Holy Light Switch Batman!

So, for my second blog post I will once again embarrass my wife by telling a totally true story which will beg the question, why did she marry me?  Still trying to figure that out, but I guess that’s a post for a rainy/hurricane/sharknado day. 

Today was a very, very, very, very important day.  Its draft day for my fantasy baseball league, time to repeat as a champion.  Sorry Mr. Myers, but so the saying goes, if you are not first then you are last. So, to translate that, you were last place last year. 

I scheduled the live online draft for 8pm which gave me plenty of time to eat Teresa’s delicious dinner, give Kateri a bath, read her a book and say night prayers.  We were getting short on time and I had to go to the bathroom!  As I am in the bathroom I hear the draft bell start and Teresa yells to let me know.  I jumped to wash my hands and, as I turned the light off, I shocked myself and came bouncing out of the bathroom like a jungle monkey with my pants down! BUT I did not miss my first pick, score!  Welcome to my team Mr. Kershaw!

We are painting our hallway bathroom so the freaking light switch plate was off and in my rush stuck my wet fantasy baseball hand into the wires.  Anyways I am pretty happy with my team and I can feel my finger again so all is well.  After the draft, I was feeling pretty stressed so my saint of a wife gave me a back rub, sorry boys she is all mine.  Can’t wait for opening day!!!

{Pretty~Happy~Funny~Real} Of Shoes, Chocolate, Rabbits, and Dirt

~Pretty~

One of Charlotte's favorite things to do is to try on shoes, and fancy shoes with heels or pink or fluffiness all over them are especially tantalizing. When she finds a pair of shoes that take her fancy, she will doggedly persevere in wearing them despite any drawbacks. Whether they are decorative wooden clogs made in Holland or broken dress up princess shoes, Charlotte determinedly puts them on over and over and tries again and again until she is able to successfully walk!

The other day at Mutti's house, Charlotte discovered some of Jeanne's shoes that immediately caught her eye. And, despite the obvious drawbacks of these particular shoes, she was able to walk in them after some determined practice. And, boy, was she proud of herself! You could tell that she felt very pretty and grown up wearing these shoes!

I am still very impressed that she was able to get around in those things . . . and the laces weren't even tied!

~Happy~



There is nothing that says 'happy' like a baby who gets a chocolate donut from her Nanny on a feast day during Lent!

See, she wants to SHARE with me?!

. . .

Actually, let's be real here,  she just wants more.

She made a pretty impressive mess, but I am sure if she could, she would tell us the mess was well worth the deliciousness.

~Funny~

So we raise Lionhead rabbits and we currently have four in our back yard. Just last week, Mimi was asking me if I was planning on having any 'Easter Bunny' litters this year, and my answer was a resounding no! Having my own new baby coming is enough for me!

But it turns out someone had other plans. Maybe it was a practical joke played by my guardian angel, or maybe it was Wrigley, but there must be someone behind this.

The other day, I glanced out the door to see what Wrigley was up to. I saw not one, not two but THREE rabbits out of their cages and running through the muddy sod. Of course, Wrigley was intrigued that they were now so close and attainable, and she was right there with them dodging about.

Looking back on it, it is pretty amazing that she came inside immediately when I called her (not always a common practice of hers, and Pat will back me up on this). And I ran outside and (thankfully) was able to gather up the three rabbits rather quickly. Of course, one of the rabbits that was out was male, and the other two female, soooo if they happened to do what rabbits do best, we will be having two litters come 4 weeks.

So much for my plans! But I guess that's what happens with the best laid plans of mice and men . . .

So likely we will have a few of these cuties in a few short weeks:

They are pretty cute! I can't say I'm too upset. In fact, now that I'm used to the idea, it will be a little disappointing if there are no babies after all!

And meanwhile, Pat has been working extra hard to build some beautiful new hutches. They are huge and he is building them like tanks. Mac and Mike have been helping him, which has been awesome. Not quite ready, but getting there . . .

~Real~

It is amazing how much dirt one little seven pound dog can accumulate and then disperse. She has given me a whole new understanding of the 'Pig Pen' character in the Charlie Brown strip. Wrigley is Pig Pen, in Bichon form. She collects everything dust, dirt, and debris related and scatters it about inside. With the snow melting, and the growing expanses of mud in our back yard (particularly around the rabbits, where Wrigley most especially likes to roam), Wrigley has gone from being a mostly white dog to a brown dog.

