All Saints Academy

Poetry Friday

2011-03-25T15:52:00.004-04:00

I can't believe how long it has been since I last posted. I will start back up again by posting poetry on Fridays. Since it was Max's 11th birthday this past week, I will post one of dh's poems about Max.

Maxy my Boy

Maxy my boy you bring great joy
To Daddy every day
Though some are told at four years old
Don’t bother me, go play.

You snuggle up and share my cup
My lap is all your own.
I hug my boy just like a toy,
How big he sure has grown.

Your brothers four have gone before
Each in this lap of mine.
And sisters two, preceded you,
But all grew up in time.

It’s your turn now, and oh just how
I cherish moments merry.
Soon you’ll be too big for me,
But then, there is Kateri.

What will I do when Sweet Pea too,
Becomes too big for Dad?
If Sugar Plum is not my chum,
I surely will be sad.

But growing up, it is the cup
God has for us to drink.
To cherish now, and then learn how,
To love him more I think.

When hearts are full they feel the pull,
To let this love abound.
Be sure to fill your inner till,
And let his love be found.

Mark Hennessey (www.henso56.blogspot.com)

Divine Office Boot Camp

2011-02-17T11:38:00.002-05:00

My friend, Daria has started a blog with a step by step guide to praying the liturgy of the hours. I think this is a wonderful way to get started. She even answers questions!

Conquering Corruption by Raising Christian communicators

2010-04-09T13:52:00.004-04:00

This are my notes from a talk I heard by Andrew Pudewa of Institute for Excellence in Writing. this talk was given April 7, 2010 for our homeschool support group. I don't agree with everything he said, but it was the most challenging homeschool talk I have heard in a long time. If you were there and I have missed any important points or have errors, please post a comment.

Conquering
As a church we must storm the gates of hell - be on the offense. There are 3 fronts.
1. Our own soul - the evil one wants to destroy us each and every day. We need to secure angelic and divine protection. Then he told the story of the St. Michael prayer and Pope Leo XIII. Also, I think he meant for us to keep close to the Lord through prayer and sacraments.
2. Our own family. Evil forces want to kill our children, soul, body, intellect. It is our responsibility to control the evil that comes to our home. We must also monitor closely our children's peers. Peers can pull our children away from what is good and holy.
3. culture - We have less impact here - but by changing our world - we do have impact.

We must combat evil on all three fronts simultaneously. This is an extended campaign that we will win if we follow the Lord's marching orders.

Corrupt
Corruption is all pervasive. the source of the corruption is the biggest lie - Relativism. "My beliefs are just as good as yours." God and His Truth are absolute. The Reformation was the beginning of this idea. The results are secular humanism, the Enlightenment, atheism, etc. In the church this is expressed as selectivism - cafeteria Catholics. This idea has deeply infected the minds of Americans.

The state religion is relativism - it's temples are the public schools. The faith they profess is the "non-gospel." No one is permitted to claim a primacy in their beliefs. No kid should go to public school unless they are in full battle gear. Many Christian have been lost to secularization in the public schools. They are taught that no one belief is better. When they leave home and find their faith challenging - they find it easy to switch beliefs. 60-80% of public schooled Christians lose their faith. 60-80% of homeschooled Christians retain their faith. Mr. Pudewa then stated that it is far better to have the child home staring at the wall all day than send them to public school. They are that bad.

Solution: 1. Pull kids out of public schools.
2. immerse them in a good culture. Definition of culture
1. the art, music, etc of a time period or place.
2. Corporate culture - each family or organization has their own way of doing things.
3. What's in a petri dish - grow whatever you want to grow in a good culture or medium.
The culture in a home should be designed to grow faith.

There are disordered cultures. We should be proactive in challenging errors in thinking.

Our home is a sanctuary. Outside evil is persistently trying to get it. The greatest enemy is television. It brings sewage into our home and steals family time. When you are watching TV, you are NOT doing something else like reading to your child, or being together.The Pudewas do have a video player which they use sparingly. He suggested if we need a TV for sports to have it is a separate place where only you can watch it. The TV is a major force in materialism in or culture.

Video games are as addictive as pornography. He referenced the book Boys Adrift by Leonard Sax. There are 5 factors in derailing the success of boys.
1. endocrine disruptus - soy in foods and pollutants in water - too much estrogen causes a problem.
2. video games. same effect as pornography. Boys need to fight battles. With addictive video games they do not have to fight real battles which feminizes boys.
3. devaluation of men - there is a huge shortage of "real men" in our society.
4. teaching methods are not designed for boys.
5. teaching environments are not designed for boys.

Relativism in culture. He suggested reading a book (he couldn't recall which one) by Dietrich Von Bonhoeffer. Von Bonhoeffer's ideas show God' transcendental qualities: Goodness, Beauty and Truth. They permeate everything. When we are attracted to something, it is these qualities that attract us, also much is corrupted. These qualities cannot be separated. Society would like to disconnect these things. When one is degraded, all are.

We are acclimated to culture in our tastes. For example, we may think that some forms of popular art or music are not bad - but they are bad art, bad music, etc. We need to call what is ugly, ugly. They have qualities that are not good, true or beautiful.

Since these qualities are all bound together, when we accept the relativism of one -We will accept the relativism of all. This will lead us down the wrong path since all are bound together.

