Blessings of the Season

As of now, we are on winter break from choir, but we are in full swing for the year. We just finished up Savanna's winter concert. It was spectacular, as usual. We attended the concert at the Cathedral of the Blessed Sacrament. The music sounds so magical in there! The acoustics are fantastic.




She truly loves to sing. God has blessed her a beautiful gift.








I am always amazed at the kids in the choir. I hear so many of the songs coming from Savanna singing at home, in the car, in the store, and anywhere else she can but when all the kids are on the stage, dressed in tuxes and their hair pulled back, the music is transformed!




Words can't describe the beauty of the music!

Happy Birthday Charles

Charles is truly a good sport. He spent his 12th birthday at Savanna's concert.





He even gave her flowers.












He did get to celebrate for 3 days in a row though! Since he couldn't do his birthday dinner on his birthday, we went to dinner the night before. Charles' favorite place to eat right now is Joe's Crab Shack where he gets to eat a bucketful of crab, potatoes and a corn on the cobb. He even gobbled down a dessert!





Here he is with his friend Ben and his sister getting ready for the bucket to arrive.






The day after his birthday, he had cake and ice cream with his cousins! Talk about an extended party! He is growing up fast and becoming a nice young man. Hope that sticks through the upcoming teen years!

A Special Feast Day

On December 9, 1531, a native Mexican named St. Juan Diego rose before dawn to walk fifteen miles to daily Mass in what is now Mexico City. Juan lived a simple life as a weaver, farmer, and laborer. That morning, as Juan passed Tepeyac Hill, he heard music and saw a glowing cloud encircled by a rainbow. A woman's voice called him to the top of the hill. There he saw a beautiful young woman dressed like an Aztec princess. She said she was the Virgin Mary and asked Juan to tell the bishop to build a church on that site.




Click St Juan Diego's name above to find out the rest of the story and to learn more about this humble man.


San Juan Diego, Pray for us!

God's Smile!

On the way to church one cool, November evening, we saw God smiling! This picture was taken at Holy Trintity Church in El Dorado Hills, CA. A passerby said the "eyes" were planets and the crescent moon was just right to make a smile. At one point, an airplane flew by right where a nose would be. This celestial arrangement made me smile too.

Signs of Fall

Every year is different around here weatherwise. This year the leaves seemed to change lower in the foothills and closer to the city. As I drove around town, I always noticed how brilliant the colors were. There was a lot more red this year. As I savored the colors from God's paintbrush, I realized that the colors of fall are the colors of the Holy Spirit. Golden yellow, bright orange and blazing red; the colors I wore for a week in Australia on my back (our World Youth Day backpacks.) As the trees changed, I would think about the Holy Spirit. God is truly amazing! He speaks to us in so many different ways!




This picture looks like the tree is on fire at its uppermost branches. The flames of the Holy Spirit. (This tree is our neighbor's tree.)

Going Here, Going There...

Sorry I've kinda lagged on updates. We got a little busy the closer we got to Thanksgiving. Happy Thanksgiving to you all.

I'm thankful for all the blessings we have in family and friends.




Mike's parents visited from Missourri for a week and what a great time was had by all.






Grandma got to listen in at Savanna's choir practice as they prepared for their big winter concert.

We took a day trip to South Lake Tahoe in search of some letterboxes, but to our dismay, the boxes were missing. Now, while we were in Tahoe, the kids played by the stream where the salmon were spawning. It was late in the season, but there were still a few live ones swimming around.






Believe it or not, Charles caught this fish with his bare hands!





We took a trip down to Historic Sacramento and another trip up to Apple Hill. We even took a trip to the emergency room, but that's another story.

The kids had a wonderful time visiting with grandma and grandpa. Now that they are older, they truly were able to appreciate the time spent with them.

Getting Ready for Christmas

I know that Thanksgiving is still around the corner, but it is never too early to get ready for Christmas. Enjoy!

