Snow time and family photos!

I wish I could make a cartoon of my life, because some days, it certainly feels that I am in one cartoon square after another.....

It's taken me two days to find the time to write about a rather hilarious moment in the world of catholicmomma that happened on Sunday.

It snowed.

For the sake of not giving away my "family Christmas photo" and ruin the fun of it all, I'll just post the above photos of two super cute minions in my home.  One of whom is experiencing her first actual snowfall and the other who is just a rookie with two years experience.

They had been predicting this snow for a few weeks.  Actually, I was hoping the European model was more accurate, because it had the other areas other than snow country (south of us) getting up to a foot of snow.

But no such luck was in store for us.  So we had to settle for a few inches of the white stuff.

Alrite, where was I?  Oh yes, Christmas pictures and cartoon life.

I had been contemplating a day when all seven of the children would actually be home at the same time, not napping, not needing a nap, not hungry, not working, not having sports, band, etc (the window is small my friends, very small) and mentioning in passing how I would like to take a family photo of everyone one day soon.  Money is very tight in my home, so the more I can save by "DIY" the better.

Last Friday, it was 71 degrees.  I was so hoping to get them outside in the beautiful fall day and get some cute ones, but of course, as large families go, baby was asleep before oldest had to go to work and it was dark by the time we were all together because it gets dark at 3 pm these days.... (ok, really 5pm, but it feels like midnite by 5 pm)

Saturday I was at a conference all day promoting our women's conference for next year and Saturday night my oldest again had to work.....

See a pattern here?

So, Sunday, while my oldest was at driving school, I had the hair brained idea that getting a photo with them in their snow suits and standing with the Christmas trees in the back would be AWESOME!!!  (disclaimer-they are apparently not called Christmas trees up here, but in fact, are called things from firs to spruce-I know, terribly wrong.  They're Christmas trees...duh...)

Here is what I envisioned...

I've no idea who these people are....

I swear, as I google messed up family snow photos, I am finding NONE.  So apparently, there is a market out there for people to post some pretty messed up outdoor snow pictures and I will not be the first one.  Perhaps that's why there ARE no snowy family epic fail pics as of yet.....

Anyway, it was a train wreck in the making.  If I was good at making cartoons, I would draw a cartoon depicting the entire scenario starting with when the almost 17 year old got home from class and immediately began complaining that her coat was too small....

I knew I was forgetting to order someone something for winter this year.....

Then the fight ensued over the hat my son should wear.  That hat may be permanently MIA.

The middle child said her hair was an oily mess.  (Isn't that what hats were made for??)

The babies were rested and ready, but the wind was blowing so hard it was scaring the youngest one.  

The photo session lasted all of 3.2 minutes with mounds of complaints.  

"My eyes are watering."

"I'm freezing."

"Can we go in?"

"Can we have hot chocolate?"

"Are we done yet?"  (which I quickly corrected and said we are not chicken in an oven....)

Wah, wah, wah, wah. 

And I was the one just wearing a hooded sweatshirt!!  These kids these days!! 

Fortunately, my superhero hubs was outside with us, doing the best to entertain the two Taz's into smiling willingly, but the ultimate photo that was chosen has a rather smirky boy,two squinty teen girls, an overzealouly smiling pre-teen, an 8 year old who FINALLY opened her eyes, a three year old more interested in the snow in the Christmas trees, and a rather devilishly smiling 22 month old.....

All in all a success I think..... you tell me after you receive the card....bahahahahahaha.....

My All Saints Adventure.

Today is a holy day in the Catholic Church.  We honor the Saints in Heaven today. All of us should really be striving to get to Heaven.  I know yesterday I wrote about my disenchantment with my Catholic peeps.  Today, I hope they attended Mass and heard the readings and hopefully listened to a great homily.... I went to www.mycatholic.com and the craziest thing happened! I went to listen to the reflection on  today's readings, just to refresh my brain before I wrote, and lo and behold, the  priest doing the reflection?  IS FROM BUFFALO!!!!

Fr. David Baker?