Raising
Raise an army to fight the battle. Go out and recruit. We are way too passive as Catholic homeschoolers. Currently 1.5%-3% of all students are homeschooled. Currently this is statistically insignificant. This number is rapidly growing. Andrew believes that we are on the verge of a major societal change. One we reach 5-10% of the students homeschooled, the government will take notice of us and attempt to regulate us. He thinks that this will come when homosexual rights are promoted by law and backed up by the Supreme Court. This may happen in about 3-8 years. He feels that the only way we should be able to continue to homeschool is if we sign a paper stating that we will teach the correctness of the homosexual lifestyle which will cause us either to perjure ourselves or to give up homeschooling, neither of which is acceptable.
At 5-10% of the popular we will not be powerful enough to fight this. Yes, we have more children who will probably homeschool, but the movement will not grow quickly enough. In order to be a formidable force, we must reach 15%. We should be proactive is recruiting other families to homeschool to protect all parental rights. HSLDA is the only organization that he can see that can fight to the bitter end for our rights. Join them. He also mentioned that our state group here in Ohio CHEO, gets its operating budget from its convention in Columbus. The Midwest homeschooling conference is pulling their profits away from them. They are the foremost watchdog in our state to monitor state regulations. Even though they are evangelical Christian we should support them monetarily.

If the President signs and the Senate ratifies the UN Convention on the Rights of a Child, that becomes law over and above our laws. It is second in force only to the constitution. Therefore we should be supporting the Parental Rights Amendment www.parentalrights.org.

The best book on parenting he has found is written by a 19th century Orthodox monk called Theophan the Recluse. Theophan suggests that when we are raising our children we are creating appetites. In the US we all have an appetite for comfort, safety and ease. We are sacrificing our liberty for security. We are addicted to this.

The Christian faith is the opposite. The health and wealth Gospel is not true. As Catholics we value suffering. We have a tradition of martyrdom. We should be looking for ways to sacrifice to retain our freedom.

Christian Communicators
This does not mean words only. We communicate in differing ways.

The idea of education should be simple. It has nothing to do with job training. Even college graduates have to be trained when they get a job.

The purpose of education according to Plato (who influenced Augustine) is the culture of wisdom and virtue by filling the soul with goodness, truth and beauty, so we can know God, love Him and serve Him eternally.

A person who is educated this way will never lack for employment. They are ultimately employable. People are looking for good people .

Definition of virtue (from Greek) fulfilling it's purpose or nature. A "good" man is good at being what a man is.

We should teach only 3 subjects: character, knowledge and skills. We should get our kids off the conveyor belt of grade levels and graded subjects. (Note: He gave no specifics on how to do this.)

Each child is an individual with gifts and handicaps equipped with a mission from God. Give them the character, knowledge and skills to help them fulfill their mission thereby making them virtuous. He stated that if a kid knows that they want to do with their life chances are that is their calling from God.

He also thinks that the current college system is a scam. First of all, with student loans kids never have to learn how to work. They should know how to work before they get to college, even if it is volunteer work. Secondly, they loans are a trap. If a young man college graduate with $60K in debt meets a young lady with the same, if they get married their hands are very much tied with $120K in debt at age 22 or 23. He also mentioned that if a young adult has a vocation, they cannot enter the seminary, convent or monastery with student debt. He strongly suggested forgoing college or lessening it's social and financial effects by using a service such as College Plus. (This helps kids get as much CLEP credit and online class credit as possible before going to college.) One of his children went to Steubenville. and another to Thomas Aquinas. He is not happy about either of them. He said none of his other kids will go to college that the older 2 did.

When he was asked about Catholic schools he recommended that we read Designed to Fail: Catholic Education in America by Steve Kellmeyer. (www.bridgroompress.com) He suggested that Catholic schools are also teaching relativistic errors since many in the school systems do not know their faith well. They can be worse because those errors can be masquerading as truth.

When asked about rebellious teens he recommends stopping school and making them work. It is better to start a home business and lose money to allow kids to have a purpose in working. Volunteer work qualifies as well. Maria Montessori has written on teaching teens. She recommends that teens quit school for about 3 years to work and then take up schooling again later.

When asked about computers, he said he did not like educational software because that is disordered. Man should tell computers what to do, not machines telling man what to do. Programing computers is good because it is in the right order.

Companion Saints 2010

2010-01-04T07:55:00.004-05:00

Companion Saints for the Journey 2010

As many of my readers can guess, we are fascinated with the many Holy Ones who have gone before us. I recently became aware of the tradition of choosing a patron saint to accompany one on their spiritual journey each year. It is not uncommon that a saint chooses you!

Our saint of the year is Jane Francis de Chantal. We will be praying especially for mothers this year. I was surprised when this one was given to us since for the last two weeks I have been meditating on her life.

Anyway, in order to spread this saintly devotion, our family is offering to pray to the Holy Spirit for a patron saint for you and/or your family. If you post in the comments section that you would like family or individual patron saints prayerfully chosen for you, we will ask the Holy Spirit to assign one to you and let you know. It's not too late.

When you get your saint's name, google them, find out more about them. Get a medal or a holy card or picture and post it to your refrigerator or mirror and pray daily for their intercession not only for your life but for the lives of others. God bless you.

Free Admission Day at Smithsonian Museums

2009-09-06T09:28:00.002-04:00

On September 26, most Smithsonian affiliated Museums will have a free admission day. There are hundreds of them throughout the country. However, you must print out a free coupon from their site in order to gain free admission. Check the site for a list of museums in your area. Locally, they include The Betts House, The Cincinnati Fire Museum, XU's Art Museum, The Serpent Mound, Dayton's Carillon Historical Park, and Indy's Connor Prairie. Good Deal.

My Husband's Poetry

2009-08-20T09:50:00.002-04:00

If you look on the sidebar, you will see a link to My Husband's Poetry.

