Hilltop Farm

moving again ....

2011-05-01T00:01:00.004-04:00

.... before you faint, no we're not moving physical abodes ... we REALLY like Virginia.

But we are moving to a full website with blog and other stuff that I think you'll enjoy. So re-set your favorite to:

www.marygildersleeve.com

Thank you for reading this note and heading on over ... click around and let me know what you think (remembering of course that it is a work in progress and may still need a little bit of tweaking)!

Yarn-Along: April 27th ... Easter break and lots of driving ...

2011-04-27T07:19:00.001-04:00

... and therefore, lots of knitting!

~ Two of my favorite things are knitting and reading, and the evidence of this often shows up in my photographs. I love seeing what other people are knitting and reading as well. So, what are you knitting or crocheting right now? What are you reading? Take a single photo and share it either on your blog or on Flickr. Leave a link below to share your photo with the rest of us! ~ Ginny at small things

We were blessed to be able to take a short road-trip down to North Carolina to visit dear friends for Easter and a few days after. About 20 minutes from their house on Easter Sunday, our van started making a very odd, scary sound (so worrisome, I actually stopped knitting for that final stage of the drive!). We got to the house and the men took care of the van (we got it back on Monday evening, $300 later!) while the kids played with their NC counterparts and the mom and I knitted. Poor dear, she's pregnant with their 8th and so can't knit too long ... it makes her dizzy.

But I got lots done. Here's what I got done since last week:

Two scarves in cashmere/silk/merino blend (yes, VERY luscious!) -- the top one is a gorgeous teal that I've called "The Long and Winding Road" while the lower one is a beautiful true royal blue that is called "Lapis Lazuli Lace". Both patterns should be up by the end of the week ....

A cable sampler jacket is currently on the needles. Knit with KP's Cadena (a wool/alpaca blend bulky) the jacket is going quickly. The welt is a cable I "unvented" which grows into a 9-stitch braided plait with seed stitch as the ground. I have jury-duty today and tomorrow, so I can get lots done on the jacket today!

Read-aloud? Not so much read since it's Easter break 'round these parts! On my nightstand, I'm just about done with Motherless ... a fiction book packed with Church teaching (and the explanations of) for all things bioethical -- end of life, abortafacients/abortions, IVF, etc. What a great book ... I can't wait to review it! I'm also reading Smashing WordPress to get my new website up and running -- I've got a deadline of May 1st to have it ready; next week, the yarn-along will come from there (God willing!).

How has your knitting and reading been progressing? Don't forget to check-in over at small things and catch up with all the others as we participate in this week's yarn-along. [Oh and do leave me comments on your reaction to my knitting ... I love comments and advice and suggestions!]

Yarn-Along: April 20th .... lots of knitting accomplished this week!

2011-04-20T06:52:00.002-04:00

Wow, this has been an amazingly prolific knitting week (must be because we did a 6-hour round-trip road-trip with dh driving and me knitting!). That said, here is what I got accomplished since last week:

Spring is Blooming baby blanket (30" diameter) - (immediate pdf download $5.00)

Malcolm's Easy-Peasy, One-Piece One-Button Vest (pattern coming soon)

Hand-dyed Harvest Fingerless Mitts (immediate pdf download $4.00)

Ruby Red Butterfly scarf (pattern coming soon)

Cool, huh? But with that much knitting, not so much reading got done. I did finish No He Can't (scariest book I've ever read but a must-read for all voters). Here are the books we're reading this week:

The family reading: we're still working on our Shakespeare unit using the Lamb book and BBC dvds (got thru MacBeth and Merchant of Venice; this week, we'll do Taming of the Shrew and As You Like It). We're also reading Chasing Vermeer, a great first novel with puzzles and mysteries woven throughout the story ... plus all the rabbit trails for art history!

My reading: I'm still getting up to speed on CSS and HTML and WordPress tech stuff. I'm such a geek ... I LOVE this stuff! I also just started Motherless ... an amazing bioethics novel that grabs you from the get-go! Written with a decidedly active Catholic world-view, this is an interesting story about end-of-life issues. Very good so far.

On the knitting needles: since I just finished the Ruby Red Butterfly last night, I haven't cast on yet. But that little ball of yarn? A blend of cashmere (50%), silk (25%) and merino (25%) in a lovely deep teal color ... yes, I swooned when I got it! (The Ruby Red is made with the same fiber blend ... knits lovely and has GREAT color definition). I've already charted the stitch-pattern for that one ... a cable/lace scarf!

Ginny is a little late posting this week's yarn-along ... but feel free to leave comments below and let me know what's on your needles and on your reading table! And a blessed and happy Easter to one and all.

Review: No He Can't: How Barack Obama is dismantling hope and change

2011-04-19T07:53:00.000-04:00

Disclaimer: I rec'd a review copy of this book through the publisher's Book Sneeze review program. The review below is my honest reaction to No He Can't: How Barack Obama is dismantling hope and change.

I've been to many places in my almost-50 years of life and I have to say I love our country -- there are few places on this earth that can boast of major political upheavals occurring peacefully, of the freedoms we Americans have and use daily, of the wealth and power of our nation. But these great benefits come with a price -- the price of responsibility for knowing what is happening in our country, of knowing what our employees (remember, when you vote someone into office, they are for all intents and purposes your employees -- if you don't like what they are doing, you must "fire" them!). in Washington are doing for us, and in ensuring that we never allow these rights, these freedoms to be taken from ANY American.

Kevin McCullough's book, No He Can't, is a book that every voting-age (or even, soon-to-be voting age) American should read. McCullough defines four major policies areas and what the current administration, that is, Mr. Obama, is saying he'll do, is actually doing and what the end results will be if these policies remain unchecked. The policies areas covered include:

the economy -- on the campaign trail, Mr. Obama stated that there would be no tax increase for families making less than $250,000 per year; but in the same speeches, he swore he would remove the tax breaks of the Bush administration -- the net result? By cancelling the tax breaks, the tax bill for everyone went up. The $1.3 TRILLION stimulus package, the brain-child of such experts as Mr. Obama, Mr. Reid and Ms. Pelosi -- a package that could have been distributed to each family in the United States (where a family of four could be given a check for $17,000) -- instead went for corporate bail-outs, "cash for clunkers" (that no one wanted anyway and which ran out of funding within a week of the program's start), and millions to STD awareness. In other words, the huge national debt incurred by this stimulus package was a major flop ... and one that we'll be paying for the next few centuries. Remember, these politicians are our employees -- "we the people" elected them and asked them to do a job; is this the job we asked them to do?
national security and international policies -- in May 2010, Mr. Obama gave the commencement speech at WestPoint. His topic was that he was intent on shaping a new international order, to minimize the US role of securing democratic values around the world, and "implied that America should not claim the mantle or the right of self-protection or self-responsibility" (pg 79). He was talking to newly graduated Army officers, men and women who would shortly be asked to go out and defend our country -- and the President of the United States tells them he's basically moving toward getting rid of these jobs? That's like telling a group of new-hires in a company that in the next few years, we won't need you anymore! Mr. Obama, who seems to promote a non-American agenda (buddying-up to anti-American international leaders like Chavez of Venezuela and Castro of Cuba, embracing blatantly non-democratic policies),on one of his first international trips as President he spoke to a group of Egyptian students in Cairo; the speech "equated the roots of freedom in the United States with the origins of Islam, a religious system that enslaves women and dehumanizes and kills opponents" (pg 84). Really? Is this what we want our hired President to say? Is this what we think?
domestic policies -- all of the domestic policies pushed by the Obama administration (health care bill, education policies, recreating the definition of "family", allowing millions of federal dollars to go to Planned Parenthood, etc) seek to shift our democracy to a socialist state through more and more, bigger and bigger government, to cause our free market economy to implode, and to punish those who disagree with his policies. When the blogosphere was rampant with critical essays about the proposed health bill, the White House website asked readers to send links to anti-administration posts to the White House so they could track the dissidents! Really? In a democratic country, we're encouraged to rat on each other? Hmmm ... so much for the First Amendment! Is this what we want our elected officials to say and do?

The final section of the book, "render unto Caesar", lays-out what "we the people" need to do. McCullough asks the reader: how do we treat our political officials, and most especially, how do we treat our President? We elect these folks ... and the elected officials are our employees. If they are not doing their job, they need to be fired. We are stockholders in the country, we all benefit when all is well and we all suffer when things are not good. We elect officials who we think will fix things. We have hope that our officials will fix what's broken, leave the overall good things in place, and make, FIRST, the country a better place, and SECOND, make the world a better place. Is our current administration doing this? Why not?

Politically, I'm a conservative -- want smaller government, less federal spending, protection of rights for all humans (from the pre-born to natural death). I am a Roman Catholic and believe in a merciful God and my right to practice my religion. I don't want any of these things taken away ... I don't want a debt that my great-great-great-grandchildren will have to cover. I don't want bigger and bigger government. I don't want a socialist state where the liberal elite tell me and mine what we should do. I am part of "we the people" and I think Mr. Obama needs to be "fired" at his next "review" time.

I highly recommend this book to all voting-age Americans!

I love my UPS man ...

2011-04-18T19:49:00.000-04:00

... look what he brought today:

check out this post ... the top in the center of the cover -- it's mine~! For more info, check out this link:
More Knitting in the Sun ...

Abandonment to Divine Providence is like a tapestry ...

2011-04-18T07:18:00.000-04:00

knitting directions for the baby blanket pictured can be purchased through my Ravelry Store ... the blanket (30" diameter) is titled, "Spring is Blooming".

Yarn-along: April 13th and Spring has sprung!

2011-04-13T05:59:00.000-04:00

After what seemed like YEARS of winter weather (not snow, but ooky-mooky, icy cold days and dreary skies), we are FINALLY getting a bit of spring. This week we're getting rain that promises to have our garden blooming fit to beat the band -- the dogwoods are blooming out, the hostas are unfurling and the Japanese maples are covered in red-green leaves. Gorgeous even if the sky is not!

But, you've come to see what I have for this week's yarn-along, haven't you. Here's the idea:

This is our yarn-along!

On the needles: a baby blanket for a dear friend (and dh's colleague) whose wife just had their 4th child ... a beautiful baby girl ... last week. The blanket is knit in the round, so you're not getting the full effect here (as it's still on the circs), but the yarn is different shades of Dale of Norway's Falk (a washable wool version of their traditional Heilo). With a pink center and than 3 shades of purple ... it's very appropriate for a baby born right before Easter!

The yarn skeins on the right are kool-aid dyed yarns we did yesterday in our St. Agnes Fiber Club. The greens/blues is in fingering weight for a pair of socks for me and fingerless mitts for BamBam while the reds/purples is a worsted weight for me to make String Bean a pair of fingerless mitts, too.

On the reading table: we finished Another Whole Nother Story and I decided we'd do a fun introductory unit to Shakespeare. Using the classic Charles and Mary Lamb Tales from Shakespeare as our spine, we'll learn about the master's comedies and dramas. We've started with Macbeth ... having read the Lamb synopsis, and having memorized the witches' "boil, boil, toil and trouble" speech, we're now in the process of watching a BBC version. We're just about finished and will then turn to Merchant of Venice for something just a tad "lighter". This is a GREAT way for the kids to learn about (and learn to love) Shakespeare before having to analyze his works to death later on.

My reading: I'm building a new website (to be unveiled soon ... please pray for me!) so of course I've been poring over books like WordPress for Dummies (which is excellent, btw). I'm also continuing my early morning spiritual reading/prayer time with the classic, Abandonment to Divine Providence. Since I'm such a fiber-fanatic, and to prep for my talk this past weekend (which went wonderfully ... thanks for the prayers), I've been loving reading the pre-publication copy of The Fleece and Fiber Sourcebook (review coming soon): this is a treasure trove of clear and concise information about all animal fibers used to make yarn (weaving/knitting). This book is eye-candy for this fiber fanatic!

Enjoy your day .... visit the other folks who participate in Ginny's yarn-along ... and let me know, too, what's on your needles and on your reading table!

BTW, the wrap I was working on last week ...

Spring Garden wrap

... immediate download from my Ravelry store

for $6.00 (MUST be able to read charts!)

So, where will you be on May 7th?

2011-04-08T17:06:00.000-04:00

Here's an email I just got:

THERE BE DRAGONS:
Everyone, take a look at this movie trailer for THERE BE DRAGONS. It's a powerful film about love and redemption, directed by Roland Joffe (The Mission, The Killing Fields). It opens in theaters May 6!

