I'm blind without my glasses

In chronological order...
Miriam met Ronald McDonald during Catholic Schools Week at the beginning of February. Even got to go to the front of the assembly with her teacher to help him do a trick.

Miriam really had no clue who he was...maybe a vague idea. But Mommy counts this as a parenting victory. Protection from fast food in all its shining glory.

We had five deer in our backyard one evening last week. We LOVE experiencing the nature in the woods in our backyard. Many evenings we can hear an owl hooting outside. Just another reminder what a blessing our new home is!

Last week was a big week for Vivian as we began the doctor appointments before entering Kindergarten. She started off at our family doctor which turned out pretty rough with the first set of shots and a topical, chemical treatment of a skin virus Mommy misdiagnosed as eczema. Parenting fail.

She had her eye doctor appointment later in the week. And what we thought would be a 30 minute appointment turned into 2 hours and 45 minutes because...

...Vivian needs glasses. Felicity was well behaved during this ordeal, like normal.

But Viv decided she did not want glasses. At all. And she wasn't trying any on and she wasn't cooperating with the eye doctor. There were no hysterical fits...just a very passive patient claiming she couldn't read ANY of the letters or identify any of the pictures. Huh. Well that's just gonna get you some eye dilation, child, so the doctor can get a better look at what's happening. (Did you know eye dilation makes kids tired and grumpy? We learned that.)

Eventually she warmed up a tiny bit to the idea of glasses when a pair with Anna from Frozen was offered.

And we picked out a backup pair because Viv is just hard on stuff.

There was also a bribe involved to maker her at least decent during the last half of the appointment...Burger King. So much for life fast-food-free.

And it turns out fast food is terrible for you, especially if you don't have a gall bladder, like Mommy.

After surviving all that, Mommy and Daddy were pretty pleased to have plans to visit the Beer Exchange in Kalamazoo again with some of Sarah's siblings. Aunt Bridget and Uncle Ryan spent the night that evening, which makes the girls giddy with happiness. They made a plan for how they would wake up Aunt Bridget and Uncle Ryan. They sang "Happy Birthday" to Aunt Bridget and said to Uncle Ryan, "Wake up, Uncle PoodlePants!" Silliest wake up calls for the silliest person they know.

So a whole day of fun with Bridget and Ryan. ALSO, let's talk about groceries. In this picture, Miriam is eating an entire container of raspberries in one sitting by herself. They say teenage boys eat a lot...but so do little girls!

That evening was more adult family time with some square dancing. The best.

The next day? More family time...a peanut butter cookoff...Bridget and Ryan won with their burgers topped with homemade peanut butter chipolte BBQ sauce.

...and baby Catherine time. These girls LOVE their baby cousin. Poor baby girl cries from being "over loved" but a few cuddles from her parents fixes it all right up. 

But don't you love Catherine's legs! Chunk-a-MONK!

No dirt for me, thanks.

Felicity did not like Ash Wednesday Mass. Primarily because someone put dirt on her.

Every morning, Felicity wakes up, drinks a cup of milk while cuddling with her Daddy...and then asks for a fancy dress. 

She likes to throw away trash...or whatever she perceives to be garbage. In fact, Miriam is missing a book from the school library and Mommy's not entirely sure Felicity didn't find it, not recognize it, and throw it away. 

When we returned to our pew, Felicity not-so-sneakily rubbed away her ash cross, then rubbed her face into Mommy's shirt, for good measure. Later she leaned over to Mommy and whispered, "United Way {where Mommy works part-time} people gonna to ask why you have the dirt cross on you face."

Because dirt on your face is the lowest of the low. But that's probably what the Church is going for when they say, "Remember you are dust and unto dust you shall return." So thanks for catechizing, Felicity.

These Girls

Costco Break

Having three little girls couldn't be more fun. Really! They're old enough now to play together, young enough to say the most ridiculous things.

Matching Irish Twins

Vivian especially, with her little wheels always turning, comes up with some wild ideas.

Stories before bed with Nana

Recently she said, "Isn't it good that macaroni and candy aren't poisonous?"

Miriam, our artist and author

Yes, it is good. What would we do without those things? Probably just eat white rice forever, her other favorite food.

St. Josephine, pray for us

Today is the feast of St. Josephine Bakhita, a favorite saint-friend.

She was kidnapped, enslaved, and tortured. A terrible life that she did not allow to make her bitter, but instead gave her a deep love for her Savior who suffered for her. 

Such an attitude of gratitude to emulate!

A young student once asked Bakhita: "What would you do, if you were to meet your captors?" Without hesitation she responded, "If I were to meet those who kidnapped me, and even those who tortured me, I would kneel and kiss their hands. For, if these things had not happened, I would not have been a Christian and a religious today."

Again, her attitude makes the difference. She thanks God for her suffering because it drew her close to Him. She would "kiss their hands."  Something to recall on the days when the people in life become the crosses we're bearing. Instead of gossiping or lashing out or becoming cold, we should "kiss their hands" and thank them for letting us be of service.

Thank you, Lord, for these little crosses and big blessings that bring me closer to You.