My Daybook :: December 11, 2012

by | Dec 11, 2012 | Uncategorized | 10 comments

Outside my window… 
The weather has been all over the place lately.  Yesterday it was beautiful and sunny, today it is back to cloudy and rainy.  We recently had quite the rain storm come through which caused quite a bit of flooding.  The Sunday before last Sean and the kids stopped by the river on their way home from town and by the time I got back to take a few pictures it had really “calmed down.”  It’s not as high as I have seen it, but still flooded the park…

These pictures were taken on Sunday, December 1st:
And here are a couple pictures that I took on Friday, December 7th: 
You can see that same little green box from the above picture on the far left on the following picture, to get an idea of how high the river was the previous weekend! 

I am thinking…        
about stocking stuffers and whether or not I want to order this (non-battery version) of the Little People Nativity as a birthday gift for Bud.  I better hurry… He is going to be one on the 19th!

I am thankful… 
that I have most of my Christmas shopping completed.  Now to just get everything wrapped, and the packages that need to be mailed to the post office!

Learning all the time 
We are just focusing on the essentials this Advent – not working on everything, but not taking Advent completely off either.  The kids are working on Religion, Math. and Language Arts every day, Writing and Latin each week, and History, Science, Geography, and the Alphabet Path can wait until January.

Celebrating the liturgical year 
Yes, we definitely have been celebrating the liturgical year – with even more celebrations coming up this week!

From the kitchen… 
Peppermint Dipped Snowflake Pretzels from Costco… Oh. My. YUM!!!

I am working on… 
the Celebrate/Quiet Moments section for Catholic Digest beginning with the February/Marsh issue! (Though you will find a recipe from Catholic Cuisine in the January edition!)   I mentioned it on Facebook, but I keep forgetting to mention it here.  My deadline is December 21st and I am very excited, and very nervous.   I am always amazed at God’s timing!  The little bit of income this will provide is exactly what Sean’s paychecks will be decreasing in January when they start deducting for our new Dental Insurance and Flex Savings Plan we just added to help pay for the kids braces.  God always provides!

I am creating… 
ornaments with the older children to give to their Godparents for Christmas.  They worked on them this past Saturday, and I just need to find a way to get the ribbons for hanging them back through the holes. Perhaps one of the “floss threaders” we have been using for the braces will help!

I am going… 
to try and finish our Christmas Cards this week. Our family picture is far from perfect, but it’s the best I have if I want to get cards out before Christmas!
 I am hoping… 
to get on the treadmill today.  It has been way way too long.   I attempted it yesterday, but only got as far as moving the baby swing and unfolding it before something came up.  My Dad recently told me that “He who begins is half done…”  Um… I don’t think that applies in this situation!  😉

I am praying… 
As we were lighting candles and praying for our Christkindl’s after Mass on Saturday, Father came over and asked us to also pray for a 7 year boy in our parish who was just diagnosed with a brain tumor.  Will you please offer a prayer for him too?

I am reading… 
Christmas Books and Bible Stories!  Speaking of Bible Stories, do any of you own this new Read-Alound Book of Bible Stories?   It was just published in October, and it doesn’t have any reviews yet, but it looks great!

Pondering these words…
spoken by St. Augustine:

“Him whom the heavens cannot contain, the womb of one woman bore.”

I am listening…  
to Advent at Epehsus and loving this new CD!

Around the house… 
I recently moved the Castle to Rose’s bedroom and she has been enjoying it so very much!   I think I am going to have to give her a Calico Critter family of her own for either her birthday or Christmas this year.   Isn’t the Deer family darling! 😉

The boys have a little green tree that gets set up in their bedroom each year, and the big girls have a purple tree.   When I was out shopping this past weekend I ended up buying this little tree for Rose in her favorite color.  She ran up and down the hallway yelling “Daddy!  Daddy!  I have a tree-uh! It’s pink-uh! I luv it!!!”  She was just a little excited!

One of my favorite things…  
choosing Christmas gifts for my children.  I think I enjoy deciding what to give them, just as much as they will love receiving them!  ( Shhhh!  The themes for the big kids this year are pretty much Historical American Girls – have you seen these great craft kits? They will tie in perfectly to the girls History plans! – for the big girls and lots of Legos for the big boys!  I can hardly wait to share more of my picks for this year.  So much fun!) 

This week’s plans…

Sunday :: Visiting priest and his Grandmother (who is visiting from Poland!) for dinner. (I loved that my children found little ways in which to communicate with her, even though she doesn’t speak English!  Twinkle Toes enjoyed showing her the new book she received on the Feast of St. Nicholas.  And the kids had saved a couple St. Nicholas cookies to give to Father and his Grandmother!)  

Monday :: School, School, School!
Tuesday :: School, Run Errands, Lego Robotics Class
Wednesday ::  Celebrate the Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe; Dear friends that moved away to the midwest are coming for a visit!!!
Thursday :: Celebrate the Feast of St. Lucy; Lego Robotics Class
Friday ::  Ice Skating, maybe?
Saturday :: Visit with friends ends… Lego Robotics Competition for Boys; Celebrate Rose’s 3rd Birthday!

A little peek at my day…
The girls sharing a Hot Cocoa after Mass on the Feast of St. Ambrose, 
before going to cut down a Christmas Tree! 

10 Comments

  1. Charlotte (WaltzingM)

    Oh my! That little Deer family is super cute. But not as cute as your little girl and her pink-uh tree-uh! She's adorable!

    Reply
  2. Anonymous

    Such sweet pictures! Can you by any chance share where you found that "pink-uh" toy kitchen that Rose is sitting near?

    Reply
  3. Jessica Gordon

    We purchased ours for the big girls quite a few years ago for only $40 at a St. Vincent's Dinner/Auction! It was damaged in the back, but you can't tell, and it has been perfect for the girls. At the time it was available at Costco, but it looks like Amazon has a similar version: Retro Kitchen and Refrigerator in Pink

    Reply
  4. Erin

    I thought the deer family was cute too, but my kids were a bit disturbed by their lack of antlers, ha!

    I love picking out Christmas gifts too… such fun!

    Reply
  5. Jessica Gordon

    Oh, funny! Well, we have lots of deer around our home all the time, most without antlers, so I don't think my kiddos will even think twice about that! 🙂

    Reply
  6. Karen

    Based on the preview of the Read Aloud Bible Stories book, I think it looks like it would be pretty good. I've had it on my religious ed wish list since it came out. I just have so many books on the list that I want for either my children or my class that the book will likely sit on my list until I either find it for a good price or a review copy lands in my mail box.

    Did you see that the Little People Nativity also comes as an on the go set in a box with a latch?

    Reply
  7. Jessica Gordon

    I did, though I didn't like it as much as the other versions.

    Reply
  8. Anonymous

    Hi Jessica, my 2 year old daughter has the Little People Nativity set and she just LOVES it! I think that the light and music are a really nice touch. I highly recommend it!

    Karen

    Reply
  9. Pamela

    I would recommend the Little People Nativity set as well! We don't turn on the music or star till Christmas morning, the rule is it stays off. The music is nice and soft I think you would love it.

    Reply

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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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