Mark never knew he had a gift until about 12 years or so ago. Our eldest daughter was rewriting 'Twas a Night Before Christmas" to fit our family to present at our annual extended family Christmas Eve party. She asked for help and between the two of them, they developed a hilarious rendition.

Ever since then Mark has written poems for many occasions and some non-occasions. I think his blog is a tremendous insight in to a man's soul and family life. Check it out.

G.K. Chesterton

2009-07-25T15:57:00.002-04:00

G. K Chesterton on Motherhood

“To be Queen Elizabeth within a definite area, deciding sales, banquets, labours, and holidays; to be Whitely within a certain area, providing toys, boots, cakes and books; to be Aristotle within a certain area, teaching morals, manners, theology, and hygiene; I can imagine how this can exhaust the mind, but I cannot imagine how it could narrow it. How can it be a large career to tell other people about the Rule of Three, and a small career to tell one’s own children about the universe? How can it be broad to be the same thing to everyone and narrow to be everything to someone? No, a woman’s function is laborious, but because it is gigantic, not because it is minute.”

G.K. Chesterton

Books about Saints

2009-07-21T15:53:00.000-04:00

Since our school is called "All Saints Academy" we love to learn about all the saints. I do this a variety of ways.

The most common is the Saint of the Day article from "Magnificat" Magazine. First we pray morning prayer together. Then we pray for all our intentions. After that we pray to the Holy Spirit to let his Word sink deep into our souls so that we become more like Jesus. Then after reading the daily Mass readings and using One Bread, One Body meditations published by Presentation Ministries, we go back to the saint of the day in "Magnificat". It is just the right length for our daily meditations. If I have it all together, I then help the children make a figure for their timeline books.

We also read longer saint biographies. I particularly like 2 that are out of print. They are Sixty Saints for Girls and Sixty Saints for Boys by Joan Windham. Joan is a British author who has quite a gift for story telling. The details of the saints' lives are probably fictionalized, but she does get the important facts right. After reading the boy's book, they wanted to hear the girl's book as well.

I have used the Lives of the Saints books by Rev.H. Hoever and published by Catholic Book Publishing for our daily meditations in the past.

I have used other saints books by Catholic Book Publishing in the past, but they don't have the detail that I like. The pictures are awesome, however.

I really like the Vision book series published by Ignatius. I use these for family reading time. I am less enthusiastic about the Tan series by Windeatt.

Another series I like are the Pauline Press series. They are continually publishing new titles. One that we read on St. Maximilian Kolbe was quite inspiring.

If you don't want to buy anything, I like the liturgical year feature at Catholic Culture. It is sometimes hard to locate on their website.

There are crafts and recipes and activities for saints feasts and other feast days. We try to really celebrate at least one special feast a month complete with craft and special recipe.

Other resources are the blog "Catholic Cuisine" and Building the Family Cookbook by Suzanne Fowler.

Common Objections to Homeschooling Part 3

2009-07-19T13:35:00.005-04:00

4) I have to work. Working does not automatically mean you cannot homeschool. I know many homeschool moms who work part-time. They have jobs such as nurses, doctors, teachers, medical/legal secretaries, writers, physical therapists, assisted living aides, tutors, music/art teachers/ tutors, photographers, child care professionals.

I owned my own homeschool supply business for 5 years. That was full- time in the summer and part-time the rest of the year.

This requires active support for the husband or other friends or family members.

I have known a few who worked full-time. The dedication and organization of these women are phenomenal. It can be done - with a lot of planning and fortitude.

5) I don't know math (or science or any other subject). Well this is a perfect opportunity to increase one's knowledge. Depending on the age of the children, a parent will learn right along with the child. If homeschooling an older child for the first time, a parent can choose from a variety of curricula that are much easier to use than when I started homeschooling. Not only are they homeschool friendly textbooks that don't assume that there is an expert teacher leading a class lecture, there are now correspondence courses, computer and internet based classes and co-op classes. Even in traditional schools, it is not uncommon for a student to use a tutor. Tutors can be an essential part of any education plan. I have one son who has a significant reading disability. He was tutored for a year to get him over a particular difficulty. I have tutored and taught co-op classes in logic, literature and writing classes, math and science.
I have enrolled my children in literature, religion, science, health and physical education classes.
The 2 most important things to remember is that a) you have God's grace with you to teach your own children and b) you have the answer key.

The Lord is my help. The Lord uplifts my life. I will offer you a willing sacrifice; I will praise your name, O lord, for its goodness. (Ps 53:6,8)

Common Objections to Homeschooling Part 2

2009-07-19T10:03:00.006-04:00

3) I am not organized. Can a disorganized mom homeschool? Yes, I am living proof!

Organization has never been my strong suit, although I am always striving to improve. I think homeschooling gives the mom a lot more to organize, so one has to constantly work on this character trait.

My suggestions come in three different areas. First of all, I need to be at the top of my game. That means I have to concentrate on my own spiritual and emotional development. I do this by making sure I have a regular, daily prayer time. This is usually in the morning before my children are awake. Then I make sure I have adequate rest, nutrition and exercise. Regular date nights with my husband are important to maintain communication. Sometimes I am so busy, these activities go by the wayside, but then I feel it. I get more disorganized, disconnected and grumpy.

Next on my list is getting the housework done. Menu planning is essential to keep everyone fed. I have my menus planned before Monday morning. That way I have started defrosting or early prep by 10 am. each day. Since I plan my menu before I shop, it cuts way down on unplanned grocery tips.

I have also used flylady.org to help me keep focused on what needs to be done each day. In addition, I have a daily schedule for me and daily chore lists for each child. I really like Terri Maxwell's books Managers of their Homes and Managers of their Chores for her system of managing a large household. Other people really like A Mother's Rule of Life by Holly Pierlot.

