Makes My Monday

It's Official

Meet Mrs. and Lieutenant Paul J. Davis.

(More Makes My Monday Posts over at Cheryl's!)

Had to share this one...

All in fun, y'all!

I love my coffee!

Drinking Fair Trade French Roast these days, brewed from freshly ground 100% Arabica beans. (Yum.)

Oh, and here's a really cool bunch of coffee facts going around Facebook these days!  Fun stuff.

I was gonna take a picture of my cuppa coffee this morning to share one of my favorite drinking vessels, but truth is:  I'm not here.  I get to go hang out with my daughter-in-law while my son does Marine stuff before his Commissioning Ceremony today.  Woohoo!  Fun morning for me -- Big afternoon for Paul.  A very big step.  Will you please remember our new Marine in your prayers, as well as all our young men who fight for our freedom?

Have you heard...

... about the controversial Super Bowl ad  that will star Tim Tebow, former Florida Gator superstar quarterback, soon-to-be NFL draftee? 

If you haven't heard about it yet, you will soon.  "Women's groups" all over the nation are trying to have the commercial pulled, and its contents have become the talk of the internet and are quick becoming the stuff of network news overplay.  See that wholesome-looking young man pictured on the right?  That's the guy causing all the trouble.  For all the hoopla, you might wonder if we were dealing with another possible Janet Jackson-type expose here.  But that wouldn't stir up much indignation in our world, would it?  To really rile up the liberal press Tebow would have to do something like... maybe demand honor and integrity among our nation's leaders (ala Glenn Beck).  Or, dare to make light of the muslem* religion or call it the enemy of the free world.  But he's not doing that. 

What Tim is daring to do is make a pro-life ad for Focus on the Family, thanking his mother for her courage in not aborting him when she was counseled to do so.  It's a thirty-second ad honoring life and thanking a brave woman.  But, you'd think by the horrified outrage among the "status quo" that this Right to Life commercial will show thirty seconds of Tebow decapitating Nancy Pelosi.  Or Oprah Winfrey.

What a world that such a thing would cause such a ruckus.  The liberal press doesn't bat an eye when Sarah Palin and her family are insulted on national television.  Repeatedly.  There is no outcry when our president bows to the King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia,  no alarm when countless innocent Christians are murdered in the name of Islem* all over the world, no disgust when Planned Parenthood offers abortion gift certificates for gift giving.  But a courageous young man stands before the world to uphold the right to life of the unborn and he is lambasted, insulted, hounded.  Such a world.  God help us.

~+~+~+~+~+~

This whole story touches a soft, sore spot in my soul.  You see, twenty-two years ago (about the same time Tim Tebow's mother discovered she was expecting),  I was also couseled to abort a child.  I hadn't finished college yet, I was editor of our school paper and had a coveted ticket into a prestigious publishing institute.  I was also hoping to participate in a graduate school exchange program in London.  I had my whole life in front of me.  And all of that was still possible, if I just signed on the dotted line and made an appointment...  It was a simple procedure, nothing to be upset about... So the campus nurse advised and cajoled. 

She was convincing -- and I was numb with terror, but I didn't sign anything. I had to think things through; I had to talk to Dan.  I had to shake myself free of the daze I was in so I could think clearly.  And so I walked across campus alone -- but not quite alone -- to figure out what to do.

As it so happens, the girl across the hall from me in my apartment building found out she was pregnant the same time I did. I knew because that very night I heard her and her boyfriend arguing about it in the hallway. And I heard her crying after he left.  It was strange that we were suffering the same fate at the same time, but I didn't know her well enough to dare advise her, I thought, and was dreadfully caught up in my own troubles at the time, so I didn't intrude upon her world...  But I wish to God I had had the courage and sensitivity to talk to that girl. It will haunt me the rest of my life that I didn't. Such an opportunity tragically missed. I learned later that my neighbor had listened to the counsel of the college clinic nurse; she'd killed her unborn child.  I did not. 

