Feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross
Tomorrow is the feast of the Exaltation (or Triumph) of the Holy Cross. The church has celebrated this feast ever since September 14, 326, the day that Saint Helena, mother of Constantine, miraculously discovered the cross while she was on a pilgrimage to Jerusalem.
In one of my favorite Catholic cookbooks, A Continual Feast
, the author tells us that “This holy day is one of strict fasting among the Eastern Orthodox. In Greece, the priest distributes sprigs of sweet basil to his congregation, because tradition says that basil grew all over the hillside where Helena discovered the cross. “The author, Evelyn Vitz, goes on to suggest a recipe for Pesto (a wonderful sauce for pasta made with fresh basil) since, “With this dish you can keep the spirit of the day as one of abstinence from meat and still serve something delicious and symbolic.“
Although I don’t have a garden, we do have a wonderful local Grower’s Market. This morning I was able to pick up a couple bunches of fresh basil and some beautiful tomatoes, among other things. When I arrived home (my twin sisters babysat the kids!) my oldest son said, “Mom, you smell like pasta!” 🙂 Don’t you just love the smell of fresh basil? I do!I had planned to spend the afternoon (after Mass) at home painting wooden crosses with my children and then having a nice Pesto dinner as a family, but plans changed. The good thing is, the fire that my hubby is on, is relatively close to home. Not only is it in the same state in which we live, it is in the same county, less than an hour away! So, the kids and I are headed that direction to meet up with my hubby for Mass in the morning (he will have just gotten off the night shift, poor guy!) and then we will head to a nearby park for a picnic lunch. Yeah!! We will get to see him and it will have only been two days since he was dispatched! (This NEVER happens!! Thank you all for your prayers!!!!)
In preparation, earlier this afternoon the girls and I baked some cross shaped cookies. They were very simple. (I am ALL about simplifying things right now, with my hubby gone!) We used a roll of pre-made sugar cookie dough, a Cross Shaped Cookie Cutter
, and some 
We will still have Pesto pasta, though I will be serving it cold instead of hot. I am also packing a couple Baguettes, a jar of Bruschetta sauce, and a Tomato Basil Mozzarella Salad.
Before prayers and bedtime, in anticipation of the feast, I let the children stay up and watch The Legend of the Three Trees
. I couldn’t help taking a picture of all five of our little ones on the floor, enjoying the movie together.
I hope you all have a wonderful Sunday and Feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross!
Because by Your Holy Cross You have redeemed the world.
The countdown begins…
…till daddy’s return.
My hubby was dispatched to a wildfire assignment earlier this afternoon, just as we were getting ready for a relaxing weekend!! He just arrived at the fire and it looks like they have him scheduled on the night shift for the next couple weeks. Any prayers you can spare for his safety (and my sanity!) would be very much appreciated.
The Most Holy Name of Mary
Some days I have great plans, but something comes up to prevent me from achieving them… Today was one of those days. I had hoped to attend Mass with my family and then bake a beautiful cake in honor of the feast of the Most Holy Name of Mary, but it just didn’t happen.
Instead, my hubby took our older boys to Mass and then out to breakfast, while I stayed home with the girls and my sick little baby, and quickly baked a box of “Twice the Blueberry” Muffins.
Thankfully my children had no idea I had hoped to bake a cake, and they were thrilled with the muffins, along with a wonderful new book
It was the perfect opportunity to break out those new markers! I hope you all had a very special day as well!
Having Fun with the Alphabet
This week, our Little Saints theme was Alphabet Fun. It was a very fun week and a great kickoff for our journey along the alphabet path starting next week.
Here is a glimpse at a few of the things we did:
We read:
- ABC of Birds
- A is for Altar, B is for Bible
- Chicka Chicka Boom Boom
- Prairie Primer A to Z
- Let’s Fly from A to Z
- ABC Cat
- On Market Street
- An Alphabet of Catholic Saints
The girls (and in some cases the boys!) played lots of games and made crafts relating to the alphabet including:
Alphabet Puzzles
From Thy Bounty Fairs – Autumn Edition
Catholic Cuisine will be hosting a series of From Thy Bounty Fairs highlighting the major feasts and fruits of the coming months which lead us into Advent. (A big THANK YOU goes to Mary for coordinating these for us!!!) These fairs will be an opportunity to share with one another the joys, beauty, and abundance of our hearth and home, kitchen and table. We would love everyone to join us in sharing about any aspect of bounty and feasting that you would like – whether it be meals, desserts, homemaking/decorating tips, or prayers.