To give you an idea of how much she can accumulate, here is Pat giving her a bath the other day.

It is pretty satisfying when that much dirt comes off one little thing!

Linking up with the ladies at Like Mother Like Daughter to capture some contentment in our lives!







Vaffeldagen: The Annunciation

~Happy Feast Day of the Annunciation~

Which means only nine more months until Christ is born~ let the countdown to Christmas begin!

And, to start it off, we will celebrate this joyous solemnity.

According to Catholic Culture, this is the only Marian feast day that is still celebrated in Sweden, which is predominantly Lutheran. And the traditional way to celebrate is by eating waffles! In fact, the entire day has come to be known as 'Vaffeldagen', or Waffle Day. Waffles are served for breakfast, lunch and/or dinner.

So, since I am 25% Swedish, AND Catholic to boot, there is no way I can resist serving waffles for dinner tonight. So waffles it will be, with a side of sausage and bacon of course. After all, it IS a solemnity!

And don't forget about dessert! We will be having an angel food cake in honor of the Archangel Gabriel and the news he brought Mary.

Yum! Kateri is looking forward to all of the treats, as you can see:

Let the feasting begin!


How will you be celebrating this feast? Any other ideas for traditions?



~The angel of the Lord declared unto Mary,

And she conceived by the Holy Spirit.

                  ~Hail Mary~

~Behold the handmaiden of the Lord

Be it done unto me according to thy word

                 ~Hail Mary~

~And the Word became flesh

AND DWELT AMONGST US.

                ~Hail Mary~

Jeanne

It is still amazing to me that my darling little sister Jeanne is a senior . . .

A senior!!

And that she will be graduating from high school the month after next!

That is SO SOON!


I suppose that it is even more difficult to believe since we just took these pictures yesterday, March 24, in 20 degree weather.

Yes.  20 Degrees. In March. In Virginia.

And right now it looks like this out our back sliding glass door:

It is hard to believe that it really is indeed March. But March it is!

And in just a few more weeks, graduation will have happened, and Jeanne will be on to bigger and better things.

Summer jobs! And then off to college!

No looking back!

I am excited to see what the world has in store for you, Jeanne!

And what you will do with the incredible talents God has given you!

Best of luck to you in everything, you will be in my prayers always, beautiful girl! May you glorify Him in all things!

My First and Last Roommate

I (as in Pat) decided to highjack Tee’s blog to address a very serious topic.  My first and last roommate has finally been kicked out. I do not count my wife or kids as roommates; I know some moron is about to call me out on that. 

So my first and last roommate was cheap, short and loved hotdogs; I could relate to him in all of this.  My parents brought him over when I first bought the house and Tee has officially replaced him.  After many many years of abuse I must say good bye to my grill. 

He has seen many parties on my deck and I know he be will be taken off the street by our trash raiders.  It’s crazy, every trash day these prospectors drive around in their trucks deciding what trash is worthy to be scooped up.  Well, I know for a fact that this red little grill will be taken, but to where and to be used for what, I do not know.  Stay classy Manassas Park. 

Anyways, as I said, Tee replaced him with a new state-of-the-art Weber grill. Charcoal of course; I may be married but I am still a man.  I do not get gas, just use the stove if you are using gas, geezzzzzzzzzzz.  The grill is so nice that I not only bought a cover for it, but I actually use the cover.  It’s a pretty sweet cover with tie downs and everything. 

Cheers to you little cheap red grill, you may have partied with me, but you never paid rent, so have fun in the back of that pickup.

Happy St. Patricks Day!

Today will always mark a day of great celebration in our household as it is both Pat's name-day AND the feast of Kateri's baptism. Enough of an excuse for me! We decided that as St Patrick is known for using the 3 leaf clover to teach the Trinity, we would apply that to our celebration and celebrate for three days in a row. Makes sense, right?!

On Saturday, we were able to go to the St. Patrick's day parade in Old Town.

Kateri met the parade with obvious trepidation.


She was really Not Sure what to think about everything. Mainly because of the Harley motorcycle contingent, but also because of these guys:

Pat noticed that the guy who played his bagpipes at our wedding was among this group!

Charlotte enjoyed it a lot,

And not only did she get to meet an Irish Wolfhound,

She got to meet St. Patrick, himself!

