2013 in review - Counting my blessings

Another year comes to a close. They fly by faster and faster. But there is an excitement at the prospect of a new year.

A new beginning.

365 grace-filled days ahead.

365 days have past. Mistakes have been made. Some goals have not been met. But it's done. We now have the opportunity to try once again to get it right. Or at least more of it right.

2013's greatest blessing: Joseph Christian Harrill

It is amazing how your family feels complete and yet another is added making you wonder how you ever considered your family complete without this one.

Another blessing - My husband is still cancer-free.

Yet another - the wonderful elementary school full of people who love my boys and are doing a great job in educating them at this time when our home is too crazy for them to focus. And for being honest with me about their apprehensions of what they might face with homeschooled children who hadn't been in school for several years. And how their test scores and behavior have proven what a great job that I strived to do in giving them a quality education.

Another blessing is the Moms group at church that supported us generously and tangibly with our new addition. As well as my aunt who took a couple days of work in the middle of the week (the thing that I thought was an impossibility to even ask for) and came to stay with my older children while I was in the hospital.

We were blessed with 17 years of canine love. Our elderly chihuahua had to be let go. Several weeks later, we still find ourselves expecting to see him cleaning up something the children dropped from the table. I find myself checking to make sure the toddler isn't in the dog's bowl.

We are blessed with a couple of stray kittens. They have made Tito's absence a bit easier. It's been nice to feed and care for a couple of half-starved strays and see them grow and become healthier each time we open the door.

We are blessed to be where we truly feel at home. We are blessed with innumerable family and friends. We are blessed beyond measure. Whatever didn't get done in 2013 is really of no consequence. It was plenty full!

Here's to a great 2014!

Rotel Enchilada Lasaga

I was in the mood for enchiladas last night. I call mine an enchilada lasagna because rolling them up is futile. They end up tearing and falling out the sides. SO in the interest of keeping my sanity and not wasting a whole lot of time, I started layering the ingredients.

I modified a homemade enchilada recipe. I used garbanzo bean flour to make it gluten free. I was out of tomato paste so I thought I would just add a can of tomatoes to the crockpot. In looking in the pantry for the diced tomatoes, I saw rotel and added that instead. I added the enchilada sauce, rotel and a quart bag of already cooked and cubed chicken that I had in the freezer. I let this simmer about 6 hours.


I took a 13x9 pan and added a little of the liquid from the crockpot to the bottom. I layered 6 of the corn tortillas. Then half the meat. Then about a cup of grated cheddar cheese. I repeated 6 more tortillas, the rest of the meat and another cup of cheese. I topped with 6 more tortillas, the remaining juice from the crockpot and more cheese on top.

It was fabulous! The older boys who don't love enchiladas got seconds. The toddler boy and Daddy got thirds. Definitely a keeper!

GF Banana White Chocolate Pancakes

Often, we have something special for Sunday meals. I'll fix a roast dinner or Mike will grill for us. This Sunday, we were getting over two weeks of colds, coughs and strep throat. We needed a simple day.

So I planned pancakes for Sunday supper. But after getting a few hours of extra sleep and a good hot shower, I was feeling better and wanted to jazz the pancakes up a bit. I would normally make blueberry pancakes but I had already made blueberry muffins for breakfast using Pamela's Ultimate Baking and Pancake Mix, 4-Pound Bags (Pack of 3)

Blueberries twice in one day would be a bit overkill. I had some white chocolate chips that needed to be used up. So I looked online at a few recipes and then came up with my own version. I would have used cinnamon in the pancakes if two of my kiddos hadn't shown sensitivities to it. But they turned out delicious none-the-less. My second child only ate two when he is normally begging for a fourth or fifth of my blueberry pancakes. But he has this weird aversion to most things white. He thought at first that the white chocolate chips was cottage cheese. I tried to explain to him that he really needs to let his tastebuds make the decision.

I absolutely love Pamela's Baking mix. It is a very easy way to fix gluten free goodies when I am short on time and energy. No guesswork! I know whatever I make with it will turn out perfect. No wasted time making something not worth eating. I included the link above where I order it by the box from Amazon.

GF Banana White Chocolate Pancakes

3 bananas, mashed
2 cups Pamela's Baking Mix
1 tsp ginger
1/4 tsp ground allspice
1/4 tsp nutmeg
2 eggs
1 1/2 cups water
2 T oil
1/2 cup white chocolate chips

Mash bananas in a bowl. Add remaining ingredients except for chocolate chips. Whisk well. Stir in chocolate chips. Pour 1/4 cup batter onto a 325 degree griddle. (Love my griddle, too! Invaluable in making pancakes, grilled cheese, crispy bacon and even fried eggs. Saves a lot of time standing over the stove.)

I doubled this recipe for my big brood. Many times, there isn't any left. Because these were a bit rich, there were more leftover so I am eating some for breakfast. They reheat well.

Enjoy!

Healthy Beverages

When my first two boys were little, I gave them mostly milk and apple juice. I was thinking that those were healthy options except that one of the boys having a lactose sensitivity and even watered down apple juice prevented their gastrointestinal problems from going away.

When my next two started having similar problems, I asked the pediatrician what to do and she recommended water with the squeeze-in liquid flavoring like Mio. I LOVE having a mom for a pediatrician. Our old pediatrician had five children and was pretty kid savvy but nothing beats mom-experience coupled with a medical degree. She knows the best, easiest ways of accomplishing what needs to be done.

We had a cold last week and this week, one child has strep with possibly a sinus infection. I have been drinking GGMS which gives me apple cider vinegar daily.



I don't get near the sinus infections that I used to with apple cider vinegar. I can't exactly explain how it works but after drinking an ACV drink, I can feel the mucus loosening and coming down my throat. By clearing my sinuses, it doesn't sit and fester and turn into an infection.

I wanted to get my kids to drink something similar but they aren't fans of that kombucha-like taste. Then I found this recipe for healthy Cool-aid. I don't have any fruity herbal tea at the moment so I'm using up some koolaid packages. While we use up what we got, I'm gonna keep an eye out for herbal tea coupons and sales.



Today I used orange and mango in a gallon of water. I added a few shakes of Sweet Leaf Stevia and a generous splash of ACV. I stirred it up and asked James to try it and tell me if it was sweet enough. He loved it and told me that it was the best drink I had ever made. Told me that he loved me and gave me a hug for it. I do believe that it is a success!

Light of the World

I am working on some goals to balance out my life. I have a tendency to hyper focus. But with so many people, needs and obligations in my family, I can no longer afford to let all the balls fall while I focus on one part like cooking, organizing, teaching or whatever.

But juggling balls is terrible imagery because inevitably one falls. I am picturing instead a boat in need of many anchors to stay steady. Some days may get crazy and unbalanced but instead of stopping the juggling to pick up a ball, I'll just throw out another anchor.

My faith is very important to me. One of the goals I am working on is keeping conscience of doing it all for Christ. It is so easy for my thoughts to be dominated by the tasks of everyday life. So to bring my thoughts back to my Savior, I light a candle.

That's all. I put it on the windowsill in my kitchen out of reach of the little ones. Every time that I walk by, the light catches my eye and I am reminded of Christ, the Light of the World. This post by Loyola Press explains the concept so beautifully.

Now inevitably, life will become unbalanced. I have had a rough night with a sick child, busy morning at the doctor's office and pharmacy and right now, I am wondering how much toddlers would destroy if I closed my eyes for just a moment. But lighting a candle takes my eyes off the difficult day to the One with the power to make it better.

Light of the World, illumine me!

Affirmations

A few months ago, I went home to Mississippi for my step-father's funeral. My family stayed with my grandmother and I was telling her about our suspicions of dyslexia in our second child. I was telling her about the reading specialist that I had spoken to and what steps we were taking to address the concerns. She told me how glad she was that I was able to homeschool them and spend the needed time to help them learn well. I'm not sure that she was always whole-hearted supporter of the homeschooling idea in our extended family so it meant a lot to me that she was affirming our decision.

 Shortly after, we decided that I didn't have the ability to take on homemaking, five kids and homeschooling. So when I saw her again at my son's birthday party, I was updating her on how neat their school was and how well the boys were doing. She beamed and told me what a great decision I had made and how homeschooling really was a huge task to take on with five kids. At first, I wondered what decision she thought was better. But then I realized that it didn't matter. She was affirming ME, her granddaughter and not my decisions. My decisions are mine. She didn't need to use them to tear me down. Whatever I chose, she could be an encouragement in this hard job of motherhood.

Affirmers are rare and I am lucky to have one. People mean well but they often whether meaning to or not, tear down a person with their efforts to set-them-straight. I think many of us have the scars of someone who allowed our decisions to build a wall between us. Those negative voices in our head can go on for years.

