S.tay A.t H.ome M.om at Work

I know what you must be thinking, is this really a worthy blog topic? Oh, geez the SAHM at Work has finally run out of ideas, and now she laments her age and hair color changes. Stay with me, I hope to bring this full circle. This morning I awoke to an all too familiar face, tired, makeup free and pale from a long winter. I began work to spruce up my image before HH awakes, and then suddenly a silver line shined back at me in my vanity mirror. Thinking our crafts the other day might have left a strand of string in my hair….I began to try and brush it out. Yep. No luck. It grew there. A l l  b y  i t s e l f.  (And no, that pic is not of me!  Thanks ehow!) At 35 years old, generally speaking I am not prone to vanity issues. For years and years with new babies arriving yearly at times, I went without any knowledge of an eyelash curler or even my beloved under the eye highlighter pen. Even now, I know, all the primping I do has a purpose. And that purpose is to kee...

As a Sahm at Work, the planning for most holiday traditions rest on my shoulders. The week or two before any major holiday, is such a time of scrambling for ideas, for organization of a tradition, shopping and cooking. I thought I'd post a few ideas here, traditions that we have done from year to year, with the hope of bringing home the real reasons for these holidays. Every kid gets to know Santa or the Easter Bunny with all the commercialization, but does every kid really understand why we have these great holidays? Pope John Paul II the Great, called the family, the Domestic Church. And it is. It's where our children learn the first lessons about God. For these holidays, we get to be the first to introduce to our children to the realities of Jesus' Birth, Death, and Resurrection. Filling these days with traditions that you might develop in your home helps to bring these realities to life for children who need a visual representation to understand it all.  For the Lent...

Last week we began this series, with Part One:  Acceptance.  We were once again reminded that we choose this man in our lives for better or worse, and if we haven't yet accepted him for who he is, then that must be done first.  Next we move to Part Two of this little series The Mind of the Good Man.  We will look at the issue of... 2.)  Time I’ll be the first to tell you, I’m a busy woman. I have five children ages nine and under. I have a household to manage, clothes to clean, schedules to keep, doctors to visit, kids to potty train, meals to make, and somehow find the time to shop, sew, check email, watch the news, and never miss a favorite TV show. There will never be enough hours in the day to accomplish all I feel I must. That’s the point. There will never be enough time. It’s so easy to neglect a major piece of my life when that piece isn’t complaining. That piece is my Good Man. He needs my time and appreciation. Simply making time for him makes him ...

Often I receive these emails from our beloved Francis Cardinal George, OMI, and today's was particularly striking....As Lent nears it's end, we can see the last paragraph below so true:  "Knowledge without love is dangerous." Monday, March 22, 2010 God is Truly Father As Jesus struggled to make his true identity known to the people who followed him, he spoke of his Father. If Jesus isn’t known, it’s because his Father is unknown; and, vice versa, no one knows the Father except the one he sent, Jesus. We are invited into this knowledge, this unity, when Jesus invites us to address his Father as our Father. God is truly Father, just as Jesus is truly Son. It’s easier to recognize Jesus as a son because, in assuming human nature, he takes on our flesh as a male. It’s harder to recognize the Creator as Father, because he’s not a man, he’s not male. How God, who is purely spiritual, engenders a spiritual Son from all eternity is part of the mystery of the Blessed Tr...

HH and I have been contemplating replacing our dining room table and chairs set. Actually we’ve talked about for years now, as we see more and more wear and tear on this old table and more reasons to upgrade to accommodate larger groups for dinner. Just the other night, we finally came to agreement, perhaps the timing is right, as we now notice the middle leaf of the table beginning to sag. Then we began to discuss the origins of our table and chairs set, and boy, the memories flew between us. I was so moved, that I thought, this is one of those stories that could only be truly appreciated by those who have walked in similar shoes. Married only one year, we had very little furniture, and the few we did own, were remnants of old college days bought at a garage sale or two. Buying new furniture at that point in our lives together, well, it was impossible. We mixed matched blue chairs and an octagon shaped glass table which wobbled back and forth with a passing breeze. We made do. Up...

http://news.yahoo.com/s/livescience/20100318/sc_livescience/helpfuldadscanhurtmomsselfesteem Give me a break....what an awful title.  Men are not hurting their wives' self esteem, as the authors of this article conclude.  If women are offended that Dad can parent just as good as the wife, then the wife has issues, not her helpful spouse.  Feminists have been spouting garbage like this for too long.  They lead us to believe that we can do it ALL, and better than anyone else.  Therefore, feelings of inadequacy are sure to show up, because NO ONE can do it all, no one is perfect, no one can handle everything alone. It shows more maturity and character in a woman who can simply accept a man's help and be grateful for it.....  Any help from her team mate is just that, help from her partner, not an indicator of her failures. This article belongs in the trash, in my opinion. What do you think?

Before I begin – This series of posts are based on the mind of the GOOD man. I am not referring to those men who have serious issues that shackle them to the cycle of dysfunction. Most are good men, and by God’s good grace, most women have married good men, and these tips are for you, the wife of the good man. Let’s begin with fact. Men are simple creatures. This fact is often lost when working to decipher the mind of the good man, however, it is the most critical fact that we as women need to remember. They are simple creatures, women are the complex ones. Men appreciate straight-forward conversations, vocalized expectations, an ego stroke and enthusiastic affection. Easy right? Let’s delve deeper with category number one:  Acceptance. 1.) Acceptance First, accept him. You’ve married this man. You fell in love with this man. He had the qualities that you were looking for in a spouse, and you said, ‘I do’. You made vows before God, to love him, to honor him, for better a...

