… and these Thy gifts …

Anne in Oz keeps her hubby healthy with these herby salads. I’ve seen many of these mentioned in Prescription for Nutritional Healing so I’m trying to grow some of them again this year, but I was unsure how exactly to use them fresh. Now I don’t have to wonder, as Anne shows how right here in her wonderful post!

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That’s really a misnomer. It’s not “after Christmas” yet! Christmas is a SEASON, not just one day. We’ve replaced our Advent candles with our lone Christ candle, in white, with the Chi Rho etched on it (next year I’ll try to make it nicer and drip melted red wax into the symbol and hopefully have a pic).

Today, Dad’s taken our oldest boy to the office with him. He’s got a bunch of vacation days left but he wants to get some reorganizing done before the rest of his colleagues come back from Christmas break. This way he gets peace and quiet, and some daddy-son bonding as well.

The rest of us are going to be SHOPPING. Hah! That sounds so anti-me, but the kids do have some things that they need and I have a couple of coupons that need to be used before 12/31. Plus a couple more gifts to deliver, and a couple of gifts to ship. That’s a lot of “couples” .

Speaking of which…. new year, new household, new role at CFC-FFL. Exciting! Today, I also found an older girls’ group that I need to pray about and discern — Fiat — because I’d love to have one at our parish. I wish I had found out about it when Aisa was younger … now she’s gearing up for college and it might be difficult to fit this into her ever-burgeoning schedule. But last night during prayer time I once again heard the call to recommit myself/ourselves to SERVICE. This year we hardly did any volunteer work, and that’s really disappointing, since at the beginning of 2007 that was one of our resolutions as a family. It’s so difficult to find volunteer opportunities that call for FAMILIES to come and help. Perhaps we should be looking at other ways to help out instead of the sites I check from time to time like iVolunteer and VolunteerMatch. And a Fiat group might want to do things together, but of course it will take a while to get it started….

Now that I think about it I shouldn’t be titling this After Christmas sales because I’ve now looked at all my favorite stores’ ads online and there isn’t much I want to shop for at these places. I began the post thinking I’d tell you all about the great deals I found but none of them interest ME, so now I don’t want to blog about them — funny how that works. I’ll just give you links then, in case YOU’RE looking:

Michaels
Joann
Target
Tuesday Morning
Cost Plus World Market
Gymboree

I did already place an order at House of Fontanini for a few additions to our Nativity set. They were discounted and shipping was free!! Yay!

And I’ll be shopping for my dearest mom, who’s 73 today!! Happy Birthday, Mommy!! Let’s hope I find her something really special. She’s off work so she won’t see this:)

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DD-16 has a baker friend who’s asking for an affordable kitchen scale recommendation, and here it is, in an array of beautiful colors:

Search Results at Amazon

I currently have a serviceable one, but this has been on my own wish list for a while. When the need arises….

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I’ve said before that I hate shopping. Hubby and I both. We just think it’s a bunch of wasted time. Zipping in and out of stores, keeping your patience in check (not so successfully) as you navigate through the hordes of shoppers, and it’s only going to get worse as Christmas approaches. So last Thursday, the 15th, was our monthiversary. We’d been married 17 years and 11 months. We went out for an inexpensive dinner at Chipotle. Then there was Panera. And Christmas-shopped for the kids. Online. In the comfort of a warm place. No braving the already wintry weather, no carrying bags while running to the car.

We had my laptop and the list of gifts the family had agreed on when we had our gift-meeting. And we shopped for each child, narrowing in on the items we really want, the shops/stores we were going to get them from, etc. In the process we talked about each child, how they’ve changed, about their strengths, their interests, our dreams for them, their own dreams, etc. Shopping was never so much fun as it was that night. So different from the rush of Christmases past, though of course, many such shopping trips do hold beautiful memories for us as well, despite the crowds and the misadventures and the tantrums.

