Last day of Kindergarten

My baby boy will always be my baby but according to him he is a big boy now. Today was Little Man's official last day of kindergarten. I wonder if every accomplishment is going to get me so choked up. Looking back on this past year I am even more proud of what he has accomplished because if all the additional obstacles he had in his path. I know most know that I am currently going through a really rough divorce and it has been equally hard on my children. We have had to be uprooted several times, change our schedules around and deal with the emotional trauma while continuing our daily lives. Little Man actually started school a couple weeks late because I did not have copies of his birth certificate and other important information to have him registered. I do not want anyone to feel sorry for us though because me and my boys are happier, stronger and have grown exponentially in our faith though this experience. God never gives you more than you can handle and he will never leave your side.
Here is a picture of Little Man with the beautiful Stargazer lilies he bought for his amazing teacher, Mrs. Guy. After the exciting school year he had in her classroom she sent such a sweet letter home in his folder saying she would love to hear how he continues to learn and grow. It really touched my heart and Little Man just smiled as I read it to him.

I am truly blessed and seeing the blessings that my sons will bring to the people we cross in our paths makes my heart soar.
Now on to the next adventures... summer camp and 1st grade!

Saint Boniface

You will have to forgive me for the lack of pictures I have to offer on the next few posts. I am using the blogger app on my phone and it isn't exactly picture friendly. Anyway...

Yesterday was the Feast of Saint Boniface and in honor of the patron saint of Germany I made German Goulash served on noodles and sourdough bread. I have to admit that the Goulash recipe I used was not amazing but everyone ate it with no complaints. Next year we will find a new recipe or try a different dish all together. We also made German cut out cookies. They are very similar to sugar cookies and of course were a huge hit with the kids. They didn't even mind they were a tad bit burnt on the bottom.

Saint Boniface is an awe inspiring saint who spent his life converting pagans. In one story Saint Boniface saved a boy from becoming a sacrifice by destroying the Oak tree the pagans used in their ritual with one hit with his staff. The instance the tree was hit a huge wind blew the Oak tree over and its wood was used to build a chapel. Saint Boniface then told the pagans to use a Fir Tree as a symbol of Christ. Its evergreen leaves point to heaven and it should a symbol of love and gifts of kindness.

I am still working a lot and I need to get more organized for these feast days to include more coloring pages and crafts. I was brainstorming about a few traditions that would be fun to incorporate on this day, such as picking out the new Christmas ornament that will adorn our Christmas tree this year. I thought it would be great to incorporate a tradition to tie into the Christmas tree story. What are your thoughts?

You can also check out my previous post on Saint Boniface from last year. We made a delicious German chocolate cake that I wish I would have made it again this year! It was amazing. Also adding a bottle of German wine would have completed the celebration.

Saint Boniface, pray for us!

Mud Run 2013

Wow! It has been so long since I have been able to take a look at my life and know that I am on the path God created for me. I am happier now than I have ever been. As a family we are still struggling through some big bumps in the road but me and my boys are strong and God has continued to provide for us. We were rock bottom. No home, no money and only our faith, family and friends to help us. And we are doing it! More on that later but I did want everyone to know that God truly provides in any and every circumstance and you will NEVER be alone!

Now... on to some blogging! I have so much to write about and its going to be a jumbled mess but its going to be fun. I thought I would start writing about the Mud Run I ran with my coworkers from Ruby Tuesday.

The Emerald Coast Mud Run is an annual 5K obstacle course done to help raise money for orphans. They have several different options for this run. There is a kids run, which Little Man really wants to try next year, the Warrior version which is longer and the obstacles are more difficult than the normal 5K I ran. If you go to their website I did see some pictures of me and my team so take a look around and you will see the awesome obstacles and the huge amounts of mud they had ready for us to tackle. I will admit I fell face first into the mud during the up and over obstacle and my fellow teammate, Jeff had to carry myself and our other runner across the monkey bars! Our hands were so slippery I would fly off 2 bars before the end of the monkey bar set. It was a great cause to participate in and was an amazing experience. I think I want to try a half marathon next! What do you think? I feel like I am ready. Take a look at our before and after. Come join us next time!