Kateri did eventually start to warm up to the whole show.

And wants to be one of the lucky kids who get to ride in this next year . . .

Even Wrigley came with us.

At the end of the parade, the sun came out and it was beautiful!

And we even got a family picture at the utmost end of the parade!

Come on K-bear! Smile!

But the celebrating didn't stop there! We went home, and Kateri took a 3+ hour nap (!!!!!) and Pat and I attacked the garage with a vengeance. And after we worked for quite some time, Kateri woke up and we called it a day.

Then, thanks to my parents (who generously watched Kateri) and Mrs Hilleary (who, last minute, watched Charlotte), Pat and I went out to celebrate St Patrick's with Mikey and Lu! Sadly, I did not take a single picture, but we had so much fun, as I am sure you can imagine, especially if you have ever celebrated St Patrick's Day with Mikey or Pat at some point!!

On Sunday, Laura and Mikey hosted an amazing St Patrick's day party! Corn beef and cabbage, potatoes, Irish soda bread, and lots and lots of other delicious tempting Lent-forbidden foods. It was so much fun, and the decorations were fantastic!

Today, St. Patrick's day itself, Kateri got to have one of her favorites for breakfast : French Toast. It was especially scrumptious because we made it with homemade bread (made by no other then Pat).

Delicious!

 

 

 

This evening, Pat brought home a special treat for Kateri on her baptismal feast!

 

 

Flowers!

 

 



White for the purity of her soul after baptism, and green because it is St Patrick's Day!


Of course we had to put them in this beautiful (and very appropriate!) vase from Aunt Gigi, which is from Ireland (Thanks, Aunt Gigi!!).

Pat enjoyed some Guinness after a long day at work. And Kateri said, "Ooooo! This is where it's at!"

"Just holding the bottle is enough for me!


BUT that won't stop me from trying for more!"

We hope you had a blessed St Patrick's Day!

7 Quick Takes

~1~

So I'm not sure what a Lenten candle would smell like . . .

But I'm pretty sure it wouldn't smell like this:



But, I will say that after cleaning with vinegar, the house needs some kind of pick-me-up in the olfactory department. And after the lovely warm-weather teaser earlier this week and subsequent plunge back into arctic temperatures, I decided to bring a little spring inside. I absolutely love this candle. And it actually smells just like honeysuckle, so right now I feel like I am in a spring bower!

It does make me wonder what sort of candles could be qualified as 'Lenten'. All that comes to mind is purple candles smelling of incense. Which I have never seen. And probably don't exist! If you have an idea, let me know!

~2~

Here is Wrigley's current hair cut . . . or complete lack thereof:

She is our resident shag carpet.

And her primary function is to bring tree-parts inside and evenly spread them around the house.

Her small size does not preclude entire branches from somehow getting caught up and carried into the house.

And then, leaves and sticks and branches that velcro themselves to her outside and refuse to let go suddenly lose hold and drop off immediately after she comes back inside.  

However, although this is probably crazy (especially considering all the things she brings inside), I think she is way cuter with that shaggy look than all cleaned up and manicured. She just doesn't look like she belongs to us when she looks like this:

Don't you agree??!! Is that even Wrigley?

~3~

 

Mrs VdV posted this great link on facebook and I had to share it, too. I highly recommend reading this post! I have never been a big Jim Gaffigan fan, but I found it really inspiring to read about his kids (he has five) and his views on having more. I love how he uses humor when he talks about all of this!

~4~

 I just finished reading my first James Herriott book (other then The Christmas Kitten, which was one of our all-time-favorite kid books growing up).

I enjoyed it immensely (especially because I spent my entire childhood wanting to be a vet), and seriously cried at almost every.single.story. in the book. Reason number 267,345 that I know I'm pregnant. It will be a welcome relief when every little story is no longer deeply emotionally touching. Someday that will happen. I don't know when!

~5~

CRISPIN CAME OVER! It was so much fun to see her the past few days and to catch up! Pure joy! Sadly, I realized after she left that I had taken zero pictures. No! Say it isn't so!

She brought these gorgeous flowers:

I love hydrangeas! And the best part is we can plant them somewhere once it's warm enough. And then we will find out the acidity of our soil! Thanks, Crispin, for such a wonderful time and the lovely flowers!

