Christmas in May

There is nothing like finding a bargain that you can't pass up.

The other day I was walking through a specialty store here in town and noticed they were having their semi-annual sale. Anytime this store has this sale, I can expect to fill up my Christmas closet with all kinds of gems that would make wonderful holiday gifts for adult family members. My only disadvantage was that little Gus was with me and he has the male mind when it comes to shopping: Mom, why are we here and when will we be leaving. I explained to Gus that I just wanted to have a short look around and that we would not be too long. Gus moaned and groaned a bit, but finally entertained himself with some of the items around him. Plus I bribed him with candy (shameful, I know. But you've gotta do what you've gotta do!)

Not long after that, I found them. Simple. Elegant. Colorful. And the right price: $1.99 a piece.

Dinner Plates.

I have been looking for dinner plates for my kitchen for about three years. The ones I currently have have massive chips on them. The corresponding bowls have been long lost....probably used for boy science experiments or bug collecting. Same with my salad plates...I have no idea where those went. So, long story short, I needed some new dinner plates and found them on a whim. I was so excited to see stacks of these plates in various sizes and colors but hesitated in purchasing them since there is always something more important I should be spending my money on. I justified my decision by telling myself that I could return them later if they did not work. Yeah, well, they worked all right. I bought 14 plates: 7 cobalt blue, 7 mustard yellow = 14 dinner plates for the Clemens family. I also bought cereal bowls, mugs, and salad plates. They are sooo pretty. Makes me want to cook more! (really!)

One of the benefits of buying new things for the kitchen is that you must clean out the old cabinets in order to make room for the new things. I organized my dish cabinet, which in turn made me clean out my pots and pans cabinet, which dominoed into creating new storage space for my long-lost tupperware containers ( which are now being put to good use ) and finally helped me to throw out mounds of un-used Gladware tops. ( I had NO idea how many un-matched Gladware/plastic container tops I had.) I was able to organize all my Corningware with their original glass tops and put them in accessible spots in my kitchen. Last but not least, I laid my old dishes to rest in three very sturdy bags that went to a friend who said she would put them to good use. I also gave away old plastic novelty children's dishes along with mugs and mis-matched glassware. I tell you all...when you re-organize like I did, it's like you have a WHOLE kitchen of new dishes. Try it! It works!

When my husband returned from Idaho, I was a bit concerned with what his reaction to my little dish spree would be. At first he was like, "HOW MUCH?" But then I SHOWED him how nice and organized everything was and then he was mildly happy. "Well, I guess we did need them", he said. Merry Christmas to me!

Something I never thought I would say to one of my children:

Me: Gus, please take the tortilla off of your face. It is not a mask.

We DO thank you....

Today...when you are roasting your hotdogs and hamburgers, remember those who only have military rations to eat. When you are spending time with the ones you hold most dear; remember those who only have a gun and tank to keep them company. When you are spending time in the comforting cool of the neighborhood pool, remember those in the blistering sun of the desert. When you hug your spouse or child at the end of a glorious Memorial Day; remember those families whose mom or dad cannot be with them at night. And when you say your prayers tonight; pray for the many men and women who fight for that freedom. Hats off to all our military personnel overseas, past and present, and the families who suffer without them.

A great article sent by a friend:

Happy Memorial Day!

Can you hear me now?

It has been four days since my husband left to "commune" with nature with his brothers in Idaho and I'm really starting to miss him. At first when he leaves on any trip, I just hunker down and focus on what needs to get done with the kids while he is gone. I don't have much of a chance to think about missing him since I need to worry more about the kids and their needs. I purposely distract myself with the day to day routine so that I won't miss him. But tonight, in the quiet of my home..my kids are sleeping in their beds...as I look across the den at the chair he is usually in... I am forced to face the fact that he is not here with me and won't be here for another week or so. (sigh) The T.V. is on for background noise and is keeping me company; but does not match his presence. Most evenings after the kids have gone to bed, Chris and I sit in the den together. We each get out our laptops and work. It's our time together. Sometimes we talk, sometimes we don't. Either way, we are with each other and I've taken it for granted that it is a comfort to me. So tonight, I have to face the inevitable realization that I really hate it when he's gone. Really hate it.

When you are out in the mountains of Idaho, there are no cell towers, which means no cell phone service and no land line service either. Chris's younger brother brought a satellite phone with him for emergencies and for the brothers to use to check in with their families. Chris warned me that these kinds of phones are not very reliable and that it's hard to get a good connection. He called tonight to check in on us. The connection was so bad, that we could only talk for about 30 seconds. He called a second and third time and we quickly continued our conversation where we left off, knowing that at any moment we would lose the connection. After he lost me for a third time he called back and said, "Before I lose you again, I want to you know that I love you and miss you...all of you." Not 10 seconds later, he was gone again. But that was all I needed to hear; nothing else needed to be said; nothing was more important to me than those words. My husband of 13 years KNOWS the importance of those words and he makes sure that he tells me. It keeps me going until he comes back home and sits across from me in the den....

The last days...of innocence

After tomorrow, it will be the first time I will have a child out of pre-school in years. Gus is headed for Kindergarten in the Fall, Jack in 1st, Nick in 5th and Rebecca in 9th. May I always remember the innocence of the pre-school years and thank God for the privilege of being able to stay home with my children those tender days.

This is a picture of Gus playing with the bubbles on one of his last days of preschool camp.

Youth Convention Woes

As I mentioned earlier, I attended the Diocesan Youth Convention last weekend where around 700 teens gathered from various Deaneries to celebrate their Catholic Identity. The weekend includes various activities and speakers that teens can choose from, and culminates with a dance and free-expressions lounge where youth can participate in karaoke, recite poetry etc. All in all, I would describe it as a community building event more than a "retreat" experience. That being said, please don't take what I have the wrong way, but I did have some MAJOR issues with some of the speakers that presented talks during the breakout sessions.

One of the breakout sessions was presented by a priest (a Franciscan). The title of the presentation was called," How to stay married forever " and was to last for one hour. I was interested in what this priest had to say, and so did the majority of the kids from my youth group, so we all decided to attend. I held much hope that this talk would address the most common mistakes people make when choosing a spouse or maybe address important qualities to look for in a spouse...the issue of sexuality in marriage, how to avoid temptations when dating...you know...the stuff that youth are really wondering about and wrestling with.

We all sat together at a round table. While we waited for the speaker to arrive, the girls at my table were talking about the future and their desire to marry, and so did the guys. I could tell that they had come for answers. Good answers to give them hope for the future and hope in marriage. Before long, the ballroom FILLED with young teens interested in how to stay married forever. I was floored at the interest level. I mean, these kids had 7 or 8 speaker options, but this talk title had hit some kind of nerve with them and before long, over 200 kids waited for the speaker to begin. I thought to myself: Wow! What an opportunity of a life-time! A captive audience of INTERESTED teen-agers wanted to know more about marriage and life-long love! What a sight!

But the opportunity was totally lost.

Unfortunately the priest whittled away the first 30 minutes of his talk by talking about the beauty of pasta and bread...his favorite foods and tempted us by saying over and over..."I'm gonna' tell you how to stay married in just a minute..but first....blah, blah, blah," Finally, when he eventually gets to the crux of the talk, he starts talking in some sort of nebulous language that only theologians and religious theorists could decipher....not teens: "When someone walks down the isle with their fiance, they must come to the alter "full"...maybe even "spilling over" with what makes them complete. (Huh?) One should never expect another person to "fill" them. They need to come to the alter filled. (filled with what? pasta? themselves? God's love? Could we be more explicit here for the youth, please?) The teenagers at my table turned to me, their expressions looking confused and dazed. One whispered, "What is he talking about Georgie?" I just shook my head slowly and shrugged my shoulders.

At this point, I was chomping at the bit knowing that this priest had only 20 minutes left to impart some kind of wisdom to the youth...it was not happening. The opportunity was almost gone. He continued with this ambiguous language of what matters in a marriage. Finally the agony ended and he opened the ballroom up for questions. The youth just sat there. Stunnned into silence. Not sure what to ask or how to begin...maybe they were stoned with boredom or zapped with the realization that they were doomed to make the same mistakes as their parents. After a couple of seconds of silence, I raised my hand. "Father, could you please address the obsession our society has with sex and how an unrealistic view of sexuality can hurt a marriage? " The ballroom perked up. He answered with more ambiguous phrases . After he finished, I whispered in one of the teens ears to ask the priest what qualities to look for in a spouse. She raised her hand eagerly and asked my question. He answered, "Well, I think I answered that already...you need to find someone who is "full"..someone who is compatible with your fullness." My table looked at me puzzled.

Here's the scary thing. This priest did this same talk last year and was asked back this year? To present this talk at three different times! Go figure.