Nemo and Little Man's Adventures

Nemo is Little Man's class pet from school. I think this idea is so incredibly cute. Nemo came home with Little Man this past Thursday. Nemo came in a travel bag with a Journal to record all the adventures he goes on with our family. It is encouraged that the kids take photos along the journey and draw pictures in the journal for them to discuss with the class. I will also write a brief description of our fun filled weekend for the teacher to read to the class. To be honest, I had no clue that Nemo would be coming until Little Man was attempting to bring an extra backpack home from school. Thankfully I was able to throw together a special "Welcome Nemo" dinner complete with Sparkling apple juice. I love how the little things can make my boys so happy. Little Man had a blast making sure Nemo had a wonderful dinner and making sure our dinner guest was comfortable. We ended our night by watching The Lorax together snuggled on the couch.

On Friday, Little Man was invited to a sleepover at his friends house all by himself! I think it was the first time he has stayed the night at anyone.s house without me or Squishy and he was thrilled. Little Man's friend doesn't attend the same school as Little Man but had also completed a weekend with his class pet, Buddy the Beaver, just a few weeks ago and welcomed Nemo with open arms. Both boys are the biggest Scooby Doo fans of their generation, so they had a Scooby Doo party with cartoons, pajamas and Scooby snacks. Nemo loved cuddling with the Mystery Machine pillows and blankets. I wasn't there to witness the craziness that evening but I heard everyone passed out from all the singing and dancing. 

Even though Friday was full of adventure, Saturday was even better! I met Little Man and his friend at the local skating rink. This was the first time I have skated since Middle School and a first for both of the kids! I have to admit I was impressed with how quickly the kids caught on to skating. I consider my boys to be quite clumsy, just like their mother, but they had amazing coordination on the roller skates. They used the side walls at the beginning but after 30 minutes Little Man was skating around the rink all by himself! Squishy was chasing after his big brother too! It was so adorable and we didn't forget Nemo either! He was a natural at skating too :)


We skated for a couple hours and then loaded everyone in the car to take a quick nap. We didn't drive out of the parking lot before everyone was fast asleep. We stopped by the house and packed their overnight bag before heading off to take the boys to my sister's house for their sleepover with her. I have been trying to work a couple evening shifts on the weekends and the boys love getting special time with their Aunt! I snapped a quick pick of the kids asleep on the couch and the dog watching Nemo while they were sleeping.

Sunday we picked up the boys and went to Mass. We did not bring Nemo to church because the boys do not like to be quiet when they have distractions with them. Instead we took Nemo on one last adventure at Turkey Creek and showed him the beautiful nature trail. It was an extremely busy weekend! Now I am printing pictures from the computer to add to Nemo's travel journal and preparing a short summary of the weekend. I wonder if it would be acceptable to just a copy a link to my blog? :)

Little Man was so glad that he was able to take Nemo to meet his friends and family and have some amazing adventures everyday. I am so grateful he has a great teacher that makes learning and experiencing life fun. We are still experiencing a lot of changes in our daily lives and it looks like we are getting back into a good routine and possibly moving into a larger place. Yay! Please keep us in your prayers as we continue on our journey.

Christmas Pictures

Getting in the Holiday Spirit

Sorry I have not been blogging much lately but thank you for the kind emails asking how myself and my children are doing. Your prayers have touched our hearts! I am finally getting settled into a new routine with my kids. I am hoping to incorporate blogging more but since it has been such a long time here is a summary of our Advent and Christmas preparations and celebrations.

God truly provides. My kids and I have been blessed with my friends and family members coming to aid us during our greatest life change. At times it's hard to imagine what plan God has for us but I am beginning to see that his plans are more amazing than anything I could plan for myself and my family. Please keep us in your prayers as we continue down our new path.

