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Ladybug Lights"For the sake of His sorrowful passion, have mercy on us and on the whole world."
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June 30 Independence DayThe 4th of July is Friday...the day we celebrate our freedom! Thank a veteran for fighting for our continued freedom! Pray for the conversion of our country back to the morals and values it was founded on...traditional family values; and pray for a Godly outcome to the elections in November.
This is the one holiday that I do something a little wild
 . I paint my toenails red/white/blue...yup that's about as wild as I get folks! My big toenail is painted blue & has a white star on it. The rest of my toes are painted red with a white stripe down the middle. Pretty flashy and cool, I must say!  My daughters also have their toenails painted red/white/blue. They wanted their big toes blue and then 2 toenails are painted red and 2 are painted white, alternating of course! Make some red/white/blue foods to celebrate! Having food to match our special occasions is always fun!
Make popsicles from vanilla yougert: color part of the yougert red, part of it blue, and leave part white. Make a cone out of waxed paper that fits in a cone-shaped ice cream cone. Put a little red yougert in, then a little white, then a little blue. Put a popsicle stick in it & cover with foil, poking the stick through (this will keep the stick straight as they freeze). Freeze till solid...yummy!
Make a poke cake with a white cake mix and both red & blue jello.
Serve strawberries & blueberries...or that all-time summer favorite - watermelon.
Have fun, be creative and enjoy the fireworks! June 17 Marylike Standards for Modesty in Dress1. Marylike is modest without compromise, "like Mary," Christ's mother.
2. Marylike dresses have sleeves extending at least to the elbows and skirts reachings below the knees. When a woman sits down her knees should still be well covered. (Because of impossible market conditions, short sleeves are temporatily tolerated with Ecclesiastical Approval, until Christian womanhood again turns to Mary as the model of modesty in dress).
3. Marylike dresses require full coverage for the bodice, chest, shoulders, and back; except for a cut-out about the neck not exceeding 2" below the neckline in front and in back, and a corresponsding 2" on the shoulders.
4. Marylike dresses do not admit as modest coverage transparent fabrics - laces, nets, organdy, nylons, etc. - unless sufficient backing is added. However, their moderate use as trimmings is acceptable.
5. Marylike dresses avoid the improper use of flesh-colored fabrics.
6. Marylike dresses conceal rather than reveal the figure of the wearer; they do not emphasize, unduly, parts of the body.
7. Marylike dresses provide full coverage even after jacket, cape, or stole are removed. June 05 reusable shopping bagsI realize that it doesn't take much to amuse me, but these reusable shopping bags are SO handy! A friend was telling me about them, so I tried them today. Now you must understand that I only shop once a month, therefore I have about 25 or more plastic bags to unload by the time I'm done. They are falling all over the place, don't stack at all & tear easily. With the reusable bags, I have less than 1/2 the bags, they sit up in the trunk (and in the cart for re-packing after paying) and don't spill all over or tear. You can unload your groceries right from the bags into the pantry because you can see what is in the bag. Walmart has them for only $1 each! So you can't beat that! Then you can fold them all up & put them in one of the bags & throw them in your trunk...they take up no room at all & you have them with you every time you shop! Some stores even offer a small rebate if you use the re-usable bags each time. And you are saving the environment on top of all that convenience! You have to try them! June 02 ChicagoWe just returned from the Chicago area and had a wonderful time! We attended the Catholic Homeschool conference in Joliet, IL where I sold candleholders & Rosaries, as well as attending the conference. It was wonderful! Lots of great ideas that I hope to implement! Some friends of ours are in a graceful dancing troupe & performed at the conference. Did dances from around the world as well as a lovely portrayal of life in the womb - truly incredible!
We spent a couple of days with some friends (the ones in the dance troupe and their family) and enjoyed playing games, visiting, and praying together...oh, the kids had a great time swimming in the hotel pool together too, as well as getting their hair braided beautifully!
