Prayers and Good Wishes

**UPDATE: Click here for pics of Natalee and family. She's a beauty! Congrats to you guys!

Just as an fyi ... If all goes according to plan, there will be a new little life today. Shelley over at Making Memories is in the hospital this morning, awaiting the arrival of her second daughter, Natalee. Please keep Shelley and Josh in your thoughts and prayers today.

Back to Normalcy - Whatever That Is

Boogies. Poopy diapers. Cat vomit.

That has been my world the past few days. Yes, yes, loads of fun, thanks for asking.

Maggie was under the weather almost all of last week. A combination of teething and a cold, I think, which resulted in a runny/stuffy/tender nose that made sleeping difficult for her, and loads of super-poopy diapers. We went through so many diapers one day we actually broke down and bought a box of disposables.

Friday late-morning, her fever finally went away for good, and by Saturday, the Doodle was getting back to her old self. Not that she quit playing or anything like that, she was just more clingy and cuddly than usual ... and what Mommy would refuse that, no matter the reason.

Maggie still has a bit of a stuffy nose, but she's back to sleeping through the night, so she's making progress. This week made me wish I'd remembered to enter Shana's Boogie Wipes giveaway ... Maggie doesn't want to let us near that sore nose of hers.

And into this mix we have attention-seeking cats who have hacked all over my house ... 3 times in one night, even. They nearly sent me over the edge of sanity.

Today, I think life is finally back to normal. And by normal, I mean boring. And I am fine with that :)

P.S. My goddaughter, Ellie, received the Sacraments of Confirmation and First Eucharist this morning at St. Mary Basilica in Phoenix, and I was her sponsor. Congrats, sweet girl! I'm so proud of you! Sending you lots of love and hugs!

I'm So Excited! And I Just Can't Hide It!

I am so full of enthusiam and bounce right now, I just wanna to dance around!

Hubby and I are going to see James Taylor and Carole King in concert next month!

JAMES TAYLOR AND CAROLE KING!!

We both have been wanting to attend this concert so badly, but originally, the closest concert was in L.A. We tried to justify spending the extra money for the trip but just couldn't. The flesh was willing but the wallet ... not so much.

Then - out of the blue - Hubby heard a radio advertisement for a Phoenix show, and now, WE ARE OFFICIAL TICKET HOLDERS TO SEE JAMES TAYLOR AND CAROLE KING.

Granted, we'll need tissue to contain the nosebleeds, our seats are so high up, but hello? JAMES TAYLOR AND CAROLE KING!!

I'm trying to contain my excitement, but the CAPITAL LETTERS KEEP SPILLING OUT.

You know it's an event I really want to attend when I agree to leave Maggie with a sitter for an evening. She'll be with her Grandma but still ... I don't like leaving her. Hubby and I have only done so a couple of times since she's been born. I know it's important for Hubby and I to have date nights, yadda-yadda, blah-blah-blah ... but I work full-time so I find it extremely difficult to give up my time with Maggie. She's only little for such a short time, and I don't want to miss any of it.

So, to James and Carole (both of whom I am sure read my blog so we can be on a first-name basis): I'm expecting an unbelievable performance, worthy of time lost with my baby girl. Just so ya know. No pressure or anything.

Okay, I think I've calmed down now. Back to life ... and counting down to May 19th.

Psssst. Did I mention I'M GOING TO SEE JAMES TAYLOR AND CAROLE KING?!

Maggie's 1st Birthday Party

The Birthday Girl!

Ty enjoying his carrots - yum!

Blake and his mommy

Hubby and Me with our official and adopted godkids :)

Lil' Miss Hailey ... another sweet friend

My goddaughter, Ellie ... being a goof :)

Sweet Cousins, Jack and Norah

Happy Birthday to you! Happy Birthday to you! Happy Birthday, dear Maggie! Happy Birthday to you!

