Preparation in Receiving Our Lord in Holy Communion

                                     

     I've been reading the book "The Mystical City of God" by Venerable Mary of Agreda. What an INCREDIBLE book filled to the brim with many mysteries and revelations of our divine faith. Each chapter I learn more and more of the bond between Our Lord and Mother, the things He revealed to her, and intimate details of His life. It's a very thick book with 794 pages, but me not being a reader at all, have finally made it to page 483....it's taken me a while to get there too. ;) I'm excited to read further and discover and learn more. Yesterday I read an especially touching chapter about the dealings between Our Lord and Mother right before The Last Supper. I was so touched that I had to share it on here. 

Jesus went to Our Lady and told her that His time has come. He then asks for her permission to enter into His sacrifice and to consent to deliver Himself over to His enemies in obedience to the will of God. It is relayed that Our Lady suffered more sorrow than all the martyrs combined during this time. She then asked Him in the most loving and humblest way to permit her to receive Holy Communion which was something He had revealed to her many years previously. Our Lady told Venerable Mary of Agreda that she had prepared herself for many years with fervent acts of love, humility and gratitude for the day that she might receive Our Lord. She then spoke about the importance of preparation for Communion...

"...what a horrible crime it is in the eyes of The Lord, in mine and in those of all the saints, that men should despise and neglect the frequent reception of holy Communion, and that they should approach it without preparation and fervent devotion..."

"...I have manifested to thee, what I did on that occasion and how I prepared myself so many years for receiving my most blessed Son in the holy Sacrament..." "For if I, who was innocent of any hindering sin and filled with all graces, sought to increase my fitness for this favor by such fervent acts of love, humility and gratitude, consider what efforts thou and the other children of the Church, who every day and hour incur new guilt and blame, must make in order to fit yourselves for the beauty of the Divinity and humanity of my most holy Son?"

This gave me much to think about in the way I receive Our Lord. Many times, if not most times, I am distracted and have not begun my preparation early enough to be befitting in receiving the most sacred Body and Blood. St. John Berchman would begin his preparation 3 days before Communion and then he made his thanksgiving for 3 days afterwards! And I do about 10 minutes of thanksgiving?? God forgive me for my negligences! If Our Lady, most perfect and sinless Mother, called herself a wormlet, what then should I consider myself who is infinitely more than that through my shameful sins and pride? May I always keep this in mind when preparing in receiving Our Lord, who is galaxies greater than I and who has given Himself to save my soul.

Lord have mercy, Christ have mercy!

Merry Christmas!

A very Merry Christmas to you all!

It came so quickly! This year however, I decided to smarten up a bit and buy most of my gifts online to avoid those vicious crowds. Despite my efforts, I still found myself wedged in between massive crowds of people while grocery shopping and running any sort of errand. Driving was a nightmare as I worked my way through stop and go traffic and dreaded the thought of trying to find a parking spot. Let's just say this right now, there is NEVER a good parking spot at Walmart. EVER. And that's probably because most of the parking spaces are taken up by 50 Handicap parking spots. This makes no sense because by the time you find the last handicap spot, it's halfway down the parking lot which defeats the purpose of a handicap parking spot in the first place and leaves us hopeless individuals stuck about a mile away from the door. I just had to get that out of my system. Walmart during the Christmas season = Worst Nightmare. Ever.

So, despite the headache of running Christmas errands and such, I had a wonderful Advent season and Christmas! Advent was especially meaningful this year. I'm proud to say, I did not listen to One. Single. Christmas. Song. NOT ONE until Christmas Eve. Of course that's aside from being forced to listen to the ones in stores and such. Instead I pretty much played O Come O Come Emmanuel from every single artist and version out there for all of Advent. Why don't they have more songs for this beautiful time of the Liturgical year?? We also didn't put any decorations up until Christmas Eve which is something we plan to do every year as our family grows. It definitely impressed upon me the meaning of Advent and the joyous day of Christmas. Despite our humble living situation, we did the best we could in the line of decorations and instead of a real Christmas tree....well...you'll see the picture on my shutterfly account. ;) We decided not to get a real tree because 1. We simply don't have the space and 2. We were going to be spending the week at the Kromms' house, so there wasn't really any point in getting a tree that we couldn't enjoy or take care of.

