Homeschool Conference and Stuff

I went to the event (at St. Thomas University in St. Paul, MN) and met some ladies at the "blogger's roundtable". It was nice but the best part was seeing Paula there. I love that girl (she's back there in front of the window).




I went by myself on Friday but didn't plan very well so I went again today at the very end with the girls and Tommy. I RAN to the Seton table and snatched up about 80% of the kids' school for next year (the rest they will send FREE SHIPPING in a little while). We also got 2 big, replica Daniel Boone rifles for the boys, some T-shirts for me and the two big girls, mantillas (Trina has been talking about getting some for a while so I finally gave in) for me and the big girls, some Geo-Deo games, some really cool, super powerful magnets, and an autographed copy of Catholics and the New Age by Fr. Mitch Pacwa (who was there and signed it for me and played with Tommy!). I missed his talks, but getting to chat with him and have him ogle Tommy was even better!

Mari was a big, stink butt while we were shopping there.


THEN, on our way home (actually while we were in the parking lot, ready to leave) Butch calls me and tells me that there is a HUGE hailstorm and tornado warning and we would be driving RIGHT TOWARD it if we headed home! I called my bro-in-law and he watched the radar and the map and got us ALMOST past the storm but it hit us right as we were in front of the KARE 11 studio in Golden Valley. The Perkin's flag was almost stick straight as the front slammed into us and we sped into the parking lot. I pulled onto the sidewalk about 3 feet away from the door and let Trina and Mari out first as the first hailstones started to wing into the back of the van. They got way too intense for me, Weazy, and Tommy so we had to wait about 5 minutes for a window of time to dart out of the van and into the restaurant. We decided to stay and eat because the hail lasted about 20 minutes! I finally got to go out to the van to move it and, as I parked, I saw this in the sky:


(See the KARE 11 sign across the street?)

I got more hail damage on my van. The rearveiw mirror is smashed and the hail knocked my blind spot mirror off!

We got home safely and the boys grilled some burgers on our new grill that we got from the neighbors (it was an extra one they didn't want anymore). We are probably going to have our parents over for grilling tomorrow.

I hope it doesn't hail again.

Holy Big Head Mass!

I think I just sh*t my drawers.

"Heart of the Beast Theater"...INDEED!

Go HERE for picture highlights if you can't see the video (which would give you nightmares anyway).

Ya know, it just ain't a good Mass without a ginormous headed scary mask person prancing around trying not to fall on the audien...I mean "congregation". "Hey! Don't you remember the wolves leading the way into Jerusalem...oh, that Easter Island Head Jesus is SO realistic!" It's really catching on! I wonder if they're doing it to scare the bejeevers out of little kids (and adults!) on purpose?

Hey, wouldn't it be funny to "accidentally" trip one of the giant heads and see what happened after that? Man, I should NOT be thinking about Mass in this way...NOBODY should! This is NOT Mass. I don't know what the heck it is but it's getting to look more and more like some sort of pagan nightmare than anything resembling the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass.

Tommy says, "Hey, let me in on some of that big head puppet action! I've got the perfect look for it!"




H/T The Curt Jester

Dear Insurance Company,

I know that we've had claim after claim due to the storms in our area in the last few years, but this is the biggest hail I've ever seen! We got two storms (on Sunday) within minutes of each other and both had layers and layers of this nasty stuff. The first storm was preceded by GREEN sky and very ominous atmosphere but didn't cause any damage. The second storm was BEATING on the house and was so loud you had to shout to be heard. Mari was shouting "POPCORN!. That's what it looked like falling from the sky and bouncing off of our windows, house, VAN, and lawn!













A lot of people other places in the state and in Iowa got it a lot worse than us. Some even died. We have the pain of shelling out cash YET AGAIN for deductibles, etc., but we lived to tell the tale and still have a roof over our heads (dented, but still sound)!

Come ON!!!!

I have a blister on my toe that looks a little like a dove. Do you think I should maybe call the Vatican?

Oh, My Aching Heart

PLEASE look behind you in the driveway. Make sure all the kids are accounted for before you back up. PLEASE be safe this summer. PLEASE pray that I do the same.

Pray for her and her family.

I can't (nor do I ever want to) imagine her family's sorrow.

I TOLD You! I'm NOT DEAD!

Here's another reason I want you all to go to extreme measures when I keel over. GOT IT???? I'm telling you, EVERY MEANS NECESSARY, PEOPLE!

There. Now you can't say I never wished that. Also, you will feel extremely guilty and I will haunt you from purgatory forever if you didn't listen.