Upcoming From Thy Bounty Fair Schedule:
Triumph of the Cross (September 15): The cross is a very basic shape and one easily incorporated into cooking and table decorating. This fair will be held right after the feast day. Share what you did to celebrate the Feast of the Triumph of the Cross. How did you make the feast and symbol come alive in your Catholic kitchen? Michele will be the hostess. Please submit your link or pictures by 9/14.
Angels: Our Guardians and Defenders (September 29): Angels are honored in two big feasts within a few days of each other – the Feast of the Archangels (9/29) and Memorial of the Guardian Angels (10/2). Share how you are celebrating either or both of these feast days. What are you doing to make this memorable and visible for your family? Do you have special symbolic foods or meals for these days? Jenn will be the hostess.
The Fruits of Our Harvest (October 13): How do you give thanks? What do you do with the bounties of your harvest? Whether you grow your own, shop at he farmer’s market, visit the orchard, or hunt the land you are benefiting from the bounties of God’s creation. Let’s share our recipes, ideas, and thoughts on the bounties that God provides. Mary will be the hostess.
Hallowed Days: All Saints and All Souls (October 27): Florence Berger writes in Cooking for Christ: “The doctrine of the mystical body unites all Christians to their Master, and one with the other in God’s kingdom here on earth. As the branches have their source in the vine, so with Christ we have been bound together for growth and fruition.” The Feasts of All Saints Day (preceded by All Hallows Eve) and All Souls tie together and help us remember the Church Militant, the Church Suffering, and the Church Triumphant. These days offer many unique traditions and celebrations. Share how you feast any of these days? What do you do to fill your tables with the traditions of these hallowed days? I will be hosting this one.
Holiday Foods and Feasts (November 10): Thanksgiving and Christmas are days associated with feasting and celebration. Each family has traditional foods and festivities. Please share your thoughts, suggestions, menus, and recipes for these big feasts so we’ll be well prepared to enjoy them. Amy will be the hostess.
The Bounty of St. Nicholas (December 1): St. Nicholas Day provides a bit of special festivity early in the waiting weeks of Advent. There are so many wonderful culinary traditions from around the world honoring this saint. How is St. Nicholas honored and remembered in your hearth and home? Do you have special treats or food ideas for celebrating this feast day?
Don’t they sound wonderful?? I am looking forward to being inspired by all the submissions!
To participate in the fairs please send a link to your post by the deadline date to the hostess indicated, leave a message in the comments section of the Catholic Cuisine blog, or email me at catholiccuisine[at]gmail[dot]com, and I will forward it to the right hostess. You don’t need to have a blog – you can participate by sending pictures or ideas to the hostess for inclusion. So don’t be shy! 😉
An Alphabet of Saints
Next week we will begin Along the Alphabet Path.
Along with each letter of the alphabet the children will be introduced (or re-introduced as the case may be) to a Saint using the beautiful book An Alphabet of Catholic Saints
Elizabeth suggests making a Wee Felt Saint each week. They are darling, however I decided it might be fun to try my hand at painting instead, inspired by Catholic Folk Toys. So, while I was grocery shopping on Saturday, I picked up an inexpensive paintbrush and a bottle of skin tone paint — I had other colors in my craft bin from some projects I planned last year, which were never completed. I do need to pick up a bottle of blue sometime.
I had never been very good at drawing or painting, but they didn’t turn out too bad! I truly surprised myself and my family. My husband said he was “impressed,” and Captain said, “WOW mom! I didn’t know you were an artist!” It was very cute, and made my day, though I am sure the Saints must have been helping me!!
