Day 5 of our Rosary novena

A message from Fr. Corapi - Part One:

Day 4 of our Rosary novena

An open letter to Senator Joseph Biden courtesy of the Knights of Columbus.

Day 3 of our Rosary novena

In 2004, Obama called DOMA (Defense of Marriage Act) an "abhorrent law" and said, "The repeal of DOMA is essential. ... For the record," he continued, "I opposed DOMA in 1996. It should be repealed and I will vote for its repeal on the Senate floor. I will also oppose any proposal to amend the U.S. Constitution to ban gays and lesbians from marrying."

Many Americans have family members or friends who are homosexual.
We do not want them harmed by thoughtless uncharitable attitudes.
We would NEVER discriminate against a homosexual person’s fundamental rights.
Marriage is NOT an institution made by man, it is made by God, and God is very clear on the Sacrament of marriage.
How dare the Obamessiah think that he can legislate what God has made?

Please continue to pray for our beloved country and for the conversion of those who wish to distort God's laws.

This is too important not to watch!

Photo and video editing at www.OneTrueMedia.com

Day 2 of our Rosary novena

Mr. Obama, babies are a gift, not a punishment.
Praying for your conversion and for all who
participate in the killing of the most weak, innocent, and vulnerable of our society.
If you have no regard or respect for their life, how can you have any for the rest of us?
May God have mercy on your soul.

Pray, pray, PRAY!

As we approach this monumental election, our choices are as clear as the scriptures themselves: "I have set before you life and death, the blessing and the curse. Choose life, then, that you and your descendants may live." (Deut 30:19)

Please join our family and Christians across all denominations in praying for our country. We will be praying a rosary novena starting today and ending on election day.


From Fr. Corapi:

Among the most important titles we have in the Catholic Church for the Blessed Virgin Mary are Our Lady of Victory and Our Lady of the Rosary. These titles can be traced back to one of the most decisive times in the history of the world and Christendom. The Battle of Lepanto took place on October 7 (date of feast of Our Lady of Rosary), 1571. This proved to be the most crucial battle for the Christian forces against the radical Muslim navy of Turkey. Pope Pius V led a procession around St. Peter’s Square in Vatican City praying the Rosary. He showed true pastoral leadership in recognizing the danger posed to Christendom by the radical Muslim forces, and in using the means necessary to defeat it. Spiritual battles require spiritual weapons, and this more than anything was a battle that had its origins in the spiritual order—a true battle between good and evil.
Today we have a similar spiritual battle in progress—a battle between the forces of good and evil, light and darkness, truth and lies, life and death. If we do not soon stop the genocide of abortion in the United States, we shall run the course of all those that prove by their actions that they are enemies of God—total collapse, economic, social, and national. The moral demise of a nation results in the ultimate demise of a nation. God is not a disinterested spectator to the affairs of man. Life begins at conception. This is an unalterable formal teaching of the Catholic Church. If you do not accept this you are a heretic in plain English. A single abortion is homicide. The more than 48,000,000 abortions since Roe v. Wade in the United States constitute genocide by definition. The group singled out for death—unwanted, unborn children.
No other issue, not all other issues taken together, can constitute a proportionate reason for voting for candidates that intend to preserve and defend this holocaust of innocent human life that is abortion.
I strongly urge every one of you to make a Novena and pray the Rosary to Our Lady of Victory between October 27th and Election Day, November 4th. Pray that God’s will be done and the most innocent and utterly vulnerable of our brothers and sisters will be protected from this barbaric and grossly sinful blight on society that is abortion. No woman, and no man, has the right to choose to murder an innocent human being.
May God grant us the wisdom, knowledge, understanding, and counsel to form our conscience in
accordance with authentic Catholic teaching, and then vote that well‐formed Catholic conscience.

Voting Pro-Abortion Called Cooperating in Evil
From the Bishop of Scranton (Joe Biden's diocese)
Archbishop Chaput weighs in!
More from Bishop Martino

Menu Plan Monday

It is another hectic, hectic week for us! My meal plan this week has to be a fool proof no brainer because there simply aren't enough hours in the day to be spent prepping for meals. It's simple, it's easy, hopefully it will be nutritious....it's dinner.

