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Calico Critters

Nov 27, 2014 | , | 5 Comments


My girls all love playing with their Calico Critters. I’ve been looking for a couple new families to give to Rose for her birthday in a few weeks and I recently added the cute little Calico Critters Sea Otter Family to my Amazon Shopping Cart. I happened to log in a few minutes ago and noticed that the price had dropped significantly and they are now 41% off! I just placed my order and thought I’d share the link with you all. Now if only the Hazelnut Chipmunk Family would drop in price… They are so cute!

(Update: Rosie’s Row Boat is also on sale at 48% off!)


Glasses

Nov 24, 2014 | | 24 Comments

 

I mentioned the other day that we ordered glasses (including an extra pair at a discount) for our 11 year old daughter this past Wednesday. We were told that they would take about 7-10 days, but on Friday they called to say the glasses had already arrived. Sean took her to pick them up after Hockey yesterday morning. She is still getting used to wearing them but I think she looks adorable… and so grown up! 

Mama’s Notebooks {Sponsored Giveaway}

Nov 23, 2014 | | 0 Comments

It’s time for another giveaway from Mama’s Notebooks!

Mama’s Notebooks brings you helpful notebooks to organize your family life. All of our notebooks are designed from the ground up by a Mom for other Moms, and feature simple and effective charts, lists, and ideas to help your family life run more smoothly!

Of all the notebooks created by Heather the original Mama’s Notebook is my favorite!

I love that it doesn’t include pre-printed dates, so when I misplace it for a week (or three!) I can pick up right where I left off without wasting any pages.

I love using it to plan our menu for the week including any special occasions or feast days!

And I especially love all the space provided for my “Weekly Lists & Goals.”

You can find additional information and pictures in my past reviews here and here.
You can also find Mama’s Notebooks on Facebook and Pinterest!

All notebooks are currently 20% off and one of the coupon codes below can be used in addition to the sale. It’s a perfect time to purchase notebooks for the upcoming year or to give as Christmas gifts!

  • FLASH30: 30% off until November 24, 2014 at 11:59 PM.
  • TRESACE: Buy three books and get one of equal or lesser value free (no end date listed).
  • FAST5: 5% off.
Mama’s Notebooks has offered to give the winner of this giveaway one notebook of their choice! 
Please enter the giveaway using the Rafflecopter box below:

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Instagram Recap

Nov 22, 2014 | , , | 6 Comments

I always hesitate before posting a picture to Instagram and wonder if I should “save” it for the blog… I love Instagram, but the blog has always been my favorite spot to record special moments and memories. I thought I’d share this week’s Instagram recap in 7 Quick Takes.

— 1 —

I love it when he wakes up in such a great mood, especially on Monday morning! 

“Look!! There’s the peacock!!!”
— 2 —

Over the weekend I had the children all choose “five favorite” ChristmasBooks to share! The list of all 35 favorites, along with a giveaway for an autographed copy of ChristmasMosaic by Cay Gibson can be found {here}.

There is still time to enter the giveaway! 

— 3 —

Lunch date with my husband! He says I look younger for some reason…

On Tuesday morning I had another appointment at the orthodontist, this time for braces on my top teeth. I had been stressing out over it for months and was fighting tears when they started making the impressions a couple weeks ago… If it wasn’t necessary I wouldn’t have even considered it (my five years in braces as a child was plenty, not to mention pretty traumatic!) but my top teeth are collapsing inwards and have been causing bite issues. My bottom teeth are fine, thanks to a permanent retainer, and I’ll only be wearing them for about six months. 

Thankfully we have great dental insurance right now that, combined with the family discount, covered about 75% of the cost. Invisalign was an option, but it was so much more expensive and I couldn’t justify the extra expense just for my pride and vanity… I actually joked about going into hibernation for the next six months, but decided to just “rip the bandaid off” and post a picture. So far they haven’t been nearly as bad as I remember.  And I picked “lavender” so I’m all ready for Advent! 😉 
Oh! When we were at the grocery store the other night Sean had to run and get one last thing so I was at the checkout by myself. When the cashier got to the bottles of wine she looked up and said, “Ummm… I’m going to need to see your ID.” I laughed and handed it to her. She looked at my driver’s license, back up at me (standing there with my hair in a pony tail and braces on my teeth), and back at my driver’s license before mumbling “I never would have guessed.” I’m not sure if that should make me feel young or really old! 😉 
— 4 —

