Great Suggestions for an Incredible Summer

My brother-in-law Tom Steenson, who is married to my husband's sister and teaches 5th Grade at The Heights School in Maryland, just wrote another excellent blog post and I wanted to share the link with you all:

Four ways for your son to have an incredible summer…

It is such an inspiring post!   A couple days ago I wrote out a simple schedule for our summer days and left plenty of time for the children (both our boys and girls) "to do nothing!"  In fact, all four of his suggestions were already on my list of "goals" for our family this summer.  However, Tom put it all into words so much better than I ever could. Do click over to read the whole post!

{pretty, happy, funny, real} :: Vegas in the Valley!

~ Capturing the context of contentment in everyday life. ~

{pretty}

New iPhone + Instagram filters = Better than reality new profile picture for Facebook! 

And for those who have asked, you can find the link to my pretty polka dot dress here. 

{happy}

It was so much fun to get dressed up for a night out with my husband last Saturday!  We went to Vegas and gambled... Yep, completely out of character for us! ;) 

Actually it was "Vegas in the Valley" an annual fundraiser for the Hadley Hope Foundation!  Tickets to the event included admission, appetizers, hosted beer/wine/soda, and $25 "funny money" which could be cashed in for chips.  I spent most of the evening playing Blackjack and then took all my winnings over to the Roulette wheel!  I paid my $10 in chips for for three spins and won 2 Chipotle Gift Cards!  Sean played next and won the Grand Prize, a $50 gift card to Papa John's, and a couple t-shirts!  Just slightly addicting...  Overall we won 3 Chipotle Gift Card Sets (1 free salad bowl/burrito, buy one get one, and free chips and guac. in each set), 2 - $50 Papa John Family Packs (perfect for summer birthdays, right?!), a few passes to the Ice-Skating Rink, some t-shirts and a hat for the boys!

I didn't win anything on my last few spins, but at least I was able to "hold still" long enough for Marc to get a great picture!  Marc thought it was worth the loss, though I wouldn't have minded another gift card! ;) 

{funny}

My brother photobombed this cute picture of Rascal's Godparents...   Nice, Brian! 

And my brother Scott?  Just look at all those tickets he won!  At the end of the night everyone turns in all their chips/winnings for raffle tickets.  There were tables lining a long wall filled with gift baskets and prizes that had been donated to the event.  You could drop however many tickets you wanted into the jar for each item.  My brother Scott had his eye on a GoPro Camera and, after putting one ticket in each of the other jars, he put all the rest in the jar for the camera.  He didn't win the camera, but he did win two of the other prize baskets!!  He gave us his basket of Trader Joe's goodies!  Thank you Scottie! 

Sean & I didn't have nearly as many tickets, after spending most of our chips on all that Roulette Wheel, but we still had about 20-30 between the two of us to enter into the raffles.  I put them in various jars:  Horse Riding Lessons, the Camera, some Carhartt gear, a big Thirty-One Gifts bag filled with bags, and a few others that were either practical or fun!  I actually ended up winning one of the raffles - a gift basket filled with manicure supplies and more Chipotle gift cards!  Woohoo!!! 

{real}

Even though we had a fun night, the best part of the evening was hearing the updates on the Hadley Children and knowing that all the prayers and fundraising is making a difference in the lives of these dear children!   Just before showing the update video, Brian Hadley got up and spoke.  He said it has been over five years now since two of their three children were diagnosed with a terminal disease called  Niemann Pick Type C, also known as "Childhood Alzheimer's."  At that time they were told there was no cure and to go home and love their children...   The progress they have made towards finding a cure has been nothing short of miraculous!  Please continue to pray for the Hadley family, and if you feel called to donate you can visit the Hadley Hope Foundation here.  

Note: All Photography by Marc Salvatore used with permission.

Visit Like Mother, Like Daughter for more pictures of contentment.

My Daybook :: June 4, 2013

Outside my window... 
We keep spotting a couple birds sitting on the edge of one of the hanging flower baskets.  I just realized, after seeing the mess on the deck, that they are actually taking the lining to build a nest somewhere!

