Where the heck have I been...??

Gee, I just realized that THREE months have gone by since my last post... guess I've been a little busy.. ha. I had two people (on the same day 3 months later..) ask me how the open mic night went... I took that as a 'sign' that I should come back and share some more... :)

Due to very sad and unforeseen circumstances (Dan's uncle Steve died suddenly from a severe asthma attack), we were unable to sing at the open mic night. We went to Ohio for the funeral that week, and for obvious reasons, were not really up for singing when we came home.

Hopefully I will get my act in gear and start practicing again... I have taken a few months off.. sigh. If all works out, we would love to give it a go next year! Kristen has FAR surpassed me in ability, so I really need to put some time in.. and I think I will ask her to be MY teacher this time. :)

In the interest of expanding my horizons here......... we are going for our second, yes SECOND, performance at the 'Open Mic Night' at the local Arboretum. They have an outdoor stage and a field for spectators (and fans :) to sit.

We (Dan Sr., Dan Jr., Kristen and I) were there about 7 years ago. This was just about the time when we had initially picked up instruments, and really knew next to nothing. So, we decided we would 'perfect' one song, and perform it at the Open Mic Night. We did 'okay', even though we had a 15 minute slot and only sang for about 4 of those minutes.... but the end result was a total feeling of euphoria for doing something we didn't think we could... I am a firm believer in doing things like that, most especially when it is something I thought I could never do.

So..... this time around, we have FOUR songs... hopefully enough to fill our 15 minute slot. I will be on guitar and vocals, Kristen will be on the same, Dan Jr. on the fiddle, and Dan Sr. will play guitar. I haven't had a ton of practice time (even though it has been 7 full years since we have been there.. haha), but I think we can pull it off.

The funniest part of it is that the guy who organizes it recognized us. He said he uses us as an example to encourage people to come. (partially flattering, but really what he is saying to these people is that 'If they can do it only knowing one song, then you have no excuse!') I am glad we could help out there... :)

I will definitely post pix when we get them, and fill you in on all details... Okay, off to practice!

Midlife Crisis

No, I haven't been out buying sports cars, going on cruises, or losing 20 lbs and dyeing my hair... but for the past couple months I have found myself wondering 'What am I doing with my life?'......... From the outside, I guess that seems a silly question.. I am happily married, raising 7 kids, running a household, volunteering for the church, etc. What else do I need? Well, maybe nothing... but I just found myself thinking thoughts like, 'where is my life going, what does God want from me, is there something else I should be doing, where do I find my worth, etc, etc'. I feel like I am back in my teen years wondering which direction my life needs to take from here.

Sometimes I find myself looking around at others and seeing their most positive qualities and wondering why I lack them. Comparing oneself to others is a dangerous game, btw... So I end up thinking to myself that I should be making quilts, writing books, training harder for my runs, taking continuing education courses, scrapbooking all 7 of my kids' lives, making my own card instead of purchasing them, becoming the perfect hostess, etc, etc..... right smack in the middle of raising my kids and dealing with all that life brings just from that alone. An overwhelming feeling, I must say.

In God's Wisdom, He planned this identity crisis of mine right at the time I was to go on a Youth Conference at the University of Steubenville (stories on that are forthcoming!!!).. I almost felt that I shouldn't go, because what kind of chaperone could I really be to the kids if I couldn't even figure myself out. But, my intense desire to be back on campus and to share this unique opportunity with my eldest daughter, overshadowed my doubts and off we went. I knew I was there for the kids, and not for me.. but luckily the Holy Spirit is so grand and generous that there is Grace in abundance.

From the beginning of my 'wonderings' about my life (well, the most recent anyway), I had been listening to some tapes on Mental prayer and coming to the realization that my life needed more grounding in prayer. God had things to say to me, and I really wasn't able to listen, or atleast I wasn't taking the time to listen.. I was flailing along with no direction and this is, I am sure, what led to my identity crisis. On our weekend away, I was so blessed by all the testimonies I heard. The leaders of the conference AND our very own teens. I needed to hear about all the ups and downs that everyone faces and that in the end, God is the one who leads us away from ourselves and toward HIM. And the way He leads us is through prayer. Not just our 'babbling on' for an hour about what we need/want/hope for... but in the still and quiet of our hearts, He speaks. We just need to listen...

So I haven't 'figured it all out', but I know where I am going now. (if that makes any sense at all...) I have found peace in knowing that God's plan will unfold itself... I just need to listen and follow.

Lenten progression...