By the grace of God, Dan's sweet understanding, and my parents' good raising, I carried my fat little baby boy to term.  I could never, ever have ended his life.  Even in the cloudiness of my college-soaked brain I knew that the tiny life within me was exactly that -- life. But more than just life, it was my child.  And nothing changes the fact that ending the life of a child, no matter how old it is, is murder.  Abortion is murder.  That any woman is convinced otherwise is contrary to every human instinct; it amazes me what the power of the devil and the temptations of the world can accomplish.  To such eternal sadness.

But, anyway...  Today, in spite of -- or because of-- all the heartache of those first weeks of discovery and decision, I'm the proud mother of a wonderful, thoughtful, intelligent child -- our firstborn son, Paul. And what a young man he is.  He put himself through college on hard work and scholarships, was the Senate Leader of his school's Student Government, a high officer of the Future Business Leaders club, Phi Beta Lambda, and the Financial Officer of the Entrepreneurship Club at his university, among other things.  He just graduated Magna Cum Laude this past semester, married the most wonderful girl we could ever possibly have imagined, and is soon to be commissioned  as a 2nd Lieutenent in the United States Marines -- because he's a leader and because he loves his country.  But his devotion to his Faith exceeds his love of country: his Dad and I were so touched to see him serving at the altar when he fulfilled the role of MC this past Christmas Midnight Mass at our parish.  And as if all that weren't enough, Paul is just a nice guy, popular among his kazillion friends, respected and trusted by his elders, and adored by his nine little brothers and sisters. We love the stuffin' out of him.  And to think that I was counseled to murder him.  Our Paul. The first of our ten finest blessings.

It's a terrible thing to recall.

But worse still is remembering the tragedy of the girl across the hall. What would her child have been like? 

I pray for that girl.


* Purposely misspelled.  I don't know about you, but I can't help feeling just a little nervous doing something even like using a search engine to research anti-jiihad articles...  Ya just never know...

Risky Resourcefulness

If the hens are suddenly, inexplicably laying very well

 for such a cold, cloudy winter day

 and you don't bring a basket outside to gather eggs with

 and your hands are full...

You can always do this:

And pray you don't have an accident

 or meet a mischievous sibling

 on the way in from the henhouse.

(Can you see them?  One egg in each back pocket.  Brave girl.)

Randomness

My favorite weekly meme, the following questions are thrown out by Linda at Second Cup of Coffee every Wednesday.  It's great fun to read through all the different answers her questions generate!  Go check some out if you have a chance.

1. How good are you at delaying gratification? 
 It depends on what it is.  I can wait and patiently work toward a greater goal (like moving back to the Western Slope of Coloado); I can live with particle board flooring in my kitchen while we save up for hardwood; I can even hang onto a bottle of Guinness until Saturday night's movie with Dan, but if there's a Snickers in the cupboard or a chocolate chip on the counter...  Well, forget it.

2. Maybe a marshmallow wouldn't be too difficult a temptation for you. What food (or anything else) would be most tempting?
Um, chocolate.  Definitely. Or coffee.  Or -- the combination of the two: mocha.

3. On a scale of 1-10 (10 being saintly) how patient are you?
  Oh, my word.  I started out in this life being about a 2.  And I occasionally slip back to a 2.  But, for the most part, on any given day (when I'm neither pregnant, nor dieting, nor  suffering the results of insomnia) I'm about a 3.

4. Have you ever waited for something in life only to be disappointed upon realization of the goal/object/etc.?
I'm racking (wracking?) my brains to think of an example of when this would have been true for me, but can't think of a thing.  Any time I haven't reached a long-sought goal, I've been well satisfied with the substitution.  For instance:  After 3 1/2 years of college, I wound up short of graduating by less than 20 credits -- but I got Dan instead of a diploma.  I waited through my whole childhood, looking forward to being an adult; and here I am, forty-five years old, getting wrinkles and grey hair, and somewhere along the line, I missed that magical adulthood distinction.  I have no more confidence and security now than I did when I was sixteen years old.  But it's all good; I got a houseful of kids and license to play instead.

