Guess who lost her first tooth today?

SOPHIA!!!

OVERHEARD .....

Anonymous Girl #1: "O.k. I'm Princess Armadillo."

Anonymous Girl #2: "NO!! I'm Princess Armadillo!!"

Anonymous Girl #1: "How about you be Princess Leia and I be Princess Armadillo?"

I bet you didn't know Star Wars had a new character ...... introducing Princess Armadillo!! Only in Texas, ya'll. Only in Texas!!

Lazy Saturday Mornings

I love Saturday mornings! They are so different from the rest of our mornings during the week. Monday thru Friday we wake up with the goal of eating breakfast and starting school. Sundays our goal is to be at Mass 5 minutes early.

But on Saturdays there are no pressing matters. All we have to do is wake up. The kids watch a little bit of cartoons (3o mins.) while I fix a breakfast for champions. Normally, I'm willing to make whatever everybody wants. This morning I made eggs & bacon for Kolbe AND eggs, sausage, & toast for Belle, Sophia, and Catherine. Craig just took some passionfruit juice and a few sausage links before heading outside.

Anna didn't want to eat. And on Saturdays I don't mind. Because I know I can feed her later when she's hungry. Normally, its a small battle trying to get Anna to eat before Mass or school. Yet, if she doesn't have something small, she'll be hungry at the most inopportune time. Saturdays she can be allowed the luxury of eating breakfast at noon.

My whole brood is outside, riding their bikes, while Craig sits and talks with our neighbor. The house is quiet. As I finish my coffee I'm already thinking about the floors to clean, furniture to polish, and clothes to fold. At my leisure.

And I'm so thankful that God has put it in my heart to embrace my vocation as mother and wife. I love maintaining my home because in serving my family, I am loving them. A priest recently told us (group of women at an evening of recollection) that stay-at-home moms have such a special opportunity to see our work so similar to that of Our Lady. For 30 years she maintained a home for Our Lord, which included cleaning, cooking, and washing. She served Christ by being the best mother she could be.

And so I truly find joy in serving my family. Isn't it amazing that ordinary things we do everyday can be opportunities for grace?! I love how St. Jose Maria Escriva puts it:

Do you really want to be a saint? Carry out the little duty of each moment: do what you ought and put yourself into what you are doing. (815, The Way)

Persevere in the exact fulfillment of the obligations of the moment. That work - humble, monotonous, small - is prayer expressed in action, which prepares you to receive the grace of that other work - great and broad and deep - of which you dream. (825, The Way)

I'll only clean for an hour or so because Anna's birthday party is today. I need to go pick up her "store bought" cake as well as balloons and flowers.

A few years ago we started the tradition of giving the girls flowers on their birthday. I want them to feel cherished on their special day and to know how it feels to receive flowers. I also like the fact that Kolbe is learning to be a gentleman. He LOVES buying flowers for his sisters and grandmother and ME!!

Anna's Birthday Festivities: Part 1

Last night we went to Malibu Castle and had a blast. Craig and I hadn't been there since we were teenagers. I don't know who had more fun, the kids or the parents. The Castle has miniature golf, bumper boats, speed cars and arcades.

Even though technically Anna's birthday was Tuesday, we waited until Wednesday because Craig was out of town the day before. The kids brought their report cards (which were made for the first time 30 minutes before leaving) so they could get tokens. Kolbe and Sophia took their report cards for PreK 3 and PreK 4. I didn't think they would fly but the attendant accepted their report cards!! Each child must have gotten 45+ tokens!!

We've now decided to start doing report cards!! We didn't realize there were so many perks to report card grades. Anyways, here are some pictures:






Craig is laughing because he's about to corner Sophia and spray her with water. The boats had a spraying feature and the kids LOVED getting Craig wet. Actually, they sprayed me and I wasn't even in a boat!









Part 2 will be on Saturday when grandparents, aunt & uncle, and cousins come over for cake & ice cream as well as some lasagna. Its supposed to rain so we're not attempting a BBQ.

I think I like it better when we go celebrate as a family to seem neat family attraction and then have a small bday party for family. Not that having big parties at home aren't fun. But for the same cost, we can go have a blast somewhere!! So far Isabelle has chosen roller skating, Kolbe picked Sea World, and Anna liked the Castle.



