Sacrifice

A good mommy surprises her family with a wonderful dinner of homemade fried chicken eliciting an unsolicited hug from a boy big enough to look his momma in the eye.

A bad mommy does all of that on a Thursday night in Lent so that the leftovers taunt her children from the fridge all day Friday!

The Professor's suggestion... next time we don't leave any leftovers! : )

Closet Tops and Liturgical Boxes

One of the biggest problems I can think of when it comes to being a homemaker is organization. Whether it's organizing toys that get played with everyday, stuff that stays stored most of year or the food in the refrigerator that needs to be used before it spoils, organizing is just a fact of our life at home. This post was inspired by my in-town friend, Barb. I wanted to show her some of the organization going on over here and how I tackle what I think is one of the biggest hurdles in organization... using space efficiently.

Closet Tops

Closets are some of the biggest space wasters. Oh sure, you can go to a contain everything store and have them design you a perfectly organized closet that utlitizes every inch of available space but that's probably not going to happen for most of us whether it's because of finances or simply the fact that our needs change pretty rapidly and our closets have to be flexible (or the fact that those stores are like catnip for moms and should be avoided to save husbands from having to call out the search and rescue teams). One area that I know is a huge space waster is the top of the closet. It's not easily accessible enough to use for everyday storage space and you can only pile stuff up so high before it comes tumbling down on top of you.

Here is what we have been using for a few years now and it really works for us:

I call it a shelf hutch. I'm sure there is a professional term out there and probably an official trademarked thing that is sold in that Can't Contain Yourself place. I think I got these at the local Bullseye store a long time ago and repurposed them when we moved here. One of these 3-shelf storage organizers will make two hutches if you use the inner dividers as outer legs. Does that make sense? Something like this might work too. The new top shelf is used for keepsake boxes that don't come down very often and below can be used for accessible storage that my kids can reach themselves. Obviously, if your little ones are still very little, that's not going to work for them. You might consider using it for clothes storage while putting their toys on the bottom of the closet.

Liturgical Boxes

Below is our front hall closet. We've had the shelf hutch there for a while helping with paper and puzzle organization. Then I came up with an idea for storing our monthly feast day celebration statues, knick-knacks, mantle decorations, candles, etc.... I purchased 12 photo storage boxes like these in assorted designs from the craft store and labeled one for each month. If you need bigger boxes, look for CD & DVD storage boxes. I packed up everything that is specific to that month's liturgical days. I pull the current month's box down and leave it more easily accessible on a lower shelf with the other boxes stored up higher. I love this system because it puts a limit on what I can save. If I can't store it in the box, then I have to pare down.

I don't yet have all of the boxes packed with everything I might want them to hold (I expect that to take a full year plus) but you can see here what it looks like in our July box. Our chalice and prayer to the Most Precious Blood along with our St. Anne holy card and display stand. I have room to add some seashells and the black lace, too. Some statues, like the St. Anne statue we like to keep out all the time, but others, like our St. Nicholas and St. Patrick can go in the boxes for rotation keeping them fresh and new.

Speaking of boxes... one thing I have learned is that for my family is that toy boxes, baskets and buckets just don't work. Like I was saying about the liturgical month boxes, a lid creates a natural limit that some of us need. A drawer serves the same purpose by creating a definite closed space that is small enough to maintain easily. The same thing that makes baskets great for book rotation or school work organization, namely, the fact that you can see their contents easily is the same reason that they don't work for toy storage around here; they become catch-alls. Toy baskets and buckets in my house end up with a perpetual case of the stomach flu. (Sorry, that mental image is Husband's doing. He often reminds the children that dresser drawers can't throw up so they shouldn't look like they're trying to!)

Now an open bin can work for us provided it has a closed space to reside in like the ones below. I am a firm believer in labels even for see through containers and especially for closed containers. I don't own a label maker mostly because I like to print them up myself. They can be functional and pretty too! The ones below are attached with Velcro sticky-back tape so that they can be changed up should the contents of the bins change.

