A Few More Pictures

Just a few more shots of some plants I saw during our drive yesterday. Sorry, but I don't know the names of these. There was just a general sign about how these were native plants.

And this one is a closer shot of the same plant above.

This weekend I hope to work a little on cleaning up our patio so get it in summertime condition. Also, I'll work on getting a menu put together. I've pretty much been winging it for the past couple of weeks. I need to get on track with that again.

Now, off to relax and read a little before bedtime.

Summer Drive

Today, the kids and I grabbed Grandma and went for a little summer drive by the coast. This area is always so nice especially on hot summer days like today. I didn't take too many pictures of the ocean, but I did manage to capture these:

In the background you can see a little lighthouse over by the palm trees.

This is a view looking down from where we were standing. There's a railing so you can't fall down this cliff. This part of the coast is all rocky. There's a small public beach about a mile away to the east.

There was a little museum on the grounds but I didn't get to really have a visit. Emily wanted to run around outside so I kept her company. Tomorrow I'll try to post some pictures of some native California plants that I saw.

Am I Missing Something?

I just read this story from the Fox News website and was dumbfounded. It's the news item about a missing California priest along with the WOMAN he was vacationing with! Nowhere does it mention the oddity of why would a supposedly celibate Catholic priest be vacationing with a woman, alone. I tried to ascertain whether perhaps he is an Anglican priest? Maybe? Was he vacationing with a group?

I hope they are found but it is also sad that a priest has taken to the ways of today's culture. What happened to the notion of not even giving the appearance of scandal or causing others to get the wrong impression. On the other hand, there are many holy priests still around. I see them and see the dedication with which they serve. I see their striving to be holy priests. Let's pray often for our priests.

PRAYER FOR PRIESTS
(By Cardinal Cushing)
0 Almighty, Eternal God,
look upon the face of Thy Son, and for love of Him Who is the Eternal
High-priest, have pity on Thy priests. Remember, 0 most compassionate God, that
they are but weak and frail human beings. Stir up in them the grace of their
vocation which is in them by the imposition of the Bishop's hands. Keep them
close to Thee, lest the enemy prevail against them so that they may never do
anything in the slightest degree unworthy of their sublime vocation.
0 Jesus,
I pray Thee for Thy faithful and fervent priests; for Thy unfaithful and tepid
priests; for Thy priests laboring at home or abroad in distant mission fields;
for Thy tempted priests; for Thy lonely and desolate priests; for Thy young
priests; for Thy dying priests; for the souls of Thy priests in
Purgatory.
But above all, I commend to Thee the priests dearest to me; the
priest who baptized me; the priests who absolved me from my sins; the priests at
whose Masses I assisted and who gave me Thy Body and Blood in Holy Communion;
the priests who taught and instructed me or helped and encouraged me; all the
priests to whom I am indebted in any other way. 0 Jesus, keep them all, close to
Thy heart, and bless them abundantly in time and in eternity. Amen

Britains Got Talent - A Star Is Born

Summer Vacation Begins

Summer vacation begins and now I have to be on the ball as far as scheduling goes. Ryan will still be at his preschool three days a week until the end of this month since we are paid for until then. But for all intents and purposes, I will have all three, all day. I have lots of things planned, fun things as well as a little academic stuff here and there.




Ryan "graduated" from Pre-K and he had a little ceremony at his school. The lighting was really bad so I couldn't get any good pictures of the little program they had but that's OK. Afterwards, we went to the ice cream shoppe for some ice cream and then had a little cake at home. He was excited to have a little celebration just for him.







Not sure what's up for this weekend. I do have to do a little shopping for Father's Day. Steve hasn't told me exactly what he'd like to do on Sunday. So that's still up in the air.


Now I'm off to cook some lunch.

Popping In

I realized that it's been over a week since I last posted! Not much going on here. Just the everyday stuff. I've been lax in my housework so I'm desperately trying to do catch up and do a little extra deep cleaning. Kathryn's bedroom needs some serious work. Emily will be moving into her room soon so we want to get furniture rearranged and the room newly painted before she moves in. Before we do that, we need to work on decluttering. I would like to get as much stuff done before school ends this coming Thursday. After that, all three kids will be home and the fun begins!

Today I have to catch up with laundry! I have lots of baskets of clean clothes to fold and put away. And I have to make my menu for the week! I haven't even thought about it and I need to go grocery shopping !! YIKES!!! I better get off the computer and get to work!