Send your own ElfYourself eCards

My Very Own Chicken Herder

Chicken update: the chickens are well. Charles just loves spending time with them. He is the official chicken herder in our family. He supervises their outings in the yard and always makes sure they are watered and fed. He is the first to check on them when we've been away for the day and he loves to just play with them. He is quite responsible in caring for the chickens. It makes my life easy! The coop is finally complete. The latches have been fixed, a feeder bin and perch have been installed and a mesh floor has been stapled into place. It is a castled for our feathered friends.


Doors open wide to air out the coop (jk). The chickens are playing with Charles in the yard. The electrical cords hanging provide light and heat for the chickens. When they are cold, they huddle together under the light to keep warm.









This is Izzy (named after St Isadore, the farmer.) This is the beloved baby chick that we incubated and hatched.







Izzy is somewhat of an odd chicken. Can't really explain it, but he/she is definitely not like the others. I don't know if it's because Izzy was alone in a box for too long or what. When you hold Izzy the right way in your hands and arms, it'll fall asleep on you. Izzy also likes to be pet lightly on the chest. Izzy goes around pecking lightly at the other chickens and likes to be alone.





These are the 3 adopted chickens. Phoenix is the black one on the right. Henny, the golden breasted one in the front and Dimmy, the darker golden one in the back. Don't know if we will be keeping the names yet.


Yes, we weren't going to name them, but the 3 came with names. We thought about naming them Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner. Savanna's friend, Megan, wanted to name one Sizzle. I told her that was the sound it would make when it hit the pan. She didn't like that too much. We are still waiting to see if they are roosters. We think that Phoenix may be a rooster (he's Charles' favorite.) We will not be keeping the roosters. I don't think the neighbors want to be waken at the crack of dawn.


Charles got a lot of practice herding chickens in our friend Cindy's backyard. It's a tough job, but someone has got to do it! Unbelievably, he keeps them in a small area in the yard. He stands out there with a stick and chases them around. It's quite comical to watch.

It's Good to be the Mom

Savanna belongs to the Sacramento Childrens Chorus. This is her second year singing. Last year she sang in the Cantate choir. Cantate is entry level and the training choir where the kids learn the basic nuts and bolts of music. She was very excited when her conductor/teacher moved her into Chorus the following year. Chorus is a little more demanding both on the academic side and the performing side. The entire SCC performs twice a year in a winter concert and a spring concert.

Chorus sometimes performs by themselves at local venues. This year they were asked to perform at the Grand Opening of Phase I of the Westfield Galleria, Roseville. The mall was alive with eager shoppers and visitors dying to see the new and improved mall. We spent the morning singing at the grand opening festivities and taking a peek around the mall. WOW! $160+ million later, there are 13 new stores to browse.




Who is that cute, litte girl with the pigtails?












Being a parent brings special moments into our lives. Today was one of those that makes you feel good about being a parent. I found myself excited at first as the Chorus came out and lined up. As I listened to them sing, I felt a sense of pride for the kids singing, especially for the cute little girl in pigtails. They sing so beautifully. I could listen forever! If you are intersted, their winter concert is Dec 6th at the Cathedral of the Blessed Sacrament in Sacramento at 7:30 pm. They sound like angels singing there! Let me know so I can direct you for purchasing tickets.



Here they all are singing like little birds.

A Novena to my Blessed Mother

One of the best things about the Catholic faith is the rich treasury of prayers. Novenas are aren't just a prayer. It's a way of giving your worries, problems and desires to Our Father in Heaven. Novenas bring peace and an openess to God's divine mercy. You really can't ask for more. In just the past 4 months, I have said 3 different novenas. By the grace of God, I have followed His will and desire. I may not have received my desires in all cases, but I did receive what the good Lord wanted me to receive. Knowing that, I am content and wouldn't ask for any more. Other times, my prayers were answered in ways words just can't describe. The following is a novena to the Virgin Mary. Our Blessed Mother has a very special place in my heart and my life. I ask that all who read this, please keep my intentions in prayer. Thank you. God Bless you and your families.

