Belated Thanksgiving Note

I hope all of you had a thank-filled and joy-filled Thanksgiving!  To be honest, mine was filled a feast full of sadness and tears, but I still tried to give a litany of thanks in between my crying episodes :}  Ai-ya-yai!  I'm a pathetic mess at this time of year...  Hunting season seems to get harder for me to handle each year, and I  get a bit homesick being so far away from family during these big holiday feasts.  But God always surrounds me with things to be thankful for if I would just wipe the tears away and take a look outside of my selfish-self. 

This morning, for example, I awoke to glittery frost all over the trees and fields around our house...  Each glistening flake is a kiss from God, an "I love you" from Heaven...and He was just waiting for me to notice and say "thank You" or "I love You" in return.  Some days it is harder than others to notice the God-sent gifts around us; some days we simply have to will it, to force ourselves to be grateful because we feel so broken inside, but I think God is pleased with our efforts even when they don't come naturally.  I find hope in the Psalmist's words:  

"He who offers a sacrifice of praise and thanksgiving honors Me."  Psalm 50:23 

Sometimes giving thanks feels like a sacrifice, but it still honors God if we choose to be thankful despite the sadness we might be going through.  Perhaps it even consoles His Heart more when we thank Him through our tears, because it means that we love Him enough to come to Him just as we are (weepy, weak, sinful, and sad), and we trust that He loves us just as we are.  

So anyway, to fit with the Thanksgiving theme, here is our family's top 10 list of gifts that we are thankful for:

1. The Eucharist:  The Greek word “Eucharisteo” literally means “to give thanks.”  That is so fitting because the fact that God loves us so much that He sent His Son to die for our sins and continues to give us Jesus’ life-giving Body and Blood in the Eucharist is certainly something to be thankful for! 
2. Our Marriage:  As most of you who are married know, marriage is hard sometimes. The past few years have been particularly hard for us, but God has taught us so much through the struggles and guided us closer to Him and to each other as we have learned how to love and forgive as God loves and forgives us.  We also learned to never lose hope, because God can bring good out of every circumstance if we trust in Him.  Our marriage received some extra special graces this summer when we took a pilgrimage to Medjugorje, which is a village in Bosnia where the Blessed Virgin Mary has been miraculously appearing every day since 1981, giving messages of peace, conversion, and love.  We hope that as we live those messages, our marriage and our family will grow in holiness and help set the world on fire with love for God. 
3. Joseph:  Joseph is now 14 and we can sure tell that he is a teenager!  He is now taller than his mother, and his hair has become crazy-curly like his father’s (was) J  His favorite activities lately are:  altar serving at Mass, playing his violin, hanging out with his awesome 8^th grade friends from St. Andrew School, fishing with his grandpa, mountain biking, snow skiing, and playing baseball at every possible opportunity—especially pitching!
4. Michael:  Michael is 12 and is excelling in the 7^th grade.  He is our competitive child who is crazy about sports.  He was thrilled to play 2 seasons of baseball this year:  one in Helena, MT and one in Aberdeen, SD (because we spent the summer in SD while getting our house sold in MT).  His teams in Helena AND in Aberdeen won the championship tournaments, which was a boy’s dream come true.  He also enjoys being an altar server, fishing with grandpa, playing chess with dad, playing darts, playing football at recess, snow skiing, and mountain biking.
5. Dominic:  Dominic is 9 and having fun in the 3^rd grade.  He is our sweet and sensitive son with a heart bigger than Montana.  He is mommy’s biggest helper because he plays with his younger brothers so patiently and so well.  He loves school and was thrilled to finally be old enough to join the orchestra this year.  He chose the cello and plays it beautifully already.  He also enjoys baseball, snow skiing, mountain biking, and taking care of the chickens that we acquired at our rental house.
6. Nathanael:  Nathanael just turned 5 and it’s hard to believe that our sweet baby boy with the dimpled chin is now a big boy who goes to preschool, knows his ABCs, and can count to 1000!  He continues to be a complete delight to our family with his sweet and silly temperament and that adorable freckled face.  He is crazy about Legos, Bionicles, magnet blocks, Nerf guns, Wild Kratts, and playing with his brothers.
7. Isaiah:  Isaiah is 2 ½ and keeps us all smiling. He is fully potty-trained, so we no longer have a child in diapers---gasp!  He spends his days playing with jets, trains, and cars, chasing chickens in our yard, and following mommy wherever she goes.
8. Our family and friends:  We are so blessed with extended family that loves us, prays for us, and encourages us from afar.  With no family in Montana, we feel so very blessed to have such supportive friends through our Catholic Church and the boys’ Catholic School.  Our friends and family (both near and far) have been one of life’s biggest blessings as we constantly encourage one another on this often difficult journey towards heaven.
9. Our jobs:  Paul took on a new position within the Federal Aviation Administration this year and he has been enjoying it a lot.  It has provided him with new challenges to conquer, more flexible hours, and less traveling—hurray!  Maria continues to have the best job in the world as a stay-at-home mom.
10. A Soul-Changing Book: Our family is so thankful for a book that is truly expanding our souls and teaching us how to grow closer to Jesus in a profound way.  The book is called Consoling the Heart of Jesus by Fr. Michael Gaitley, and we hope you will put it on your “Must Read” list!  This book teaches anyone how to become a saint (yes, even if you are a weak, sinful soul—which we all are!), and at the same time how to console Jesus’ Heart that is hurt by all the souls who reject His love and mercy.  Through beautiful insights from saints whom Jesus Himself appeared to (such as St. Faustina and St. Margaret Mary Alacoque), the book explains how to console Jesus in surprisingly simple ways, like having confident trust in His mercy when we fail—for that gives Him the joy of being our Savior.  But I hope you will read the book for yourselves to learn even more ways to be consolers of Jesus’ Heart!