It’s been such a full week, complete with new accessories for a couple of us girls… Apparently that trademark glare of hers is really just her squinting to focus and see! Glasses are on the way. So thankful that there was an easy explanation and fix for the headaches she has been getting lately during school and piano lessons.
— 5 —

I was reading the papers from this week and had to show this one to my husband-it had us both cracking up! It was a creative writing assignment for our 9 year old (who apparently has “many exciting activities”) using her “brain inventory.” Looks like she included all the required #iew dress-ups (“-ly” adverb, who/which clause, strong verb, quality adjective, because clause, and adverbial clause), the topic & clincher sentences repeat or reflect the same key words, and the title repeats key words from the final sentence. I’m going to have to show it to my brothers, her “uncles who came freely because they wanted to hang out near the motor home and sit by the fire.” I love it!

Chiquita just completed the final lesson of Student Writing Intensive Level A. She started it the second half of last school year, in 3rd grade, and completed it the first part of this school year. (Our older children are using the SWI Continuation Course Level A and Level B, combined with the Fix It! Grammar. The new revised versions of Fix It! are so great!) We are taking next week off of (most) school work and then in December we’re all focusing on a literature unit study and lap book. After our Christmas break she’ll either begin the Continuation Course for Level A or one of the Level A themed-based writing programs for the rest of the school year.

— 6 —

Ack! What made me think I could dust around these minifigs?! They are like dominoes! Every time I try to fix one that I’ve knocked over, even more fall down. I’m just going to stop now or the boys are going to come home from hockey and discover that their whole army has been taken out!

Yeah… I think I need to make them do their own dusting! ‪
The boys love their Hobbit and Lord of the Rings Lego sets! Lego just came out with a few new Hobbit sets (The Lonely Mountain, The Battle of the Five Armies, Attack on Lake-Town, and Witch-King Battle)  and I’m secretly hoping that will be the end of the series! 😉  You can see how the boys organize their mini figures (when there isn’t a war in progress) here. 
— 7 —

He has been sitting there playing for the last couple hours and every time he picks up the doll his Godmother painted for him he smiles and says “St. Andrew!!!” So cute!

This Medieval Castle was one of his gifts last Christmas.  Our girls have had the Princess Castle for about 6-7 years and they still play with it all the time.  The castles are such great toys!

Five Favorites for Thanksgiving

Nov 21, 2014 | | 13 Comments

The last couple years we have hosted Thanksgiving dinner at our home, but this year many of my siblings will be coming to town and we will be going Over the River and Through the Wood to my parent’s home!

I’ll be bringing the Raspberry Cranberry Jello Mold, Sweet Potatoes, and Apple Cider.  I still plan to bake a turkey at home (probably on Wednesday or Saturday so we will have our own leftovers) as well as some of our favorite turkey themed treats and appetizers!

For All the Saints Artist Trading Card Swap 2014

Nov 21, 2014 | | 1 Comment

Our days have been pretty full lately, especially now that hockey season has started, but when I asked the children last night if they wanted to participate in another Artist Trading Card Swap the answer was “YES!!!”

 I had originally planned to spend this afternoon completing the next lesson in our Meet the Masters art study, but I think we will focus on the saints instead!

 There is still time to join this year’s swap hosted by the amazing artists over at Pondered in My Heart.

Bargain Priced Books :: An Alphabet of Saints

Nov 21, 2014 | | 1 Comment

This week only TAN is offering An Alphabet of Saints by Msgr. Robert Hugh Benson at 40% off!

This beautiful book is a reproduction of the original 1905 edition. Each page is dedicated to a letter of the alphabet with a large illustration and story (told in rhyme) of a great saint. From Antony to Martin to Zita, this classic and beloved volume has been helping children master their letters and learn about the great saints of the Church for more than 100 years. Bring this beautifully illustrated book and its long and rich tradition to your home today.

It can also be found here at Amazon.

I love reading the sweet stories found in An Alphabet of Saints to our children and the book can usually be found in our monthly book baskets celebrating the saints.

Many of the Catholic Children’s Treasure Box Books are also on sale, marked down to just $3.00 each, including Book 2, Book 11, Book 12, Book 13, Book 14, Book 15, Book 16, Book 17, Book 18, Book 19, Book 20.

