Rejoicing always!!

Rejoice in the Lord always!

-Philippians 4:4

It's been a while since my last "Multitudes on Mondays" post - almost a year, but not quite - doh!  I really have missed typing them and sharing them and praying all the way through.  But...  we have not stopped counting.  We are in the 1600's now and my last post was sharing that "we made it" to 1000.  Somedays the kids are much better than I at jotting down the gifts that have come our way.  But, we have all developed a much more grateful heart in both the big and little gifts.  Even our little Pookey (2-1/2 y/o) has expressed his gratitude in the smallest of things, and it just warms my heart hearing him say, "Thank you God for....".  The simple, verbal prayer of "Thank you God for...." or "Lord help me..." was shared by a friend sometime last year and has definitely stuck and now spread to those little ears and hearts in our home.  She shared with me how important it is to pray those silent prayers out loud sometimes to witness our need and dependance on God, especially when it comes to sharing our faith with our little ones.  WOW -was she right!  Thank you God for that wonderful piece of wisdom that was shared with me back then!   

 Onto our "1000 Gifts" - thank you God for these and all gifts received....

(I just used the last couple pages of the journal - it would take me DAYS to get caught up on a summary of gifts from 1000-now)

1594 - Hershey's chocolate candy bar won at Bingo, but then shared amongst the other siblings later

1600 - a husband that leads 

1602 - gifts "masked" - contractions that are hard to keep track of and follow and a sweet wiggly baby

1603 - Neil cleaning and moving around the living room to make room for the swing and porta-crib

1607 - "Hi!  Thank you for the cook-out.  Love - Aunt C."   (from one of my sisters after a weekend weiner roast a couple weeks ago)

1608 - ConQuest for the 3 big boys

Mario, Max, and Fone

1610 - a fireworks show and perfect view from our front yard

1611 - chili!!

1612 - a new purse (a prize that Ariel won at Bingo with her great-grandma)

1613 - a gift of homemade bread made by a sweet friend, not even knowing our own Mario said a few days prior, "Mom, it's been SOOOOOO long ago since you made homemade bread"

1615 - kids ripping apart Dady's shirt (literally!)

1616 - celebrating 100 years of John Deere Harvester and 175 years of the company of John Deere with my parents and sisters

my dad and I

my dad - who has been retired from Deere for almost 3 years now

my 3 sisters, my parents, and my sweet nephew (in the stroller)

1618 - swimming party at my sister's pool during September!  

my mom and Pookey

1619 - little boys playing at grandma's all day, giving me the much needed break to take care of myself and kick up my feet to limit contractions

1620 - failing my 3 hour glucose, but having my sisters encouraging me that everything will be okay

1621 - easy quick meals during this time when I need to "take it easy" and my sister reminding me that this is just a short season in our lives right now and not to feel bad

1623 - beautiful fall weather

1625 - Melody and Ariel playing "The Mad-catter and the Princess"

The Mad-catter (Ariel)

The Princess (Melody)

The Mad-catter attacking the poor Princess

 1626 - kids that jump and help when needed

.....  and still counting!!

Please join me in counting the 1000 Gifts that never end!! 

We made it!!!

"Since I began to love, love has never forsaken me.  It has grown to its own fullness within my innermost heart."  -St Catherine of Genoa

The story of my life - being late!  I know that this post is my "Multitudes on Mondays" post and it was started on Monday continued on Tuesday, but won't officially be posted until Wednesday (as it is almost 20 minutes away from the new day).  Forgive me Father, for I am late, for I have kids to teach, to love, to cook for, to snuggle, to sing to, to dance with, to clean up after, and on and on.  It truly is a blessing, a vocation, a calling and I am thankful for every minute of it!!

We made it....

We began our counting this year on March 6th, and reached #1000 on October 24th.  Each one of these numbers is God reaching out His loving hand to me, to Neil and to our children.  Ann's book, 1000 Gifts, opened our eyes to this need to be more aware of God's presence in our days.  It was truly transforming!  As you can see, we have already continued our counting and will for as long as we can.  These numbers, these gifts, these acts of love, have touched the innermost of all these Young hearts and we are all fixed more fully on Him! 

