Baby Manny

Here's an video of the baby-
Baby Manny

Zoo day January, 2010

Click on this link to see our ANIMOTO video of our day at the Pittsburgh Zoo.
I just figured out how to do it and its so cool and free!
Zoo day January, 2010

Saturday Morning

Well, I'm staying on track so far.




This morning I made french toast for breakfast and tried something a little different. For the 2nd batch I added sugar, cinnamon and vanilla. I also used my vintage crank hand mixer to mix it up good instead of a fork and it came out really good. Next time I think I'm going to use my Trader Joe's Agave/Maple syrup blend in the mix. I love my cast iron griddle I got for Christmas last year. You can make 6 pieces at once. I cant see how any family over the size of 4 could be without one.
Now its 10:30 and since the baby was being so cooperative I have the Sweet Sausage ready for the oven, just need to add some sauce.



And the dough for the Calzones in the bread machine.

My family really likes having the menu up. And it gives me more incentive to stick to it because thats what they are expecting to get. I have painted my pantry/washroom door in my kitchen with chalkboard paint and thats were I put the menu and I added a basket thing from an old cupboard to put the weeks adds in.



UPDATE-

By noon my cooking for the day was done!
My pizza and calzones were coming hot out of the oven for lunch.





Love this pizza peel. Bought it at a yard sale - new in plastic with cookbook- for a buck lastyear.



And my sweet pepper sausage was baked- ready to reheat for dinner.

Mmmmmm

I gave up two things for the Great Fast.
1- Baked goods-
Still trying to drop that baby weight.

2- Buying cloth diapers-
The second may sound silly to you but its addicting and can be very expensive.

So anyway, I went to Aldi's yesterday and they had these big, yummy strawberries just asking to be dipped in chocolate.



They are soooo good and better for me than a piece of chocolate cake.
Baby is now 3 1/2 months old and I have lost nearly 40 lbs. but have another 25 to 30 to go. I weighed in at 162 on Wednesday. Wish me luck.

Tenative Menu

During Lent I'm really going to work on organization and decluttering- not an easy task for me. I love to plan, definitely a good planner but not so good with the follow through part. So one of the things I'm going to try and work on to make my life easier is planning a weekly menu and trying my best to stick to it. I'm really a go with the flow, impulsive kinda of person so this will not be set in stone. But I think it will help me to budget our money and time.
On the decluttering end I am just going to work on one small area a day at a time and either organize and keep it, sell it, donate it or throw it away. There are 40 days of Lent so I think I can get somewhere- hopefully. I started with the kitchen. Yesterday I worked on the cupboards above my microwave and around it. Today I did the cupboards above my toaster oven. One thing I discovered it I don't need to buy anymore honey for awhile, good thing honey never goes bad.



My oldest loves honey, saw it all out and decided to go for a taste test.






Now for the menu for the week-

Friday-
Breakfast- Eggs- found a new source for fresh, free-range- so excited
Home Fries and Cinnamon Rolls- for those who didn't give up sweets for Lent
Lunch- Veggie Pizza, Popcorn Shrimp, Buttered Noodles
Dinner- Pizza, and Rootbeer Floats- Choc. Covered Strawberries

Saturday-
Breakfast- French Toast and Maple Sausage
Lunch- Ham and Cheese Calzones
Dinner- Sweet Sausage and Pasta Salad

Sunday-
Breakfast- Eggs, Bacon and Italian Toast- daughter #3's favorite
Lunch- Pasta and Meatballs
Dinner- Breaded Porkchops and Chicken Tenders, Corn on Cob and Baked Potatoes

Monday-
Breakfast- Ham and Cheese Omelets
Lunch- Chicken Salad
Dinner- Emerils Kicked-up Meatloaf and Green beans

Tuesday-
Breakfast- Hello Kitty Waffles
Lunch-Popcorn Chicken and Mac n Cheese
Dinner- Burgers and Fries

Wednesday-
Breakfast- Eggs and Toast
Lunch- Toasted Cheese
Dinner- Cincinnati Chilli and Corncakes

Thursday-
Breakfast- Oatmeal
Lunch- Pasta
Dinner- Tuna Casserole

Coming up next week-
Lazagna, Grilled Chicken and Balsamic Veggies, Tuna Melts, Ribs and Sweetbread, Taco's and Pork Tenderloin.

