Good Friday

For me Good Friday has always been both the saddest and happiest day of the year.
At church today we will read the Passion of Christ and the entire assembly will participate. Then Father and the alter boys will bring down our rather large crucifix and place it at the front of the church. One by one each person in the church will line up and kiss the feet of Christ on that crucifix. Every year without fail I want to weep and wail like the woman at Calvary did. I want to stomp my feet and fall prostrate in front of His most holy cross and cry out, " Why Lord why did they have to do this to you? Please let me wipe your face as Veronica did. Let me pull you down from that cross and wrap you in my arms like your sweet mother did." Alas, this was Gods will. That one should die for the sake of many.
Christ has given us all a most precious gift. This is a gift like no other we will receive. Like no gift could ever compare too. His love for us is boundless. His desire to rest next to Him in heaven for all eternity made His passion worth all of our sinful souls. Come to Christ today. Rest in His unending love. Find comfort in the peace that only He can offer.

May the Peace of Christ be with you and may you take the time today to walk with Christ to Calvary.

Holy Thursday

Tonight we will attend Holy Thursday Mass. In the Catholic Church the priest will commonly wash the feet of 12 volunteers to re enact Christ washing the feet of His apostles. I have seen this done many times since my conversion to the church. At first it seemed odd and uncomfortable. As my faith has grown, I have learned to better appreciate where
Christ was coming from and what he was preparing his followers for. I am in awe of his love for them and for us.

The institution of the Most Holy Eucharist is however the main attraction of the night. In our church we believe that Christ was literally telling his friends that they must eat his flesh and drink his blood in order to have life with in them. When I converted to the faith this was a sticking point for me at first. Its when I realized how appalled they were at his words that I seen he truly meant what he said. They actually left him there. Christ would not relent. He wouldn't explain his analogy like he had before in other teachings. There was no story to teach the lesson here. It is what it is. God has no boundaries. There is nothing he can not do. Why then could he not do this?

The sacrament of The Eucharist is the most beloved of all our Sacraments. (gift from Christ) It is in this sacrament that Christ feeds our bodies. He becomes a literal part of our physical beings not just a spiritual part. The spiritual connection to Our Lord is found all around us. In our prayers, the wind, the flowers, the faces of our loved ones. The Eucharist is the only time he comes to us Body and Soul.

Heavenly Father,

I thank you for this most precious gift of your Son. I pray that I will be made worthy to receive Him in the most Holy Eucharist. That in receiving Him I will be molded into what you want me to be. That I will be transformed into a light of Your love to this world. It is my prayer Lord that I will be worthy of the promises of Christ and one day kiss Your feet in heaven and fall before Your glory for all eternity.

In the name of The Father and The Son and The Holy Spirit,

Amen

Miracles do happen

A miracle occured in our home last night.

Easter Eggs were decorated before Easter. Thanks to my mom kits and eggs were bought and plain old white eggs became beautiful works of art. Now Holy Week can proceed into the Easter Sunday it should be. Thanks be to God.

Its a cold, cold day

I live in Michigan. The saying here is," If you don't like the weather wait 5 minutes." This winter truer words could not be said. Yesterday it was a high of like 48 degrees. I woke up to melted snow and and bare flower beds. Oh, spring fever resides in my heart. So I went outside to visit all of my flower beds and see what they are doing. I however decided to do that today when the temperature has dropped to 25 degrees. All things are frozen, and I pregnant and clumsy fell on the ice in my yard. Ouch!!! No worries though baby and I are fine. Any way I took some pictures of my sleeping garden and will share them and a warm cup of love my husband made for me last week.

Why Homeschool? II

I of course would have to say my main reason for home schooling was Gods insistent calling. There are many more however. One giant reason for us to come back to homeschooling was my children's frustration with the amount of time lost to them each day. Between transporting them to and from school, then the long day at school and the homework that followed. We never had time to relax or play or to simply have time with each other. Devin my oldest said to me, "Mom we never have time to play." They would get home, change, do their homework, eat, and maybe have a half hour of playtime before bed. If it was bath night that was gone too. I am sure if any of you have children at school this is a familiar scenario to you. Our frustration was most pronounced because we knew what a home school day entails. Of course the day for a Kinder garter is much shorter than a third grader. However my kids still have recess, lunch , music, gym, and all basic subjects between 9 am and 2:30 pm. Scheduling has become our saving grace and if they don't finish a subject within the allotted time frame they have homework that eats into their free time. It has proven to be an effective schedule that all of us have thrived under.
I read a book that was a great help to me many years ago however it wasn't until this year I found a effective way of executing it. A Mothers Rule of Life by Holly Pierot

http://mothersruleoflife.com

Why Homeschool?

This is a question I get pretty much once a week. " Why home school? " The follow up is always... "Aren't you afraid they won't be socialized?" The first is always the more difficult question to answer. Sometimes because you don't want to offend them in what works out to be a lengthy explanation that you really can't spill out in the grocery store line. Other reasons can simply be that I believe in accomplishing something for my kids that goes away from what they have chosen for their own children. This is a very personal decision. I am a person with very strong beliefs in what I feel is right and wrong for my kids. I can't say that life hasen't forced me to re evaluate them on a regular basis. (ie. what tv shows are ok or what type of education they should recive) Either way, its the dance we call life that brings each of us to our own conclusions.
So here is my attempt at explaning why we home school.
Reason #1 God told me to. Now I know what your thinking, Jesus Freak, nut job, religious fanatic. I'll take doors one and three. The second although true to some degree is not what we are talking about. I prayed. I prayed and prayed and prayed for God to help me out with this one. The kids went to private school last year and I had gotten settled in the idea that this was going to be our life. I would ship all the kids off to school until I was alone and then I could go to school. I'd let the 'professionals' handle it from here. The problem was we (the family) weren't happy. So I asked God. He told me point blank......"Kelli, this is God speaking. Your mission should you choose to accept it is to HOME SCHOOL my children and raise them up for me." -God
Ok it might have been not so direct and little less 'holywood' but you get the idea.

"Since parents have conferred life on their children, they have a most solemn obligation to educate their offspring. Hence, parents must be acknowledged as the first and foremost educators of their children. Their role as educators is so decisive that scarcely anything can compensate for their failure in it. For it devolves on parents to create a family atmosphere so animated with love and reverence for God and others that a well-rounded personal and social development will be fostered among the children. Hence, the family is the first school of those social virtues which every society needs."
- Pope John Paul II

Reason #2 Morality
Our society is saturated with sex. Sex in all its abused and misused forms is readily avalible to any child at any age just by watching an hour of afternoon tv. All they have to see is the commercials. Ok take out TV. Lets go for a family shopping trip for new clothes for Jr. "Mommy, why is that woman in her underware?" Thank you Victoria Secret. So much for the secret. My daughter looks at me to ask why a woman would be nearly naked in a picture.
Move forward to the school system.
Ok deep breath. This is a big subject for me. What I am trying to say is I know my kids better than anyone. I also am very aware of what is out in this world. I refuse to live with my head in the sand and fully intead to make sure my kids walk out into the world with the knowledge they will need. But, I'll be damned if some stranger is going to make those choices for me.
The majority does not always rule.

Ok I'm wore out. I will write more tommorow.

God Children

These are my newest children. No I didn't give birth to twins. However I could love them no less. These little dolls are our Godchildren.

Meet Thomas James and Rachel Bea.

God be praised!