1 - So maybe I'm on a Walk the Moon kick right now. I need music that will get me movin', ya know. I got dishes to do, pancakes to flip, a Thomas train track to build in a figure 8 so that it has to include a bridge and tunnel, a baby to nurse, and a miracle boy to read From Head to Toe to for the 80 billionth time. I'm busy, people! I need some pep in my step.
3 - The article is about my friends Alisha and Jude and this amazing thing that happened to them when they sold their house. I even did an interview with Alisha for the post, which was a lot of fun, really long, and had many fun tangents - including one about gravy.
4 - I still have a cough and a sore throat from my stupid sickness. Last week was horrible and when I went to the doctor he looked at my throat and said, "Ah, that's gross!" Then he laughed and gave me a prescription. I feel better in every other way but I still have this dumb cough.
5 - Travis and I love our family practitioner. Who may or may not read this blog... I'm not sure. (Hey, Mark, if you're reading.) I asked him if I'd be well enough to go to my family reunion, which was last Sunday. He said yes but that if I didn't want to go he'd write me a note.
6 - While at the family reunion I was holding Bennet when one of my great aunts approached. "Is this your son?" she asked me. "Yes. This is Bennet," I said proudly. She looked disappointed and confused and then told me she wanted to see the miracle baby she was reading about in the papers. Poor Bennet - she doesn't know what she was missing out on!
7 - This past week I've continued to keep a fairly low profile, mostly because of the dang cough. The kids and I have walked to the park, had home-made pancakes for breakfast, and even done crafts. (!) The days have been pretty smooth and I have realized that the thing that makes this possible is if I do not shower until quiet time. Me in my pajamas until 2pm = everyone's happy. I'm glad to know how to make it work, but I think that it's not too practical.
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!
2 - Yesterday a reporter from the ABC affiliate in Springfield, IL came to the house for an interview. I was a little nervous since I am never sure how the secular media will represent the Church so I was completely delighted when I opened my door and immediately recognized the reporter. We have a mutual friend and so I had heard of him, seen his picture, and knew he is a solid Catholic. God is so good!
3 - I'm excited about the Olympics but I'm also a little confused - the countdown on the official London Olympic website says the opening is in 5 hours (I'm writing this at 9:30 am). So I guess I'll just be ready at 2 and leave NBC on for the rest of the day!
4 - Easiest baby ever. Two months, completely adorable. She fell asleep while playing.
5 - Check out all the school supplies for Diane's Garden! People are so generous!
6 - Cute pictures of the kiddos:
Lydia with Sr. Marie Noelle, O.P. It was a great trip and I'll post more about it next week. I'll tell you about how I scared a couple of nuns and tips for keeping my 4 year old happy during an 8 hour car ride.
Bennet and his trains.
James and his cute, cheesy smile.
My sweet little Teresa.
7 - Travis goes back to work in two weeks! Two weeks! I am not ready for him to be gone and it's probably time I start working on a routine so things are easier when he's gone. Summer always goes so quickly.
1 - This song is a part of the soundtrack to my childhood. My mom had the 45 record and we'd listen to it over and over again. I still love this song. Do you remember it?
2 - I have a new post up at Ignitum Today called "The Kitchen Is My Mission Field". Here's a little sample: It’s true that there are some pretty shallow reasons why I have never gone on a mission trip. First of all, they usually take place somewhere hot and sunny. I hate being hot and I hate the sun. I’m paler than Jim Gaffigan and so there’s no way I’m going to have my skin burn because I sweat off all my sunblock. Secondly, while I have a basic knowledge of how to use power tools that does not mean I should be building anyone a home. I can barely assemble a bookshelf from Target let alone a roof. Lastly, I’m lazy.
3 - If you missed my interview on the Drew Mariani show you can listen to it by going to their archives here. I was interviewed during the 3 o'clock hour on Friday, July 13. My part starts around 3:30. It was a lot of fun to do the interview, although as I sat and waited for them to call me I was so nervous I almost began to cry. Some prayers to the Holy Spirit definitely helped although it still took me the first 10 minutes to work all the "um"s out.
4 - Speaking of me sharing James' story, I have gotten a few more invites to speak at parishes and other events. I'm really excited about this opportunity and if you are also interested please feel free to email me. You can find my email address and some basic information on my presentation under the top right tab.
5 - We have two awesome events coming up. The first is an annual party that reunites our friends from the St. Francis Newman Center where Travis and I met. The second is Sr. Marie Noelle's profession of final vows with the Nashville Dominicans. Sister and I were close friends in college but I haven't seen her since she professed first vows six years ago. I just had to share the good news because I'm so happy to be able to do these things. God is so good.
