"Do not grieve nor be disturbed by anything..."

Happy Feast Day of Our Lady of Guadalupe!!!  One of my favorite feast days, one of the most miraculous events in history!  Marian apparitions have a special place in my heart, for they show how much God truly loves us to send his own mother to appear to people with messages of hope and love to draw people back to God.  One of my greatest desires on this earth is to go visit all the apparition sites of Our Lady with my husband and my children.  I have been to Medjugorje twice, and my experiences there have taught me that drawing near to Mary brings me closer to Jesus.  My devotion to her brings me peace and helps me keep my eyes fixed on heaven (instead of the anxieties of this world, which is my natural tendency).  During the darkest times of my life, she has been as close as my own earthly mother, comforting me and helping me to get through life's challenges.  Somehow she always gently helps to untie the knots in my life.  I am so grateful to be Catholic and to have this devotion to Our Lady instilled so deeply in my heart. These words that she said to St. Juan Diego remind me of her loving intercesion throughout my life and give me renewed hope and courage to keep fighting the good fight (and asking for her help to do so) until I'm in heaven.  May these words spoken long ago by our loving mother comfort and inspire you too:

• She said to him:  "Am I not here who is your Mother?  Are you not under my protection?  Am I not your health?  Are you not happily within my fold?  What else do you wish?  Do not grieve nor be disturbed by anything."

So, today (and every day), try to give all your worries and cares to Our Lady.  She will take care of them, so there is no need to grieve or be disturbed by anything!  Boy, did I need to be reminded of that this week!  I have been battling anxiety in a big way (and felt like I was losing the fight).  I have grumpy teenagers that I can't seem to make happy or connect with; I have an almost-teenager who is still battling panic attacks that I can't seem to fix; I have a project that is totally stressing me out; I am disappointed in myself for not making Advent more spiritual for our family; in general, I have felt like I have been totally failing in my vocation as wife and mother.  But perhaps it has been because I was trying to do it all on my own.  The rest of this week I will strive to ask for Our Lady's help and try to trust that she and her Son will truly take care of everything.

Here are some fun and miraculous facts about Our Lady of Guadalupe, Juan Diego, and the image on his tilma:

Our Lady of Guadalupe, 

Pray for us all!

Our Lady of Guadalupe Fact Page

• Our Lady of Guadalupe appeared to Saint Juan Diego on December 9, 10 and 12, 1531.
• The image is proven not to be painted by human hands; no natural or animal mineral colorings, or paint, are found on it
• The image has remained intact with all its original vibrancy for 475 years. The natural life span of a cloak made with fiber from the gave or maguey plant is only about 30 years.
• The image is a pictograph which could be read and understood by the Aztec Indians.
• On her rose garment is a topographical map of the location of her apparition.
• Our Lady appears as a beautiful young Indian maiden and Queen.
• She is wearing a blue-green mantle (the color worn by royalty) covered with stars.
• The stars signify she comes from heaven – the Queen of Heaven. The constellations are in the exact position as appeared before dawn on the morning of December 12, 1531.
• Her robe is colored rose or pale red and covered with Aztec flowers, symbolic of an Aztec princess.
• In the center of her robe, overlying her womb, is a four petal quincunx flower in the shape of a cross which is the sign of the Divine and the center of the cosmic order to the Aztec. The Virgin’s Baby, Jesus, is Divine and the new center of the universe.
• Her hands are joined in prayer and, therefore, she is not God but clearly there is one greater than she and she points her finger to the cross on her brooch.
• Her fur cuffs symbolize royalty.
• She wears a black maternity band signifying she is with Child.
• A black cross is on the brooch around her neck. This signifies she is a follower of the God of the Spanish Missionaries, Jesus Christ who died on the cross for all.
• She stands in front of the sun. The sun symbolizes the greatest Aztec god – Huitzilopochtli. She announces the God who is greater than their sun god.
• She stands on the moon. The crescent moon symbolized the Aztec god Quetzalcoatl, the feathered serpent moon god. She has clearly crushed and defeated him.
• The image depicts Revelation 12:1:  a woman clothed with the sun with the moon at her feet
• An angel with eagle’s wings supports the Mother of God. The eagle was the “bird of the sun.” Here the eagle is the servant of the Virgin. She holds her mantle in one hand and robe with the other, signifying the Son she bears is from both heaven and earth.
• To date the image cannot be explained by science.
• The image on the tilma was able to do what up to that time the missionaries were not able to do significantly. Namely, clearly explain Christianity to the Indian people. The proof is in the fact that after the apparitions, eight million natives of Mexico converted to Catholicism from 1531 to 1538.
• A doctor once heard a heartbeat coming from the image using a stethascope over the womb area.
• The eyes of the image have the refractory characteristics of human eyes, and they miraculously reflect the image of the witnesses present at its unveiling, including Juan Diego and the bishop.