But how wonderful that things have changed. Sometimes I don’t like technology all that much, though obviously I’ll be one of the first to admit just how many benefits it has brought to our lives and our family. This is one of them. Can’t wait for Advent. If things go as planned, this Advent will be the most *real* Advent we’ve ever had. Prayers appreciated!

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Brace yourself, this is bound to be a LOOOOONG post. Not really a post, I guess, more like a compilation. One of my high school classmates asked for book recommendations, and I promised her I’d post our favorites. (There are too many, I probably will have to do a Part II, or even Part III.)

The ones I’m listing this evening are really popular, and should be really easy to find at the bookstore or library. I’m listing these first even though you (AW) probably already know about them, because they’re too good to miss. I’ll definitely be adding more, esp. some of the obscure ones that may be out of print but are worth finding.

Here we go…

Perfect for bedtime. After 4 children, we are on our second copy — and its cover is torn too. Love the simple words. Warning: your child might want to say goodnight to EVERYTHING and EVERYONE when you start reading this book to him/her.

Both girls and boys love this book equally. And you’ll love reading it to them! Preferably with LOTS of feeling. Every little child has a little “wild thing” inside. It’s great to read when they’re in “a mood”, seems to calm them down somewhat.

Make sure you get the board book version of this. I’m telling you now, it will get TREMENDOUS wear. Eric Carle’s books are marvelous, for visual as well as tactile exploration. A real treat for your toddler!

I cried the first time I read this book. And through the years it still touches me every time I read it. You can read it from a child’s standpoint, or from a parent’s standpoint. As a new parent I often found myself meditating upon the spiritual messages in this book (and I don’t even know if that was the author’s intent, but that’s what I took away from it). Christ gave Himself to us, ALL of Him, much like the tree in this book does. And often we ignore, or take His gifts for granted, but He’s just there, waiting for us. Sometimes it takes us a long time to come back to him. Sometimes we come back to him only because we have no other options. But always, He is there, ready to welcome us with open arms. It is a BEAUTIFUL book.

Ais received this as a gift from her preschool teacher. It’s not one of my favorites, and I think it’s a little too silly, but the kids have all loved it.

Another one that’s a kid favorite but that doesn’t appeal to me very much. I guess, on some level, I understand why they like it: it tells kids that even when you have a really bad day, you can still come out of it alright. It also tells you that you’re not alone, and that it happens to other kids too.

I *love* this book — love the words, the illustrations. I find myself looking at all the minute details and am just fascinated with how the illustrator paid attention to such detail — not surprising, because I’m a detail person myself. I actually like this better than the supposedly more popular

but that may be just me. It may be similar to how I love movies, then get predictably disappointed with any and all sequels. I think somehow making another version kinda dilutes the qualities of the first one. Again, maybe it’s just me.

Here’s another favorite of my kids, but which I dislike intensely. It’s basically a fantasy picture book, and though I have a soft spot for childhood fantasies, I did not enjoy this one.

While the story in this book doesn’t give me goosebumps, I so enjoy reading this aloud to my kids, esp. the part about Tikki-Tikki-Tembo-no-Sarembo, etc., etc. Some books are just FUN-FUN-FUN to read aloud. This is one of them. I don’t know what it is about Chinese storybooks that make them so popular with the kids. Two others that they love (and a particular favorite among homeschoolers, entire unit studies have been planned around them!):

and

We bought these as a set. I love reading these to the kids, and I often find myself laughing along with them. Little Bear is just so funny and adorable! The lessons to be learned are so subtly put together that the kids may not realize it but they’re there. Themes about friendship, about relationships with grandma and grandpa, etc. You as the parent, if you don’t know it yet, are given lots of clues as to how a child’s mind really works: their imagination, their reasoning, etc.

I am NOT a Dr. Seuss fan, however, all my kids loved them and loved to read them and loved to have us read to them. Argh. I grinned and bore it.

Be back later, I’ve got MORE!!

