A Week in My Life 2014 – Tues & Wed: Mama Said There’d Be Days Like This

By bobbi
November 13, 2014
2 Comments

I think this is pretty but if only bath time was as calm and sweet as this photo implied.

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Today I am linking up with…

Kathryn over at Team Whitaker for Week in My Life 2014. (See my Monday here.)

Cari over at Clan Donaldson for Theme Thursday: Lean. (Scroll down to the last photo.)

The lovely ladies over at Like Mother, Like Daughter for {pretty, happy, funny, real}.

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No school + Target run = One happy boy.

Okay, I have to admit that Tuesday was uneventful. I am seriously sitting here thinking what in the world did I do that day? Well, there was only one moment that stands out in my mind. On Monday the three older kids had the day off to celebrate Veteran’s Day. Matthew’s pre school has done the same for years. Well, I did not check the pre school calendar to see that THIS year they get Tuesday off instead of Monday. So it was the usual morning routine of getting the older kids off to their school then getting Matthew off to pre school. However, when I arrived there were no cars and all the lights were off. A quick check to the online pre school calendar showed my mistake. Sigh. So much for my pre-planning. Oh well, that just meant that Matthew had to come with me on my morning shopping challenge where I hit four stores within two hours – Costco, Target, Trader Joe’s and Whole Foods. He loved it.

The rest of the day was a blur so let’s move on to…Yeah, it’s funny now but it wasn’t then! And the drawer was open just enough for the sauce to drip in and dirty the dish towels.

Okay, mama said there would be days like this. At first, it seemed like an ordinary day with me going about my business when some time in the late morning, there was a shift and everything started going wrong. Now, nothing major, mind you, but you know those crazy little things – spilled food, unrolled toilet paper, kid with a marker and a wall, broken dish, toys everywhere, brothers fighting, kids screaming, boys that can’t aim in the toilet, dirty behinds to wipe, and laundry and dishes that you swear your neighbors sneak into your house because there’s no way one family could make that much mess!

Maybe it was the fact that the kids had only a 1/2 day of school. Maybe because it was raining and they couldn’t go outside. Maybe because I have so little patience and I groan and rant when things are not going right. Whatever, it was no buneo. I somehow managed to get dinner on the table early, even though I had no time to eat myself because I had to get Bella to her youth group on time that night.

After dropping Bella off, I pulled out my little finger rosary to say say a decade, asking God to help me calm down. I started thinking about Mary and told her, “You know, Blessed Mother, sometimes it drives me nuts that I am supposed to be all calm and humble like you. I’m not like you. I am not ‘let it be done unto me…’ I’m more, ‘What the @#$% is going on?!’ How am I supposed to relate to you when I am the opposite of you?”

Then I thought about my own kids and all the naughty moments they have throughout the day. Do I love them any less because they misbehave? No. Do I have the desire to jump off the bunk bed and land on my little brother? No, but just because I am not tempted to do that doesn’t mean I love my kiddo any less or that I’m incapable of helping him correct his behavior. The same thing with our heavenly Mother. She doesn’t have to experience the same temptations in order to love us and and help us.

Mary is my Mother and she is constantly lifting my head and looking at me in the eye and saying, “Why are you being so disobedient to your Father? Does he not love you unconditionally? Do you not want to return that love to him?” Sigh. Of course, I do.

Like a loving and good mother that lets you lean on her, Mary hugs me and points me right back to where I should be – at the feet of Jesus. So I turned my heart back to God and asked for his forgiveness for being so self-centered and bratty. I asked for his mercy and shed a few tears of thanks for bringing peace to my heart once again. God is good. All the time.

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, Pinterest, GoodReads, Letterboxd or Instagram. 😉

7 Quick Takes and the Link-up Palooza!

By bobbi
November 8, 2014
2 Comments

Random fall photo. 😉

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Quick Takes

It has been a busy week and I have a writing deadline I should be working on but my brain is not cooperating so instead I’m going to have a little blogging fun. Since I have a bunch of posts half written in my draft folder, I am going to have a Link-up Palooza today and link up with as many of my favorite ladies (Jen, Cari, Gina, Nell, Jenna) as I can in this one post! The first link-up is with Jen for 7 Quick Takes. 🙂 I can’t wait to hear her on Lino’s show. I just may have to resubscribe to Sirius radio to get these great shows.

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Theme Thursday

I am linking up with Cari for this week’s Theme Thursday (on a Saturday.) The topic was brick. The first thing that came to mind is the brick fireplace in our house. I always dreamed of having a house with fire place and a mantel that I could decorate during the seasons and hang Christmas stocking during the holidays but when we moved into Brian’s grandma’s house, I found that there was no mantel. Instead it was just a wall of white jagged brick. (Hence, my most viewed post – How to baby proof the fireplace area.) However, there is one big blessing that came with the brick wall – this painting of the Blessed Mother, Baby Jesus and I am assuming John the Baptist.