Monday: Bean and cheese tacos served on homemade whole wheat tortillas with sides of homemade pico de gallo and guacamole. OK, so this is the ONE day when I can make dinner from scratch! I'll be using leftover pintos from Sunday's dinner so that will save a cooking step.

Tuesday: Grilled vegetable panninis. Will pre-grill some zucchini, red onion, and tomato on the good 'ol George Foreman Grill. When everyone is ready to eat they can assemble and grill their own sammies. Serve with fresh fruit and queso fresco.

Wednesday: Slow cooker chili served with cornbread.

Thursday: Taco salad served over organic corn chips.

Friday: I have no idea if or when we will be eating dinner on Friday! Busy, busy day!

Saturday: Homemade pizza.

Sunday: Breakfast for dinner. Scrambled eggs, bacon, and whole wheat toast with apple pumpkin butter.

If you've made it this far, can you say a quick Ave for our family? We'll be doing well to keep our sanity this week! Thanks!

Make your own yogurt!

You must, must, MUST visit the crockpot lady! She has a fool proof way of making yogurt in your slow cooker. I put a batch on this afternoon and we'll be enjoying some wonderful homemade yogurt for Sunday breakfast. I can't wait!

Make your own homemade yogurt for pennies a serving!

UPDATE: We enjoyed strawberry yogurt smoothies before Mass this morning and they were wonderful! I did alter the recipe a little~
We like our yogurt thick, like a custard, so I put a whole cup of starter into the milk. The yogurt did come out nice and thick and I am totally pleased with the results! I skimmed off the whey on top of the yogurt and put into a clean canning jar. You can use a tablespoon or two of whey in just about anything, especially if you are lacto-fermenting vegetables (ala Nourishing Traditions).
I put some beans on to soak this morning and put 2TBS. of whey into the soaking water. This will neutralize the phytic acid in the beans which will result in better and easier digestion and relatively no gas! This is VERY important if you live in a household with 5 men/boys where "tooting the hiney horn" is a recreational sport!

Sure, he looks sweet now...

...but his angelic demeanor could change at any minute!
We are getting ready for the All Saint's Day Festival at our church so I spent most of yesterday evening sewing this little outfit for Danny. He just loves it and calls it his "church dress."
Can you guess which saint he is?
Hint: Danny is named after this particular saint.
Let's make this fun! I'll send one of my funky aprons to the first person to guess correctly!

Got Pecans?

We've finally got pecans! For some reason our trees didn't produce nuts last year, but this year looks like a good crop. You can't go outside barefoot without crunching some underfoot...so it was either pick them or suffer. The kids are so competitive that picking them took no time at all! Plus, it helped that I was bribing them with all sorts of goodies we could make like pecan sandies, pecan pie, you get the idea!

Here's the star pecan picker of them all:

He's got a bit of advantage over the other boys....he's closer to the ground!

15 Years Ago Today...

Happy Anniversary
Dougie-Poo!

I'll drink to that!

Doug had to run to Houston today for a thingamajig for his camera so we all tagged along. We made a stop by Whole Foods on the way home because I've been dying to try some kombucha. Kom-whata you say? Kombucha (kom-BOO-cha) is a fermented tea drink that is centuries old. It is full of wonderful probiotics, lactic and glucuronic acids, and B vitamins. It is said that it revitalizes you, enhances the immune system, and detoxifies the liver. It is fermented like apple cider vinegar (which Doug loves, but I cannot stomach!). So we tried some raw organic kombucha...and it was pretty good! It is naturally effervescent and tastes like a really fizzy apple juice! And hey, if JP will drink it....

I also strolled by the dairy section to get some more kefir starter when I spied pre-bottled flavored kefir!
Now even though I'm a BIG believer in kefir, I could never get the kids to drink it. It was just too sour for them. We tried a little of this after dinner and it was FABULOUS! JP and Danny drank a glass and begged for more! Hopefully between the kefir, kombucha, and sticking to a whole foods diet, we'll stave off the flu and any other illnessess that come our way this season!


And before I get any emails telling me that Whole Foods supports Planned Parenthood - I already know! We plan to make a donation to Priests for Life equal to our purchases at W.F. If you know of other outlets for these products, please pass them along! We really do prefer NOT to support businesses that support P.P.

I should have seen it coming...

