But now I am six

"But now I am six I am clever as clever. I think I'll stay six now for ever and ever! "

thanks for inviting us to your birthday party Cameron, we all had a great time!

We didn't mean to go to sea!

Some good friends invited us to share some playtime down by the river. It was also an opportunity to give my foot some helpful physio(!).Beautiful day, wonderful friends, I'll leave the pictures to tell the rest of the story!

The potager

Some photos of the potager taken by ds(12). It was his idea to train the nasturtium up our rusty old swing set.I think in the first picture you might be able to see some borage and statice and primulas flowering. We also have a prolific supply of mint, but I expect that will decline once summer temperatures arrive in force.Any ideas what to use borage for?

Nasturtium the jolly,
O ho, O ho!
He holds up his brolly
Just so, just so!
(A shelter from showers,
A shade from the sun;)
'Mid flame-coloured flowers
He grins at the fun.
Up fences he scrambles,
Sing hey, sing hey!
All summer he rambles
So gay, so gay-
Till the night-frost strikes chilly,
And Autumn leaves fall,
And he's gone, willy-nilly,
Umbrella and all.
(From The Complete Book of the Flower Fairies by Cicely Mary Barker)

Yes, Columbine!
The choice is she;
And with her, see,
An elfin piper, piping sweet
A little tune for those light feet
That dance among the leaves and flowers
In someone's garden.
(Is it ours?)
(From The Complete Book of the Flower Fairies by Cicely Mary Barker)

Deo gratias

The anouncement earlier this week has left me singing God's praises .There are many good articles and commentaries available but I especially like the following:

"There was a T-shirt on the market last year for converts to the Catholic faith. Emblazoned on the front were the words, "Member of the Tiber Swimmers Club." After today's amazing announcement from the Vatican, Anglicans no longer need to change into their swimming trunks. Trembling toes no longer need to be dipped in the chilly waters of the Roman river. Anglicans needn't take the plunge: Benedict has built a bridge.
........

What are the wider implications of this move? First of all, the Holy Father has effectively closed down the Anglican-Roman Catholic ecumenical discussions. Of course they will still go on, but the discussions will be like those days of detente where Americans and Russians met, drank tea, shook hands for the cameras, made a bland statement, and went home. Instead of "searching for ways to overcome obstacles," the pope has given a concrete way for the obstacles to be overcome.

Secondly, the personal ordinariate may provide a model for the reunion of other groups with Rome. It has always been Benedict's view that the way forward ecumenically is to replicate the existing structures that the Eastern Rite churches enjoy, and that this can be done with new flexibility and creativity. Pundits are already wondering whether this same model might assist the Society of St. Pius X to come into full communion, and once the Eastern Orthodox see it working well, they too might find ways to reunite with the ancient See of Rome.

Finally, what are the implications for the Catholic Church herself at the beginning of the new millennium? Not only is this Apostolic Constitution a rebuff to the old style of ecumenical discussions, it is a rebuff to liberal Catholics. The pope is giving a very clear message to those who wish to follow the historic Christian faith: "Let us be united in the One Faith, One Church, One Baptism." He is willing to take risks to welcome those who follow the historic Christian faith, although separated from full communion with Rome. On the other hand, he sees those who prefer the modern gospel of relativism, sexual license, and a denial of the historic Christian faith that have taken over the mainstream Protestant churches. He knows there are plenty of them in the Catholic Church, and to them Benedict is quietly saying, "There's the door."(extract from A Bridge Across the Tiber" by Rev.Dwight Longnecker)

and this:

"The canonical permanence of the Personal Ordinariates means that within a generation or so, when there are no real Anglicans left to convert, the best of Anglicanism will still be growing in the Catholic Church"(Atonementonline)

Lets be real!

Elizabeth in a recent blog post writes convincingly on reality checks in the homeschool community. It is surely a wake-up call to our community when other homeschooling mums are our harshest critics.

No where in anything I have read or listened to does Jesus outline a formulaic walk for us as Christians :do this and this and all will be well for you on earth.!! why do we expect this in our homeschooling family life?!

