The real stuff is a lot more enjoyable!

Bubblewrap

Patrick's Breakfast Song

"A spoonful of seeds helps the medicine go down, the medicine go down..."

Prayers

Please pray for the repose of the soul of Archbishop Paulos Faraj Raho of Mosul. The story of his death was reported on Catholic World News and Catholic News Agency.

Getting to know your friends

I received this little q and a via e-mail from a couple of friends and thought that it would be fun to share it.

Welcome to the 2008 edition of getting to know your friends. Okay, here's what you're supposed to do, and try not to be lame and spoil the fun! Copy this entire email and paste into a new email [or blog post] that you can send, change all the answers so that they apply to you. Then send this to a whole bunch of people you know, INCLUDING the person that sent it to you.

1. What is your occupation? loving wife, loving mommy, pro-life volunteer

2. What color are your socks right now? what socks? I like bare feet!

3. What are you listening to right now? daughters giggling

4. What was the last thing that you ate? brown rice and canned corn. No, it was not what I had planned for dinner. The chicken and vegetables did not cook in a timely manner because I turned off the wrong burner (usually, I turn on the wrong burner). At least, tonight's dinner is already made.

5. Can you drive a stick shift? Definitely! My first and second cars were stick shifts. Thank you Mom and Dad! I learned to drive a stick going down to California with my friend, Donna. Thank you for your patience, Donna!

6. If you were a crayon, what color would you be? Red (or navy blue)

7. Last person you spoke to on the phone? My dad

8. Do you like the person who sent this to you? yes, I love both of the people who sent this to me

9. Favorite vacation? Maui or Mauritius

10. Favorite drink? water

11. What is your favorite sport to watch? soccer

12. Have you ever dyed your hair? no

13. Pets? a dog might be in our future

14. Favorite food? apple ~ Golden Delicious to be precise

15. Last movie you watched? I can't remember and no that's not the name of a movie. One of the things that I gave up for Lent was watching movies (it wasn't really a sacrifice, as I have a hard time sitting still to watch anything on a screen)

16. What do you do to vent anger? Get on the computer.

17. Favorite Day of the year? The day I was married, my children's birthdays, and Christmas

18. What was your favorite toy as a child? Jane ~ a doll that I was given for my third birthday (I still have her).

19. What is your favorite, fall or spring? spring!

20. Hugs or kisses? Both!

21. Cherry or Blueberry? blueberry

22. Do you want your friends to email you back? yes

23. Who is most likely to respond? The two people who sent this to me

24. Who is least likely to respond? The people who have received this and not sent it to me

25. Current living arrangements? comfy

26. When was the last time you cried? Sunday ~ Anneke, Benjamin is a beautiful miracle!

27. What is on the floor of your closet? shoes, bags with sweaters

28. Who is the friend you have had the longest that you are sending this to? my sisters

29. The friend you have had the shortest that you are sending this to? ????

30. Favorite smell(s)? roses, warm evenings in California walking in the rose gardens or by the roses outside the mission church

31. What inspires you? God

32. What are you afraid of? spiders

33. Plain, cheese or spicy hamburgers? cheese

34. Favorite car? My "big brass wagon" ~ it's actually a green van that seats 12 ~ the children currently have plenty of room

35. Favorite cat breed? How about favorite cat? Lucky

36. Number of keys on your key ring? 5

37. How many years at your current job? 11 1/2

38. Who do you miss the most? my mom and my dad

39. Favorite day of the week? Sunday

40. How many states have you lived in? 2

41. How many countries have you been to? 9

42. Today's date and time: March 6th, 7:10 am

Have a blessed day!

Shower of Roses has a Challenge for You

Please visit Shower of Roses and take Jessica's Easter Hope Challenge. The Hadley family really needs your help.

St. Mary's Messenger - Catholic Children's Magazine

My prayers have been answered! A few months ago, I was sent a copy of St. Mary's Messenger by the senior editor of the magazine and I was impressed. St. Mary's Messenger contains stories and information that are pertinent to the liturgical year in a child-friendly, eye-pleasing format. My second eldest daughter went to bed on more than one occasion, looking at the magazine. St. Mary's Messenger provides a wonderful way to teach and reinforce the Catholic faith.

In order to publish this magazine, the editors need to show their prospective publisher that there is a market for it. If you have been looking for a Catholic children's magazine, please visit www.stmarysmessenger.com and fill in their form, stating that you would like to read the magazine. Filling in the form does not mean that you are obligated to subscribe when the magazine is printed. A PDF sample of the magazine is available on the website.

Please pray for Lori Baron

Received via e-mail:

Dear family and friends,

We need to ask for your prayers for Lori Baron again. We just found out last week after her surgery that her cancer is back and it's all around her diaphragm. It's the same ovarian cancer she had before, which means that this could take her quickly. Please keep her in your prayers as well as everyone else in the family; they still have the 11 adopted kids at home ranging in age from 18 to almost 10 (at the end of this month). They just did a second surgery to take care of a leak she had in her intestines and it doesn't sound like she's doing that well either, so she needs all the prayers she can get.

Thanks and God bless you all!

Padre Pio

My mom introduced me to Padre Pio when she was sick. My love for this saint grew after my mom's death. I was very happy to read the following on Catholic World News:

San Giovanni Rotondo, Mar. 3, 2008 (CWNews.com) - Church officials exhumed the body of Padre Pio on March 2, in preparation for the public veneration of his remains later this year.

Bishop Domenico D'Ambrosio reported that the body of Padre Pio, who died in 1968, was partially incorrupt. Although there was no sign of the stigmata-- the wounds on his hands and feet, matching those of the crucified Christ-- the saint's hair and beard were intact. The bishop remarked that the hands of the beloved Capuchin friar were so well preserved that he appeared to have "just had a manicure."

The body of Padre Pio--who was canonized by Pope John Paul II (bio - news) in 2002-- is being transferred to a new shrine in San Giovanni Rotondo, where he lived. His remains will be exposed for veneration there. Archbishop D'Ambrosio overcame objections from some of Padre Pio's relatives to exhume the saint's body, making it available for veneration during the 40th anniversary of his death. Each year nearly 1 million people travel to San Giovanno Rotondo to visit the saint's grave; Church officials expect larger crowds for the anniversary year.

Please pray for this Archbishop and those who were killed

Iraqi bishop kidnapped by terrorists
Mosul, Feb. 29, 2008
(CWNews.com) - The Chaldean Catholic Bishop of Mosul, Iraq, has been abducted, the AsiaNews service reports.
Bishop Paulos Faraj Raho was seized by terrorists who attacked his car as he left the Holy Spirit cathedral in Mosul after leading the Stations of the Cross on Friday, February 29. Three companions who had been in the car with him were killed.
A Church spokesman in Iraq confirmed that the bishop was in the custody of his kidnappers, who had contacted the Chaldean Church to make a ransom demand. Iraqi Catholics did not know whether or not the bishop had been wounded in the attack.

Update: More information is available from Catholic News Agency.