6 - I am not taking James to Nashville and I feel a little worried that the nuns may be disappointed that the "miracle baby" did not come to them. I do not want to disappoint a nun but the fear of a miserable trip courtesy of my 22 month old son is more powerful.
7 - My heart goes out to the people who were killed or injured at the shooting at the midnight showing of The Dark Knight Rises in Aurora, Colorado. Many prayers are being offered!
Today there are a lot of people who are very sad here in central Illinois.
Today my friend Lisa and her family are moving back to Colorado.
Personally, my sadness is mixed with regret. Lisa lived 25 minutes away, which isn't very far really, and so I should have seen her more. My Lydia loves her Ellie and I love her sense of humor, devotion to Our Lady of Guadalupe, honesty, and homemade salsa.
Lisa, there is always text messages and Facebook, but they will not suffice I am sure. I will still miss you and the way you look at people with true compassion when they are sharing their pain and the way you look at me like I'm crazy and you're not sure what to do with me.
Lisa, Paul, E, M, and Q - the Engstroms will miss you A LOT. We wish you safe travels, fun adventures, financial security, good schools, a wonderful parish, lots of new friends, health, and all of God's blessings.
2 - Right now there's not a lot of talking going on about the Legionaries of Christ but I'm very interested in the progress they are hopefully making. If you don't know what I'm talking about, a couple of years ago the Vatican asked for a major clean-up of the organization when some very scandalous, sad facts were learned about the Legion and its founder. My bishop has asked that no one join them until their house is in order, and I'm not interested in doing so, but I do have friends who are involved and so I am hoping for the best for the sake of my friends.
3 - When we had Lydia my mom told me we had a difficult baby. She cried all the time and she did not sleep. When we had Bennet he was a lot easier. Sometimes he fussed but for the most part making him happy was pretty easy. James had a special set of difficulties but when it came to his personality he was pretty laid back and easy to deal with. He was easier than Bennet but only by a little bit. Now that we have Teresa I must say that I thought I knew what an easy baby was but I had NO idea. I am finally experiencing the "babymoon" that I've heard so many moms talk about! It's amazing and wonderful! She smiles, she coos, she naps, she naps in the swing, she falls asleep on her own in the crib, she doesn't seem to have food allergies, she nurses well, she sleeps for 10 hours straight! Please do not hate me, I think that after everything we went through with Lydia and James we deserved a reward for being open to life.
4 - Speaking of all my kids... Two friends stopped by to visit our family last Sunday. The guys, Brian and Ben, are single and in their early-mid twenties. They were present for bedtime and things were a little rough so I jokingly said to them, "This is how priests are made." Brian, who was in seminary for awhile, then told us that in seminary they called such situations "cele-boosters".
Now that's funny.
4.5 - Brian is a musician up in Minnesota. Check him out and Like him on Facebook. It was really loud when he was telling me about his budding music career but it's something like someone is interested in working with him in the studio but they want to see if people will listen to his music... or something. Brian, correct me in the combox. But everyone else go Like Brian K. on FB.
5 - At 3:30 central time today I will be doing a live (EEEK!) radio interview with Drew Mariani on Relevent Radio. You can listen live online here. Please pray for me and that my nerves don't have me making up words, stumbling to answer questions, and using poor grammar. Thank you!
6 - Also, my husband and I were recently told of a boy who is suffering from a very, very rare and horrible condition. Please pray for this boy, M, and his parents.
7 - Lastly, I'm joining my friend Larry in honoring his late wife by collecting school supplies to donate to children in need. I'll be posting more information about Diane's Garden next week but in the meantime, grab an extra set of pencils, crayons, or notebooks while you're out shopping for your own kids.
1 - I wanted to post a song to go with the heat. Buster Poindexter's "Hot Hot Hot" is just a little too peppy. So I went with Badly Drawn Boy's "The Shining" which is nice and slow and thick. I thought it fit.
2 - Thursday was a pie baking day at my house. Remember when I said I needed to make some money to pay for a trip so I could see my friend profess final vows with the Nashville Dominicans? Well, my mom is often hired by local women to bake home made pies for certain events. One such event (an ice cream social at the park) is tonight and we baked four apple pies and one blueberry pie for $8 each. Every little bit helps!
3 - Here's what we did on the 4th of July:
We made red, white, and blue skewers. The kids mostly ate marshmallows and complained about how they don't like blueberries.
