St. John's Bonfire + 30th Anniversary Celebration

Lord God, almighty Father, the light that never fails and the source of all light, sanctify + this new fire, and grant that after the darkness of this life we may come unsullied to you who are light eternal...

"June 24 is one of the oldest of the Church feasts. It is the birthday celebration of St. John the Baptist, and is sometimes called "summer Christmas." On the eve of the feast, great bonfires were once lighted as a symbol of "the burning and brilliant" light, St. John, who pointed out Christ in this world of darkness. The solstice fires had been pagan, but now they were blessed by the Church in John's honor. There are actual blessings for the bonfire in the Roman liturgy. Magical and superstitious elements of food and drink were forgotten, and we were encouraged to have great picnic feasts out-of-doors around the blazing logs. The outdoor grill, so popular in our own back yards, was once less selfish and more communal. We feasted as many neighbors and not as exclusive individuals." source

 
This article from Regina Magazine was passed out to all of us just before Father blessed the bonfire. 

June 24th is also Father Terra's 30th Priestly Anniversary! We had so much fun attending a St. John's Bonfire and Surprise Potluck in his honor this past weekend. 

Even though I had never met Fr. Terra before moving here, my grandfather would always give us updates about him until he passed away in 2009. He would be so happy to know that his great-grandchildren are getting to know this holy priest, who happened to grow up in the same parish as my mom! Fr. Terra actually offered his first Mass at the church where my parents were married and I spent much of my childhood. Such a small world! 

Update: St. Joseph's Apprentice just let me know that this beautiful artwork is by Daniel Mitsui

The cakes both for the party and for after Sunday Mass (see picture at bottom of post) were both amazing! I need to find out where they were made for future reference. So awesome! 

 Our family brought along a couple side dishes and a simple chocolate Cathedral Bundt Cake to share.

In addition to the St. John's Bonfire, there was also musical instruments played for Father, poems recited, and some songs sung for him as well! Three of our teens have really enjoyed being in the choir since moving to our new home/parish.

It still feels like a dream that we are actually living here and able to be part of such a wonderful parish community. We are so grateful! 

 

Let us pray. God, who by reason of the birth of blessed John have made this day praiseworthy, give your people the grace of spiritual joy, and keep the hearts of your faithful fixed on the way that leads to everlasting salvation; through Christ our Lord. Amen. 

Picking Berries at the Strawberry Patch

"It is the sweet, simple things of life 

which are the real ones after all." 

— Laura Ingalls Wilder

We got up early this morning to go pick strawberries with friends! 🍓🍓🍓

"Live in each season as it passes: 

breathe the air, drink the drink, taste the fruit."

— Henry David Thoreau

The girls helped bake this Naturally Sweetened Fresh Strawberry Pie for dessert with some of our strawberries. We are hoping to go pick more to freeze sometime soon... We'll see! 

The Little Mouse, the Red Ripe Strawberry, and the Big Hungry Bear

(I also just ordered a copy of Strawberry Girl to read this week too!) 

Baby Updates :: 30 Weeks and Counting

“Nothing, how little so ever it be, if it is suffered for God’s sake, can pass without merit in the sight of God.” - Thomas a Kempis

Happy Feast of St. Anthony!

It's hard to believe that it has been five years today since we lost our little Anthony. After his miscarriage, I really didn't think I'd be able to have any more children, or at least not be able to carry a baby to term... Three years later we welcomed our surprise baby (shortly after getting rid of nearly all our baby stuff, of course) and here we are again, preparing to welcome yet another baby girl!

I've shared a few little updates over on Instagram, but thought I'd take a minute to transfer those pictures of her over to the blog today.

April 3rd:
On Monday we hit the halfway mark! I’m really looking forward to another peek at our baby girl next week 💗 #prayingforstrength #20weeks #dueaug19th2019 #stilldebatingbabynames

Baby's Profile at 21 Weeks

May 29th:
It’s been a rough week (see prayer requests below), but look who I got to see today! I had to pop in and share this sweet picture with you all! My doctor had some concerns at my appointment yesterday, and a followup ultrasound was scheduled for this afternoon, but everything looks good and she’s measuring in at exactly 3lbs. #28weeksandcounting

P.S. In your charity would you please offer a prayer for my Mother-in-law who has been gravely ill, for my husband who traveled to Arizona to help care for her, for our two soon-to-be First Holy Communicants (they were supposed to receive this past weekend with their class, but we decided to postpone till their dad is home again), for the repose of the soul of my Uncle Shawn who passed away early Monday morning, and for our little toddler who is currently fighting a high fever. 

