A Couple Quick Questions. . .

One of my boys has a birthday coming up this next week and I am trying to decide on a few gifts for him, while I still have time to place an order online.  Anyhow, I recently came across a series of books by Dianne Ahern - Adventures with Sister Philomena, Special Agent to the Pope (which includes Lost in Peter's Tomb, Break-In at the Basilica, Curse of the Coins, and Secrets of Siena) -  and was curious if any of you/your children have read them and whether or not you would recommend them to others.    They seem to have good ratings on Amazon, but I haven't seen them mentioned on any of the blogs I read (at least not that I remember), so thought I'd ask all of you.

Also, since he loved the lego sets he was given for Christmas, I think we will get him another one to add to his new collection.   I've just ordered a LEGO® Bricks & More Building Plate 628 so I can make him a Lego Tray, but I can't decide on whether to just get him a box of Basic Bricks or another actual set (perhaps the LEGO City Corner (7641) - which is currently way overpriced on Amazon but might be available locally).  Any thoughts?  For some reason I am completely overwhelmed by all the choices when it comes to legos!  :)

Thank you all for your help, and Happy Candlemas!     I am sure I will be back later with some pictures from this year's Candlemas Tea.  :)

On the Feast of St. Brigid of Ireland

Today is the feast of St. Brigid of Ireland, Abbess of Kildare. This afternoon we will be reading a few books about St. Brigid.   A couple of our favorites are Brigid's Cloak (with the study guide in Catholic Mosaic) and Saint Brigid and the Cows.   This past year I also purchased  The Life of Saint Brigid: Abbess of Kildare to add to our collection.  It is a beautiful book, and I am glad to have it in our home collection.

For those of you that don't have a picture book of St. Brigid (or even if you do), I wanted to let you all know that, like the book Lucia, Saint of Light, The Life of St. Brigid is also available to listen to at Ancient Faith Radio!  I plan to play it for my children later today.

We will also be enjoying some more of St. Brigid's Oaten Bread and Irish Potato Pancakes.  Don't forget to print out the lovely coloring page at Waltzing Matilda and/or copy the one from Fenestrae Fidei, and here are directions for How to make a St. Brigid's Cross.

O Glorious St. Brigid, Patroness of Ireland and Mother of the Churches, protect the Irish Church and preserve the true Faith in every Irish heart, at home and abroad. Obtain for us the grace to walk faithfully in the path of Christian perfection during life, and so to secure a holy and happy death, with life everlasting, in thy blessed company, through Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen.

Happy St. Brigid's Day! 

Say Cheese!

On Friday morning we met Father T., as well as his visiting sister and her family, at a local creamery (before continuing on to the chocolate factory) for a field trip!

Even though they were not making cheeses (at least not on the other side of the viewing window) at the time, the plant manager/head cheesemaker came out and gave us all an excellent presentation.  He explained the whole process in which they create their Worldwide Award Winning Handcrafted Artisan Cheeses!

First he explained how the milk comes from a local farm that the creamery works with exclusively.  The cows are fed a grass-based diet, so that the flavors of their milk reflect such freshness.  This is the first (and very important) step in their handcrafted process with has been resulting in both nationally and internationally recognized cheeses.  He then went on to tell us all about the actual process of making cheese, once the milk arrives at the creamery:

CUTTING ::  The vat is filled with fresh raw grass-based milk, cultures and mold. Then it is stirred by hand. Vegetable enzymes are added to coagulate it. After setting, it is cut with a cheese harp to make curds.

STIRRING ::  The curds are then hand-racked, shoveled and turned. This strengthens the individual curds and gives them integrity.

SALTING ::  Salt is added to the vat by hand.

DIPPING ::  A stainless steel bucket with holes is used to hand-draw the curds and pour them into hoops. The hoops are placed on drain tables and turned (by hand!) every 15 minutes until the curds have knitted into a wheel.

PERFORATING  ::  The wheels are placed in our caves and turned (by hand!) every day like champagne. After a period of time, the wheels are perforated. This allows mold to grow inside the wheel. 

AGING ::  The wheels are places into one of our four aging caves and turned (by hand!) daily.

WAXING ::  The wheels are pulled out of the cave after a period of time, then cleaned and waxed. The wheels are them put back into our caves and aged up to two years.

