Our Blogger Family

Well...I have not posted a lot lately, but it is not for lack of interesting things to write.  I just needed the time to get the children caught up in school and get settled in our new home.

One of the things we did was set up a blog for each of the boys.  It was kind of funny how this came about...Henry and I were talking about my blog and he said he would love to have a blog of his own.  Next thing I knew all the boys wanted one!  So I decided it would be a good way for them to practice all their grammar skills.  It would also let them share their own special talents.

Sean decided right away that he would have a blog about insects.  He loves sharing what he finds in the world around him.  If you have time, check out his blog and share with your children.  Maybe they will find that they love insects also!

Henry (who started it all) was excited to share his love for photography.  His blog is not just your typical photo sharing site.  He loves to challenge himself to a photo session and following through with how he met the challenge.  He also challenges his viewers to share what they viewed through their lens as well.

Edward loves LEGOs, so it did not take long for him to decide to take pictures of his creations and tell a creative story to go along with the figure.  He is just getting started, but I think it is a good way to use his imagination!

Brendan could not be out done.  He had to have blog also.  It took some thinking but then it was an A-ha! moment when we realized he should have a blog sharing his genius.  Actually, what we are doing is letting him check out books about other geniuses and then telling what he learned.  It is a lot of fun to hear his idea of what he hears in the books we read.  SO, check out his Big Boy Genius site.

SO...if you have enjoyed my blog, maybe you will enjoy the boys as they write their own stories.  I know I have enjoyed them...but of course, I am a little biased.

I am sure the holidays will bring new adventures that I will write about but it has been a nice break.  God bless you all!  Enjoy your family and friends and remember that Jesus came down to this earth to save us!  Praise be to God!

Our Friend the Bishop

This last week another one of our dear friends has been named bishop of a Texas diocese....Monsignor Michael Sis!  It is so exciting to know that this man...our priest from many years ago...who was instrumental in our lives...is now becoming a bishop!   We were so blessed to have him in our lives during the early times of our marriage.

He gave us good advice about the way our lives were being lived.  Many know that Michael and I were given the blessing of a child before our marriage.  Fr. Mike was there to help us in our decision making.

Then he married us (20 years ago!) and baptized our first child, Amanda.  I will never forget how he announced to those in attendance at the end of the ceremony..."I present to you the Reynolds family!"  It just brought us that extra special blessing to unify us.

Then helped us as we begin our young married couples group.  It was not our idea but we were one of the first couples to attend the meetings.  We had 5 couples at that time and we were all in need of serious guidance.  Fr. Mike was there when we needed him.

There were many times during the first ten years of our marriage that required spiritual assistance.  Fr. Mike was always there to help us.  In the end, I know that through the grace of our Lord, we were sent this godly man to assist us.  I am not even sure Michael and I would be married without his good counsel.

Just when Michael and I had given up...we were led to seek his advice one last time.  It had been a couple of years since we had gone to him for help.  We had been overseas with the military.  We really thought Fr. Mike would not even remember us...he had so many people who was helping at the college ministry (1000's were attending Mass each Sunday and many others were seeking spiritual assistance).  However, as soon as we walked into his office, he was overjoyed to see us and acted as if we had just seen him days ago instead of years apart.  It was in that session that Michael and I began to find healing once again.  Once again through the grace of our Lord, Fr. Mike knew the words to help us.

Soon after this, Fr. Mike was called to the Diocesan office to assist with vocations.  He had boosted the number of religious in the diocese and specifically from the college campus at A&M that he was sent to replicate this throughout the diocese.  Michael and I also moved to another area.  However, when ever we chanced to meet he would embrace us in a kind way remembering us as a friend.  Again...such a blessing!

We are so excited to know that he will lead the diocese of San Angelo.  We hope we can be at his installation in January.  God willing...we will be there.

Oh...and since this came up...I had meant to do this last year but got side tracked.  The ceremony for the installation is so beautiful.  Words cannot describe the joy and the feeling of the Spirit in the experience.  However, here are the steps in the ceremony:

