Feast of the Holy Family

This weekend celebrates the Feast of the Holy Family. Today I will skip too much of my own writing to instead share what our priest put in the bulletin about this feast.

"This feast is a wonderful celebration of the family of Jesus, Mary, and Joseph and a challenge to all of us to live more like the Holy Family. In a special way this week, let us pray for the gift of family. Often times the world does not support the family as it should. Let us as Christians unite on our love and support of Christian family life, especially in the sacrament of marriage."

Our priest also shared with us that we should feel really more like the Holy Family is like the family of 2006, since, after all, Joseph was more of a foster father to Jesus. The family had to move around several times, and faced many challenges. Perhaps they were more like the family of 2006 than like a family typical of their times.

I was really moved by the homily and found that that really resonated with me. We can't feel like the Holy Family is so separated from us. We can still strive to be a holy family, and to raise our children to love and honor God.

I was also very moved by the writings of my husband on this topic. Here is the link to his blog today. I found it to be very thought provoking. Eric has gotten to be quite the deep religious thinker as we continue on our journey to Catholicism.

Another year older (aka I'm not 1,000 years old yet)

Yesterday was my birthday, and so I was mostly away from the computer. It was a really nice day (apart from not so nice stuff in the morning that was work related). Speaking of work, my one session for the day ended up being rescheduled to this afternoon, so other than a couple of phone calls in the morning, I didn't have to work at all. That was a nice birthday gift!

So...it's was a biggie of a birthday. I am now officially out of my twenties. Today at the gym, I actually got to punch in 30 as my age on one of the machines. Weird! But, I'm pleased, and excited to be here on the second day of being in my thirties. I'm hoping for an excellent decade! (Although, it is a bit shocking to think that when I am entering my forties, it will mean that I will be the Mom of children ages 17, 15, and 12. Wow!)

My parents were sweet enough to watch our kids for the afternoon so that Eric and I could have a little alone time. We had a nice lunch at Panera Bread, and then we did something I had wanted to do for quite a while -- we went walking in the downtown area and went into all the little shops that I had always wanted to go into. We picked up some homemade chocolates (just enough for us to each have two pieces right then) and then some Robeez shoes for Molly. Too cute! (Although, we have decided we need to start being better consumers, and so possibly $26 slipper shoes are not so practical.) We also picked up flowers (some greenery and pink Gerbera daisies) in a cool clear glass rectangular vase for my Mom. She thanked me for the flowers, and I thanked her for the birthday.

One funny exchange on that afternoon was with Noah. I asked him how old I was (since it had already come up numerous times), and he said, "I don't know."

I told him, "You know how old I am. We talked about it before."

"24?"

"No,"with a bit of laughing. "More than that."

"25?"

"No, still higher than that."

"Oh, I don't know, Mom. A thousand?!?"

"Seriously, Noah? Do I really look 1,000 years old? Do you really think I'm 1,000?"

"Okay, Mom -- 29?"

"That's so close, Noah! Just a little more!"

"30!"

Whew -- finally! Although, Eric did comment today that if I was really 1,000 -- then I would be looking pretty good for my age. So true.

Sometimes it's in the presentation

My kids just excitedly finished up lunch at a restaurant. The restaurant was "Mommy's Restaurant," as I announced to them when I set the plates in front of them. Each child was a sir or ma'am, and they were served up their lunch on what I would secretly call the "leftover platter." Each child had a half of a double cheeseburger that was left over from McDonalds last night, a bowl of macaroni (from the night before that -- each served in a small bowl that sat on their plate), and then a small dip sized bowl of sugar free chocolate pudding (all three servings came from the same pudding cup). I seated each child and took their drink orders while they started on the lunch special.

Now, I can't say that they all ate everything up, but they WERE excited about it, and played along that they were a family coming to eat for dinner at my restaurant.

Sometimes, it's in the presentation. And, sometimes, it would seem that, it's all about our own perceptions. Sometimes the leftover platter can be a special feast, if we want it to be.

From the heart of a child (aka "huggie Mary!")