This looks like it will be a great movie! Here's a bit about the story-line:

[It's] an epic action-adventure romance set during the turmoil of the Spanish Civil War. The story traces the lives of two young men, Josemaria Escriva (Charlie Cox) and Manolo Torres (Wes Bentley), childhood friends who are separated by the political upheaval of pre-war Spain to find themselves on opposite sides as war erupts. Choosing peace, Josemaria becomes a priest and struggles to spread reconciliation by founding the movement Opus Dei (work of God).

Manolo chooses war and becomes a spy for the fascists. He becomes obsessed with a beautiful Hungarian revolutionary, Ildiko, who has joined the militia in pursuit of passion and purpose. But when Ildiko rejects him out of love for the courageous militia leader Oriol, Manolo's jealousy leads him down a path of betrayal.

A group has gotten a viewing down here in Fredericksburg on May 7th at 7p.m. (movie location TBA). I know we'll be going. Why don't you think about joining us .... or check if it's in your area the weekend of May 6th ...

Yarn-along: April 6th and all is well ...

2011-04-06T06:07:00.001-04:00

Ginny ... small things

... on the reading front -- the kids' read-aloud has slowed a bit since we had a few days of gorgeous weather and they wanted to be out and about but we are almost done with Another Whole Nother Story ... any suggestions for what should we read next?

I'm about half thru No He Can't ... wow, this is the scariest book I've ever read! Hard to imagine a, this guy was elected president, and b, that he thinks he should be given another four years .... McCullough's book is an amazing indictment of the machinations of this particular politico!

... on the knitting front all is well! Just about finished with "Spring Garden wrap" (will post the pattern soon) done in a lovely sage-y green of cashmere/bamboo blend that knits up like a dream. The white pieces are some short-row samples for my talk this weekend at Graves Mountain (please pray for me ... and there may be a few spaces left if you'd like to join us out in the mountains).

I've also been playing with knitted hearts. These two came from this great FREE design Teresa Fox did up. These are so cool: they're knitted in one-piece, stuffed (or not), felted (or not). The multi-color one is KP's Bare Superwash wool ... dyed in a crockpot with kool-aid! The dyeing technique is easy, clean and gives great results (and the house smells like kool-aid for a bit!). I didn't stuff that one, but instead left it flat. The green-ish one on the left is Plymouth's "Poems" a silk/wool blend that I stuffed.

I've also been playing with starting up a website (thanks to a dear friend's web expertise) and have been playing with a new logo:

What do you think of the design?

Come join our yarn-along ... always great fun to see what others have on their needles and on their reading tables! I get such great ideas for both ...

Help support creativity and get some real bang for your buck!

2011-04-04T13:21:00.000-04:00

Last week, I found out about the coolest thing ... a way to support creative efforts, fledgling artists, published designers do even more. Shannon Okey (the brains behind the phenomenal publishing house of Cooperative Press, hand-knits designer and all round amazingly creative woman) has started a month-long campaign to do even more for indie knitting designers, using a program called Kickstarter.

Here's a video that shows some of the designs that are going into the new series Shannon is publishing: Fresh Designs:

I have some designs in these upcoming books -- a set of knitted dolls for Fresh Designs: Toys and a set of southwest-inspired sofa pillows in Fresh Designs: Home.

Now, these books will be published this summer regardless of Shannon matching (or even better, beating) her goal of $5000. The important thing here ... and why I've already pledged a bit ... is that this is a chance to help an indie publisher, indie hand-knits designers, and a host of other folks do something very cool ... very creative. Any pledge, large or small (even $1) will help. There are some cool incentives for different pledge points -- including copies of the 10-book Fresh Design books!

So what are you waiting for? Go make a pledge, would ya? And thanks .... from one of many independent hand-knits designers!

BamBam grows up ...

2011-04-02T12:42:00.000-04:00

... and makes his First Holy Communion today!

Today is the anniversary of John Paul the Great's death and so we thought it appropriate for our BamBam to make his FHC on the date when his patron was sent home to the Father. As an added bonus, it was First Saturday, so we had Morning Prayer, Rosary, Confession AND Mass.

LegoManiac was able to serve and String Bean was happy to have a chance to dress up and look lovely in pink!

Congrats, BamBam ... we are very proud of you and love you very much!

Thoughts to carry us into the weekend ...

2011-04-01T06:29:00.000-04:00

... at the midpoint of our Lenten journey:

Do you live moment-to-moment, listening to God? How do you do that?

Just in case you're wondering ...

2011-03-31T14:44:00.000-04:00

where to see me over the next couple of weeks ....

check out my knitting blog for some exciting knitting/fiber events coming up in the area!

Make sure you stop by and say "howdy" if you're able to attend either of these events. The weather should be gorgeous ... and the content will be stellar!

Yarn-along: March 30th ... new design and new book ....

2011-03-30T06:05:00.000-04:00

This week's yarn-along finds us with a new design on the needles and a new book on my table. The new design (close-up below) is a spring-shawl in a fun lacy pattern. The yarn is fingering weight cashmere/bamboo from Spring Gate Farms (whose yarn is gorgeous -- she'll be at the Olde Liberty Fibre Faire -- as will I -- on April 16th if you want to head down for some fun and a good cause ... all proceeds from the Faire will go to area hospice!). The idea from the shawl came from a question from Ginny ... so it's quite appropriate that it's presented here on her Yarn-Along!

BTW, to get the nice airy look and wonderful drape, I'm using a size 8 on this yarn. The bamboo gives the cashmere enough body to really show the stitch definition.

On the book table -- we're continuing to read-aloud the Another Whole Nother Story ... which my kids have deemed even better than the first book, A Whole Nother Story (which ranks right up there as a fabulous read-aloud). Another one we're delving into that is great fun is M.B. Synge's A Book of Discovery -- wonderful short readings for history/geography!

In yesterday's mail, I received my newest reading book ... one for review for Thomas Nelson's Book Sneeze program. Titled, No He Can't: How Barack Obama is dismantling hope and change, this book is written by Kevin McCullogh and details not just how Mr. Obama's administration is taking away our hope and changing what is good, but also gives suggestions on how to stop the hemorrhaging in economics, national security, human rights and accountability. I went to bed at 8:30 last night so I could get reading this one! It is really good.

Won't you join the yarn-along. Check out Ginny's post and add your own link. And let me know what you think about the burgeoning design by adding a comment at the bottom of this post!

Off to read and knit before the squidges get up!

Lenten Retreat on a DVD ....

2011-03-29T13:24:00.000-04:00

If you're like me, Lent kind of sneaks up on you. I'm never as prepared as I should be ... with offerings/sacrifices, spiritual reading, and/or Lenten retreats scheduled. Or, if I am prepared, I realize that Lent is longer than I thought, and I need something more to read, listen to, or sacrifice (and, yes, I know that Lent is always 40 days ... but some years it just seems longer!).

If you are like me, have I got a great suggestion for you: Seven Deadly Sins, Seven Lively Virtues is a retreat in a box, all ready for you to watch and listen and meditate upon. Fr. Robert Barron (whose Conversion cd/study guide set I reviewed recently) takes the seven capital sins of pride, envy, anger, sloth, avarice, gluttony and lust and explains why they are present in our lives and how to eradicate them. He gives great practical advice on how to turn these sins into the seven virtues of humility, admiration, forgiveness, zeal, generosity, asceticism and chastity. A recurring theme is that sin is caused by our own fear (thus, pride is the root of all sin) that can only be conquered by true love, the love that God shows us all round (see the meaning of faith) and that Christ showed us when he died on the Cross.

This DVD is great! In just under two hours, the viewer understands how Dante's Purgatorio is peopled with sinners and why he assigns them the punishments he assigns (for instance, those who are in purgatory because they were gluttons in life are shown as repeating ad infinitum Psalm 51:17: Lord, open my lips and I will sing your praises). Barron does a wonderful job of giving practical advice on how to begin to counteract these sins in our own lives. It's interesting to hear him mention such folks as Bob Dylan, Johnny Cash, Gandhi and Martin Luther King, Jr. when giving examples of how to be a better person!

I recommend Seven Deadly Sins, Seven Lively Virtues to all Catholics, particularly middle-school and above. In the video, Fr. Barron is speaking to adults, but there is no reason why tweens and teens shouldn't hear Barron's advice, especially if you need some Lenten retreat material!

This review was written as part of the Catholic book reviewer program from The Catholic Company. Visit The Catholic Company to find more information on Seven Deadly Sins, Seven Lively Virtues CD Bundle . They are also a great source for serenity prayer and baptism gifts.

Lenten Thoughts ... the meaning of faith

2011-03-29T06:25:00.000-04:00

Here's a link to this amazing book: Abandonment to Divine Providence ... a very worthwhile read!

Family: please pray for BamBam this week ...

2011-03-28T07:28:00.000-04:00

... as he'll make his First Holy Communion on Saturday, April 2nd at 9:00 a.m.

April 2nd is the anniversary of Venerable John Paul the Great's death ... and since we named the little guy for him, it's a very auspicious day for him!

Here is an excerpt from what Pope JohnPaul II wrote in 1994 in a letter to children, during the Year of the Family:

Dear friends, There is no doubt that an unforgettable meeting with Jesus is First Holy Communion, a day to be remembered as one of life's most beautiful.

The Eucharist, instituted by Christ at the Last Supper on the night before His passion, is a sacrament of the New Covenant -- the greatest of the sacraments. In this sacrament, the Lord becomes food for the soul under the appearances of bread and wine. Children receive this sacrament solemnly a first time -- in First Holy Communion -- and are encouraged to receive it afterward as often as possible in order to remain in close friendship with Jesus.
...
This event is usually commemorated in a family photo, so that it will not be forgotten. Photos like these generally remain with a person all through his or her life. As time goes by, people take out these pictures and experience once more the emotions of those moments; they return to the purity and joy experienced in that meeting with Jesus, the one who out of love became the Redeemer of Man.

For how many children in the history of the Church has the Eucharist been a source of spiritual strength, sometimes even heroic strength! How can we fail to be reminded, for example, of holy boys and girls who lived in the first centuries and are still known and venerated throughout the Church? Saint Agnes, who lived in Rome; Saint Agatha, who was martyred in Sicily; Saint Tarcisius, a boy who is rightly called the "martyr of the Eucharist" because he preferred to die rather than give up Jesus, whom he was carrying under the appearance of bread.

For Catholics, FHC is a big deal and a wondrous gift, a major milestone along the child's path to Heaven!

He is very excited ... and a bit nervous ... so if you could please keep him in your prayers. Please pray for our BamBam, especially to his patron, Venerable John Paul the Great (soon to be beatified in Rome).

THANKS!

We have the best kids ever ...

2011-03-25T12:04:00.000-04:00

... this was on the laptop this morning to greet Rick & I:

BTW, that would be a "pen flower" that our favorite mail-lady gave him one day -- a loved present indeed!

... and this just came from Kotch and the "littles":

Gorgeous flowers for this gorgeous (but COLD!) day ... the florist even put real lemon slices in the vase

Lenten Thoughts ...

2011-03-25T06:21:00.000-04:00

... from Abandonment to Divine Providence by Jean-Pierre de Caussade:

Holiness is produced in us by the will of God and our acceptance of it. It is not produced by intellectual speculation about it. If we are thirsty we must have a drink and not worry about books which explain what thirst is. If we waste time seeking an explanation about thirst, all that will happen is that we shall get thirstier. It is the same when we thirst after holiness. The desire to know more about it will only drive it further away. We must put all speculation aside and, with childlike willingness, accept all that God presents to us. What God arranges for us to experience at each moment is the best and holiest thing that could happen to us. Chap 1: 4

Hmmm ... "speculation aside" ... "childlike
willingness" .. I'm not so good at that. What would you suggest?

March 25th: Annunciation and an Anniversary!

2011-03-25T06:10:00.000-04:00

Icon received on our First Anniversary --
note that Mary is holding yarn and knitting needles!

Today is a great feast in the Church -- the Feast of the Annunciation. It is such a feast that most all Catholics will not abstain from meat today (unless they want to). The Feast of the Annunciation is very near and dear to my heart as it is also my wedding anniversary.

Here's the story, in case you haven't heard it before:

On May 26, 1992, my husband Mike died of cancer. He died four days after his 31st birthday, leaving me with a just-about three-year-old boy and an 11-month-old baby girl. I was devastated, but I had the love and care of family and friends who helped me through the time. I was climbing the corporate ladder at Delta Air Lines and they couldn't have been kinder.

But more importantly, I had the Blessed Mother to wrap her mantle around me ... to pray for grace to see me through the ordeal ... the loneliness ... the uncertainties. God was always near.