Speaking of the Kromms, we had such a lovely time with them over Christmas!! They generously offered us a room at their inn house and even let us share half their Christmas tree! ;) We had so much fun and enjoyed being in a beautiful house decorated very nicely! On Christmas Eve, we spent most of the day preparing food and desserts. I made a White Chocolate Peppermint Bark Cheesecake and Thomas made his famous Garlic Mashed Potatoes....Mmm mmm MMM!!! We went to Midnight Mass (which Emma slept for most of it!) and had a special Christmas morning opening our own gifts to eachother before heading off to the Schutzmans. The next day was Lovey's (Francesca's) 18th birthday, so all of us went to see the Hobbit with her at the movie theater. That Saturday, the younger Schutzman girls VERY GENEROSLY offered to watch ALL of the nieces and nephew so that the couples and older Schutzmans could all go out to dinner with eachother after a Christmas Lights Limo Tour at the Country Club Plaza. We had a blast!

New Years was such a relaxing and special time. Since Thomas worked VERY hard the few days beforehand finishing up the year and working on getting qualified for Million Dollar Round Table, we decided just to relax and have our own little celebration. For New Years Eve, I decorated the dining room table up fancy with our China and cloth napkins. We dressed up formally and had some scrumptious Indian food. :) New Years Day was a pajama day! We brought up our TV from the living room and put it in our bedroom so that we could just chill in our pajamas in bed and have a movie day. PERFECT day.

So that pretty much sums up our holiday festivities! :) Please enjoy some pictures on my shutterfly account!

https://morningstar257.shutterfly.com/pictures#n_5

Thanksgiving Surprise!

What a Thanksgiving to remember! Unbeknownst to my family (aside from Lindsay and Zenith), Thomas, Emma and I travelled to NH for Thanksgiving to surprise everybody! Lindsay braved the snowstorm and drove all the way to Boston to pick us up. Don't know how we would have done it without her! The Martello family generosly invited Thomas and I to stay at their apartment overnight to make the day even more successful. We had such a wonderful time, especially since it was the first time ever the WHOLE family was together (brother-in-laws, grandchildren, etc.). God is so good and what a blessing that everyone was truly thankful for this year! Here are some pictures of our visit.

Emma and Willy are best of cuz cuz!

"Emma, this is MY playmat!"

                                                               "You have my blessing."

                                                           Holding hands :)

Nana and Bumpa were so kind and babysat Willy and Emma so that we could go out on a double date!

There's no place like Bumpa's shoulder!

Movie time with more of her cuz cuz!

We even got to stop by some old stomping grounds.....where it all began. :)

       All snuggled up and warm on Nana's shoulder. :)

The Kansas evening sky

 

Time to say goodbye. :(

It was a blast!!

I'm A Big Girl!

Look at me! I'm a big girl now in my Bumbo seat!!

Thank you Rachel for such a nice gift!

Dating My Husband

Thomas and I have had a really fun few months! For his birthday I got him tickets to The Piano Guys concert. We had an absolute blast! The Schutzmans babysat Emma for us, and we spent the evening strolling around Zona Rosa, eating at a nice Italian restaurant, and going to the concert. The Piano Guys put on an awesome concert.... spouting out funny jokes and playing beautiful music in a gorgeous theater! I had a great time getting all dressed up and spending the evening one on one with my husband.

