My Spare Oom

Joining A Catholic Young Woman

2012-01-01T22:53:00.000-06:00

Exciting news! After many months (ok, probably a year) of prodding and gentle reminding on Clare's part, I finally joined the contributors to her beautiful blog, A Catholic Young Woman.

I love Clare dearly - she's my adopted older sister - and I'm tickled pink to have such an honor. She and ACYW are wonderful inspirations to grow closer to God, live a life of holiness, and be an old-fashioned girl.

So....here's my first post on one of my favorite blogs. I've been a reader for 3-4 years, back when she had just started it, so it's surreal to see one of my posts on there! I'll be blogging about living my Faith as a young woman, courtship, marriage, and the loveliness of home and beauty. Come say hello!

Oh, and there's a few new posts up on my food blog, Graceful Eats. I wrote today about my goals for 2012 and the Inspiration Board I made to help me visual them.

Enjoy! :)

2011-12-31T12:22:00.000-06:00

Helllo, friends!

I'm still here...I haven't been holed up in my house, weeping buckets of tears, which my last post may have insinuated. Nope, I'm cheery and busy as ever. My last post was merely some thoughts I wrote down during a rather daunting week. I'm quite eager for Christmas (!!!) and all the holiday loveliness. :)

(Edit: I started this post the week of Christmas, so I'm a tad late but I'm finishing it.)

In other exciting news, Christmas is literally just around the corner! I can't believe Advent went by so quickly...I'm looking forward to Christmas Eve Mass on Saturday and Christmas Day on Saturday
---------------------
(skip to present day [Dec. 30th])
My anticipation was mingled with sorrow though...a dear family we know was stricken with tragedy two weeks ago. Two friends ( both young boys, 15 and 13, I believe) lost their father a week before Christmas. Please keep their father and the family in your prayers. Their father was a hilarious, hard-working, compassionate, devout man who was dedicated to God and his family. His death was a startling reminder of a well-known, but oft-ignored truth: 'we know not the day or the hour.' (Matt. 24:36.) Life is so precious....
I was reminded of this even more at the end of Christmas Day when I watched the beautiful classic "It's a Wonderful Life."

It is the story of a man who, after continiously sacrificing his own hopes and dreams in order to do the right thing for his loved ones, hits rock bottom on Christmas Eve. Surrounded on every end by hopelessness, facing finiancal and business ruin, George Bailey (play by James Stewart in the performance of a lifetime) wishes he had never been born. His wish is granted. He has the chance to see what the lives of his family and friends would have been like without him.

The ending quote, by the angel Clarance who accompinies George in the second half of the movie, moved me to tears. I posted on Facebook:

"Just finished watching It's A Wonderful Life and bawling my eyes out. 'No man is ever a failure who has friends.' If that's the case, then I'm as rich as I'll ever want to be. So very, very blessed. Thank you, dear friends for your friendship. It's the best gift I could ever receive."

So, to conclude, it was a very lovely Christmas. Not quite how I'd imagined it...but then, that's Life. Spontanious. Our Christmas started bright and early with presents, so I muched on a scone and some egnogg to tide me over.

Among the gifts I received, this one was one of my favorites!!

I lovelovelove Lord of the Rings and the complete soundtrack and recording has been on my wish list for a few years. It is the perfect music to listen to when I have a severe case of writer's block. :) Needless to say, I was one very happy (albeit sleepy [and that's what I look like when I wake up]) girl.

Then it was off to Christmas Day Mass, dressed in my best. Despite attending the Vigil Mass the night before, I still wanted to go on Christmas Day since it fell on a Sunday this year. I dithered back and forth for a bit, but decided to go, and ended up being so glad I went. Mass was beautiful, Father gave a lovely, simple homily (i.e. sermon for any non-Catholic readers), and the CHristmas spirit was overflowing in the church. One of my favorite things - Christmas cheer! :)

I came home starving and did what any normal Catholic girl who wakes up early for presents and then fasts before Mass does.

I ate breakfast at 10:50: a smoothie covered in cookie crumbs that was inhaled in less than 15 minutes.

Mind. Blown.

Eggnog gingerbread smoothie with gingerbread cookie pieces, chocolate-orange scones (Joy the Baker recipe), dried cranberries, pomagranant arials, minced candied ginger, and chocolate chips. :D That's how I roll...

Speaking of chocolate...

It's pretty safe to say I hit the chocolate motherload this year...between stocking stuffers from my mom, my amazing best friends who know I'm a dark-chocolate-all-the-way-girl, and some I picked out for myself...I'm set for next few months. Or anytime the beast strikes. ;)

Hope y'all had (and still are - Christmas season ends 2nd week of Jan.) a blessed Christmas! Did it go how you thought it would? What was your favorite part?

Mine was definitely making whipped cream in 5 minutes with my new Kitchen Aid <------- LURVE. (Been drooling over one for years!)

Isn't It (Not Really) Funny?

2011-11-17T20:48:00.003-06:00

Funny when laughs turn into tears...and suddenly it's not funny any more.

Funny how you can never cry just one tear...

Funny when crying makes you feel better...even when the reason you're crying isn't so funny.

...how tears are salty, as bitter as the reasons that cause them.

...that just when you think you're done, a fresh flood surges.

...despite being a rational creature of intelligence and logic, emotions can move you so.

Isn't it funny?

Not really...but with a good sniff, a few shakes of the head, and some soothing Irish music, you're all right, having weathered yet another storm.

And you hope you find an umbrella with pink polka dots before the next one. :)

Are You There, God? It's Me.

2011-11-12T22:00:00.000-06:00

I've never read the children's book, "Are You There, God? It's Me, Margaret." but oh, how apropos the title is. This past week, I've found myself whispering those words more than once....it finally feels like Fall here and with the cooler breezes, twirling leaves, and shortening of the day-lit hours of Fall, comes the heavy, unexpected surprises dropped on one's shoulders, moments of discouragement, even despair, and sharp, cold reminders.

Not everything is roses and sunshine. Throughout the seasons of life there are always changes, many unwelcomed and unlooked for. Medical bills, emotional revelations, a disagreement with a friend, etc....the list is endless and seeming with possibilities. A family member suggested I make a list of 15 things that stress me and I wanted to laugh because I could write 1,000 reasons! I did not, choosing instead to make a list of 15 things that make me happy. When I fall, when the world's too much and I am too tired, I never hestitate to ask the only One who can carry me to do so.

Are you there, Lord? It's me. I've fallen again. It's all those darn roots. For some reason, there's so many in the path that leads towards You. I tripped; I couldn't help it...and I'm so tired, Lord. I can't do this right now - I'm too weak. Won't you carry me? I need Your strength, for mine is nothing without You. And Jesus, our good Shepard, tenderly bends and enfolds us within his arms. What a sweet joy to lift one's head and say simply, "I can't. Won't you carry me, please?" Like the small, innocent lambs who see the world with fresh eyes and minds, the wise, experienced sheep in their prime, or the elderly ewes who cannot continue on their own, He gently carries each one of us according to our need.

What is difficult for many is to let Him. And it is hard to let go, to surrender all the impending deadlines, hopeless seanarios, and dead ends...however, I usually don't have a problem informing God I need Him to carry me, probably because I know my limits when I hit them and I know when He needs to take over. I have no problem calling in reinforcements. :) (Now, mind you, I'm not so great at letting go and letting Him take charge from the start - something I need to work on.)
No one is meant to walk and struggle forever without any respite. During these moments of discouragement, Our Lord invites us to rest in Him, to soothe our spirit. It is a humble reminder we are not the Creator of the universe. Everyone stumbles. Everyone falls. Even Our Lord did when He carried the Cross to Calvery. Because of this, He sympathizes with us even more deeply. During His short life on earth, He also felt pain, despair, grief, weariness, abandonment, and loneliness...He understands better than anyone else what we feel, and how desperately we need to be carried sometimes.

For as we share abundantly in Christ's sufferings, so through Christ we share abundantly in comfort too (2 Cor. I:5)

It's what helps me keep going....as do the words of a small yet indescribably wise Hobbit, when I too ask, "Why? Why should I keep on?" When evils darkens the door, when the last straw that breaks the entire camel (not just his back!) falls, when I have no answers, no comforting words of advice, when absolutely nothing goes right, when I wonder what I'm holding onto...I am reminded of the simple, profound truth.

"Because there's some good in this world, Mr. Frodo - and it's worth fighting for." ~Samwise Gamgee, The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring.

There is always good, therefore, we need to be joyful in hope, persevere in hardship; keep praying regularly (Romans 12:12).

No matter how bleak things may seem, there is always hope. For when the world says "Give up," Hope whispers, "Try it one more time."

An Outstanding October

2011-10-13T22:22:00.000-05:00

Hallo, friends!

Whew...I know it sounds cliche, but September went by so quickly! I blinked and it was October...how did that happen? Regardless, I am so. Pumped. For. Fall.

I can't wait for the tree leaves to explode with color....

The air to get cool, crisp, and invigorating as a cup of sparkling apple cider.

Long sleeved sweater weather, decorating the house with squash and gourds, drinking hot chocolate and lattes (when it's not bright and sunny outside). And pumpkin recipes out of the wazoo. ;)

Delicious Autumn! My very soul is wedded to it, and if I were a bird I would fly about the world seeking the successive autumns. ~George Eliot

It's doesn't feel like fall yet here in the South, but everyone else seems to be feeling the exhilarating chill in the air, so I'm hoping we're next! I love, love, love fall. There's something about the season: starting school back uo, getting in the swing of weekly activities again...my pep, creativity, and drive always abound in the autumn. It inspires productivity, I tell you! I may grumble about getting out of bed, but once I'm up, I can't wait to spend the day checking off my To-Do list.

Inspired by Gina's 10 Ways to Make October Outstanding, I put together a list of my own (although I definitely want to follow hers as well!).

Eight Ways to Make October Outstanding

1. Take daily walks in and soak up the beautiful sunshine

2. Have an Octoberfest (a non-beer one, haha) party - a fall party, if you will.

3. Practice yoga weekly (3x)

4. Pizzzzzoooooki!!!!

5. Roast my first butternut squash of the season

6. Finish every last word in the draft for my book.

7. Decide on dress sketch (my besties and I are making our dresses for an upcoming winter formal)

8. Something to do with writing (and fall)...it's the the works, so we'll see if it pans out. :)

There's a harmony in autumn, and a luster in its sky, which through the summer is not heard or seen, as if it could not be, as if it had not been!~Percy Bysshe Shelley

P.S. I updated the blog template - thought it was time for something new. Hope y'all like the new look! :)

Happy September!

2011-09-18T13:37:00.001-05:00

Things that make me happy....

A brand new Shakespeare script.

Pumpkin spice lattes.

Friends who are just as crazy as I am.

Twirly skirts.

Having some pretty awesome biceps... ;)

Bangs.

Soft, fall-y sweaters.

Chocolate chip millet-banana muffins.

Having my college girls back for the weekend.

Reading.

Texting. :)

I have a sneaking suspicion I'm secretly British...

2011-09-03T12:59:00.001-05:00

If not that, then it must be in my blood somehow, for I've an unholy love for English books, pubs, roaring fires, and tea.

Scones make my heart pitter patter.

I adore rainy days and galoshes.

I secretly wish Americans said "mates."

Even though I vehemently loathed eggs and bacon with a passion growing up, I frequently have eggs, toast, and tea for breakfast now.

I've already had four cups of tea. And it's only 8:30 in the morning.

I love the country - lush, green, rolling hills especially -, adore British accents, and I even drove on the wrong side of the road my first time behind the wheel. (Ahem. It was at night in an empty parking lot with my mom, for the record. ;) Heh.

I also think Shakespeare must be read and acted in a British accent.

My heart longs for cobblestone streets.

I have a deep and abiding love for fish and chips.

In short, I am a Anglophile.

I am also of the decided opinion that teatime should be reinstated - bring back the tea, Paul Revere!

(...Of course, all of this is typed with a straight face. My personality decidedly reflects my actual heritage which is Hispanic. Hm, calm, cool, reserved, logical, astute, and thoroughly respectable? Dear me. I'm not British at all!)

In the Midst of a Tempest

2011-08-18T23:55:00.000-05:00

Greetings, friends! I'm writing this, sitting in a car safe and dry, while the heavens pour down and lighting flashes silver against the violet-hued night sky. It's a lovely storm pattering down around us and invoking delightful and refreshing sensations of calmness - despite the intense lightning - almost like orchestrated chaos, if there is such a thing. We're headed home from the rushing, metropolitan city of Houston where we enjoyed lunch at our favorite French cafe, La Madeleine, some book love at Barnes and Noble, and a scrumptious repast of salads, hard boiled eggs, and our respective sandwiches (portabello wrap for me and muffalatta for my mother) for dinner.

And now the rain, rain, rain is coming down, down, down, like a pail of water, as Winnie the Pooh would say. Thankfully, our house is a bit more higher up than Piglet's so we shan't (hopefully!) be flooded in. :)

I've oft remarked this (perhaps not on here before), but I find whenever I am feeling particularly cross, miserable, worn out, and discouraged with how my day went...it never fails to begin to rain. It's the loveliest feeling to suddenly hear the cheerful gurgle of raindrops when everything else seems out of sorts. Rain, and storms, seem to wash the unpleasantness away. Perhaps it's because that's what rain does: it washes things away, cleanses and makes a new slate. No matter what I am upset about, it always seems to disappear with the storm. Rather like God spring-cleaning me. I always love a good rainy day, especially rainy nights, but they're even nicer when they send my weariness and scowls floating away like a bottle bobbing in an impromptu stream.

“The best thing one can do when it’s raining is to let it rain.” ~ Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

Sometimes...

2011-07-07T22:08:00.001-05:00

...I don't want to grow up.

It's usually when I'm tired and feel exceptionally young.

I realize how little I am, how big and demanding the great noisy world is. It's quite nice, you know, being a child. Not to have to have any real worries, responsibilities, or commitments, like taxes, working, bills, or even spouses and babies.

When the world is too much, and mental exhaustion and genuine weariness sets it, we can still close our eyes, curl up, and forget the outside world pounding on the door. There are others to carry us: mothers and fathers - who were children once too - but now grown, brush our heads with a cool, nurturing hand, a gentle knowing smile, and pick us up when we're too tired to go further.

A comfortable peace fills one's soul at the sleepy, reassuring knowledge that home is near, like a door suddenly opening and spilling warm, golden light in the falling dusk of a long day...Or the smell of home, the dear familiar scents of your personal world blending with the delightful aroma of a hot, homemade dinner coupled with the sweet fact that your bed waits with clean (perhaps ;) ) sheets, ready to welcome you with delicious softness.

Often the mere knowledge that there is a place of welcome and refuge is enough to soothe our weary spirits.

"I shall find wandering more bearable: I shall know that somewhere there is a firm foothold, even if my feet cannot stand there." (LotR: FoR)

Sometimes, it is nice to be small and taken care of. Sometimes it is nice to be weak.

All things have their season, including being a child. Ours is the golden time of laughter, friendship, and play. Now is the time to laugh freely, scamper, dream lovely dreams, count the stars, and bask in carefree joie de vivre. Growing up - a wonderful, exciting, and adventurous as it may be - comes with a set of responsibilities we are still too small for.
Even falling in love, lovely and life-changing as it is not for us yet...it's almost like giving a beautiful, moving, awe-inspiring book, like The Lord of the Rings, to a wee tot who is barely able to read. They may be able to listen to the story be read aloud but it is not until they are older and have matured that they can read it themselves and laugh, weep, and sigh by turns as the story deeply moves them.

If all things came early, the world would be a jumbled, unhappy place. For what is joy of reading the first few pages of a book, then skipping to the end? The richness of journeying and falling in love with the characters is lost. Though it is a fact often forgotten by many, the journey is more important than the destination. What would have The LotR have been if the Fellowship had not had to fight, struggle, and plod their way to Morder? Had Frodo been magically whisked to Mount Doom, the moment he stepped forward in Rivendell and offered to carry the Ring there, it is probable he would not have had the immense courage to stand at the edge of the fiery chasm - and Gollum certainly wouldn't have been there to play a role in the Ring's destruction.

We never quite know what the future holds - and it is better, I think, to not know. Growing up lays ahead of us. For now though, we are still little children.

For now, we can sleep. For when we sleep, we dream...of Neverland, sugarplums, shoes, ships, and sealing wax. :)

Future Plans as a Mother

2011-06-14T08:07:00.003-05:00

I have determined a few things concerning the education (and life in general) of my future children.

First, I'd like to have some.

Secondly, I'm going to start homeschooling them as soon as possible. And there will be math -just a bit- done in the summer.

I'd love them all to be a grade ahead...merely for the reason that come their senior year in high school they can study/concentrate on their passions (read: relax and have fun) instead of burning the skin off their noses from application to the grindstone.

I'd love for them to grow up in the country, on a farm, preferably. Or at least as close to the "country" feel as we can get; not too far away from civilization. I'll need a Starbucks nearby.

I want them to grow up and do what they absolutely love for a living - not what makes money. We can be starving artists together. :)

I plan on having them in the kitchen with me all the time and teaching them how to cook as soon as they can stand....even babies can appreciate good food!

I will feed them delicious, nourishing food - including nut butters, cake, bread, and Green Monsters. ;)

And lastly, I will love them so much it'll hurt. In a good way.

12 Things That Happen at a Masquerade...

2011-05-23T21:10:00.017-05:00

1. The dancers go a little crazy...

2. You realize, despite wearing four-inch heels, how short you still are.

3. At least three people don't recognize you in your mask.

4. The Phantom of the Opera tells you you look magnificent.

5. You teach a friend to dance. :)

6. One of your best friends designed and sewed her leather mask & dress.

7. Said best friend has the night of her life.

8. Best friend and you decide to fight in the middle of the dance floor. People take bets. ;)

9. Chocolate fountain. Nothin' more to say.

10. Dipping cream puffs and cheesecake in the chocolate fountain. :D

11. You feel like Hermione Granger at the end of the Yule Ball. Just a little bit.

12. Your feet hurt indescribably, and you wonder how the Twelve Dancing Princesses do this every night...

Nothing is more calming....

2011-05-05T00:26:00.006-05:00

...than a cup of tea late at night and a conversation with a good friend. :)

Picture: Allposters.com

He is Risen!

2011-05-03T20:18:00.005-05:00

Let the whole earth rejoice that the Son of God has risen and death has been defeated! Alleluia, alleluia!

Now that the 40 days of fasting are over, the 50 days of feasting begin! Last Sunday, Divine Mercy Sunday, marked the last day of the Easter Octave...but only the first week of Easter! Lent is rather akin to Advent in that it so often steals the actual holiday's thunder (Easter, Christmas), but Lent adn Advent are just seasons of preparation for the holy seasons of celebrating Easter and Christmas. And we have 50 days!

I love that Easter kicks off Spring...I realized today at Mass that I was already back in my "normal routine" mindset, but's it still a holy time in the Church with the white and gold vestments/hangings of Easter. I'm going to try very hard to spend the remainder of the Easter season in joyful anticipation and earnest prayer leading up to Pentecost. I will be Confirmed with the Holy Ghost in June! I am both eagerly excited and nervous...it's an awful lot to prepare for! :)

On Easter Sunday, Father charged us with this task: "We must spread the Good News...it is good news, so tell someone! Share it with the world!" So here it is, dear little corner of the world - our King and Savior has risen. And sweetest of all, we too are resurrected with Him. All we need do is believe and follow His commandmants.

"'Blessed are they who have not seen yet believe...' 'Do this is memory of Me...'"

The Call to Obedience in Holy Week

2011-04-17T15:38:00.008-05:00

Happy Holy Week, friends!

I am so excited for Holy Week and Easter - I can't believe it's nearly here. Lent has flown by. Today is Palm Sunday, the day Jesus entered Jerusalem, and the people threw palms down in His path, crying "Hosanna, Hosanna!" Mass began with everyone filing outside silently with palms in their hands, and then Father said a beautiful prayer about how we have prepared for Christ's Resurection with four weeks of penance, almsgiving, and prayer....somehow, it doesn't feel like four weeks! It's hard to believe it's almost over, so I'm determined to enjoy and prayerfully celebrate this last week.

