We got a box of absolutely delicious peaches last week, and they were perfectly ripe by Friday night for dinner. I call ’em summer’s candy. There is no better summer fruit.
Just ask these monkeys!
Do you have a favorite peach recipe? If we’re not munching away on raw peaches or need to use up the extras, we love peach crisp with a dollop of vanilla bean ice cream.
Another Monday means another opportunity to swap prayer intentions and start “putting them to work” for one another!
Here are my prayer intentions for this week:
Your turn! What prayer intentions can I “put to work” for you this week? As always, I will add them to my prayer journal and pray for you by name throughout the week–especially during my morning prayers. Please share your intentions in the comment box below, on the blog Facebook page, or send them to me via the blog contact form. Thank you in advance for your prayers.
Have a great week!
The home where Jane and Walt are taking swimming lessons is just a few blocks away from St. Teresa’s Catholic Church. Philip has Tuesday mornings off, so he suggested I leave Harry at home with him. That way, I could drop off the “big kids” at swimming lessons and pop over to St. Teresa’s for some quiet prayer time. I took him up on his sweet offer and made my way over to St. Teresa’s. I had never been there before, so it was a treat!
I love the old school T-shape design of the church.
Compared to a lot of other modern Catholic churches, the building is relatively small and modest. I think it’s a beautiful, perfect homage to the parish patroness–The Little Flower.
I sat in the side chapel with Jesus. After saying hello and having some quiet time, I got to read more of Pope Francis’ The Joy of the Gospel.
I’m about a quarter of the way in. I started it shortly after its publication, but I never finished it. I’m so glad my spiritual director suggested revisiting it. When I asked him about the direction Philip and I should take with our GodTeens, he said that The Joy of the Gospel could be our curriculum. Wow. He wasn’t kidding! I can’t wait to dive into what our Holy Father is telling us in this groundbreaking message. It’s time to get out there, smell like the sheep, and “make disciples of all nations”!
I love that I got to read Pope Francis’ words with this beautiful statue of St. Thérèse looking on. Her mission was all about “the little way” — doing small things with great love for neighbors out of love of Christ. That’s what Pope Francis is calling us to in The Joy of the Gospel. There’s nothing boring about being a disciple of Christ when we live out our mission.
Isn’t this stained glass window in the front door beautiful? I especially like the rose in the middle in honor of The Little Flower. I’m so grateful that Philip suggested I take a little breather for myself to fuel up for my mission as mama. It was exactly what I needed. What a gift that I can pop into any Catholic church around the world and pray with Jesus in front of the tabernacle.
St. Thérèse, pray for us!
A few random pictures of what’s going on around these parts:
-1-
Finally found a preschooler-sized apron for Walt that didn’t have flowers on it. Well done, Target! He loved helping me bake some banana bread yesterday.
-2-
“Mom, doesn’t my hair look pretty for Mass?”
(Mostly) business in front.
Party in the back. Beautiful, honey!
-3-
The neighbor’s car got a flat tire. Jane and Walt took it upon themselves to help them out.
-4-
Among all of the things Jane and Walt made/brought home from preschool, these two pages are among my favorites. Jane and Walt’s teacher took their pictures on the first day of school and during the last month of school. She asked them what they want to be when they grow up, and she recorded their answers below their pictures.
Jane:
Daddy would argue that they’re the same thing.
Walt:
Either the kids are loving what’s happening at home, or their main goal in life is to do it better for their progeny!
-5-
Poor Mr. Harry has been teething big time the last few weeks, and he’s on the tail end of an ear infection. He was so beside himself after his nap the other day that he had to hold two stuffies and have his blankey wrapped around him.
-6-
After reading The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up, I’ve been purging a whole lotta stuff around here and happened upon this gem. Here’s Philip with his Grandpa Al, who used to drive the engine at Henry Doorly Zoo in Omaha. Walt, our current train aficionado, cannot believe he’s actually related to a train engineer! Super, super cool stuff! I got a frame for the print, and Philip has it on his nightstand. Love you, Al!