Here's a small video clip of Isabelle. Unfortunately, her car stalled out!! But it was soon fixed and she continued racing for another 5 minutes. I've gotta say, Belle has a knack for driving!

*Listen carefully and you can hear Baby Catherine saying, "Daddy! Daddy!"

Summer has taken over my life!

And so I haven't been able to blog lately. The girls joined a swim team 2 weeks ago and I think Belle will actually get to stay on it. This is our neighborhood's first swim team. So, they decided May would be for practicing. Whoever can swim a lap at the end of May can join the swim team in June.

Isabelle has gone from not being able to swim across one time TO swimming 20+ laps per practice! AMAZING!

Anna and Sophia are in the "Can't swim or even put face in water" team. Actually, Anna can swim but she's afraid to go over to the other lane to be with real swimmers. WHY? She doesn't want to go without a sister!!

While that's sweet and all ... REALLY! Go over and swim!! I'm crossing my fingers that today she crosses over. Because she only has 2 more weeks of practice to make the swim team. And Sophia's team is still in the "put-face-in-water" phase. Anna has been swimming around and around and her coach doesn't understand why she doesn't just cross over!

Actually, Anna has been struggling with this in other areas of her life too. She only wants to do something if a sister does it with her. See what homeschooling has done!? Its taken away any sense of independence for my poor Anna!

Actually, she's very shy and has blossomed and I figure there's always next swimmer. Still, I hope she swims over to the next lane. Craig took them to practice today so I could stay and blog. Now I've gotta go and join him to see if Anna crosses over or not.

And next week is the last week of school! YAY!!!

Although we still do math and reading during summer! ;-)
But they will get most of July completely off!!

Happy 7th Birthday Anna!!

Anna, I couldn't ask for a sweeter daughter! I've so enjoyed watching you grow up into a beautiful little girl with a BIG heart! You are such a simple soul, full of love and forgiveness for anyone you meet. May God continue to bless you. Thank you for all the lessons you have taught me. Have a wonderful birthday!

Walking Down Memory Lane (for my weight, that is)

(I'm in the middle of the middle row)

Anna: Mommy, were you ever skinny??

Me: WAS I EVER SKINNY!?! Are you calling me fat? Let me show you!

I went and pulled out my high school yearbooks and lots of laughs and howls ensued. They not only thought I was skinny, but pretty too! And now they all want feathers! And puffy bangs.

I also read them Craig’s comments. Here’s what he wrote my freshman year:

Hey Lilly,

What a great year this last one was for me & everybody. Maybe next year there will be a Latin III class and you can take it. I don’t think I would be able to handle Mrs. McCurdy for another year. (*Notice how I learned her signature)

I hope that the band goes to Region before you graduate. We went to Region my sophomore year. It was great to beat Marshall. It was also great to beat them at the Alamo Tournament of Bands. I hope you will get to stomp on Marshall.

I hope that you make flag captain, you deserve it. Have fun because it goes by fast. REAL FAST!!! Have a great Year.

Craig (your bud)

Trumpet #1

Class of ‘90

I didn't make flag captain BTW!! And in my sophomore yearbook:

Lilly,

Even though I make fun of you and call you stupid you’re still a nerd. J/K You are a very nice and sweet person. Stay that way. Have a great life and a wonderful time with R*#@&%#.

Craig

Very different from the first entry wouldn’t you say?! The first entry was gigantic and took up most of the cover of my yearbook. He had decorated it with trumpets. The second entry was tiny and makes reference to a boyfriend I shouldn’t have had and no decorations. Hmmm … I wonder if he was jealous. Probably didn’t even like me and was just signing my book because I asked him to.

Anyways, the girls thought it was funny he called me a nerd. They couldn’t believe he would say a bad word!! What fun it was traveling down memory lane. For the record, we met in Latin class my freshman year and we hated it! After 2 years the only thing we learned was that “agricola” means “farmer.” I had to retake Latin in college. Hope you had fun going down memory lane with me.

(I'm in the middle and NOT wanting to be there!! I had run for Class Vice President because I figured it was an easy job and also I ran uncontested. Well, the next day the boy who ran for President resigned!! I became class president with LOTS of responsibilities!! I wasn't very good! )

Parachutes and Such

This is what happens during a math test when teacher goes to change a poopy diaper ......