The first four weeks of Lent are devoted to our personal mortification (making sacrifices and carrying out works of penance), last week focused on Jesus's public life, and Holy Week celebrates His Passion - the last week of His life.

We are planning to spend Easter out of town, in Texas with my mom's family as we always do. So at some point we'll be on the road all day, but I'm looking forward to resting and spending quiet time with God this week.

The first three days following Palm Sunday are traditionally spent in vigorous spring-cleaning of the house for the greatest feast of the year. Tomorrow, I'll tidy my room, go through my closet and organize my clothes, adding to a bag already filled and waiting to be donated. I'm going to make a sacrifice and donate it to charity instead of bringing it to a clothes swap with my friends (we all bring unworn clothes and trade - everyone gets something cute!). That was my original intention before Lent, but why not donate some pretty clothes to charity? It shouldn't just be ugly, faded clothes that we give away. :) It will be good for my soul to do that...I can always use the extra penance! And of course, it's an excellent sacrifice to offer up, especially for Our Lady, who no doubt loved pretty things as well.

In his homily, Father talked about what we should focus on during this week, leading up to Good Friday, Our Lord's Passion. He said that the greatest sacrifice we can offer up and lay on the alter is obedience. To be truly obedient is to imitate Jesus, who said, "Father, let this cup pass from me, but not my will but Thine be done." Yet Jesus was obedient to His Father's Will, to the point of death. Father challenged us to be obedient this week, to whatever authority over us - for children, parents and teacher; for employees, their bosses; for wives, their husbands. He asked (with a smile) what we had given up -Chocolate? Why not offer the most difficult and pleasing thing? Our free will.

Don't you love it when Father says something that you know was Divinely inspired? What? You really want me to do it, God, so You nudge him to say it publicly? In church, where EVERYONE can hear?

I gave up chocolate, coffee, and listening to music for Lent and I made the commitment to attend Daily Mass on a regular basis again and spend more time in prayer. My mother, throughout Lent, had subtly (albeit repeatedly) pointed out that surely giving up being angry/losing my temper was more important than coffee or chocolate. I, resolved to give those up to celebrate the penitential aspect of the Lenten season anyway and secretly doubtful that I could "give up" something abstract, went ahead with my plans. Until I heard Father, that is. So it often is....God tries to tell us something (at least, this is how He does it to me - He's different with everyone, no doubt! :) ). We (I) go on our merry little way, pretending not to hear. Oh no, He doesn't want me to do that. Yes, I'm sure. Then He gets our attention through someone or something physical.

And then I cast a guilty, sheepish glance to Heaven. So this week, my observance of Holy Week is to be as obedient as possible. Especially when I don't want to. After all, if Jesus can obey God's Will by dying, can't I "die" to my wishes too? I am similar to Jo from Little Women, and I find it hard to curb my temper and tongue, so this is a good practice for me.

We plan on praying the Stations of the Cross with some friends tomorrow. On Tuesday, our church is praying the Divine Mercy chaplet which I plan on attending. Wednesday is probably when we'll leave; I hope to be at our grandparents for Holy Thursday, so we can have a Passover-like meal, and attend the Last Supper.

Holy Thursday meal: Mainly inspired by Jennifer's post

gyros or a roast - symbolizing the Lamb of God and the Passover Lamb

pita bread/tortillas - reminder of the Unleavened bread and the Eucharist

cranberry or grape juice - the wine that Jesus turns into His Precious Blood

mashed potatoes

Spinach, either cooked or as a salad - the bitter herbs symbolizing the bondage of slavery

A dessert - since this is not a penitential day according to the Church

On Good Friday, I'm going to make Hot Cross buns for breakfast. I probably won't make the icing to go with it, since it is a day of penance and I don't feel that would be appropriate, but I plan on making it to go with any leftovers on Easter Sunday.

I'm also going to watch the Passion of the Christ before (hopefully) going to church between 12-3, the three hours Christ hung on the cross. Yes, I know, I know...I think I'm the only person who hasn't seen that film yet, but my mother didn't allow me to see it the past few years because of the intensity. I begged to see it last Lent and I think she actually agreed, but I somehow forgot! Won't be happening this Good Friday. I'm fully prepared to be shocked, horrified, (I realize how harrowing the film is) and in desperate need of an entire box of tissues. Good Friday, obviously, is the perfect day to pray the Sorrowful Mysteries.

Good Saturday will likely be spent in quiet resting, spiritual reading, and possibly Easter baking but we'll see. I'd really like to fill Easter baskets for the kids this year to be discovered upon our return from Mass (we usually do an Mexican egg hunt outside with the cascarones).

And then...Easter Sunday!! :)

The Gift of Today

2011-04-06T07:42:00.005-05:00

I know I promised Romeo and Juliet pictures as well as a full recap (it's coming!) but here's something that I was thinking about this morning...ah, the musing that waking up at 2 a.m. stirs.

It can be so easy to fall into despair. I know, because I have. Many times before. Often at the end of the day…you know, one of those flop-down-and-sigh-because-nothing-is-going-right-you-didn’t-get-any-school-done-your-chores-are-waiting-and-you’re-exhausted-but-still-have-20-things-to-do-before-bed…the kind of day that leaves you wondering ‘Where did it go?’

I think those emotions are especially magnified in larger families, specifically the variety with many younger siblings. It’s a given when you’re born into a large family (not to mention a taste of parenthood), can seem like a burden, and yet it’s a sweet, hidden blessing. Much like Lent.

I once heard a Catholic homeschooling mother speak at a Seton conference who said, “If the Devil’s not yanking your chain, you’re not doing something right.”

I must be doing quite a number of right things then. ;)

I agree with her. It’s often a during a special period in our lives that the Devil knows we’re growing closer to God, spending time with good friends who inspire us to goodness, or his least favorite thing, that we are content and happy with our lives. He appears in our ear, in the guise of common sense or the world and whispers to give up. To despair. It’s so easy. Simple. Allowed. Common. Everyone’s weak – everyone can give up, right?

What we often fail to realize is that he is thoroughly miserable and wretched, and wants us to share in his misery, much like an upset child who wants the world to fume too. If we can’t be happy, we want everyone else to feel our pain as well.

However, just as the Devil may be whispering to give up in one ear, our Guardian Angel is always at the other, ready to offer comforting words of strength.

With each dawn and cool, calm morning is an invitation. Just like laying out clean, pressed, fresh Sunday clothes the night before and rising to put them on, God lays out a new day and invites us to “take it on”.

"Do not worry about tomorrow; tomorrow will take care of itself. Sufficient for a day is its own evil." (Matt. 6:34)

After all…everyday is a new, fresh day. Every day is a chance to start over. We were meant to live today. Not yesterday, not tomorrow. So, today, I shall finish my school. I’ll sweep the kitchen merrily with a song in my heart and on my lips, I’ll dance my way outside in the sun, I’ll murmur the prayers of the Angelus, and I’ll live today.

After all, it’s my day. :)

St. Patrick's Day

2011-03-17T16:40:00.003-05:00

Happy St. Patrick's Day, everyone!

I hope you've been having a lovely day. It's been a beauty of a day where we are - the sun's a shining, all's green outside, and there's an Irish breeze in the air! ;) St. Patrick himself couldn't have asked for a bonnier day.

I believe there's a wee bit of Irish blood in my family (....or is it Scottish?), but just like St. Patrick, I love the people and the culture and consider myself Irish at heart. ;)

St. Patrick is actually a Catholic saint who was kidnapped as a young boy by Irish bandits and brought to Ireland where he was a slave. Many non-Catholics are surprised to learn he was not Irish, but actually a pagan Roman. Patrick became very close to God during his years of captivity and prayed for a way to escape. Eventually, he was able to escape and later returned after he became a priest and bishop. Though met with strong opposition at first, he was so successful in spreading God's Word that within 25 years after his arrival, all of Ireland became Catholic! He became so beloved, even by his enemies, that few cared he was not Irish.

We enjoyed some shamrock-green ice cream and lemonade (green food coloring) from Chickfil-A, and I'm about to make some Irish soda bread. I've made it a few times after seeing it on Charlotte's blog and our family loves it! I have to hide it from my parents so it lasts the night!

I played with the recipe and used half whole wheat flour and half white; I also added about 1/4 cup of ground flaxseed, which resulted in a lovely thick, dense, hearty bread that is heavenly straight out of the oven and smeared with butter. :)

I'm off to evening Mass - wearing green of course! - and then it will be time to feast for dinner! I also plan on reading one of my old favorites - The Cottage at Bantry Bay by Hilda Van Stockum. Such a fun, sweet book that is irresistibly Irish!

Here are a few simple and delicious-looking ideas for dinner:

Irish Beef Stew

Irish Potato Pancakes

Shamrock Toasties

Blarney Biscuits

Shamrock Peppermint Shake

Why not try a Green Monster - get your greens/salad in for the day and enjoy a luscious smoothie while you're at it? Irish coffee (or any coffee drink) is another fun treat.

And of course, the classic ~ Green eggs and ham! :D

May the road rise up to meet you.
May the wind always be at your back.
May the sun shine warm upon your face,
and rains fall soft upon your fields.
And until we meet again,
May God hold you in the palm of His hand.

Success!

2010-12-06T17:10:00.006-06:00

Well, my experiment turned out better then I hoped - not only did I make it through the dress rehearsal, but both performances of Romeo and Juliet! Thank you all so much for your well wishes! :)

It ended up being a blast...I really think I was running on adrenaline. Thursday's run through went well; we performed the next night, as well as Saturday night. It's been an amazing journey and one I am so proud to have taken with our group of kids/friends, especially my dear friend and co-director/fellow actor, Kilah. :)

Here's me after Friday's show with my youngest brother, Little Man - most of the cast and crew went out to Wendy's afterward to eat. (I opted for some oatmeal from home, hence the Coca-Cola lunchbox!) My hair is naturally wavy but we straightened it for the play...

Shrieks of laughter, arm wrestling, and really bad knock-knock jokes ensued at the restuarant. I went home floating on clouds with numb and limp wrists...ah, the theatre! Or should I say, ah, homeschoolers!

An Interesting Experiment

2010-12-02T07:57:00.004-06:00

What is it like to run a (and co-direct) full dress rehearsal of Romeo and Juliet on absolutely no sleep or coffee???

While also playing Juliet?

I shall find out!

Assume the worst if I fail to post again....

Day of Thanks

2010-11-25T20:57:00.002-06:00

I am thankful for...a sunlight-day with swirls of vibrant leaves, clear skies, and smells of home cooking in the oven..

...brownie pumpkin pie...

...growing up, and holding home closer...

...the adventure that is Life and out there waiting...

...spiced ginger cookies...

.... that my first turkey-less Thanksgiving went smoothly - I hardly missed it!

....rain pattering softly in the velvet night...

...a shift that begins at 9 on Black Friday and not 4:30 a.m!

....my family - all here and safely enclosed in a circle of love...

...God's sweet Love...He knows me so well. Better then anyone, in fact. :)

...and you...

Much love (and hope that you have had a loverly day filled with God's blessings and love),
Grace

Celebrating Narnia-day while the World Celebrates Halloween

2010-10-31T21:32:00.006-05:00

Hello, everyone! Happy Halloween for those celebrating! (And an early Happy All Saints Day!)

I'm sorry for such the long silence (grammar? :P)....these past few months have flown by! I keep thinking, "I need to update, I need to update" and somehow it always slips away! :(
But if anyone is still there/reading, I'm here and posting again!

Somehow it's Halloween and about to be November...where did the time go?! Thankfully, I have started on my Christmas shopping and found one gift already!

I thought I'd write briefly about today, my favorite day... :) Sunday has always been a day of peace, spiritually, mentally and physically. The seventh day was made for us to rest and be. I like to think of Sunday as a long sigh and deep breath after the hurried flurry of the week...Sunday is the Narnia-day, Middle-Earth-day of our week. A day to pause and bask in the loveliness around us: the sunbeams brushing over verdant grass, the quiet sound of our breathing, "setting" on the porch or on a swing, a mug of hot tea, a hymn sung devoutly by many gathered as one in a sacred gathering place before their King...a day of joy.

Time slows and the world pauses on the day set aside to worship our Creator. How great is our Lord, who gives us this day to rest from our heavy burdens and find sweet rest in Him. Sunday is our day of thanksgiving for all of our blessings, trials, and experiences. Our Lord knew we needed a day of quietude to breathe - a sweet lull in the ordinary that is rather extraordinary.

My Sundays are not always idyllic days where everything goes perfectly planned. I can be stressed, angry, upset, cross, exhausted and bored on Sundays...I am human. :) What I love about it though, is that it is the most special day of the week - a Holiday that I can look forward to. And indeed, I do look forward to it, as much as I do to other annual holidays...only, Sunday is more special....because we have it every week.

Happy Sunday, and may you have had a lovely day of rest and prayer. :) (I plan to post about Sunday activities that help make it special/ways to celebrate our weekly Holiday next.)

A Productive Pretty Pink Meeting

2010-04-28T05:53:00.001-05:00

Last night the Pretty Pens met. Yes, it is a secret society for all things pink, frilly, and feminine. Well, not really. Nearly all of us were wearing pink though!! 'Twas a lovelerly eventide of all things writing, shop (book) talk, coffee, and Ms. Cay's so-unbelievable-you-sink-into-it moist chocolate cake with dewberry syrup. Seriously, people. That cake was like a pillow. A big, fluffy, silky, light, airy, cloud-like, chocolate bundle of joy that would make an angel sing.

Yes, I do realize I just used several synonyms in the same sentence. I'm okay with that.

All indulging aside though, it was a pretty good meeting; we banged all the business out of the way...so we could, as Ms. Cay said, "talk afterward til the cows come home." And come home they did, at the ripe respectable hour of 10:00. ;) The Kane ladies (Ms. Kimberly and Keaghan) and Ms. Angela (my Lit teacher) left a bit before 9....my mom and I were lured back into our Joe Mug seats for an extended chat with Ms. Cay. Needless to say we were shrieking with laughter within twenty minutes. (I say shrieking because shrieking is so more ladylike then "roaring".) ;)

What can I say? I take after my mom: slightly random, fun-loving, ready to laugh, and born to par-tay. Of course, any respectable old-fashioned homeschool girl realizes that when I say party, I mean talking with other homeschool moms and tee-heeing over things their kids have said/done. Like trail behind their big brother, vacuuming up cat hair.... :D

I'm actually an old soul. I've always been able to enjoy talking with adults. I enjoy talking to anyone, frankly, usually becasue they let me talk. Just kidding....I love visiting with babies, toddlers, little ones, tweens, teens, college-age, and moms. Especially moms. That might be partly because my mom took me to nearly ever Mom's Night Out...but it's also partly because I love the same things as homeschool moms.

The point of this post, though, was about our group. The Pretty Pens is our little writing group and it's such fun to be encouraged by others. Last night was Ms. Angela's first night as a part of the group, and I got to give her the first eight pages of SoD (Stones of Destiny)! She's my "editor" that I'll be sending chapters/first draft to. I told her I needed some pressure to churn out my draft by May 25, so she agreed.

Next time, I plan to arrive with my first draft - woo hoo! There, I've put it out in the blogsphere so now I've got all of you to bug me about it! :) I also came away with a lot of great ideas about building my platform/expanding as a writer/blogger. Part of that will be updating MUCH more frequently, posting pictures, recipes, reviews, etc.

Did I mention that I was - Oops, never mind. You'll just have to wait for my announcement until after my special project is finished.

Quick question: what would you like to see on My Spare Oom? I feel like I should have a more set theme that I blog about...

Good Eats update!

Just to clarify -

2010-03-23T18:33:00.000-05:00

My mother rather insisted I make some matters clear...

The date that I went on was NOT a romantic date. At all. However, it was a lovely evening with a friend. In my family, my mom or dad will go out on "dates" with us; it's a special night with just one on one time with that person. We call it date night...I was also using the word "date" to a describe my friend who took me out to dinner.

It was quite a something when I arrived home from Mass and my mother asked if I had met a boy at church. Um, no!

So, my dears, I am sorry to have led you on - I had wanted to post a picture of my friend and I, and do a separate post about the dinner/my birthday. It was not a romantic date in the very least, and there's absolutely no possibility that it was/could be.

Kilah, a very good friend, surprised me the Saturday before my birthday by taking me out to dinner. She showed up on my doorstep wearing a new elegant and tasteful black leather jacket, with orchids in her hand. She is one of the sweetest, kindest girls I have ever met, and a very good friend. She had decided to treat me to dinner as my birthday present. So, we went outside where her older sister and father were waiting in her sister's new silver car, and they drove us to the restaurant. Kilah and I had a blast that night, laughing, talking, and enjoying our meal. It was a wonderful evening with a wonderful friend.

There, that is all. I hope you aren't disappointed or upset with me! Please know I would never really go on a date with a boy, and neither would my parents ever let me go on one alone. I firmly intend to court, and that will be when I am older. I also hope I haven't given anyone the wrong idea...I have a small group of friends who are all dear old-fashioned friends and we often get together for a girls' date night at one of our houses. This was just simply my first time going out to dinner with a friend without all of our families being there as well. :)

Happy Birthday To Rose

2010-03-23T14:58:00.000-05:00

Happy Birthday, dearest Amanda, my Mamma Rose! You are now 18, a grown up young lady who is standing on the threshold of womanhood. You are so special to myself, and countless others in so many ways. Here are a few...

Just like Lucy, you are tenderhearted and as kind as a lioness. And yet you fiercely defend and protect those you love. You show great courage everyday when you proclaim your beloved Catholic faith to the world and the blogsphere. Purity shines forth from you in all that you do, say, and how you dress.

Like Arwen, you wait for your beloved steadfastly, for you know that there is always hope. Your grace and elegance in serving your family (both RL and forum one) is beautiful in itself, but you are also graceful and elegant in bearing as well! Your beauty shines brightly in Christ's garden of many flowers...a Rose is the loveliest, however. Just as your second name that we have all come to know you by means love, you too are filled with love. I smile each time I think of you, and I think of your love with which you are overflowing.

You are like a Rainbow!

Pink:
You are sweet just like this lovely blushing shade, and as feminine as a Rose.

Blue:
Calm and comforting as this soothing color, you are a loving mother and older sister who tends to her many children and sisters lovingly.

Green:
Your boundless energy and vitality is like the color green; you are as fresh and vibrant as a green, spring day!

Purple:
As (Daddy's) King Peter the Magificent's wife, you are Queen of Cair Paravel, and of all of your family's hearts! You are every bit as gracious, regal, and kind as a Queen.

Orange:
You are as warm as this lovely hue that denotes fall; with your beaming smile and sweet words, all feel your warm presence, especially when you wish others Happy Birthday!

Yellow:

Ah, dearest Mamma, you are like with the golden sun with your radiant smile and happiness that you emit. You belong in Narnia where the sun shines golden upon Cair Pareval and all laugh and smile. Whenever any of us are feeling sad or alone, you are there with your gentle beam that brings a smile back to our faces.

Red:
Red is for your larger-than-life heart that loves us so. You are always so kind and filled with compassion, and we love you so dearly.

You are truly a Shieldmaiden of Heaven, and certainly of Renia. ;) Thank you for being my Mamma, my older sister, my companion, letter-writer, prayer warrior, and most importantly, for adopting me and loving me. I love you so much and pray you have a Wonderful 18th year, and Many More Birthdays to Come!

~Your loving daughter,
Grace Proudfeet-Baggins-Brandybuck-Took

A toast to Amanda!! *cheers*

P.S. I hope you don't mind I borrowed your Lucy picture. :)

Yawn, Groan, and Giggle

2010-03-22T21:12:00.000-05:00

I'm yawning because I'm about to trip off to bed, groaning because I can't "spill my guts" and tell the enchanting tale of my first date until I find a camera cord...because I want to show y'all my gorgeous date, and giggling because I can't wait for a second date! Hmm... *checks calendar* This Thursday looks good...

Ah, life feels like a checklist, and yet these past two weeks have had some very moving moments. On a sad note, my grandmother (my dad's mom) passed away in her sleep after a heart attack, so we spent last week with his family. We cried with family, and then came home with my mom's sister and laughed again, with family. I feel my grandmother is Heaven, and that has helped a great deal. Because of traveling for the memorial and my aunt's visit, I've had spare time - took off for school and got to relax.

