Pulling Weeds

I was looking at my Mary garden this week and saw an invasion of weeds.  Somehow it struck me that the weeds are like sin.  If we don’t pull them out, they grow and spread and take over.

I often use a product called Preen on my gardens.  It is both a weed preventer and a fertilizer.  The directions state that it should be used regularly and as needed.

Perhaps we could all use a little Preen in our lives.  Weed out the bad and fertilize the true, the good and the beautiful.  How?  How about:

          P - Prayer
          R - Reconciliation
          E - Eucharist
          E - Eucharistic Adoration
          N - Never stop trying


 AMDG

Bodacious

May you revel in the bodaciousness of your day!

As I was leaving to go do some work at church Saturday morning, Himself sent me off with that thought.  I really liked it. 

And I wish you the same!


AMDG

Something Old

Every so often Himself and I will go wander an antique store.  There are a couple down in Amish country that we like to stop in and a mall not too far from our house that we frequent.  We don’t usually go there to buy something; more often than not we walk out empty-handed.  We just like to look.  These stores are like museums, but with things you can actually touch. 

Most often I’m drawn to china, old quilts and books.  Over the years I have put together a small collection of old china that on which I like to serve “tea.”  Himself likes the books as well, but I usually can find him looking at coins and war memorabilia.  We are both looking for the elusive, old copies of GK Chesterton and perhaps even some Belloc and Lewis. 

The old things I like the best aren’t what we find at the stores, but what has been passed down through our families.  Usually there is an anecdote or memory that goes along with the item.  They are things that connect us with people no longer here, people we may not have ever met in our lives, but are still part of our history.

This past weekend my sister and her husband dropped off an old rocking chair they no longer had need for.  It had belonged to my great grandmother on my mom’s side, and had been passed down to my aunt, then my mom and finally my sister.  By the time she got it, it was a bit, okay, a lot worse for wear, having endured many years of my three boy cousins.  Sis had it refurbished and recovered and now it is a thing of beauty.

It sits low to the ground and has finely carved details in its wooden armrests and frame.  It rocks only slightly, quietly.  It has me wondering who sat there before me.  Did my great grandmother rock her babies to sleep in it?  Did my grandmother?  Did someone sit there reading a book they just couldn’t put down? 

I think tonight, perhaps, I’ll grab the old Chesterton I’m reading and become part of the history of that old chair.

AMDG

Quick Takes (25) - Outdoor edition

-1-

The weather here has been spectacular – for the middle of March, for Spring, and just in general.  I’ve been able to leave the door open at night and enjoy falling asleep to soft breezes and waking up to the songs of a lot of happy birds.

-2-

And because the weather has been so great, I’ve been able to get a jump start on yard work.  We have a lot of gardens that need a lot of clean up and TLC.  I am much farther along than I would have expected to be at this time.  It's nice to be able to get ahead a bit and not feel pressured to get everything done now.

-3-

It’s good to be able to get ahead on yard chores as I have a lot of new projects planned for us.  There are some shrubs in the front of the house, that we often refer to as “Cousin It”, that have gotten out-of-control big.  So big, in fact, that they cover half of the sidewalk!  Out they are going to be replaced by something that hopefully grows at a much slower rate.

-4-

It’s time to start thinking about what we are going to be planning in our newly expanded vegetable garden.  Of course we’ll plant the traditional tomatoes, peppers, carrots, beets and potatoes.  Any suggestions?  We are hoping to can, freeze, pickle or preserve much of what we grow.

-5-

In order to expand the vegetable garden, there’s a bit of yard we need to reclaim.  The previous owners planted, and we tried to continue, a wildflower meadow.  I use that term loosely as it’s really become just a big mass of weeds.  So, weather permitting, I’ll be burning it all down soon.   I can’t wait.  Check back for pictures of the big burn.

-6-

We had visitors this week.  On our roof.  Yep.  A pair of geese have been visiting regularly.  On the roof.  Huh?  So strange.  And so loud.  They seem to want to make sure we know that they are there.  We do.

-7-

“A thing may be too sad to be believed or too wicked to be believed or too good to be believed; but it cannot be too absurd to be believed in this planet of frogs and elephants, of crocodiles and cuttle-fish.”

– GKC inThe Man Who Was Thursday

Thankful Thursday (14)

Today I am thankful for. . .