I am thinking...        
about Legos.  The new catalog arrived on Saturday morning, almost immediately after I had told the boys that I didn't want them to look at any Lego catalogs that they find in the mailbox for the next couple months. (Basically until after our summer birthdays.)  It was pure torture for them to carry it up the driveway and hand it over to me without peeking at "Over 60 New Sets!" They have been obedient though, and it will be fun for them to discover a couple new sets without having seen them first.  Now to decide which to purchase... Snuggles had asked for a "Lone Ranger" themed birthday (without knowing that there are new Lone Ranger Legos!) so that's easy, but the hard part is choosing which of the new Lord of the Rings Lego Sets to choose for Captain who has asked for a LOTR themed birthday... I also love the new Coast Guard Patrol Set, and the Treehouse Creator Set, and the new Castle sets...  It's a good thing I've been saving up my Amazon Visa Reward points!  Still there are just way too many options!  How am I ever going to make up my mind? ;)  

I am thankful... 
that I have been able to sell almost all of our Teaching Textbooks materials on Cathswap!  (All I have left is the workbook for TT #7.)  Now I can put that money towards all the new school books I have been purchasing for next year!

Learning all the time... 
tomorrow we have our last meeting with our charter school ES followed by an End-of-the-Year party at the park.  We have already finished up nearly all of our studies for the year and our "school" days this week consist of assembling a few unfinished Lap Books.  (The younger ones are finishing up their Papal Lap Books and the older boys just finished their Industrial Revolution Lap Books.)  Over the summer we plan to study WWII and the 20th Century, continue with Math and Spelling 3-4 times a week (to get a head start for next year), and I will also continue Primary Arts of Language with Snuggles.

Snuggles playing the "Short-e or Short-i" game this afternoon

Celebrating the liturgical year... 
The month of June is dedicated to the Sacred Heart and this coming Friday is the Solemnity of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus.  We are planning on attending morning Mass and then decorating cookies in the afternoon.  We'll also decorate some for Saturday's feast in honor of the Immaculate Heart of Mary!

From the kitchen... 
lots of tamales!  Our parish youth group had a fundraiser on Sunday and we ended up purchasing a couple dozen.

I am working on... 
a post with pictures of the boys' Civil War Lap Books... Sometimes taking the pictures and blogging about our projects seems like more work than the actual projects themselves! ;)

I am creating... 
Summer Bingo Cards!

I am going... 
to take all the empty ink cartridges I've been saving to Staples tomorrow, to recycle for rewards, after our Dentist appointments.

I am hoping... 
to carve out some time over the next few evenings to work on my next submission for the Catholic Digest Celebrate/Quiet Moments section.  My deadline is this coming Monday and I haven't started yet!         I'm also hoping to have a chance to read the June/July/August Issue.  My copy disappeared and I finally found it in Rose's bedroom.  She loves this last edition for some reason!

I am praying... 
for a couple dear friends.

I am reading... 
The Saint and his Bees!  This sweet book was written by Dessi Jackson, an Eastern Rite Catholic and online friend.   It is about the Celtic St. Modomnoc (Little Dominick) of Ossory and his work as a beekeeper.



I purchased a copy of the book when it was first available on Amazon last week (It wasn't on sale when I placed my order, but it is now!) and I have already making plans for some Saintly Summer Fun incorporating the tale of this saint!

Pondering these words...
from Blessed John Paul II:

"In the Sacred Heart every treasure of wisdom and knowledge is hidden. In that Divine Heart beats God's infinite love for everyone, for each one of us individually." 

I am listening...  
to Sean read another chapter from Snow Treasure.  They all love it when their Dad reads to them before bed.

Around the house... 
lots of library books!  I just requested a few more, including Keep the Lights Burning Abbie for the girls to read as a followup to their study of Maine.  (Thank you for the recommendation KelLee!) 

One of my favorite things...  
boxes of new school books!  This box just arrived from Sacred Heart Books and Gifts.  I've been reading through the Classically Catholic Memory Alpha Year Teacher's Manual and so far I am loving it all and looking forward to implementing it next year.

This week's plans...

Wednesday :: Tutor for an hour in the morning, End-of-the-Year School Party at the park, and four more Dental appointments in the afternoon.
Friday :: Morning Mass on the Solemnity of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus
Saturday :: Young Hunters Day
Sunday :: Sunday Mass

A little peek at the last two mornings...

State-by-State Baking :: Maine's White Pine Cone and Tassel Snack

"F stands for Forests,
with trees tall and straight.
The majestic eastern white pines
are the official trees of our state."

