CAPPMoms

Vanity

2007-03-22T09:16:00.000-05:00

So here I am, when I am supposed to be cleaning or do the millions of other things that need to be done on a daily basis, wondering if I should color my hair.

I am a young 30ish woman who is slowly being run over with the grays. Normally I'd be fine with that. In my vision of my older years, I saw myself as a hip, white, thin, active, short-haired gal like they show in the Dove commercials. Of course my qualifications for "older years" was not the 30s!

So I went out and bought two big boxes of hair coloring. I'm now a brown/gray, curly, bit-past-shoulder-length gal and I'm going to go blond, curly, bit-past-shoulder-length. I might even splurge and get a new hair style. But that's another day.

Wish me luck!

Prayers needed for Dom and Melanie....

2007-03-08T21:13:00.000-06:00

Melanie blogs here, and Dom blogs here. There is a huge bit of news that deserves your attention, and prayers over the weekend.

Melanie and Dom just lost a baby through miscarriage, and lab tests are giving them quite a scare for Melanie's health. They have to wait until Monday for conclusive results, which could be either a relief, or a tremendous blow to their hopes and dreams. Pray hard for them....

95 Books 95

2007-02-23T16:18:00.000-06:00

My uncle and aunt died and left a house full of books. Art, architecture, history, nonfiction (even a few mysteries). My cousins have sold the house and invited us to take what we want. I went out there today and came home with lots and lots of books. It was like Christmas and my birthday all at once. If you can imagine being turned loose in your local B&N to take home as many books as you want for free--that is what it was like. Bookmania!
Many beautiful BIG books about art and architecture. One of my cousins is an architect and they were all bookworms. My uncle read voraciously, especially as he got older and less mobile. History was his favorite subject and I got a few nice books and biographies for my husband and myself. Our older boy got a beautiful book about Vivaldi--lovely photographs of Venice. Even the little guy enjoyed a Time-Life book, "Primates".
I could not abandon these books. Some I had wanted for years. I never buy art books because they are too expensive. We all enjoy looking at them though.
A brief taste of what I got--two volumes of Philippe Aries " A History of Private Life", five issues of "Granta" (I could have taken all of them, there must have been a hundred, but I had no room in my car or my house for them),the collected stories of William Trevor, an Escoffier, "The Cake Bible" by Rose Birnbaum, biographies by Claire Tomalin, Antonia Fraser and Jenny Uglow (why are so many biographies written by women?), novels by Henry Green, Kingsley Amis, Ngaio Marsh and Ruth Rendell. A few gardening books for my husband, "Elizabeth and Essex" by Lytton Strachey. You can see what a good mixed bag it was!
Best of all...I spotted a slim, green cloth bound volume at the back of the shelf.It was called "The Coloured Lands" by G.K. Chesterton. My uncle's signature was on the first page. It was published in 1938--he probably would have been graduating high school then. It is a wonderful collection of fantasy stories and imaginative illustrations by GKC himself! I look forward to reading it. It seems to bring my uncle close to me in a way he wasn't when he was alive.
Now to tidy up the dining room for dinner, then a perfect orgy of reading!

Agoraphobia? Snow-o-phobia? or just plain laziness?

2007-02-15T08:24:00.000-06:00

My husband has been teasing me lately that I am turning into a housecat. It is true. I do a lot of running around during the day, but at night all I want to do is hang out, do a crossword puzzle, watch "Monk" with the big boy, read "The Magic Schoolbus" with the little guy, and drink tea. There are a lot of meetings I should be going to as a parent leader in my son's school. How much change we actually can effect, as parents, is a rant for a different place but the networking is valuable. It helps to show your face out there. Anyway yesterday was snow, ice, "wintry mix"--which always sounds to me like some kind of candy product. You know, starlight mints, red and green M&Ms, chocolate santas... I shoveled out a bit and Sir Edward put out plenty of salt. This morning it is sunny but very cold. My hair is soaking wet. I have nothing but decaf coffee in the house. B.Minor had an appointment at 9, not too far away. I went out and scraped the car and ran the defroster. Then...I felt I couldn't leave. I just want to stay home and keep warm. There were plenty of days in the past where I HAD to go out to work or school, trudging in the sleet to the bus, waiting on the corner, riding the ferry, trudging up Broadway. No doubt in the future I will be doing that again. So why not enjoy my flexibility now?
Off to help spin a spider web. We are getting hooked on spiders this week :)

Hooray, we can skate!