I was so tempted to tell them that they were going about it all wrong. That they couldn't actually make a parachute. But then Isabelle said, "If scientists can invent things, I can make a parachute!"

So I went and grabbed my camera. Math test was finished 30 minutes later. What color is your parachute? Do you have a parachute? If not, my kids can make you one!

Week 30

I can't believe school is almost over!! This will be the first time we've ended this early. After this week, we have 2 more weeks to go. The girls have joined the local swim team in our neighborhood. This is a first!! They practice M-W-F and do Taekwondo T-R.

Busy? YES!!

Fun? MOST DEFINITELY!!

Although, I'm dreading the first swim meet!! This is their first time so I don't expect any records to be made or broken. I'll be happy with just finishing. Thankfully, there are only 4 meets. Starting in June they practice M-F.

They love going to the pool but I'm not always game. This is one way of getting me to take them. And they're having a blast!! Although, they darkened at least 3 shades on the first day alone!! I need to find a sunblock with an SPF of 400!!

Plays and Babies and Talking Preschoolers

Well, we're off to see Oliver Twist." I'm MORE than a bit nervous because Catherine is coming too. Actually, I'm taking all the kids. Normally, I only take the older 2-3 girls to see plays. But Craig left this morning. And Baby Catherine won't stay with anyone else other than Craig. So, I either miss the play or take all 5 kids. So, here we go.

Send up a quick prayer for me!! I get the feeling that I will be enjoying the hallways more than the play. This baby DOES NOT like to be held in my lap for very long. And her way of letting me know she wants down is to scream a blood curdling scream!!

So, in your quick prayer mention specifically that she falls asleep. I woke her up early. And the girls will keep her awake in the car. And I will be sneaking in bagels (a great snack that doesn't make noise or spill).


Thankfully, the play is only 45 minutes long!

I'm also hoping Kolbe won't be asking too many questions. He has the habit of "whispering" during IMAX movies, mass ..... anyplace where quietness is desired. He has SOOOOO many questions! And they're good ones. But they can be annoying to neighboring people.


The bright side is that I'm going with our homeschooling group so I know I can leave the girls sitting in their seats with people I sorta know. And the other mom will hopefully not mind Kolbe's talking too much.

*We survived beautifully!! Turns out it was a private showing for our group! So I was instantly relaxed when I sat down. Also, the "theater" was tiny and intimate and so the baby could see everything and was more than distracted. The kids loved "Oliver Twist" and I was able to stay and watch whole show. I'm so glad I didn't skip this opportunity. Although, Belle now wants to be a thespian!!

Happy Mother's Day!

...She is clothed with strength and dignity,
and she laughs at the days to come.
She opens her mouth in wisdom,
and on her tongue is kindly counsel.
She watches the conduct of her household,
and eats not her food in idleness.
Her children rise up and praise her;
her husband, too, extols her:
"Many are the women of proven worth,
but you have excelled them all."
Charm is deceptive and beauty fleeting;
the woman who fears the Lord is to be praised.
Give her a reward of her labors,
and let her works praise her at the city gates.
Proverbs 31:25-31

Happy Mother's Day to all you beautiful women of God!! May Our Blessed Virgin Mary continue to bless you and your family.

My Hobby

It's at times like this that I think there's something wrong with me. I REALLY enjoying cleaning. When the girls were little I remember cleaning all day while they played. When we first started homeschooling my main concern was: "How do you find time to clean?"

I remember a veteran homeschooler laughing at me (or maybe with me?) at this question. It took me a couple of more years to realize that I HAD to let go of the perfect house for the sake of homeschooling. And so I've let go but internally it hurts my eyes to see clutter. And I've been known to go into organizing fits in the middle of the day. When I'm having a bad day my dh will take the kids out while I stay home and ...... CLEAN!!!

And although I could care less how someone elses house looks (REALLY!!!) I can't stand clutter. So today I'm in happy land because I get to do real cleaning as opposed to superficial cleaning. And I'm happy!! Which makes me think there's something wrong with me!

Just to clue you in on how sick I must be, growing up whenever I would go to a friend's house I liked to play "let's clean up your room." And in college I used to clean my roommate's side of the dorm. I couldn't study until everything was picked up. I wonder why I went through 3 roommates in 2 years? Finally, my last roomie (she was a dear friend) told me to leave her clutter alone and go to the library if it bothered me. I honestly never realized I was making a pest of myself. So, I started going to the library and we stayed friends.