Another weekend, Thomas surprised me and took me to Country Club Plaza. He set up a massage appointment for me that day and then we strolled around the plaza and ate at a really fun Italian restaurant called Buca di Beppo. I don't think I've ever been so relaxed in my life! That massage was heaven and I actually found myself falling to sleep during it. The Italian restaurant was so fun set up family-style and underground with a lot of fun pictures and a cool atmosphere. And their calamari and sangria… To die for! While Ruth watched Emma overnight, we spent our night at the beautiful hotel right next to the plaza. It was such a wonderful break and very relaxing! I loved strolling around the plaza and stopping at Panera Bread for some tea since it was a bit nippy outside. We had a ton of fun! Although I must say, I really really missed Emma! She's my little pumpkin. I did appreciate the break though. LOL 

A couple of Sundays ago, Thomas and I decided to have a fall day and carve pumpkins! We got some apple cider ale and our pumpkins and went to town. It was a blast! Thomas had never carved a pumpkin before but nonetheless decided to carve a very challenging piece. He carved the face of Jesus. Unfortunately because this time of year is supposed to be a haunted and scary time, the piece may look a little ghostly, but it is in fact religious. LOL I think it came out pretty awesome! I carved a fleur-de-lis, which to my dismay didn't come out as good as I would've liked. I accidentally punched out the wrong pieces of the pumpkin. Lol It was a ton of fun though!

I think it's so important to continue on dating your spouse. It's been so special and wonderful for our relationship! It makes us better spouses to each other and parents to our children. I recently heard a talk on marriage and how it always should be kept a priority. The woman used the analogy that, just like on the plane they tell the adults to put on the oxygen mask first before assisting the children because otherwise you would be no help to them if you died, it is the same thing in marriage, that if your marriage gets ruined your children will be ruined by default. I want to always keep this in mind and keep my husband I priority. I want to always reserve time for him and make our relationship special!

Next week is the Christ the King Festival which we're really looking forward to! St. Mary's does an awesome job putting this thing together. They have booths set up themed all different types of countries with that type of food....which is infact FREE. *jaw drop* My favorite last year were the fried Oreos. Sounds disgusting I know, but they were actually delicious! I'm so glad I decided to try them.

Thomas has been working hard trying to qualify for the incentive trip with the Knights of Columbus. We are pretty sure that he's going to make it and only has a few more apps that he has to do in order to qualify. He's doing a fantastic job with the Knights of Columbus and will be the only guy besides one other person who qualifies for the trip this early on in his career. He's hoping to have everything done before Thanksgiving which would be great because that means he can take a break in December from his hard work. The incentive trip is March 2015 and it is to Spain and Portugal. I can't even imagine how awesome that would be! A completely free trip to Europe staying at five-star hotels! I was nervous about traveling with Emma, but Ruth assured me that so many wives bring their children and help each other out and that she would be there for me as well to help out with whatever we needed. Thomas' Aunt (her husband also works for the same agency and is trying to qualify) also assured me the same thing. We'll see how it goes! Might be the best trip of our lives or could be the worst! LOL but at least it's free and will probably never get this opportunity again!

Well that's all for now! I better take advantage of Emma napping and get some stuff done including fixing dinner before my husband gets home.

A Message From Little Miss Em

Hey Everyone!

I haven't been able to post in a while, mommy always hogs the iPad! Life has been pretty good so far, my mommy has finally figured out how to get me to sleep so I definitely feel much more rested! It was getting pretty crazy for a while there, but mommy and I are learning together! Mommy puts me down for about 4 naps a day and I've learned to go right to sleep instead of cry, well....sometimes. ;) After I wake up in the morning, mommy comes and gets me and brings me back into mommy and daddy's bed. The three of us spend some quality time laughing, smiling, cooing and having a great time together. I love this time of day because I get to spend it with daddy! I'm usually asleep when he gets back from work so this is a great time for us to hang out! 

After we all get ready and daddy leaves for work, mommy puts me down for a morning nap so that she can work out. She started a new fitness program for mommies and it's a challenge for them to lose their baby weight. Sometimes I get to watch mommy work out and I can't help but laugh at all her funny exercises.... sometimes I don't think she quite knows what she's doing. After my morning nap, mommy feeds me and then we have playtime together. She puts me down on my play mat and moves all the little toys around to keep me entertained! The little hippopotamus is my favorite!

Sometimes mommy will take me outside to go check the mail! I love this, it gets me out of the house and get some fresh air. Nothing worse than being cooped up in your crib all day! Then mommy puts me down for another nap and we do it all over again! 7 o'clock I'm usually in bed and sleep until 10 or 11, sometimes 12! 