New Good Eats post! Please add to your Favorites if that is how you keep tabs on blog or subscribe! :)

Is anyone else excited for SPRING?

A Birthday, A Evening On the Town, First Place, and Headway into the Book

2010-02-28T21:34:00.000-06:00

Hellooo!! *waves* Oh, I know....It's been twenty-seven days since I've updated and I'm dashing this out frantically, whilst trying to recover from a "berry basty bold".... :P And my ear just popped. Ow. :(

Let me get to the exciting news quickly while I still have time:

1. I turned seventeen on the 8th!!!! :D I have to say after a few weeks, I do indeed feel seventeen now...although at some times it catches me by surprise that I'm a year older. *gasps for air* Holy moly...I'm a Seventh Year - how did that happen?!??! Certainly not ready to graduate from Hogwarts! Hm, perhaps I can take Remedial everything...I think Professor Dumbledore would be most understanding. ;)

2. I went on my first date! That was a complete and total shock, but truly one of the most delightful ones I've ever had. My date arrived unexpectedly in a black leather jacket, brought me orchids, and then whisked me away in a sleek silver car to an awaiting restaurant where we had a reservation for two at 7:00. *sighs blissfully* 'Twas the loveliest eventide....but I didn't have my camera, so no pictures! Grrr.

3. I entered a Shakespeare contest, in which we had to perform a 20-line monologue...and I won!! I'm going to State now - on Saturday! Please, please keep me in your prayers!

4. After months of unfruitful labour, I finally have the first 4 pages of Stones of Destiny, and I'll be bringing them to the writer's group I'm part of - 'tis me, my mom, Ms. Kimberly, Keaghan, and Ms. Cay (sorry, no links!)

So yes...I'm leaving February feeling very happy. Oooh, and did I mention I wrote an article about Lent that's to be published in the paper tomorrow?? *happy dance*

Hello, Monsieur March! 'Tis a pleasure to meet you, as I bid farewell to Mademoiselle February! *curties* :)

Back in the morning with replies to y'all comments on my last post - I just had to type out a hasty update! Cheerio!

What Friends Are For

2010-02-01T20:49:00.000-06:00

One of the sweetest gifts is a dear friend. Especially when you've had a long day, and things don't feel right....a friend is there to hug you and let you cry into her shoulder. She'll smile and make you feel better, chat with you cheerfully after you've attempted to dry your tears, and when you don't succeed and keep on sobbing, she'll say nothing, just hug you tighter and let you cry.

Friends share your dreams and hopes, thoughts and beliefs. Friends share hearts and souls. Friends are God's gift. Thank you, Keaghan, for always being there for me. Thank you for having a heart full of love. :)

Tiptoing into Renia Past Bedtime

2010-01-31T21:41:00.000-06:00

It's past my bedtime, (9:30) but for love of my readers and seemingly adoring fans, I am posting before the month of January ends. Hmp. And I needs to be figuring out how to get rid of the Christmas background. *sigh* Help?

Alright, dears. Come with me, and we'll tiptoe into my world, Renia...even though it's past bedtime. ;) My character - and fictional manifestation of myself - Emma Nels is a Catholic girl with a love of reading, coffee, tea, and other-worlds such as Neverland, Narnia, and Middle-Earth. One day she discovers an entrence to another world - and her's is changed forever. This is the tale of a girl, the world she steps into, a band of friends forged by laughter and loyalty, betrayals, and seven Stones of Destiny.

As she fights, explores, and lives in this new world, she discovers that knowing your Destiny is to trust God.

"But, Grandfather, how will I know my destiny?"

"God knows it. You must learn to let go....and trust Him. All things are in His hands. He will show you your way; it is your task to follow it."

Well? :)

Herein begins the First Year of the Tenth Age... cough ..so to speak

2010-01-04T20:37:00.000-06:00

School's begun again and I'm settling comfortably back into routine: waking up, walking, school, breakfast, dashing to the gym, and even a bit of writing!!

Lol...I've probably seen Keaghan at least 5 times in the last two weeks, and last Saturday I helped her come up with a new character! It was awesome - sooo much fun! I'm not sure if she realized, but pretty much all of the ideas I was offering for "Nessa" were all based on me! Lol...I guess I'm guilty of writing myself in her head/books! ;) I'm really, really excited to see more of "me", because, truth be told, she is an AWESOME character! I even got Keaghan to "nick"name her after me: "Wyn"...hehehehhe....of course I'm also tickled pink because *ahem* Wyn is the girl that turns a certain smiling hero's world upside down. :D

This new year, one of the main goals I've set for myself is to finish my book, so au revoir, mellon-nins! I must set my hand to pen (or in this case, keyboard)!

If y'all ask nicely -or even want to know at all, lol - I might do a post just about my book! :)

P.S. New post up on my other blog, Good Eats - it'd really mean the world to me if you guys read it and dropped a few comments. Be a lovely early birthday present! ;)

Christmas is here!!!!

2009-12-27T07:31:00.000-06:00

Merry Christmas, everyone! Happy Birthday to Jesus, the Christ-Child! Not only that, but today is the feast of the Holy Family. :)

As this blessed season of Christmas continues, I hope you all have a wonderful time! I know I am extrodinarily thankful that it is not just one day, but an entire season....it gives us such a richer, sweeter and happier opportunity to celebrate the most special day of all, and even "do-over". Maybe we snapped and spoke harshly at one point, maybe we wouldn't share a toy, maybe we forgot to sing Happy Birthday to Baby Jesus....or, maybe, we tried and we tried but could not make it. Christmas came though, and it is here, and the Christ-Child is in our hearts and families. Today and all the days following it are days of joy! A child has been born to us, who is the Son of God, who so loves us, that He humbled Himself to be a tiny infant, growing into a man who hoped, loved, wept, and bore burdens, just like us. :)

We were blessed to go to Midnight Mass with the Bishop, in the cathedral, which was truly beautiful...and we sat in the very front in the third pew closest to the alter!! After returning home, the kiddos fell asleep after chatting excitedly, Mommy, Daddy and I stayed up to finish wrapping, and then a quiet descended over the house. I dozed lightly for an hour or so and then woke the kids up at 7:00/7:30, who woke Mommy and Daddy up and then we all rushed for the stockings and then the tree. It was a lovely Christmas looking back, and it didn't go quite according to plan -but it was Jesus' day, not ours, not mine.

Oooohhh - my parents got me a CAMERA!!! *squee* Now I can finally take pictures! I'd upload all the ones I've already taken, but I don't know how to do that yet. ;) Today is going to be one of relaaaaaaxation....it's Sunday, so my dad has the day off. Today, I'm really going to rest my body, mind and soul, and meditate on the loveliest Christmas gift, the newborn babe...

Off to write!

Merry Christmas once more! :)

One More Day!

2009-12-24T09:38:00.000-06:00

It's Christmas Eve!! How did that happen? Oh my, the days have gone by so fast - filled with holiday cheer, merry friends, gift-shopping, baking cookies, and laughing parties. If I wasn't Catholic, I'd feel sad that everything ends tomorrow...but it doesn't, my friends! The Christmas season continues into January, ending with the Baptism of Our Lord.

Lots to do today! I've got to wrap all the brownies I've made for everyone at the mall, wrap presents, think of one for a dear rosey friend, finish grocery shopping for Christmas dinner, and help Mom get some stocking stuff.

EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEeeeehhhhhhhhhh - *bangs head* I'd written more but then Blogger signed me out and it didn't get saved!! *dies*

*comes back to life* Oh, well....it was mainly the list I'd made of everything we're going to do on Christmas Day...hehehe, yes, I planned it all out and made a list. Maybe I'll post it later on today. *sniff* 2o minutes of my life gone forever. Why???????

But anyways, off to spread some holiday cheer and check off everything on my lists. There's *cough* six of them, you know. ;)

What do you have left to do today?

Many gifts given and many to be given away!

2009-12-22T06:55:00.000-06:00

Here's the Honest Scrap Award, which I believe both Clare and Miss Eden gave me.

The Rules:
* Thank the person who gave you the award.
* Post 10 honest facts about yourself.
* Pass the award on to 7 others.

1. I am a dreadful procrastinator in many things. But you knew that already, no? ;)

2. Christmas is truly my favorite season - there's just something in the air this time of year...perhaps it's because we near Christ's birthday and the entire world quivers with anticipation.

3. After many months of having no idea which saint to pick for my Confirmation saint, St. Joseph chose me. After fighting it a bit, because I was really leaning toward St. Gabriel the Archangel, I sighed, gave in, and now have one of the best friends I could ever ask for. I can't count the number of blessings and gifts he has granted me, and I firmly believe St. Teresa of Avila in her declaration that St. Joseph will deny no prayer request. Whatever you ask of him, he will grant it. It may not be the way you expect or when, but he will. :)

4. I've become much more healthier and keener on exercise this year, especially after I lost about 30 pounds and a much more happy me now.

5. I'm writing a book about a girl who discovers another world, and falls deeply in love with it, God and the people she meets there...all while fighting against Evil, of course.

6. I haven't really written anything for months. School kind of overtook me completely.

7. I love the group of people of the Fairy Tale Novels Forum, and got to meet some of them this summer. They are all coming to my wedding and will even be in my wedding party! Lol...if that ever happens!

8. I have a baby name book that I have written ALL over in - I read it. Not sit down and flip through it.

9. I hate getting off schedule and not getting a bunch of things done each day. It also bugs me if something takes a long time....I've gotten very time-efficient.

10. I am a enthusiastic list maker. Every few weeks or so, I serious make a list everyday of what I want/need to get done, and then derive a singular pleasure in checking off each thing on my list at the end of the day. :D

Ok, that was fun! Eeeh...who to tag? 1. Keaghan again, 2. Earwen, 3. OurspareOom, 4. Vicky, and whoever else wants to do this!

Miss Eden tagged me as well with the 8 question meme. Here goes!

Six names you go by:
Hmm... 1. My real name

2. Rae, which is my little siblings' attempt to pronounce my name.

3. _____ (real name) - Bear! Two friends frequently call me that - I guess that means I'm related to Bear somehow!! Yay, I'm a Denniston! I've always wanted an older brother and now I have two! Both Bear and Fish. :D

4. "Precious". *cough* Yes, my family all calls each other Precious. :D My five year old little sister started calling my mom Precious, after seeing Lord of the Rings and then we all caught on..much to the amusement of Keaghan, her mother and their family.

5. Slim. Ok, I was called that once, but it was recently! ;)

6. Amazing _____.

Three things your wearing right now:
Er...layered shirts -it's cold!- capris and fuzzy socks. Hee hee.

Three things you want very badly:
Normalcy for Christmas, which for me means going to bed sweetly early before 9:30, having a blissful night's sleep, and waking up at 4:40 and going on our morning walk every morning.

Narnia, Middle-Earth, and Renia ( the fantasy world in my book) to be real. :D Alright, to finish my book by Easter...the first draft at least. I'd like to give myself 'til my birthday in the beginning of February to finish it but that's very soon, so we'll see....

More time with my family at home. I'm nowhere near ready to go away to college.

Three things you did last night/yesterday/today:
*cough* Ate one more homemade roll than I should have at a Christmas party last night...as well as one and a half caramel brownie.

Made my little sisters' Christmas present, felt play food, with Keaghan yesterday and had a BLAST!!

Fell asleep listening to Chet Baker and Ella Fitzgerald, after a small cry. Music does indeed do wonders for the soul...as does God gently telling you there's a time and place for everything, and He knows exactly when you're ready for that part of your life to begin.

Two things you ate today
Hehehehe...OATS!!! Pumpkin whipped banana oatmeal, hot and tooasty with golden rasins, granola, peanut butter and almond butter, consumed before the hour of six in the morning. Mmmmmm. And currently sipping on water = happy Raewyn. Yes, water DOES count as something to eat - it's amazing!

Two people you last talked to on the phone:
My daddy and Mommy when they came to pick me up at Keaghan's.

Two things you are going to do tomorrow:
Not have Shakespeare practice...so, finish wrapping presents for everyone at the store and bake tons of brownies for them!

Write. Definitely. I will bang myself over the head with a pot if I somehow do not end up writing tomorrow -or today!!!

Your three favorite beverages:
Water.
Water.
Water. Can you tell I like water? ;) Starbucks' signature hot chocolate/hot chocolate in general, and frappachinos. Yum.

There, all done! Tag 5 people. Now I tag Mamma Rose, Keaghan, Earwen (just because she always gets tagged for everything!), Elena, Vicky again, and....and...oh, anyone else who wants to do this - OOH, and Lanta!!!

A Return after Many Months

2009-12-20T20:59:00.000-06:00

*hide from flying tomatoes* Yes. I know.

The fact that it's nearly Christmas, and my last post was September 1st is something that I do realize. My *ahem* break that I took without meaning to is over, and I'm back. :)

Anyone else as excited about Christmas as I am?? :D I can't wait! I honestly think Advent might be my favorite liturgical season in the Church - I love the whole season of winter as everyone gets ready for Christmas...there truly is magic in the air this time of the year.

My mom and dad celebrated their 23rd anniversary today - congratulations, Mommy and Daddy! Thanks for sixteen years of love and support! Can't wait to watch you guys celebrate your 50 yr anniversary! :)

In new me news, I have a new blog, Good Eats! It's pretty much for just documenting my daily meals like Tina, Jenna, and Kath do. It hasn't been updated very much because our digital camera broke and we haven't gotten a new one yet, but I'll see if I can get some pics up for y'all. I've got to turn in but I'll answer comments in the morning. Good night and Merry Christmas!

Pounding the Pavement

2009-09-01T07:11:00.000-05:00

We're back from our walk and run which went well! I'm so happy and ready to start the day. I began the day back at home with half of a banana, sliced, and a blueberry-raspberry smoothie...yumminess. :)

I've been gifted with two awards (I love passing them on to people!), one by The Real Katie - who is now sixteen! Happy Birthday, darling! - for Sheer Awesomeness. So, this I give to Keaghan, Lanta, Rose, Paul, Elena, Brenda and Judi. Oh, and Ms Kimberly. ;)

Sweet Clare tagged me back in July with the Honest Scrap award - thanks dearie! I have to trip off to bed and say the Rosary, but tomorrow I'll give it out and post 10 honest facts about myself. Hope you all are having as good a morning!

Edit -- I started this post this morning but didn't get to finish it until tonight, hence the strange time references. ;)

A Numb Mouth, Re-Confident Spirit and Ready to Start Running

2009-08-31T20:30:00.000-05:00

Today went well....I discovered pain-numbing medicine that thankfully and blissfully numbed my gums and gave me some relief, thanks be to God. I'm sure a larger part of it was all the prayers as well - thank you so much! :)

Didn't get much school done today, but took some brownies I had made last night to one of our employees who had her first day back at the store after being out for nearly six months after falling and breaking her hip in December. She grinned when she saw me and nudged me, "Hey Slim." :D Which is really what I needed and I was glad to hear that...all I had to eat Thursday and Friday was ice cream (not that much, in all fairness), Cool Whip, some of Yoplait's 100 calorie, fat free/99% fat free yogurt, smoothies and "healthy" milkshakes, courtesy of Keaghan and her mom! :) So while I was happy (hadn't tasted that stuff in months) I started worrying Saturday, because apparently this lasts for a while and in my now-healthy mindset/happy routine I realized that all I was intaking was dairy for the most part.... :P

And really, what exactly can you eat healthily when you can't chew?? That rules out salads, most veggies, your protein from chicken and such...I was slightly depressed for a moment and wondered, "Good heavens, am I going to gain all the weight back??? Never!!" After rallying the troops and realizing (it was quite a day of realizations) that I was maybe being a tad ridiculous and vain, I quickly settled down, especially as I caught back up with Cristin's blog, Eat Like Me. She's a nutritionist who documents everything she eats by taking a picture of it and posting it on her blog. SO inspiring...especially because she's all for treats and yummy things too! She eats ice cream, Goldfish and mashed potatoes and pasta...

So, long story short, I'm back and getting in the swing of things. We're still doing our morning walks at 5:30 a.m., and I'm eating healthy again...I've fallen in love with smoothies for breakfast - today's strawberry banana was seriously the best I've ever had and it was good for me too! All I did was chop up some strawberries, bananas, throw in some milk, ice cubes, wheat germ and a scoop of vanilla protein powder. Yum.

I just had to type this up because it's the last day of August - fall begins tomorrow! (In my book, anyway...never mind the calender. ;)) I'll be back tomorrow with breakifast, an account of our walk (I hope to turn it into a run!), and of course a tag and two lovely awards to hand out. Au revoir, dearies, and a merry September morning to you all! :)

And now the pain sets in...

2009-08-28T06:36:00.000-05:00

Ow.

Well, I'm home, and holding my mouth as gingerly as one can I imagine. Please keep me in your prayers today and the rest of the week....I was calmed and comforted immensely by imagining a blanket of prayers and love surrounding me. :) St. Augustine and St. Monica, pray for us! Head over to Catholic Cuisine to see some lovely ideas/recipes to celebrate their feast days.

My Last Braces-less Post

2009-08-27T10:22:00.000-05:00

I'm not sure if that's even grammatically correct - but I have no time! We're about to fly out the door to the orthodontist's; yes, I'm getting braces. It's rather a surprise to me as well, but it's a much more welcomed alternative to jaw surgery... *shudders* I sucked my thumb when I was younger, so now some of my teeth aren't touching properly. *sigh* So now I'm getting a mouthful of metal - for three years! Eeep.

I'm actually fine withe the whole thing, only....I can't imagine myself with braces; you know, what I'll actually look like!

Aah, the chariot is here - I must go! Please keep me in your prayers everyone! Giant vat of ice cream and yogurt here I come! *dives* ;)

And Now to Bed...

2009-08-06T20:37:00.000-05:00

I'm absurdly tired tonight, and ready to go to bed. It's been a long day *whew* but a good week so far overall. :) I started a post about Earwen's romance tag, two awards I've been gifted with, and a wedding we attended over the weekend/various wedding thoughts, but it will have to wait. "God comes first. Then Sleep." ~ Yours truly. ;)

We got home a little later then I would have liked, so no time for letters and writing, but just enough to have a bite to eat, put on some beautiful music, say my evening prayers and rest my soul and body. :) I hope the same to you, dear readers. I'm exceedingly grateful to you who have stuck it out with me, through my many absents, periods of silence, and moments of need. I love you all. :)

But I at last with weary feet
Will turn towards the lighted inn,
My evening-rest and sleep to meet. ~ Lord of the Rings, Book I: The Fellowship of the Ring

Weddings and the Stuff of Life

2009-08-01T22:28:00.000-05:00

We just got back from one of our former employee's wedding...she's a sweet, small dark-haired, dark eyed girl with a grin like nothing else. Plus, her new husband is the exact same (ok, about) height as her! So cute... ;)

It was a very nice wedding - the cakes were amazing! There was no dancing *sad* because of personal family reasons, but I didn't find myself missing it too much or even remembering about it until it was over. All in all, we had a great time; this was actually the second wedding of a former employee...they are all so sweet. I truly work/have worked with some great people. :)

It got me thinking about my wedding, which I hopefully will be at one day! Heehee. I'm listening to the pure strains of joy and laughter: the Lord of the Rings soundtrack (mainly Fellowship of the Ring) and so I'm imaging my wedding:

Crazy and spontaneous...I've never been a rigid,"Everything must be perfect" person; I'm Mexican, if you please. We know how to party. ;) I'm sure it will be sheer craziness right before the walk down the isle, with family and friends running everywhere, the bouquet going missing, a dress getting ripped, and the Good Lord only knows what else. Hopefully though, I'll be able to remind myself not to get stressed, that everything will work out, and say a prayer.

I want to have a Orthodox Catholic wedding, and after much (fine - maybe a minute) of thought - I want to get married on Sunday. I was thinking about it because I want all of our employees at Chick-fil-A to come...well, the only way that would happen is if I got married on a Sunday, because CFA is closed on Sundays. For a minute I was squeamish and wrestled/argued with God. "But then we'd have to celebrate our anniversary on Sundays and restaurants are always crowded on Sundays."

