Lost Boys

Yesterday I watched my usual episode of Once Upon a Time (I love all things fairy tale) and it disturbed me quite a bit, surprisingly. (If you watch Once and don't want a spoiler you should probably wait to read this after you watch it.)  Basically, there are all sorts of fairy tale characters and stories all meshed together in this show, and currently, the characters are in Neverland, the land of Peter Pan. Something different about this show, though, is that Peter Pan is portrayed as evil, very evil. At first I didn't understand why, but in light of this letter about parenting by Dr. James Dobson, I now see why he is evil.

First of all, Peter Pan is a lonely boy with no family of his own and he kidnaps other boys to be his playmates, thus taking them away from their families. He never grows up, and therefore skirts all responsibility that comes with being a man. And in this show, he tells the boys to forget about their families, that he and the other lost boys are their family now. In addition, Peter Pan tells Rumplestiltskin  that the boys who hear his song on the flute (yes, he is also the Pied Piper in this show) are those who feel unloved and unwanted. And, in the show, Henry, who up until now has remained hopeful that his family will come rescue him, finally hears the song after Pan tells him that his family isn't coming for him.

When I read Dr. Dobson's letter on Confident Parenting this morning, I realized how true this is in our society. Because many times parents aren't there for their children, be they emotionally or physically absent, they turn elsewhere for love, and that elsewhere many times is not healthy or loving. In fact, it usually involves sin, which is what that Pied Piper's song reminded me of- a sweet sounding temptation to sin.  Temptation makes sin look appealing, not ugly as it really is. In the Once show, once Henry finally succumbs to the 'celebration' with the other Lost Boys, it becomes all about 'having fun' instead of having hope that good will win (as Henry did all along until now). Sin causes people to lose hope of a resurrection from this earthly life with all its sorrows, and just reduce this life to endless pleasure seeking to drown one's sorrows. It becomes the main goal in many people's lives, to simply find pleasure over and over again as an antidote to the stresses and sorrows in our lives. 

This convicted me to truly share the Good News with others. Just as in the Once Upon a Time show, the 'good guys' are never losing hope and always confident that good will win, we need to be confident in our Lord and His saving us from our sin. Good will win, and I feel that so many people have become so focused on their day to day lives, their stresses and pleasures, that they lose sight of the bigger picture and of the Loving God Who is there, directing our lives and rescuing us from our sins and consoling us in our sorrows. We need to remind them of this (and ourselves!) 

I am also convicted about families, that we need to be present to our families so that they don't go looking elsewhere for love. They are the most important responsibility we have on this earth. We need to make sure they are loved, that they know our God and that they go to heaven! 

The Work of God

"It's not necessary for woman to 'contribute' to the world of work. The world of work exists to be sure she has what she needs for her family." -Rebecca Ryskind Teti from 'Style, Sex and Substance: 10 Catholic Women Consider the Things that Really Matter'.

I had been reading the book quoted above and was struck by this rather obvious statement when one considers history. In society today, we have lost sight of women's roles throughout history, which mainly involved taking care of family and the upkeep and management of a household. 'Kristin Lavransdatter' by Sigrid Undset comes to mind. It is the story of a strong willed, faith filled woman in Medieval Norway who marries for love/passion, manages a large estate, and has eight sons. I highly recommend it, particularly for wives and mothers of faith.

Anyway, nowadays, women feel guilty when not 'contributing' to society by entering the workforce. However, as C.S. Lewis put it, "Homemaking is surely in reality the most important work in the world. What do ships, railways, mines, cars, government, etc. exist for except that people may be fed, warmed, and safe in their own homes? ... The  homemaker's job is one for which all others exist." And I might add that by raising loving, responsible human beings to take their place in society, we are impacting society more than anyone else could in their work, no matter how important their work may be. However, all work is important and meaningful, if done for God, as a means of sanctification. (Plug for Opus Dei/St. Josemaria Escriva.

God bless you in your work of homemaking, ladies! It is an indispensable task and vocation to which God calls us!

PS- If you wish to purchase either of the books I mentioned in this post, see the Amazon widget to the right of this posting.