I painted most of Saturday afternoon/evening and then a couple more hours on Sunday evening. I have only finished A-J, but couldn’t wait to share them with you!
I do need to seal them somehow… any suggestions out there for this amateur?
(Updated to add: I’ll continue updating this post, as I paint more saints.)
A is for Angel…
and also St. Anne…
B is for St. Bernadette…
C is for St. Cecilia…
This was my first, and my favorite! I always loved St. Cecilia as a child, and always thought she was the most beautiful saint in my Picture Book of Saints. My hubby laughed when he noticed that I highlighted her hair! 😉
D is for St. Dominic…
E is for St. Elizabeth Ann Seton…
F is for St. Francis…
G is for St. George…
H is for St. Helena…
I is for St. Ignatius…
J is for St. Joseph…
K is for St. Kateri…
L is for St. Lucy…
M is for St. Martin…
N is for St. Nicholas…
O is for St. Odilia…
P is for St. Patrick…
R is for St. Rose…
S is for St. Sharbel…
T is for St. Therese…
U is for St. Ursula…
V is for St. Vincent de Paul…
W is for St. Wenceslas…
X is for St. Francis Xavier…
Y is for St. Joseph Yuen…
Z is for St. Zita…
Fresh Plum Cobbler
Here is one of the ways we are using all those plums:
FRESH PLUM COBBLER
INGREDIENTS:
- 1 1/2 cups sugar
- 6 tablespoons cornstarch
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 8 cups sliced fresh unpeeled plums
- 6 tablespoons butter or shortening
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 2 tablespoons sugar
- 3 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 cup milk Whipping (heavy) cream, if desired
DIRECTIONS:
- Heat oven to 400ºF.
- Mix 1 1/2 cups sugar, the cornstarch and cinnamon in saucepan. Stir in plums. Cook, stirring constantly, until mixture thickens and boils. Boil and stir 1 minute. Pour into ungreased 13×9 casserole; keep plum mixture hot in oven.
- Cut butter/shortening into flour, 2 tablespoon sugar, the baking powder and salt in medium bowl, using pastry blender or crisscrossing 2 knives, until particles are size of fine crumbs. Mix in milk until mixture forms soft dough. Drop by 12 spoonfuls onto hot plum mixture.
- Bake 25 to 30 minutes or until topping is golden brown. Serve warm with whipping cream.
(Modified recipe from Betty Crocker)
WoW ~ Starting Over!
**This is probably a really boring post for most all of you… But, I am putting it up anyway, since WOW was really helping me lose weight and eat well earlier this year. Thanks Regina for getting it going once again! I need it!
It has been quite some time since I have posted for WoW (Weight on Wednesday). I did not do very well over the summer. I started gaining while on our road trip (it was SO hard to eat well) and continued with way too many cakes all summer!! It didn’t help that Regina took a break from WoW and I wasn’t having to report my gains until the last few weeks…. and I conveniently ignored posting here as well! 😉
Well it is time for me to shape up.. literally!!! hee..hee.. I am going to start eating better and exercising. Not only do I need to lose the weight from the summer (approx 7 pounds as of last Wednesday), I would like to lose another 10+ on top of that, which should be achievable… (unless God has other plans and I find out I am pregnant before that happens–which is usually the case! I am not, as of Monday, though a number of people asked me if I was this past week–and honestly, I was wondering myself!) … In fact, another friend asked me last night at Bunco… My summer weight gain must be really noticeable! 😉
Even though I would like to lose weight, what I really need to focus on is increasing my energy and getting more rest. I have been SO tired, but at the same time, I can’t sleep. I think I have gotten maybe 15 hours of sleep in the last 3 nights. Since I haven’t been sleeping, I have been drinking lots of coffee, which is probably what is keeping me awake at night!
Ok, so here are my goals for this week
- Exercise for 10 minutes before bed each night. (My chiropractor seems to think this will help me sleep better.)
- Do some sort of exercise program/video 2 times. (3 would be better, but I want to try and start slow and realistically)
- Eat some protein with breakfast. Preferably a protein shake (as long as it is dairy, sugar, banana, and blueberry free).