Was I thinking about what God had planned? Was I thinking of the fact that I had the opportunity to get married on the Lord's Day, the day of rest and celebration - the weekly Easter? No. I was thinking about restaurants! I put my foot down (politely of course) to the Almighty, and steered away from the thought in my head. Maybe if I ignored it God wouldn't realize I'd thought of it....how I didn't remember that He can hear EVERY thought in my mind and that maybe He put it in my head in the first place I don't know!!

So then I thought, "Well, this is a good time to practice Marian obedience...do what Mary would do. Just say yes." Our Lady must have been watching over me especially at that moment, for that one little thought garnered a gift of grace and I suddenly wondered why I had not wanted to get married on Sunday. My husband and I would forever be uniting our marriage and our love in union with Jesus' sacrifice and offering; not only that, but we would be married on the holiest day of the week, especially dedicated to God! If we got married on Sunday, my dad would definitely be able to come, as would all our employees...we could all relax and celebrate all day...and most importantly, Sunday, already holding a special place in my heart, would be all the more special.

What could be a sweeter gift of thanks to God for allowing me to be married, for giving me my bridegroom, then to choose His day as my wedding day? :) In a way, humility enters into it as well, for making "my" day on His, it takes some of the attention and specialness off of me. After all, after so many people telling me to remember "my" day, I can only give thanks to God a hundred times more for being so good to me, who does not deserve it. :)

My wedding... *sighs happily* Pews filled to the brim with my family and friends - all my loved ones. I want everyone I know to come to my wedding; I want everyone to share in my happiness. After the Nuptial Mass, I'll give hugs to everyone, and we'll proceed to the reception, which will be Cajun and Mexican style: in a backyard, with lights strung on trees (think Bilbo's Party!!), simple tents erected, with plastic/wooden tables and benches. Hearty, delicious food, and tons of great music....

I also love the idea of having a pot-luck wedding. Everyone brings a dish, large or small! It's an old Southern hospitality thing to me, and one that speaks volumes. To me, baking/cooking something for someone and giving it to them is a sign of love. :) Wedding presents - not needed. I'd be so happy and delighted with a dish of food, or even a treasured recipe. Even a kiss from a little one... :)

Earwen, bless her, graciously and sweetly tagged with this perfect tag after I asked her to!

Hopeless Romantic Tag

What two qualities do you want most in your future husband? There's more than two! I have to list all the important/essential ones: I want him to be truly and deeply Catholic, so much so that I will be in awe of this amazing man that will help lead me to Heaven, holding my hand and showing me the way; that he be tender and loving with a gentle heart - I myself am so loving and compassionate in nature I need a ton of love and affection or I will wilt! (Borrowed that from Mamma Rose ;)) It is my dream to have a huge sprawling family with 8-12 children, so he has to loves kids, which is where loving and tender comes in. Thirdly he must be strong, a leader and my knight. :) Lastly, but not at all least, he'll have to have a sense of humor, (being married to me!) and he'll want to homeschool our kids. :)

Is there a fictional character you see as a model for your husband? Mr. Darcy and Captain Wentworth from Jane Austen, because both are strong, honorable men who just also happen to be gorgeous! ;) In all sincerity...Cor, my main character/creation. He's sweet, kind, loyal, warm and deeply devoted to God and Mary, plus he's an ELF! ;)

Where do you want your wedding? In Renia (the world in my books), preferably, but I'll settle very happily for in my church, a cathedral, which is so beautiful and souring...with all the Saints, Angels and my loved ones looking on!

What are your views on courtship? That it is true and beautiful. I've never thought of or wanted to do anything but courtship. I firmly believe that it truly does work, and if young men/boys think I'm silly or old fashioned, then they are not the one God has chosen for me. :)

What are your views on your first kiss? It's locked deep withing me, carefully saved and hidden, to be given to my husband on our wedding day; our first kiss will be before the alter when the priest says, "You may now kiss the bride"! And I know my future husband is saving his for me!

Do you have a purity ring/locket? No, not yet but I want one so! It's going on my Christmas wish list...I'm so eager to get my "engagement" ring and start wearing so I can tell people, "Yes, I'm engaged - I just haven't met him yet!" ;)

Do you have or want a hope chest? *wistfully* Och, no, but I would love one. Hopefully I'll find one somewhere and begin filling it up. :)

Will you wear a veil at your wedding? Is the sky blue? Of course I will! I can't imagine not wearing one; it's as important as my dress.

What kind of wedding dress do you want? Something Renian... *smiles* Oh, I honestly have no idea. I think I'll just know when I see it. Or maybe I'll have to make it. All I know is that it will be sweet, simple and most importantly, modest.

What flowers do you want in your bouquet? Again, I'm not sure...but if it were possible, star-flowers/Elven blossoms from Middle Earth. :D Probably something white and delicate with blue for Our Lady.

What do you want to name one of your daughters? This is actually a very funny story because, as I hope you all know, I'm a girl who loves feminine things and little girl-sweetness, and I can't wait to have daughters. Well, like any respectable young lady wanting to be a mother, I *cough* own a baby name book and read it frequently. I also am going to give all my children saint names; imagine my horror then, when I couldn't find many girl names that I loved - but I had a list as long as my arm for boy names! So right now, here are three that I've written down: Kateri, Lucy or Lydia. *sigh* I know there are some very pretty names out there - I just need to find them!

What do you want to name one of your sons? OH, now this is easy. ;) Cameron, Adrian, Dominic, Benedict (Fish!!), Gabriel, and maybe Peter.

Do you believe in the 'knight-in-shining-armour' view of courtship? Oh yes...I recently realized the wonderful fact that I shouldn't be worrying whether there is someone out there for me who will be everything he should be; I realized if God's will for me is to marry, then somewhere out there is a knight waiting for his fair lady. He's studying hard, praying earnestly and waiting until we meet. :)

What music do you want to play at your wedding? Ha - there's so much! It'll have to last all day! :D Josh Groban's So She Dances, Sweet Home Alabama, Dean Martin's songs, Frank Sinatra, Celtic music, Riverdance, and so much more! For soundtracks: Lord of the Rings, Chronicles of Narnia, Peter Pan (2003) and all the old Disney classics.

Are you a hopeless romantic? Why yes, yes I am. :)

*sigh* Why am I falling behind so in updating?

- Please pray for young Ryan Barrett, who was called home to God, and his family who miss him very much.

"Eternal rest grant unto to him, O Lord. And may perpetual light shine upon him. May the soul of Ryan Barrett and all the souls of the faithfully departed, through the mercy of God, rest in peace. Amen."

Can It Be July Already?

2009-07-24T22:25:00.000-05:00

Well, it's been raining...on and off for the past three days, with thunder and lightning, so....maybe I'm in Forks and just haven't realized it??

*looks around* There's no Edward though, so... ;)

I'm in shock that July is nearly over. It feels as though the 4th was just a week ago or so. I'm so sorry that once again it's been so long since my update and replies to comments. Somehow. I. Have. Not. Had. Any. Time. To. Get. On. I don't know how, or why......but somehow, summer is slipping away with me posting!! Gah. Plus, our camera is broken so I can't post pictures. *sigh*

But in me news, I've been trying to eat healthier, I've had quite a few people telling me I've slimmed down/lost weight, I've been reading cookbooks (checking out huge stacks from the library!) and loving every word/bite! ;) I'm more head over heels then ever with cooking and food and vegetables! I've fallen in love with them ever since we ate at Jason's Deli and I had the salad bar. Everything looked so good, I tried it and my mouth was exploding with flavors!
Sweet peas, alfalfa sprouts, cauliflower, beans, olives, Romain lettuce, baby spinach, purple/red onions...and healthy food is good!

There's granola, walnuts, whole wheats, almonds, pecans, bananas, cranberries, tomatoes, grilled chicken, hard boiled eggs, salads, hummus, grains, strawberries, blueberries, raspberries, maderine oranges, grapes, cherries, salmon, tilapia, tuna, soup, flounder, shrimp, and the list goes on! :D

Aah, must go. I'll be back soon!

Hooray! And thanks be to God!

2009-06-21T23:24:00.000-05:00

THE DOCTERS SAID ALL IS WELL! Thank you so much for all of your prayers! I must fly now, but I'll be back to elaborate!

Much love and hugs to all,
Raewyn

Prayers would be nice...

2009-06-15T15:37:00.000-05:00

My mummy had the sharp sensation just before lunch on Friday, and said it felt like my 4 yrd little brother was sitting on her chest. When it didn't go away, she called her doctor and he told her to go to the emergancy room. Yikes. Both she and my dad didn't tell us, but dropped us off at the house with my cousin and her boyfriend. They took us to go see Up - which was amazing btw. GO SEE IT! It is so sweet and beautiful and heartfelt and funny; I teared up twice - and my dad took my mom in.

They ran a test (Catscan? Not sure if that was the one they did), but let her come home yesterday. She went back in this morning for two more tests at 1:00. My dad just called and said that the tests are almost over and they'll be heading home soon. I'm taking that as a good sign, but please keep her in your prayers, as well as Emily, who I believe is going through cancer.

It's these little moments where I remember what Earwen wrote: "We should praise God when things go wrong; not just when things go right!"

Okay, so maybe her exact words were: "But we need to praise God anyway! Then we will shine brighter for Him. It's easy to love God when things are going well, but when the road gets slippery and steep is the time we need to cling to Him and believe in Him and love Him most! When you were little and you tripped, did you push your father and mother away so you could fall, or did you grab their hand to keep from slipping?"

:)

Two Days Later

2009-06-10T19:03:00.000-05:00

Ok...so perhaps I wasn't able to "post more" on Monday, but I'm posting now! I have to hurry, as dinner is cooking -hot dogs and burgers on the grill - and there's still about two hours of daylight left. :)

The day was spent at a homeschool-moms-book-sale, which was delightful. I got to see many of the mothers, especially Miss Cay; and I found a whole stack of little pocket sized books, many for $1.00, .50, and .25 cents! *cheers* All in all we got about 14 books for $14.50...so I consider the day a sucess. :) I also bumped into one of my "lovely readers", Miss J. Austen Wannabe/Kheagan and we both burst into laughter at the sight of each other, because we had just "discovered" one another in the Blogsphere...I'm over the moon that someone I know in real life reads my blog!

And now dearies, I must leave you! I've been soaking delightedly in the curriculum/bookish way of life all day and am brimming over with inspiration, thanks in part to the lovely Miss Cindy Rushton and her book on the subject, so I'm off to start Notebooking!

I'll pop back in as soon as I can to answer comments - I'm not ignoring y'all, Earwen and Kheagan - I simply must fly! :D

Hugs,
Raewyn

P.S. ....This is the good life...flying on the edge of your seat, living spontaneously, and clacking away at the keys as the kids play outside, knowing that you're about to enjoy a dinner at home with the little ones and the rest of the evening waits for lovely writings and curlings on the couch. :) But I wax poetic....fare thee well!

*sighing-over-the swiftness-of-time-and-realizing-she-has-about-four-years-left-at-home-with-her-precious-family-before-she'll-be-of-age-for-marriage*

A Day of Rest

2009-06-07T20:41:00.000-05:00

As today is Sunday, the title of the post is appropriate and perfectly describes today. :) I'm very grateful to God for such a lovely day, especially with my family. IT was a delightful surprise that this day was as nice as I had hoped it would be.

Usually Sunday gets all the chores/family tasks that we didn't get to on the week, mainly because my dad always has the day off, as we have the blessing of working for Chick-fil-A, a company that always closes for Sunday. And when I say chores, I mean cleaning out the garage, mowing the lawn, decluttering the house, ect. We almost always have a wonderful dinner though, at home or the occasional dinner out at a restaurant. Especially since Mother's Day, when we got my dad his Father's Day present - a grill - so he could cook my mom her Mother's Day present: steaks. ;) And very good, juicy, delicious steaks too!

This morning my parents woke us up early to go to morning Mass. It was a little difficult as we had watched a movie last night, Ghost Town, so we went to bed rather...um, late. Heehee. (In case you're wondering, we enjoyed the movie very much. It was a tad slow in the beginning and it did have one bad word and a scene referring to an inappropriate body part, but we laughed and when the credits rolled we were all smiling contentedly. A note: Ricky Gervais has a very good acting and comedic style, but if you're a fan of, say, a more split-your-side-laughing-uproariously kind of movie this might not be as funny to you, but it was still very good!)

We made it to Mass, only a few minutes late, and were able to sit in one of the pews as 9:00 Mass isn't as crowded as the evening one. It was a bright Sunday morning, the morning light filling the church. Having missed Confession yesterday I did not receive Communion so I simply knelt in the pew when my family went up for Communion, and looked at the crucifix and tried to tell God how much I loved Him and how sorry I was for snapping at my little sisters or talking back to my parents.

And out of that, looking back, He moved my heart to a quiet peace and let me know things were going to okay. I left the church quietly and happy, with a smile on my face, ready to celebrate the day of rest. My dad and Faith, Hope and Andrew (my little sisters and brother) walked around the small square garden that framed the fountain which was very pretty with trees, pink-red blossoms and all sorts of greenery. Then we headed to Wal-Mart, where despite my resolvings to not buy any clothing - even if it is Wal-Mart, I still perfer, in my new more-frugal state of mind, Bargain World, the best thrift store in our town - their selection of light thin pajamas in pretty spring colours of lovely buttercup yellow, rose pink and cucumber green was so tempting I fell to their lure.
This sweet little Eeyore shirt sprinkled with the word "Dreams" was calling me as soon as I saw it. Reflecting on it I realized that I did need another "nightshirt" to wear to bed: that, plus the fact that it was marked down to $3.00 cinched it in my mom's opinion.

Then I spotted this bright cheery Caribbean blue shirt; I loved it so much I wore it as soon as I got home, under my quarter-inch-sleeve grey shirt.

After we got back home, being very hungry as I hadn't had breakfast yet, decided to make my Special Sunday Surprise Breakfast. I love the idea of celebrating a mini-Easter every Sunday as the Church encourages, so I wanted to go all out and make something special for breakfast. Because we had gone to Mass and then Wal-Mart, it was nearly eleven when we got home, and half-past when I finally got a chance to breathe after putting the groceries away. So I opened the newly-stocked fridge and pulled out the strawberries, cranberries, blueberries, the almonds and chopped pecans from my baking cabinet, a whole grain waffle from the freezer...and the half-empty carton of vanilla ice cream. ;)

What followed was one of the best breakfasts/treats...

I got my fruit, whole grains and carbs for breakfast. ;)

It's getting late and bed is calling...in the form of my mom's voice. :) I'll be back tomorrow hopefully with the rest of the day's account.

The Merry (Mary) Month of May

2009-05-19T14:56:00.000-05:00

Um. Hehehe. Heelio, lovelies. Sorry this is a verrry late update. Again. *grouses* I am amazed that I have seriously not had the opportunity to get on and "grace" you with my wonderful presence! ;) But I've now come to a decision: I'm not going to wait for tons of comments - a selfish and vain reason I slightly used -before I post a new post. In fact, even if it doesn't have ONE comment, I'll still post if I feel one coming on (a post, not a comment, lol..). Er..I'll try.

Very late Happy Mother Day wishes to everyone and their mothers (Regina, Brenda, Cay, Danielle, Charlotte, Annie, Jenny, Helen, and last but not least someone isn't 'technically' a mother, but she is spiritually to me: My Mamma Rose. :)

It was a year ago, in April I believe, when she 'adopted' me and I've never been the same since. I am so blessed to have her as my 'mother' here, on the forum, and in my heart. She is a dear friend, the older sister I never had, and a loving Mamma. So here's to a beautiful Shieldmaiden of Heaven that I am blessed beyond belief to know and love. *hugs* You always inspire me to do the right thing. :)

On a more celebratory note, I hope to have a little Marian teaparty for some sweet younger girls who I'm very fond of, on next Tuesday. I got several lovely idea from Charlotte - isn't she so clever?

Please say a prayer for Clare's grandfather who passed away this week.
Eternal Father, we offer Thee the most Precious Blood of Thy Devine Son, Jesus in union with all the Masses said throughout the world today for all the Holy Souls in Purgatory, for sinners everywhere, for sinners in the Universal Church and those in our own homes and families. Amen.

I'm A Pile Of Mush Inside

2009-04-30T15:54:00.000-05:00

Really, I am. Why? I know so because I nearly melted Monday when I was talking to a dear friend and fellow blogger, Mrs Gibson.

Two of the moms at Co-op have new babies, little darlings Stewart and Nickolas. During lunch earlier that day I had been holding Nickolas, but handed him over to Annie, Mrs Gibson's 7 yrd daughter who was cooing over him. Her older brother Garrett (16) had wandered over and was watching when Nickolas reached out with his chubby little hands and putting on an intent expression, attempted to cross from Annie's arms into Garrett's.

Smiling, Garrett had picked him up and - much like the picture - looked happy to be holding a bouncing baby.

Later on, when Co-op was nearly over, Mrs Gibson and I were sitting cross-legged on the floor in the foyer discussing babies, with baby Stewart on her lap. She mentioned that she wished she had another little baby, and remembering Nickolas earlier, I told her about her son holding the baby.

Miss Cay: *chuckling* "He loves babies. He wishes he could have a little brother. In fact whenever" ( I don't remember if it was her daughter's god-child or her sister's baby - but it was a baby!) "the baby is across the street, he's over there in a flash, playing with baby on the floor!"

Aww.

Really, that's so refreshing and delightful to hear! Honestly, when was the last time you heard of a teenage boy who loves babies and playing with and taking care of them?

Not very often.

Good to know young Catholic homeschoolers still love family and the beauty of life!

There and back again: thoughts on being sixteen and Lent

2009-03-16T22:53:00.001-05:00

*giggles* Weeeeeeeell....since I've been noticeably threatened by Judi if I don't update at ONCE, here goes. :)

So. March has come, February is over and I, it might be worth mentioning, am now sixteen. A funny thought, and one that stuck me with more humor recently when I was re-reading the more recent entries in my diary.

"February 2, 2009: 'It's nearly two in the morning and I just realized that I don't think I'll ever stop writing Cor and Emma' -the main characters in my book. 'It's a strange thought, even stranger - lol...well, not quite - than the fact that I'll be sixteen in six days.

'It's really ridiculous - the thought of me being sixteen: able to drive. I have no idea why I'm so excited for my birthday but I'm so not ready to be sixteen - it's like I want to stay fifteen. *sniff* Fifteen's a perfectly good age...what's so wrong with fifteen?!

'Ha, there you go. Further proof I'm not ready -I'm being melodramatic.'"

A few days later. (--Keep in mind this is my true coherent self at nearly midnight)

"Well, it's my last day as a fifteen year old; I'll be sixteen in 56 minutes.

Wow.

Where did the days go?'"

And then after that, I get a little nostalgic, musing on my girlish dreams and hopes that only a fourteen yrd girl can have. :)

Just in case you're wondering, Disney World was a blast. :D I loved every minute of it and I can't wait to go back. I think in terms of my family, it was the most magical it could have been! It wasn't very rainy; we mostly had sunny, sunny weather which was nice but a nuisance when it got hot. Oh well, at least it wasn't August.

Now that we're back home and in the middle of Lent, it's been incessantly rainy over here, which I'm over the moon about, as I love grey, rainy, melancholy days! My co-workers and family don't seem to share my affection for such weather, but I'm pleased as a cat that are seasons finally seem to be in order and March is behaving as expected: "Rushing in like a lion." I hope it comes out like a lamb for Easter.

This Lent is the first that I'm trying to make a real effort. A prayer book expressed the meaning of this liturgical season wonderfully, explaining that we all promise God to do better, to sin no more and that we will love Him as we should. Then, so soon after Christmas we slip and fall into our sins again despite our promises.

So God, in His Infinite Mercy, gives us the season of Lent to "go for forty days into the desert" and do penance and fast that we might prepare for Easter: the Resurrection of Our Lord, Jesus. :)

I had never thought of it that way and was humbled and reminded once again that our God truly is perfect. The Creator that has fashioned the world, formed us in our mothers' wombs and created even the smallest creatures with a purpose, has even designed a time of repentance for His Children, when they fell from grace. :) It's rather a lovely thought, isn't it?

Just to let You Know....

2009-02-04T18:17:00.000-06:00

I'M ALIVE.