Weekend Stuff

The weekend began Friday night taking in hubby Steve's baseball game. He hasn't played in 20+ years so this was an historic moment. The team is organized by my nephew and consists of many of his family members and friends. DH looked good playing but his body is not quite used to the workout. He enjoyed it though.



This morning, Ryan had his first session of his tennis class. We don't know where he picked up the desire to play tennis as we are mostly baseball, basketball, and soccer people but if he wants to try tennis, why not? I used to play in my younger college years (not very well, only PE courses) but havent' played since. Maybe if Ryan keeps up with it, I may join in too. I think it would do me good to get up off the computer chair and become a little more fit. I think I'm going to begin to feel left out. Steve has baseball, Kathryn has soccer, Ryan has baseball and tennis, Emily is chasing whatever ball happens to come her way, and that leaves me. I can surf pretty well (the web, that is), my fingers move well on the keyboard and turning book pages, but that's about it! I'll have to think about what I can do. Fitness walking is probably my best option right now.



This afternoon was spent at Chu*ck E. Che*ese. The kids had lots of fun playing the games. Of course at the end, the only thing they have to show for it is cheap toys that have already been misplaced. That whole racket reminds me of Las Ve*gas. Lots of bells and whistles and money spent in the hopes of meaningful winnings. The only thing you have to show for it is a lighter wallet. At least the money spent is not equivalent to what can be spent in Ve*gas. And the kids enjoy playing the arcade games.

Tomorrow should be a free day. We go to Mass in the morning then see what the rest of the day brings!

I've Been Tagged!!

I was tagged by Christine M at The Simple and the Ordinary to do this 8 Things About Me meme! This is my very first one so let's see if I can come up with some things.


Here are the rules: Each player lists 8 facts/habits about themselves. The rules of the game are posted at the beginning before those facts/habits are listed. At the end of the post, the player then tags 8 people and posts their names, then goes to their blogs and leaves them a comment, letting them know that they have been tagged and asking them to read your blog.


1. I'm a Leap Year baby. Born Feb. 29. When I was a kid, I didn't like to tell anyone my real birthday because I thought I would get teased that I only had a birthday every 4 years. Now it's great because most years I celebrate for two days, Feb. 28 and March 1!

2. I love to read. I'll read almost anything but I tend to gravitate toward mysteries and suspense novels. My general fiction choices are usually recommended by others. My non-fiction choices are mostly ones that help in my spiritual life or vocation as wife and mother.

3. I like to crochet and knit. I'm really a beginner knitter because I've never moved beyond the simple knit and purl stitches. I hope to move beyond that soon. My skills as a crocheter are a little better. I've made baby blankets, Christmas stockings and a few doily coasters. The crocheting and knitting come in spurts as I'm usually devoting more time to reading.

4. Before I became a SAHM, I worked for 13 years as an admissions officer at a local university. Once I had my second child, I knew in my heart that I wanted to be a SAHM. I feel that this is where I'm supposed to be now and I'm more fulfilled now than I ever was working out of the home.

5. I have a Bachelors degree in Spanish. I really had no practical reasons for choosing that degree other than I liked learning foreign languages. I had originally thought that I would be a translator for the courts but that never came about. Once I got a job at the university I ended up just focusing on working that job.

I'm having a hard time thinking of some other things now.

6. I still don't know what I'm doing with this blogging. That's why my site is kind of drab, I haven't gotten a profile picture up yet. I even had a fun time trying to type this post up. The bullet function worked kind of funny, the number list I wanted to use wouldn't double space right for me. Oh well, little bits at a time I suppose. I don't know if this qualifies as something about me other than my mental state right now.

7. I should have posted this after #2 above, but I have tons of books still to be read on my bookshelf, but I keep buying them. That's a bad vice of mine. I'm working on getting at least 10 books from my shelf read before checking out new ones at the library. I can't afford to buy new ones all the time.

8. My drivers ed teacher in high school once told me that he wouldn't want to be on the road while I was driving. I guess I was that bad. But I passed my test the first time around and I've never gotten a speeding ticket in my 20+ years of driving! I have been involved in a few fender benders but they all involved someone else hitting me! And that's the truth!

Now the hard part is tagging someone else. I know only two people to tag. One is my sister, Mitzi at Amazing Grace who is new to blogging. Also, my husband, Steve, at In My Sights. He created a blog awhile ago and only has one post. Maybe this will get him going.