5. Are you a person who takes shortcuts?
Evry chnce I get.

6. Which line is hardest to wait in?
It just kills me to be stuck in the long line of cars coming down from the mountains on any ski weekend afternoon.  You can't help but feel trapped; I-70 really is the only way down from the places we tend to go, and there is just no speeding up the trip, even though there is rarely any obvious reason for everyone to be going so slow.  35 mph is a good day, and if there's an accident, the highway is just a parking lot.  You  wouldn't wonder if some folks took the skis off their ski racks and skiied along the highway to get home.

7. Did you wait to discover the gender of your unborn child until its birth?
We did with our first child, Paul, who was a boy.  Then, when our second pregnancy was twins, the docs were in there looking around so much, it was impossible to keep a secret that they were little boys.  I think we went ahead and took a peek with numbers 3 and 4 (both boys), but our OB with #5 refused to tell us -- him and his Irish humor!  Number 5 turned out to be our first little girl and (Thank-you, Dr. Delaney)  it was a lovely surprise.  For the next five, we chose to know, the surprise being less appealing than the chance to dig out the right gender bins of baby clothes ahead of time.

8. Are you more patient with children or the elderly?
Well, let me qualify first of all, that, to  be perfectly honest, I'm more patient with other people's children than with my own.  But, I have never felt impatient toward the elderly.

9. Did you ever sneak a peek at a present? 
Never. God is looking, you know.  I admit I'm impatient, but I'm not dishonest.

10. What is the longest you've ever waited for anything?
It took us almost three years of sweat and work, to try  to sell the farm so we could move to the Western Slope --  And we made the move, thinking the property had sold, but it hadn't.  We're still trying to sell the farm.  We're still waiting.

11. Who has more patience, you or your significant other?
Oh, no question about it.  This is a no-brainer for anyone who knows us.  Dan is definitely more patient.  Thank God. 

12. Which of the following songs about waiting is your pick for the best? (OK, you may substitute another, if you like.)
A) Anticipation by Carly Simon
B) The Waiting by Tom Petty
C) Right Here Waiting for You by Richard Marx
D) Wait for Me by Rebecca St. James

My substitution -- and one of my theme songs -- because I tend to do things quickly, and some of the dear people I'm around most of the time -- don't.  Bless their pokey little hearts.

Sitting, Waiting, Wishing

Jack Johnson | MySpace Music Videos


Here's the famous video of this song that I couldn't paste due to copyrights or something; it's a lot of fun and worth a look if you haven't seen it.  Jack Johnson references it at the beginning of this clip.

If this is what they're saying about a minivan, honey...

I'll just let you  take the next step up to what that says about
our fifteen-passenger van and your ten children...



Gonna have to get that thing back from the boys in Omaha and park it out front as a macho status symbol, I'm thinking... 

H/T:  Michelle at Rosetta Stone.

It's all Relative

1. "Mommy, I love you more than dinosaurs.

Pause. 

Pause.

Pause.

(Followed by deep, purposeful, decisive sigh.)

 I even love you more than Bigfoot."

(I am so honored, Yuyum.)

~~~~+~~~~

2. "Mommy, I don't really want to be rich.

Or famous.

I just want lots of chocolate."

(Me, too, Anna.)

~~~~+~~~~

Cathy teaching Anna how to make Chocolate Chip Cookie Pie:

3. "The most important thing is the measuring spoons."

(An apt analogy for life in some ways...)

Cathy and Theresa's famous

Chocolate Chip Cookie Pie

6 Tablespoons softened butter

1/2 cup granulated sugar

1/4 cup packed light brown sugar

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 egg

1 cup all-purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

2 cups chocolate chips

1. Heat oven to 350 degrees. Line two 9-inch round baking pans with foil, extending foil over edges of pans.

2. Beat butter, both sugars and \vanilla until light and fluffy.  Add egg; beat well.  Stir together flour and baking soda; gradually add to butter mixture, beating until well blended.  Stir in chocolate chips.  Spread one-half the batter into each pan, spreading to 1 inch from the edge (as the cookies will spread to the edge when baking.)