So do I affirm my children enough? Probably not. Since having my fifth child, I am figuring out that motherhood is not for the faint of heart. Frankly, I have no clue how people do it without faith. You have to have strength from something bigger than yourself to take on this job. I have six things going on in my head all the time that need to be done right away. And then when those things are done, there are six more to be done. It gives me that hamster-in-a-wheel feeling because I work hard each day and it's all to be done again in a few hours.

It can be quite depressing but then again, I have a purpose for every single day. A great purpose! To raise these beautiful children to love God and show Him to the world through their words and deeds. But still with all the to-do's in my head, I am afraid that I spend more time issuing instructions (Do your homework, Get a snack, Drink your water, Do your chores, Find your shoes, Did you remember to do _____?) rather than affirming who they are.

With our system of High Five medals, it's giving me the opportunity to think more about affirmations. One day, James got 16 High Five medals. That was 16 times to say, "You did good!" I am trying to be very specific in how I affirm them.

"That was very thoughtful of you to take out the trash."

"You were such a great brother to tend to your sibling."

"I appreciate how quickly you responded to my request"

I am also keeping all my to-do's on a list. Not because I will forget what needs to be done, but that I can stop thinking about them once I know they are safely written down where they can be checked off when done. If I am not careful, I can spend the whole morning trying to get chores done, then nap time, then boys are home and then bedtime. Before I know it, I haven't spent any meaningful time with children. So I am making goals and including them into my to-do's. Today, along with my laundry, dishes, cooking, cleaning, and more, I included reading, praying, playing with blocks, ABC mouse and such. A lot more got done this morning by being purposeful like that.

I don't want to be Martha, running around with this harried look. I want to be Mary and chose the better part. Because my purpose is not simply to be a housekeeper, my vocation is to be a mom. Hardest job in the world. Not nearly enough hours to get it done. This is my mission field and I pray that I use every ounce of talent and strength I have along with the grace and strength of my Savior to do the best job I can at it.

High Five medals

I had been looking at ways to be more proactive instead of reactive to go along with the Seven habits. It's is way too easy with five kids and all the cooking, cleaning and grooming that go along with them to just focus on what didn't get done.

I had tried an allowance in the past but found myself still nagging them to check off their list of activities and chores. I wasn't going to pay them for work produced by nagging so we discontinued allowances until they had matured a bit.

At school, they use Mustang Medals to reward good behavior. Mustang is their mascot. They have a little store full of little toys, dvds and such that have been donated. Every once in a while, they go to the store and spend their medals which are just pieces of paper about the size of a business card.

I decided to create our own system for home that is similar. I decided to call them High Five Medals. I got on the computer and created them in a few minutes. Here is what I came up with.

High Five Medal

(you've been caught doing good)

Way to go!

I wanted to put them on a business card template but couldn't find it in Open Office. So I just made columns and separated them with one line space. I cut them out and put them in a jar.

I introduced it to the boys. They were already familiar with them so it was a brief explanation.

One chore = one medal (They already have their assigned list of chores which is just picking up and putting away in three rooms each plus their bedroom)

Extra medals will be given for exceptional work, quick completions (no dilly-dallying) and good attitude.

Medals will also be given for acts of kindness and help with siblings like giving the baby his pacifier while I am fixing a bottle or finishing up a quick chore of my own or giving the toddler his blanket when he decides to scream or playing for 20 minutes with them. However, they shouldn't expect a medal for every single instance. Sometimes you do things for family just because and I don't want them having a self-centered view of service.

High Five Medals are the new household currency and should be treated as cash. If lost, they will not be replaced. Hoping to teach some necessity of organization and responsibility.

One piece of Halloween candy or 10 minutes of computer/Ipad/tablet time for each medal.

10 medals can get them an Itunes song or app up to $1.29 with a limit of one a week.

15 medals can get a Redbox rental.
25 medals can get them an outing to Ryans buffet with Dad. Mom doesn't want to go because I threw up Ryans shortly into my last pregnancy and I may never want to eat there again.

When we find things they want at Dirt Cheap, thrift store or wherever, I will put what we purchase in a make-shift store and assign a price to it. No more buying them stuff just because which I am terribly guilty of and can result in occasional bratty behavior.

My oldest really wants the Hot Wheels Car Maker. So I told him that he could save up 100 medals for that. But then he also wanted the track and extra wax. So it is a total of 205 medals to get all he wanted. He asked what would happen if we ran out of medals. I told him that I could print more or we could create a Harrill Bank. He then went to mapping out deposits and withdrawals. Making goals! Very cool!


I posted recently about a book about kids begging for chores. It literally happened. On Sunday, James asked to do his chores as well as his brother's chores. As long as he got his done first, that was fine by me. Davy was busy with an origami binge so he didn't care. One day, Davy went the whole day without getting on the Ipad or computer so that he could save for the Hot Wheels Car maker. That took a major amount of self-discipline.


I'm figuring out that I need to keep things interesting and upbeat in regards to getting things done around the house. These High Five Medals provide a platform for endless tweaks in earning and spending. It will teach economics. It will be personally motivating for each depending on what reward they desire. Could even use it for charitable donations that they could earn during Advent or Lent. Lots of options to keep us from getting in the drudgery rut of daily chores.

Treat tins for Christmas gifts

I love upcycling! Taking something that normally would go in the trash and making something useful and beautiful with it. I really enjoy making little happies for Christmas gifts. It may be more enjoyable for me than the recipients but my family humors me. 

This year, I want to focus on giving more to others outside my flesh and blood. I've started that a little by offering fresh-baked banana bread or Halloween candy to Charter repairmen that have had to come to my house way too often. I also have the opportunity with teachers and staff at the boys' school. If I can, I hope to take the kids to offer treats to public service individuals like fireman, policeman and such. 

I've saved all the formula cans since Joseph was born. (Yes, I know breastfeeding is best but I've not had much luck with it) I took off the label and decoupaged scrapbooking paper onto the can and lid. It's a little difficult dealing with the curves and circles. I can't say that I have mastered getting all the bubbles out from under the paper but I have quite a few more to do and practice makes perfect. I can now take treats like cookies or fudge and place them into a ziploc or treat bag. The bag can then go in these cute tins and delivered to whomever we choose to spread the Christmas cheer.

All Saints Day

We read from Once upon a time saints.  It is one of the greatest gifts of becoming Catholic. I wouldn't be catholic if they were a bunch of demigods. Instead,  each saint has their own expression of what it means to follow Christ. Some did it as royalty, others in poverty. Some served the poor. Some educated. Some preached. Some devoted their lives to prayer. Such a vast rich cloud of witnesses!

We really enjoy studying the saints. It made a huge difference in dealing with my stepfather's death. The children were sad and shocked but they had a greater understanding of eternal life. Death is not the end.


Here is a small excerpt.

For today is the day
The first of November
To celebrate saints
You may not remember
The big ones you know
They stand quite tall
Like Francis and Vincent
And Peter and Paul

So take some time to learn about some of the lesser known saints. It may just give you an entirely different outlook..

How to get your kids begging for chores - Free Ebook

This is a really cool book with lots of inspiration to take the drudgery out of chore time. I got a lot of ideas for how to add some fun into our days and still get the necessities done. Normally 14.95 but free right now.

Born to Win - FREE Ebook

 I had heard a few quotes by Zig Ziglar on the Dave Ramsey show and Facebook but I had not read any of thirty or so books. So I was curious when I saw this book for free on Amazon.

 I read it all in one day. I am a speed reader but it would be a quick read for most. It seems to condense his forty years of motivational speaking into an easy-to-use format. I really love the visuals he gives to help in goal setting.

 I love the permission to redo goals every six months. I don't have to figure it all out today. I can add more goals and tweak the approach to other goals that I couldn't accomplish.

 This works well for someone who finds it so easy to get caught up in hyperfocus. I can be a great cook, housekeeper, creative artist, wife and mom but not always at the same time. Ziglar's approach gives me a way to visually see where my life is out of balance and allows for goal setting and follow through to correct it.

 This ties in so well with the seven habits so I am going to work on a tweaked wheel for the boys. Davy has goal setting assignments anyhow. This will help them also see visually where they can be more balanced. There is also a workbook at the end of the ebook for help in goal setting.

All Hallow's Eve

We have missed all the Halloween festivities due to homework or illness this year. We're all battling a cold so there may not even be trick-or-treating or trick-or-treaters as I really don't suppose the parents would appreciate us handing our cold germs with the mini candy bars.

It's not my favorite holiday but I have enjoyed Halloweens of the past. I remember trick or treating on a road in rural Mississippi where most everyone on the road was kinfolk. I remember an older cousin showing up on the roof with a shovel in his hand and scaring us when we arrived at his door. I remember a great uncle that was dressed in a dog costume and laid perfectly still. Once we were convinced that it must be a stuffed decoration, he jumped up and scared us. A couple years ago, I coordinated a Scooby Doo theme with the kids. With my kids, niece and nephews, we had Fred, Daphne, Shaggy, Scooby and Scrappy. I was pregnant with my daughter who we determined would be Velma. But we joked that if she turned out to be a boy, then my nephew would have to be Velma's character and we would call him Vernon. We decorated our van with flowers and wrote The Mystery Machine. It was so much fun. I may never top it.