Prayer to the Blessed Virgin (Never known to fail)

Oh most beautiful flower of Mt. Carmel, Fruitful vine, Splendor of Heaven.

Blessed Mother of the son of God, Immaculate Virgin, assist me in my necessity.

Oh, Star of the Sea, help me and show me herein you are my Mother.

Oh, Holy Mary, Mother of God, Queen of Heaven and Earth, I humbly beseech you from the bottom of my heart, to succor me in my necessity (state request).

There are none that can withstand your power.

O, show me here-in you are my mother.

Oh, Mary, conceived without sin, pray for us who have recourse to thee (say three times).

Holy Mary, I place this prayer in your hands (say three times).

Sweet Mother, I place this cause in your hands (say three times).

Thank you for your mercy to me and mine. Amen

This prayer must be said for three days and after three days your request will be granted and the prayer must be published.

Our Lady of Mt Carmel, Pray for us.

Saintly Fun

All Saints Day took us to Grass Valley. Our friends the Zeiters put on a spectacular All Saints Day party! There were about 30 kids there. It was pouring rain outside, but the kids were having the time of their lives inside! There were many games to play and tons of prizes to win! Nobody went home with an empty hand or stomach!


Here are Savanna and Charles dressed up as St Bernadette and Blessed Pier Giorgio Frassati.














Savanna chose to be Saint Bernadette on All Saints Day this year. St Bernadette was a peasant in France. In 1858, as a young girl, Bernadette was sent out to gather firewood with her sister and friend. At a nearby grotto, above a rose bush, a very beautiful Lady appeared to her, the Lady was dressed in blue and white. The lovely Lady made the sign of the cross with a rosary of ivory and gold. Bernadette immediately knelt down and began praying the rosary. The beautiful Lady was Mary, the Mother of God. Our Lady met with Bernadette 17 times. She told Bernadette to pray for sinners, do penance and build a chapel in her honor. Many people didn't believe Bernadette. One day, Our Lady told Bernadette to dig in the mud. As she did, a spring of water began to flow. The spring grew larger every day. Many miracles began to occur when people began using the water. The spring is Lourdes, France. Even today, many people go there to be healed.

The body of St Bernadette is incorrupt. That means, it never deteriorated and is still intact as when she was a live. St Bernadette's feast day is April 16th.


Here is a illustration of Our Lady of Lourdes and St Bernadette.


Saint Bernadette, pray for us.












Charles may look like an ordinary boy in the picture above, but he was "dressed" up as Blessed Pier Giorgio Frassati (Check out this link: Catholic Fire: Blessed Pier Giorgio Frassati there is a short video about him there.) Pier was an incredible young man. He was born in Turin, Italy in 1901. He was an athlete, skier and mountain climber. He loved being outdoors and took groups of his friends and other young adults on outdoor adventures and evangelized on the way. He always persuaded a priest to come along to celebrate the Holy Eucharist. He lived his faith to the fullest.

Unbeknownst to his family, Pier helped the poor and took care of them. Sacrificing his money and time, he made sure to fill the needs of the homeless and the poor as best as he could. Pope John Paul II called him a man of the 8 beatitudes. He lived a life of faith and charity. At the age of 24, he became very ill and died shortly after. Many of the poor of Italy came to visit his family. It was then his family learned about the generous heart of their beloved Pier.

Pier's body is also incorrupt. During World Youth Day, his casket was on display in St Mary's Cathedral in Sydney, Australia. I was able to pray for his intercession, right there, in front of his casket when I was in Sydney earlier this summer. His feast day is July 4th.

Photo of Bl Pier Giorgio Frassati

One of my favorite quotes from Blessed Pier:

“To live without faith, without a patrimony to defend, without a steady struggle for truth, that is not living, but existing.”

Bl Pier Giorgio Frassati, pray for us.


Much fun was to be had at the party. All the Saints were running around playing tons of games and eating tons of cotton candy! Here we have Savanna and her friend Emily.