35 Favorite Christmas Picture Books for Children

Nov 17, 2014 | , , , | 0 Comments

Our Advent and Christmas Book collection has really grown over the past 14 years. I’ve been getting quite a few requests to share our favorites (not to mention the fact that I was having a hard time choosing which books to wrap up for our Advent Book Basket this year!) so over the weekend I asked each of the children to choose five favorites to share.  They all had such a hard time deciding, and I really thought we would end up with some duplicates, but in the end I was given this big stack of our children’s 35 Favorite Christmas Picture Books! 
.: Captain’s Favorites :.
(age 14) 
Note: Letters from Father Christmas was in the boys’ room on their bookshelf with the rest of their Tolkien books otherwise it would have been included in this list, for sure! 
Christmas at Stony Creek
Stephen’s Feast
.: Ranger’s Favorites :.
(age 12) 


The Christmas Miracle of Jonathan Toomey

A Small Miracle tells a beautiful story using only illustrations. All the children love this book! 
.: Twinkle Toes’ Favorites :.
(age 11) 

 
.: Chiquita’s Favorites :.
(age 9)
(we have the hardcover but you can find an affordable paperback version of Lucia Morning in Sweden here)

Note: Hanna’s Christmas is out of print and hard to find at a reasonable price, especially this time of year, but you can watch the author read it aloud on Youtube!

You can also find an audio version of Lucia: Saint of Light online here. 

Mr. Willowby’s Christmas Tree
.: Snuggles’ Favorites :.
(age 7) 
Christmas Cobwebs? I’m not sure if I’d be smiling to wake up to our tree covered in cobwebs! 😉 

The Christmas Cookie Sprinkle Snitcher is such a fun book to read!  And I love that I’m not in tears by the end, like I am after reading so many other Christmas picture books. 
In the Archives: 
.: Rose’s Favorites :.
(age 4) 

The Doll’s Christmas

Mortimer’s Christmas Manger
.: Bud’s Favorites :.
(age 2) 
Bethlehem (Catholic Edition)
My Wonderful Christmas Tree

The Donkey’s Dream

Bethlehem
I still need to pick up some purple paper so I can finish wrapping 25 of these books for this Advent (Nov 30th -Dec 24th), but at least I had a little help narrowing down my options! 

.: Giveaway :. 

Christmas Mosaic
(Note: My copy pictured above is the original spiral bound version. The winner of the giveaway will receive a new autographed copy directly from Cay Gibson.)

Study guides for many of our favorite Christmas picture books can be found in Christmas Mosaic. Cay Gibson, author of Catholic Mosaic and Christmas Mosaic, has generously offered to send one of my visitors an autographed copy of Christmas Mosaic! You can also click over to Cay’s blog to learn more about Christmas Mosaic!

Please enter the giveaway using the Rafflecopter box below:

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Feasts & Seasons :: Advent & Christmas Collection

Nov 17, 2014 | , | 2 Comments

So… Our family has this little collection of Christmas books! 😉

As I’ve mentioned in the past, we started collecting Christmas picture books in 2000, following the birth of our oldest son, and we still love adding to our collection each year.  In 2007, following the release of Christmas Mosaic: An Illustrated Book Study for Children, we started reading a picture book as a family each day during Advent, incorporating some of Cay’s wonderful study guides and activities. That same year our public libraries were all closed due to a lack of funding (and stayed closed for a few years) so I was very thankful to have her booklists to use as a guide when searching for new books to purchase for my children.

In 2010 I started wrapping our books for Advent with purple and pink wrapping paper, coordinating with the liturgical color for each week. I wondered at first if it would be worth the effort (and all that paper!) but this is now one of my children’s favorite Advent traditions.  They love taking turns unwrapping the books and we all love the special time we spend together reading.

Here is the sample of the books featured in Christmas Mosaic:

Christmas Mosaic Theme: Decoration and Preparation

Waiting for Christmas: A Story about the Advent Calendar
The Christmas Cobwebs
Cobweb Christmas: The Tradition of Tinsel
The Cobweb Curtain: A Christmas Story
The Christmas Miracle of Jonathan Toomey with CD: Gift Edition
Santa’s Favorite Story
A Christmas Memory (*This was a new purchase in 2013 and we decided not to keep it in our collection.)

