manuel’s Room, then click on the box with a church on it. My kids LOVE this game!)

38. Hallelujah! : Read Revelation 19:6-9

(We will be traveling to town for another funeral Mass Tuesday morning, so the CD will be prefect for the drive home… Please say a prayer for the repose of the soul of a man named Ralph, who passed away last week at the age of 93. May he rest in peace! And maybe you could add a short prayer for Captain, who is taking his death especially hard. Captain and Rascal have both served Mass on Friday’s with Ralph since they were five. He will be missed dearly!)

39. The Thrones : Read Revelation 22:1-5

40. The Bride : Read Hosea 2:18-20

  • Since this Thursday is the feast of the Ascension, we will attend Mass and then head to a nearby hilltop for an Ascension Picnic.
  • Show the children some of our wedding pictures!

41. The Groom : Read Revelation 19:6-9

42. The Crowns : Read Isaiah 62:3-5

  • Place a crown of flowers on our statue of Mary.
  • This year, May 23rd is the traditional feast of Mary, Queen of the Apostles. Perhaps we will make another Crown Cake or at least some Simple Cupcake Crowns.

Hope you all have a wonderful week!

♥ Happy Tears ♥

I guess I was bound to cry at today’s ultrasound, and sure enough, as soon as I heard our little one’s heart beating, as perfect as can be, the tears started falling! Happy, joyful, THANKFUL tears!!! I knew I was a little bit worried, but I didn’t realize just how scared I was until today…

I had the same ultrasound tech that I had in the fall, and she didn’t hesitate to let me hear the heart beating and reassured me that everything looks just fine this time.

My due date is December 24th!!! The ultrasound machine kept going back and forth between the 24th and the 25th before finally settling on the 24th. Either way, we seem to have a Christmas baby on the way!

To celebrate I picked up a box of See’s candy for me my family and a couple maternity tops… Is it really possible to start showing at just 8 weeks???? lol!

Thank you all for your prayers!!!

“Hoopin’ for Hope”

Last Saturday afternoon, the girls and I hurried home from our tea party to change clothes and head right back out the door with the rest of the family to attend a Basketball Game. Not just any game — the Harlem Comedy All-Stars were in town and they are SO FUNNY!!

The Harlem All-Stars vs The International Sharp Shooters is a benefit game which showcases amazing basketball tricks and skills, plus plenty of hi-jinks and comedic hoop antics! Along with Basketball Hall of Fame Legend Meadowlark Lemon (also known as the “Clown Prince of Basketball”) the game also starred: Harlem Globetrotter veteran “Hollywood” Brown and Harlem All-Star veteran “Pee Wee” Harrison.

All proceeds from the game went to the Hadley Hope Fund to be used to accelerate ethical scientific research for a cure for all afflicted with Niemann-Pick Type C Disease, including Peyton and Kayla Hadley.

My boys thought it was hilarious when they started playing
baseball instead of basketball!

There were over 1000 people in attendance and the evening was filled with laughs, stunts, food, and an exciting 1/2 time paper airplane contest!

If you look close you may notice that, even though Twinkle Toes arm is extended, her airplane is dropping behind her… We couldn’t figure out how it got back there, until we saw this picture! lol!

The boys also each got there very own miniature basketball signed by a few of the players… You should have seen Rascal trying to imitate some of the stunts as we walked back to the car. It was so cute!

Before heading home, we went out to dinner with my Aunt and Uncle! Even though it was crazy busy, it was SUCH a FUN weekend!!


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

Shower of Roses Gift Guides

Looking for Something?

looking-back

  • 2026 (1)
  • 2025 (31)
  • 2024 (41)
  • 2023 (30)
  • 2022 (48)
  • 2021 (48)
  • 2020 (57)
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  • 2018 (90)
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  • 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!