3 Comments »

Mother Teresa of Calcutta said that “the fruits of abortion are nuclear war.” She was indicating that the complete disrespect for life, especially the lives of the unborn, would bring about a nuclear war.
More from Mother Teresa:
“[Abortion] is really a war against the child, and I hate the killing of the innocent child, murder by the mother herself. And if we accept that the mother can kill even her own child, how can we tell other people not to kill one another?”

For the Sake of our Country and Unborn - PROTECT LIFE

…………………………………..

http://www.jesus-passion.com/ -

GOD WILL NOT BLESS THIS COUNTRY IF WE CONTINUE TO KILL OUR UNBORN BROTHERS AND SISTERS.

“Woe unto the wicked! it shall be ill with him: for the reward of his hands shall be given him.” Isaiah 5:15

…………………………

In a message dated 8/27/2008, riomac3@msn.com writes:

…the only choice is to vote for candidates that are PRO LIFE not for candidates that are only concerned about economic prosperity as some people think. They have their priorities backwards. There will be no economic prosperity if we kill our future. It would be ludicrious to think that God would say go ahead and kill your child — after all, you need the money [for yourself].

After 40 years of legalized abortion how does the economy look now? We are
suffering the consequences of child killing. We are the only species that CONSCIOUSLY seeks to cause ourselves to become extinct.

I thought [that suppsedly ‘intelligent’] people would have seen the foolishness of their ways about seeking to self destruct the human race! Jesus told the Pharisees in ‘the story of the man born blind’, ’so you say you see (understand) but your sin remains’; in other words they didn’t get it either, they rejected the truth so they remained intellectually and spritually stupid.

…………………………..

http://www.jesus-passion.com/ -

PROTECT THE LIVES OF UNBORN CHILDREN IN 2008.

IN 2007 OVER 1.2 MILLION ABORTIONS WERE PERFORMED IN THE U.S., 1 OUT OF EVERY 5 BABIES WERE ABORTED.

AROUND 50 MILLION BABIES HAVE BEEN PUT TO DEATH SINCE 1973.

SENATOR JOHN S. McCAIN HAS SAID THAT ROE VS. WADE SHOULD BE OVERTURNED. VOTE PROLIFE.

…………………..

http://www.catholic.net/index.php?option=dedestaca&id=922&category=News%20&%20Media%7ENews —

“…we are heartened by the choice of Sarah Palin for vice president… In addition to her involvement with Feminists for Life [“Women Deserve Better Than Abortion,” to quote the tagline from their website], we know where she stands on the right to life from her personal life.”

VOTE FOR McCAIN/PALIN FOR PRESIDENT/VICE-PRESIDENT.

THE LIVES OF OVER A MILLION BABIES A YEAR DEPEND UPON YOUR VOTE..

PROTECT AMERICA; END THE ABORTION HOLOCAUST.

SEE SENATOR JOHN S. McCAIN’S WEB SITE:

http://www.johnmccain.com/

……………………………………….

http://www.jesus-passion.com/ -

From an article in the Washington Post by columnist, Michael Gerson, April 2, 2008:

“But Obama’s record on abortion is extreme. He opposed the ban on partial-birth abortion — a practice a fellow Democrat, the late Daniel Patrick Moynihan, once called “too close to infanticide.” Obama strongly criticized the Supreme Court decision upholding the partial-birth ban. In the Illinois state Senate, he opposed a bill similar to the Born-Alive Infants Protection Act, which prevents the killing of infants mistakenly left alive by abortion. And now Obama has oddly claimed that he would not want his daughters to be “punished with a baby” because of a crisis pregnancy — hardly a welcoming attitude toward new life.”

Senator Joseph Biden has said that Roe vs. Wade should not be overturned; abortion should remain legal. He is a Catholic and he is in direct violation of Catholic teaching which states that the lives of unborn children should be protected by the law from the the murderous crime of abortion.

………………….

http://worldnetdaily.com/index.php?fa=PAGE.view&pageId=73463

Denver Catholic Archbishop Charles Chaput says Democrats simply don’t know Christianity if they insist on continuing to spin the Bible’s teachings on abortion.

