everyday Ann

living the ordinary seeing the extraordinary

Christmastime

Merry Christmas!! The season always seems to be here and gone before I even realize it. Trees are already out on the curb and lights turned off. While we are still in the octave of Christmas, the season is fleating.

Christmas Eve and Christmas Day came and went and our long anticipated stay with family was over all too quickly. When I went to bed on Christmas night I was reflecting on how fast the time went, wondering if I really entered into the mystery. Was I fully present at Christmas Eve Mass or just distracted by the circus that Mass can usually become with 5 children.

Have I allowed Christmas to transform my heart or was it just another holiday I celebrated that won’t be given a second thought until it comes upon me again next year. Have I allowed the Christ child to change my life. Christmas comes and goes, but do we take the Christ child with us. The love that is poured out from the manger, has it truly radiated my being. I am still pondering these questions as I gaze on the tiny babe who transformed the world.

I proclaim to you good news of great joy:

today a Savior is born for us,

Christ the Lord. Lk 2:10-11

To Have Faith

This weekend these two turn 10 years old and 2 months old!! They are my bookends and it melts my heart to see the immense love Kolbe has for Briella. I cannot believe how fast the time has gone!! So many emotions in just one picture.

It feels like just yesterday I was in the hospital giving birth yet somehow two months have disappeared. If only the last two months of pregnancy would go by that quickly and the first two months of life be frozen in time.

Five years ago I was blowing out candles on a birthday cake at our adoption shower for a son I had never met, but who had already won my heart! Five candles for an amazing little boy, who upon seeing just a few pictures of him instantly captured my heart with his big brown eyes. I blew out his candles and made a wish for him 5,000 miles apart.

We didn’t eat any of the cake that day, but instead put it in the freezer, so when the time would come that we would finally be together we could enjoy it as a family. We celebrated his 5th birthday not knowing that in just three weeks we would be flying across the world and he would be in my arms forever!!

And now to see him this weekend blowing out his own candles, ten candles surrounded by a fan club of siblings. A sight I never thought I would see just a short six years ago.

From the time Kolbe could speak English he prayed fervently for a baby sister. He had no idea of Aaron and I’s struggle, so I simply told him that maybe someday in the future we would adopt a little girl. He proved me wrong. God heard his prayer. Prayers filled with complete child-like trust and faith. Faith with no reservations or hints of doubt. Faith with full abandonment knowing that God would answer. And when we told the boys a few short months later that I was pregnant, Kolbe knew the baby was a girl.

The Gospel reading from Friday ties in so perfectly. Faith that knows God will answer. Not only will he answer, but he will open our eyes. He will open our eyes to see the marvels and wonders performed in our midst. Open our eyes to his goodness, his unending love. And upon seeing, our lives will be radically transformed.

When he entered the house,
the blind men approached him and Jesus said to them,
“Do you believe that I can do this?”
“Yes, Lord,” they said to him.
Then he touched their eyes and said,
“Let it be done for you according to your faith.”
And their eyes were opened.

Matthew 9:27-29

Easter People

I figure the title is still relevant being we are technically still in the Easter season. We have been adhering to the mandate of celebrating the last few weeks, leaving me a bit exhausted along with looking more 30 weeks instead of 19. In the past I have been a strict no caffeine person while pregnant and nursing, not even a drop. Not sure if it’s my advanced maternal age, chasing around four other children or the lack of sleep that has driven me to enjoy cups of the fully dieseled kind.

Well we made it, hosted two major celebrations both of 30 people or more all within a two week time frame and came out free of any major meltdowns on my part. What I learned, hosting makes you keep your house clean and beyond. Cleaning out of the normal routine; washing the outside of windows, scrubbing down outside doors, washing the walls and no matter how hard I try my patio door will always have little hand smudges on it.

In addition to Easter, this past weekend Ethan made his First Holy Communion. He was sooo excited and kept saying, “this is the best day of my life!” With all the rush of preparing for the weekend I hadn’t taken a lot of time just to reflect on his day not to mention Mass always being a circus in our pew, so I was taken a bit off guard by my emotions. I was surprised when I found my eyes filling up with tears of joy as I watched him receive Jesus for the first time. In that moment all seemed to stand still there was a beautiful period of silence in our pew and I was able to just close my eyes and bow my head as I prayed for my son.

The psalm from today’s readings spoke poignantly to my heart as I reflected on the words.

Shout joyfully to God, all the earth,
sing praise to the glory of his name;
proclaim his glorious praise.
Say to God, “How tremendous are your deeds!”

