Well, it finally happened. For the first time since our parish added on the narthex, I was told by a parishioner that I should keep my children in it.
Of course, it was done by a sweet old church lady, who smiled with dimples the whole time. You just couldn't be annoyed with her. And she phrased it as a compliment sandwich; as we were leaving she came up to me and put an oh-so-gentle hand on my arm, saying how much she appreciates us moms, each and every one of us, our families are so beautiful, and did I know that the new doors were soundproof, and with the new big window in the wall you can see Father through it and there's a speaker in the back so you can hear everything, and what a good job you're doing with your children, God bless you, and then she finished with,
"But take them OUT!!" [dimple smile dimple]
I felt so deflated.
I never go to daily Mass any more. It's so much effort to get out the door, and then I spend the whole time wondering how many people we're disturbing with all our noise. But it is the feast of Sts. Peter and Paul today, which is one of our family name days, so I wanted to honor it by going to Mass. I had only the boys with me, as the girls are at Vacation Bible School every morning this week. I had forgotten the bag of church books at home, so I knew it would be a challenge, but all in all the boys were very good, at least I thought so.
Apparently she didn't agree. And I didn't have the heart to argue the matter. I didn't want to point out that I DID actually take them out when Daniel was getting noisy enough to be a disturbance. I didn't ask her to understand that he was testing out his new word -- his very first word ever! -- on the echoes of the church. I didn't want to argue that while there is *a* speaker in the narthex, the volume is set so low that you cannot hear the Mass, especially when there are children nearby (who are of course acting up because they can't hear or see anything). And you can't see, either, because of the bright reflection from the outside wall, which is solid windows.
THIS is why cryrooms are a blessing and a curse. Yes, sometimes it's nice to have a place where mothers can temporarily take their little children who just can't keep still or quiet, so they can still attend Mass and not worry that their noise is disturbing Father on the altar.
BUT.
It also means, sadly, that children are no longer welcome in the body of the church. Even as I was sitting in the pew, I noticed that with the exception of maybe one or two persons, everyone in the church was old. All the mothers who made the effort to bring their small ones to Mass had banished themselves to the outside.
If we are supposed to a People of Life, I find it so hypocritical that new lives are not welcome around the Lord's Table, unless they are hidden someplace where they cannot be seen or heard. I can't think of anything more discouraging to a mother who is trying to bring her children to Jesus. I solemnly swear that when I am an old church lady I will never, ever tell a mother of young children to keep them out of the church. At the most, I would befriend her over time and then offer to bring them back myself and watch them while she has some much-needed peaceful time with Our Lord.
Am I being too sensitive about this?
Wednesday, June 29, 2011
Tuesday, June 28, 2011
Sober thoughts.
The Holy Spirit has been speaking to me so pointedly through Elizabeth Foss lately. I found her recent column from the Herald especially eye-opening, this part in particular:
Please read the whole thing. She reminds me how easy it is to take the good things in life for granted, and miss those fleeting opportunities to build up a marriage.
Nothing is certain, except this moment. Right now. How can I use it for good?
"Was she really trying to tell me not to take time for granted? Not to assume that we can neglect each other today, just this once, while we work in our own spheres, sure that we made a promise, so that when things slow down — at work, at home, with the kids — we can pick up where we left off, still all aflutter with the blush of love? ... Was she telling me that there are not infinite opportunities to do the important things that make love grow?"
Please read the whole thing. She reminds me how easy it is to take the good things in life for granted, and miss those fleeting opportunities to build up a marriage.
Nothing is certain, except this moment. Right now. How can I use it for good?
Saturday, June 25, 2011
Daniel Speaks!!
I think this is how all my children learned "uh-oh" -- by flinging their sippy cups off their high chairs.
Daniel Walks!!
Daniel took his first steps while we were on vacation. Miriam (who is the Family Memory) informs me that we were in Akron at the time. He took more and more exploratory steps, for funzies, throughout the trip, but preferred crawling because it was so fast. Then when we returned home, he would always begin by walking until he fell down, then continue his journey crawling. About a week before his birthday he decided walking was his preferred method of transportation.
I don't remember giving him permission to grow up like this.
I don't remember giving him permission to grow up like this.