There are several posts circulating on Facebook about Halloween. I like this one from Trouble Face Mom. I do agree that we separate ourselves so much from the world that we fail to have an influence on our culture. I decided to do some research and learned quite a bit about the origins of Halloween.

The Catholic Church took the message of Jesus to the pagans. Thank goodness that they did because those are my ancestors. Without the missionary efforts of the church, I wouldn't have had the privilege of growing up in a Christian family.

There was an effort to Christianize the pagan customs. They celebrated a fall festival called Samhain in Gaelic culture. During this time, they believed that the dead could come back to the living. The Christians showed that we also believed from an ancient Jewish belief that we also can connect with those who had died through our prayers. All Saints Day was celebrated in May during the celebration of Easter. It was moved to November 1st so that they could honor the dead in a way that pointed to Christ by celebrating those that had given their lives for their belief in Christ.

I did quite a bit of reading and learned the origins of the Jack o'lantern. Fascinating story that shows the power of the cross. The origin of bats may have been from the bonfires of Samhain that attracted insects which offered bats a meal. Halloween History had some interesting tidbits like sugar-rationing ending trick-or-treating for a period of time. American Catholic contains several articles about how to bring back Halloween to its Christian roots.

So here are my thoughts.

If you are trying to Christianize Halloween, you are many centuries too late. It is a Christian holiday as the eve of two feasts, All Saints Day (Nov 1) and All Souls Day (Nov 2). By changing it to a fall festival or harvest festival, you are getting closer to Samhain rather than All Hallow's Eve. Hallow means holy.

Now if a fall festival is a safer place to celebrate, by all means do so. But I agree with Trouble Face Mom that we miss out on an opportunity to be a light in our neighborhoods.

But the biggest problem that I see is that we throw around judgments of evil where it doesn't exist so much that we fail to see evil when it's right in front of our face.

Children dressing up in costumes is not evil! It happens on a weekly if not daily basis in my house.

Sharing candy with your neighbors is not evil! It may have its roots in sharing food with the poor which is right in line with Jesus' solidarity with the poor. It is called Beggars night in some places and times.

Acknowledging the dead is not evil. Many have died for the sake of Christ's name. We should never forget that. So skulls and skeletons are not evil.

Celebrating the harvest is not evil. As long as we acknowledge where those blessings come from.

What is evil? Here is what the Catechism tells us.

"All forms of divination are to be rejected: recourse to Satan or demons, conjuring up the dead or other practices falsely supposed to "unveil" the future. Consulting horoscopes, astrology, palm reading, interpretation of omens and lots, the phenomena of clairvoyance, and recourse to mediums all conceal a desire for power over time, history, and, in the last analysis, other human beings, as well as a wish to conciliate hidden powers. They contradict the honor, respect, and loving fear that we owe to God alone." (Catechism, #2116)

And lastly, we need to remember that we have nothing to fear. The devil is not equal and opposite of God. He is a created being and he has been defeated. We should use this opportunity to explain to our children why we should avoid witches, demons and such since they would glorify Satan. And share why we avoid the things of the occult that draw us away from Christ and into Satan's oldest ploy by promising that we can be like gods.

Whether, then, you eat or drink or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God. 1 Corinthians 10:31

Children's clothes

I have a confession. I totally HATE shopping! I enjoy couponing because of the money that I save. But my idea of a successful shopping trip is one where I can get in and out with what I need as quickly as possible. I don't do malls. Other than going to a special store for the kids like the Lego store or to get pictures made at Olan Mills because I have a coupon, I can go years between trips to the mall.

I love hand-me-downs from cousins and clothing swaps with church or homeschooling groups. Children grow so fast. Many of the clothes that I have for my six-week-old Joseph to wear have already been through 5-6 brothers and cousins. Some things I've had to patch up and other things have worn out or become too stained to be fitting to wear. But a lot of it is still usable.

My older boys have gotten so big that hand-me-downs are rare. So the bulk of our clothing budget is for them. When we started them in public school, I knew we would need some more clothes. Pajama and sweat pants were great around the house but we needed a good selection of jeans and khakis. Here are my three main shopping venues.

1) Salvage store - My husband manages a store that takes out-of-date, out-of-season, and returned items from major retailers. I have found a few shirts and pairs of socks for the boys there. Prices are 30-90% off. I try to look here first but they don't always have enough selection so I can get what I need here. This is where I get most of the little ones' shoes whenever they have a big shipment.

2) Consignment sales - There is a big annual sale here and this year was my first year to attend. I found the boys super nice winter coats for $15 each. Much nicer than what my husband was getting at his store. I loved it because of how well organized it was. I got five children out of the van, loaded three into two strollers, looked at shoes, coats and found the bouncy seat and exersaucer for Joseph. I got all that I was needing to find there and got everything loaded back in the van and back home in an hour. That's my kind of shopping. Quickly done!

3) Thrift stores - I now live five miles away from the thrift store that I drove two hours to visit quite regularly. I found the boys several jeans and a few shirts when school started, but I needed a few more now that it was getting too cold to wear shorts. I found seven pairs of jeans and khakis and four long-sleeved shirts for $26 total. You have to look closely at the clothes for rips and stains. Also check zippers to see if they work. I saw a rustic red plaid dress with a scottish terrier on the skirt. I wanted so badly to get it for Katie Rose although she is really in no need of any more clothes. But alas, it had a stain on the front so I walked away. It took no more than thirty minutes to sort through the size 8 and 10 pants as well as the long sleeved shirts.

Side note - the inventor of the elastic and buttons inside jeans so they can be adjusted smaller for my skinny 10-yr-old and bigger later on for my 8-yr-old is a total genius! I try not to buy pants without them.

And although it will be several years before they are needed. I store everything the older boys outgrow in office boxes or space bags. I shouldn't have to buy much at all for the younger boys. With the exception of completely worn out clothes that need to go to the trash or hand-me-downs that I never cared for that will go to the thrift store.

I have occasionally bought an item or two like shoes for John Micah or dress socks for the older boys at JC Penney. They send out a coupon for $10 off $10 purchase ever so often. I hear that you can get some great deals with coupons at The Children's Place, Gap and Target with Cartwheel but I haven't done that personally.

I am working on seasonal changes in the children's wardrobes. Yesterday, I got rid of many of the summer dresses that I knew Katie Rose was growing out of and wouldn't be able to wear next summer. I need to look through the next size of shirts and jeans in storage to see if I need to get out anything that she will fit into now. Yesterday, I also organized the older boys' dresser so that their jeans and khakis are separated with a drawer for each boys' clothes. So much of their clothes have been communal property since they haven't often been very far apart in size. Davy's growth spurt has put some distance between them. Maybe this will reduce the times I have to send them back to the room to try again.

Liturgical calendar

I found this calendar from the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops. it share the readings,  memorials, feasts and holy days throughout the year. You can also get it for 2014.

I saved it on my Samsung Galaxy so I can access it anywhere. I also want to print it out and place it in my home management binder.

I started last night preparing Christmas cards and thinking of what I need to do in preparation for the holidays. This calendar will be helpful in preparing for traditions like the St Nicholas, Our Lady of Guadalupe and when to celebrate the Jesse Tea. Looking forward to Advent and the preparation of our hearts for Chistmas.

The Leader in Me

The school that our boys are attending has been very suprising to us in their approach. They use the book by Stephen Covey titled The Leader in Me based on The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People. The habits instantly sounded familiar to me. My husband told the boys that he had learned in college what they were learning in elementary school. It has brought a different sort of language to our home. They are talking about proactive, synergize and sharpening their saw. Even our priest used Sharpen Your Saw in his homily a couple weeks ago. James instantly recognized it and realized they were learning something big.

I found the book at our library so I could learn more about how they were implementing these habits. I love that the book ties in how to further the habits at home as well. One of the statement in the book is "Treat a man as he is and you make him worse than he is. Treat a man as he has the potential to become and you make him better than he is." My boys are growing fast. This tells me that I need to be envisioning the men that I want them to become and start communicating that potential to them now. They will have more opportunities for practicing leadership with joining scouts this year as well.

One of the recommendations in bringing it home is to create a family mission statement. I have seen this suggested before and avoided it because it seemed vague and unrealistic without means of measuring success. But I want our home environment to be a result of all of our goals and ideas. The boys had helpedbwith creating a class misdion statement the first week of school. I knew they woul be familiar with the process. So we sat down this week and made a first draft. Some of the suggestions were kindness, respect, honesty and love. We started it with our anchor in our faith and ended with regular goals for each family member so that we are growing and measuring our progress realistically.

As we mull over our ideas we wrote, we will make a plan to come back and write it out clearly. Then begin to align systems so that we are successful in creating the culture that we all want. From the two pages we have written, I think it will look more like a family resolution.