You will notice the two open shelves where Superman is in a fierce yoga tangle and some other things are piled on top of Fr. Dowling's vestment box. I intentionally left those two spaces open so that we could see the difference ourselves between open spaces and spaces that could be contained. We wanted to see if we needed the space for anything that might not fit in a bin. I'm not sure what we will ultimately decide, but right now I am leaning towards getting two more of these things. (You can find those cheaper at your local Bullseye store, btw! The only thing I don't like about them is that over time they will get floppier, but they still stand up enough to do their job.) 

All of the children, but BigBoy especially, love knowing where to find their toys and also where they go when it's time to clean up and that makes all the difference in my little guy's attitude and cheerfulness when asked to do his chores.

P.S. This post isn't intended to claim that I have organization mastered or to make anyone feel bad who is still struggling to find what works for them. Simply to offer a glimpse at what works for us now, what hasn't in the past and what we've learned from it.

Science of Curling

The Professor is really disappointed that NBC hasn't been showing any curling competitions in their evening broadcasts. He complained, "I've been waiting 4 years to see this!" So, to console him, we've been watching some of the curling videos on the NBC Olympics website. This one on the Science of Curling really helped clear up some unexplained points of the sport. In fact, there is a whole Science of the Games section here. We've been enjoying those short little science clips during lunch time.

The one called, Curling House of Horrors is really funny...not scary at all unless you count the clown pants on the Norwegian team! Oh and we liked this one too. People making faces and yelling funny things...what's not to love?

Where have I been?

Oh, here and there! You're jealous... aren't cha? ; )

We had a lovely visit with some sweet friends and I don't have one picture to show for it because I was too busy enjoying the company! Bad blogger, I know.

Regular blogging will resume shortly. Right now, I have an unexpected house guest. Yes, Sue... that's what I get for opening my big mouth!

Happy Wednesday!

Pray

 

Lent is a privileged time of interior pilgrimage towards Him Who is the fount of mercy.

~ Message of His Holiness Benedict XVI for Lent 2006

Alms

Love, then, gives almsgiving its value; it inspires various forms of giving, according to the possibilities and conditions of each person. 
~ Message of His Holiness Benedict XVI for Lent 2008

The Fast

The Fast, as taught by holy lore,
we keep in solemn course once more:
the fast to all men known, and bound
in forty days of yearly round.

The law and seers that were of old
in divers ways this Lent foretold,
which Christ, all seasons' King and guide,
in after ages sanctified.

More sparing therefore let us make
the words we speak, the food we take,
our sleep and mirth, -and closer barred
be every sense in holy guard:

~ Pope St. Gregory the Great

Mardi Gras

Mardi Gras cookie masks & Monkey Bread King Cake

Lenten Reading Plans

I already picked up some Lenten reading for Husband for St. Valentine's Day. You can see Taylor Marshall's new book, The Crucified Rabbi, pictured below. If you haven't had a chance to pick up something for yourself or your family, then you need to click over to this great resource.

Fr. Jerabek is an amazing young priest who our family has had the privilege of meeting and spending time with in person. He plays an awesome game of soccer according to a certain 5 year old I know!

He has linked to a Church Father's Reading List complied by someone else and has provided three other reading lists compiled by himself based on the lives of the saints, Cardinal Newman and St. John Vianney. Two of them can be printed as pdf files and the other has links to the Vatican website where you can read the Holy Father's words at his weekly audience. I think that one might be great to go over with the kids.

Anyway, just wanted to let you all know in case anyone was still looking! Happy Shrove Tuesday!

Organizing for Lent

There are many great posts out there about organizing Lent.  Organizing thoughts, crafts, how the kids are going to participate, what meditations Mom should read... it's all wonderful advice! I really don't have anything to add.

I want this Lent to be a time of preparation and reparation in all aspects of our life. This year, I am keeping our plans pretty close to the vest, but you can read past posts here. This place might be more quiet than usual though not abandoned or anything like that. Just quieter.

Blessings,

O Canada!

Despite the weirdness of the tap dancing fiddling rockers wearing flannel, I have to say that I really did enjoy the opening ceremonies. I might not have understood everything, but I liked it. I loved the fabric mountains and all of the projections. The whales, the leaves, the ice breaking... so cool!