-7-
Philip and I celebrated our 7th anniversary last Sunday (May 31st). Don’t you like how I’m writing about our 7th anniversary on my 7th post? Not at all planned, but a definite happy coincidence. How did we celebrate, you ask? We did absolutely NOTHING! We had a leisurely morning at home, went to the late morning Mass, had lunch, went for a family bike ride/walk (pictured below), had a family nap (glorious!), had brinner (breakfast for dinner), got the kids to bed, watched an episode of The Goldbergs and The Property Brothers, and read in bed. It was a perfectly wonderful quiet day, and we’ll be celebrating with a date night in the very near future. This was Walt’s first actual bike ride beyond our block. He was a champ!
* * *
Hope you have a wonderful weekend! If you’d like to read more 7QT posts, head on over to Kelly Mantoan’s blog, This Ain’t The Lyceum!
For the past two weeks, Jane and Walt have been going to swim lessons at Mulgrue Swim Academy. I am so grateful to our friends for recommending “Rhonda on Randolph” to us. While Jane and Walt enjoyed their swim lessons they took over the winter, the instructors weren’t pushing them to learn new skills or challenge them to perform beyond their fears. Our friends warned us that Rhonda is “no nonsense” and that she would push the kids to get them to reach their goals. “Perfect! That’s exactly what our kids need,” I said.
When the day of the first lesson rolled around, I walked Jane and Walt in, helped them put their things in cubbies, and introduced them to the assistant instructor. Rhonda was busy teaching another class. We sat on a bench by the pool while we waited. A sweet little girl (who I later learned is 8) heard Walt getting nervous and introduced herself. “Hi, I’m _________. This is my second summer at Rhonda’s. She is so nice, and she is going to take good care of you! She is a really good teacher!” I could have kissed the girl! What a little angel! Walt smiled back at her. I took that as my cue to go, gave Jane and Walt big hugs, and said I’d be back at the end without looking back.
When I came back for pick-up, they were BEAMING! Rhonda cleverly gives the kids “shark rocks” at the end of each lesson. The “shark rocks” are those colored glass pebbles you see in centerpieces.
Jane and Walt showed off their “shark rocks” and told me all about the new things they learned. I thought I’d capitalize on their excitement and build on it. “You know what…if you each get 8 shark rocks for your 8 swim lessons, we can go to Runza for lunch after your last swim lesson!” You would have thought I said it was Christmas morning. As soon as we got home, I found them 2 small mason jars to put on their bedroom dressers to start their “shark rock” collections. They can’t wait to cash them in for our special Runza lunch! I didn’t know it when I made the deal with the kids, but Rhonda gives out a coupon for a free Kids Meal at Runza on the last day of lessons. Life just keeps getting better and better with Rhonda!
Rhonda does not allow parents to stay for lessons so that the kids don’t get afraid and look to Mom or Dad to bail them out. However, we are invited to come for the last half hour on the last day of lessons to see how much they learned. At the end of Jane and Walt’s first week of lessons, I opted to come for the last ten minutes. I didn’t want them to see me and get cold feet since I knew they were still working on a few new skills. It ended up being a great decision because I snuck in when the kids weren’t looking, and I got to see them (unknowingly) showing off their skills. They bobbed, waved to Rhonda underwater, jumped off the diving board, and swam to the side of the pool. So, so, so much progress!
The kids were disappointed last weekend when we told them they didn’t have lessons. When Monday morning rolled around, Jane said she wanted to draw Rhonda a picture.
“I like Rhonda so much! She is a good teacher!”
“That’s me and Rhonda swimming.” I love the goggles and bubbles.
Walt drew his own picture for Rhonda, but he said, “I’m going to give it to her on the last day.”
In just two short weeks, Rhonda has transformed Jane and Walt from timid pool toe-touchers to full-fledged fish! We are so grateful to her for her passion and dedication to teach children how to love the water and be safe enjoying it. For the first summer ever, we are going to join a local pool and get to enjoy the water as an entire family! Thank you, Rhonda!