  ~ L is for Lobster: A Maine Alphabet Alphabet

For the state of Maine, the 23rd state in our State-by-State Study, the girls considered making Lobster or Clam Chowder, but ultimately decided on a fun "Pine Cone" themed snack after reading L is for Lobster: A Maine Alphabet and completing their Maine Notebook Pages.  Their Daddy is a Forester after all!

"More than 90% of Maine is covered in forests.  No other state has such a high percentage of woodlands. In the early days, forests were full of eastern white pine, so it was a natural choice for our official state tree.  The pinecone tassel is our state flower. The "Pine Tree State" is our nickname."  

~  L is for Lobster: A Maine Alphabet Alphabet

White Pine Cone and Tassel Snack

adapted from Family Fun

Ingredients: 

• Round crackers
• Cream cheese
• Almond slices
• Pretzel stick
• Celery, thinly sliced

Directions:

For each, spread a generous amount of cream cheese onto a round cracker. Starting at the bottom, layer almond slices on top of the cream cheese for the scales. Add a small piece of a pretzel stick for the stem and serve with thinly sliced celery pine needles.

Resources we used for this State Study:

L is for Lobster: A Maine Alphabet

L is for Lobster Teaching Guide 

Maine Notebooking Page from United States Maps

United States Coloring Book (Dover)

State Birds and Flowers Coloring Book (Dover)

The United States Cookbook: Fabulous Foods and Fascinating Facts From All 50 States

Other Posts of Interest: 

State-by-State Scrapbook

State-by-State Scrapbook :: Maine

State-by-State Scrapbook :: Maine

"A is for Augusta,
the capital of our state.
In the rooms of the statehouse,
our representatives legislate."

  ~ L is for Lobster: A Maine Alphabet

The next up in our State-by-State Study is Maine!  The boys mastered their states and capitals long ago, but this is a project they have really been enjoying and want to continue until they have made it through the 50 states.  (I am a little behind on posting and they are currently studying/working on Florida.)  They have enjoyed learning extra details about each state and turning some of those into artwork for their scrapbooks.

"Q is for Quoddy Lighthouse, 

a friend that stands beside the sea,

warning of dangers so ships sail worry free.

On top of its tower burns a bright light

that cuts through the fog and the dark of night."

  ~ L is for Lobster: A Maine Alphabet

We have also started incorporating additional picture books for each state.  Our pick for Maine was one of my own childhood favorites, One Morning in Maine.  

The boys also read Time of Wonder, which is also written by Robert McCloskey, to the little ones as well.  These are also the two suggestions Cay Gibson offers for the state of Maine in the section titled "Read Across America" in her book A Picture Perfect Childhood.  Rose is always ready and waiting for storytime with her big brothers... She loves it!

.: Maine by Captain :.

.: Maine by Rascal :.

*The links to the worksheets used for these notebook pages can be found here, and here is the link to all of our State-by-State Study posts.

You can find the recipe and notebooking pages the girls completed for Maine here. 

{pretty, happy, funny, real} :: Beautiful Smiles!

~ Capturing the context of contentment in everyday life. ~

{pretty}

At the Orthodontist just before her braces were taken off! 

This morning Twinkle Toes told me that right before she woke up she dreamt that she heard my footsteps coming towards her bedroom and then I said "Wake up! Today's your lucky day, Baby!" (in the voice of the cocky rooster from one of Chiquita's new favorite audio books...) Yes, she was very excited about her orthodontist appointment this morning!  Today her braces were scheduled to come off!   Her braces were put on during the first week of school and taken off during the last!  The purpose of the braces (this was phase one of two) was to make room for her other teeth to come in naturally and avoid having oral surgery and/or permanent teeth pulled when she is older.   (This "lucky" daughter of ours inherited my teeth... I had braces for 5 years and a total of 10 teeth pulled - 2 baby teeth, 4 permanent teeth and then the 4 wisdom teeth.  My husband, on the other hand, has never even had one filling!  I'm hoping more of our children take after him!) She loves having the braces off, and is now adjusting to wearing a retainer! 

Beautiful Smile!