Great book! There is also another book mentioned called the 8th Habit so I think I will look for that one next. I appreciate that this journey in public school is inspiring growth in more than just academics

St Teresa of Avila

Today, we celebrate the feast of St Teresa of Avila. She was a part of the Counter Reformation. She, along with St Ignatius of Loyola and St John of the Cross brought reforms badly needed within the church of the sixteenth century. You can read more about her life in the Divine Office as well as an excerpt of her writing in the Office of Readings.

 There are some great recipes on Catholic Cuisine. We will probably just do a dessert to celebrate since we can't have French Bread and I doubt the kids will eat garlic soup at this young age.

 There is a simple reading for kids here. I enjoyed reading another post about her that focused on her struggles at times to pray without being distracted. As a mom, my life is full of distractions so it is nice to know that I am not necessarily hindered from a great prayer life by any struggle I may face. 

Let nothing disturb you, 
 Let nothing frighten you, 
 All things are passing away: 
 God never changes. 
 Patience obtains all things. 
 Whoever has God lacks nothing;
 God alone suffices. 

St Teresa of Jesus, pray for us.

The grace of reconciliation

It has been a busy time with a new baby, new school and such. Several months had passed since attending confession so Friday night, I asked my husband if he could meet us at church after work Saturday. Saturday morning, I gave the older boys an examination of conscience to read and pray about what sins they needed to confess. I did the same in preparation for confession before Saturday evening Mass.

My mom thinks confession is an unchanging event where we confess but don't change our ways. As if confession is easy. It is hard even behind a curtain to say out loud, "I messed up!" It is so much easier to say, "Father, forgive me where I have failed you" and never officially calling that sin out by name. And therefore continuing to struggle. Calling out sins specifically by name and frequency is powerfully effective.

We don't leave the reconciliation room with a clear conscience and license to abuse the grace we have been given. We leave filled with grace to avoid those snares of the devil and thanksgiving that Christ has forgiven us when we have chosen to really look at how undeserving we truly are.

My oldest, Davy, claimed he had nothing in need of confession. I reminded him that we all sin and if nothing else, his lack of attention and participation in Mass would be something to talk about. After realizing the previous Sunday that the oldest misbehaved in Mass more than the younger four, he was warned that he would lose privileges if he didn't straighten up. But he didn't confess that. He decided to keep it short and sweet and just confess that he wasn't listening to his parents at times. During the mass that followed, he played with his shoe and his glasses and his reflection in the window. On the way home, I let him know he was grounded and how important it was to confess the sins we struggle with so we have the grace to resist the temptation.

I love the reminder that we all need to confess sin. I am a busy mom. I really don't have time to get into too much trouble. But I am amazed at the beginning of Mass when we are asked to bring to mind our sins and failings, the Holy Spirit prompts a pouring out of prayer from my soul of whatever I haven't done right or with all my might the previous week. It is sometimes quite a revelation what has harmed my soul through my thought and deeds or lack of.

One confession I had was that I wanted to not be so impatient and reactive to my kids. It is so hard to bite your tongue when you have said something over and over again and it seems like you might as well have been talking to a wall. Sunday morning, I heard Davy doing something he shouldn't. It was carelessness typical of boys but I was playing over in my head how many times I had told him to stop doing it and logically explained the why behind it. I was getting ready to ask him, "Why, oh why do you not listen to me? Why do you continue until I am all out of options except but to punish you?"

But I stopped. Later, I took the time again to have him practice how to do it properly when I was not gearing up for a rant. That is the grace of God. There is nothing different about me. In my mind, I was justified in extending his punishment since he had refused to listen. But something divine took over and allowed me to show the mercy that I have received from my Heavenly Father.

That is why I go to and believe in the power of reconciliation. I want to be a mother empowered by the grace of God.

Super simple crabby patties

On Fridays, we abstain from meat. Fish is allowed since they are cold-blooded. And someone joked possibly because our first pope was a fisherman. Seriously, fish was easier to catch as opposed to killing a warm-blooded animal and was cheaper with red meat being a real luxury.

In America, we are allowed to choose something else to abstain from such as social media, caffeine, sugar, or whatever causes us to think of the sacrifice our Lord made on the cross. I can live without meat but if I don't abstain from meat, it's easy for the rest of the family to forget that it's Friday. And that's the whole purpose, to not only remember His resurrection each Sunday but also the sacrifice He made on Friday.

So tonight we are having an at least four generation tradition of salmon/mackerel patties usually with macaroni and cheese and biscuits. My great-grandmother, grandmother and mother have all made it. If you count my kids, that's at least 5 generations. My aunt came to help with the kids when Joseph was born and I made it for supper. She remarked how good it was and how she hadn't had it in a while. My husband thinks it stinks but it's comfort food for us.

I use wild-caught Alaskan salmon. I take a can, drain the liquid, mash up the fish; bones and all. The bones are real soft and a great source of calcium. I add a bit of cornmeal and an egg. It doesn't need salt but you could add pepper and/or finely chopped onion if you like.

I form patties and fry them up in a bit of coconut oil. With the omega-3 from the fish, calcium from the bones and healthy fats from the coconut oil, this is one nutritious supper. You can serve them on buns for the kids who want to pretend they are eating with Sponge Bob. I prefer them just topped with ketchup.

Our new normal

Here we are....amidst life's twists and turns, we have arrived here with five children. Two in public school. Living in a town that neither of us grew up in but is very much home. We have such a great community.

Joseph Christian was born September 10th. Delivery and hospital stay went smoothly. He was baptized two weeks later. I love Catholic baptisms. The whole congregation was asked to join in renewing their own baptismal vows as Joseph and another little girl were baptized. The whole community joined together in professing our faith in God and committing to accept Christ and reject Satan. Something we need to do often, even daily.

Life with a fifth baby isn't as unsettling to our routine as adding the first or second or even third. I spoke with a lady at the hospital who had ten children. She said that after the fourth, adding another one is easy. And she is right. Experience makes everything familiar and easy to find a good rhythm to life. We are a little sleep deprived but we know that this season is so very short. Before long, he will be sleeping through the night and we will miss the snuggles at 2am.

The boys are thriving in public school. They've asked several times if they can go to public school forever. I had to explain that I can't commit totally to that because I can't see into the future and what challenges may arise. But so far so good. They've started riding the bus which requires a short walk to the bus stop. I walked through it with them going over all the rules and they've not had any problems other than another exuberant boy who knocked James down. He later apologized and all is well. The first day, I called one of the special education teachers to see if she had seen Davy. She had and he had excitedly told her about riding the bus. I told her that I was just a little neurotic and didn't want to wait all day to find out whether or not they made it to school safely. It's soooo hard watching them grow up and become more independent. I know it's necessary and I can't hover over them all the time. But it does take a lot of faith to remember that God can watch over them much better than I.

Several have remarked how I must feel like a load has been lifted to not have that pressure of homeschooling. And they're right. I had no idea how much of a weight it was until they started public school. I didn't fully appreciate how much time and thought it required. Even with a newborn, it feels like I have so much more time and there are so many more things that I can do for my family. I've thanked the teachers for helping bear this load with me. It has taken several teachers to help keep Davy's work straight. His main room teacher said that she didn't know how I did it by myself.

But with this extra time, comes a bit of a reinventing period. I'm thrilled to have more time to keep the house clean and do some extra baking. I have time to coupon and shop the sales. I am hoping to add more projects for learning for the little ones. I also want to add more Catholic traditions. There is such a vast richness to our faith with opportunities to share in the cultures all around the world since we are a global church. I am praying for wisdom that I will prioritize properly and not sacrifice the time with my kids for clean floors or family time for organized closets. Hopefully I will manage to do all that needs to be done as I manage my time well. But when a choice arises, I pray that I always chose the better part as Mary, Lazarus' sister did.

My eldest turned 10 on the Feast of Holy Archangels and my husband turned 40 on the Feast of Guardian Angels. We have also studied about angels in our catechism study from St Joseph Baltimore Catechism. So I am taking a suggestion from Many Little Blessings to memorize the prayer for our Guardian Angel.

Angel of God 
My guardian dear
To Whom His love
Commits me here
Ever this day
Be at my side
To light and guard
To rule and guide. Amen

No longer homeschooling

Not sure if that is the correct title. Not homeschooling this year or not homeschooling until we feel led to make a change. We've been so deceived into thinking we can plan out our lives and everything go according to plan but life changes constantly. Change truly is the only constant other than God.

I have had a varied life experience. I have attended public, private and homeschool. I know what I liked best. Kids can be cruel and my husband and I both had our share of bad experiences. He's friends on Facebook with kids that went to his high school. Things are different as adults but none of them were really his friends in high school. He doesn't want to go to his reunions. Just not a lot of happy memories associated with public school for us.