That's not all! The keynote speaker was a female D.J. who did a good job helping the youth look for positive messages in secular music. She had their attention mostly because she played clips of popular music where the kids could sing along during the presentation. She had some good things to say, but continually referred to "marriage" as being a "lifelong meaningful relationship" and never referred to someone having a spouse....only a "partner". Now, is it me, or is it too much to ask that the leaders of our church, the keynote speakers, etc refer to things like sacramental marriage? and husbands? and wives? and spouses? I could understand this better if it were some sort of secular conference, but this was a Catholic Youth Conference where the kids were hungering for answers to life questions. References to the sacraments are integral to being a Catholic...where have we gone that we bow to modern terminology in our churches and ignore traditions we hold sacred? things we hold as essential tenants of our faith? How confusing is that to teenagers? It subtly sends a message to the youth of our religion that marriage doesn't matter..only "meaningful relationships". What does that mean anyway?

It's this kind of stuff that makes me want to run, not walk, over to some of the Protestant Youth Conferences and steal a few of their youth speakers. They don't sugar coat issues and their youth respond favorably. Why not? If our youth speakers make little or no references to sacramental marriage or chastity or even the Bible..with passion.... why not ask a Protestant leader who will address a least a few of these issues? Am I over-reacting here?

Triple Dog Dare You

There's nothing like a slippery water slide on a hot spring day UNLESS your kids decide that the 16 ft water slide is insufficient and you need to make it longer by attaching another 20ft slide to that one. And if that is not enough for your kids, you can make it even BETTER by laying a 6 ft tarp at the end (to save your back from getting scratched by the grass when you complete your "sweet" moves down the slide). Three slip and slides plus one pretty steep front yard makes for an afternoon of neighborhood excitement...never to matched!




Oh, yeah!! We triple dog dare you to go down THAT slide!



Er... can I change my mind?



Geronimooooooooooo!

The Truth Hurts Sometimes

I just returned from Youth Convention where one of my "darling" high schoolers realized that I am pregnant.

Youth: Georgie! I did not know you were preganant!

Me: Really? I thought most of you guys knew.

Youth: Naw, I didn't know. I just thought you were getting really fat!!!!

Youth Convention

I'm off to Greenville for the Diocesan Youth Convention where over 800 teen-agers will be gathering to praise God and enjoy a number of fabulous Catholic youth speakers. I'll be back on Sunday and tell you how it goes. Prayers for these youth and their chaperones, that they be inspired by the holy spirit and re-dedicated to their faith.

Oh, and hey, I get to drive a rental car to the Convention Center... It's so nice and clean and new...and ....oh, makes me want a new car!!!!

Redeemed!

In the comments box of my last post, I mentioned an update bout the bully I confronted in the bagel store. For those of you who did not read it, I'll relay the story here.

This morning, I walked into the bagel store again for my "regular" order. I was alittle nervous wondering if the crazed bully might be there, but he wasn't. Relieved, I walked up to the counter and asked, " Did that crazy guy come back today?" The employee nodded his head and said, "yeah, he showed up this morning and apologized to everyone." I was taken aback. He apologized! Unreal! I sputtered out "He did? Wh...Wh... Well isn't that wonderful!" I turned around and headed toward my car....on cloud nine!

Never, ever, in a million years would I have thought that a man like that would apologize. Never. I had given up on the man. I was sure that he was a lost soul. Not a good bone in his body. But I was wrong. I learned that I am much more condemning of people than my God is. Where I give up on someone, God continues to work His magic. It was a good reminder that we all are "works in progress" and can see God even in the corner bagel store. Amen!

BTW: My bagel tasted extra yummy today!

Bagels and Bullies

Many mornings, after I drop the kids off to their respective schools, I sneak over to the local bagel store and grab a hot bagel and a glass of iced tea. It is my favorite treat of the day and gets my morning off to a good start.

I've been going to this bagel stop for at least 5 years off and on, but my visits have become more frequent this year since all four have school every morning. The employees at the shop are familiar faces. They exchange pleasantness with the patrons as they prepare their bagels. When they see me, they don't even ask what I would like. They know. They simply grab an everything bagel, toast it, put a moderate amount of butter on it and pass it to the cashier who looks at me and says, " Ice Tea?". I say "yes" with lots of ice...and whallah! It's mine! My bagel and tea....sweet harmony.

But today was not so harmonious in the bagel store. In fact, it was quite disturbing.

As I walked into the store this morning, I stood in line behind a decent looking man about my age. He was wearing khaki shorts and a tan shirt. Very normal looking. He was waiting for his order to be finished. All of a sudden he yelled at the female manager of the store who was working behind the counter and said, " Don't be a smart-a**!" At first I thought he was joking around with her, but he then said, "Yesterday you were a smart a**, and I don't appreciate it. Do you understand me?"

He was obviously NOT joking with her at that point. I saw her face turn 4 shades of red. She turned and spoke quietly to a co-worker, and then turned and calmly asked to help the next customer. I could tell she was shaken up by his tone and embarrassed at his comments. Even so, she continued to work as he waited for his order...all the while glaring at her. She asked for the next customer in line and so I approached the counter, smiled at her and asked for my everything bagel. (She didn't remember my regular order, understandably.) I moved down the line to pay for my order and then he started in on her again. Loudly. " I want SALMON on it this time and don't mess it up! Do you understand? Did you HEAR me?" She just kept working. There was so much anger in his tone and attitude. Everyone in the store was silent...customers as well as employees. No one was saying anything...NOT ONE of the men in line with me said ONE WORD to this man. As I checked out I asked the cashier what the deal was with the guy, and he just mumbled, "Who knows."

My heart started thumping faster as I contemplated speaking to this jerk, wondering why any human being would ever treat someone else in such a disrespectful manner and WHY no one else was saying anything. I mean, after all, it was JUST a BAGEL. Not worth the bullying he was giving this woman. I gathered my things and had decided to forget all about it, but my feet decided to do the opposite. Before I knew it, I was at the side of this man. I touched him gently on the arm while he was waiting for his order, leaned into him so that I did not make a scene and whispered, " Why are you bullying that woman? Why are you doing this?" He turned and looked at my me and at my baby belly, his face softened and said, "Well, SHE was RUDE to me YESTERDAY!" His volume was up and by now everyone knew what I was doing. I leaned in closer to his face, stared into his eyes and said even more quietly, " But it's only a BA-GEL. It's not worth all this energy. " Well...he was not too happy with that little comment and barked, "Why do you think this is any of YOUR business anyway?" I said sternly,(as if I were speaking to one of my children) but still quietly, "You made it everyone's business in this shop when you started yelling expletives at her for everyone to hear." With that he turned and walked away from me and yelled, "*uck off." I responded, "Bully" and walked away to my car.

Nice. Great way to start off the day.

OK, now many of you are thinking that I'm crazy for even approaching this man. Even my husband was mortified to hear of what I did. "Georgie! He could have had a knife or a gun. What were you thinking?" Yeah, OK, point made, but there were at least 20 people in the store...I did not get the vibe that he was on drugs or "dangerous" man. I knew he was just being a jerk and could not stand one more minute of his abuse. I mean, at what point, as Christians do we act when we see an act of injustice? At what point do we walk away and do nothing? All I know, is that if I were paid minimum wage, had to get up at 4am to make bagels for strangers only to be hassled by a jerky patron...I'd have wanted someone to stick up for me. Honestly 9 times out of 10, I admit I walk away...but I could not this time. It was just too harsh, too blatant, too inhumane.

sigh.

DaVinci Stuff

There has been much hulabaloo about the impending release of the Da Vinci Code movie. I recently read a poll that indicated that one out of four christians now view the theories presented in the Code book as truth. (ug.)I'll never forget when a parishoner/youth volunteer came up to me and stated, "Can you believe what the church has hidden from us all these years?" I wanted to shake the woman and say..."What?? You actually believe this stuff?" I, for one, have NO intention of veiwing the movie...the book was mediocre enough for me. Instead, I plan to take my kids to see the release of the movie: Over the Hedge

One good way to educate ouselves and others who tend to believe this fiction is to visit the US Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) which holds a wealth of information about Jesus and the Church. This site answers many of the questions raised by the book. Be sure to check it out before the release!!!

Yet another good resource for insights on how churches are using the Da Vinci Code as a tool to talk about the realities of the Church can be found here

Baseball, Boys and Burger King

There is nothing more enjoyable than an afternoon of baseball with all three boys and then ending with a big 'ol Whopper from Burger King!

A Happy Mother...

and her beautiful children.

Thanks kids (and Chris) for a wonderful day of rest, home-made pizza, chocolate, Josh Grobin and massages. I am loved in so many ways.

What are they thinking?

A friend of mine called tonight to firm up plans for Mother's Day dinner. Her family and mine are gathering on Sunday; the guys are going to be making dinner for the moms while the girls will be going out for manicures or a ceramics session (we have not decided which activity yet).

