This week's feasts and festivals, plans and projects

Thank you St. Anthony and Michael, the date book has been found! It was Michael who remembered where I last had it. That kid has quite a memory when he wants to.

The kids are going to Vacation Church School this week. I know it must start to look like I just shuttle them off from one VBS to another (hey, that's not a bad idea!) but really, it just worked out this way. Our wonderful church organist has grandchildren who are Katie Grace and Michael's ages, and this was a way they could spend some time together.

Monday, July 21
Daniel's name day! There are several St. Daniel's, but we decided to go with good Old Testament Daniel of lion's den fame. We may or may not make a lion cake or cupcakes. He won't really notice, I guess, since he's just one.

Tuesday, July 22
Mary Magdelene
Haircuts for Katie Grace and Daniel (his first!)
Also, a swim meet in the evening.

Wednesday, July 23
St. Brigid of Sweden. I have a little booklet of her writings. I should definitely try to read some of it.

This is also the big day our brand spanking new Target opens--whoo hoo!

Friday, July 25
St. James.

Dentist appointments for all in the morning, and then we leave for Grovesmen Weekend. The Grovesmen are a group of 5 guys who met at Grove City College in the early '90s. Now, with wives and babies, we are up to... oh, 24 of us I think? And we still get together every year.

Saturday, July 26
It's my name day! The feast of Good Saint Anne.

A whole pail of blueberries and three more besides...

Nicholas's two favorite books lately have been Peter in Blueberry Land by Elsa Beskow and Blueberries for Sal by Robert McClosky. Our favorite family treat lately is frozen blueberries. So, what better way to spend a Saturday morning then picking blueberries?

I've never picked blueberries before. I had no idea the bushes were so beautiful!



Kerplink...


Kerplank...


Kerplunk... (note Nicholas's bucket... and this was towards the end of the picking!)


Michael's favorite part-- Daddy gave him money for the vending machine and he got a soda to share.


The berries were weighed in this beautiful outbuilding. I think it may have been a summer kitchen at one time.


Katie Grace, as if to say "I can't believe we picked seven pounds of blueberries in this heat!"

Music Camp!

Ah, the joys of music camp! Every morning this week, the older three went to music camp where they sang, played rhythm instruments, learned the recorder, played chimes, made crafts, studied Bible stories, and learned to play Boomwhackers.

On Thursday, they had a picnic lunch and a concert at a local nursing home, and Friday night was the concert for friends and families.

Here's Katie Grace's group playing Boomwhackers


and singing.

I had a picture of playing chimes, but you couldn't really see her above the table.

I didn't get a picture of Michael playing chimes either, but he really did a great job! Here's Michael's class singing "Swim Faster Jonah".


Then there was the recorder. When I was student teaching, I had to teach recorder to fourth and fifth graders. I hated it, and last night reminded me why.


The worst part? They sent the recorders home with them! They're here. In my house. In all their loud shrillness. *shudders*

Then there was Nicholas. He looks like a little singing angel, right?

Wrong.

And whoever gave that boy a Boomwhacker was either nuts or extremely optimistic. It wasn't just an instrument. It was also a telescope, an ear trumpet, a sword, a microphone, and heaven knows what else.




The whole group

singing the camp song (Daddy taped this one)


Seriously? They did a great job. I can't believe everything my little ones learned in just one week, and they had a great time

Nicholas's Song

Nicholas made up a little song in the backseat today. It went something like this:

"OOOOOOOOHHHHHHHH!!!! I am a HERO!
I can really be a HERO!!!!
OOOOOOOOOOOOHHHHHHHHHH!!! I am a HERO!
Because I am so smart
And so modest!!!"

Just testing things out!

Menu Plan Monday for the Week of July 14

Monday: Theoretically, this was a make-up day on the official menu. Alternately, I was going to make pasta. But honestly? I ordered subs.

Tuesday: Baked lima beans

Wednesday: Mom's Stew and Popovers

Thursday: Cheese enchiladas, chips and salsa

Friday: Pizza!

Saturday: Roast chicken, potatoes, and peas

Sunday:Chicken stir fry

And, on a somewhat unrelated note, I can't keep this blog template. It's making the spacing all crazy. So, if the spacing doesn't seem crazy to you, it's because you missed the rainbow flower blog. So sorry!