Then my husband's parents & 2 sisters joined us & we spent a couple days in Chicago together (& then made our way home with them) taking in the Museum of Science & Industry (highlights were: German submarine exhibit, glass blowing & stained glass exhibit...hmmm wonder why that was fun???, baby chick hatchery, went inside a real airplane), the Field Museum (highlights were: seeing many dinosaur skeletons, Egyptian exhibit, animals from around the world, Pawnee Earth Lodge), and the Navy Pier Stained Glass Museum (seeing a pattern here???) ...all very interesting and fun! The girls & I went to American Girl Place...while Virg drove around the block in downtown Chicago trying not to get a ticket...a fun place to visit...and shop of course! We all went to the Indiana Sand Dunes on Lake Michigan and found lots of neat rocks, climbed some dunes, and the girls got VERY wet in the lake, but had a great time! We also stopped in Dubuque, IA (rode the steepest & shortest tram up the side of a bluff, saw the lock system at work on the Mississippi River, and saw some beautiful architecture) where we could have spent several days! I had no idea Dubuque had so much to offer! We hope to go back sometime & spend several days there. We had a fun, safe trip & enjoyed our time away...its always nice to be home though. Our cat, Dreamer, missed us greatly & is waking us up every morning at 6am meowing LOUDLY! she continues to meow throughout the day & doesn't mind being smothered with attention! May 13 Feast of Our Lady of FatimaToday is the feast of Our Lady of Fatima. Mary appeared to 3 shepherd children on the 13th of each month from May thru October, 1917. She asked them to pray the Rosary to save poor sinners from going to hell. She predicted World War II. She showed them a vision of hell. In October, a miracle occured that was witnessed by thousands of people, the Miracle of the Sun. She wants us to pray the Rosary every day, wear the Scapular of Mt. Carmel, and make the 5 First Saturdays - our world is in need of much prayer and conversion...is she really asking us to do that much to help bring peace to the world???
To find out more, visit:
The World Apostolate of Fatima http://www.wafusa.org/
Fatima Family Apostolate http://www.fatimafamily.org/
May 05 FEAST OF PENTECOST RECIPESSunday is the feast of Pentecost, here are some recipes to set your celebration on fire
. Anything red works great of course, so be creative! Recipes with 3 ingredients or 3 layers work well too, for the Trinity. Anything spicy or tangy will...light your fire!HAM
Place uncooked ham in roasting pan. Pack brown sugar and dry mustard on top and sprinkle some in bottom of pan. Add 1-2 inches of water to pan. Cover tightly. Bake at 350 for 2 hours (for a thawed 3# ham) or till meat thermometer reads 160 degrees. This is for a non-precooked ham, would probably work about the same for a pre-cooked ham, bake according to package directions.
HOLY SPIRIT SALAD
6 apples, peeled, cored, sliced thin
2 cups water
1 cup sugar
1 cup red hots candy
Heat water and sugar to boiling. Add red hots. Stir till melted. Add apples, cook till you like; if crisp, then just a few minutes; if mushy, then cook longer. Drain. Serve warm.
CLOVERLEAF ROLLS
Use frozen bread dough rolls. Thaw dough till soft but still cold, cut each dough ball in half. Place 3 halves in each muffin tin, cover with sprayed plastic wrap. Let rise about 3 hours, till double in size. Bake at 350 for 15-20 minutes, until golden brown.
TRIPLE-LAYER LEMON PIE
2 cups cold milk
2 pkg. (4 serving size each) lemon flavor instant pudding & pie filling
1 graham cracker crust
1 (8 oz.) tub Cool Whip
Pour milk into large bowl. Add dry pudding mixes. Beat with wire whisk 2 minutes or till well blended. Mixture will be thick. Spread 1 1/2 cups of pudding onto bottom of crust. Gently stir half of Cool Whip into remaining pudding, spread over pudding layer in crust. Top with remaining Cool Whip. Refrigerate 3 hours or will set. Garnish with lemon peel if desired. Store leftover pie in refrigerator.
April 30 May AltarMay is dedicated to our Blessed Mother. Do you have your May Altar planned??? It can be as simple as a statue of Mary and a vase of flowers or a candle or something more elaborate including all or any of the following...a table covered with a blue cloth, statue or picture of Mary, candles, flowers, family picture(s), Rosary, Bible, Catechism, Rosary meditation book, etc. Your children will probably have great ideas of how to make a beautiful altar for Mary!
We ask Mary's intercession during May in a special way...we do not pray "to" Mary, but ask her to pray for us. She is Jesus's Mother...who do children ask when they want something? Mom of course! So we are asking our Heavenly Mother, whom Jesus gave to us before He died on the Cross, to intercede for us...to pray for us. If you are sick or going to have surgery, or something like that, do you ask other people to pray for you? It is no different to ask someone on earth to pray for you than someone in Heaven, like Mary...except of course Mary is Jesus's Mother, therefore her prayers are even more powerful than ours! We STILL listen to our mothers...don't we??? So does Jesus
. Just like He did at the Wedding at Cana when Mary first interceded for someone...the bride & groom. We are not praying to the statue or picture either, we are using that image to remind us of Mary (or whoever the statue or picture is of). Do you have pictures of your children or grandchilden or parents or grandparents? Do you worship that image??? Of course not! But those pictures remind us of those we love! Do you sometimes even kiss that picture of your loved one? Do you 'love' the picture? No, but you love the person that the picture reminds you of! So we have statues and pictures to remind us of Jesus and Mary and our favorite saints...because we love them too!Happy May! Happy Spring! Happy Mother's Day! April 29 Tribute to Pope John Paul IIA Star rose in Poland,
Bright, beautiful and strong
Formed in a land of suffering,
Amidst much right and wrong.