WRAPPING ::  The wheel is pulled from our caves when it has achieved the perfect level of mold and taste. The wax is stripped from the wheel and the cheese is wrapped (by hand!) in foil and cheese paper for the customer.

The Creamery's handcrafted blue cheeses have won numerous awards, including the prestigious World Cheese Award for best blue and first place in the American Cheese Society Competition.

After the presentation, my children all enjoyed tasting some of the cheeses.  Despite all the awards, they just didn't want to taste the moldy blue cheese, though they loved the original curds and cheddar samples.

We were all so impressed that this little local creamery has become one of the finest artisan cheese operations in the world today.  Their cheese is served on Air Force One, at the White House Inaugurations, and even to the Queen of England!  I think we might just have to stop by again one day soon to sample more of those delicious cheeses see them in operation.

It really was a great field trip, but I have promised my children that our next one will not involve "Moldy Cheese or Spicy Chocolate!"

On the Feast of St. Thomas Aquinas

Prayer to St. Thomas Aquinas
O Angelic Doctor, St. Thomas, prince of theologians and guide of philosophers, bright ornament of the Christian world, light of the Church and patron of all Catholic schools, who has wisdom without deceit and did impart it without envy, pray for us to the Son of God who is Wisdom itself, that, by the coming of the Spirit of Wisdom, we may understand what you have taught and imitate what you have done, and that being made partakers of the wisdom and virtue in which you, while on earth, did ever shine, as the sun, we may last enjoy with you in heaven their sweetest fruits, praising the Divine Wisdom through endless ages. Amen.

Yesterday was the feast (on the new calendar) of St. Thomas Aquinas. It was a busy, yet fun-filled, day for our family, and we were very blessed to be able to spend most of it with Father T. and his visiting sister and her darling family!   The morning started with two field trips:  one was at a creamery and the other at a chocolate factory.   Then we attended Father's noon Mass before heading home for lunch, some school work, and to get ready to have them all join us for dinner.

 

Somewhere in the there we did mage to find time to color pictures of St. Thomas Aquinas and bake a delicious Gluten-Free Apple-Walnut Spice Cake for dessert, decorated with stars.

"The star, St. Thomas Aquinas' symbol, signifies the divine guidance given him in his work." ~ My Nameday: Come for Dessert

Our children had SO. MUCH. FUN. playing with their new friends until way, way past their bedtime, but were all still able to get up this morning to go back to town for Father's Saturday morning Mass.  Hopefully it won't be too long before we are able to have Father over again for dinner.  What a blessing it is to have him in our area!  

God our Father, you made Thomas Aquinas known for his holiness and learning. Help us to grow in wisdom by his teaching, and in holiness by imitating his faith. Grant this through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

St. Thomas Aquinas, 
Patron of Students and Catholic Schools, 
Pray for Us!

Note to Self:

The next time you go on a field trip to an Artisan Chocolate Factory, it might be a good idea to turn any backwards signs around BEFORE giving all of your children a sample. . . Oops!  

{this moment}

{this moment} - A Friday ritual. A single photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember. If you're inspired to do the same, visit Soulemama to leave a link to your 'moment' in the comments for all to find.

Small Successes :: January 27, 2010

"It’s important for moms to recognize that all the small successes in our days can add up to one big triumph. So on Thursday of each week, we do exactly that."

I haven't posted Small Successes since last November, but since I didn't have time for a Daybook this week, I thought I would post these instead.

~ 1 ~

I spent some time on Saturday working on a new header for Catholic Cuisine. I have received quite a few complaints about the layout this past year - some people are not able to see the sidebars, others would like the posts to have a white background for easier printing, etc.   It isn't that hard to change the actual template, but the problem was that the header which is currently being used is part of the actual template and cannot be transfered to another blogger template.   I did not want to hire/pay someone to create one for the blog... (Catholic Cuisine is a free site and we have never looked for sponsors or have had paid advertising on the blog.  Some posts do contain affiliate links, which pay a percentage if a purchase is made after someone clicks over, but that very small amount is the extent of any "income" that is generated from the blog.)  Anyhow, at the suggestion of a friend, I spent Saturday evening over at Picnik (what a fun site!)  trying to create a new header, using a painting of The Last Supper by Domenico Ghirlandaio.  I thought it turned out nice, but I am still nervous about actually making changes to the blog - it has been the same since I first created it back in 2008...  So, I thought I would give you all a sneak peek here first.   I'd love to hear whether or not you like it... ;)

~ 2 ~

The weather has been beautiful this week!  Mostly sunny, with highs around 55˚...  It is still chilly, but nice enough to go outside each afternoon.   On Monday the kids and I worked on cleaning up our yard and then I even took the initiative to figure out how to fire up Hubby's leaf blower, after filling it up with gas, to clear all the fallen pine needles off the driveway.  It's hard to pull start a leaf blower!