2007-02-14T10:46:00.000-06:00

The pond has frozen! Well over a week of sub-freezing temps has led to a good thick coat of ice on Allison's Pond. The Parks Dept, still cautious, has plastered "No Skating" signs around the periphery. But the locals are ignoring that....
B.Major and I were thrilled to be skating on real ice. Most years our skating has been confined to the skating rink at Clove Lakes. This is much more fun! We found two branches shaped roughly like hockey sticks, and a chunk of a log, for a puck. We got to scrimmage a bit. Quite a new experience. B.Major began to realize that playing hockey on the ice is a far different thing than playing it on a computer game. Yesterday both boys and I skated. Then a hike into the woods, over the frozen waterfall behind the cemetery, and up to Goodhue Lake. Both boys broke the edges of the ice and got full of mud. A good day!

Ice thoughts

2007-01-31T16:51:00.000-06:00

I was skating with my older son at our local ice rink. We arrived at the beginning of the session. The ice was like glass: freshly zambonie'd and as slippery as a mirror. It took him awhile to find his feet but soon he was gliding and swooping away in enjoyment.

I love to skate. I remember going to the small swampy pond near my house when I was a kid. Everyone hung out there. Even if you didn't have skates, you could slide around on the ice. We would stay til the sun finally sank and the cold grey air seeped into our fingers and toes. On Wednesdays (Catholic schools' half-day) we would go to the newly-opened rink, the same one I take my son to now. The plaza in front would be jammed with Catholic school kids. You'd see cousins, and kids you knew from playing basketball or scouts from other parishes. Clumps of girls would skate together, giggling and pointedly ignoring the boys who shouted and raced past, showing off.
Even there we felt the cold, despite the big "bubble" roof, but we could buy some hot chocolate (actually hot Swiss Miss) and burn our tongues while our mittened hands clumsily clutched the styrofoam cups.

The last time it was cold enough for long enough to skate on the pond near my house was four winters ago. I was heavily pregnant with my younger son and could not risk a fall. Ever since then I have longed to skate outside on a pond again. We are lucky to have the rink so convenient to our house, but there is something too close to being a hamster on a wheel...round and round, round and round....

Still, the last time we went to the rink, my son met up with a girl from his class. She talked to him for awhile and then on the ice, my son skated near (but not exactly with) her, and showed off some of his moves....it is nice to see that some things don't change. Even for seventh-graders.

Drowning in gush

2007-01-26T12:38:00.000-06:00

Oh dear, I hope it is not disrespectful of me, but I am not getting on with St.Therese too well. The style is very sentimental, gushy and too too sweet. Perhaps it is the translation.
For now I have switched back to Susan Howatch's Starbridge series--an astringent antidote to all that sugar.

Or maybe I should just save the Little Flower for a Lenten penance.

Let's Talk Books

2007-01-18T16:37:00.000-06:00

Every year I say I am going to do this: keep a list, annotated if possible, of the books I read. One reason this doesn't work for me is that I tend to go back and do comfort reading: re-reading old favorites in the tub before bedtime or when I am not feeling well. But I guess we could list new books that we read as we finish them. I see they do this on the 4real learning forums.

OK. The first book I finished this month was Christ the Lord: out of Egyptby Anne Rice. This book was terrific. It did a good job of portraying Jesus's early life from *his* point of view. CAn't wait for the next one. Anne Rice has an interesting conversion story which she touches on briefly as an afterword to the book.