Slice of Life
I've got so many good posts backed up. Many having to do with Daniel, like his climbing stairs, and transitioning to only 2 longer naps a day, and walking (!!), and first word ("uh oh" -- I hope it's not indicative of any future tendencies); but other random things. Like swimming at the pool, or not swimming because of all these summer thunderstorms we've been having; making jam, or not making jam because I missed strawberry season (*weep*); finishing up schoolwork and planning for next year (which is always fun) and attending the homeschool conference; getting everyone their summer haircuts; the beastly new girl in the neighborhood (whose name is, ironically, Serenity)... but then life happens. Right now Miriam is hovering behind me reading over my shoulder, Katie is scattering graham cracker crumbs on the table and telling stories that never end (if I hadn't put all the comic books in timeout it would be quotes from Baby Blues or Calvin & Hobbes), Joseph is hungry and tired and cranky and therefore perpetually whining and bumping into me (does this drive anyone else batty?), and Daniel is asleep after Mr. Pickles put him to bed because I can't get him to fall asleep any more.... And then the rest of the time there is the load of laundry to switch over and meals and snacks to plan (although it IS Saturday which is Mr. Pickles' night to cook) and homeschool business to remember and books to order and ironing to do and the myriads of backed-up sewing projects to attend to.....
I think of so many great things to post about throughout the day, so many witty comments to make in the moment, but always forget them when I'm finally able to make time (there's no such thing as "found time" here) to work on the computer. This isn't meant to be whiny, really (okay, maybe just a little bit), but rather to assure you all that I'm always thinking of you throughout my day and wanting to share our life with you, but am finding it difficult to make the time. If I had a housekeeper and a cook and a nanny and a personal secretary I might be able to keep up.
Maybe.
I think of so many great things to post about throughout the day, so many witty comments to make in the moment, but always forget them when I'm finally able to make time (there's no such thing as "found time" here) to work on the computer. This isn't meant to be whiny, really (okay, maybe just a little bit), but rather to assure you all that I'm always thinking of you throughout my day and wanting to share our life with you, but am finding it difficult to make the time. If I had a housekeeper and a cook and a nanny and a personal secretary I might be able to keep up.
Maybe.
It's all in the wrist.
Daniel demonstrates proper yogurt-eating technique.
Note how clean the hand WITH the spoon is.
(And yes, I gave him a bath afterward!)
Note how clean the hand WITH the spoon is.
(And yes, I gave him a bath afterward!)
Thursday, June 23, 2011
Determined
Miriam watched the first 15 minutes of Prince Caspian with me last night. Today I told her that Daddy and I agreed she shouldn't watch any more until she read the book first.
She's already 90 pages in.
That's my girl!
That's my girl!
{pretty, happy, funny, real}
{pretty}
 |
| Daddy's girl |
{happy}
 |
| finally broke down & got those take & toss cups w/straws, in an attempt to get Katie to drink more milk (what kid doesn't love drinking through a straw?) -- and realized that such happy Easter colors make me smile! |
{funny}
 |
| fishie lips! |
 | |||||
| she may be a girlie girl, but she knows how to handle herself |
 |
| poor Madeline... I wonder what she did to set the mafia after her? |
{real}
 |
| the counter to the right of the happy Easter color cups -- please tell me that everyone has a counter that attracts Stuff like this! |
See more {phfr}!
Sunday, June 19, 2011
Big Sky Country
Okay, I know technically that title belongs to Montana, but the sky in Minnesota is SO BIG!! Living in a valley as we do, we never get to see sights like this.
Okay, this one was cool. Ever since I first saw these on APOD I've wanted to see them. And we did! See the rays to the left?
Of course, the reason the sky is so big is that this is what passes for a "mountain" in Minnesota:
Beautiful, beautiful country. Minnesota is just lovely in spring (before the mosquitoes wake up...).
(yes, these were all taken from a moving car. don't you love all the reflections of my lap?)
 |
| looks like Ireland to me |
 |
| the contrasts! (the thunderheads!) |
 |
| anticrepuscular rays!! |
Of course, the reason the sky is so big is that this is what passes for a "mountain" in Minnesota:
 |
| see that little bump in the land -- with a ski slope on it? |
(yes, these were all taken from a moving car. don't you love all the reflections of my lap?)
