Winter Wonderland~2010

This weekend is one for which I am truly grateful. The snow was beautiful. Family time was wonderful. There were picture puzzles to put together, party to be had, and sledding most of the afternoon.

Wishing the beginning to a wonderful week.

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

Please visit Mary and The Little Red House. Her pictures are grand and so are the pictures of others!

Celebrate Friendship Saturday

I'm joining Ruth at Celebrate Friendship today to share with you a friendship rediscovered. Bev has been a friend I've had since grade school. Ye, that long ago. We went to the same middle school (junior high school in my day) and then went to high school together. She is a very intelligent lady. And for what ever reason we really lost contact with each other after graduation. She went on to college and I went to Mercy Hospital School of Nursing. I got married and moved away, she stayed and worked in public service and education.

Bev and I stayed in contact yearly with letters at Christmas. Then much to my delight, she invited me to face book. It has been such a treat to chat! Some things never change...she is still sensitive, hard working, and gifted in so many ways! And now she and I can share our lives as if we were just across the street again!

Open Letter

Dear Bev,

I just wanted you to know who proud I am to have you as a friend. You have been a source of pride for me for some time. I admire your courage in the area of education and politics and I know that you are sensitive to the needs of others. May God Bless you heartily!!!

Yours in friendship,

Cathy


I invite you to share with her a special friend you would like to celebrate! Please do, friends need to be acknowledged and what better way to do that than by praising them publicly!

Wishing you all a grand weekend!!!

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

Picture Puzzle Day

This is perfect day to do a jigsaw puzzle...Snow is on the way and it's cold. Wes, Annie and the Girls are coming to visit. Neil will be spending the night with us too, as Kellie has a winter guard competition in Spencer tomorrow and they need the space for the other girls in the car. (He doesn't want to go either.)

We'll sit around and put puzzles together here, so join in the fun. Get your cup of tea/coffee and gather round the table and begin. If you have a "picture puzzle you would like to share with us please link us to you "puzzle place" with Mr. Linky. Let's begin!!!

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

The Simple Things

Christina at Soul Aperture is inviting us to list the little things we appreciate in our lives. For every blog that participates, Christina & her family will generously donate one dollar to Doctors Without Borders (max $250).

So it is today that I list those Simple Things for me.

~The soft skin of a newborn child.
~The velvet petal of a rose.
~The Autumn Gold of the trees.
~Lilies in the pond.
~A child's giggle.
~Tears of joy.
~The full moon.
~The smell of freshly mowed grass.
~The sweet smell of the peony.
~The sun glistening on a lake.
~Cheering crowd at a sporting event.
~The choir singing in church.
~ Watching the sunset and its rising again.
~The surety of God's ever presence in my life.

Please wander over and share your "Simple Things" with Christina.

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

Novena for Life IX

Montgomery Falls
Quebec, 2003

Day Nine
Meditating on the Gift of Life

Prayer
Father of life, may the mysteries of our Redemption stir us to contemplate with wonder the invincible hope which is our in the Gospel of Life.

A Reading form the book of Revelation 22:1-5
An angel showed me the river of life-giving water, sparkling like the crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb down the middle of its street. On either side of the river grew the tree of life that produces fruit twelve times a year, once each month; the leaves of the tree serve a medicine for the nations. Nothing accursed will be found anymore. The throne of God and of the Lamb will be in it , and his servants will worship him. Night will be no more, nor will they need light from lamp or sun. for the Lord God shall give them light, and they shall reign forever and ever.

(silent reflection)

Prayer
God of all creation, may men and women of every time and place proclaim the Gospel of Life: a Gospel of God's love for us, a Gospel of human dignity.

A Reflection by Pope Benedict XVI*
[The] Eucharist is far more than just a meal; it has cost a death to provide it, and the majesty of death is present in it. Whenever we hold it, we should be filled with reverence in the face of this mystery, with awe in the face of this mysterious death that becomes a present reality in our midst...Death is the ultimate question...Only when this question is answered can men truly celebrate and be free. The Christmas feast, the Eucharist, plumbs the very depths of death. It is not just a matter of pious discourse and entertainment, of some kind of religious beautification, spreading, a pious gloss on the world; it plumbs the very depths of existence, which it calls death, and strikes out an upward path to life, the life that overcomes death.

Our Father...
Hail Mary...
Glory Be...

Joseph Cardinal Ratzinger, God is Near Us: The Eucharist, the Heart of Life, p. 44

~~~~~~~

Spiritual Adoption prayer

"Jesus, Mary, and Joseph, I love you very much. I beg you to
spare the life of ( Baby' s name) the unborn baby that I have
spiritually adopted who is in danger of abortion."
- Prayer of Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen-
~*~*~*~*~*~

I have added this prayer that was first displayed by Kathy at Daily Grotto. It is an example of what to say when you desire to pray for a child you do not know and will never know, yet one who needs your prayers. I will be praying for "Matthew Thomas". I had decided that as soon as I read Kathy's plea.

And as God would have it, I had made the commitment to pray for "MT". Then my son, David, called to tell me he and his wife were going to the Dr. that day. Kelly is with child. This will be their 5th and I will be a grandmother once again. And so it is with joy I will be praying for two wee ones now. "Matthew Thomas" who I beg will be spared and another who will be loved and nurtured and cherished. God Is GOOD...all the time!

~~~~~~~
I truly say,
Thanks be to God!

Originally posted 1/24/2008

[Indeed, Maddie arrived healthy and happy August, 2008! TRULY, THANKS BE TO GOD!!]