This is so great for us moms! My sister Lindsey sent me a card that said ....Because God Sees and there is a cathedral pictured on the front and you open it up and it says "With admiration for the greatness of what you are building when no one sees" Nicole Johnson. Watch the u-tube video it is a wonderful reminder for me. It is a quote that is going to be posted on our bathroom mirror.
Sunday, February 21, 2010
Friday, February 19, 2010
Visit with Lindsey
So looking back because I never posted these pictures and I know when Lindsey looks on here she would love to see them. Aunt Lindsey is so loved by the kids. Tristan thinks Lindsey lives on an airplane and has her own airplane because that is where we always pick her up and drop her off. It is so cute. A plane will pass through the sky and he will say is that Lindsey's airplane. They love love love Lindsey even though we don't see her often because she is away doing what God has called her to do. It is amazing how praying for someone like Lindsey being away brings such a closeness to the heart and I definitely think this is a reason the kids love Lindsey so because they pray for her. Lindsey is so creative in the things she will gift the kids with because of her poverty she doesn't have anything but she always finds things and they are always perfect because they are simple! Although this past trip she really out did herself. Someone gave her money with the specific intention of buying gifts on her trip to Jerusalem and whenever money is given it is to be used in the manner in which the donor requests with the permission of her directors. So she was given $100 and she bought gifts for all of the kids and for us. She gave Annaliese a lamb from Jerusalem that she loves, it is one her "snuggle bugs". Tristan got a wooden plaque with the stations of the cross on it! He LOVES the stations of the cross and has since he was two. He always wants to pray them and can lead you in them. He has a great love for the stations. We love Lindsey so much and miss her lots, but are proud of her and her fidelity to her Consecrated life.
Thursday, February 18, 2010
Don't Want to Miss a Moment
Okay so I think officially I am going to home school and the cherry that topped it off was, I don't want to miss a moment. Everyone you meet that has grown children says it flies by and wishes they could go back to this day that I am presently in so I want to live it up and not miss a moment. A lady saw us walking into the Y a couple of weeks ago and she pulled me aside and told me to look at my kids every day for a few minutes each not thinking about if they have brushed their teeth or made their bed or if they have talked back. It was just what the Holy Spirit Ordered! I thought this was such simple advice, but really wonderful and I took it and use it daily. It makes you really appreciate these little souls and in the chaos of the days not letting it slip by and taking a moment to realize the gift God has given you. It is a gift that can be unwrapped every day so take those few moments and unwrap the gift because every day it is wrapped beautifully again waiting for you to unwrap it again and again and again. How beautiful life is and how wonderful our vocation as moms.
As I am typing I realize why I don't normally blog when the kids are awake. I just got frustrated at my children as I am writing a blog about spending time with them...how contrary is that. I am split right now btwn what I am supposed to be doing and what i am not supposed to be doing. I totally want to be at the computer right now because it is definitely more appealing to me at the moment. More appealing than being pulled out of my selfishness at every moment in raising my children, but the obvious answer is get up and leave the computer behind leave the soulless useless thing that will not come with me to heaven behind and take up my vocation of motherhood. Got to go my cross is calling and if I stay to long my will power will get weaker.
Sunday, February 7, 2010
Snow Days
Okay so it is a big deal to get snow that sticks and that is thick enough to be able to go sledding. We had so much fun! We borrowed a big tube because supposedly that's the way you do it in TN. It was fun! Tristan had his little sled as well that he got for Christmas from my mom and dad. I wanted to go again and again and again. I think I had just as much fun as the kids. I think the older I get (28) the more fun it is to have fun and act like a kid again. I love it! The Ehrhardts came with us and we all had so much fun! We came home from sledding and had our Sunday night game night with the kiddos. This is Tristans favorite night of the week. If you are wondering where Finnian is he was in a stroller behind us being the sweetest little pumpkin ever. I would wear him on my back when I wasn't going down the hill.
Wednesday, February 3, 2010
Baby Katie is in Heaven
This is an email I received today.
Dear Friends,
>
> From Fr. Ryan: "Thank you for all of your prayers. Unfortunately,
> I'm sending you the sad news that Hannah did have the abortion. She
> is not doing well. Please pray for Hannah and all involved, they are
> all hurting very much. Thanks, Fr. Ryan."
