Friday, January 10, 2014

7 Quick Takes -- My First!

I've never done this, but why not start today? I'm linking with Mrs. Fulwiler for


1.
I love making sourdough bread, and I wish I knew it was so easy all these years. My friend gave me some of her sourdough starter a few months back, and after a few trials and errors I've gotten into a nice routine to keep it alive and make the amount of starter/bread that we need for our bread eating purposes. Basically, you add 2 tablespoons flour and 2 tablespoons water both morning and night, and within a few days you'll have enough to make bread. Further details to come when I don't have to be so quick :)

2.
If there's one thing for which I should thank my husband, it is his gently establishing heavy limits on the children's show-watching. I thought Julian would never be able to part from as much Netflix as he has right now. I thought he would have a meltdown every five minutes until eternity after we took away daily show-watching from him. I also thought, "How on earth am I going to be able to put the baby down for his morning nap without putting on a show for Julian?" All of these concerns and worries have dwindled. Julian's imagination continues to grow by leaps and bounds and his ability to follow directions has greatly increased as the no-shows days pass. Ever since we've limited his show-watching to a few times on the weekends he plays and engages purposefully in the world around him so much better than before. Rarely is he bored, and his vocabulary and people skills are exquisitely more developed since limiting shows. Please read this awesome article if you're interested in going "low media" too. You will not regret it!

3.
I can't believe Ignatius is going to be 1 year old next month! He is exactly 11 months today, and this has led me to nostalgic thoughts of his first days outside the womb. He was a go-getter from the start; he rolled several times within the first few days of being born! He still is like this, as he's already walking and now trying to jump! We love you so much, Ignatius! Keep on being the awesomeness that you are!



4.
Did I mention I officially have a 3 year old now? Seriously, where does the time go? Julian continues to shine, and we are continually astounded by his amazing memory, deep empathy for others, and ability to articulate exactly what's going on in his little amazing mind. His latest love is for all things Spider-Man, so it is loads of fun being one of his "Amazing Spider Friends" Fire-Star and fight bad guys with him. If you've never met him, I wish you could. He's one great person, if I should say so myself. :)


5.
I dance like a crazy woman, and it brings a great joy to our day. There is nothing better than being silly with your kids. They love it when they see their moms and dads laughing, being goofy, and finding joy in what makes them tick. Dancing is something that I love doing, and now that we're stuck in the house more these days (winter... blah!) I've turned to this long-lost love of mine and found that it makes them want to dance, too. This is also a great way to get some exercise during these dark months of winter. I highly recommend it to anyone wanting more happiness in their hearts. 

6.
I took our Christmas tree down this morning, and it was rather traumatic for our little sentimentalist. Through his big, watery tears Julian asked, "Why you taking the twee down?" and the best answer I could come up with is, of course, a Catholic one. I said, "Well, it's soon not going to be the Christmas Season. It's going to be Ordinary Time!" Sure enough while talking to Grandma on Skype, I mentioned our dismantling the tree and Julian chimed in, "Yeah, because it's Ordinary Time." Ha!  

7.
We are saddened by the fact our church's pastor is moving on to another assignment at the end of January. He is a great man, a holy priest, and gives the most beautiful homilies. He is also the only priest there who offers the Holy Mass in the Extraordinary Form. We have been privileged to attend the Latin Mass in the Extraordinary Form for the past two years. We will miss this gift greatly in our spiritual lives, as when he leaves so does this type of Mass. We know God has much in store for our parish with the new priest coming in, but we can't help but be taken back by this news. We know that where he goes the people he will serve will be greatly blessed as we have by his service, dedication and love.

That's all, folks! Check out Conversation Diary for more Quick Takes!

4 comments:

  1. So sorry to hear that your pastor is leaving :( And how awesome that Julian remembered about Ordinary Time! What a bright little boy!!! Also, you'll have to share your sourdough secrets. Haven't attempted it since I forgot about my starter last time, hehe. But I'd love to make some!

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    1. Thank you... I've never fully felt like (believed, of course, but never emotionally experienced) a priest was my spiritual FATHER until I became a member at this parish. He is at every single Mass -- even when he's not offering -- to greet people and be a paternal presence to them. He truly is wonderful.

      Once he moves, we're going to go to H-town a couple of times a month so the kids continue to be exposed to the Extraordinary Form. I hope that soon more priests desire what our pastor does in saying this beautiful liturgy.

      Thanks! Julian is quite the guy :)

      I am definitely going to have a whole entire post on the awesomeness that is sourdough. It'll be the next post, I promise! :)

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  2. I'd like to keep our kid as low-media as possible, too. Which should be interesting since I'm addicted to my phone... And my laptop... But I don't watch much TV, so at least I have that going for me. ;) Dancing, on the other hand, won't be a problem over here!

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    1. Ha! I'm definitely too attached to my computer, but at least I'm not watching tons of videos. Mostly, I read blogs and emails. They're bored with what I do, so that's a good thing!

      Dancing's the best -- especially when your audience consists of very happy babies who become even happier when you're twirling and whirling about :)

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