My girlfriend,s son has kindly offered to help watch the boys on Mothers Day. He is a well-rounded young man, a senior at the local high school, a track star, Sunday school teacher, youth leader at the parish, and has just been accepted to the Air Force Academy with special honors. All in all he is a special guy with a good head on his shoulders and a bright future ahead of him. He's the kind of boy that my boys stand in awe of....he owns REAL swords...has big muscles...and likes to play rough and tumble games with them. To my boys' chagrin...he ALSO has a girlfriend.

Tomorrow is prom for this young man and his many friends. Excitement is in the air and the youth are preparing dresses, shoes, hair and transportation. They are also planning pre-prom dinners, post prom parties, and co-ed sleepovers (pause and re-read that last item) Yes, you read that correctly: CO-ED SLEEPOVERS! All of the friends of this young man will be spending the night in backyard tents at the home of another friend. My girlfriend called me tonight for moral support after she announced to her son that he could NOT sleep over with his girlfriend at this friends house after prom. She proceeded to tell me that ALL of the parents are allowing their kids to sleepover....some of which are already engaging in sexual relations. "I am the mean mom, as usual." my friend lamented to me.

" Well, you know, they are all good kids." the host mother told my friend. " I'd rather have them here, safe at my house, than somewhere else where they may not be safe." My friend responded, " Well, we do not approve of co-ed sleepovers and would rather our son be in his own bed, in his own home. If he is too tired to drive, we will be happy to pick him up when things start to wind down."

OK. NOW. Are we the only ones who think that it is absolutely CRA-ZY to allow co-ed sleepovers on prom night? Have these parents forgotten how the hormones rage at that age? Have they completely lost any moral compass that gives them the sense to parent these....(sorry if this seems naive) children???? I for one have NOT forgotten how hard it is to be a teenager and boy do I remember the temptations! I had a boyfriend in high school, and if it weren't for my parents strict rules and high expectations, I could have EASILY gotten into trouble. Prom night was NO exception...I had to be in at 12:30am...no post party...sleep-overs were unheard of. "Good kids" get tempted, they struggle and fight to do the right thing. But everyone has a limit and sponsoring a co-ed sleepover crosses that limit for most kids.

Today these kinds of post prom sleepovers are the norm. You are not a cool mom unless you allow your children to experience such an event. I backed my girlfriend 100% in her decision to not allow her son to sleepover. But the sad part is that I'm the only one she could call...the only one she knew that would understand her plight. What has happened in my town that a mom has to go searching for someone that holds her same morals on this behavior. And we wonder why abortion is prevalent, teenage pregnancy is prevalent, so many are filling their bodies with birth control hormones, girls are objectifying themselves, boys are objectifying girls, gang rapes, date rapes and on and on.........wanting your kids to be somewhere "safe" on prom night is a relative term when you think of the dangers that are lurking in your own backyard!

Wake up! Parents!!

How to weigh yourself correctly

A friend sent this to me today. It gave me a good laugh since my waistline is getting bigger, the scale numbers are getting bigger, and my clothes are getting a good workout!

Kissy, Kissy

Most nights when it's time to get ready for bed, I usually get moans and groans from the boys about how they are not ready for bed. They usually resort to various time consuming activities to weaken my resolve like asking for "one more book" or " a drink of water" or " I just need to get one thing from the toy room!" (They sleep with numerous hard, plastic knights, dragons, and weapons) When I mention that it is time for a bath, Jack and Gus will simutaneously say things like, "But we just had one YES-TUR-DAY!" or "NO,MOOOOM. Please....I don't need a bath, only Nick does 'cause he's bigger". I usually stand strong when attacked with a bombardment of these requests and insist that my commands be met; but last night I cracked. I gave in. I couldn't help it. It was so sweet.

After the kids were in bed (or so we thought) Chris and I were sitting in the living room talking when we heard that familiar sound of footsteps coming down the steps. Who was it this time? Is it Jack wanting another story? Gus wanting a drink of water? Nick needing some sort of medicine to cure a phantom ache? A few seconds later, Gus's head peeked from around the corner. He looked at me a smiled shyly and said,

"Mom. Can I kiss the baby goodnight?"

I was totally unprepared for that kind of request, so I said yes.

Gus (who saw his window of opportunity) bounded from around the corner, came over to me and wrapped his arms around my growing belly. "Goodnight baby" he said and kissed my tummy gently. Afterwards, he gave me a smile and a kiss and snuck back upstairs to the bed.

So much for standing strong. I guess I'll get two visits tonight.

Pure Fashion: It's back in style

Here is a great excerpt from the article bootylicious backlash written by Anne Marie Owens. A prime example of what small religious groups like the Catholic Challenge Girls Club can influence if they work hard enough.

Coleen Kelly Mast of Catholic Answers, says Pure Fashion can impress upon young girls how important it is to consider how they present themselves to others. "You are a walking advertisement," she says. "The type of clothing you wear will either advertise your body — or your values and beliefs as a person."
"Teenage girls often don’t realize what men and boys think and feel when they see girls dressed immodestly. Clothes that are tight, short, skimpy or transparent can be a real temptation for others to lust."

"Teaching modesty should be a normal part of the discipline of children on the road to self-mastery," she says. "It can remind them of their inner dignity as a child of God. Each time a child shops for or gets a new outfit, the question of modesty should be addressed. Children can begin to think about the statements they are making with their clothes."

MMMMMMMMMM!

While the boys were out at Nick's baseball game, I made a really wonderful dinner with leftover turkey from last week. It was really good, easy to make, and a hit with the kids (which is always a plus!) I added this side dish which my kids did NOT eat, but our friend Mike (who was visiting from Catholic University Seminary) LOVED it! I also served bread, salad, and for dessert....ice cream! Give these recipes a try!

The older they get, the smarter they get

Sorry for the lack of postings, but this weekend was a massively busy one with Rebecca's 8th Grade Dance, Birthday Parties, Sleepovers, 8th Grade Parties, work stuff, and end of year youth ministry cookouts! I'll post on a couple of these events since they are worth documenting, but for now, I'd like to post on my daughter's 8th grade dance which was held on Friday.

This night was extra special in that she is quite obviously growing up before our eyes..out of childhood into womanhood. Those who know my daughter knows that she is a simple kind of kid. No frills. Very practical. She is not one to run to the beauty salon for a make-over, but instead asked me to do her hair and make-up. She was happy to wear the red dress from my parents's 50th wedding anniversary instead of buying a new one; (I offered to get her a new one) and she decided that her old silver shoes would work fine. The only thing "new" that she wore were some earrings and a bra. No, she didn't arrive at the dance in a limo or Cadillac as seems to be the custom these days with some parents. She just arrived in a van owned by a friend. Nothing special.

But as I watched my daughter in all her practicality walk into the dance...and as I saw the other kids arrive in their brand new dresses and shoes and limos I saw something VERY special. A beautiful girl that stood out from the rest; tall and slender, a blend of myself of old, my mom, and my sisters. I saw a girl who knows who she is and what she wants. Rebecca does not care to put on airs like the rest of us; she does not try to be someone she isn't; she is beautiful as she is and she teaches me more about honesty and truth than most adults. She reminds me through her simplicity that our natural selves are more beautiful and beautifully made--created by God--- than anything we could ever put on, or buy, or alter ourselves with. So, after I left the dance, I did what every parent does when they realize that their children are growing up with their own minds and personalities: I cried.

Prayers Please

Prayers for a kindergartener at Jack's school who tragically lost his daddy in a car accident shortly after morning drop-off. The mother is left with her 5 year old son and her 2 year old daughter. May the angels lead him into paradise and comfort those family members who are feeling this immense loss.

Dinner Bell

I'm thinking that I am completely over the "night sickness" that plagued me the first four months of my pregnancy. In fact, I've been "taking back" some of my normal responsibilities from Chris who (by the way) has done a great job in my absence. I confess that during the first 3 months of my pregnancy, making dinner was a stomach turning sacrifice when I actually rose from my horizontal position long enough to put something together. The sights and smells of raw meat, beans or cheese kept me from making anything more exotic than peanut butter sandwiches with a side of pretzels AND if you you were LUCKY....some sliced apples. Many nights we simply ordered pizza or ate soup. Other nights, Chris would attempt frying some chicken (ewh) or warming leftover pizza.

Oh, but NOW....now...I'm feeling much, much, better and so I want a little credit for making a great dinner tonight consisting of
this and this with some crusty Italian bread on the side, a fresh fruit salad, and cookies for dessert. Everyone loved it; but no one more than my sweet husband who exclaimed, " Oh, it's like I have a wife again!"

Spring Planting

The signs of Spring are everywhere!