What impressed me most was finding out from Tom Brokaw's introduction what the Canadians did for us on September 11th. Did you know that when American airways were shut down on that horrific day, Canada allowed over 200 flights to land and then provided food and shelter for over 33,000 people until they could get them back home? I remember that day and remember the deafening silence of the runway approach over our house. It never occurred to me that those planes might have had to land outside our borders. The bravery in accepting those strangers on that uncertain day and the charity the Canadians showed in taking care of them speaks to the generous character of our friends to the north.

While it is a small reward for such a great act of kindness, I am just thrilled that they got the home gold medal they were hoping for!

Love

To love God is something greater than to know Him. ~ St. Thomas Aquinas

Love consumes us only in the measure of our self-surrender. ~ St. Therese of Lisieux

Where love exists, it works great things. ~ Pope St. Gregory the Great

Happy Feast of St. Valentine!

Opening Ceremonies

If I was live blogging, right now I would be asking...

...what's up with the tap dancing-flannel-wearing-Canadian goth fiddle rockers?

And now they're on fire.

How many Molsons does it take to make this make sense?

Snow Daze

The ninja birds (Cedar Waxwings) picked a bad weekend to cruise through town.

We lost a top branch from this oak tree in the back yard.

 

Super silly snowman

Friday Fun (drum roll please!)

The winner of Barbara Beery's new Pink Princess Cupcake Cookbook is....

Chrissy

Congratulations! We will all be waiting to see what lovely things you create with it! I will send you an email today so that you can send me your snail mail address.

Thanks everyone for playing and a big thank you to Barbara for giving us the opportunity!

Memory Lane

Lenten calendars are popping up everywhere as the time for fasting rapidly approaches! Jessica reminisced about their first calendar in 2005, back when her oldest was a wee lad of four. I started thinking about our first calendar....which I couldn't remember exactly. So I went searching for it in a box of old photos (this was before the digital age, folks). And look what I found...

Easter 2002

Oh my goodness, see how tiny my big kids were! Such babies! I wish I could say that I remember those days well, but sadly, three kids, aged 3, 2, & 1, meant not a lot of sleep for mama. The brain fog is thick on those days. I don't remember if the Lenten calendar you see on the back wall was our very first one or not, but that doesn't really matter. Just look at this treasure that was hiding in that dusty old shoe box.

Sunshine, The Professor and Shortcake sitting on my absolute most favorite couch in the world. We bought it off the back of a van and it turned out to be the most comfortable spot for sleeping when I was 9 months pregnant and 9 days overdue with each of those three little munchkins!

And it might make her blush, but I just couldn't resist one more...

Mmmmmmmm....chocolate!

Who knew that a little craft basket update would send me on such a sentimental journey? As Bob Hope would say, "Thanks for the memories!" Now, where are the tissues?

P.S. If you are looking for a Lenten calendar like this one but don't think you can draw it yourself, Lacy has generously offered her printable version here. And if you are looking for more Lenten ideas, you can find them here.

Good morning!

Heart shaped scones with Our Lady blue sprinkles and toasted brown bread by the fire courtesy of an early rising Mom.

 A beautiful white fluffy landscape courtesy of our Great Provider... The kids loved their breakfast, but His gift was infinitely more appreciated!

P.S. Don't forget... today is the last day to enter the giveaway contest for Barbara Beery's Pink Princess Cupcake Cookbook. Entries will be accepted until noon today EST.

USA! USA! USA!

The Winter Olympics are set to begin in a couple of days! Whoo hoo!!! So, Friday night, when we hunker down to watch the Opening Ceremony with the Parade of Nations (our favorite part!) and our globe handy, we will also enjoy some Fluffy Canadian Pancakes with Maple Syrup. We have been using a lapbook to study up on some Olympic history and will spend the next few days learning about the athletes that we will be rooting for.

I would love to know if you have any specific plans for opening night. I admit that we are flying by the seat of our pants here. An out-of-town trip got canceled and now I'm trying to throw some ideas together.