Lunch dates with Himself.  They are becoming our every other Thursday tradition.  It's such a nice break in my work day.

Pretty flowers to adorn my desk.  See above.

Sunshine and warmth.  I don't care that we seemed to have skipped spring and have gone right into summer. I love, love, love it!

Air conditioning.  It's been mighty humid and putting on the air for a few hours really helps. 

It's almost the weekend.  We're heading to K&S's house for dinner Saturday evening.  It's always a great time of fellowship and friendship.

Check out more things to be thankful for over at The Road Home.

AMDG

Down the road

Down the road a ways from where we live is a small hobby farm.  They recently acquired a couple of new cows, I think black Angus, that we noticed as we drove by.  A week or two later we saw another addition, a small calf, who seems to be growing rather rapidly. 

Sorry to say, one of my first thoughts when I saw it was Yum!  Veal!  No, really, it was. Come on,  you can’t blame me.  I live in a rural area.  Cows and pigs and chickens equal food.

My next thought was that this poor little creature needs a name.  And what did I come up with?

Introducing . . . Veal Young!



Veal Young is on the right.  When we stopped to take a picture, we were surprised to see another small creature.  So, in keeping with the theme, we named him Veal Younger.  I think that's one of their mamas in the back.

AMDG

The soft ends

Ah!  We made it to Spring.  Glorious, sun-shiny, warm Spring.  Given all the Signs of Spring posts I’ve done lately, my guess is that you have already figured out that I love this time of year.  And I do.  A lot. 

It’s not just the weather that I love.  I crave the newness and the freshness of it.  It is the beginning of something good.  It has possibilities.  It is not harsh or oppressive.

I often call Spring and Fall the soft ends of the year, just as morning and evening are the soft ends of the day.  They are gentle, undemanding.  They ease you into what comes next.  Or they just let you be.  Summer and Winter are harsh, insistent, raucous.  The sun is either high and hot or hiding and dim. 

The colors are fresh now.  Maybe it's because everything, not too long ago, was gray and brown and dirty.  The flowers seem to sing for joy.  And I am too!

 

AMDG

Our Song

Katie at NFP and Me asked: What song did you first dance to as husband and wife?

Well, Katie, I’m glad you asked.  In just two days we will be celebrating the day my beloved asked for my hand in marriage.  Since the proposal took place in St. Joseph’s chapel and today is the Feast of St. Joseph, what could be better than to think about our wedding!

Our song is The Gift sung by Collin Raye.  We had heard it a number of times when we were dating, including live at Collin’s Christmas concert that year.  It was really a no-brainer choosing it for our wedding.  The lyrics really summed up what we felt about each other. 

Winter snow is falling down

Children laughing all around

Lights are turning on like a fairy tale come true

Sitting by the fire we made

You're the answer when I prayed

I would find someone and baby I found you

I remember praying in church before Mass one Sunday for God to send me someone special.  I felt such peace that day as I heard Him say In my time, not yours.  I knew at that moment I had to wait for for the man God would send me, whether it took 10 days or 10 years.

[Chorus:]

And all I want is to hold you forever

All I need is you more everyday

You saved my heart from being broken apart

You gave your love away

And I'm thankful everyday

For the gift

I think the older I get and the longer we are married, the more this song means to me.  I still get goosebumps when I hear it! 

Watching as you softly sleep

What I'd give if I could keep

Just this moment if all of time stood still

But the colors fade away

And the years will make us gray

But baby in my eyes you'll still be beautiful

[Chorus: x2]

Can't find the words to say

Thank you for the gift

AMDG

More signs of Spring

The peas they are a poppin'!

Catholic TV

Sometimes I just crack myself up.  I think of something that I think is hilariously funny and am totally amused by it.  When I explain myself to Himself and why I am laughing so, he usually just shakes his head in utter disbelief. 

The other night, as Himself was reading and I was relaxing, I burst out in fits of laughter.  So many of the shows on television these days are totally inappropriate for family viewing, or anyone’s viewing for that matter.     I came up with an alternative to at least one show.  Instead of Sex in the City how about Celibate in the Suburbs?

Okay, I thought it was funny. 

But that got me thinking (dangerous, I know).  How can we revamp/rewrite other TV shows to make them better for our viewing pleasure?

Change Modern Family to Trad Family?  That’s a little bit lame, but a start. 

Any ideas?

AMDG