Still Snowing- Breaking Records

Just seems like there's no end to it. We get a few more inches everyday. My poor husband has to drive an hour to work everyday and that hour has turned into 2-4 hours one way! It has turned into a good homeschooling lesson that will carry on till the thaw because I'm sure there will be plenty of flooding. There have been quite a few roof collapses so far.

And baby's in staying warm

Playing in the record deep snow.

Let it Snow, Let it Snow, Let it Snow.....

Just please let me keep my gas, water and electric!

These first 2 picts are of the front of our house-






This is our Chevy Uplander van-



This is a path I shoveled this morning-



Path on our steps-



Its hard to see but the yardstick measures 20 inches-



The dogs trying to walk in the backyard-



These next two are of our backyard-





This is our backporch-



Oh, and its still snowing. Hubby and kids are going out now so I'll try and get some good shots of them up soon.

Homemade candles to be blessed for The Feast of the Presentation of our Lord

Forty days after Christmas, the Church celebrates the feast of the Presentation of our Lord. The event which the Church commemorates on this feast is described in its Gospel: “And when the days of her purification were fulfilled according to the Law of Moses, they took Him up to Jerusalem to present Him to the Lord, as it is written in the Law of the Lord: Every male that opens the womb shall be called holy to the Lord, and to offer a sacrifice according to what is said in the Law of the Lord, a pair of turtle doves or two young pigeons. And behold, there was in Jerusalem a man named Simeon, and this man was just and devout, looking for the consolation of Israel, and the Holy Spirit was upon him. And it had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit, that he should not see death before he had seen the Christ of the Lord. And he came by inspiration of the Holy Spirit into the Temple. And when his parents brought in the Child Jesus, to do for Him according to the custom of the Law, he also received Him into his arms and blessed God …” (Lk. 2:22-28).

From the words of the Gospel and from the Liturgical texts for the feast, it is evident that it has a threefold character: the purification of Mary, the redemption of Jesus as first-born Son, and the meeting of Jesus with the aged Simeon and the prophetess Anna.

According to the Mosaic Law, a mother who had given birth to a boy was considered unclean for seven days, then for 33 days was excluded from public worship. When the appointed forty days were past, she was expected to offer a sacrifice for her purification – “a lamb for a holocaust and a pigeon for a turtle dove for a sin offering.” In case of poverty, however, two young pigeons or turtle doves would suffice. The priest then prayed for her, “purifying” her and restoring her to her former status. Sacred Scripture tells us that the Mother of God fulfilled this law despite the fact that, considering the spirit of this legal enactment, she was not bound to it. Mary was the chaste Spouse of the Holy Spirit, virgin in conceiving and virgin in giving birth to her Son. Yet the Holy Spirit inspired her to comply with this law and she fulfilled the will of God, embracing it with her whole heart.

The second aspect of this feast is the presentation of Jesus in the temple. By another ordinance of the Mosaic Law, every first-born was considered as belonging to God and had to be brought back by an offering. The Mother of God fulfilled this also. She brought Jesus to the Temple to present Him according to the command of the Lord “Every male opening the womb shall be called holy to the Lord.

According to the Gospels, on the same occasion as the presentation of the Child Jesus, another significant encounter took place. There was then living in Jerusalem an old man, Simeon by name, whose heart longed unceasingly for the Messias. The Holy Spirit revealed to him that he should not die without first seeing the Lord’s Anointed. Led by the Spirit, Simeon went to the Temple at the time Mary and Joseph were bringing In the Child Jesus. Mary, guided by the same Holy Spirit, welcomed the saintly man and placed her divine Son in his trembling hands.

Besides Simeon, the prophetess Anna, Phanuel’s daughter, was there to meet the child Jesus. The holy Anna was noted for her piety and was venerated by the people because of her great age. Simeon and Anna are thus representatives of the Old Testament, gathered to celebrate the happy coming of the Child who was to renew the face of the earth.