A WELLLLLLLLLLLLLLLCOME!!!! And a cough update, among other things - such as a meme

2008-11-13T14:59:00.000-06:00

A HUGE WELLLLLLLLLCOME TO TWO RANDOM AND PROFOUND TWINS: BRIDGET AND LANTA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

MY FUZZY-WUZZY COUZZZZIES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Hehehehe.... Yes, I get excited, and when that happens I go into caps and exclamation points. ;)

Anyhoo, the Fuzzy-Wuzzy Cuzzies are brilliantly evil, and hilarious. You MUST go and visit them, and say hi!! Or I refuse to answer comments! *realizes she's already doing that; not necessarily 'refusing', but neglecting* Sorry!!

So here's the update, started last night:
It’s nearly 11:00, but it feels waaay more later….like a unearthly hour. And I know I should go to bed, especially as I’ve been on the computer for hours and my mom is going to come and drag me off any second now. *looks around paraniodly*

(The dictionary, the world, English grammar and spell check say that paraniodly is not a word. The dictionary, the world, English grammar and spell check are WRONG.) (Heh, stole that from one of the AWESOME Evil Twins, Bridget. *hugs*)

I’ve been tagged by my newest ‘sister’, Katie, and she’s my new sister just cuz she’s a Shakespeare ‘freak – like me.’

The rules are: Link to the person who tagged you, list the rules, write six random things about yourself, tag six-ish people by leaving comments on their blogs and let the person who tagged you know that you've written the post.

1. Um……um….here’s one: I am such a huge fan of Lord of the Rings and the characters, I agonize every time I see the movie, read the books or the ridiculous number of fanfics, over who I love more: Frodo, or…. (Come on, you all know what name I’m going to say) Legolas. Cause, well… *wrings hands* I CAN’T CHOSE!! Elijah Wood was not only my first actor crush, but my first character love. And let’s face it, who can withstand those gorgeous blue eyes? The pale skin, the dark curly hair? The fragile Hobbit-strength? The gentleness, the determination?

And then you have Legolas. *swoons* What can I say? I met him before I met Mr. Darcy - no harsh judging please, ladies; I'm swooning over the Elven prince, the CHARACTER.Ok, so First off, he's a ELF! And he's beautiful, and he's kind, and he's a wicked warrior, not mention the BEST archer in Middle Earth and every world on top and bottom. ;) *coughdream* Exhibit A:

*goes slightly mad* LEGOLAS GREENLEAAAAAAAAAAAAF!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! *dances to the music with stars in her eyes*

Every single time I play this video or watch it, I sqeak. No lie. As soon as the music starts I go, "Eeek!" and "Eeep!" *sigh dreamily and lovingly* Lol...yes, I have a problem. *puts her 'I'm a Legolas fangirl and I have a Serious Problem' button with a picture of that elf's gorgeous face, on.

Now, I'm not obsessed. But...I have had one dream about him (or was it two?)...and I love love LOVE really good fanfics about him. The first real one that was any good, and my ultimate favorite: Lament of the Niphredils. I really, really love how the authoress wrote Legolas. It is NOT a Mary-Sue love fic, but it has the feeling of romance. It's a very sweet story of friendship, and a lovely look at how a mortal and a elf can be close. So, yeah, it's a very sweet story and whenever I think of it, it's with fondness. Most unfortunately, the author seems to have disappeared or forgotten about her fic, because it hasn't been updated since 2005. :( So...it is unfinished, which kills me...I'm hoping and praying she comes back because frankly, I NEED TO KNOW THE END!!!

So in concluding, how can you not love, or even admire that elf, I ask you? :D :D :D Can you imagine having him as your husband? The chivalry, the pure love, the HAIR??? :D

*musingly* One can almost say the same for Aragorn.... *new train of thought* Ooh...Jk!! ;)

. HA! Yep, haven't even got to 2 yet - I'm such a LotR fangirl! Here's one: I painted my fingernails black last night and liked it for about four minutes, and then I missed my nice, clean, natural nails!!!! It just looked so cheap. (I'm not insulting people who do like black nail polish - I know there are a bunch of girls that look great with it. It just didn't look good on me.)

Eeh, like I said, I donno, I just felt so weird...like I had finally succumbed to trendy-ness.

I shuddered, at the though this could be the first step to being a modern teenager. Skinny jeans could come next - then a hair straightener - a cell phone - I had a sudden image of horror, of myself texting on a cell phone with chipped black fingernail polish, wearing contacts, with straightened hair, chewing on bubble gum. With my mouth open. AAAAAAHHHH!!! SAVE MEEEE FROM THE MODERN TEENAGER!!! *hides*

(I actually did straighten my hair once; last November, the night before my mom and I left for Hawaii, and it looked very nice. I liked it a lot. :))

3. I am a computer/Internet addict. Which most of you can probably tell. Heheheheheh. :D I spend way to much time online...and yet I don't update as much as I should. *squirms guiltily*

4. I am a very giggly person, especially when I don't hear what people say. I think I have terrible hearing. I'm constantly asking people to repeat themselves. ;)

Like for instance, at work today, a little bit before I got off, I had another 'incident' with a guy. Lol...I couldn't hear him very well, but I caught the gist of what he said. He basically told me something along the lines of , "You know, you've going to be beautiful when you get older. Just giving you a warning; a head's up!" Then he said something which I didn't catch and added, "just tell her to send 'em to your dad!"

Lol...maybe he was talking about future guys, for my mom to send them to my dad??? Ha. If he had been older I would have been creeped out, but as it was he was like twenty-something, and cute (blushes) and I somewhat know him because he works in the mall. I'm still suspicious that he kind of flirted/hit on me, but what do I know?*cough* So...yeah. Anyways... moving on.

Number 3!! I love music so much. I really don't know if I can express how powerful it is, and how much it means to me. I can't imagine not singing, or even a world without music. Some of my favorite music and songs comes from the world of film, which I love, I think almost as much. Some examples: the Phantom of the the Opera, West Side Story, Beauty and the Beast, Lord of the Rings, Star Wars and countless others. I sing all the time, so much in fact, there have been times where I haven't realized I was singing until someone mentioned it! :D

4. I am a gushy romantic puddle of mush and darn proud of it! As cheesy as Titanic might be I always sob and bawl at the ending... :( It's- it's...just so SAD! *blows nose* I'm both a hopeless and hopeful romantic. Hopeless, because I know there's no cure, and I'll never change. Hopeful because I dream that 'somewhere, out there, there's someone waiting for me...' :) And if it is God's will that I do not marry, I'll still be in love with love. Because that is the most beautiful thing in the world, after God and our Faith.

And when I say 'romance' I don't necessarily mean lots of smooching (through there's nothing wrong with that!;)), but just *sigh* pureness, and real love. :)

5. I have recently fallen back in love with the Disney movies! Pocahontas, Cinderella, Snow White - I'm talking about the old 'real' Disney movies. :) John Smith and Pocahontas are so sweet together. :):):)

Goodbye...

First Glances....

Wow...his skin is really yellow in the last picture. I just realized I got all the way to number 4 and the I started back up on 3...hahaha.

One last thing. For the first time in my life, I have a midterm test. A Latin midterm to be exact, and I'm dreading it. Aah!

No school, and a demon barber: the Music of Sweeney Todd

2008-10-20T19:31:00.000-05:00

Hello dear ones! I'm baaaack! ;) I had a blast - my little cousin's birthday party was so much fun. There was this huge joyjump-thingymagjig/inflated obstical course. Pictures soon...

Anyhoo, here's the new post. Enjoy!

'Dear me; how far I have fallen behind in updating. I think I'm finally starting to see the beauty in shorter posts. They don't take as long, and I'd be able to update more often. One of the reasons for my absence is I've lost computer prilages again. :(

Here's the beginning of a post I started to write a few weeks ago, but never finished -

The teenager is feeling grumpy, tired, bloated and ivreccovably stupid. She is also referring to herself in third person or what-ever-the-heck it is...

She feels at the moment like I'm a size 40, which I'm not, but it sure feels like that. There has been practically no school done today, and she's feeling the after affects of not catching up during summer. At the moment she feels, nay, knows a five year old is brighter. And she's supposed to be in high school. :P

So now that depression and certainty have set in, she's trying desperately to get back into rhythms of things and just do it! Just the thought of college is enough to make her groan and want to hid in her bed under her blankets. Her brain feels like it's mush slopping around and she's frankly terrifed at the prospect of 10 grade. She also wishes she was a normal Catholic homeschooler who was properly at her age leval, and knew Latin well enough.

She's been visiting Mrs. T, Mrs T's Academy, and her high school English blog.

On a brighter note she has fallen in love with the gory film musical Sweeney Todd: the Demon Barber of Fleet Street! Checked out the soundtrack from the library and proceeded to fall head over heels for it and now dreams of playing Mrs Lovett onstage. What a role!

A warning: The first song and Epiphany have the word sh--, in the songs. I believe it is only mentioned once in each song.

The Trailer!

There's No Place Like London

The Worst Pies In London

Poor Thing

My Friends

Green Finch and Linnet Bird

Alms, Alms

Perilli's Miracle Elixer

The Contest

Wait

Ladies In Their Sensitivities

Pretty Women

Epiphany

A Little Priest

Johanna (reprise)

God, That's Good

By the Sea

Not While I'm Around

Final Sequence - (SPOILERS!)

Well? :)

Musings on Sweeney Todd while packing for another trip

2008-10-17T06:56:00.000-05:00

Hello, lovelies! Can I fall over myself apologising for being gone so long? ;)

Good news is that I am updating, bad news is that it's 7:04 A.M. and we are leaving for the Valley again. So I'll be helpless, blog-wise for nearly all of today. Hopefully my mum will let me on my grandfather's laptop, but if not, you know where I am being held... ;)

However, do not despair, loves. I shall leave you another post, scheduled to be posted while I'm on the road. I'm having some doubts about it though....the first three paragraphs are all about how miserable I felt that day, I'm so behind in school, blah blah blah. On the other hand I was so sad about returning my Sweeney Todd soundtrack to the library, having kept it as long as I could. (It had to be pried from my fingers.)

O, to cheer myself up I decided to go for the next best thing: listen to it on Youtube.com, and was so cheered up by it I have decided to open your eyes to the sheer genius and brilliance of and enlarge the walls of your world with SWEENEY TODD!!!!!!!!! *fan-girl shriek*

So that will 'your way come' soon - the SOUNDTRACK OF SWEENEY TODD! As you may have noticed I'm a huge fan. Haha. I know (nearly!) all the lyrics, love love love Johnny and Helena in their roles, sing the songs all the time, and oh yes, will not see the movie. Why? Well, as I listened to the soundtrack at night before falling asleep, I painted in my mind what they were doing while singing the songs - their actions, expressions. When I saw clips of the film they were different then I had imagined, but I still love the movie!!

Uh, just don't see it if you are squeamish about blood and guts, and even, well, *cough* burning alive. It's Tim Burton of course, so you are forewarned. He loves soaking his movies in blood and stuff. It is rated R for 'Graphic Bloody Violence' for a reason. I just saw the opening credits accidentally and um, well it shows bright red paint-like blood pooling in Sweeney's barber chair, spilling down the trap door and then switches to...meat coming out of a meat grinder. Eeeeh...

If you don't know the plot already, the film tells the story of a young talented barber on Fleet Street, Benjamin Barker (Johnny Depp) was happily married with a little daughter, Johanna. His life was ruined through, when the lecherous Judge Turpin (Alan Rickman) sees his beautiful young wife Lucy:

There was another man who saw
that she was beautiful,
a pious vulchur of the law,
who with a gesture of his claw
removed the barber from his plate
and there was nothing but to wait,
and she would fall!

Benjamin is falsely imprisoned by the Judge, for sixteen years, and at last returns to Fleet Street but not as Barker, but Todd. Sweeney Todd. He is surprised to find an old neighbor, Mrs. Lovett (Helena Bonham Carter) a baker who resides on the first floor below his old shop. Mrs. Lovett runs her meat pie shop - selling the worst pies in London. She recognises him and tells him what befell of Lucy and his daughter, how the Judge tricked Lucy, and now he has Johanna, locked up as his pretty little ward. Sweeney burns for revenge, and in alarm at being recognised by a former apprentice, slits his throat.

Mrs. Lovett is horrified at first, then her cunning and cleverness sets in. Why get rid of...good meat? Lots of other gentlemen'll be coming for a shave. Sweeney can practise 'on less honorable throats' and sharpen his skills 'til Judge Turpin steps in his shop. The victims are made into Mrs. Lovett's meat pies and her business booms. But blood does not always come off, and such doings are very, very dangerous.

'Sweeney Todd - a wink in his eye, a smile to beguile. Sweeney held his trusted razor to the skies and freely flowed the blood of those who would Moralize'

And my dears, adieu! *blows kisses* Au revoir! *runs and climbs into the car*

A Warm Welcome, and the rest of the Award!

2008-09-22T19:58:00.000-05:00

I want to welcome and introduce my dear forum cousin, Ella - also known as Janny and Froggy (on the forum) - who's lovely blog A Quick Succession of Busy Nothings is already a favorite! :) Don't you just love her title? I believe it is a Jane Austen quote. So please pop over for a visit and welcome her to the blogsphere! *hugs Ella*

And now to continue last post's award recipients -

Judi - One of my newest friends, but already very dear, she's been amazing at pushing me to update, so she's a huge part in making sure the Spare Oom is filled with new things!

Delaney - Another forum cousin who is so kind and sweet; her words are always lovely and just what I need!

Dear, dearest Jo who has been like a aunt, a wonderful sweet aunt, and always warms my heart with her words.

Leigha - From Wordpress and a awesome blogger and commenter. Fact - she taught her little sister to swoon at the sight of Mr. Darcy.

Victoria! A very sweet girl who always pops by for a visit, leaving warm cheery words behind!

And of course, Ella! The newly nineteen year old! *cheers* Happy Birthday, darling! Lol..sorry it's a tad late. Her birthday was...ahem..Thursday. *hides shameful face*

Some news - and it's quite big, people: EDGE IS ALIVE AND OKAY!!!!! YYYYYYYYYYYAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAYYY!!! SHE ALSO CHANGED HER BLOG TEMPLETE! WHEE! *hugs Edge tightly*

And oh, my... goodness. BRISINGER IS OUT AND SITTING ON MY DINNING ROOM TABLE!!!!!!!!!!!!AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!

*screams and runs around the room**having fainted and brought back by Mr Darcy and consequently smelling salts* Leigha, I know your opinions on Eragon, Eldest and Christopher Paolini, but I am seriously SO stoked right now, I can't even remember why you don't like it, although I'm sure you'll remind me.

How very odd, that just like Twilight I should not realize how HUGE of a fan I was until I started screaming. Haha. Anyhoo, I came home from dance class and walked in to my bedroom to grab Murder, She Wrote, wicked older mystery series with the ever-excellent Angela Lansbury, and turned to my little sister Faith when she called me. She held what I thought was one of my Lord of the Rings books. Until, I saw the golden dragon on the black cover. My eyes got bigger and bigger.

Me: "Aaaahhhhhhhhhhhhh!!!! Ok, ok, ok -" trying to calm myself. "I'll be right back. Let me go put this down and then I'll come hug you." I had grabbed the book, while balancing oatmeal chocolate chip cookies and a glass of water in my hands. After carefully laying everything down I whirled around the room with her, hugging her for joy! :D I keep eyeing the book from the computer as I type. Hehe.

That is it for now, as my mother's waiting to get on. Much love to you all! I've become not-the-best-person at replying comments, but I really do keep getting dragged off. All of your comments mean so much to me, and any time I neclect your blogs, feel absolutely free to leave me a comment bugging me to come visit. :)

I nearly died of laughter Friday.... and I got a Award!

2008-09-07T13:50:00.000-05:00

Hey y'all! I know it has been nearly two weeks since I've updated...gah.

Here's a post I started the Friday, before last.

'So... Friday I worked. And nearly collapsed twice because of it. I had mentioned to one of my co-workers the day before (Thursday), I was going to make scones. On Friday she came up to me.

Her: "I never got to try your snow cones."

Me: "....What?"

Her: "Your snow cones!"

Me: (the light dawns) "Oh, you mean my scones!"

I couldn't stop laughing. She had never had one or heard of one - she doesn't care for coffee shops - so she was eager to taste them.

The second thing, that was much more eventful and side-splitting, was:

I usually work in the front at Chick-fil-A, as a cashier or bagger. I was taking a lady's order, handed her drink to her and then noticed the guy behind in line behind her. He looked like he was in his late twenties/29 and he looked like James Mardans as Corny Collins in Hairspray, only with lighter blue eyes. His hair was even slicked back like Corny's!

We had been giving three free chicken strips away to every customer - a sort of Hurricane Relief thing-y, so he came up and told me he wanted the free three strips. I took his order, suggestively selling, ect. I think I amused him, because I'm so short and well...young. He paid with a ten and then gave me three dollars and said, "That's for you."

I started blushing, thanking him profusely. I wasn't sure whether to take it or not because I did want it, but I didn't want to seem greedy by immediately accepting money.

He grinned in disbelief when I handed him his change. "You're not going to take it?" I giggled nervously, going, "Weeell..." when Jessie's sister Gayla, who also works for us, marched over and nearly exploded. "You're saying NO?! Girl, take the tip!" She grabbed it and stuffed it in my pocket.

The guy was having a good time watching, as he dug through his bag, checking his food. He said something about having two jobs and Gayla laughed, "Hey, you can give us all a tip!" One of the other girls up front, Kristen, giggled and said, "Yeah, I'll take a tip!"

The guy handed two dollars over, earnestly saying, "Here you go." Kristen was flabbergasted and refused, saying, "No! She served you," nodding to me. So I ended up with two more dollars.

My face was beet red after he left, and the girls were teasing me about it. So, yeah. Friday was a good day. ;)

Darling Aussie Liz has given me a award, and I'm almost too delighted and giddy for words! This is my first award so it's definitely a event! She gave it to me a week ago, but we were evacuating from Gustav so I had to hold on to it. I'm estactic to receive the SuperCommenter Award from her. Now, according to the rules I have to pick 7 other bloggers to receive the award. Here goes!

Lady of the Rose - My Mamma! She's the first person I grew close to over the web sphere, and is one of the sweetest, wonderful girl; a true Rose in every way.

Escritora - Sweet, funny Edge, who is sadly without electricity in Houston as a result of hurricane Ike; please keep her in your prayers!

Ahh, must fly! I'll be back soon with the other five; chores and bed call!

A side note - just got back from the library with a arm and loadful of books and music. Oh joy!

Hurricane Update: Then: Safe in Texas and watching from afar. Now: Safely Home

2008-09-03T22:04:00.000-05:00

Hello everyone! I'm back, and safe thanks to your prayers. Thank you so much!

This first part was typed up on Sunday, after we evacuated safely to Texas. My grandfather's laptop wouldn't show the comment box, so all I could do was publish comments, and reply on your blogs, but I was forced to get off several times. Also, we left Tuesday morning, spent the night in Houston and arrived home in the afternoon today.

Part One: Safe in the Rio Grande Valley, in my grandparent's house, I type this on my grandfather's laptop.

Yesterday (Saturday) began with my previous post, and then rushing off to the mall to work. We were giving away a free entree (I didn't realise entrees were, say, a sandwich, nuggets or strips - I thought they were sides, like fries or fruit!) per person. I had taken maybe six orders at the most when mall security came rushing up and asked us to stop taking orders. They were closing the mall immediately.

In the back our workers were cooking as much food as they could as fast they could. Last time with Rita, my dad came back and found all the food rotted and yucky, so this time we tried to cook and give away as much as we could. A lady from Women and Children's (a local hospital) came up to the counter and asked us if we would donate any food. We gave about two big bags of food and were going to give her another one, but she had already left.

More food was given to one of the mall workers, who was overseeing men boarding up the mall, so they got hot food. :) It was a proud feeling giving food to these people, and one that felt good. Charity never bruises but rather lifts the spirit.

We came in at noon, and the mall probably closed around 12:20. We didn't leave until four o'clock at least. We had to count everything: sauces, lids, bags, for inventory which is done at the end of each month and would have been done yesterday but for the hurricane. We also had to prepare for the hurricane. I covered all the registers with trash bags to protect them if rain should come in through the ceiling.