When our first child was born, I thought for sure I would homeschool. It was awesome. I loved it. I was passionate about it and determined to do it. And then a bombshell, Autism. How could I teach a child when I couldn't even get him to talk? So we used several public school resources and found the wonderful reverse mainstream classroom with the passionate teachers and therapists that not only helped him but taught me things to do that continued his success.

Then he aged out of preschool, we went to talk to the local county school to see where we would go from there. There wasn't as many resources as he had been accustomed to. I found myself having to explain autism to some of the people I met within the system. And while many were lovely people that would have done their best with him, in my gut I felt that it would be overwhelming and spell certain regression for him.

I was scared to death and prayed over it for a long time before finally decided to homeschool not only my two boys but my niece and nephews as well so that we created opportunities for working on social skills. I did a lot of tweaking to find teaching methods that helped them grow. For a while, unit studies that expounded on his obsessions at the moment were the primary curriculum. Pirates resulted in history lessons on privateers, science lessons on nutrition and sailor diseases like scurvy, math with pieces of eight, art with making a treasure chest and more.

We moved to another state and no longer had cousins homeschooling with us. The new state requirements and the smaller class helped us to accomplish a lot of study. We studied dinosaurs, American history, Presidents, States, etc. We finished books and started new books. We discovered through standardized testing that the reading comprehension was a significant weakness and planned for a more classical approach this year so we could read, read, and read some more.

We began this year mid-summer. We realized the reading comprehension wasn't a problem with dealing with concrete facts like science. The difficulty was in abstract concepts. So we sought out books like Amelia Bedelia to think less literally about stories. The spelling proved very difficult for our second child and after investigating it further realized that his non-sensical approach to spelling could be dyslexia. We adjusted the curriculum to address that and prepared to keep on trucking.

Since we had started earlier, I didn't jump in full force right away. We did half the first week. For the next 6 weeks, I tried to get us on task so that we were covering all the subjects each week. Once we adjusted the math and spelling for our second child, his competitive nature kicked in and he endeavored to finish so that he could "beat" his older brother. We had tried ADHD meds with our oldest with side effects becoming worse than the symptoms of dawdling. We tried Natural solutions. We then wondered if maybe it is not ADHD after all and just further symptoms of his high functioning autism. We worked on routine, structure, and tricks like using a big paper with a hole to allow him to focus on one problem at a time. Some mild succcess. Even began taking the 3 yr old and 1 yr old back to the master bedroom to watch Sesame Street while I folded laundry or kept school records to give the older boys the table and a quiet half of the house. When we couldn't get it done in the mornings, I had them use the quiet time during naptime to finish up lessons. And yet still, sometimes school work was still being dealt with til supper and sometimes the next day. The last straw was a history test that contained 60 questions took three days to complete. I had allowed them from the start to use the text to find the answers since we had covered the three chapters over weeks and really couldn't expect them to remember what they had read a month or more ago. I also allowed them to work together. Most questions were multiple choice, fill-in-the-blank or yes/no. Three hours would have been reasonable but it took 12 + hours and several questions to me when my second was convinced that the answer was not in the text.

I got to thinking of whether or not I could focus in the craziness of our house or if I would need a quiet library to study. A quiet library would be my choice. I couldn't give that to them. I couldn't focus on one-on-one time with them because I was trying to keep the little ones separated to buy a little bit of quiet. And I was expecting another little one so time was going to be stretched even further between the five children. I fought the feeling that I needed to consider other options. I hated that I was thinking of a major decision amidst pregnancy hormones. But I came down to two options, I could continue doing what I wanted in homeschooling and risk them falling behind. Or I could make the safe choice, send them to public school and then if I felt I could handle it better next year, resume homeschooling. I hated it, but I felt the right decision for the kids was public school. So many homeschool families talk about how they work around a new baby and how the kids learn life skills even if not much schoolwork gets done. But these families may not be dealing with autism and dyslexia. And I just don't feel that I would be right in sacrificing their education that way. We might could continue homeschooling and use a few more days to complete everything. They might still be fine. But if things are crazy still next year, I run the risk of considering public school with them behind. That isn't the case this year. They both have strengths and weaknesses but they aren't behind. And nearing the end of the first week, I don't see the curriculum being above their abilities in either grade. They may actually be ahead of their grade level in some areas.

So after discussing it as parents and then with the boys, we decided public school was the wisest choice for them. I spent the evening near tears. I knew it was the right choice but I hated that it was. I hated feeling inadequate to meet their needs. I requested prayer from other moms I knew and after meeting a lot of the staff and getting the boys settled in on their first day, I actually felt excited for them. This week, I have enjoyed helping them with their homework and hearing about what they are learning. They are both likely to be reevaluated to see if there are any helps that special education can provide. I am using the All about Spelling curriculum to help our second boy to prepare for spelling tests. I'm going to use the Latin curriculum as extra learning on the weekends and holidays. Latin isn't something that they would learn in public school and something to help them in their faith as Roman Catholics as well as studying science. And our oldest really enjoys conjugating verbs.

So what comes after this year? More decisions based on how they have done this year, what they desire, and what we feel is the best course for them. Our oldest would go to middle school next year so that is a major transition. We just have to take it a year at a time.

Neurodiversity

Often, you will find autism advocates divided into two categories. One group cheers for the strengths that the autistic brain offer and sees it as a more evolved state. The other group emphatically declares autism as a plague of sorts and we must find a cure.

Many parents probably fall somewhere in the middle where I am. I want to provide whatever means available to help him succeed but how he thinks and sees the world will largely stay the same.

My second child has had some letter reversals. I have looked it up several times and it has always been just a normal period of development.  I couldn't look into dyslexia because he had learned to read and reads well. Although, I suspect the reading can be attributed to his competitive nature and wanting to keep up with his brother and cousins.

Moving into fourth grade proved difficult for him. He failed his first spelling and latin tests.  He couldn't seem to remember the process he just completed in a math problem when carrying over to a new problem with new numbers. But with a lot of practice, that was getting some easier.

He is a grade ahead because he was wanting to do everything his brother and cousin was doing so pulling back to 3rd grade math and spelling lists for a bit longer won't hurt him. Latin may be difficult but he can repeat it next year if need be. The repeated Latin quiz and 3rd grade spelling earned A's. The only two wrong answers were simple misspellings where he flipped two letters in each word. So I started wondering, "Are we sure this is not some mild case of dyslexia?"

There are many things that he does that are similar to dyslexics. He has a lot of trouble sounding out words. He seems to rely on memory for spelling. He does reverse numbers and letters ever so often. He sometimes inverts time with saying 10:11 when it is 11:10. Just last week he was saying the mileage counter said 69 when it was actually 96. He does mix up some words when reading like for and from. Sometimes he even skips small words.

BUT he reads a lot. He reads fast. He recognizes all his numbers and symbols in math. He can do the simple calculations in math even if he may write a 9 for a 6. He is very creative and nearly turned a simple writing assignment of a paragraph or two into a book. He sculpts and draws all the time.

I got a book on dyslexia from the library and did a bunch of research. The dyslexia book was disappointing because so much focused on getting them to read and giving extra time which really wouldn't apply as much here. In my online research, I learned that speed reading may mask some of the difficulties and make it easier to comprehend. I have been speed reading as long as I can remember. If I force myself to slow down, the text does look a little jumbled but that could be partially attributed to astigmatism which he also has. I do know that I have trouble saying a new word from just text or writing a new word that I have heard without ever seeing it. So there is definitely an auditory processing weakness.

Online,  I found more similar to the first group of autism advocates. People who value the creative right-brain dominance of dyslexics and see that as more highly evolved state. And I realized that some of our labeling comes from this insane desire for conformity and a lack of appreciation for the unique. There are much more extreme cases than my boys where a diagnosis helps to give assistance in finding treatment and assistance. But really it appears that we are labeling to what degree a person is left-brain or right-brain dominant.

There are things I will do with him to give him the tools he needs to succeed. Letting him listen to audio books while following in a book. Building a large vocabulary. Using brain integration exercises. And speaking with reading specialist for more ideas.

Our children are a reflection of their parents' strengths and weaknesses. When you are strong in math, you are often weak in others. When you are strong in the arts, you are weak in other areas. It must be God's way of keeping us humble.

I am looking into having him possibly evaluated and will definitely see about anti-glare glasses in the future (helps lessen the affects of astigmatism), but I appreciate what makes each child unique. So today I stand for neurodiversity. This world would be a terribly boring place without it.

Maturity

This week has surprised me with homeschooling. This transition to Charlotte Mason was primarily for Davy. So I was anticipating spending much more time with him. But as it turns out he has taken to it like a fish in water. He is demonstrating comprehension of our reading assignments. His handwriting is so precious and neat that I wish I could turn it into a font. He made a 95 on his spelling test and has shown such great understanding of his Latin lesson that I am sure that he will ace his quiz tomorrow.