>
> I'm so sorry to have to pass this news on to all of you. There is no
> way I can express in an e-mail the sadness in my heart for Hannah and
> her family, or for Fr. Ryan who has been such a faithful and
> courageous priest in the face of terrible spiritual warfare. His
> trust in God's mercy has been incredible, and he is a witness to all
> of us of the power of spiritual, priestly fatherhood that loves to the
> extreme. Please continue to pray for him, as he will continue to
> minister to Hannah in the coming months and years.
>
> At a time like this it would be easy to think that God has not
> answered our prayers or to ask where the Lord was in all of this. To
> attempt an explanation for the dichotomy of good and evil is beyond my
> ability, but I feel that we have all been part of an extraordinary
> movement of grace in the last few days.
>
> On Thursday morning, Fr. Ryan called me asking for prayers for
> Hannah, along with the request to pass the prayer intention along. I
> passed the request on...and you responded with your own prayer and by
> asking those you knew to pray as well. All told, religious sisters in
> about 15 convents in several states and two countries, seminarians in
> 3 seminaries, consecrated women in the US, Italy, and England,
> priests, and over 1000 lay people have been lifting Hannah up in
> prayer. WE ARE CATHOLIC!!! In His mercy, God has united us from our
> different vocations and locations to pray for one of His children in
> her hour of need.
>
> Within one hour of the first e-mail being sent, four people wrote to
> me offering to adopt the child. It was not long before others echoed
> that offer. A woman offered her home as a safehaven for Hannah,
> should she need a place to stay. Others sent me information on
> counseling services and adoption agencies. Women who have had
> abortions offered to speak to Hannah, as did women who had seriously
> contemplated abortion during their pregnancies. All without knowing
> Hannah or anything about her. In a time of trial and crisis, God
> called for generosity and from your hearts you gave, from your hearts
> you responded in ways that could never be expected.
>
> Most of all, the grace of your prayers has been felt and God has used
> this as a moment to teach us all. A friend wrote to me: "Through
> praying for her I can say honestly that I love her, without knowing
> anything about her other than the painful situation she has found
> herself in. I hate the idea of her aborting this baby and then
> suffering for it the rest of her life. I want nothing more than to
> spare her that grief." In the face of hatred and death, God has
> called us to love. Abortion is hatred and it is hatred that leads to
> death. In spite of this, love has grown through the grace of prayer.
> The prayer has been constant and has come from all sorts. I received
> an e-mail that said simply "I have been praying since I opened my eyes
> this morning". From a 5 year-old in Nashville, Hannah's baby received
> a name. Knowing only Hannah's name was not enough for him, he wanted
> to know what the baby was called. Since no one had a name, he called
> her Katie. So Baby Katie became not a theory, but a real person in
> his eyes. On Monday afternoon, I began asking the children in
> religious ed here at St. Pius to pray for Hannah. A third grader who
> comes for class on Tuesday told me that her friend, who comes for
> class on Mondays, had sent her an e-mail after coming home on Monday
> telling her to pray for Hannah. THIRD GRADE!!!!!! A first grader
> asked why we were praying for Hannah, to which her classmate
> responded: "It doesn't matter why we're praying. God knows, and He'll
> take care of Hannah."
>
> I hope that this experience of prayer continues to bear fruit. More
> than that, this experience of prayer must not end here. Young Hannah
> still needs prayer and healing. There are thousands of Hannahs in our
> country and in our world, children living in fear and hopelessness.
> No one, at 15, should have to experience what Hannah is now enduring.
> This should convince us more than ever that abortion is the worst
> option available and that women deserve better. This should be a call
> to us to respond with generosity to those who find themselves in
> crisis, to those who find themselves alone. Jesus calls us to be
> instruments of His mercy and to bring the light of His love to the
> darkness and hopelessness of the culture of death. Today is a sad day
> because one life is ended, and another wounded, scarred and mourning.
> Today is a sad day because we all share in this loss and in this
> wound. In prayer, we have come to love Hannah and we are helpless as
> our sister, our daughter, suffers. But God is still at work and His
> project is not yet complete. He has called us together in prayer and
> He has called out of us a generosity that goes beyond our own desires
> and seeks the good of another for the glory of God. We can take great
> comfort in the promise God has given, that love always triumphs, that
> life is always victorious over death, that the light continues to
> shine in the darkness.
>
> Please pray for Hannah's healing. Let her broken heart be restored,
> Lord! Pray for her parents, for Tom and his parents...they suffer,
> too! Pray for Fr. Ryan, who is their father, friend, shepherd and
> priest. May he receive the grace he needs to protect them and bring
> them healing. May God work in his heart and words so that they see in
> him, not Fr. Ryan, but the face of Christ turning his merciful gaze on
> them.