I invited Jack and Gus to join me in planting some Geraniums, Pansies and Basil. Jack was interested, but Gus turned me down and chose to play inside. After some digging, watering, and re-arranging of the front porch, Jack excitedly exclaimed, " Mom, this is almost as fun as playing VIDEO games!" Realizing what he just said, Jack ran back inside the house to report this epiphany to Gus.

Jack: (Yelling up the stairs) Gus, planting flowers is ALMOST as fun as playing video games!

Gus: (Yelling from upstairs) What? Almost as fun?

Jack: Yes! Come! Come out and see!

Gus ran out the front door to the front yard and eagerly starting planting and watering with us. He loved it.

Gus: Mom, aren't the flowers just beautiful?

Me: Yes, Gus. They are VERY beautiful.....mostly because you and Jack helped me plant them.

Mary's Month

Hail, Holy Queen, Mother of Mercy, hail, our life, our sweetness and our hope! To thee do we cry, poor banished children of Eve! To thee do we send up our sighs, mourning and weeping in this vale of tears! Turn then, most gracious advocate, thine eyes of mercy towards us; and after this, our exile, show unto us the blessed fruit of thy womb, Jesus! O clement, O loving, O sweet Virgin Mary!

A Revelation....

I can't remember where I saw it, but it was on some web page. There was a poll being conducted about the Church's Corporal Works of Mercy. The question was something along the lines of this:

Which corporal work of mercy do you do most often?

Feed the hungry
Give drink to the thirsty
Clothe the naked
Shelter the homeless
Visit the sick
Visit those in prison
Bury the dead

I glanced at the list and initially thought to myself, "Gee, my husband and I don't do any of those things like we should." I didn't answer the poll; I just thought about how I needed to make time for more spiritual commitments in my life. But upon further reflection and after reading an excerpt out of the book, "Life-Giving Love" written by Kimberly Hahn I realized that maybe my husband and I WERE participating in the corporal works of mercy more than I thought.....a mother/father's corporal work of mercy:

I was...

hungry: We made a great bbq chicken dinner for the kids, made a batch of chocolate chip cookies for the neighbor kids playing outside.
thirsty: Made sure that the boys had plenty of water for their baseball practices; and lemonade after playing outside with friends
naked: We dressed the kids in their play clothes today, did a couple of loads of laundry so their clothes were clean and fresh smelling; wrapped those naked bodies in a fresh towel after their bath...oooh they smell so good!
a stranger: I am welcoming a new child into my womb; preparing the baby room; we are planning for his/her arrival
in prison: I encouraged a friend who is going through many emotional changes in her life and family; she just needed someone to listen.

Sometimes we moms and dads get bogged down with mundane tasks that make us feel as if we are not doing enough for God, but there are seasons of life for everything, and right now...a path to holiness with God lies not within how much we are doing for others, but how much we are doing for our children, our spouse, and the "stranger" who is about to knock on our door in September.

RECALL NOTICE....

A funny start to your morning sent by a friend:

Regardless of Make, Model, Year, or Tithe Amount, all units known as "human beings" are being recalled by the Manufacturer. This is due to a malfunction in the original prototype units named "Adam" and "Eve", resulting in the reproduction of the same defect in all subsequent units. This defect is technically called "Serious Internal Non-morality," more commonly known as "SIN." Symptoms of the SIN defect include, but are not limited to: Lack of peace and joy, Loss of direction, Foul vocal emissions, Depression, Selfishness, Ingratitude, Fearfulness, Jealousy, Rebellion.

The Manufacturer is providing factory authorized repair service FREE of charge to correct the SIN defect. The Master Repair Technician, Jesus Christ, has most generously offered to bear the entire burden of the staggering cost of these repairs. The toll free number to call for immediate repair in all areas is 1-800-SACRAMENTS.

Once connected, please upload burden of SIN through REPENTANCE procedure. Next, download FORGIVENESS from Repair Technician, Jesus Christ, into the SOUL component of the human unit. No matter how big or small the SIN defect, Jesus will replace it, at no extra charge, with: Love, Peace, Joy, Goodness, Kindness, Faithfulness.

Please see the Operating Manual, "BIBLE" (Basic Instructions Before Leaving Earth), for further details on using these fixes and enhancing overall performance. As an added upgrade, the Manufacturer has made available to all human units a direct monitoring and assistance hotline, called PRAYER, from the oncall Help Desk, THE HOLY SPIRIT, available 24 hours per day, 7 days per week.

WARNING:
Continuing to operate a human unit without these corrections voids the Manufacturer's Warranty and exposes the unit to dangers and problems too numerous to list and may ultimately result in the self destruction of the human unit.

Thank you for your immediate attention. Please assist the Manufacturer by notifying other human units of this most important recall notice.

Beautiful moments of success...

When my firstborn child was a toddler/pre-schooler, I would regularly visit the local library with her and check out at least 20 children's books. Most every night I would read a huge stack of books so often that we even memorized words to some of the books. Those were the days! Today, with four crying out loud, I'm lucky to get to the library once a month...and even then...the books the kids check out somehow get scattered in the car, in bedrooms, in various bookshelves or beds where I have a hard time locating them if ever I have time to READ them aloud. But you know, just when I start to get those, "You are not an attentive enough mom" or " You don't read enough to your kids" voices in my head; God appears. He appears in subtle ways that one would not expect, but He speaks volumes!

As parents we think we must be the only ones teaching our children the love of reading, writing, etc. and certainly this is true in the early stages. But what a beautiful thing when the fruit of that early formation results of one or more of your children doing the same for his/her siblings! It's the ultimate goal if you think about it....with all things..from passing on the faith, to reading to others, to giving to the poor to sharing special things. When your children reach the point of "doing for others selflessly" .... that, in itself can be considered successful parenting! My kids practice this stuff on each other all the time! At times the outcome is positive and at other times they end up being selfish. Today, my heart filled with pride as I watched Nick offer to read a book Jack brought home from the school library. His younger brothers were riveted to every word, and so was Nick.

I had to take a picture of the moment.....



Here is what Nick read to his brothers.

This one's for the girls!

Here's to Rebecca's softball team. The season is over with a record of zero wins, two forfeits, and 100% heart! Let's hear it for the girls!!

I'm happy to say....

that I had a good night's sleep last night. No heartburn.

Heart Ache

It's been five years since my pregnancy with Gus, and it's amazing how much I had forgotten about pregnancy after such a short period of time. For example, I forgot how bad he morning sickness (or in my case, the afternoon and night sickness) could be, the poking and prodding done by doctors, the slower pace of my walking, the everyday smells that turn your stomach the weird cravings of odd types of food (I've been craving orange juice! I NEVER drink orange juice) and on and on. Last night, I was reminded of yet another pregnancy symptom that I had long forgotten about: heartburn.

The last few weeks of my pregnancy, I've been feeling more myself; more normal but at the same time I get hunger pangs all the time. Last night, my dinner consisted of roasted turkey, pasta, salad with a sprinkle of basalmic vinegar and water. "Oh what joy!" I thought to my starving self when I arrived home after a long day of driving kids to and fro "time for dinner!" I was eager to eat last night, and piled my plate with my leftover delicacies! When I sat down to eat with my daughter, Rebecca (the boys were at a baseball game) I. Was. Hungry. I didn't care what I ate, I didn't care who it was with, I didn't care where I was, I just wanted to EAT. Unfortunately, in my eagerness for food I ate too much, too quickly but still was satisfied all the same. But only for awhile.....

Then the feeling struck...that feeling I had not felt in a long time. It was a burning sensation starting in my chest and moving up to my throat. "No problem" I thought to myself. "I'll just pop a few Tums and I'll be just fine." So I did, but things were not so fine. I went to bed at about 11:00pm but not one hour later the pain woke me so I ate 2 more Tums. I waited for the Tums to take effect, added a few more pillows to my bed for elevation, and went back to bed. Again, I woke an hour later with that familiar pain, took 2 more Tums and decided to sleep upright. I drug my comforter to the rocking chair in my room and tried to make myself comfortable. "Please God, I just need some sleep!" I prayed. God did not hear my prayer, the pain continued so I had to resort to two tablespoons of Pepto-Bismol. Now THAT helped and I was able to sleep for another hour, but awoke at 4 am with more discomfort. More Tums, more pillows, another visit with the rocking chair, then the bed, then more Tums. Finally at 6am I fell asleep for good. Until the alarm rang at 6:30am. I pulled myself out of the bed to make lunches, and get kids dressed, drive carpool, and run work errands. All day today, that haunting heartburn feeling stayed with me.

I learned my lesson at breakfast and lunch to eat smaller portions, and eat more slowly. Dinner consisted of home-made tacos, salad and corn. This evening, when I returned home from taking Jack and Gus to swim lessons, I. Was. Hungry. (again) I ate a soft taco and corn....and then another taco. As I sit here and write, I'm wondering if I'll have yet another "episode" of heartburn tonight. Hope not...I 'I'll let you know in the morning!