Fast-forward five years later and I decide to we need to jump-start our lives again. It is time. I prayed to God and through Our Lady's intercessions, we ended up in Raleigh, NC just when the principal of a parochial school needed a computer teacher (which I could do) and had space for my two parochial school children!

How good is God!

At this parochial school, there was a certain middle-school science teacher with whom I became instantly attracted. Something pulled us together -- we credit our prayers to the Blessed Mother. He was a conservative Catholic and so was I. He had been married (and annulled) and had older children who didn't live with him and so accepted mine with open arms.

On March 25, 1998, we married in the parish church of the school where we taught ... with some of our family-member and many students, faculty and staff in attendance. Friends came from near and far to wish us well and witness to this near-miraculous event.

And so, as our 14th year together begins today: we renew our "I Do's", our fiat to live together in the state of Holy Matrimony, to assent to our Lord's will and abandoning ourselves to Divine Providence.

Thank you, dear Lord, for the past 13 years ... for being with us on this journey together.

Thank you, Blessed Mother, for your intercessory prayers and always wrapping us in your mantle of love.

Thank you, dear Rick, for loving me even when I am not at my most lovable and thank you, too, for the three "littles" we have together and the blended family we continue to love and pray for daily.

Yarn-along: March 23rd and the swatches are almost done ...

2011-03-23T08:31:00.000-04:00

Unfortunately, last week was a tough week for any kind of knitting as my laptop was dying a slow death and I was in the "denial" stage most of the week, trying to get the blasted thing to limp through its work. Well, it made it till Thursday a.m. and I quickly hopped on dh's and ordered a new Toshiba (and a wireless printer while I was at it) -- thank goodness for overnight from Amazon and for design sales!

Well, this week is starting out much better! I've been knitting and reading and generally doing the good.

On the needles: swatches for my talk at the Dog House Yarns Retreat (will we see you out at Graves Mountain on April 9th?). The morning session will discuss how to substitute yarns for designs so I collected up different yarns, all in worsted weight, and am doing 50st by 72row squares(on size 8s) to show the differences in gauge, feel (or "hand"), drape and other characteristics. I'm finishing up on the midnight blue wool/silk blend and then I have one or two to go and then I'll be ready to move on to real knitting again.

FYI, the yarns shown (clockwise, starting at the lower left) are:

Plymouth Yarn's Boku (95% wool, 5% silk) in color 8 (very autumnal stripes)
Universal Yarn's Poems Silk (75% wool, 25% silk) in color 803 "Baffinis" (greys and blues)
Plymouth Yarn's Jelly Beenz (75% acrylic, 25% wool) in color 9623 (rosy pink with dashes of brights -- perfect for a little girl's sweater)
Cascade Yarns' Venezia Worsted (70% merino, 30% silk) in color Forest (a gorgeous dark green)
Plymouth Yarn's Royal Llama Silk (60% fine lama, 40% silk) in color 1842 (midnight blue)
Stonehedge Fiber Mill's Shepherd's Wool (100% wool) in Antique Rose (a pale, but warm, pink)

On the reading table:
Our current read-aloud is the sequel to the wonderfully fun-to-read-aloud, A Whole Nother Story. We just started Another Whole Nother Story yesterday, and it promises to be just as much fun as the first.

I just finished reading the fascinating, based-on-fact, novel, The Daughter's Walk by Jane Kirkpatrick. I have now turned my reading toward that pile of books you see in the upper right corner of the picture: lots of books on decorating on a shoestring! Spring always gets my interior design creative juices flowing and these books have gorgeous ideas: Flea Market Style, Simple to Sew Slipcovers and Cover-ups (especially for the leather furniture -- we stick to it in the summer!), Country Living's Cottage Style, Better Homes and Garden's New Cottage Style, HGTV's Design on a Dime, and Country Living's Shoestring Chic. If those don't keep me busy this week, I've also got a few Windows 7 books to help me deal with all the changes to un-broke Windows programs that Microsoft decides we all need!

Go check out Ginny's post for today and add your own knitting/reading activities for this week!

Review: The Daughter's Walk

2011-03-22T16:39:00.000-04:00

Imagine yourself in eastern Washington state in the late 1800s. You are the eldest daughter (barely 20 years old) living in a Norwegian immigrant family, a family of farmers. Your family has hit hard times: your dad was ill and the farm has been mortgaged and your mother has found a solution. The solution involves you. The solution involves giving up all that you want to do to save your family. You are told (not asked) to sacrifice all for your family.

This is the premise of the based-on-fact novel titled The Daughter's Walk by Jane Kirkpatrick. The Estby family, a family of Norwegian descent, are about to lose their farm due to lack of funds to pay the mortgage. The family is desperately trying to find a solution and the mother of the family discovers a solution.

The solution? The mother has worked out a deal with some New York fashion moguls who want to spread the word about the new "reform dress" -- above the ankle dresses for women. This is a dress that many see as indecent (remember, it's the 1890s) but the fashion pundits want to encourage. The deal is that if the Helga Estby and her daughter Clara walk from Spokane (WA) to New York City within a set amount of time, gathering dignitaries' signatures as they go, the Estbys will earn $10,000 -- enough to save the farm, send the children to college, and better the lives of this immigrant family.

What would you do?

The book doesn't stop with this harrowing (true) journey these women take. The book continues with their return to Mica Creek, Washington and the family's reception of the women. The story, told through the voice of Clara, than takes a sharp turn -- Clara is ostracized and for 20 some years is denied her family for whom she sacrificed so much. Clara finds community, finds family, with two older women showing that we all need someone, that God never meant us to walk our earthly journey alone.

This is an amazing story. This is an amazing tale based on the actual walk the Estby women undertook. This is an amazing tale based on the daughter's actual rejection by her family when she returns to Mica Creek. This is an amazing tale, pieced together through family records, newspaper articles and family legends that Kirkpatrick weaves together to make a fabric of forgiveness, love, family and courage. With a bit of suffragette history thrown in, this really makes a great read. Kirkpatrick also does a wonderful job explaining the fur business (in all its many aspects), the coming of World War I and its impact on the homefront, and other work that respectable women of the early 20th century could do in the West.

Kirkpatrick has wonderful notes at the end that explain what was based on verifiable facts, what came from family reminiscences and what was pieced together as "probably happening" in the lives connected to Clara Estby. This is what I would call a living book ... a book where the author revels in her story and shares that joy with her reader.

I would highly recommend this book for high schoolers and above, especially those interested in American social history ... in the suffragettes' movement ... in the lives of immigrants ... in the stories of family who cling together in good times and bad.

As a side note: I particularly enjoyed the descriptions of early 20th century Spokane -- I went to Gonzaga University in Spokane and I knew the places discussed, the street names and the area. Very cool personal link.

Disclaimer: I received this book as part of WaterBrook Multnomah's Blogging for Books program. I received no other compensation and only was required to write an honest review of the book. The critique above is my honest impression of The Daughter's Walk.

Max: putting family first

2011-03-21T06:26:00.000-04:00

Six months ago, we got a mini-schnauzer from a dear friend (and breeder). He was my birthday present for my 49th. Many of us were excited to have him in our lives ... some of us were not. Six months later, we have found him a new home because nothing ... NOTHING ... should ever be allowed to disrupt a family's peace and well-being. No thing should be allowed to disrupt the harmonious living together of a family.

Nothing: not a pet, not a job, not an activity.

Family is the core unit of society and receives bombardment from all directions, bombardment that can rip a family apart. Society tells us we can have it all ... but it doesn't tell us how to share or how to balance the give-and-take necessary. Society says that "I have a right to xyz", "I should be able to do abc", "I have the right to go to 123". There are lots of I's in those sentences and not too many "wes".

A family must be a "we" ... must be a unit that works toward the same goals and builds up from within. A family must be a give-and-take ... with all helping to support each other, nurturing different interests and activities of the individuals while ensuring that nothing tears up the family unit. At times, things will come into a family that throw that balance off, that can cause a small tear in the family fabric that can become a large rent and then a total disconnect. Max was throwing our family off balance ... he was causing a small tear. Max was causing loss of sleep ... tension ... stress. It wasn't fair to us or to Max.

So, with the help of the dear friend, we found him a lovely, perfect new home. I should amend that: thanks be to God, we found him a new home. It was fast, virtually pain-free and all are happy. It's a bittersweet happiness though as we're also a little sad to lose our mini-Max. But we know that he is in a better situation -- lots of room to run, another puppy to play with and a "mom" that really wants him.

And, our family is whole again.at peace again.

Review: Conversion: Following the Call of Christ

2011-03-18T10:59:00.000-04:00

Fr.Robert Barron's latest cd-talk, Conversion: Following the Call of Christ, is a wonderful tool for increasing your spirituality during this Lent. The review set I received from Catholic Company contained a two-CD set of six talks (plus an introductory overview of conversion to the Truth) given by Fr. Robert Barron, a professor at Mundelein Seminary (Illinois) as well as a popular speaker. Also included in the set was a study guide and workbook written by the talented Amy Welborn.

The talks by Fr. Barron are twenty minute sermons based on various Biblical conversion stories:

Bartimaeus (the man born blind whom Jesus cures) from Mark 10:32-52
The Rich Young Man (who is not too sure about selling everything and following Christ) from Mark 10:17-31
The Calling of Matthew (the tax collector known sometimes as Levi who choses to give up his life as a tax collector and follow Jesus) from Matthew 9:1-13
Jonah (the only OT story of conversion where Jonah at first heads the other way when God asks him to go to Ninevah) from the Book of Jonah (which Fr. Barron describes as "a hoot to read").
The Woman at the Well (who, as Fr. Barron explains, is definitely from the proverbial wrong side of the tracks) from John 4:1-42
The Journey of the Magi (a tale of the calling of the Gentiles) from Luke 2.

Fr. Barron's talks -- each about 20 minutes -- cover many interesting and provocative descriptions and explanations of each of these conversions to the Truth ... conversions to God. The talks assume knowledge (or pre-reading) of the particular scriptural story. The short talks are just long enough to listen to on a run to the store or just before starting evening prayers. Fr. Barron has a pleasant speaking voice and his message is deep, profound, but lovingly delivered.

The study guide/workbook by Welborn is a nice addition, with leading questions for each talk to help the listeners really meditate and understand what Fr. Barron is saying. The questions are split into "questions for understanding" (with definite answers) and "questions for reflection" which should lead to some pretty lively discussions. This workbook is quite useful for small groups (or, for us, in the homeschool!) when listening to the talks.

In addition, Word On Fire (the publisher of the cd's and workbook) has password-protected, free supporting materials for this set of talks. The materials include a facilitator's guide (for small groups); promotional materials for stirring interest in the small group meetings, and an answer key for the workbook questions.

This set -- especially with the additional materials on the website -- really makes for a practical small Lenten retreat to do at home or in small groups. And, because it is so self-contained, it's not too late to order for this Lenten season! I highly recommend this set, Conversion: Following the Call of Christ -- VERY nice.

This review was written as part of the Catholic book reviewer program from The Catholic Company. Visit The Catholic Company to find more information on Conversion CD Bundle (CD/Study Guide Bundle) . They are also a great source for serenity prayer and baptism gifts.

Lent 2011: a third desktop background ...

2011-03-15T07:11:00.001-04:00

Homeschool Connections: wonderful summer-school option!

2011-03-11T11:04:00.000-05:00

Whether you've got middle-schoolers or high schoolers trying to earn more credits, Homeschool Connections has some great summer-school/online classes scheduled. AND if you register on or before April 1st, you'll save up to $40! Cool, huh?

All you need is high speed internet (not dial up) and a headset (easily available and inexpensive). The classes are live and interactive. It's all user friendly and fun too. The greatest advantage of these courses is that you and your child have access to some of the best teachers in the country.

HC also offers recorded courses which include past summer boot camps. This way you have many options if you like to keep learning year round, even if on a much lighter schedule.

Recorded summer courses include:

Literature: MacBeth (Catholic Shakespeare series)
Literature: Beowulf and Christ
Catholic Apologetics with Gary Michuta
SAT / ACT Preparation and Practice
Foundations of Christian Historiography
Latin I
Latin II
Life Skills: Job Search Skills

Go check it out at Homeschool Connections; I think you'll be impressed by the offerings they have!

Lent 2011: another desktop background ...

2011-03-11T09:56:00.001-05:00

... based on today's responsorial psalm ...

My Lenten desktop background ...

2011-03-10T06:07:00.000-05:00

... from Ash Wednesday's First Reading (Joel 2):

Lent 2011: here's how we'll do Stations of the Cross ...

