Family Ties

I have started this post several times but I never seem to finish it.  Many opportunities to show how much I love my family these months since returning to Texas.  I am so thankful we were close by as my mom and brothers needed a helping hand.

I would be remiss in my blogging journeys if I did not talk about this past summer.  I think that with all the every day activities...the bustle of our lives in the routine...sometimes we must be shaken to remind us that we are not in control.

As I mentioned in a previous post, we never know what curve ball will be thrown our way.  Just when we think we know it all and have life "figured out," something happens that throws us off course.  However, if our life is already on course with God, we should be able to stay on the road and keep moving forward.  Unfortunately, this is not always the way life goes.  Sometimes, we are already off course...other times we are thrown off course instead of gripping the wheel and letting God lead us.

When we returned from California, we were already slightly eschew...trying to figure out how to adjust and make it all work.  We were trusting in God to help us...but we were still in that tail spin!

Then we had another curve ball thrown our way...I had just been to a funeral for my sister-in-law's father.  As we were leaving, we received a phone call that my brother, Nathan, was being taken from one ER to another hospital in Houston.  He was being put into a drug-induced coma.  We did not know if he was even going to make it through the night!

My mom and I decided to make the drive to Houston...not knowing what we would encounter.  Looking back now these many weeks later...we were scared but we also knew to pray.

Thankfully, he had the doctors he needed to stabilize him and after several days he was well enough to have open-heart surgery.  Funny to say it that way but we were so grateful that he would have that surgery.  There were definitely moments when we thought he would not make it to that point!

Day he was released

We took his son home with us for a few days and tried to help him understand that God was in control.  We even had a chance to go to a special prayer garden where he could pray for his dad.  I hope they all realize the importance of God's hand in their lives!

When he was finally released from the hospital, he recovered at our mom's house.  I would take him to his doctor appointments.  Now nearly six months later, he is going to be starting a new job and he is feeling better than he had in a long time.  I am so thankful for God's answer to our prayers...and proud of Nathan for his hard work in adjusting to a new healthier lifestyle.  I am also thankful for our mom who has worked so hard to make it all possible.

Just when this situation was resolving, we were hit with another whammy!  My older brother, Damian, also called to tell us he was going to have by-pass surgery.  He had gone into a routine doctor's visit due to insurance changes, and they told him he would need to have the surgery.  When he asked when he should have it done, they told him they were admitting him to the hospital immediately!

Once again our mom and I huddled together to work out a plan of action.  Unfortunately, I was not feeling well, but it all worked out for her to go down to the hospital.  Prayers answered...I waited for surgery and recovery time in hospital without being able to help.  However, I was there for his release...and later doctor appointment.  I was once again thankful that I could help...grateful for my brother's health and for our mom who worked so hard during the recovery in her home.

Through it all...I can only say that God was with it through it all.  My brothers continue to stay with our mom as they adjust.  This would never have been possible if we had not moved back to Texas.  SO...I am also thankful for the foresight to return.  God is good...he knows our needs before we do...I continue to be in awe of His plans.  I think he truly wants us to be bound together as family...it is through these family ties that we are able to help each otehr when we are down.

God is good all the time...and all the time God is good!

A Full Day with St. Nicholas

We love celebrating our holiday season a little different then most.  We actually take the time during the days leading up to Christmas to prepare our hearts for the coming of our Savior!  No decorating our tree or gift shopping...instead we think about how we need to change to be ready to stand before the manger scene on Christmas morning...giving the best of ourselves to the baby Jesus...in hopes that one day we will stand before Jesus...the just judge...and enter into heaven...our ultimate goal!

SO...when we try to better ourselves, we look to the ones who have gone before us...the saints...the Church Triumphant...for ways to live our lives for that goal!

Today, it is the feast day of St. Nicholas of Myra....many know him as Santa Claus.  The real man was not a jolly fat man flying through the night with his reindeer.  You can read more about him in my companion blog...here.

Our family tradition is to place our stockings or shoes out on this day...just as many families do on Christmas Eve.  However, we try to focus on things that are needed along with a little sweets and treats!  We also receive St. Nicholas notes that give us ideas of how we can improve as we patiently wait for Jesus.

This morning that meant waking up around 6am...this allowed everyone to listen around the table as we each opening our stocking...before dad and one of the boys left for their day.  It is always a joy to listen to these notes and enjoy a fruity breakfast.  Along with a few necessary items, I was able to help St. Nicholas slip in a small toy for each of us!

Our morning continued with trips to college...work...and dentist!  The boys even had a couple of teeth wiggle out during their cleaning!  Then a round about as we headed to the down town area for a laser show for the older boys.  While we were waiting the younger ones and I enjoyed our hobby of geocaching...taking us to historical cemeteries and fire stations!  The little ones were even given a special gift of sitting in a brand new fire truck!