Cooking Never Tasted So Good

Jack and Gus are eager to help in the kitchen, especially when they know they'll be helping with the creation of something sweet!



But what they really desire is the leftover batter on the beaters. Here I caught them in the act of licking.....



Gus: Mom, don't you need to make more cake? We can help you!

Some resources for you....

As you all may recall, I attended the Catholic Religious Education Congress in California a few weeks ago and promised to relay some of the resources I found that may be helpful to everyday lay Catholics who are looking for something interesting to read. Here are some of the books I’ve picked up...but have not read yet. They patiently sit on my coffee table for when I have time to read. Disclaimer: I am not a theologian in any sense of the word (shocking, I know) or a learned scholar on church topics or issues..I am recommending these books mostly from the point of view of a (1) mom who desires to learn more about the Catholic faith, (2) religious educator always looking for new and practical resources to pass on to families and youth, and (3) person simply trying to gain daily inspiration. I hope some of these books interest you, and if so...let me know what you think. I’ll include a title, author and a short description of the item.

1. A Mother’s Rule of Life: How to Bring Order to Your Home and Peace to Your Soul

“Motherhood and homeschooling had overwhelmed her. The house was dirty, the laundry undone. Holly felt frustrated , discouraged, and alone. She couldn’t find time to snuggle and have fun with her five children or to go our with her husband. Yes, she loved Philip and she loved God, but she had come to resent Philip’s freedom and she almost never found time for prayer.”

2. 101 Questions & Answers on Vatican II: Maureen Sullivan, OP

(BTW: I love this author so much that I want to BE her. I’ve listened to her speak on two separate occasions and have found her to be smart, fair, funny, logical, practical, physically and inwardly gorgeous, and honest. To top it all, she’s a nun...)

“For people who have heard of Vatican II but have only experienced the Council through a glass darkly, this book answers the basic question: “Just what was Vatican II?”

3. The Death of Innocents, An Eyewitness Account of Wrongful Executions: Sister Helen Prejean

“From the author of the national bestseller “Dead Man Walking” comes a brave and fiercely argued new book that tests the moral edge of the debate on capital punishment. What if we’re executing innocent men? “ Two cases in point are examined closely.

4. The How-To Book of the Bible: Everything You Need to Know but No One Ever Taught You-Karl A. Shultz

“Perhaps you know very little about the Bible...or enoughto realize there’s so much more to discover! maybe your previous attempts to read the Bible have not been fruitful, and you don’t get much out of the readings at Mass. You observe the role the Bible plays in the lives of others and feel that you're missing something.”

5.Compendium of the Catechism of the Catholic Church ( hot off the presses)

A shorter, easier to read summary of the very popular reference book, “The Catechism of the Catholic Church”. I recommend to all youth ministry parents that they have.... at the very least ....a Catechism in their home bookshelves and a good Catholic Study Bible. When children get older, they start asking the “hard” questions. Parents need to be ready when these questions arise and frequently refer to the Catechism for answers. The compendium makes things easier to find or look up.

6. Sacred Necessities : Gifts for Living with Passion, Purpose and Grace-Terry Hershey

A short book on finding the sacred in our lives.

7. Be With Us Today: Music by Michael John Poirtier

I heard this man sing during a contemplative Mass at the Religious Education Congress and his voice, lyrics and gentle manner stirred my soul to the point that I had to run to the bathroom to grab Kleenex tissues. His music is gentle and prayerful...sometimes with only a guitar and violin. It’s the lyrics that he writes that helps the listener grow ever deeper in prayer with Jesus...in a contemplative way. He has many, many CD’s, but his current release has, in my opinion, some of his best songs. My personal favorites: I will renew your heart, and All will be well.

Yes, it's true.

The word is getting around that we're expecting a 5th child. I'm always amused at people's reactions when they find out. I promised myself that I would write some of these reactions down, so this is the theme of today's post. To be accurate, the vast majority of people are sincerely happy for us, but every now and then I get the stunned, crazed look that's accompanied by a silly question or phrase. Here are a few of my favorites:

1. Are you crazy? (my personal favorite)
2. Well, if you are happy, then I am happy
3. So... how do you feel about that?
4. Was it planned?
5. Oh. Did you know our donkey is pregnant too?
6. Could you repeat that?
7. I'm glad it's you and not me
8. How old are you?
9. Does your husband know?
10. Haven't you figured out what causes that yet?

Note to my husband....

You have nothing to worry about. I like brains AND
brawny


HT: The Common Room

Mr. Big

Nick was 30 minutes late coming home for dinner from a friends house yesterday.

Me: Nick, what took you so long to get home?

Nick: (He's 9) We were just working out.

Me: (hiding my amusement) Really? Like with exercise equipment?

Nick: Yeah, Jake has a really cool new exercise room with all kinds of weight lifting equipment; so we thought we would work out.

Me: Oh. Are you going to show me your muscles? Nick lifts his sleeve and flexes his muscle. Jack and Gus were equally impressed with their older brother's "buffness".

Nick confidently announces to everyone at the dinner table: You think I'm strong...you should see Jake...He has an 8 pack.

Me: Ohhhhhh, an 8 pack. That is HARD to do! Impressive!

Boys.

The Battle of the Signs

Thanks to Happy Catholic for this hysterical post.

Click Here and get a good laugh!

Introducing....

the newest Clemens baby!



A wave to you!

A tender moment...

So I had my first intensive ultrasound to see the newest Clemens babe today. It was at 8:00am so I'd decided to take Jack and Gus along so that they could get a first glimpse of their baby brother or sister. As we all gazed at the blurry miracle on the monitor, I asked Gus what he thought:

Gus: (not sure of what he was looking at) That totally fweaks me out.

I want one

I just discovered this unique little calendar perfect for the busy Catholic mom or wife. See what you think.

Easter Vigil

Ahhhhh! The Great Easter Vigil is the arguably the greatest night in the liturgical year. It's filled with symbolism, music, conversion, tradition and story-telling. I look forward to this night not only because it marks the passing of Lent, but reminds me to rejoice in the gift of my life, family and God with a renewed sense of His purpose and hopefully STRENGTH to lead my family into a healthy respect of the church and faith.

I have a sense that my son Nicholas viewed the evening as something much different, much more torturous and painful.

I knew it was going to be a long night when I announced to my older children that we would be going to the 2 1/2 hour Vigil earlier in the day on Saturday. Rebecca had no problem with the announcement, but Nicholas (who I had to call home from a birthday party) moaned and groaned.

Nick: MOMMMM! We have to go to church tonight?

Me: Yes, Nick

Nick: Do I have to dress up?

Me: (calmly) Yes, Nick

Nick: (cow-like moan) I can't find my clothes.

Me: They are hanging in the laundry room, Nick. Oh, and don't wear your tennis shoes with your dress slacks, they are too dirty. Your dress shoes are in your closet.

Nick slumps over and walks slowly away to get dressed. I can hear faint moans coming from his closet. Nick re-appears in my bathroom dressed and wearing his nice shoes. He starts again:

Nick: MOOOOMMMM

Me: (patient and steady) Yes Nick

Nick: These shoes make me look like a clown.

Me: They look great.

Nick: (whining) But they are uncomfortable. Can I please wear my tennis shoes.

Me: ( even steadier) No. Go...get...in....the...car.

When we arrived at the church, we immediately joined the masses outside for the candle-light procession into the church. I was worried that Nick might accidentally set someone's hair on fire, not being the sort of child who is very conscious of others around him, but luckily all were safe. We filed into our pew with other parishioners but were "smooshed" so we moved Nick and Rebecca into the pew in front of us. Not FIVE minutes into the Mass, Nick leaned backwards and asked in a pained face: Mom, how much longer? At this point, I was getting a bit impatient with his complaints and so I glared at him with steely eyes and said in a cold whisper, " You KNOW how long Nick. Now turn around before your father takes you OUT." ( You do not want to be taken OUT of church by dad, because there is a 90% chance it will end with a good spanking .) So Nick turned around, shoulders hung and defeated and settled into Mass.

Now normally, I would mentally prepare myself for the Mass, but could not get a good focus on what was going on before me since Nicholas sat figiting in front of me throughout the entire Mass. If one had a time lapse camera, you would have seen Nick with his head tilted far back on the back railing of the pew in some kind of sleep mode (I firmly pushed his head up in a clear signal that this was NOT appropriate church posture), bent over examining his shoes, picking at wax on the floor, bending his candle in all kinds of odd shapes and making shadow finger plays on the pew cushion. After about 2 hours into the mass, Nick said in another pained whisper, " Mom, I'm having a hard time breathing. Can I get some water and air?" I looked at his dad for his opinion and since he had bouts of health problems earlier that week, we agreed that he could go to the water fountain and get some air.