The archbishop’s guidance echoes The Catechism of the Catholic Church, which states that “Human life must be respected and protected absolutely from the moment of conception. From the first moment of his existence, a human being must be recognized as having the rights of a person among which is the inviolable right of every innocent being to life.”

…………………………..

http://www.jesus-passion.com/ -

Senator Barack Obama supports the civil union of homosexual couples — he says it’s ok for two men or two women to live together in the mortal sin of homosexuality. Obama told CNN’s Larry King, “I don’t think that homosexuals are immoral any more than I think heterosexuals are immoral.” This means he does not even recognize the seriousness of people living in complete violation of God’s laws. Holy Scripture says:

“You know perfectly well that people who do wrong will not inherit the kingdom of God: People of immoral lives, idolaters, adulterers, catamites, sodomites, thieves usurers, drunkards, slanderers and swindlers will never inherit the kingdom of God.” 1 Corinthians 6: 9

………………………

http://www.jesus-passion.com/ -

God does not want us to discriminate against the unborn child, saying that the unborn child is sub-human and does not deserve legal protection from wicked doctors.

“Make a tree sound and its fruit will be sound; make a tree rotten and its fruit will be rotten. For the tree can be told by its fruit. Brood of vipers, how can your speech be good when you are evil? For a man’s words flow out of what fills his heart. A good man draw good things from his store of goodness; a bad man draw bad things from his store of badness.” Matthew 12: 33-35

When Presidential candidates support abortion, they are being very wicked and they do not know or love God enough. If they do not know or love God, they cannot possibly lead a nation.

……………………………

Subj: The most lethal WMD
Date: 5/30/2007

The Most Dangerous Places for Americans:

In War - Total Americans killed in ALL U.S. wars……………………………….1,111,000

In Traffic - Average American deaths per year……………………………………..47,776

On the job - Average American deaths per year……………………………………..6,736

In the WOMB - Americans killed by surgical abortion since Jan, ‘73………54,186,000
This WMD kills 4,500 Americans each day.

…………………..

EXCERPT: Catholic means pro-life by Father Thomas D. Williams
http://article.nationalreview.com/?q=MTUwZWRkYmFiNTNjYzE1NWM2NThmYjIwZWQxNzIwMWY=

Some people think that when Catholics compare abortion to slavery or to Nazi anti-Semitism they are engaging in hyperbole. They couldn’t be more wrong. Abortion is not only the greatest social injustice of our century; it is arguably the greatest social injustice of all time.

Abortion circumscribes an entire class of human beings (the unborn) as non-citizens, excluded from the basic rights and protections accorded to all other human beings. In this way abortion mimics the great moral tragedies of all time, which always began with the denigration of an entire class of people as unworthy of life or freedom.

“Humanity today offers us a truly alarming spectacle,” wrote Pope John Paul in his 1995 encyclical letter Evangelium Vitae, “if we consider not only how extensively attacks on life are spreading but also their unheard of numerical proportion.” The legal, systematic elimination of the most vulnerable members of society is the most heinous crime known to man. To fail to oppose it is to make oneself complicit in it.

…………………

Question asked:
>>>>>>>>
Do you think many voters will make their choice on a single issue, such as abortion?
<<<<<<<<

Let’s get one thing straight:

Abortion should NOT be merely one of many issues to consider. The right to life is fundamental. Without this, all other rights are null and void. One must first have existence to enjoy anything else.

Most Republicans are Pro-Life. John McCain is Pro-Life. Most Democrats are Pro-death. Obama is Pro-death. The “choice” is simple.

Is the hypocrisy not obvious? Democrats cite how many millions of children living outside of a womb would benefit from universal health care but pledge to uphold legalized abortion, under which over 50 million children living inside of a womb have been killed since 1973.
They decry that almost 4000 soldiers have lost their lives in 5 years of war, yet vow to uphold laws that permit nearly 4000 innocents to be murdered EACH DAY.
Democrats exude compassion for the human condition. Unfortunately, this does not extend to the most vulnerable members of our society - unborn children
Sure they promote 100% protection those living outside womb, yet they offer 0% protection those living inside womb.

