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!

Football and Stargazing

Wow! Where has this summer gone?! I have to admit that I love the summer heat and everything that goes along with it. It seems like the school year just ended and we started soccer and summer camp for Little Man.

Well...Soccer officially ended two weeks ago and this is the last week of summer camp. We did end soccer on a great note! Little Man received the award for being "The most Christ-like Player" during the last game because he helped a player from the opposing team up after they fell chasing down the soccer ball. His face lit up when he found out he was being bestowed with such a great honor. In recognition of his achievement, he received a red wrist band that says "Represent". Little Man wore that wristband everyday until it was lost in the abyss that has become his room. I am hoping we can find it because it meant so much to him. We will definitely be having a serious cleaning session very shortly to prepare for the upcoming school year. I am hoping to have clothes and toys to donate to our churches thrift shop.

Approaching the fall, we are entering into a whole new world of exciting life changing milestones. For Little Man, football tryouts just ended and we will be finding out more information about his team and the upcoming season tomorrow! Not only that, but he will be starting the 1st grade at a new school, and starting his Catechism for his first Reconciliation! I am so excited for him and to see how he is going to tackle these exciting new adventures in his life.

For Squishy, which may need a new nickname soon, will be moved up into the next class in daycare and we will aggressively start potty training. I can not believe my baby is becoming a big boy already. I received notice of his transition upward this past week and it nearly brought me to tears. I am so proud of both of my boys but I wish they could stay little forever. If you don't mind could you say a small prayer for squishy too.. he is having a hard time with his molars coming in and his congestion has been flaring up even with his nebulizer treatments.

 

Even with all these new and exciting developments for the boys, I am excited to say that I will be finishing my degree and starting classes this month as well! If you think we couldn't add anymore changes and attempting new things this month you were wrong... Eric has accepted a management position and will be starting management training right around the time the new school year starts.

 

God is showering us with so many blessings and our hearts are so full of happiness and appreciation! I have to admit I am a little nervous trying to figure out how we are going to manage all these new schedules changes and additions but God never gives you more than we can handle so I am stepping aside and allowing him to lead the way.

I touched on football a little but I am really excited about star gazing this week! The Feast of Saint Dominic, which is Little Man's Baptismal patron saint, and the Feast of Saint Lawrence are fast approaching! In honor of Saint Dominic I want to throw together a Star gazing party for the boys. Saint Dominic is the patron saint of astronomers. The story is that Saint Dominic's grandmother saw a radiant light that came from Saint Dominic's forehead during his baptism and he had a great love for learning. I think it would be fun to make star headbands for everyone to decorate and wear as we star gaze together in the backyard. Another fun fact about Saint Dominic is that he has an association with orange trees because it is said that he planted an orange tree at the Convent of Saint Sabina in Rome. I was thinking about having either star shaped sandwiches with chicken and stars soup or possible a star shaped pasta dish served with an orange sherbet punch in honor of this amazing saint. I would love some suggestions if anyone has some to give! At the Catholic Culture website they suggest making Cherries Jubilee in honor of the dream Saint Dominic's mother had of a dog holding a torch that lit the world on fire. I actually have my own dream that I had many years ago that has made me have such a strong devotion to this saint but you will have to wait until August 8th! Coincidentally, I was researching some ideas for the Feast of Saint Lawrence and I feel it really is only necessary to have a barbecue in his honor. We will either have cheeseburgers, hot dogs or some sort of kabob.... like I said I am still in the planning stages. In addition to a barbecue, I found that it is a tradition to wish pray upon a star and invoke Saint Lawrence to pray along with you. I think it is pretty awesome that the next two feasts we are celebrating both incorporate the stars. It will be a nice way to help bring our busy summer to s relaxing close.

So that sums it up! I would love some input on anything anyone has to offer as we start down the new path God has brought my family to travel. Thank you for your continued prayers and God Bless!

RE Graduation and Starting a New School Year!

Here is another better late than never post I started and forgot about. It's been so much easier updating my blog from a regular computer versus my phone... I know the new school and religious education years are about to start but oh well!  