Mommy doesn't really like to take me out too often as I get really fussy and grumpy because I've missed my naps. Because of this, daddy has generously offered to watch me on Saturdays so that mommy can go out and get errands done! Mommy says this is been a huge help to her, but I don't think I'm that much work. Although I must confess, Aldi trips really wiped me out! 

I'm really really really looking forward to this weekend! Sunday is the Christ the King festival in St. Mary's! I've never been to it before, but mommy says it's a blast and I'm really looking forward to seeing all the sights and smelling all the different foods, even though I can't eat them yet!

I'm really starting to get big now! I now interact with toys much more and love looking at the little birdies hanging above me in my bouncer seat! Mommy and daddy say they can't believe how big I've gotten! Definitely a lot more fun when you can start playing with things. Mommy is starting to bring out more toys and try out new things. This is something I didn't do before!.....and she wonders why I was fussy. ;)

All three of us have been doing a lot more now. Last Thursday, mommy and I went over to Ruth's house (Thomas' boss' wife). She has been so sweet and watches me for mommy to be able to go out and do stuff. I even spent the night at her house once! I have so much fun with her and she plays with me a lot. She has a lot of stuff for babies at her house since she has grandchildren. I am able to play in her swing, her bouncy seat, and she even puts on baby movies for me. We met her at hobby lobby last Thursday and got supplies to make our own wreaths for autumn. This was a lot of fun and mommy and Ruth made really pretty wreaths! They plan to make wreaths for every season. Mommy loves having someone that she can get together with and do fun stuff with. They plan on doing a lot of arts and crafts together and Ruth even offered to teach mommy how to sew! Here is the wreath that mommy made... Isn't it pretty!? 

Last Friday we got together with Jesus and Sarah for dinner and had a great time getting to know them better! What a delightful family and great time we had!

Every Wednesday, mommy and I go to Kansas City to a mommy's group with Kitty and Maddie and then for a chiropractor appointment. We have lots of fun spending time with my aunties and cousins! They're pretty awesome! Here's a picture from when we all went out to eat. Everyone has been saying how calm and chill Franz is, so I thought I'd copy him just this once and fall asleep. These Wednesday outings are a great way to get out of the house and socialize. Plus, I finally get to be around someone my own age and size who understand the same language!

Well, I better get going now. I'm starting to get tired and I don't want to get too grumpy for mommy.

Love you all!

Emma

Just one of those days...

                                                                                

 

         

      

     It's just been one of those days! Emma, as usual, has been extremely fussy and crabby today, just constantly wanting to be held and caressed. Thomas kindly and very generously got up with her this morning at 6am and spent the whole morning trying to calm her down and let me sleep in...even though he has work today! He's been an incredible help and support. But, despite his efforts in trying to get her to sleep, she has insisted on remaining fussy and putting up a fight. I find myself saying "it's just one of those days". You know those days when your baby doesn't allow you to shower, clean a very messy house or run errands? Ya, those days. ;) I do find however that saying "it's just one of those days" helps me to accept that fact and remind myself that I can't and won't be able to "do it all". The vacuuming, mopping, laundry, dusting, bathroom, bedroom, grocery shopping...etc. etc. But that's ok! Once I just accept the fact of it being that kind of day, I can more easily roll with the punches instead of resisting it and beating myself up about it. We are meant to have these kinds of days and you know what,  it helps and forces me to stop, take a breath and just spend the quality time with Emma. If she wants to be held all day and screams if I leave her alone for even a second, then thank you God for forcing me to give her that undivided attention and spend this time cuddled up with her...a time which quickly speeds by to when your daughter doesn't always "need" you to hold her and comfort her constantly. So I'm going to just sit back, light a nice smelling candle, drink some calming tea, listen to Paul Cardall on Pandora, relax snuggled up with my baby cakes and not feel guilty about the gazillion chores that need to be done. God has given me the day off from chores today. Today my task is spending quality time with Emma being there for her and comforting her. I do believe God gives you these days to force you to take a step back and relish the moments with a newborn that fly by so quickly.....oh AND to work on your patience. ;) 

So here's to having "just one of those days!"