Wowie

Whoa, she got SERVED by that little girl!

And I'm here to be the SECOND on the whole "nut" issue.


I've been thinking that our politicians might need to be reminded that they work for US. This lady is the epitome of self-centered, rationalizing, nuttiness I think I've ever seen.

The interviewer is a total dork but she's so ignorant, she doesn't even realize he's making fun of her. Embarrassing.

Two Edge Talk

Check it out. It's a super cool chick and a dynamite deacon in once a week, frank, timely, and SHORT discussion of interesting Catholic matters.

They seem very REAL and honest and I really like their voices. You gotta listen to at least one podcast (which are all posted on their blog) and I'll bet you'll be hooked!

H/T mah sistuh

Photo Contest Entry

I found this post at around 11:30pm so I hope I can enter in under the wire! I thought that this picture of Thomas with Great-grandpa Bud was so funny. Thomas has such a goofy look on his face (he DOES look like his father, you know!) and I love it because this was the first time Grandpa was able to hold him. It's a funny picture and a precious reminder of a beautiful moment.





By the way, at the top of her blog she quotes her Grandma:
"One day God will have enough of your foolishness and demand that you hit your knees before Him. You can either do it willingly or He will put his hand upon your head and shove you to them."-Marie Lane

I LOVE that! I wish I could have come up with something so right and so profound!

Shut UP! We're Saying the ROSARY!

When I was growing up, Mom and Dad always tried to get us to say night prayers together. This was the usual scene:

Mom and Dad take the rosaries down from their hooks and pass them out to the kids. The kids start out by fighting over which one will lead which decade. The kids inch closer to each other on the floor so they can poke each other with their feet and then innocently pull their foot away when the offended kid yells "MOOOOOOOM! He TOUCHED me!" in the middle of prayers. One kid will realize that he/she has "the wrong rosary" and fights for the one he/she thinks is his/hers. Mom and/or Dad will try to shush these fights but then resort to yelling something like, "We don't fight during prayer time!!!!"

We really tried to say at least a decade of the rosary after night prayers together. I am the oldest of six and remember when night prayers consisted of my mom or dad kneeling beside my sister and I in our big, double bed and saying this formula (kids added as they were born):
"Angel of God...
God bless: Mom, Dad, Laura...
Sr. Bonnie and Sr. (a nun that used to live with my aunt, Sr. B), Fr. (whomever was our priest at the time) and all the fathers, Pope JPII, grandmas and grandpas, cousins and friends, and all the little angels of the world."
But as more kids were born, we would add a different decade of the rosary for each day.

Then one kid would pipe up that we already said that decade and a whole other fight would ensue.

Now, whenever I try to say the rosary with the kids, this is the scene:
Weazy runs to get the rosaries from their hooks. She distributes them as she sees fit and at least two kids fight over one of the nicer ones. We start prayers and the littlest kids choose that time to be as loud, annoying, and whiny as humanly possible. Nobody wants anyone sitting within two feet of them so they all scramble and fight over where they want to sit. Someone stumbles over a "Hail Mary, Mother of...oops..." and the other kids laugh and the person who said that gets frustrated and starts to yell at the laughers...

BUT, by the end of the whole thing (after I remind them who we are praying for...we always choose someone who is suffering in some way) there seems to be a peaceful calm. Even if it only lasts a few minutes ("MOM! He put MY rosary on HIS hook!!!), the rest of the day is ALWAYS nicer and goes much more smoothly when we pray the rosary.

Thomas' Baptism (Saturday, May 10, 2008)

I wanted one more picture before he got baptized. Note the very non-baptizey look on his face? You can totally tell he's still a pagan baby in this picture, can't you? Also, note that he is not wearing a silky, girly outfit or baptismal gown. It's sort of a tradition in this family now. Matthew got baptized in a white, quilted McDonald's brand outfit with light blue piping from Wal-Mart (sounds kind of tacky, but it was really cute). Niklaus got baptized in an off white, Old Navy onesie and jeans (at the last minute, I couldn't find the outfit from Matty's baptism so I wrapped him up in a blanket and hoped no one noticed). Thomas was wearing his Easter outfit (he was going to wear the outfit that his cousin, Wyatt wore but Trine forgot to bring it. I kind of figured that might happen and I don't really care.). Redneck baptisms for the boys in this family I guess.

Here's a very short video of the big moment!




