In the Mood!

I had to share this picture and video from Eric's big concert last weekend.

In the video of the Jazz Band from University High School, Eric is the cool cat in the shades. What a blessing to watch your child do something they love so much - you can see the big smile on his face in the video. He was having a blast.

During the course of the evening, Eric played with the wind ensemble, the Orchestra and the Jazz Band. One of the highlights of the night was the finale, where all 405 students from University High School took the stage to perform together. It was amazing!

Change can be a difficult thing, especially for mothers. When Eric decided to transfer high schools, I will admit I had a lot of fear and trepidation about the move. But watching him this weekend and seeing the sheer joy that he had being among his peers and making such lovely music, I am convinced we made the right decision. It's been a big change in the past year going from football pads to a tuxedo, but I'd say Eric is doing just fine with the transition!

Christmas Bracelets Giveway

I'm thrilled to announce our latest giveaway - your chance to win two adorable Christmas bracelets from the wonderful On This Day Designs.

Prizes: 1 winner receives two fun Christmas bracelets from On This Day Designs

How to Enter: To enter, email lisa@catholicmom.com with “Christmas Bracelets Giveaway” in the subject line and be sure to include your complete mailing address. Enter by November 30, 2008

About the Product: Two wonderful cute stretchy bracelets to help commemorate the Christmas season: one has a tiny ceramic St. Nicholas with the words "St. Nick pray for us". It's the perfect reminder for a child that St. Nicholas is the true Santa. A wonderful gift to place in a child's shoe on December 6, the feast of St. Nicholas. The second bracelet celebrates the birth of our Lord Jesus. It's the perfect gift for a child to help remind them why we celebrate Christmas with such joy. Just the right size for a stocking stuffer! This giveaway is sponsored by On This Day Designs

Make Multiplication Magnificent

Thanks to Vikki for sharing the heads up about a great tool for teachers and parents called "Timez Attack".  It's a great video game that will help your kids learn to love multiplication. 

I remember hearing this game mentioned on the Rosary Army and Greg and Jennifer gave it great reviews.  There is a free Base Version available online to teach your child 2s through 12s and to give you a chance to preview the product.

You can check out the game at BigBrainz.com.  I really wish this tool had been available when my boys were learning multiplication!  If you've used Timez Attack, I'd love to hear your comments!

Multiplication Tables - Flash Player Installation

Workout Tips for Stay-at-Home Parents

I'm getting caught up on a whole bunch of backed up email today, so expect a few blog posts to be coming your way! With Nana here, I've been too busy having fun to blog!

One of my favorite daily emails comes from SparkPeople.com - this email today seemed to be a good one to share here:

Workout Tips for Stay-at-Home Parents

When you're running a household that includes young children and teens, it can be hard to get away for a workout.

If you're desperate for fitness but can't seem to find the time, all you need is some planning and a little creativity. Here are some tips for parents with children and teens:

1. Exercise with your kids. If your kids are old enough, let them bike while you run or rollerblade. Hiking makes for a fun family activity that keeps everyone shape. Or, create a fitness course in the backyard, complete with jump rope, jumping jacks, and pushup stations.

2. Purchase some exercise videos. Yoga, Pilates, low-impact aerobics, and kickboxing can all be done on your living room floor with little or no equipment. Before you buy, rent a few from your local video store or check them out from the library to see which ones you like.

3. Improvise. If you miss your aerobics class because of a marathon naptime, pop in an exercise video or do lunges in the backyard with the baby monitor hooked to your pants. Don't stress if you don't get that perfect workout in every time. With exercise, doing some is always better than doing none.

4. Most importantly, put exercise on your "to-do" list. Make it a priority. If that means getting up an hour early for a run, then set the alarm and go for it. You'll benefit in countless ways, plus you'll be a happier, more peaceful parent for your kids.

Catholic Moments #77 - Weight Issues and An Attitude of Gratitude

This week, Lisa shares double the fun with two interviews: Ruby Gettinger is the star of "Ruby", a new television show that chronicles her lifelong battle with morbid obesity. Sue Lundquist is the author of the I'm Thankful journal, a tool for helping our families build an attitude of thankfulness. Deacon Tom Fox shares a stirring reflection entitled "The Struggle of Parenting" filled with encouraging words for parents. Share your feedback at 206-339-9272, comment here on the blog or email lisa@catholicmom.com.