The Great Western Trek, part the second
Another long post!
I feel like the next leg of the journey was the most difficult part of the trip. We had a couple long days of driving, and we hadn't found our rhythm yet, so it was hard on the kids (not to mention their parents...). Several unplanned potty stops made it take longer, and hungry baby alarms made it seem even longer. It happened that on the trip Daniel transitioned from nursing as primary source of nutrition with solids as supplementary, to nursing as supplementary with solids as primary. So the poor kid was always hungry until we figured out what kind of baby foods were car-trip worthy. Mr. Pickles and I spent a lot of time twisted backwards, passing him Os and baby puffs, to keep his mouth occupied in a way that didn't involve screaming.
Well, the first leg of the continued west-bound journey was actually very short (would have been shorter were it not for an extra potty stop). After we left Steubenville, we stopped in Akron, Ohio to visit some good friends from college whose wedding we had attended ages ago, and whom we hadn't seen since our OWN wedding! They graciously housed us for one night. Of course, we neglected to take any pictures of them and their awesome family of 4 boys (see: sucky picture taker, below). A house full of boys is such an interesting dynamic. At one point three of them were entangled in a wrestling match on the floor of the den. I'm sure it's a common sight for their parents, but it was the first time I'd seen so many white athletic socks locked together.
Even though we hadn't seen these friends in years, we can still call them friends; most of our close friendships from college have been like that. It's like you pick right back up where you left off, regardless of how much time has passed. It is always so joyful visiting with people who are trying to live their lives and raise their families with the same goals as you. It's one of the blessings of friendships built on the Lord.
The next day was a long one -- we drove all day to Chicago, where we stayed at an Embassy Suites. (We have standards -- we only stay in hotels with a pool and free breakfast, if we can help it.) :) I think taking a dip in the hot tub helped ease some of the achiness of a long day in the car. The following day was another long one -- from Chicago we made it all the way to our final destination in Minnesota, after getting stuck in miserable traffic around Minneapolis/St. Paul (or "the Cities"). We finally stopped for dinner outside Minneapolis, because we were all sick of driving by that point and everyone was beginning to melt. A brief stop at a McDonald's revived us enough to be able to finish the day's trip.
It was interesting comparing notes with Mr. Pickles to see how our different personalities handled the end of the trip. We'd been reading The Temperament God Gave You out loud to each other along the way. Mr. Pickles is a classic Melancholic, while I'm a classic Phlegmatic. So at the end of the day when the girls were horsing around in the back and making lots of noise and Jo-jo was "singing" at the top of his lungs and the baby was screaming for a diaper change and his dinner and just LET ME OUT ALREADY, Mr. Pickles and I would have very different reactions to the situation. I would find my happy place: I would retreat into myself, tune everything out, and tell myself, "it's okay, we're almost there, and then everyone will be happy and all will be well," while Mr. Pickles would think, "oh, what a horrible idea this was! Everyone is miserable! We're all dooooomed!" -- he would find his UNhappy place. But there was always a moment when it was the most ear-splitting, and we would catch each other's eye, and just smile at each other. We always felt like comrades in arms at such moments. Often we would lay out a plan of attack before we stopped: "Okay, you take the baby and the child doing the potty dance to the bathroom while I find a table and then when you're done I'll nurse the baby while you make lunch and then afterwards I'll take the remaining children to the bathroom while you clean up and get coffee and we can leave okay ready set GO!" We always aimed for speed, but no matter how efficient we tried to be, a quick potty stop always took 30 minutes, while a quick lunch break always took an hour. Why is it that an hour at a rest stop passes by like the blink of an eye, while an hour in the car is an eternity of torture?
But we finally made it to St. Cloud, and unloaded the suitcases, and threw away several days' worth of fast food residue, and collapsed.
And then it was playtime! We got to see the cousins almost every other day. The kids seemed to pick up right where they left off last fall.
Apparently we brought the warm weather with us -- it was absolutely glorious while we were there!
We got to spend lots of time with Grandma, too.
One day we took the time to visit the area where Mr. Pickles grew up, including his old parish.
The kids have heard so many stories about Mr. Pickles's childhood here, so it was fun for them actually to be able to see it.