 

Little Man and the rest of the family have been attending several different churches over the past year while we have been trying to figure out our new living situation. Well around February/March we finally moved into a beautiful new home and are becoming more active members (aka registered!) in the Catholic Church nearby. I was ecstatic to find that they offered Religious Education classes for Little Man's age group. He was only able to attend for a couple months but he absolutely loved his class and his teacher! He was lucky enough to have a beautiful Graduation ceremony to celebrate his achievement! I can not wait until next year's class... Little Man will be preparing for his First Reconciliation.

I am hoping that there may be a Blue Knights Group started here soon to open more educational opportunities about our faith. Squishy gets super excited when he sees his big brother getting awards and participating in events. I am truly blessed to have two sweet loving children. They are so affectionate to everyone but especially to each other. I love the "hurry up and take my picture mom" smiles I received! These boys have blessed my life in so many ways. I love being their mommy!

 

 

Now its time to get ready for the new chapter of religious education and Little Man starting 1st grade! Squishy still has some time before starting formal classes but I think he is learning a lot from me and his brother at home.

 

In addition to school we also registered Little Man for his first season of football... I am a little nervous but I hope he enjoys it. There are also some exciting new changes coming our way! Keep a look out for updates soon to come! God Bless!

 

 

Feast of Saint Anne and Joachim

Friday was the Feast of Saint Anne and Joachim. They are the parents of Mary and the grandparents of Jesus. I have a special devotion to Saint Anne since she was the Baptismal Saint my parents chose for me. This day is a little more special to my parents now because they are now grandparents too.

 

It is customary on this feast to enjoy shellfish and summertime fruits normally in a sort of pastry or tart. As I stated in my previous post, I have really been craving seafood so I decided to try my hand at Lobster Bisque. I was very impressed with myself because I have never made Bisque from scratch (minus making my own stock). The soup was very tasty! I think it was a huge success. I found the recipe on Pintrest not too long ago and saved it just for this celebration. I'm sure many of you have found tons of cute crafts and recipe ideas from this website too. If you haven't, I have to warn you it is utterly addicting, so check it out at your own risk.

In addition to our Lobster Bisque, I made a watermelon cake! Its an actual watermelon cut into the shape of a cake. I used Vanilla Greek yogurt as the "icing" and covered the "cake" with other summertime fruits and some praline pecans. Not too bad for my first try and I will definitely be making it again.  I liked the idea of having a healthier alternative to the many sweet treats I normally make. You know, the usual cupcakes, candies etc.

A few interesting facts I discovered preparing for celebrating Saint Anne is that she is correlated with rain in Germany and Italy. It is said that the rain showers during the month of July are Saint Anne's dowry. I promise it has been raining for almost 3 weeks straight here and I found it so ironic that it did not rain this past Friday in honor of Saint Anne. Oh well, there is always next year! I hope everyone else had an amazing celebration with their families with special recognition of any grandparents.

The next feast we will be celebrating is the Feast of Saint Ignatius of Loyola on Wednesday! I am hoping to actually have that post completed on Wednesday instead of almost a week later :o) In case anyone was wondering we will be making nachos!!

St Anne Prayer (To Obtain Some Special Favor) Glorious St. Ann, filled with compassion for those who invoke you and with love for those who suffer, heavily laden with the weight of my troubles, I cast myself at your feet and humbly beg of you to take the present affair which I recommend to you under your special protection.

St. Ann, please, recommend to your daughter, the Blessed Virgin Mary, and lay it before the throne of Jesus, so that He may bring it to a happy issue.
St. Ann cease not to intercede for me until my request is granted. (Here ask for favor you wish to obtain.)

Above all, obtain for me the grace of one day beholding my God face to face, and with You and Mary and all the saints, praising and blessing Him through all eternity. Amen.
Good St. Ann, mother of her who is our life, our sweetness and our hope, pray to her for us and obtain our request. (Three times).

 

 

Saint Anne, pray for us!