This string was Maggie's favorite thing while opening gifts. I think it shows up in quite a few pictures :)

I just have to tell y'all this ... the thing we did that the kids enjoyed the most were the pinwheels in the yard. My mom picked up a bunch of them at Target for $1 each (in the front section where all the cheapy stuff is) and we just put them in the grass for color and decoration. The kids LOVED them and played with them constantly! We ended up sending one pinwheel home with each kid, just because they enjoyed them so much. How fun and inexpensive, huh? :)

Patient I Am Not

I have photos from Maggie's 1st Birthday Party to share with y'all. Tons of them. But I'm trying to be patient until I collect all images from all photographers (Nana and Grandma, specifically) so that I share the very best ones.

I know this will come as a shock to those of you who know me 'for real' (ha!) but I'm not the most patient person. Birthdays and Christmas are so hard for me because once I have something to give or share, I want to do.it.now. Do It Now!

So, here's a little preview, as it were. To tide y'all over and allow me to share.

'Cause I know y'all are waiting on pins and needles for them.

 We finally touched grass!!

Hangin' with Grandpa ... and running out of energy

The Happy Little Family

(By the way, I have never appreciated digital cameras more than this past year. Can you imagine the money we'd have spent on film?! Eegad!)

All By Myself

I think I'm a lone hold-out here. Definitely in the minority.

I'm the girl who doesn't have a Facebook page.

Social networking sites just aren't for me.

(I'm embarrassed to admit that I have a Twitter page, though I will say I only started it because I was following Stellan during his hospital stays. But I have never tweeted.)

(I can't believe I just typed 'tweeted'.)

Just so you know, I did have a MySpace page a few years ago, right up until it hit me just how much time I was wasting on it. Once I realized that, I deleted my page and haven't been back since.

(I'd thought it would be a great way to keep up with my friends from back home and would make it so much easier to see what all the goings-on were in their lives, and they could see mine, and we would all be happy and together in cyberspace.

It started innocently enough.

I made sure to update my Status often. We all know how important The Status is. How would anyone know if I were happy, gloomy or constipated if I didn't make sure to update? It is imperative to share. and share often. Complete with emoticons, of course.

Then I started decorating. I had to make this space reflect me. Or at least, the best part of me, the stuff I wanted people to see or know about me. (It's so easy to 'be' someone else online, don't you think?) The Decorating ... it was on-going. My word at the time I spent finding the perfect wallpaper. I chose colors for my home quicker than I did for my MySpace page, and that is not an exaggeration.

Of course, the purpose of all this was to keep up with friends. Which I did. Often. Multiple times a day. Because if someone commented or gave me a sticker or there was a quiz I needed to take to determine which Hogwarts House I would be Sorted into, an immediate response was required. Until I wised up.)

(I'm sure y'all wanted to know all of that.)

I only bring this up because I was on Hubby's Facebook page today (Yes. He, too, has abandoned me). I wanted to see how his cousin in Costa Rica is doing and asked Hubby if I could login to his account. For the record, this is the first time I have done this. Once I was in, I checked on his cousin. Then I checked on Friends #1 through about #6, and had started searching for folks I know, before realizing I had been sucked into the Online Time Warp and 40 minutes had passed.

(Y'all. Where does the time go when you're online? Seriously. It's ridiculous.)

And that was before I remembered that I wanted to see what the heck Farmville was all about (I didn't though).

So, that was likely to be a first and last time for me. I'm not saying never, I just saying that it is an unnecessary thing for my life. My blog works well whenever I want to chronicle our lives with Maggie, or ramble on about nothing (um ... like now?), or just share news or meditations. And my friends ... we can visit when we have time, and it's nice that way.

Kuddos to all y'all who are able to use responsibly.

Dear Maggie

We celebrated your first birthday yesterday. 

You have been in our lives for a whole year, but it's like we've had you forever.

I can't even remember what we did before you came into our lives.

How I got lucky enough to be your mommy I'll never know, but I will always be thankful for the love and prayers of our friends and family who are all part of the miracle that is you.

You are truly our precious gift from God.

I watch you grow and change every day, and you are no longer my tiny baby.

You are learning and exploring and have such a fun personality.

Your Daddy and I love you so much, and we are looking forward to seeing the person you will become.

Always remember that you are a child of God and you are special to Him, as well.

He loves you even more than we do, and that's a lot!

Thank you for being our sweet little girl.