*Please forgive the second blog entry for today, but watching Molly tonight inspired me to write this entry*
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Molly loves Jesus. I don't know what she understands, but I do know that she loves to hug a statue of the Holy Family that is in our church social hall (temporarily). The statue features a standing Holy Family, with Jesus, as a child, about the same height as two year old Molly. She loves Him. She hugs the statue and kisses it. One night, as she ran to the social hall, she apparently was yelling (as reported by Eric), "I'm coming, Jesus!"

Molly also loves Mary. Every time we pass an outdoor Nativity scene, she points out Mary. She kisses Mary on the Holy Family statue as well. (And, Joseph [also known as "JoJo" to Molly] gets the ocassional hug as well.) And, pretty much every time we see a statue or picture of Mary, she wants to "huggie" (hug) it or kiss it. I think that maybe it could be that this mama's girl sees another Mom to love, perhaps.

When we went to Mass on Christmas morning, Molly insisted that we walk up to a large stone statue of Mary in the courtyard area at church (with everyone leaving Mass watching, it seemed) to "HUGGIE MARY!" This is not unusual, and so I humored her. Imagine my surprise on this Christmas morning when she hugged the statue of Mary and gave it a kiss, and then for the first time ever while doing that said, "Thank You, Mary." (I will admit that it actually sounded more like, "Tank Ewww, Mary.") It seemed so appropriate that I have to admit that it took my breath away. Of course, we have to thank God for giving us Jesus, but it could not have been easy for Mary to deal with the implications of the events that lead up to the birth of Christ.

Sometimes, it would seem that we have a lot to learn from even the littlest of children.

Excess can "rotten" your house too

As has already been established (see the past post "Excess can 'rotten' your teeth"), excess can really do a number on your teeth.

Well, this had me thinking, and I realized an important truth -- excess can "rotten" your house too. We again did what would seem to be our annual rite of sorting through our things and taking some of those "treasures" to Goodwill to make more room for our Christmas loot.

This year, Eric and I didn't get too many big things. We mostly got things that we were really asking for and already had in mind either where we wanted them or what we were going to do with them. And, our buying for the kids was really our main reason for having to reorganize their rooms, as most everyone else in the family seemed to cut down their spending for this year (of those who typically buy gifts specifically for the kids). So, we went through Molly's room, as well as the boys' room, and I was SHOCKED to finally see that when bag after bag of stuff went out to the car for Goodwill, we finally FILLED Eric's car. Yes, I do mean filled. Oh geez! The trunk was full, and the back seat was so full that he had a hard time seeing to back out (though he did make room to be able to see). It was just crazy.

And, now their rooms look SO much better! Molly now has more toys in her room, but they are more age appropriate AND they look better. And, the boys' closet can actually be safely walked into.

So, maybe excess can not only rotten your teeth, but it can pretty easily rotten your house too. This will be something for me to think on this year, and decide how I can better help us to not buy so much stuff that just goes to Goodwill later.

New Additions to Our Family

We are officially pet owners! It is hard to be pet owners with two kids that are totally freaked out by animals though, so we are excited to say that we now have pet fish. Finally -- when it inevitably comes up in school when they have to draw a picture of a pet or the like -- my kids will be set!

Eric just couldn't wait for the kids to have their fish tank for Christmas, so they got it early. We set it up, and then were able to go out this afternoon to pick up our fish. We had to start small (much to Eric's displeasure), and we got four fish (two each of two different kinds). The girl at PetSmart said we could add more next week, but since we just set up the tank, we need a chance to get a bacteria cycle going. (That doesn't really sound pleasant, does it? "Oh yeah, I have a bacteria cycle going on.")

The boys insisted that we name the fish, so please welcome our newest family members: Jordan, Rose, Feller Timantha, and Sunday.

Angie is not a financial guru

Sorry -- it makes me sad to say, but I am not a financial guru. LOL Seriously -- I'll just say it, I'm not good with money. Really, on every level possible, I am bad with money. And, shockingly, I am the person in charge of money in our house. Perhaps I should make Eric try it out a few months to see how it would go if he were in charge of the money. Maybe it's something to start in the new year. It would be a change, that's for sure.