>
> Peace,
>
> Fr. Sam
Dear Friends,
>
> From Fr. Ryan: "Thank you for all of your prayers. Unfortunately,
> I'm sending you the sad news that Hannah did have the abortion. She
> is not doing well. Please pray for Hannah and all involved, they are
> all hurting very much. Thanks, Fr. Ryan."
>
> I'm so sorry to have to pass this news on to all of you. There is no
> way I can express in an e-mail the sadness in my heart for Hannah and
> her family, or for Fr. Ryan who has been such a faithful and
> courageous priest in the face of terrible spiritual warfare. His
> trust in God's mercy has been incredible, and he is a witness to all
> of us of the power of spiritual, priestly fatherhood that loves to the
> extreme. Please continue to pray for him, as he will continue to
> minister to Hannah in the coming months and years.
>
> At a time like this it would be easy to think that God has not
> answered our prayers or to ask where the Lord was in all of this. To
> attempt an explanation for the dichotomy of good and evil is beyond my
> ability, but I feel that we have all been part of an extraordinary
> movement of grace in the last few days.
>
> On Thursday morning, Fr. Ryan called me asking for prayers for
> Hannah, along with the request to pass the prayer intention along. I
> passed the request on...and you responded with your own prayer and by
> asking those you knew to pray as well. All told, religious sisters in
> about 15 convents in several states and two countries, seminarians in
> 3 seminaries, consecrated women in the US, Italy, and England,
> priests, and over 1000 lay people have been lifting Hannah up in
> prayer. WE ARE CATHOLIC!!! In His mercy, God has united us from our
> different vocations and locations to pray for one of His children in
> her hour of need.
>
> Within one hour of the first e-mail being sent, four people wrote to
> me offering to adopt the child. It was not long before others echoed
> that offer. A woman offered her home as a safehaven for Hannah,
> should she need a place to stay. Others sent me information on
> counseling services and adoption agencies. Women who have had
> abortions offered to speak to Hannah, as did women who had seriously
> contemplated abortion during their pregnancies. All without knowing
> Hannah or anything about her. In a time of trial and crisis, God
> called for generosity and from your hearts you gave, from your hearts
> you responded in ways that could never be expected.
>
> Most of all, the grace of your prayers has been felt and God has used
> this as a moment to teach us all. A friend wrote to me: "Through
> praying for her I can say honestly that I love her, without knowing
> anything about her other than the painful situation she has found
> herself in. I hate the idea of her aborting this baby and then
> suffering for it the rest of her life. I want nothing more than to
> spare her that grief." In the face of hatred and death, God has
> called us to love. Abortion is hatred and it is hatred that leads to
> death. In spite of this, love has grown through the grace of prayer.
> The prayer has been constant and has come from all sorts. I received
> an e-mail that said simply "I have been praying since I opened my eyes
> this morning". From a 5 year-old in Nashville, Hannah's baby received
> a name. Knowing only Hannah's name was not enough for him, he wanted
> to know what the baby was called. Since no one had a name, he called
> her Katie. So Baby Katie became not a theory, but a real person in
> his eyes. On Monday afternoon, I began asking the children in
> religious ed here at St. Pius to pray for Hannah. A third grader who
> comes for class on Tuesday told me that her friend, who comes for
> class on Mondays, had sent her an e-mail after coming home on Monday
> telling her to pray for Hannah. THIRD GRADE!!!!!! A first grader
> asked why we were praying for Hannah, to which her classmate
> responded: "It doesn't matter why we're praying. God knows, and He'll
> take care of Hannah."
>
> I hope that this experience of prayer continues to bear fruit. More
> than that, this experience of prayer must not end here. Young Hannah
> still needs prayer and healing. There are thousands of Hannahs in our
> country and in our world, children living in fear and hopelessness.
> No one, at 15, should have to experience what Hannah is now enduring.
> This should convince us more than ever that abortion is the worst
> option available and that women deserve better. This should be a call
> to us to respond with generosity to those who find themselves in
> crisis, to those who find themselves alone. Jesus calls us to be
> instruments of His mercy and to bring the light of His love to the
> darkness and hopelessness of the culture of death. Today is a sad day
> because one life is ended, and another wounded, scarred and mourning.