Click on Fr. David's name!!!!  INSANE!!  But what he says sums  up  today!!!  Truly- a beautiful summary of the readings from Revelation, 1  John, and Matthew!!!  What we all should be striving for!  ALL OF US!!!!!!

So, I took five of the minions to Church this morning.  It was at 8:00 am, at a parish in the town I live in, which to give an idea of the number of parishes I  live "near," I could probably go to around 20 different churches within a 10 mile radius of my house.  I have Catholic surrounding me.  Or so I thought when I moved here.....the truth is in the pudding so to speak.  City-data lists Catholics at 77% here..... 13% where I moved from.  I was sad to discover that  most of the  77% who identity as "Catholic" do so in name only........most do not attend Mass regularly,  and sadly, most do not attend Holy Days of obligation.

But I digress again....if only I could convince them of the healing power of the Eucharist.  They'd never miss Mass....

So it was 8:00am.  A "new" church.  Literally 2-3 miles from my house.....We go in and sit towards the front.  I felt like not doing the  front row today, because despite my children behaving better sitting up front, having to walk out of a new church with a screaming toddler yelling, "no mommy" wasn't exactly on my fun radar today.

Mass was great.  Priest gave a great homily.  Told us we should all be striving for  Heaven.  And if we follow God's commandments, all of them (he added that last part in a serious voice), we should get to Heaven.  It's our hope. It's our prayer. It's our goal.

During the course of  Mass, several exciting things happened.   I'll just make some bullet points...

1. #6 loves singing.  Loves "following along" with the book.  She was singing and  using the book and when it was over, tried to lower the book, and in the process, ripped the page right.out.of.the.book.  Perfectly ripped it out.  I  looked over at my 8th grader and mouthed the  words, 'perfect...'  The 8th grader giggled and took the book and tried her best to make it look like that page never came out..... it sorta worked....

2.  Collection today.  Nothing like a collection basket coming down your row and feeling like a cheap skate.  "oops."  I say to my 8th grader.  Perfect #2.  She giggled some more....

3.  To keep terrorist 1 & 2  occupied, the 8th grader gave them a few envelopes and pencils.  Unfortunately, the tinier of the two terrorists, started doing this insane scribbling thing and preceded to stab herself with the tiny little sharpened weapon, er, I mean pencil in the  process.  This produced a rather loud cry, the intitial, 'crap, momma, that  hurt....' and led into the full blown, 'I think my arm needs to be amputated now,' cry.  It was amazing.  Once again, I look over at the 8th grader and mouthed, 'perfect.'

4. Was the only one once again wearing a veil.  I keep hoping to one day 'run into' a kindred spiritual sister wearing her veil, wrestling with her kids....but I don't.  Pretty sure I'm the only weirdo crazycatholicmomma in the universe.  Some days I'm ok with that, but others, it gets kinda lonely.  Just keep telling myself, "Mary wears a veil.  Want to be like Mary.  The Eucharist is  my focus.  My veil allows me to humble myself (in more ways than one) before my Lord and Savior.....'

5. Mass ended with relatively little debacle after that and I even managed to get my 3rd grader to her school before it even started!  Score one positive for crazycatholicmomma today!

6.  8th grader begged that  I  'take my time' getting to  the middle school.  She didn't want to come back right before the bell rang and wonder where she should go.  So I obliged her by driving through Tim Horton's to get myself a coffee, some donuts, and water for all of them.  She seemed extremely grateful and when we dropped her off, she informed me  that she missed a test today!

Explains her compliance with missing class this morning...................

So that was my All Saints morning.  My oldest attended Mass last night because her volleyball  team has it's semi-final playoffs tonight and my son has to work at our parish as the sacristan during the evening Mass.  Hopefully the super hero hubs remembered to attend Mass at noon today downtown so we can watch the oldest play volleyball.....

It was chaos.  It was exhausting.  But I hope that I'm  setting that example for  my children to see, that even in the chaos, the  busy, the overwhelmed, that it is so important to stop.  Examine what it's important.  And celebrate those who have  gone before us and have "won the fight!"

God bless you today.