Baby's Profile at 28 Weeks

June 11th:
I saw my doctor this morning for our 30 week check-up and everything is looking perfect 💗

I’m so so grateful this pregnancy is going much better than my last, that I’m able to keep food down now, and that I’m still able to walk without any issues, unlike two years ago. Thank you all for the prayers! 🌷

I haven’t done anything at all to prepare for her arrival yet - I think it’s still sinking in that another baby will be joining our family soon! - but we now have a darling gown for her and a precious little embroidered Immaculate Heart badge too!

Thank you BabyMyLove and StellaMarigoldArt! 

PRAYER TO ST. ANTHONY 

FOR HEALTH OF AN EXPECTANT MOTHER 

AND HER UNBORN CHILD

Glorious St. Anthony, you were blessed to hold the Infant Jesus in your arms. I come to you now on behalf of (mention name) who pleads for the health and safety of the child that God has graced her to conceive.

St. Anthony, guard this life God has created, and the mother God has chosen for this child. Let your gentle hand, like that of a skilled physician, aid in her delivery so that this baby will know good health and lasting happiness.

May her child be favored with the grace of holy baptism, and grow to love our lord Jesus Christ above all else in this world. Amen.

St. Anthony, Patron of Expectant Mothers, Ora Pro Nobis!

The Catholic Child and the Saints

My dear Child: The Saints are your Special Friends in Heaven.

They are happy with God.

They are most willing and most anxious to help you, and God is so good, He will hear their prayers for you. 

You must have your special friends in heaven before God, and you must often pray to them. 

You will wish to pray to your Patron Saint, to St. Anthony, to St. Aloysius, to St. Stanislaus, to St. Ann, to the Little Flower.

 

DEAR St. Therese, thou wert always good and obedient and always did the Will of God. Now thou art a great saint in heaven with God. 

Thy loving and tender heart rejoices to send down roses upon earth. O give me the sweet flower of a great love for Jesus! Pray for me that I may have all the graces I need. 

Excerpt from Jesus, Make Me Worthy - A reprint of the original can be found here

Saints for Girls: A First Book for Little Catholic Girls

Lady Saints Leggings • Twirl Dress 

Chews Life Rosary

Last Week of High School for our Two Graduates

 .: Inland Empire League District Golf Tournament :. 

May 6, 2019: Our whole family (and some friends!) went out to watch the boys golf in their final High School Varsity Golf Tournament. 

I'm SO proud of these two sons of ours. It wasn't easy moving to a new state halfway through their senior year. They had always played on the varsity golf team and even went to state last year... They had been really looking forward to going back to the Oregon State Championship this year. Moving to Idaho, joining a new team, and switching from a 1A/2A/3A school to a 5A school was a big challenge for them. They never had to worry about qualifying for tournaments on their old golf team. Here their new golf team had 35 boys on the team and only the top 5 get to participate in the varsity tournaments. It was a sad morning one day during the season when just one of them left to go to a tournament and the other stayed home since he hadn't qualified. 

 

They both worked really hard to continue improving and I was so happy that they both made the top five for the final tournaments and including the District Tournament/State Qualifier! Their team played well and came in third place in the district, but they needed to be in the top two to go on to state. They were disappointed but happy that they had improved since last year and that their current team score was better than all the teams back home in Oregon. High School golf has officially come to an end! 

Here is a photo of all three of our high school golfers, with their coach (who actually played against my youngest brother in college!), following the district tournament. The girls team also came in third place! 

.: Kolbe Academy :. 

May 9, 2019: This is it... They are officially done! I just finished grading and sending off the final samples and reports to Kolbe Academy for our two high school seniors! 🎉😭

#highschoolgraduates #catholichomeschool #kolbeacademyhomeschool #magnacumlaude

.: Carmel :.  

May 11, 2019: Beautiful Saturday Morning Mass at Carmel (James and John served together yesterday morning too. Perfect end to their final week of high school!) ❤️

.: College Decision Day :. 

Photos from Experience Christendom Summer Program 2018

May 1st was National College Decision Day. After months of discerning and applying to various colleges, not to mention working on financial aid and scholarships, the decision was finally made and we called up the Admissions Director on April 30th to put down a second deposit. 

Both boys will be attending Christendom College in the fall!

My due date is Monday, August 19th and Move-in Day is across the country on Friday, August 23rd. 

Please keep them (and me 😭) in your prayers!