Links for this episode:
Ruby
Sue Lundquist - I'm Thankful website, I'm Thankful Journal
Man's Search for Meaning by Viktor E. Frankl
The Catholic Company
Lisa's Facebook Profile, Plurk, Twitter
Catholic Mom Logo Store

Click here to listen to Catholic Moments #77

Subscribe to the feed | Subscribe with iTunes

Mommy and Me

Nana arrives today! I always love welcoming my mom to town, despite the fact that somehow I am traditionally running around the night before she arrives, trying to make my home look halfway decent.

Her guest room adjoins my office, and is frequently the "spill over" space for all of my projects, books waiting to be reviewed, items to be donated and anything else that doesn't have a home. So on the eve of her arrival, I can usually be found moving stacks around, sorting, dusting and cleaning. It makes me happy to do these otherwise hated tasks in anticipation of her arrival though, because I want everything to be just right when she gets here (or at least not as chaotic as it usually is!)

So last night, I was running back and forth between cleaning and watching the events of the evening unfold. I thought John McCain's speech was very gracious, and I'm going to follow the marching orders he gave us in his words of concession:

"join me in not just congratulating [Obama], but offering our next president our good will and earnest effort to find ways to come together to find the necessary compromises to bridge our differences and help restore our prosperity, defend our security in a dangerous world, and leave our children and grandchildren a stronger, better country than we inherited."

As for the election of our new President Obama, I was inspired watching the crowds in Grant Park listen to his speech. I found the following section of his remarks to be the ones that will spur me to action:

The road ahead will be long. Our climb will be steep. We may not get there in one year or even in one term. But, America, I have never been more hopeful than I am tonight that we will get there.

I promise you, we as a people will get there.

There will be setbacks and false starts. There are many who won't agree with every decision or policy I make as president. And we know the government can't solve every problem.

But I will always be honest with you about the challenges we face. I will listen to you, especially when we disagree. And, above all, I will ask you to join in the work of remaking this nation, the only way it's been done in America for 221 years -- block by block, brick by brick, calloused hand by calloused hand.

What began 21 months ago in the depths of winter cannot end on this autumn night.

This victory alone is not the change we seek. It is only the chance for us to make that change. And that cannot happen if we go back to the way things were.

It can't happen without you, without a new spirit of service, a new spirit of sacrifice.

So let us summon a new spirit of patriotism, of responsibility, where each of us resolves to pitch in and work harder and look after not only ourselves but each other.

Coincidentally, after I voted and dropped Adam off at school yesterday, I found myself at Catholic Charities delivering our canned goods. Lined up in front of the door were families, desperate for the single free sack of food they receive from the organization. The reality of their situation tore at my heart as I recognized the broad cross section of folks there - no stereotypes, just people just like you and me who are feeling the weight of these tough times. It made me ask myself what I am doing personally, daily, to respond to Jesus' call to feed the hungry and to clothe the naked. I hope we can all respond to President Obama's call to "look after not only ourselves but each other" in as many little ways as possible. I hope that these can be words that not only inspire, but that more importantly motivate us to real action.

Have I RSVP'd?

In today's gospel passage, in the Parable of the Great Feast, Jesus shares the story of a master who threw a great dinner and invited many.  Unfortunately, when the time came, those who were invited came up with convenient excuses why they could not answer the call - "I'm too busy" or "My spouse won't let me" are modern ways to paraphrase the lame excuses given. 

So the master turned and extended his invitation to those who wouldn't have exactly been the first on his guest list, casting the net ever wider and swearing that the first invited guests would never taste a morsel of the fabulous dinner.

Every day, Jesus invites me to the heavenly feast of eternal salvation and to true Communion with God in the Eucharist.  How often do I make up excuses to avoid answering his invitation?  I want to go to the feast - but have I RSVP'd to Jesus lately that being with Him and replying to his call is my top priority?

Also today, we celebrate St. Charles Borromeo, the patron saint of bishops, seminarians, catechists, and catechumens.  Let's pray today for the shepherds of our Church and for those of us who learn from them - may our hearts be open to hear their teachings and to answer Jesus' invitation to the great feast!

USCCB - (NAB) - November 4, 2008

Serving without Repayment

I think Jesus might have been speaking to moms as well as Pharisees in today's readings when he said to those gathered:

“When you hold a lunch or a dinner,
do not invite your friends or your brothers or sisters
or your relatives or your wealthy neighbors,
in case they may invite you back and you have repayment.
Rather, when you hold a banquet,
invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind;
blessed indeed will you be because of their inability to repay you.
For you will be repaid at the resurrection of the righteous.”