2011-03-10T05:50:00.000-05:00

ETA (3/10/11): Yes, Paula is right, it was Ruth at Just Another Day in Paradise where I got this idea. I really love that it is all connected so I don't have to re-set it every Friday, but instead can leave the votives/cross on our family altar in the dining room all week! THANKS Ruth for this brilliant idea.

On Fridays during Lent, we always try and do the Stations of the Cross ... either at home or in our parish or wherever. This year, to ensure that we DO the Stations each Friday, we borrowed an idea from one of my lovely online lady-friends (but since I'm pushing 50, I just can't remember who -- if it's you, PLEASE post to the comments!) and did the following:

14 votive candle cups hot-glued to a board (I actually had to string some boards together (thus the gaps underneath) that I painted purple. Each of the cups represents a Station of the Cross. The wooden cross backing up the candles (and attached by using a square block instead of the rectangles for the rest of the "board") was painted by LegoManiac -- which accounts for the "blood" dripping down where the wounds of Christ would be.

The idea is that when we get ready to do the Stations, we light each of the candles. As we read the Station, we blow out the candle, until all 14 are blown out. In the darkness, we will then quietly (well, that's the plan) head to bed.

Cool, huh?

How is your Lent progressing?

Yarn-along: March 9th edition ...

2011-03-09T06:35:00.000-05:00

Here's my offering this week: we're finishing up our read-aloud, Airman, which I highly recommend (especially for boys, but my now-11yod loves it, too) and then we'll move on to A Whole Nother Story, a book that sounds very much like the type of crazy story Howard Whitehouse writes (we read his triology this past fall). For my reading, since we're starting our Lenten Journey today, I've got the classic, Abandonment to Divine Providence, Houselander's Way of the Cross and Fr. Barron's Conversion on tap.

My knitting for the past few days has been lots of swatches -- squares for the upcoming Olde Liberty Fiber Faire, swatching a new design I've got in my head:

... and I picked up a sampling of worsted weight yarns yesterday from Dog House Yarns in Culpeper. I'm the morning speaker at Dog House Yarns' upcoming knitting retreat (out at Graves Mountain Lodge on April 9). I'll be speaking about substituting yarns, what different fibers do, and generally discussing "the ins and outs of using this for that"; the swatches I'll knit from the yarns shown below will help illustrate just what different fibers do! I'll also be signing copies of my Great Yarns books and doing two break-out sessions in the afternoon ("short rows" and "tips and tricks").

Come join Ginny's yarn-along ... and go check out the links to all the lovely ladies who post about what they're reading and working on ... the fiber pictures will have you drooling!

Ash Wednesday 2011 OR why I'll still be posting thru the next 40+ days ...

2011-03-09T05:53:00.000-05:00

Today, our Lenten journey begins -- a journey toward the Resurrection which we can't have until we walk our own Calvary, leaving all our sins and ugliness behind to be refreshed, renewed, reborn on Easter Sunday morning.

What a great time of year! A great chance to rebuild our relationship with the Holy Trinity ... to sacrifice what we hold dear in order to put Him first. These next 40+ days are our chance to walk our own Calvary -- to fall occasionally ... to be ridiculed and mocked ... to endure the crosses we have created ... in order to be renewed.

Many of the folks I know are giving up the Internet for Lent ... this is quite commendable and works for them. I will still be online, posting and chatting, primarily because my knitting work requires that I stay in touch. But also, because I think if I share my Lenten journey with you, it might help you on yours. I will be increasing my spritiual reading with: Abandonment to Divine Providence, The Way of the Cross, and Fr. Barron's Conversion: Following the Call of Christ.

May you all have a holy and healthy Lenten journey -- please pray for me as I will do for you!

Birthdays: String Bean turns 11 and hosts a party!

2011-03-06T17:32:00.000-05:00

Our millenial baby, String Bean, turned 11 on the 1st ... we had a small family party Tuesday night but she really just wanted a party with her girl-friends so today, we sent the boys off (dh took them to see Rango!) and Max was relegated to the crate.

Our "theme" was A Royal Garden Tea.

We set the table with String Bean's birthday gift from us: a beautiful, real tea-set -- a service for 4 (including cups, saucers, luncehon plates, dessert plates & bowl and a tea pot). The runner underneath the tea-pot is one that her grandmother sent her that her mother had stitched ... so it's old as well as gorgeous!

The wooden flowers in the wine-glass/water-glass are the place-cards (with a magnet on the back for the girls to bring home and use). For party-activities we painted flower-pots (which then became their "goodie bag"); a wooden initial letter and made fabric-covered scrapbooks (filled with traditional black thick paper). BTW, in the picture below, that is a real baby sleeping -- he was the only male allowed to come to the party (the youngest brother of one of the guests) and he was a perfect guest -- slept the whole time!

We ate fancy, traditional tea finger-sandwiches (cucumber, honey-walnut, and ham-roll-ups), homemade blueberry muffins and cheddar muffins, crudite tray, deviled eggs (String Bean's favorite!), and a hot-tea punch (served in the tea cups, of course). No birthday around here would be complete without a chocolate cake of some kind: String Bean asked for the old Betty Crocker "chocolate joy cake" with chocolate fudge frosting!

Wow, what an afternoon. But String Bean is such a blessing to so many ... every bit of work and worry was worth it!

God bless you, String Bean. Happy 11th and may you have many, many more such glorious (but not so rainy) days!

Please vote: just a few more days to let your voice be heard ...

2011-03-03T10:47:00.000-05:00

We are very small at Mater & Magistra... but we are holding at 10% against big national magazines such as America... take a look! Please vote! We know we don't have a chance against Magnificat for example, but every vote gives us visibility! We can vote everyday until March 15, click here and scroll down to vote!

Feast Day: St. Katherine Drexel

2011-03-03T08:03:00.001-05:00

St. Katherine Drexel, born into a fabulously wealthy family, spent an estimated $20 million of her family fortune to help the African- and Native-Americans throughout the country. She opened schools, convents and centers throughout the country, including Xavier University, in New Orleans some 80 years ago. A tireless worker for minorities, St. Katherine founded the Sisters of the Blessed Sacrament, and at the age of 77 suffered a major heart attack which left her confined to the motherhouse in Pennsylvania. The last 20 years of her life were spent in prayer for her sisters and the minorities. She died in 1955 and was canonized by JPtheGreat in 2000, one of only five canonized American-citizens (and the second born in the United States).

Review: Linking Your Beads: The Rosary's History, Mysteries and Prayers

2011-03-03T06:56:00.000-05:00

I went to Catholic schools for almost all of my education: 9 years parochial elementary, 4 years in a Dominican highschool, 4 years in a Jesuit college -- these were wonderful years of learning with a bit of a Catholic tint. Unfortunately, all this schooling was from 1966-1983 -- not exactly the heyday of good, solid Catholic education. It was post-Vatican 2 and on the West Coast at least, alot of what we loved, lived and learned previously was thrown out with the proverbial bath water.

One of the "holes" in my Catholic education was understanding the Marian devotions -- to this day, I can't remember all the mysteries of the rosary without some prompting, nor do I have a clear understanding of why folks for centuries have been praying these beads.

Enter the opportunity to review the new book by Patricia Ann Kasten: Linking Your Beads: The Rosary's History, Mysteries, and Prayers. Reading a bit like a doctoral thesis (but with a light-hearted touch as to make it very readable), this book has explained so much to me. Kasten starts with the background devotion of using beads or other markers when reciting prayers. She links the rosary to the Desert Fathers who would recite each of the 150 psalms while they went through their work-day. To keep track of which psalm they were on, the good men would used beads on a string. These beads eventually shifted to people using them to recite the Our Father or other prayers -- beads on a string help us to keep track (something that is quite important in our hectic modern world!).

The entry of the rosary -- with it's now-four sets of mysteries (Venerable John Paul the Great added the 5 Luminous Mysteries to the traditional Glorious, Joyful and Sorrowful mysteries in his apostolic letter, Rosarium Virginis Mariae in October 2002), has been prayed with slight modifications for 500-600 years. Although traditionally attributed to St. Dominic (1170-1221), Kasten explains that the popular use of the rosary only dates to about the 15th century -- but the spread of its usage throughout Europe is definitely from the Domincan preachers who traveled Europe, catechizing the peoples.

Kasten than walks the reader through every piece of the rosary -- from the sign of the cross at the beginning of the devotion, through the Apostle's Creed, the Our Fathers, the Hail Marys, the Glory Bes (also known as the "doxology"), the Salve Regina, and the final AMEN. She explains the background behind each of these prayers and why they are included in the rosary. She also quickly points out that the rosary, as with all prayer, leads us to a devotion to Jesus and God's love; the rosary does this through meditation on the life of Jesus:

in the Joyful Mysteries: the Annunciation, the Visitation, the Birth, the Presentation and the finding of the Child Jesus in the temple
in the Luminous Mysteries: baptism of our Lord, wedding feast at Cana, proclamation of the kingdom, transfiguration and the institution of the Eucharist at the Last Supper
in the Sorrowful Mysteries: the agony in the garden, the scourging at the pillar, the crowning with thorns, the carrying of the cross and the crucifixion
in the Glorious Mysteries: the Resurrection, the Ascension, Pentecost, Assumption of Mary and the coronation of Mary as Queen of Heaven and Earth.

Kasten does a fabulous job at explaining each one of these mysteries, giving the reader something to meditate upon when "saying the beads". She ends her book with details about some of the variations (including additional prayers such as the Fatima prayer), the myriad chaplets that can be said using the rosary beads, and even the different colors used for rosaries and why.

This is an amazing book -- filled with the author's deep love of the rosary, a deep love she wants to share with her readers. I highly recommend this book -- especially for those of us who have this "hole" in our Catholic understanding. This book will fill that hole!

This review was written as part of the Catholic book reviewer program from The Catholic Company. Visit The Catholic Company to find more information on Linking Your Beads:The Rosary's History, Mysteries and Prayers. They are also a great source for serenity prayer and baptism gifts.

Review: Sisterchicks in Wooden Shoes

2011-03-02T19:19:00.000-05:00

Sisterchicks in Wooden Shoes by Robin Jones Gunn is a wonderful story -- very thought-provoking, well-drawn characters, and a good message.

That said, let me say first that I don't much care for the name "sisterchicks" as it is supposed to be about women who are hip and groovy -- puh-lease!  But I do like the sentiment behind the appelattion: girl-friends so close, so sympatico, that they are like sisters. I like this idea as a theme for books. This is the 8th in the series, but the first I've read and I might just have to read the others.

Second, I've never been to the Netherlands but have always wanted to go and see VanGogh's homeland as well as the fields of tulips, the windmills (especially after reading The Winged Watchman!), and the canals. This book made me want to go see this amazing country even more. Gunn does a great job of describing the sites, sounds and even smells of the Netherlands. At the end of the book, she includes pictures and information of her own, fact-finding trip to the this tiny country. Lovely stuff.

The premise of the book is that Summer Finley and Noelle van Zandt have been penpals since 4th grade but have never met in person.  Finally, at the age of almost 50, they finally meet, in the Netherlands. Summer initiates the visit when she gets a "bad" mammogram; rather than dwelling on the "what ifs" she takes the bull by the proverbial horns and emails Noelle about coming to visit. As Summer's trip unfolds, both Noelle and Summer learn many truths, the first and foremost being that there are things we cannot impact and anxiety and worry are worthless; only God can help in those time of paralyzing fear or fixing past issues.
I like this book. I like Summer's character and Noelle's; I like Noelle's husband and the other sub-characters (incl Summer's husband -- a man who has just a bitty part in the story but obviously a large influence on Summer's life). I like the Christian element woven into the story without sacrificing the plot or seeming an obvious add-on. I love the descriptions of this fantasy country -- the tulips and wooden shoes and canals and museums and other magical bits they call the Netherlands.

I highly recommend this well-written, thought-provoking story of letting go and letting God!   Having experience a "bad" mammogram myself, the fear and trepidation portrayed by Gunn are very true to life.

Yarn Along: March 2nd edition

2011-03-02T06:49:00.000-05:00

Well, since my two-week hiatus from the internet, I've missed a couple of yarn-alongs. My last one was February 9th ... and I mentioned reading Sweater Quest as I'd heard good things about it. Don't waste your time -- she's got great info about fair-isle knitting, but it's random and rude, the language is a bit much (she swears alot in her writing!) and she jumps on the "dissing Alice Starmore" bandwagon. Carmen, you were right ... I guess I should listen to you more, huh? I hate when books let me down.