Another day we drove out to visit with Grandpa Gene and Betty. They're in the process of trying to sell their house. I think the kids will miss their awesome driveway!
Of course, I have to say something about the generous family who hosted us while we were there. It was the same who opened their home to us last fall. We have so many bodies in our family now that whenever we visit someone, I feel like we take over their lives.
So we really do appreciate it so much when people let us stay in their homes. And we had such great fun! Even though we saw family a lot, we made sure to spend time with our new friends too.
We spent a whole week in Minnesota, but the time passed really quickly. We spent a lot more time driving than we had thought we would -- the house we stayed at was amazingly convenient in that it was almost halfway in between Grandma's and Aunt Mary's houses. However, that meant we spent every day driving to and from one or the other. We were happy to do it, although we're thinking maybe next time we'll rent a house on a lake and invite everyone to come stay with us! :)
(P.S. Can everyone read the picture captions? They just seem awfully small to me...)
I feel like the next leg of the journey was the most difficult part of the trip. We had a couple long days of driving, and we hadn't found our rhythm yet, so it was hard on the kids (not to mention their parents...). Several unplanned potty stops made it take longer, and hungry baby alarms made it seem even longer. It happened that on the trip Daniel transitioned from nursing as primary source of nutrition with solids as supplementary, to nursing as supplementary with solids as primary. So the poor kid was always hungry until we figured out what kind of baby foods were car-trip worthy. Mr. Pickles and I spent a lot of time twisted backwards, passing him Os and baby puffs, to keep his mouth occupied in a way that didn't involve screaming.
Well, the first leg of the continued west-bound journey was actually very short (would have been shorter were it not for an extra potty stop). After we left Steubenville, we stopped in Akron, Ohio to visit some good friends from college whose wedding we had attended ages ago, and whom we hadn't seen since our OWN wedding! They graciously housed us for one night. Of course, we neglected to take any pictures of them and their awesome family of 4 boys (see: sucky picture taker, below). A house full of boys is such an interesting dynamic. At one point three of them were entangled in a wrestling match on the floor of the den. I'm sure it's a common sight for their parents, but it was the first time I'd seen so many white athletic socks locked together.
Even though we hadn't seen these friends in years, we can still call them friends; most of our close friendships from college have been like that. It's like you pick right back up where you left off, regardless of how much time has passed. It is always so joyful visiting with people who are trying to live their lives and raise their families with the same goals as you. It's one of the blessings of friendships built on the Lord.
The next day was a long one -- we drove all day to Chicago, where we stayed at an Embassy Suites. (We have standards -- we only stay in hotels with a pool and free breakfast, if we can help it.) :) I think taking a dip in the hot tub helped ease some of the achiness of a long day in the car. The following day was another long one -- from Chicago we made it all the way to our final destination in Minnesota, after getting stuck in miserable traffic around Minneapolis/St. Paul (or "the Cities"). We finally stopped for dinner outside Minneapolis, because we were all sick of driving by that point and everyone was beginning to melt. A brief stop at a McDonald's revived us enough to be able to finish the day's trip.
It was interesting comparing notes with Mr. Pickles to see how our different personalities handled the end of the trip. We'd been reading The Temperament God Gave You out loud to each other along the way. Mr. Pickles is a classic Melancholic, while I'm a classic Phlegmatic. So at the end of the day when the girls were horsing around in the back and making lots of noise and Jo-jo was "singing" at the top of his lungs and the baby was screaming for a diaper change and his dinner and just LET ME OUT ALREADY, Mr. Pickles and I would have very different reactions to the situation. I would find my happy place: I would retreat into myself, tune everything out, and tell myself, "it's okay, we're almost there, and then everyone will be happy and all will be well," while Mr. Pickles would think, "oh, what a horrible idea this was! Everyone is miserable! We're all dooooomed!" -- he would find his UNhappy place. But there was always a moment when it was the most ear-splitting, and we would catch each other's eye, and just smile at each other. We always felt like comrades in arms at such moments. Often we would lay out a plan of attack before we stopped: "Okay, you take the baby and the child doing the potty dance to the bathroom while I find a table and then when you're done I'll nurse the baby while you make lunch and then afterwards I'll take the remaining children to the bathroom while you clean up and get coffee and we can leave okay ready set GO!" We always aimed for speed, but no matter how efficient we tried to be, a quick potty stop always took 30 minutes, while a quick lunch break always took an hour. Why is it that an hour at a rest stop passes by like the blink of an eye, while an hour in the car is an eternity of torture?
