Pondered In My Heart

Eastertide Daybook

Outside my window- It's a lovely, sunny dewy morning that is predicted to turn into a hot hot summerlike day. The weather has been so strange this spring it's hard to keep one's (gardener's) head straight. But this week is to be a hot one.

I am hearing- Lydia complaining that her brother took her calculator so she's stuck with 'a dumb calculator that can't do inverse tangents' and Mary Rose giggling her Mary Rose giggle at this despairing news. Little bits of heavy breathing as little sleeping beauties slumber on the couches.

I am wearing- One of my favorite summer skirts that pops with bright flowers, a white top and a pink cardigan. It's so lovely and refreshing to be in spring colors! We put off wearing summer clothes until after Easter,  (Regina Doman describes it here as a 'clothing fast')  and after so much black and purple and dark wool during Lent it's positively delightful to be in spring cottons. I love how just looking at each other is a constant reminder of our Easter joy.

I am thankful for- A beautiful day yesterday for Divine Mercy Sunday. We visited the local Carmelite Monastery for the afternoon. It's a long but pleasant drive out in the country and up a mountain and when you arrive it is clearly to a more peaceful and holy place. And to hear the nuns singing their prayers is always heavenly. Not entirely unlike the angels, they sing at set points throughout the day marking time with praises of sweet voices rising in joy to Our Lord. Hour after hour, day after day, behind the wall they live and move and have their being united in prayer to Him. Nothing in the outside world can shift their focus, their progress towards Him. Always so much to contemplate after a visit to Carmel.

I am reading and thinking about- How to Converse with God, which I bought along with Uniformity with God's Will, two little booklets by St. Alphonsus Liguori (thankful hat tip to Christine). I read How to Pray Always during Lent, and this is a nice and easy to read companion to that. I appreciate brief and easy to read yet profound words of wisdom from the saints.

Having given up frivolous reading, I admit I had great difficulty getting much spiritual reading done during Lent as I need quiet to do deep reading and quiet is pretty sparse around here. We go to early Mass, so reading in the morning doesn't happen, and by night fall I'm generally tired and fall asleep after a page or two. In spite of these shortcomings of mine we had a very good Lent by mining the treasure trove that is Audio Sancto. This site has a collection of excellent sermons by various priests (who remain anonymous as they all have other duties) on a myriad of topics such as Prayer and Interior Life, Grace and Holiness, Marriage and Family, Purity, and The Saints just to name a few. We found we could turn on a sermon whilst doing our chores or tidying up and everyone could listen and benefit so much from the time spent folding laundry or washing dishes or whatever. The solid and inspirational teaching quite literally had my kids clamoring for more. (!) Some of our favorites: We Are Not Saints, Because We Do Not Want to Be, Supernatural Charity, and this three part series The Importance of Praying Well, Examining Sin - Its consequences and remedy, and The Importance of Preparing for Death. You can find sermons as short as ten or fifteen minutes that you can squeeze in anywhere as well as much longer fare. Really good stuff.

From the kitchen- Yesterday we made this fabulous lemon cheese braid. With home made lemon curd, it was wonderful. Course it's all gone by now. Some folks in these parts are wont to fiercely eschew the likes of brown bread and oatmeal (too Lenten!) and yet freely admit the perilous effects of the white flour and sugar ('chocolate coma' anyone?). So it's a fine line to walk (I mean cook) here in this second week of Easter, balancing the need to feast with the need to resume healthy eating habits...

We are creating- Birthday gifts. I made a few things last week for Lydia's birthday and now have another birthday coming up this week.

A few plans for the rest of the week- Someone is counting the days until that birthday I mentioned.

Living the Liturgical Year - Still basking in that glorious Easter joy! As yesterday's Collect declared:

Grant, we beseech Thee, almighty God, that we who have celebrated the Paschal Feast, may, by Thy bounty, retain its fruits in our daily habits and behaviour.

That's the current focus and goal: having kept a good Lent and celebrated the Paschal Feast we now pray for the grace to retain its fruits in our daily habits and behaviour. Amen.

A picture thought-

Knowing well where their bread comes from, Ralph and Alice follow Father. (But Eliza didn't like it a bit when one of the big Muscovies snatched her lemon bread from her dangling hand. Live and learn.)

Happy Easter, Friends! Resurrexit Sicut Dixit!

It's a New Year Daybook

Outside my window- It's a clear, cold dark night.

I am hearing- Outbursts of laughter as the big kids roast marshmallows over a fire outside with their Pa. They sound cold and jolly. Perfectly toasted marshmallow keep arriving in front of me. And then they disappear.

I am wearing- My standard winter attire of a plaid wool skirt, turtleneck topped with a wool sweater, tights and boots. I am so pleased with these boots I got for my birthday last fall: decent looking leather boots with a comfortable footbed that I can wear all day, every day without hurting my troublesome feet. Hooray for happy feet!

(The rest of the post taken down and written by the scribe, supplemented with liberal doses of comments from the bystanders.) (My family is trying to help me remember how to blog.)(Caution - this post may sound like one of my kids' blog posts.)

I am thinking about- Oh, My bed. I love my pillow. etc. (drat these scribes)

I am reading- Village Centenary (a Miss Read book, from the handy college library, as I read all the ones from the public library)

From the kitchen- Potato cheese soup and oriental cabbage salad for dinner. Still lots of cookies for dessert.

In the learning house- (Everyone is learning crazy stuff, like how to catch marshmallows on fire and blow them out.  Fire safety is a required subject in our state. You should see Jon's - they go up in blue flame. Fire starting also being studied regularly.)

Living the Liturgical Year-  Look. It's still Christmas.  We were so somber for real Christmas (on account of the sick person) that we have to have more Christmas.

Around the house- Well, slowly restoring order, and catching up with the laundry and chores.  Christmas decor remains unashamedly (see above) and the living room is still in the stage where the presents are all lying about in tidy piles according to whose they are. Pretty white twinkly lights will also remain throughout the house as they are so cheery during these dark winter days that can be so dreary.

We are creating- Blog posts, once again.  You could say I am crocheting hats.  Actually, you could say that I am finishing Christmas presents I didn't get done because of taking care of the sick and the sewing machine broke.

I am thankful for- The restoration to health of my family members! (No, she's thankful you didn't catch your beard on fire.) (that too) We have had illness circulating through the family since October in various degrees of severity, with the last few weeks being the grand finale. I am thankful for antibiotics and antipyretics and health care professionals and my nurse's training. I am thankful to have finally returned to Holy Mass in the morning and my own bed at night. I am thankful that for the moment we are all well and the siege seems to be over.

A few plans for the rest of the week- (Aaaay, let's go make a fire.)  No, getting school ramped back up to full term time speed. Hope to do some catch up blogging, Christmas and presents and cookies and so forth. I actually had notes written down for posts about handmade gift giving and boughten gift ideas. (ha)

One of my favorite things- Sitting on the couch with a stack of books and a cup of tea while Eliza reads to me. She received a number of the Flicka, Ricka, Dicka books for Christmas and they have become instant favorites. The sweet stories with lovely gentle pictures are just the right length for her to read aloud and she likes to sit in a chair with a pile of them to read to her dollies.

A picture thought- (Gotta have a fire picture.)

Happy New Year, friends! I'm back! Clearly I remain muddle headed and sleep deprived, but things can only improve, right?!

Hello Out There Daybook

Outside my window- It's a beautiful, brisk fall day. Blue sky, leaves turning, perfect.

I am hearing- Eliza reading out loud to herself, Kateri chattering as she makes a booklet of flowers, Mary Rose practicing Latin declensions, the wind rustling the trees outside.

I am wearing- I have on this Loft knit tiered skirt in a fall plummy brown color that has become my I-want-to-wear-it-every-day-because-it's-so-very-comfortable favorite, a bayleaf shirt (embellished with a few flowers, of course), a lovely thrifted hand knit cardigan of ivory wool, pomegranate Mary Janes.

I am thankful for- The big kid who has been sick for a whole week is finally better. This morning's quote: 'school is jolly when you are healthy.' Amen and Deo Gratias.

I am thinking about- I am happy to begin thinking about something other than fever and illness, thank you. My brain was really preoccupied and likewise rather useless for the past week.

I am reading- I'm just starting A Little Way of Homeschooling and greatly enjoying it already. I've also been indulging in a bit of a Miss Read binge for fun, retreating to the English countryside in stories replete with natural history tidbits, endearing characters and tea mentioned on every other page. I read some of her books a couple of decades ago, so it's kind of nostalgic for me as well as admittedly escapist.

 From the kitchen- Apples, apples, apples! We get a huge (about forty pounds) box of our favorite (and super cheap) deer apples every other week or so at the farmer's market. I've been making plenty of applesauce and last night the girls made us four galettes. We also made these applesauce cookies  (with half whole wheat flour, decreased the sugar amount and used brown, and butter) yesterday as we were out of eggs. In between apples, we eat lots of chocolate pudding (link is to my homemade mix).  

