SharonAndAdam.com

My Babies are getting older

My little girls turn another year older this month. Gianna turned 4 last Wednesday and Cecilia turns 2 on Tuesday. The girls had their first party today and we all had a great time celebrating with family and friends and friends that are like family. Gianna wanted something in the princess  genre and Cecilia still can’t talk so I chose duckies for her. I made a princess pinata that made my little girl smile and found some great cake ideas.

The big gift hit his year was Calico Critters and the Woodsland animals. Gianna finally has something that is hers and that  her siblings like and want too. After months of watching her siblings play with cars and not share, Cecilia now has her own daisy car of her own that she absolutely loves!

Baby G VII on the way!

Today on this most blessed feast of the nativity of our Blessed Mother, she gave us the gift of seeing our new baby having a party in my womb! Baby G VII is on his or her way. Baby G is a healthy 10.5 weeks old and due April 2,the Monday of Holy Week(and anniversary of the death of John Paul II).

It has been a rough 6 weeks since we found out about our newest blessing. My progesterone levels continue to be low, but I am on the maximum dose of progesterone supplement at this time. I had some spotting that has thankfully passed. I have been really tired and mildly nauseous which are always good signs.

The children are very excited to welcome a new brother or sister. They have ridden the roller coaster of scares for the future of their sibling and risen to every moment in joining us in prayers for a healthy baby. Fulton is advocating for a brother to share his room with someday. The girls would be happy with another princess.

Please pray for us and God’s holy will for our family.

Our Lady of Guadalupe, pray for us.
St. Gerard, pray for us.
St. Gianna, pray for us.
Bl. John Paul II, pray for us.
All holy men and women, pray for us!

Summer Family Update

It’s just not easy to update the world on our lives when there are so many little lives to look after.

The kids are loving the pool. Fulton will finally put his face in the water thanks to the motivating water slide. Muffin is learning to swim with a nifty little swim aid that I originally got for Cecilia. Therese is still going strong and realized she can swim the whole length of the pool. Cecilia is usually a handful so I often leave her with Adam when she’s napping and he’s working from home, but she’s getting a lot better and doesn’t scream anymore.

Adam and I took a month of dance lessons with a gift certificate he gave me for my birthday. It was so great and I highly recommend it! We learned the Argentinian tango, Vienesse waltz, East Coast swing and jitterbug, and the West Coast swing. We were able to make the lessons four night of the week thanks to our generous friends who watched the kids. We’re still amatuers but we can get around on the dance floor.

Cecilia is still a little girl of few spoken words but many many signs and many smiles. We’ve had visits from a developmental therapist since mid-July. In that time she has gained only a few more sounds and words, but she can sign so many words that it is easy for her to communicate and any frustration is minimal. Next week we have a speech therapist coming out to observe and perhaps we’ll have a better sence what is going on.

We started school last week. It is a full time job for me but so far so good. Therese is now a 3rd grader and Fulton is starting first grade. It is so interesting to see how different they are and how opposite their gifts and talents. Fulton is definitely the math whiz while Therese is the English and reading star. Both are very talented and capable but certainly have their preferences. We school four days a week and leave one day for make up projects, playdates or field trip. Our extra curriculars at home are botany for science, Latin for our language and art appreciation. At least for Latin and art, Gianna can also participate. When we get more into the hands-on of our botany, she’ll be able to do more with us. Between 8am and 4pm I really only have a two hour break from noon to 2…so if you don’t hear much from us, that’s why! The kids are also participating in the Christian Choral Society of Austin. Muffin gets to go to class this year and she is loving it. She so wants to be doing everything her siblings are doing, but I’m not ready for her to be in kindergarten yet!

Family Vacation Days 5-9: Indiana

We are blessed that we know so many married and single people that have joyfully given their lives to God in their vocations and we get to spend so much time with them in our daily lives. But it’s rare for many of us to be given the gift of spending a lot of time with priests and religious who have given their life over to God. And the time we were in Indiana with Adam’s family and Sr. Maria Kolbe was truly a gift. What I admire most of Adam’s parents are that they raised 5 children who all love and practice their faith. And there is a different love and joy that comes with being around some one who has joyfully become a bride of Christ. I always get that same feeling when we visit with the Sisters of Mary here in Austin, but to spend 5 days with one them was continual bliss for all the family! Fulton especially was loving all over Sr. Maria Kolbe. It was very cute!