After Mass, we visited in the Narthex with friends while Nicholas and his friends quietly sat in a corner enjoying the cake, lemonade and veggies. Nick seemed to be feeling better (miraculous) and did not complain once since being released from his pew prison. After awhile, a friend came up to me and jokingly said, "Your son was getting ready to run some races in the Narthex before Mass was out." I replied, " Nick?" She said, " Oh, yeah. He and two of his buddies were posed in starting position over by the bathroom doors and were getting ready to race down the hall. So I went over and broke up the event and informed them that Mass was not over and that they should be sitting quietly." I said to my friend, " Is that right? Well, thanks for letting me in on that interesting little piece of information. Oh, and by the way, you always have my full permission to set him straight anytime you see him out of line. Thank you for correcting that bad behavior."

For a boy who was having a hard time breathing earlier in Mass, I found it quite interesting that he was healthy enough to want to run a race before church was over. When I asked him about it, he pleaded innocent. " We didn't run mom! I promise. We were just posed to run. We were not really going to do it! " I said to my son, " Nick, there is NO excuse for even pretending to run down the Narthex during Mass. It better not happen EVER again. Do you understand?"

Nick: Yes mom.

It's an Easter of new beginnings and renewed strength. I'm tired already.

God or the Girl?

My husband and I have been blessed to have befriended a few seminarian candidates and priests in our 8 years here in North Carolina. These men have blessed our family life in ways too numerous to count. We've spent many a night in deep conversation about vocation, God's calling, the good days of being a priest or seminarian and the difficult times. When speaking with our seminarian friends, they always relay the very real struggle of discerning God's call to the priesthood or to family life as a married man. It's a very hard process they must go through spiritually, mentally, physically and emotionally and is a hard thing to watch. Sometimes their family is hostile to the idea of priesthood, sometimes their hearts yearn for the companionship of a wife and kids, other times these guys weave in and out of the seminary searching for the path God desires for them. Either way, a decision is made with a large dose of prayer and faith.

I was happy to see that there is now a reality show that focuses on the real life issues facing young men discerning the priesthood. It focuses on four young Catholic men and the choice they must make: God or the Girl. The show can be seen on the A&E channel from 9-11pm on Sundays. While it's been getting great reviews from the USCCB and other groups, we'll have to watch to get the full story. I don't have the A&E channel, so if anyone watches it, please let me know your opinion. I may want to buy the 6 week series for the young men in our parish....It could be a great tool for discussion on the topic of vocations in our faith development classes. A show like this, if well done, can plant seeds for more vocations in our country and THAT is always a good thing.

Good Friday 2006

If you were unable to make it to the Stations of the Cross today like me, click here for a wonderful reflection by Mother Angelica.

Jesus remember me, when you come into your kingdom.

The Three Great Days, The Triduum

And [Jesus] comes unto the disciples,
and finds them asleep, and says unto
Peter, `What, could you not watch
with me one hour?' ...
He went away again the second time, and
prayed, saying, O my Father, if this cup
may not pass away from me,
except I drink it, Your will be done.
Matthew Ch. 26:40,42.

One of those moments where you sit and smile uncomfortably and laugh later

Nick's public school nurse called me at home today to inform me that Nick was having trouble breathing in school. She wanted to give him some albuteral puffs to clear his passages and needed my permission. I gave her the go-ahead and then went down to the school to see how my little patient was. I brought Jack into the nurses office with me while Rebecca and Gus waited in the car. As we waited for the medication to take effect on Nick, the nurse started up a conversation with little Jack after she noticed Jack's Catholic school uniform.

Nurse: Oh, hello Jack. Will you be coming to the public school next year with your brother Nick?

Jack: (He's 6) No. I go to another school, it's a Catholic School.

Nurse: Oh, now...why do you go there?

Jack: 'Cause they kicked Jesus out of the public school.

Happy Birthday Bennie!

Here’s a great way that families can join together with people all over the world to help Pope Benedict XVI celebrate his birthday. On Easter Sunday, April 16, Pope Benedict will be 79 years old. With the encouragement of the National Catholic Educational Association and the National Conference for Catechetical Leadership, William H. Sadlier, Inc. is sponsoring free birthday eCards for the Pope.You can choose from a variety of beautiful birthday designs, add your personal message, and send your electronic card directly to Pope Benedict. The same beautiful eCards are also available in Spanish. What a great way to share your faith with the Pope!!!!

Five

So we are absolutely thrilled and terrified at the thought of another Clemens child in the house. I mean, I flip-flop between feelings of elation and insanity when I stop to ponder the reality of it all. I mean, It's a whole other journey, story, life, that we are blessed to be forming and nurturing.

I don't know why I get scared about a fifth child. When you think about it, five is not that big of a number. I usually complain if I get only 5 french fries or 5 M&M's..5 minutes is not a long time, 5 fingers would be too little, 5 pairs of underwear would be a disaster (ewh), not to mention if one only had 5 teeth to brush. 5 jelly beans would be a crime in an Easter Basket, and 5 minutes in the presence of Jesus would not be nearly long enough. When our newest child comes along, I'll be blessed with 5 smiles when I serve them ice cream and 5 goodnight kisses everyday. I'll look forward to 5 saying "I Love You Mom!" on Mother's Day and 5 peaceful slumbering children in their beds to peer at. Some mornings I'll have 5 jumping on my bed and 5 singing songs in the car. 5 giggling, 5 waking on Christmas Morning, 5 telling me their secrets and hopes, 5 praying for me when my life is almost over.

5 is sounding better and better. It just depends on your perspective.

I'm in need of some suggestions for a new name for my blog...

The fifth Clemens baby is on the way!

Chad worship

Gus (5 years old) and I had a short conversation about a single male friend of the family:

Gus: Mom, Chad does not have a wife.

Me: That's true Gus. He's not married.

Gus: (pausing for about a minute) I'm going to be like Chad.

Me: Gus, you don't want to get married?

Gus: No, I don't like girls.

Me: Well, daddy married me, and I'm a girl.

Gus: (pause) Yes. Well. They also take your picture when you get married, and I don't like taking pictures.

Me: Oh. O.K. But you don't HAVE to have your picture taken at the wedding, if you don't want to.

Gus: I just want to be like Chad.

Moments in a day

1. Tulips
2. Baseball practice at night
3. Rebecca's softball games
4. Wendy's with Gus
5. Jack's excitement when he comes through the door
6. My children's art
7. A loose tooth
8. Holding the hand of a child
9. Nick's dimple
10. My husband's specialty popcorn made just for me

We are NOT worthy.....

After a long day full of talks at the Catholic Congress, our church group was invited to the mysterious Magic Castle in Hollywood. We were invited to this unique California "hotspot" to watch some of the best magicians perform in various rooms in the castle. The funny part is that we weren't told that in order to be allowed in, the guys had to be wearing jackets and ties with dress shoes and the women had to wear formal jackets or dresses. NO flip flops or tennis shoes allowed! They were very strict about the dress code. No exceptions.

You can only imagine how we looked when we arrived at the (Harry Potter) styled castle, not knowing these interesting little facts: I was wearing flip-flops(uh-oh) with only black crop pants and a white shirt, the guys had casual shirts with casual pants and tennis shoes, Sonia (my co-worker) was wearing black pants with a simple cotton tee shirt. We looked like the Beverly Hill Billies from "Noath Carolyna". The elegantly dressed hostesses at the front door received us as if the cat drug us in and disdainfully informed us that we would have to "borrow" some coats/ties and shoes from their back closet. And as for my flip flops: "I'm sorry, but we don't carry YOUR size in women's shoes...we only have a size 6. You'll have to ask the host if he will let you in." I thought that I was out of luck for the evening and that I would have to walk the streets of Hollywood, a poor peasant, until my friends were finished at the Castle. But after a few minutes, my "sweet" hostess offered to let me borrow some old, ugly men's brown loafers (Believe me, my black flip flops looked much better with the outfit) and a hideous black and white houndstooth jacket to cover my plain white shirt. I slipped on the old loafers without having any socks on (ewh...germs) , and humbly thanked the princess for "throwing me a bone" and allowing me and my friends entrance to the castle.

While inside, we were definitely entertained. Everyone inside was extremely well dressed, drinking, and having a good time. We were first directed to a small room with about 15 others to watch one magician and his fantastic card tricks. Later we moved to another room where a ghost named "Irma" played tunes on the piano. You could ask "Irma" any random question, and she would respond to that question in song. (Very mysterious) And lastly we were directed into yet another of the many rooms in the castle to watch a "Vegas" style magician entertain us with his antics...It was all very good, and all slightly creepy. Gave me the heebie geebies to be in there, but I'm glad I went. It was all verrrrry Hollywood.