{happy}

Chiquita's First Dentist Appointment & Cleaning

Chiquita also had her very first appointment with the dentist this afternoon.  The hygienist was very pleased with her brushing and said that she is doing a great job!  I was so happy it was good news, especially since we had put off taking her to see the dentist for so long.  I'm also so happy that we finally purchased dental insurance!  After the amount of debt we wracked up last year between the braces and Rascal's broken tooth, we couldn't afford not to have dental insurance any longer...

{funny}

I helped the girls with their hair, but I probably should have checked Snuggles choice of clothing and shoes before heading to town!  He cracks me up... 

Still not sure what to think about seeing the Dentist for the first time...

{real}

It was a crazy day - with four stops at the orthodontist (Captain-wire removed, Twinkle Toes-braces off, Captain-wire replaced, and Twinkle Toes-pick up retainer) and three at the dentist (cleaning for Captain, Chiquita and Snuggles)!  They were overlapping at two different places at pretty much the same time, which ended up creating about six trips for me, from one to the other, over a couple hour time period...   I was ready for a nap by noon the time we made it home!  

And yet I still managed to take pictures through it all, thanks to my new iPhone!  I had been counting the days (all 20 months!) until I was able to upgrade my Droid cell phone and it (finally!) arrived yesterday!  I didn't waste anytime getting down to the store and picking up my new phone... I've been having so much fun setting up iCloud and syncing it with my computer and iPad!  I've been reading through my copy of Paperless Home Organization: How to Create a Digital Home Management Binder (recommended by a friend) and am looking forward to (hopefully) getting a little more organized.   I hope you all have a great weekend!

Visit Like Mother, Like Daughter for more pictures of contentment.

Blessed :: A Locket for Mother's Day!

I've been so excited to share a couple pictures of my beautiful new locket with you all, and finally have a chance to do so this morning!  This was an incredibly generous Mother's Day gift from Tricia at Origami Owl, one of my dear visitors here at Shower of Roses!

The Large Locket includes a "blessed" tag, 7 birthstones - one for each of our living children, a rose, a camera, and the letter J.  There is also a Rose Dangle, representing the rose from St. Therese, which my husband happened to leave on my apartment doorstep on the 9th day of a novena (March 17, 1999) I prayed to her asking for a sign if he was who I was to marry (it was the first flower he ever gave me and did not know I was praying the novena!) along with a Small Locket containing a cross and two little hearts - one with tiny blue footprints - in memory of my babies in heaven.  It is just perfect and I love how it so beautifully "tells my story with jewelry."



Tricia pointed out how easy it will be, especially for Catholic moms like myself with big and growing families, to continue to add charms as our family grows, and they are only $5 a charm!   There is no need to buy a whole new necklace each time a new baby arrives!  She also mentioned that, once you own the locket, you can change out the charms as often as you like, and move them to various other locket designs to change the look.

So far every time I've worn the locket I've had people ask me about it and comment on how it is so unique and pretty... Rose especially loves looking at my locket and pointing out all of the beautiful charms!

 

Pictures Taken on Mother's Day - May 12, 2013

If you are interested in creating your own locket, be sure to visit Tricia's website.  In addition to Mother's Day, these would be great gifts for graduations, weddings, birthdays, and Christmas!  You can also contact her directly for personalized design help at tricia@teamjennings.net

Thank you Tricia!  May God reward you for your kindness and generosity!

A Saturday Morning in May

Outside my window... 
I can see the beautiful new flowers my thoughtful husband picked up on his way home from work and planted in my hanging baskets from last year.  Much to everyone's delight the hummingbirds have already been spotted enjoying the flowers too!

I am thinking...        
about curriculum plans for next year!  I'd love to wrap them up soon and place the last of my book orders.

I am thankful... 
for this delicious steamy cup of coffee (with a little half-and-half) following the three-day detox which I successfully completed, despite the flu-like symptoms on Day One!  It was a tough few days, especially choking down the flax granola each morning (which is surprisingly starting to become more palatable), but I really do feel great and it has been so nice to see the weight, which has crept on the last couple months, fall right back off!  I am confident that I'll finally be able to hit a new low this week and finally get off this plateau and continue moving towards my goal.

Learning all the time... 

"I would't do..."

Celebrating the liturgical year... 
Trinity Sunday is tomorrow.  I think we will pick up some Neapolitan Ice Cream on our way home from Mass... And maybe I'll make Tacos for dinner!