This is my Uncle Tommy with Thomas. He is my dad's brother and one of the nicest people I know. I was so happy to name Thomas after him. His son, Billy is marrying my friend Rachie at the end of June. Rachie and Billy are Thomas' Godparents. Also, Rachie is one of the most sickeningly beautiful gorgeous supermodels of the world. Then she smiles and she starts to get other-worldly beautiful.




Here are some of the umpteen kids that were at the (thankfully, private) baptism playing in the baptismal hot tub.

I guess all that baptizing tired him out. Tommy and Papa took a little cat-nap at the party we had here afterward.

He got some nice presents but the nicest part of the day was that we got to spend time with beloved friends and family and got to welcome Thomas into our Christian family.

Thomas got very excited when his Godmother told him that he can come and visit her at her house someday soon (beware, this video may cause you to pass out from the cuteness. And I'm not talking about the baby!)


P.S. I was looking at some old posts from a couple of years ago and I found Mari's baptism pictures. It's kind of funny that Mari was baptized on the same day (vigil of Pentecost!) and that it was also the day of the TLM at our historic church! We went to that Mass yesterday too (the girls and I)! Trina and I also went today to the TLM at the once a month service in a nearby town because a friend's daughter was having her First Holy Communion today and we didn't want to miss her big day. It was a weekend of lovely sacraments. The same priest said both Masses. Today, he said that baptisms were traditionally held on Easter vigil and Pentecost vigil in the early church!

P.P.S. Bocker and Mari were climbing all over me while I was holding Thomas this afternoon. Bocker was rubbing Thomas' head and said, "Holy baby! Hey, that was funny when that guy who was wearing the weird clothes dumped water on Tommy's head last night!"

I guess I shouldn't assume that the kids will just sort of absorb the faith! I think I have some explaining to do!

Ins and Outs

The very lovely, Antonia (she only has about 7 weeks left until she is done with med school and can become a real doctor in England!) has given me permission to post the story that she told on her (now private) blog. I am truly amazed! Even after 6 kids, I find the possibilities of future antics that lead to trouble are innumerable. Add one more to the list:
So today I had my first ever big moment of glory as a potential future doctor; I actually made a big difference to another human being!

So in the midst of all my craziness of revision, hospital work blah blah, I got assigned to spend this evening (a SATURDAY!!) (until MIDNIGHT) in a centre where GPs ('Family Physicians') work on the weekends (because the GP offices are closed on the weekends, so instead of going into hospital patients can come to this centre or telephone to request a home visit).

ANYWAY, so at about 10pm a little 4 year old boy in his pjs comes in with his father.
The poor little kid had pushed a bead up his nose.
Young children aren't very good at understanding the concept of blowing their nose; you tell them to blow, and all they do is sniiiifffffff (& so get the object in their nose wedged even higher up!)

The little boy was actually very very good, considering he was only 4.
The doctor & I had a look up his nose and, sure enough, really high up there was a glint of a green plastic bead.

So the doctor broke out a pair of long tweezers and we began the difficult process of trying to get the bead out of the little guy's nose.

Twenty minutes later the once-happy child was now crying and not happy, his nose was all snotty and running (so he kept sniffing the bead up!), his father was getting upset and worried, the doctor with the tweezers was all sweaty and giving up.

We weren't winning.

The implications of not-winning means that the child and his father would've had to go to the Emergency Department, wait for at least 3 hours to be seen, have another doctor try to get the bead out in pretty much the same way, probably fail, and then call the ENT dudes ('Ear Nose & Throat') docs, who might've had a few extra tricks up their sleeve.

But either way...it would just be much better if we could get it out now.

Then I had a brain-wave and remembered some advice I was once given by another doctor on how to get objects out of children's noses. It's a little-known technique but apparently always works.

So I suggested that the dad blow hard into his child's mouth, while we pushed closed the bead-free nostril.

No one had heard of this method before, but the dad was desperate, the kid was crying and upset, the doc just wanted it solved...so the dad clamped his mouth on his kid's, blew hard....and out shot a stream of snot and a little green bead!

Needless to say, I was the hero! Everyone (the dad, the doc and the kid!!) were soooooo grateful and thankful! Seriously, the sincerity with which the dad, his brow all sweaty, thanked me...well, no patient has ever been so grateful to me! Phew! No trip to the emergency room!

hehe!

So that's my one moment of glory. I'm basking in it.

and if your child gets something stuck up their nose....blowing in their mouth works every time!