Christmas Mosaic Theme: Giving 

The Christmas Candle
Shoemaker Martin (*using the guide for The Shoemaker’s Dream – same story but depicted by a different artist)
The Christmas Coat (local library)
The Gift of the Magi
The Bear’s Christmas Surprise
A Small Miracle

Christmas Mosaic Theme: Family (and Birthdays!)

An Orange for Frankie
Silent Night
The Christmas Promise
One Christmas Dawn
Night Tree

Christmas Mosaic Theme: Nativity, Angels and Epiphany

The Christmas Bird by Sallie Ketcham
The Christmas Bird by Bernadette Watts
Father and Son: A Nativity Story
Mortimer’s Christmas Manger
Bright Christmas: An Angel Remembers

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

The rest of our collection: 

~ Advent and Christmas Chapter Books ~

Christmas at Stony Creek 
Destination: Bethlehem
Letters from Father Christmas (not pictured)
The Gift of the Magi and Other Stories by O. Henry
The Story of Holly and Ivy
The Thirteen Days of Christmas
The Trees Kneel at Christmas
Kersti and Saint Nicholas (not pictured)

A Christmas Chronicle
The Catholic Christmas Book of Cherished Christmas Customs
The Church Mouse of Saint Nicholas
The Eternal Babe (poetry)
The True Meaning of Christmas by Fulton Sheen

Samantha’s Surprise
Josefina’s Surprise
Kirsten’s Surprise
A Surprise for Caroline
Addy’s Surprise: A Christmas Story

~ Early Advent ~

Advent Storybook: 24 Stories to Share Before Christmas
The Twenty-four Days Before Christmas, An Austin Family Story (more of a chapter book)
Waiting for Noel: An Advent Story
A Time to Keep: The Tasha Tudor Book of Holidays

~ December 6th :: Feast of St. Nicholas ~

A Gift from St. Nicholas (we don’t love the illustrations in this one)
Saint Nicholas
St. Nicholas: A Closer Look at Christmas (coffee table style book)
The Baker’s Dozen: A St. Nicholas Tale (our “Baker’s Dozen” inspired cookies)
The Legend of Saint Nicholas by Demi (great book, definitely a favorite)
The Legend of St. Nicholas (not pictured)
The Miracle of Saint Nicholas (about a church named “Saint Nicholas” – definitely near the top of my list of favorites for Advent and Christmas)
The Real Santa Claus: Legends of Saint Nicholas (another favorite, most appropriate for older children, especially love the illustrations)
Saint Nicholas: The Real Story of the Christmas Legend (board book)
Kersti and Saint Nicholas (chapter book, not pictured)

~ December 9th and 12th :: Feasts of St. Juan Diego and Our Lady of Guadalupe ~

Saint Juan Diego and Our Lady of Guadalupe (not pictured)
Our Lady of Guadalupe by Father Lovasik
Our Lady of Guadalupe (Coloring Book)
Our Lady of Guadalupe  by Carmen t. Bernier-Grand
Our Lady of Guadalupe (pop-up)
The Story of Our Lady of Guadalupe Empress of the Americas (*there are still a few copies available here at the old price, plus you can support the sisters with your purchase!)

~ December 13th :: Feast of St. Lucia ~

Bells of Santa Lucia
Hanna’s Christmas
Kirsten’s Surprise: A Christmas Story
Lucia Morning in Sweden
Lucia, Child of Light: The History And Traditions of Sweden’s Lucia Celebration
Lucia, Saint of Light

~ Christmas Around the World ~

Baboushka: A Christmas Folktale from Russia
Christmas Around the World
Marta and the Manger Straw: A Christmas Tradition form Poland
Miracle of the Poinsettia
Pablo’s Christmas
The Miraculous Child: A Christmas Folktale from Old Russia

~ Christmas Books Inspired by Music ~

All for the Newborn Baby
Good King Wenceslas
Good King Wenceslas
Mary Engelbreit’s Nutcracker
Nutcracker  (not pictured)
O Holy Night
Stephen’s Feast
The Huron Carol

~ Christmas Crafts and Baking ~

A Christmas Manger (Punch-out-and-play Books)
The Gift of the Christmas Cookie: Sharing the True Meaning of Jesus’ Birth
The Baker’s Dozen: A St. Nicholas Tale
The Christmas Cookie Sprinkle Snitcher
Cranberry Christmas

