Working . . . on the prototype for a crochet collar. I need to order some finer yarn to make it more like lace.
Grateful . . . that I can be a stay-at-home mom at last!
Hoping . . . for better health; to weed out the impurities in my diet and find some coconut oil and gluten-free foods around here; to exercise regularly; and a productive summer.
March 28, Feast of St. John Capistrano, confessor.
-- 1 --
-- 2 --
We've been ill with colds over the last few days, so I spent most of my time in bed watching Avatar: the Last Airbender on my dad's Netflix. Much like my Firefly revelation, I can say heartily "I get it now!" It's warm, breathing characters make the show. Without them, Avatar would be just another fantasy world with all the good guys uniting to defeat the one really evil overlord, but it's the characters' development and personal struggles that kept me from clicking away to watch Portlandia. The fact that they've managed to do all this while not complicating is a real strength, I think. It would have been so easy to misconstrue "simple" with "shallow." Somewhat reminds me of Ender's Game in that way. It's easy to understand and follow the deep emotional and moral questions without dumbing them down.
The only thing I just couldn't get into is the same thing that made cast down The Golden Compass in the first chapter. Reincarnation isn't in itself something I can't accept for the sake of story; it's the I'm-more-than-one-person-at-a-time thing. If you're not familiar with Avatar, the main character Aang is a reincarnated being similar to the Dali Llama. But when they present his past lives as other selves--as opposed to times when he lived other than in his present lifetime (think Tolkien's elves or "the sending back" of Gandalf in tLotR)--my Thomistic sense of philosophy rejects it with all my being.
Despite that, look for a 10 Reasons You Should Watch Avatar: the Last Airbender post in the future.
-- 3 --
I'm brushing up on my Welsh with a Welsh starter course, and I'm pleased with how much I've retained. I never learned it like I wanted to when I was here before. The free course offered at the university conflicted with my one and only weekly lecture. And then I was elbow-deep in my studies (and a romance!). It will be good for me in the future to speak conversational Welsh when looking for work.
The Welsh language is one of the reasons I wanted to study in Wales. It's beautiful, lyrical, and not as hard as Irish. And while it's phonetic, the spelling is intimidating and lovely. Words like llyfr (book), cynnwys (contnets), and wyddor (alphabet).
Hint: the y and w are actually vowels.
-- 4 --
I've never heard a child eat so expressively. With each bite or sip, Afon growls and "mmmmmmmmmm!" from the very depth of his little being. It's the cutest.
We took him to visit a playgroup yesterday. It's like a preschool, though it starts with two-year-olds, and then they move on to the actual preschool, which they call nursery school. It's almost fully funded, and with my experience working at a childcare center I could see that they were very well run. We signed him up for two days a week, for the social interaction. They are also trained there in speech therapy and working with children who have disabilities, so I think this is a good choice, though it makes my homeschooling-wannabe self a little nervous. They were already talking about him going on to "nursery school" in the September term. Now as I'm typing this, I think I ought to look up some homeschooling groups in the area.
-- 5 --
There were a handful of things I prepped myself for before moving across the Atlantic, some good some not so good. Things like:
the cashiers at the stores sit down and aren't required to help you pack your groceries
you bring your own grocery bags or get charged for each they provide for you (granted, they're much sturdier than the flimsy, see-through bags Walmart offers)
the electrical sockets themselves have an on-off switch
people ask "Do you drive?" instead of "What kind of car do you drive?"
Worcester sauce tastes good in everything; this is an indisputable, scientific fact
flowers are a part of daily life, not just for special occasions; if they don't have them in pots or planted in the yards, the shopping carts have built-in holders for affordable bouquets of flowers--and people do use them
curtains are functional--75% or more of the population use closing curtains rather than blinds
there are two taps (faucets) at each sink, one for hot water and one for cold; there's no way too get luke-warm unless you mix them
there are duplexes everywhere, aka semi-detached home; even the name suggests that the norm is to have houses smack up against one another
the doctor is seen in his actual office, rather than moving around to patients in consultation rooms
Mother's Day is this Sunday, not in May
and, of course, the left side of the road, fish-and-chips, metric system, yadda yadda, etc.