From the kitchen... 
lots of recipes from The Plan: Eliminate the Surprising "Healthy" Foods that Are Making You Fat--and Lose Weight Fast as I continue through the 20-Day Meal Plan.  Today I get to have Coffee (1 cup only), Cheese, Wine and Chocolate! I am the most excited about this morning's cup of coffee and the 1 oz of dark chocolate for dessert.  I've never been able to drink wine without having an allergic reaction, and we'll see how it goes with that goat cheese (the test food for today)... My mom is determined to find some that I will like and suggested some soft cheese with herbs from a local creamery.

Preparing Carrot Ginger Soup for Lunch on Day One

Updated to add:

Goat cheese.... Wait for it.... Yep, there is that awful aftertaste! ;)
Actually, I must admit, of all the goat cheeses I've tried in the past, this was the least disgusting best.  

Day Four Dinner... YUM!!

I am working on... 
cutting out the names of more states, with the boys' help, using the Cricut!  The biggest challenge of this State-by-State Study has been having the materials available for the boys when they are ready for them!  They are now all set with the worksheets for all the remaining states, and the scrapbook pages for the next nine.  Next up is Florida, which means I still need to post pictures of their completed Maine, Missouri, Arkansas and Michigan pages!  (Note to self:  If Snuggles decides to do this project be sure to have everything ready ahead of time and maybe it will only take 1 to 2 years instead of 3 or 4!) 



Speaking of our State-by-State Study, and since Florida is up next, I'm really excited about the Unit Study from Catholic Pilgrimage Press we will be incorporating!  I would love to have something like this available for each state to easily incorporate the Catholic history.  In the meantime, I just ordered a copy of Our United States of America to add to our study, as we work our way through the second half of the states using the Discover America Series!



I am creating... 
a list of books to read during our upcoming study of WWII.  If you have a favorite I'd love to hear about it!   The Winged Watchman and Enemy Brothers, are already definite favorites in our home.  Sean just started reading Snow Treasure to all the kids and I am planning on starting Five For Victory   with them next week.   I also picked up the Molly series at the library yesterday and Twinkle Toes has already completed five of the six books!

I am going... 
to grade the boys Math lessons. I'm already missing the automated grading in Teaching Textbooks...  If only they could turn Saxon into a computer program!

I am hoping... 
that I get to see my little sister JoAnn (one of the twins) while she is in town this weekend!

I am praying... 
for my brother.  Next week would have been my nephew's 5th birthday... It doesn't seem like it has been nearly 5 years since that heartbreaking night.

I am reading... 
lots of fun picture books to my little ones.  Actually, last night, as I started to read The Miraculous Tale of the Two Maries (such a unique and interesting book!) to my little Rose, I loved how all seven of my children cuddled up on the couch to listen to the story!   I couldn't help but think that these days are limited as the boys get older...  I'm enjoying every minute of it while it lasts!

Pondering these words...
from Strickland Gillilan found in my copy of Reading the Saints.  This has been such an excellent resource, and I just love the little quotes sprinkled throughout... I just realized it has been updated and there is now a brand new Second Edition.  I might have to add that to my wish list!

"You may have tangible wealth untold;

Caskets of jewels and coffers of gold.

Richer than I you can never be-

I had a mother who read to me." 

I am listening...  
the sounds of spring heard through the open windows.

Around the house yard... 
pinecones... LOTS of pinecones! The boys have been picking up a wheelbarrow full each week!

One of my favorite things...  
my new scale!  I had a feeling that our old scale was off, since I always weighed less when I would visit the doctor or midwife in the past.  Gotta love it when you find out that you actually weigh a couple pounds less than you thought you did!  (Even if it isn't technically a new low for me, I love seeing that lower number!) Oh, and our kids all prefer the old scale... They can have it! ;)

This week's plans...
Only two more weeks until our summer break!  We've finished quite a few of our courses from this year and are still working on wrapping up a few.  In addition to the tutors on Tuesday and Thursday we have Orthodontist and Dentist appointments on Friday.  Hopefully we will be able to finish planting the garden too!

A little peek at some recent days in the garden...

I wrote this post this morning and then headed out to the garden without clicking post...  

It has been such a nice day! I hope you are all having a relaxing Memorial Day weekend!