How many times a day do we find ourselves serving those in our lives and wondering if they notice it or why they don't thank us?  If I'm being honest with myself, I have to admit to those small feelings of not being appreciated that bubble over into big feelings at times.  But today's readings should be validation for any mom that we are called to truly serve our families, to give them our very best, and to do so humbly.  In fact, in today's first reading today we hear:

"Do nothing out of selfishness or out of vainglory;
rather, humbly regard others as more important than yourselves,
each looking out not for his own interests,
but also everyone for those of others."

Most of us moms will never be missionaries, saints, or doctors of the Church.  But we're so very lucky that every day we have the opportunity in our own homes to respond directly to Jesus' call and to do so for the people we love most in this world. 

Lord, grant me the attitude today to serve my family humbly and, in doing so, to show you my love.

USCCB - (NAB) - November 3, 2008

Shopping Reminder

As we enter the Christmas shopping season, I hope you will consider making your online purchases through CatholicMom.com. Please look for the links at CatholicMom.com or on the right sidebar here at the blog - your purchases at Amazon.com and The Catholic Company help pay the expenses for this site and enable me to keep dedicating my time to it. Thanks, as always, for your support and prayers!

Does Praise Add Pressure?

I'd love to know what you think about this article entitled Want to build your child's self-esteem from the fabulous CERC website. It's premise is that we, as parents, need to be very careful about the way we give feedback to our children to assure that we do not set them up for disappointment or low self-esteem if they do not measure up to all they think we want for them to be.

I fear I've fallen short a bit in this area, as one who's pretty regular at praising her sons for their accomplishments. The article suggests a more refined praise paradigm:

Praise, then and now

OLD

You're brilliant.
You're a great hockey player.
You're smart.
You're so talented.
You're a great colourer.
You're a good artist.

NEW

I really like the way you tried all different ways and found one that worked.
I'm really happy for you -- you worked really hard on the ice today.
I like the way you took on a hard task. I like the way you stuck to it.
You're stretching yourself. You're trying new things.
I like the way you used colours.
That drawing makes me happy. Tell me about it.

So what do you think? I'm fairly certain our parents praised us regularly, and I don't think my self-esteem didn't suffer too greatly.

p.s. Is anyone aware of the trend towards "potty-training parties" mentioned at the end of the article? I must have missed that one!

Book Resource:

Happy All Saints Day!

Today's readings remind us of the importance of living a life of purity, a life aimed at our ultimate goal - to someday see the face of God in heaven. We have such a vast number of saints who have gone before us, giving us wonderful examples of how to live this life towards that end.

I love it that our saints come in so many shapes and sizes: priests and popes, moms and daughters. Each of the saints walked his or her own path to sainthood, and some stumbled and fell along those paths just as you and I do. Knowing that, and knowing Christ's perfect love for me, helps me to pick myself up and continue my own journey on the many days when I fall so short of being all that the beatitudes call us to be.

“Blessed are the poor in spirit,
for theirs is the Kingdom of heaven.
Blessed are they who mourn,
for they will be comforted.
Blessed are the meek,
for they will inherit the land.
Blessed are they who hunger and thirst for righteousness,
for they will be satisfied.
Blessed are the merciful,
for they will be shown mercy.
Blessed are the clean of heart,
for they will see God.
Blessed are the peacemakers,
for they will be called children of God.
Blessed are they who are persecuted for the sake of righteousness,
for theirs is the Kingdom of heaven.
Blessed are you when they insult you and persecute you
and utter every kind of evil against you falsely because of me.
Rejoice and be glad,
for your reward will be great in heaven.”

USCCB - (NAB) - November 1, 2008

To Teach for November

My favorite resource from the USCCB, To Teach, is now available for November and December.  The online magazine offers suggestions for principals, teachers, and parents to bring faith into our homes and classrooms.  I love many of their suggestions for November and know you will too!

To Teach November 2008

What's for Dinner on Halloween

In case you're like me and don't have little ones to take out trick or treating tonight, I thought you might enjoy this article with ideas for a special themed dinner party.  It even gives me a good excuse to carve a pumpkin or two!  What are you doing tonight or this weekend to celebrate? 

A Dinner Party for Allhallows Eve - FamilyTime.com -

Catholic Charities Needs Us

For my Fresno friends, I want to share the following email I received which is a big call to action from our friends at Catholic Charities. For those living in other parts of the country, I'm relatively certain that your local Catholic Charities offices are likely in the same dire straights. Can you help out in your area with an immediate donation? Now, TODAY, is a great time to help!