- Michael J. Coppi

…………………….

Can’t Be Right by Fr. Frank Pavone National Director, Priests for Life
http://www.priestsforlife.org/magisterium/bishops/abone.htm

An honest look at what an abortion is, and at how many victims it claims, is enough to reveal that nothing outweighs its gravity among the many “life issues.” Multiple Church documents have confirmed this insight, repeating over and over that the abortion tragedy demands urgent attention and priority.

While some have tried, shamelessly, to obscure and contradict this teaching, many are quite able to understand and accept it. Yet the truth is even deeper than the statement, “Being wrong on abortion outweighs being right on other issues.”

The full truth is, if you are wrong on abortion, you can’t be right on other issues.

To permit abortion, but then to cry out for the right to work, housing, education, health care, and so forth, is to say that these other rights belong to some people but not to all. They obviously do not belong to those who were snuffed out by abortion.

Therefore, these rights cannot be human rights, because you have already said that not all humans have a claim on them. This trivializes those other rights and puts them on an obscure and questionable foundation.

If you permit abortion, then, on what basis do you defend the other rights?
Why do we care for the poor?
Because they have a right to food, clothing, and shelter.
But why do they have a right to those things?
Because they have a right to live.
Why are we concerned about unemployment?
Because people have a right to make a living.
Why do they have that right?
Because they have a right to live.

It all comes back to that foundational right. Abortion is not the only issue, but neither is the foundation of a house the only part of a house. Take it away, however, and see how well you can build the rest.

…Any human right begins when human life begins; otherwise, it isn’t a human right, but rather some kind of benefit bestowed for another reason.

Now if you can take the right to life away from some humans, as abortion does to the children in the womb, then obviously you can take away from those same humans all their other human rights, because none of those other rights made such a claim upon your respect that you had to let those people live to possess it.

This is why the Pope has said that when the right to life is not protected, cries for other human rights are “false and illusory.” When one is wrong on abortion, one cannot be right on anything else.

……………………..

In the 222 years that this country has existed as a “free” nation, there are three decisions by branches of the federal government that have been not only despicable but that verge on ethnic cleansing:

1. Early in the history of our country, a decision was made, by the federal government, several presidents, and the military that the original settlers and inhabitants of this country were not human and therefore could be slaughtered at will and their land stolen from them.
Then, after millions of men, women, and children were hunted down and killed, most of the remaining souls were herded or driven from their homelands to less fertile or unwanted land and placed on “reservations”.

2. In the mid 19th century, a decision was made by the supreme court, known as the Dred Scott decision, that stated that Negroes were not human and therefore could be owned and sold as slaves. Since the Negroes were considered property, they could also be disposed of at will, by their owners.

3. In 1973, on January 22, another despicable decision was made by the supreme court that stated that an unborn child was not human until it had been separated from the woman and therefore could be slaughtered at any point from conception to birth. Never mind that modern ultrasonic echnology has proven that an unborn baby is not only human but very much alive and can even be operated on in utero.

In the words of the flight engineer on the Enola Gay, after dropping the first atomic bomb, “What have we done?”

[Abortion =] the modern holocaust?

…………………….

http://www.lifesitenews.com/ldn/2008/jul/08072108.html
BISHOP DEVINE : “Indeed, a nation that condemns to abortion our beautiful and blameless unborn babies betrays itself as morally, ethically and politically untrustworthy and disinclined to give due care and attention to the poorest and weakest members of our society.”

……………………..

Subj: PRAYER FOR THE ELECTION BY FR. JOHN HARDON S.J.

Lord Jesus Christ, You told us to give to Caesar what belongs to Caesar and to God what belongs to God.

Enlighten the minds of our people in America. May we choose a President of the United States and other government officials according to Your Divine Will.

Give our citizens the courage to choose leaders of our nation who respect the sanctity of unborn human life, the sanctity of marriage, the sanctity of marital relations, the sanctity of the family and the sanctity of the aging.