Our family hopes that you all have hearts full of “Eucharisteo”—thanksgiving—for all the blessings God has given you, too!  May all of our hearts grow in gratitude this year, and grow closer to Jesus’ Sacred Heart which loves us so much and is thirsting for us to love Him in return.  

As Jesus said in these powerful words when he appeared to St. Margaret Mary Alacoque:

“Behold this Heart, which loves so much, yet is so little loved. 

Do me the kindness then—you, at least—

of consoling my Heart as much as you can.

Yes, let’s console Jesus’ Heart with our love and gratitude as much as we can...

even if it is a sacrifice to do so at times.

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!

Family Photo Shoot

Every year I try to take new photos of the boys for our family blog and also for my mom's "Grandkids Wall of Fame"  :)  It is always a fun, yet stressful project for me because I am such a perfectionist and I have zero photography training, but I have to say I am pleased with this year's results.  Normally I take the photos at a nearby lake, but this year I took the photos right outside our rental house (yes, we are still in a rental...keep praying for us to find the home God has planned for us soon!).  Sometimes I struggle with being grateful for our rental house because it's waaayyyy out in the valley where the cactus and sage brush thrive, but I was thankful for the Montana-esque backdrop it made for these photos...  Always try to find the silver-lining, right?  :}  It would have been humorous for you to watch me take these photos because I kept having to kick chickens out of the way so that they wouldn't get in the photo.  I'm sure am learning to be quite the pioneer woman living out here!  Actually, I'm learning that I am no Laura Ingalls Wilder...there's no way I would have survived the pioneer days! :)  Anyway, here are the photos...  I was shocked to see how much the boys have grown since last year's photo.  I guess I didn't notice the change from day to day, but I can sure see it from year to year.

I am blessed to be the momma of these five beautiful boys:

I couldn't believe how much Joseph matured this year!  He looks so different from last year...  Even though he is only in the 8th grade, I had the strange feeling that I was taking his senior pictures!  It certainly gave me a twinge of sadness to think of how few years he has left in our home :(

Michael gets more and more handsome each year and more and more freckles too!

He got his braces off this year, so he was finally able to smile showing his teeth--although he just barely showed them off :}  He is the only one in the family with those beautiful brown eyes, and I have a feeling that someday they will melt a young lady's heart--unless, of course, he chooses the priesthood! :)

Dashing Dominic!  What more can I say?  How I love his hazel eyes, his huge hugs, and his sensitive, loving heart!

Natey's photo was perhaps my favorite one of all.  I just love his dimpled chin, his sweet grin, and that sweet sweater to match the blue mountains behind him!

I was grateful to get at least one good picture of Isaiah.  Getting a 2 year old to sit still and smile is like trying to catch a tumbleweed in a tornado!  :)  With the other boys photos, I had plenty of good photos to choose from, but with Isaiah I only had two...this one, and this one:

I'm guessing my mom will want the other one for her wall, but this one sure makes me laugh :)

After taking all the pictures of the boys, I asked my son Michael to take a few of Paul and I.  I thought they turned about pretty sweet  :)  I can't even pick which one I like the best.  Do you have a favorite?  I think my husband looks quite handsome in that hat.  God has abundantly blessed me...beautiful boys, a handsome husband, and Jesus' merciful love...what more could a girl want?  Well, perhaps a new house, but there I go being greedy again.  Truly, I am grateful for what I have and trying not to want more...but it is hard.  Pray for me and I will pray for you...just send me a comment or an email (pmhurlbert@gmail.com) if you have specific prayer intentions.  I would be honored to pray for you specifically.  