Just be thankful I spared you the picture of the jack-o-lantern with pumpkin goo coming out of of its nose.
Such is life with boys!

Menu Plan Monday

This week's menu plan has come from some really great blogs. I can't wait to try them out as they are all very simple, comforting meals.

Monday: Slow Cooker Pepper Steak served over brown rice.

Tuesday: Braised Greens and Lentils Will try to find a nice ham hock from the local butcher to put in this!

Wednesday: Three Cheese Baked "Spaghetti" Using spaghetti squash instead of pasta! Will also make my own sauce using organic canned tomatoes.

Thursday: Our 15th anniversary....Doug better be wining and dinning me!

Friday: Spinach & Rice Casserole

Saturday: Garlic Noodles

Sunday: Pinto Beans and Cornbread

Check out lots of other great menu plans at www.orgjunkie.com

Exposed!

Ten facts about breast cancer that you're not supposed to know!
Take the time to read this very informative article! I've been doing so much research on eating a whole foods diet and how it helps to prevent disease. The breast cancer industry is suppressing so much information and it's killing thousands of women each year! October is breast cancer awareness month...but don't buy into all that pink ribbon crap! Spend your money on a good vitamin D supplement and get 15-20 minutes a day of direct sunlight on your skin. Maybe even pick up some of these books to read:

Nutritional Healing
The Raw Food Detox Diet
Healing With Whole Foods

Winner, winner, chicken dinner!

I won this super cute, vintage inspired apron by Jessie Steele at Confessions of an Apron Queen. Get yourself over there for TONS of great giveaways (and it's a great blog to read, too!)

Thanks so much Apron Queen!
I love it!

JP is SEVEN!

We spent all of Friday afternoon at the Houston Zoo as a little pre-birthday treat for JP. It was a cool overcast day, just perfect for walking and enjoying the sites. JP and Danny had so much fun looking at all the animals, plus, the zoo has so many interactive exhibits which lets them get up close and personal with the animals! We had such a good time but were so exhausted by the time we got home.

Today JP turns SEVEN! I just cannot believe it! When did my sweet baby grow up?

Since Doug is out of town on a shoot, we'll spend a lazy weekend at home playing Fantanstic Four and...

...eating cupcakes!

We're off!

Scrappin' the school books and taking off to the zoo today! It's a little "pre-birthday" fun for JP (he'll be the ripe old age of seven tomorrow!) Will tell you all about it this weekend...

Fall Planting

Cauliflower, broccoli,

bibb, romaine and arugula lettuce.

Red and green cabbage,

swiss chard, brussell sprouts, collard greens,

...and radishes.
Mama needs a manicure!

Menu Plan Monday

Monday: Migas with homemade whole wheat tortillas.

Tuesday: Cabbage casserole with homemade croutons.

Wednesday: Spaghetti with marinara meat sauce.

Thursday: Buckwheat pancakes and fruit.

Friday: Tilapia and vegetables baked in parchment packets.

Saturday: John Paul's birthday - so we'll probably be eating out.

Sunday: Cowboy stew and cornbread. A highly coveted recipe from Mrs. C! It's getting nice and cool in the evenings and this is a big bowl of comfort food!

Check out hundreds of great meal plans at www.orgjunkie.com

March of the Surviving Youth

The C.O.O.L (Catholic Organization of Life) held a prayerful protest today at the Planned Parenthood facility in Houston. Ryan had been wanting to go for weeks so we decided to go and participate as a family. It started with a beautiful Mass at Annunciation and then we proceeded to a local park. The kids got to socialize, listen to speakers and sing. It was so wonderful to see so many teens so passionate about this cause! We then prayerfully and peacefully walked to the P.P. facility. While carrying our signs and rosaries, we got many honks in support. Upon arriving, we were greeted with many people who were already involved with the 40 Days for Life...the smiles on their faces was priceless as we approached! We prayed the rosary, the Chaplet of Divine Mercy, and sang our way around the building seven times. After the seventh time, three trumpeters blew their horns! But the walls didn't crumble to the ground like the Bible story...well, at least not YET!
Doug and I were heartbroken as we saw woman after woman come and go into the facility. We prayed for each one...they are still haunting me. Kyle and Ryan knew full well what was going on and they prayed like the strong young Catholic men we raised them to be. JP and little Danny only knew we were praying for mommies and their babies...and even though it was hot and they were tired, they didn't complain. They had a sense of what they were doing was important, and they persevered.
Please pray for an end to abortion!