At least I was able to post the design for Victoria's Tee that I'd been working on for numerous yarn-alongs during the hiatus!

This week finds me working away at a Snow on the Mountains vest in cashmere (a commission project). This raspberry cashmere is almost idential in color to the "Victoria's Tee" ... must be the new popular color.

The kids and I are reading Eion Colfer's Airman ... now this is a great read! Set in Ireland in the early 1900s, it's a bit of Man in the Iron Mask but with great early aviation tidbits. All of us are really enjoying it. I'm in the middle of Linking Your Beads: the Rosary's History, Mystery and Prayers which is really well-done. I'm learning tons about the rosary -- something that wasn't taught in my years of Catholic-school education (since I was in school during the post-Vatican 2, enlightened period in San Francisco!). I'm also working my way through St. Louis Marie deMontfort's Total Consecration so that I can do my consecration to Jesus thru Mary on my wedding anniversary: March 25th (Feast of the Annunciation!).

So how is your knitting and reading week going? Check out Ginny's yarn-along post and add your own link. Don't forget to check out all the lovely ladies doing the same ... it's great fun and you'll get great ideas for books to read (or read-aloud!).

I'm back ....

2011-03-01T07:11:00.000-05:00

... after my two-week, self-imposed hiatus from the internet. Just to refresh your mind: on February 14th, I began a two-week period of fasting (only tea/water/coffee to drink and no sweets), prayer (daily Mass and rosary, morning prayers before the kids wake up, de Montfort's consecration prep) and abstinence (no FB, blogs, etc). I did these mortifications as an offering to God for a miracle: there is a house I just love that would be perfect for us and solve so very many problems. Well, that two weeks finished up yesterday ... I don't know whether God's answer is "yes", "no" or "not now" but I do know that the past two weeks were such a grace-filled gift, with lots of re-prioritizing and plans and reading and changes to come.

For all of you who prayed for me and mine during this time -- thank you so very much! It means so much to me when dear friends I've known online for years ... many of whom I've never met ... pour out prayers and good wishes whenever I ask! You are all in my daily prayers and know that if there is anything I can do for you, please don't hesitate to holler.

So watch for some awesome book reviews ... some changes to this blog and my online presence ... and a great emphasis on my knitting work. For those that knit: I'll be speaking in the morning (and doing a couple of afternoon sessions) at Dog House Yarn's spring knitting retreat out at Graves Mountain and I've got some new knitting designs available for download:

Victoria's Tee -- a fingering-weight cotton-acrylic yarn done in a Victorian lace edging pattern. This top looks great with an undertop or (if it ever warms up ...) all by itself.
Malcolum's Cluthar, cap and toy cube -- knit in an organic, worsted weight cotton, this set was designed for a dear friend's first baby, Malcolm. The blanket is knit in one piece with textured designs (anchor, heart, crown, boat) and cables for interest; the cap repeats the cables and the 7-inch soft-cube has bells buried deep inside to jingle to the baby's delight.

And, today is String Bean's 11th birthday .... more on that later ...

Prayer, fasting and abstinence for a special intention ...

2011-02-13T17:37:00.000-05:00

will mean this blog will be on hiatus for the next 14 days.

We have seen a house that is available for sale ... an 1838 house that is in a perfect spot, cutting dh's commute 30 minutes EACH way, near all the friends we have down here, and more than 1.5 acres around the house (so LOTS of play area for the kids). I SOOO want to move to this house ...

BUT

we'd need a major miracle to have all things come together. In asking God's divine providence to "kick in", I am planning to fast (drinking only tea/water/coffee and not eating any sweets), to pray more (by going to daily Mass and carving an hour out of each day for prayer time), and to (and this is a BIGGIE for me) abstain from the Internet (by only checking email twice a day and not doing anything else online).

We are asking for a clear sign from God whether or not to pursue this house ...

So I will update you all on this intention on March 1st (which is also String Bean's 11th birthday). Will you please add your prayer to my self-imposed sacrifices while I'm away?

Gateau Basque for Our Lady of Lourdes!

2011-02-11T17:39:00.000-05:00

Gateau Basque ala Hilltop Farm!

I mentioned in my earlier post that we'd be making Gateau Basque for dessert. Because it is just IMPOSSIBLE for me to follow directions, here's the recipe as I made it for the Feast of Our Lady of Lourdes:

Gateau Basque

8 servings; pan size: 9" springform

Ingredients:
2 cup all purpose flour
1 cup whole wheat flour
8 oz butter, softened (2 sticks)
3 eggs
1-1/4 cup sugar
1-1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 cup jam (I used Bonne Maman Wild Blueberry for the Blessed Mother!)
1 egg yolk for brushing the top
cinnamon-sugar (optional)

Directions:
Pre-heat the oven to 400 degrees. Butter the spring-form pan (my pans are NOT non-stick and I highly recommend using these Kaiser ones!) and then set aside.

In a bowl, mix the flours, sugar and baking powder together. Add eggs and butter, stirring until well-combined.

Take half the dough and spread it in the pan, lifting it up the sides about 1/2" or so. Pour the jam into the center of the cake, spreading it evenly out to the sides (but leave about an inch or so border so the jam doesn't leak out).

Sprinkle a bit of flour on your work surface and roll the second half of the dough out into a circle that is the same size as the pan. Place this on top of the jam/dough and ensure the jam is completely sealed within.

Mix the egg yolk with a few drops of water and "paint" the top crust with this mixture. Optional: sprinkle cinnamon-sugar on top for an added bit of sweet!

Place in the preheated over for about 25 minutes or until the cake is golden and done. Wait 10 mins and then run a knife round the edge of the pan. Pop off the spring-form and voila!

Enjoy!

Feast Day: Our Lady of Lourdes

2011-02-11T05:59:00.003-05:00

Our family is very tied-into the Feast of Our Lady of Lourdes: my husband and I met while we were teaching at Our Lady of Lourdes School .... we were married at Our Lady of Lourdes Church ... two of our children were baptized at Our Lady of Lourdes Church ... we've been very blessed to go to Lourdes as a family, twice -- once in 2000 and again in 2001. My maternal great-grandfather came from the Basque village of Oloron-Ste.Marie, about 20 miles west of Lourdes in the Pyrennes.

We have many connections.

This apparition of Our Lady to St. Bernadette in a grotto in the south of France 18 times in the 1850s is one of the most visited shrines in the world. Catholics, Christians, Jews ... even pagans go to Lourdes to pray and become whole in mind, body and spirit. Some are cured ... some are eased in their illness ... some are left with the crippling diseases which have brought them to this spot. But all leave with a sense of peace and love and care that only the Blessed Mother and her Son can bring.

It is an amazing place like none other on earth ... a place of prayer ... a place of peace ... a place of love. The candlelight prayer service everynight is amazing: singing and crying and praying in different languages, warmed by the glow of the thousands and thousands of candles that fill the area in front of the Cathedral. There is a constant flow of penitents into and out of the Confessional Building, where the Sacrament of Reconciliation is offered all day every day in just about every language. The Blessed Sacrament is available for adoration as is Holy Mass throughout the day. The sick ... wheeled in on stretchers or wheel chairs, some even carried ... are all there for a special healing service in the afternoon, every afternoon.

What a haven of peace and Divine love in the midst of our 21st Century.

Today, we'll read stories from The Wonders of Lourdes: 150 Miraculous Stories of the Power of Prayer ... we'll watch Bernadette and Song of Bernadette (we started last night by watching Loretta Young in Road to Lourdes). We'll eat Tuna Lorenzo (tuna salad on homemade English muffins, broiled) and Gateau Basque (I'll post our version later) ... and of course, we'll pray for all those who are sick, suffering or dying as well as praying in thanksgiving for God's Love which allowed St. Bernadette to see Mary and God's Charity which continues the miraculous cures into the 21st century.

mater et magistra ... the ONLY Catholic homeschool magazine ....

2011-02-11T00:30:00.002-05:00

... needs your help. Margot, publisher of m-et-m, received word that the magazine has been selected by the readers of the About.com Catholicism GuideSite as one of the five finalists for Best Catholic Magazine in the 2011 About.com Catholicism Readers' Choice Awards!
Starting at 12:00 A.M. EST on Friday, February 11, 2011, and running until 11:59 P.M. EST on March 8, 2011, Catholics from around the world will cast their votes in this category (and in nine more). The competition will be fierce; I encourage you to get the word out to your supporters as soon as you can after 12:00 A.M. EST on Friday, February 11, 2011.

Here's the form to vote for m-et-m (as well as other great Catholic sites) as the Best Catholic Magazine.
The winner will be announced on March 15, 2011. Please help m-et-m and chose it as the Best Catholic Magazine, because it is!

Review: The Mountains Bow Down

2011-02-10T17:50:00.000-05:00

Well, this was a disppointment! I'd only give this one 2 stars, maybe 3 if I was feeling extra-generous.

The Mountains Bow Down: A Raleigh Harmon Novel is the first Raleigh Harmon book I've read (seems there are three before this one). So what I have to say may not be true if you've read the previous books.

Raleigh Harmon is an FBI agent who goes up to Alaska on a cruise with her mom, aunt and Claire the Clairvoyant on "vacation" only to get caught up in a suicide/murder and major gem theft. She is helped by Jack Stephanson, a man she worked with earlier when she was working in the Seattle FBI office. An added twist (or complication) is the fact that she is now back to working in the Richmond FBI office, newly engaged to a Southern aristocrat and her widowed mother is bordering on having a nervous breakdown. This would probably make better sense if you'd read the earlier books ... but it SHOULD stand-alone and not be quite so confusing as this one is.

That's just the synopsis of the plot affecting Raleigh. This doesn't include the sub-plots of ship-board crimes (including a rather graphic description of Turkish ship-workers who are also pornography-film makers), narcissistic Hollywood types and their issues and .... well, sex drugs and rock and roll pretty much sums it up. See what I think it's a bit convoluted?

That all said, the primary mystery is a very good mystery although I don't think the author, Sibella Giorello, plays fair in that the stolen rocks are a very rare, found-only-in-California, mineral that even Raleigh (who is supposed to be a geologist) has never seen before. The reader doesn't understand the point of the rocks as the key until right near the end ...

I also don't much care for Raleigh Harmon's character -- she is self-centered, a work-aholic, who says she loves her mentally ill mother but doesn't drop everything to help her, being caught up in the case instead. She lies to "protect" her mom but actually just makes it all worse. She is engaged to an old sweetheart who she ignores when he repeatedly calls her and when she does finally talk to him is angry that he's partying with old school friends. She's supposed to be a "forensic geologist" and yet she spends more time being just a detective ... why have her constantly reminding other characters about her "geology education". A further irritating character-flaw with Raleigh is that she is supposed to be so smart and such a great agent and yet is very cynical and sarcastic and rude to people she's trying to get to help her. Her former boss in the Seattle office is treated almost as a buffoon and yet he does everything he can to help her.

The other characters include Aunt Charlotte who is quite odd and hard to understand while her friend Claire the Clairvoyant is truly over-the-top weird but then she ends up helping Raleigh set up the bad guys. Very strange. The character of special agent Stephanson is much better drawn and believable. And I love the character of the Dutch ship's captain, Geert! The victim's family and friends are not very sympathetic and the other cruise customers are ridiculed throughout the nove.

I also have to say that this particular book, although supposedly Christian fiction, is not that at all. The reference to Christianity and organized religion are all snide slurs including comments from the ship's chaplain of "well, it's ok that the Cross was ripped off the wall ... it's such a bummer for people" or Aunt Charlotte's new ageiness that has her saying that she used to be like Raleigh's mother until she stopped buying into the whole Episcopal thing. I don't know how the other Raleigh Harmon books read .. but this one is not a winner!

Disclaimer: I received this book at part of Thomas Nelson's Book Sneeze program. The critique above is my honest reaction to this work of fiction.

Yarn-along: February 9th edition ...

2011-02-09T12:05:00.000-05:00

With this yarn-along, I can FINALLY say that I am FINALLY finished with "Victoria's Tee" (formerly named "Victoria's Tank" but String Bean and I are planning a tea party for her bday so tee/tea is on my mind) ... all is done but the blocking, photographing in situ, and writing up the design. I think it turned out nicely, don't you?

On my needles now is the cashmere vest ... I've got the pattern all charted out, casted-on and now the knitting begins. This is similar to the Snow on the Mountains designs but since I can NEVER repeat, I've changed it slightly just for this design.

