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!

Cemeteries and Visionaries

It's been awhile since I posted, but I promise I am working on editing my summer pictures to get those on the blog soon.  In the meantime, I came across some worthwhile reminders that I wanted to share.  One is a reminder about November being the month devoted to the Holy Souls in purgatory.  I didn't realize there are special indulgences we can receive for the souls in purgatory during this month, so I thought I'd share them with you too:

• During the first 8 days of November, if you go to a cemetery to pray for the holy souls in purgatory, you can receive a full (plenary) indulgence each day.  Any other days throughout the year, you can receive a partial indulgence when you pray for the holy souls at a cemetary.  I usually don't think to go to cemeteries to pray, but I am going to try to start doing it more often and bring my kids along to help plant the seed of praying for the souls in purgatory in their hearts.  I think God (and the holy souls) would be delighted with any prayer offered at the cemetery, but one powerful prayer that I found a few years ago was written by St. Gertrude, who was especially devoted to the souls in purgatory.  I found this in a prayer book that said that this prayer, when prayed devoutly, may help release 1000 souls from purgatory:

"Eternal Father, I offer You the most precious blood of Thy Divine Son, Jesus, 

in union with the Masses said throughout the world today, 

for all the Holy Souls in Purgatory, 

for sinners everywhere, 

for sinners in the universal church, 

for those in my own home and in my family.  

Amen."

• You can also receive a partial indulgence for the souls in purgatory every time you pray the "requiem aeternam" prayer.  Our family is going to try to say this prayer at the end of our meal prayer during the month of November:

"Eternal rest grant unto them, O Lord, and let Your perpetual light shine upon them.

May the souls of the faithful departed, through the mercy of God, rest in peace."

The other reminder I wanted to share with you comes from our Blessed Mother in Medjugorje.  Her words this month were beautiful and worth sharing.  Perhaps they will encourage you and remind you to share your faith with the lost souls in this world who do not follow God yet.  They need our help and prayers even more than the souls in purgatory do!!!

November 2, 2018 Message to Mirjana

"Dear children, My motherly heart suffers as I am looking at my children who do not love the truth, those who are hiding it - as I look at my children who do not pray with their feelings and actions. I am sad as I am saying to my Son that many of my children no longer have faith, that they do not know Him - my Son. That is why I call you, apostles of my love: you strive to look to the very depth in human hearts and there you are certain to find the little hidden treasure. To look in this way is mercy from the Heavenly Father. To seek the good even where there is the greatest evil - to strive to comprehend each other and not to judge - that is what my Son is asking of you. And I, as a mother, am calling you to listen to Him. My children, the spirit is mightier than the flesh, and, carried by love and actions, it overcomes all obstacles. Do not forget: my Son has loved you and loves you. His love is with you and in you when you are one with Him. He is the light of the world and no one and nothing will be able to stop Him in the final glory. Therefore, apostles of my love, do not be afraid to witness the truth. Witness it with enthusiasm, with works, with love, with your sacrifice, and, above all, in humility. Witness the truth to all those who have not come to know my Son. I will be alongside you. I will encourage you. Witness the love which never ends because it comes from the Heavenly Father who is eternal and who offers eternity to all of my children. The spirit of my Son will be alongside you. Anew I am calling you, my children: pray for your shepherds, pray that the love of my Son may lead them. Thank you."

Happy Feast of St. Margaret Mary!

"His Sacred Heart will do everything for me if I let him.  
He shall will, he shall love, he shall desire for me 
and make up for all my faults."  

~St. Margaret Mary~

Today is the Feast of St. Margaret Mary, a hidden and humble nun from France, who God chose to reveal the tender and powerful devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus.  Jesus appeared to St. Margaret Mary in the 17th century when the Jansenist heresy was widespread, especially throughout France.  It was a heresy that focused on predestination and perfectionism to a fault--that we needed to be perfect in order to earn God's approval and salvation.  It was a heresy that poisoned much of the Catholic theology of that time-period.  This heresy made people feel so ashamed that they constantly felt that they were disappointing God, often to the point were they would not even receive Holy Communion out of a feeling of unworthiness.  It made people look at God as a harsh judge who was ready to punish them at the slightest mistake.  Of all the heresies over the centuries, this one perhaps wounded Jesus' heart the most because it turned people away from His love and mercy--the very love and mercy He died on the cross to lavish upon us!  Here is a great excerpt from the book "Consoling the Heart of Jesus" by Fr. Michael Gaitley, that captures the story of St. Margaret Mary so well:

"From his sorrow at being so misunderstood and abandoned, Jesus looked for someone who would take pity on his aching Heart.  From the tabernacle, he cast his gaze out on all of France, searching for a true friend on whom he could unburden some of his heartache and through whom he might finally convince people to believe in his tender love and mercy.  Eventually, he found such a friend:  a little nun named Sr. Margaret Mary.  To this blessed soul, Jesus released an ocean of anguish as he disclosed his Divine Heart.  Appearing on the Cross, he said to her in a voice full of sadness and grief:

Behold this Heart, this heart so deeply in love with men, it spared no means of proof--exhausting itself until it was utterly spent in order to testify to its love!  In return, I have received from the greater part only ingratitude...  This hurts me more than everything I suffered in my passion.  Even a little love from them in return and I should regard all that I have done for them as next to nothing, and look for a way of doing still more.  But no; all my eager efforts for their welfare meet with nothing but coldness and dislike.  Do me the kindness, then--you, at least--of making up for all their ingratitude, as far as you can."  (emphasis mine)

Wow, how beautiful that Jesus asked St. Margaret Mary to console His sorrowing heart... And He asks this of you and me, as well!  Yes, we (sinners though we are) can somehow make up for the ingratitude that Jesus receives from most of the world by simply loving Him and being grateful to Him for His love and mercy!  You, at least, and me can be the ones that quench His thirst for love and remove some of the bitter sorrow from His heart!  Just like Margaret Mary did!  That's what we have in common with this great saint!  We can do this in so many little ways:

1. Go visit Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament so that He will not be alone, and just tell Him that you love Him and enjoy spending time with Him
2. Make small sacrifices throughout the day to tell Jesus thank you for the sacrifice He made for you (give up an extra cup of coffee, hold your tongue and smile when someone irritates you, clean a toilet or two joyfully :)...etc)
3. Make an effort to receive the Eucharist more than once a week to show your love for Him and your gratitude for the gift of receiving His Heart (literally) in the Eucharist
4. At 3:00pm (the hour Jesus died on the cross), stop for a moment to thank Jesus for His sacrifice, to express your love, and, if you have time, say a Chaplet of Divine Mercy
5. Buy a picture of the Sacred Heart and each time you gaze at it, hear Him saying to you:  "Behold this Heart that loved so much, yet is so little loved."  And then reassure Him that He is loved by you...you, at least...and me!  

...the possibilities are endless!

Back to School

I haven't even posted our summer pictures yet, and here we are a month into the school year already!  Life just never slows down, does it?  But I thought I'd go out of order this time and share these school photos and request some prayers before I backtrack and blog about our summer adventures.

Here is our crew of boys on the front porch on the first day of school.  They requested a porch photo instead of the embarrassment of taking their picture at school in front of all their classmates... :}  It's not the best photo, but it sure captures my crazy crew and shows how each of them are growing and have their own unique personality:

• On the top step there's Joseph who just turned 17 and is entering his Junior year.  He is starting to ponder college options and hopes to find one with a baseball team :)  In this photo he is sporting a sweet 80s style mullet, but sadly the school asked him to cut it after the first week because it did not meet the dress code.  He is still mourning the loss, but it won't be long and he will have the freedom in college to grow his hair long again.
• Then there's Michael wearing an A's baseball cap who already wishes there was less homework so that he could watch more MLB or practice baseball with his brother.  He is 15 and in the throws of puberty (I keep wondering when the grumpy stage will end...please, Lord, make it soon!) :}  He must have grown 3 inches this summer because he is taller than his older brother now and starting to lift weights every day so that he can play for Legion baseball again this Spring.  He just started Driver's Ed, so we will soon have 2 teenage drivers at our house!!!  He is a sophomore this year, with only 3 other kids in his class--how crazy is that!?
• And then there's Dominic wearing his studious glasses and sitting beside his cello.  He is 12 years old and in the 6th grade this year. This boy has a brain that astounds me.  Super smart, mathematical, and musical.  He has so many gifts, but also so many crosses to carry right now.  This school year has been a very rocky start for him.  He is still learning to manage his panic attacks and healed so much over the summer.  But one of his classmates has been bullying him, which has made the panic attacks come back to the surface.  Please help me to pray for the virtue of kindness to grow in his classroom, and for strength and perseverance for Dominic as he learns to stand up for himself, forgive, and keep his panic attacks under control all at the same time.  It will be hard, but I am confident he can handle it with the help of God's grace.  
• Nathanael, our 7 year old, is in the 2nd grade and loving every minute of it.  He keeps a constant smile which looks so sweet on his freckled face.  He is growing into a young little man before my eyes though, and I am so happy that he will get to receive Jesus in 1st Communion this year.  It won't be long and he will be altar serving with his 3 older brothers!
• And last but not least is our little Isaiah who was big enough to start Kindergarten this year!  He was so happy and ready to go.  No tears on the first day of school.  He loves his teacher, loves learning, loves recess, loves his classmates, and loves coming home to show off all that he did at school every day.  I miss him like crazy, but his smile when he comes home keeps my heart filled with joy.  I still cannot believe that ALL FIVE OF MY KIDS ARE IN SCHOOL!  This is a strange new chapter in my life, and I am keeping my days filled with numerous projects and volunteering to keep me busy and to keep me from getting too lonely :}