Love and sugar from,

Your Mommy

In Which I Share the Doodle's Easter Photos

We had a beautiful Easter Mass today (singing and guitar-ing by Hubby, thankyouverymuch), then an afternoon of lovely family-time. Although this isn't really Maggie's first Easter - she was only 4 days old last year at Easter and we actually took her home for good that Easter evening - so this is our first year to really celebrate this day together ... and it couldn't have been more perfect. The weather today was gorgeous, the food scrumptious, and it's always nice that both Hubby's and my families all get together for any given holiday. So, before we button up for the evening, I just wanted to share Maggie's "1st" Easter pictures.

Oh! Oh! One more thing! In the Momentous News Category: Maggie took 3 small, wobbly, unassisted steps this afternoon! Of course, as per usual, when we grabbed the cameras and asked her to repeat the performance, she did not cooperate. But it was witnessed by many - how exciting!

Hope y'all had a beautiful day! Happy Easter!

And just for comparison, this is Maggie last Easter, at 4 days old, 4 pounds, 5 ounces ...

God bless!

Easter Sunday

He is alive! Hallelujah! Hallelujah!

(from the 2010 Magnificat Lenten Companion)

Released from Anger

I was surprised when my brother said to me, "I remember you as an angry young man." Now that he mentioned it, I could recall. I was for ever out to defeat some enemy. Even after I had converted to the Church, I had moved from being an angry anti-Christian to being an angry Catholic. Whatever it was that drove this anger in me, I felt the need for it all just to fall away from me one day. I was with a group of other young Catholics, very aware and alert about the Church and cultural issues, but it was clear that they had no use for angry arguments. They were simply grateful. Why? I realized it all in a moment. They were grateful because he was there, there among us, and that was everything. They beauty of his presence was so evident that I could not feel threatened by any hapless opposition to it. I just wanted to say with compassion, "Come and see." The disciple who had first heard Jesus say, "Come and see" came to the tomb, saw, and believed. Easter. The power of this victory would from then on ever be a release from the need for fear and thus anger. He is risen. Nothing can threaten this. He has defeated the enemy, and not let us shout, "Alleluia, come and see!"

Reflection based on John 20:1-9
Father Vincent Nagle, F.S.C.B.

How many dark deeds I commit due to my deep,

secret fears, Father. May the glorious resurrection of your Son

free me from fear, and thus also from rage,

for he lives and reigns for ever and ever.

Holy Saturday

(from the 2010 Magnificat Lenten Companion)

Remembering the Resurrection

What must those women have felt that morning? Jesus had changed everything for them. His Presence in their lives had brought to them a love and hope beyond anything they imagined; and all that was left was to anoint his dead body. The feeling must have been overwhelming. But, more importantly, what were they thinking? What had they thought when Jesus clearly told them he would rise on the third day? Did they remember? If they are overwhelmed, if they are losing hope, it is because of their forgetfulmess. Jesus could never have gone to the cross if he forgot his Father's love, or if he had forgotten all that the Old Testament says about the suffering servant having the final victory. The two men remind these women of what their feelings had clouded, just as Jesus himself will remind the despairing disciples on the road to Emmaus. In our forgetfulness we become as dead as a man on a cross. But the Father did not leave Jesus there and Jesus does not leave us there. Those three women and those two disciples were not left in the tomb of their forgetfulness. They were reminded and thus they were raised. From the very beginning Jesus shares his resurrection with us. And now we can understand the urgency of his command, "Do this in memory of me."

Reflection based on Luke 24:1-12
Father Richard Veras

God our Father, as storms buffet the house,

help us to remember your Son, our Lord, Jesus Christ,

who is for ever alive and for ever our foundation.

Today's suggested penance: Spend thirty minutes in total silence.