Green for Dangera vintage mystery by Christiana Brand. This was a very atmospheric thriller about murder in the operating room of a British military hospital in WWII. The last page is a heartrending twist. (No peeking). My husband tells me it was a movie! I had no idea--wonder if I can get it on Netflix?

The newest Dick Francis....excellent as always. These are definitely comfort reading and you do learn interesting bits of information. This one was all about DNA testing. I remember one I read that was about meteorology, and there was a banking one too. Always worthwhile escape reading.

Now I am reading The Story of a Soul. I am ashamed to say I have never read it. It seems very sweet and accessible so I am reading it as training, so to speak, for my annual Lenten attack on St. Teresa of Avila's Interior Castle. For some reason I have never gotten too far into that one.

Late at night I have been re-re-reading The Complete Father Brown Stories in the huge Penguin paperback edition. Mine is falling apart and warped from the steam of my bathtub...nothing is more comforting than GKC.

So what are you reading?

Happy New Year!

2007-01-01T10:13:00.000-06:00

I would like to send greetings to all our readers, whoever you are, for a very Happy and Healthy New Year.

I hope 2007 brings all you hope for, blessings beyond your dreams, and if you have sorrows and troubles, I pray you'll easily be given the graces you need to handle them.

God bless!

Dear Pope Benedict,

2006-12-24T23:37:00.000-06:00

Next time the fourth Sunday of Advent falls on Christmas Eve, please make a ruling that it will be celebrated on December 17, giving us a full four weeks to prepare for Christmas.
That is the sort of motu proprio we mothers would really like to see!
Merry Christmas,
Love,
Eliz. Hatton

I miss...

2006-12-05T12:46:00.000-06:00

Selkie's blog. I know she's going for a degree, but I do miss checking in her world and I miss her way with a turn of phrase.

Hope the studies are going well, Jamie!

Happy Thanksgiving!

2006-11-22T13:55:00.000-06:00

There's much to grieve this year, but so much to be thankful for.

I'm off to bake a whole bunch of pies for our family gathering this year, but I wanted to take a minute to wish everyone a very Happy Thanksgiving!

May the things that delight you be many,
The things that annoy you be few.
May your joys ever increase daily,
And all sorrows stay far from you.

God bless!

Asking for prayers...

2006-11-08T04:53:00.000-06:00

It looks like we are losing the baby. Please pray for us. We go for an ultrasound this afternoon to see how things stand. This is heartbreaking. May God's will be done.... but even so, I am praying for a miracle for us............

Updated on 11/9/06. We lost our baby last night, but were able to hold the remains before burying them in a little private family service. So sad. But I do know that three of my children are waiting for me in heaven. Until we meet.... God bless you, little ones....

Shingles?!?!

2006-11-03T09:21:00.000-06:00

No, I don't mean the kind on the roof ;)

I wondered if the weird rash on my neck was shingles, and the doc confirmed it. Luckily, if I don't aggravate it and set it off, it's pretty bearable. I don't want to take anything for it, not at this stage in the first trimester.

While there, we did get to take a peek at the baby, and he/she (he?! I had a vivid dream about a boy) is a nice little round blob right where it oughtta be :) Now, if time could only speed up a bit, to get me past the point where my fears could ease. Ah well, it is a good lesson in patience and trust.

Happy Weekend everyone....

oooh, Fall!

2006-10-26T08:07:00.000-05:00

We had our outing to a pumpkin patch yesterday. It was great fun for all involved, including the part where all the kids but my friend's baby went on a second 10 minute hay ride, which gave the two of us a chance to roast some marshmallows over the fire pit and make s'mores, which we ate greedily before the kids came back. We did make some for them when they came back. However all that did add up to a major asthma attack for poor K3. We were up all night with breathing treatments and Motrin for fever. I guess it wasn't the brightest decision, but such fun was had with the hay stacks and the hay ride and the petting zoo and the wiener/marshmallow roasting.