In the learning house- My three older girls have started a blog! They blog about books and birds and art and writing and all that sort of good stuff. Some of you have already wandered over there, and they always appreciate visitors! (And comments.)

Living the Liturgical Year- I hope to have a post up about the All Saints ATC swap soon! I'm sorry I'm a bit behind, but we do plan to host another saint swap.

A few plans for the rest of the week- The guys have a couple of days off of classes at the end of the week, which will be a nice little break for them and jolly fun for the rest of us who miss them every day. Hope to hit a library book sale and perhaps head back to the mountain for hawk watching, friends coming to visit on Friday. Also hope to catch up on email. We had no internet for a while, and then sickness in the house, and so I've got pile of unanswered mail to tend to.

One of my favorite things/Picture thoughts - Lovely fall weather and happy, healthy kids.

 

Mid July Daybook

Outside my window- It's so hot and dry out there, even the crab grass is dying. We have to water faithfully to keep the fruits and vegetables and flowers alive. I did go out for a bit to do some weeding and harvesting today, and I still feel like an overcooked noodle for being out there. I saw five kinds of butterflies on the flowers!

I am hearing- Bach on the piano. Teenagers carrying on together. Someone singing. Jonathan playing around on a vintage trumpet. Someone whistling the Bach.

I am wearing- Yellow floral skirt, yellow shirt, white socks with my Mary Janes to soothe my feet, dangly yellow crystal flower earrings. (I'm wearing both of them now; this morning I went to church wearing two different earrings. My helpful children told me no one could have noticed at that hour, and you could only tell if you looked at my head straight on. Encouraging.)

I am thankful for- The slower, no-pressure pace of summer vacation, in which the only thing we have to decide is stuff like paint colors, pie vs. cobbler, and who to invite to the next tea party...

I am thinking about- The lovely weekend. On Saturday, the Commemoration of Our Lady of Mount Carmel, we attended a most beautiful Solemn High Nuptial Mass in the Extraordinary Form. It was so joyous to witness the wedding of this dear, devout couple as they joined their lives together in the Sacrament of Holy Matrimony.

the priest gives the couple a special blessing-

It was the most beautiful wedding celebration, clearly focused on the sacrament and the vocation and the blessing of Christian marriage. While 'destination weddings' are rather trendy right now, this wedding was more about our final hoped-for destination of heaven. And the beauty of the Mass and the mystery of Marriage do give us a little foretaste of heaven, do they not?

I asked Lydia to paint a wedding card with the bridal couple before Our Lady of Mount Carmel, and I think it turned out beautiful- 

 

The music was beautiful too, the 'Full Bach Special' as Jonathan fondly dubbed the couple's selections. The schola also sang some lovely pieces, including an Ave Maria in three part harmony for the presentation of flowers to Our Lady, and the vespers hymn of St. Joseph for flowers presented to him.

I do love weddings! I started crying before the bride even got to the doorway...
 
I am reading-  Chesterton's The Flying Inn to the big kids, and The Fellowship of the Ring to them when Michael is home as well. Unfortunately, Kateri is listening to too much of this and her siblings fear she's going to know the whole plot. But she does get things rather mixed up: the other day she had her peg doll 'sailing away in the lily water like Frodo'. (Sorry Kateri, but that was Prince Caspian.)

From the kitchen- Oh, summertime! The garden is overflowing and the eating is good! Zucchini this and zucchini that, lemon cucumbers to snack on all day (some folks even eat them for breakfast), and oh, joy, the little tomatoes are just starting to ripen. The raspberries are slacking off, but the blackberries are in full swing. We tried blackberry pie last week which wasn't fantastic, but hello, blackberry cobbler! We use the 'apricot raspberry cobbler' recipe out of Rustic Fruit Desserts, using about a quart of fresh blackberries for the fruit, and it is just fabulous every time, which is currently about every other day. (with all natural vanilla ice cream, of course) (and tea)

In the learning house- We're on summer break, which means lots of extra time for reading, creative writing, and art work.

Living the Liturgical Year- Last evening I lit a candle in a beautiful icon-filled chapel dedicated to St. Anne, Mother of the Theotokos. Elizabeth has a lovely post up on preparing to celebrate the feast of St. Anne coming up on the 26th. She is a wonderful saint for all mothers.

Around the house- A bit of sprucing up here and there as the summer allows a bit more time for such things. Mary Rose wants her room to look medieval, to go along with the pictures she got for her birthday. You have to love an eleven-year-old girl whose favorite picture is The Accolade, and I got her Leighton's Godspeed to go along with it as well. Lydia has decided to take down the dozens of horse drawings on her side of the room, but she'd like to replace them with barn owls, so we'll see how it all works out...

A few plans for the rest of the week- Hope to get the girls bedrooms painted before company arrives on the weekend.

One of my favorite things- Watching my children make art. I especially enjoy seeing Josiah use this easel my father made many years ago-

 

A picture thought- I don't think I've shown you the missing tooth!

Hello Blogworld, I've Got a Few Minutes Until Dinner Daybook

Outside my window- It's raining, which is very good for the vegetable garden. Flowers are coming along nicely. I've finally finished planting the last of the rabbit food flower seedlings - I always grow extra to fill in when things don't make it, but I've reached the end. I have one bed I planted at least three times - neat little clusters of zinnias and cosmos and marigolds that just disappear. Robins and tree swallows have fledged, bluebirds coming soon!

I am hearing- Danny Boy on the harp courtesy of Mary Rose - always lovely.

I am wearing- A yellow linen blouse, vintage black skirt tossed with multi colored flowers, little black ballet flats, and a yellow apron of a sweet Heather Bailey floral.

I am thankful for- Cardio office finally called today to tell me Eliza's 24 hour Holter and blood work were all 'within normal limits'. Deo Gratias!

I am thinking about- Trying not to, too much. The youngest has suddenly decided to move out of my bedroom, with great fanfare and finality. She even moved her toothbrush and paste out of my bathroom, and screeched loudly when someone tried to bring it back. Of course she does this while the oldest is away singing for a whole week (can you spot The Bearded One?).

I am reading- Just finished some popular kids' books but I didn't care for them, so I'll just shush. Not sure what to start next.

From the kitchen- Only four years behind the times, I've just discovered Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day. I never really considered it before as we are quite happy with both the ease and quality of our daily bread made in our machine. But, hello! After just a week I've found having dough in the fridge for all kinds of other stuff to be quite fantastic. So far I've just made the basic Boule dough (in white and part whole wheat), and we've enjoyed pizza, rolls, and pain au chocolat. I also made pitas - the flat failures that crisped were perhaps even better than the soft ones that poufed properly - to serve with fresh baby zucchini and chard from the garden sautéed in a little olive oil with mushrooms...mmmn....

In the learning house- We've been busy busy busy finishing up. I had to send in Josiah's diploma application before June, which required Herculean Efforts of Shocking Punctuality on our part, but we did it. As Josiah was done so early, I figured it would be nice to have everyone else finished up as well, so I went ahead and scheduled the rest of our evaluations for June 8th. This is unheard of in my house, as we are typically very-late-June finishers! But we did it! We still have a bit of typing up of final papers and then we can turn everything in to the district. Hurray!

Living the Liturgical Year- Celebrating the Octave of Pentecost, according to the old calendar. I do love the 'bonus' octaves we get to celebrate in the EF, and the coming of the Holy Spirit is most worthy of a week's celebration! Enjoying these last few days of the Regina Coeli.

Around the house- Digging into some cleaning between guests - visitors here last weekend, and others coming next week.

A few plans for the rest of the week- Week? What week? They slip by so fast, every one!

Got to run - The soup is ready and the rosemary onion focaccia just came out of the oven...

A picture thought- Kateri takes the nightly call from big brother. She has exciting news for Jonathan. 
Postscript - Well, I didn't quite get this posted before dinner. We all got distracted when a baby blue was spotted on the deck, apparently the precocious little silly fledged at dusk in the rain while the others remain safely in the box. Perhaps we can get a full bird report from Lydia soon. And the focaccia was wonderful! Bye! Hope to be back soon!

Eastertide Daybook

 

Outside my window- It's finally spring! Michael has repeatedly remarked that it is nice that spring waited until Easter to arrive, and I do not disagree, but it was a long wait. So much dreary gray takes its toll, you know? Now that it is really, truly green and blooming out there it seems almost surreal to me. I look out the window at the blooms and I have to tell myself it's really spring, here to stay. Thank Goodness.

I am hearing- Various Irish tunes as Josiah plays DJ on Naxos, the free subscription which is one of our favorite college student perks. His sisters call out favorites and he is happy to oblige their requests- Minstrel Boy, I'll Tell Me Ma, Foxhunter's Jig, St. Anne's Reel... Now Eliza and Kateri are dancing and singing along to the beloved Charlie is My Darling. You know 'Charlie'...