Hm. I'm beginning to see the formation of a master "You Know You're in Wales When" list.
-- 6 --
I'm finally happy with my title banner picture thing-y on the top left side (for now). As I've mentioned previously, I'm the worst kind of perfectionist, so this is kind of a big deal. And um, just in case you were wondering when the look of this blog was finally going to settle down (for now).
-- 7 --
The bedroom window is open to let the cold freshen the the room, and Afon and I have a game of bed-making calling our names (he lies under the covers and I throw the duvet up-and-down, up-and-down, like a parachute). Thank you to everyone who have sustained us with your prayers and intercession throughout this tedious transition. It's feeling more and more like home everyday, and I'm so happy to be at home with my baby. I've got more energy now to play with him and attend to him than I ever had when I was working and worrying about paying the bills. God is good.
Take a moment to add me to your Google+ circles (bottom left side bar) if you keep with that kind of thing, and visit other Seven Quick Takes at Conversion Diary. Have a lovely weekend!
She wore her yellow sun-bonnet, She wore her greenest gown; She turned to the south wind And curtsied up and down. She turned to the sunlight And shook her yellow head, And whispered to her neighbour: "Winter is dead."
--A.A. Milne, "Daffodowndilly"
Hello, Wales! The daffodils are out in full force, and I am so, so happy to see them!
We had a fairly good flight, and the flat is cozy and much prettier than in pictures. The Lenten fast was somewhat compromised with the travels; and I forgot what delicious food there is here. (The stereotype of bland, mushy food crept back into my psyche while I was gone--shame!) But we are fortunate that the UK as a whole is a little more forward-thinking as far as dietary restrictions than my old hometown in the rural South.
We are settling in well. Afon has already had a look at the sea and wanted to get to it; but we held him off because he can't realize how bitter cold the water is. I can't say much for now because my husband's laptop is temperamental and deletes my text as I type--so frustrating. But we are getting an adapter for my computer this Sunday, so I will have plenty to say by then!
March 7, Feast of Sts. Perpetua and Felicity, martyrs and mothers, patronesses against the death of children.
lonely balloon // wellies getting ready to go in the bag // empty hooks
Just dropping in to say that contact will be sparse for the next week. Cleaning up and clearing out, I'm reminded of when we moved in a year and a half ago. Things look much the same, but they couldn't feel more different. The space with which we were unacquainted--almost shy, like a first relationship--is now familiar. The walls have memories of our sobs and our laughter. The back room never became the nursery we intended. The drab, ugly kitchen that was my least favorite part of the apartment--with some thought on its strengths, a few pieces of furniture that just needed to be believed in, and hundreds of lovingly cooked meals--became its heart. I'm going to miss this small place, the big windows opening onto Meridian, the white-washed brick fireplace, and the light-flooded front room with the cracked red tile (though not the perpetually-wailing fire alarm, the broken dishwasher, and inconvenient parking). It's time to meet and make a new home.
If we make our way back to this side of the world for good, next time I think we'll skip the renting drama and build a fairy house. I'm starting to think that's not a bad idea, regardless of where we land on this spinning ball of rock and water.
"A portrait of my child, once a week, every week, in 2014."
Afon: in the store parking lot one evening, cookie crumbs and a bit of paper are all that are left of his shopping treat.
I didn't get any photos of Afon this week, so I had to fall back on the past month's "archives." Some weeks are just busy like that, and you don't get to pick up the camera, of have the presence of mind to make a conscious effort to take a portrait. But these few weeks, we've been getting ready, and we have some news. In about two weeks' time, we're moving to Wales, to join my husband, Afon's daddy. We've been separated since November 2011, but John is finally ready for us to join him and has accommodation and means to support us.
I'll continue to blog during this new phase in our lives and am excited to bring you along for the journey. We're cautiously optimistic that things are going to work out for the best. Still, your prayers and good wishes during this difficult but hopeful transition never go unappreciated.
Feb. 12, Feast of St. Eulalia, patroness of runaways, torture victims, and widows.
I've seen a lot of Sesame Street renditions and factsforkids! picture books, and while we do enjoy reading My Fuzzy Valentine occasionally (er, my three-year-old enjoys it), the literary snob in me prefers something a little more artful. Composition, design, storytelling, and illustration: these books about love are what we're reading for Saint Valentine's Day.