Thanks for tagging me, Christine M! This was quite fun.

Ouch!

Ryan had to go to the lab today and get a routine blood test. He tried to be brave but the anxiety was a little too much for him. It didn't help that last week he had to endure three immunizations plus a TB test. All this for his entrance into Kindergarten in August. Anyway, he freaked a little when he saw a test tube coming. I tried to get him to close his eyes or turn his head away, but by this time he was coming unglued and was not even aware of what I was saying. After an what seemed like eternity, it was finally over! It took him awhile to recover from the ordeal but it helped that he got to buy a book at the bookstore. He picked out an I Spy book. He loves those.

Most Tuesday nights, we try to head out to the ice cream shop for Dollar Scoop Tuesday. Today was no exception. Kathryn & Ryan tried out a new flavor, Penguin something or other that was black and white. It had some kind of mixed berry flavor. I had my usual, Rocky Road.

This is what the kids looked like after having the delicious ice cream! Luckily the black stuff came off pretty well.

Menu Plan Monday - May 28

Here is my menu plan for the week:

Monday - Simple Memorial Day BBQ in the backyard. Hamburgers & hot dogs

Tuesday - Beef N Cheese French Bread, salad

Wednesday - Chicken casserole, vegetables

Thursday - Shepherd's Pie, vegetable pasta salad

Friday - leftovers

Saturday - spaghetti w/garlic bread, vegetables

Sunday - Chicken Cheese Enchiladas (new one to try), rice & beans

For more menu plans, go to I'm an Organizing Junkie. There's lots of great ideas.

Have a great week everyone! Don't forget to remember those who gave their lives for our country, our freedom. They paid the ultimate price.

Pentecost Sunday

Fire of God, undying flame,

Spirit who in splendor came,

Let your heat my soul refine,

Till it glows with love divine.

Breath of God that swept with power

In the Pentecostal hour,

Holy breath, be now in me

Source of vital energy.

Strength of God, your might within

Conquers sorrow, pain and sin;

Fortify from evil art

All the gateways of my heart.

Truth of God, your piercing rays

Penetrate my secret ways,

May the light that shames my sin

Guide me holier paths to win.

Love of God, your grace profound

Knows not either age or bound;

come, my heart's own guest to be,

Dwell for evermore in me.

Happy Birthday to Emily!!!

Today is my sweet Emily's 3rd birthday! She is a challenge right now but she brings such fun to our family. She loves her My Little Pony toys, duckies, doggies, and playing with her big brother Ryan. She tries her hardest to keep up with him and big sister Kathryn. She can't wait to play soccer and softball. She is a true gift from God!

New Birth Control Pill

I just read an article here about a new birth control pill that can stop a woman's menstrual cycle indefinitely. While that sounds wonderful in practical terms at first glance, pondering it a little more leaves me wondering what will be the outcome in the long term. It just seems unnatural to try and mess with something that is not broken. A woman's body is supposed to menstruate.
That is the way God created the female body to work. I think in our quest to be the master of everything, we are trespassing too much into God's domain. He knew what He was doing when He created male and female. That is my humble opinion.

Mentally Drained

Well, Emily has sure been the challenge this week. Maybe she's entering a new stage. She has been throwing the worst tantrums yet. I can't seem to take her anywhere without her going into a fit and major power struggle with me. If we go to Target, she wants to buy a toy. If we go to the grocery store, she wants to eat the chips NOW. If we go to the park, she doesn't want to go yet. It can be about anything. Sometimes I have to carry her out of the store, park, wherever. The hard part is that I'm only barely 5 feet tall. Emily is almost 35 pounds! It is quite a sight to see. Me carrying her while she's squirming trying to get out of my arms! I don't even want to imagine what it looks like - LOL! I think I need to think of another solution than trying to carry her away from the situation. Either my back is going to give out or I'll give myself a hernia - don't want that. I think I better pray and get some parenting books.

I know this seemingly endless season will pass but right now it's hard going through it. Most of the time she is a sweetie and a cutie. More about her tomorrow. Tomorrow is her 3rd birthday and I'll do a little entry about her.