"My dear," says Alan, "I cannae very safely say; but I'll tell ye what I'll do instead," says he, "I'll whistle ye a bit tune." And with that he leaned pretty far over the table, and in a mere breath of a whistle but with a wonderful pretty sentiment, gave her a few bars of "Charlie is my darling." - Robert Louis Stevenson (Kidnapped)

"O, Charlie is my darlin', My darlin', my darlin', O, Charlie is my darlin', The young chevalier!" With "chevalier" Mama took up the linen towel she used to protect her hand from burning and took the iron door off the brick oven. The good smell of the pork pie nearly made Charlotte dizzy. - Melissa Wiley (On Tide Mill Lane)

I am wearing- My trusty vintage April Cornell skirt of multi patterned florals, a cream linen tunic, pink glass beads, brown ballet flats. So very happy to be in the spring clothes after Lent!

I am thankful for- Easter! Spring! Sunshine! Flowers! Alleluia! Alleluia! Alleluia!

I am thinking about- The beautiful Holy Week and Triduum services. I had almost finished a post about it, but alas our internet has been going out, and if you hit 'save' when you're not connected you haven't really 'saved'. (Sounds like some forced spiritual object lesson.)

I am reading- At teatime I am reading The Singing Tree. I love how sometimes I am asked to read aloud a beloved favorite that everyone else has read many times, but they want to hear it aloud. Along the same vein, I am reading The Hobbit aloud to the whole family in the evening. This was actually quite a family debate. After I finished The Silmarillion, they decided they wanted to hear all of The Lord of the Rings out loud, which has Never Been Read Aloud in our house. But Mary Rose has not read it, as she is not yet of the customary household required age of twelve, and the debate raged on whether she should be allowed to experience all of Middle Earth for the first time in a private reading. But the literary powers that be in the house came to the consensus that it Shall Be Read Aloud at this time. Isn't family culture so fascinating? Especially when it comes to such all important topics such as literature?

From the kitchen- Easter goodies abound! Kalacs and nut and poppy rolls and bird nests and sugar cookies and homemade chocolate covered coconut cream and buttercream and maple cream eggs. Oh My.

Things looks pretty much like last year, but I have to show you some of the cookies. My big girls take the cookies from the cow cutter and shape them into horses,

and the chicks into everything from hummingbirds and whooping cranes to barn owls .

 

and eaglets, of course.
 

A kestrel for Mary Rose - her favorite bird.
 

In the learning house- The Singing Tree is making me want to learn more about Hungarian history that I have forgotten. Eliza is still smitten with Frog and Toad and Little Bear, Kateri reads everything in sight, Mary Rose is in the throes of the Civil War, Lydia is thrilled to be studying feather development, Josiah is working hard to finish editing his movie so his brother can finish composing its soundtrack.

Living the Liturgical Year- Easter is the most beautiful season in the Church. I love how we celebrate for fifty days, and how the joy of the Risen Lord permeates all. I love how Alleluia's punctuate everything from the Mass readings to the thrice daily Regina Caeli, as if we cannot speak for long without inserting an Alleluia, so great is our Easter joy. The Lord is risen! Indeed He is truly risen! Alleluia!

Around the house- The windows are open with delicious breezes blowing through. Last week's spring cleaning efforts still shine (except where they don't). Easter decor abounds.

We are creating- Spring nature journal entries! Hooray!

A few plans for the rest of the week- After minimizing online time for Lent, I'm still playing catch-up on answering email. If you have been waiting forever for an email from me, please don't take it personally!

One of my favorite things - Eliza's joy at the unveiling of the statues that have been covered in purple for Passiontide, both at church during the Vigil  

 

and afterwards at home.

 

A picture thought- Josiah was privileged to serve as Thurifer for the Vigil Mass

A most blessed, joyous Eastertide to you and yours! Alleluia!

No Foolin' Daybook

Outside my window- It's cold and dark. That March that came in like a lamb sure went out like a lion - a cold, dark, wet, snowy, dreary lion. Those few lamb days seem like a distant dream; waking up it's always grey and raining.

I am hearing- Beethoven, as a pianist prepares for an upcoming recital. Big girls helping little girls paint birds.

I am wearing- A purpley skirt, ivory turtleneck and fisherman sweater, wool handwarmers, brown boots. A few weeks ago I told the girls it was time to put away the woolens, and I determined to stop wearing boots, and then that lion came back and we're all back in wool.

I am thankful for- sheep

I am thinking about- "My child, progress in the spiritual life does not consist in having a great deal of interior joy and consolation. It consists in being humble, patient, and free from self-pity when things go wrong. Faithfully go on with your affairs, and do not become careless in your prayers and good works when you no longer find pleasure in them. ... Many people judge their closeness to God by their feelings. If they feel devout, they believe they are pleasing Him, and if they feel dejected and gloomy, they think that He has abandoned them. These standards are false and deceitful. I may be proving my best love for God when I least feel like pleasing Him. As long as I fulfill what He expects of me, I do love Him, no matter how I feel. Jesus Himself said: "If you love Me, you will keep My commandments." There is the test of true goodness and holiness." Always so much to ponder in My Daily Bread.

I am reading- We are finishing up Rilla of Ingleside. A few readers had mentioned that this was their favorite Anne book, and we can understand why. Set during WWI, there is much more depth and character and struggle and sorrow and real life than in the other books. We have read aloud through all of the eight Anne books for many a teatime and it's rather sad to have arrived at the end of it all. But Rilla is proving to be a most satisfying ending to all of our Anne, and that you may tie to.

From the kitchen- Simple Friday supper consisted of this bean soup and this potato-onion rye made into round loaves. They didn't rise much, but had a fabulous chewy crust.  (I didn't use the optional ingredients and used rye flour instead of pumpernickel) Very tasty.

 

In the learning house- Rilla has sparked interest in WWI, and people want to watch Sergeant York sometime soon. I made a casual comment that we should study WWI, and in typical fashion they went and scoured the shelves. They produced a stack including the book about York, Marrin's Hitler and The Yanks are Coming, ever-popular The Singing Tree, and Josiah's trusty old Biplanes, Triplanes and Seaplanes, and a few vintage oldies for younger readers. Such homeschooers.

As for the little girls -

 

 

 
Clearly they are enamored with learning about manatees. Kateri is actually pretending to swim on the riverbed with her calf on her back in that last shot. Eliza soon swam over to nuzzle her, like manatees do.

Living the Liturgical Year- Friday night Stations of the Cross. We look forward to the story of Susannah in tomorrow's Mass readings (you have to love a Bible story in which the falsely accused are indeed proven innocent, the bad guys get their due, and tree identification saves the day) followed by Laetare Sunday. Joy! The cold nasty weather has seemed fitting for Lent; as some one remarked 'it doesn't seem right to have spring before Easter.'

Around the house- I am making mental lists of spring sprucing to be done. If only we had a little sunshine to inspire me to actually do it all.

We are creating- The children are working on ATC's for trading with each other as well as pen pals. Writing fairy tales. Carving rubber stamps. Making cards for the shop. I think I'm going to start crocheting a scarf - something not-wintery-but-still-warm-and-wooly.

 
A few plans for the rest of the week- Three recitals coming up within the week!

One of my favorite things- sunshine

A picture thought-

 

Hello March Daybook

Outside my window- It's cold and dark. That lovely day of sunshine on the first is but a memory- it was 17 when I got up this morning and remained cold and windy throughout the day.

I am hearing- Accordion from down the hall - Ale Brider, Hava Nagila, The Beer Barrel Polka... someone clapping along, someone whistling along, now someone joining in on the piano. Little girls' heavy breathing as they drift off to sleep on my shoulders.

I am wearing- A chocolate brown skirt, orange top, cream cardigan. I've grown tired of wearing the same boots and heavy wool sweaters every day, but it's so cold without them...

I am thankful for- That accordion. We wanted to get Josiah something cool for his eighteenth birthday last week. Jonathan had generously decided to surprise him with the sword he had been wanting and we wanted to get him something equally as cool and fun and awesome as that, but what? And then last Monday I thought of an accordion!  (Sometimes I just get these Ideas.) Josiah is fond of discovering jolly music for us to listen to, stuff like Irish jigs and klezmer dances, so I thought it would be neat if he could play his own. Michael liked the idea and said, "Find one!" Searching craigslist for 'accordian', the closest ones I found were in another state. I started looking online at shops, where I realized I knew nothing about the instruments or what to look for in buying them and also they cost a ton of money even for the ones 'great for a beginning student' (ugh). But I also found out it's really spelled 'accordion'! So I thought I'd just check craigslist once more with the proper spelling, and lo and behold there was one here in town. Michael filled his pockets with cash and went to look at it after the girls' piano lesson the next night. He had asked me what to look for in an accordion, and I told him he just had to go on what it sounded like and his gut feeling of the guy selling it. They came home with a lovely vintage Italian made accordion! I would spontaneously laugh out loud whenever I thought of the two gifts hiding in my closet - a sword and an accordion. Josiah is one eclectic dude. Of course Jonathan is having a riot with it as well - thankfully they are good at sharing nice. It's my turn!