1 // Where the Wild Things Are by Maurice Sendak isn't your classical love story, maybe, but when we read, "he wanted to be where someone loved him best of all" . . . if you have a wild things (or things), you know, you know.
2 // All the Touch and Feel seasonal books are in our library because of how they correspond with the feast days. And I just like seeing how they make each page and picture sensory, even if it is only the one sense (touch . . . and feel?).
3 // The Wishing of Biddy Malone was a grocery store clearance find. I'd not heard of Joy Cowley before, but apparently, she is a children's book giant! Her voice as a storyteller is fantastic--she gets the Irishness into the narrative without sounding trite or silly--and the love story is a classic folklore, while remaining entirely new.
4 // Barbara Lavalee's folksy, robust illustrations colored my childhood, and now they enrich my son's. Like with Where the Wild Things Are, Mama, Do You Love Me? not what immediately comes to mind when you think Valentine's Day reading, but I daresay it's improved my and my son's understanding of each other. The universality of the message is beautifully complimented by the culture-specific details.
5 // BabyLit's Romeo & Juliet: because they're never too young to start indoctrinating with Shakespeare. In truth, though, counting out the roses, love letters, and streets and bridges with my three-year-old has yielded positive results.
Inspired by Pam and Susan and Angie, I put together these valentines and Saint Valentine's Day printables (you can either click the picture to enlarge, right-click and print, or save them to your own hard drive and print from there or arrange in Word, Publisher, or another program). I'll probably end up using one of their many fun project and celebratory ideas this feast day, as Afon's birthday is the day before and his birthday party the day after: no time for extra planning!
It's kind of annoying to me that the "saint" in Saint Valentine's Day is so often overlooked, so I made sure to make my pictures extra Catholic-y. You know, short of an actual picture of the post-martyred saint.
Feb. 4, Feast of St. Andrew Corsini, bishop and confessor.
Feeling // sleepy, the good kind. The kind of sleepy you feel after a good night's rest and a hard morning's work and the satisfaction of tasks accomplished. Of contentedness and a midday power nap.
Seeing // these oriental blossoms that bloom on a small tree in my parent's garden in late January-early February. It's a short bloom: a week, week and a half at most. And it strikes every time anew how fleeting yet how familiar this short time of year is. Like an old friend rarely seen but always cherished.
Smelling // the vanilla-scented candle my coworker gave me.
Tasting // buttered toast from this morning's breakfast.
Listening // the Juno soundtrack I loved and lost too long ago but found again on Youtube.
Grateful // for days without work. Working for money, I mean. The older I get, the more of a distributist and less of a capitalist I become.
Reading // Lepanto by G.K. Chesterton. As a whole, it is one of the most superior poems I've ever read. But I'm still partial to The Ballad of the White Horse, for obvious reasons--saints, Gaels, and the Matter of Britain!
Loving // my little boy, whose sudden burst of speech has helped me to overlook the frustrations and see the ravenous affection that was always there.
Hoping // for a smooth month; there is much to do; lots of planning, lots of changes, but I am hopeful.
Jan. 24, Feast of St. Frances de Sales, bishop and doctor. Memorial of Our Lady of Peace.
A scene from my friend's wedding last weekend. For more photos from the wedding, see below.
-- 1 --
The Kumquat Festival ushers in early spring cleaning. I actually took a personal day from work because otherwise I'd never have managed. We're clearing out, gathering up, and tucking away. The plan is to hold a yard sale tomorrow (my first!). If you have any advice about how to best direct a sale of this type to be the most lucrative, the comment box is down below. (*points*)
As for clothes (mommy & baby), I have an inner criteria that go something like this:
Do I still like it?
Does it look good on me?
Do I still wear it?
Have I worn it in a year?
Do I fit in it?
Will I ever use it again (honestly)?
Does it have sentimental value?
Did someone I love give it to me?
Did whoever gave it to me mean it as a special present?
It's surprisingly easy to weed things out by these. Many of the clothes I'm holding onto answer a resounding "no" to all of the questions above.