No feasts... No festivals... No plans... No projects

Why? Because someone moved my date book. *weeps*

Seriously, I can't live without my date book.

I know all three older children have music camp every morning this week.

I know on Monday and Tuesday, Nick has early intervention "Stay and Play" in the early afternoon.

I know on Thursday, they have a picnic and are performing at a nursing home and on Friday they have a concert.

I'm reasonably certain they have a swim meet tomorrow, but the details elude me.

St Anthony, pray for me! I need that book...

Did you see that?

I've gone from orange to rainbow to butterflies. I'm wanting a new template for the blog-- one that isn't too dark and one that has columns on either side of the main body of text. I just can't decide.

Yeehaw! It's a weekend round-up!

Weekend Round-Up!


I've discovered the joy of Google Reader. Actually, I discovered the joy of Google Reader a while ago. But this week I discovered the joy of Google Reader folders. Here are some of my favorite posts this week. Yeehaw!

Blogginess
I discovered a new-to-me blog called Blogging Basics 101. Brought to you by the same mama who runs Rocks in My Dryer (a title that never ceases to make me smile!), Blogging Basics is a goldmine of information if you're trying to make your blog um... bloggier. I myself learned how to add an RSS Feed button to my blog. *pauses so everyone can admire my shiny new RSS Feed button over yonder on the right.* You can get one too! Just check out this post. Next step... FeedBurner!

Cooking
Another new-to-me blog, Carrie's Cooking. And I am so glad I found it, because I cannot wait to try her Inside-Out Ravioli.

Craftiness
One Crafty Mama has some wonderful tutorials for felt food. Even I should be able to make these egg and orange slices and lemon and tomato slices and ice cream.

Finances and Frugality
Michelle at Leaving Excess wrote a great post called "The Work of Being Frugal."

Green Living
We've got some big plans this week, courtesy of Bohemian Revolution. Katie Grace and I can't wait to try making a fruit bowl out of paper tubes. The diaper case wrist bag looks cute, easy, and like it would be a great baby gift, and I want... no, I need... several of these car organizer boxes.

Homemaking
Over at Keeping the Castle I got some great tips for storing, using, and rotating my stockpile.

Homeschooling
Over at Starry Sky Ranch, there are a series of posts on planning for the upcoming homeschool year.

Daniel and his entourage

These are from over a week ago, but they cracked me up. We went to play in the park with friends while Nicholas was at First Art. Daniel was practicing walking on the playground sidewalk, and had a passel of groupies following him every step of the way.

Do you have The Knack?

We're finally getting a Michael's! I think the Grand Opening is today. We're going to go check it out.

When I looked on their webpage, I found a link to something called "The Knack". If you're a homeschooler, you'll want to sign up for "The Knack Faculty". I signed up for each using a different email address.

If you join The Knack Faculty, you get special offers, project ideas, and a newsletter. There's also the first "The Knack Faculty Event" on July 19 from 1pm to 4pm. Free demos and goodies! I love that Mary Engelbreit school stuff.

If you're not a homeschooler, you can still sign up for The Knack, which has project ideas, printables, special offers, and a newsletter as well.

I knew that Daddy was trouble...

I was trying to make dinner when Daniel got all Clingon on me. I picked him up and started to nurse him when I saw it... a perfect little circle of teeth marks on his arm. We have two nibblers in this house--one is not old enough or coordinated enough to bite his own arm (plus he still doesn't have all his teeth!) and the other is Nicholas.

ME: Nicholas Martin Frontz! Look at this. Did you bite Daniel?
NICHOLAS: No.
ME: You need to tell Mama the truth. Did you do that thing where you go to kiss and then suck and bite his arm?
NICHOLAS: (A little less sure) No...
ME: Nicholas, look at his arm! Who put those little marks there?
NICHOLAS: (thinking) Wellllll... Daddy has sharp teeth!

Daddy denies biting the baby.

Jon and Kate Plus Grace

Jon and Kate Plus 8 has been a guilty pleasure of mine for a while. All the Discovery Health/TLC channels about large families pique my interest, actually. I think big families are absolutely beautiful. I think big Christian families are especially lovely, because there are so many opportunities to grow in love and grace. I'm convinced that when St. Paul wrote that a woman would be "saved through childbearing" (1 Timothy 2:15), what he really meant were those daily, sometimes hourly opportunities that one dies to oneself when embracing motherhood.

