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.

Some favorite videos

My Christmas gift was a new cell phone that takes very nice videos and picts. so before I clear my card for new things I had to download the old. Here are some of my favorites. The first 5 are a few years old and the last 2 are recent.


This is son #1 at Eat n Park when he was just learning to talk. We were feeding him icecream and he said "Happy". We were recording for my hubby who missed out because he was at work.



This is my 3rd daughter a few years ago having fun on the swing set spinning.


Son #1 again singing to the chickens. We all really miss our chickens.


Son #1 playing in the leaves


Daugher #2 playing in the tent with our then only dog Hallie


Fun on the slip n slide last summer


Daddy took the kids out to play while I stayed home and rested with the new baby-what a good daddy

Zoo day

Well, last Monday we drove an hour with a 2 1/2 month old to go to the Pittsburgh Zoo only to find it closed! We felt like the Grizwalds pulling in to Wally World. The zoo only closes 2 days a year- every other year but this year. This year they closed down 2 weeks for repairs and we just happened to try and go one of those days. Luckly, 6 days later we had another nearly 50 degree day in January and the zoo was open. Horray!!! We had a great time. And we got to see the baby, well toddler elephants. One was nursing. It was so cute. They told us an elephant can live for about 70 years, is pregnant for 2 years and nurses for typacilly 3 years. There are 2 little ones at the zoo right now.

Pinned!

O.K. I'm addicted to cloth and wool. I'll admit it. So I having been trying- finally after 4 other children were in cloth- to figure out prefolds. I think I've got it. The key for me is

1- The prefold has to have some stretch to it. I like a prefold with some bamboo in it like Swaddlebees.
2. They have to be big enough to fit around him so that I only need to use 1 pin.

The above picture is of him now at about 15lbs. with super huge thighs. He is wearing a Panda Tushies prefold - I bought used on Spot's at Hyena cart-great place to buy and sell by the way. I'm not sure the size because the tag doesn't say but I'm gonna have to measure- I think I want more.

Here's a full view-



And him with his Aristocrats soaker on top-




Aristocrats aren't my favorite- Ruskovilla is- but I got them used- barely- from a mama who just didn't care for wool- for a unbeatable price so I'm giving them a try.

Cute n Clean

Nothin like a fresh baby. Wish you could smell him. It's been a busy few weeks. My hubby goes back to work tomorrow after 11 days off and maybe things will get back to normal. Things went well though with him home I was afraid the kids would drive him crazy. Hope to be bloggin more soon.

2 Months old tomorrow

I can't believe it. My lil man is going to be 2 months old tomorrow. Isn't he sweet and HUGE!

Check out the cheeks.

Baking cookie cake

My youngest daughter loves to help and wanted to make some cookies but since I never know how much time I have before the baby wakes and starts crying we opted to cookie cake instead... just as good and alot less time consuming.



She did most everything herself except for the oven of course.



And loved icing it. I heard it was yummy but I didn't have any- trying to loose some baby weight!

Oh my gosh, colic stinks!!!!

Well, I'm having a hard time blogging or doing anything for that matter because my poor little boy has colic! I cant stand it- seeing him in so much pain and I cant do anything really useful to help him. I feel so powerless. I took him to the chiropractor for the first time Tuesday since a few days after he was born and he did great for 2 days and now he's back to crying, lip quivering and jerking in pain again. I feel so bad. Please keep him in your prayers. I'm going to try and take him to Divine Liturgy tomorrow and have father bless him.

Walking him around in the Moby wrap seems to help some and also my 7 year old daughter has the magic touch and always seems to calm him. It makes her so proud.
Hard part is she is only 7 and he's heavy for her to carry around for too long at darn near 15 lbs.

One Month old in his Woolies

Wow has the month flown by. I cant believe my new little guy is a month old already.
He is such a joy, a really sweet baby with just a touch of colic in the middle of the night when everyone else is sleeping which is good because the other children would probably be afraid because the cries in so much pain its heart wrenching but I;ve been through it so many times now I just remind myself to try and make him as comfortable as possible but I cant really help him or stop his pain. Although that is hard it was much worse for me with my first little girl, I felt so helpless and lost as a new mom when she would cry in pain for hours and I couldn't take that pain away or even ease it. What a horrible feeling, I don't even like thinking about it. Anyway, let not talk about that look at my adorable new baby in his warm woolies. The new blankie is from Engel and is soooo super soft and warm. I just love the smell and feel of wool. This blanket is an early Christmas gift from his daddy and me. He is laying on what was his sisters and brothers lambskin so he is just surrounded in soft warm wool, I'm kinda jealous, wish I could be.

