Oh, I get it Dad!

So just like the lunatic-fringe-anti-choice-homophobic-bigoted-fanatics we are, today the 7 of us loaded up and made our way for an hour and a half to the only Tridentine Mass in one the nation's largest dioceses. That's right, we're those kinds of Catholics. Really though, it's for the best, because I think that we really do make rank-and-file N.O. Catholics feel uncomfortable when our veil-wearing three year old refuses to hold hands with whichever poor soul manages to squeeze into the empty spot on the pew next to us during the Our Father. Well anyways, today was a special day. Today I was given revelation #5,281 on why the Traditional Mass is the better choice....for us.

If you've ever attended the TLM anywhere other than your weird aunt Sally's living room,

you're bound to have seen them. The little red cash cow of the Coalition in Support of Ecclesia Dei called the Latin English Booklet Missal. On the front cover is one of those

delightful black ink drawings of the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass that was so prevalent in Catholic kitsch when the Benzinger Bros ruled with an iron fist. Sadly the spirits of Vatican II brought to the liturgical artists the new light of amorphous symbology perhaps ending forever (if not for Summorum Pontificium) exchanges like this that happened today.

Daddy: Anne, I want you to draw something that you see happen during Mass today.

Anne: OK. Like what?

Daddy: Anything. Here look at this [hands her the red book]. What's happening there?

Anne: Jesus is on the cross.

Daddy: What about at the bottom?

Anne: The priest is holding up the Blood.

Daddy: That's right.

Anne: [Sitting quietly with Pooh Bear's thinking face on for several minutes.]

Daddy: [Enjoying the repetitious sounds of the Rosary before Mass].

Anne: [Beginning to draw the altar]

Daddy: [Wondering to himself if the demon will manifest in Michael this Sunday.]

Anne: Ohhhh, I giiiit it Dad.

Daddy: ?

Anne: The priest is Jesus and Jesus is the priest.

Daddy: [Dumbfounded] That's right, Anne.

Anne: [Quietly continues on with her neorealistic, slightly amorphous liturgical sketches.]

More Garden Delights, PLUS Canning!

We planted our garden in April/ May, knowing that we started late, but we didn't think it would take THIS long to begin producing!

Despite the drought, our garden is green and lush (with too many weeds as well) and we are beginning to pick more and more daily.

Praise be to God!

Sadly, my in-laws just lost most of their garden to desperate deer.... all except the tomatoes and eggplant. I'll post a picture later of the beautiful eggplant they've grown.

Last week, my Oma gave me a crash course in pickling. It was much easier than I thought to make dill pickles.... I guess the hardest part is waiting 3 weeks to try them!

Also, a friend and I made 18 pints of Jam. Some of it was strawberry and some, peach.

It was her first time to can and we had a great system going with one of us at the stove stirring fruit & the other, manning the canner- despite 2 fussy babies and a slew of other children darting in and out the kitchen ( oh, and husbands too).

God Bless them- the husbands that is- they tried to get the children out of our hair by taking them on a wild grape picking excursion, only the place they went to didn't happen to have any grapes on the vine.

Providence or poor planning? - you tell me.

Fresh Veggies & Sweet Babies!

Lean, mean, fresh and green!

Our garden is FINALLY producing some delicious produce...

we have white squash, peppers, cucumbers and loads of green tomatoes!

********HAPPY 4th of JULY *********

Vacation Conclusions

THANKS BE TO GOD for the blessings of safe AND happy travel! Those two things are huge... especially considering some of the breakdowns we've had in recent months.

ANYHOW, we arrived safely home last night with no sunburns & walked into a clean house. After discussing it for a while, Jason & I came to the mutual conclusion that even though our trip to the beach was short, it WAS a true vacation- filled with rest and indulgence.

The list of things we indulged in:

Sleep

Sun

Beer

Cheesecake

Buttermilk Pie

Cable TV & Cartoons

PLUS, sweet husband made it extra special for me by keeping the condo kitchen clean, letting me sleep in 1 morning & giving me an afternoon all to myself to.......drumroll please....SHOP!

(in front of the shrimp boat 'Polly Anna')

We also pinpointed the low spots of the trip as being our 2 experiences eating out.

#1. Eating lunch at a BBQ joint that WAY overcharged us

#2. Getting overcharged TWICE at the Coffee Shop

(.....Does anyone else get the feeling that retailers are intentionally deceptive and don't care much about customer service & true value? I don't want to be a scrupulous miser but it makes me feel like I have to watch out every time I buy something.)

Oh well, all the more reason to appreciate the Creator's handiwork...

...things like the sunset, the fresh sea breeze, the dolphins jumping in the harbor and the children shreeking with laughter while they play.

Silliness at our house

Lily Mae had a blast spitting her cream of wheat everywhere today! According to her sisters, Michael is the one who taught her how to do that... can you hear him making 'motor' sounds in the background? Yeah, he does that all the time.

And here he is trying to ride our mutt Tawny.

She is getting to be VERY good natured with his antics.

Encouragement from the Pope

"You need to know what you believe. You need to know your faith
with that same precision with which an IT specialist knows the
inner workings of a computer. You need to understand it like a
good musician knows the piece he is playing. Yes, you need to
be more deeply rooted in the faith than the generation of your
parents so that you can engage the challenges and temptations
of this time with strength and determination. You need god’s
help if your faith is not going to dry up like a dewdrop in the
sun, if you want to resist the blandishments of consumerism, if
your love is not to drown in pornography, if you are not going
to betray the weak and leave the vulnerable helpless."

-part of Pope Benedict XVI's introduction in the new Youth Catechism

God Bless Him!

A few pictures...

Easter Sunday at Mater Dei in Irving. It was great!

My Easter 'Lily'

By the Dallas Patriots Field House

Our New Dog, Tawny

AND, apparently I need a new camera. oh joy.

anne can spell. <-- (Anne's first attempt at typing! She's awesome)