Anyway, since it would seem that I take my financial advice from MC Hammer, it is no surprise that it finally got the better of me when I realized that the bank said I had probably about $500 more than I thought I had in my checkbook. So, 3 1/2 hours later, I found $71 worth of errors of things I had forgotten to write in the checkbook and whatnot (this is, of course, over about a 7 month time span, since it's not like I balance my checkbook). I also found $79 worth of errors in my favor. Most of that is from a deposit that I either didn't realize was made (a direct deposit) or just forgot to write in, plus many little amounts where I did something like round up for some regular automatic payments (like $7 for Netflix when it's only like $6.25 or something like that). So, that put me $8 closer to figuring out the mystery. LOL

Then, the big undertaking -- we checked ALL my math for the last 7 months. Augh! And, since we use the debit card almost all the time, this was UGLY! I habitually make math errors. Although, I am happy to say that I made a much smaller number than usual. Luckily, my math errors are typically taking away more money, so it's always been a nice windfall when we figure it all out. (This time, I am ashamed to say that we "found" $206 between several math errors.)

Finally, we found a few things that have, for whatever reason, never posted, even though we used the debit card. I don't really know how long a person could wait before assuming it will never post, but we left the money just "floating"...awaiting it to clear. Plus, then one large check that we had to pay on a deposit for testing that Jack had done which hasn't been cashed.

And, alas, we finally got the check book balanced. I'm sure it will come as no surprise, but when I say that the checkbook was balanced, that meant that it was less than $10 +/- what the bank said I had. Hey...we can't all be perfect, can we?

The Definition of Sharing

I found while looking online that one definition of the word sharing (or, really, to share) is: To participate in, use, enjoy, or experience jointly or in turns.

This is now a word that is used often in our house. It is usually coming out of the mouth of one Molly Katherine, age two. It is not a casual word for Molly. It is not said with a matter-of-fact tone, or typically with any hint of kindness. I am now pretty certain that if Molly were to write the definition of sharing, it would sound more like this: To give to Molly whatever it is that she desires -- post-haste!

The word doesn't even sound quite the same when Molly says it. Instead of being "sharing," it is really something more like, "SHARE - RING!!!!" It is an ugly word that usually is followed by itself numerous times while she pries a toy out of the hands of one of her brothers while looking at them with disgust that they are not "SHARE-RING!!!" what she wants.

And, so, in this special time of year, I wish you abundant joy and sharing ( and not too much SHARE-RING!!!).

Cotton Candy -- Health Food?

Yeah, okay -- so maybe it's NOT health food. But, I must go on the record as saying that I just ate a big bag of pink cotton candy from Chuck E. Cheese and it seemed like the most sinful yummy treat ever. Alas -- just about 120 calories for the whole bag.

I, apparently, need to stock up on cotton candy! Yum!

I'm STILL tired!

Yesterday was such a busy day for me that I have to admit that I'm still tired today. That's some kind of tired!

So, inside my crazy yesterday...

I got up and got Noah off to the school bus. A large semi (or, maybe just a semi -- it seemed large to ME) pulled down the cul de sac at that time to unload the things for our new neighbors. I was able to meet them on the way back down to the house, and they seem very nice. As soon as I got in, Jack was already up (and I was thinking I might get another 20 minutes of sleep!), so I got him ready and then got Molly up and ready.

The evaluation team from Early Intervention came over at 9 am, and Molly had her annual evaulation. It was as we were expecting, and she has made so much progress that once her IFSP (individualized family service plan) expires on January 31st, she will no longer be eligible for services. It is great to hear her talking so much now, and so we will be fine with her being discharged from the program.

Then we did some odds and ends, had lunch, and Jack went to school. I then braved the post office, which was surprisingly not busy (with packages to family in New Jersey and South Carolina). As soon as we got home, I realized that Eric had all of my toys and such for therapy in his car at work. So, I spent the better part of my hour before leaving for therapy getting things together. And, then I was off for two therapy appointments.

As soon as I was home from therapy, I picked up Noah & Jack and drove across town to Chuck E. Cheese for a birthday party of one of Noah's classmates. So, it was a "fun" filled two hours at the "Cheese." (Some parents stayed, some left -- but since I never know what might freak Noah out, I always am one that stays.) Jack was thrilled to go along as well, and we sat at our own table near the party. Jack was up playing most of the time, and was quickly making friends with several of the girls in Noah's class. (What a surprise -- NOT!) Jack is quite the lady's man. (Or, quite the lady-man, depending on his mood.)