But we finally made it to St. Cloud, and unloaded the suitcases, and threw away several days' worth of fast food residue, and collapsed.
And then it was playtime! We got to see the cousins almost every other day. The kids seemed to pick up right where they left off last fall.
 |
| Bethany and Miriam -- the big girls! (wish I'd taken a second picture!) |
 |
| The Catherines built (with Paul's help) a SECRiT GiRlS ClUB |
 |
| complete with bathtub |
 |
| Paul willingly hauled water from the lake for them |
 |
| cold! cold! cold! |
 |
| apparently the best way to fetch water is to swing the bucket around your head as fast as you can... |
 |
| and then cast it out into the water |
 |
| meanwhile Jo-jo found some wheels! |
 |
| Grandma's bike repair shop |
 |
| including, but not limited to, the removal of training wheels! |
 |
| way to go, Catherine! all the kids were so excited for her! |
 |
| lookit all this crawling space!! |
 |
| bah, crawling is for babies! look what I can do instead! |
 |
| for dessert, Grandma and Aunt Mary made root beer floats! |
 |
| what a beautiful day it was... |
We got to spend lots of time with Grandma, too.
 |
| what a great-looking brood! |
 |
| Daniel helped clean Grandma's kitchen |
 |
| scrubbing the floor is fun! |
 |
| you know, just a quaint little country church... |
 |
| ...with an interior like this! it was so beautiful. Mr. Pickles made his First Holy Communion here |
 |
| the lane leading down to the 50 acres where Mr. Pickles' family's home was |
Another day we drove out to visit with Grandpa Gene and Betty. They're in the process of trying to sell their house. I think the kids will miss their awesome driveway!
 |
| about 5 seconds after this photo, Daniel fell off |
 | |
| Grandpa is very handy -- he made his own "Polish bowling" game out of plastic piping and golf balls! |
 |
| you throw the linked balls and try to ring them around one of the pipes |
 |
| it's pretty fun! |
 |
| ...and their basements! |
 |
| our kids get along so well |
 |
| Miriam proving how responsible she would be if we had a dog... |
 |
| Daniel showing how he would help care for a dog (giving it shiatsu massage, maybe?). i have to say their dog is amazingly patient and good-natured |
We spent a whole week in Minnesota, but the time passed really quickly. We spent a lot more time driving than we had thought we would -- the house we stayed at was amazingly convenient in that it was almost halfway in between Grandma's and Aunt Mary's houses. However, that meant we spent every day driving to and from one or the other. We were happy to do it, although we're thinking maybe next time we'll rent a house on a lake and invite everyone to come stay with us! :)
(P.S. Can everyone read the picture captions? They just seem awfully small to me...)
Wednesday, June 15, 2011
From Baby to Boy
I'm not ready for Daniel to grow up. I want him to be a baby forever. He makes such a sweet baby! Time however is against me, marching inexorably on as it does. So to force myself to accept the knowledge, I did something drastic.
I cut his hair.
I cut his hair.
Before
During
 |
| all slicked down and supplied with O's |
...aaaand After
 |
| I don't like it Mom! |
He still looks very cute.... just not like my baby any more.
Pardon me while I go weep.
(At least he's still nursing, thankfully, and doesn't show any inclination to give that up any time soon! So I still get to pretend for a little while longer.)
{phfr}, Birthday Edition!
{pretty handsome}
 |
| how can this deliciousness be one already?? |
 |
| look how big I am! |
{happy}
 |
| kids who are lucky enough to be born in the summer get pool parties! |
 |
| this cupcake was WAY cuter before the icing melted in the car |
 |
| getting helped by big sis (altho' I think the wind blew out the candle first) |
{funny}
 |
| the first birthday cake must always be chocolate just for the purpose of this photo. it's in the parents' handbook. i looked. |
{real}
 |
| how pleasant it is when brothers dwell in unity! |
 |
| today, exactly a year ago, very early in the morning... |
What a gift you are to us, Golden Boy!
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