• Invoking of the Holy Spirit by the previous bishop (or bishops in attendance).
• The mandate from the Apostolic See is read from the altar.
• A public examine in which the acceptance to the role as bishop "with the help of God" is proclaimed to all in attendance.  
• Then a Litany of Mary and the Saints is prayed together.
• At the installation of Bishop Strickland last year, the deacon said, "You came from this clergy, so you have no excuse but to love them.  Let us go as it is time for the Lord to act."
• At this time, the bishops in attendance (There were 40 bishops and a cardinal at the one last year.) lay hands on the newly appointed bishop, handing down the the unchanging faith given to us from the Apostles.
• This is followed by the prayer of consecration.
• Then the Book of the Gospels is held over his head.
• Sacred chrism oil is then used to anoint the bishop. 
• At this time, the bishop is invested with the Book of Gospels and told to preach unceasingly.  
• The bishop is given his miter as a sign of his growth in holiness and a staff to symbolize his position as shepherd and pastor of his flock.  
• A ring is also presented to the new bishop as a sign of fidelity.
• The new bishop is led to his chair (Little known fact...any church that holds the bishop's chair is called a cathedral (it is not a style of church) as chair in Latin is "cathedra.")
• After this placement in his chair, all of the bishops and priests are allowed to come before the bishop to offer a kiss of peace.

I am sure I am forgetting parts of the ceremony.  I will try to take better notes to fill in the gaps this time around.  I love the symbolism of the parts of the ceremony...I cannot emphasize how beautiful the experience.

Praise be to God!

I have watched many posts over the last few weeks about all the things people are thankful for in their lives.  Many touching remarks have been said and I am sure I could say many of the same things.  But I am not.  LOL!

Instead, I thought I would add a twist to the traditional list of things that I am thankful for this year.

I am most thankful for a loving God who watches down on me and places His hand on me every day.  He forgives me for my shortcomings and made me His child regardless.  I would not BE if it were not for His creation.  He lets me stumble in my humanity and picks me up when I cry out to Him.  He waits patiently while I try to do it myself and smiles with arms out stretched when I finally realize I cannot do it alone.  He has given me every thing else that I am thankful for in this world...and he is waiting for the day to bring me home when my days here are over.

I am thankful for my Mom who helped raise me with my Dad and stayed close in spite of not always agreeing with everything I say...is willing to let me be the person I am.

I am thankful for my brothers who do not always see me for more than the "Church Lady" but still loves me because I am family...and well...who else will be there in the end but family and friends!

I am thankful for my husband who loves me almost unconditionally...even when I get upset for silly things...like pumping the gas pump ONE CENT over the dollar or eating the left overs that we were going to have for dinner!  He is so patient with my temper that I continue to work on but lose so often.  He has been there for me and I have been there for him for over twenty years!  Praise God!

For my children, I am thankful that they know that my bark is worse than my bite and they know that I love them very much!  I often tell them "I am just a first time Momma and they need to be patient with me while I figure it out!"  So glad that they are forgiving and still give me hugs at night...even after a bad day!  I cannot imagine life without any of my blessings...those that I birthed and those that entered my life by surprise as I try to be a surrogate to them.

To all my many friends in all the strange places where God has planted us.  I cannot imagine being able to move without knowing that God is going to find the perfect friends I need in the next place.  There have been those that I have known a life time and those that I cannot even remember your name (I guess I am getting old!), but you know who you are and I love each and every one of you for being there for me!  Many of you have listened to me get angry and helped me when I cried...stood beside me during many good times and bad...I am forever thankful God placed you in my path.

I am thankful for the women and men in my ministry that I have been blessed to help.  I am blessed to have a calling to help others find my most grateful gift of faith.  I know God uses me to help others and I am humbled and overjoyed to see Him work through me.

May each of my days in this next year be spent remembering these blessings and be grateful not just one day of the year but every day.

To God be the glory in all things!

Special Day for Mom

I love spending time with my mom...today was a special day as we celebrated her birthday...as I wrote on my Facebook post...my mom is pretty awesome!...the most amazing mother who raised five boys and a girl of her own (with Dad's help of course!)...took in two more children...helped (and continues to help) un-numbered others in her life as the neighborhood mom....nurse...and friend...She does not mind telling you like it is to help you do your best! She is talented and can cook for two but especially loves to cook for a crowd....

But not today....today we are going to take care of her! Heading to my mom's house to serve her a lasagna dinner with all our crew and Adrian's family and Kendall...her other children are there in spirit...hoping we can have more of us together for the next time! God bless you, Mom on your special day and many more to come!

So...we left right after I posted this and arrived in time to set up the lasagna and pies...Adrian and his family (minus Alex :( ) arrived with the salad and bread.

I had told my mom we would be having a carrot cake for dessert...knowing that she LOVES pies and as she says...no one ever makes me pies (but hers are so good!).  I arrived to find that my mom...always considerate to other's taste...had made brownies for Kasey and Alex.  She was so surprised that the children and I had made SIX pies...pumpkin, lemon, apple crumb, chocolate and coconut cream (her favorite!)!