We cleaned everything as much as we could, cramming our fresh produce (lettuce, vegetables) in to ice chests with bags of ice to keep them cold. We lugged everything we could to our storeroom into our big refrigerators. Our salads, cheesecakes, brownies, carrot-and-raisin salad, coleslaw, fruit cups, lemon pie slices and cool wraps were pulled out and put into bags.

We let our employees take food home with them so they had something to eat later.Everyone stayed as long as they could, and helped us close. The last two to leave was one of our teamleaders, Jessie and our manager, Tony. Both are quite young, in their twenties, and are just really awesome. :)

The Great American Cookie Company is right next to us and they were giving away cookies, so we had two boxes and two bags of cookies in the store. Then, Jessie told us her sister wanted to give us cookies at the other cookie company, down at the other side of the mall.

She walked my little sister, Fey and I down there. Her sister Denise is really nice, and let us take whatever we wanted, because as she said, "I have to get rid of it all and I'd rather give it away then throw it away!"

When we first walked up, Denise looked up and grinned. "You have food, I have cookies and Mama has Piccadilly's!" Jessie had fruit and soup from the store, and their mother works at Piccadilly's so she got to take home food from there. So they had a variety to munch on in the car. ;)

Fey and I went back to the store, Tony left and we followed half a hour later. At home we packed, ran around pulling at our hair, and well...tried to figure out what to do. Around ten, the football game my dad had been keeping a eye on, between weather reports, was paused for a important message. We were told the latest of the storm, and that the Mayor of New Orleans was getting everybody out, so we were advised to bump up evacuating by a few hours as the roads would be packed/jammed in a little while.

We left at 11:30 p.m., with mini mattresses on the floor and our car crammed. I had stuffed as many of our 'good' books into a closet in the middle of the house away from windows, taken down all the pictures in my room, moved stuff away from the windows and put what I wasn't taking on my closet shelves.

Arrived at the Valley early Sunday afternoon, relaxed, visited with family and kept a close eye on the tv. Monday was lots of fun. My mom and I made dinner for all our cousins, aunts and uncles. My mom made homemade gumbo and cooked a whole red fish for my grandpa who's vegetarian. I made fish cakes, smashed potatoes, (pictures soon!) and homemade rolls. It was a great dinner and everyone was so nice and complimented me afterwards.

Part Two: Early Tuesday morning we left, and stayed the night at a fellow operator's house with his lovely family. I had hoped to meet fellow blogger and Texan, Edge (!!!) in Houston, as she goes to college there, but my dad ended up making up his mind to leave early so he could get back to the store.

So... no Edge. *tear* I really wanted to meet her, but I know we'll go to Houston again in the near future. There's a homeschool store my mom gets a bunch of our school stuff from. Plus we just miss Texan food so. ;)

We got back home at 10:00 (a.m.), having left Houston at 5:30 in the morning. Came home to check the house. It was exactly as we had left it. It was almost impossible to believe a hurricane had been so near a few days ago for today was hot and sunny. I went to work, therefore, further cut off from the computer and you dear friends.

But I'm home and safe, so thank you, thank you for all of your prayers. I know it was your prayers that kept us safe and our home and town unscathed. :)

And now I must bid you all a quick adieu, for Mommy is calling, and I must go if I hope to be back tomorrow.

Hurricane Update: Then: Safe in Texas and watching from afar. Now: Safely Home

2008-09-01T14:09:00.000-05:00

Hello everyone! I'm back, and safe thanks to your prayers. Thank you so much!

This first part was typed up on Sunday, after we evacuated safely to Texas. My grandfather's laptop wouldn't show the comment box, so all I could do was publish comments, and reply on your blogs, but I was forced to get off several times. Also, we left Tuesday morning, spent the night in Houston and arrived home in the afternoon today.

Part One: Safe in the Rio Grande Valley, in my grandparent's house, I type this on my grandfather's laptop.

Yesterday (Saturday) began with my previous post, and then rushing off to the mall to work. We were giving away a free entree (I didn't realise entrees were, say, a sandwich, nuggets or strips - I thought they were sides, like fries or fruit!) per person. I had taken maybe six orders at the most when mall security came rushing up and asked us to stop taking orders. They were closing the mall immediately.

In the back our workers were cooking as much food as they could as fast they could. Last time with Rita, my dad came back and found all the food rotted and yucky, so this time we tried to cook and give away as much as we could. A lady from Women and Children's (a local hospital) came up to the counter and asked us if we would donate any food. We gave about two big bags of food and were going to give her another one, but she had already left.

More food was given to one of the mall workers, who was overseeing men boarding up the mall, so they got hot food. :) It was a proud feeling giving food to these people, and one that felt good. Charity never bruises but rather lifts the spirit.

We came in at noon, and the mall probably closed around 12:20. We didn't leave until four o'clock at least. We had to count everything: sauces, lids, bags, for inventory which is done at the end of each month and would have been done yesterday but for the hurricane. We also had to prepare for the hurricane. I covered all the registers with trash bags to protect them if rain should come in through the ceiling.

We cleaned everything as much as we could, cramming our fresh produce (lettuce, vegetables) in to ice chests with bags of ice to keep them cold. We lugged everything we could to our storeroom into our big refrigerators. Our salads, cheesecakes, brownies, carrot-and-raisin salad, coleslaw, fruit cups, lemon pie slices and cool wraps were pulled out and put into bags. We let our employees take food home with them so they had something to eat later.

Everyone stayed as long as they could, and helped us close. The last two to leave was one of our teamleaders, Jessie and our manager, Tony. Both are quite young, in their twenties, and are just really awesome. :)

The Great American Cookie Company is right next to us and they were giving away cookies, so we had two boxes and two bags of cookies in the store. Then, Jessie told us her sister wanted to give us cookies at the other cookie company, down at the other side of the mall.

She walked my little sister, Fey and I down there. Her sister Denise is really nice, and let us take whatever we wanted, because as she said, "I have to get rid of it all and I'd rather give it away then throw it away!"

When we first walked up, Denise looked up and grinned. "You have food, I have cookies and Mama has Piccadilly's!" Jessie had fruit and soup from the store, and their mother works at Piccadilly's so she got to take home food from there. So they had a variety to munch on in the car. ;)

Fey and I went back to the store, Tony left and we followed half a hour later. At home we packed, ran around pulling at our hair, and well...tried to figure out what to do. Around ten, the football game my dad had been keeping a eye on, between weather reports, was paused for a important message. We were told the latest of the storm, and that the Mayor of New Orleans was getting everybody out, so we were advised to bump up evacuating by a few hours as the roads would be packed/jammed in a little while.

We left at 11:30 p.m., with mini mattresses on the floor and our car crammed. I had stuffed as many of our 'good' books into a closet in the middle of the house away from windows, taken down all the pictures in my room, moved stuff away from the windows and put what I wasn't taking on my closet shelves.

Arrived at the Valley early Sunday afternoon, relaxed, visited with family and kept a close eye on the tv. Monday was lots of fun. My mom and I made dinner for all our cousins, aunts and uncles. My mom made homemade gumbo and cooked a whole red fish for my grandpa who's vegetarian. I made fish cakes, smashed potatoes, (pictures soon!) and homemade rolls. It was a great dinner and everyone was so nice and complimented me afterwards.

Part Two: Early Tuesday morning we left, and stayed the night at a fellow operator's house with his lovely family. I had hoped to meet fellow blogger and Texan, Edge (!!!) in Houston, as she goes to college there, but my dad ended up making up his mind to leave early so he could get back to the store.

So... no Edge. *tear* I really wanted to meet her, but I know we'll go to Houston again in the near future. There's a homeschool store my mom gets a bunch of our school stuff from. Plus we just miss Texan food so. ;)

We got back home at 10:00 (a.m.), having left Houston at 5:30 in the morning. Came home to check the house. It was exactly as we had left it. It was almost impossible to believe a hurricane had been so near a few days ago for today was hot and sunny. I went to work, therefore, further cut off from the computer and you dear friends.

But I'm home and safe, so thank you, thank you for all of your prayers. I know it was your prayers that kept us safe and our home and town unscathed. :)

And now I must bid you all a quick adieu, for Mommy is calling, and I must go if I hope to be back tomorrow.

Hurrying from a Hurricane

2008-08-30T11:12:00.001-05:00

A quick goodbye, dear friends, for I must hurry. I live in Southwest Louisiana, which means we are right in Hurricane Gustav's path. I woke up to hear from my parents that electricity will be cut off some time today, so the order to evacuate will probably follow.
Last night everyone was scurrying around, trying to pack. My mom woke up at four, and was very angry I was awake, but now with so little time, I'm glad I stayed up to get my things together.

I was going through all my writings and scribbling, which are my dearest possessions, books nearly even, but still a second compared to my writings. Books can be replaced, but my writing would be lost forever as a great deal of it is on paper.

I quickly decided which papers I couldn't leave behind (half of the rest was typed up on the computer, and a quarter were song lyrics I had printed out from the web), and put them in to one of those plastic school folder. I tried to put two or three pages in each plastic sheet thingy. I managed to get most of it in there, which is a relief. I picked which clothes I'll be taking - two soft, goucho's (scrunchy, loose flowing bottoms), one like this in gray, one black, oh, and my brown one.

I always wear them when we have to drive in the car, I call them my "traveling pants". I'll have six shirts, one jacket/sweater, two skirts, and I think that's it.

Last night, I cooked a whole chicken to keep it from going bad. I ended up making smashed potatoes with cheddar cheese, rice, Caesar salad, and homemade rolls. It was so good. I felt like I was at a restaurant, and I cooked! My farewell dinner to Louisiana.. :)

I have to rush off now, because I'm going to work. My parents are going to try and sell as much chicken as they can before everything closes.

If you don't hear from me for a while, you know why. I'll try and get to a computer. Please pray!

Much love,

Grace

Oh My Word

2008-08-24T21:48:00.000-05:00

I walked in after being dropped off from youth group by a girlfriend, and the first words out of my soon-to-be-eleven brother's mouth are, "Can you cook something?"

I feel proud and then amused that he is staring at me desperately and and most incredibly, is asking nicely.

So I tossed aside my purse, rolled up my sleeves and made dinner. His birthday's tomorrow, so I really wanted to do this for him. Even though we are the only two kids in the family that fight all the time, he's annoyingly and obnoxiously my brother, and deep, deep down I love him. My mom drives us both crazy by saying we're twins,which kills both of us. ;)

I made chicken and rice, and I think I'll try to make yummy cheesecake for tomorrow, only I don't have the dang recipe at the moment. *sighs* Oh well. And on top of that, Blogger is acting up... a little note in red is popping up by the Save Now button: Could not contact Blogger.com. Saving and publishing may fail. Retrying...

I had Sprite the other day for the first time in... ages. I don't like Sprite. It's way too sugary. Too sweet for me (which is saying something; I think my entire mouth is full of sweet teeth). I just don't like my drinks that sugary.

As I stop to think this over I realise I have no problem chugging down a Icee, but I can't drink white soda. Well, I drink it when it's put in punch or something. You know, that big bowl of fizzy punch that shows up at showers and dances?

But Sonic sprite I can drink. I like the Sprite from Sonic, I probably even love it. I love Sonic's ice which is crumbly and soft and perfect for crunching. :D

Oh my goodness. I just nearly had a heart attack. I was typing that last sentence when I paused suddenly and then heard a unbelievably loud crash. My little sister was screaming in the garage. I ran to the garage and threw open the door to see the heavy 7/8 ft. metal locker/shelf thrown across our bikes. Fey (eight) was screaming my name in terror, beneath it.

I ran to it and lifted it up, so she could climb out. Thankfully she wasn't hurt at all, she had only been trapped beneath it, in a hollow, thanks to the many bikes and stuff around the locker. I hurriedly got the Little Man (my three yrd brother) and Precious (my youngest sister, six) out of the garage feeling weak, and hugged Fey as tightly as I could.

I know her Guardian Angel protected her and saved her life. I was truly afraid I would lift up the locker to find her bleeding, but she doesn't even have a scratch. We knelt and prayed, thanking God for keeping her safe. My heart still can't slow down.

Aaahhh! I just caught my little brother dancing with a cord, innocently wrapping it around his neck. *mutters* I feel close to collasption. Prayers, please, dear friends and readers.

In Which She Feels Horrible For Being Absent

2008-08-20T17:26:00.000-05:00

I just now received a comment from ever-awesome Judi, who kindly wrote "Um....Update....Please?" I know, I know. It's been a while. And I always promised myself I wouldn't be one of those people that never updated.

I haven't been able to get to the computer lately because it has been logged off. Only my parents know the password, so I can't always just get on when I want to. I have to hunt and track either my dad or mom down, make sure my chores are all done and then ask them, very nicely if they could log on, please. It a delicate parent-child dance that takes two to tango. ;)

So at the moment I am on, frantically checking my favorite blogs, reading some fics on Fanfiction.net and typing this. I went to the library a few weeks ago and came home with a armload of books which have now all been read.

The Tale of Despereaux
The Thief
The Queen if Attolia
The Goose Girl
Enna Burning
I, Juan de Pareja
The Thief Lord
Ottoline and the Yellow Cat
Two of Hard Boys books*
The Wind in the Willows
A is for Abigail
Stardust :P **
Calico Captive *
Spellbound: Fantasy Stories
Tunnels **
Frightful's Mountain

And I'm sure there was more... I plan to review each of them very soon.

I loved the Thief, Queen of Attolia and King of Attolia by Megan Turner Wheeler. At first I was flicking through the beginning pages getting bored. I had been reading Stephanie Meyer all day, so I was feeling irritated, because Megan wrote in a somewhat similar vein, but I didn't think it was as good as Stephanie's style.

I quickly found myself getting pulled in, however. I laughed at Gen's wisecracks and became found of the magus. Then I got to the surprise ending, and just...fell harder. She is definitely my new favorite author, and Gen is.... Well, let's just say I'm in love... :)

I've also fallen for Finn from Enna Burning by Shannon Hale, and pretty much everything in Breaking Dawn. Yes, I finished it! And I loved every moment! Yes, I proudly admit I love the Twilight series.

I put a * next to each book I didn't like and don't reccomend, and two ** next to Stardust and Tunnels which I urge you to never read. Stardust was coarse with iffy stuff in it, but Tunnels...that book creeped me out. It was horrible. Reviews coming soon!

It's really frightening to realize that in a matter of days September will be here, bringing with it the cool crisp winds of fall. Where did June and July go? The 4 of July seems only a few weeks ago, and now the end of the year is drawing near. Before I know it, it'll be All Saints Day, and then Thanksgiving, Advent and then... Christmas. Wow.

January and February will soon follow and I will be sixteen. That's.... something I feel I'm not ready for. Eeeh, I don't know. Sixteen? Legally able to drive? Will I grow? Will I still be me? Silly fears, I know, but ones that present themselves. Hmm...

I am soothed by Sondre Lerche's voice, though. Nothing like gorgeous Norwegian pop to sooth the soul. ;)

Isn't he cute? A few more for good measure...

One of his younger pictures. He's twenty six now, I believe, with a lovely wife. :)

Autumn seems to have already crept in quietly. It's very windy today, the sky is grey and clouded and our backyard looks like England. We haven't really touched it so it is large, green and lush. Definitely my kind of garden. :)

Tonight...

2008-08-07T21:36:00.000-05:00

Tonight... there is quiet. The Our Father seems all the more beautiful, as it is said softly, fingers moving over luminous pale pink pearl beads of the Rosary clasped in my hand.

Dinner simmers softly on the stove, chicken and vermicelli, a old Mexican dish from my mother's childhood. Baby Christopher is nestled in my arms, and Dario Marianelli's music in Pride and Prejudice plays from Jo's nook.

Deep within a beloved dark wooden chair, I write this, and contemplate on how much I feel at this moment, caught between Heaven and Earth. This is when one looks around at the children clustered together quietly, the husband is writing; and the wife smiles while her heart sings a song of joy and peace. This is why it's all worth it. These are the moments when we stop long enough to see God.

Tonight, I am thankful for... My mother, because it is in these moments that I realize how difficult and heartbreaking her role is, as a mother. To watch her children balk, and yearn to stretch their wings without help; to look in to the future and treasure the moments she know will pass all too swiftly.

For being my best friend on earth, and knowing me as well as she does. For installing in me a deep love for Jesus and spending time in His Presence. For saying the Rosary every night while I do the same in my room.

For reading to me while she was pregnant with me, before I was even born, and thus raising a biblophile as a daughter. For her unending love, which like God's, never runs dry. There is always more in her heart with each year.

te quiero mamá. I love you, Mom.

For my father... who is the only man in life, and will remain, unless God wills it otherwise. For always holding my little hand in his, and allowing me to cling to his ear with one hand and suck my thumb with the other, whenever he held me as a little girl. :)

For taking me to Mass on the days we make it. For God's grace in bringing my daddy to Him, and giving me the sweet gift of receiving my First Holy Communion on the same day he did, together receiving Our Lord for the first time. For being a role model for my future husband ( if he lives!), in everything.

Thank you Daddy for being my hero, and letting me be your little girl.

For my Guardian Angel, whispering these words in my ear, and granting me sweet peace. For always staying, watching and guarding. For fighting for my soul. For being my dearest, best heavenly friend.

For all the crazy and comforting conversations I've had with Paul. They are filled with laughter, silliness and moments of seriousness: about our Faith, our beliefs and our burdens we carry each day. He's like the older brother I never had (nor met). ;)

For all my friends here in the blogsphere....I love you guys so much. Thanks for making my day when you post, and being the lovelys you are.

Goodnight.

A moment of music...

2008-08-07T16:12:00.000-05:00

I was browsing on Myspace (quite accidentally) and decided to check Donovan's page (a boy I know, who is a family friend and also my co-worker).

He usually has pretty good music playing, and as I was checking his song history I saw with a thrum of pleasure, he'd had Boston by Augustana at one point. This is one of my favorite songs and I hadn't heard it for the longest time. I listened to it, and was suddenly struck with a urge to share it.... :)

I love long hair on guys. When I say long, I mean the length of the lead singer's hair. Did I also mention brown hair is very nice too? ;)

This is such a lovely video to watch. It just makes me feel so good. There's something so soft about it: the pianos, the muted shades of the band's clothes, the sky and the water itself...

Thoughts, Randomness and Rambling

2008-08-06T15:01:00.000-05:00

It's been a hard day's work and
I've been working like a dog
It's been a hard day's work,
I should be sleeping like a log.

1. The Beatles knew what they were singing.

Today, I worked at my job, at my parents' store. So I'm 'dog'-tired, but in a good way as I remarked on the comments box to Delaney and Mamma Rose. :) Nothing like a good hard day of labour to make you truly appreciate, enjoy and be thankful for Sunday, the day of rest.

2. I went to Mass today (well, no, yesterday), which I am very happy about. I have now attended Mass on the First Friday (in honor of the Sacred Heart of Jesus) and the First Saturday (in honor of the Immaculate Heart of Mary, especially as it is August, the month honoring Her Immaculate Heart). So I have eight more months for Our Lord's Heart, and four for Our Lady's Heart.

When I arrived at Mass, I was running late from said work, but thankfully my dad and I made it before Communion. We remained inside to pray quietly afterwards and then went home to my mom and siblings who hadn't managed to make it.

Yesterday (Friday), after Mass I was standing in the parking lot, talking to my friend from youth group, when a white fifteen-passenger van pulled up to the front doors, and seven or eight guys proceeded to step out standing upright, dressed in black pants and white jacket/tux jacket-thing-y. (Think Wedding Singer.)

The hilarious thing was they just stepped straight out like they were walking through a doorway. It was one of those things you hear described in books and see only in movies: You know, a little car pulls up and ten guys just step out, straightening their outfits.

Turns out there was a wedding, so that was the beginning of the wedding party. As we drove out of the parking lot, the bridesmaids had arrived, looking lovely in blue dresses, and I caught a glimpse of the bride, resplendent in white.

3. Went to Wal-Mart to take advantage of the tax-free day. Got two bags of flour so I can finally bake, and make bread. Yay! Gasped at the sight of Breaking Dawn (it's out!!!) and clutched at Eclipse to try and finish it...and was disappointed by Bella's 'demand', contrasting Edward's of marriage. Yuck. She needs to talk to a good priest. ;)

4. The computer hard drive is back! Which means I have Internet again! *hugs computer*

5. I have started a new blog, Operation Cupcake. Yes, Delaney. It is what you think it is. I am working on the first post which will hopefully be up soon.