On the reading front: the kids and I are finishing up The Book of Story Beginnings ... a wonderful read-aloud and exciting story that proves the value of writing good beginnings for a great ending! Waiting underneath is the classic The Pushcart War ... I remember really enjoying this when I was younger and someone's mention of it the other day reminded me that I hadn't yet read it to my kids. We will remedy that as soon as The Book of Story Beginnings is done.

For my personal reading I've got two books just starting up: The Mountains Bow Down is one I'm reading to review for Thomas Nelson Books and Sweater Quest: my year of knitting dangerously is just for me as I've heard great things about it (and it's about knitting so why not give it a shot!)

So how is your knitting/reading adventure evolving this week? Head on over to Ginny's and check out the links to some wonderful folks' activities!

What happens when you have a sister home for Christmas break ...

2011-02-09T11:50:00.000-05:00

after her first semester of culinary arts study?

Chef Boy-ar-dee, of course!

Fabulous Movie for Family Movie Night!

2011-02-08T13:09:00.001-05:00

The recently re-issued movie, Saint John Baptist De La Salle: Patron Saint of Teachers, is a marvelous movie to watch for Family Movie Night. Starring Mel Ferrer as De La Salle and Fernando Rey as one of his young recruits, the movie is a wonderful overview of De La Salle's life from being named canon at the Cathedral in Rheims at the age of 28 to establishing the Brothers of Christian Schools at 41 and then dying at the age of 68, having established Christian Brother schools throughout France.

De La Salle (1651-1719) was from a wealthy French family, orphaned in the midst of attending seminary. As the eldest, De La Salle was made executor of his father's estate and guardian of his younger brothers and sisters. The movie opens with him and his family in their lavish home and a layman asking him to help set up a school for the poor in Rhiems. As De La Salle commits more and more of his own personal resources to helping educate the poor (as well as teaching teachers to be teachers), he begins to move from being a Courtier Churchman to being a helper of all, educating the poor and rich alike. Once he starts on this path, he never looks back!

The movie is not glitzy, glamorous or even very high tech. Done probably in the 1960s (although I couldn't find an actual date), this movie does its best to tell the story of this man who put others first ... this man who discerned God's will for himself and did it ... this man who ignored the criticism of family and friends to help all people learn! This is a cozy, "Sunday-afternoon family movie" type of movie. It tells a great story (some bit of truth-stretching for story-telling's sake) of a great man.
Mel Ferrer becomes this humble priest, with loving eyes and actions throughout. The viewer has a sense the Ferrer truly understood De La Salle's theology and philosophy -- not playing the role too high-brow or insipid. Fernando Rey starts the movie as a young, tough, street kid and ends up as one of De La Salle's most active brothers. The rest of the cast -- all European actors -- add wonderful support to the movie.

One thing you can always count on with Ignatius Press videos is the booklet that they package with the DVD. The booklet included in this movie includes a detailed biography, information about De La Salle's teaching philosophies (or "pedagogy") , and an overview of the Christian Brothers today (with website links for further information).

Thanks, Ignatius Press for republishing this wonderful look at a man many teachers, especially Catholic school teachers, should try to emulate!

You can purchase this DVD here.

Disclaimer: I wrote this review of Saint John Baptist De La Salle for the Tiber River Blogger Review program, created by Aquinas and More Catholic Goods, your source for Baptism Gifts and First Communion Gifts. For more information and to purchase, please visit Aquinas and More Catholic Goods.

Tiber River is the first Catholic book review site, started in 2000 to help you make informed decisions about Catholic book purchases. I receive free product samples as compensation for writing reviews for Tiber River.

Review: Life Without Limits: Inspiration for a Ridiculously Good Life

2011-02-07T06:06:00.000-05:00

Wow! Here's a book to give to every teen with angst, to those who have lost their jobs, to those who feel they are less than perfect in body, mind or lifestyle. Life Without Limits by Nick Vujicic is inspriational, motivational, humorous, sad and just a great read.

This book challenges every reader to turn disabilities into abilities ... challenges into opportunities ... failures into new directions. Vujicic demands that the reader find the sugar for the lemonade that life's lemons require. And he does it with humor, personal anecdotes and lots of love for all.

Nick Vujicic, a now-28 year old man, was born without arms or legs (except for a little, two-toed flipper on his left side). He credits God's plan and his parents' love and family's optimism for getting him to where he is now -- an uber successful businessman, evangelist, inspirational speaker and writer. How did he get from contemplating suicide at the age of 10 to scuba-diving and surfing at the age of 27?

It's all here in this book.

But this book is much more than an interesting autobiography. This book is filled with the "wisdom of the ages" ... with the philosophy of living "a ridiculously good life". But it's not Pollyanna stuff here. This inspirational book tries to get the reader to see beyond the negative ... beyond the failed enterprise, the lost job, the less-than-perfect body. To get the reader to see that God has a plan for each and every one of us ... and once we find that path, we are good to go.

He talks about having a great attitude ... about getting the attitude by being grateful for what you do have, from acting on what works and ditching what doesn't, from empathizing with others who are worse off, and by forgiving those who may have hurt you or upset you (and in doing so, forgiving yourself!). He talks about change for the good: recognizing the need, envisioning what the "new" would look like/be like, forgetting about the past and moving forward, getting settled to make the "new" the "now", and to keep growing and not stagnate or say, "I'm where I should be ... doing what I should do ... and now I should never change this." He talks about the "ridiculous rules" ... the rules necessary for dealing with the small and large risks of living on this Earth:

test the waters to ensure you know what you're jumping into
understand and start from knowledge of what you're about to do
make sure you're "jumping off" at the right time
ask dear friends, mentors, even enemies their opinion of what you're about to do
prepare for the seen and unforseen ... in other words, overestimate costs and underestimate revenue

Sprinkled throughout his motivational pep talks and autobiographical anecdotes are information about others whom Vujicic has met throughout his journey -- other quadriplegics/physically disabled, achingly poor and destitute, prisoners and materially-rich/spiritually poor folks. He mentions kids, adults, famous people and not-so-famous people. He shows that God has made us each differently ... and wonderfully ... and for a reason.

No wonder Vujicic is such an in-demand speaker ... his love for God and all God's creatures emanates from the 200+ pages of this book. You can learn more about Nick by checking out his site: lifewithoutlimits.org.

Great book I'd recommend for teens and older (especially teens or young adults going thru angst of not fitting in or despairing).

Disclaimer: I rec'd this book as part of Blogging for Books review program. The review above is my honest opinion of Life Without Limits: Inspiration for a Ridiculously Good Life.

Feast Day: St. Blaise

2011-02-03T10:14:00.000-05:00

Note the wool-carding comb in his right hand!

... invoked for sore throats/throat problems (and the traditional blessing-of-throats on his feast day) because of a story that he dislodged a fishbone from a choking boy's throat. When I was little, invariably I would have a sore throat on St. Blaise's feast day (guess I wanted to prove his intercessions would heal my throat!).

St. Blaise is also the patron of wool workers/combers.

Why, you ask?

Well it seems that during the reign of Emperor Licinius, there was a cruel and violent persecution of all Christians ... Bishop Blaise (in Sebaste, Armenia) was arrested, thrown in jail and after being sentenced to die, was tortured by being "combed" by metal wool combs. After this particularly gruesome torture, St. Blaise was beheaded.

So if you go to get your throats blessed today, remember to wear wool in the good saint's honor!

St. Blaise, you kept the faith even under horrible tortures, even unto death ... may I be as steadfast in always defending my faith.

St. Blaise, patron of throat disorders and wool carders, pray for us!

Feast: Presentation of the Lord (Candlemas)

2011-02-02T09:03:00.000-05:00

Initially called the "festival of lights", inspired by the words of Simeon, this feast led to the custom of blessing candles, giving the feast its popular name of Candlemas. This feast also concludes the birth cleebrations and begins the route toward Easter with the offering by the Virign Mother of her firstborn and the prophecy of Simeon. [excerpted from Rosa Giorgi's Saints: A Year in Faith and Art ... a book we used daily!]

May we always be "a light to the Gentiles", too!

Yarn Along: February 2nd edition

2011-02-02T07:10:00.000-05:00

What's on my needles: still haven't gotten the long circs for the cashmere vest design, so I'm continuing to plug away at my "Victoria's Tee"... it's slow going only because I great hair-brained ideas and drop this and whip up something else (this weekend, it was the nested Easter baskets for my handcrafts column in mater-et-magistra!). But I'm loving the way the fabric feels and I think it will be quite a nice design ... though I'm still chomping at the bit to get cracking on the cashmere!

On my book table: LOVING Life Without Limits: Inspiration for a Ridiculously Good Life by Nick Vujicic. This is a GREAT book. Here's a guy born without arms or legs who loves God and life and wants us all to love God and life, too. It's an amazing read.

Read-aloud: We started The Book of Story Beginnings by Kristin Kladstrup ... an odd but engaging book. It's fitting in nicely with my wanting to get the kids writing more so that is all to the good. As I mentioned ... a bit odd but we're enjoying it!

Head on over to Ginny's, where she has a linky-list of others who are also enjoying these yarn-alongs.

Feast Day: St. Brigid of Kildare and Anne's birthday ...

2011-02-01T06:27:00.000-05:00

Today is one of String Bean's patronal feasts ... St. Brigid of Ireland ... we'll make BarmBrack and I've already made a confetti cake (for the weather-cancelled St. Agnes Fiber Club meeting) ... so we are good to go.

It is also my favorite sister's 55th birthday today! God bless you, Aunt Anne ... we love you. Thanks for helping the kids with the "snow dance" ... we have another snow-day today!

And may all your angels keep you warm ... and cozy ... and safe ... wherever you go today!

Feast Day: St. John Bosco

2011-01-31T07:12:00.000-05:00

St. John Bosco (1815-1888) was a priest, educator and champion of the young. He has some amazing insights into teaching the young (a wonderful resource for Boscovian quotes can be found at Saint Bosco.org.) A great way for the kids to understand this wonderful man's life is the movie St. John Bosco: Mission to Love (Italian but dubbed in English)... a favorite around here!

Hey all you knitters ... a preview and jump on Easter knitting ...

2011-01-30T16:57:00.001-05:00

As many of you know, I write the handcrafts column for the quarterly Catholic homeschool magazine, mater et magistra. I'm just putting the finishing touches on the column for the Spring 2011 issue, an issue with a large chunk of editorial space devoted to Easter celebrations.

Whenever I write the column, I try and include a bit of knitting content and this column is no exception. In fact, I created a design just for Easter: a set of nested fabric baskets knit using a re-purposed sheet cut into strips. To get a free copy of the pattern, subscribe to this wonderful magazine ... if you just can't wait till then, I have the pattern available for immediate download from my Raverly store ($4.00 for the design with all info necessary to recreate this one-of-a-kind Easter decoration).

Of course these baskets would be wonderful for a new baby's room, or powder room, or wherever you want a splash of color and distinction. [I'm thinking of making seasonal sets as well as a set that will coordinate with the dining room decor!]

Review: A Biblical Walk Through the Mass

2011-01-30T15:40:00.001-05:00

I have just finished an amazing book that taught me so much. A Biblical Walk Through the Mass: Understanding What We Say and Do in the Liturgy by Dr. Edward Sri taught me more in its 150 pages than I learned about the Mass in my 17 years of formal Catholic schooling. Here I am a cradle-Catholic and yet there are comments, descriptions and explanations in this book that I didn't know before or never had it explained to me in these easy terms. Dr. Sri proves that the Catholic Mass is tied to tradition and scripture and that every piece has a reason ... a past ... a link to bringing the participants into the Presence.

Dr. Sri, provost and professor at the Augustine Institute in Denver, goes through EVERY aspect of the Catholic Mass and explains the scriptural basis and historic setting of each part. Starting with the "Sign of the Cross" in the Introductury Rite, working through the section known as the Liturgy of Word (the how, why and who for the readings, responses, homily and creed), explaining the rituals and prayers performed during the Liturgy of the Eucharist and then quickly following with a breaking apart of each element of the Eucharistic Prayer (when the priest changes the water and wine into the sacred Body and Blood of Jesus Christ during the consecration -- a time known as the mystery of the Faith), and then finishing with the Communion Rite and the Concluding Rites (including the sending forth of the congregation to spread the Gospel).

Dr. Sri speaks from his knowledge and expertise as a theologian and scripture scholar. But he doesn't just give the reader his opinion. He quotes Church documents (including the Catechism), papal writings and encyclicals, other theologians and scholars including Doctors of the Church and direct scriptural quotes.
This book is a book for apologists, catechists and even "Joe Blo" in the pew -- this book helps illuminate the truth, beauty and good inherent in the Catholic Mass and gives the historic and spiritual underpinnings of each element. And, it is very readable for the untrained! This is an amazing resource for use in the home or parish or school. Excellent ... excelllent ... excellent!

