Reflections over laundry.

The domestic life leaves many hours for silent thought, especially when one has a baby and not much (intelligent) conversing occurs throughout the day. When I was working my former jobs, I would usually complete my chores while thinking about school/work projects, music for my choir, activities for my students, etc., but now, I do not have priorities outside of the home on which to dwell. Of course I think about my family and friends often, but for the most part, I feel like there is too much time in which to think. If one is not careful, a wandering mind can cause disquiet, doubts, room for temptation, or sin, so I believe that in quiet time, the mind should be put to good use by reflection, prayer, and interior cultivation; I like to call it mindful quiet. I try to keep my mind working along with the hands, and my soul always always needs a good tilling. "The soul of the sluggard craves in vain, but the diligent soul is amply satisfied." (Proverbs 13:4) I think we can fall prey to the sin of sloth not only in our actions, but also in the movements, or lack thereof, of our minds. I am learning to be more contemplative within my duties around the house. It goes without saying that it helps me find more peace in the daily nitty-gritty to remember that our Lord is His complete humanity, experienced/performed the necessities of the physical/material world.  And of course, I can always ask myself, "How would the Blessed Mother have gone about this task?" Perfectly and peacefully and lovingly, of course. Also, work can be accompanied by prayer. All things I've known since I was young and try to implement. I feel that I need to continuously develop and strengthen my works/mind/soul connection, in order to aim for a more unified and holier sense of purpose.

Mondays are usually my wash day, however this week, I had overflow which I dealt with today, in addition to diapers. Laundry is not my favorite chore, but as providence would have it, today's spiritual reflection from one of the books I am working through, Grace in Every Season by Catherine Doherty, concerned a meditation on doing laundry!  I have to share part of her beautiful insight which encouraged me: 

"The laundry is a place where you can learn contemplation. The repetitive work of ironing and folding clothes is conducive to the freedom of the Spirit which allows you to roam at will, now beholding Christ in Nazareth, now meditating on the Eucharist, now thinking about the Scriptures. Your work is redemptive too. Souls depend on the perfection of your work and the spirit in which you approach it. That spirit should be peaceful, prayerful, and full of charity."

While running the diaper wash (twice through with a rinse), I thought about how Christ is continually running our souls through the wash of His never-ending mercy and love. And don't we need it. Our worldly thoughts and desires need rinsing, our virtues need brightening, our sinful stains need whitening, our spirits need refreshing. It is all found in Him alone. Additionally, a good tumble akin to that of the dryer, never fails to remind us to remain humble and tighten our grasp on Him. :) I found this snippet in Gunilla Norris' Being Home (a wonderful little book with meditations on each domestic work) which paralleled my thoughts:

"Soon the clothes will be drenched in water and soap. It will be a different time, and sorting will no longer matter in the midst of the wash cycle. I need to learn this in life: when to recognize, to name, and to sort - and when to immerse, to soak, to tumble, and be rinsed free of opinions. Grant that I may as much as possible honor You in all things...I pin these wet clothes to the line...an image of joining, of clinging to something. If I really know that You are my lifeline, then to cling to You is my primary business."

So thankful He made Himself known to us and allows me to cling to Him, my Strength and Saving Grace, my Lifeline.

Cheery colors drying in the laundry room today - after summer travels and a few colds, Michael's stuffed toys were in need of a good wash. :)

Weekend elements.

1) Voted. For life. Plain and simple.

Peace reigns knowing that it is in His hands. Sometimes good is worked more efficiently and effectively through bad.
"Any country that accepts abortion, is not teaching its people to love, but to use any violence to get what it wants." Mother Teresa

2) Fall weather hit us hard this past week. Grey skies, wind, rain. However, there were sunny reprieves at some point almost every day, so not bad, although I don't mind the rain. The cold temps have been the most shocking to our still FL-spoiled systems. But hey, mid-40's is cold, folks.

I haven't worn nylons in so long. This weather caused me to break out an old old pair; I foresee new ones of different patterns and colors for me in the future. With boots. Delighted about the cold weather. Except the fact of jean or pants. Not so much just yet...

Funny, the things I've found sprouting up in this untamed garden section in the front lawn area (which we do plan on cleaning up before winter)...

...herbs, lobellia, a snapdragon, irises, some kind of onion, and I just noticed this simple autumnal beauty. I may replant it in a pot to place next to the front porch pumpkins. 

3) Michael has been loving his new tag blanket made by Nana. I had been telling her of his fascination with tags; looking at them, pulling at them, feeling the texture between his fingers, and of course chewing on them, and so she proceeded to make this for him:

Apparently this is a popular item among the wee folk; now I see why.

4) Thrifted treasures lately: love when I find just what I have been wanting at a much lower price!

Flower press for the abundance of NW wildflowers to be found nearby, wooden Christmas tree garland, sewing hoops for both practical use and decor, wooden child's rosary, hand-less teacups for little chubby hands, Berta Hummel sketches, and always always, children's books. :)

5) The afore-mentioned cold weather has encouraged more time indoors, and the fall crafting I accomplished, motivated me to pull out my craft bin in seriousness. A Christmas angel cross-stitch needs completion. There is a new nephew/niece on the way, and Michael could use another hat and warm booties, so I've started something on the knitting needles. I haven't knitted since I was 10 or 11 when my grandmother briefly taught me, but an easy baby pattern with the basic knit/purl stitches caught my eye, and it seems my fingers easily remember those. We shall see if the end results leave a desire for more yarn work; there are such cute knitted patterns for babies out there, and I would love to have the ability to quickly create a little something handmade for new babies of friends/acquaintances.