Whats Cookin? Kettle Corn

We love Kettle Corn but it is hard to find and very expensive so I found a recipe to make it at home which I doctored up a bit and we are loving it. Actually so is my extended family and they have requested it for Christmas this year so here are the directions-

First you need one of these for it to come out like Kettle Corn rather than Carmel Corn. Its called a Whirley Pop and I luckily found mine at my friends moms resale shop for a couple bucks






In to the Whirley Pop you put-
3 tablespoons of oil--I found the best is the Smartbalance- it just makes the taste the best
and 1/4 cup of organic popcorn- again I have tried cheaper but the organic kept in the fridge just seems to pop the lightest.





Turn heat on high, close lid and start cranken
when you hear the first pop hurry and dump in 1/4 cup white sugar- I have tried it with organic and it just doesn't work, I think its because there is still some molasses and it tends to brown.
Now it will stop popping for a min. when you dump the sugar in but just keep cranken- not too fast, not too slow- and it will start poppin again real fast for about 30 sec. to a min. and when it stops hurry and remove from heat.





Take off lid and dump on parchment lined cookie sheets (2).
Hurry and sprinkle with salt while still hot. It will cool very fast and the salt wont stick if you dont get it on fast.





With the parchment it doesn't stick, clean up is easy and you can pick it up with the popcorn on it and funnel it into a jar.

Still Beautiful

Oh, even when he's screaming he's just still so darn cute!

Beautiful.....

Is this not the most beautiful sight in the world? A newborn baby sleeping peacefully. Why does it have to go by so quickly?

Time for Bed Spidey.

Well after a long day my big boy passed out. We didn't get everything done I wanted to but the list was just too long with a nb that nurses 23 out of a 24 hour day!
I did scrub the floor, wash and hang out my bed clothes, wash Manny's diapers, some clothes, run the sweeper, play in the leaves and food wise I made the breakfast, lunch, the braid for dinner and the pie crust..the pie will have to wait till tomorrow. I did make Antipasta bread and Monkey bread. The kids LOVE the Monkey bread. This is the 1st time I made it for them and I don't think it will be the last.
Oh, tomorrows another day.
I'll try to work on the list alittle more.

Manny's 1st Bath

At nearly 2 weeks old my little man got his 1st bath lastnight. Isn't he a cutiepie!
He didn't do too bad but I'm hoping to get him a Tummy Tub soon. He loves being bundled up and worn in the Moby Wrap so I think he will really like the Tummy Tub.




Anyway, here's my "to do" list for today, we'll see how much I actually get around to doing-

Prune raspberry bushes
Put Halloween decor away
Put clothes away
Wash and put away Manny's diapers
Wash and hang out bed clothes
Scrub kitchen floor
Take kids up Moms to play in leaves
Do some homeschool work

Okay, list is getting a little too long with a newborn to be realistic.

Menu-

Breakfast- Eggs, ham and biscuts

Lunch- Pizza buns

Dinner- Pampered Chef Chicken and Broc. Braid

Sweet- Pumpkin pie

Pampered Chef Chicken Broc. Braid-

Ingredients
2 cups cooked chicken, chopped
1 cup broccoli, chopped
1/2 cup red bell pepper, chopped
1 garlic clove, pressed
4 ounces sharp cheddar cheese, shredded
1/2 cup low fat mayonnaise
2 teaspoons Pantry All-Purpose Dill Mix
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 packages (8 oz each) reduced fat refrigerated crescent rolls
1 egg white, lightly beaten
Optional: 2 tablespoons slivered almonds



Directions
Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Place Chicken, broccoli, bell pepper in mixing bowl. Add pressed garlic. Add shredded cheese and mix. Add mayonnaise, dill mix, salt then mix. Unroll crescent rolls but do not seperate. Place both packages of rolls on a baking stone or cookie sheet end to end. Press ends together to form one long sheet of dough. Press all seams together so filling will not leak out. Along outer side of dough, along each of two opposite sides, cut 2 inch strips from end toward center. This will look like fringe along the two longer sides of the dough. Add filling down the center of between the strips. To braid, lift strips of dough, one at a time, across mixture tomeet in center, twisting each strip one turn. Continue alternating strips to form a braid. Tuck ends up to seal at end of braid. Brash with egg white. Sprinkle with almonds. bake 25-28 minutes or until deep golden brown. Makes 10 servings.