3.  Bake 15 to 20 minutes or until light brown.  Cool completely; carefully lift from pan and remove foil.  Cut each cookie into triangular wedges. 

* For a special treat, serve with a scoop of icecream!

Makes My Monday

No "roots," no grey,

Thank-you, Nina;

That makes my day!

Happiness is a Sunday afternoon sharing "coloring" jobs with your sister!

For more Makes My Monday posts, make sure and toodle over to Cheryls!

It's All About Coffee

The rules are: Post anything you want, so long as it mentions coffee in some way.  It can be a reminiscence, a recipe, a link, or it can include a coffee factoid, such as my entry below.  Feel free to grab the Coffee Club button.  If you'd like me to link your post, just let me know and I'll add it to the bottom of mine.  Or you can just comment on my post! I always love to hear from you. If you're drinking coffee, tell me what your mug looks like this morning! 

 I love coffee; it's so easy to include in an easy-going Saturday morning post.  At the very least, grab a mug and enjoy the following:

THE YEAR 1909

1909 Ford Model R

One hundred years ago.

What a difference a century makes!

Here are some statistics for the Year 1909 :

The average life expectancy was 47 years.

Fuel for this car was sold in drug stores only

Only 14 percent of the homes had a bathtub.

Only 8 percent of the homes had a telephone.

There were only 8,000 cars and only 144 miles of paved roads.

The maximum speed limit in most cities was 10 mph.

The tallest structure in the world was the Eiffel Tower!

The average wage in 1909 was 22 cents per hour.

The average worker made between $200 and $400 per year ..

A competent accountant could expect to earn $2000 per year,

A dentist $2,500 per year, a veterinarian between $1,500 and $4,000 per year, and a mechanical engineer about $5,000 per year.

More than 95 percent of all births took place at HOME .

Ninety percent of all doctors had NO COLLEGE EDUCATION! Instead, they attended so-called medical schools, many of which were condemned in the press AND the government as 'substandard. '

Sugar cost four cents a pound.

Eggs were fourteen cents a dozen.

Coffee was fifteen cents a pound.

Most women only washed their hair once a month, and used Borax or egg yolks for shampoo.

Canada passed a law that prohibited poor people from entering into their country for any reason.

Five leading causes of death were:

1. Pneumonia and influenza
2. Tuberculosis
3.. Diarrhea
4. Heart disease
5. Stroke

The American flag had 45 stars....

The population of Las Vegas, Nevada , was only 30!!!!

Crossword puzzles, canned beer, and iced tea Hadn't been invented yet.

There was no Mother's Day or Father's Day.

Two out of every 10 adults couldn't read or write and

Only 6 percent of all Americans had graduated from high school..

Eighteen percent of households had at least one full-time servant or domestic help...

There were about 230 reported murders in the ENTIRE  U.S.A.!

Plus one more sad thought; 95 percent of the taxes we have now did not exist in 1909

Try to imagine what it may be like in another 100 years.

IT STAGGERS THE MIND !

H/T: Forward from Theresa, through her friend, Murena!  Thanks, girls; this was so interesting!

* Btw: I'm drinking a bold coffee, Starbucks Espresso Roast, out of a blue ceramic cup, with black around the lip of the cup, an orange interior, black line squiggly decorations and the word Colorado on the side. 

Looking Up

Twenty Minutes of Colorado Sky

2:35 pm - 2:55 pm

Friday, January 22nd, 2010

All photos taken by Theresa (11), and her handful of little helpers.

Run over to Crazy Working Mom for more sky photos today!

Quick Takes Friday

Well, sorta quick..