The Blessed Virgin Mary (Emily) and St Bernadette (Savanna)











Zak Zeiter got all wet bobbing for apples.











Charles wins his prize! Notice the wet shoulder. He pretty much dove into the water!








Filled with candy and good food, Mike and Savanna take a rest.





All Saints Day was lots of fun for both kids and adults. We look forward to more years of Saintly fun. God Bless.

Yummmy...gotta try this one

Pumpkins seeds are always a big hit around here. This year, I think I will try this new recipe out. Something new... Toasted Pumpkin Seeds Recipe | Simply Recipes

The Eve of All Hallows

Happy Hollows Eve. In our household, we have celebrated Halloween by means of honoring Saints, historical figures and characters in the latest books we've read. We try to remember that Halloween is the eve of All Saints day. Tomorrow, we will remember all the saints that are in Heaven with our Heavenly Father. Since we are all God's children, and we strive to please Him in all we do, we too will be saints one day. As we live our lives here on earth and we pray for those alive and deceased, we are part of the communion of saints. That makes us all one in the Body of Christ. That is pretty special!

We've decided that this will be the last year that we celebrate Halloween. I've never really understood this holiday, if you can call it that. What is it a holiday of? It seems to have become distorted over the years.

I was shopping for candy at the local store. This year, the candy seemed to be extra expensive for some unknown reason. We don't buy a lot, we have opted out of the neighborhood trick or treating for the past few years. Instead, we have been trunk or treating at our church. Our neighborhood gets bombarded with visitors from all over. Literally, hundreds come and use our neighborhood as the prime candy collecting spot. HUNDREDS! So many people import themselves, that we can barely drive down our street and you actually have to wait in line to receive candy! People pull their couches up to there front doors and sit there giving out candy! Anyway, while shopping for candy, I was irritated and fed up. I blurted, "I hate Halloween!" I turned to the kids and suggested we celebrate All Saints day instead of Halloween for now on. They looked at each other, then looked at me and said, "Okay." It was as simple as that. We have friends that always have All Saints day parties. So, we are opting out of this celebration for a more meaningful one.

We still will be dressing up and decorating pumpkins, but we will be doing it with a new state of mind. Instead of ghoul and gross, we are going Saintly and virtuous. Our pumpkins even reflect this change. This year, Mike and I did some cool religious symbols vs. your typical jack-o-lantern. Next year will be even better!

So to go out with a bang, the kids chose 2 characters that are muched loved and talked about around here:




Calvin and Hobbes.














For those of you who aren't familiar with Calvin and Hobbes, it's comic strips about a little boy and his stuffed animal, tiger, Hobbes. The two of them go on some wild adventures and wreak havoc. They are very funny. The kids love reading them. Check out this link: calvin and hobbes wonderland!

Calvin and Hobbes were joined by St Michael the Archangel (Aaron) and the Fall Fairy (Sarah). Our friends, the Truxtons, joined us this year carving pumpkins and trick or treating.












The kids poked around on their pumpkins. Savanna decided on a multifaceted pumpkin. Here are the many faces of Savanna's pumpkin:


A chiseled jack-o-lantern pumpkin face. Look careful, it is hard to see in this picture.






A carved cross.








A chiseled Sorrowful Heart of Mary.






Charles tried a tree, but it didn't turn out the way he wanted it to. He decided to rip into the pumpkin and create a jack-o-lantern.



The facial expression looks something like Calvin's in the comic strip.








The growth in maturity of both the kids is truly showing this year. Charles and Savanna independently designed, carved and chiseled their own pumpkins. I didn't even cut the brain out of the pumpkins. They did all the work themselves for the first time ever!

Mike and I took a different approach with the pumpkins. They took on a new meaning this year. Mike chiseled out the Sacred Heart of Jesus. It is just beautiful. It took a lot of planning and time to create this masterpiece. Too bad it will only last a day or so.

