Burning the Candle at Both Ends

...all is calm; all is bright...

 

The Show Must Go On

And did it ever... in a blinding blizzard which dumped about a foot of snow or more in our area. That didn't stop people from showing up to see our parish's performance of  Like Winter Waiting, an Advent musical.  I have to say, and not just because my entire family was involved in the production, that I was so impressed with the quality of the performance. When a cast is performing a story that they believe in, and love... about Someone they love, it comes through clearly.  People I ran into afterward shared that they were so uplifted and that the performance was just what our parish needed. I agree. It was a real spirited, community event and I was so proud to have my family part of it!

The bittersweet note to all this is that Ryan Barrett's presence was sorely missed. We who love and miss him know that he would have been right up there with the other children, sharing his gifts.  I truly felt him smiling on the whole crowd... a church about 2/3 full during a snowstorm the likes of which we haven't seen in years; I'm sure he enjoyed the whole scene from a place where he sits basking in the warmth of our Heavenly Father's light!

And so, a few pictures from that wonderful evening. My favortie is the Nativity scene. The lighting in the church was beautiful. What I found particularly striking was the way the lights threw a shadow behind the Crucifix.  It looked like wings of an angel, with outstretched hands toward the audience.  For some reason, I was very comforted by it and I think you can see what I am talking about  pretty well in the picture.

Three Barrett girls greeted my Hannah so sweetly. Hannah had swine flu earlier in the week and we weren't sure if she'd make it that night. They all hugged her and let her know how happy they were to see her there!

Mary is telling (in song) the children about the Baby she is carrying.

John the Baptist (in white) announces the coming of the Lord.

The Holy Family.

The kings arrive. (My king is the one on the right... does that make me a queen??)
 

The kings bow before THE King. 

My favorite picture of the night!

The shepherds join the crowd.

 

I love this!

This is one of the most politically incorrect ad campaigns I've seen in a while... I love it. I hear the feminists are raging over it.

Now go buy your man some Dockers !

HT: MommyLife

With just three days left...

... 'til their big debut in our parish's Christmas play (read more about it here ) Thomas and Hannah simultaneously came down with fevers yesterday afternoon.  In good conscience, I could not drug them up with Motrin and send them to the dress rehearsal last night to spread this kind of Christmas joy right before opening night. Poor Thomas was sooooo upset. Now that we are getting closer to showtime, they are rehearsing with costumes and lighting and it is getting him a bit nervous. He really did not want to miss practice. Poor guy. He is trying to act as if he's perfectly healthy, but a mother kows that glassy-eyed look and flush that comes along with these types of illnesses.  I am praying this is (very) short-lived because I just can't stand to see that boy upset. It tugs at my heartstrings in ways only a son can do to a mother. 

Christmas Cheer

If you have never seen any of the videos by the group Improv Everywhere prepare to smile. Based in New York City, this group shows up in all sorts of places and comes up with hilarious scenarios to give those tired, cranky New Yorkers a smile. One of my favorites is called "Where's Matt?" in which one of the actors pretends to be lost in Madison Square Garden after getting snacks. The video I'm sharing today is a Bell Choir joining in with a Salvation Army worker on the streets of Manahattan. I love New York!

Cards for Our Troops Overseas

Last week I saw an article in our local paper saying that the VFW Post in our town would be collecting items and packing up care packages to send to the troops in Iraq and Afghanistan for Christmas.  I thought this would be an excellent cause for the kids to get involved with.  Plus, having our very own Iraq veteran living in our house has made me much more aware of the sacrifices the men and women of our armed services (and their families) choose to make for our country.

On Friday morning, five homeschooling families gathered at the Bonny Blue House to craft Christmas cards.  Remember, these are homeschooling families, so that amounted to about 26  children! It was a great activity  and other than the setup and cleanup, the moms were able to have coffee and chat while the children got their creative juices flowing. Paper, glue, glitter, old Christmas cards, markers, trimmings and stickers were provided and then we just turned them loose to create. Some of the results were beautiful. Some were pretty sticky and messy! All were made with love.

Early Saturday morning I packed up the cards, Thomas, Hannah and soon-to-be son-in-law, Matt and we shopped for a few useful items to add to the care packages.  I'm told that nice tp is in demand, as well packages of drink mixes which are pre-measured for bottled water.

Then off to the VFW, where we were amazed at the amount of men, women, and children who got out of bed early on a cold Saturday morning during the busiest season of the year to send some love overseas.  I definitely need to do more of this. Sometimes, when homeschooling, even though we  do gather regularly with other families, we tend to be isolated in our own communities. This is something I am hoping to change in the new year.

Here are some pictures of our card-making party:

Ready and waiting for the mess to begin

 

 

Busy crafters and their crafts

Cards packed and ready to ship

 
 
 
  
 
  

  

Rejoice!

Third Sunday of Advent

Feast of the Immaculate Conception

Craft Day

For St. Nichlas day I invited the Bonny Blue House kids over to make a craft. I thought making triptychs would be fun. Triptychs consist of three panels of art in which the two side panels are smaller than the center panel and they fold in toward the center . It is a very old form of art and can be seen in many churches throughout Europe.  This craft is not specific to St. Nicholas, so if you like it, make one for the Immaculate Conception tomorrow, or any Saint Day you like.

I started by printing some art. Most of it came from The St. Nicholas Center , where you can also get more ideas, downloads and information about this Advent saint.  I made a trip to Michael's and got some pretty scrapbook paper and glitter glue and gold trim. In the foreground of this picture you can see a sample triptych I used to show the children what we were planning. It is one which I believe one of my great-aunts must have made as a chld. I remember it being in their home when I was growning up.

 
 
  Cut-out manilla folders were used as the core of the triptych, so they would be able to stand up when completed. Then I gathered up some kids and we started getting messy! I love working with ModPodge. It comes in lots of different finishes these days., glossy, matte, sparkle and the one I chose for this project... gold shimmer (there is also silver shimmer, but gold was better for us this time).
We glued gold paper on one side of the cut-out folder and the scrapbooking paper on the outside. Then the children chose which art they liked and they cut three pictures to fit, one on each panel. They sealed the whole thing up with modpdge and decorated with glitter glue and gold trim to finish them off.  They did take some time to dry and I am still peeling modpdge off my fingernails, but overall, a worthwile project. We learned about an ancient art form and also some of the lesser known stories about St. Nicholas, which stretched us beyond the gold coins and Christmas stockings. 
Here is an example of one drying. After drying I folded the side panels in to the center and laid some books on top to really make the folds take.

Make sure while crafting your Advent projects you have some nice Christmas music playing to set the mood. I usually listen to AOL Radio because they have a nice assortment of music. We listened to Jazz Holiday and it was perfect.

Praying for a miracle Pt.2

Keep storming heaven with prayer. It seems to be working! Read the update here .