I did all the prep work and made mine while they were still in quiet time. By getting all my ridiculous perfectionist tendencies out of the way I was able to let the kids just enjoy themselves.
Thank you, Pinterest.
I tried to get a cute picture of my four awesome kids. This is as good as it got.
I ate waaaaaay too many patriotic rice krispie treats.
Another thanks to Pinterest here.
Travis set off fireworks and the kids held hands while they watched. I think it was one part excitement, one part fear, and one part safety.
Poor Lydia momentarily forgot all the warnings and reminders and touched a recently extinguished sparkler. Here's a picture of our little burn victim holding her injured hand in ice water while her daddy holds her ice cream. It's cute.
4 - One of my favorite sites to visit is Big Pulpit. Every day Tito Edwards posts links to the best Catholic blog articles out there. Along with National Catholic Register, I check out Big Pulpit almost every day. I just wanted to share it in case you hadn't heard of it yet. Enjoy!
5 - Let's take a moment to appreciate how cute my little Teresa Marie is...
Six weeks and so, so sweet!
6 - Tomorrow our good friends, and Teresa's godparents, are getting married. Travis and I are so happy for them and we're so excited to share in their joyous day. Yay for MVV and Liz!
We love you!
7 - This one's for R, who left a sympathetic message for Travis in my comment box.
I am proud to be an American and there are so many things I love about this country - I thought I'd type up a list:
rock and roll, beer, beaches, mountains, apple pie, peach pie, baseball, football, the Super Bowl, redwood forests, fresh sourdough bread in San Francisco, fold over pizza out East, deep dish pizza in Chicago, fried chicken, McDonald's french fries, southern peaches, corn on the cob from the garden, Simon and Garfunkel, Jimmy Fallon, Jimmy Stewart, Archbishop Sheen, family farms, cold watermelon on a hot day, hot cocoa on a snowy day, snow days, beer from all over the world, warm chocolate chips cookies, cookie exchanges, fireworks, fireflies, butterflies, cooking meals for families, sprinkler parks, Batman, the Declaration of Independence, how the histories of so many other countries play into and build the history of our country, buffalo, the Wild West, Boston accents, southern accents, public education, the Midwest, PBS, Broadway, small town festivals, lemon shake-ups, three branches of government, open elections, Oprah, the American Dream.
When I asked Bennet what he loves about being an American he said, "the mailman".
Lydia said, "a princess".
Travis, who was in another room and didn't really hear the question, said, "the fireworks".
What about you? Leave a note telling me some of the things you love about the USA.
Over at Betty Beguiles Hallie is hosting a little love song link up where she invited her readers to post about their favorite love songs. Taking a slightly different twist on the matter I thought I'd post the songs that make me think of the people in my family. They're love songs, just not the romantic kind.
Travis:
The first dance at our wedding reception was to Israel Kamakawiwo'ole's version of What a Wonderful World and that song is special to me. But I still consider this "our song."
Peter:
A lot of the things Sara lists in this song are things Peter never got the chance to lose. But even though he lost his life he cannot lose my love.
Lydia:
This song came out right around the time of Lydia's birth. Every time I heard it I thought of my little girl, this new soul trying to figure things out in the world and I was given the blessing of leading her by the hand. So lovely.
Bennet:
This song came out around the time of Bennet's birth. Looking at my great big baby boy as he grew into the charmer he is - it is undeniable that there is a Creator behind the miracle that is life.
James:
There were so many times I sang this song to James while he was in the NICU and I still sing it to him as a lullaby at times. The lyric, "with ten miles behind me and ten thousand more to go" made my heart ache, especially when we were still looking at the possibility of James having a rather short and very disabled life. Take away all the grief and jubilation and he would still be my sweet baby James.
Teresa:
The chorus of this song was the first thing I sang to my new baby girl when I held her in my arms. Even the first time I heard it I touched my belly and thought of her. It's so fantastic how God places just the right people together.
1 - Originally I was going to put up a video by Weezer. There's something about warm weather that makes me want to listen to Weezer. But my duaghter said I needed to play a "girl song" and so heeding the advice of a 4 year old I looked up some Regina Spektor. She watched the video with me and said, "That lady is making a mess." True dat.
2 - Last night I decided that I wanted to do a movie night with the kids tonight. I went to Family Video and got The Road to El Dorado and The Prince of Egypt so the kids could chose. Then I went to the grocery store and bought snacks to make this edible necklace. I'm hoping the kids enjoy it all. I figure we can have some homemade veggie soup for dinner and then pig out a little bit on popcorn and sweets.