~ 3 ~

The girls and I spent most of Monday and Tuesday evenings cleaning and organizing their room again.  It could still use a bit more work, but we made pretty good progress.  We went through all of their clothes, pulling out what had been outgrown, filling a couple bags to donate, and sorting/organizing what was left.  We then organized all of their toys.   My favorite change was moving their Dollhouse and Fairy Forest Lodge, as well as all the accessories off the floor and into their armoire.   The girls are loving being able to leave their toys all set up and just close the doors so their sweet little sister can't get her hands on all of it when she sneaks into their room. ;)

Stop by Faith and Family Live to read more of this week's Small Successes.

Wordless Wednesday

On the Feast of the Conversion of St. Paul

If St. Paul's day be fair and clear,

It does betide a happy year;

But if by chance it snow or rain,

Then will be dear [expensive] all kinds of grain;

If clouds or mist do dark the skie,

Great store of birds and beasts shall die;

And if the winds do fly aloft,

Then war shall vex the kingdom oft.'  

~ A Yearbook of Seasons and Celebrations

We are enjoying an absolutely beautiful day here and will be headed outside to enjoy the sunshine soon! Before we go, here are a few ideas for today's feast day:


Read:

• St. Paul the Apostle by Father Lovasik
• The Adventures of St. Paul by Oldrich Selucky
• Saint Paul: The Thirteenth Apostle (Encounter the Saints) by Mary Lea Hill
• The First Christians by Marigold Hunt
• Saint Paul the Apostle: The Story of the Apostle to the Gentiles by Mary Fabyan Windeatt

Coloring Pages and Activities:

• St. Paul Coloring Page from Waltzing Matilda
• A Very Determined Man: A Story of St. Paul - PDF Download
• Saint Paul COMIcolor Saints - Purchase from Pauline Media 
• St. Paul Crossword Puzzle - Online Printable

Other Resources:

• St. Paul the Great Evangelizer Faith Folder
• "Paul's Missionary Journey's" from New Testament Lapbook
• Food Suggestions for St. Paul the Apostle at Catholic Cuisine

A Prayer for Conversions

O Blessed Apostle, St. Paul, greatest of all converts, who labored unceasingly for the conversion of other souls, inspire me with the ardor of your zeal that I may pray and work for the conversion of my brethren, redeemed in the Blood of Christ but not as yet blessed with the full light of His Truth. Mindful of the loving concern of the Divine Shepherd for the salvation of the “other sheep that are not of this fold,” I now beg your intercession to obtain the grace of conversion for (name of family member, friend or others). May God, the Holy Spirit from Whom alone this gift can come, hear my humble prayer and thus enable me to share with others the riches of my heritage of faith through Jesus Christ, Our Lord.  Amen.

Once Upon a Time...

I have a few extra minutes this afternoon and thought it would be fun to share a picture of what our home looked like when we first moved in nearly 11 years ago!  I remember the day my Dad called asking if we wanted to come and look at a "little house with so much potential" where he was doing some electrical work.  The sweet old woman who owned the home was planning on putting it up for sale so she could go and live with her daughter.  

Other than the paved driveway, I don't see anything in this picture that hasn't been changed.  The retaining walls behind the house are gone... In fact, that is where the kitchen, dining room, and family room are now!  All that dirt got moved around to the side, creating a level play area for our children.  The chimney is now covered with stone.  The little "deck," orange front door, windows, siding, roof, etc, have all been replaced.  Not to mention it has nearly tripled in size.

Thankfully our little home has grown with our family, because I just can't imagine trying to fit all eight of us into the little two bedroom house that used to be here.  Deo Gratias! 

"When it comes to life the critical thing is whether you take things for granted or take them with gratitude."  ~ G.K. Chesterton