He still dilly dallies some due to his ADHD but he seems to be more hungry for knowledge. He spent over an hour on Khan Academy doing math assignments. That was over double his required time. He is spending much more time and effort on his piano practice. He is a math and science guy so fine arts isn't really his forte.

We had done overkill on science books over the past couple years so I was planning on just doing hands on projects once a week. But every day, he was asking for a science assignment so I added the physical science research from Easy Peasy online curriculum. 

What happened over the two month break? Seems he matured so rapidly. We want our kids
to grow but it is so bittersweet. Before we know it, he'll be off to college. I'm proud of how well he is doing and truly amazed at how far he has come. His reading speed is still slow and still a very literal thinker but if that is all we have to worry about then there are really no worries at all.

Charlotte Mason - first three days

We have homeschooled year round in the past. I loved the flexibility and summer time structure. This year, we had covered so much material and the older boys understand that other schools get summer breaks so I opted for a summer break from May to August.

I hated it! We did take some fun field trips but our days lacked the purpose and structure that homeschooling provides. But I kept it to myself and resisted the urge to start early. But this week, my oldest came to me asking for a test.

I said, "A test? Are you wanting to start fifth grade already?"

He said, "Yeah!"

I said, "Ok, let's talk to your brother."

Davy presented the idea to James and James agreed. So Wednesday was our first day of the new school year.

I have been planning since January. I have a shelf full of books to go through this year. We have used an eclectic method over the past four yrs and that worked pretty well. But there needs to be more focus on reading comprehension so Charlotte Mason is the method I chose. I wondered if I had too much for them.

So far, it has gone great. We did about half the work of week 1. We have done the weekly art lesson and science project. They have done some history, literature, grammar and more. We will finish up the first week next week keeping it pretty light because we are introducing a more demanding history curriculum and Latin. I want them to get a strong start. The next week will be our first attempt at a normal week. But even Friday which involved half the day gone from a trip to the pediatrician for the little one was very productive. So I have no doubt that we can fit in trips to the library and museums

But the totally best part of homeschooling was Friday night. I was peeling peaches and the boys were showing curiosity in the parts. So I gave them a peach pit to wash. They got their science notebooks and sketched the pit. They wrote a title and then listed observations, questions and hypothesis. We researched online and found a picture showing a cross section of the peach so one boy could draw the peach and label all the parts. The other started adding pages with insect drawings since classifying bugs was our science project this week. We have created an environment where all of life is about
learning rather than having learning confined to libraries and rooms with desks.

See ya later

I heard about this deal and purchased it this week. http://www.smockityfrocks.com/2013/04/ultimate-homemaking-ebook-bundle-on-sale-now.html

I was reading about managing time and thinking about what I really want to accomplish in a day. Was I doing things that didn't matter all that much in the long run? My time is getting thinner with more kids and getting back to gluten free diet. I begin Charlotte Mason in August. It is an ideal method for what my kids need right now but it requires more time. I would also like to take some education college courses at some point to help me learn more about how to effectively teach.

In evaluating priorities, several things didn't make the cut. Twitter feels frivolous when Facebook works just as well for me. Instagram is unused most of the time so deleted that. Several games like Words with friends and Candy Crush Saga were cut.

Things that don't add value like watching tv are added to things that do like folding clothes or stitching at the same time.

So does blogging make the cut? Do I enjoy it? In my times of hyper-focus, yes! But sometimes, it is just a painful reminder of how far I have to go in becoming the consistent person that I want to be. Does it add value? I don't reach that many readers. It doesn't bring in income. In nearly five yrs of blogging sporadically, I've yet to make enough to cash out.

So blogging is cut. Gonna use lists and planners to make and track goals. Maybe someday, my life will be a little less hectic and I will have some e books born out of time, experience and my moments of hyper-focus. I have a lot of work to do in becoming the follower of Jesus Christ, mom and home-manager that I need to be. Freeing up time and energy to reach those goals.

Gluten free - second time around

While living in Baton Rouge, my two oldest needed tubes in their ears. We got it done on the same day (would never do that again if I could help it. It was very hard to tend to them both adequately) they started having diarrhea shortly afterwards and it just wouldn't stop. Stool samples, blood tests and a trip to a gastroenterologist after a bowl of 7 grain cereal caused a severe facial rash were all done and determined that while they didn't have the typical bloodwork of a celiac, the reaction to the diet determined celiac. It is probably more of what is called gluten intolerance. It was so bad that when I tried to reintroduce gluten for the second child to be tested, he reacted so violently, I had to say forget it and just stick with the diet.

We moved back to Mississippi. When the boys would accidentally ingest gluten, they didn't react so strongly. And it was so much trouble and hard for them to understand why they couldn't have the hotdog bun and cupcake that everyone else had. In a rural area, there are lots of church functions and family get-togethers. So I bought some digestive enzymes, left some at my grandmother's house and said that a little cheating would be ok.

We got a discount grocery in our little town. I was thrilled to find some gluten-free things. But little by little, I started getting tortillas, pasta and dessert mixes that weren't gluten free. Besides the boys had done well with the occasional gluten, why not enjoy the savings? That was a slippery slope so that when we moved to Alabama last year, I had to ask why I was buying expensive gluten free foods when I wasn't really following the diet. I did start making sourdough bread. Sourdough does break down gluten some and we seemed to thrive on regular baking of sourdough.

Then I discovered I was pregnant with my fifth child. And then morning sickness moved right into tree pollen season so none of us felt real great. I was too sick to bother with sourdough or much cooking at all. So we got fast food, ordered pizzas and bought easy ingredients like sandwich fixings and hotdogs. I did crave salads so I did get some healthy things. But it was a lot of gluten. The older boys were fine, why not leave that time behind us?

Then my younger son and daughter started with diarrhea. I thought it was surely a bug when my second child joined them. I was having the opposite problem but thinking it was all pregnancy related. I had actually cramped so bad initially that I was afraid I was miscarrying. After about a week, I determined this was not simply a bug. At ten days, I was thinking that this was feeling a bit of  déjà vu. So back to gluten free we go.

I sent a bunch of unacceptable food with my husband for snacks at work. I live near a health food store so I grabbed a few things to get us started. I already know that Tinkyada has marvelous pasta. I know Pamela's baking mix gives us great options for biscuits and pancakes. So I am a little ahead of the curve.

I definitely see where it was tempting to get away from the diet. It is a lot of work. There are more gluten free options now. I was able to get gf kids meals at Chik-fil-a. When I sprained my ankle, I found gluten free chicken strips so I could cook something easy without standing too much. But you have to think about every single bite you take. Every. Single. Bite.

The young ones responded quickly. Within 24 hours, the worst of the diarrhea was gone. But they still aren't back to normal. They have the yellow, greasy stools that is typical of the malabsorption troubles with celiac. I have them on probiotics, enzymes and omega-3 so hopefully their bodies will heal soon. I feel a lot better. My body is so sluggish. Gluten free diet makes my intestines come alive so to speak. Why I resist the way of eating that makes me feel better, I don't know.

So back to gluten free. I do want to see if we can go back to sourdough so trying some pizza tonight but prepared to get back to gluten free baking if that bothers the little ones.

Bible & Catechism - Day 9

Genesis 12-13

This passage recalls the call and migration of Abram. We see that God rather than Abram will make a name for him. Abram goes forth rather than settle down. And the families of the earth will find blessing in him.

Abram and Sarai deceive the Pharaoh by saying she was his sister rather than his wife. Then Lot and Abram part ways because of the wealth they had each accumulated. Lot heads for Sodom, a decision that will bring devastating consequences.

Psalm 9 and (tomorrow's reading) Psalm 10

A psalm for thanksgiving for victory and praying for justice. These two psalms were originally one acrostic poem using the Hebrew alphabet.

Matthew 6:19-34

This passage speaks to the importance of being detached from the things of this world. Building up treasures in heaven, because the things of this world don't last. Depending on God for our basic needs because He cares for us and never fails to come through with what we need.

Catechism   54-64

This section details the various stages of revelation through Adam, Noah, Abraham and the prophets.

Bible & Catechism - Day 8

Genesis 10-11

Chapter 10 classifies the groups of people. This is referred to as the Table of Nations. How easy it is to lose sight of the fact that every human being is descended from one man and one woman. More importantly, how often we forget that we are all made in the image of God.

Chapter 11 describes the incident of the Tower of Babel and ends with the ancestors of the Israelites. I find the Tower of Babel an act of compassion on God's part. If you think about it, eventually the tower could have reached very thin air and many could have perished from lack of oxygen. It reminds me of how often our plans seem so smart but we can't always see the consequences.

Psalm 8

A beautiful psalm that speaks of God's grandeur and our inadequate attempts to praise him. The psalmist is struck by the smallness of humans and then by the royal dignity and power that God has graciously bestowed on them.