- Cut out coffee. Is it possible? I had a cup of green tea this morning.
Weight Gain/Loss since last Wednesday:
- -2 pounds Wahoo! Only 5 more to go to be my pre-summer weight!
To join in, or see everyone else’s results, click here.
The Nativity of Mary
Today was the feast of the Nativity of Mary, and what a beautiful day it was!
While the boys were finishing up their school work this afternoon, the girls colored a picture of Mary from Fenestrae Fidei. I wasn’t planning on taking any pictures, but I was amazed at how well they colored today — ALL BY THEMSELVES!! I am sure our Blessed Mother is pleased with their loving efforts.
During dinner each night, my hubby reads from Saints for Young People for Every Day of the Year, and I thought I would take a second to share today’s excerpt on the Nativity of Mary:
We do not usually celebrate the birthdays of the saints. Instead we celebrate the day they died because that is the day they are born into the joys of Heaven.
But the birthday of Mary, our Blessed Mother, is an exception. We do celebrate her birthday because she came into this world full of grace, and because she was to be the Mother of Jesus.
When Mary was born, legions of angels hastened from Heaven to surround her little crib and exclaim over her beauty and holiness. The birth of Our Lady was like the dawn. When the sky starts to turn a rosy pink early in the morning, we know the sun will soon come up. In the same way, when Mary was born, she brought great happiness to the world, for it meant that soon Jesus, the Sun of justice, would appear. Mary was the wonderful creature whose privilege it was to bring the Lord Jesus to all mankind.
Even today, if we have Mary, we have Jesus. Whoever is very devoted to her is very close to the Heart of Jesus.
Do we want to offer a gift to Mary on her birthday? What pleases her the most is that we avoid sin, every kind of sin, because sin offends her Son Jesus.
After dinner, it was time for cake! I had the made a recipe for a delicious Blueberry Cheesecake found in Ann Ball’s book Catholic Traditions In The Home And Classroom. The all white cheesecake symbolizes Mary’s purity, and the blueberry topping is symbolic of her blue mantle.
We topped the cake with a small statue of Mary and surrounded it with a circle of 10 candles, representing one decade of the rosary. We let the children take turns lighting the candles as we prayed a “Hail Mary” for each candle.
We then sang Happy Birthday and let the children blow out the candles!!!
My children LOVE this tradition. It was so much fun!
And the Cheesecake was pretty good too!
(Traditional Prayer found in Maiden & Mother
)The Simple Woman’s Daybook ~ Sep 8th
Outside my (open) Window… the birds are chirping and the sky is blue. It looks like it is going to be a beautiful day!
From the learning room…lots of books from the library. I am a couple books away from maxing out my limit! We are going to be busy, but it’s a very good type of busy!
I am thankful… for socks and sweaters on chilly mornings.
From the kitchen… Blueberry Bagels for Breakfast in honor of our Blessed Mother’s Birthday! Last weeks shredded beef burritos were so yummy, I’ll be popping another roast into my crock-pot and will have them again tonight… Followed by Blueberry Cheesecake for dessert.
I am creating… little wooden saints. I’ll try and post pictures soon.
I am going… to exercise this week. I am going to exercise this week. I am GOING to exercise THIS week! 😉 Now let’s see if I actually do it…
I am wearing… warm socks! My feet are freezing!
I am reading… lots of emails. I am sorry if I owe you a response. I wasn’t on the computer much this past week, and am quite behind once again.
I am hoping… that I don’t have to report a gain for the 4th week in a row! sniff.sniff.
I am hearing… the children talking… They just woke up. Time for me to get off the computer!
Around the house… lots of laundry and stacks of various things that need to be put away. I spent too much time “creating” this weekend. (It was so much fun though!)
One of my favorite things… Have I mentioned socks? Nice fluffy warm ones?
- Week two of school, the tutor will be coming Mon, Tue & Wed
- Dentist appointments for our 3 oldest on Thursday.
- Mass and Benediction on Friday, followed by lunch with Father.
Here is a picture thought I am sharing:
To see more Daybook entry’s, click here.
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