Do yourself a favor and read this truly amazing post by a wonderful Catholic mom on doing God's will every moment in our lives. She captures the essence of why I named this blog Ordinary Time much better than I ever could.
"The family is like a little kingdom, and, like most other little kingdoms, is generally in a state of something resembling anarchy."
G.K. Chesterton
Some fun advice on mind-wandering during prayer:
One afternoon when I had the flu some time ago, I happened to see the Oprah Show. She had an author on that day who had written a book called, "He's Not That Into You", the premise of which was that women shouldn't go chasing after men who don't pay them proper attention, because a man who is interested in a woman will chase after her to the ends of the earth. He wasn't talking about stalkers. He was talking about ordinary men.
I can't help but think of that book when you say your mind wanders during Adoration. Apparently you're not that into Him.I suggest you mediate about what's adorable about Jesus. If you're mind wanders (I have to admit I can't picture it....) either pull you brain away from your 'to-do' list (and it's all important trip to take DVD's back to Blockbuster before you have to pay a fee vs. 'loved me enough to die a horrible and humiliating death') and re-train yourself to mediate thusly...or...leave and try again tomorrow. Jesus is very forgiving. But he knows when you're just not that into Him.(HT: Ask Sister Mary Martha)
It's been awhile since I have posted. I'm sure many of my readers are about to go through Paul-Lucy withdrawal. Not to fear, I'll get an emergency too-cute picture up soon.
In the meantime, please pray for my family. We had a traumatic crisis in the family about two weeks ago (ya know, when the posts suddenly stopped) and could certainly use everyone's prayers. We have been facing what I now call to myself "purple days."
During Lent, Paul became very aware of the lovely purple hue of the priest's vestments at Mass. It was quite a shock when Easter hit and suddenly - no more purple! It took sometime for him to reconcile to white vestments. For several mornings on our way to church, Paul would ask me if it was a "purple day." I would patiently explain each time that it was a "white day." Learning from the past, I've spent the last few weeks preparing him for "green days."
Paul's obsession with vestment colors has brought the liturgical calender into clearer focus for me. I've lived and prayed through liturgical seasons with clearer purpose, sharper clarity, deeper truth. I feel like I have internalized the truths that each liturgical season offers me in a new way.
And now when I encounter a heavy cross in my life, I think to myself - "purple day." And it helps. It helps me immediately encounter the reality of suffering. It helps me know that Christ knows and understands and shares my pain. But most of all, it helps me know that there is redemption on the other side of the Cross...because the purple days come to an end. Then it will be all white days.
Paul approaches me this morning smiling and rubbing his tummy, looking for some conversation. I decided to indulge him.
Mommy: "Paul has a big tummy."
Paul: "No, Mommy big tummy. Paul...tiny tummy."
Thanks, Paul. I decided to try again. Lucy is lying next to us and had just finished her bottle, giving her a nice, swollen, milk-filled tummy.
Mommy: "Lucy has a big tummy, too."
Paul: "No! Mommy big tummy. Lucy... tiny tummy. Paul...tiny tummy."
To heap insult upon injury, it is 6:30 am, we've didn't just roll out of bed, and I'm not even pregnant.
With chapters like The Greatest Paper Airplane in the World, Hunting and Cooking a Rabbit, Making Cloth Fireproof, and Timers and Tripwires, this seems like a must-read for any mother with a son. Maybe someday I'll actually let Paul read it.
Great article in NY Daily News about Pope Benedict standing up to pro-abort politicians.
"Pope Benedict condemned politicians - like Rudy Giuliani - who support abortion rights and said yesterday they should be excommunicated from the church....
During his flight to Brazil yesterday, the Pope told reporters he supports excommunicating Catholic politicians who recently legalized abortion in Mexico.
"It is part of the [canon law] code. It is based simply on the principle that the killing of an innocent human child is incompatible with going in Communion with the body of Christ," Benedict said."
Mommy: What does a horse say?
Paul: Neigh!
Mommy: What does a cow say?
Paul: Moo!
Mommy: What does Paul say?
Paul: Ta-da!
Mommy: What does John Wayne say?
Paul: Bang!
(The last question was added by Uncles Nick and Luke during our last Ohio visit.)
These before and after shots of some major celebs were a real pick-me up for me today. I have been doing really well at getting back to my pre-Lucy weight - only a few more pounds to go. Still I'm realizing that having babies changes your body for ever. Plus you simply don't have the time, energy, or money to look really good very often. So it is helpful to realize that if I had a fabulous make-up artist, great hairstylist, and really good photoshop software, I would look like a magazine cover too!