Another Monday means another opportunity to swap prayer intentions and start “putting them to work” for one another!
Here are my prayer intentions for this week:
Your turn! What prayer intentions can I “put to work” for you this week? As always, I will add them to my prayer journal and pray for you by name throughout the week–especially during my morning prayers. Please share your intentions in the comment box below, on the blog Facebook page, or send them to me via the blog contact form. Thank you in advance for your prayers.
Have a great week!
Jane and Walt had the same preschool teacher this last year. (Jane had her M/W/F mornings, and Walt had her T/TR mornings.) Needless to say, she had her fill of our family this year!
As a former teacher, I know how much the end-of-the-year thank you presents mean. This is what I put together for our beloved preschool teacher:
I got a thermal cup with a plastic straw and filled it with goodies: I started with colorful, thin Sharpies, True Lemon raspberry lemonade packets, a travel hand sanitizer with clip-on case, and a Coldstone Creamery gift card.
Then, I inserted the straw before topping off the cup with Dove dark chocolates.
The finishing touch was a special “All About My Teacher” questionnaire. I interviewed each kiddo separately and recorded their answers. (To get your own adorable printable from Juggling With Kids, click here.) 
I was in a rush, so I just stuck both questionnaires into an envelope and attached it to the cup with a polka dot ribbon. Ta da!
Thank you for a great year, Mrs. King! You are such a blessing to our family and the rest of our parish community! Have a great summer!
Another Monday means another opportunity to swap prayer intentions and start “putting them to work” for one another!
Here are my prayer intentions for this week:
Your turn! What prayer intentions can I “put to work” for you this week? As always, I will add them to my prayer journal and pray for you by name throughout the week–especially during my morning prayers. Please share your intentions in the comment box below, on the blog Facebook page, or send them to me via the blog contact form. Thank you in advance for your prayers.
Have a great week!
Tuesday, May 19th, was a big, big day for Mr. Walt!
1. He turned 4 years old.
2. It was his last day of preschool. (Until next year, that is.)
3. His preschool class spent the day at a park.
4. That evening was the last Don & Millie’s night of the school year.
Some guys have all the luck, huh?
Walt started his birthday off with a special singing hamburger birthday card. The kid LOVED it!
We told him he could open one present before school – a set of minion figurines!
Walt and Jane played with them until Walt had to go to school.
Before leaving for school, we got to take the obligatory last day of school picture on the front porch.
Can you believe how much Walt changed between his first and last days of preschool?
He definitely has a bigger personality these days!
Later that morning, we got to meet Walt and his preschool class at a nearby park for a last day of school play day.
After play time, we took a break for monster cookies and sang “Happy Birthday” to Walt. How precious is it that the group prayed before cookies? I love Catholic schools!
We headed back to the classroom to get Walt’s birthday crown and took a pic in the legendary cupcake chair that the birthday kiddo gets to sit in for the day.
Obligatory pic in front of school.
Walt had a rainy first day of school and a cloudy last day, but he had a wonderful year! We didn’t have an emotional goodbye with his teacher that day since we were coming back the next day to celebrate Jane’s last day with the same teacher.
Then, we headed home to open presents and have lunch before Philip had to get back to work. While I was busy baking monster cookies the night before, Philip (creatively) wrapped Walt’s presents. He missed the box of tissue paper and opted for brown packing paper instead. Christmas wrapping paper was a big player, too. And you know what? Who cares?! Walt certainly didn’t! Thanks for wrapping the presents, honey!
Walt loves this minion play-doh set. You can give the minions crazy play-doh hair, cut it with scissors, and make them little outfits and accessories.
Outdoor toys like water blasters and a ball.
Awwwwww, a stuffy minion to cuddle with at bedtime!
I think he liked it.
The Sandlot! We watched it in a few sittings. Jane and Walt thought it was hilarious! “Can we watch it again and start it where the boy with the glasses tries to trick the life guard and kisses her?! He’s so silly!”