3 - Last night Travis and I talked about inviting some friends over to join us in the movie night. Our kids could make their necklaces together and sit in their pj's, watching a movie and eating while we grown ups sat at the dining room table, playing cards or Scrabble, and having a beer. We went through all our friends who would maybe want to come over and then I gave a reason why most of them wouldn't want to come and swore off calling any of the other ones. Because I enjoy hosting things but I'm also an insecure introvert this happens to poor Travis on a fairly frequent basis. It's a ridulous combination to have in a person.
So unless someone invites themself over we will be watching our movie alone.
4 - So yesterday had some sad news. I really like Ann Curry. I read this press release from my Bishop, Daniel R. Jenky, and I wanted to share it here as I think it is a little more positive than some people (myself included) first felt. You can see the press release here.
Bishop Daniel R. Jenky, CSC, Bishop of the Diocese of Peoria, believes that today's Supreme Court ruling will have no impact upon the Catholic Church's legal case regarding being forced to fund abortions, sterilizations, and contraceptives in our religious institutions. The church's pending lawsuits are based upon our First Amendment right to freely practice our religion and to define for ourselves what constitutes a Catholic ministry. Today's Supreme Court ruling addressed other legal issues that are not the direct concern of the Church.
The Catholic Diocese of Peoria is now considering joining other Dioceses and Catholic entities suing the Federal Government. Bishop Jenky calls upon the Catholic faithful to participate in "Fortnight of Freedom" observances and to continue to pray for religious liberty in America. Under no circumstances will the Catholic Church ever abandon its absolute commitment to the Gospel of Life.
5 - In case you didn't hear the super great news let me introduce to you the VENERABLE Fulton J. Sheen!
6 - Big prayer request: A friend of mine's mom is battling cancer. The cancer is pretty aggressive and there have been some issues with the insurance company wanting to deny treatment. Please pray for my friend, her mom and doctors, their entire family, and all the insurance issues. Our Father...
7 - One more prayer request: The feeding therapist and I will be scheduling another swallow study for James. Our little boy is eating normally now, except for all the things he can't eat because of allergies, but he still isn't drinking normally. We were given the go-ahead from his feeding therapist to give him little sips of water so he is accustomed to drinking that way in time for the study. I don't want to expose him to radiation and not even have drink from a cup. Hopefully we can get rid of the thickened formula and the bottles forever!
1 - My friend Alisha recommended this song to me saying, "I just found your next quick takes song." She was right.
2 - People asked how I find the songs I use in my quick takes posts and recommendations from friends is a great way. My top suggestions for finding "new" music are:
- Friends. Check out the music your friends post on Facebook, listen to in their cars, or are downloading. I've noticed that my friends who dress and decorate their homes in ways I really like also tend to listen to music I really like.
- Pandora. I plug in an artist I like and then they play other artists with a similar style. I take note of the ones I like, write down the names of the bands and songs and look them up on YouTube later.
- YouTube. When a video ends YouTube suggests other songs by the same or similar artists. Listen to those songs and see if you can find something new.
- Watch the music channels. We don't have cable but our local Fox station has substations, 43-2 and 43-3. Those stations are how I saw Brooke Fraser and The Lumineers.
3 - I am so stupid when it comes to Word Press and cannot upload a picture of Teresa Marie for this week's column over at Ignitum Today. Therefore I am sending people to this blog if they want to see a picture of my baby girl. Isn't that embarrassing and lame? I think so.
5 - Congratulations to Dwija and her entire family on the birth of #babyunseen Mary Isabel! So happy for you all and I can't wait to read the birth story!
6 - I will now confess that knowing that Dwija had a homebirth makes me a little sad that I did not. I know that it was very, very good that we were at the hospital with Teresa. I cannot imagine how scary it would have been to deliver such a big baby at home and it would have been terrifying to see them give her oxygen if we were at home. But I still miss the experience.
7 - It's time to wrap this all up. I've been at McDonald's, using their free internet for almost 2 hours. Teresa has been napping, James has been mostly happy, and I'm sure I'm running out of time. Plus I need to go home and eat lunch before I'm tempted to buy a cheeseburger!
1 - This infectious song just got so much better. The guy on the right, rockin' out on the xylophone on wheels and the one on the left with the kazoo are my faves. That is, they're my favorites not counting Jimmy Fallon. I love watching Fallon enjoying himself, it makes me happy seeing him so happy. I hope this song and video make you smile the way it did for Travis and me.
2 - Remember when our house looked like this?