Here is the one picture I took of us in the front foyer of the castle. We cleaned up 'real' nice, don't ya think?



From left to right: Sonia, Fr. Scott, Andrew, Georgie, Jim Unfortunately you can't see my loafers. So sorry.

I'm baaaaaaaaaackk!

Hey, ya'll!

I'm back from the conference and am VERY happy to have come home from California. I have much to tell you about, but I'm trying to get life back in order (er...um..I mean...MYSELF back in order) here at the homestead. I plan to create another post this evening on some of the resources I've found that you all might be interested in. In the meanwhile....heartfelt thanks to my husband for keeping things here at home running smoothly and for welcoming me home with flowers.

I am loved in so many ways.....

Religious Education Congress, CA.

I leave tomorrow morning to attend the Religious Education Congress in Anaheim, California. It's the biggest of its kind and filled with speakers on every topic associated with the Catholic Faith, Religious Education, Liturgy etc. I've signed up to hear speakers on the topics of youth ministry, creating a Catholic home, and issues facing Catholics today. I plan to post any new resources that I discover while there, but in the meantime, pray that my colleagues and I have a safe trip and that the Holy Spirit moves fiercely at this convention!



(Over 23,000 people are registered to attend.)

One of the speakers I've signed up to hear is Sr. Helen Prejean. She's the famous nun who advocates against the death penalty and whose book was the inspiration for the movie, "Dead Man Walking" a few years back. Should be interesting to hear what she has to say.

We WILL be making a visit to Disneyland in order to convert Mickey and his friends...strictly business. Riiiiiiiggghhhhttttt!

Hard Choices...updated..with pics...scroll down...

As I've mentioned in a previous post, it is Spring Break. Nick was invited by his good buddies to accompany them on a 12 hour car trip to visit their grandmother in Florida from Wednesday to Sunday. The trip would have included a visit to some Florida Gators sights, visits to the beach, candy from grandma's walk in pantry, and guaranteed boy bonding bonanza...Nick would have LOVED to go, but his father and I decided he was still too young for such a long trip. After many tears, whines, and pleading, Nick realized that our minds could not be changed. He was REALLY disappointed, but took it bravely. It broke my heart to tell him no, but I knew in my heart of hearts that it was the best choice.

After the decision had been made, we tried to sooth our son with a bowl of ice cream, a few popsicles, and a family viewing of Harry Potter 4. All seemed to have passed until I walked into my bedroom after everyone went to bed....and realized Nick had not stopped trying to convince us....there were notes with the scribbled words of a 4th grader saying, "Please let me go." They were on our pillows, desk, rocking chair, bathroom counter, laundry.....everywhere. Awww.

Can I change my mind???


Note on my bed.

Notes on my bench.

Notes on the bathroom floor....and on and on.....

Gus Crying Out Loud

Which one does not belong?

Four Crying Out Loud at the beach, with their beach penguin.

A lesson for the world....

Today is Friday, and the beginning of Spring Break for Rebecca and Nicholas.

Nick has a couple of his neighborhood friends over and I was preparing their lunch feast of frozen pizza, garlic bread and brownies. As I finished slaving over the frozen pizzas (HA!) I called the boys down to eat. Before I knew it, they were sitting at the kitchen table laughing and talking about plans for Spring Break as they waited for their food to be served. I served them on paper plates ( also known as the "Clemens China") and placed the plates in front of each boy. As I turned away to serve myself, things got quiet...which always sets off red flags for me...so as I turned back to see what the boys were up to, I saw the most amazing sight: all three elementary-aged boys were praying to themselves quietly before they ate. You see, one of Nick's friends is Jewish, one is Protestant, and Nick....the Catholic....all praying...in their own tradition...to themselves...quietly. Not 10 seconds later, they were back to their boisterous selves laughing and talking....un-moved at what just happened.

It was beautiful.

Conversion Story

Sometimes you just need a good story about
Christ's redeeming power to remind you

1. of how real He is
2. of the important and difficult task youth workers have to speak the truth about Christ and His church to youth, and to provide more than just "social outlets" for youth
3. how the darker side lives
4. of how powerful the devil can be...in so many disguises
5. of how one bad church representative can cause years of damage

Little by little we grow closer to Him.

Miraculous Healing

I walked downstairs yesterday to find my son, Nick, laying on the living room floor. His arms were stretched above his head and the bottom half of his body was twisted like a pretzel. He was moaning softly and staring into space.

Me: Nick, what is wrong?

Nick: (groaning) I don't feel too well mom. I think I have fever.

Me: Well, come here and let me feel your forehead.....(I feel his head) Nick, I don't think you have fever.

Nick: But I don't feeeeeel good. I must have fever. (He plops back on the floor)

The phone rings. I pick it up.

Me: Nick, it's your friend Hayden. He wants you to come over and play.

Nick immediately jumps up from his ailing position, perks up, starts jumping up and down saying, "Can I go? Can I go?"

Me: Nick. I THOUGHT you were sick.

Nick: (smiling) Naw, it was nothing. I'm well now!

Me: Faker.

Someone tell me to breathe.....

For the last month, I've been attending meetings for parents who have rising 9th graders in the local high school.

I feel like my first born is going off to kindergarten again. I'm kind of freaking out that she'll be going to a gigantic high school complete with all kinds of freedom, police officers, and tons of courses to choose from.

BUT. WHEN. DID. HIGH SCHOOL. GET. SO. ACADEMICALLY.CHALLENGING!

Geez.

I just took the basic classes, my SAT (once. not the 4 or 5 times they take it now), and went to college.

Now, you have to have a minimum of 5 honors/AP courses in order to get into a North Carolina University, graduate with at least 50 service hours, fit in some cultural arts, foreign language, in addition to sports. I'd have been D.E.A.D...especially when it came to honors science and math...

Rebecca is ready for H.S.

I don't think I am though.

Beach Broadcasting

Sorry for the delay in posting, but as you already know...the Clemens 6 went to the beach for a few days of R & R.

(Reflection question of the day: Can a mom and dad with four children go on a 3 day excursion to the beach and ACTUALLY get R & R? ) I'll get to the answer later.

Anyway....

I would LOVE to say that the kids were TOTALLY enamored with the beautiful blue skies, the crisp night air, the indoor pool, the abundance of family time, the sandy beach, the tumbling waves of the Atlantic waters, the store bought ice cream sandwiches, frozen pizzas, the frisbee playing, the shell searching, the sand castles. I could go on and on with all the things that we did. Don't get me wrong, the kids enjoyed the above activities. But all of it paled compared to the condo we stayed in and the fact that there were three T.V.'s in the place: one in each bedroom and one in the family room....all with cable.

You see, we only have one working T.V. in our normal home and it is not cable ready. So we are limited to maybe 4 channels (2 fuzzy and 2 clear....if we play with the bunny ears) and so my kids spend more time playing knights, reading, and playing outside with friends instead of watching the tube. I like a relaxing show to watch as much as anyone else (American Idol is the family favorite), but really, there is not that much quality programming that justifies me (or my kids) sitting on my bottom for two unproductive hours when I could be doing something else more interesting or important. That being said, HAVING three t.v.'s to watch at the beach was quite an interesting thing to experience.

At night, the boys would go into their room and watch Cartoon Network until they fell asleep, Rebecca would watch the Disney Channel until she would fall asleep, and I would watch the Food Network,Fox News or simply flip channels until I fell asleep. After being together the entire day, the family would separate into their rooms, not speak to one another and watch a glowing screen. Normally the nights at home are filled with the sounds of children talking, playing, fighting, bathing, drawing, laughing, cleaning....but at the beach.....the nights were filled with silence....no one talked...we all just sat quietly in our rooms and watched cable T.V.... away from one another.

The power of the box.

I was glad to get back home and get back to the normal routine of minimal T.V. watching. As I write this evening, I can hear my son Nick reading to his brother Gus, Chris is discussing the morning routine with Rebecca, Jack is singing to himself as he dresses for bed and I'm....writing this post. It's time to go up and tuck the kids in bed with kisses and prayers.

My life is much more colorful and interesting without 250 channels and a cable bill.

Oh and the answer to the above reflection question:


NO!

Perfection...

There is only ONE thing better than going to the N.C. beach for three days of R and R with the fam:

Going to the beach and staying in a beach house for FREE! Be still my heart!

Where are my ducky floatees?

1-2-3-Shoot!!!

SPEAKING of boys and weapons: I confess there is a veritable arsenal of war toys in my home. We have plastic guns, swords, holsters, shields, helmets,costumes of every type of warrior and on and on.