1. William has a special way of waking me up without waking  me up every morning.  Dan usually leaves for work at the crack of dawn, and I dutifully kiss him goodbye, as he leans over my pillow.  (Bless his tolerance of an insomniac wife.) After Dan leaves, I roll over and pull the covers over my head most mornings, but it isn't long before I hear William's little feet toodling down the stairs adjacent to my bedroom wall -- usually around 7 am or so.  I pretend not to hear him as he quietly opens my bedroom door and scales the side of my bed.  "Just fifteen more minutes would be heavenly..." I think
.
And, to give him credit, William, knowing Mommy prefers just a bit more of a sleep-in than he does, tries to at least put on a show of being considerate.  He quietly steals my favorite little pillow and stealthily scootches in as close to me as he can get. He breathes heavily, but quietly, right in my face, every so often pulling in a deep sigh.  After  a bit he climbs over me and goes over to the window.  "What are you doing, William?" I ask.
 
   "Seeing if it's morning yet," he says, pulling aside the thermal curtains.

   "It's still dark, William. The sun's not up," I say.

   "Nope.  It's not morning yet," he agrees, and climbs back in the bed over me, gently pulling my blankets off me and onto him.  He settles in for a minute.  Just a minute.  Then he gets back up, climbing over me again.

   "Where you going now, Yuyum?" I ask.  He doesn't answer right away, but runs out to the living room, announcing as he runs back into my room,"The clock is pointing up, Mommy!"  As if that has some significance. =sigh=

   "William, why don't you go wake up Theresa?"

   He doesn't even consider that suggestion, but climbs up, snuggles in next to me and holds my hand across his chest, rubbing my fingers. "You know what, Mommy?"  he says.

   "What?"  I answer.

   "I love you."

Alright already.  I'm up.  "I love you, too, William."

It's a nice way to wake up in the morning. A little early, but nice.

2.  It's been heartbreaking watching the coverage of the Haiti earthquake victims.  We all feel so helpless.  Monetary contributions are needed from us more than anything, to be sure, and it's heartening to see our Red Cross workers, the US Marines and relief agencies from all over the world working so capably to save victims and bring food and water to the homeless.  But my arms ache to get ahold of those crying, frightened children.  I wish there were some magic way I could bring them all into the warmth and soft light of our morning routine.  I wish I could send the safety somehow to every one of them.   Cathy came up behind me the other day and silently watched the news coverage for a few minutes.  "What can we do for them?" she asked.   I told her, "We can send all the money we can spare and we can pray." 

 And we can hold our own children close to our hearts and thank God for our safety  because there, but for the grace of God, goes any of us.

3.  Like, for instance, have you been following the news coverage of the mudslides in LA?  My father-in-law used to be the go-to guy during mudslide season in LA a couple decades ago.  He's watching the fire-flood-mud sequence with no surprise from his home in Laguna Hills these day, itching to be in on the action no doubt.  But the astounding thing about these mudslides is that there is ample warning of them.  Unlike the earthquake in Haiti, the people on the hillsides of southern California, know full well that they are in danger right now.  Everyone has seen it coming, the news continuously broadcasts the threats, police have gone door to door evacuating the most endangered.  Twelve thousand people, I think I heard, have been warned to get out of their homes.  But hundreds refuse to go.  Can you imagine?  What on earth could keep you there, in the path of likely death and destruction?  Do they just think that tragedy happens to someone else, not to them?  Do they worry about leaving their stuff?  What is the disconnect?

4. So, we had a little accident here the other day -- a very little one in the scheme of things, but irritating, to say the least.  Someone among us (who shall remain nameless), wanting to unload some sacks of chicken feed, backed the minivan up to the outbuilding that houses the chickens, and the sliding door happening to be open, clipped it on the side of the building, pulling the door off of it's grooves.  It turns out that a bracket is broken.  And to make a long story short, we have it at the body shop today where they might be able to save the door.  If they save the door, the cost will be less than $400.  If they have to replace the door, it'll be closer to $1,000.  Would you all mind pausing a moment for some silent prayer?

5.  Oh, and also, our dearly beloved North Carolina relative, my mother's sister, my Aunt Billie Jean, is having surgery this morning to remove a tumor in her neck.  Forget the prayers for the door.  Instead, please send up a word for Aunt Billie.   She's 79 years old and these things don't get any easier the older you get. I can't begin to tell you how dear and Godly this lady is and how much we love her.  She would fit right in at the heavenly court, but we'd love to have her with us down here for as long as we can get away with.