Psalm 66: 2-3

As I reflect on the past few weeks, months and years how can I not say how tremendous are His deeds, how can my very being refrain from shouting joyfully. The weekend after Easter I happened to run into a priest who once served at our parish. He knew Aaron and I prior to children and asked how my family was doing. My mind quickly raced back to Holy Saturday Vigil eight years ago. I had just found out I was miscarrying for the third time and I remember the exact pew we were sitting in.

During the homily the priest talked about how in our lives after every Good Friday there is an Easter Sunday, although we may not always see the Easter Sunday in our lifetime. I sat there holding Aaron’s hand so tightly as tears ran down my face. As my heart questioned when I would ever see Easter Sunday, when would I experience the joy. All I know is Good Friday as once again another baby is taken from me. Will there ever be an Easter Sunday in my life to follow all of this pain?

There I stood now years later telling him we were preparing to welcome our fifth child. I had to recount bodies in my house as five children sounds unthinkable to me. This, this is my Easter Sunday.

Easter Prep

(source)

It is hard to believe that we are almost halfway through Holy Week and Easter will be upon us soon. My kids are counting down the days and Grace and Caden are practicing up their Alleluias!

I feel like so many efforts I wanted to work on during Lent didn’t all come to fruition, including making Lent more applicable for the little ones. So we are throwing everything into Holy Week.

I ordered Resurrection Eggs for the younger ones, although the older kids enjoy reading it as well. I debated about saving them for Grace’s Easter basket, but I am so glad I didn’t. These are perfect for Holy Week and telling the story of Christ’s Passion leading up to Easter. Grace asks to read the Jesus story before nap time instead of a book and we have gone through them at least twice a day since getting them in the mail last week. I highly recommend them for anyone with little ones.

We made it through Palm Sunday Mass without too much sweat, two long Triduum Masses to go. I wrote about taking our little ones to Mass a few weeks ago over at Catholic Mom in case you are in need of some encouragement before embarking on Mass during bedtime and naptime.

Ever since our first Easter with Kolbe and Ethan we have done the Risen Jesus search Easter morning. On Good Friday the kids will make a picture of Jesus on the cross. They will then put their picture in a tomb (decorated shoe box). Easter morning they will find the boxes open and empty and will need to go in search of the Risen Jesus. When they find Jesus they will also see another surprise, their Easter basket!!

Easter morning the kids wake up to the house transformed and full of bright color. I wait until they are asleep Saturday night to put up any Easter decorations or flowers and also set out a nice table setting for breakfast. Come Easter morning I always wake up insanely early to make a nice brunch and a pan of sweet pecan rolls for us all to sit down and enjoy before heading out to Easter Mass at 8:30am. This year I am going to add virgin mimosas to the early morning brunch menu, something I think the kids will really enjoy.

The following are true and tried family recipes that my Mom has made every Easter morning since I can remember. Since we won’t be traveling this year for Easter, but will actually be hosting some of Aaron’s family I will be making sure to keep the tradition alive.

Pecan Rolls
3 packages buttermilk biscuits (make sure to buy the regular size, otherwise they won’t turn out)
Pecans
Sugar
Cinnamon
1 cup Brown Sugar
1/3 cup Butter
1/3 cup Cream

  • Grease bundt pan and spread pecans on the bottom. Layer biscuits in pan. Sprinkle with sugar and cinnamon between each layer.
  • Mix brown sugar, butter and cream in saucepan. Bring to a light boil. Pour over pan.
  • Bake at 350 for 20-25 minutes.

Chocolate Pudding Torte
1 1/2 cups Flour
1 1/2 sticks Butter
2/3 cup Chopped Pecans
8 oz. Cream Cheese
1 cup Powdered Sugar
1 large Jello Instant Chocolate Pudding
3 cups Milk
12 oz. Cool Whip

  • Combine flour, melted butter and pecans. Press mixture into 9×13 pan. Bake at 350 for 20 minutes.
  • Beat cream cheese, powdered sugar and half of cool whip until smooth. Spread over cooled crust.
  • Combine pudding mix with 3 cups milk and beat until thick. Pour over cream cheese layer.
  • Spread remaining cool whip on top and refrigerate.
  • Garnish with chopped pecans.

I would love to hear some of your Easter traditions! This is the holiest week of the year and we are about to embark on the greatest moment in history of all time, Christ’s Resurrection!!

Moms and Lent

It is practically here, are you ready? I know I will be fine tuning my Lenten commitment right until midnight tonight along with enjoying a large bowl of ice cream. I set up the sacrifice jar today and we each wrote down our Lenten commitments on a note card last night. The boys are already thinking of ways to fill the jar, because they know the coffee beans will turn to jelly beans come Easter.

Writing over at Catholic Mom as we prepare to enter the Lenten journey. Let’s be honest, simply by being a mom we are daily met with situations that challenge us and we don’t have to look far for opportunities to make a sacrifice. All in this together!