This review was written as part of the Catholic book reviewer program from The Catholic Company. Visit The Catholic Company to find more information on A Biblical Walk Through The Mass Book . They are also a great source for serenity prayer and baptism gifts.

Feast Day: St. Thomas Aquinas ....

2011-01-28T06:31:00.000-05:00

St. Thomas,

please watch over all our students today and throughout the year ...

help them to remember that

"love takes up where knowledge leaves off" ...

St. Thomas Aquinas, pray for us!

Finally .... SNOW!

2011-01-27T09:26:00.000-05:00

Last night about 5:30 p.m. ... a little dark but you get the idea!

Not alot of snow, but enough to keep dh home today ... to get the kids done with their work early so they can go out and play in it ... and enough for me to think about sittin' and knittin' all afternoon with a cuppa and a movie on the screen .... oh and the mandatory "snow baking" (olive oil chocolate chip cookies and fresh white sandwich bread) to ensure that the house is warm and tummies are full!

A perfect day at the Lake! Hope wherever you are, you're staying warm and cozy with loved ones around!

You can see how much snow by the "icing" on the bird bath

Max ... not sure if he likes this stuff!

Snow baking -- to keep the house warm (and tummies full)

Yarn-along: January 26th edition ....

2011-01-26T09:50:00.000-05:00

Can I just say that I love these "yarn-alongs" that Ginny started. What a great way of peeking into homeschool-rooms and seeing what's on the needles, the reading table and other interesting tidbits!

On my needles: last week I started Victoria's Tank but only got about 1/3 of the way done with it during the week as I had a cashmere design (Birds in Flight cowl/headband) to prep for a meeting with my supplier of cashmere (and cashmere goat owner) Miss Jane. Miss Jane was coming on Monday, so the weekend knitting was devoted to prepping that design. But I did get a bit done and love the way the top is coming out. The unwound skeins in the picture are for a design that Jane commissioned ... a Snow on the Mountains vest in this lovely dusty rose ... that will imitate the Snow on the Mountains scarf I've already designed for Spring Gate. So, I'll be working on BOTH knitting projects this week ... glad the weather is supposed to cooperate by being nasty AND the van is in the shop so I can't go anywhere anyway! Great knitting times ahead!

Reading table for the kids: Last week we gave String in the Harp a shot. After reading more than 20% of the book (our standard if-it-don't-hook-us-it-ain't-gonna), we decided to set that particular book aside and pick up something else: the kids picked The Bridge to Terabithia (not knowing the ending!) and so we sailed right thru that one, finishing yesterday afternoon (and then watching the latest video version ... which led to some interesting discussions of what was in, what was out, what we liked/didn't like from the movie, etc). Today, we're starting a creative writing unit to encourage the kids' writing: Word After Word After Word will be our read-aloud today .... a lovely book by famed author Patricia MacLachlan (Sarah Plain and Tall series, etc). We're also using this week: Writers Express, You Can Write a Story: A story-writing recipe for kids, and we'll start doing the exercises in Unjournaling. I'm looking forward to pulling the creative writer out of each of my littles -- they can tell stories but avoid writing stories!

Reading table for mom: continuing to read the Agatha Christie's notebooks book ... fascinating (and maybe why I'm on a creative writing kick with the kiddoes!). I have also started Dr. Ted Sri's latest book, A Biblical Walk Through the Mass, which is a GREAT book and particularly interesting since he's using the new translation for the Mass that will go into effect this coming Advent! Very cool to see all the links to scripture that are included in every Mass celebrated every day throughout the world. Dr. Sri is a homeschooling dad and amazing theologican I was privileged to know during our sojourn in Denver.

So what do you have on your needles and your book table this week? [BTW, make sure you link your yarn-along post to Ginny's this week; she's giving away a gorgeous skein of yarn!]

Obedience ... my word for 2011 ...

2011-01-25T06:40:00.000-05:00

As I've mentioned previously, my "word" for 2011 is "obedience" ... "docility to the will of God" .... "cheerful embracing of God's desires for me" ...

Sounds easy?

Not if you were raised in the United States in the last half-century. Americans are taught from cradle-to-grave to be independent, self-reliant, demanding what WE want. If you are an American woman raised in the last half-century ... you've been taught: "you are woman, hear you roar", "it's your body and no one can tell you what to do to it", "you can want it all ... you can have it all ...you can do it all".

If you notice, nowhere in that paragraph above is there anything about me submitting to anyone else ... let alone God. Nowhere is there mention of allowing God to have His say in my life. Nowhere is there even the suggestion that I would need anyone or anything else in my life.

What a load of cow manure!

But this is what the "American dream" has become ... self-centered claptrap engendering chaos, discord and disunity. Is this REALLY what we're meant to do here on Earth? Is this really getting us what we want?

I'm thinking not. I'm thinking that when I back off from my own desires -- not needs, but wants --when I submit to others, sacrifice for others, seek the needs of others, I am so much happier. I have such a better day and go to bed with a clean conscience and a stronger love for all.

THAT's why my word for 2011 is obedience -- docility to God's will and cheerful acceptance of where I am and who I am and what I am.

The prayer card above I created to help me remember my goals. I will put it on my laptop as my "wallpaper" so that every time I pass my desk ... or sit down to work ... or get ready to school the kids, I will think of this prayer and my need ... my desire ... my wish to bend my will to Him who created me.

[A personal note: This is a prayer attributed to St. Ignatius of Loyola, founder of the Society of Jesus (the Jesuits). My father, God rest his soul, really liked this prayer and, furthermore, LIVED this prayer: May I be so blessed as he was.]

This is why our fiber club is under the patronage of St Agnes ...

2011-01-22T08:02:00.000-05:00

Pope blesses special lambs on Feast of St. Agnes :: Catholic News Agency (CNA).

Don't you love how the little lamb is all decked out in roses and leaves ... he almost looks like an Easter cake! The article linked above has pictures including what the pallia look like and further info about this annual "blessing of the lambs".

and the prayer card I created last year for this special day ...

m

Feast Day: St. Agnes of Rome and the St. Agnes Fiber Club

2011-01-21T06:15:00.000-05:00

I've been remiss in telling you all about a girls' group I'm doing this year but since it's St. Agnes' feast day and we've put the club under her patronage (read the saint bio below for just why we have St. Agnes as our patron), I thought I'd share a bit with you:

Nine 9-13 year olds come to my house every two weeks or so and learn all about wool fiber at the St. Agnes Fiber Club. For the basic framework of the class, I use Harrisville Design's great curriculum, WoolWorks: Teaching with Fiber Arts. This is a complete (if a bit pricey) guide that includes background information and activities to help the girls understand the many facets of wool. The activities suggested allow the moderator to either buy pre-made kits from Harrisville or to use what they have on hand. We were forutnate to be able to save a bit of money as Knit Picks (LOVE those folks) sponsored our club and donated raw wool for spinning, wool yarn for dying, knitting needles and knitting yarn! This cut the cost somewhat, but I still had to charge the girls $75 each to be in the year-long club in order to cover supplies.

I've augmented the guide's info from more current resources (some of the information is a bit dated in the guide) and am compiling a resource list of books, magazines, websites and you-tube videos which I'll give to the girls at the end of the year (along with copies of each recipe I've made to stave off hunger during our two hour meeting -- boy, these girls can EAT!). Each two hour meeting includes a "lecture", review of past meetings, an activity, and snack time.

We started in October and we've already done: history of sheep and wool production, classifying different raw wool types, felting wool, spinning wool (after first making drop spindles!), and Peruvian braiding designs. We still have: potholder weaving (beyond the camp style), world history of weaving, weaving on rigid heddle loom, weaving a tapestry, kool-aid dying washable wool yarn, and then (of course) knitting with wool.

I love getting the girls (even those who thought they didn't want to learn about wool) psyched about the fiber and all the cool, amazing things for which wool can be used. We are covering history, geography, math, science (a wool fiber is an amazing example of complex protein!), art ... and having tons of fun at the same time. We're nurturing their God-given creative talents while learning ... and I'm right there with them learning to drop spindle ... or felt .... or braid.

Here's the prayer we pray before the start of each meeting (I got a prayer card for each of the girls from Catholic Prayer Cards, a family business that has GORGEOUS holy cards!):

O lovely St. Agnes, spotless lamb of Christ,

you glorified God in fidelity and purity while on earth,

and you now behold the glory of His radiant face in Heaven.

In your passion for Christ, you persevered, even unto a martyr's death,

and gained the crown of eternal life.

By your constant prayers, protect us from every danger that threatens us on our pilgirmage of faith,

and intercede for us in all of our needs and trials.

We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen

What a blessing this Club has been, and continues to be! Thank you, St. Agnes.

Saint-biography:

St. Agnes was a Roman girl who was only thirteen years old when she suffered martyrdom for her Faith. Agnes had made a promise, a promise to God never to stain her purity. this was how great was her love for God! Since she was very beautiful, many young men wished to marry Agnes, but she would always say, "Jesus Christ is my only Spouse."

Procop, the Governor's son, became very angry when she refused him. He had tried to win her for his wife with rich gifts and promises, but the beautiful young girl kept saying, "I am already promised to the Lord of the Universe. He is more splendid than the sun and the stars, and He has said He will never leave me!" In great anger, Procop accused her of being a Christian and brought her to his father, the Governor. The Governor promised Agnes wonderful gifts if she would only deny God, but Agnes refused. He tried to change her mind by putting her in chains, but her lovely face shone with joy. Next he sent her to a place of sin, but an Angel protected her. At last, she was condemned to death. Even the pagans cried to see such a young and beautiful girl going to death. Yet, Agnes was as happy as a bride on her wedding day. She did not pay attention to those who begged her to save herself. "I would offend my Spouse if I were to try to please you. He chose me first and He shall have me!" Then she prayed and bowed her head for the death-stroke of the sword.

Agnes comes from the Greek word "hagne," which means chaste and sacred. Because of her purity, and because her name is similar in spelling and pronunciations to “Agnus,” St. Agnes is often depicted with a lamb. The Feast of St. Agnes is also connected to the pallium, a vestment worn by the pope and also presented to certain archbishops. Two very young lambs from the sheepfold belonging to the Trappist fathers of the monastery of Tre Fontane near St. Paul's Basilica are crowned and placed in straw baskets, which have been carefully decorated with red and white flowers and streamers: red standing for Agnes' martyrdom, and white for her purity. They are then taken to the Basilica of St. Agnes Outside the Walls. There, at the end of the solemn feast day Mass, a procession composed of young girls in white dresses and veils, as well as carabinieri in red and blue uniforms and hats, who bear the lambs on their shoulders, proceeds down the center aisle. The lambs are ceremoniously incensed and blessed. They are then shown to the Pope at the Vatican and finally placed in the care of the Benedictine nuns of Santa Cecilia in Trastevere, who rear them until Maundy Thursday, when they are sheared. From the lambs' wool are woven approximately 12 pallia a year.

St. Agnes is the patron saint of girls, young women, chastity and purity.

Yarn Along: January 19th edition

2011-01-19T09:54:00.000-05:00

Last week, I was reading Defiant Joy (about GKChesterton ... excellent book!) and readng Lost in Peter's Tomb to the kiddoes. I was also finishing up a cashmere design which I've titled Blue Ridge Sunset (it's available for download from my Ravelry store).

So, what's on my reading table and knitting needles for this week?

Reading: reading to the kids a Newbery Honor book (from back in the day when that meant good literature), A String in the Harp by Nancy Bond. It's a great story about a family who moves to Wales after the death of the mother ... and their adventures in the midst of dealing with their grief. So far, the reading is wonderful -- the images Bond conjures with her words are amazing! The book I'm reading is one I found at the library last week and was so thrilled with, I ordered a copy for my shelf:
Agatha Christie's Secret Notebooks! This book is fascinating -- seems Christie scholar John Curran deciphered Christie's hand-written notebooks to create this book. It's a creative-writing lesson in book form! For this wannabe-writer and Christie fan, this book is perfect. What a fascinating glimpse into the overall writing process! Loving it!

On my needles is a new design that I'm calling "Victoria's Tank". The body of the top is a classic Victorian knitted-lace pattern that will have a bodice put atop. I'm using KP's Comfy Fingering (a washable cotton-blend) and it is kniting up beautifully!

So won't you join the Ginny's yarn-along posts .... and any comments on my designs or suggestions for great read-alouds for the kids would be most appreciated!