Back home we gathered...took a nice walk to place some new caches...then a fun Greek-style pizza dinner (one of our favorite meals and with St. Nicholas being a Greek saint it works for us.)!

Through it all we tried to be the light of Christ for all those we met.  We prayed for those around us...the policemen...the firemen...those who have lived their lives and who are now at the mercy of God...those buried in the many cemeteries we visited today!  It was a full day but enjoyed by all!

Veteran's Day 2016

I have read a lot of posts from fellow Facebook feeds this week stating that they are not proud of our country...this makes me so sad...I just cannot believe that this country is so divided.Today we were able to go to a Veteran's Day event and I realized (I really have always known) that I am very proud of our country.

I met with some amazing men and women who have been brave enough to serve our country in the worst of times...and come back stronger...they did that for us regardless of how we vote...whether we burn the flag...whether we kneel or stand at attention during the national anthem...whether we hate them because of the horrors of war (Don't we all hate that, especially those who lived it!?!) or cry when we hear Taps at yet another funeral.

The veterans...of all branches...chose to give their lives for our freedom...some will never return to us and others come to us broken and in pain...but they are all heroes in my mind...and they make me proud to be an American.

State Senator Donna Campbell joined us

There was a young group of children who sang for us today.  They were so sweet and truly showed that they cared for those in the audience.  They were not showing signs of fear...they just sang because they love our country.  Let us all learn from those children.

Hey!  Also, a big shout out to Chipotle... they served us dinner tonight for half price even though our veteran is off in Pennsylvania...God love him!...they thanked our family for our sacrifice as well.  So kind of them!

God bless America!

First Days of Fall 2016

Isn't it still SUMMER!?!?!?

Well, it seems everybody is posting there "first day of school" pictures again around this time or year.  Not to be remiss in my parenting duties, I thought I would have some fun with the children.  We do not officially start school until next Tuesday.  However, we have had a lot of first days this month so it seemed this was as good a time as any to share.

The first day Michael started his new job...at his old job...that is now his new job...I know...its confusing to me too!

The first day Sean started his VERY FIRST job!  He is working at Six Flags as a grounds host.  A great first job with benefits that he loves to brag about (e.g. tickets to the park and buddy passes!)

The first day Henry also started his VERY FIST job!  He is going to be a season worker at Sea World this fall as part of the Scare Squad...how frightening!  No pictures of him as his costume is too expensive to take out of the park!  But I might try to sneak a peak sometime in October and I will update.

The first day Henry started college...he is taking two dual credit classes this fall at our local community college.  He is actually doing a great job with his History and Anthropology courses.  He made me proud this week as he was able to remember something from our past courses and answer a question no one else knew.  (For those of you wondering about Sean...we messed up and registered too late so he will start in Spring...bummer but it will be ok.)

The first day I insisted that my children could in fact make their own breakfast...and then proceeded to remind them all that they could scramble an egg!

The first day I taught a group of homeschoolers Algebra II.  A new cooperative study group started and I jumped at the chance to teach math again.  None of my children needed the classes that were being offered so they get to stay home and enjoy an hour without mom while I teach.

The first day of school...sort of...we kind of opened some books this week just so we could enjoy the Labor Day weekend.  So...I took some pictures of the children at one of our favorite parks with their favorite subject book in hand.  I thought their choices were very interesting!

7th grade-chose his writing folder!

2nd grade-surprisingly chose his Spelling book!

12th grade-chose his Lovecraft novel...
Who said it had to be a school book?

Pre-K...chose her cell phone!  Oh my!

Along for the hike through the woods

Bittersweet Graduation

We spent a year in California...and as many know we enjoyed our time here.  However, the main goal of this move was for Michael to complete a language course for the military.  He worked so hard all year in his Farsi course.  We just assumed his hard work would end with a graduation from the course with flying colors.  No one involved in his coursework was more surprised to find out that he was not able to complete the test with proficiency!

I suppose we could just ignore the elephant in the closet and not talk about our disappointment in our last hours in California; however, this blog is an important witness to our faith in God...our trust that HE knows what is best for us.  We might not understand why things happen and I will be the first to admit that God did not make this happen...BUT we DO know that God is here for us...even in our disappointment.

I truly think that it was a combination of events that happened that could have town down anyone...especially some one not rooted in their trust in God.  SO...I thought I should go back and tell the story.

The week before graduation...with all the moving and plans when we returned home...their was a tension in the air.  Everyone was on pins and needles to find out the final results of the tests.  We had been warned that even someone who did well in the course could struggle with the final tests for proficiency.  In a crazy turn of events...the test date was changed...this added more stress to the end.

Then on the day our brave leader found out his results several other things happened as well.  Within an hour of each other...we found out he would not have his job when we returned (his company had lost their contract and had not procured another one!)...he failed to meet proficiency requirements...he would not be able to stay an additional six weeks to obtain proficiency (money had ran out for military unit back home) and the closing date for our new house was pushed back to the following week!