Most nights I have fallen asleep hearing the boys making music - one night I drifted off to Danny Boy, another night Josiah played while his brother belted out Whiskey Johnny... They play jigs and reels and polkas and show tunes, everything from Courtin' in the Kitchen and Edelweiss to Puff the Magic Dragon. It is so incredibly fun to have this versatile, portable instrument.

I am thinking about - How very joyful it is to have a houseful of music and how wonderful it is to have a bunch of kids who enjoy making music together.

I am reading- We'll finish up Rainbow Valley tomorrow -it's very good and every one is anxious to see how all the happily-ever-afters work out in the end. In the evening when Jonathan and Michael are home I'm reading  Chesterton's The Napoleon of Notting Hill aloud. It starts off really, truly nuts, but it might be starting to make a bit of sense along in Book II.

I am pondering - From My Daily Bread: Do you expect to enjoy interior consolation whenever you wish? Not even My saints could do that during their earthly life. They had to face many troubles, temptations, interior misery and desolation. They went on, however, in spite of all these obstacles, trusting in Me more than in themselves. They were fully aware that the sufferings of this life are not worthy to be compared with the glory that is to come...

Wait for the light and strength which I will send in due time. In the meantime have courage and be patient. Do not give up the fight against your faults and defects. Do your best to become the kind of person I want you to be. Leave the results to Me. I am near you at every moment. Be unselfish enough to go on trying for My sake. I will someday reward you far beyond anything you can imagine...

I really like this book.

I am praying for - This week I'm praying especially for the family of ten year old Sanjay, who passed away on Friday evening after complications from a brain bleed while he was undergoing a bone marrow transplant for a congenital blood disorder. He seemed to be improving and making hopeful progress when the bleeding started again in his brain. We first connected with this family through the Marian and saint artist trading card swaps I hosted.  I feel such a connection to this sweet boy from having been privileged to receive his artwork, and somewhere out there ten of you have art cards made by dear little Sanjay. Please pray for the repose of his soul and for his grieving family.

From the kitchen- With Lent coming up we are indulging in a fair bit of goodies. Today we made cocoa for tea time to go with our chocolate chip cookies. (!) Some people are generously trying to eat up all the candy in the house and finish off the open bags of chocolate chips. We also made these kolache the other day - thank you Jen! My family thanks you! They want to know if these things are Lenten?

 

Living the Liturgical Year- Clearly, it is Septuagesima:

Lent is just around the corner, and with it being so late this year it is most welcome by now. 

Around the house- My kitchen is still decorated with medieval theme from the birthday. This weekend we'll clear things out and get ready for Lent.

We are creating- Lydia is working on a commission of some watercolor birds. The girls are all working on ATC's to send out to their trading friends this week. Josiah made something to attach his sword to his belt. A few more things should go in the shop tomorrow.

A few plans for the rest of the week- I must get my seeds planted. I must. I must.

One of my favorite things - Crawling into a warm cozy bed at night.

A picture thought- Gotta work on that Myron Floren smile...

Happy New Year Daybook

Outside my window- It's cold and dark and the white Christmas lights are twinkling on the deck.

I am hearing- Kateri is sitting on my lap and reading every word as I type it. Now she is giggling because I am writing about her. Jonathan is singing chant in the foyer - his favorite spot due to the pleasing acoustics.

I am wearing- A red plaid skirt - because it's still Christmas! Kateri wants to know why I wrote that apparently ridiculous sentence...

I am thankful for- A quiet and pleasant holiday season.

I am thinking about- Kateri says I should write "I am thinking I want a carriage" as she wants to buy a dolly carriage with her Christmas money from her Grammy. As she didn't get any boughten toys for Christmas, I'm thinking this might be a fine idea. Hmmn, she seems to be effectively highjacking this post...I'm thinking how hard it is to squeeze in blogging time, and how it doesn't seem like that long ago I would write with a sleeping nursling in my arms. And here she is quite awake and reading (and giving her opinion) on every word. It's quite tricky trying to type with a small person wiggling and giggling-so-much-she's-now-hiccupping on my lap.

I am reading- 'The Hobbit.' Kateri, that is. She is on page six. She's reading it out loud to Jonathan, quite slowly (!) I am reading The Silmarillion - I just restarted it as I hadn't picked it up for so long. The rest of the family has been busy ploughing through their new books received as gifts. I've posted a list of them in my left side bar if you're interested.

The students young and old have greatly enjoyed the leisure of reading so much while on break, while I've gone around muttering about my folly in buying them so many books as I have trouble getting some of them to arise and do something else. But that's what break is for, right? And silly me is encouraging them to buy more books with their gift money. They got the first three of Andrew Lang's Fairy Books (we previously only had an old copy of Fifty Favorite Fairy Tales, a compilation drawn from the individual color books) and there are nine more...

 

 On a similar note, today I read this great article on reading - Stop cleaning the kitchen and read a book H/T Regan Good stuff.

From the kitchen- Still enjoying lots of Christmas goodies here. Supper was potato pancakes, carrots, corn and a big pot of homemade applesauce. We eat pretty simply here. :-)

In the learning house- We will start back with the actual schoolwork tomorrow, as that's when Jonathan's classes start. We've had many weeks off for crafting and celebrating so everyone will be in for a shock as we crack open those math books...

Living the Liturgical Year- Two more days of Christmas and then we celebrate Epiphany on Thursday. My resident liturgical consultant aka the schola director tells me the time after Epiphany is quite long this year, with the maximum six Sundays before Septuagesima. It's so nice to know these things ahead of time...

Around the house- Things are relatively clean and tidy. There are still neat little gift piles in the living room as folks haven't put all away yet and still enjoy admiring their new things. The Christmas tree still looks lovely and we're never in any hurry to take it down, nor the sparkly lights hung here and there that give the house such a pleasant, friendly glow on these dark winter days.

We are creating- After so much creating for Christmas gifts the children seem quite content to just be drawing for pleasure. They are trading ATC's with friends and with each other. And like most other kids the first week in January they are making thank you cards. 

I am pondering- 'The only thing we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given us.' These favorite wise words of Gandalf come to mind at the start of a fresh new year. Or as the saints put it, as quoted in my Divine Intimacy:

We must give every moment its full amount of love, and make each passing moment eternal, by giving it value for eternity. - Sr. Carmela of the Holy Spirit, OCD

We have only the short day of this earthy life in which to grow in love, and if we wish to derive from it the greatest possible profit, we must overcome our natural inertia and carry out our good works 'with our whole heart.' Then love will increase immeasurably and we shall be able to say to Our Lord like St. Therese of the Child Jesus: "Your love has grown with me and now it is an abyss, the depth of which I am unable to sound." We must, then, make haste while we still have time, for "the night cometh when no man can work."

On my part, O Lord, I can think of no better way to make up for the time I have lost than to try with all my might to increase my love. Yes, my love will grow if, for Your sake, I fulfill all my duties and perform all my good works "with all my heart" and "with all my good will." Alas! I am so weak, so careless, so indolent! I am inclined to flee from exerting myself; I try to avoid making sacrifices. My nature always seeks what is easiest, what is the least tiring, and soon falls into negligence and laziness. Help me, O Lord, and strengthen my love by Your almighty power. What I do for You is so little; grant, O my God, that I may at least do it with all the love possible.

None of us knows what awaits us in this new year, but God knows. His will has already prepared our path; every detail of our life is already determined in His mind. Let us be ready to accept, or rather to embrace with courage and readiness, everything that God wishes or permits, certain that in His holy will we shall find our peace and our sanctification.

"I think of this new year as a white page give to me by Your Father, on which He will write, day by day, whatever His divine good pleasure has planned. I shall now write at the top of the page, with complete confidence: Domine, fac de me sicut vis, Lord do with me what You will, and the at the bottom I already write down my Amen to all the proposals of Your divine will. Yes Lord, yes to all the joys, the sorrows, the graces, the hardships prepared for me, which You will reveal to me day by day. Grant that my Amen may be the Paschal Amen, always followed by the Alleluia, uttered wholeheartedly, in the joy of a complete gift. Give me Your love and Your grace, and I shall be rich enough." -Sr. Carmela of the Holy Spirit, OCD

A picture thought-

Happy New Year, Friends!

Mid November Daybook

Outside my window-It's dark. Today was entirely overcast and rain is expected all week. The vibrant fall colors are fading and the gray is taking a firmer hold day by day.

I am listening to - Lydia and Mary Rose are practicing harp together and it is so very lovely to hear them play. Mary Rose just started this fall and has taken to it beautifully and greatly enjoys playing, and Lydia is very happy to have a teacher again. It's so nice to have both of our harps in use simultaneously for the first time.

I am wearing- An oatmeal colored skirt, a flowery top in coral tones and a forest green wool sweater jacket.

I am thankful for- Everything.

