A wish for a "backwards" kind of day...

Today (only for a little while longer) is one of those fun, 5 Minute Friday's where I get to read a simple prompt and write on it and not worry one bit if it is perfectly right or not. 

Today's prompt is....  backwards.

Ready.

Set.

Go.

Ever have a day when you wish you could just rewind and go backwards in time?  Uhhh, this is like every day for me.... 

Why did I just say that?  Why did I not keep quiet and think before I speak?  Words can be so hurtful, especially when a momma takes out her own stresses on an innocent child by being short or sharp with them.  Sometimes, the rewind button, going backwards and redoing would be great.

We do lots of re-do's in our house.  These are geared for our kids to give them a second chance when they have made the wrong choice, not only because I want to correct bad behavior, but most importantly because I want to allow the heart to be right even more.  Re-do's allow for a second chance at fixing a wrong.  Mercy!  
Although I don't have the rewind button for my own life, I do have the opportunity to go backwards, to rewind, to re-do.  First it starts with an apology and asking for forgiveness, if I can get over my pride (that's the hard part!).  Second, it involves restitution for the wrong, trying to make the wrong choice right this time.

Lord, forgive me when I screw up.  Help me walk backwards and go back to the wrong and make it right.  Have mercy on me as I know I will fall and fail time and time again.

Stop!!  Ding!  Times up!

Not that you have time to join in (because Friday is almost gone), but go on over to this site and view many other responses to 5 Minute Fridays....

Plans for the month of the Sacred Heart

One of the many beauties of the Catholic Church is the order found in the liturgical calendar.  Living out the feasts and seasons of the Church help us bring these special days into the life and order of our own home, not to mention the memories and traditions that we are creating in our family.  Of course, we grow as a family during Lent/Easter and Advent/Christmas, but we also love to celebrate as many feast days as we can get to as well as whatever the month is dedicated to.  The month of June is dedicated to the Sacred Heart of Jesus.  Here is a peek of some neat things we will try to do this month....

• Sacred Heart of Jesus lapbook
• print out some of these lovely Sacred Heart prayer cards to put around the house (scroll down to where it says "Sacred Heart prayers")
• wear our Sacred Heart tie dye shirts 

• print out this fun fact sheet on the Sacred Heart
• color this beautiful "stained glass" picture
• Sacred Heart craft
• eat some yummy Sacred Heart cupcakes

Multitudes on Mondays

"When it comes to life the critical thing is whether 
you take things for granted or take them with gratitude."

-G. K. Chesterton

We're still counting our way towards 1000 Gifts!!  What a joy it is to be alert throughout our days and weeks to find all these gifts from God.  The secret to finding them is simple awareness and an open heart to accept them and know who they come from.  And, then of course, writing them down is our way of fully accepting them and our way of thanking God for his abundant love and living presence right here, right now.

Thanks be to God for these (and all) gifts received over the last 2 weeks....  (I never got around to posting last Monday)

#240 - playing Words With Friends on my new iPhone with....  Neil, Jessica, Michele and Aubrey
#242 - being spared from a fatal car accident that occurred 100 yards in front of us on the way home from Saint Louis
#246 - a home for our dogs when we were gone on vacation
#248 - Mass, play, lunch, devotions, and education at the Our Lady of Snows Shrine too feed us physically and spiritually

#250 - reconnecting with old friends in Maryville on our way home
#254 - a great vacation (from Fone)
#256 - my cousins and friends (from Fone)
#258 - scrabble date night (and win!) with my dh
#259 - boys outgrowing their mothers
#262 - cookout, playtime, swimming on Memorial Day with family
#263 - healthy, homemade breakfasts to start our day (thanks to our new double waffle maker!)
#266 - surprise hugs from kids when you least expect it, but are in most need of it
#267 and #268 - finally getting around to plant our garden and my garden helpers

#270 - smooth trip to the lab with my 2 littles to get a blood draw for myself and Max's "I love you, Mom" to comfort me after the poke
#271 - lots of cousin playtime this week
#272 - a lovely ballet recital for Melody and Ariel this weekend and a yummy girls-only lunch afterwards with cousins/friends

#274 - boys who pull their teeth the moment it is loose and girls who have wiggly teeth for weeks
#277 - Pookey climbing up on his own to play the piano

#279 - saying "yes" to mud play and mess
#280 - our 1st cook-out in the fire pit for the summer and family prayers around the fire

#281 - six sleepy, clean kids after a busy, beautiful, blessed day outdoors and at home all day long! 

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Won't you join along in counting your way to 1000 Gifts?  Link up here...

Muddy, Mucky Mess

For those of you who know me personally, I am a little anal-retentive particular about keeping things clean and orderly around here.  With six busy, active kids, this can obviously be a challenge but on the flip side it becomes one of the ways to help me lighten up get to heaven.  Anyways, Melody is typical girl and loves to talk.  This morning, she went on and on about how she wants to paint the sidewalks with mud, paint the windows with mud, her body with mud, her walls inside the house with mud, etc....  Then she shared that this would have to happen at her own house someday, when she grows up, because I "never let them play in mud"....  So, as we progressed throughout this lovely summer day today of playing outside, gardening, bike rides, yard work, etc... we decided to break out our kid wash for the first time this year.  Our driveway is sloped to allow the water to run off and down our hill and has created this lovely (or not so much) pitted-river.  So, the kid-wash had water pouring down our hill and there was a nice muddy river forming and some kids (guess who was first??) noticed it and started playing in it.  Remembering what Melody had shared earlier in the day and God gracing me with that special talk with her, I decided to bite my tongue and let them continue in this play.  I am so thankful I did!  What a wet, sloppy, slippery, and dare I say - FUN way to play.  Here's some pictures of the kids enjoying the muddy river....

Melody - the discoverer of the mud (surprise, surprise!)

more kids getting in on the fun

dirty little piggies

Uh oh!....1 young one down!

Uh oh!....  a 2nd young one down!

Uh oh!...  a 3rd young one down!

Uh oh!... a 4th young one down!

Pookey discovered his own version of wet play

Splish, splash, taking a bath!

And, then he found the planter sitting right next to the bird bath and decided to eat the dirt.  Yummmmmmmmmmy!!!