-- 2 --
While we're executing this project, I'm listening to the latest Audrey Assad CD my sister gave me. I knew it would be a beautiful album because of the songs I had heard on YouTube and blogs, but I didn't guess that every song would be moving (with maybe the exception of Track 2, whose name I don't know, but I have to disclaim my exceptionally picky and temperamental sense of taste in music).
As a synthesis of liturgical, medieval chant, psalm, and actual prayer, it's incredibly moving and passes well beyond into the realm of Art with a capital A. I think your average Christian pop radio tune is praise, but that's only one kind of prayer. Audrey's songs are the deep internal groanings of the soul searching for God, the pilgrim aching for home never seen.
Jenna introduced me to this one, and it hits far too close to home for me to hear it without shedding a tear:
From the love of my own comfort
From the fear of having nothing
From a life of worldly passions
Deliver me O God
From the need to be understood
From the need to be accepted
From the fear of being lonely
Deliver me O God
Deliver me O God
And I shall not want, I shall not want
when I taste Your goodness I shall not want
when I taste Your goodness I shall not want
From the fear of serving others
From the fear of death or trial
From the fear of humility
Deliver me O God
Deliver me O God
And please pray for her husband. My sister tells me he has cancer. Again and again, God has shown me that in a mystery I don't understand, those who are most precious to him experience the most suffering. If you love Jesus, you love the Cross. The two can't be separated. And in the darkest moments, the fact that the former comes with the latter, is sometimes the only comfort. But it is utterly sufficient.
-- 3 --
The Squirt's birthday is coming up soon, and seeing as he has little friends to invite this year, I really want to throw him a birthday party. It's the day before Valentine's Day, so I was thinking about the weekend before. I already know a lovely lady who makes delicious cakes, so that's set. As for the rest, it will have to be low key for financial reasons, but I am all. about. themes. Right now, it's a toss-up between St. Valentine's Day and Where the Wild Things Are.
What kind of themes and birthday party life-hacks have you implemented?
-- 4 --
This week's Theme Thursday was catching people unawares. Oh Cari, what will you think of next?
-- 5 --
My nephew will be baptized into the Body of Christ this Sunday. I'm sad I won't be able to be there, but will you remember him in your prayers this weekend? I don't have permission yet to use his name on this blog, so you can just refer to him as "Christie's nephew." c: Thank you!
-- 6 --
Haley sweetly shared Everything to Someone over on Carrots for Michaelmas, which delights me because I respect Haley for her thoroughly good literary taste and have turned to her well-established practice of liturgical living in striking out on my own liturgical lifestyle. Someone must have acted on her advice and nominated EtS for Bonnie's Sheenazing Catholic Bloggers Award, in two divisions. Like in Whose Line Is It Anyway?, where the points don't matter, the only reward for winning is the sparkly-smug self-satisfaction . . . but that works for me! And it's just really fun. We need more fun for fun's sake.
My "manifesto," as it were, on attempting liturgical living. Linked to by Haley at Carrots, which explains all the clicks! But I still mean now what I said back then, and I hope you'll share your liturgical living journeys with me. Catholic All Year and CatholicCulture.org are good places to start, if you're interested. I've loved what we've been able to do so far.
Oops, it totally looks like I'm fishing for compliments, but really Cari just liked the stark contrast of the black-and-white self portrait. And lo, "most comments"!
According to number of clicks, this post was the one with the best picture. Not quite sure which picture ought to be considered the best, mind you. The second-most clicked post, though, so . . . favorite pic. If you go with the numbers.
I have a many and various favorite pics, though, so if you want to see my personal favorites, check them out here. Which of my photos this past year have been your favorite?
I struggled with feelings of jealousy, inadequacy, self-disappointment, and the inherent difficulty of recognizing and admitting to all those feelings. I still relapse into self-pity from time to time, but mostly I chose real and messy to fake and perfect.
Also, it helps to know so many stellar, faithful Catholic moms in the blogosphere who struggle with the same feelings of inadequacy.
Not actually one of the categories, but I didn't want to leave out either this one or the NFP one. A must-read for anyone wanting to get to know me or this blog. Also, GK's the greatest!!!