After our afternoon nap time, we met up with Philip at Don & Milie’s for the last Don & Millie’s Night (a portion of the proceeds goes back to the school). This was a BIG DEAL to Walt. Normally, Philip works late on Tuesday nights. Since Don & Millie’s nights are always on Tuesdays, we usually just do the drive thru. On Walt’s birthday, Philip took the evening off so that we could go to Don & Millie’s together as a family. Walt was so happy to be eating his children’s meal in a booth with Daddy, surrounded by his classmates’ families and his teacher in another booth nearby. Big, big deal for the birthday boy! After dinner, we came back to our house for cookie cake. Another job well done, Cookie Company!
What we didn’t tell Walt was that Mimi, Papa, and Maddy were coming over, too. Walt was so excited and surprised to see them!
First, we sang “Happy Birthday” and ate cookie cake.
Then, Walt opened his presents from Mimi, Papa, and Maddy.
And we ended the night with a bedtime story and prayers.
From beginning to end, Walt had a fantastic birthday!
We forgot to do it on the actual day, but we remembered the next morning to mark Walt’s height on our pantry door frame. I can’t believe our little guy is 4! We love you, buddy!
Tuesday, May 19th, was a big, big day for Mr. Walt!
1. He turned 4 years old.
2. It was his last day of preschool. (Until next year, that is.)
3. His preschool class spent the day at a park.
4. That evening was the last Don & Millie’s night of the school year.
Some guys have all the luck, huh?
Walt started his birthday off with a special singing hamburger birthday card. The kid LOVED it!
We told him he could open one present before school – a set of minion figurines!
Walt and Jane played with them until Walt had to go to school.
Before leaving for school, we got to take the obligatory last day of school picture on the front porch.
Can you believe how much Walt changed between his first and last days of preschool?
He definitely has a bigger personality these days!
Later that morning, we got to meet Walt and his preschool class at a nearby park for a last day of school play day.
After play time, we took a break for monster cookies and sang “Happy Birthday” to Walt. How precious is it that the group prayed before cookies? I love Catholic schools!
We headed back to the classroom to get Walt’s birthday crown and took a pic in the legendary cupcake chair that the birthday kiddo gets to sit in for the day.
Obligatory pic in front of school.
Walt had a rainy first day of school and a cloudy last day, but he had a wonderful year! We didn’t have an emotional goodbye with his teacher that day since we were coming back the next day to celebrate Jane’s last day with the same teacher.
Then, we headed home to open presents and have lunch before Philip had to get back to work. While I was busy baking monster cookies the night before, Philip (creatively) wrapped Walt’s presents. He missed the box of tissue paper and opted for brown packing paper instead. Christmas wrapping paper was a big player, too. And you know what? Who cares?! Walt certainly didn’t! Thanks for wrapping the presents, honey!
Walt loves this minion play-doh set. You can give the minions crazy play-doh hair, cut it with scissors, and make them little outfits and accessories.
Outdoor toys like water blasters and a ball.
Awwwwww, a stuffy minion to cuddle with at bedtime!
I think he liked it.
The Sandlot! We watched it in a few sittings. Jane and Walt thought it was hilarious! “Can we watch it again and start it where the boy with the glasses tries to trick the life guard and kisses her?! He’s so silly!”
After our afternoon nap time, we met up with Philip at Don & Milie’s for the last Don & Millie’s Night (a portion of the proceeds goes back to the school). This was a BIG DEAL to Walt. Normally, Philip works late on Tuesday nights. Since Don & Millie’s nights are always on Tuesdays, we usually just do the drive thru. On Walt’s birthday, Philip took the evening off so that we could go to Don & Millie’s together as a family. Walt was so happy to be eating his children’s meal in a booth with Daddy, surrounded by his classmates’ families and his teacher in another booth nearby. Big, big deal for the birthday boy! After dinner, we came back to our house for cookie cake. Another job well done, Cookie Company!