Jon and Kate, though... sigh... It just seems to get worse and worse and sadder and sadder. Last night, The Cupcake Episode, may have just pushed me over the edge.

Now don't get me wrong. I've been defending them up until now. Editing to show what makes the best TV may not always put them in the best light, and setting up artificial situations and outings because no one, after all, wants to watch a family sitting in their playroom reading stories and coloring and snuggling all day certainly sets them up for stress. And I've paid absolutely zero attention to all those out there supposedly possessing insider information about this family because it's all been so incredibly mean-spirited and gossipy.

But last night just about broke my heart. There are recaps all over the internet--just google "Jon and Kate" plus "cupcakes"--and we discussed it quite extensively in the TV forum on MDC today. I'm not going to spend my energy summarizing the show. I will share my thoughts, though.

One of the best things about being a Christian mother-- and one of the scariest-- is that my children learn about how God loves them by watching how I love them. "As a father (and mother!) have compassion on his children, so the Lord has compassion on those who fear him." (Psalm 113) It's a crazy dauntingly huge responsibility. And yes, we teach our children about things like obedience and duty and responsibility and covenants. But we also get to teach them about grace and mercy and forgiveness and love. One of my favorite parts of being a mother is taking chances to say to my kids "Look, we have this rule, and you didn't follow it. But I know this is important to you, so I'm going to go ahead and let you do this. It's not because you deserve it, or because of anything you've done, but I'm going to show grace to you, because I love you. " And I remember "But God demonstrates His own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us." (Romans 5:8)

If I could sit down and have tea with Kate, this is what I would tell her:
Look, I can't pretend to know what life is like with eight children, let alone with two sets of multiples. But I do know this-- God wants us to parent our children the way He parents us. He wants us to love them, and enjoy them. If doing a television show is forcing you into situations where you find yourself laughing at your children when they're crying or in pain, or you can't see past your rules to find a chance to extend mercy and grace, you need to rethink your priorities.

But, since the chance of me talking to her are slim and the chances of her reading this are slimmer, I will pray for her and those eight beautiful babies God has given her.

Calling all pastor's wives...

To the person who clicked into my blog after googling "exhuasted pastor's wife," bless your heart. Feel free to comment or drop me a line if you need someone to talk to.

This week's feasts and festivals, plans and projects

Another week of craziness... At some point, we need to slow down our summer.

Monday: Swim practice in the morning, and then Nicholas had his first "Stay and Play" preschool session with early intervention. Tonight, another swim practice. All this was interspersed with errands.

Tuesday: Stay and Play again! Michael and Katie Grace have a swim meet tomorrow evening, and I have a planning meeting withe HOME (Heart of Mary Educators). I'll take Daniel, of course, but I have got to find a place for Nicholas to stay.

Wednesday: Nicholas has art in the morning. I may or may not get the older two to swim practice. Depends on if Daddy can pick them up, because good as I am, even I can't be in two places at once.

Thursday: Free movie in the morning! Veggie Tales: The Pirates Who Don't Do Anything. Then in the evening, another swim meet.

Friday: Swimming in the morning, and there are some big yard sales around town today and tomorrow. Daddy has a wedding rehearsal tonight, so we'll probably do a movie for family night. We'll also need to have a family meeting before he goes.

Saturday: St. Veronica I'm thinking about getting them all new hankies to celebrate St. Veronica's feast day. Is that too weird?
Swim meet in the morning, and the Dad is off to wedding in the afternoon and early evening.

Sunday: Church in the am--we're doing the nursery!--and in the evening the symphony is playing in the park.

Sigh... I was also hoping to get some school going this week. Nothing major, but Story of the World, math, and Katie Grace's reading lessons. Who knows? Maybe we will!

Meal Plan Monday!

Monday: Potato scalloped with ham, green beans with mint, homemade pudding
Tuesday: Pizza pinto beans, salad, smoothie pops for desert
Wednesday: Sloppy Joes on buns, veggie stix
Thursday: Bean goulash and salad or veggie stix leftovers
Friday: Homemade pizza and salad or veggie stix leftovers (See a theme? In the summer, I just prep a bunch and keep serving it until it's gone) and popcorn balls for desert
Saturday: Chicken wings, salad/veggie stix, potatoes
Sunday: Spaghetti, salad, garlic bread

This is a healing song... it helps when things go wrong...

