Seven Quick Takes: Volume VIII

-One-

Whew!  I've been missing the fun that is Seven Quick Takes, so I'm leaving this open so as to add them as I go all week.  Things have been rolling into overtime lately with our little bit of home-preschooling, getting Anni ready to start Catechesis of the Good Shepherd, and a very busy fall season for me (family portrait time!)

-Two-

Rain.  Oh, my.  I had just mentioned to my mom how I kind of missed long, rainy days in Kansas... and then Colorado had to go and have an entire week of them!  I'm all about the rain, but it's starting to get dangerous here (luckily not right here, but near enough us that I have lots of friends to worry about).  Anni asked me this morning if it was still raining and if the playground was dry yet.  Poor chicky... at least this is when we're all sick so we'd most likely need to be indoors anyway.  When it starts to let up a little, I let Anni run up and down the side walk a few times (today it felt like it never let up, so we all took the umbrella on a trek to get the mail).  




 Otherwise, we turn all the lights in the living room on (why do people install ceiling fans without lights, by the way?!) to try to hold the dimness back a bit and go on with our day.  A few times a day I'll open the door to let a little air in and we'll sit and watch the rain fall.





Please pray for all those being evacuated, and especially for those who have lost loved ones (three deaths at last count).  It's a very scary time for many people.

-Three-

It seems that my blog-reader is overflowing with pregnant mamas or their sweet, fresh newborns.  So, if you're one of those mamas, here are a few others to commiserate and share your joy with:

Blessed and Broken

Sew Liberated

Hallelujah is My Song

You are my Sunshine

Catholic Missionary Family

Natalie's Sentiments

I can't it's been over six months since we had our Colette, her birth-day and the days that followed are still so fresh in my mind!

-Four- 

We have been sick/allergic for the past week.  Last Sunday, I sent Daniel to bed early and took over his usual "job" of rocking sweet Colette to sleep amidst the house needing some serious cleaning.  She's been a bit of a handful to get to sleep lately (teething, learning new skills, fear of missing out), but that night she snacked a bit, and took frequent nursing breaks to give me sweet, sweet smiles.  As she nodded off, I pulled up this beautiful movie, Light of Love, on the ipad, and prayed, as I watched, that my sweet girls would be as fulfilled as these women are, no matter what their vocations.  It was one of those sweet memories of motherhood that carries me through the harder moments.

It reminded me of this poem.

The cleaning and scrubbing can wait till tomorrow  
But children grow up as I’ve learned to my sorrow.  
So quiet down cobwebs; Dust go to sleep!
I’m rocking my baby and babies don’t keep.

-Five- 

We started cloth diapering a couple weeks ago... and, for the most part, we're loving it!  I'm adjusting to the fact that it's very hard to snap onesies that used to fit (and I rarely attempt pants!)  What do you cloth diapering families out there do to deal with these things?  I moved up a size on clothes, but I'm not sure that will help the pants issue, even then.  Anni loves to grab things for me (she'll get the prefolds, but she absolutely delights in picking out a fresh diaper cover).  She also spent quite awhile helping me "fold" the prefolds the other day.  What a helper!

 

-Six-



Last week, we celebrated Mary's birthday.  I loved seeing other celebrations popping up:

Domestic Church Militant

Catholic Icing

-Seven-

Sept. 11th was this week.  I teared up a few times as I read accounts and remembrances and Anni was quick to catch on (as she has been lately to all emotions that "aren't happy").  It was a conundrum to explain to a three-year-old.  I told her it was a very sad day for our country and always would be because a lot of people got hurt on this day.  I watched this tonight.  Tears, but also faith in humanity. 

More Seven Quick takes at Conversion Diary.

Happy Birthday, Mary!

Today was the celebration of the nativity of Mary, Mother of God.  Unfortunately, I hadn't thought ahead very far, and we were all feeling a little rough after a busy two days and a cold for each of us.  Luckily (or probably unluckily on the healthy side of things, haha!), I had a random cake mix in the cupboards from some mini-cupcakes I had planned to make for something and never got around to.  Therefore, cupcakes!  With blue candles!  I only frosted a few, because I'm definitely a fan of the plain cupcake (and I had enough sugar coursing through my system after taking a few too many licks of the batter).  Anni was so excited to sing Mary "Happy Birthday", and kept talking about how Mary and Jesus would just love their cupcakes. 

Colette didn't really know what was going on, but was pretty peeved when I was frosting cupcakes and didn't give her one.

Luckily, I gave her a piece of pear, and we sang, so her sweet heart was delighted.

It was simple, but something that I think Anni will remember, and it was a great opportunity to talk to her about how we ask Mary to pray for us and how she helps us grow closer to Him because she loves Him so much. 

No hair was burnt in the blowing out of the cupcakes.  Thank goodness.

Four Years: Pt. Two

Generally, I love gift giving.  It's one of my love languages (so, yes, I enjoy receiving super thoughtful gifts as well), and I pride myself on trying to find something thoughtful.  For our anniversary; however, I was tapped out.  A few days before our anniversary, I picked up a cold of some kind, and had come to the desperate decision that I would probably pick up a pineapple (haha!  Daniel told me that this year's materials were books, flower and fruit... though, looking it up now, I don't see books on it, which kind of makes my gift not fit that, but it was fun anyway!)  The day of, I decided to make him a little mini book (stick figures and all!) summarizing our marriage.  It's a little silly, but he loved it, and it makes me smile every time I see it sitting on the shelf in the living room.

We even made it out on a date!  Miss Colette ended up tagging along as she's got stranger danger kickin' in like you wouldn't believe.  It was a fun, cheesy and yummy date.

Four Years

Four years ago, I married my best friend, my confidante, and the guy who makes me laugh more than anyone else ever has.  In four years, we've lived as fundraising missionaries (and continue to do so), we have had two sweet, sweet babies, and he has, without fail, supported my goals as a photographer, stay-at-home mama, and person.  I am so glad we chose each other! 

B Week

Letter of the Week: B

I was far less organized our second week of school (it happens, I promise I was better the next week!)  Luckily, I managed to have enough prepared that Anni was picking the letter out of books and still had at least one craft she loved (I bombed our second attempt at a craft... we just didn't get anything out of it!)  For our craft, she glued (or rather mod-podged, because I still can't figure out where the glue got packed!) buttons, beads and black beans in the shape of a B. 

Our Saint of the week was St. Benedict (I went to Benedictine College, so the choice was easy!)  I didn't find a coloring sheet for her, but we read out of our little Saint stories book and talked about Pope Emeritus Benedict (is that the correct title now?), since she knew a little about him already.

She always gets really excited for the grab bag (she usually starts out our "classtime" by saying, "and we'll look in the grab bag?!")  This week we had a bun (she referred to it as bread, still works), butterfly, bumblebee, baseball, block with the letter B on it and black beans. 

Stay tuned for week "C"!