And yet, I've FINALLY learned that I don't live in a museum. I live in a REAL house with REAL kids who make REAL messes. And I can't be mad all the time because everything isn't perfect. They need to be educated, not sanitized. And so now school starts at the same time everyday (whether their beds are made or not) because just like real school kids are on a bus no matter what, my "fake" school kids need to be at school too.

Still, I have to admit that I like cleaning my house and I'm enjoying today. But I also know that this won't last forever (maybe through the weekend) and that's okay.

And I can't even say that when they are grown and gone my house will be "perfect" clean. Only because my mother-in-law is ALWAYS reminding me that that's not necessarily true either. Not if the grand kids are visiting. ;-)

Maybe in Heaven (God willing) I will be the cleaning lady for those people who don't like to clean! Win-win situation!

Company Cleaning

Company's coming and we're busy bees today! Can't wait!

Actually, they're family friends from "the woods" and in several hours this house will be full with almost a dozen children and a few adults. You know how it is when Catholic families get together, kids outnumber the parents!!

Prayers for Mommies and Babies

So many new little babies!!! So many prayers for their mommies and daddies. Please keep Blair, Veronica, Michelle, Andrea, and Katie in your prayers as they carry the wonderful gift of life within their wombs! Anyone else?!

I just love it!!! Okay, now I'm feeling left out! ;-)

What City Do You Belong In?

You Belong in Rome

You're a big city soul with a small town heart Which is why you're attracted to the romance of Rome Strolling down picture perfect streets, cappuccino in hand And gorgeous Italian people - could life get any better?

What City Do You Belong In?

That's me alright!! I was afraid I was going to get some weird city. But Rome is my first pick!! Rome sweet home!

Beware of New Drivers

....specifically Anna and Sophia! They can now drive their bikes without training wheels. Its amazing what living on a cul-de-sac does to one's bike skills!! I think I need to teach them road etiquette/manners/rules. Because they're driving into each other since they drive in different directions. And that's not including Belle(who drives to the end of the street)flying down the hill and missing everyone by inches. Its not that she's not watching, rather the new drivers will get in her way at the last possible second. They drive into each other and into curbs (still learning how to use brakes). Its amazing they're still walking. And now rather than relaxing when they go outside, I have to watch them nearly kill each other. I don't think helmets are enough. Do they make full body padding for bike riding?

We need a system like at the roller skating rink. One way driving.

Under Construction

I'll be working on the look of my blog for the next few days. I'm a VERY visual person and have to "SEE" which one fits best. At least its not furniture I'm moving around!!

Update: I went over to Moms Who Blog to learn how to put the photo in my header. I hope to pick up some more tips later. This is the reason for my inspiration. What a lovely blog! I haven't figured out how to stretch out my photo yet.

May Baskets

We finally finished our May baskets for family. We've had the supplies since Monday but its taken us this long to make them. We had planned to deliver them secretly but the kids REALLY want to hand deliver them. They want to personally hand them to grandparents and cousins and see their surprise. I figure its still a surprise since they don't know they're receiving anything. We've never made these before and we plan to do them annually, but hopefully we'll be on time next year. The girls picked out their own paper and flowers. Here are the results:

UPDATE: I first learned about making May Baskets from Cottage Blessings. I don't think its strictly a Marian idea. Louisa May Alcott made these as a little girl. For ours we used scrap booking paper, fake flowers, stickers, ribbon, and tissue paper. To be honest, I don't know the history of May Baskets. But it was so much fun making and delivering. We delivered them to grandparents in person and to cousins secretly. My kids REALLY enjoyed sneaking up to the door and hanging them on doorknobs. They went in pairs while the rest of us waited in the van. We weren't sure if we were supposed to say who they were from so we opted to be anonymous. But this morning I called my cousin and she said they called everyone trying to figure out who they were from. They enjoyed not knowing.

Anna's

Sophia's

Isabelle's
(who's personality shows in her paper choice!!)

Kolbe's

We decorated this table for the month of May. It's going to look so plain after we give away our baskets. We'll need to make more for us!!

Picture of the Day: Homeschool Exhaustion!!

I feel the same and would gladly join Catherine!! She fell asleep before I could put her down in her "bed."