Soul Stamp

For selfish reasons, I just love when my children receive a new Sacrament.  Not only do they receive abundant graces themselves, it's also an opportunity for the whole family to strengthen our faith...Most importantly, we, the parents!  As Catholics, we are not "once saved." We are saved through our Baptism, of course, but our salvation is an ongoing process; We believe our lives are a series of constant and continual conversions.  The Sacraments are one of many blessed opportunities to experience a new conversion, to revisit the gifts of our faith, and renew our commitment to the greatest Giver.

I've heard it said before that "Once a Catholic, always a Catholic." It's no wonder when we receive a permanent, indelible mark on our souls, received through the Sacraments of Baptism and Confirmation.  From these special moments forward, we are always recognizable by the Father...And the Son, and the Holy Spirit.  We are loved. Soul Stamp! Permanent gifts are given. 
Of course we have free will not to practice our Catholic faith but in doing so, we deny such beautiful gifts so lavishly poured upon us.   For goodness sakes, it makes sense that we aren't at peace until we are back on the home page. We are restless until we rest with God. {Home in the Church}.  (St. Augustine) 

In a nutshell, we are marked by God. We are His forever. Our souls are stamped. He loves us so much that he gave us many gifts through the Sacraments...Not just one gift but many. Whoa, I saw this in a new way ...A realization of the many gifts freely given to us by God Himself, specifically through the Sacrament of Baptism and strengthened in Confirmation.  How many times have I squandered these gifts? Oh My!  Yes, I was "one of those."

There were times in my life that I ignored the gifts and even so much as tried to send them back.  Nope, didn't work.  The gifts remained.  They sat there waiting for me to look at them, dig down deep, open them up, adore them, be grateful for them.  God waited patiently and lovingly, as He always does for his children.  He never takes back His gifts or His soul stamp.   
His mercy endures forever.

Now I do my best to appreciate those gifts, hoping to never take them for granted again. As my second son prepared for his Confirmation, I was reading about the 7 gifts of the Holy Spirit.  They jumped out at me, not just as words to memorize for Catechesis, but vitamins to strengthen us for our journey.  They're spiritual self-help, real, tangible, instructions and helpful hints for how to live.  I'm saying that again for myself...How to live.  We aren't just Catholics by name but it's how we live our lives that count.  I'm always trying to talk the talk to my children while most importantly, reminding myself that I need to walk the walk, live by example.  Note to self: Children watch more than they listen! 
(Can you tell they aren't listening?:)

In the midst of keeping things real, we were really excited as the time came for our son to receive the Holy Spirit. 

Everyone was ready and eager for this exciting day.  

Ohhhh, what a very special moment it was...

His soul was stamped and mine was dusted off and shined up again.
A faith ignited,
A faith renewed.
"It was not you who chose me, says the Lord, but I who chose you."~John 15:16~

Topsy, Turvy, Terrific!

May is here already!
 Time is zooming by, as usual.  
The weather where we live makes me want to be outside all. the. time.  I know that is such a blessing when God's playground hollers for our company.
So,

we found a park nearby that we have promised to visit at least once a week.  The readers in the family want to make it their new reading nook.

"Some" of us had a fun OUTing, there recently.

While missing the other members of the family, we still made the best of things:)

I really *love* how these photos turned out...

But there's one, little, "if only."  "If only" our whole family unit were in them!

Can I just say the I really miss those days when all 5 kids were in every photo?
It has me feeling topsy turvy.  

I know that time in our life has officially passed but I just miss it.

It's a new phase now...A new place.
We have a young adult growing out of his teens this year and an older child who is quickly growing into a young adult.  At the same time, we still have youngers who are still sweet and innocent, though growing just as quickly.  I am really, really, trying to savor every moment!
  

As for precious moments, this Mama recently had a lovely opportunity to visit our college son.  He's doing great and we are so proud of him:)  He's on the Dean's list and heading to Rome for a semester in August...
[This college has an amazing campus of its own right outside of Rome!]

I have to say that it is an amazing blessing to witness your own children living so much better (including making better decisions) than you did at their age!  
I am beyond grateful.

My oldest daughter went along to be my travel buddy and we had fabulous mother-daughter time!

We arrived just in time to see the last of the famous Texas Blue Bonnets (State Wildflower) in bloom.  They are so pretty!

These 2 photos were taken on my son's campus.  I just love "the tower" in the background...Students call it the beacon of hope:)

Princess loved experiencing her first college campus!  

Big brother enjoyed showing us around...

He loves the intimate class {round table} setting.

Princess loved the peaceful surroundings:)

A bonus to our travels was a visit with some Texas friends.  Patty and I met in the blog world and connected "real life" when our son first left for this college near her home. It's so fun to meet a fellow blogger and even more of a blessing to form a lovely friendship.  As Patty said herself:  "Friends are good medicine."  True indeed.  
God places just the right people in our paths according to His good timing and plan.

One of the neat things about this time around was that some of our children got to meet up in "girly heaven."  

Can you guess where?

It was such a fun morning, to say the least! This bunch is a sweet family to hang out with, let me tell ya:) And the boys DID survive! *wink*

With the tides of change, bonus blessings always abound...

Speaking of... This trip I finally got to meet Charlotte, from Waltzing Matilda!  We met prior to and (had the chance to chat) after a beautiful Cistercian Mass near the college campus.  {The college my son is attending is also the Alma Mater for Charlotte and her husband:)} It won't come as a surprise that she and her family are just beautiful, both inside and outside the blogging world! 

There are so many of you that I'd love to meet!  Maybe someday... If not in this world, maybe the next:)

It was a wonderful trip with good memories to cherish.