I am thinking about- As we stood around outside after Mass yesterday enjoying the beautiful sunshine we were chatting with a visitor from out of town. Michael was holding Eliza, who is rather shy with new people, but then she lifted her head and the other woman caught a glimpse of her. She broke out in a big smile and exclaimed in a most genuinely delighted voice, Oh you have a Downs girl! and she mentioned her sister has a child with Down and what a blessing these children are. I keep thinking of how we who are close with these special children know so deeply the extraordinary joy and incredible blessing they are, while the rest of the world has no clue. I would love to be able in some small way to help dispel that cluelessness and foster more delighted Oh's!

I am reading- I just finished Pride and Prejudice - Hope had started it aloud so I had to read all of it. That of course leaves me in the mood for more Austen, however I'm supposed to be reading The Silmarillion. Jonathan gifted me with my very own copy, and Lydia made me a beautiful (and helpful) bookmark to go along with it, so I reckon I really must resist Jane and dive back into Middle Earth.

From the kitchen- Today we finished up the aforementioned cake and also gingerbread waffles and brown sugar shortbread. Monday night suppers have to be fast and portable, so it was just a simple stir fry and rice, with lots leftover for a promise of rice pudding, of course.

In the learning house- Mary Rose and Lydia are attempting to write novels for NaNoWriMo despite their mother telling them about it eight days late. Anna Ruth and the others are determined to persevere with their fairy tales and thus will not join them. Kateri is not quite ready for novels but has discovered story writing with invented spelling. Eliza is sticking with reading.

Living the Liturgical Year- November is dedicated to praying for the Holy Souls. The schola director keeps reminding me that Advent is just around the corner.

We are creating- for the Etsy shop, otherwise known as The Fig and Thimble. Lydia is working on more rosary roses and a peg doll set - she sold the sweetest Snow White and Rose Red pair and now she's working on Peter and the Wolf. Anna is kept busy with her storytelling cubes and peg dolls. I've been doing a little papercrafting making sympathy and remembrance cards specifically for women suffering miscarriage or infant loss. Josiah is not making things for the shop as he is still working on his saint cards for the swap, painting really beautiful miniatures.

A few plans for the rest of the week- I think it's just a regular week. :-)

One of my favorite things- When Jonathan gets home at night and everyone catches up with everyone on the day. Now he's got Lydia playing variations on Lo How a Rose E're Blooming on harp that he's composing, and now he's playing them on the piano. Heavenly.

A picture thought-

 

October Daybook

Outside my window- The sky is blue! After so many days of rain and clouds we have sunshine. Lots of laundry is out there blowing in the breeze as we play catch-up. It was wonderful to have so much rain after a long drought (oh, the poor lawn and the dear man who tends it) but it was getting to be rather dreary.

I am hearing- Lydia practicing the harp. After a few years without a teacher Lydia is back to playing harp again and it is so very lovely to hear. Mary Rose has just started lessons as well and loves it. I can't think of any music more soothing than harp. Eliza is 'reading' books aloud and Kateri is chattery about the pictures she is drawing - the people are all wearing fancy party dresses because it is a concert with girls singing and people playing harp and horns...

I am wearing- A floral skirt in violet, black and grey, black top (one of those comfortable looks-like-a-blouse-but-it's-really-a-knit shirt), black Mary Janes, teapot earrings (I'm so old I can get away with these things)

I am thankful for- Did I mention the harp music? And the sun is shining!

I am thinking about- If I'm going to squeeze in this blogging business I have to do it quickly. I'm not very good at quick thinking and writing. I can't even answer an email without thinking about it for a long time. I should try to change that.

I am reading- Our current teatime line up starts with the saint of the day from Lives of the Saints - so glad to have found a saints book that follows the old calendar. We're still working our way through Enid Blyton's Nature Lover's Book - so fun to hear about the different species found in other places. After poetry comes a longer selection. After lots of Shakespeare - most recently Romeo and Juliet, Hamlet, A Winter's Tale, and The Tempest we're taking a break and having some lighter fare. Several children requested I read Peter Pan aloud and I'm certainly not one to turn down a request like that.

From the kitchen- Lemon blueberry scones for the feast day today. We also enjoyed our first  pumpkin bread of the season this week and it was also chilly enough in the house to make granola.

In the learning house- Words with silent e, mammals, types of bird feet (anisodactyl, zygodactyl, heterodactyl, syndactyl or pamprodactyl anyone?), portrait drawing, naval heroes, David and the Philistines, one-dimensional motion equations, protozoa (also called protista, they're microscopic and they're single-celled...)

Living the Liturgical Year- Our Lady of the Holy Rosary today! We also celebrated on Sunday, as the traditional rite allows for the external celebration of this feast formerly known as Our Lady of Victory.

We are creating- The big kids are working on things for their etsy shop. They are having a lot of fun playing store, and they even got a wholesale inquiry already for their storytelling blocks (although it seems the shipping costs to the UK are proving prohibitive). I've gotten in on the crafting as well and have been making some cards. I've always thought it would be nice to have special cards to send to mothers with broken hearts and so I've decided to make some. It's nice they share their shop with me.

One of my favorite things- New readers getting their hands on a house full of books and finding new things they can read every day.

Around the house - The tea table is set and Lydia has poured out - I've got to go...

A picture thought- Look mom, I'm holding Eliza! She's being my baby!

 

Hello Summer Daybook

Outside my window- It's going to be another very hot day. The garden is growing, flowers are blooming, raspberries are producing at a decent rate. Our three little blackberry bushes we put in last year are covered in berries - they produce so heavily I'm wondering why we don't have more of them. Much more fruit per square foot than anything else we grow.

 

I am hearing- Mississippi hot dog being practiced on the piano (or pep-per-o-ni piz-za as some of you call it). Jonathan has been teaching some piano lessons here at the house, and the little girls have curiously watched and rightfully demanded lessons too. So Kateri and Eliza are off to a fine start, and Jonathan will get a good mental work out as well trying to teach those two. It's delightful to have beginning pianists in the house again - such enthusiasm!

I am wearing- A black floral skirt, pink top, black Mary Janes (well, they're somewhere around here).

I am thankful for- Summer vacation is finally here!

I am thinking about- I didn't mean to take a big blogging break, really. At the end of May we snuck away for a few days to visit some dear friends on their big day, and then I left my computer's power cord at my mother's house. And then it was June. In June everything from my kitchen table to all of my brain power is consumed with jumping through my state's end-of-the-year homeschool hoops. The house falls apart and my brain along with it as I try to sum up a year's worth of home learning, each student's education being reduced to a two inch thick three ring binder. We had our evaluations last week and have spent the time since trying to put everything from my kitchen table to my overwhelmed brain back in order. It is all finally beginning to feel peaceful and akin to summer vacation - my dear husband says I seem like a person again. 'I really get into a tizzy every June, don't I?' 'Yes, dear, I know you do. I know all about it...' He's a very patient guy.

From the kitchen- Transitioning over to summertime eating is delightful. We had raspberry galettes on Sunday - nothing cheers Dad quite as well as the sight of Lydia putting on her apron.

She used her famous galette pastry and just topped it with a layer of raspberries, finishing it off with a sprinkle of sugar and dots of butter. Then on Monday she made the apricot-raspberry cobbler from Rustic Fruit Desserts, a collection of homey recipes for crumbles, buckles, pandowdies and more.

This was surprisingly scrumptious for such simple fare, and it was especially satisfying to use apricots from our very own little tree. Dinner is often salad and pasta with whatever-is-ready-to-pick-tonight: squashes, chard, spinach, and I'm hoping for the first basil harvest tonight. We've also enjoyed the first taffy of the season, now that school's out.

In the learning house - Going through everyone's work for the year has reminded me of so many things I had wanted to blog about but can't seem to find the time during the school year. So perhaps I'll get to some of that in the coming weeks, and a post on summer learning as well...

Living the Liturgical Year- Celebrated the Nativity of John the Baptist last night. This feast properly calls for a bonfire and the singing of Ut queant laxis; lacking a firepit, we just stuck a candle in our cherry crisp and sang over that. June altar looks much like last year's and my little red hearts are around the house as well.

Around the house- It's time for the annual deep clean and purge/organization to occur. I am trying to figure out what areas are top priority, as it's unrealistic to try to get the entire house done without spending the entire summer cleaning. I'm also trying to plan some painting and generalized sprucing up, but again trying to be practical. Everything always seems to take at least twice as long as we think it will.

One of my favorite things- Can I say I love the internet? I know it's supposed to make your brain mushy and all that, but sometimes I just love having instant access to so much information. Example: the other day Josiah came downstairs and announced he just saw a fox in our front yard right by the house, in broad daylight, rolling around in the grass. Naturally I freaked out became very concerned at the thought of a decidedly rabid fox in our yard and roaming the woods where my children go on nature walks. I went outside with Josiah and we looked around where he said it went off, and to our surprise we actually got a glimpse of it. We also saw it trot briskly away when it sighted us - a good sign. But it looked very strange, like a fox-cat or fox-dog as it had a fox-like head but a long, skinny bare tail. We were both confused as to what the strange looking animal could be. However a quick google search of 'fox without bushy tail' immediately brought up information about foxes afflicted with mange, how they hang out around houses even in daylight and often roll in the grass to try and soothe the relentless itching, and the pictures looked just like 'our' fox. All of the fox's strange behavior and looks could be attributed to the mange, not rabies. Whew.