Well, after talking with a friend, she mentioned that my 'interruptions' needed to be prayed about. Maybe it wasn't God trying to teach me acceptance (or maybe it was.. either case), but the devil trying to interrupt my prayer time/reading time... He doesn't want us to study saints and read scripture. So, I now begin with the St. Michael prayer (per Andrea's advice), and my prayer time has become less interrupted and more fruitful... Yay for that!

Lent in Full force...

Here we are embarking upon the lenten season... I have actually been looking forward to this time of really 'trimming down' on life's excesses, and looking for a more ordered and disciplined life. The first thing I wanted to do was to follow Fr. Fasano's direction of giving up something for each of our senses; taste, touch, sight, hearing, smell. I also wanted to 'add' things to my daily routine which would enhance my spiritual life. (These, of course, are things I should've already been doing, but just hadn't committed the time to... )

Well, one of the books I wanted to read (a chapter or so each day, time permitting) was Introduction to the Devout Life by St. Francis de Sales. This book is aiming to teach us 'regular people' (who aren't in a religious order and are living 'in the world') how to live a devout spiritual life in the midst of regular life. This is something I am really looking forward to learning about, as I find it so hard to focus on silence and meditation with 7 children's needs to attend to...

So this afternoon I found myself in a quiet house... boys playing happily out in the springy weather, baby sleeping and older kids at school.. and it was only 1 o'clock! Normally this would have provided me with literally HOURS to read............... BUT, today was an early release from the school... so not long into my silent reading time I was interrupted to make the bus stop run. Big sigh... Such is the story of my life, I thought to myself..

My first reaction is, 'Come on Lord.. Don't you want me to have silent prayer time? Don't you want me to do my spiritual reading and learn from your saints? Don't you want me to study the scriptures?' And on and on go my thoughts.. So as I sit at the bus stop, a bit disgruntled at this twist in my plans, I realize that the merit in lenten sacrifices isn't necessarily in how many things we give up or how many hours we spend studying the saints... it is rather in how well we can accept life's interruptions with peace and joy and acceptance. Obedience is harder than sacrifice, and I think that was my lesson for this day. God has a will for me. I have to accept whatever it is even when, and especially when, it doesn't coincide with my own. So today instead of making a 'sacrifice' of my time to read holy books, I made a sacrifice in giving up that time.

It's going to be an interesting six weeks. I look forward to the lessons to be learned.. and pray to St. Francis de Sales for guidance.

Italian Fare

I have requests for a couple recipes, so I thought I'd just post them here for all to see... I really like serving this Cacciatore to guests. It can be made ahead of time, and then just popped in the oven before serving. Served with a nice bottle of wine, a salad and some yummy bread, this makes a really nice meal. Mmmm good.

CHICKEN CACCIATORE
4 chicken breasts
1/2 cup flour
1 tsp salt
1/4 cup butter
1/4 cup olive oil
2 medium onions, sliced
1 green pepper, sliced
1 pound mushrooms, sliced (I omit these because my kids and I don't like them)
1 head garlic, chopped
2 cans petite diced tomatoes
2 chicken bouillion cubes
2 Tbsp chopped fresh parsley
1 1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
1/2 tsp oregano
1/2 tsp marjoram
1/2 tsp thyme
1/2 cup dry white wine
1/2 cup sliced ripe olives
Parmesan Cheese

Dredge chicken pieces in salt and flour. Brown chicken in mixture of oil and butter. Remove to a casserole dish. Saute onion, garlic, green pepper and mushrooms. Stir in tomatoes, bouillion cubes, parsley, seasonings and white wine. Cook a few minutes to blend. Add to chicken in casserole. Cover and bake at 350 for 45 minutes. Uncover, add olives and bake 15 - 20 minutes longer. Serve over pasta (spaghetti or linguine work well) and top with parmesan.

SPAGHETTI SAUCE
1 onion, chopped
6 cloves garlic, chopped
2 cans diced tomatoes
1 (15oz) can tomato sauce
2 (6oz) cans tomato paste
3 cups H2O
2 tsp beef bouillion
1 bay leaf
1 Tbsp sugar (or enough to take away the acidity of the tomatoes)
1 tsp oregano
3/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp marjoram

Saute onion and garlic. Sometimes I add chopped green pepper too. Add rest of ingredients and simmer an hour or until sauce thickens. (in really lazy moments, I even skip the sauteing, and just add some garlic powder)

Final results are in...

Ok, so I am not pregnant this time around....... That realization brought feelings of both relief and sadness. Strange. I had envisioned this little curly haired girl bebopping around with Chelsea.... If there were only some way to avoid the whole 9 months of pregnancy, and skip right to the sweet cuddly baby....... :)