You have need of only one thing...St. Martha and Mother's Rule of Life Part II

It is the feast of St. Martha, the woman famous for having complained to Our Lord that her sister Mary was not helping with the serving. He tells her, 'Martha, Martha, you are anxious and worried about many things. You have need of only one thing, and Mary has chosen the better part.' We all know the story about how Mary is sitting at the Lord's feet and listening, and therefore, she has chosen the better part, whereas Martha, running around the house, trying to get things done, is too preoccupied to pay much attention to Jesus.

This hearkens back to my recent post about the book 'The Mother's Rule of Life' and my implementation of its principles to my daily life. The key to the Scripture passage about Martha and Mary is not that we should always be in the chapel praying and reading Scripture, but that we should not get so overwhelmed by the housework we have to do that we forget about Jesus, Who is always with us.

One of the most inspiring things about the Mother's Rule of Life for me was that the author, Holly Pierlot, once she began living her Mother's Rule of Life, after awhile no longer had to think about the tasks she was doing because they became second nature. Instead, she was able to offer each task she did for the Lord and she was able to reach heights of contemplation as she did her tasks. She got everything done and had chosen the better part.

This is a great inspiration to me as a homemaker wanting to grow in holiness but still have a well-kept, beautiful home for all who enter, in particular my family. Making all meals and snacks from scratch and keeping on top of housework is time-consuming; a homemaker cannot obviously pray in the chapel all day, however we can be in union with Our Lord while we do these tasks. Though I'd read about saints who thought about God all day long as they did their tasks, I'd never been able to do it myself until I formed and implemented my Rule of Life. When one does not have to think about what to do next from the to-do list, it makes it so much easier to just follow the schedule already laid out and focus one's thoughts on other more important things, such the One Thing, our Lord Jesus Christ.

The Art of Fermentation

Fermentation is something I knew nothing about until a little over a year ago. I finally read the introductory section of the 'Nourishing Traditions' cookbook, which I'd had for months but had not really opened much. I've just started experimenting with different recipes of late, and so far they have turned out pretty well!

Fermentation was the way the ancients preserved vegetables for longer periods before there were freezers or canning machines. The reason the vegetables stay preserved is due to Lactic acid, which is produced by the lactobacilli bacteria that are present when you let something lacto-ferment. The health advantage to eating lacto-fermented vegetables is that they are made easier to digest by the lactobacilli, they increase vitamin levels, they produce enzymes and antibiotic and anti-carcinogenic substances and most importantly, they promote the growth of healthy flora in the intestines. 

The ones I've made so far, pictured above, are Ginger Carrots, Kimchi (Korean Sauerkraut) and Ketchup. The main thing you need besides the veggies is homemade whey (made from milk/buttermilk/yogurt), a food processor to shred the veggies, and about 2-3 days. 

For the Ginger Carrots and the Kimchi, I used the Nourishing Traditions cookbook (see my sidebar widget for Real Food/Cookbooks to order on Amazon), and for the Ketchup, I used the recipe section from the book 'Beautiful Babies' by Kristen Michaelis (also on my Amazon widget). 

However, here are some other very similar recipes:

Ketchup:

http://nourishedkitchen.com/homemade-ketchup/

http://wellnessmama.com/4999/easy-homemade-ketchup/

To make whey and cream cheese: (you need whey for most ferments)

http://wellnessmama.com/2402/how-to-make-whey-and-cream-cheese-in-one-step/

Sauerkraut: 

http://wellnessmama.com/663/homemade-sauerkraut/

Book Review: A Mother's Rule of Life

I just finished reading this amazing book, 'A Mother's Rule of Life' by Holly Pierlot.

It has really inspired me regarding time management and work in the home, as well as the importance of routine for prayer, and all other things for that matter. For any woman going from having worked full-time to staying at home, this is a must! When I first stayed at home, while I was pregnant with my son, the days would fly by and I would notice that so much time had passed without my even acknowledging God or getting anything productive done. I would realize that I'd just spent half an hour or even an hour looking at facebook, blogs, or watching a show, and then I'd get distracted by something else and before I knew it, it was evening and I needed to start cooking dinner, which I would determine at the last minute.