A picture thought (or three)-

 

 
Happy Summer, friends!

It's May Daybook

Ave Maria!

Outside my window- It's bright and sunny and promises to be a lovely day. The strawberry beds are chock full of flowers and fruits waiting to ripen, the little blueberry bushes have a decent showing of flowers and the blackberries are just starting to bloom. The raspberries are doing well, and if we keep the deer and groundhogs at bay (that's a big if) we should have a great crop this year. (Finally. It's been a long wait since we moved.) Most exciting are the little apricots growing on the two trees we put in last year - I can't believe they are bearing already and I keep looking at them in wonder. I know it sounds silly, but apricots! Fresh from a tree! I've also been hardening off my seedlings and it's just about time to start getting them in the ground.  
 
I am hearing- Eliza reciting nursery rhymes and birds singing. Everyone else is still asleep as we don't have morning Mass on Tuesdays.

I am wearing- A swingy red floral skirt, white top, little yellow flower earrings.

I am thankful for- Some readers have left kind comments about my new banner picture and I realized I haven't publicly acknowledged or thanked Josiah who did it for me. I wanted a collage picture, similar to the cool ones he makes for his movie menus. He has a natural talent for design and composition and I love how it turned out and how well it represents our family. There is something for each person in it - Michael's red Mr. Tumnus scarf and handkerchief and his recorder, my favorite blue woolen silver-tasseled Thorin hood that Josiah made for me peeking out from under my mantilla, and Jonathan's rosary. For Josiah there are several of his creations - paper houses from a movie miniature, the wooden story cubes, needle case and tiles. Lydia's binoculars, paints and colored pencils, a needle book made by Anna, Mary Rose's calico pencil case. There is one of Eliza's Lasix bottles, and that little brown bit of glass says so much about life with our special girl. The bunny is for Kateri and there is also one of her famous curls. Scattered in the mix are more of our favorite things - flowers and feathers, a missal and Shakespeare, the ever-present tea and biscuits, The Book, and of course Our Lady overseeing all. And there is my quilt which you may notice is not actually finished but I thought it made a lovely background. I suppose it's also a visual metaphor for our family life -bits and pieces stitched together into something uniquely beautiful, yet full of mistakes and no where near perfect, and not complete just yet. Thanks, Josiah!

I am reading- Tale of Manaeth, but I can't say much about it as no one else in the family has read it yet. For teatime readalouds we are working our way through Enid Blyton's Nature Lover's Book, which is very enjoyable and entertaining to read about the flora and fauna from another continent, and Anne of Avonlea.

From the kitchen- A triple berry coffee cake will come out of the oven in a few minutes. More tea must be started.

In the learning house- Some students are beginning to calculate how many more weeks until they finish their subjects. Lots of nature journaling going on - Lydia got some Edith Holden - Country Diary and Nature Notes - for her birthday. They have inspired the girls to start new watercolor nature journals, and to go out on daily nature walks.

Fabre's Passionate Observer is popular now as well. The after effects of Dale Ahlquist's visit are still apparent with most of our Chesterton in current circulation, and Mary Rose started reading Father Brown, but her older siblings scoffed that she was reading it so young. Does that happen in other large families - children reading things younger and younger? Mary Rose read Narnia and Anna, The Hobbit, at six, much younger than their older sibs, and they predict at this rate Kateri will have to read them when she's four (ha). Also, Eliza is making great progress with her reading - I'll have to post a new video.

Living the Liturgical Year- Tis the month of Our Mother! We had our May Crowning at church on Sunday.

We are learning the Regina Caeli in Latin - the young people know it, but the old folks (that would be Michael and I) are still working on it. I made these little cards to use at meal times - I printed them doubled sided so they have Latin on one side and English on the other. Download The Regina Coeli Jonathan is trying to get us to sing it, and he has plans for teaching us more Marian songs as well.

  
We are creating- I had this idea of holding an online Artist Trading Card swap of Marian art during the month of May. ATC's are small (2 1/2 x 3 1/2") pieces of original artwork that are created for the purpose of trading with others. My children have started on some samples. What do you think, dear readers? I imagine most of us have kids who love to create artwork, love to get mail, and love to honor Our Lady in May! Are you and your young artists interested?

Around the house- Can I just say it's a challenge in spring to keep the inside going when there is so much outside work to do.

A few plans for the rest of the week- Tonight we are going to Jonathan's college for the performance of new music compositions. This semester he composed the soundtrack for his brother's latest movie, and they are supposed to be showing it. Should be a riot watching an orc movie in the recital hall. :-) More yard work and planting and nature walks and life...

A picture thought I'm sharing -

Happy May, friends!

Hello March Daybook

(Just getting this posted from last night.)

Outside my window- There is darkness. The snows are melting leaving the fields streaked white and brown, but as the white fades it gets easier to imagine green. And little bits of green are indeed out there to be found. 
 
I am hearing- Anna is blowing a bugle calling the Writing Committee to come to order. Kateri is chattering, asking Anna to read her 'story' - a list of three letter words. I hear dueling in the foyer with theater practice rapiers. TPR's are thin pvc weapons used for sword practice, similar to the ones Jonathan sees the theater students using to practice their swordfighting sequences. This is often the first sound I hear when I wake up in the morning and the last sound I hear when going to bed at night.

 
I am wearing- Olive green skirt, cream shirt with little green flowers, a toasty thrifted hand knit wool fisherman's cardigan, my green crocheted scarf with cream rose, brown boots.

I am thankful for- My children seem to all be healthy again. And a friend who had an accident with a snow blower still has all his fingers.

I am thinking about- How fast Lent is going by, probably because we spent the beginning of it ill. Also, Jonathan is always talking about and planning the liturgies to come so it seems to make time go by faster.

I am reading- True Devotion to Mary, Divine Intimacy and The Fellowship of the Ring. Quite a mix, no?

From the kitchen- Mondays are piano lessons so it's always a quick meal night - this time garlic pasta with broccoli and olives, topped with olive oil and Parmesan. We had simple raisin biscuits for second breakfast and tea. We mix up a batch of scone dough, stir in some raisins, and pat it into a well floured cookie sheet.

Raisins are as good as chocolate during Lent. :-)

 
In the learning house- Jonathan is teaching us Ave Maris Stella.  We're on 'Q' this week with the little girls. The three big girls have formed a Writing Committee, and they all sit and write together by the fire every evening, each working on her own story.

Kateri likes to join them. 

Current read alouds for afternoon tea time include Anne of Green Gables -funny how we just got to the part about Anne's Story Club today (but she and Diana Barry don't have a bugle). We're also reading The Hidden Power of Kindness - this book is indeed so powerful I only read a couple of pages at a time. Perfect for Lent. We also just started Enid Blyton's Nature Lover's Book which looks lovely, though I was surprised by the meanness of the children's dialogue and chose to edit a bit. Do they get nicer?

Living the Liturgical Year - Moving along with the rhythms of Lent. We have sung Compline after evening Mass on Wednesdays, and Stations of the Cross followed by a monastic style meal and Compline on Fridays.

We are creating- Lydia and I are very behind in the quilt-along, but that's okay. She is spending most of her extra time writing, and I didn't sew at all while people were sick. Lydia is still working on her quilt top, while mine is done and ready for quilting.

 

Michael kindly bought me a free-motion quilting foot (you know you have a good husband when he goes to the sewing machine shop for you) and I am almost ready to start my quilt. I can't decide if I should do another practice piece or just go for it.

 
Around the house- I keep picturing quilts! And pillows! I have caught this quilting bug and have all sorts of floral cotton imaginations. Not good when you're trying to focus on detachment.

A few plans for the rest of the week- I simply must start my peppers and petunias this week. I usually like to get them seeded in February but I'm running a little late here. I hope to quilt my quilt. Wednesday and Friday as above.

One of my favorite things- The little daily interactions of family life and how we are all very comfortable in our life here.

The other night the girls were making galettes in honor of it being Sunday and we had a new box of apples and Eliza asks for galette about thirty-five times every day. The little girls were happily watching the big ones, who were working together to get the job done. I was on the sunroom floor making my quilt sandwich.

Lydia is always in charge of the pastry. All of a sudden she declared, Eliza just poured a whole cup of water on my rolled out crust. It sounded so utterly ridiculous I just started laughing and laughing. And laughing and laughing. And Eliza was giggling. I just kept laughing and went on with my pinning.
And then I thought , oh dear, what if Lydia doesn't think it's quite so funny - I'd better go make sure she's not upset. So I stood up from my quilt.

But one peek at her smiling face and I knew all was well. She loves her special sister like nuts and she's quite used to her antics. And it's really very simple to mop up a pie crust with paper towels after all. Eliza thought that was hysterical.

A picture thought I'm sharing-

 
Happy March, Friends!