So, today is all about washing and dusting and cleaning so K3's bedroom will be more allergen free than it was after we came home yesterday....

The kids painted the little pumpkins they received as part of their admission, which kept them very busy all afternoon once we came home. So, not all was lost!!

It's been a long, long time...

2006-10-16T12:42:00.000-05:00

hello readers, if there are any left. I've not posted in ages, because, well, frankly, I felt I had nothing to say!

But, I am popping in now out of lurkdom to ask prayers.

The DH and I have discovered to our utter delight and total surprise that we are expecting a new little CAPPlet! Thought those days were long gone, physically speaking, and had emotionally moved on to that next stage of life.

Guess we are getting one of those late-in-life bonus babies you hear about. Heck, my own mom was a late-in-life bonus baby! This is what happens when you are open to life, eh?!?!!

Could you all keep us in your prayers for a healthy pregnancy and a healthy baby?!

We surely appreciate it!!

What a Guy

2006-07-30T18:30:00.000-05:00

We got home last evening from an exhausting transcontinental trip. It was the best trip we have ever taken! But back here in Babylon it is hot and very humid. Naturally we have not replaced our airconditioners, taken out last fall when the windows were replaced. The boys are steaming. It is pretty sweaty around here.

Today my husband went to Lowes and took both boys with him. They bought lumber and "stuff" to brace the air conditioners when we put them back in. Tonight he will put back one unit in our bedroom, and boys can camp on the floor. He has been working on cutting and installing, while I made dinner and a delicious blueberry dessert (recipe on request) :) I have had time to catch up with my lists and check out my favorite blogs. My husband has had very little computer time since we got home. I truly appreciate it. My connections with my friends, including my online friends, is so precious to me...he understands that. I know, I am blessed.
Boy clamoring for dessert, must go.

The Grief of a Mother and Father

2006-07-09T13:57:00.000-05:00

I have read on Bettnet of a horrible tragedy that has happened to the Doman family. You may know Regina Doman as the author of the especially wonderful "Angel in the Waters" story, which you can read online here.

Their four year old son has died in an accident with the family vehicle, his name is Joshua Michael Doman, and you can see his sweet face here.

We all know, but never want to think about, how quickly lives can change in an instant when something like this happens. Our children, these gifts of God entrusted to us, could be called home at any time. None of us want to ever have to bury a child.

God grant them mercy and peace somehow in the depths of their sorrow, bless and help their family in the days ahead, and may they know that unnamed folks all around the world are keeping them wrapped in prayer.

Hug your children and hold them close.

Hurting

2006-06-24T08:53:00.000-05:00

What do you say to a child who asks "Mom, why does God let me be in pain?".

Background: my almost 8 year old daughter, Sally, toe-walks. She has an orthopedic problem, sadly passed down by her loving mother, of a short achilles tendon. This causes her feet to point downward. At some point, nearly all children toe-walk. With Sally, she started out walking on her toes at an early age and continued as she started school. Visits to doctors did nothing; if she was able to put her feet down, she was "okay".

Fast forward to 1st grade. The summer before, she was diagnosed with sensory integrative dysfunction. She was prescribed occupational therapy. Her therapist thought Sally's toe-walking could be a sensory issue so we put her on a sensory diet to no avail. She still toe-walked. We thought we'd get her checked out by a physical therapist to see if her toe-walking was a physical problem and we hit the jackpot. She had a number of problems with her feet and legs (which were then verified by an orthopedic surgeon) and we started her on physical therapy.

Since then, she's been placed in casts for 3.5 weeks, seen countless doctors, gone through physical therapy and home therapy for 1.5 years now and now she's in night splints. Which are VERY uncomfortable for her.

Which brings me to last night's conversation. Sally crying "Why does God let me be in pain? Why did He make me this way?" and me trying to console her but failing miserably. I even think the words "character" and "making you stronger" passed my lips but I don't think she understood. In her eyes, she prays for health, she prays for the ability to run like her friends, she prays for painless legs and God doesn't hear her. She says she talks to God but He doesn't answer. What does one say to such a child, one who has dark nights of the soul at such a young age?