Blahblahblah (plus a cute video of the crazykids)

Butch is sick. He came home early from work today with a killer sinus infection that affects every other of his body systems because of his allergies and asthma. He has a big, overtimey job coming up tomorrow and needs to be in top shape.

My running is going very well and I'm all jazzed up about a possible 5k this weekend and the half marathon in June. A friend of Trine's has parents that live in Duluth so I have a place to stay and will probably make a girl's weekend out of it.

Thomas' baptism will be this weekend.

We didn't get our stimulus check yet.

I was up for parish council. I didn't vote for myself because I figured if it was meant to be, I'd just get voted in. I didn't get voted in. I'm pretty sure people were voting AGAINST me. Not paranoid or anything, it's just a fact that I've made "enemies" with my big mouth. All I had to do was get in the top 3 of 5 for pete's sake. I have a feeling this church is going in a direction I am not willing to go and can't do anything about (not because I am not on the council! This was a long time in coming). I have leftover bad vibes from last fall that I will write about soon.

We went to my cousin's daughter's wedding this past weekend and it was really nice.

The grass is finally green.

All Kellogg's cereal is 50 percent off at Coborn's and I bought 20 boxes. I'm not kidding. I love cereal. This is like cereal heaven for me. I may go buy more. Plus, I am going on a tour of the General Mills factory this month. I may pass out from the thrill. I'm not kidding.

Weazy is driving me crazy right now because I told her we could check out dresses at the place I work. I'm looking for more of these (I work at the outlet for this store so we get the sale and clearance from a bunch of mall stores) for the wedding of our friend at the end of June. We want all our little girls to wear them. I already have one for Weazy and Gabby. They like to match.

I wish I had enough money to: build a fence in the back yard, pour a patio, finish finishing the basement, buy a backup camera for the bus, buy/build a cool playset for the kids, buy a little car so I don't have to haul the big bus around, buy a lawnmower for Butch, pay for Trina's braces all at once. Oh well. We'll just attack things a little at a time.

I don't understand "Divine Mercy". I just don't "get" it. I've read everything about it and the saint and all the history behind the devotion but I just don't get it. I don't get how I can say something like "I offer you the body and blood...In atonement for my sins and those of the whole world..." I don't get how I can say something like that. It's just words to me. They don't have any meaning. I don't understand how I can offer something that someone else already gave for something that someone else doesn't feel sorry for. It would be like saying, "Here mom, I'm going to give you an IOU of 50 bucks for the vase that my cousin broke when we were little. He's not sorry and won't ever give you the actual 50 bucks but it makes ME feel better to feel sorry for what HE did. See, dad gave ME 50 bucks to buy a new vase and I've really been enjoying it so I'm not actually going to give it to you because I gave you that IOU and that's good enough." Don't get me wrong. I like devotions and all, but this one is just plain goofy in my mind. I like the sound of the litany when it's sung ("...for the sake of his sorrowful passion, have mercy on us and on the whole world!") but, quite frankly, that picture of Jesus with the USA flag colored rays shooting out of his heart has always seemed kind of tacky and creepy to me. Same with the picture of Sister Faustina. Sorry, but that's just the way I think about a LOT of images of Jesus (and Mary, especially the Medjugorje image, that one looks like a Miss USA model "Mary Barbie" or something) It's maybe just a matter of artistic vision?

Ughhhhh, I'm going to allow comments but I'm sure I'm going to regret it.

I Complain About The Rising Cost of Food But...

...at least I don't have to do THIS.

From the article...weird and so sad:

"An unpleasant taste
A reporter sampling a cookie found that it had a smooth consistency and sucked all the moisture out of the mouth as soon as it touched the tongue. For hours, an unpleasant taste of dirt lingered.

Assessments of the health effects are mixed. Dirt can contain deadly parasites or toxins, but it can also strengthen the immunity of fetuses in the womb to certain diseases, said Gerald N. Callahan, an immunology professor at Colorado State University who has studied geophagy, the scientific name for dirt-eating.

Haitian doctors say depending on the cookies for sustenance risks malnutrition.

"Trust me, if I see someone eating those cookies, I will discourage it," said Dr. Gabriel Thimothee, executive director of Haiti's health ministry.

Marie Noel, 40, sells the cookies in a market to provide for her seven children. Her family also eats them.

"I'm hoping one day I'll have enough food to eat, so I can stop eating these," she said. "I know it's not good for me.""


Hat Tip: I thought it was a hoax or something when I saw it on his blog, so I checked it out and couldn't believe it was true

Late Wednesday Night Date With Tommy

Gee, What A Surprise!

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