When my son was born, of course I had plenty to do in order to care for him. Once I got the hang of that, there were times again where I would lose track of time (not nearly as much as before, but still I would take longer to do things such as get ready for the day because I was simultaneously checking email or some such thing.) 

After having been reminded several times of a book a friend had recommended years ago, I finally realized that maybe the Lord was calling me to read 'The Mother's Rule of Life'.  I read it excitedly and shared many passages with my sister-in-law, who is newly married and planning to stay at home. 

Some of my favorite things about this book is that it is very practical. The author goes into great detail regarding her Rule of Life, which helps me to insert my own details easily for my Rule of Life. She shares some stories from her life, making it interesting, as I love reading testimonies and personal sharing. 

Most of all, it has really inspired me to make the most of my day, keeping faithful to prayer times, as well as attending to duties in a timely manner, and keeping our Lord present by invoking Him in between each activity and offering the next one for love of Him. 

The author compares the married vocation to the religious and challenges us to strive for holiness as much as a religious would, as we are equally called to it. We may have many distractions in the world, such as babies crying and laundry to juggle, but if we order our lives so that things become so habitual that we don't need to think about them, we are able to contemplate God as we work. 

I've been very drawn to the writings of St. Josemaria Escriva and the message of Opus Dei lately and for good reason. It goes right along with the 'Mother's Rule of Life' because Opus Dei and St. Josemaria emphasize sanctity through our work. Today's Gospel reading at Mass was the one about Mary and Martha, and how Mary has chosen the better part, sitting at our Lord's feet, listening to Him. The reflection from 'In Conversation with God' for today refers to a 'unity of life' in which our work and prayer flow into each other and are not segregated into separate spheres.

 "For we must find God in our daily job, transforming our professional work into the hinge on which our calling to sanctity rests and turns...It is there in the midst of daily work and by means of it, not in spite of it, that God wants to call most Christians to lives of holiness. We are to sanctify the world and sanctify ourselves with a life of prayer that gives meaning to earthly tasks" (Francis Fernandez, 30.2, Volume Four). 

 "To maintain the presence of God while we work we need to resort to simple reminders, little things that will help us remember that our work is for God...All worldly occupations, when engaged in with the right intention, allow us the opportunity to put into practice charity, mortification, a spirit of service to others, joy and optimism, understanding and an apostolate of friendship and confidence.  We sanctify ourselves through our work. This is what really matters- to find Jesus in the midst of our daily concerns, not to forget about the Lord of all things" (Francis Fernandez, 30.3, Volume Four). 

Anyway, if you haven't already, read 'A Mother's Rule of Life', and check out your local Opus Dei Center for Evenings of Recollection and Retreats. If you wish to purchase 'A Mother's Rule of Life', use the widget here on my page to access my recommendations from the Amazon store. 

Grain-free Chocolate Chip Cookies

Even though I'm not technically 'grain-free', I've been making some items without grains just because it's easier than soaking/sprouting, etc., which I believe is necessary to properly digest grains. Some people, like the Wellness Mama, believe that grains cannot ever be properly digested, which I want to research some more, but for now I do eat some grains (mainly brown rice and sprouted grain English muffins). 

Anyway, I wanted to share this recipe with you because it's really good and for those who are trying to eat less grains or grain-free, it's a great option! I don't think those who've tried these cookies even knew that they were grain-free. They are also very soft and the chocolate chips are luscious!

Here's where I found the recipe: 

http://wellnessmama.com/5810/grain-free-chocolate-chip-cookies/

I did everything the same as the recipe except I used dehydrated coconut sugar instead of cane sugar.