We enjoyed the meal and the pies...then we surprised her with her gift...a ceiling fan that she has been hoping to save up to purchase for her dining room...not your typical fan...very pretty and concealed to avoid being so obvious since it was being placed in the dining room.  Michael had the joy of setting it up, along with another light that we planned to change.

After all the food and work, we also had time to play a game of cards before heading home.  It was so fun to see my mom smile so much...I think she was pleased!  Another great day in our part of the world!

Proud Sister

I had the privilege of seeing my younger brother, Kendall, fulfill his career goal...he is now a member of a local sheriff's department.  He has spent the last nine weeks (and many years in other efforts to succeed in this field!) training, which included written exams, gun safety and accuracy, baton training, pepper (OC) spray experience, and hand to hand combat scenarios.  He worked very hard and we could all tell how excited he was to start this new career.

The graduation ceremony included several speeches, oath of office, and a pinning ceremony.  The two speeches that were the most impressive were from the sheriff and one of the trainers.

The sheriff told the group that they should be committed to helping the facility to be safe for the prisoners and staff.  Their job was not to just contain the prisoners like animals but to treat everyone as if they had just made mistakes that needed to be rectified....not that there were not bad people that needed to be watched but that they should all be given opportunity to change.  He also told the group that they should be able to determine if this job was right for them and make the decision to give up their badge if they were not able to give their best to this commitment.

The trainer said that the main thing he could offer for advice was to remind them of the acronym for the word SHERIFF:

S- Service to others (Service in Leadership...lead by example)
H- Honesty (on duty and off)
E- Embrace diversity
R- Respect (it must be given to receive)
I- Integrity (again...in all settings!)
F- Full accountability for their actions- responsibility for actions
F- Family...make time for your own but know that the department is one big family unit ready to help each other

It was great to see Kendall walk across the stage to receive his certificate of completion and then recite the oath of office.  However, my favorite part was watching our mom pin him with his sheriff badge!  So awesome!

It was a great day...so glad that Mom, Adrian (oldest brother), Loretta (family friend), Sean, Henry, Zaira, and I were able to be there to support him...I know that the rest of the family is proud of him also.  Great job, Kendall!

Remembering the Twelve

I will never forget the day we heard about the Bonfire stack falling...we were living in Germany at the time and it was one of the few times when I thought the ocean was too wide...I missed Texas terribly and wanted to be home and prayed that it was all a bad dream...how could something so awful happen during such a unifying tradition as Bonfire.  Still today...I think that part of Aggieland died along with the twelve souls taken from us.

I could go on and on about those feelings...but what I thought I would focus on tonight is the memorial set up at the site of the accident.  I have always wanted to go see the site but knew it would be emotional and steered away from that moment until this weekend.  We were passing through Aggieland and we had to wait for an appointment so it was one of those moments when a good idea actually matches with the moment.  I had not even thought about the anniversary of the event when we drove up to the entrance...I have had a few other things on my mind of late...it was not until we were at the site that I stopped to realize it was only two days away.

As Henry, Zaira, and I walked around we noticed the symbolism that would only be realized by an Aggie and other points that just made sense...we would later read about the different elements of the memorial and smile with appreciation.  It was a good time as we learned a little more those lost and how proud they were to be a part of the tradition that would lead to their end.  It made me stand a little prouder as I reflected on being an Aggie...part of a group of amazing people.  I have no real words of wisdom in the experience except to treasure life and those we hold dear....so I thought I would just share the images molded into the stone that represents the twelve.  Then I end with a picture that shows the intent of the memorial...that we stand in their absence as Aggies so they are never forgotten.

Gig 'em Ags!  AND know...we mark you present with a loud call out "Here!"  

Celebrating Life with Anita

 
Our crew spent the day yesterday helping prepare for the local pregnancy help center banquet.  This is an annual fundraising event for the center who helps women who are in an unexpected pregnancy situation.  It is not a welfare program...but what I like to call a hand up program designed to help families reach their potential through love and compassion and learning...not just about parenting but how to be a better person.  The small staff...from director on down...are amazing and caring people who I have come to love over the years we have lived in East Texas.  I will miss them terribly...as will our entire family.  We never had to use their services (we have been blessed while living here) but instead were able to help in our small way to help others through their center.

Each year we have given our day to help them decorate and set tables for this event.  We LOVE doing this...it is just a fun day with great people.  There are times when I watch the boys working this event and wonder why our house is not spotless!  LOL!  No... really...they do such a great job...and work together with the center staff...I love to see my boys in action...a proud Momma moment!  One of my favorite parts of the day is to come back after we complete the decorating and see it all come together with candles lit and see the sparkle!  It is quite breath-taking to know we had a part of the set up!  After all, it is often the ambiance that helps set up the effort to raise the money needed to keep the center going another year!  It is in that moment that I see that the efforts of all our strengths came together to make it all happen.