My oh my, look who's FIVE!

Nathanael turned FIVE this week...November 10th to be exact.  It is hard to believe that our sweet baby boy with the dimpled chin is now a big boy who goes to preschool, knows his ABCs, and can count to 1000!  He continues to be a complete delight to our family with his sweet and silly temperament and that adorable freckled face :) We celebrated his special day by going to an afternoon Mass at Carroll College, followed by eating at a restaurant of the Birthday Boy's choosing...  He chose a Japanese Steakhouse so that he could see a fire show---typical boy.  Then we came home and gave him a few presents.  Simple and sweet.

Here is Nathanael the month he was born.  Simply adorable.  He was our first baby with that cute dimpled chin and I remember just wanting to kiss it all the time and gaze at his sweet face all day long.  I still love to cover him with kisses, and he still is super adorable, but now I can start to see in his face the young man he is to become.  In the picture below I see a 5 year old going on 15.   I see more maturity on his face and realize he's not a baby anymore.  Bittersweet.  But I am so grateful for each year God has given me with this sweet boy, and although I don't know how it's possible, I find myself loving each of my boys more and more each and every year of their lives.  I am one very blessed mother.

Dearest Nathanael,

my baby boy with the dimpled chin who is no longer a baby.

I still love to kiss that dimple and all those freckles, 

and I hope you will always let me.

I am so proud of the son that you are:

sweet, silly, and sensitive.

You are one of mommy's biggest helpers--

the way you play with Isaiah so that I can get things done.

I love the way your brilliant mind works 

and how you love to build and create with Legos and K'Nex for hours.

I love your smile, your laughter, and your joyful heart

that you contagiously give to everyone in our home and everyone you meet.

You are a blessing to our family, a firecracker of joy,

and I pray that you will set the world on fire with love for Jesus!

Isaiah's newsflash

Guess what?

I'm officially potty-trained!!!

Now give me some privacy please!

Thank you, very much :)

Eucharistic Miracle of Buenes Aires

A friend sent me this YouTube video of a recent Eucharistic Miracle that is definitely worth sharing!  For those of you who are Pope Francis fans, you will be delighted to learn that he was directly involved with this miracle.  This story makes my belief in the Real Presence so much deeper, and I hope many non-Catholics will see this video and have their hearts opened to the beauty of the Eucharist and the truth that God loves us so much that He literally shares His Heart with us at every Mass!

Here is the link:
Eucharistic Miracle of Buenes Aires
or you can copy and paste it using this address:  https://www.youtube.com/embed/3gPAbD43fTI

Our Little (and not so little) Saints

We continued the tradition of celebrating the saints on Halloween as a way to focus on what is holy rather than what is not.  Only one family joined our celebration this year, but we still had a fun and holy time!  We carved "Saint-O-Lanterns," played Catholic trivia and a few other saint games, prayed a litany of the saints, shared stories of our favorite saints, and had great food and fellowship!

Joseph is dressed as St. Thomas Aquinas, Isaiah is St. Gabriel, Nathanael is St. Pio, Dominic is St. Damian, and Michael is St. Peter

(Paul was levitating and Maria was bi-locating, which is why we are not pictured) ;)

Each time I see a picture of the Sacred Heart all aflame with love for us, I am reminded of Jesus' words to St. Margaret Mary (paraphrased):

"Behold this Heart that loves so much, yet is so little loved...

Do me the kindness, then--you, at least--

of consoling this Heart of Mine, 

as far as you can."

May we all become saints that console His heart and quench His thirst for love in countless small ways!  Through the intercession of all the holy saints, I pray that my family (and yours) may become saints that set the world on fire for love of Christ!  Happy All Saint's Day!!!

Apparition Hill (and some spiritual warfare stories fitting for Halloween)

Apparition Hill is the most visited spot in Medjugorje for the obvious reason that the Blessed Mother first appeared on that hill in 1981 and continues to appear there still in 2015!  It was a bit surreal to hike that hill with my husband, knowing that millions of other pilgrims have climbed it before us and that the Virgin Mary herself has hovered right over the rocks we were treading upon.

 As pilgrims climb Apparition Hill, many of them pray the Joyful Mysteries of the rosary, which are beautifully displayed on bronze plaques going up the mountain.  One could spend hours just mediating upon the scenes on each plaque because they capture the life of Jesus so beautifully.