Then, there were a couple of short stops at Office Depot (for a toner cartridge since mine went out right while doing Christmas letters, of course) and then the library for my Mom.

We finally rolled in to our driveway just at just about bed time for the boys. Yikes! And, I was in bed by just about 10 pm, which is at least a few hours earlier than I normally go to bed.

And, I'm STILL tired. But, a moms job is never done, and I have some Christmas gifts to wrap for teachers, aides, the boys' therapists, and religious ed teachers (for tonight). But, this all *does* remind me that I bought myself a bag of cotton candy last night! So, apparently it's time for a little pure sugar therapy for me!

Excess can "rotten" your teeth

Jack and I spent a short bit of time this morning putting together his "holiday" gift for another boy in his class. The exchange will be random, so we just had to put that it was "for a boy" and that it was from Jack. The exchange maximum was $3.00. Let me tell you, if you thought that wasn't very much to spend, well -- you would be right. Anyway, Jack was excited to pick up a few things at the dollar store, and so we wrapped the items together in a decorated box, since today was the deadline to send them in for Wednesday's gift exchange. (That's us -- we wouldn't want to send in things early lest we actually ever feel caught up.)

After our gift was put together, I said, "Why don't we put in some candy?" Hmmm...Jack had to think about that for a minute. He finally agreed, and we went to the pantry. He then was silent for a minute while thinking and finally decided, "Okay...let's put in one Hershey's kiss." Yes, just one. I told him, "They're small -- let's put in a bunch," and the proceeded to put in a handful. Jack looked up at me like he might scold me at that point. He then started to take out my kisses. He then informed me, "Mom -- we can't give that many! Too much chocolate will rotten his teeth! How about just three?" And, really -- how could I argue with that? So, apparently our box is filled with not only some cheap dollar store toys that appealed to Jack, but also a mere three Hershey's kisses and a hope for healthy teeth.

The Lesser of Two Evils - Panic Attack or Hot Flash?

Yes, yes, I know. Who would try to go to Walmart so close to Christmas on a Saturday afternoon? Well, apparently Eric thought it would be fun for all five of us to go to Menards and Walmart, and I thought it sounded like a fine idea. Menards was fine, and Eric picked me up an extra shelf for my office/scrapbooking room. Score!

But, then Walmart wasn't so pretty. We had a variety of things to pick up, and every single time we got to the point where a decision had to be made, I was silently freaking out. What the heck? Here we were standing in the aisle trying to decide between plastic organizers to hopefully clean up the counter that I insist on putting things all over, and I was going crazy inside. I have no idea what was happening -- we were trying to discuss the merits of one organizer over another, Molly was trying to grab things off the shelves, and the boys were running around the aisle (and Jack kept taunting us by petting the vases), and then my breathing got kind of shallow, I got super hot, my skin was prickley (is that a word) and itchy, and then I was sure I might pass out. But, I told myself, "I can't pass out because what would Eric do with three kids in a busy Walmart with his wife on the floor?" Finally, I urged us to just decide (which apparently meant that I needed Eric to decide), and we moved on.

We parted ways (all boys went to look at games, all girls went to pick up other things). Molly and I walked past slippers and she has been dying for a pair. So, I stopped and we tried to pick some out. Again -- quite the dilemma that wasn't getting solved, and then the same thing happened. What in the world? Unfortunately, it then happened a few more times, and I was thrilled to finally leave the store.

Were these panic attacks? Maybe just some other kind of anxiety? I have no idea. But, then Mom came to the rescue and said, "Maybe they were hot flashes." LOL She told me that sometimes women start to get them in their thirties. (I think this was a direct comment on the fact that I will be 30 in less than two weeks.) Hmmm...either way...it wasn't fun. (I must add here at the end that Eric was a darling the rest of the day and not only ran out to get us dinner just because I was hungry, but also later zipped to Starbucks just because I was so thirsty and was being taunted by the strawberries and cream frap receipts I was coming across in my cleaning. What a doll!)

The wonder of Christmas (aka "The baby Jesus was glowing!")