6.  We just got the news the other day that our oldest son, Paul, will officially be commissioned in the US Marine Corps as a 2nd Lieutenant on Saturday, January 30th.  My Dad, his grandfather will pin him.  Since my Dad is suffering from dementia, we remind him about this honor every few days, and he always receives the news with brand new pleasure, wondering every time if he should wear his uniform (he's a retired Naval officer).  We tell him that we're pretty sure his uniform has shrunk, and he laughs.  I love my Dad.  We're all going to need a good stock of Kleenex at that ceremony.

7.  We also found out that Paul and his wife, sweet Nicole, will be heading out to Quantico, Virginia the first week of June.  We knew it was coming, their leaving Colorado, but I can't say we're ready for it. My grandbabies are likely to come when they're far away from us.  I have to start saving for airfare.  In the meantime, though, we're planning a big family reunion -- renting a cabin in the mountains for a week -- before they leave as a bon voyage for them and to celebrate Dan's parents' fiftieth wedding anniversary (and Nicole's 22nd birthday). I've never planned an event like this, though -- and the ball is in my court.  Has anyone out there planned or attended a  family reunion like this?  Any tips? Are there best ways to organize time, or is it better to be spontaneous?  What are your favorite memories? What makes for a successful reunion? 

(Ran out of time for pics this morning, so this is a bland Quick Takes!  Yikes.  I'll try to get on later and add some color!)

PS --  Just now Gabe is telling me about the Wizard of Oz and he tells me about the lion who needs courage and the tin man who needs a heart, but he can't think of the third guy.  "Who's that guy?  Oh, yeah, the scarecrow! And he needs...  Um... he needs...  What does he need?"  ('Scuse my wicked sense of humor---Does anyone else out there find this funny? gglggl)

Run over to  Conversion Diaries, where Jennifer has compiled a slew of Quick Takes!

Random Dozen, January 20th

1. So I was thinking about how Jon Bon Jovi never seems to age much. His hair is smaller nowadays, but he still manages to look like a boy somehow. And then that made me think of the story of Dorian Gray. Question: If you physically lock in one age for yourself, which would you choose and why?

I would want freeze time in my early twenties, back when I could eat anything I wanted without a thought, exercise as little or as much as I wanted without repercussion, and never gave my skin a second thought. 


2. What is the best dish that you cook or bake (your piece de resistance?)

 I claim no fame as a cook, but I think I'm pretty good at anything that can be made in one big pot: soup or stew, spaghetti, gumbo, stroganoff, mystery casserole, etc. I like a menu with very few pots to have to wash, that can feed an army, and that I can embellish with pretty much any combination of odd ingredients that I happen to have left over in the fridge.  And, though these dishes are never the same twice, and their ancestry questionable, the kids never complain.

3. When you feel blue, what is one strategy you use to help yourself back to normal?

 A sure cure for the blues for me is a getaway to the mountains.  If I can't do that, listening to upbeat music usually turns the tide, or watching Olly and Stanley, or just having a conversation with the Littles -- who are probably more funny than Olly and Stanley. 

4. When was the last time you danced in public?

Um.  I don't dance in public.  I may have been guilty on a couple of occasions in college, having most likely had some kind of alcoholic encouragement, but I wouldn't be caught dead nowadays.  I do have some smidgeon of dignity, still in tatters perhaps, but worth hanging onto. I have two left feet is the truth of the matter and am usually too preoccupied trying to keep track of toddlers to think of keeping a beat. As a matter of record, actually, I didn't dance at my son's wedding -- but I didn't need to because my mother and father-in-law got out there and cut such a rug that anyone else attempting looked ridiculous.  (Except maybe Theresa, getting dipped in the above pic from the wedding reception...)