About half way up the mountain, pilgrims find a simple, wooden cross, which marks the spot that the Blessed Virgin Mary appeared the first time, giving the visionary children the first simple, yet profound, message:  "Peace, Peace, Peace, and only peace."  Standing at that spot which overlooks the peaceful village of Medjugorje certainly fills the soul with peace.  How I long to be standing there right now!

It was interesting to watch the different ways that pilgrims walk up Apparition Hill...some of them singing joyfully from the heart, some of them praying silently, and some (typically the Italians) praying so loudly it could be mistaken for rudeness.  It truly is a spiritual journey to tread upon those jacked rocks--surprisingly still sharp and precarious even after more than 30 years of erosion from pilgrims' feet.  One touching scene is to see the handful of pilgrims who choose to take their shoes of and hike the hill barefoot as a means of penance and to symbolize the fact that they are walking on holy ground.

Paul and I were blessed to be staying at homes very near Apparition Hill, which allowed us to hike the hill numerous times throughout our pilgrimage.  Every time I hiked the hill and made it to the beautiful Mary statue at the top, I would place my personal intentions and all the intentions of my family and friends into Our Blessed Mother's hands, who seemed to be waiting for them with a loving smile, as if she was about to say, "Of course I will take these prayers to my Son for you.  Thank you for entrusting them to me."

The top of Apparition Hill is where the apparitions of Mary took place during the first few weeks of Mary's visits in Medjugorje.  However, once the Communist government at the time found out about this mysterious phenomenon that was attracting thousands of Catholics to this obscure little village, they quickly tried to put a stop to it.  For weeks they barricaded the bottom of Apparition Hill so that no one could go up--not even the visionaries.  Therefore, the visionaries started having their apparitions of the Blessed Mother wherever they happened to be at 6:40pm.  Oftentimes, it was at St. James Church, sometimes in a field as they were running away from the Communist soldiers, and sometimes in their homes.  It was a special grace that Mary was willing to appear to them anywhere, unlike at Fatima and Lourdes in which Mary always appeared at one location.

One miracle of the early days of Medjugorje happened when the visionary children were running away from the Communist soldiers.  The parish priest at the time was Fr. Jozo, and he did not fully believe that Mary was appearing to the children.  He thought they were all making up a fantastic story to get attention.  So as he was praying in the church of St. James, begging for God to show him a sign to guide him as to whether or not he should support the children's crazy claims or denounce the whole affair, he heard a voice in his heart that said, "Go now and protect the children."  It seemed like an urgent command, and so he got up and started walking to the door of the church.  Just as he was about to open the main door of the church, the scared and frantic children came charging through a side door, seeking protection from the Communist authorities who were threatening to imprison them.  Fr. Jozo had received his sign and started believing that the Blessed Mother truly was appearing.  He suffered greatly for his belief.  He was imprisoned by the Communists for nearly 4 years and was not allowed to return as the pastor to Medjugorje.  But he tirelessly spent the following years spreading the messages of Medjugorje in the parish where he was at.

Fr. Jozo with the visionary children

Many pilgrims who came to Medjugorje would take a day-trip to Fr. Jozo's parish just to hear him speak because his testimony was so filled with the Holy Spirit.  I was blessed to hear Fr. Jozo speak the first time I went to Medjugorje in 1996.  It was his tradition to hand out holy cards with a beautiful picture of Mary on it.  On the back of the holy card was one of Mary's messages which was a powerful reminder of how to take the message of Medjugorje home with you...  He would explain Mary's message to the pilgrims by telling them to gather 5 stones from Apparition Hill as a reminder of the 5 stones that David used in the Bible to defeat Goliath.  Fr. Jozo said that these 5 stones symbolize 5 spiritual weapons that the Blessed Virgin Mary herself said will help you to defeat any "Goliaths" in your life:

1) The Rosary and prayer from the heart
2) The Eucharist
3) The Holy Bible
4) Fasting
5) Monthly Confession

Our holy and humble tour guide reminded us of Fr. Jozo's advice to pick 5 stones from Medjugorje, and so Paul and I had fun collecting stones of various sizes on our hikes up and down Apparition Hill.  Paul keeps 5 stones at work; I keep 5 stones in my car; and we also have stones on our kitchen window sill.  They are beautiful reminders of how to fight our various "Goliaths" throughout the day.