~ Historical Christmas Books ~

Christmas from Heaven: The True Story of the Berlin Candy Bomber (not pictured)
Christmas in the Trenches
War Game: Village Green to No-Man’s Land

~ Just for Fun ~

A Christmas Carol: A Pop-Up Book (not pictured) 
Golfer’s Night Before Christmas , A
Home for Christmas
How the Grinch Stole Christmas
Katie’s London Christmas
Mr. Willowby’s Christmas Tree
Snowmen at Night
Snowmen at Work
The Dolls Christmas (not pictured)
The Night Before Christmas: Book & DVD
The Night Before Christmas (not pictured)
The Mitten 20th Anniversary Edition
Pinkalicious: Merry Pinkmas! (not pictured)

~ Legends, Inspirational Stories & Other Miscellaneous Books ~

Angela and the Baby Jesus
Bambinelli Sunday: A Christmas Blessing (not pictured)
On Christmas Eve
The Christmas Knight
The Legend of the Candy Cane
The Legend of the Christmas Rose
The Little Fir Tree
The Little Match Girl
The Three Gifts of Christmas: Book with Audio CD
The Year of the Perfect Christmas Tree

~ Christmas ABC’s ~

ABC is for Christmas (A Little Golden Book)
S is for Star: A Christmas Alphabet (*also available in paperback for much less)
The Christmas ABC (A Little Golden Book – reprinted this year, not pictured)
The Angels Alphabet by Hilda Van Stockum (OOP – I found our copy on ebay)

~ The Christmas Story ~

Bethlehem
Christmas in the Barn
Christmas Night Fair and Bright
Little Star
On That Christmas Night (not pictured)
One Winter’s Night

Saint Francis and the Christmas Donkey
The Christmas Bell
The Christmas Story (A Little Golden Book)
The Donkey’s Dream
The First Christmas
The Nativity by Ruth Sanderson
The Stable Where Jesus Was Born
The Tale of Three Trees: A Traditional Folktale (not pictured)
There Was No Snow on Christmas Eve

~ The Twelve Days of Christmas ~

The Twelve Days of Christmas by Jan Brett
The Twelve Days of Christmas by Laurel Long
The Twelve Days of Christmas by Gennady Spirin
The Twelve Days of Christmas: A Christmas Carol (A Little Golden Book)
The Twelve Days of Christmas: The Story Behind a Favorite Christmas Song
Twelve Days of Christmas Stained Glass Coloring Book

~ January 6 :: Feast of Epiphany ~ 

Babushka and the Three Kings
Small Camel Follows the Star
The Last Straw
The Third Gift
We Three Kings

~ Board Books for our Littlest Ones ~

A Christmas Carol
B Is for Bethlehem: A Christmas Alphabet Board Book
Christmas in the Manger
One Night in Bethlehem
Saint Nicholas: The Real Story of the Christmas Legend
Stable in Bethlehem: A Countdown to Christmas (not pictured)
That’s Not My Reindeer (not pictured)
The Christmas Story Board Book
The Legend Of The Three Trees – Board Book
The Saving Name of God the Son
The Twelve Days of Christmas
Touch and Feel Baby Jesus Is Born
Who’s Hiding: A Christmas Lift the Flap
Who Is Coming to Our House?

~ A Few More Out Of Print Finds  ~

A Child’s Story of the Nativity Illustrated by Masha
That Wonderful Night: The Story of the Very First Christmas
The Christmas Anna Angel 
The Little Juggler

I plan to add to this post as our collection continues to grow. Links to all of my book posts for the various feasts and seasons can be found here.

Note: I haven’t finished adding our new additions for 2014 to this list but you can find them listed in my post of New Christmas Books for the Feast of St. Nicholas.

Advent & Christmas Favorites from Holy Heroes

Nov 16, 2014 | , | 0 Comments

Today I wanted to share some of our Advent and Christmas favorites available from Holy Heroes!

Advent is right around the corner and I have been making plans! I am still working on this year’s Advent Book Baskets (you can find last year’s book basket here) and I have already posted my New Christmas Books for the Feast of St. Nicholas. (Have you entered the giveaway yet?)


(Note: This post includes affiliate links. If you click any of the links in this post and make a purchase I will receive a percentage. Thank you for blessing our family in this way!) 