A Scholar, Philosopher, Theologian, Poet
An Actor, Mystic, man heroic
Called to be a priest, bishop, then Pope
Bringing to a confused world much hope.
A man of suffering, love, strong faith
Inspiring youth to a life that is safe
Traveling the world, meeting the great and lowly
Bringing the Good News of Christ, so all be holy.
Vicar of Christ, Visible Head of the Church
Neglecting no one in his universal search
To bring the world to Christ and Mary His Mother
Pope John Paul the Great, man's favorite brother.
(by, Fr. Robert J. Fox - www.fatimafamily.org)
April 20 Freedom of Speech????We had a birthday party for my daughters with my husband's family today at a pizza place in a small college town. Pizza was delicious, we had a good time...despite the mix-up of not getting the party room as we had requested. After eating pizza, opening presents, singing "Happy Birthday" and having dessert, a bunch of us went to a local park so the kids could play for awhile. When we were leaving, we noticed little pieces of...something...on the ground by the car. We realized it was my pro-life magnetic bumper sticker that had been torn up into little pieces!!! Why is it that I don't get the right to have freedom of speech??? Of course, my oldest daughter immediately said, "I know what we should do for whoever did that...we should pray for them!" Out of the mouths of babes! April 12 Spring?Is spring EVER going to come to the Midwest??? I am SO ready...where is it??? The robins came back, so I figured, good we only should have 1 more snow - they alwayrs seem to get snowed on at least once...I think its been about 4 or 5 times. I tried taking down the snowflakes from the windows that the kids made...has snowed at least 3 times since then! I tried changing my blog to this lovely pink flower design...didn't work! I want...no, need...warmth & sunshine! I am praying for spring to come SOON! April 11 Vacation Bible SchoolI am working on plans for Vacation Bible School at our church for this summer. Our theme is "Under Construction with St. Joseph." If you have any ideas let me know! April 03 Happy Birthday!His Holiness, Pope Benedict XVI will be celebrating his birthday on April 16. You can send him a card at:
His Holiness, Pope Benedict XVI
00120 Via del Pelligrino
Citta del Vaticano
Europe March 24 Thank you Gov. Heineman!Gov. Heineman of Nebraska has declared March 30 thru April 5 as "Nebraska Home Education Week!" Thank you Gov. Heineman! Hopefully other governors and states will follow his example in supporting parents' rights to educate their children at home. Send Gov. Heineman a letter thanking him for his support of homeschooling:
Gov. Dave Heineman
PO Box 94848
Lincoln NE 68509-4877
To read his proclamation, go to: http://www.hslda.org/hs/state/ne/Neb_Proclaim_08.pdf March 20 The Joyful Mysteries of LifeI just finished the MOST wonderful book for helping parents to explain the 'facts of life' to their children! It is absolutely beautiful! There are chapters to read & discuss with your child, and discussion questions are even included. The book was written by Catholic parents for their own young family. In order to encourage attitudes of respect and reverence for the mysteries of procreation, the biological facts are presented in the context of a meditation on the joyful mysteries of the Rosary. Chastity, both inside and outside of marriage, is shown to be the Christian way of living out God's will in regard to the procreative aspect of our nature. In his forward, Cardinal Lopez Trujillo welcomes The Joyful Mysteries of Life as a response to the Church's call for good resources for education in sexuality: "With its predominatly spiritual and moral emphasis, in a positive, clear and delicate way, this book is designed to assist parents in their task of formation."