Feast of Saint Mary Magdalene

Last Monday was the Feast of Saint Mary Magdalene. I have to be real honest, I really wanted to make one of the traditional French pastries that are common to make in honor of Mary Magdalene but since I have never made them before I was afraid I may mess them up. Also I have been extremely crunched for time so I wanted to make sure whatever I attempted to bake or cook would be made in time to still enjoy it before the kids had to get ready for bed. So instead of the traditional Magdalenes, I decided to make "Mary"land crab cakes with grilled zucchini, homemade mash potatoes and corn bread! If you would like the recipe send me a comment or email!

I love the play on words and I have really been craving seafood lately! I have to admit they came out as a huge success and are apparently Little Man's new favorite :o) To finish our meal we also enjoyed a Passion fruit Sparkling drink to represent Mary Magdalene's presence during Our Lord's Passion. Overall I think the small celebration we had was very fun and delicious! Sorry again for the lack of pictures and late update.

 

Saint Mary Magdalene, pray for us!

Saint Kateri Tekakwitha

I am so excited to be writing this post about SAINT Kateri! Last year I was writing about Blessed Kateri, what an amazing opportunity to share how this amazing this new saint is and share how she has made an impact in my life in the short time I have been praying for her intercession in my life and my children's. There were a couple fun ideas and crafts I described before but I would love any new suggestions or ideas! Last year we made sand art and colored from Holy Heroes free coloring book they offered. If you have a chance you should check out their website and purchase their Glory Stories CD about Saint Kateri. It is amazing and people of all ages will appreciate it! The CD even includes an interview of the little boy whose miraculous recovery in 2006 helped pave the way to Kateri's sainthood!

My plans for Saint Kateri's first year as a saint were postponed. I really wanted to make a visit to the Indian Temple Mound nearby on Saint Kateri's feast day but they are not open Sundays. Instead, I felt it would be very appropriate to spend some time outdoors with the boys. We are still having some difficult times and I feel so much more at peace hearing the soft sounds of birds, the gentle whisper of the wind and the grand beauty that the world offers us. God has bestowed a vast world for us to enjoy and Saint Kateri was very aware of this. I have started running and praying quite often to help me cope with my current circumstances and I have asked Saint Kateri to intercede and pray for me and my family. I can honestly say that the quite time I spend running and praying has helped me exponentially. I have Saint Kateri to thank for that I am sure. Praying outside is something I think everyone should do. I have fallen in love with the closeness and personal feelings that accompany it. I am thinking of creating a rosary garden including statues of Mary but also Saint Kateri, she is the patroness of ecology after all :o) And she also made her First Communion on the Feast of the Annunciation.

There is a Nation Shrine in Saint Kateri's name that I hope to one day visit! Until then I will continue with my small outdoor prayer time in her honor. Below is a picture of me and my children enjoying homemade lunchables and praying the Litany of Kateri and the rosary this past Sunday. It was so peaceful and I think the boys enjoyed it too.

St. Kateri, Star of Native People and Bright Light for all! We thank God for your heroic courage, constant perseverance and deep love of the Cross. Pray for us that our love for Christ may deepen. And may we imitate you in following God's Will even when difficulties arise. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen

Saint Kateri, pray for us!

The Feast of Our Lady of Mount Carmel

Tuesday was the Feast of Our Lady of Mount Carmel. I absolutely love all the special celebration I have with my children but the ones we have honoring Mary are my favorite!

To start the day we had some Blueberry Oatmeal Muffins. I think we always end up having some kind of blueberry something in honor of Mary. Little Man told me that we have to have blueberries for Mary because they are her favorite. Stuff like that makes my heart and soul soar :o) Unfortunately, I did not get a picture of those beautiful muffins... I did get a picture of the delicious Mount Carmel Meatball Subs we had topped with "carmel"ized onions. This dish was inspired from Catholic Cuisine. They always have so many creative and yummy ideas to bake! One day I will be way more organized and I will make one of the beautiful Our Lady of Mount Carmel Crown Cakes. I purchased a pound cake with icing to symbolize our crown cake as a substitute.

Last year I posted some information about the Brown Scapulars if you wanted to know how to enroll your scapulars on this special feast day. This Feast day would also be a good time to make a family tradition of praying the Rosary daily. I try to do it with my children often but I need to make it part of our daily routine.

Our Lady of Mount Carmel, pray for us!