Advent Adventure

Advent Adventure Activity Book

Our children have really enjoyed the Advent Adventure in the past (sign up now, it’s free!) and I’m excited about the addition of the Advent Adventure Activity Book this year. Advent begins on November 30th, but there is still time to place an order if you do it soon! I purchased the three pack and now I need to decide which of my seven children will be the lucky ones who get to use them this year. 😉  

Advent Candle Kit

Advent Candle Kit

I am still trying to find a new favorite alternative to the Advent Candles I always purchased and loved from Mt. Angel Abbey… I finally broke out my very last set (although they were square instead of round) and we lit them last Advent. This year I am still not sure what I’ll be using for our large Advent wreath in the family room, but I am looking forward to trying out the lovely beeswax candles I ordered last month from The Cloister Shoppe. I’ll be using these candles in our new Enesco Pillars Advent Wreath on the dining table to light during dinner each night.  (Note: The Cloister Shoppe has unfortunately sold out of Advent Candles for this year, but they have many other items that would make great gifts including St. Nick Soap and a couple darling picture books for children. Plus your purchase helps support the Dominican Nuns!)

We have enjoyed crafting our own candles for Christmas, Easter, and Along the Alphabet Path (Oh! Look how little they all were back during “H” week rolling candles!) and I’m excited to let them try out the Advent Candle Kit this year. These candles usually tend to burn really quickly so I’m not sure how long it will last but it will definitely be a fun activity for Advent. 

Jesse Tree DVD

Jesse Tree DVD

Last year was our first year using the Jesse Tree DVD. It was so convenient for me and the children really enjoyed watching all the videos.  The were also excited when they saw the children in the video using the same Jesse Box that we pulled out last year! 

My one “complaint” is that the symbols for each day don’t perfectly match those that my children have grown up using(oh, why does each and every Jesse Tree have to be a little different) but I’m working on figuring out how to mesh them all together (Jesse Tree DVD/Advent Adventure + our original Jesse Tree + our Jesse Tree Treasures Ornaments + the Read-Aloud Book of Bible Stories below – it’s such a blessing to have so many great resources!) for this year and will probably end up creating a couple new ornament options to add to our felt set.  

Read-Aloud Book of Bible Stories

Read-Aloud Book of Bible Stories

Speaking of the Jesse Tree one of my plans for this year is to incorporate the stories from the Read-Aloud Book of Bible Stories. (You can also find this wonderful book on Amazon.) Even though we still love the using the New Catholic Picture Bible (you can find a free printable with the corresponding readings here) I’m ready for a little change and am really looking forward to reading this book aloud to the children this Advent! I have a couple ideas and I’ll try and share them as I figure it all out and finalize our plans. 

Gifts from the Magi

I purchased our Gifts from the Magi from Amazon a few years ago and am so excited to see that Holy Heroes has them available! Our children love using these for the annual Christmas play they perform for Sean and I and I love including them in our Twelve Days of Christmas Dinner Party!  I think they are totally worth the investment. 

Glory Stories

Glory Stories Audio CDs

We LOVE Glory Stories and our children have grown up listening to these beautiful and inspiring stories about the lives of the saints. We already own the whole series and I’ve given many of them as gifts to friends and Godchildren over the years. I still cry every time I listed to the story of Saint Miguel de la Mora of the Knights of Columbus and my boys are especially inspired by the story of Blessed Jose Luis Sanchez del Rio. They are all excellent and make great stocking stuffers!

Right now you can purchase three of the CDs for this month’s feast days for the price of two! 

Free Coloring Book with Purchase

Childhood of Jesus Coloring Book

Right now you can receive a free Childhood of Jesus Coloring Book with any purchase made now through November 30, 2014 with coupon code: Adv3nts4l3

(Note: Be sure to add the coloring book to your cart before applying the coupon code which will take the cost of the book off your order.)

Glory Stories Giveaway

Holy Heroes has also offered to send one of my visitors their choice of a Glory Stories CD! 

Please enter the giveaway using the Rafflecopter box below:

a Rafflecopter giveaway – Congratulations, Ann!


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.

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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?

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Shower of Roses Alphabet of Saints

A Papal Unit Study & Lap Book

Shower of Roses Easter Gift Guides



All Saints Party Printables

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