Fr. Jozo speaking to a group of pilgrims

Our tour guide also told us a story of spiritual warfare involving a stone from Medjugorje.  Apparently there was a priest who was a trained exorcist, and he decided to take a rock from Apparition Hill into the room where an exorcism was going to take place.  He put the rock in a box and then placed the box in a far corner of the room just to see what would happen.  As soon as the exorcism rite began, the possessed person starting violently yelling, "Take it out of here, take it out of here!"  The priest asked the possessed person what he wanted to be taken out of the room.  The demon, clearly in agony, yelled, "The box, the box!"  Again, the priest questioned further and asked why the box should be removed, and the demon finally said, "Because of the holy rock and her presence...I hate her!"  What a powerful confirmation that Satan and his demons do not like the Virgin Mary, and even the presence of her graces upon a rock from Apparition Hill can drive evil spirits away!  Satan can't stay long in the presence of what is holy, so I feel better knowing that I have some holy rocks, holy water, and other blessed items all over our house!  :}

The last story that I will share about apparition hill involves more spiritual warfare...  At first I was not going to share this story, because I didn't want to frighten anyone.  But, the more I thought about it, the more I was convinced that this story truly is not frightening, but rather quite the opposite!  So, here it is...  Paul and I were blessed with the opportunity to be present for an evening apparition when Our Lady appeared to the visionary named Ivan.  This was not the daily 6:40pm apparition, but rather an extra apparition later in the evening which Mary told Ivan about in advance during his 6:40pm apparition.  She told him that she would appear to him again that evening at the top of Apparition Hill as a special grace for Ivan's youth group that he leads.  Paul and I went up the hill many hours early to find a spot to sit because we knew it would be crowded with thousands of people once the apparition time got near.  We waited for hours, but it did not seem long at all.  It was so beautiful to pray quietly and to watch the spectacular sun set as pilgrims slowly began to find a seat on every rugged rock at the top of Apparition Hill.

Paul reading and praying as we waited for the evening apparition.

The crucifix at the top of Apparition Hill near where we sat for the apparition.

A view of the beautiful sunset and all of the pilgrims waiting for Mary to appear.

The gorgeous sunset right before Mary appeared on Apparition Hill.

I never got to see "the miracle of the sun" like so many others in Medjugorje,
but this was close enough for me!

Ivan's youth group sang praise and worship songs for awhile, and then Ivan led the crowd in praying the rosary.  By this time, it was completely dark on Apparition Hill--probably around 9:00pm.  Paul and I were sitting very near the Mary statue because we had come to the hill so early to wait.  We chose a spot that was to the left of the Mary statue and higher up so that we would be able to see Ivan well and so that we wouldn't get squished in the big crowd.  There were some bushes right behind us, and just moments before the Blessed Virgin Mother was about to appear to Ivan, we heard the most horrible growl come from the bushes right behind us.  The growl was unlike any sound I had ever heard before--unlike any animal and unlike any sound that a person could possibly make.  I immediately knew it was a demon making that sound.  I was terrified.  I looked at my husband, and we did the only thing we could think of doing...we prayed.  All the people around us started praying too.  And then suddenly the growling sound seemed to jump to the center of the crowd and a young girl started thrashing on the ground and the horrible sounds were now coming from her!  Thankfully, there was an abundance of holy priests and holy pilgrims on the hill, and they all started praying for deliverance and protection from evil spirits.  Suddenly, Mary appeared to Ivan.  He stopped praying the rosary; his head looked up; peace was covering his face, and peace immediately covered the crowd.  The demonic growling stopped.  When Mary came, it was as if all evil was forced to flee.  The whole event dramatically proved to me that spiritual warfare is real...  The fact that the demon showed up moments before Mary appeared was a sign that demons visibly get agitated when they know something holy is about to happen and they try desperately to stop it.  The fact that the demon fled as soon as Mary appeared was a sign that evil spirits have no power in the presence of the holy.  Therefore, we truly have nothing to fear if we stay close to what is holy...namely, Jesus Christ, the Sacraments, and His Blessed Mother!  I cannot express how grateful I was to be in Mary's presence that night on Apparition Hill!  I now can say with so much more certainty that I believe Mary is appearing in Medjugorje, and that she is a powerful and safe refuge against sin and Satan.

Perhaps all this spiritual warfare talk is fitting as we approach Halloween, for it reminds us that Satan is real, but evil is easily defeated by the power of Jesus, His Cross, and His Blessed Mother!

To learn more about Medjugorje, click here:  http://atotustuusfamily.blogspot.com/2015/09/medjugorje-101_24.html

To read more about our personal experience in Medjugorje, click here:
http://atotustuusfamily.blogspot.com/2015/10/medjugorje-why-there.html