Karol had his pinewood derby today and he was very proud of his car, as you can see, it was a pretty neat car.
(and not to brag, he won his den race and his pack race! He also took first place in the design category, I’m pretty impressed.)
Cake Fail
I may have a cake fail on my hands. Well, no, I do have a cake fail. It’s all good, I’ll make a trifle out of my mistake cake. Anyone know if I can use buttercream frosting in a trifle?
I think I Found Dessert
Filed under: General Stuff
7 Quick Takes – IV
- Yesterday, in case you missed it., yesterday was the last day of the reign of Pope Benedict XVI. I don’t think anyone could have missed it, but in the event that you did, here is a nice link with images of the last moments.
- I’ve been trying to come up with ideas for quick, yet healthy snacks for the kids (and for me). I made these for the Scout pack meeting on Tuesday, and found them to be pretty darn good, so they will be added to the mix of snacks for us. I doubled the recipe, the used store bought whole wheat flour, because I have some that needs to be used up and only used a cup of oats, because  I used whole oats. They turned out very well and received rave reviews from everyone who ate them. I came across this recipe this morning and hope to make them soon!
- Have you ever had a week of non-success in the kitchen? I did last week, so this week, when my rye bread, cookies, pretzels, and on the fly spaghetti sauce turned out well this week, I was thrilled. My spaghetti sauce was made yesterday, with meat, something I seldom do. I forgot to thaw out hamburger and kept putting it off. Then it was 430 and I didn’t have anything started yet. Crud. I ended up taking a packet of ground beef, putting it in a saucepan, pouring a can of pureed tomatoes on top, adding chopped onions and peppers, and some seasonings. I put the lid on the pan, then came back every 10 minutes or so to stir and to chop up the meat. In the end, it turned out wonderfully! I used elbow noodles in place of regular spaghetti noodles and it for some reason, it was just a joy to eat dinner last night.
- Margaret knows how to read, now. Last night, during Compline, she read the reading all on her own (well with a little help from me with a word or two.)
- Karol lost his first tooth yesterday! He is seven and I thought he’d never lose a tooth, now he has and he looks quite different already! (Well when he smiles anyway.) He was very confused this morning as to why he had two quarters under his pillow this morning.
- The pinewood derby is this weekend. There was supposed to be a camp out, but because of all the rain (nearly 9 inches here!) Â the camp out was cancelled, but the derby will still happen on Saturday. Karol and Joshua have been working hard on the car and making it look nice. The car is awesome and I can’t wait to see it race!
- The Wings are on television this weekend! With the nifty antenna Joshua made for me, I’ll be able to watch it again. Then we are having dinner with friends after. I am looking forward to a nice Sunday.
For more 7 Quick Takes, check out Jennifer’s blog.
Sede Vacante
Karol asked if we could go to Mass again today. I couldn’t come up with a good reason to tell him no and my heart was telling me to go as well, so we went to the 1210 Mass in Valdosta. Joshua met us there as well, which made it nice.
On the way to town, Karol was upset about the retirement of our Holy Father and kept asking why. I reassured him that everything was going to be just fine and that God will not abandon us, Pope Benedict, nor the Church. That calmed him down a bit and seemed to accept my answers.
After Mass, we headed home, had lunch, then sat down for some quiet time. At 2pm, I told the kids it was time to say a prayer for our former Holy Father and for our Church. Â I didn’t make it through the first Ave before I started bawling my eyes out. Saying goodbye is hard!
Now we wait for the announcement of the Conclave and the election of our new Pope. I don’t know about you, but I’m super excited to see what the Holy Spirit has in store for the Church!
Papa Bene and Mass this Morning
This morning, I woke up early, threw my hair in a ponytail, got the kids dressed (with Joshua’s help) and headed off to Mass (with the kids, but without Joshua). Our pastor was offering the Mass today in Thanksgiving for Pope Benedict XVI and I wanted to be there, as it would be the last Mass where we would hear “Benedict our pope.”
I made it there, with a minute to spare, got in the pew with the kids. I made it through the Mass with a few children who thought silence was an option. I made it through with my temper in check. I ignored a fit being thrown by a cute four year old (she missed the Holy Water font on the way in and wasn’t happy about). Her fit involved her laying on the floor and being very quiet. I was okay with that for today.
Benedict (the two year old, not the Holy Father) brought a stuffed toy in with him. Yikes, normally not permitted and I was reminded why. Flamingo started snoring during the homily. No it wasn’t a toy that made noise, Benedict decided that it was sleepy.
Margaret and Karol had their little skirmishes but were mostly okay, I think. Maybe not. All I know is that at 37+ weeks along, I took my four kids to Mass on my own. There was a time where I was scared to just take the older two out in public on my own.
I am so very thankful for the Mass that Father offered this morning. Our pastor has a special connection to our Holy Father. He was studying in Roma when Blessed John Paul II died and was there in the Square when Pope Benedict was announced our pope. He was also selected to read during the Holy Father’s Inaugural Mass.
Let us keep our Holy Father in our prayers as he finishes out the final day of his Pontificate, and let us offer our prayers for the College of Cardinals, that they be guided by the Holy Spirit as they prepare for, then enter the Conclave, in the coming weeks.
End Times
“But of that day and hour no one knows, neither the angels of heaven, nor the Son,-Â but the Father alone.”
Matthew 24:36
I’ve seen a lot of discussion around the interwebs these past few weeks, about the end times. It seems that many people are buying in to prophesies about the end of the world and tying them into the resignation of Pope Benedict XVI. Many of these people, good and faithful Catholics, those who would scoff at a Mayan Calendar or someone predicting that the end of the world would happen at 6pm this Saturday, are taking to heart that Pope Benedict is the second to last pope and that the end of the world is upon us.
I don’t know if this is the case, because I’m not God (see scripture above), but even if it were, if I’m living my life as I should (trying to be faithful, receiving the sacraments as often as possible) why should I be afraid? Shouldn’t I trust in the Lord to deliver me from evil? We pray that every time we pray the Our Father, shouldn’t we believe that He will?
Adopt A Cardinal
Build Me an Ark
Beautiful Words
God the Father of mercies, through the death and resurrection of His son, has reconciled the world to Himself and sent the Holy Spirit among us for the forgiveness of sins; through the ministry of the Church may God give you pardon and peace, and I absolve you from your sins, in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.