I opted for the Blessed Mother. I offer all I think, do and say through Her beloved hands for the Glory of God and the Salvation of Souls. Speaking of souls, in addition to All Saints day tomorrow, All Souls day follows on Sunday. That is the day we remember all the poor souls in purgatory. Pray for them constantly! They will pray for us in our needs too.

Here is my pumpkin in honor of my Beloved Mom:

This is the image on the back of the Miraculous Medal. The letter "M" stands for Mary, the Mother of God and My Beloved Mom. The cross represents Jesus.

That's it for now. Until later, God Bless.

The Final Product

It's done. Well pretty much done. There is a bit of tweaking that needs to be finished, but it is open for business. Our friends gave us their 3 chickens for a total of 4. They don't seem to like each other. The three bunch together and leave the one out. In a few months, we'll know how many we will actually keep. We're only going to keep the hens. The 3 came with names, so we named our's too. They are Izzy (after St Isadore), Henny, Muffy and Phoenix. Phoenix is the only one of the 3 that got a name change. He's Charles' favorite.

Here's a night time look at the coop:

Coop Continued...

We finally got the puzzle put together. We had to disassemble part of the coop, I forgot to take the width of the support pieces into consideration. So, we pulled apart, cut and put back together. I never said I was good at this. Actually, I found this coop on-line. No directions. Only a few dimensions and pictures, that's about it. So, I think we did pretty well considering, I really didn't know what I was doing.

It is great to work mini projects like this. The kids have finally reached an age where they really help. At one point, all three of us were independently working on something different. I think it would have taken much longer if I had had to build the coop by myself. The feeling of accomplishment always feels good. Here are some photos of us hard at work:




Savanna was very handy with a nail gun.











Charles is a champion with an electric drill.











Only Mom was allowed to use the circular saw.










Here's Savanna with her finished project. A two story coop condo is useless without a grand staircase!








While we were working on a beautiful sunny day, a couple of crazy, wild chickens came flying into our yard. I'd never seen wild chickens around here before. They flew right into the unfinished coop and started peeping around. Check them out!

Building Time

Today was a productive and fun day. We are beginning the building process of our chicken coop.



We are going to attempt to turn this pile of wood and metal, into something spectacular, okay, maybe not spectacular, but something worthy (at least for a chicken)







The kids worked hard measuring, cutting and learning to respect power tools.















We discovered that we needed to work as a team. Wood falls when nobody is supporting it!





They liked being a part of the project and getting to use the tools. Today we cut all the wood . Tomorrow, we will begin building! Can't wait. We will soon have a chicken condo fit for a chicken.

Chicken Update

Here is an update on our chicken. This little guy changed daily. One day he was little and fuzzy, the next day he had feathers. I noticed one day that his tail was red and swollen. I was a little worried thinking maybe he was sick. The next day when I checked out his little rear, feathers were poking out! They grow so fast!




Here is the latest picture of our feathered friend.







We will be adopting 3 chickens from some friends that participated in the project, but don't want to keep the chicks. They are about 6 days older than our chick. Hopefully this weekend, we will have a chicken coop for them to live in and we will have 4 chickens!

A New Kind of Treasure

Today we went on a treasure hunt. We were in search of a "letterbox". Never heard of it? It is actually really neat. There is a website that lists letterboxes world wide (Letterboxing North America). You search their data base and find a location either near you or where you are going. Print the information for the clues to find the letterbox and start your hunt.

Now, there are a few things you need in order to participate. You need a rubber stamp, an ink pad and a little notebook. When you find the letterbox, it will contain a stamp and a little notebook. You leave and impression of your stamp in their book and stamp their image into your book. We like to add the date, the city we live in and our "name". This is a hobby the kids and I have been doing for a few years now. It always amazes me that out in the middle of no where, in the middle of a small country town or just about anywhere, we can find these little treasures.

Below you can see our personal images.



This image is "Lady in Blue" Guess who it belongs to?







This is "Leatherback" Another give away!