And yes, Wellness Mama again! I love her site. Check it out and get your fill of nutrition, exercise, and general health information! Some of my favorite posts are :

Eat Your Sunscreen: http://wellnessmama.com/4621/eat-your-sunscreen

Eat more Coconut Oil: http://wellnessmama.com/8858/how-to-eat-more-coconut-oil/

10 minute a day workout plan: http://wellnessmama.com/5560/10-minute-a-day-workout-plan/

Barefoot Running: http://wellnessmama.com/4764/barefoot-running-101/

Heart of the Home

A couple weeks ago, my sister-in-law got married on the feast day of the Immaculate Heart of Mary (the rehearsal the day before was the solemnity of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus). That makes this month the month of the Sacred and Immaculate Hearts. I was a bridesmaid and for jewelry, she gave us a necklace that consisted of a heart with many small hearts within it. She said that the big heart was Mary's (could also be Jesus's) and the small hearts were all of ours.

A Catholic tradition for families is to do a Sacred and Immaculate Heart Enthronement of the home. A priest or group, such as the Legion of Mary, comes in and prays certain prayers with the family and consecrates an image or images of the Sacred and Immaculate Hearts. It is a beautiful devotion for a family to take part in. In our house, have a beautiful painting of the Sacred Heart by my father. It is huge and is easily viewed from outside the sliding glass door of the patio. It is interesting to see people peering in at the painting as they walk by. Hopefully they have an encounter with Jesus as a result.

"The Heart of Jesus is always in search of souls to save, to free from the snares of sin, to wash in His blood, to feed with His Body. The Heart of Jesus is always living in the Eucharist to satisfy the hunger of all who long for Him, to welcome and console all those who, disillusioned by the vicissitudes of life, take refuge in Him, seeking peace and refreshment." -Fr. Gabriel of St. Mary Magdalen, O.C.D.

As homemakers, our vocation is to be the 'heart of the home' but I think the only way that is truly possible is if we have the hearts of Jesus and Mary as the center of our hearts. Sometimes it is hard to maintain this focus, as lay people living in the world bombarded by so many other voices and temptations. I know for me, it is always a temptation to compare my situation with that of others. I tend to get negative about how I don't have the gifts that other women have and it becomes almost a competition. This quote struck a particular chord with me:

"Every human person is a unique creation of love and has his or her irreplaceable function within God's glorious plan of love. There is no such thing as competition; it is senseless to compare this one with that. Each vocation is totally unique, and temperament, circumstances, all that elements that go to make up my life are directed towards the shaping of that particular "form" which is to receive God's love and express His beauty in a way unique to itself, thus becoming a living praise of the glory of His self-bestowing Love" -Sr. Ruth Burrows, O.C.D.

In order to stay focused on this truth, we must hide ourselves in the Sacred and Immaculate Hearts. Only then can we truly live our vocations as homemakers within the world without distractions that only bring us strife and division.

"We must become aware that God dwells within us and do everything with Him, then we are never commonplace even when performing the most ordinary tasks, for we do not live in these things, we go beyond them. A supernatural soul never deals with natural causes but with God alone" -Bl. Elizabeth of the Trinity

Sacred Heart of Jesus, have mercy on us! Immaculate Heart of Mary, pray for us!

Farm fresh!

Spring (almost summer) brings flowers, vacation, warm weather (or here in Tennessee, HOT weather), and best of all, garden vegetables!

We've been excited the past few weeks to try the vegetables from our CSA (community supported agriculture), or at least I have. Each week you never know what you're going to get.

So, I've been experimenting with radishes and turnips, and garlic that looks like this:

Also we've had all kinds of greens such as bok choy, different kinds of kale, butter lettuce and swiss chard. 

To live on a farm; that would be the life! To be preparing dinner and simply walk outside, pick what you need and get cooking! But this is the next best thing, I suppose!

For about a year now, I've been getting raw milk from the farm, and recently, because of this http://www.cornucopia.org/egg-report/egg-report-exec-summ.pdf, I started getting eggs as well. (I also get butter, yogurt and occasionally buttermilk from the farm). The milk is so delicious, fresh, and even has a slight sweet flavor sometimes. If you haven't already, you should really try it! The yolks of the eggs are bright orange, compared to the paler yellow of even the most organic, free range eggs you can find in the supermarket.