6. I am hoping to go to the library tomorrow and check out the Importance of Being Earnest. I saw the film with Colin Firth and Reese Witherspoon first, then saw the first twenty minuets of another filmed production but didn't get to finish it! Pooh.

It's simply hilarious, but I had forgotten about it until yesterday, when I was at the library with no usable card. I grabbed a book called Scenes for a Actor or something along the lines. (Correction: The Book of Scenes for Acting Practice by Marshall Cassady.) The copy I have from the library is a wee bit (okay, a lot) more tattered and used, but that only gives it character.

The storyline is simple. Jack Worthing, a gentleman who lives in the country has invented a "younger brother" named Ernest, so that he may go to town and amuse himself. While in town he assumes Ernest's identity. His close friend, a young man by the name of Algernon Moncrieff, who lives in town is quite innocent of Ernest's real name. Algy's cousin, Gwendolen, is in love with 'Ernest' who loves her in return. Algy discovers his friend's real name and learnsJack has a young, pretty ward named Cecily. Having made up his mind to meet Cecily, he travels to the country unknown to Jack and introduces himself as Ernest. He and Cecily fall in love, but things are complicated as Gwendolen arrives. She and Cecily are surprised to learn they are both engaged to 'Ernest Worthing', and the plot thickens. :)

Jack: Good morning! (Alergnon, from the other room, strikes up the Wedding March. Jack looks perfectly furious, and goes to the door.) For goodness' sake don't play that ghastly tune, Agly! How idiotic you are!

(The music stops and Alergnon enters cheerily.)

Algernon: Didn't it go off all right, old boy? You don't mean to say Gwendolen has refused you? I know it is a way she has. She is always refusing people. I think it is most ill-natured of her.

Jack: Oh, Gwendolen is as right as a rivet. As far as she is concerned, we are engaged. Her mother is perfectly unbearable. Never met such a Gorgon. . . . I don't really know what a Gorgon is like, but I am quite sure that Lady Bracknell is one. In any case she is a monster, without being a myth, which is rather unfair. . . . I beg your pardon, Algy, I suppose I shouldn't talk about your own aunt in that way before you.

Algernon: My dear boy, I love hearing my relations abused. It is the only thing that makes me put up with them at all. Relations are simply a tedious pack of people, who haven't got the remotest knowledge of how to live, nor the smallest instinct of when to die.

Jack: Oh, that is nonsense!

Algernon: It isn't!

Jack: Well, I won't argue about the matter. You always want to argue about things.

Algernon: That is exactly what things were originally made for.

Jack: Upon my word if I thought that, I'd shoot myself....(a pause.) You don't think there's any chance of Gwendolen becoming like her mother in about a hundred and fifty years, do you, Algy?
Algernon: All women become like their mothers. That is their tragedy. No man does. That's his.

Jack: Is that clever?

Algernon: It's perfectly phrased! and quite as true as any observation in civilized life should be.

Jack: I am sick to death of cleverness. Everybody is clever now-a-days. You can't go anywhere without meeting clever people. The thing has become a absolute public niusance. I wish to goodness we had a few fools left.

Algernon: We have.

Jack: I should extremely like to meet them. What do they talk about?

Algernon: The fools? Oh! about the clever people, of course.

Jack: What fools!

Algernon: By the way, did you tell Gwendolen the truth about your being Ernest in town and Jack in the country?

Jack: (in a very patronising manner). My dear fellow, the truth isn't the sort of thing one tells to a nice, refined girl. What extraordinary ideas you have about the way to behave to a woman!

Algernon: The only way to behave to a woman is to make love to her if she is pretty, and someone else if she is plain.

Jack: Oh, that is nonsense.

Algernon: What about your brother? What about the profligate Ernest?

Jack: Oh, before the end of the week I shall have to get rid of him. I'll say he died in Paris of apoplexy. Lots of people die apoplexy, quite suddenly, don't they?

Algernon: Yes, but it's hereditary, my dear fellow. It's the sort of thing that runs in families. You had much better say a severe chill.

Jack:You are sure a severe chill isn't hereditary, or anything of that kind?

Algernon: Of course it isn't!

Jack: Very well, then. My poor brother Ernest is carried off suddenly in Paris, by a severe chill. That gets rid of him.

Algernon: But I thought you said that....Miss Cardew was a little too much interested in your poor brother Ernest? Won't she feel his loss a good deal?

Jack: Oh, that is all right. Cecily is not a silly, romantic girl, I am glad to say. She has got a capital appetite, goes for long walks, and pays no attention at all to her lessons.

Algernon: I would rather like to see Cecily.

Jack: I will take very good care you never do. She is excessively pretty, and she is only just eighteen.

Algernon: Have you told Gwendolen yet that you have a excessively pretty ward who is only just eighteen?

Jack: Oh! one doesn't blurt these things out to people. Cecily and Gwendolen are perfectly certain to be extremely good friends. I'll bet you anything you like that a half hour after they have met, they will be calling each other sister.

Algernon: Women only do that when they have called each other a lot of other things first. Now, my dear boy, if we want to get a good table at Willis's, we really must go and dress. Do you know it is nearly seven?

Jack: (irritably). Oh! it is always nearly seven.

Algernon: Well, I'm hungry.

Jack: I never knew you when you weren't....

Algernon: What shall we do after dinner? Go to a theatre?

Jack: Oh, no! I loathe listening.

Algernon: Well, let us go to the Club?

Jack: Oh, no! I hate talking.

Algernon: Well, we might trot round to the Empire at ten?

Jack: Oh, no! can't bear looking at things. It is so silly.

Algernon: Well, what shall we do?

Jack: Nothing!

Algernon: It is awfully hard work doing nothing. However, I don't mind hard work where there is no definite object of any kind.

A scene from The Importance of Being Earnest - 1952

In this scene, Gwendolen arrives with her mother, Algy's Aunt, Augusta. "Good heavens! Why are there no cucumber sandwiches?" Haha...I love that line; Algy too. ;) He has such a delightfully dry and witty humor!

I know the lighting and quality is very bad...my apologies. I tried unsuccessfully to find part one but this was the only long clip I could find of the 1952 version.

Aunt Augusta interrogating "Ernest" as a potential husband. Fun, fun, fun.

This post, I am sorry to say, was written on Saturday and Sunday. How very sad...

Thanks and News

2008-08-01T13:35:00.000-05:00

I would like to thank everyone from the bottom of my heart for all the advice and best wishes from everyone.

Unfortunately, I wouldn't be trying out for Annie after all. I emailed a friend of mine who had been in a previous production, the Sound of Music, with the same theater and director. She wrote back:

First of all, I would advise you not to audition. Yes, our family did audition and get parts for Sound of Music there, but our experience was quite unpleasant.

The director was very rude (to adults and children alike), the building itself is ill kept (fire regulations were not followed, there is no air conditioning backstage, men and women do not have separate dressing rooms, costumes are not washed, backstage is so filthy rats were found, there are no bathrooms backstage to use during shows), then adults smoke and curse openly in front of the children.

Also, there are many hidden unnecessary “fees” put upon the volunteer actors. Ex: they are expected to pay for their own scripts, costumes (even ones we made ourselves. Go figure.), etc. which is quite unprofessional on their part. On the set construction days they let 10-15 yr old kids handle table saws and heavy duty equipment without supervision or eye protection.

Finally, it is in a very dangerous neighborhood with barbed wire surrounding and hobos wandering the neighborhood.

Frankly, we didn’t find it to be child friendly, or adult friendly for that matter.

So.... My parents have decided no, and I find myself agreeing with them. I also find myself thanking Our Lady, because as I read my friend's advice and realized my parents decision, and that I would not be auditioning, I felt a great weight lift off me. I didn't realized just how frantic and worried I felt about the whole thing until after I knew it would not happen.

Now, I know some of you might think, 'yes, but you'll still be nervous when the next play or musical comes along.' I know I will be nervous, but I will have time to prepare, and most helpful, my friends (her and her sister) will probably be auditioning with me. :)

After cautioning me, Chickadee, (don't ask. ;)) mentioned that this fall, auditions will be held for You Are A Good Man Charlie Brown at a different (and better) theater, and auditioning-wise: You wouldn’t need to prepare anything for Little Theater. They give you a script upon arrival and you read from it the part they would consider you for.

As for general advice on auditioning, just be yourself (or, rather, the person they consider you for) and have fun with it! The best way to learn about auditioning is to actually do it over, and over, and over! ….and everyone get nervous auditioning and being on stage…everyone.

So hopefully, I will try out for that. That is if it doesn't coincide with the FT get-together!

Once more, thank you so much for all your kind words! It's so nice knowing I have a blogging 'family' to fall back on for advice and help! :)

Relived and content,

Raewyn

Help!

2008-07-29T17:38:00.000-05:00

Okay, I think I'm going to audition for Annie.

But I'm in desperate need of help. The auditions are in about a week, and all the children have to sing and I can't think of a song! Does anyone have any suggestions?

I was thinking something lighthearted and fun, like something from Mamma Mia, or Matchmaker from Fiddle on the Roof, or Officer Krupke from West Side Story. Do you have any suggestions? Something short but effective?

Any tips for the audition? Do they want me to sing the whole song or just about for a minuet?

I can sing, but I'm no opera singer. I'm really nervous. I had auditioned for the Sound of Music awhile back, but they had already had callbacks, so... I remember I was so nervous my voice couldn't decide on a pitch, so I was going from high, to really high, to low. Hee hee. ;)

Any tips would be great! I need help!

YES IT DID!

2008-07-28T20:41:00.000-05:00

NOOOOOOO!!! I started a post on Romeo and Juliet, and how the 1968 film and that song, What is a Youth, makes my blood sing AND BLOGGER KILLED IT! EVIL! NASTY! HORRID! SCRUFFY-LOOKING....NURFHERDER!

Calm now.

Hares, Hatters, and Wiggles!

2008-07-28T18:08:00.000-05:00

Not really. I just couldn't think of a title. *glares at muse who was brilliant a hour ago, but has now fled*

So! I found Leigha today, and abso-bloody-lutely love her blog and her post about creativewritingprompts.com. I was so inspired I decided to meander over and explore. I did number one and two on Microsoft Word, but then I was banging away at the keys and it got xed out and didn't save! *sniffle*

The next one, 3, however sounded like so much fun I had to share it: Grab your dictionary off your shelf and blow the dust off. Pick ten words randomly (love the random bit!) and don't look at their meaning. Write them down or (in my case) type them and have fun creating meanings for the words. What do the words make you think of? What do you think they should mean?

Here are the ones my Guardian Angel picked...

marsh wiggle!!! Haha. Hm, Puddleglum’s home, a wet grey plain of water and thin mud, with mist. Fun to think of, imagine and write about, but probably not as much fun in real life. ;)

pit ooh, something for Mamma to fall in! Hee hee. A hole made out of dirt; excellent for roasting potatoes, eggs and other scrumptious food. See Chapter 24 Let Them Laugh of The Secret Garden.

barracks long house for boys, very military. Young Roman soldiers running drills, lounging about lazily, busy being good-looking and flashing dazzling grins at a girl getting water from a well nearby. :D

flame fire-hot, red, gold and blue. Beautiful in the dark. Passionate and quiet, loyal and steady, burning bright. Flickering in the wind, dancing merrily and shining at the lad or lass who carries it.

peruse read or glance with a haughty look, skimming over, eyes flickering here and there. Can make a girl uncomfortable. ‘Specially if it’s being done by a boy. Quite careless, effortlessly nonchalant.

slosh yay! Loooovvve it! Heh, drips in to Bella’s hood and gets her hair wet. Disliked immensely by her. Fun to run through, and stamp in. Lighthearted and melancholy at once. Grey-white stuff, made of melted snow and rain. Likes boots and being tracked indoors on carpets.

inevitable ooh. *runs her hands briskly* Death. Being snarky. Sarcasm living on. Mocha Frappachinos. The feeling you get when it’s raining. Stepping in to a Starbucks. Guys. ;)

row Baker’s! A fun British word describing a fight, which is so much cooler then anything we Americans could come up with. So very British. Which makes it so very cool. A row of pumps all lined up, shiny, beautiful and impossibly high. *drools*

scalawag *glowers* My little brother! Grr. A v. annoying person who know he pushes your buttons and enjoys it. Also shoplifters, hooligans and fresh-mouthed youngsters.

bluff Into the wee wee bluff, och me bonny lass! (Kidding. Don’t worry, my songs aren’t as bad as that.) Something James Bond does. A brave front. Pretending like you don’t care even though you’ve told him time and time again that nothing he can say or do will change your mind! (Haha. Rose and Fishy, anyone?) Cards: poker if you prefer. Casino Royale! (Yes, Bond again. What can I say? I like me my Daniel Craig.)

And there we go. Hoo, that was fun! Your turn now...

Back...and Happy

2008-07-28T12:49:00.001-05:00

Oh, my friends, it feels so wonderful to be back! I've missed every one of you. It's amazing how I can feel so attached to people I've never even met! :)

Well, I have math to do. Haha, yes, summer is over for me, but, well, here's a little secret. It was never supposed to have even started. I am very behind, so I planned to continue my school, or math, at least, through the summer. Ha! There goes that well-laid plan. On a good note however, I finished my third math disc, so I have 29 lessons and then I am done and I move on to next level of math! Algebra... oh dear.

I realized I posted sometime ago that Geometry was going nicely. Ahem. Apparently that was just a introduction. My...bad.

Tomorrow is Tuesday. Which means basketball practice and youth group. At the same time. I chose a few weeks ago to go to youth group instead of basketball, and I think I shall make the same choice again. I have nothing against basketball, but my friends and fellowship are dear to me. :)

I'm lurking about Jo's corner, dreaming in the souring melodies and listening to her words of Summer. I need the 2005 Pride and Prejudice soundtrack so. Music, I cannot live without. I need it, I crave it. My soul is filled with melodies as they play softly, and tug at my heart...

One might also say the same about God. We cannot do without, no matter how hard we may try. It is like trying not to breathe. We need Him, we cannot live without Him. He, is. Is all we are, all we try to be, all we want to be; He is there, watching always, with tender eyes. Waiting to carry us when we stumble, comfort us when we cry, and love us always.

Lovely Jenny who I "met" on the first day of World Youth Day, shared the story of her conversion to the Catholic Church, which was beautiful, and as I read, my eye was caught and held by a line she wrote:

Finally I knew that Jesus was the missing piece! All those years I had focused on God the Father but apart from Christmas and Easter I had not thought about having a relationship with His Son. I needed a loving dad and God had been it...now I had a Brother.

Our Lord. Who gave Himself that we might be with Him in Heaven. The Sorrowful Mysteries are always able to bring tears to my eyes when I reflect on what He suffered for us. We, who had not even been born yet, and were hundreds and hundreds of years away from even existing. He loved us so much, that He was willing and ready. When I think of Jesus, I think of pure love. Of a Man, so gentle and tender, who loved children and His fellow men. He was whipped, beaten, ridiculed, spat on, mocked and forced to carry the Cross He would die on.

As a girl I dream of love and beauty, and one day a family, a home, and a husband. I dream of being rescued, someone to protect me, and comfort me. When I shed my bitter tears of childish hurt, I picture Him sometimes, bending toward me, and laying His hand on my head and just a wave of peace sweeping through me. Jesus is pure Love, and therefore we love Him. We are all searching for love, and we find ultimate love in Our Lord. Because we can't ignore Him. We love Him too much. :)

If that sounds contradictory, forgive me. I'm no scholar, so I error in something I say, it is in error. ;)

fondly.
Reawyn

Just for a little while

2008-07-21T16:16:00.000-05:00

I've lost computer for about a week, because I'm having trouble waking up early, so my mom's trying to motivate me. So I'm not ignoring you, if you left a comment. I'm just... temporally absent. ;)

Hopefully I'll be back soon, dearies, so say a prayer for me please!

fondly,
Raewyn

A Blessing filled day!

2008-07-15T11:52:00.000-05:00

It's the beginning of World Youth Day, as Mamma Rose reminded me! Hurrah! It sounds amazing, but as I am not in Sydney, here is everything to keep up with this exciting week.

Pope Benedict will make his first visit to Australia, so I'm more then sure everyone down under is ecstatic about it!

For those who do not know what WYD is, it is the largest youth event and gathering in the world of young teens! It's organised by the Catholic Church, and a invitation to all the youth everywhere to celebrate their faith and learn more about it.

Prayers to all over there, that they have a amazing week, stay safe and have clear weather!

God Bless!

a Meme...

2008-07-12T22:39:00.000-05:00

My dear friend Jo tagged me last night. (well, it was last night, last week. Many days have elapsed since then, and nights come and gone...)

But here I am at last, and I tag Elena, Mamma Rose, Delaney, Claire, Paul, Clare, Brenda, Sarah, and Mrs. Gibson...

I am: a daughter of Christ

I think: of raindrops and whiskers, and all I can

I know: there is a God

I have: so many people to love, worry over and pray for

I wish: to be good

I hate: cruelty

I miss: my cousin, and my best friend

I fear: losing my friends

I feel: quiet, lonely, and souring on gentle waves of music

I hear: the quiet pattering of rain coming down and crack of lightning

I smell: the faint scent of perfume, romantic, beckoning and comforting

I crave: hot chocolate, hugs, and the smell of coffee

I search: for truth, beauty and life

I wonder: about Love and its many different forms

I regret: that I didn't pray when I should have

I love: unconditionally

I ache: for the Girards, their friends and Paul

I am not: alone

I believe: Marc and Thom are in Heaven

I dance: in the rain and at night

I sing: always

I cry: when I watch my parents wedding video and listen to beautiful music

I don't always: fall asleep while it is still night

I fight: for my soul

I write: to find my voice

I win: a hug from a friend

I lose: my temper

I never: believe evil will triumph over good

I always: laugh

I confuse: my family by loving characters alive only on page and in my mind

I listen: carefully and gratefully

I can usually be found: curled in a chair, or a book

I am scared: of losing my loves

I need: a ton of love and affection or I will wilt

I am happy about: comments on my blog, and finding a new friend

I imagine: Middle-Earth is real

And I must add one of my own.

I am wearing: a great red oversized sweater :)

Taa-dah!

2008-07-11T18:31:00.000-05:00

Me....

I felt it was time to dispel the rumors and post evidence that I am real, so...;) Here I am. Wow, my hair looks really glossy!

In Loving Memory

2008-07-09T20:41:00.000-05:00

Paul posted a beautiful video, 'In Loving Memory', of Marc and Thom. I teared up as I was watching, and truly started crying when I saw Marc receiving Holy Communion with a beautiful humbleness.

I cried for his family and friends, and for the boy I never met.

We love you, Marc.

Eternal Rest grant unto them, O Lord, and may perpetual light shine upon them. May their souls and all the souls of the faithful departed, through the mercy of God, rest in peace. Amen.

With love...

Yesterday I met a Dragon Rider and a Hobbit

2008-07-09T12:34:00.000-05:00

I arrived at the library late yesterday afternoon in search and hopes of my first Chesterton. Hopping out of the car, I saw through the dark sliding glass doors, a cut out standee of Eragon. Full sized.

I eagerly scuttled inside going, "Eragon!!", bounced up to him and stood there rocking on my feet looking for a sign declaring there was to be a autograph signing or a meet-and-greet. No such luck.

After gazing rapturously at him and having fully admired his leather waistcoat thing-y, I left him with a sigh, and followed my dad inside so he could get me a new library card. Apparently since I got my last two library cards, they changed the limit of how old you could be, to get a card without an adult with you, to eighteen. Pft. Or so said the guy at the counter who didn't look but four or five years older then me. Double pft...

While my dad was writing down how much we owe in fees (really; it's surprising how $52, $19, and $10-something add up!), I looked around, my attention span already moving on, when I saw - gasp- Frodo!

They had a cut out of him too!

Squeaking excitedly, I bobbed over to where he was and halted before him, hands behind my back as I indulged in his Hobbit-ness freely. Interrupting my ogling, my dad came up and said he didn't want to get in to the whole fee thing, at least, not without a bank statement; so with a backward glance longingly, I heaved a sigh and allowed myself to be escorted out.