It's February Daybook

I am hearing-Jonathan playing the Steinway, girls chattering in the kitchen over ice cream and cocoa.

Outside my window- It's cold and dark and snowing.

I am wearing- Black skirt with watercolory florals in shades of purple, black turtleneck, lacy lavender fly away cardigan, black Mary Janes. (I know I'm not the only one who won't wear any other shoes after trying Danskos. :-) I do think I've stopped raving about them to my patient husband. Mostly.)

I am thankful for- This new nifty little computer my very dear husband brought home for me Saturday night (he got a great deal on a floor model). It's my first very own computer, and it's so tiny and cute an unobtrusive- Lydia has dubbed it the 'Little Pipsqueak'. It's so nice to be able to sit and use a computer at the kitchen table and remain fully a part of the family milieu, instead of having to retreat to the office away from everyone. I feel like such a grown-up having my own computer. :-) Thank you so much, Dear!

I am reading- Divine Intimacy - I'm trying to read it morning and evening and I can't seem to find time for anything else right now.  When do you ladies find time to read?

From the kitchen- I read somewhere that crepes are traditional for Candlemas, so we had palacsinta (the Hungarian version) for tea time today. Eliza loves them, so they must be good.

 
In the learning house- Thank you all so much for your sweet comments on the video of Eliza reading! I do so appreciate your encouragement along this adventuresome path. Several folks have asked me to share more about her progress, so I will try to get an early reading post up soon. It's all here in my head - I've just got to squeeze it out into a blog post. :-) We are on the letter O this week, and things are a little low key as Eliza and a few others have colds.

Living the Liturgical Year- It's Septuagesima! I hope you've read Lindsay's lovely post on this season of getting ready for Lent. I am very thankful we have this time of preparation to think and pray about our plans for Lent.

Today is also of course Candlemas, also known as the Feast of the Purification - the official end of the Christmas season. We had great plans to make beeswax candles today and have them blessed tomorrow on the feast of St. Blaise, but alas, I discovered I had purchased the wrong type of wick - it will have to wait for another day.

This is the perfect day to show you the beautiful Christmas gift Jonathan made for me! Simeon's words upon seeing the Baby Jesus enter the temple, known as the Canticle of Simeon or Nunc Dimittis, are said as part of night prayer in the Divine Office:

Around the house- Christmas is really over now and it's time to finish putting away the decorations. Ahem.

We are creating- Lydia has joined the On the Road to Spring quilt-a-long and is busy cutting out blocks for her very first quilt. This seems like a great project to prevent any onslaught of Februarytis and the format seems perfect - everything is broken down into very manageable bit size steps and the online group provides motivation and inspiration to plug along bit by bit. 

Lydia did a lovely job picking out her fabrics, starting with a large cut of thrifted floral we had in our stash. I know you can guess her favorite!

 
It looks like so much fun, and I was getting rather jealous, so she kindly convinced me to make one as well. She even helped me pick out the fabrics. We are both using the same yellow fabric so we will have that little bit in common - isn't that sweet? Now I just need to catch up to her!

One of my favorite things- Instant homemade cocoa. Put 1/3 cup dry milk powder, 2 or 3 teaspoons each of sugar and cocoa in a mug, fill part way with boiling water and use a frother to blend it well and give it some nice froth. Fill the rest of the mug with hot water, topping it off with a bit of half and half if you like. Yum.  (Caution: liquid at the bottom will be a lot hotter than the froth on top - don't burn yourself!) Must drink lots of cocoa before Lent. :-)

 
A picture thought- This one is from yesterday's chocolate chip cookie baking and is for Nana who gifted the girls with the lovely aprons for Christmas:

 
Happy February, friends!

We're Getting Closer Daybook

Outside my window - It's dark and still.

I am hearing  - Jonathan on the Steinway playing something new I don't recognize. Mary Rose helping Eliza paint and make presents. Kateri's heavy breathing as she sleeps on my lap. She woke up from a nap not quite rested enough and is taking the remainder of her repose snuggled on her mama. (Hence the blogging.)

I am wearing - A plaid wool skirt and wool sweater, a sleeping child under a wool blanket. 

I am thankful for - So many things. Thankful we all stayed in safe and sound Sunday morning. The boys were ready to leave early for Mass when Michael realized it might be icy as it was raining lightly and freezing cold.  Looking out the window he saw car after car stop on the road, unable to proceed up or down the hill due to the ice. We've since learned there were two fatalities on the ice Sunday. We are very thankful we can see the main road from our vast sunroom windows.  I'm also so thankful for this wonderful homecoming that made me cry, and this one coming soon, and this sweet new one everyone has been waiting for, and this wonderful surprise that really shouldn't surprise us. God is so very good.

I am thinking about - The sermon we heard on Tuesday. My dear husband forgot to wake us early for Mass and so we went late instead, and were blessed by the rare treat of having our beloved 97 year old Monsignor celebrating. The gospel was of the two brothers, the one who told his father he would work in the vineyard but then didn't, and the other one who told his father he wouldn't work but then did. Monsignor compared Judas to the first brother and the thief on the cross to the second. I continue to think about it as Christmas is the time of year when many people who have spent their whole lives saying no to their Father, no, I will not work in Your vineyard, find it a little bit easier to contemplate changing their minds like the second brother and do what He wants. I pray that the images and sights and sounds of the season will cause many to contemplate the Babe in the manger, and set out to do the will of the Father even if they have been telling Him no for a very long time.

From the kitchen -  Not too much yet, as it's Ember Week. We did have apple pancakes for second breakfast, but tomorrow and Saturday are fasting days. But right at this very moment my dear husband and two of the children are loading a cart at the warehouse full of about twenty-five pounds of butter and dozens and dozens of eggs and sugar and nuts and everything nice, for next week we shall bake! Cookies! Hundreds and hundreds of cookies! Some of them will even have this dark brown delicious stuff called chocolate in them. And on Christmas Eve we will begin to eat them.

In the learning house - Academics are suspended and everyone is spending lots of time on crafts. We have been doing 'Handmade Christmas' since my children were little and it is Tradition to make presents for everyone in the family. Every day it's just piano practice and then off to Making Class as my girls like to call their craft time.

Living the Liturgical Year - The 'O Antiphons' begin today. Jonathan plans to have us sing the Magnificat every evening for our evening Advent devotional time, and he will sing the Antiphons. We'll see!

 

It's rather belated but I have to thank Karen for the delicious St. Lucy bread recipe we, um, devoured on Sunday. Eliza particularly enjoyed it, and the dear girl has asked for more Lucy bread several times since then. You know it's good when Eliza asks for it.

 

Around the house - We got most of the house cleaned last week. It's hard to keep up with the housework and laundry and crafting but we're trying. Hopefully we'll get a tree this weekend, and soon it will be time to decorate!

 
We are creating - Presents! Grocery lists and cookie lists and gift lists, oh my.

One of my favorite things - 

 
Having my college student home all day. I think it's safe to say it's one of everyone else's favorite things as well. 

Advent Days Book

The days are such that I can't seem to finish a post in one day. So this 'daybook' is really a days book, or a weekbook, or something like that.

Outside my window - It's a beautiful sunny day with mostly clear skies. The remains of a dusting of snow are on the ground that makes everything look so pretty and wintery. I hope it lasts.

I am hearing - Mary Rose is practicing piano. Kateri and Eliza are laughing and giggling as they pretend to play 'pling plong' at the table in the sun room. They are using two play spoon for paddles and a pretend ice cream for a ball. It's so funny to hear them announce 'the score' before every 'serve'  - Kateri says 4-8-8 every time while Eliza says northern puffler zero. (don't ask me what a northern puffler is) They are playing this because we did of course get a ping pong table. It's funny how one simple thing leads to so much else in life - Jonathan found those ping pong balls and paddles at the thrift shop for  50 cents and that lead to tableless foyer pong and then we looked for and found a table on craigslist and now we play ping pong all the time. Michael loves to come home and play a few rounds with the boys every night, and I enjoy playing too, and it's always a hoot. If you have teenagers I highly recommend playing ping pong with them. :-)

  

I am wearing - A gray wool skirt that charmed me with its accent pleats. (I thought I was buying this for one of my big girls but they said they already have gray skirts, so I get to keep it - it's fun pretending it fits and that I have a waist this size.) I have on my blue wool Saturday sweater that has a bit of gray in it, and my new black Mary Janes. I have recently discovered my troublesome feet love Dansko shoes, and it is so nice to have shoes that don't hurt. (okay I wrote this the other day when I started this post - today it's a plaid wool skirt and a camel color sweater - same happy shoes)

I am thankful for - We are keeping a simple and quiet Advent and it has been so lovely to really embrace the season of expectation. Maybe it's the fasting from treats, or maybe it's the staying out of the stores and not having to hear 'holiday music', but something feels different this year and it's very nice to really focus on the preparation and not indulge yet in any festivities. Jonathan has successfully taught Alma Redemptoris Mater to those of us who will sing, and we are moving on to Creator Alme Siderum. It seems utterly impossible but I keep reminding myself the other song did too just a week and a half ago. We wait in joyful hope.