> Today is a sad day because we all share in this loss and in this
> wound. In prayer, we have come to love Hannah and we are helpless as
> our sister, our daughter, suffers. But God is still at work and His
> project is not yet complete. He has called us together in prayer and
> He has called out of us a generosity that goes beyond our own desires
> and seeks the good of another for the glory of God. We can take great
> comfort in the promise God has given, that love always triumphs, that
> life is always victorious over death, that the light continues to
> shine in the darkness.
>
> Please pray for Hannah's healing. Let her broken heart be restored,
> Lord! Pray for her parents, for Tom and his parents...they suffer,
> too! Pray for Fr. Ryan, who is their father, friend, shepherd and
> priest. May he receive the grace he needs to protect them and bring
> them healing. May God work in his heart and words so that they see in
> him, not Fr. Ryan, but the face of Christ turning his merciful gaze on
> them.
>
> Peace,
>
> Fr. Sam
Tuesday, February 2, 2010
What makes me unique to my hubby
I was in Mass a couple weeks ago when I began thinking about Father Bala and his vocation as a priest and how he can persevere in his vocation and during consecration it occurred to me that the mass makes him unique in his vocation. The reason that most Priests within Religious Orders have to celebrate mass every day is for their perseverance so they can experience that uniqueness that makes them set apart from other men and makes their vocation special. This is what makes him different from another man and what makes him unique to the Church, his bride. It then lead me to thinking about Branden and what makes us so unique as spouses and that is the intimacy we share with the gift of sex. The thing that makes us so unique in marriage is being intimate with our spouse and that is the very thing that is attacked the most with in marriages. This is a great means for perseverance when united with God for union and pro-creation. I now try to think about it daily so I can overcome the many distractions and temptations to avoid the intimacy with my husband. Yes I used the word avoid because so often I would try to avoid, most of the time because I am just so darn tired by the end of the day. So I now try to not avoid and take advantage of that special part of our marriage that makes me unique to Branden!
Monday, February 1, 2010
Pray for baby Katie
So we have been getting prayer requests for a young woman and young man in high school that conceived a precious little baby. The abortion is scheduled for tomorrow morning. I told Tristan (5yrs) what was going to be happening tomorrow and of course at 5 he is a soldier. He has an amazing concept of spiritual battle and loves it. He will go around "shooting fires out of his heart" to get the demons by praying or making a sacrifice. So as I tell him this and tears well up in my eyes as I tell him about this little baby and how we need to pray to protect this little baby he asked well what is her name. I thought he was talking about the mom so I told him it is Hannah and he said no the baby. I said well the baby does not have a name yet and he said the baby needs a name. I said we don't know if it is a boy or girl. Well he wanted to name the baby so he said her name is baby katie. We will pray for baby katie. So please please please pray for baby Katie that her life be saved and that her mothers decision to have an abortion will be changed.
Another little note on abortion that I will try and find a picture of is back when we were participating in the 40 days for life we would go to the abortion clinic and pray every Sunday with the kids. One week when we were there to pray the lady who runs the pregnancy center down the street that fights to save babies lives was there praying and had some flags. She explained to the kids the different meanings of the flags and they loved it. Tristan, Annaliese and Gavin marched up and down with their flags and then yes of course these flags became swords because that is way of boys. While we were there Finnian needed to eat so I crossed the street and sat on some steps to feed Finnian and watched Branden and the kids waving their flags along with three other ladies praying and then I began to hear them all singing Yes Jesus Loves Me Yes Jesus Loves Me Yes Jesus Loves for the bible tells me so over and over. My eyes welled up with tears and then I just began to cry. It was such a beautiful image to behold I just know the angels were singing with them.
Another little note on abortion that I will try and find a picture of is back when we were participating in the 40 days for life we would go to the abortion clinic and pray every Sunday with the kids. One week when we were there to pray the lady who runs the pregnancy center down the street that fights to save babies lives was there praying and had some flags. She explained to the kids the different meanings of the flags and they loved it. Tristan, Annaliese and Gavin marched up and down with their flags and then yes of course these flags became swords because that is way of boys. While we were there Finnian needed to eat so I crossed the street and sat on some steps to feed Finnian and watched Branden and the kids waving their flags along with three other ladies praying and then I began to hear them all singing Yes Jesus Loves Me Yes Jesus Loves Me Yes Jesus Loves for the bible tells me so over and over. My eyes welled up with tears and then I just began to cry. It was such a beautiful image to behold I just know the angels were singing with them.
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