~6~

Nanny and Mac came over to give Kateri her birthday present. Kateri was very interested in the box . . .

And got really excited when Mac started building her castle. She wanted to help!!

But anyone who has built anything with a one year old knows that their 'help' is not exactly that. So nanny held her during the proceedings .

But Kateri managed to wriggle out before the castle was quite complete . . .

And since completion, she has been working and working to climb that wall on her own!

Yesterday, she finally succeeded. Watch out, world!

~7~

 Vinegar. I have been using this for cleaning (almost everything) lately and I mostly love it.

For many reasons, but one is that it isn't poisonous if swallowed. Plus, I figured the taste would be a natural deterrent for Kateri, who wants to 'try' everything from shampoo bottles to bath salts to birthday cards. Unfortunately that plan backfired, she seems to love the flavor. Seriously, what the heck? What one year old loves vinegar?

Anyway, I've even been even using it on the wood floors, which I'm not so sure is the best-idea-ever for said floors. So, one of my resolutions is to research and figure out an inexpensive easy and simple solution for mopping! Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated . . . and I will update my findings at some point in time.

Until then, happy almost-weekend! Thanks, Jen, for hosting 7QT!  

























Little Tidbits . . .

~1~

So the other day for breakfast, Pat said he would give Kateri some yogurt.


When I turned around, I saw he had . . .

 

 

 

Come on, Kateri! Don't you know how to eat yogurt yet?? geez.

 



 

 

~2~

 



 

Ok . . . ONE MORE SICKIE POST and then I PROMISE I will stop talking about how we all got sick last week. Hey! It is a rare occurrence so I really gotta milk it for all it's worth.

 

I put a white sheet and a comforter on our couch for Pat the day he was sick, and then I ended up taking his spot when I got sick the next day. Kateri was so cute when both of us were sick, she just kept coming up and wanting to smile and climb up on the couch to snuggle. You can't stay sick for long when you see this face:

 

 

 

 

 

~3~

 

  

I know Kateri is my daughter because she gets ridiculously excited whenever it's time to eat.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Food!! Food!! Food!!

 

 

~4~

 

 

The other day, Pat was installing this cool bear bottle-opener on our deck (Thanks Mike and Emily, for the bottle opener!!). Kateri wanted to watch so I took this picture of her learning how it's done.

 

 

 

Apparently, she's also learning how something else is done . . .

 

 

 

Pat seems to approve . . . I better keep an eye on these two . . .

 

 

~5~

  

As you can tell from the previous pictures, it is only the classiest of things that we expose our children to. So of course, Pat has started her early and showed Kateri the wonder of Nascar

 

 

 

I think Kateri is a fan . . .

 

 

 

~6~

 

 

 

On Sunday, we went to Mass at Old St Mary's in DC with Mary and Stephen. Afterwards, we went to their house for an incredible brunch. I should have taken pictures of all the deliciousness. And there was a lot of it.

 

 

Stephen made each person a Belgian waffle and a toad on a hole (or whatever you happen to call the yumminess that is an egg in the middle of a piece of toast all fried in butter).  And on top of that, he made fried Spam. Have you ever had that? I hadn't either. It didn't taste like what I thought it would at all! I did like it thought! There was also fruit (which was our clearly very meager contribution) and we topped brunch off with these amazing scones that Mary made. It was scrumptious!

 

And then we took advantage of the nice weather and went to Great Falls!

 

 

 

 

 

Which was awesome as always!

 

 

Kateri wasn't a huge fan of the ergo-carrier . . .

 

 

 

 

But she graciously put up with being carried in it for about 3.5 minutes.

 

 

Enough time so that we got a family pic. . .

 

 

 

 

 

And we were able to get one of Mary and Stephen and Maddie too!

 

 

 

 

 

Though it was rather too bright for Maddie!

 

 

But she did enjoy it~ it was her first real out-door hike! Which she was very proud of!

 

 

 

 

Stephen brought a survival kit, but no calamities happened and we never needed it. Next time, perhaps!!

 

 

 

~7~

 

 

Congratulations!!!

 

 

My sister in law, Corinne, just gave birth to a beautiful baby girl yesterday!

 

 

Olivia Corinne weighs 8lbs10oz and is 20.5 inches long. She is beautiful! I cannot wait to see this precious face in person!

 

 

 

 

We are so happy for Corinne and Adam!! Congrats!