Feast of Saint Dominic

Plans for today were rearranged completely since I wrote out a short summary a post or two ago. So far this week both boys have been to the doctor and one has gone to the Emergency Room! Squishy has an ear infection and Little Man has an infection in his gland in his throat. As you can imagine this has obviously created an exciting week of driving to and from summer camp and daycare to doctor to hospital and then to the pharmacy. I have to say my little guys are so resilient, they are both still running around like there is nothing wrong with them :o)

Before I go into detail about our special celebration today I just had to share some adorable pictures of Little Man from today's football practice. It was the first practice the kids have had in full uniforms and they all look so adorable in their little uniforms and football gear! As you can see Little Man was exhausted from such a long practice but he said he really likes his cool practice uniform. While I was trying to entertain Squishy and take pictures during practice I apparently took a video as well?? I have no idea... I guess my phone has a mind of its own at times but I somehow captured Little Man's first tackle attempt. After practice I was told Little Man has a lot of potential and listens well so maybe this will be one of the sports he pursues as he matures in his athleticism.

I love seeing both of my kids blossoming as they grow. I feel so blessed to be their mom. I am hoping we can see a high school or college football game this coming season. Little Man always asks to go watch the "professionals" play. We are big Florida Gator fans! We watch the Patriots and Kansas City Chiefs as well :o)

Getting back on topic... I was able to throw together a nice but simple celebration in honor of Saint Dominic today! I ended up throwing together a couple turkey sandwiches and imprinted them with stars to serve along our chicken and stars soup. I served dinner with some Saint Dominic's Orange Punch, which was the highlight of the meal! I put 2 scoops of Orange flavored sherbet in some glasses and topped it with some ginger ale. I love that the boys were so excited about the bubbly drink. To end our small celebration we had smores! One day I am going to try a flaming dessert but I think the boys my be too little to fully appreciate it and actually may be more afraid than excited, if they saw their food on fire. Plus with all the doctors visits we have had this week I was not willing to try my luck that everyone would keep their little fingers away. 

During dinner I talked to the boys about some cool facts about Saint Dominic. We discussed how he is the patron saint of astronomy (thus all the star symbols in our dinner), his special connection to oranges and the dream that Saint Dominic's mother had about him while she was pregnant. He was a dog carrying a torch and he lit the world on fire. 

We also we unable to do any star gazing or glow in the dark bubbles. After the kids ate and took their baths they literally passed out on the couch together. They are snuggling each other as I sit here typing. I think we will try to move our outdoor activities to tomorrow night.

As promised, I wanted to share my special story about Saint Dominic (Little Man still doesn't know this). When I was pregnant with Little Man, I had planned on giving him a different name than the one he has. One night I had a dream that I was sitting in a church and I was alone in this gorgeous room full of beautiful stained glass. I can see in the middle of this room there is a book lying on the middle of the ground. I hear someone whisper, "Read it". I pick up the book and there was tons of writing but I can only remember seeing the word DOMINIC. All of a sudden the stained glass shatters and I am awaken from my dream. I remember calling my dad the next day and telling him this story and how it touched me. I remember him laughing on the phone and saying he remembers having a dream about having a little girl named Jessica and him telling my mom about it. It is so funny how God's plan is so intricately designed and how it is perfect no matter how much we try to deviate from it. I know that God was talking to me in my dream, just like I think my dad feels the same way about his. And here we are :o) I later learned about the dream that Saint Dominic's mom had about him.

Saint Dominic, pray for us!