The Joyful Mysteries of Life
by, Catherine and Bernard Scherrer
Can be found at:
February 28 St. Patrick's Day recipesI am planning ahead! I like preparing special recipes for the Saints' Feast Days. One of my favorite resources for doing this is "Building the Family Cookbook" by Suzanne Fowler. The potato soup and soda bread recipes are from her cookbook. Here are some recipes you could use for St. Patrick's Day:
St. Patrick's Potato Soup:
32 oz. frozen hash browns (thawed or partially thawed)
4 Tbls butter
3-4 stalks celery, chopped
1 c onion, chopped
1 can ready to serve chicken broth
2 c water
1 can cream of celery soup
1 can cream of chicken soup
2 c milk
salt & pepper to taste
In a soup pot, saute celery, onions, salt and pepper in 4 Tbls of butter till tender crisp. Add potatoes, broth, and water to the celery mixture, stirring over high heat. When mixture comes to a boil, cover and reduce heat. Simmer for 30 minutes. Stir in soups, milk, salt and pepper and heat till hot, stirring occasionally. You may serve with cheddar cheese, bacon and parsley. You can double the chicken broth, water, soups and milk if you are serving a large crowd without adding more potatoes and still have a rich soup.
St. Patrick taught about the Trinity, make Trinity dinner rolls:
Using frozen bread dough rolls (or your own bread recipe should you be more talented than I am), divide each roll into 3 parts, rolling each part into a ball. Cover & let rise till double. Spray muffin cups. Roll each ball in flour & place 3 balls in each muffin cup. Squeeze melted butter between balls. Bake at 350 for 15-20 minutes.
Irish Soda Bread
3 c flour
3/4 tsp salt
1/2 c sugar
1 tsp baking soda
2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp cream of tarter
1/3 c butter
1 1/2 c buttermilk
1/2 box raisins (optional)
Mix dry ingredients; cut in butter. Add raisins, if desired, and buttermilk, stir till moist. The dough will be sticky. Flour your hands and shape dough into a ball. Knead for 15 seconds on a lightly floured board. Place on a lightly greased baking sheet. Flatten to about 10 inches in diameter. Using a serrated knife, cut a deep cross in the top of the loaf as you say "God bless this family in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, Amen." Bake at 350 degrees for 45-50 minutes. Glaze: Combine 1/4 c powdered sugar and 2-3 Tbls milk. Stir until thick syrupy. Brush on warm bread. This is wonderful!
Jello-O Parfait
1 small pkg lime Jello
1 c sour cream
8 oz. Cool Whip
1 tsp vanilla
1 can fruit cocktail or pineapple tidbits, drained well
Mix the Jello with the sour cream. Add vanilla and mix well. Fold in Cool Whip. Layer fruit and Jello mixture in parfait glasses. Chill. Serve cold.
St. Patrick's Day Cupcakes
1 3/4 c flour
small box instant pistachio pudding mix
3/4 c mini chocolate chips
2/3 c sugar
2 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
2 beaten eggs
1 1/4 c milk
1/2 c oil
1 tsp vanilla or 1/4 tsp almond extract
1 cup cream cheese frosting (1/2 of can of frosting if you're lazy...I mean busy...like me) tinted green if desired
green colored sugar, other decorations as desired
Grease muffin cups. In large mixing bowl, stir together flour, pudding mix, chocolate chips, sugar, baking powder and salt. Add beaten eggs, milk, oil and vanilla, stirring just till combined. Fill muffin cups about 2/3 full. Bake at 375 for 18-20 minutes or till golden brown. Cool. Frost & decorate. Makes 24 cupcakes.
Be sure to have your children make shamrocks, paint rainbows, and talk about the Trinity!
February 19 Apostolate of Holy MotherhoodChrist Child speaking on February 23, 1987: "I wish you to be joyous even in your trials and tribulations. This may seem difficult to understand, but if you unite your suffering to Mine, I will turn it into joy...Christian suffering has meaning and is redemptive. In fact, it is necessary for your salvation, for he who would follow Me must take up his cross...Never seek what may not be God's will. Pray always that God's will be done and accomplished in you...I wish to establish in the world greater devotion to Me as the Christ Child. This will be helpful in combating the evils perpetrated against innocent children which are so sadly common now. The innocence of children must be guarded as a precious jewel...At the end of each Rosary say three Hail Marys for the mitigiation of the suffering of the innocent children in the world - so precious and dear are they to My Mother and I. Often throughout your daily duty, say, 'This is for the innocent children suffering in the world.'"
Blessed Mother speaking, later on February 23, 1987: "Continue to pray for all priests as they need your prayers right now. The Christ Child will be your guide in perfecting you in the way of motherhood, such a sublime vocation which has fallen into disregard among many...The children which God has given them must be first in their lives, even at times coming before their husbands, but, of course, neve before God Himself. The more that you love God, the more you will love your husband and children...I am sorrowful that so many mothers neglect their duty for other things. This is often unnecessary and solely for the purpose of accumulating more wealth, when their true weal | |||||