Thanks be to God for these and all graces received....

#881 - fuzzy caterpillars
#882 - orange ladybugs
#883 - Melody and Ariel loving their choir practice for church and all their new friends
#884 - picnics outisde in October
#885 - extra snuggles and playtime for Sophia and Goldie on the Feast of St. Francis
#886 - great sales on shirts for me and pants for Fone

 #891 - pretty fall flowers

#888 - Fone and Mario's Lego "Halloween" letters on their desk as a fall decoration
#890 - breakfast helpers

#891 - my adorable "salt and peeper" shaker
#893 - Moms who feed their kids breakfast (right prayer group girls?)
#894 - Moms who clothe their kids (chuckling now...)
#895 - 6 sweet, sleeping kids
#898 - an ever present God
#899 - my guardian angel for taking my place in adoring our Lord tonight
#900 - for Fulton J Sheen for teaching and guiding my husband
#901 - my dear husband who turns regularly to scripture, the Church and the saints for example and guidance
#903 - seeing Reba with my parents and sisters

#905 - the gift of planning and organization
#907 - Fone's love and talent for writing
#909 - TKD promotions
#911 - Melody comforting a sad Pookey who had a sore bottom
#913 - wonderful wiener roast with Neil, his parents, his brother's family, and Aunt June

#914 - my mom who babysit kiddos so Neil and I could go out
#915 and #916 - kids playing in & burying each other in the leaves

#919 - a wiggle bug
#920 - sleepovers with cousins
#921 - Neil getting to spend a couple extra hours with our Lord in adoration when the next 2 people didn't show up for their time slots
#924 - Pookey nodding his head
#928 - Pookey really starting to jabber
#929 - Max's "lard" for yard
#930 - my 4 year old nephew's "splain" for explain
#931 - new ways of prayer
#934 - thankful I'm alive after a heart attack
#935 - our green dog
#937 - for little kids, giggles, happy screams and shoes!

 #938 - yummy food

#939 - friends, happy kids, lots of food

#941 - for the good day
#942 - friends who stick up for me and show me their love and support
#943 - kids who teach me and let Christ and His wisdom work through them
#947 - grandma helper at the mall who stood with my kids so that I could pull up Big Red in the pouring down rain
#948 - Max and his playdate at a new friend's house
#949 - messy marker hands and shirt, but a beautifully painted pumpkin and a ton of fun
#954 - Neil making mochas and lattes for me
#955 - good cousins
#956 - the good, good time playing with Mario and him winning
#957 - Ariel taking out her own splinter
#959 - horribly good Wetzels Pretzels
#961 - snuggle time with Neil on the couch
#963 - Melody reminding me to keep a good eye on Pookey while he runs free at the mall and she pushes his empty stroller- such a little mother to him!
#965 - Ariel reading to me
#966 - Max shouting "I love you, Mommy" halfway across the house
#969 - for a nice family
#971 - snuggies from daddy

#973 - Max's black pumpkin transformed into a vampire with a little paint and a nice, loving big brother
#974 - for a mom who lets us have hot cocoa in the fall
#975 - for my little sister starting TKD
#976 - savor the flavor
#977 - an awesome math
#980 - Fone offering to vacuum his room, his brothers', and his sisters'
#981 - Pookey's praying hands
#984 - Melody's gift of cleaning and her willingness to always say "yes" when asked to do so
#985 - for being a big sister
#986 - a super, duper, awesome, fantastic, cool, terrific, fun-loving mom
#991 - my brother, Mario
#992 - my life
#993 - the Holy Catholic Church
#997 - meeting my cousins on the road
#1000 - the Lego Book of Ideas
#1002 - bare, baby, kissable, chewable piggies

#1004 - Neil bringing dinner home on Mondays
#1005 - having Daddy back
#1006 - my little girls' devotion to their scapulars
#1007 - how my kids love to play with each other

....  and still counting!!!

Please join me in counting your way to the 1000 gifts that never end