For homeschooling I maintain daily schedules for all family members. Lesson planning is also a must for the best experience. Although in very stressful times I have been know to fly by the seat of my pants. (I suffered through many pregnancies with premature labor and one of my sons had leukemia). Adequate record keeping especially for high school is essential.

These ideas would make for the ideal situation. Most moms do not manage to do all the the above suggestions, but keeping focused helps everywhere.

I recommend first year homeschooling moms drop almost every extra activity they do in order to readjust. Homeschooling is a different way of life that requires adjustment. Homeschooling is a full time job.

Common Objections to Homeschooling Part 1

2009-07-19T09:39:00.004-04:00

I would like to address reasons that parents give to not homeschool. I think there is a common misconception that they are incapable of homeschooling

First of all, when God calls parents to disciple their children, he gives them the grace to do it. In Pope John Paul's "Letter to Families" he states, "Parents are the first and most important educators of their own children and they also possess a fundamental competence in this area; they are educators because they are parents." In the CCC# 1641 it states, "By the reason of their state in life and of their order (Christian spouses) have their own special gifts in the People of God...By this grace they help one another to attain holiness in their married life and in welcoming and educating their children."

In this light I will address common reasons to not homeschool.

1) I don't have the patience. How does one develop patience? First of all, it is a gift of the Holy Spirit. We can pray to ask Him to increase patience in us. Then we practice patience.

As I have grown, I find myself less apt to fly off the handle when I have a child who just doesn't get a concept, or who acts in a disobedient or defiant manner. I find a creative way to reteach the concept, or impose immediate calm discipline. I pray to my child's guardian angel and to mine - along with our patron saints (All Saints - we need a lot of help.) God does not fail to show me the way.

2) My children do not listen to me. This is a fault that needs to be addressed. When I sent my older 2 children to school, I found it easy to avoid the unpleasant. Since I only had to tolerate misbehavior for a few hours at a time - I could handle that. Consequently, I hated summers. Then I had to be around my unruly kids who sorely tried my patience.

Since my husband and I knew God wanted us to formally homeschool, I knew we had to try it, but I dreaded being with my children all day, every day.

On the last day of school before summer vacation, I told myself, "Well, I had better make the best of this since I will be with them full time from now on." I worked on addressing their misbehaviors, setting aside my most selfish desires, and planning interesting activities with the kids. I was shocked to find that we had a great summer. I realized I had an attitude problem. I had to learn to love my kids. And love means sacrifice.

A great resource for improving parenting skills is Dr. Ray Guarendi's book, You are a Better Parent than You Think, and his "The Doctor is In" radio program on EWTN radio.

Who Should Homeschool?

2009-07-17T08:09:00.007-04:00

I have recently been asked the question, "Who should homeschool?" The answer may be surprising. All parents should homeschool. Parents should decide to homeschool when they find out they are pregnant. Homeschooling is simultaneous with living.

Pope John Paul II in a variety of places, including Familiaris Consortio, Canon Law, quotes the Second Vatican Council, which states that, "The right and duty of parents to give education is essential, since it is connected with the transmission of human life; it is original and primary with regard to the educational role of others, on account of the uniqueness of the loving relationship between parents and children; and it is irreplaceable and inalienable, and therefore incapable of being entirely delegated to others or usurped by others." (see also FC 36) This means that all parents should be homeschooling or discipling their children.

I love what the late Fr. Al Lauer had to say about homeschooling. As we disciple our children, we must decide on supplements to their education. A textbook or co-op class I may choose to use, or a support group I may join are all supplements. Other parents use larger supplements such as enrollment in Catholic schools. He also stated that a parent would need a special calling to put a child in into such a gigantic supplement as regular school. The philosophy of the public educational system is that the government is the primary educators of the children, which is at total odds with church teaching.

Therefore, regardless of the supplements we choose all parents should realize that they are homeschooling their children. They should prayerfully discern together what type of supplements the Lord would have them utilize.

Daily Prayer for Priests in the Year of the Priest

2009-07-05T19:48:00.007-04:00

Here at All Saints Academy we try to learn about all saints. We read the "saint of the day" from a variety of publications and try to celebrate a particular saint's feast day once or twice a month. We also read as many biographies as we can about saints.

Anyway, one of our favorite saints, the Cure of Ars, is honored this year on the 150th anniversary of his death. In honor of him and all priests, we invite you to pray with us for the priests of the Archdiocese of Cincinnati. This list is from the Contemplative Sisters Adorers of the Precious Blood in Portland, Maine. (Isn't it interesting that this is the month of the Precious Blood?)