Matthew 6:1-18

This passage speaks of the importance of do good deeds, give alms, fast and pray with a warning to not make these things known to others to gain earthly praise.  Then Jesus teaches us how to pray. As a Baptist, I was never encouraged to pray the Lord's Prayer. As a Catholic, I see the power in this prayer to truly transform our hearts. The mot impacting portion for me is "Forgive us our debts as we forgive our debtors." You can't say this prayer day after day and miss the fact that His forgiveness of us is dependent upon how we forgive others. That is further explained in verse 14.

Catechism 50-53

This section speaks of the Revelation of God to man and how it was done in stages culminating in the mission of Christ. The Old Testament isn't a bunch of failed experiments before getting it right with Jesus. It would have been easily missed had not there been so many prophecies and foreshadowing. The plan was revealed by so many and in so many times before Jesus was ever born.

Summer plans

We finished up schoolwork Tuesday and kicked off summer with a trip to the US Space and Rocket center. Today's a bit of begging (doggone auto-correct) vegging since I am still so sore from all the walking and lifting yesterday. I have about thirty days to finish up the required school days for our cover school. I have schooled year round before. We are expecting a baby in September so I really debated about whether to start the next grade early. But I have come up with a different plan. It may take a couple of weeks next summer to make up what we miss with the craziness of life with a newborn. But this summer will have a different objective.

Religion - We'll continue with reading through the Bible in the evenings as a family. I had to reread the reading from Tuesday night. I wasn't very focused. It will get done in 365 days, just maybe not 365 consecutive days.

Math - this is one of the subjects that we can't afford to lose ground in. We use an IPad app that the boys enjoy so we will continue this throughout the summer. Especially in the van on trips to field trip venues.

Reading - the boys can earn a Happy Meal for every 15 books they read. 15 books because they want instant gratification and go for smaller, easier books. I think I'll add an option to read a chapter book and write a one page report showing they understood it.  So trips to the library will be planned weekly. If the boys don't need books from the public library, we will go to the Parent library for activity packs for Katie Rose.

Field trips - We can go to the Children's Hands On Museum, Birmingham Zoo and McWane Science Center. We also have the Natural History Museum and Moundville Archaelogical park. Hoping for a trip to Atlanta, Jackson, Montgomery, and Mobile. Maybe even Louisiana and Tennessee. We'll see what we can work into the summer.

Routines - I want to plan an outing every day that doesn't involve thunderstorms. Errands, field trips, and playing at the park. There needs to be motivation to get done quickly so we get to the fun sooner. The more consistent that we are, the more efficient we'll become. I want to build a good routine each morning so that we eventually leave a very clean house. I am starting with them making sure they get dressed, make up their bed and eat breakfast first thing rather than dilly-dallying. Eventually, I hope to have the whole house picked up, dishwasher unloaded and a load of clothes washed and hung up to dry. Then an evening routine where we prepare for the next day's activities, fold and put away laundry, and bath and bed routines. A couple of afternoons when we get home at a decent hour need to be devoted to deeper cleaning like dusting, mopping and vacuuming.

Getting ready for baby - We need to go through old clothes and see what we have that will work for the new baby. While we're at it, see what else we have for John Micah to grow into this fall from Davy and James' clothes in storage. We already have the new crib and majority of the baby needs are simply hand-me-downs like the blankets, carseat, swing, etc. Need a mattress and a few clothes. Then we should be ready. Remember to include pre-registration for the hospital and cooking meals for the freezer.

Planning for the next school year - This year was new for me even though I have been homeschooling for a while. I had to get accustomed to the new state laws, planning, and keeping records. I want to make a very detailed plan with spelling words, copywork, and all. So there is no need to switch gears in the middle of the year. I am going to hope that I can get them in a very solid routine in August so that they can complete their assignments in September without much of a hiccup.

Bible & Catechism - Day 7

Genesis 8-9

The flood waters recede. I like verse 1 of chapter 8, "God remembered Noah and all the animals." How wonderful that we are not just left to navigate the storms on our own! God remembers! I also liked verse 19 where all the animals come out by families. How orderly!

Chapter 9 is about the covenant with Noah. Some very serious warnings for anyone who spills blood. The promise of the rainbow that God would never destroy the earth with flood again. Then the curse on Canaan because Ham looked upon his father's nakedness.

Psalm 7 - God the Vindicator

Verses 15-17 were interesting. "Consider how one conceives iniquity; is pregnant with mischief, and gives birth to deception. He digs a hole and bores it deep, but falls into the pit he has made. His malice turns back upon his head; his violence falls on his own skull." You may have evil planned towards someone else it often we do ourselves more harm than anyone else.

Matthew 5:21-48

A lot of serious warnings. Anger equal to murder. Lust equal to adultery. Divorce leads to adultery. Say what you mean. Turn the other cheek. Love your enemies. The last verse is one that we rarely pay attention to, "Be perfect, just as your Heavenly Father is perfect." This is one of the verses that drew me to Catholicism. Our churches expect so little of us in regards to holiness and yet Jesus clearly expected a great deal from us.

Catechism 39-49

How can we speak about God? We do start with what we know and the resemblance to creatures. But God transcends all creatures. So our human words always fall short of the mystery of God. Another drawing of Catholicism. We can know a lot about God but we aren't God so none of us know it all. I like that the Catholic Church acknowledges mysteries. There are subjects that can be exhaustively studied over centuries and we can still feel as though we have only scratched the surface with our limited human understanding. We never reach the end. There is always more wisdom to gain.

Bible & Catechism - Day 6

Genesis 6:9 - 7:24
This reading is all about building the ark and the gathering of the animals into the ark. As a child, I imagined Noah like a cattle wrangler or something to have to gather up all those wild animals. Noah had enough to do with building the ark and gathering food. But in 6:20, it reads, "two of each will come to you." I also thought the footnote was interesting about how did Noah know which were clean and unclean. The distinction wasn't made until Sinai that we are aware of. Maybe he didn't know and learned as they showed up.

Psalm 6
The first of the Seven Penitential Psalms used to express repentance.

Matthew 5:1-20
The Beatitudes - I have a new appreciation for the Beatitudes as a Catholic. They have often been described to me as "bless you if you got a rotten lot in life." But in Roman Catholicism, the Beatitudes are worthy of aspiration. Being a Christian is way more than the Thou shalt not's. Those are important but equally important is how you fill the space left when you purge sin from your life. Verses 13-16 describe the salt and light. We need to be visibly different from the world. Verses 17-20  speak of Jesus coming not to abolish the law but to fulfill it.

Catechism 31-38 - Ways of coming to know God and the Knowledge of God according to the Church

The world - we can see God in the order and beauty of the world around us.

The human person - We are made in the image of God with an openness to truth and beauty, a sense of moral goodness, freedom and the voice of conscience, and longing for the infinite and happiness.

But we need to be enlightened by God's revelation. 37 quotes Puis XII about being hampered in the attaining of such proofs. For, "So it happens that men in such matters easily persuade themselves that what they would not like to be true is false or at least doubtful."

Bible & Catechism - Day 5

Genesis 5-6:8

This passage shows the genealogy from Adam - Noah. The most interesting part was Enoch.

5:24 Enoch walked with God, and he was no longer here, for God took him.

This narrative replaces the standard, "then he died." This passage spurs a lot of speculation. What did this life look like that was worthy of not seeing death? But I suppose if he walked with God, then his life resembled that of Jesus. That is who we should be imitating anyhow.

Psalm 5

In verse 8, the psalmist refers to mercy. Mercy is used to translate the Hebrew word, hesed. This term speaks to a relationship between persons. It is manifested in concrete actions to persons with some need or desire. The one who offers hesed has the ability to respond to that need of the other person. We often define mercy as offering something that the other doesn't deserve. So our acts of mercy often have an element of judgement as well. But here, mercy is described as just giving what you can.

Matthew 4

This passage deals with the temptation of Jesus and the calling of the disciples. Jesus' forty days in the desert recalls the forty years which Israel was tempted in the desert. Each refusal of Jesus is expressed in language taken from Deuteronomy (Deut 8:3, 6:13,16). Jesus takes on all the failings of the disobedient son, Israel and becomes the victor.

Catechism 26-30

We begin with I believe/We believe. The first words of the creed is divided into three parts; our search for the ultimate meaning of life, the Revelation by which God meets man, and our response of faith.

27 The desire for God is written in the human heart....Only in God will he finds the truth and happiness he never stops searching for.

The next section speaks of the attempts of man in their quest for God.

28 These forms of religious expression, despite the ambiguities they often bring with them, are so universal that one may well call man a religious being

 This references Acts 17:26-28 which speaks of those that would search for God and perhaps grope for him and find him.

I like that word, grope. It perfectly describes the plight of man. In darkness, we reach out hoping to grasp the Light. But God is never far from us so we are able to find Him despite our lack of spiritual sight.

29 talks about the various reasons for rejecting this innate desire for God.