What we didn’t tell Walt was that Mimi, Papa, and Maddy were coming over, too. Walt was so excited and surprised to see them!
First, we sang “Happy Birthday” and ate cookie cake.
Then, Walt opened his presents from Mimi, Papa, and Maddy.
And we ended the night with a bedtime story and prayers.
From beginning to end, Walt had a fantastic birthday!
We forgot to do it on the actual day, but we remembered the next morning to mark Walt’s height on our pantry door frame. I can’t believe our little guy is 4! We love you, buddy!
Jane and Walt had back-to-back last days of school, and they both had crummy weather. Jane’s day was even colder and rainier, so she went off to school in her winter coat, hat, and mittens.
I love how much you can see the transformation from her first to her last day of school pictures.
5, going on 25.
The best normal face we could get from this silly monkey!
Cheeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeese!
Jane and Walt said goodbye to Mrs. King together. (Remember, they had the same preschool teacher, and Walt will have her again next year). She is a wonderful teacher, and the kids both had a great year!
We had to snap a few pictures out front just like we did on the first day of school. This girl. How do you like the little pose with the foot action?
So much bigger!
Hard to believe our little girl is going to be a big kindergartener next year! Jane wishes it would start tomorrow. Between getting to wear a uniform, eating lunch with friends, and staying at school all day, the girl can hardly wait!
Jane and Walt had back-to-back last days of school, and they both had crummy weather. Jane’s day was even colder and rainier, so she went off to school in her winter coat, hat, and mittens.
I love how much you can see the transformation from her first to her last day of school pictures.
5, going on 25.
The best normal face we could get from this silly monkey!
Cheeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeese!
Jane and Walt said goodbye to Mrs. King together. (Remember, they had the same preschool teacher, and Walt will have her again next year). She is a wonderful teacher, and the kids both had a great year!
We had to snap a few pictures out front just like we did on the first day of school. This girl. How do you like the little pose with the foot action?
So much bigger!
Hard to believe our little girl is going to be a big kindergartener next year! Jane wishes it would start tomorrow. Between getting to wear a uniform, eating lunch with friends, and staying at school all day, the girl can hardly wait!
-1-
One of our current favorite books from the library, Pirates Don’t Change Diapers, by Melinda Long and David Shannon.
-2-
Does your baby retrieve things out of the trash? Harry loved this pineapple core. On top of teething, he’s been battling an ear infection, so I was happy to let him gnaw on something that kept him happy for a few minutes. After snapping this pic, I relocated him to his booster where he could enjoy his pineapple core without Monty bothering him.
-3-
“Jane, can’t you share that ice cream with me?”
-4-
I caught Jane reading (singing) her own version of Dinosaurs Love Underpants to Harry. For Jane, all of life is a musical!
-5-
These two kept me company while I cleaned out my drawers and closet earlier this week. At one point, I ran downstairs to grab more trash bags. When I came back up, Jane had positioned a book in front of Monty. “He’s reading a book, too, Mom!”
-6-
The busy-ness of the month (and his ear infection and teething) got the best of Harry. He passed out on the family room floor before afternoon nap time yesterday. Poor sweetie pie!
-7-
We’ve been enjoying evening family walks after dinner. A few nights ago, our shoes were filthy from walking through puddles and wet grass after the week’s rainstorms. Philip suggested we sit on the front stoop so that the kids could enjoy the leftover ice cream cups from our Mother’s Day celebration. Isn’t he brilliant? It was a sweet moment as a family.
* * *
To read more 7QT posts by other bloggers, head over to the link-up at Kelly Mantoan’s blog, This Ain’t the Lyceum!
Walt celebrated his 4th birthday with his preschool classmates last weekend. After considerable deliberation, he finally selected the party theme:
Walt’s party was all about Despicable Me!
Well done, Cookie Company! They did a great job decorating this chocolate chip cookie cake for the party. Isn’t it adorable? It was equally delicious!