It looks like this now:
With some lovely landscaping that looks like this:
Okay, well you can't see the landscaping so well but believe me, it looks wonderful.
3 - When I was pregnant with Teresa I had no energy what-so-ever. Getting myself and three kids dressed and out of the house before 9am was a ginormous feat. And so now, three weeks post partum, I am thrilled to have the energy to actually do things.
Wednesday's weather was beautiful and while Teresa napped the rest of the family was outside. Lydia and I planted some flowers and it was a wonderful remedy for how I'd been feeling.
4 - Yesterday Travis did some stuff around the house that needed to be crossed off our to do list. The first "To Do" was to hang the light fixture over our kitchen sink.
The second thing was to install a spicket on the outside of our house. He'll hook up the plumbing once the mortar is all set and we'll finally have a hose outside! This means good things for water fun this long, hot summer.
5 - Last week I said I was getting some short bangs. My hair dresser / sister-in-law was hesitant and it took me a few days to figure out how to best style them but I think they turned out pretty well. I was hoping for something kinda hip but I may have only gotten nerdy but I still like them. Oh well.
6 - Now that fair season is upon us I feel like summer is really here. Our family went to a Turkey Festival in a local town. Travis and I kept to our diets and didn't eat anything (it was horrible!). I thought I was being a good mom and bought 6 tickets thinking my two eldest would get to each ride 3 rides. What an idiot I was! One ride each for $3 a pop. Lydia chose the carousel and Bennet the train. James and Teresa hung out in the stroller and then we left.
7 - Teresa Marie will be baptised this Sunday at our 9am Mass with a celebratory brunch to follow. I've got some breakfast casseroles to make, fruit salad to prep, and a DQ ice cream cake to buy.
Have a great weekend, everyone! Click on over to Conversion Diary for more Quick Takes!
1 - I haven't really felt like my marriage is "dancing in minefields" but I like the analogy nonetheless. I think this song is beautiful.
2 - Speaking of marriage - in the five years that I've been hitched to Travis we have both gained a lot of weight. I won't tell you how much but my awesome cooking and four babies in four years have not been good for our waistlines. We are finally doing something about it. Travis bought the Insanity videos and I started Weight Watchers. I feel stupid even mentioning it but I'm sincerely hoping that by next summer I will look a lot more like this:
Yes, I want to be thin again. With naturally curly hair again. Eating a Belgian waffle in Belgium again.
3 - Did you hear the good news about Hallie and Dan Lord? Dan, whom you may know as Mr. Betty Beguiles, has been named the new editor for Catholic Exchange! Congratulations are definitely in order, so CONGRATULATIONS! Bloggers I love such as Patrick Madrid, House Unseen's Dwija, and Clan Donaldson's Cari write at Catholic Exchange, which features all kinds of great content. I'm super excited for Dan and his family.
Also, right now Catholic Exchange is in the midst of their summer fundraising. Why not drop by and donate a little bit of money to make sure this great site is able to keep up the good work?
4 - Here is an example of why I do not do ecological breastfeeding: Last night Teresa slept from 9:30pm until 7:30am. That means I got to sleep through the night, too. THANK YOU, JESUS!!!!
5 - Today I will get my hair cut. And I want my bangs to look like this:
I don't know if this will work on me because of my longer hair but I'm liking the short bang look. Here's hoping it looks cute!
6 - I am super excited to say that this July my friend Sr. MN will be professing final vows with the Dominican Sisters of St. Cecilia, aka the Nashville Dominicans. Sister was my best friend in college and it was a lot of fun to watch her revert to her Catholic faith, fall in love with Christ, discern religious life, and have to learn how to sew. (She was horrible at sewing but every nun needs to know how to do it I guess. It's a habit thing, I think.) I have been a horrible pen pal with her, and each child makes me even worse, but I love her and have such wonderful memories of eating ice cream, singing along to Keith Urban's Blue Jean Song, and watching her play laser tag.
We're not sure if the whole family can go or not. I really want her to meet my kids but a seven hour drive and a night in a hotel room followed by good behavior at a long Mass sounds like a disaster for my family of six. There's also the fact that we really can't afford to pay for any of this. I tried thinking of ways to raise money for it. I could bake pies, do a garage sale, clean people's homes, or be really tacky and ask for cash for my birthday. I could probably whip together a yard sale, right? And sell some fruit pies at the sale?
Or we could win the lottery.
7 - Our 12 year old neighbor boy was visiting while the kids and I were playing outside yesterday. He looked at Teresa and said, "I think she looks like you."
"Oh yeah? Thanks."