No Chesterton, but a Dragon Rider and a Hobbit? Yes.

These events are real and did happen, but are slightly exaggerated for humorous benefit. ;)

Rainy days

2008-07-09T12:06:00.000-05:00

I love rainy days so very much. I've always found it hard to believe I was born on a sunny day. I was born between Sunday and Monday, in the wee hours of the dawn and midnight, so at least it was grey...

Some people talk about starlight and how beautiful it is; but I think rain-light is the most beautiful. A pale, clear grey-white, so very soft and gentle...

Rainy days are when you are nestled in your house, hot cocoa bubbling on the stove top... you are dressed in your favorite clothes, perhaps no longer wearable in public, but perfect for days such as these.

Rainy days are perfect for pottering about quietly, feeling homey, thinking thoughts of one's own, reading a good book and contemplating it's words.

Or, for us writers , it is spent over sheets of paper, notebooks or the computer. Writing slowly now, then filled with words flowing over, out of our fingertips, down through the black ink, on to the snowy white paper; and dancing there, merrily twinkling up at us as we lean back with a sigh of satisfaction and take a sip of our much-deserved tea, coffee or cocoa.

Yes, I think rainy days are the best.

fondly,
Raewyn

Our Lady's Knight

2008-07-02T22:48:00.000-05:00

It is with a heavy heart that I type this. The FairyTale Novels Forum lost a dear member, 'The Illustrious Marc', on June 30.

Marc Girard was a eighteen year old boy and a Knight of Lepanto. He was a son, a brother, a friend, and soon to be, a Friar of the Franciscan Friars of the Immaculate. He was all this and so much more.

I knew him through the FT forum, and he made me laugh. He ran for President in our Election thread, undaunted by the growing amount of votes for Mr. Darcy; he had the silliest and coolest avatar of Mr. Bean making faces, and he was a hero. He died with his father, Thomas Girard, trying to save his dad's life.

Marc, Mr. Girard, and Marc's younger siblings, Lucas, 11, and Hannah, 7, went swimming at a pond. There was a small island not too far away from the shore and they decided to swim to it. Marc swam with Lucas and Mr. Girard was behind them with Hannah in his arms, who couldn't swim. Marc heard his little sister scream and turned to see her in the water, their father nowhere to be seen. It is thought he suffered from a heart attack while swimming

Marc swam out to Hannah, pushed her to safety and told her to pray, then struck out back for his father. He was too late, however.

Lucas, Marc's little brother witnessed the entire tragedy. He also saw the firefighters pull his father and brother from the water. Marc was brought to the hospital barely alive. He received the Anointing of the Sick and Fr. Angelo blessed him with a relic of St. Padre Pio. As he did so, Marc entered in to cardiac arrest, and passed away at 1:50 a.m., on the Feast of the Precious Blood.

Last year the Girard's house burned down, and the only thing that survived the fire from Marc's room was his picture of St. Padre Pio. His family moved into a trailer and lived there through the winter. In fact, ten days before Marc's death, his dear friend, Master Paul Xavier, sent a message to me after I asked how things were going, replying that he was spending the night at Marc's place.

He posted later on the forum: "Ooh! Had a great weekend! Slept over Marc's friday Night, and watched Kingdom of Heaven on a surround sound laptop in his tent. Went to Six Flags with him, his brother and sister, and Angela. Went on nearly every ride. (Including Superman! Had the wonderful experience of having a mouthful of Miss Georgianna's hair... ) lol

Bought Angela a pink superman cape, which I had to wear while she went on a water ride, while Marc held her purse... (Just picture that...lol Pink cape...and a purse.) Lovely. Played Nintendo Wii Bowling with Bugs Bunny and Granny. lol

We went fishing later on afterwards, spent the night feeling sick as I found out that I'm a cursed man....Miss Turner...lol (Has to do with that Satanist guy that spammed me...)

Sunday we went to Mass, wore our capes, ate food, had a water balloon fight, played some kickball and baseball with the Friars, went home, took a shower...and sleeeeeepppppppppppppp feels so good."

I'm so very glad God gave the band of three friends (Paul, Angela and Marc) a wonderful last memory together, and Marc a amazing last day with his friends.

Pray for us, Marc, and help us to God. Watch over us. We won't forget you.

What a night!

2008-06-24T22:53:00.000-05:00

Regina posted her reply to the tagg-y thing in the comments, so I thought I'd post it here!

Hi Raewyn!
I'll post my response here if that's okay!

Who’s your all-time favorite author and why?
It's a tie between C. S. Lewis (for his unforgettable phrases and simple narratives and brilliant imagination) and G.K. Chesterton, for his exuberance and humor and robust writing style that can handle writing about both theology and bloody murder.

Who was your first favorite author and why? Do you still consider him/her among your favorites? Madeleine L'Engle used to be my favorite, but I read too much of her. :P Her adult books leave something to be desired.

Who’s the most recent addition to your list of favorite authors, and why? Walker Percy, because I love his humor, which is so dry that you either get him or you don't. And I love, covet his last sentences. The way he ends his novels is graceful and elegant and understated. Love it. My personal favorite of his is not a novel though: it's Lost in the Cosmos: The Last Self Help Book.Oh, and J.K. Rowling for excellence in both plotting and characterization.

If someone asked you who your favorite authors were right now, which authors would first pop out of your mouth? J.R.R. Tolkien, C.S. Lewis, J. K. Rowling, Laura Ingalls, A. A. Milne, Beatrix Potter, Dorothy Sayers, Madeleine L'Engle, Lewis Carroll, T. S. Eliot and others.

Hey I didn't need almost anyone else to your list!

I'm blushing... Wow. So many new authors to read. I need to make my way to the library and check all them out. I have yet to truly get in to Chesterton because I have yet to really read any of his books. I read and loved his Father Brown omibus, so now I need to move on to his other writings.

Got home from basketball, (Yrch!) and decided that I do not like suicides. For any other person (like me), who's world does not revolve around sports, suicides are exercises, running up and down the court and back. First running a few feet and back, then about five feet and back, half-court and back, and finally all the way to the other end and back.

Again.

And again.

Although tonight the coach took pity on us just when I thought I was going to be sick, collapse, pass out and die. He announced to our joy we could run two laps around the court instead. Yes, I know you have to do tons of them. But I did not join the girls' homeschool team to play. I joined for the exercise. Come game time I'm going to be the best water girl that team has ever seen.

I do not like running up and down court; I get sweaty and out of breath.
I am not fit; I get out of breath reeeal easily.
I am not good at basketball; the ball doesn't like me.
I am not a athlete; I. Have. No. Endurance.

Which is why I joined. (take your pick which reason) ;)

Thanks to Paul for the correction and suggestion with the links. See? This is why I have you readers. To catch the stuff I don't. ;)

Marriage and Memories

2008-06-24T17:12:00.000-05:00

Ha, concerning the cursing...Aren't you glad you didn't marry me?

So said my past-fiancee, Master Paul Xavier, when we were discussing the rather unfortunate incident of him getting cursed. (grammar) To which I promptly replied, 'no!' Marriage is about sharing your life with someone, and that includes getting cursed as well!

Heheh...we got engaged sometime ago out of pure spontaneity... actually, I proposed and he accepted... (his decision may have been influenced by the fact I had a chicken dowry) and Delaney summed it all up with a rather witty sentence: "I think we all must be drunk, or something equally bad."

I had a lovely virtual wedding shower, and we got tons of Presents, after which Paul and I went back to our normal, non-married lives. Although...I'm not too sure about him...

Jack enjoyed it while it lasted however. 'A wedding.. I love weddings! Drinks all around!'

Geometry's surprisingly simple so far, for which I give thanks. But math is always easy with Linkin Park and Coldplay playing in your ears...

And yes, I gave Paul his own label. I have a feeling he'll be filling it. :)

It likes me!

2008-06-23T18:13:00.000-05:00

Yay, it's fixed! My dearest Mamma, Lady Rose, ever so sweetly helped me!

Tagging..and It still doesn't like me

2008-06-22T14:01:00.000-05:00

Okay... I hereby tag: Miss Brenda,

Sarah,

Mrs. Gibson,

Regina,

Carpe,

and Ben!
I can't figure out how to post the links as names. One more enemy to vanquish...:)

It doesn't like me

2008-06-21T23:24:00.000-05:00

My blog won't let me post a picture. Bother. And it's such a nice one too.

O... Never mind! Have I mentioned I love my dad? He's so terribly smart.

Tagged

2008-06-19T22:37:00.000-05:00

Ah, my best friend. No, not the cat. My best friend, Garra, has a lovely simple black book bag with this piece on the front. As if she wasn't chic enough, she has such a purse...

Randomness..

Anyhoo, I've been tagged by my forum 'cousin', Delaney! Never been tagged, so this is my first. It was Delaney's first tag as well.

Rules Link to the person that tagged you, post the rules somewhere in your meme, answer the questions, tag six people in your post, let the tagees know they’ve been chosen by leaving a comment on their blog, let the tagger know your entry is posted.

Who’s your all-time favorite author and why? J.R.R. Tolkien. Because he manages over and over again to steal my breath away with his beautifully crafted stories, to make my heart ache queerly, and the liquid poetry he writes. Because I don't think there will ever quite be someone like him. Because he poured his Faith in to all he did, because he was a amazing Catholic author and because he wrote of friendship and hope.

Who was your first favorite author and why? Do you still consider him/her among your favorites? I really don't remember. There were so many books, I don't remember the first. The first I can truly remember was Laura Ingalls. I read all her books when I was a little girl and loved them. They were so wholesome and satisfying and so wonderful to me. Yes, I think I do, subconsciously. I'd forgotten about her, and if someone were to ask me about my favorite authors, I wouldn't have listed her. But I still love her books.

Who’s the most recent addition to your list of favorite authors, and why? Stephanie Meyer. Because she wrote a really good vampire love story that I truly enjoyed. She wrote simply, spun a marvelous story, made you fall in love with the leading vampire, and made it familiar. I am somewhat hesitate about reading the third one, because I want to be careful, but she is my new favorite author.

If someone asked you who your favorite authors were right now, which authors would first pop out of your mouth? J.R.R. Tolkien, C.S. Lewis, Regina Doman, J. K. Rowling, Sir Athur Conan Doyle, Agatha Christie, Christopher Paolini, Hilda van Stockum, Joyce West, Constance Savery, L.M. Montgomery, Louisa May Alcott, Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings, Frances Hodgson Burnett, Laura Ingalls, A. A. Milne, Mark Twain, Stephanie Meyer, Shannon Hale and others.

I have to get off, so I'll tag everyone in the morning.

Why thank you

2008-06-19T20:47:00.000-05:00

In reply to the lovely comments left by the two maidens I have not met yet:

Lucia, *giggles* Sorry, Lord of the Ring came to mind more because I was listening to LotR music... I love Narnia as well though. For Aslan!!

Yes, it does feel like a Quest doesn't it? Only there's no Legolas or Frodo. :(

I like to think we are in Middle-Earth, only we can't see it yet. As time passes, as we grow, the mountains emerge, Lothorien is visible, we can see a glimpse of a Elf though the forest, and the Grey Harbor is on the horizon...

I'm in a whimsical mood tonight. :)

You too? Mayhaps we are cousins indeed! I suspected though I was a descendant of Merry or Sam. I think I am like Sam in that I am devoted to my loved ones and would follow them to Mont Doom.

"Don't you leave him, Samwise Gamgee! And I don't mean to. I don't mean to."

I always start crying during that scene when he and Frodo hug.. *blows her nose* I'm getting teary-eyed just thinking about it!

Victoria, hehe. I love 'Poppet'! And Pirates of the Caribbean! Imogen Heap started one of her vlogs, number 21, with a cheery, "Hello poppets!" So, inspiration all around!

Thank you for your warm encouragement! May I ask how you came across my Spare Oom?

Really? That sounds wonderful. I really liked it. I was disappointed that there weren't more students. I had forgotten it was summer, so I really want to go back and sit in on a class.

Now to wander over to your blogs! Wot?

Where I belong

2008-06-19T17:55:00.000-05:00

Oh, it feels so good to be home.

I've missed everyone so much! *hugs all her blog pals, old and new*

Well, nearly two weeks after I wrote my last post, I return. Relived, reassured, and many other things starting with 'R's'.

I wrote down as much as I could. Here is the first part of my travel journal:

Eeep! We were late this morning. I jolted awake as my dad rushed, saying, "Wake up! They're here!" (my grandparents) I did, gasping the first word to come to mind and stumbled out of my room. To my horror, it was 7:23. We were supposed to leave at seven sharp.

"Dad, it's 7:23, " I groaned, burying my face in my hands in despair and sleepiness.

I turned on my heel, and yawning my way into the bathroom. When I came out, my dad was coming down the hallway gesturing wildly. Nonplussed and too tired to try and think, I tried to walk past him. He spun me around and steered me into the bedroom. "Sure thing, Mom. It's the first door on the right," he called over his shoulder.

Realizing my grandmother was coming down the hall and I was still in my pj's, I ran into my room.

Dressed and somewhat ready, I decided to dump the bag of shoes. I was embarrassed by the fact that I had a big, heavy suitcase, a huge backpack of books (New Moon included), a medium sized bag and my purse. My purse is generous sized too.

later

We're on the road now, just having left town. All around are alternating fields of fields, tall trees and scrub. V. clear day; the grass is wet. It rained late at night or early in the morning.

I slept from five o'clock in the morn, to seven twenty-three. So that's nearly two and a half hours of sleep. Gah...

later

As we drive down the road, modern enough, I feel like a cross between the second Mrs. De Winter coming down the drive for the first time, the huge hedge peering down at her, nodding it's many leafed head. And Alice in Wonderland going through the maze of hedges in the strange world where nothing is the proper size and everything is so much bigger or smaller...

It's a strange feeling, one of a sense of isolation, wonder and of course, curiosity... :)

So?

2008-06-08T02:22:00.000-05:00

*props her eyes up long enough to notice the title spelling and label of her first post*

I spelled it Intraductory, and I don't care. It looks fine that way, and for all you may know, I spelled it that way on purpose...

Blurg

2008-06-08T02:16:00.001-05:00

...I'm going to need something from Starbucks so bad in a few hours...

*sleepily* Goodnight luvs, don't miss me too much. I don't want anyone pining away while I'm gone.

Be awfully flattering, though.

And Now, I Take My Leave

2008-06-08T01:39:00.000-05:00

*sigh* I leave for Virginia in six hour and a half hours. Ugh..make that six hours and twenty minuets!

My grandparents discovered some odd years ago, while researching their genealogy, that they were related to the Calmes, sharing the same ancestor, a Marquis, who's name escapes my memory at the present moment. Apparently, they have a reunion every year, and they were kind enough to invite me along with them.

I'm very excited, because in addition to a wonderful amazing trip, my grandparents agreed to take me to Christendom, a Catholic collage in Front Royal, about a hour and a half from Charlottesville.

I first heard of it from Bowman the Black, from the FairyTale Novels Forum; who is a resident student there. He sung Christendom's praises on the Collage thread, so of course I was beside myself with excitement when I saw how near Front Royal was to Charlottesville.

Not to mention it's the home of the lovely Catholic author Regina Doman, and her husband Andrew. http://http//www.reginadoman.com/

Alas, I won't be able to see them at the IHM National Home School and Parent Conference in Chatilly, because we will be in Williamsburg during the 13 and 14.

We plan to travel to Front Royal, spend the night and then visit the campus in the morning. I hope Bowman and I can meet. He offered to show me around campus, but if he cannot, I think he said something about his friends, although they may have plans as well. A very nice offer all the same. Lovely boy.

We leave at seven in the morning; I believe it's about twenty to two, so that gives me five or so hours to finish packing, my clothes to dry, agonise over which books to bring with me (It's like having to pick between your children; it's simply impossible!), figure out where to put my shoes, (there's no room in my suitcase), sit on my suitcase and try to close it, and cram numerous notebooks, pens and various other stuff I won't end up using in to a medium sized bag!!

It's not fun putting things off...

Yes..I'm Finally Here!

2008-06-07T12:32:00.000-05:00

Hello poppets!

Well, here I am. After months of telling myself over again and again, "I need to get a blog", I'm Finally Here.

I've spent the past twelve hours struggling with my template and settings, the colour, ect.. I'm one of those people who want their blogs to look comforting, relaxing, and cool and perfect, without looking perfect. And well, frankly, I'm beginning to suspect all the creative juice was squeezed from my head last night while I slept. Grr.

I guess I should tell you something about myself. *thinks it over* Hmm..yes, that would be smart. Here goes. I'm a mortal girl, with suspected Hobbit ancestors. I am the oldest of six, a teenage girl ( glares at the boys hiding behind shields), and am very proud to be a Roman Catholic. I have two wonderful, amazing parents that manage to provide for, love and annoy and ignore me when I'm in a mood, but not necessarily in that order.

Oh, and I love Lord of the Rings with all my heart. "It is said, there is a final Theme and purpose for Men, which Eru has not yet revealed... All we can do is use the time that has been given to us.." There is beauty in this world and part of it, (for me) is what J.R.R Tolkien, Peter Jackson and Howard Shore has given to us. So, yes. I am on a Quest, with my own Fellowship, and all I can do is hope I will reach the end. "White shores.." There will I follow, into the West.

It is with my whole heart, that I dedicate this blog to The Sacred Heart of Jesus, and to The Immaculate Heart of Mary, His Mother. May they watch over this blog and all who visit.

Blessed be God!

My Spare Oom

Joining A Catholic Young Woman

Isn't It (Not Really) Funny?

Are You There, God? It's Me.

An Outstanding October

Happy September!

I have a sneaking suspicion I'm secretly British...

In the Midst of a Tempest

Sometimes...

Future Plans as a Mother

12 Things That Happen at a Masquerade...

Nothing is more calming....

He is Risen!

The Call to Obedience in Holy Week

The Gift of Today

St. Patrick's Day

Success!

An Interesting Experiment

Day of Thanks

Celebrating Narnia-day while the World Celebrates Halloween

A Productive Pretty Pink Meeting

Just to clarify -

Happy Birthday To Rose

Yawn, Groan, and Giggle

A Birthday, A Evening On the Town, First Place, and Headway into the Book

What Friends Are For

Tiptoing into Renia Past Bedtime

Herein begins the First Year of the Tenth Age... *cough* ..so to speak

Christmas is here!!!!

One More Day!

Many gifts given and many to be given away!

A Return after Many Months

Pounding the Pavement

A Numb Mouth, Re-Confident Spirit and Ready to Start Running

And now the pain sets in...

My Last Braces-less Post

And Now to Bed...

Weddings and the Stuff of Life

Can It Be July Already?

Hooray! And thanks be to God!

Prayers would be nice...

*Two Days Later*

A Day of Rest

The Merry (Mary) Month of May

I'm A Pile Of Mush Inside

There and back again: thoughts on being sixteen and Lent

Just to let You Know....

A WELLLLLLLLLLLLLLLCOME!!!! And a *cough* update, among other things - such as a meme

No school, and a demon barber: the Music of Sweeney Todd

Musings on Sweeney Todd while packing for another trip

A Warm Welcome, and the rest of the Award!

I nearly died of laughter Friday.... and I got a Award!

Hurricane Update: Then: Safe in Texas and watching from afar. Now: Safely Home

Hurricane Update: Then: Safe in Texas and watching from afar. Now: Safely Home

Hurrying from a Hurricane

Oh My Word

In Which She Feels Horrible For Being Absent

Tonight...

A moment of music...

Thoughts, Randomness and Rambling

Thanks and News

Help!

YES IT DID!

Hares, Hatters, and Wiggles!

Back...and Happy

Just for a little while

A Blessing filled day!

a Meme...

Taa-dah!

In Loving Memory

Yesterday I met a Dragon Rider and a Hobbit

Rainy days

Our Lady's Knight

What a night!

Marriage and Memories

It likes me!

Tagging..and It still doesn't like me

It doesn't like me

Tagged

Why thank you

Herein begins the First Year of the Tenth Age... cough ..so to speak

Two Days Later

A WELLLLLLLLLLLLLLLCOME!!!! And a cough update, among other things - such as a meme