This past week, my family was busy preparing for my sister-in-law's wedding, so I wasn't able to eat many eggs, so I made this delicious crustless crab quiche from the 'Beautiful Babies' book by Kristen Michaelis. I used the delicious farm fresh eggs, milk, and green onions. 

We also hadn't drunk much milk this week because I was sick (and there was no cereal for my husband) so to use up more milk and eggs, I decided to make some oh-so-delicious, creamy and spicy cardamom gelato!! (As if I needed an excuse to make this!) I was so excited to find this recipe http://realfoodhascurves.squarespace.com/food-blog/2010/11/24/cardamom-gelato.html because it reminded me of the marvelous gelato shop in Reston Town Center 'Pitango'. I had tried the cardamom flavor a couple of times and the combination of spicy and sweet is heavenly! 

Of course, in keeping with real food/no refined sugars, I used coconut palm sugar (found here: http://www.amazon.com/Wholesome-Sweeteners-Organic-Coconut-16-Ounce/dp/B007TGH4CK/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1371248461&sr=8-3&keywords=organic+coconut+palm+sugar) instead of regular sugar. And I only used 1 cup of sugar total instead of 1 1/4 that the recipe calls for, and it was fine. I just added a little honey so the gelato wouldn't freeze as hard. 

This gelato is a bit more work than regular ice cream, but it is so worth it! The point where you heat the custard concoction to 178 degrees seemed to take forever but I am glad I was precise because this gelato is soo much more creamy than the other ice creams I've made (and this is with mostly milk!)

Anyway, here's a photo of the delightful, farm fresh delicacy: 

Yay for local farmers, and the fresh, real food they provide us! Thanks be to God for quiche and gelato! :)

The Little Gentleman

My sister-in-law just got married and since I was a bridesmaid, I wanted to have my son dressed in equally formal attire. So my friend Monica, who was also in the wedding and has a baby, and I made two bowties from the scraps of the bridesmaid dress:

We used this tutorial to do it: http://oneyounglove.com/2012/02/17/tiny-bow-ties-for-tiny-gentlemen-tutorial/

It was pretty simple and it took about an hour of actual work, I believe, though with us each nursing our sons and trying to keep them entertained, I think it was more like two hours total that we were at it.

Here's how they turned out:

Then, separately, we each worked on the attachment portion of the project. Monica did hers according to the tutorial (with two snaps on the back of the bow that would snap to a shirt), but I decided to attach the bow to a ribbon so that the shirt wouldn't have the snaps on it and could be used separately. I think it would have been better to use elastic rather than ribbon, but it worked out alright. 

Finally, we wore our matching dress and bowtie on the big day! 

Making the world more beautiful

So, the inspiration for this post has been brewing for some time, but it is difficult to find spare moments in the day. A few days ago, I saw a florist at the farmer's market and thought it perfect because I was already planning to buy flowers for a friend's birthday. And these were homegrown wildflowers! The lady asked me about my friend and I told her the word 'vibrant'. So she proceeded to put together an amazingly vibrant bouquet with the utmost care and precise movement. She kept arranging the flowers just so to make the bouquet perfectly aligned and balanced. It reminded me of the Practical Life lessons for the primary child in Montessori, (one of which is flower arranging) where you do everything deliberately and very very slowly, so the child will be able to mimic you and will also go slowly when he later does it himself. (I can't wait to begin some of these lessons with my son!) Anyway, here is the bouquet:

Then, as I reflected on the efforts of the flower lady to make the bouquet as beautiful as possible for my friend, I remembered a beautifully illustrated children's book called 'Miss Rumphius' by Barbara Cooney.

This book tells the story of a woman who is told as a little girl that she must someday do something to make the world more beautiful. So she lives her life but eventually remembers her resolution to do something to make the world more beautiful, so she begins to plant lupines all over the countryside. She becomes known as the 'Lupine Lady'. Only then, after she makes the world a little more beautiful, is Miss Rumphius truly happy.

A couple days after the experience I had with the flower lady, I was in adoration before the Blessed Sacrament, and I opened The Diary of St. Faustina, paragraph 208, and read, "O you small, everyday sacrifices, you are to me like wildflowers which I strew over the feet of my Beloved Jesus." So not only are we called to make the world more physically beautiful, but by our sacrifices we offer spiritual bouquets to our Lord, thus making the spiritual world more beautiful. 