"Yeah; you have the same red dots on your face."
Awesome. My precious daughter and I look alike because we both have acne.
1 - Teresa Marie's birth story is now up. You can check it out below this post, or click here. Though by clicking you will no longer be able to hear this funky, groovy, perfect song. Thank you, Mr. Stevie Wonder, for writing this piece of music.
2 - Cluster feeding is happening. Milk is coming in. I am sore. She won't nap. Which means I can't nap.
3 - I listened to Johnny Cash while laboring with Teresa. I did that with Bennet's birth, too, and it's so helpful. Highly recommend it.
4 - How 'bout some pictures?
5 - Bennet LOVES Baby Resa, as he calls her. LOVES her. As soon as he saw her he asked to hold her, and when he did he immediately put his cheek to hers, kissed her, patted her head, commented on how soft her hair was, and then - waving his hand around her - he asked, "Where baby come from?"
6 - Lydia is very interested in how I feed Teresa. When we first came home from the hospital she asked if she could feed Teresa some babyfood. I explained she would have to eat milk from my breast. Lydia asked, "How will she do that? With hoses?"
7 - James doesn't know what to think of our newborn but he's pretty ticked that I can't pick him up right now nor hold him while she's nursing. Poor little boy.
Alright, friends. Thanks for all the well wishes, love, congrats, prayers, and general nice things you've said. We appreciate it! And now it's time to nurse! Have a fun weekend, and check out conversiondiary.com for more quick takes!
1 - This song is just delish. I hope you enjoy it.
2 - Here's something else I love: Lisa and Joel Schmidt's blog The Practicing Catholic. They have all kinds of great content, they update frequently, and they're just plain wonderful. Seriously, you can read the fluff I write, or you can read something interesting. Or, you know, you could do both. And ps - Lisa was one of our bloggers at the 2012 Behold Conference. Pretty blonde with a baby.
3 - Also have a new found love for Kathryn Whitaker's blog and tweeting. Check out Team Whitaker. I especially appreciate what I've read under her Motherhood and The Preemie tabs.
I have a lot of respect for Karen and I'm so, so grateful that she's written a book about miscarriage. I wish I would have had a good Catholic book on miscarriage when I was going through the loss of Peter, and I think it would probably still be helpful five years later.
5 - I'll be honest, the internet sometimes makes me feel like I'm a freshman in high school looking across the cafeteria to the upperclass cool kids table. (Doesn't that just sound so dorky? But it's how I think. Dork.) Don't get me wrong, I have a very full, fun table myself and I love the friends I have. Sometimes I wish I knew - in real life - women like Lisa, Kathryn, Karen, Grace, Hallie, Dwija, Katie, the Bright Maidens, Sarah. They seem to be just as fabulous as my friends who I share playdates and texted prayer requests with. And if you don't know them yet I strongly encourage you to check out their blogs, Facebook pages, and Twitter feeds. They're funny, kind-hearted, and Catholic.
6 - Back to things I love. This picture:
This print was done by the awesomely talented Jude Landry. His wife Alisha and I met at a local Catholic moms' group and then they moved back to the South from whence they had come. I don't think there was a direct connection between the timing of our meeting and their moving. If you want to buy this print or something else similarly great check out Jude's store.
7 - And lastly, I love the tulips my loving husband brought home yesterday because tulips are my favorite flowers and I am overdue. What a good man.
1 - Before you get too far into this song please be warned that a major f bomb is dropped in this one. I'm pretty much sick of their single, which I posted a few weeks ago. I can no longer listen to it. Top 40 radio, you have overplayed and therefore killed another good song, for me anyways. This song, though was recommended to me by my husband who had a student play it for him earlier this week.
2 - Honestly, I had no idea what song to post here this week. I've been listening to the Maccabeats a lot lately, especially their cover of Matisyahu's Miracle. It's how I'm prepping for the birth, weirdly.
If you're in the mood for a Hannukah song, and not a song that sounds a little like The Lion King, then you can watch this one:
3 - And yes, I'm still pregnant. Last night I had some pretty strong, long contractions but whenever I'd sit and rest they'd stop. I was tempted to go for a walk or scrub my tubs or something but overall I'm just too tired to do a bunch of work for something that would end once I sat down.
4 - Today I will have my first one of these since last fall.
5 - For Mother's Day I'm doing this awesome thing: hanging out with my mom without the kids. Maybe it's bad that on the day that celebrates my motherhood the one thing I want is to be by myself with another adult. No diapers, holding, correcting, wiping, feeding, buckling in, buckling out...