It wasn't always like this, I promise. I started out like every other new mom...mostly against anything that resembled a gun or weapon. But the more I tried to keep my boys away from those toys (that's what the mom magazines were telling me), the MORE they begged! It didn't help that Uncles were giving them pop guns, cowboy sets or water guns for birthdays. (Nick: "Uncle Jon is the coolest! Look! He gave me a shotgun!!") I knew that my cause for a peace-loving home was over when Nick sat at the breakfast table and bit his toast into the shape of a gun and pointed it at his sister (he was only 2, OK?) Not only that, my other friends who had boys around the same age as my boys...were starting to see that their efforts were failing miserably as well. We all succumbed to what the world already knew: boys love to battle and nothing you do, can change that...(although it does seem like the world is trying to feminize boys these days....blurring the gender lines.)

I should have known better though...I mean, I was raised in Texas and cut my first teeth on a BB gun. My brother and I would run out into the cow pasture in front of my house and hunt Armadillo in our free time. Get along...little doggies!!!

So if you ever pass my house on a beautiful Spring day, there is a good chance that you'll see numerous packs of boys running around home-made forts and battle zones. Drive slowly though, they may use you as a moving target.

Spring is on its way...

Signs that Spring is on its way at the Clemen's home:

1. The water hose is used for more than just watering flowers and grass.
2. My Fall comforter is replaced with a lighter, more colorful Spring one.
3. I get grumpy when I see overfilled closets with heavy winter clothes.
4. Chris gets more frequent 'urges' to go to Home Depot
5. Where are those baseball gloves?
6. Easter candy appear on store shelves. Peeps candy....I'm coming!!
7. Lots of cute, small, colorful Spring fashions in Target....empasis on SMALL! Time for a diet.
8. Mud
9. Kids say, "MOM...can we go swimming?"
10. Packs of boys running through the 'hood with various weaponry...preparing for battle..

I'm sorry..

I've removed the last posting after a few friends relayed that it may have been too "irreverent". After some thought on it, I tend to agree so if anyone was offended, I sincerely apologize. My attraction to the site was mostly due to the amount of work this person spent on it, and how detail oriented it was....even with Leggos! Creative? Yes. Tacky? Yes. Classy enough for "Four Crying Out Loud"? Ne-vah!!! Let's move on to more important stuff....

The Lenten Journey Intensifies

I realized that I'm giving up more for Lent than I thought!! Today I gave up any spending money I'd hoped to have for March, maybe April and quite possibly May and June!!!! There goes my favorite Easter treat : Peeps!!!!

I mean, kids need to go to the dentist and all...but why does it have to cost so darn much!!! I took my four crying out loud to the dentist today: three had their teeth cleaned and had clean bills of teeth health, but JACK!!! Poor Jack has had a train wreak in his mouth ever since I brought him in 6 months ago. Over the past few months, he's had two teeth pulled, spacers fitted where the rotten teeth were, a child's version of a root canal (not as bad as the adult version), and has yet to get another tooth filled were decay has set in. Mind you, these are all his baby teeth!! How can three of my kids have perfect mouths and one inherit the teeth of an 80 year old?? Back when Jack came in for the first of his many dentist visits, our dentist broke the news to me that the cost of all this work may run about $4000 thousand dollars.....I just stared at him.....blankly.......not knowing what to react to first: the fact that Jack would have to suffer all this work, or to the fact that my pocketbook would no longer exist as an entity to hold money. Our dentist, God bless him, saw my stunned face and quickly assured me that since we were members of the same church, he'd give me a price break. I smiled uncomfortably, not used to needing such charity, but knew it would be stupid to pretend that I had $4000 just sitting at home so I humbly said, " Thank you, I think I may take you up on that offer."

Fast forward to today. I approached the receptionist desk for partial payment, and I knew it was going to be large.

Receptionist: $700.00 please

Me: heh. (I thought to myself....there go all my Easter Peep candy) Here's my bankcard. You can put it on that.

When I broke the news to my penny pincher husband about how much the visit was today, he took the news well. No fainting was involved at all!

Turns out that the overall cost for Jack will *only* be $3000. Meanwhile, my Lenten journey continues, more painful than I ever thought, but hey....no pain, no gain. Oh, and no Peeps for Easter. Waaaah.

You don't have to imagine...

This post is dedicated to my father, Hector, who never misses his time slot of midnight to 1:00 am and to the thousands of others who participate in Eucharistic Adoration...humbly, quietly, and without notice...while the rest of us sleep.

Just click on the arrow in the middle of the screen and ADORE!

Lenten Sacrifices

As with all larger families, saving money is an important part of daily life. When you have four crying out loud, something as simple as going to a barber shop can cost between $40-$60 a pop depending on where you go. Luckily, my industrious husband offers to cut the boys hair when they start turning into wooly boogers (as we call it here at the homestead). Rebecca is the only one who indulges in full price hair cutting..reason being that (1).she's got a ton of think wavy hair AND to mess that up would be a sacrilege and (2.) she's a girl! Dad's just don't know how to cut girl hair!

Hair was getting out of control here at the Clemens abode recently, and we knew we needed to line the boys up for their haircuts. It is NOT pleasant to cut the hair of three boys. Young boys, in general, do not like to sit still for longer than 2 minutes or so. To them, cutting hair can be compared to something unpleasant like....playing barbies, or having proper tea at a tea party or dressing up in fancy clothes. They moan and groan in pain when they know they have to go "under the knife".....ESPECIALLY GUS. Even Chris dreads the whole thing, but knows he will save money. "I saved $60 today!" Chris proudly exclaims when he finishes. Below are pictures of Gus and Jack on the hot seat. Nick ran away before I could get his picture. I'll post him later:







Call the "Wahhhhmbulance!" The agony of it all!!!!






Jack was actually willing to smile for the camera. He has more self-control than GUS.

Macho, Macho Man

I really thought about whether I should relay this family story to you. I mean, by not telling you it would somehow give you the impression that these sort of talks never happen to the Clemens 4...and that would be a false representation of what our family is all about. So, out of a sense of honesty and wanting to be "real", I relay this discussion which occurred between my husband and my 5 year old son Gus. Boy talk you may call it......I call it the moment where women can get a glimpse of where the whole male-macho thing starts.....

Gus: Dad, if you buy a horse, theres no way to tell if it's a boy or a girl, no way at all.

Dad: Why do you think that?

Gus: Cause they look just alike.

Dad: Gus if you look between the legs of the horse, and it has a wee-wee, it's a boy horse. Girl horses don't have wee-wees.

Gus: Really?

Dad: Really, girl horses, girl people, girl rabbits, girl squirrels, none of them have wee-wees.

Gus: What about girl pigs?

Dad: No wee-wee.

Really long pause.....

Gus: Dad....... I'm glad I'm a boy.

Dad: Why is that Gus?

Gus: Because I like having a WHOLE body, not like a girl.



Well, there you have it ladies! An innate superiority bred in them long before we ever do or say anthing. Boy.... the psychiatrists would have a field day with Gus. Well, you can''t say the child has a bad self-image. I just hope he doesn't let his preschool girlfriends know WHY he is "WHOLE" and they are not. They may want the proof.....and Gus would show 'em. I can just imagine THAT phone call.

Ahh, the joys of raising boys.

A hot school day....

Becca: (coming in from school) Mom, I didn't take my sweatshirt off all day so the ashes wouldn't come off.

Death and Resurrection

Be sure to hop on over to Dave Myers Blog to see his latest drawing of the crucifix at my parish of St.Thomas More with the Resurrection window in its shadow. It is a beautiful rendition of what was Christ's suffering and what is core of our longing.

Leave the past in ashes....

Ash Wednesday: You are dust and to dust you shall return.

It's a humbling thought that we all, one day, will turn back into that from which Christ made us. Yesterday, while at work at my parish, there was an unusual smell wafting in the air. It was a strong smell that made me think, at first, that someone was cooking something exotic in the parish kitchen. As I made my way outside to my car, the smell got stronger and as I looked up into the sky trying to figure out what the smell was, I saw it! Stupid me! It was the burning of last year's palms being done right outside the office windows! Traditionally, Catholics take last year's palms from Palm Sunday..burn them... and use them as the ashes for Ash Wednesday Masses. It is a comforting thought for me to know that the palms given/held/stored/prayed over by our many parishioners were being used in such a profound way? Their palms are on my forehead right now! Can you imagine the amount of LIFE that those palms have witnessed in the last year? From the first day where they were fresh and green, placed in a bible in someone's home? Or tucked behind a crucifix in a bedroom? Maybe they were folded into a cross shape and stored in the car visor? Or placed in someone's china cabinet?

We have our old palms prominently displayed behind a cross in our eating area. I forgot to take these old palms to the church for burning, but maybe we'll just burn our own as a family tonight. It can be a symbol of our familial beginning of Lent. ......Reminding us to "Come to the Lord with all our hearts and leave the past in ashes".

I love being Catholic.