So Friday was the Feast of the Sacred Heart of Jesus. All the family went to noon Mass at St. Boniface and then to the rectory for lunch with Fr. Tim, Fr. Gustavo, and Fr. Jeff. Turns out Fr. Jeff went to seminary with some of the priests we know in Austin. Small world. Then the Sister, Grandma, Grandpa and the older kids went to watch Cars 2. Adam and I took the younger kids to candy store for ice cream and then we picked up some stuff to make our traditional Sacred eart Cookies!

Saturday, Adam, Sister and I went to spend an hour with Jesus. Then all the family met up at one of Adam’s aunt’s homes for the Gretencord reunion. Lots of kids and lots of fun. Adam’s only surviving grandparent, his Grandma Lucile Gretencord was there. She’s 96 years old and a gem!

Sunday, after Mass and brunch, the Datzmans (Adam’s Mom’s side of the family) went to the farm for dinner. Then we went to his grandfather’s farm to watch and set off some fireworks. Muffin fell asleep and completely missed them. Cecilia was afraid of them. For me the most memorable part was watching the fireflies light up all the corn fields. God’s fireworks are most beautiful.

Monday, I needed to take a rest, but Adam, the kids and his parents went to the Fair Oaks dairy farm. Definitely not organic or grass fed free grazing cows, but the kids enjoyed it and I got some honey butter and cheese curds out of it! It was also the 4th of July and the feast of Bl. Pier Giorgio Frassati…a favorite not only of Sr. Maria Kolble, but of ours. Sister and Adam’s other sister Mary, made an Italian feast in his honor–Lasagna and a cake decorated with the Dominican shield since Bl. Pier Giorgio was a 3rd order Dominican (the lay order).

Tuesday was our last day there and Adam and I got away for a few hours on a date. We went to watch Transformers 3. Then we met up with his mom and the kids at the local pool and took the kids swimming for a couple of hours. Fr. Tim join us all for supper at the farm.

Family Vacation Days 1-4: Missouri

This year’s family vacation centered around visiting Adam’s family in Indiana. His sister, Sister Maria Kolbe, had a home visit from June 30-July 5.  Over all it was a great trip even though I was sick from day 1 and am still trying to get over my illness.

We left Monday morning, June 27, and despite small bladders we made it to our first stop in Springfield, Missouri. We were hoping to get there in time to get a tour of Honey Heaven, a little bistro with a live bee hive.  We didn’t, but instead went to the original Bass Pro Shop! I have never been in one. The kids quite enjoyed it and it was a fun little excursion as we wound down from a day of driving. I even picked up some camo pjs while I was there.

On Tuesday we went to Honey Heaven, saw some bees and picked up some yummy raw alfalfa honey, orange blossom honey and apple butter.  Our camera’s memory card died while we were there and we had to go get a new one so we lost all the pictures from the Bass Pro Shop and Honey Heaven. After getting a new camera, we headed out for our next destination, Mansfield. “What’s in the little town of Mansfield?” you might ask. Mansfield is the home of Laura Ingalls Wilder! We enjoyed of tour of her homes and museum and the kids got to knock on “Laura’s door.” I know all of you kindred spirits out there would have enjoyed this.

Off to our next destination, St. Louis. Wednesday morning we went on a tour of the Anheuser-Busch Brewery. Impressive. They also gave complementary drinks after our 9 a.m. tour. It’s the earliest I’ve ever had beer in my life! Afterward, we left to visit the Gateway Arch. We rode the tram up to the top. We visited the Museum of Westward Expansion. We zipped off to Grant’s Farm after lunch. More free beer thanks to Anheuser-Busch…all we had to pay was parking.

Thursday was our pilgrimage day. We went to the Cathedral-Basilica of St. Louis. It’s a must see if you’re in the area. They claim to have the largest collection of mosaics second to St. Peter’s. It’s architecture is Byzantine on the inside and Romanesque on the outside. They had a papal flag of Bl. Pope John Paul II and we visited the chapel where he prayed when he stopped there. We went to noon Mass and then off to our next pilgrimage site, The National Shrine of Our Lady of the Snows in Bellville, IL, a short 20 minute drive from the Cathedral. We had our picnic lunch and visited a few of the outdoor grottoes. It’s pretty but definitely a 180 from the traditional architecture of the Cathedral. From there we headed to Indiana. We stopped for dinner in Effingham, IL. Our friend’s family owns a restaurant there, The Neimerg Restaurant,  and we stopped in to check it out. Tasty.

We finally rolled into the windmill filled country side of Indiana and to Gretencord farm at 10 p.m.