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Grateful for…
- Hopefully, that my blog is working now. (It was down for a few days.)
- A break of warm sunshine after weeks of rain.
- All the much needed rain.
- The love of family and friends.
- Food on the table, a roof over our head and material blessings we often take for granted.
Praying for..
- Many special intentions from friends.
- Our divided country.
- The unity of all Christians.
- Those fighting addiction and mental illness.
- Victims of violence, racism and abuse and for the conversion of their oppressors.
- For peace in the heart of all men/women.
- All pregnant moms (especially family members), those trying to get pregnant, those who have lost their babies and for moms contemplating an abortion.
- The souls in purgatory, especially family, friends and those most forgotten.
Pondering…
The need of sisterhood. Over the month of January, Blessed Is She has sponsored the prayer pledge where we’ve pledge to start the new year right and take time to pray every day in January. There is a daily prayer prompt for inspiration and members of the Blessed Is She team took turns each day to do InstaStories on Instagram showing you how we incorporate prayer into our daily lives and to lead Live Prayer in the evening at 6:00 PM PT/9:00 PM ET. I led twice this month and I was touched by how many ladies sent messages and prayer intentions. They were grateful to be in solidarity with us and each other. They opened up about their struggles in hopes that we would join them in prayer to God.
Yesterday morning I gathered with other moms at the kids’ school to pray the rosary together. It has become a weekly activity and I can’t tell you how beneficial it is to my soul to stop and pray with like minded sisters. It means a lot to know that they are praying for me and I am praying for them. When I am feeling lazy and think about all the other stuff I need to get done in my day, I am tempted to skip it but knowing they are there gives me that nudge to put in the extra effort. I am always thankful that I did. So whether we find out community of sisters online or in your own backyard, I do hope you are able to connect with other women who can support you and pray for you. And if you need someone to lift you in prayer, you are always welcome to leave a comment or email me at rol(at)revolutionoflove.com and I’d be happy to add you to my prayer list. 🙂
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Around the House…
I haven’t been able to work a lot on my decluttering list since Brian has an extra work project that I have been helping him with and it has taken up my free time. However, I have been working on one of my other 2017 goals and letting the kids cook with me in the kitchen more. Granted there have been some days when I had to ban them out of the kitchen because I seriously just needed to get the meal done ASAP but most days, I let them join me.
My master chef.
Yesterday was Matthew’s turn and when Brian came home from work, he ran to the door and excitedly exclaimed that it was his day to make dinner with me that night. Brian smiled and whispered to me that he guessed dinner will take an extra half hour or so. Well, maybe 15 minutes. 😉 Truthfully, Matthew actually really did help with getting veggies washed and some easier prep done. At least I’ll have two sons who will feel comfortable in the kitchen. The other son has little interest in domestic work so I still need to work on him. 😉
Family Chit Chat…
On a field trip with John-Paul.
Life is busy but going well. We’re half way done with the school year and the countdown for summer vacation has begun. It seems a little early to be excited about swimming and trips to Lake Tahoe but John-Paul has been praying each evening that Grandma would be well enough to come to Lake Tahoe with us this year. (Last year she was waiting to have her surgery to remover the cancer.) So far my mom is doing well, and we pray she continues that path.
Speaking of cancer, next week (on Monday 1/30) Brian goes for his cancer testing to make sure he is still clean. I can’t help but nervously hold my breath as I wait for the test results. Frankly, it’s damn scary but I’m trying to not let it take over my thoughts and instead leave it in God’s hands. Your prayers for Brian (and my sanity) will be appreciated!
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In the Kitchen…
Dinner has been a little ho-hum lately. I’ve reached that point where I am so tired of cooking the same handful of meals each week. I need to look though my recipe book and find some old favorites I haven’t tried in awhile. What’s some of your top go-to meals? Maybe I’ll discover a new favorite.
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Reading…
Okay, I seriously need to sit down and write a post about my 2017 reading list and review the last few books I’ve read, which includes these…
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Haley and Christy at Fountains of Carrots.com are reading this book next for the FofC book club so it is next on my list too.
Watching…
(MOVIES)
My first movie of 2017 was La La Land. I’ve got to admit that I’m not a huge musical fan. I have some favorites but I wouldn’t count musicals as a favorite genre. I went into La La Land with some trepidation and when the opening sequence began with a full on scene of people leaping out of their cars to sing and dance, I thought, “Oh, no, what did I get myself into?” Luckily, it took only a few minutes to win me over and get my feet tapping. I landed out loving the movie and all the nods to old school Hollywood. The music was infectious and I’m listening to the soundtrack as I am typing here. My only complaint is that while I loved Emma Stone and Ryan Gosling in their roles, their singing was less than stellar considering that it was a musical. I’m guessing their star power trumped their musical abilities. With that said, I still loved the movie even though I was hoping for a Hallmark happy ending (and didn’t get it.) (Parental note: Rated PG-13 for language. The main characters live together but nothing is shown.)
