7 quick takes

1 - Once again, I thank the Mumford & Sons Pandora station for introducing me to more good music.

2 - I recently found the blog The Recovered Catholic and I've been enjoying it.  Christina is another small town Illinois girl and (I emailed her and asked because I'm noisy) she only lives an hour and a half away from me.  Oh internet, look at you bringing people together.  Sorta.

3 -I've been trying some Pinterest recipes lately.  The chicken fried chicken; lemon scones; and  black bean, avocado, and cucumber salad recipes are all great.  Today I also made the Pioneer Woman's restaurant salsa recipe with tomatoes from my garden and it was fantastic!  You can check out these recipes by checking out my "Food I Gotta Make" board.

4 - This morning my husband let me sleep until 8:35.  This is easily an extra hour and a half, and had Teresa not been hungry I would have slept longer.  The past few nights have been pretty rough around here because of the older two which means I've been becoming over-tired which means my patience has been decreasing. I'm so grateful for the extra sleep.  (And I'd love it if you could say a little prayer for me and my kids.)

5 - Also, I hope you're praying that the Landrys sell their stupid house!  We've all been asking for St. Jude's intercession and since he's the patron of impossible causes we may need his help.  Even if you whisper a "please, God" on their behalf everyone who loves them would really appreciate your prayer.

6 - Have any of you read a book that tells a story similar to James'?  I'd love suggestions of books about miracles, NICU babies, anything similar.  And if you want to give me a mini review of the book, too, that would be great.  Please leave a comment!

7 - Time to clean the kitchen!  God bless!

What are you reading?

Nancy at the Catholic Post Book Group starts each month by asking her readers what they're reading. I thought I'd share my answers here:

What are you reading? The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien and I'm still slowly working my way through Letters to a Young Catholic by George Wiegel and The Lamb's Supper by Scott Hahn.

What do you like best about them? I like that The Lamb's Supper is easy to read and that it's reiterating a lot of things I've heard or read before. It's good to be reminded of these things or else I'll lose them, like the ability to do algebra equations.

I like the depth and perspective that Wiegel offers in Letters. I also like that he takes us around the world in the book.

The Hobbit is my favorite that I'm reading now. I've never read it before though I grew up watching the trippy 70's cartoon movie and I'm really, really excited about Peter Jackson's version that's coming out in December. Tolkien's storytelling is so engaging and endearing and it's very easy for me to be drawn in to the story. I feel like I'm leaving this life and entering Middle Earth each time I pick it up and sometimes that's exactly what I need - to not feel overwhelmed but to be swept away with adventure. When James came home from the hospital I read through the Narnia books and I felt the same way about them. I think there's something about a good book that lets you process emotions and thoughts in ways that academic books or even movies don't. Even though I'm not able to sit and read it for long periods of time (it's usually 15 mintues here or there while I nurse) I'm going through it pretty quickly because I'm loving it so much.

What do you like least about them? Letters and Lamb's Supper engage my head and a little my heart but they're not stories. I've actually been reading Letters for over a year and Lamb's Supper has been at least seven months. They don't engage my heart the way The Hobbit does and because it was taking me so long to read them I began to wonder if I even like reading any more. That really troubled me since I used to devour books but once I thought back to reading the Narnia books I realized that I needed a story.

The only thing I don't like about The Hobbit is that the edition I'm reading is old and a little brittle. I have to hold it in one hand while I nurse so it's hard to read the top of the pages because they're not spread enough and the bottom of the book's binding is starting to split a little. I know, first world problem...

What's next on your list to read? Ummm... definitely not Fifty Shades of Grey. Does it gross anyone else out how women are not at all embarrassed to talk about how they read that erotica novel?  I don't want to read on Facebook, watch on tv, listen to on the radio, or see on Pinterest how you're engaging in something that's basically porn, people. You can call me a prude but I feel bad for your husband every time you talk about Christian Grey.

7 quick takes

1 - Aaahhh... boy bands...  I love this song, though I'll probably hate it by summer.  These boys are so little, like 13 year olds.  Is it silly of me that I wish NKOTB was singing this song?  Probably.  I also wish all men wore pants with the crotch in the crotch.  Ugh.

2 - Today I had a playdate with two friends whom I know from my college Newman Center days.  I hope that wherever you are you have friends like I have.  Friends who are funny, honest, thoughtful, and supportive.  Friends who love God and His Church and beer and $1 McDonald's ice cream cone bribes for good behavior.  It was a beautiful day, perfect weather at a park, a picnic lunch, 10 kids age 7 and under, and lots of good conversation.  So what if the conversations were always interrupted by a crying/whining/disobeying/tattling child?  It was perfect.

3 - I wrote a review of Hallie Lord's book Style, Sex & Substance over at IGNITUM TODAY.  Go check it out and share your opinion of the book in the combox! 

4 - Have you heard the good news about iusenfp.com?  Blogger friends Katie and Kayla are building a website filled with information on natural family planning.  It doesn't matter if you practice or are interested in nfp because of your religion, because of how "green" it is, because of infertility issues - there will be helpful resources and support.  They will include sympto-thermal, Creighton, NaPro Technology info, etc.  I encourage you to check them out, like them on Facebook, and snag yourself a button.

Best button ever.

5 - Lydia's birthday is coming up in early May.  She wants a Strawberry Shortcake birthday party which means I've been pinning things.  The funny thing is that there are four versions of Strawberry Shortcake. 

The one on the left, who I loved as a little girl, Lydia doesn't love. The one on the far right Lydia does not love, and I'm glad about that because she's a little too mature for me - not as sweet,cute, and little for my almost 4 year old.  The Strawberry in the middle was revamped with longer hair and uglier clothes before she morphed into the one on the right.  It's the Strawberry in the middle that Lydia loves - she's all about "working together" and "friendship".  I can live with that. 

6 - Speaking of Pinterest:

Why does everyone seem to want to put everything in a mason jar?  I wonder if this mostly appeals to people who don't otherwise eat food out of mason jars.  But since my mom has canned food and grape juice my whole life, and taught me once though I haven't tried it again, it's not cute and novel for me to eat food from one.  In fact, I always look at these things and think about what a pain in the butt it would be to prep the jar, bake the food in the jar, eat out of the jar, and then wash the jar again.  But maybe I'm just lazy. 

7 - Actually, I am lazy.  There's no way I would dye my cake batter 5 different colors and take the time to pour a little of each into a kabillion jars.  Or even one cake pan.