Have you ever seen the movie? I kept the party decorations relatively simple, but we had to have our own Box of Shame from the movie like this one:
We transformed a garment box from our move into a Box of Shame. The kids LOVED it! Walt tried it out before the other kids arrived.
The rest of the minions in the Box of Shame:
The kids mostly entertained themselves for most of the party. It was fun to watch their individual personalities shine through.
Monty was happy to have so much attention from his new buddies!
Note to self: No more balloon bouquets at a 4-year-old boy’s birthday party. They will get destroyed. This started as 3 separate balloon bouquets.
Things got pretty quiet when it was time for lunch. All of the playing wore ’em out–temporarily. Then the sugar ramped ’em up again!
We suggested Duck, Duck, Goose. The kids brilliantly changed the game to Yellow Minion, Yellow Minion, Purple Minion. There was so much giggling!
Look at Walt’s face. The joy!
One of my favorite pictures from the party. I love how happy he was to watch his friends having a great time at his party.
All good things have to come to an end, so we came upstairs to wait for parents to arrive. Meanwhile, the kids had fun playing with their treasures from their goodie bags.
Harry especially loved the party blowers. He thought they were HILARIOUS!
The next day, I helped Walt to create his own thank you notes for his buddies. He drew each one a picture on the front. Here’s one:
Very serious work, people. Look at that concentration!
After he finished his cover art, I transcribed whatever message he wanted to include on the inside, thanking the friend for coming to the party and for bringing a nice birthday present. Walt especially loved getting to sign each card.
Walt had a huge grin plastered to his face when he went down for his afternoon nap after the party. It’s a beautiful thing to watch your child forming friendships with children who will be a big part of his life for the next 12+ years in elementary, junior, and high school. I’d say the party was a success because the minions were exhausted at the end–just in time for parents to bring them home for naps. Love you, Walt!
Walt celebrated his 4th birthday with his preschool classmates last weekend. After considerable deliberation, he finally selected the party theme:
Walt’s party was all about Despicable Me!
Well done, Cookie Company! They did a great job decorating this chocolate chip cookie cake for the party. Isn’t it adorable? It was equally delicious!
Have you ever seen the movie? I kept the party decorations relatively simple, but we had to have our own Box of Shame from the movie like this one:
We transformed a garment box from our move into a Box of Shame. The kids LOVED it! Walt tried it out before the other kids arrived.
The rest of the minions in the Box of Shame:
The kids mostly entertained themselves for most of the party. It was fun to watch their individual personalities shine through.
Monty was happy to have so much attention from his new buddies!
Note to self: No more balloon bouquets at a 4-year-old boy’s birthday party. They will get destroyed. This started as 3 separate balloon bouquets.
Things got pretty quiet when it was time for lunch. All of the playing wore ’em out–temporarily. Then the sugar ramped ’em up again!
We suggested Duck, Duck, Goose. The kids brilliantly changed the game to Yellow Minion, Yellow Minion, Purple Minion. There was so much giggling!
Look at Walt’s face. The joy!
One of my favorite pictures from the party. I love how happy he was to watch his friends having a great time at his party.
All good things have to come to an end, so we came upstairs to wait for parents to arrive. Meanwhile, the kids had fun playing with their treasures from their goodie bags.
Harry especially loved the party blowers. He thought they were HILARIOUS!
The next day, I helped Walt to create his own thank you notes for his buddies. He drew each one a picture on the front. Here’s one:
Very serious work, people. Look at that concentration!
After he finished his cover art, I transcribed whatever message he wanted to include on the inside, thanking the friend for coming to the party and for bringing a nice birthday present. Walt especially loved getting to sign each card.
Walt had a huge grin plastered to his face when he went down for his afternoon nap after the party. It’s a beautiful thing to watch your child forming friendships with children who will be a big part of his life for the next 12+ years in elementary, junior, and high school. I’d say the party was a success because the minions were exhausted at the end–just in time for parents to bring them home for naps. Love you, Walt!