(HT: Peace! Be Still)
I'm usually not a big fan of this kind of quiz, but this one kinda sparked my interest.
| You scored as Neo-Conservative Catholic. You see that the government of the United States was originally founded on recognizably Catholic natural law principles and reason in the tradition of Saint Thomas Aquinas, and the freedom of religion acknowledged in the Constitution has allowed Catholicism to flourish in this largely Protestant country. You recognize that the American system of government, even with its faults, is the most moral social order developed in history. You are committed to being a Catholic active in society. Like the Liberal Catholic, your views might be too determined by American culture, and you may uncritically accept many theories that may be harmful to yourself and society; instead you may need rediscover traditional Catholic teaching. You should emphasize the love of your neighbor, especially love for the poor, in your everyday business dealings. http://saint-louis.blogspot.com - Rome of the West
What is your style of American Catholicism? created with QuizFarm.com |
I've been feeling this love-hate dynamic with Monday the last few months, but couldn't quite put my finger on it. Luckily another fellow Catholic mom blogger hits the nail on the head.
"I hate Mondays for being the true end of the weekend, but I love them because they are almost always the best stay-at-home days. I am most rested, and most motivated, and all my work seems brand new. Compared to Fridays, and even more, compared to Thursdays, Mondays are fresh and shiney. "
Golf, like the measles, should be caught young, for, if postponed to riper years, the results may be serious. ~P.G. Wodehouse
Paul's convinced. He is working intensely on his short game with a little five dollar plastic golf set Mommy and Daddy bought him this weekend. Mommy's hoping the real golf set restores a sense of reality to life. The Wii has seemed to blur the line between reality and virtual gaming for Paul. He has been walking around the house saying, "Be Paul, Be Paul." Scary.
Another interesting discussion over at Rod Dreher's Crunchy Con blog. It's a thought-provoking discussion on how conservative Christians live in a hostile culture, especially when many of them were never given a real living conservative Christian tradition in their own lives.
"Very few of us today have living links with tradition. The condition of modernity is precisely that our roots have been largely severed. So, what is one to do? Throw up our hands and shore up fragments against our ruin? Or try to replant the vines in a new terroir, and hope it takes? Naturally I favor the latter, because what else is there but despair?"
"We DO need to be the leaven in the world, but we can't be until we build up our strength. The family is under constant assault, and we need to retreat and fortify. We are going to be lost if we don't. It's not a bunker. It's an incubator. We need to nurture the seeds of the cultural restoration, and we need to do it in a place that is safe.
I wonder how many of us might be committed to this incubation. How many of us would be willing to step back, and create a refuge for our children to learn and grow in, so that they will be ready for the fight in a way we never were...Then when the others disappear completely, our crops, our animals, our little havens will continue to thrive and grow. "
Playing Wii with Paul is always an entertaining event. Wii should definitely include a rambunctious toddler with each gaming console - it brings the experience to a whole new level.
After his non-nap today, Paul was extremely excited to play "golf ball" on the Wii. As usual, he needed to "Be Dada!" which means he had to use Andrew's Wii character. (For my readers unfamiliar with the Wii, it allows you to create little customized characters that look like you...sorta.Your character is called a Mii.) After about the 6th hole, Paul became a little less excited about "golf ball." In fact, like many grown men I know, he became rather frustrated with his inability to get that little ball into that little hole. Unlike most grown men, Paul had his Mommy finish the game for him.
We moved on to "tennis ball." Paul was Dada; I was Paul. (Yes, Paul has his own Mii. In fact, so does Lucy. Lucy's Mii has a huge, bald head. It's great.) This was a win-win situation. No matter who won the match, Paul would win. Either Paul wins as Dada or I win as Paul. Either way, some form of Paul wins.
One unfortunate incident in the "tennis ball" game. The game has an announcer that says the score after each volley. At one point in our game, the announcer cries out, "Deuce!" (Don't ask me how I actually was at deuce with Paul.) Paul mistakenly hears, "Juice!" Mommy and Paul take five minute BRJ break.
Finally, we wrapped up our Wii session with a game of bowling. This is definitely the most difficult for Paul to play because the player must push a button, swing forward, and release the button to actually bowl. Paul tends to swing backward. Hysterically, the game actually shows the ball flying into the seats behind the bowler, where all the Wii characters are sitting around, just like a real bowling alley. Momma, Lucy, and Aunt Ruth's Miis suddenly jump wildly as Paul's bowling ball goes flying at their heads.
Some days it just seems too much like real life to be a game.
Paul is playing golf on our Wii this afternoon. He is decent at long distance shots, but not so good at putting. He just volleyed the ball back and forth over the hole between the rough and the sand trap about 10 times.
He has a fabulous attitude, though, and they say that golf is a mental game. After each swing, Paul exclaims, "Nice shot!"