We have been making a concerted effort this year to focus more on the meaning of Christmas than we have in the past. It's easy to get caught up in the commerical and secular aspects of it. Why wouldn't it be? It's pushed at us. Starting at Halloween, the stores are decorating in red and green, and we get blitzed with commercials on the TV to encourage our holiday shopping. (This is not to say that I think that is bad. Heck, *I* was up at 4 am the day after Thanksgiving and was at Walmart by 4:30 am. And -- I am well aware that there will be an iPod waiting for me under the tree come Christmas morning.)

But, anyway -- we've been trying to refocus this year. And, while I think I am doing okay for the kids, I still find that deep down, I am still in the secular mode. I'm the Mom. I'm the shopper and the present wrapper. I'm the one addressing Christmas cards (which, by the way, hasn't been done yet), and I'm the one picking up stocking stuffers. And, I was the one today to call Starbucks to find out the best way to get 15 gift cards. I talked to Katie, who was snippy with me. Seems the thought of ringing that up was less than enjoyable for her. It ruined my morning. I obsessed about it, and planned how I would stop at Starbucks a few times for five cards at a time. What a pain! In the end, my obsessing got too much and I went to a grocery store near us that has a Starbucks inside, and the woman who rang me up was just too sweet! Not only did she not fuss, she apologized when she heard about Katie's reaction to my question. And, so I happily left with 15 gift cards.

So, this is still me in shopping mode, not in a true Christmas mode. And, because of that, I think I will pray today for the kind of childlike wonder that Noah showed me last Wednesday night. After his religious ed. class (he is in 1st grade), he told me they had watched a movie about Christmas. He instantly had huge eyes and started pounding his hands together a la Noah style (this is one of the outward signs of his Autism). He said, "Mom -- baby Jesus was so beautiful! And, do you know what? (insert squeal) He was GLOWING! He was glowing from the inside out, Mom! He was so special!" I thought I might cry to see his excitement, and I hoped that I might have that kind of excitement too.

Why a blog?

So, here I am. My first post to a brand new blog. I will admit, I actually already have a blog, but it is for one of my businesses, and this is just for me. (And, well, any of my family and friends that want to read what goes on in my head.)

And, so I ask again -- why a blog? Well...I hate to write anymore...with a pen, anyway. I will write, of course, when I have to, but I figure it is probably not uncommon now for people to just prefer to sit down at a keyboard. So, instead of just randomly typing thoughts to myself, I decided to blog them.

I guess we'll start with a quickie for anyone reading this who doesn't know me...why am I?

I'm Angie. I'm here in the last few weeks of being in my twenties, and excited to be 30 soon. I guess I'm tired of saying that I'm 29, maybe. I don't know. I have always liked getting older. My Mom has said that even when I was a little girl, I was an adult. So, maybe that's why each passing year just makes me excited to be older.

I'm a mom of three awesome kids, ages 7, 5, and 2. That statement always seems to elicit a "Wow -- you've really got your hands full." Well...I suppose so, but I don't always think it's because I have three kids! LOL Although I have two part time businesses, I consider my full time job to be as a stay at home Mom. I think this, in particular, because I have these businesses because they fit around my schedule of being home with my kids as much as possible. Most of the work I do is when they are asleep, doing other things around the house, or when Eric (my husband) is home.

So...yeah, I have two businesses. Although that keeps me very busy, it doesn't feel to me to be something I feel like talking about right now, so I'll get to those later.

I'm an Episcopalian who is on the road to converting to Catholicism. Although it is something that I have thought about doing for a while, we have been actively engaged in the conversion process since late summer of this year. By Easter, I will finally just get to say that I'm Catholic. That will be pretty cool.

All of these are things that I'm sure I will touch on more throughout my blogging. And, even if you know me, feel free to read, as you may learn things you never knew. Like, for instance, I seem to have a pretty obsessive personality, and also suffer from mild depression. Oh, you say you had already picked up on that? Oh well... (Although, I mention those "qualities" of mine because they are part of the reason I decided I needed my own blog. sometimes, thoughts pop into my head, and I just feel like they won't leave. Just random thoughts about my life or that of my family. And, I keep thinking if I could just write them down, I can walk away from them. And, so that's why I already have a list sitting here of topics that I am waiting to talk about. LOL)

So, anyway, that's me for today. I'll, hopefully, be back tomorrow with some thoughts on something or other. I have to decide what to talk about next, although, as I say, I have the handy dandy list already.