Since I have not been blogging consistently there is so much I would like to share so I will apologize in advance because the rest of this is going to look like a mini scrapbook with random thoughts and pictures. I will try to keep everything short and sweet :)

Picking the Perfect Christmas Tree
We decided to purchase a real tree this year and the kids were so excited running through the forest or trees on display. It was a beautiful night and the smell of the Christmas trees and wreaths was amazing. I hope one day I can take the kids to actually cut down a Christmas Tree. 

Decorating the Tree
We were going to wait to decorate our beautiful tree but the boys were so excited after buying ornaments and lights that we couldn't say no. I think putting our gorgeous Star on the top was their favorite part of the entire experience.

Feast of Saint Nicholas

I absolutely love reading Jessica from Shower of Roses blog on all her traditions with her family. I wanted to write letters to the boys from Saint Nick but I had been working extra shifts due to the seasonal rush this time of year and starting a second job.

This year Saint Nicholas brought the boys some Christmas books, The Legend of the Candy Cane and A Christmas Prayer. There was also chocolate coins and candy canes with Christmas socks filled with several real gold $1 coins.

Squishy's Holiday Program

Squishy had the cutest holiday program at his daycare for the children ages 3 and under.

His class sang Rudolph the Red Nose Reindeer. Although none of the children really sang, it was more the parents in the audience since the children were overwhelmed. Squishy was sitting next to a little boy wearing a Rudolph nose and stared at the blinking light on the little boys face until half way though the song he decided to poke the poor kid on the nose. It was hilarious! I will always remember this production and I am so excited to see Squishy participate in more programs like this soon.

Baking Gingerbread Cookies
Decorating cookies has always been a favorite activity for Little Man during the holidays. This time Squishy was able to participate but he chose to eat the cookie decorations instead of decorating his cookies.

I am hoping to post about Christmas Day soon... I have until Candlemas though right? In addition to the activities above we also decorated gingerbread houses and went for a walk through Christmas Reflections. I tried my best to incorporate our normal traditions but this Christmas was a very simple one due to lack of time and money. I think it actually made it one of the most meaningful Christmases we have shared as a family. I also have some ideas about celebrating The Baptism of the Lord this upcoming Sunday I would like to share along with a review of The Big Book of Catholic Customs and Traditions. I hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas with their friends and families!
God Bless!

God's Plan

I don't really know how to go into writing this post... It's been several months since I have been active in blogging. So... I am just going to say it. I am getting a divorce. My husband and I are ending our marriage. It is still difficult to talk about and I never saw this as something my family and I would ever have to endure. The past few years have been hard and I would rather not give reasons to the end of the marriage but I do want to say that in all honesty there are no other options for us. I know that sounds crazy to many people but I have to admit it sounds crazy to me too. I do not believe in divorce and I truly meant "until death do us part". I have discussed everything with our family priest and he is preparing me for this journey and is helping me through the annulment process as well. I never thought I would be a single mom with two children. I have faith that this is God's plan for me.

It feels strange to be so far from my comfort zone and relying on God alone to truly provide for me and my family. I was blessed with a nice home that provided everything we needed and now I no longer have that. Me and my two children are essentially homeless but have been blessed to have amazing friends helping us as we get back on our feet, allowing us a roof over our heads and food to eat. I am starting to truly realize the extent of God's love for us. I just received the Holy Heroes Glory Stories CD about Saint Claire before St Claire's Feast Day in August and I was so touched by the reoccurring theme that God provides for the birds who neither sow, reap or store food and so we who are made in his image will be provided everything we need and more. I am living this reality.

I am asking everyone to please pray for me and my children as we are finding ourselves on a new road in life. We are finding so many blessings that have been bestowed upon us. Please pray for my ex-husband too, that he may find happiness and a stronger relationship with God.

I am hoping to find a new normal routine for myself and my children very soon. I feel horrible admitting but we have not been attending mass regularly nor have we celebrated any Feast Days. This is a time when we should be holding to our faith with both hands and I have allowed it to slip. I will be trying harder and I am optimistic about our future celebrations as a family! Thank you for stopping by and I will be back soon :o)