We went from worry about our move...to worry about where we were going in seconds!

And to add to this...I was at our house with the children...and he was at school and could not talk to me more than the few seconds to tell me about this downward spiral!  Just a few miles from each other but it felt like a widening abyss!  He would not answer his phone or texts for hours!

So...I prayed!  I gathered the children and we prayed more!  And while I was worried for his emotions, he was actually at school praying also!

And then a peace came over us and we knew that God had this entire situation under control!

‘Do not fear, for I am with you; do not anxiously look about you, for I am your God. I will strengthen you, surely I will help you, surely I will uphold you with My righteous right hand.’ Isaiah 41:10

I sent out a post to family and friends and asked them to pray for us.  No one (other than my mom) what was happening.  Maybe if you are reading this now, and remember that we asked for prayers, you thought it was just for the stress of the move.  But we felt God in our lives and we knew it would all be OK in the end.

Casting the whole of your care on Him, for He cares for you affectionately and cares about you watchfully. 1 Peter 5:7

Michael came home and we took the time to go out for our planned family pictures at the beach.  What we thought was going to be a celebration for him was a little more subdued but we were given a special gift that night in the beautiful surroundings of the beach and the glorious sunset with the extra large moon coming up over the mountains!  Again, we felt a peace...we knew that a God who could create such an amazing landscape...set the oceans in a cycle of tides and waves...create a universe so magnificent...would help us through our struggles!

“God is our refuge and strength, always ready to help in times of trouble.  So we will not fear when earthquakes come and the mountains crumble into the sea.  Let the oceans roar and foam.  Let the mountains tremble as the waters surge!” - Psalm 46: 1-3

We went through the next week trying to decide what to do...

We signed on our house a week late...no job in sight but with savings in the bank, we knew we could do this.  We felt blessed to have the savings to keep afloat until a new job presented itself.  Looking forward...the job did come...not until the end of July but we were able to make it work.

I suppose we could have bowed out of the graduation ceremony...walk away with our tails tucked between our legs or hidden in the shadows.  However, we had spent the last year encouraging each other and we were proud of all that everyone had accomplished...even Michael.  We arrived on graduation day ready to celebrate the moment with everyone else.  This struggle would make us stronger.  We would persevere with God's help.

And, Michael has not given up...he plans to take the test again in the fall and be ready to have that paper showing he is in fact proficient in Farsi.  I hope I will be able to update this story with that news at that time.

God is good all the time!  No amount of stress will deny this truth!

Birthday and Graduation Plus More!

When we were planning Sean's last year of school, we knew it was probably not going to end well.  I mean...he would graduate...but we would be in the process of moving right at the time most students were graduating.  There would not be much chance to join with a group of homeschoolers to have a nice ceremony.  We teased Sean that he would have to graduate by walking across the living room with just us watching!  Maybe that is what most people think homeschoolers do any way...but he knew that we had done so much more for our previous graduates.  Even Christina...who did graduate by walking across our living room...had a ceremony with speeches and guests...and she had a quick graduation thrown together in just a few days!

As funny as we tried to make it, it was not what we had wanted.  So...this is where we get goose bumps...no that we were being taken care of...even in the smallest details...and we were able to have a special day set up for Sean.

So...here is the rest of the story for those who have not heard it yet!

Since we "knew" we would be doing our own graduation, we decided to wait until we were settled into our new house.  We decided to make it a birthday-graduation party for him, so we set the date for mid-June.  We created some fun graduation announcements with the date June 18th (the Saturday before his birthday) and sent them out just after moving into our new home.  We thought it was a perfect solution, as we could send out the invitations and also give out our new address!  Wow...talk about multi-tasking!

Soon after we made these plans, we had our first Mass at the new church.  As we were leaving, I noticed a family we had remembered from our time in the homeschool group previously.  I went up and we re-introduced ourselves and somehow the conversation of graduation came up.  She told me that the group had not had their ceremony.  It would take place on June 18th, and Sean could join in with the other ten graduates!!!!!  Not only that...it would be part of a Mass at OUR church!

God is so amazing!  All the other parents were asked and agreed that Sean could be a part of the group.  We were so excited!

Of course, our announcements did not have these details, so I began telling those who might be interested in coming to the ceremony.  It turned out that we would have some guests at our house soon!



Then we found out from one of the other moms that a special drama camp/retreat would take place the week before graduation.  Many of the graduates planned to be in the camp.  The idea was for the camp to begin on the Sunday before graduation...then they practiced all week...with a performance on Saturday...right after gradation.  The camp was always looking for male teens and our boys would fit right in with the normal small close-knit group.  So I asked if the two oldest would be interested (my pre-teen cried the entire time that he wanted to do it...not old enough YET!) and I had them signed up!  That is when we found out they were doing The West Side Story...lots of singing and dancing...this should be interesting!