Jan. 2, Ninth Day of Christmas. Feast of St. Basil the Great, patron of hospital administrators, reformers, and Russia.
photo of the Squirt and his little friend sledding taken by my girlfriend Shanais
I don't know what's more ridiculous: the fact that it was stiflingly humid and warm the Sunday before Christmas, that the local church has to ship in fake snow for the kiddies to find out what sledding is (and, by default, the amazing hot chocolate bare they had set up but how it was so hard to enjoy thanks to the aforementioned heat! (and my climbing fever)), or the fact that the Squirt, after three slides down the hill, went back up and tried to go down again. On his bottom. On the grass.
No, son. It only works on snow.
It's also ridiculous that I've been sick pretty much since the 17th of December.
But you know what's not ridiculous?
A year full of friendships, old and new, the first clumsy but fruitful steps toward liturgical living, and a new year ahead.
Dec. 13, Feast of St. Lucy, virgin and martyr. When her mother was cured at the shrine of Saint Agatha, Lucy vowed chastity for Christ. When the Roman prefect ordered her violated among prostitutes, God made her stand firm, and not a soul could move her from that place. They then tried to burn her--she survived. At last, she was pierced in the throat with a sword. St. Lucy is patroness against hemorrhages, blindness, dysentery, eye disease, and throat infections; she is patroness of blind people, laborers, peasants, salesmen, stained glass workers, authors, and writers. Happy Saint Lucia Day!
{pretty}
Each winter, I cut more snowflakes from white pieces of printer paper. I may make five, or I may make dozens, but they're fun, easy, inexpensive, and fruitful crafting for children who are old enough to hold a pair of scissors without hurting themselves. At the end of winter (sometime after Valentine's Day), I put them away and save them for next year. The collection grows and grows, and I hope some day to have enough to decorate each window pane, cabinet door, mirror, and suspend them from a ceiling in a paper blizzard.
{happy}
The Squirt doesn't quite get this Christmas tree thing. Throw in that it's hot and humid at a tropical 85 degrees F, and it's going to take a juice box to make this tree-seeker happy. Good thing I had one (or three) on hand.
Me setting up the "pretty." I even have my snowflake apron on for good measure (in the non-winter months, it's a Scandinavian apron, so it works for all seasons . . . at least for this Nordic-obsessed Latina). The Squirt was napping, I had braided Saint Cecilia bread in the oven, liturgical Christmas music on Pandora, and a good hair day going on . . . happy, happy, happy!
{funny}
CLOSE AZKABAN NOW!!!! Because, obviously. . . . [/Harry Potter humor]
{real}
Trying to keep things real this Advent doesn't just mean saying no to extra stressors--like skipping Parent Appreciation Night at the childcare Center, neither working nor having my son attend, to spend a quiet evening at home bonding with him--but maybe sacrificing some of those extra, festive events, or even the quiet ones, and putting the smallest of efforts into something that isn't for me and mine.
I knew I could count on my adopted little sisters and their lovely mother to come last minute to an untended house, without expectations of my being a pristine hostess, and share their friendship and time while we did something for those who share their talents, time--and even lives--with us.
The American Red Cross does a Holiday Mail for Heroes program, so we put together some homemade holiday cheer for our servicemen and servicewomen. December 6th was the last day you could mail cards, but there's always next year!
Nov. 28, Feast of St. Catherine Labouré, to whom the Virgin Mary appeared and charged her to make and spread devotion to the Miraculous Medal. Spontaneously declared henceforth as the patroness of traditional habits and really cool headdresses. Thanksgiving Day.
Oct. 30, Feast of St. Alphonsus Rodriguez. Beset with tragedy, he was the picture of humility, living most of his life as doorkeeper for the Jesuits. His piety attracted the attention of many, including the St. Peter Claver and fellow Jesuit Gerard Manley Hopkins, who made him the subject of one of his poems.
-- 1 --
I first saw Beetlejuice when I was five years old at a friend's house, and while I wouldn't recommend it showing it to your kindergartner, it's been a favorite of mine ever since. This campy goth movie is totally fun and features a young Winona Ryder!
-- 2 --
Buffy the Vampire Slayer (the movie, not the awful WB televesion series!) hails from the same time period as Beetlejuice and is a cult classic. It should be too, as it hilariously parodies the genre. This one is so much fun! I highly recommend it! And hey, apparently the same guy created Firefly. So win-win!