For now, I will be happy with the topsy turvy.  
We might not always be together but together we will always be.
That's the goal, at least:)

Through it all, I'm finding that even the topsy turvy is pretty darned terrific!

+God is good+

Morning "Feasting" with St. Mark!

This was a fun and easy way to bring the feast of St. Mark into our morning!

Evangelist Mark is represented as a lion because he begins his Gospel in the wilderness, `The voice of one crying in the desert: Make ready the way of the Lord,' or because he presents the Lord as the unconquered King."

I made 4 Lion Fruit Plates.  

Each one took about 2 cutie oranges.  Then, I used a total of about 2 kiwi, 1 apple, and 1 banana.  
I also shared this idea over at Catholic Cuisine.

+Happy Feast Day+

"Jesus said to them, "Go into the whole world and proclaim the Gospel to every creature." Mark 16:15

Saint Mark, a cousin of Barnabas, accompanied Saint Paul on his first missionary journey and later went with him to Rome. He was a disciple of Saint Peter whose teaching was the basis for Mark's Gospel.  Mark is said to be the founder of the church of Alexandria.

Good Shepherd Sunday Celebration

This post is one for the records!

I realized thought I didn't have all the links in one place for the 4th Sunday of Easter, which is always Good Shepherd Sunday.  Then I found an old post that wasn't labeled.  So I did have the links posted here after all. (As I'm more than half way done with this post and spent an hour looking for my sheep template)! Argh. Oh well, I'm finishing this one anyway!  It will be fun for us to look back and see the differences over the years;)
Celebrating Good Shepherd Sunday has been one of our many liturgical celebrations over the years.  Some of the others have come and gone but this one has "stuck" for our family!  (It has officially made it to our annual list of traditions and everyone looks forward to it. Mostly, I think everyone loves the menu:)  For me, I love the reminder that we are the sheep and Christ is our Shepherd.  Like good sheep of the flock, staying closely pressed to Him is the best place to be.

We made these cute little guys a few years ago.  I loved them because they were easy to print out on card stock, color, and fold for each member of our family.  They can be found at the Crayola website.  I also Pinned them so they can always be reproduced if we add more family members or if one gets ruined.  We bring them out to graze the table (above) on Good Shepherd Sunday:)

Each year our menu stays pretty much the same, though our dessert has varied.

Shepherd Pie
{I always use this one from Simply Recipes and add a shredded cheesy Cross to top before baking}

Shepherd staff breadsticks

Green pasture salad

Flock of sheep dessert

In previous years, we have made Flock of Sheep Cookies but this year we stuck to easy peasy Rice Krispy treats since I have a sheep cookie cutter.

This year my Good Shepherd glass candle fell to the floor, broken by me and not the kids this time.  I am able to reproduce it very easily with this link and instructions for a tall glass candle jar. Yay!
Well that's about it.  Praying all of you readers are still feeling the graces of Easter!
When all else fails, count eat sheep:)

The Forest IS Through The Trees

My fog is lifting and I am beginning to see the forest through the trees:)

We took a beautiful little hike last weekend and I was snapping photos like mad...the scenery was gorgeous!  The funny thing is... This little park and hike- by- the- river is very close to home and it's crazy-silly that we had never been there. It just proves that there's always unexpected beauty waiting to be discovered right under our noses! (Note to self)
Spring has definitely arrived in our neck of the woods.

God's glory, at it's finest, is all around us.

It's still Easter and I'm singing Alleluia="Praise the Lord!"

With God, we can always find our way.

Yet why do I resist moving forward sometimes?
Why do I get so locked up?

Is it because I know I will stumble? 
Maybe.

The road ahead is sure to be a little unsteady, bumpy, and even dark at times.

Springtime always arrives (eventually), this I know, so what's the problem?
I recently read a meditation passage in the Magnificat that really spoke to me.  (via Mother Mary Francis, P.C.C.) It said that when we are self-fixated, we tend to be static and obstinate, separating ourselves from Jesus because He is always on the move towards the will of the Father.  Fixing upon ourselves literally causes us to get stuck.  If we prayerfully (continually) shift our focus, fixing our eyes on the Father, we, too, will always be moving ad Patrem, towards the Father. We shall always be  in via, always on the way.  

I love that!  

I needed to hear that.
 I am eager to be constantly in via, always on the way.  Now this might seem Christianly commonsensical but I think we could always use the constant reminder.  

At least I do.

The follow up was a tangible hike...A"new foot path" towards being in via...
I get it.

New vistas opened out before me.

Eyes off me, myself and I.
Forward motion and surrender to God's will screamed
Get moving!
Mobility is good:)
I am free.
Dealing with the unknown, practicing patience...
Yes! I am on my way.
(At least until the next time I get stuck;)

Only His light shines through the darkness...Helping us see the forest through the trees.  
These images are helpful as we see the light of Christ triumphant (being the central image of the Easter season) that rescues us from the darkness of death.

(John 1:5)

These trees were absolutely majestic...
Reaching out,
Pushing forward,
Lifting up,
Watching and rustling,
Like a canopy of forest angels.

Would they reach down and catch the ball flying through the woods?
Nope.
They let boys be boys:)

Trust in the Lord with all your heart, 
on your own intelligence rely not; 
In all your ways be mindful of him, and he will make straight your paths.~Proverbs 3:5-6

Your word is a lamp for my feet, a light for my path.~Psalm 119:105

Moving forward must be a continual process...
There will always be bridges to cross...
 But in faith we know that a helping hand waits on the other side...Keep moving, keep moving!
I am inspired to keep moving.
In Via!

In his mind a man plans his course, but the Lord directs his steps.~Proverbs 16:9

Alleluia!
I'm on the way, again, as
A new path awaits...
And the forest is definitely through the trees!