5. Do you consider yourself a realist or dreamer? 

Oh, my gosh.  Good question.  I think I'm a hybrid.  I'm a dreamer about big things, but a realist about little things.  I dream about moving back to my beloved home on the Western Slope of Colorado, but I'm realistic about what it will take to get there -- and so I'm painting walls and de-cluttering the outbuildings, and holding on until the timing is right.  The little things, the realistic things, have to come before the big dreams can happen...

6. As a parent, what is one thing that you have done well?

I am humbled and blessed by the fact that my children -- from the youngest to the oldest -- talk to me, tell me their dreams and frustrations, and share with me the details of their lives.  I don't know that that is so much my doing as our family culture or the fact that we're all a bunch of big mouths, but it's something that I'm very grateful for.

7. Which is your favorite character on the Andy Griffith show? 

Will I have to duck stones and pinecones if I admit that I really don't like the Andy Griffith Show?  My mom even comes from NC, but I just can't stand that show. I love hometown, I love wholesome, I even love some of the early comedy of Andy Griffith himself, but the pace or the hoak or Don Knots adams apple --- something irritates me about that series. To be perfectly honest, though, I really don't care for any show like that.  Except for I Love Lucy and Dick Van Dyke, I can honestly say I have not purposely sat down in front of a sitcom or dramedy of any kind for many, many years. 

8. On a scale of 1-10, how much do you know about Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.?

 Oh, gee, in the world of knowlege about any human being, I'd say my knowlege of MLK was likely the tip of the iceberg.  In fact, since I didn't go to public schools, and my children don't go to public schools, my knowlege is probably more like the tip of the tip of the iceberg.  I'd say it tops out at maybe a 3.  But ask me anything about Queen Isabella of Spain or Pope Pius X.

9. Have you never been mellow? Have you never tried … to find a comfort from in side you? (Sorry, Jorge was singing that song just now, and it just seemed to be perfect timing as I was creating this week’s questions.) REAL question: What is your #1 driving pet peeve?

Children who come in the front door and. drop. their. shoes. right. in. the. middle. of. the. floor!  AGH!

  Other than that...  You know when you're driving on the highway and two miles ahead of time, signs start alerting drivers about a lane closure ahead?  Arrows point it out, graphic signs display exactly what the lane is going to do and when.  Every forty feet there is a sign.  No chance every driver on the highway is not aware that they need to merge into the open lanes.  So you get over, right?  You'd think.  But some people don't think those signs apply to their world, or they are snoozing at the wheel, or they are just plain arrogant.  Have you seen these people?  They think they can stay in the closing lane until the very last minute, whizzing past everyone else who dutifully pulled over into the bottleneck lanes.. They speed all the way to the front of the line expecting that some dope is going to let them in. And then some dope does! Grrr.  One is rude, the other is an enabler.  I don't know who makes me madder: the arrogant line-cutter or the dope that lets him in.  (Sheesh!  Not feeling mellow now...)

10. Which color best represents your mood today? Care to elaborate? 

Green.  I'm wearing a green plaid blouse and a matching kelly-green cardigan.  Green is my happy color and I'm determined to be happy today (just as soon as I get the highway line-cutters out of my mind).  But, there's no green outside, so I'm trying to feel it inside.  (I'm looking forward to a springtime hike in the mountains!)

11. If your spouse were an animal, which would he/she be?

 Dan is brown-eyed yellow lab.  Sweet and snuggly, thoughtful and steady, loyal and friendly, and smart.

12. What activity takes up the bulk of your time on an average day? 

Trying to remember what it is I'm doing and what I need to do next. 

* Mosey over and have a "cuppa" with Second Cup of Coffee for more Random Dozen posts!

It's True, Isn' It?

What Makes My Monday

A very nice husband who got up this morning -- on his day off -- and started coffee and bacon before I even rolled out of bed...  (Regardless of what the t-shirt may imply, Dan is not a bear in the morning.)

And a sweet eleven-year-old daughter who got up with the little boys at the crack of dawn and sat down with them to quietly watch cartoons.

Ah! Sleeping in! 

Makes My Monday.

It really is the little things in life, isn't it?