6 - Today we have a playdate and since I am not in labor we will be there! Yay for playdates!
7 - Courtesy of Netflix my kids are now fans of three staples from my childhood: Care Bears, Strawberry Shortcake, and My Little Ponies. The Ponies and Shortcake and updated, ya know, but I still like that Lydia loves what I loved as a little girl.
Hallie's hosting Quick Takes this week. Please pray for Jennifer, the soul of the man who was in the motorcycle accident she witnessed, and his loved ones. Thanks.
1 - The Boat Song! Parents who love Margaret Wise Brown, and I'm lookin' at you, Laura Beth, I think you would like this song. It was inspired by The Runaway Bunny and it features the bird wallpaper LB has in her kitchen and hallway. Everyone else, it's such a cute song, I really think you should listen to it. And then love it.
2 - For those of you who do not know my friend Laura, let me show you a picture of her arm.
Now do you understand why I think she'll like a song that was inspired by The Runaway Bunny? You can barely see it, but there's two bunny birds, one for each of her sons. Also, I don't really like tattoos but this is seriously the most amazing thing I've ever seen on someones body and I really appreciate the craftsmanship of this tat.
3 - Did I pull that off - calling it a "tat"? Do people even call them "tats" any more? It's tragic how unhip I am. Wait....
4 - Lydia Anne turned 4 yesterday! Four! Her Strawberry Shortcake themed party is tomorrow and she is so excited. What a cutie. What a joy. What a bundle of energy.
5 - Tonight Travis and I are going on a dinner and a movie date. We're going to see the new Avengers movie and I think Travis is half-hoping I'll go into labor the way I did as I watched Iron Man 4 years ago. We'll see!
I'm excited about our date night but I do think I should probably tidy up the house a bit. Our babysitters will be a couple of his students and I feel pressure to have the house clean. I should have thought of this yesterday when all I did during quiet time was sit on my butt and surf the internet, telling myself that 9 month pregnant women with occasional contractions should keep their feet up so they don't get too swollen. But now it's 9:30am and I've napped once already today, haven't showered, and need to clean and bake Lydia's birthday cake for tomorrow's party. We'll see how all this goes.
6 - Bennet does this absolutely adorable thing where he sits on the back of the sofa, recites the first half of Humpty Dumpty, falls back onto the sofa, and recites the second half of the nursery rhyme. I love it.
7 - Bennet wants a picture of himself on the blog so I will post one. Happy Friday, everyone!
It all began when I first heard the Goyte song Somebody That I Used to Know, which means this post has been floating around in my head for about two months. In case you don't know the song I'll put a fully clothed cover of it right here, though you can find the original song and video here.
Every time I listen to this song I think of the somebodies that I used to know, guys I once dated / hung out with / crushed on / flirted with / impressed with my "flux capacitor" t-shirt. Some of the guys I kissed, some I did not. Some of the guys I remember with great embarrassment and some I can barely remember at all. Pretty much all of them that I kissed I wish I had not.
And all of this makes me thank God that I was a virgin when I got married. Unfortunately there are guys in that list above with whom I did more than kiss; there were times when being pure and chaste were not of the highest importance. There were times when we were not leaving much room at all for the Holy Spirit. And honestly, it makes me a little sick to my stomach when I think about that. I really do regret those relationships with guys who are no more than people that I used to know and I simultaneously am very grateful that I never had sex with them.
Having run in Christian circles for a long time I have heard a kabillion times why I should "save myself for marriage." When I was young and single I pretty much thought it was a good idea, with a dash of doing what the Church told me, with a healthy dose of fear of pregnancy, STDs, and having people disappointed in me. But now that I am married I can see all the reasons why it was so good that I did wait and many of those reasons I don't think I could have ever fully appreciated without knowing what I know now.
One reason I'm super glad I didn't have sex outside of marriage is because I married a virgin. He didn't have to worry about any tag-along diseases I was bringing into the marriage and neither did I. Our conversation about sex was pretty easy to have: You've never had sex? I've never had sex. I'll see ya on our wedding night. It was completely clear that the pressure to have sex would not be present during our dating or our engagement (which is not to say we weren't tempted).
So when our wedding night came, well, it was awkward and painful. I won't go into any details, I'll just stick with those two adjectives. The good thing, though, is that I was with my best friend and a man who was 100% committed to me. My husband and I laughed together as we figured things out together. I didn't have to be sexy or afraid. I didn't feel vulnerable or unsure if I was making a good decision. When I have seen scenes in movies or tv of a couple losing their virginity or even just having sex together for the first time (scenes I am assuming are based on real people's real experiences) it is nothing like what I experienced. And I what I experienced was my husband loving me, adoring me, enjoying being with the whole of me. He was giving 100% of himself to me. Only me. Always me. Looking into my eyes, wanting only me forever. It was truly beautiful. While still remaining awkward and painful.