Happy Belated Birthday Natey!!!

Natey turned 8 in November and had a blast with all the boys in his class at his party.  We had to postpone the party by a week because he had strep throat the week of his birthday...bummer.  But his party was well worth the wait.  He and his friends had a Nerf gun battle in the house (wild and crazy fun), and then I sent them outdoors to play "capture the flag" and to try out the zip line.  It was a bit chilly outside, but there was hot cocoa waiting for them when they came back indoors :)  His friends got him great gifts, they all ate a delicious Dairy Queen ice cream cake, and I'm pretty sure everyone went to bed happy and exhausted.  God is good, all the time, and I am so thankful He gave us this sweet and fun-loving birthday boy to bring so much joy to our family!!!

Natey and his buddy Robbie

Natey and his buddy John

Natey and his buddy Stevie

Natey and his buddy Matthias

Natey and his buddy Matthew

Natey and his buddy Jack

Natey and his buddy Jake

Cross-eyed Natey waiting to blow out his birthday candles :)

Happy Birthday Nathanael!!!

We love you more than all the Nerf darts ever fired

in the whole wide world!

Summer recap in the Fall...or should I say winter?

Well, we already have snow on the ground and I realized I had not posted the rest of our summer photos yet!  You would think that now that all of my kids are in school, I would have all the time in the world to update my blog, but somehow I feel busier than ever.  Oh well.  Life is full and crazy and good.  So here's some photos of our full, crazy, good life:

Riding the Tour Train with Grandma Jean

We didn't get to travel much this summer, 

but thankfully we have so many cool sites to see right here in Montana!

We had fun going to the lake to sip on Freezy pops...

The big boys chillaxin' while eating at the lake...

Dominic using flippers on his hands to cruise the lake...

Only in Montana can you get an entire lake to yourself! :)

This summer was Natey's first year playing baseball on a team...

HE LOVED IT!

And he was a cut above the rest because of all the practicing with his older brothers!

I sure love that dimple, those freckles, and the pinstripes!

A future Derek Jeter or Aaron Judge?

This pinstriped boy wants to play for the Yankees someday!

Can't wait to see him play next summer!

Once baseball season was over, we jumped in the car to head to SD and MN to see family...

and do LOTS of fishing with grandpa!

Michael was our most passionate fisherman and spent countless hours fishing for carp

and helping his little brothers reel them in!

Joseph preferred cooling off in the lake from time to time,

and then chilling with a Pepsi the rest of the time.

The little boys loved the tube and the jet ski!

Isaiah's sweet ski-do hair-do!

Grandpa and Michael...two peas in a pod, happiest with poles in their hands! 

The carp were happy that our boys chose the "catch and release" method :)

Our boys were so happy every single time they caught a fish.

Grandma and Grandpa were so happy watching their grandkids have so much fun!

My god-daughter Gianna took me out for ice cream while were in SD;

it was certainly one of my summer highlights! 

After our trip to SD, we continued on to MN to see Paul's side of the family.

Me and the 3 little ones stayed with Aunt Rachel and her girls, 

while the big boys went fishing in the boundary waters.

Not sure which group had more fun!

A butterfly landed on Holli at the Minnesota Zoo!

And one landed on Aunt Rachel's shoe too!

This butterfly might be confused and is trying to talk to the butterflies on the chart!

We got to see a really cool bird show at the zoo.

This is the sulphur crested cockatoo from Australia that was trained to dance.

This red-legged seriema bird from Brazil was showing the crowd

how it can kill a (fake) poisonous snake.

A kangaroo taking a nap in the hot August afternoon...

probably what I was hoping to do at the moment too! :)

My boys loved this Komodo Dragon!

Natey and Isaiah loved being with their cousins Holli and Kennedy,

and they also loved the new snakes they bought at the zoo to snuggle with :)

Holli and Natey riding the raft that their cousin Rowan made!

Joseph looking cool with his long-haired mullet :)

I love watching big boys and little boys having fun! :)

The Boundary Water Boys!

This truly was a coming-of-age experience for this crew.

They endured endless mosquitos, humid August air, sunburns, 

having to catch and eat their own supper,

and sleeping on the hard Minnesota ground in a tent.

Personally, I was happy with hanging out with Aunt Rachel and her girls,

sipping on wine in an air-conditioned house, 

painting our toe nails, and visiting the zoo to see my wildlife :)

As you can see, our summer was filled with so many memories!  Some of our boys said it was the best summer EVER.  I'm eager to see what next summer holds and we will try to embrace every moment of it.  It won't be long before Joseph will be heading off to college, followed quickly by Michael, so I want to enjoy every second of the time we have together as a complete family of 7 while it lasts!