Announcing a New Arrival

Art by Mary Engelbreit

Announcing the arrival of

DANIEL LYNN STAUFFER

born

October 10, 2009 at 1:15 a.m. EDT

Weighing 8 pounds, 6 ounces
22 inches in length

He and Mom are hail and hardy
though Mom is most tired.

We'll be off to INDY to see the wee one soon! Everyone have a wonderful weekend!!!!!

~~~^j^~~~

Thanks be to God
and
for all your prayers!

On Waiting

Waiting
Looking forward
Contemplating results
Childlike anticipation and joy
Coming
~~~^j^~~~
Thanks be to God

Marianne is in hospital even as we speak. Please keep her and Daniel in your prayers. Oh, and don't forget Dad, Eric as well! He's in labor, too!

I am SOOOOO excited! Can you tell?

Lady In Waiting

This is dedicated to my daughter, Marianne. She is still a "Lady in Waiting." As she says, It's DD+5. And so Marianne this is for you!

Picture by Suzy Toronto

She Who I With Child

Some women are just made
for "birthin' babies,"
For others it's a sacrifice.
She Who Is With Child knows that
she is a co-creator with God.
The nausea come and goes...
The kicking may last all night...
The last months may be torture...
But then she hears that still small voice:
"I know it's not easy now,
But soon it will all be worth it."

The Sacred Sisterhood of Wonderful Wacky Women
By Suzy Toronto

~~~^j^~~~
And so it is
and
Thanks be to God!

Picture Puzzle Day

Glass Sculpture
Indianapolis Children's Museum

Taken at Christmas time last year, it reminds me of the fun we had with Rebecca, Ainsley, and Lindsey. They went down the slides and had their picture take with Santa. It was just the most fun! My goodness but it is nearly upon us again. The Children's Museum is just the most fun for the kids!!!

Ainsley and Lindsey with Santa

Rebecca and Marianne
with You-Know-Who
~~~^j^~~~
Thanks be to God!

Here is the link to JigZone so you can create and submit your puzzle. And Mr. Linky is available below for you convenience so we can enjoy your puzzle.

You are invited to leave a comment, too. Please join in the fun!!! I can hardly wait to put YOUR puzzles together!

The Simple Women's Daybook

Weekends of late have been grand and glorious. Fall colors are showing and the glory of the rose is still apparent in the garden. The Mums are in bloom and the Cardinal is roosting in the Burning Bush. Oh my, what a fresh breeze is blowing.

~~Outside my window...it is early, but the mother cardinal is flitting about.

~~I am thinking...Will wee Daniel be born this week?

~~I am thankful for...challenges that keep me alert and open to change.

~~From the kitchen...leftovers. They are good at times.

~~I am wearing...my long-sleeved nightgown.

~~I am creating...nothing special. Only continuing to work on my x-stitch project.

~~I am going...to meet with Sr. Dorothy this Wednesday for spiritual direction.

~~I am reading...A Call To Joy by Matthew Kelly. I have read others of his but this is the first.
~~I am hoping...the weather continues to be so glorious.

~~I am hearing...Duchess barking.

~~Around the house...the gardens need pruning in preparation for winter, but when to do it?

~~One of my favorite things...grouping on Tuesday night! A time to gather and pray with friends.

~~A few plans for the rest of the week: 1) Work on my vacation journal (still);2) write my reflections for spiritual direction with Sr. Dorothy, and 3) Read the Bible Study lesson for Thursday,

~~Here is picture thought I am sharing...





After you visit here please visit Peggy at The Simple Woman and journey along the path of life we all share. It will always be a journey worth sharing!

~~~^j^~~
Thanks be to God!

Your Age by Chocolate Math

YOUR AGE BY CHOCOLATE MATH

This is pretty neat.
DON'T CHEAT BY SCROLLING DOWN FIRST!
It takes less than a minute .
Work this out as you read
Be sure you don't read the bottom until you've worked it out!
This is not one of those waste of time things, it's fun.

1. First of all, pick the number of times a week that you would like to have chocolate (more than once but less than 10)

2. Multiply this number by 2 (just to be bold)

3. Add 5

4. Multiply it by 50 -- I'll wait while you get the calculator

5. If you have already had your birthday this year add 1759...
If you haven't, add 1758

6. Now subtract the four digit year that you were born.

You should have a three digit number

The first digit of this was your original number (i.e., how many times you want to have chocolate each week).

The next two numbers are

YOUR AGE! (Oh YES, it is!!!!!)

THIS IS THE ONLY YEAR (2009) IT WILL EVER WORK, SO SPREAD IT AROUND WHILE IT LASTS.

Chocolate Calculator.