This is "Princess of Hearts" This belongs to Mommy's little princess.




We each designed our own stamp and I carved them out for the kids and myself. They are stamped in the color ink pad that we use.

We'd love to take anyone on a letterbox adventure! Come join the fun.

Homemade Vanilla Extract

I received a recipe today on how to make vanilla extract. We're going to try this at home. I'll let you know in 2 months how it is! If you want to make you own, check out Simply Recipes at:
How to Make Vanilla Extract | Simply Recipes
It is unbelievably easy!

God's Creatures

We found a fascinating spider today. It was so beautiful, that it almost looked unreal. The back of the spider was gold and silver. It shimmered in the light. The translucent legs were bands of black and tan. It is always fun to find God's magnificent creatures so close to home. We usually get the simple brown spiders and an occasional black widow. To see such an unusual spider was really cool. Savanna and I drew the spider and Charles observed it with a magnifying glass. We caught it in a jar to show Mike when he gets home. We'll let him out later today. It took us some time, but we finally identified it on the internet. We discovered that it is a banded garden spider. Take a look:






As seen through a magnifying glass.

Apple Hill

The beginning of this week took us to Apple Hill. When Grandma and Grandpa Straight come, we've gotta go up there. It is so beautiful there and lots of great things to do and see. If you've never been there, check out this website Apple Hill Growers We spent the morning with our friends and plan on going again real soon. We need to get our pumpkins, some fresh apples and maybe even a pie (yummmmm.) It's a little cooler there too, so it is a nice escape for the STILL very warm weather here. Come and visit and we'll go to Apple Hill. Just be sure it is before Thanksgiving, that is when all the festivities end and the Christmas tree lots begin.






Here is Savanna on the tire swing! She is actually pretty far off the ground. The ground slopes down.

WOW, EWWWW, YUCK, OHHH

The title echoes the sentiments while experiencing the unhatched eggs. Yes, we broke them open to investigate what was inside. We were a little sad to see that one egg had a fully developed chick. We don't know why it didn't hatch. We saw the embryos at different stages of development. Some smelled a little off and others were flat out putrid, to say the least. Most had signs of a previous life.

I thought the kids would be taken back or really sad to see the results of the unhatched chickens, but they were both very scientific about the whole thing.

Savanna said she was sad that they had died, but she had an understanding that there was a reason they didn't live. She said, "They just weren't meant to live, Mom". Wow, to be able to understand that there is a reason for everything at her age is amazing to me. Especially for her. Those that know her can tell you, she is very dramatic. I was expecting a different reaction from her.

Charles commented that the whole experiment taught him perseverance and hope; that you keep going and hope for the best. Even though the best would have been 12 chicks, we only received one. His hope was never distinguished. He accepted what was given and moved on.

There is a whole lot I can learn from my kids! I need to accept what is given to me, whether good or bad, and I must persevere to the very end. In all that, I have the gift of hope to carry me through. In the end, I accept what I have been given and move on.

My children amaze me. To me they are still so young, yet they can teach me so much! Thank you God for these little treasures that you have entrusted to me. May I do you will and lead them closer to you! God Bless.

The One and Only

Well our chicken hatching days are over. #1 is the only survivor. Chickens are really ugly when they are first born, unless they belong to you and you hatch them yourself, then they are really cute. It amazes me how fast they grow and change on a daily basis.



#1 is only 1 day old here. Compare it to the other photo when it was just born. Remarkable changes in just 24 hours.





Being snug and secure, #1 is content to be carried around. Savanna actually started wrapping it up in a bandana and #1 liked it. We took it for a walk to visit our cousins around the block.



At only 2 days old, he is wrapped up and ready for travel.







One week later, #1 has already started to grow feathers on it's wings. It is truly amazing, the feathers get longer and bigger everyday! Look at the left foot, it is a little bendy. The massage didn't work so well.



At one week old, #1 likes to play with the kids.









Now we need to decide what to do with #1. It needs a friend to hang with. Decisions are in the making.