July 1 Rev. David Fey, Rev. Toan Tran
July 2 Rev Alan Hirt, OFM, Rev. Gerald Bensman
July 3 Rev. Robert Obermeyer, Rev. Thomas Kreidler
July 4 Rev. Raymond Larger, Rev. Kenneth Baker
July 5 Archbishop Daniel Pilarczyk, STD
July 6 Rev. Paul DeLuca, Rev. Bryan Reif
July 7 Rev. Charles Mullen CPPS, Rev James Bramlage
July 8 Rev. John MacQuarrie, Rev. Dennis Dettenwanger
July 9 Rev. Steven Shoup, Rev. John Civille
July 10 Rev. Mark Watkins, Rev. Michael Holloran
July 11 Our Holy Father
July 12 Bishop Carl Moeddel
July 13 Rev. Charles Bergedick, SM, Rev. Joshua Otusafo CSSP
July 14 Rev. Erwin Bertke, Rev. Walter MacPherson
July 15 Rev. James Byrne, Rev. Robert Jack
July 16 Rev. James Elsbernd, Rev. Thomas Shearer
July 17 Rev. Philip Seher, Rev Satish Joseph
July 18 Rev. Francis Niehaus, Rev. James Schmitmeyer
July 19 Rev. Elmer Smith, Rev. James Weber
July 20 Rev. Kyle Schnippel, Rev. Jeffery Bacon
July 21 Rev. Paul Wolfer, Rev. Michael Beatty
July 22 Rev. Ronald Wilker, Rev. Harry Meyer
July 23 Rev. William Wagner, Rev. Hugh Henderson
July 24 Rev. George Klein, Rev. Theodore Ross, SJ
July 25 All priests
July 26 Rev. Ralph Westerhoff, Rev. Norman Langenbrunner
July 27 Rev. James Trick, Rev. Eric Bowman
July 28 Rev Edward Jach, SM, Rev Jason Bedel
July 29 Rev. Bernard Bruening, Rev. John Wall
July 30 Rev. Francis Miller, Rev. Frank Klamet
July 31 Rev. Anthony Fortman, CPPS

My Kids

2009-06-29T20:05:00.003-04:00

Here is a new informal picture of all my kids. It's not so often these days that they are all together.

In the back row are Lucas, Ellie and Sam
Then John Paul and Megan
In front is Kateri, Maximilian and Tim

Summer Daybook

2009-06-24T08:26:00.001-04:00

For Today

Outside my Window Beautiful flowers, birds in the trees

I am Thinking Of Sam interviewing at P&G; of organizing the school year for the fall

From the Learning Rooms On our summer schedule of 3 math lessons a week, religion lessons as usual and one art class a week

I am thankful for a great husband, great kids, a steady job for Mark

From the kitchen Cold grilled chicken on a great salad with whole wheat rolls

I am wearing black workout shorts and a pink workout top

I am reading All of a Kind Family to Kateri and Max

I am hoping That Grace's birthmarks are nothing to worry about

I am creating my own workbox system

I am hearing baseball conversation between the boys

Around the house lots of baby stuff, high chairs, swings, toys - lots of babysitting of grandkids this week.

One of my favorite things playing with my grandkids

Workboxing

2009-06-24T07:53:00.004-04:00

Recently I discovered an interesting concept for organizing a homeschooling day. It is called Workboxes. A homeschooling mom named Sue Patrick developed this system of visually organizing the schoolwork into individual clear boxes with one subject per box. Therefore both the mother and the child can see exactly what needs to be done to finish school that day. She adapted this from another system in order to help her son organize his day. He has autism and needed additional help.

I am planning on using this system with some adaptations this school year. I would say that Sue Patrick's website doesn't explain the system well, but there are many blogs that do. Here are a few that I find the most helpful:

http://fortunatelyforyoubooks.blogspot.com/2009/05/sue-patricks-workbox-system.html

http://heartofthematteronline.com/thinking-inside-the-box/

The types of things that can go into workboxes are numerous. One can schedule music pratices, art lessons, math, hsitory, science, exercise, etc. Each box is labeled with a velcroed number that is removed and placed on a corresponding chart when the contents are completed. Mrs. Patrick has her son, who is autistic, totally remove the box from the shelf and place it in a large bin. This gives additional visual clues of how much work is left to be done. There are other cards that indicate that a particular box should be done with mom or that the student needs help. Her son also "checks in" to school each day with another card. On the other hand, the mother has a visual clue to show her that she needs to prepare for the next day by loading the boxes. Boy do I need that cue!

From what I understand, this system works for preschoolers to high schoolers; from those with limited budgets and space to those with more generous resources. Browsing all the blogs on this subject, I was surprised to see all the adaptations.

I think you could start with without buying Sue Patrick's book. I did purchase it and I intend on using my own variation. I have starting purchasing Sterilite drawer units that stack. They will be more space saving than the wire shelf/plastic shoebox idea. A more space saving idea is to have a manila envelope system or even envelopes with just the lesson assignment hanging on the wall. Look for more posts on this idea. I will post pictures soon.

I've been busy

2009-05-21T09:52:00.003-04:00

Lately I've been feeling like a catering machine. Megan's sweet little Grace was baptized on April 26 with a party here afterwards. Megan came on Saturday to help cook and prepare.

Then on May 1, we catered the reception for Liz's wedding. 350 people - all appetizers. What a huge amount of work for about 24 hours! It was worth every minute to see the beautiful reception she had.

Then the following Saturday we had a shower for Ellie and Baby Joe. Fortunately it was at my mom's so I didn't have to worry about cleaning the house.

Then last Sunday, Little Joseph Daniel was baptized. We had about 50 people here - with Jonathan's family coming from Owensboro, Nashville and Louisville. It was so nice to see Johnathan's family again.

Now, no more parties for a whole, just baseball.

Spring Daybook

2009-04-07T19:25:00.002-04:00

I think I would like to start an occasional entry called a Daybook. Here is the first:

For Today...

Outside my window...Cold, cloudy spring weather with some snowflakes

I am thinking... I wish Ellie would progress in labor

From the learning rooms... Since it is Holy Week we are working on math and religion and reading only.

I am thankful for... the approaching birth of a new grandchild

From the kitchen... Went out to dinner at Cancun Restaurant with Grandma and the kids

I am wearing... jeans, red turtleneck and my best, most comfortable sneakers

I am reading... The Cleaving of Christendom by Warren Carroll

I am hoping... sunshine and warmer temperatures and a beautiful Easter

I am creating... a mess as usual.