The best made plans of mice and men...life got crazy in the beginning of June...I started to wonder if we were going to have time for anything extra...I will have to post about this separately just to keep everything from sounding too crazy!  But I was so thankful for the graduation details being taken care of by the other parents.  I really cannot thank them enough for all they did to make the event special and including Sean.

Then the boys arrived on the first day of camp, to our surprise, there were teens coming out of the seam work!  This was a small close knit group?!?!  It turns out...this little summer camp...was finally being encouraged as one of the best camps for teens!  Not only would they have this dramatic experience...a priest was leading this camp with his seminarians and others priests at a small college...there would be Mass, prayer and reflection everyday...AND they would be auditioning immediately for parts!  Their numbers had more than doubled from the previous years!  Surprisingly, the teens were running around as if they were all best friends.  I worried a little about the boys not knowing any one...but it turned out to not matter...AND they did know some of the teens!  One girl in particular ran up and gave both boys a big hug and said she was SO glad they were back in town...then ran off to hug someone else in the room!  When I asked the boys if they knew who she was...they both blushingly said they thought they remembered her but not her name!  LOL!  Michael snuck over strategically when she registered and found her name so they could "remember" her!  Smart Dad!  


Another thankful part of this week was having one of the teens with a car...the boys were able to carpool...I offered gas money and they were set for the week!  Early mornings and late evenings... along with our other craziness... allowed for a better week for everyone!

And they did have a lot of fun!  They came home singing and dancing all week.  They were even teaching the lines to the pre-teen who was still wishing he could be with them!

In all of this...I was keeping a secret!  Christina and Madison were going to surprise Sean and come visit us from Washington for his graduation!  They arrived mid-week so the surprise came early...but he was so excited to know that they wanted to be here for him!  We had so much fun playing with the baby and going to places Christina missed from Texas!  The first stop...food!  Everyone always misses their "Texas" restaurants!

Gramma arrived the day of graduation, along with her friend (Loretta) who the boys enjoyed playing cards.  We grabbed the boys from their last rehearsal and were off to Mass and graduation.

 The ceremony was wonderful!  Father Klak gave a wonderful homily about going out into the world to do God's will.  Just before he gave out the diplomas he gave a vocations talk.  Then as he gave out diplomas, he asked each one if they were going to make him proud and become a priest or nun!  Great job, Father!

The reception was also just as nice.  Tables were set up for the graduates to share their highlights from their high school years.  We knew Sean would not have time to create his table, so Christina and I made a table for him.  It was just as much a surprise for him as a sharing of how proud we are to the other guests.  We even made a "geocache" for him to find at his table!  There was even a surprise visit from Shane and Pope Francis!

Then we had just enough time to have dinner and change before heading to the play!

Zoom!  We were there and the boys were setting up.  We were so early, we had time to enjoy the grotto and gardens before hand.

Then the outdoor theater was ready...the evening setting was perfect as the sun set and the lights of the grotto came on to let us know the action would begin!  The entire cast (over 50 teens!) did an amazing job!  I was so impressed that they could make this happen in just SEVEN DAYS!  Not only did the team who led the camp create this...they were able to place the teens in an atmosphere to discuss gangs and bullying...drugs and just being a teenager...into the week as well.  A wonderful experience for everyone involved!

I never would have guessed that our boys could do this but they were great!  Not just bragging as a mom...I really think they all did a great job.  And if you want to hear them perform, they have the entire play memorized and still break out in song and dance at a moment's notice!

Sean had mentioned that he was the stage manager but we thought this was just a small role...turned out that he had to ensure all the props were set up and scenery was moved around for each scene!  He was a busy guy and worn out by the time he finally crashed!

He did not crash right away...there was still a cast party to attend after the show and clean up!  Thankfully we went in two cars...Michael stayed with them and the rest of us...also exhausted went home!  Gramma stayed the night, so we had a full house!

The next day we went to Mass bright and early...much earlier for some than others...those party animals did not get home until after midnight!

Then we surprised Sean with a post graduation...early birthday...reservation for The Magic Time Machine.  If you have never heard of the place...it is a restaurant with themed tables...costumed wait staff...and very pricey food!  Sean has always wanted to go to this place...we decided to close our eyes to the prices and make this happen.  It was a great experience...highly over-priced but should be tried once...just go for dessert if you want to save money...or eat from the salad bar!  We learned the hard way but made it work!

I think Sean had a memorable graduation.  The lesson learned is to never promise a set ceremony for any homeschool graduate.  What works for one child...one situation might not work for another.  AND in the end trust that God will help make amazing things happen!  It all worked out in the end and no one involved could have been more pleased!

Now we can say that we have graduated three of our children...a good feeling that we might actually know what we are doing...until things change, of course!