We had a bit of a mishap at the grocery store. Nicholas, in his usual be-bopping way, be-bopped in front of me and tripped me. I scraped up my knee, my back is sore, and, although my mama instinct kicked in and I put my hand behind the baby's head so he wouldn't smash it on the ground (he was in the sling and I fell forward), I managed to bend my hand at an angle I am fairly certain it isn't meant to go.

The whole thing left me feeling very sore and achy. I also have a headache and feel generally out of sorts. I came home and took some arnica, which helped a little. But the whole ordeal made me think of how the children must feel after a particularly hard tumble. It really is a shock to the whole system! (At least, this is what I choose to believe and not, as DH says, that I am just getting old!)

When searching for the arnica, I thought of the Healing Basket we had when the children were smaller. Now I keep my meds and herbals waaaaaaaay up high where little hands can't reach them, homeopathics in one plastic bin, herbs in another, cough and cold remedies in another. The salves are all in a little crock downstairs on top of the hutch, as are the allopathic remedies.

Back in the day, when it was a more hopping list, WE_HS had a great discussion on healing or "boo boo" baskets. Ours had kid salve, arnica (both pellets and gel), band-aids, Schweitzter fluid, rose water for "fairy kisses" when a boo boo didn't really need any physical attention, Weleda calendula, wound, and burn ointments, and the Healing Pig, an herbal animal you can heat up and cuddle up to.

All this sat atop my favorite health and healing book for little ones, Your Vital Child: A Natural Healing Guide for Caring Parents by Mark and Angela Strengler.

I'd really like to get a basket like this together again. I'll post pictures when I do!

Deal Alert! Staples Back-to-School Deals

I'm new to this whole deal thing. Seriously. I'm just barely dipping my toes in compared to some of the other mama bloggers out there--Deal Finding Mom, Frugal Village, Homeschooling and Frugal, Mommy Making Money, Money Saving Mom... I'm looking at you all!--but I did want to share some Staples deals.

These are good from today (Sunday, July 6) through Wednesday, July 9.

2-pocket paper folders
1 cent each (Limit 10)

Dixon #2 yellow pencils/ 8 pack
1 cent each (Limit 2)

Purell 0.5 oz bottle
1 cent each (Limit 2)

1/2" and 1" poly assorted binders
25 cents each (Limit 4)

Pentel handy Line retractable highlighters
$4.99 - $4.99 easy rebate = FREE! (Limit 1)

Even if you can't or don't use these things, they can always be donated! There are various other deals that might work with your family in the circular, but these are the ones that are cheap and easy.

Also, don't forget to sign up for Teacher Rewards. You get quarterly rewards that really help out the homeschool mom's budget!

Going... going... gone!

On Monday, I had my first haircut since I was pregnant with Nicholas. For those keeping score, he will be five at the end of September.

Not only was a getting a haircut, but I was leaving Daniel (and the other three!) with my good friend from down the street who really made this whole thing possible. She even made my appointment!

I don't take great pictures, but here are some of my new 'do. She took 13 inches (give or take) off my head! It's not as poofy as when she cut it. I don't usually blow-dry my hair, which I guess I need to do if I want height, and I need to get a bigger curling iron.

Now I want new glasses!

Cherry Picking!

Yesterday we picked up the van from the shop... again... and dropped Daddy off at the church. Then the four kids and I went cherry picking at Mountain View Farm!

We picked 15 pounds of cherries. Well, I picked 15 pounds of cherries. Michael picked about a dozen and decided to go read Superfudge and Katie Grace kept picking alongside of me, but really ate more than she picked. Daniel tried to pick cherries from the backpack but, alas, was thwarted at every turn, and Nicholas picked cherries that I later found in his pocket. He was saving them for his stuffed fruit bat. I love him like a son, but he is one odd child.

We filled the bucket with 15 pounds of cherries and paid 15 dollars. Awesome deal, if you ask me! We also saw tons of cicadas and learned how the orchard owners used a sound system with taped bird sounds to scare away any cherry-eating birdies. I'm totally counting it as our first day of 2008-2009 homeschooling!

Mostly we froze them, but I did manage to make a huge batch of cherry vanilla ice cream in the ice cream maker. Tonight I boiled some down and made a cherry glaze, which we had with a big hunk of ham that got sent home with us after Sunday's Pastor Potluck. Yum!