(TV)
The usual faves including: This Is Us, Speechless, Big Bang Theory, Lethal Weapon, Designated Survivor and American Housewife.
Sadly, we just finished two shows. (Sad, because I didn’t want them to end!)
We finished The Crown this week and I’m missing it. The acting, cinematography and costumes were top notch and I highly recommend it. (Parental note: Rated M for mature but I thought it rather tame for an M. The only thing I can recall is a couple bare butt shots at the beginning of the show.)
In my last Daybook, I had just started watching the show The Man in the High Castle. The premise was interesting and Brian thought some of the alternate reality scenes were weird but he both enjoyed it and I LOVED it. I thought it was well done, well acted and it kept me on the edge of my seat. I can’t wait for the confirmed Season 3, most likely in late 2017. (Parental note: Rated M for Mature. There is some violence, language, brief nudity and a sex scene towards the end of season 2 that we fast forwarded through.)
Next up on the list is Victoria.
Listening to …
The latest added to my playlist – Your Heart Is a Weapon by POP ETC.
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Recent Posts:
I finished all my End of the Year Recaps, including:
- (Part 1): 2016 in 12 Photos & Link-up
- (Part 2): Entertainment & Social Media Faves of the Year
- (Part 3): Top Posts of 2016
- (Part 4): Lessons God Taught Me in 2016
I finished Lara Casey’s 2017 Goal Setting Series and posted about it here:
- Part 1: Getting Started (Steps 1-3)
- Part 2: Cultivate What Matters (Steps 4-6)
- Part 3: Say Yes, Say No, Choose a Word
- Part 4: Uncover Intentional Goals & Part 5: Make It Happen
Lastly, for my fellow planner lovers there’s – How I Use a (Blessed Is She) Planner and a Bullet Journal
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Pinned…
Lenten Journal by Blessed Is She (These journals are on sale until Sun 1/29.)
The Jesus Tree by Do Small things with Love.com
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Penmanship and Beginning Creative Lettering Guide Sheets by Creative Lei.com
Around the blogosphere…
Here are some posts I’ve been reading…
- Bible Journaling: Craving Connection by The Littlest Way
- Sorting Out Which Differences Matter Between Us by Whole Parenting Family
- InCoWriMo, 2017 by Boho Berry
- {SQ} Seven Things I Learned about Catholic Mindfulness by This Ain’t the Lyceum
- The Moral Life of the Child and How to Nurture It by Like Mother, Like Daughter
- What’s Saving My Life Right Now: A Peek into My Bullet Journal by The Big White Farmhouse
- Seven Quick Takes: 2017 Reading Challenge by a rosary a tractor and some books (My sister is back to blogging!) 🙂
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I’ve been participating in the Dogwood Photography 52 Week Challenge and these are my photos so far.
Week 1: Rule of Thirds (Basically, keep your subject out of the center.)
When the storm winds blow, the palm trees dance.
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Week 2: Straight out of the camera, no editing.
Signs of Spring
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Week 3: Land
I shot this with my iPhone but the subject matter was so pretty, it still came out nice. 🙂
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Week 4: Mirror
Two of my favorite bracelets on a mirror.
So that’s what I’ve been up to lately. What about you? What’s currently happening in your life? Any recommendations? Do share.
I’m linking up with Kelly for 7 Quick Takes. (Technically the link up doesn’t start until tomorrow so I’ll add the link then.)
Have a great week!
PS – You can follow RoL on Bloglovin, Feedly or another news feed. If you are a social media fan like me, we can stay in touch through Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest, GoodReads, Letterboxd, or Spotify, 😉
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In other words, if you click on my affiliated links and make a purchase, I get a small compensation that goes towards keeping the blog online. Big hugs to those who click and help support the blog! xoxo 🙂
Photo credit: My bro Rob
This month I completed a book you should have read in school. – 
…and a book published before you were born. – 
We don’t have snow here but I can handle a chilly day by the sea. 😉
Well, except for John-Paul. He did have fun but he could only take so much sports until he needed some “me time” to zone out. The only way I could get him to sit through two hours of football was to let him play a couple video games between quarters. 😉
Photo courtesy of 
Sept 2015 – 
Taken on a morning walk.