Apple Pumpkin Butter

You must make this NOW!
It is super easy, tastes like autumn, and makes your home smell so good!

APPLE PUMPKIN BUTTER

1 (29oz.) can of solid pack pumpkin
2 Cups apple cider
1 Cup applesauce
1 Cup packed light brown sugar
1 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. nutmeg
1/4 tsp. cloves
(I omitted the nutmeg and cloves and substituted 1 heaping teaspoon of pumpkin pie spice!)

Mix all the ingredients in a large saucepan or Dutch oven and simmer uncovered for two hours, stirring occasionally, until thickened. You can also make this in your crockpot. Just cook on high for four hours or low for six. Refrigerate up to one month or freeze.

Trust me, you want to use a DEEP pot! This stuff bubbles and splatters!

Tie your jars up with pretty ribbon and bake some homemade bread. Your neighbors are gonna love you for it!

Oh yes, it tastes THAT good...

Your family will love you for it, too!

HEY! Put the bread down and step away from the apple pumpkin butter!
You're going to ruin you dinner!

On second thought, have another slice! I've been in the kitchen making this all afternoon and now dinner is going to be late...heck, it may BE our dinner!

Fly me to the moon!

I snagged some boxes from work and the kids spent the ENTIRE evening playing with them.
Kyle made this awesome rocket ship with the little ones:

For a few hours, no one was fighting and everyone was playing together and laughing...

Dad and Kyle prepare for BLAST OFF!

It sure put this mama "over the moon!"

Preparing our fall garden

It was fast work! The boys and I went out early this morning and pulled up black plastic and weeds. After lunch, Doug tilled up the soil. It was a gorgeous day and everybody lent a hand in prepping the garden...

...except Danny, who was mad because he couldn't run the tiller!

What Doug and the boys do all day while I'm at work...

Doug emailed this to me at work:



and yes, he apparently IS a 12 year old boy!

Menu Plan Monday

Another week, another menu plan! This one is less than spectacular. We are just so busy this week! I am pulling recipes from past plans that were quick to prepare or could cook in the crock all day.
Ugh...I'm tired just thinking about next week, but planning meals certainly helps! It will help us ot avoid last minute store runs that cost us $50 dollars more than we intended to spend. It also helps with the temptation to pick up fast food or serve PB&J as we run out the door...

Monday: 15 Bean Soup. Dried beans will cook in the crock all day and will be served with whole grain homemade bread.

Tuesday: Baked Ziti. Whole wheat pasta and organic tomato sauce baked with parm. and ricotta cheeses. Will assemble this Tuesday morning and Doug can pop it in the oven before I come home from work.

Wednesday: Black Bean Quesadillas. I'll make homemade whole wheat tortillas early that morning and put beans on to soak. The black beans we don't eat at dinner will be ground into a black bean hummus with lots of cilantro, cumin, and garlic for lunch on Thurs.

Thursday: Burgers on whole wheat buns. One pound of grass fed beef mixed with 2 cups of brown rice are good for the body as well as the budget! Will serve with all the fixings and red cabbage slaw.

Friday: Fish Tacos. These have become a real family favorite! Grilled tilapia on homemade whole wheat tortillas (from the double batch I'll make on Weds.) served with fresh pico de gallo and leftover red cabbage slaw.

Saturday: Zesty Mexican Soup. This will simmer in the crock all day for a no fuss dinner! Will serve over organic tortilla strips and garnish with pepper jack cheese.

Sunday: Spinach Enchiladas Verde. Will assemble this (casserole style instead of individual enchiladas) Sunday morning before Mass so that I can just pop it in the oven when we're ready to eat. I'll sub kefir for sour cream.

For hundreds of great menu plans, check out www.orgjunkie.com

Sun Tea - FAIL!

I thought I'd brew a pot of green sun tea.

It steeped all day and I was looking forward to a nice tall iced glass with dinner, BUT, sometime during the day, little hands unscrewed the lid to investigate and then put it on very loosely. When I picked it up to take it inside, this happened:

Probably a good thing...they probably put leaves, sticks or boogers in my tea anyway!
Rotten kids!