Summer Academic Aspirations

I've been thinking about what I want to do with the kids during the summer to keep them fresh academic wise. Of course I want them to enjoy their summer vacation, but I also want them to be a little prepared for when September (or August in our case) rolls around. Here are my tentative plans:

Kathryn (entering 4th grade) - Work in Summer Bridge Activities. This book covers reading, writing, math and language skills. Write 6 book reports. Write a journal entry everyday.

Ryan (entering Kindergarten) - Practice letter and number writing. Practice reading with beginning readers.

Emily (barely turning 3 this coming Thursday) - Letter and number recognition. Simple shapes and basic colors.

I hope I can accomplish this. I also need to think about an overall schedule so that this can happen. I haven't been good about this in the past but I really want to try. If I can overcome my desire to want to do what I want instead of what I should do, then it will happen.

Got Bandages?

Over at 5 Minutes For Mom, another contest is going on to win 45 BOXES OF BANDAGES!!! My household is always in need of these things so I'm in.

If you'd like a chance at this contest, visit 5 Minutes for Mom.

Note:
This looks like a gag, but it's true! Go check it out!

My Dentist Loves Me

I had another visit to the dentist today. I think I've been there four times in the last three weeks! I went for cleaning last week, then had to return for some sealants to be put on some teeth. Kathryn went for a cleaning then had to return for some teeth extractions - 3 to be exact! Emily goes in about 3 weeks. Seems like one of us is always scheduled for something! I think I heard my dentist saying something about a trip to Tahiti (on us)! LOL

Menu Plan Monday

I'm a little late posting this but here it is. Nothing exciting this week. I tried to find things the kids would like with minimal fussing. I have picky eaters.

Monday: Shrimp Scampi w/rice, carrots & Ranch dressing

Tuesday: Chicken Stir Fry w/rice

Wednesday: Chicken Tortilla Soup (will finally try to make this)

Thursday: Tacos, rice & pinto beans

Friday: Sirloin steak, Honey Garlic Angel Hair Pasta, Marinated Vegetable Salad

Saturday: Baked Chicken Nuggets, Two Cheese Baked Potatoes, salad

Sunday: Shepherd's Pie

I don't have a good track record with sticking to the menu plan, but I hope this week I can.

For more great ideas check out I'm an Organizing Junkie!

Mother's Day

I hope all you mothers out there had a wonderful day. I had a nice one. It started yesterday morning with breakfast at IHOP. I don't particularly like the wait for breakfast on Mother's Day so we went on Saturday!
This morning, the kids gave me their present ( a gift card to Macy's - yea!). After church, we went to grab my mom and took her to Ruby's - another yea! All together, a nice weekend.

Today, I thank God for another year with my mother. She is the sweetest mother anyone could ever have. She has taught me so much about being a mother, not necessarily by words but by example. She has taught me all about self giving and sacrifice. She would do anything for her three children. She gives of her time to her friends, family, and church. I would say she truly lives for the service of others. I hope that I can be a giving person as she is. I have a long way to go in that department.

Today, I also thank God for my vocation of being a mother. He has blessed me with three beautiful children. He has chosen me to help lead them to Him. I hope I do not fail! Today, I again accept His call and pray for His strength and the graces necessary to do what He asks me to do.

Pant! Pant! Pant!

Today was one of those days. I was non-stop all day.

First, Kathryn's school had a Mother's Day tribute this morning. It was very sweet. Her class read tributes to their mothers.

Next, I picked up Ryan from preschool and took him to his new school for a Kindergarten day. He was so excited. He got to meet his teacher, see his classroom, meet his new classmates, sing some songs and play at recess. Then it was time to fit him for his uniform. He looked so handsome.

After Ryan's fitting, I had to pick up Kathryn from school and bring her to the new school and have her fitted for her uniform. All this fitting of uniforms left my checkbook much lighter (sigh).

Next stop, fast food, stop at home for Ryan to change into his baseball uniform, get all of us loaded into the car and head out for his game. Of course once at the game, I can't rest and watch the game, I need to keep Miss Emily occupied and happy. I was kind of lucky this time because she ended up playing with Kathryn and her friend. Still, I had to keep my eyes on her. She fell about 5 times while there and scraped some skin. She loves to run around this shady tree but all its roots are raised and exposed out of the ground. There is something attractive about that for her. Anyway, she's my tough cookie and she brushes herself off and keeps going.

After giving baths and tucking everyone in bed, it's time for me to relax and enjoy some reading. I'm almost finished with The Joy Luck Club. Next book will probably be a Vince Flynn book from my list.