Clearing Away the Angst and the Dust

This is a whole new thing for me, to have two teenage boys. They were at each other's throats again yesterday, as they have been for months. This is the part of homeschooling I wish I could simply erase. Can't we go back to the elementary years when the biggest tempratantrum was over a little spelling assignment and the two of them wrestled on the living room rug?

I've been chalking up the tension to the typical wintry cabin fever, and I've been told that this is normal for teenage boys. But my motherly instincts are telling me otherwise, that this is not normal for brothers who are otherwise very close.

What gives?

I have to admit that I haven't been the cheeriest family member among us, either. I wonder if my own interior angst is directly affecting the boys.

My impatience.
My selfishness.
My eyes not on Heaven.
My days have a decisive lack of prayer, contemplation, petitions, and thanksgiving.

I feel like I am alone, struggling to educate and raise the boys, struggling to care for the house, struggling to help my husband in his own struggles.

In many ways, things have been looking up. All the things we have prayed for are happening. Roger is gaining some strength back, and his blood tests prove that his health is slowly improving. (He looks so much better! Just a few weeks ago, he called the boys outside to have a snowball battle. I loved watching him from the kitchen, running through the snow while carving a softball in his hands, sneaking around the garage, looking for his next victim. He hadn't been able to do that in ages.) His business has new and bigger opportunities, offered to him through just one timely phone call. I have two writing projects on the table. And the boys are healthy, doing well in their schoolwork, and enjoying their activities in the parish's youth group as well as Boy Scouts.

And yet you could cut the tension in this house with a knife! Why?

Well, all I can think of now is thank goodness Lent is here. Talk about needing to get back on track!

A chance to pray and contemplate again.

A chance to fast and give a little gift each day to Our Lord, starting with my morning cup of coffee. The operative word is starting.

A chance to put my eyes back on Heaven.

A chance to go from my desolation to consolation--that is, the consolation I can offer to Jesus.

A chance to clear away the sins that have been piling up.

A chance to turn to Our Blessed Mother and observe the operations of her soul.

Of course, I could have done these things--and had the proper mindset--throughout the year,  avoiding all this angst that has accumulated. But I am human, a mom human, and I have a human habit of losing track of these imperative devotions when the world knocks on my door with homeschool research papers and fair projects, with knitting projects, with writing projects...house cleaning, shuttling kids, groceries...yadda, yadda, yadda. The noise of busyness!

I ignored our quiet and gentle Lord, who has been waiting for me all along.

Have a wonderful Ash Wednesday.

Three Pillars

Here's an excellent essay about preparing your children for Lent, and how to make simple yet meaningful changes that can help them discover what Lent truly is about. It's not about giving up sweets. Check it out, and God bless!

Of Sound Mind and Spirit: 3 Pillars of Lent Prepare our Hearts for Christ: "Preparing a lesson on Ash Wednesday and Lent for yesterday’s 3rd grade CCE class clarified my own discernment for Lent this year. Growing ..."

Butter-Free Cinnamon Oatmeal Raisin Cookies--Quick and Awesome for "Fat Tuesday"!

(photo copyright Roger L. Blease)

Fat Tuesday, Faschnacht, the day before Ash Wednesday, the last chance to binge...whatever you call it, it will be here tomorrow!

Here's a quick cookie recipe that takes no time at all, and believe it or not, it's a little healthy, too--whole wheat flour, oats, raisins, nuts and cinnamon--so you can feel a little bit better about your last-chance munch fest. If you like, add a little flax seed meal or wheat germ to boost the fiber.

Toss all the ingredients into one bowl, spoon onto greased cookies sheets, and pop the little dough mounds into the oven. Out will come fresh aromatic cookies that are delicious and cinnamony. Mmm!

Although they do keep for a few days, these are at their very best right out of the oven. These are also terrific for breakfast, and they will surely lure a few sleepyheads out of bed.

Butter-Free Cinnamon Oatmeal Raisin Cookies

1 c. canola oil
1/2 c. firmly packed brown sugar
2 jumbo eggs
1 tsp. vanilla
1/2 c. all-purpose flour
1 c. whole wheat flour
2 1/3 c. quick-cooking or regular rolled oats
2 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. sea salt
1 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. ground nutmeg
1 c. raisins
1 c. chopped walnuts

Yields: Approx. 3 dozen

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease 4 cookie sheets.

In a large bowl, whisk together oil and sugar until fully incorporated and smooth. Add eggs and vanilla and whisk again. Add all dry ingredients. Mix together with a spoon. Add raisins and walnuts. Stir well. This is a very stiff and dense cookie batter. Drop by tablespoon on greased cookies sheet. Pinch each little mound so the dough stays together while baking.

Bake at 350 degrees for about 10 minutes, or until they are no longer shiny and are well set. Do not over bake. They should still be soft and a bit moist when taken out of the oven. Allow them to cool on the cookie sheets so they firm up, then transfer them to wire cooling rack. 

Enjoy!

Homeschool Photos For Fun

Okay, only a homeschool mom would get a kick out of these photos. But I know lots of you are homeschool moms! So go ahead and get your kicks, just two. ;-)

A little paper sculpture that Max made while listening to my rendering of With Lee In Virginia by G.A. Henty. His hands are always busy! Max is our builder and inventor.

These pins would eventually label Ben's biology project, a dissected fetal pig, which led to his science fair project, Man & Pig: The Similarities Between Human and Swine Nervous Systems.

The Passion Through the Eyes of Mary

I love this video, linked below. It gives us a special perspective of The Stations of the Cross.

We witness what Mary witnessed, and it illuminates some of the operations of her soul. Have you ever thought about how Mary shares the operations of her soul with us, a perfect and pure soul that's never been soiled by sin--a soul that is completely free, never bound by what sin brings? Pretty amazing to think about that. She gives us the perfect example of human love, a perfect example of how to live free. Little by little we can apply these operations to our own daily lives. What an amazing gift our mother gives us!

Lent is just around the corner. Ash Wednesday is March 9. Prayer, fasting, and almsgiving are our Catholic Lenten obligations. Just a gentle reminder! Maybe this video will help put you in the right frame of mind.

God bless!

Here is the link, first posted during Holy Week of 2010...

Kathleen's Catholic: Mary, Mother of God: "Our Christ's Passion through the eyes of Mother Mary. Christ's first temple and Mother of God, Mary of Nazareth never left her beloved Son..."

Design A Scarf for A Friend or Loved One: Secrets from the Experts

It's not too late to design a scarf for a friend or a loved one.

Your kindness is always welcome. Spring yarns, winter wools, mohair, cotton, laces, ribbings, and cables are surely the stuff of comfort! Just a skein or two will do.

Here's a great article from Lion Brand Yarn to help you beat the "roll" that inevitably takes over your design--if you don't know the secrets! It's all here. Lion Brand article.  Have fun, and keep your needles clicking!

God bless!

A Cat and Her Human

Sigh. My human is in my chair...

 

...again.



Ah...yeah...to the right. Do you think this would be a good time to ask for a new collar and a St. Francis medal? A little cat bling.

To read the story about our cover girl, Honey Bun, and how she came to us, click here. God bless!

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