6) Sunday was a busy day, with Mass and CCD teaching, and then a quick stop over to a family's for one of their 7 children's birthdays. Michael got lots of attention from children and adults alike, and it was nice for us to spend time with folks from our parish; met another nice young couple too. After that we headed down south for dinner at some other friends' to celebrate their purchase of a new home. I brought dessert; pumpkin shortcake bars and brownies. In my mind, just what a perfect Sunday should consist of - our Lord, the faith, friends, fellowship and good food!

7) Sunday also marked the day of new saints entering the Church's professed category of saints. One in particular we had learned much about growing up. A native of the America's, Kateri Tekakwitha was scarred by smallpox as a young girl, leaving her partially blind. She became a Christian despite the taunts and rejection bestowed to her by her people. Kateri then led a life of virginity, prayer, penitential practices and service to those who were less fortunate than her. Due to her poor health, she died at age 24, and upon death, her disfigured face was miraculously restored and made beautiful. Bishop Hubbard of Albany, N.Y, had this to say about her:

"In this day and age, when the pleasure-principle so dominates our society, and when people spend all kinds of time, effort and energy to remove the Cross from Christianity and to escape the sometimes harsh realities and responsibilities of mature Christian living, Kateri Tekakwitha stands as an heroic example of how to integrate the mystery of the Cross with the mystery of the Resurrection in a way that gives honor and glory to God and that ensures loving service to His people."

So excited to have more women from the USA be proclaimed saints; very relative and encouraging to us American women. St. Kateri, pray for us!

Bits of fall around the home.

Kitchen door entry

 Living room 

"Live Thankfully"

Burlap/lace/rosette wreath inspired by this one and which hangs on the inside of the living room door.

 Felt details

Piano top

Over my kitchen sink

Kitchen window corner

Checking out the voter's pamphlet on a fall morning.

And just wanted to share this clever idea. A friend invited me over for a ladies' craft night, and since I was unable to attend, she brought me one of the finished products - a dryer hose pumpkin! Brilliant. 

Weekend with family.

This past weekend we made the trek down to Klamath Falls, OR to meet up with Andrew's mother, brother, sis-in-law, and their 3 children. We hadn't seen Andrew's mother in a little over four years, so it was nice for her to spend some time with both her sons and of course introducing her to Michael was fun. A lovely time of catching up, playing with the kiddos, and some fall crafting commenced. Gabrielle, Nehemiah and Declan have all grown since we saw them a few months ago and their little personalities are so much fun.

 

 Amanda and Paul were very sweet and took us to the park for some pro shots (can't wait to see the rest and hoping to use one for a Christmas picture!) They also did a little shoot with Michael; looking forward to seeing those chubby baby pictures.

And then it was back to Portland for one night on the way home, where Catherine had yummy dessert and breakfast waiting for us. We had a little time for good sisterly conversation. Michael loves his Auntie Catherine.

 It was a little hectic, little rushed, but all in all, we had a good time and are thankful to be living a little closer to family.

On the Holy Rosary.

As October is the month of the Holy Rosary, I have been trying to do some reading pertaining to the benefits and promises of this beautiful prayer given to us by our Lady. Below is a snippet from Catherine Doherty:

"The Creed is our declaration of faith and allegiance to the Holy Trinity, to the commandments of God and his spouse, the church. Recite it slowly and let each word sink in - for thousands have died for these words and what they stand for. The Our Father is our prayer for the fellowship of men and women under the fatherhood of God, a prayer of love, trust, hope, and faith. And the Hail Marys are the angelic salutation that brought the incarnation and the redemption to this earth! It still does, to those who say it with their hearts as well as their lips. The repetition, slow and reverent, of these prayers, is not monotonous. It is a companion to our retracing of the life of God, his mother, and his church, a pilgrimage of love and faith. Mary continually holds out to us, her children, the slender thread of a rosary, asking that we say it, perhaps because it is as slender as she, and as strong as the God we pray to. October is the months of the rosary. Let us pray it daily, spanning the word with its slender, unbreakable strength, lifting it, lifting it up, up to the very feet of God."

I found this to be a perfect summation of the Rosary; the origin of its words and a reason for its repetition. Amazing, all the trans-formative power to be found within this simple string of prayers, in its ability to draw our minds and hearts to contemplate the Divine. Pope Pius XI provides excellent reasons to dwell on the mysteries of the Rosary:

"How could love not be made more fervent by the Rosary? We meditate on the Suffering and Death of our Redeemer and the Sorrows of His afflicted Mother. Will we not make a return for the love received? ...The Rosary enlivens the hope for things above that endure forever. As we meditate on the glory of Jesus and His Mother, we see heaven opened and our heartened in our striving to gain the eternal home."

The Rosary is especially beautiful to me because it meshes so well with humanity and makes Christ and the Blessed Mother more tangible to us. Its mysteries present us with the occurrences of our Lord's life; the birth, joys, growth, good works, sorrows, death, and eternal life. By meditating on the very humanity of the Divine, we learn how to be perfect as He is perfect. But isn't that always the goal of our Lady...to continuously lead us to her Son.

"To become perfect, say a Rosary a day."  St. Louis de Montfort

On that note, I should get to my daily Rosary as I work in the kitchen. :)

7 months.

In the weeks leading up to his 7 month mark, Michael has kept busy...

exploring the piano...

"Who, me?"

Enjoying books...

 Working on his crawling abilities...

 Spending time with Daddy...

 Trying to stand up...

and clapping.

In addition, he has been busy teething, a bit of a painful and tiring process for this baby, we have discovered.

We love you, little man! Keep growing strong!