Go see Cheryle for more Makes My Monday posts!

Bad Haiku Friday

Everyone here knows

If someone uses this cup...

You shouldn't ask why.

For more bad haikus, go see Laura!

Patroness of Haiti

Our Lady of Perpetual Help

Please come to the aid of our neighbors;

Help them in mind, body, and spirit.

Practically Wordless Wednesday

Especially if you're four years old.

Sparse around here.

We didn't have a computer hook-up over the weekend, so I had to use my husband's laptop to post Sunday while I had it available.  But I called bright and early yesterday morning and the phone company finally got around to flipping the switch to connect us back up -- and now my keyboard is acting up.  We need a new one, anyway, because half the lettters are rubbed off, but now it's randomly deciding to only recognize half the keys when you press them -- unless you slam them with your fingers.  Can you hear me from where you are blamming down on these keys?  Dan did buy a new keyboard after work yesterday, bless him.  But he got home late last night and left early this morning -- and left it in his car.  So, since my fingers are already getting sore, I leave you with this wisdom from Brian Regan for the day:



I may eventually iron out all the glitches over here and be able to post normally...

Brit Hume for President

I have always liked Brit Hume, in no small part because, in both looks and temperament, he reminds me of my husband.  But, after getting a look at this television interview today, I don't just like Mr. Hume, I love him! I'd like to give him a medal, elect him to office, or, at the very least get a hold of his hand, pump it vigorously and gush embarassingly all over him.  God bless him.

  How sad that we've reached a point in our country that a prominent man's declaration of Faith and charity toward another over the airwaves is so unusual that it stands out like a flashing beacon. The enemies of Christianity are having a fit over this televised segment, which only proves to me what a truly wonderful thing it was for this man of integrity and faith to so boldly speak the truth.  It's awfully nice to have the dark atmsophere of our public arena lit up for a minute.  Thanks, Mr. Hume.

Me on a good day.

Me with insomnia.

bla.

The Best Laid Plans of Mice and Men and Mommies

A severe weather advisory and blowing snow on the highway between us and our parish church have prevented us from making it in to Mass and the Epiphany potluck.  So, we have a big ole crockpot full of enchilada to eat for dinner tonight (and tomorrow night, and the next night...).  And we have this:

Courtesy of Chef Catherine.

Happy Feast of the Epiphany!

Picture Puzzle Day

Visit Cathy at A Bit of the Blarney for more!
(Please excuse the weird overlap... I haven't yet figured out how to fit it in better.)

We've been having some fun with this.  Here are our times:

Name.....Time
Yuyum...5:02 (to finish all by himself)
Cathy....3:07
Shelly....1:41
Me........1:57
Anna.....4:08
Gabe.....4:29

Feast of the Epiphany

Our school table this morning.  (William doesn't know these coins have chocolate in them yet...)

Our Nativity Scene.  The Kings have arrived.

The shepherds have stepped back and are hanging out around the campfire with the sheep.

Planned today:

+ Read the history and customs and symbolism of the feast day, which are linked in this post and this post. Color some coloring pages (also found on those links), and make some crowns if we have time before Mass this evening.

+ Make Cathy's world-famous Magi Bread.  Though it's supposed to be reserved for today, she's been making loaf after loaf since before Christmas -- in lieu of the fruitcake I threatened to make.  Every batch she makes disappears in seconds.  The boys even made a special request and brought some back with them to Omaha.  But the two bundt-style breads we make today will go with us to a potluck tonight.  It is very, very good.  We highly recommend it.

+ Instead of the eastern-world cuisine we might have prepared, we'll be bringing crockpot enchiladas to the potluck after Mass just for ease of transport -- and because it's easy-peasy and delicious.

+ When we get home tonight we'll have the traditional Epiphany Blessing, where we'll use our blessed chalk to place Caspar, Melchior, and Balthazar's initials with the year over our doorways. 

+ And we'll sing "We Three Kings of Orient Are..."
(Are you like me and retain a certain version of this song from your childhood that you have to consciously restrain yourself from singing? &:0)