~~~^j^~~~

My Mom has done it again. The game/puzzle lady
sent this to me. I know some of you have already
seen this but it is fun all the same. And who can
deny the beautiful choco-pics?

Have a grand Sunday and
Thanks be to God!!!

Feast of Saint Mother Theodore Guerin

Art by Kim Harmless

Today is the feast of Saint Mother Theodore Guerin. Canonized in October, 2006, she is foundress of the Sisters of Providence of Saint Mary-of-the-Woods, Indiana.

So today I would offer these words of Saint Mother Theodore as I anticipate becoming an Associate of the Sisters of Providence in November.

"Do not give way to
uneasiness about the future.
Put yourself gently into the
hands of Providence."

~~~^j^~~~
Thanks be to God!

Bad Haiku Friday

Humble is the heart
That never quite gets is right
But keeps on trying.


Image of Saint Therese
by
Brother Claude Lane, O.S.B.

On this feast of my patron saint, Saint Therese of Lisieux I would offer these words of hers for reflection.

It seems to me that if a little flower could speak, it would tell simply what God has done for it without trying to hide its blessing. It would not say, under the pretext of a false humility it is not beautiful or without perfume, that the sun had taken away its [splendor] and the storm has broken its stem when it know that all this is untrue.

I often reflect on the gift of humility and find that being truly humble is one of life's most difficult tasks. Humility requires of us honesty and acceptance of who we are. We must try to know ourselves. It is so hard to look inward, because some days it is not a pleasant sight. It becomes a sight we try to avoid. Well, take a look! Yes, there are flaws! But the beauty in the flaws is that even in them there is a love so powerful that when we accept it we too can see the signs of perfection there because God made us! And that is why He loves us!

Have a wonderful weekend!

~~~^j^~~~
Thanks be to God!

Picture Puzzle Day

Sunset, December 2008

Sunsets are glorious gifts from God. A time of day to reflect on the way you have progressed in this earthly journey. A time to see the challenges and gifts for what they are, an opportunity to grow in the love of God. The sunset becomes a beautiful cloak to be warn as we rest in the arms of our loving Father.

~~~^j^~~~
Thanks be to God!

Here is the link to JigZone so you can create and submit your puzzle. And Mr. Linky is available below for you convenience so we can enjoy your puzzle.

You are invited to leave a comment, too. Please join in the fun!!! I can hardly wait to put YOUR puzzles together!

Music In Prayer

High Museum
Atlanta, GA
April, 2007

St. Augustine once said, "that a song sung, is a prayer prayed twice." So even when I am humming a song I am often reminded that I am, indeed praying the words as they run through my mind. Consider there are 150 Psalms. Early Christians recited them daily. Hear the Gregorian Chant during prayer. Music is centering. Music is harmony and discord. Music is life.

I reflected on these words by Archabbot Lambert Reilly, O.S.B. from his book Latin Sayings for Spiritual Growth.

Cantare amantis est
("To sing is characteristic of the lover")
St. Augustine

When one is in love one can't stand still and keep quiet. One must speak to the beloved. One must speak of him. And sometimes, filled with the love that is too much for words, one must sing.

The Psalms are our love songs to God. Some are attributed to King David, others to unknown figures, all of whom bring forth tin their songs all the sentiments, emotions, feelings, and desires that anyone who knows love is able to experience.

It is the Spirit who inspires the lover and it is the lover who sings the glorious dependence on the Lord God in the Psalms, the prayer book of the Holy spirit.

But I will sing of thy might;
I will sing aloud of the steadfast
love in the morning.
For thou has been to me a
fortress and a refuge in the
day of my distress.
O my Strength, I will sing praises
to thee, for thou, O God, art
my fortress, the God who shows
me steadfast love.
~Psalm 59:16-17~

So it is as a lover of God, one's music becomes a gentle offering of prayer. Voices lifted in praise, thanksgiving, petition and repentance, like incense, rise to heaven as an offering to the Almighty God! Whether gifted in voice and music or not, one should not be restrained from offering this gift. And so I say to one and all, "SING!!!"

~~~^j^~~~
Thanks be to God!