Good Friday

(from the 2010 Magnificat Lenten Companion)

A New Way of Life

 

The Common Doctor, as Saint Thomas Aquinas is know, tells us much about the death of Christ. He sought especially to penetrate what was foretold by the prophet Isaiah: "But he was pierced for our offenses,/ crushed for our sins,/ Upon him was the chastisement that makes us whole,/ by his stripes we were healed" (Is 53:5). Aquinas prayed. He pondered. He prayed again. And then he asked: How can the crucifixion of one Man atop a mountain that was reserved for the execution of criminals both forgive sins and make eternal lovers of those who embrace his cross? The essence of his reply is simple. Aquinas recalls that the one who dies outside the walls of Jerusalem is the Son of God, and that in his humanity Christ exhibited before God the maximum charity and the most perfect obedience. This reply only restates what Christians have believed from the start, what we have held since that moment when Christ, lifted high on a cross - a holy cross - cried out, "It is finished." One Good Friday, we venerate the cross of Christ with a kiss. This is the Church's way of inviting us to embrace his love and obedience. She invites us to enter into the mystery that begins when from Christ's wounded side flows blood and water, the fountain of sacramental life in the Church.

Reflection based on John 18:1-19:42
Father Romanus Cessario, O.P.

Eternal Father, the death of your Son on a cross redeems the

world. Make me a loving and obedient disciple of that same

Son, Jesus Christ who is our exalted Lord.

Today's suggested penance: Make the Stations of the Cross.  (click here for the Stations)

I Heart Waldo's

... and they should be grateful I came back, considering that the past two times I have eaten there I did not leave happy. I guess third time's the charm, or the bbq gods were feeling pity for me or something, because this time Waldo's was all it was supposed to be.

Waldos' was the bonus, though. The prize was that Hubby stopped in unexpectedly to take me to lunch today. Yay for thoughtful hubbies! :)

I forgot to take a picture of my unbelievably tasty, melt-in-your-mouth pulled-pork bbq sandwich because, well, my body acts of its own accord when it senses this treat, and I had it covered in sauce and my hands had picked it up and jammed it in my mouth before I ever thought about it. And really, at that point my body will just not do anything else but Eat That Sandwich. There was no "let's put down the sandwich and take a picture" ... Serious Eating had already commenced and was not to be interrupted by something as silly as my need for blog material.

But, just to share some of the ambiance of The Place With All The Pork, here are just a few of the ka-twenty-zillion things hanging on their walls and ceiling:

You know you're not in for fay-ncy when this guy greets you ...

Wears that hat a bit rakishly, I'd say.

Here's another one hangin' from the ceiling ... invitin' feller, ain't 'e?

This is Hubby hammin' it up with his fried okra (he sending you the okra-love, Misti) ...

And this is Hubby's favorite sign in the place (and the word with the flash-hole in it is screaming, just so ya know) ...

Aaaaahh, Waldo's. You're back on my happy list now. I'm so glad we're friends again. Oh, and for those who live in the Phoenix Metro area: go to the Original Waldo's on Main Street, not the new one in San Tan. Just trust me on that. You won't be disappointed :)

Holy Thursday

(from the 2010 Magnificat Lenten Companion)

A New Presence

"Do you realize what I have done for you?" Today', Jesus Christ addresses this question to the Church. What has Christ done for us? Three mysteries come to mind: First, he gives us the sacrament of his body and blood. The cenacle provides a place where friends gather to share. The Eucharist is no ordinary meal. The Last Supper could not have taken place in a fast-food restaurant where people stop to find something to eat. Because Christ wants to remain amond his friends, he institutes the sacrament of Real Presence. Second, Christ ordains men priests to serve in his name and Person. Priestly ministry stands at the heart of the practice of the Christian religion. Without priests, there is no perfect way for men to worship God, no sure way for us to be found pleasing before him. Without the words of absolution spoken by the priest, we remain in our sins, bent on those things that dishonor instead of ennoble. Without the gift of the Eucharist brought by the priest, we find ourselves alone in the world, isolated from neighbor and God. Both Reconciliation and Eucharist bring a new Presence that is God's very own. This Presence introduces the third mystery: Love. When we meet Christ in the sacraments, his love becomes our own. Do you realize what Christ has done for you?

Reflection based on John 13:1-15
Father Romanus Cessario, O.P.

Loving Father, you have given us the sacraments that wash

away our sins and make us lovers of the truth.

Make me sorry for my sins so that I may approach worthily

the Easter mystery.

Today's suggested penance: Buy someone a meal or something to drink.