-- 3 --
Do you miss the good ol' Disney Chanel days before Lizzie McGuire (gag!)? Remember when the Disney Channel Original movies weren't mass produced and actually approached interesting plots, rather than throwing a punned title out on the table and writing them from there? Remember the original series that were thought-provoking, like So Weird, or actually entertaining, like Even Stevens? Remember the good movies like My Stepsister Is an Alien and the Luck of the Irish? Me, too.
Halloweentown falls in with the above. There's a whole series of movies that progresses after this one, and they all have their charms, but when you must choose, stick with the original.
-- 4 --
The classic Halloween movie. Hocus Pocus is a must-see.
-- 5 --
The Others is probably my favorite scary movie, period. Now, I'm more creeped out by mind games and mysteries, so keep that in mind--there's no gore and a lot of things that are only circumstantially scary (not inherently so), but man! This will creep you out! In a good way! It's the quintessential, turn-of-the-century, haunted English mansion ghost story. But you won't be bored for a minute.
Runners up included:
The Blair Witch Project--they say what we're scared of most is the unknown. I think that's what did it for me in this movie. The not-seeing. It helped that it was creepily made to look like a found medium.
Sweeney Todd--when you want to sing and dance a bit macabre, or a lot. It's tons of fun, and the bloodiness is so over the top it swings back around 180 degrees and doesn't bother me.
Sleepy Hollow--also with Johnny Depp, and Christina Ricci, if you like colonial history like me, this one is enjoyable and scary! Thought it has a bit of a weird take on the source of the trouble.
Rocky Horror Picture Show--excluded because, well, moral offense abounds. I watch it up to the part when they finish singing the Time Warp--which, let's face it, is the most important part of the whole film!
What do you like to cuddle up to watch on a cold evening? Any favorite scary movies to recommend? What about Halloween favorites?
Linking up with Masha over at Piękno. Go look at her beautiful photos!
Today, I am . . .
Feeling . . . rough. After last month's rushing, I dropped walking in the mornings completely, and pretty much ate whatever I could get my hands on. Then vacationing and some drinks last night with coworkers . . . I think it's time to jump on the detox bandwagon. It's amazing knowing how much the daily routine and healthful minded habits made me feel so much better physically.
Seeing . . . all the beautiful photos from my sister-in-law's baby shower and Pensacola beach. Hope to share some this week if things finally calm down! (But don't count on it just yet . . . a brand new niece or nephew and a visit from a long-distance friend are coming soon!)
Smelling . . . the medicated lotion I've self-prescribed for prickly heat rash. I'll leave it at that!
Tasting . . . nothing. I should get some breakfast!
Listening . . . to the lawn maintenance crew outside. Always annoying to hear that mid-morning on a day off, especially after a late night. And this song.
Grateful . . . that summer is almost over. It's brutal down here. And fall is my favorite season.
Reading . . . still Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets. But while I was at the beach, I casually picked up And Then There Were None by Agatha Christie and read it in two sittings. A very enticing and easy read.
Loving . . . this warm tan I picked up from Gulf coast sunshine.
Google Reader's phased out, and everyone's dropping little reminders to resubscribe or follow via other social media. So now's as good a time as any to do a little shuffling, stacking, and organizing, and offer a would-be audience (as well as old, loyal friends!) an easier way to connect with the EtS.
I'm not a digital socializing person myself (aside from the huge, egocentric obviousness of having a blog, ha!). I check in on my favorite blogs via my sidebar blogroll (see left), but others have long arrived in the land of social media and set up camp, so consider:
That's it for now. I don't have an Instagram (no i-phone--astounding, isn't it?) and my Flickr account is inactive. I have a StumbleUpon, but I don't think I use it enough for it to be worth subscribing to. Someday maybe I will have something to share on the delightful Ravelry, or even Etsy! I do have a Pinterest account, but my chief concern there is in collecting whimsical and fairy tale art for my other blog. So there it is.
How do you like to connect? Are you a Facebook person, or a Twitter person? Do you prefer e-mails strait to your inbox or going to a blog reader and seeing everything in one place? Which is easier? Which is more fun and/or satisfying, and why?
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