I am hearing... the kids trying to get in from the locked back door. John Paul weedwacking.

Around the house...library books from the trip there yesterday and school books all over the dining room

One of my favorite things... reading to my kids

Baptism of the Lord

2009-01-16T19:30:00.000-05:00

This recipe was pretty good. We ended up with 16 for dinner. I invited our goddaughter and her parents and siblings, Ellie and Jon, Lucas and then Sam's girlfriend Mary came. Was quite a production. I think I may invite a godchild for dinner on this feast every year.

Feast of the Baptism of the Lord

2009-01-09T08:50:00.000-05:00

Sunday is the Feast of our Lord's Baptism I found this recipe at www.catholiccuisine.blogspot.com. I like the idea of using shell pasta since a symbol of baptism is the shell. I'll let you know if it is a delicious as it appears.

Nacho Stuffed Shells

Picture & Recipe Source: National Pasta Association

32 to 36 Jumbo Shells (12-oz. package), uncooked
3/4 pound extra-lean ground beef
1.25-oz. package low-sodium taco seasoning mix
1 cup water
16-oz. can refried beans with chilies
1 cup low-fat cheddar cheese, shredded
3/4 cup mild, medium or hot picante sauce
8-oz. can low-sodium tomato sauce
2-oz. can sliced ripe olives, drained
1/2 cup thinly sliced green onions

Optional Garnishes:
Low-fat sour cream
Low-fat grated Cheddar cheese
Chopped jalapeños
Chopped cilantro
Salsa
Guacamole

Prepare pasta according to package directions. While pasta is cooking, saute beef in a large skillet until browned; drain well. Add taco seasoning mix and water; simmer 5 minutes or until thickened. Stir in beans and cheese. Cook until smooth and well mixed. When pasta is done, drain well. Fill shells with beef mixture (1-2 tbsp. per shell).

Combine picante sauce and tomato sauce in a saucepan. Cook until heated, stirring occasionally.

Preheat oven to 350° F. Spread 1/2 cup sauce over the bottom of a 9 x 13-inch baking pan that has been coated with cooking spray. Place filled shells side by side on top of sauce; pour remaining sauce evenly over shells. Sprinkle with olives. Cover with aluminum foil; bake 35 to 40 minutes or until thoroughly heated. Sprinkle with green onions. Cover and let stand 5 minutes before serving. Serve immediately.

Garnish as desired. Serves 8.

(This recipe could also be made in honor of St. James the Greater, who is also symbolized with a scallop shell.)

2009-01-03T18:38:00.003-05:00

Rome Part 1

2008-12-21T18:29:00.000-05:00

On Monday, we left Assisi to head to Rome. Again, heading through the Umbrian plan was an awesome experience. At one point there was a quite large Medieval town. We found out it was Palestrina. I had heard of it, but I need to research it.

I must tell you about our guide, Liz. She had met us at the airport in Rome when we arrived. I had the opportunity to speak to her. She speaks 4 different languages, English, Italian, German and French. She is from London and works quite frequently leading tours throughout Europe, Italy being her favorite. She was not Catholic, but very definitely Christian. I was very glad to have such a knowledgeable person handling a lot of the details, along with Kelli from Magnificat. Kelli is an awesome young lady from Louisiana who was a pleasure to travel with. I am sure there was so much that she did behind the scenes that made the trip go so smoothly. This pilgrimage was an opportunity for me to not worry about what was for dinner, whether the laundry was done and who was going where. Even though it was an overwhelming trip, I was surprised at how relaxed I was.

Anyway, back to Rome. We arrived in the city center of Rome in the afternoon. We took a driving tour of the Forum, Colosseum, Circus Maximus and the ruins of the massive bath-house in Rome. We visited the Church of St. Peter in Chains. Here, under the altar, are the chains that bound St. Peter, both at the Mamertine Prison in Rome and the set from Jerusalem. When Pope St. Leo I put them together to compare them, they linked together and couldn't be unlinked. Here we prayed specifically for our archdiocese, our bishops and priests, since our cathedral is also St. Peter in Chains.

Here is also Michelangelo's famous statue of Moses. When he finished it, he threw a hammer at it yelling"Why don't you speak?!" Pope Julius II had commissioned Michelangelo to make 47 statues for his tomb. Michelangelo had spent 2 years in the marble quarry picking out the perfect pieces of marble for these statues. He had hardly begun on the statues when Pope Julius pulled him off of that job to paint the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel. Pope Julius ended up being buried at St. Peter's but he is behind the organ. So much for the proud. You can check out this church here

We walked over to the Colosseum in the rain. Mark would have loved to go inside and check out the architecture, but it was too late in the day. This structure had been covered with marble, but after the fall of Rome, it was used as a quarry. The marble was used to build churches. The thing I noticed about the Colosseum was that there were three tiers of columns. The bottom layer had Ionic capitals, the middle Doric and the topmost layer had Corinthian capitals. I didn't expect to see all on one building. During the Roman empire, there was a large tarp that covered the open arena.

The Circus Maximus was a large open area used for chariot races. It was here that most of the Roman martyrs lost their lives. We also passed under aqueducts and through ancient gates in the walls around Rome. In Rome, the inner city is very vibrant, but the outskirts tend to be rougher areas - very different than Cincinnati.

Our hotel was about 2 KM away from St. Peter's Basilica. This had been a former hostel for pigrims to the Eternal City that had been built in the 1950's. It had been called the Domus Maria (House of Mary) This very large hotel is now a convention center and boasts an exquisite Chapel with a beautiful mosaic of Mary in the apse. Her were able to have Mass in a small modern side chapel.