First Holy Communion!

2006-04-30T19:48:00.000-05:00

Today my daughter made her First Holy Communion! Rejoice with us as she joins us in receiving OurLord in the Eucharist! God bless you, little one!

Alleluia! Alleluia!

2006-04-18T07:44:00.000-05:00

Did you get enough Alleluias this past weekend? I was enjoying them so much. It is true that absence makes the heart grow fonder! After an entire lent without them, the liturgies of the Triduum and Easter felt so joyous.

How was your Easter? Were your Masses beautiful? Did you have lovely family dinners? Did you feel the joy of the Risen Christ in your hearts? I know we did, for the most part. K3 was ill over the weekend which put a small damper on the celebrations, but he's on the way to recovery.

So, I wish you all a very happy Easter! Resurrexit Sicut Dixit, Alleluia!!

Spring is around the corner!

2006-03-11T16:58:00.000-06:00

We went to a dairy goat farm today. My husband had to work today, and that's not common on Saturdays, so I decided the children and I needed to find something interesting to do. We had read about a dairy goat farm not far from us, where they make delicious artisan cheeses. What a fun time we had! There were countless Mama Goats in the "maternity ward," as well as many, many new baby goats. It's birthing time, and we didn't even know it! We saw four newborn goats, just two hours old, as well as dozens of week old baby goats. They were just beautiful. I had no idea baby goats were so CUTE. We were able to pet them, and watch them being hand fed. They are taken from their mamas immediately :( but are hand-raised, so they're friendlier with humans. The babies were just so appealing. My 10 year old son was begging for a goat when we left. Alas, we don't live in an area that allows goats in our yard. However, it did get us thinking about our "next house." On a humorous note, my 10 year old also asked, "If our house burns down, can we move where we can get a goat?" Eek! I hope he didn't have ideas....

Anyway, it was a really nice way to spend the morning, reminding us of the cycle of life, and so on. One more thing; baby goats weigh 6-10 pounds at birth, much like human infants do! But they do seem to require a lot of attention and care at first, and I don't think it'd be easy to carry a baby goat in a sling. ;)

Delurking to ask for travel advice

2006-03-09T17:32:00.000-06:00

I have the opportunity to build up a little nest egg over the summer, and hope to take the family on a real, honest-to-goodness vacation in October.

Do you have any favorite family destinations? Favorite Packages? Great Hotels?

I think we'd need to stay in the US, I'm not up to going overseas just yet with my gang aged 9, 8 and 4... (when we go), and I'd love to do something with trains.

Can you comment back with your ideas?! Thanks!

What Sticks in Their Minds

2006-03-04T19:34:00.000-06:00

Today my older son and I visited this exhibition and noticed a painting across the room. It was called "Fertility" and showed a naked man and woman on either side of a tree. He got the Adam and Eve reference. Next to it was a lovely, more harmonious looking painting, again of a man and a woman (clothed this time), seemingly a farmer and his wife, on either side of a full, leafy tree. The woman held a basket of cherries before her. As I pointed out to my son, you could see she was pregnant, too. I asked him what he thought about this painting.

"It is like the Cherry Tree Carol. It is Mary and Joseph and he gave her cherries".

He remembered this from a CD we listen to at Christmastime. I always marvel about what sticks with them, and what they so easily forget.

Perhaps it is just that art and music has the power to touch their hearts and minds in a deep er way than I had realized.

A Blogging Break For Lent

2006-02-28T16:29:00.000-06:00

I'm going to try something that may be very difficult (gulp) this Lent.

I'm going offline, except for Sundays.

This could be kinda challenging. But, I think I am up for it. I'll try my best, and if I stumble, well, I'll try again!

Praying for a blessed Lent for all of you faithful readers :)