Review: Defiant Joy -- The Remarkable Life and Impact of GK Chesterton

2011-01-17T09:56:00.001-05:00

I love reading GKC ... he's always provocative, often humorous, and always spot-on with truths that transcend his time. He is as pertinent today as when he was writing in the early 20th century. He had an impact on many of his contemporaries -- not least of which, C.S. Lewis who credits GKC's writings with helping him find Christianity.

The above is why I jumped at the chance to review, Defiant Joy: The Remarkable Life and Impact of GK Chesterton by Kevin Belmonte. Published by Thomas Nelson, this paperback with it's fairly cartoon-ish cover is a wonderful overview of GK's life, but more interestingly, the book is also a highly readable analysis of GKC's prolific production of the written word. Belmonte, who obviously greatly admires this early 20th century writer, crafts a book that pays homage to GK's life, philosophy (as gleaned from his writings), and impact on others.

If you're looking for a biography of GK ... this is an ok starting point, but there are better biographies out there. But if you're looking for an highly readable analysis and overview of GK's writings ... this is a wonderful book for you. I thoroughly enjoyed the reading ... especially appreciating the excerpts from GK's own writings that illustrated Belmonte's points. What better way to analyze than to use the actual words of the author being analyzed?

I highly recommend this book for high schoolers and up ... for all those interested in literary criticism, writing, and especially GOOD writing. Excellent!

DISCLAIMER: I received this book as part of Thomas Nelson's BookSneeze program with the promise that I would write an honest review of the work. The above post is my honest opinion of Defiant Joy.

Football: uh oh ... what happens when you run out of ice cream ...

2011-01-16T19:27:00.000-05:00

... when it's playoff weekend?

Quickly (and I mean, quickly) make a big ol' pan of brownies with chocolate frosting and sprinkles ... DUH!

File this in the "whew ... dodged that bullet" category ....

Coming in April/May ...

2011-01-16T05:50:00.000-05:00

and available for pre-order ....

More Knitting in the Sun: 24 Patterns to Knit for Kids, edited by Kristi Porter. The designs are all knit in summer-type yarns (cottons, linen, etc) for kids to wear in the summer-time. So the knitting is summer-able and so is the wearing.

Don't you love this cover .... don't you love the sweater in the middle? That would be mine! Cool, huh? I knew the book would be coming out this spring from Wiley but that's all I'd heard. Browsing Amazon's knitting books (ALWAYS looking for more to add to my library) ... I came across this. Was I thrilled!

I'll be posting more details as the book nears publication, but so far this is all I can share!

So much ______________________, so little time!

2011-01-15T07:52:00.001-05:00

Fill that particular blank with either:
a. knitting
b. reading
c. sleeping
and you'd have a summary of my week! There just aren't enough hours in the day to get it all done and yet I so want to!

Knitting: I've got a deadline of Tuesday morning to finish a design for upcoming Cast On! magazine (the knitting is just about there and then I have to write it up and get it packed to mail). I've finished another design for Spring Gate (which I'll give her when she comes next Friday to brush up her knitting skills) -- that gives me a few days to write-up THAT pattern. So, on the knitting front, it's not like I'm doing nothing (and have even booked a Friday two weeks from now to teach two dear friends to knit ... they also homeschool their kids so we'll make it into a family affair!) I do have a backlog of three designs for Knit Picks I've got to finish and get out ... so I'm definitely swamped (but THAT is a good thing).

(see http://www.book-games.com/featured-book-games/agatha-christie-peril-at-end-house.html for this cool game)

Reading: I'm doing pretty well on this front, too. I finished a couple of books for review (see this review of Fr. Groeschel's book and a Christian chick-lit) and the Chesterton book mentioned in this yarn-along post has been finished and the review just needs typing up. Whew! The problem is I went to the library the other day .... and serendipitously found a fabulous book, one that I didn't had been published (in 2009, no less -- I must live under a rock), and that I'm SOOOOO excited to read .. but NO TIME! I just want to curl up and read Agatha Christie's Secret Notebooks: Fifty Years of Mysteries in the Making, by Christie scholar John Curran. This a book that discusses Christie's 72 notebooks filled with her writing notes ... plot changes ... development of her stories! How cool is that????? I've loved Christie books since I was little ... have read all 66 crime novels and 150 short stories (and read them all more than once). I am a writer-wannabe (have long had an idea for a mystery tied to, what else, knitting!) and this is a treasure trove of info for all writers. I'm so excited ... and I saw on Amazon that this hard-cover is a "bargain" book so it's my very own copy is winging it's way to my doorstep as we speak (gotta love Amazon!). So it's ok ... I have to keep telling myself this ... that I don't have time to read it this weekend, as I'll soon have my very own copy (and then I can make notes in the margins ... dog-ear the pages ... and study this book to my heart's content!).

Sleep: Max is getting better about sleeping thru the night. But the kids, in their innocence (bless their hearts), taught Mr. Max to leap the baby gate keeping him in the boys' room till I'm ready to take him out. So yesterday and today, Mr. Max got me up early to go potty -- a good thing in its way but does cut into the sleep factor! This too shall pass ... this too shall pass ... [my new mantra!]

So, what word(s) would you be using to fill in the title blank?

WooHoo ... John Paul the Great .... Blessed-to-be!

2011-01-14T08:34:00.001-05:00

How cool is this? The Vatican announces that JPtheGreat will be beatified on May 1, 2011 ....

Road trip, anyone??????

Yet another reason why I homeschool ...

2011-01-14T06:48:00.001-05:00

2011 by MCG

The interesting thing I've found over my past 10 years of homeschooling is the simple fact that I'm learning right alongside the kids ... whether it's learning things I have forgotten or things I never knew, the fascinating thing is that I'm always learning from my kids as well as while I'm teaching them.

God, in His infinite wisdom, gave each of us a brain that is a great and glorious thing ... but like any muscle in our body, it needs to be exercised.

How are you exercising your brain today?

Yarn Along .... two of my favorite things ... knitting and reading!

2011-01-12T05:59:00.000-05:00

~ Two of my favorite things are knitting and reading, and the evidence of this often shows up in my photographs. I love seeing what other people are knitting and reading as well. So, what are you knitting or crocheting right now? What are you reading? Take a single photo and share it either on your blog or on Flickr. Leave a link below to share your photo with the rest of us! ~ from Ginny's blog, small things

This is only my second time posting for Ginny's yarn-along ... shame on me! It's not that I haven't been knitting ... it's not that I haven't been reading ... it's just that I've been so busy knitting and reading, I haven't had time to post.

So, I apologize.

on my needles: finishing another cashmere design for Spring Gate Farm ... a cap (which is done) and a coordinating scarf which only has about seven more inches (than I must start the tam for Cast On!). I'll have this design posted on my site by the end of the week. If you'd like to see my other original hand-knit designs, check out my knitting blog, By Hand, With Heart!

on my reading table: re-reading Sweater Design in Plain English ... love, love, love this book! A "second edition" is coming out in April that of which I'm hoping to get a review copy so I can see if it's worth it to buy ... I'll keep you posted! I'm also reading Defiant Joy: The Remarkable Life and Impact of GK Chesterton that I'll be reviewing later this month. Our read-aloud, which we started on Friday, is Lost in Peter's Tomb ... a book we've had knocking around for a while so decided to read-aloud. It's really an interesting read that fits in with our "explorer" unit we'd put on hold during Advent/Christmas. The story is a mystery set in Rome with siblings and their aunt helping the Pope discover who is getting into the Vatican and why!

Thanks, Ginny, for starting this yarn-along ... it's always fun to see what others are doing!

Review: Fr. Groeschel's Travelers Along the Way

2011-01-10T06:35:00.000-05:00

First, a disclaimer: I love Fr. Benedict Groeschel ... I love listening to him on EWTN, have read others of his books and just really admire this long-time evangelist/crusader for ecumenism/example of God's great love for us all. I mean, look at the cover of his latest book, Travelers Along the Way, doesn't he just look NICE?

So, I was set to like this book ... and after spending the weekend reading it, I can assure you, that this book exceeded my expectations. Fr. Benedict Groeschel, a founding member of the Franciscan Friars of the Renewal and EWTN host, takes us on a journey through his life; a journey where the reader gets glimpses of some of the many men and women who have shaped and affected Fr. Groeschel's life.

He has vignettes about Blessed Mother Theresa of Calcutta, Mother Angelica, Terence Cardinal Cooke and Blessed Solanus Casey ... and these are remarkable (and very personal) stories he tells; glimpses of the sanctity inherent in each of these well-known and well-loved characters. But he also has a story about the Jewish cleaner who gave him such sage advice 50+ years ago when Fr. Benedict was heading to seminary: "be a good boy". This simple phrase ... and the deeper meaning behind the philospher-dry cleaner's words ... has stuck with Fr. Benedict ever since.

Or the story he tells about Ruby, the woman who came every year to get the holiday food basket for her neighbors who couldn't come themselves and her simple faith and love and sheer happiness she exhibited every time Fr. Benedict saw her. When Fr. Benedict asked Ruby what made her so happy all the time, she explained that her mother told her when she was little: at noon everyday thank God for your blessings. Ruby, in taking time to thank God daily, brought a special love to everything she did. Fr. Groeschel paints this lovely woman and her simple faith for the reader in words filled with love and tenderness.

He has stories about young folks he's met on the streets of New York ... and stories about the religious he's met on retreat ... stories about people who have worked for him for years .... and stories about people he knew just briefly. Some of the stories have happy endings and some have sad endings; but EVERY story is about people who each have a message and meaning for Fr. Groeschel and he shares that message, that meaning, with his readers.

The subtitle of this book, "the men and women who shaped my life", doesn't go quite far enough. Through these stories, the reader not only understands more about Groeschel's life, the reader also begins to see how our own lives are shaped by our encounters. The reader begins to see a path to sanctity in all walks of life ... to see that each person that comes our way is a gift from God, a chance to grow in holiness. As I read these stories, I began to think about some of the travelers with whom I've journeyed: the teachers from grammar school ... the co-workers ... the other moms ... the people who have hated me (and thus made me re-think what I was doing, either confirming or negating my actions) ... the kids in college.

What a great and wonderful gift God gives us in and through others we meet. Fr. Benedict Groeschel's book will get you thinking about these fellow travelers and ones you've met. Trust me, you'll enjoy the journey through his life and begin to see the blessings in your own.

This review was written as part of the Catholic book reviewer program from The Catholic Company. Visit The Catholic Company to find more information on Travelers Along the Way . They are also a great source for serenity prayer and baptism gifts.

Review: Divine Appointments ... Christian chick-lit at its best

2011-01-10T05:59:00.000-05:00

For the past year or so, I've been reading a lot of escapist Christian chick-lit ... as a way to rest/relax after a particularly hectic week. Chick-lit, especially Christian, is a nice way to de-pressurize ... to enjoy a light read with a cup of coffee and (if I'm lucky) the ability to knit at the same time. But there has always been something less-than-satisfactory about the Christian chick-lit I've read: the Christian part always seemed tacked on to the story rather than an integral or organic part of the story.

With Divine Appointments, this "tacking on" aspect is non-existent. Charlene Ann Baumbich is able to weave a Chrisitan story that is magical and believable and the Christian part is an integral piece of the overal1story.

First, I have to say, when I started the book, I had low expectations: the protagonist, Josie Brooks, is the least-attractive type of career woman: a hard-hitting, hard-driving, unfeeling, self-centered consultant who goes into companies, determines how to make them more efficient, and then recommends new systems and layoffs. Josie Brooks, a late-40s spinster, doesn't care about the people she's recommending to axe ... she doesn't care about the people left in the wake of her project: she's off to the next assignment, a larger house, a bigger paycheck and alone.

I really didn't like her.

But Baumbich's writing and story-telling ability, wove a spell that had me cheering for Josie! The supporting cast of characters help Josie to open up to others ... to see the people beyond the numbers ... to understand that although companies do have to "right size", the people need to be taken care of also.

Baumbich leaves the Christian element to these supporting characters, particularly the 60-something widow who exhibits true charity ... true love of others because of her love of God. I loved the character of Barb DeWiit -- a woman of grace who reminded me of many wonderful folks I've worked with thru the years.

This book is a magical, wonderful escape into how the world is and how we can make it just a bit better through loving others. A wonderful read that I highly recommend (and I got to knit while I read it!).

DISCLAIMER: I rec'd Divine Appointments as part of the Blogging for Books program from publisher, WaterBrook Press. The views expressed above are my honest opinion of this work of fiction.