Grant us the wisdom to give You what belongs to You, our God. If we do this as a nation, we are confident You will give us an abundance of Your blessings through
our elected leaders. Amen.

Servant of God + Fr. John A. Hardon, S.J.

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FoodNews.Org’s Pesticide Test

This is the most comprehensive list I’ve found to use when choosing produce.

The Top 10 Must-Buy-Organic fruits/veggies:

Peaches
Apples
Sweet Bell Peppers
Celery
Nectarines
Strawberries
Cherries
Lettuce
Imported Grapes
Pears

The Top 10 Okay-To-Buy-Conventional:

Onions
Avocado
Frozen Sweet Corn
Pineapples
Mango
Frozen Sweet Peas
Asparagus
Kiwi
Bananas
Cabbage

Note that a lot of the items from the conventional list are tropical fruits — a bonus, esp. for my family. I hope that doesn’t change anytime soon. I didn’t know about avocados! Here I was paying 2x, sometimes even 3x for organic. Seems guacamole will once again be a staple around here…

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Know Your Travel Seasons

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The Oster blender my hubby got me for our first Christmas together 17 years ago finally went kaput. I’d get another one as it did really serve me well, but want to look at other options, even if it’s a bit more expensive, if it happens to have more capabilities that I might be interested in. BUT if I don’t have to spend that much, I want to know that too, so all opinions welcome.

So considering the Vita-Mix, but open to other suggestions. Brands, prices, sources, suggestions for what to do with it besides blend and puree…

Is the Vita-Mix also a juicer? Anyone have a Waring? Opinions, comparisons?

8 Comments »

Dried Garden Heart Wreath
English Meadow Heart Wreath
Flora Pacifica’s Wreaths
Pussy Willow Wreath from Wreaths Unlimited - they have it in lavender too!

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Santa Fe Candle, or Creative Candles.

Creative Candles has a nicer selection of colors, but Santa Fe’s candles are less expensive AND they’re pure beeswax.

Calculations:

t 10 p12

12 pieces per unit
3.5 hours
13.95/unit

= 1.16 per candle
= 1.16
= .33 per hour

3.5*12=42 hours

3.16 per candle

24 candles - 75.99

.33 cents per hourr

T12
7.45 for 2 candles
12 hours each
7.45 for 24 hours

= 31 cents per hour

white
green
purple

pink
blue

12 inches, 9 hours, 8.03/2
4.01 per candle
.44 per hour1

12 inches, 3.5 h ors, 10.89/6
1.81 per candle
.51 per hour

10 candles = $40 + $10 s&h

$15 each
2 t12 each of
white
pink
purple
blue
green
4 pieces each color
20 pieces =

= 74.50
+ 1 more set of green
7.45

= 81.95

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Bits and Pieces
MindWare
The Paragon

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Lighthouse Place, the nearest outlet to us that has a Hanna Andersson outlet store.

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I’d put her cookbooks my wish list but my cookbooks really take a beating, and I would rather have Susan Branch’s designs elsewhere than on my countertop, where they’re sure to be sugared and floured and splattered. So I’m wearing her jammies instead.

I just adapted her French Chicken soup last week and the whole family was raving about it (I did make it minus the butter and the flour, but it still turned out awesome!). I’ll write about that one soon — I had saved a bowl of it to take a picture of in my precious soup crock the next day when the lighting was better — and then my hungry 15-yo had it for breakfast. Grrr…. but at least her tummy was filled — and so was my heart. I love it when the kids can’t wait to devour the food! I’ll still post the recipe, sans the soup crock photo — soon.

Other Susan Branch products at Amazon:

5 Comments »

Price of hanging and taping drywall
Tips on getting drywall in basement
dry lok paint in basement
Basement Dehumidifier
Basement insulation
Basement wall, floor & ceiling pricing per SF?
Metal vs. Wood framing
need recommondation for replacing basement windows
Framing in Ohio
Best way to clean floor before placing carpet tiles

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