Last night's dinner brought with it a 'not-so-carefree' Mr. Carefree.  His ordinarily happy, easy going nature was replaced by a pensive look and demeanor.  Something was on his mind, for sure, which, by his thoughtful stare, let me think he's struggling to understand something that may have happened at school.  I let it go for a while hoping he'd tell me without my asking, and sure enough it bothered him enough to speak up. A little girl in his class was different from the rest of the kids, and I remember asking him at the beginning of the year, what was so different about her, and he couldn't really tell me, just that she quiet, shy and kept to herself.  For him, that was enough to not be bothered with her, as he loved to get out his energy at recess and be outgoing with his friends.  Carefree began to remind me of this little girl that was different from the rest, and I assured him, that yes, indeed, I remembered her.  He said, "Mom, she to...

Did you know St. Patrick used the Shamrock to explain the Blessed Trinity?  Is it one leaf or three?  Both!  Genius!  Gotta use that one next time one of my kids ask what it means to have God in Three Persons!  Thank you Saint Patrick!

Sorry Blog Folks, I haven't posted in a while.  We are living in the House of Goup. I was hoping winter to be behind us with all the sickness that it brings....but alas, we find ourselves deep into the thick fog of green goo.....Babe is suffering, as just this morining it took several baby wipes to clean his face from all the goup, smeared from one end to the other, during his nighttime escapades.  God love him, he is still his joyful self.   Due to the amazing response I've recieved on the topic of " Submissive Wive " my HH suggested I do a series of blog posts on the Mind of the Good Man.  I've figured about 6 or so categories.....and coming up, I'll be posting, when I can find my way out of the sticky mess our home is in right now!....Stay tuned...

Babe turned two just last week and suddenly our baby no longer looked like a baby.  He has begun toddler antics, amusing games and developing quite a sense of humor.  It's been difficult to discipline him in any way, considering his antics usually generate laughter from me, not conducive to a stern look of disapproval. The night of his birthday, I put him to bed.  I held him for a few minutes, snuggled and kissed his sweet face, while playing our usual quiet game of peek-a-boo.  Finally, his heavy head rested on my shoulder giving the clue of readiness for bed. I held him for a few more minutes, and I began to realize this 'baby' was now getting too heavy for these snuggle games before bed.  My arms ached a bit, and I flashed backwards mentally to the first night he was born.  In only a few seconds there by his crib, with the dim light of a globe night light, I remembered my first night with this little boy in the hospital.... ...

I've said it before, and I'll say it again.  Sometimes, there's a role reversal in our home. Just when I think, hey, I've got the hang of this, one of my kids will pull me right out of my Pride, and slam me right into the reality of humility.  It's these moments that I truly see the great fruit in the decision to be at home with them.  As much as I might teach them, they teach me, and they don't even know it.  They have an innocence and simplicity that, I suppose, adults lose after years of being jaded, of knowing too much or trusting too little. Here's our morning van ride to school: Entertainer:  Mom!  We forgot to say the decade! Mom:  Oh, Ok, Let's say our intentions, and three Hail Mary's, and trust God will take care of the rest for us. Thinker:  For my tests this week. Carefree: My God-father. Entertainer singing:  For my dolly, Mom, Dad and my God-mother Babe:  (Untranslatable) Serious feeling rushed:  Hummmm, I don...

HH and I recently watched the thriller 'The Fourth Kind' together. It's supposedly a reenactment of 'real' events which happened in the town of Nome, Alaska. Watching it, we had no idea if it was truly based on real events or not, and a bit of research online would tell anyone it's simply a Hollywood movie, trying a new angle to capture interest. Well, it did. It is interesting. I don't recommend it for children, certainly not. However, it was interesting and it kept me awake, which I admit can be difficult to do. Whether it is based on real events or not, doesn't matter that much to me. What was interesting to me, is that it sparks conversation. HH and I talked a bit about alien life, are we alone, where might God's existence enter into the dilemma, and so on. I like movies that make people talk, where the topic fuels us in some way. HH asked me directly, 'What do you think? Do aliens exist?' I paused for a long moment, especially afte...

Thinker: Mom, are you always sure the decisions you make for the kids are the right ones? Mom: Usually. Thinker: So, sometimes you are unsure. Mom sensing a trap: Well, sometimes, I ask God for the right answer, if I am not sure. Thinker: Hum…Well, you never tell us when you are unsure. Mom: Well, I don’t want you to worry. Dad and Mom will figure what’s best, with God’s help, and you shouldn't worry. We’ll take care of you. Thinker: How do I know if I am making the right decisions? Mom: Watch the results and try again. Confidence: belief in own abilities To accomplish many goals in life, confidence is almost a requirement. The belief in self, the ‘I can do it’ the recognition of courage to attempt something, is needed in most situations or we’d never succeed accomplishing anything. Not only for ourselves, but for others to invest in us, we must show confidence. Think our of country’s leaders. They must convince us they can do the job, or we don’t vote for them. They must at the ve...

Our small acts have a ripple effect, for good or for not. What we do, indeed can affect others.

Authenticity during this Lenten Season: A Reflection for Lent. Have you ever been in a conversation with someone, talk about many things, share many of the same views on life, and then shortly thereafter, that certain 'someone' does something, or somethings, that completely contradict the whole conversation you just had with them? Then, you are left, standing there, dumbfounded and confused, asking yourself, 'Why did I just waste my time?' Talk is cheap. Anyone can put together a few sentences that sound good, admirable, inspiring. My two year old is putting words together, and recognizing the impact words can have. Words can get him what he wants. He's thirsty, he uses words like 'drink' and suddenly, his mother is at his side with a cup of water. Words get us things all the time. Sometimes, words can influence people. Sometimes, words can impress people. However, using words all the time without backing them up with action, are just hollow words. When acti...