My mother-in-law grew up in Austria and was a young girl during WWII. This painting hung in their home and during the bombing and the subsequent loss of their possessions, this was one of the few items they were able to save and bring to the states later when they immigrated. She has since had it cleaned, restored and framed and gave it to us. I’ll gladly live with this brick wall as long as it houses this beloved family treasure!

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Embrace the Ordinary

I am linking up with Gina for Embrace the Ordinary. Yesterday, I was in the kitchen with my “helper” Matthew and at one point he hugged me and said, “You are my best buddy, Mama!” Aw, that deserves a kiss. (I’ll try to remember that the next time he is driving me crazy. 😉

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Week Eats

I’m linking up with Nell for Saturday’s Week Eats.

Sunday – Paleo Beef Stew

Monday – Slow cooker BBQ chicken with broccoli slaw

Tuesday – Turkey Meatloaf, brown rice and green beans

Wednesday – Honey Chipotle Chicken Bowls with Lime Quinoa (I’m not a fan of quinoa so I’ll probably use leftover brown rice from Tues.)

Thursday – Leftovers

Friday – Tuna melts & tomato soup

Saturday – Homemade pizza and Greek salad

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tl;rl: November

Last month I completed the October 31 Days Writing Challenge with my 31 Days of Gratitude. I posted (almost) every day of the month (that last week was a killer.) I am linking up with Jenna for tl;rl and sharing my 7 favorite posts of the month.

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October 1, 2014 – 31 Days of Gratitude (Day 1): Feast of St. Therese

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October 7, 2014 – Pinterest Party & Link-up (vol 31) and 31 Days of Gratitude: Love of Fall and Pumpkin Donuts

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October 9, 2014 – 31 Days of Gratitude (Day 9) & {pretty, happy, funny, real} (vol 89): A Day on the Farm

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October 12, 2014 – 31 Days of Gratitude (Day 12): Leaving the Bubble and Seeing God’s Beauty in Creation

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October 17, 2014 – 31 Days of Gratitude (Day 17): Decorating Our Home for Fall

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October 24 & 25, 2014 31 – Days of Gratitude (Day 24 & 25): The Grace of the Cross (An Update on Brian)

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October 28 & 29, 2014 – Weigh-in Wednesday: Sharing Health Goals: Review of Fitbit Flex & 31 Days of Gratitude (Day 28 & 29)

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Pinterest Party

And since it’s been all about link-ups today, join me for the November Pinterest Party Link-up. Share your creative posts – a recipe, craft, project, parenting or marriage tips – anything we would want to pin to one of our Pinterest boards. It can be a new post or an older post that needs a little traffic. The Link-up is open through the end of November. Have fun!

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Wow, you made it all the way to #7. You rock. Join me next week when I’ll be telling you about the new Blessed Is She Advent Journal and hosting a give-away! In the meantime, have a blessed weekend!

Theme Thursday: Google Search Image

By bobbi
August 21, 2014
2 Comments

I was thinking earlier this week that I haven’t participated in Cari’s Theme Thursday in a long time so I would join in the next one. I had to laugh when I found out the topic but I knew it would be fun and easy. So here it is – Theme Thursday: Google Search Image.

Since I don’t use my real name online I googled “Bobbi at Revolution of Love.” The first photo was one of me and Brian from a year or two ago.

Here is the screenshot of all the images.

I love that also included in the search was the joyful sister from The Dominican Sister of Mary, Dwija’s daughter Lizzy wearing the dress we gave her and Michelle who was also a participant in Cari’s Snapshots from Sunday.

Thanks for a fun diversion, Cari, but now it’s tie to make dinner. 🙂

PPS – This post may contain affiliate links.

7 Quick Takes (6/13/14) & {p,h,f,r} vol. 88 & Theme Thursday – Old Fashioned: Beach Bonfires and BBC/Masterpiece Love

By bobbi
June 13, 2014
10 Comments

Well, today the kids have Mass and a closing ceremony at school and then they are officially done for the school year. I am already in vacation mode as I sit here in my pajamas typing on the computer, waiting for the what seems like the 100th load of laundry to finish. It has been a jam packed week with birthdays, end of school year parties, preschool graduations and other end of the year festivities. I feel like I’ve hardly been home all week, except to prep food and take it to a party. As such, the blog has also been neglected but I just figure you guys are as busy as I am at this time of year so I don’t sweat it. 😉 But just to keep you in the loop as to why I haven’t blogged, here’s what we’ve been doing this week.

I am linking up with Kathryn for Jen’s for 7 Quick Takes, Cari for (gasp!) Theme Thursday: Old Fashioned (see Take #3) and the lovely ladies at Like Mother, Like Daughter for {pretty, happy, funny, real}.

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On Sunday, Andrew celebrated his 7th birthday. He wanted an ocean party complete with a trip to his favorite spot – the Monterey Aquarium. After days of grey fog the sun finally came out to make a beautiful day.

The view from one of the observation decks.

The birthday boy.

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{pretty}

I had a ton of photos I took at the Aquarium but to spare you the photo dump I added my faves to this collage.