I am thinking about - Sweet 'Galadriel' and her family's beautiful faith. When Julie first posted about the discovery of the brain tumor she asked for prayers 'for a holy and happy death'. That immediate spirit of surrender couldn't help but make us think of Abraham being called to sacrifice his beloved Isaac, especially as we read the story for our Jesse tree that same day. And we marveled at how fifteen minutes after she posted asking for prayers the 'ram in the thicket' showed up and his name was Dr. Albright. And now they have their daughter back and day by day they are called to walk in faith as they continue to trust in Him for her recovery. And what a witness that dear girl must be to her caregivers! And O, Lord, increase our faith. And now I'm thinking about another The Lord gave and the Lord hath taken away, and also The Lord hath taken and the Lord giveth. Blessed be the Name of the Lord! Jesus, I trust in You!

From the kitchen -  We just enjoyed a pan of plain biscuits for tea time, and it was delightful how surprisingly tasty such good simple food is. Soon I'll put on a pot of applesauce with some of this week's seventy four pounds of apples - the box of deer apples was a lot bigger this time so we have a lot of apples. I like eating seasonally - we enjoyed our first crate of clementines on St. Nicholas Day and we'll enjoy many more after Christmas, but for now it's apples. This picture's for my mother who wanted to know what seventy-four pounds of apples looks like (the box started out full).

In the learning house - Academics have slowed down somewhat and everyone is spending lots of time on crafts. We have been doing 'Handmade Christmas' since my children were little and it is Tradition to make presents for everyone in the family. Next week we'll switch over to full time arts and crafts all day every day.

Living the Liturgical Year - Celebrating the Feast of the Immaculate Conception today. Music was lovely at Mass this morning - the highlight (for me) of the simple a cappella music from the very small schola was an Ave Maria Jonathan sang with another young man. I still am amazed to hear him singing, as he never sang in his life, but his newfound love of Gregorian chant has lead him to find his voice and use it to sing for Mass. That was obviously Tuesday -now we are looking forward to celebrating Our Lady of Guadalupe on Saturday and Gaudete Sunday with a bit of festivity.

 
Around the house - It's time to do some serious cleaning before we submerge ourselves in the crafts. That's all I'll say. ;-)

We are creating - Presents!

One of my favorite things - the Lesser Yellowlegs Tringa flavipes

 
(for instant yellowlegs, or any other color leg warmer, just cut the sleeves off a felted sweater)
 
 (Visit Peggy for more Daybooks here.)

Thanksgiving Week Daybook

Outside my window - Darkness. (Should I have called this a Nightbook?)

I am hearing - The big kids having their bedtime ice cream. Jonathan is explaining that a 'Neapolitan' chord (you label it N6) is a major chord whose root is the lowered second scale degree, almost always in first inversion and usually in minor, and it functions as a predominant. Because they are having Neapolitan ice cream. And Beethoven uses Neapolitans. (Got that?) Now he is at the piano playing one...There's one in the Moonlight Sonata but I can't think of how it goes. He's temporarily abandoned his bowl of ice cream and I hear his slippered feet scuffling around in the music room, and now I hear the piano. When you're in minor like this, the Neapolitan goes like this... I also hear the clinking spoons of the other ice cream eaters who, having lost the entertaining company of their brother are eating in silence. And now I'm over the moon hearing Moonlight...

I am wearing - A taupe skirt with a chocolate brown viney pattern, beige wool sweater, brown boots, earrings of glass leaves.

I am thankful for - a week specifically dedicated to being thankful.

From the kitchen -  Apples, apples, apples. I bought 60 pounds of apples at the farmer's market on Saturday. They sell these bushel size boxes of seconds that they call 'deer and horse apples', and they sell them for $3.50 a box! They are really a beautiful assortment of many varieties, and the price is unbelievable. What else can I feed my family with for ten cents a pound?! They make wonderful applesauce, as a variety of apples makes for a more complex, delicious flavor. Sunday we had galettes and yesterday we made apple crisp, and when I put 'horse apples' in the oatmeal the girls tell me it's a fine 'hot bran mash', fit for any filly. Of course on Thursday they will go into apple pies, the first of the year. (They tell me you can't have real apple pie before Thanksgiving. They're tough.)

In the learning house - Things have wound down for a little Thanksgiving break.

Living the Liturgical Year - Getting ready for the Advent season and the beginning of a new liturgical year.

Around the house - Can you smell the Murphy's oil soap? We've been cleaning away like busy bees in preparation for the holiday. People seem happy to focus on cleaning, as it's our main task until Thursday when we cook all day.  It's usually so hard to squeeze in all of the housekeeping on Saturdays, so it is very pleasant to be able to work all day without any other obligations. Things are slowly looking fresh and tidy, room by room.

We are creating - Waxed leaves. I saw the idea in a waiting room magazine, and I knew I'd have to try it, leaf lover that I am. We didn't actually follow their directions as I didn't like the thought of wax anywhere near the stove, so we just worked at the counter spread with newspapers. We simply put some wax in a clean can, and then poured boiling water over it to melt it, filling the can almost to the top. Of course the smaller you cut your wax the faster it melts.

The wax floats on top of the water, so as you dip your leaves in the water and pull them out they get coated with a thin layer of wax. We also found it's best to just hold them until the wax is set - if you put them down on waxed paper as suggested they stick and it ruins the smooth wax coating. We had fun experimenting with various other natural specimens, my favorite being Josiah's waxed fern and someone's sprig of silver mist.

One of my favorite things - my children's creativity, and all of the unexpected, useful ways it manifests. We have a two story open foyer with a kind of wide shelf space above the closet doors. It's been empty since we moved in here, but I recently put a bunch of plants up there - geraniums and dangling ivies and such. However I wasn't looking forward to climbing a ladder every week to water them (and climbing down and moving the ladder and climbing up and ...). Josiah suggested using a looong piece of PVC pipe.

Of course he had a piece of PVC in the cellar. Of course the spout of the watering can fit perfectly into the lumen of the pipe. And of course it worked like a charm, and he didn't spill a drop.

But mostly it may have finally taught me to never say, Josiah, you can't do that!

 
 
 (Visit Peggy for more Daybooks here.)

Autumn Daybook

Outside my window - Dusk is settling in earlier each day. My little girls keep running to look out the window at the Shake-o-speare scene happening below down on the patio. The Shakespeare Summer has stretched into Shakespeare Fall as my big kids still can't get enough of the Bard and 'doing Shakespeare' remains the leisure activity of choice. The three big girls and Josiah have memorized several scenes from Cymbeline, and they have ambitious plans to learn some As You Like It, A Midsummer's Night's Dream and Richard III. Josiah has a natural flair for acting, and they all have impressive memorization skills. They usually practice in the cellar, but occasionally we are treated to a kitchen performance. I love having teenagers whose favorite thing to do is practice Shakespeare. 

 

I am hearing - See above.

I am wearing - A rusty cinnamon colored viney skirt, one of my trademark vintage lacey off-white cardigans, fall colored olive and rust floral scarf, chocolate brown tights and brown Mary Janes, little topaz earrings.

I am thankful for - this awesome family and this wonderful counter-cultural Catholic homeschooling life we live

From the kitchen -  Cloten's head (a cauliflower) will be turned into tonight's soup. Lydia is making three more apple galettes. She made two last night and they were sooo scrumptious.  We've been buying a bushel of apples a week at the farmer's market and enjoying them in so many appley-fall-goodness ways.

Lydia makes the best pie crust/galette pastry in the whole wide world. But don't take her picture while she's cooking.

 
 
From the learning house - I tried to think of a good title for this section. We don't have a school room so I can't say 'from the schoolroom'. I was going to say 'in the learning department' but that makes me think of a department store like Macy's or something. 'Lifestyle of learning' is appropriate but a mouthful. I like 'from the learning house' as it makes me think of The Napping House, where everyone is napping, only in the learning house everyone is learning. Shakespeare and astronomy and birds and Churchill and letters and reading and patterns and counting and ancient Greece and watercoloring, oh my.

Living the Liturgical Year - Daily Masses for the Dead this week (still no Suburban but I get to go tonight and tomorrow night). On Saturday our priest will lead Solemn Cemetery Prayers for the Poor Souls after Mass. Tonight we also have our weekly candlelight rosary vigil at the clinic.

Around the house - After we voted last night Michael took me to the thrift shop just to 'get out'. I knew I would find good stuff as I didn't really want to go but I tried to keep quiet and not complain as it was his idea. :-) Sure enough, I found a set of dishes that match the ones we have, or I should say that match what's left of the ones we have. I have so wanted to find dishes so we can have a large set that actually matches.  I also found a double decker wooden dolly bed for the girls, a little table that's perfect for where I need it,  charming vintage artwork, a linen shirt for my ranger, and best of all this old picture:

It still has the price tag on it from the five and ten - it originally cost $1.59. I've already hung it in my upstairs hallway. I love it.

One of my favorite things - this face