Assisi Part 3

2008-12-15T19:35:00.000-05:00

At the Basilica of Santa Chiara, we saw the original San Damiano Crucifix that spoke to Francis. That was a beautiful spiritual experience. Then we went to the crypt where Saint Clare is buried. She looks beautiful, like she is incorrupt, but she is not. This is a wax figure which encases her bones. I think the Eucharist was there in a tabernacle behind her; there was a vigil light there, but our guide didn't know anything about it. Saint Clare was buried here because if she had been buried at San Damiano, which was outside the city walls, there was danger of her body being stolen. In another area of the crypt is a reliquary with Saint Clare's blond curls that St. Francis cut off when she chose to follow Francis and Jesus. There were also several habits that she had made for Francis and herself, plus a deacon's robe for Francis. That was very large. I guess it got gathered up when he put on a belt. Click here for further information.

Several people in our groups met the bishop of Assisi in Saint Clare's Plaza. He asked our prayers because his diocese is lacking in strong faith.

As we approached San Damiano, we saw a bronze statue of St. Francis sitting and gazing over the countryside. This place is a peaceful quiet place surrounded by olive trees and umbrella pines. We walked into the small chapel and were able to sit on the built in stone benches that Francis probably sat in. It is so small, about the size of my living room. This is where St. Francis heard the Lord talking to him through the familiar Byzantine crucifix, telling him to "Rebuild my church". We also saw the Poor Clare's refectory with the original furniture that Saint Clare and her sister's used. Upstairs was the dormitory where all the sister's slept. Here St. Clare held the monstrance out the window when the Saracens were invading. They don't know if they had invaded the inner courtyard, or the outer, so that are not sure which of 2 windows she used. This is also the spot where she had her vision of Christmas Mass at St. Francis Basilica, and where she died. What a place for prayer! To be in the places where Francis and Clare lived and prayed and died was indescribable. You must go some day. I wish we had much more time here.

The day we left Assisi, we went down to the plain to the Basilica of Santa Maria degli Angeli. This basilica is built over the Portiuncula, the small chapel where St. Francis and his brothers lived. There is also a little stone hut in the Basilica that marks the spot where Francis died.

There is a plenary indulgence attached to anyone who is a pilgrim to this spot. St. Francis asked the Pope for the indulgence. He reluctantly gave it to St. Francis. When he asked for how long, Francis didn't want time, he wanted souls. So whenever anyone goes to confession, visits the Basilica and prays an Our Father and an Apostle's Creed for the Pope, they are given a Plenary Indulgence. It is called the Pardon of Assisi.

Other things of note here was a statue of St. Francis in the Basilica area. There are white doves there who always choose to nest on the statue.. Beyond the statue where some windows. Outside we could see a rose garden. When Francis had temptations agains the flesh, he threw himself into the rose bushes as a form of penance. Ever since then, these rose bushes do not have any thorns.
Here is more information on this basilica.

The food was great in Assisi. We had wine every night and bread with olive oil. Then some form of pasta (the prima piatta). The lasagne was to die for. Then the secondo piatta - usually some meat and vegetables. Then a dessert (dolci). Occasionally this was fruit, or a pastry or lemon pie, or ice cream. We had a lot of fun with the server named Leo. He was about 60 and obviously loved what he did.

Assisi, Part 2

2008-12-14T10:41:00.000-05:00

That evening we walked up to the Basilica of St. Clare, but did not go in. The steep streets are amazing. The are mostly cobblestone and parallel - going up the mountain. They are connectors between the streets - passageways with steps. Some have buildings over the top of them. There are about 2000 people who live in Assisi - about 90 percent of them religious. We passed some buildings that housed cloistered nuns. We did stop and get hot chocolate, a specialty of the Italian towns. It was interesting - like warm chocolate pudding. I liked it, but most of the people with us didn't. The houses are are built together - no yards to speak of. I can just imagine St. Francis as a youth running loose all over the streets and wreaking havoc in the town squares. The whole town in surrounding by walls. Some of the gates were present at the time of Francis. The ones we used were added later - especially once they built the St. Francis Basilica. This was built on the site outside Assisi where the gallows, or execution spot was. It was his desire to be buried there. He was first buried at the Church of San Giorgio, his home parish, but that was torn down when the St. Clare Basilica was built. He was moved 2 years later to the Basilica. It was built to keep Francis body safe.

The St. Francis Basilica is very interesting. There is a lower basilica built in the Romanesque style with the curved arches. There are frescos all over paint showing events in the life of Jesus and St. Francis. You can even find the most familiar portrait of St. Francis in the right transcept.
There was a tunnel made to go to Francis' tomb under the high altar. Much later, the Perugians (historic enemies of the Assisians) tried to invade the town and steal Francis' body. When that didn't work, the Perugians petitioned the Pope to let them have Francis' body, because it would be much safer in Perugia. Instead, the Pope ordered the tunnel to Francis' tomb sealed. It was sealed for 600 years. Later the upper Basilica was built over the Lower. It is in a very early Gothic style. The frescos there are also very early Renaissance style. Our guide, Marco said that this is the very beginning of the Renaissance. We went to Sunday Mass at the Lower Basilica.

The upper basilica is the one that was damaged in the earthquake in 1997. Most of those frescos have been repaired. The frescos on one side of the church are scenes in the life of Francis and the other side, Jesus.