I have dug out all my Pampered Chef cookbooks and look forward to making some of my old favorites. For the kids I will leave out the almonds, dill and bell pepper for this one and do broc. in all except one quarter for daughter #1.

Lets Go Steelers!

My baby is ready for the big Monday night football game. Last week the Steelers had a by week so this is his 1st game. I hope they make him proud because mommies favorite- the Pittsburgh Penguins- have stunk it up so far in November but they had the best start ever in October. It doesn't help the Pens that they are missing very key players because of injury. Gonchar, Malkin, Kennedy and Letang are all out right now. Oh wow, I forgot about Max Talbot, he's been out since the begining of the year!

He's Here!!!

Actually he's been here since 1:43 am last Wednesday morning- 10-28-09 - I just have been too busy to post. Everything happened very fast. Last Tuesday, after being told the day before I was pretty much getting no where fast, I decided to take my other children to the movies for the afternoon. I maybe had one or two condtractions while we were gone. Then later on that eventing at home I did start to get stronger ones but they were still far apart. At about 9:00 pm I told my hubby I was going to call the midwives just to see if they were at the hospital with anyone else just incase I would need to come in but they weren't and since I had no physical- visual- signs- my water never breaks but I do get the show- and the contractions were still so far apart I was just probably just being hopeful and I'd probably see her in a few days.
So we got the other children to bed at 10:00 pm and they were gaining strenght but staying about 9-13 mins apart and even skipping to 20. So I lay there for an hour trying to fall asleep but getting really annoyed by the strenght of them so I thought I would go down stairs to watch alittle tv and get something to eat and all it took was walking down the steps and I called my mom, called the midwife and walked right back upstair to wake up my hubby because they were now 4-5 mins apart and soooooo strong.
Luckly, my mom just lives a few streets away and was here in no time and my hubby had already laid his clothes out just incase. We were at the car with in 10 mins and I couldn't get in till a strong contraction passed. Now we have an hour drive in the dark, rainy night on the Turnpike that is full of construction- no fun. I didn't think we were going to make it there because they were so strong and close together. I had such a hard time just sitting there. With every contraction I just prayed for the Virgin Mary's help to get me through and I know this may sound silly but I just pictured my new little one home in all the cute, soft little cloth diapers I've been collecting over the past month. That really helped!
When we finally made it there at 12:30 am I told the guard in the ER I need to go up now. They wanted to do paperwork but I said this is my 5th and I know what I'm talking about! Up stairs they took me right to a room and let me go pee- there was finally a little blood but just some spotting. The midwife checked me right away and said I was between 8 and 9 and needed to start the antibiotic right way because it took an hour to get in and we weren't sure if I could hold off that long. After a long hour in bed with an IV and fighting any urge to push they said it was in and she was going to check me again. I was ready- which I knew- and she broke my water to make sure it was clear. Now I was finally allowed to push. Two pushes and his head was out but I was told to stop. What! How can I stop, he's half way out. But I had too because the cord was tight around his neck and she couldn't slip it over so she had to cut it which was also hard because it was so tight she was afraid to cut his neck but with in a few mins. it was done and I was allowed to finish pushing him out. One more push and our sweet little boy was here safe and healthy. 20 1/2 inches, 8lbs 9 oz, our heaviest baby yet. Also our longest to stay in.
He's nursing great, growing everyday. And is very sweet. He went to see our chiropractor on Friday and is all straighted out. He did very well and barely cried. He is a pleasure and a blessing and I am reminding myself ever night when he has me up with nursing and a dirty diaper to just enjoy it because I'm getting older- 36- and he may be my last little blessing. That makes me sad to think about but what ever is God's will will be. I'm just so happy he's here and safe and beautiful.
Here he is in the little hat my 9 year old daughter made him.