Purgatory is...

...drinking a chai latte at 4:00pm and green tea at 7:00pm and then not falling asleep until 4:00am. "NO CAFFEINE AFTER 4:00PM" is my new, New Year's Resolution. I have new sympathy for those who suffer from insomnia. Good night, that was sheer torture! For the love of Pete and all the Souls in Purgatory, I will never do that again!

P.S. Sorry for those of you misled by the Title for this post and were hoping for a deep theological discussion on Purgatory. I am WAY too tired to discuss Theology today! :}

A Saintly New Year

A friend of mine who is a Catholic missionary shared with me a beautiful Catholic devotion that our family is going to make our annual New Year's tradition, and perhaps some of you would like to do the same. The tradition is as follows:

Religious orders, both male and female, particularly in the 1800's and early 1900's, got into the habit of drawing a saint's name at the close of each year, and that saint would be their "patron" for the coming year. St. Faustina, the saint who Jesus appeared to and taught her the Divine Mercy prayer in 1931, writes about this common devotion in her diary. Apparently, each sister would draw a saint name out of a hat, and they believed that God truly had a hand in which saint they received---that in the realm of the Eternal, God knows better than you what your needs for the coming year will be, and so He chooses a special saint to assist you in coming year. Therefore, the point is to develop a special relationship with the saint you were given, to learn about them, and to ask them to pray for you.

Last night we celebrated New Year's Eve with 2 other Catholic families who wanted to share in this tradition with us. So our boys wrote out the names of about 25 saints onto small sheets of paper and brought them to the party. At the close of the evening, all the adults and children drew a saint to be their special intercessor for the year. Here are the saints our family received:

Paul: St. Dominic
Maria: St. Peter
Joseph: St. Therese of Lisieux
Michael: St. Juan Diego
Dominic: St. Bernadette

I pray that these heavenly friends help our family grow in holiness in the New Year! I am so happy to have found this saintly devotion, and I imagine it will be much more fruitful than any New Year's Resolutions would've been! :)

Christmas Joys!

This Christmas was perhaps the most relaxing and lovely Christmas we've ever had! There was no traveling, no entertaining---simply being a family and focusing on the real reasons for the season: Jesus and Joy! This year we didn't even have very many gifts under the tree. We told the kids that Jesus only received 3 gifts for His birthday from the wise men, so 3 should be the max for them under the tree too. So rather than playing with tons of new toys, we spend the majority of our holiday experiencing old joys, such as making snowmen and snow angels, playing outdoor hockey, sledding, and dusting off our old Scrabble game. It was delightful. Unfortunately, I don't have very many good pictures to share because my snapshot camera doesn't take the greatest photos... But my sweet husband came to the rescue and surprised me with a more professional-grade camera for Christmas! I am eager to start experimenting with it...so be prepared for some great photos soon! I truly had a blessed Christmas in so many ways, and I hope each of you did too! And may God bless your family and mine in the New Year as we keep our hearts and minds fixed on Him!

The joy of Christmas morning!


The joy of skating outdoors!

The joy of making a snow angel!

The joy of "trying" to play hockey!

The joy of making an All-Star snowman!

Wrapped Up in the Season

I feel like I need to apologize for my lapse in blogging (as if you've all been desperately waiting to hear about my exciting life and profound thoughts!) :) I have to admit that I've been wrapped up in the busy-ness of the season...it's simply impossible to escape it. This week alone we've had the boys' Christmas piano recital, the school Christmas program, making costumes for the Christmas program, Paul's office Christmas party, hockey practice, last minute shopping, and trying to find inspiration (and time) to write my Christmas letter (which I think is turning into a New Year's letter because of the afore mentioned items). Despite the busy-ness, I still feel like I'm experiencing the joy and wonder of Advent. The list of items I previously mentioned were all fun (except for the costumes), my kids are healthy and filled with Christmas cheer, my husband and I are enjoying special time together, and how I love to see our lighted tree with Christmas music playing in the background. So anyway, I just felt like I should check in and let everyone know that I haven't abandoned my blog. I'm simply trying to simplify during this busy and blessed season. So "Merry Christmas" to all of you if I don't have time to blog again before the New Year!

Holy Day of Opportunity

"St Anne Conceiving the Virgin Mary"

by Jean Bellegambe (Flemish painter c. 1480 - c. 1535)

Today is the Feast Day of the Immaculate Conception, a feast day that most Catholics sadly can't properly define. Many faith-filled (and not-so-faith-filled) folks seem to think we are celebrating the day that Jesus was miraculously conceived in Mary's womb. However, this day truly defines the day that Mary was conceived immaculately (without sin) in her mother Anne's womb. I'd be curious to see how many of my Catholic high school friends remember that important bit of theological trivia...I'm sure we covered it in Miss Heinz' religion class :)

The Church even elevates this feast day to the status of a "Holy Day of Obligation." My wise and witty husband likes to refer to these days as "Holy Days of Opportunity." :) And he is so right. Every Sunday and special feast days like this one are considered holy days of obligation, but the church is only trying to set these rules to provide us with beautiful opportunities to grow in grace and holiness. Today's Mass at the Cathedral reminded me just what a special privilege it is to hear the Gospel, to gather with other believers, to receive Christ's real presence in Holy Communion, to worship in song, and even to breathe in the holy smell of incense. I remember despising the smell of incense as a child (maybe because it made me sneeze), but now as an adult I love it (even though it's spicy aroma still tickles my nose). Incense is an Old Testament tradition, and only the very traditional Catholic churches ever seem to use it. It is used to bless the Sacred Scriptures before the priest reads the Gospel, it is used to bless the altar before the priest consecrates the bread and wine, and it is used to bless the congregation. My very limited understanding is that it symbolizes our prayers being raised (like the smoke it creates) to God in Heaven. I think I appreciate incense now because it truly seems to take me back in time, to a place more reverent and full of awe at God's majesty. Oddly enough, it also takes me forward in time, to what I imagine Heaven to smell like, with angels surrounding God's throne (and trying with all their holy might not to sneeze!) :) Thank you, God, for these holy days of opportunity, days that bring me another step closer to understanding just how awesome You are.

Who Needs Toys?

The other day I let Dominic play at the sink while I was getting supper ready. I forgot how much kids love playing in water! He kept himself entertained for nearly an hour...which kept his mommy happy too! I got so much done, and I'm sure he learned more playing with water than he would've watching a video or playing with other over-rated, fancy toys! It was a reminder that kids truly don't need "toys," they just need household items to foster their creativity!

Advent Message from Mary

The following is the latest message that the Blessed Virgin Mary gave to one of the visionaries in Medjugorje. The message is so fitting for this Advent season and simply too beautiful not to share. For those of you unfamiliar with Medjugorje, you can click here for the history of these miraculous apparitions that have been occurring daily since 1981. I was very blessed to be able to visit Medjugorje my junior year in high school (1995). I had the privilege of meeting 2 of the visionaries, and was present in St. James Church church during one of the daily apparitions of the Blessed Mother. I went to Medjugorje right after Christmas, so this time of the year always brings back very warm memories of my pilgrimage there.

"Dear children. At this time of preparation and joyful expectation I, as a mother, desire to point you to what is the most important, to your soul. Can my Son be born in it? Is it cleansed by love from lies, arrogance, hatred and malice? Above all else, does your soul love God as your Father and does it love your fellow brother in Christ? I am pointing you to the way which will raise your soul to a complete union with my Son. I desire for my Son to be born in you. What a joy that would be for me as mother. Thank you."
(December 2, 2009 Message to Mirjana)