It is also interesting that when walking in this morning I thought about it being our last year to help as we move on to San Antonio.  However, by the end of the day, the boys were all asking if we could find a way to come back and help next year.  Who knows...maybe we could do that after all...who says moving means we cannot continue to help the organization we love so much!

We especially loved getting Zaira ready for the event also.  We went to the store in the afternoon and bought her first pair of jeans and cowgirl boots!  She was not sure at first but got used to the idea after a little walk around the room.  I think she might just be a country girl!  LOL!

As for the actual event...well it was an amazing evening!  

We started off hearing about the ministry and the blessings of helping not just women but men to reach parenting success.  Then about the way grants helped to continue efforts in faith-based initiatives...and then hear about the success of the new ultrasound equipment (half purchased by local funds and remainder donated by Knights of Columbus program).  We even heard about the blessing of seeing a set of twins that were saved by the view on this new ultrasound!  Praise God for these blessings and more shared last night!  Then we had the joy of the guest speaker.

I have been coming to this event for years...love all the speakers who have come in the past...but this year was the best EVER!!!!  We were blessed with an evening of humor from Anita Renfro!  She is true to form...the woman who is not afraid of saying what we are all thinking!  She was so funny and can sing also!  I had to take dear Zaira to the back of the room so she would not disturb the others around us with her squealing but it turned out for the best....as Zaira danced herself right to sleep...she literally fell asleep toward the end of the night...in the middle of one of Anita's fast paced songs!  

The best part of her talk was that she took the time to make it personal.  Maybe a little too personal for some of us...but so funny!  She joked about our HUGE balloon decorations hanging from the ceiling...and one our sweet guests...Rachel was teased so kindly because she was a twenty something who could fit into skinny jeans.  I spoke to Paula later to see if it was planned...it was not but it could not have been a better situation...as it must have made Rachel...a new mom...feel good knowing that she was envied for her size by Anita!  By the way, Anita has nothing to worry about as she looks great in her 'average size jeans'!  I love that she ended with a serious song after all our laughter it was good to bring it all back home to share a mother's love for her child...which is what the center is all about...and then the 'Raised You Right' song.

The only bad part of being in the back of the room was not being able to sit with my dinner guests.  I would have really enjoyed talking more with Julie (hopefully taking over pro-life activities in East Texas), Vicky and Bill, Steve, and Cynthia.  I hope Sean and Henry were able to be good hosts for me! 

To make the evening even better...the meal served was great!  A little Polynesian flare for our East Texas banquet...a great choice for a fun evening.  Zaira especially loved the chocolate cobbler...she tried to lick the bowl clean!  She loves chocolate!  LOL!  If only the tea were a little sweeter! <WINK> [SIDE NOTE:  If you wondered about the song she skipped...click on the link...we really missed out with this one!]

Although we could have gone home at the end of the night with all the other guests,  we stayed for the long haul...we first met with Anita.  She is true to herself and gave time to everyone who wanted to talk to her.  The boys were happy to wait their turn so they could tell her how funny she was and how much she spoke of their mom (yikes...do I really say all those things!  YEP!!!!)  We enjoyed hearing about Anita's love for tamales and the joy she gave to others in the audience.

Then we helped clean up all the decorations...ending with those massive balloons on the ceiling!  I know this sounds crazy but it is just as much fun cleaning up after this event as it is setting up!  The center staff and volunteers are just that much fun!  Have I mentioned that we love these ladies?!?!!?  We really do!  

Just when we thought we could not have anymore fun for the evening!  We were getting into the van and Henry yells, "STOP!!!!!!  I need the camera!"  He jumped out and took a picture of the building lights and the statue all lit up.  THEN...got back in and said he wished we had the tripod so he could get a picture of the moon.  LOW AND BEHOLD...we had packed it in the van to go back to San Antonio...and he was able to get an AMAZING moon picture!  A fun way to end the evening...we were so wound up that we stayed awake a little longer into the evening and then crashed!  

WHAT A GREAT DAY!  And so fun to end our official time in East Texas this way!  We head back to San Antonio tomorrow!  Today we finish packing and cleaning!  So, I end with a bitter sweet farewell to Paula and all the ladies...Who knows maybe we will be able to come back next year...so we will not say good-bye just yet!  And of course we can always stay in touch!  God bless!