In the 1800, Francis' tomb was opened and a small entrance was made there. Then the pilgrimages stared and most Assisians moved away. In the early 1900's they made a grander entrance and a chapel at the tomb under the altar. There , buried all around Francis are 4 of his companions, Leo, Masseo, Rufino and Angelo. We had Mass there Monday morning. It was so incredibly awesome to be praying at the tomb of Francis. We also prayed at the side chapels in the lower basilica. They had a chapel to St. Maximilian Kolbe there. http://www.sacred-destinations.com/italy/assisi-basilica-di-san-francesco.htm

Assisi Part 1

2008-12-08T15:51:00.000-05:00

After landing at the Rome airport after 19 hours of travel, we headed on a bus north to Umbria and then to Assisi. Umbria is the breadbasket of Italy. We traveled through the Umbrian Plain. Both to the east and west we could see mountains in the distance. Every so often we could make out Medieval towns planted on the side of a mountain. The names all sounded familiar like Cascia, Palestrina, Spello, Spoleto, etc. We actually traveled in a tunnel under the town of Spoleto where there is a papal fortress. I had read a biography of St. Francis before we went, so many of these towns sounded familiar as places that Francis visited. Everywhere were flocks of sheep, olive groves and vineyards. Just a beautiful picture even though it was drizzling. We stopped at a "truck stop" and learned how to order food (sandwiches or pizza) and drinks in Italian style. Italians hate to form lines, so when attempting to get food, one has to catch the eye of the cashier, pay for what they want and then move to the counter with a receipt. After traveling a little while longer, we saw Assisi off to the right. At the foot of the hill was the Basilica of Santa Maria degli Angeli which encloses the Portiuncula - St. Francis' Chapel. It was the afternoon break so we passed by it and headed up the mountain to Assisi itself. We could see the back of the monastery attached to the Basilica of St. Francis. After we were let off at the bus stop, we had to unload our luggage and walk a couple of blocks through narrow cobblestone streets to our hotel, called the Hotel Giotto. We passed by many little gift shops in many little nooks and crannies of the city.

The Hotel Giotto was opened in 1899 - at least that is what the sign in the lobby said. There were little additions all over at odd little angles. The dining room was down the steps in a much more ancient part of the building. In back, the Hotel was built right into the side of the mountain. On the back side of the dining room, I could see solid rock, not bricks. The other side had a nice terrace overlooking the valley below. The dining room had very old stone arches holding up the ceiling. I had a rest soon after we got there, while Mark climbed up to the Rocco Maggiore - a papal fortress at the top of the town, which is not at the top of Mt. Subasio just on the side.

Rome, Sweet Rome

2008-12-08T15:48:00.000-05:00

Mark and I got back from a 9 day trip to Rome, Assisi, Monte Cassino and San Giovanni Rotundo about a week ago. Talk about awesome! Everyone should make a goal in life to go on pilgrimage to the Eternal City. What an uplifting experience. We went with Dave and Janet, Leslie and Ted, Paul and Linda and Pam plus about 22 others from all over the US. Over the next several days I will be posting about what I saw there.

Happy Feast Day, Megan

2008-11-16T14:34:00.000-05:00

Happy Feast Day to my eldest, Megan, who is the mother of 2 darling little girls and another on the way.

St. Margaret was know as a holy woman who help to civilize and convert Scotland. she was the mother of 8 children, including 1 saint, St. David.

I pray for the intercession of St. Margaret for Megan to be a holy wife and mother.

Spelling Bee

2008-03-09T11:49:00.000-04:00

My kids have gotten into spelling lately. Usually we use Sequential Spelling from AVKO, but we watched the movie "Akeelah and the Bee" a couple of weeks ago. In this movie a girl from the inner city wins the National Spelling Bee. The boys started spelling all the difficult words from the movie. Then they started quizzing each other by sitting on the couch, reading long words from the dictionary and asking the others to spell. Then they started playing Action Scrabble. This is done with the letters from a Scrabble game. Each player chooses 5 letters. As soon as someone spells words in front of them using all their letters - they yell "Go!" Everyone then chooses 2 more letters. The first one who uses all their letters wins. Each person ends up having their own little scrabble board in front of them.

Finally I downloaded the manual from this year's Scripps Howard National Spelling Bee. http://www.myspellit.com/Spell_It_2008_download.pdf This even suggests studying tips for words from different languages. We are studying groups of words from different languages and having a weekly family spelling bee. I don't know how long this fascination with spelling will last, but I sure appreciate it and it helps pass away the long hours of being snowed in.

Handy Tools

2008-03-08T09:52:00.001-05:00

I started using these internet based tools a few months ago. I thought I would share them.

The first is Jott. www.jott.com When I signed up for Jott, I entered a list of contact's email addresses. Then I was given a phone number to put on my cell phone. When I am out and I remember something, such as to sign up the kids for the next quarter in music lessons, I call the 800 number for Jott. By using voice recognition software, I can dictate the text of am email that is sent to me. Then when I am at the computer and my "to do" list, I get my reminder. This sure is handy since my memory seems to have left me.

The next thing I want to share is Pocketmod. www.pocketmod.com Pocketmod has a site where you can design an 8 page booklet that is printed on 1 sheet of paper. After cutting and folding, I have a mini game plan for the week that I can carry in my pocket. I have listed my weekly menu, my record of what I spend for the week, a mini grocery list and a place to write down whatever I need to remember. For example, if I am in the upstairs bathroom, far from my grocery list, and I notice we need toothpaste and toilet paper, I can write those things on my pocket mod.

Welcome

2008-03-04T18:02:00.000-05:00

Welcome to my new blog! I hope and pray that I can keep up regular blog posts about our domestic church - the way we live our faith, and how we homeschool. I love sharing resources I have found on a large number of topics, so check back frequently.