This quote from St. Francis de Sales helps me to put my life and the lives of others in perspective:
The everlasting God has in His wisdom forseen from eternity the cross that He now presents to you as a gift from His inmost Heart. This cross He now sends you, He has considered with His all-knowing eyes, understood with His Divine mind, tested with His wise justice, warmed with loving arms and weighed with His own hands to see that it be not one inch too large and not one ounce to heavy for you. He has blessed it with His holy Name, anointed it with His grace, perfumed it with His consolation, taken one last glance at you and your courage, and then sent it to you from heaven, a special greeting from God to you, an alms of the all merciful love of God.

And because I think others say it so much better than I ever could. How about this from “the Aeneid” in the context of spreading our views on others around!:

Of all the ills there is, Rumour is the swiftest. She thrives on movement and gathers strength as she goes. From small and timorous beginnings she soon lifts herself up into the air, her feet still on the ground and her head hidden in the clouds....Rumour is quick of foot and swift on the wing, a huge and horrible monster, and under every feather of her body, strange to tell, there lies an eye that never sleeps, a mouth and a tongue that are never silent and an ear always pricked....holding fast to her lies and distortions as often as she tells the truth....fact and fiction mixed in equal parts.

Finally here is a quote from Elizabeth's post:

If you are a mother whose heart is breaking for your teenager(or any other matter)lean on Christ and not those other perfect parents.Christ won't ever fail you.

Thoughts on Sunday

I found this great u-tube video by the Sisters of The Sacred Heart.I thought it would be great to share with our daughters as it stresses life-long commitment to whatever vocation we are called to as women. I also think it is awesome to note that these sisters are praying every hour of the day,right through the night before the Blessed Sacrament.It certainly put my prayer life in perspective!

Down by the river side

It rained a bit earlier in the week so dh and the boys went to investigate the river.Rarely does the water level get this high...and it will be interesting to compare it with similar scenes in a few months time!

I think the Brothers of the Sacred Heart outline what we should aim for whatever community we live in.They demonstrate how practically holiness can be lived out in our daily lives.I found it a very enjoyable video to watch!

Surprise visitors

Look who visited our place yesterday!

Around and about

As a focus yesterday I asked ds(8) to take some photos of what is happening outside.These are what he came up with:

I am sharing this fabulous quote from this blog.It really spoke to my heart.

"We are used to thinking of Jesus as more divine than us, but let me suggest that I understand Jesus to be more human than I: I am NOT fully human, insofar as I tend to run away from those parts of my humanness that scare me, like looking stupid, failing, vulnerability, and dying. Jesus “does” humanity better than I do – he IS fully human. He accepts being misunderstood, failing, suffering, being thought poorly of, even dying – because he is rooted in his absolute identity, which is beloved child of God. Anyone want to take a guess what our deepest identity is? You got it – “beloved child of God”! How often do any of us try to come up with more identity than that?"

The Feast of the Holy Rosary

The Battle of Lepanto
It was during the reign of Pius V that the famous battle of Lepanto took place on 7th October 1571.Pius had been deeply worried by the growing power of the Turks, who at that time were threatening all the countries around the Mediterranean. An alliance had been formed between Philip II of Spain and Venice. A fleet was sent out under Don Juan of Austria which attacked the Turkish fleet at Lepanto and won a glorious victory. The Pope had organised a great crusade of prayer; all over the world, the faithful were praying the rosary without ceasing. And pilgrims flocked in great numbers to the shrines of our blessed lady everywhere, begging that the catholic fleet would be victorious. The power of the Turks on the sea was broken once and for all. It is said that the Holy Father knew in some miraculous fashion of the victory, on the very same day that it occurred and gave thanks to our lady Queen of the Rosary. That is why we celebrate the feast of the Holy Rosary on October the 7th.
(extract from “The Story of the Church” by Reverend George Johnson)

something that can be done when you're imobile!!

One and all

Here are just a few pictures of Saturday's adventure aboard "The one and all".





"Aboard at a ship's helm,
A young steersman steering with care. "












a



But O the ship, the immortal ship! O ship aboard the ship!
Ship of the body, ship of the soul, voyaging, voyaging, voyaging. "