Then I randomly opened the book 'He and I' by Gabrielle Bossis to this passage: "I was giving [Jesus] a sacrifice and I said, 'It's a flower that I'm pinning to Your robe'. [He said]: 'Give Me these flowers often. (The voice seemed to smile). It's as though you added to My beauty. You see, when you become more beautiful, I become more beautiful. Oh, my little girl, how one we are! From the time of your morning Communion, right to your night's sleep, let us be one! And again, when you are fast asleep- one. Forever oneness....Would you like that? Then tell Me that you long for it. Keep it always before the eyes of your soul." -1941, May 30

When I read this, I knew our Lord desired me to specifically meditate on this theme of sacrifices offered to our Lord in the form of spiritual flowers. And not only do these sacrifices add to our spiritual beauty, but they add to Jesus's as well. It brings us into closer union with Him. Why would we not want to use these opportunities to grow closer to Him? We all have sacrifices that we could quietly offer throughout the day instead of complaining or venting later to our husbands. 

This is the true work of being a homemaker. Making the house more beautiful, cooking a delicious, wholesome meal, yes, these things are important and good, but even more so we need to make ourselves more spiritually beautiful, more virtuous, so we can help our family members do the same. Then we can eventually all be together in heaven for eternity. This is our true and ultimate goal. Pray for me in this difficult yet crucial task and I will pray for you as well!

Delighting the Senses

Since my decision to not buy processed foods, I've been getting creative in order to still enjoy some old favorite sweets, such as ice cream and peanut butter cups. There are plenty of great recipes out there that do not involve refined sugar and other nasties. One that I found very refreshing on a hot day was this recipe [http://www.foodrenegade.com/no-churn-ice-cream-honey-cinnamon/] for honey cinnamon ice cream. It is 'no churn' but since I have an ice cream maker attachment, I used it. It is simple and the subtle flavor of cinnamon sweetened with honey is so pure and light.

Here's a photo of the delectable treat just before I devour it:

And the neat thing about this ice cream is that it is not so rock hard after it freezes probably because of the honey (but supposedly if you do not add honey you can add vodka to make it not so rock hard).

Then I found this great recipe for almond butter cups: http://www.savorylotus.com/2013/05/17/salty-sweet-almond-butter-cups/#more-1439. These are amazing! My husband, who loves processed sweets and is usually wary of the healthful sweet concoctions I cook up, was eager for another one of these, so they must be tasty! I used my new silicone cupcake liners, which were perfect for peeling out the cups, and they even look like Reese's cups with the brown liner!

Also, these are the opposite of your normal nut butter cups because the chocolate layer is on the inside. But they are perfect! I wouldn't want to change them a bit!

Well, hopefully this inspires some of you to create some delicious treats that are actually good for you, (in moderation)! Next on my list is this recipe for coconut popsicles: 

http://www.savorylotus.com/2013/05/15/coconut-freezer-pops/

"Like the sun rising in the heights of the Lord...

...so is the beauty of a good wife in her well-ordered home" -Sirach 26:16

This verse inspires me in my homemaking aspirations- homemaking is meant to make a woman beautiful! It is to create beauty all around her for those whom she loves, thus making herself beautiful. Lately I have been meditating on the art of homemaking, how it truly is an art, though it is becoming a lost art, sadly.

This weekend I was at a lovely bridal shower for my sister-in-law, and the theme was fitting: 'My Favorite Things About Homemaking'. Several of the ladies mentioned how they did not particularly like keeping house, but they liked making things beautiful. The hostess mentioned that she specifically chose the word 'homemaking' to describe the theme of the shower, because homemaking is not just keeping house, but rather, it is making it a home and making it beautiful for loved ones.

This blog will document some projects in my homemaking adventures. It will also be my motivation to complete some long delayed undertakings. I hope it may inspire others to labor at the art of homemaking, for it is truly a labor of love, and our calling as wives and mothers.