30 Although man can forget God or reject Him, He never ceases to call men to Himself. But this search for God demands of man every effort of intellect, a sound will, "an upright heart," as well as the witness of others who teach him to seek God.

I like that our search for God is treated as a major undertaking rather than with the flippant simplistic attitude we see now. As we study diligently for school, we should study even more diligently the things of God. One of our RCIA leaders described the deposit of faith as a treasure chest. We keep pulling out more gems to learn and grow, but the chest never empties. There is always more to learn from the Bible and Catechism. Then there are endless documents from Church Fathers, Councils and letters and books of the saints to help us grow closer to God.

Much of my tidbits are gleaned from the footnotes in the New American Bible Saint Joseph Edition. It is a great study Bible.

Bible & Catechism - Day 4

Genesis 4 - Cain and Abel

Verses 6-7 grabbed my attention. God sees Cain is angry and speaks to him. He tells him that sin is waiting at the door BUT yet you can rule over it. He was offering him a way out. And then in verse 15, although Cain does sin against God and his brother, God shows compassion on him by placing a mark upon him so that no one would kill him. God's compassion is truly unfathomable.

Psalm 4  - Trust in God

This whole psalm is awesome. I liked verse 2 when David says, "When troubles hem me in, set me free." Verse 3 is convicting with him speaking to the people, "Why do you love what is worthless, chase after lies?" Verse 5 speaks to the need for private sincere repentance of our sins within "our hearts" and "upon our beds." We have lost the sorrow for our sins. We are so quick to judge another but will justify our actions at all costs. There is forgiveness but there must be repentance.

Matthew 3 - John the Baptist and the Baptism of Jesus

I really love the comparisons that are done of Elijah and Elisha to John the Baptist and Jesus. I read an awesome article about it a couple of years ago but can't find it now. It is uncanny how many things lined up with the Old Testament giving a glimpse of the New Testament and the New Testament fulfilling the Old Testament eternally.

There were a lot of ritual washings during this time period. But John points to the baptism of the Holy Spirit and fire. Some see the Holy Spirit and fire as synonymous, and the effect of this "baptism" as either purification or destruction. Thought provoking!

Catechism 18-25

As a homeschooler who's primary objection to public school is the attempt to reach all children with one method of teaching, I loved 24 which states in part, "teachers must not imagine that a single kind of soul has been entrusted to them and that consequentely it is lawful to teach and form equally all the faithful in true piety with one and the same method." Amen! So while my husband and I are reading the Catechism individually. At family devotions, we read from the St Joseph Baltimore Catechism that contains the same points but is tailored to children. There would be no benefit of reading a text with language above their heads. Our goal is understanding and subsequently wisdom so that comes from providing instruction at their level.

This section also points to the importance of paying attention to cross-references and looking at Scripture references in their entirety so that the faith can be understood as a unified whole.

Bible & Catechism - Day 3

Genesis 3 - The Fall

It's easy to judge Adam and Eve. For heaven's sake, they had one simple rule to follow. No Ten Commandments. No Great Commandment. No Beatitudes. No governmental laws. Complete freedom save one tiny command.

But if we're honest, none of us would fare better. Who wouldn't be tempted at the prospect of being a god? People still seek it today in power and fame. I'm glad God doesn't give up on us and continues to find a way to reach us.

Psalm 3 - A psalm of David, when he fled from his son Absalom

David is lamenting over his enemies and how they don't believe that God will come to his rescue. We know how Absalom ends up meeting a dreadful fate and David is returned to power. But you have to admire David in his darkest hours. He knows God has never let him down. And his "Salvation is from the Lord!"

Matthew 2 - Magi, Egypt and the Massacre of the Infants

You might wonder why didn't God make things easy for Mary and Joseph and the poor parents of Bethlehem. But all this seemingly difficult paths were necessary to fulfill the Scripture. I like that the Catholic Church honors the Holy Innocents as saints in heaven. They are portrayed as the first martyrs to lose their life for Jesus' sake. I can't comprehend the parents' grief over the senseless slaughter of precious babies.

Catechism 11-17

This section talks about the different aspects of a Christian's life that will be gone into greater depth throughout the text. The profession of faith is our response to the gifts that God has given us. The sacraments of faith section explains how God's salvation, accomplished once for all through Christ Jesus and the Holy Spirit, is made present in the liturgy and the seven sacraments.The life of faith speaks to our conduct in righteousness and charity. The forth section speaks of the meaning and importance of prayer in the life of faith.

Bible & Catechism - Day 2

Genesis 2 - I was drawn to the tree of life in this passage. I had read recently about how fitting communion was because we connect with friends and family almost always over a meal or some sort of food. From the very beginning, life was connected to eating. The tree of life, then the Passover meal that celebrated life that was spared during the tenth plague of Egypt, then the Eucharist which is obedience to Jesus' instructions at the Last Supper and understanding of John 6 where Jesus said that we must eat his body and drink his blood or we have no life in us. This is why I love being Catholic. There is such consistency from beginning to end.

Psalm 2 - a royal psalm. In verse 2, it is referred to the anointed. The Hebrew word for anointed is mashiah which is where we get the English Messiah. The Greek word is christos. So when we say Messiah or Christ, we are essentially saying King. Because traditionally royalty was recognized by anointing.

Matthew 1:18-25 - I wondered why they couldn't just tell Joseph beforehand before he began contemplating divorce. But I think this ties back to the importance of questions. We need to ask the questions before He provides the answers.

Catechism 1-10  - Our purpose is to know and love God. This section speaks of the importance of handing down the faith. I really like #7 which says that Catechesis is not just about adding new members, but the spiritual growth of its existing members.

We are going through this as a family but with the St Joseph Baltimore Catechism during family devotions. All four of us, that can read, read a section so it isn't much at all to get through the reading for the day.

Reading through the Bible and Catechism in a year

I am using Coming Home Network's plan for reading the Bible and Catechism in a year.  I have been through the Bible in 90 days and a lot of study since from the questions that arose. Now armed with more understanding, I want to go through it again. In looking for a yearly plan, I found this one that included the Catechism.

Day 1
Genesis 1
Psalm 1
Matthew 1:1-17
Intro to Catechism

Genesis 1 - This outlines the creation of earth. So this brings up the question of creationism vs evolution. You will find a lot of arguments about whether the earth is thousands of years old or millions of years old. Some will question how long a day is. But does it matter?

What are the important matters to take from this first chapter. God was here before anything else and he created it all. Now does it matter if POOF it all appeared or if a process was spoken and God watched it unfold. No, it only matters that we acknowledge a divine intelligent Creator.

Now many creationists will argue that we must take it very literally or people won't believe the rest of the Bible. Then many of these faced with John 6 and the necessity for the real presence of Christ in the Eucharist will then argue that Jesus though adamantly repeating the same thing over and over without the typical alternate explanation that he offered in other cases where people misunderstood him, allowed majority of his followers to leave over something "symbolic." Their theology isn't consistent.

You can question things on both sides but I think that is the point. If we could find all the answers in science, why would we need to look for something higher? There's always the evidence of intelligence in the tiniest cells. You can never be satisfied with creation til you look for the Creator

Psalm 1 - I remember staying with my grandparents and memorizing this passage of Scripture. So it is one of my favorites. I think it highlights that we need to be in some cases physically separated from wickedness but most importantly in our minds and hearts. We need to meditate on the law of The Lord day and night. I just finished a book by Tami Kiser, Smart Martha's Catholic Guide for Busy Moms.  While there are a lot of tips to do things simply and efficiently like Martha, we have to constantly be mindful of how Christ is beckoning us to sit at his feet as Mary did. We need the time in Bible study and prayer. We may find him in the service to our children, husband, neighbors, church family, etc. But prayerfully keeping our focus on the source so life itself.

Matthew 1:1-17

The genealogy of Christ is divided into 3 periods; from promise given to promise fulfilled, from promise fulfilled to promise lost, from promise lost to promise fulfilled eternally. The number of generations in each period is 14. Some scholars note that 14 is the number of David always pointing to Jesus as the Son of David.

Catechism - Intro

This talked about the purposes of the Catechism as a "reference text" that "fulfilled the mission of the Church to guard the deposit of faith." You can look in the index at any Scripture and find the teachings of the Church that correlate to that particular passage. You can also reference documents by Early Church Fathers and more. The Catechism is "offered to every individual who asks us to give an account of the hope that is in us (1 Peter 3:15) and who wants to know what the Catholic Church believes." We have a guide to exactly what the Church teaches. We still have to form our conscience according to the Scripture but I am thankful for a means to avoid confusion.

In a college town in Mississippi, I sat in a restaurant near a table of six college students. I couldn't help overhearing bits of their conversation. They compared and contrasted their various denominational beliefs amidst a lot of confusion of the ones trying to explain the reasons why. But they never seemed to arrived at any truth. In the Catholic Church, we have a book compiling our beliefs and backed up by thousands of years of Scripture and a couple thousand more of the Holy Spirit's work in the Church.