Please keep all of my boys in your prayers for a happy, holy, and healthy school year!  Thank you!!!

Isaiah, my big Kindergartener!

Happy Feast Day of St. Mother Teresa of Calcutta!

Here are 2 great quotes from St. Mother Teresa of Calcutta to help you choose JOY  and LOVE today!  :) 

For more great quotes, you can find her top 20 quotes here:  https://www.goalcast.com/2017/04/10/top-20-most-inspiring-mother-teresa-quotes/

"Joy is a net of love by which you catch souls."

"Spread love everywhere you go.  Let no one ever come to you without leaving happier."

~St. Mother Teresa of Calcutta~

The Summer of Baseball

As you may have noticed, I haven't spent much time blogging this summer.  And that is because I've been at baseball games the majority of the time.  Joseph and Michael were both selected to be on American Legion baseball teams this year, which was quite an honor, and they were SOOOO happy and proud.  But it kept our family SOOOO busy because each of the boys was on a different team, with different practice times, different game times, and many of the games were out of town, which often resulted in my husband and I traveling different directions to watch our boys plays.  It was crazy but fun for the whole family.  Baseball is the big-boys' passion, and the little boys enjoyed chasing after fouls balls and receiving a prize from the concession stands. :)

It was exciting to watch the boys play at a higher competitive level than ever before and improve their skills.  Both boys also had to learn how to deal with disappointments along the way too, which was no fun, but I'm sure it helped them grow in Godly character! :)  Michael's major disappointment was injuring his right hand middle finger at the beginning of the season.  It was an injury called "mallet finger" or "baseball finger" where the tendon that straightens the finger gets damaged.  In order for it to heal properly he had to wear a finger splint for 8 weeks.  Despite the annoying splint, Michael somehow managed to have one of the best batting averages on the team and was the starting 2nd baseman most of the time.  Joseph's challenge was learning to deal with the reality of being a small fish in a big pond this year.  There were 18 young men on his team, many of whom played Legion ball last year and had done traveling All-Star teams the previous years.  About half of his teammates were pitchers, so Joseph didn't get to pitch quite as often as he would have liked, but he still enjoyed every single minute of his season whether he was cheering on his teammates from the dugout, pitching from the mound, batting, or playing left field.  Both boys and their teams had a great season, with more wins than losses, and our boys are already eager for next season (mom and dad are still recovering)!  :} We were super proud of our boys, but we were also a bit grateful when the season was over so that we could get back to normal family life and do some other fun things before summer was over.

Here are some great photos of our boys in baseball action!  I was super thankful that a few of the other parents had amazing cameras and high-powered telephoto lenses, and I was able to download them off of Facebook.  It's the only thing I've ever used Facebook for!  :)

I'll start with photos of Michael...

He only got to pitch a few games before he injured his finger,

but honestly, he loves playing in the in-field more anyway.

And now photos of Joseph:

And now we wait for next year... :)  While we wait, Paul and the boys have plans to build a batting cage in our extra garage so that they can practice in the off season.  I sure love my baseball-loving boys, and I hope they always give glory to God in their sport, grow in virtue while they grow in skills, and have fun no matter if they win or lose.