I am emailing you today to enlist your support for two of Catholic Charities food drives. Without these food drives, Catholic Charities states that they cannot keep up with the demands that they are facing every day at the Fulton Street site.

Typically they feed 40 families a day; they are now feeding over 140 families. They have had to reduce hours of operation; otherwise they will simply run out of food. Catholic Charities serves all of those in need, regardless of their religion, race, etc. In fact, over 70% of those who walk through the doors are not Catholic- they just have a great need.

We have been asked to spread the word, come visit us, and more importantly bring canned goods to either of these events listed below- THEY NEED OUR SUPPORT.

The first event is this Saturday and Sunday Nov.1-2 at the corner of Blackstone/Shaw. The Catholic Charities truck will be parked there from 8:00a.m.-7:00p.m.

The next event Nov. 13-16 at River Park. A Mayflower Truck will be there for the 4 days, 24 hours each day.

They are working on securing a radio/tv station to broadcast live to build some excitement and awareness in the community. River Park has challenged all Fresno/Clovis High Schools to a Food Challenge. The High School that brings in the most canned goods during Nov 3-7 will be presented with a check for $1000, which will be given to them during our kick-off ceremony on Nov. 13th.

If you are looking to do something to help this a great chance to make a difference. Please spread the word and come out and support Catholic Charities. EVERY CAN COUNTS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Want a Text from BXVI?

We have text messaging blocked on our family cell phones, but if we didn't I might be tempted to check out this service from Catholic Mobile where you can receive daily text messages containing the words of the Holy Father.

If you're looking to use your cell phone as a spiritual tool, you may want to check it out. Somehow, I doubt seriously that Pope Benedict XVI even knows how to text, so I'm sure he has no involvement with this project, but I do love to see Catholics looking to use creative means to spread the faith.  The charge for this particular service is $4.99 per month. 

Catholic Mobile · Want to try?

Calling All Catholic Writers!

Catholic Writers to Hold Online Conference
World Wide Web--Writers, editors, agents, and other publishing professionals from around the world are gearing up for the second annual Catholic Writers’ Conference Online, which will be held February 2-9, 2009. Sponsored by the Catholic Writer’s Guild and the Extraordinary Moms Network, the online conference is free of charge and open to writers of all levels who register by January 15.

Last year’s conference drew over 300 participants and had more than 30 editors and writing professionals from all over the country presenting. Here's what attendees had to say:

"Gas prices are high. Writers' conferences are out of reach. CWC met my need! Write ON!" Jewel Sample, author of Flying Hugs and Kisses, and Flying Hugs and Kisses Activity Book (jewelsamples.blogspot.com).

"This conference … moved beyond practical concerns of writers and revealed the creative union between writing and faith, establishing it as a source of endless inspiration. As writers, we all want to feel good about what we write. The CWCO helped to show us how." Kate Wicker, “Momopoly” (www.katewicker.com).

"If ever a newbie writer on the scene needed an added boost of confidence, input, and tips, the Catholic Writer's Conference Online was the place for them to camp out for the week. I learned so much and enjoyed being in an arena that was friendly for all who want to share the Catholic faith. Thanks for the great week of advice, information, and meeting new people." Elizabeth Weidner, “A Catholic Mum Climbing the Pillars”

“We were very happy with the caliber of publishing professionals who volunteered to participate in the last conference,” says event co-chair Heidi Hess Saxton, author and founder of Extraordinary Moms Network. “There was a nice mix of fiction and non-fiction as well as book and magazine publishing represented. Something for everyone … and you can’t beat the price!”

"On-line conferences cross economic and political boundaries. We can reach Catholic writers who normally wouldn't have a chance to meet, much less learn from, successful writers, editors and publishers. Plus, the faith-sharing is phenomenal," said Karina Fabian, author of the Catholic science fiction anthology Infinite Space, Infinite God and President of the Catholic Writers' Guild.

Early registration is recommended. Although the conference is offered free of charge, donations are accepted; proceeds will go toward future conferences. To register or for more information, go to http://www.catholicwritersconference.com.

Quitting is for Wimps

I wanted to point you to a post I have up today over at Productivity @ Home where I share a fun video featuring someone who didn't quit when the going got tough - his name is Lance Armstrong.

It's very funny that I wrote this particular blog post on Sunday evening, not knowing how badly I'd need to read my own words today about not giving up.

