Archive for » June, 2007 «

Engine Dropped

26 Jun 2007 by Adam

The engine has been removed…

Vespa Engine dropped

… and tear-down is complete… or as far as I need to go anyway.
Vespa Engine piston

I was expecting to have to crack the engine case apart to replace all the seals. However, the flywheel-side looks really good. I can only assume the clutch side is the same since there wasn’t any gas in the transmission oil. There is however a leak at the rear-hub seal that resulted in the rear-brake drum being bathed in oil. That will have to replaced, but thankfully can be done without any further tear-down.

I have quite a few parts to replace that are either damaged or missing. It’s a bit of a challenge to find them but it’s a fun one at that. I’m postponing any body repair for the immediate future. The guys at American Scooter Center (they rock by the way) swear by 3M’s Rubbing Compound to bring back a nice finish to a weathered frame. We’ll see how it looks when I have time to get around to polishing it.

Oh yeah, another important item for the garage is one of these. $30 on Craigslist. Score!
Workbench

Category: Vespa  One Comment

Inspired by the Kitchen Angels…

25 Jun 2007 by Sharon

…I’ve spent a good portion of the last three days cooking…and cooking…and cooking.

Although Adam reminded me that we still have about two and half months before Baby G’s arrival, I wasn’t sure if I’d be so inspired to cook later this summer.  God has been so gracious in blessing us with a mild and rainy summer so far.  So I thought I’d take advantage of these days indoor with Therese, my helper, and Fulton, my napper, and some good sales at the grocery store. 

I was able to make about 15 meals and I’ll probably make a couple more tomorrow.  Maybe I’m insane, or nesting early, or just prepared. Take your pick.  I’ll just rest better (if I can stop dreaming of boiling beans) that Adam and the kids will have food to eat when I’m at the hospital.

Oh, and by the way, since only two people–who live out of state–responded to the request for recipes.  They will both get gelato when they visit.  (Fr. Tim, I guess you’re going to have a very “Italian” visit with your chocolate gelato and riding around on the Vespa!  And Kim F., I’ll think of something fun to send you if you’re not going to be dropping by Austin any time soon. ;) )

Category: Family  2 Comments

Pascual and the Kitchen Angels

25 Jun 2007 by Sharon

Tomie dePaola has recently become one of my and Therese’s favorite children’s authors.  He’s a great illustrator, and he also writes many Catholic books about the saints. 

Our most recent find at the library is Pascual and the Kitchen Angels about St. Pascual and how God had found him so special that He always sent angels to help him throughout his life. Pascual ends up at the monestary of St. Francis because he wanted to feed the hungry, but he was put to cook in the kitchen. He hadn’t the first clue of how to even boil water. Then he kneeled and prayed and God sent angels to cook for him. The other friars never let him go out with them to feed the hungry because they think he was too busy cooking. One day they peek in on him to find out how he cooks such delicious meals and see the angels. And from then on they let him go with them to feed those in need.

This has been a great book for our family as it has given us a way to relate to Therese what Pascual wanted to do with why we feed the homeless. Therese sees the importance of her part of making the sack lunches for the homeless that we carry in the car–and many times she asks to make more after we read this book. Even though she’d deny it, she’s a little kitchen angel herself.

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Embryonic Stem-cell Research Taking Hits

20 Jun 2007 by Adam

Thank the Maker he did it again. It’s my hope the nation will wake up and realize the fact that embryonic stem-cell research is going nowhere while adult stem cells are saving people’s lives today without any ethical complications.

Our great state of Texas has recognized this truth thanks to the great lobbying efforts of the Texas Alliance for Life. From a recent email update dated 6/20/07:

For the first time in the history of Texas, the General Appropriations Bill, HB 1, has line-item funding promoting lifesaving adult stem cell treatments and research. (This was a major goal of Texas Alliance for Life.) The legislature has appropriated $5 million for adult stem cell treatments and research. $4 million is to save lives with stem cells found in umbilical cord blood, a rich source. The money will be used for collecting the cord blood at hospitals across Texas and storing those adult stem cells in a public bank such as the Texas Cord Blood Bank in San Antonio. There will be no cost to the birth mothers. Those stem cells will be available for treating patients with diseases such as cancer and sickle cell anemia in Texas and beyond. Another $1 million will go towards research to find more treatments using adult stem cells at a Texas research institution, such as the MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston.

However, there’s still a lot of work to be done when we’re continuing to hear messages like this:

“This is just one example of how the president puts ideology before science, politics before the needs of our families, just one more example of how out of touch with reality he and his party have become,” said Sen. Hillary Clinton of New York, a leading candidate for the Democratic presidential nomination, at a candidates’ forum Wednesday.

Boy does my stomach churn whenever this woman opens her mouth and spews forth such nonsense as this – and should she happen to become the next president (heaven forbid) I’m looking at an ulcer.

  1. Should science always trump ideologies?
  2. There is nothing “political” about this so-called “issue”. Innocent human lives are being destroyed. The ends do not justify the means.
  3. It throws me for a loop where the president is quickly accused of not looking out for the needs of the families, as if embryonic stem-cell research is the only hope for finding new cures.
  4. Finally, I’d be interested to hear from someone such as this who promotes relative and subjective truths – what is “reality”?
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Bubbles

19 Jun 2007 by Adam

Sometimes it’s more fun to let kids figure things out on their own.