Closely related to all that is the fact I never had to worry about him comparing me to some other woman he'd slept with (was she thinner, prettier, better in bed?) and vice versa. As it turned out the man I was meant to marry was engaged to someone before me. Their relationship was pretty pure but I still felt a lot of insecurity (because I'm insecure) especially in the beginning of our marriage. Had he been sexually active with his former fiance it would have been very, very difficult for me. I realize that this may not be the same for everyone but for my husband it would have been. I suspect that this single issue would still be rearing its ugly head, especially when our marriage hits a rough patch. It's better to not even have that issue to deal with.
Lastly, I do want to say that of the guys I dated and did not marry there is only one whom I completely respect and sincerely wish the best. Unlike all the other guys I do not consider him "somebody that I used to know" but instead as a man that I briefly dated. The only thing that separates him from the others is that his intentions were clear and godly and he never even held my hand. I think those things illustrate the amount of respect he had for my eternal soul and for my future husband. I can appreciate any man who is that good, especially a man who has that much respect for the man I did marry - whom I consider to be the best of men.
I do not assume that all the people who read this were or will be virgins on their wedding day and I sincerely hope I didn't shame or judge you. I have enough to be ashamed about and I didn't write this post to make myself look or feel better. But if you are still a virgin I hope that sharing my experiences may reaffirm the decisions you've made. And if you are unmarried but not a virgin I pray that something I wrote will make you rethink your decision to be sexually active outside of marriage.
I was 25 when I got married and the wait was well worth it. The man I gave, not lost but gave, my virginity to is not "somebody that I used to know." He is not a person who "screwed me over" and I had to cut out of my life. He was a man who waited for me, not even knowing it was me he was waiting for. He is a man of virtue, character, and selflessness. He is a man who loves and adores me. He is a man who I can wholly give myself to and trust that he will protect, love, and care for me for the rest of his life. Like I said, the wait was well worth it.
1 - So I've been listening to this song on repeat for about 3 weeks. I hate the video, though. The song definitely tells a story that happened in the 80's but everything is current except for the mix tape. Seriously, do people younger than 25 even know what mix tapes are? I don't think so. So don't watch the dumb video, just listen to the song and appreciate all its references to songs we can all hopefully agree are great.
2 - I own this album, as in record. There's something about a record... but I can't listen to them anymore because my kids would break or scratch them, I am sure of it. I'm on Fire is probably my favorite song, closely followed by Working on the Highway. I think I have a strong association between my childhood and Bruce Springsteen and John Mellencamp songs. They always make me think of playing in my neighborhood, eating popsicles, and riding in the backseat of my parents grey Oldsmobile. It makes me happy.
3 - On Pinterest I saw the suggestion to take a picture of your daughter in your wedding dress so it can be displayed at her wedding. Of course the picture on Pinterest showed a little girl with styled hair and good lighting, probably sitting in a portrait studio. This is Lydia at the end of the day, sitting on my bed. But it doesn't really matter. She looked beautiful in the dress and I was delighted when she told me she would wear it on her own wedding day. (I seriously love that dress so much that until I could no longer fit in it I would wear it around the house, talking on the phone, watching tv, whatever. Love it.)
4 - Now it's time for some cute pictures of my kids. These are a little late being posted but it's still the Season of Easter so I'm not gonna fret.
5 - Over at IGNITUM TODAY we're doing a symposium on Mercy and Killing, which grew out of an email exchange about mercy killing. You can check out my post, Black and White for the Shades of Grey. It took me a long time to gather my thoughts and write the essay. I feel like the tone changes and it doesn't flow, but I still hope you read it. It's intimidating stating that mercy killing parents aren't monsters when the internet is full of people ready and willing to rip my head off for saying such a thing.
6 - It's probably really lame that I can't remember is in the US we're supposed to spell it "gray" or "grey" though it's even more lame that I didn't look it up I just decided to go with the 'e' and keep it at that. If "grey" is the British spelling let's all just blame my concentration in British literature and call it good.
7 - Tonight my mom is keeping all three kids overnight. In anticipation I have blown off the whole day and done nothing but feed and dress the kids at eat cookie dough. I hope you're gonna do something fun tonight!