I was at the gym this morning, for a light workout with my good friend Mara. I'm feeling pretty good after last week's biopsy, so an easy walk on the treadmill seemed like a reasonable workout. While I was there, I figured I'd try to do a few pushups (girlie style, of course!) and assisted pullups (with a lot of assistance). Dumb idea! With Coach Greg's help, I'd worked up a few weeks ago to being able to do quite a few of these. But I haven't done them for two weeks now, and the result today was pretty dismal.

I thought to myself, "Why even bother for the next month?" even though my small surgery is not scheduled until November 24th! Nice attitude Lisa! The point isn't doing pushups/pullups, it's putting things off until "it's more convenient". Do you ever fall into that trap?

Well, thankfully Mara my workout buddy was there and she has a tremendous ability to make walking on the treadmill fun for me - it's great to have someone to talk with when you're walking in circles! I took a few moments to remind myself to go easy on myself, but not to quit my trips to the gym entirely for the next month. Even easy walks and bike rides are great for me, both mentally and emotionally!

I'm not sure why I'm sharing this here, other than just to say that if you feel like quitting something today, no matter what it is, take a few moments to watch that Lance video and it might put a few things in perspective for you. It's often easy to put things off or to quit altogether, but it feels so good when you persevere and offer it all up to God, letting Him know you're doing it out of love for Him.

In today's first reading, we hear one of my all time favorite verses:

I am confident of this,
that the one who began a good work in you
will continue to complete it
until the day of Christ Jesus.

Remembering that I am continually a "work in progress" waiting to be completed is truly a blessing, and a good enough reason today not to give up!

Productivity @ Home: Never Give Up, Never Surrender

As a Mom of teenage boys...

I have to thank Lisa Wheeler for bringing my attention to Skank-o-ween 2008: The Sexualization of Children by Kristen Fyfe. 

I've been complaining to my girlfriends about this topic for the past few years, so it's nice to have some well-written validation of my point.  Girls these days seem to be exposed to risque fashion at a younger and younger age every year - I applaud those moms and dads who are helping their children stay CHILDLIKE for as long as possible. 

The book referenced in this article is So Sexy So Soon: The New Sexualized Childhood and What Parents Can Do to Protect Their Kids
by Diane Levin.

Skank-o-ween 2008: The Sexualization of Children

Medical Update

Hi all! Just a quick note to say that I'm already home from my appointment this morning with the surgeon - you've got to love doctors' offices who get you in on time and out quickly!!

It was a good appointment. She feels that the best step at this point is to do an outpatient surgery to remove a small area, so we have that scheduled for the 24th. The surgery shouldn't be anything too difficult and I'm sure the hardest part will be fasting beforehand (does this get me out of Ash Wednesday?)

After the surgery and the resulting lab diagnostics, I will likely be meeting with an Oncologist for a consultation. Just to reiterate, this is not cancer, but rather sort of a pre-cancer diagnosis, so I'm optimistic that things should be resolved very soon and with great results.

Thanks to all of you for your prayers and support. Now let me know how I can pray for you to return the favor!

Inspiring Interview

I had the most inspiring telephone interview this morning with Ruby Gettinger, the "star" of a new reality show on the Style Network based on her efforts to get healthy. I will be writing up a full review of the interview, and will also be sharing it on the podcast, but for now I just wanted to let you know a bit about Ruby and her show.

Ruby has weighed in as high as 700 pounds, and when the show started recording she weighed approximately 500 pounds. She bravely opened up her life and her journey to cameras, who have been documenting her efforts. The show will debut on Sunday, November 9th but I was lucky enough to prescreen the first episode.

It came to my attention through Mary Kochan of Catholic Exchange, based on Ruby's faith commitments. Although she's not Catholic, Ruby is a Christian with a strong faith that she's definitely called upon to see her through this journey.

The interview made me realize that this show truly has two purposes - the first is to inspire those who have been diagnosed with morbid obesity that losing a healthy amount of weight in a healthy fashion will save your life. The second, and perhaps as equally important, message of the show is that we should look at people for who they truly are, not what they look like on the outside. We, as a society, desperately need to stop judging and abusing people who struggle with addictions. As Ruby pointed out, those addicted to food wear their addictions on the outside, where they are obvious to others. They need our prayers, not our humiliating remarks or unkind stares.

I will keep you posted on the Ruby interview and my Catholic Exchange article, but in the mean time, feel free to head over to www.RubysJourney.com and start learning more about her. There is an active message board that is filled with all types of people and looks pretty inspirational.

Ruby - The Inspirational Weight Loss Journey on the Style Network