Category: Family, Fun  6 Comments

Blackberry Picking

11 Jun 2007 by Sharon

We took a trek today back to Sweet Berry Farm in Marble Falls for some blackberry picking with our friend Mrs. Nicholson.  It’s not too late.  There are plenty of berries waiting to ripen just a bit more.  And it’s a steal for $2.75 per pound–far far less expensive than buying at the supermarket. 

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One thing I didn’t know about blackberries was that they grow on thorny bushes.  So the farm had some leather gloves for pickers to wear (as you can see from the picture above).  Of course our brave little berry picking Therese had no need of gloves and no fear of the thorns or bugs. 

blackberries-005.jpg

 Fulton, thankfully, sat quietly by watching and taste-testing the berries for us.

blackberries-006.jpg

We finished picking around noon and the kids were famished.  So Mrs. Nicholson recommended a great little restaurant called the Bluebonnet Cafe.  It’s on Hwy 281 about a block south of FM 1431.  It’s great “homecooking” at great prices, and they have mighty yummy homemade pies!

Tomorrow we’ll try freezing some berries and baking a berry cobbler. 

Category: Fun  One Comment

More Doooouuuugggghhhhnuts!

11 Jun 2007 by Sharon

Adam has been bragging for the last 6 years of the homemade doughnuts his family made when he was a boy.  This weekend the kids and Adam had the pleasure of making and devouring over a dozen doughnuts!  It’s amazing what joy and bonding you can bring to three kids with a couple of cans of biscuits, a pop top, deep fryer, and cinnamon-sugar!

 doughnuts-001.jpg

doughnuts-002.jpg

Category: Family  2 Comments

Fr. James’s First Mass

10 Jun 2007 by Sharon

Today we were blessed to attend the first Mass of Thanksgiving of newly ordained Fr. James Misko! Fr. Jamie was ordained yesterday morning along with two others from our diocese.

I fondly remember the first time I started going to daily Mass at St. Louis–and ever since then–we would always pray for vocations to the priesthood and especially for James Misko. And as I think of it now, St. Louis is the only local parish we’ve ever gone to that specifically prayed for its seminarians by name. That close connection filled the church this morning.

The Mass was incredible as it should be for the feast of Corpus Christi. For St. Louis it was the equivalent of a Christmas Mass or Easter Vigil–full choir, organ and trumpets. It was beautiful.

The opening hymn was “O God Beyond All Praising.” It’s one of our favorite hymns. In particular it has always been a source of strength in my vocation perhaps because we also used it in our wedding Mass. But it has always seemed fitting to me as a beautiful song to use as one enters into a new state in life whether it be a change in vocation, bearing the sufferings or joys of your vocation, or entering into eternal life with our Lord. The words say it all:

O God beyond all praising we worship You today.
We sing a love amazing that words cannot repay.
For we can only wonder at every gift You send,
At blessings without number and mercies without end.
We raise our hearts before You and wait upon Your word.
We honor and adore You our great and mighty Lord.

Then hear O gracious Savior, accept the love we bring
That we who know Your favor may serve You as our King.
And whether our tomorrows be filled with good or ill,
We’ll triumph through our sorrows and rise to bless You still.
We marvel at Your beauty and wonder in Your ways
We make our joyful duty this sacrifice of praise!

Category: Faith  2 Comments

Thank you!

09 Jun 2007 by Sharon

Thank you to all of you who sponsored us for the Walk for Life!  As of last night, we raised $3,120!!!  We were a little worried there until the last few days when so many of you generously came through! We now have a larger goal to strive for next year!

The kids had a blast.  Perhaps the highlight was the fun straws at the water station and the cookies for desert at lunch time.  Thanks also to the Cey family for sharing the stroller–especially little Clare.  Thanks also for Texas Alliance for Life and all they do to defend and protect human life. 

Category: Events, Family  3 Comments

How can you resist…

05 Jun 2007 by Sharon

walkforlife-003.jpgwalkforlife-001.jpg

these cute faces with their cute pro-life t-shirts?  You can’t?!  Great!

The Texas Alliance for Life 2007 Walk is THIS Saturday and we’re still looking for pledges!!

To sponsor us with a one-time, tax-deductible donation, please click here: Sponsor a Walker. (We’re signed up under Therese’s name.) You can make a donation right away via a credit card or make a pledge and be billed later–no amount is too small or too large. To join the fun and participate as a walker, click here: Walker Registration. Either way, we hope you will support this worthy cause.We’ll be walking with hundreds of Texans from dozens of churches to promote the sanctity of innocent human life and to raise funds for life-saving programs and agencies in our community.

100% of the proceeds will support peaceful, legal efforts by Texas Alliance for Life to protect mothers and their unborn children and to promote respect for innocent human life. To learn more about them, visit their home page here:  Texas Alliance for Life. All donations are tax-deductible.

Category: Events  2 Comments
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