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{happy} / Theme Thursday: Old Fashioned

There were three end of the year school parties and our favorite was the old fashioned beach bonfire.

Although it was roughly 59 degrees and the water was COLD, Bella, Matthew and Andrew couldn’t resist playing in the waves. (A beanie and bare feet – Cali attire.)

Meanwhile, John Paul takes after his daddy. Neither of them like to take off their shoes and most definitely don’t want to feel the sand between their toes. (That baffles me!) At one point they both were just staring off into the sunset contemplating. It was so sweet.

I was just happy to stand there and let the waves wash over my feet. (And even more happy that I didn’t drop my camera or anything.) 😉

The sun is setting behind the fog.

We ended the day with old fashioned smores. Can you spot the stick with the flaming marshmallow??

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{funny}

I think it’s funny that we are supposed to celebrate pre-school graduations. I don’t really get it…

…but I play along anyway. Besides, John-Paul is so cute in his little cap. So congrats to my little grad.

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{real}

All these outings are a lot of fun but with all the potlucks we joined, out kitchen looked like this pretty much all week. (And this is only a small portion of the mess.) Don’t even get me started on the laundry. Yesterday I was trying to convince a size 7 boy that he could borrow a clean pair of underwear from his size 4 brother. No bueno. Yeah, so today I don’t plan on leaving the house until all the laundry and dishes are done. (Check back with me in a few days.)

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Happy Father’s Day!

Happy early Father’s Day to all you papas out there, especially my own sweet Daddy, my father-in-law Opa and finally my hubby – father to my children, my sweetheart and my super hero Brian. We’ll be celebrating the day with fresh homemade ice cream with our new Cuisinart ice cream maker as soon as Amazon Prime delivers it today. (I heart Amazon!!)

Later I’ll post how it worked out for us.

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Masterpiece Mystery

source

After we put the kids to bed on Father’s Day, Brian and I will meet on the couch to enjoy the return of Masterpiece Mystery, which I love even more than the beginning of Downton Abbey season. First on the roster is Dave Tennant with The Escape Artist.

The rest of the season includes:

ENDEAVOUR: Season 2 (June 29-July 20, 2014) – Smart and well done.

HERCULE POIROT: Season 12 ( July 27 to August 3, 2014) – HP is an oldie but a goodie.

BREATHLESS (August 24 to September 7, 2014) – Not sure about this one. Looks like a Mad Men type show, which I wouldn’t mind if the characters can manage to keep their pants on.

MISS MARPLE (September 21 and 28, 2014) – I still miss the old Miss Marple character but enjoy the show none the less.

INSPECTOR LEWIS: Season 7 (October 5-19, 2014) – I’m glad the boys are back! (And not just because I have a little crush on Hathaway, who reminds me of Brian.)

DEATH COMES TO PEMBERLEY (October 26-November 2, 2014) – I’ve got this book in my reading queue so I can read it before I watch the show. 🙂

Get more details at PBS: Masterpiece Mystery. (Now I’m just waiting for more Sherlock, Broadchurch, Whitechapel and Wallander.) 😉

That’s it for now. Have a great weekend!

PPS – This post contains affiliate links. (I get a small credit for purchases made through my Amazon links.)

Restore Workshop – Lessons Learned (Vol 2): Remember Gratitude

By bobbi
April 4, 2014
2 Comments

NOTE: It is not too late to sign up for the Restore Workshop. I believe it is open until this Saturday 4/12/14. You do not need to follow the workshop’s timeline. I am about a week behind the schedule. Some elements I like to take a little more time to work on and some days I simply run out of hours in the day. You can read my other post about the workshop here – Restore Workshop – Lessons Learned (Vol 1): Melt Downs & Being at Peace

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I am linking this post’s photos with Cari’s Theme Thursday: Remember. (Well, I was going to, but as of right now, there is no link-up. Maybe I missed something…)

I am linking up this post with the ladies over at Like Mother, Like Daughter for {pretty, happy, funny, real}, although it is a little out of order. 🙂

{real}

There are many lessons we are learning in the Restore Workshop and one of them is gratitude. I know it is sometimes easy for me to get bogged down with the “what is going wrong right now” and not pay attention to “everything that is going right.”

Part of our goal is to end our day in prayer and reflect on being thankful. Elizabeth asked us to write down five things we were thankful for at the end of each day. I had a small blank journal I got on clearance at Staples gathering dust on my book shelf so I thought it would be perfect to use as a gratitude journal. I added a quote from Mother Teresa on the front cover. It says:

“The best way to show my gratitude to God is to accept everything, even my problems with joy.”

I’ve got a looooong way to go until I can accept everything with joy but writing down five things seemed easy enough. I have to admit, it is not always easy to come up with five things every night. Sometimes I really have to ponder, particularly on days when it was just me, the kids, and housework. I had to look at the little things that brought a smile to my face whether it was a moment of humor or a phone call from my mom or a new recipe I tried that actually tasted good but I have been keeping track. Elizabeth said we could write it down or take photos, whatever works for us. Sometimes I add photos to my journal that highlight something I’m thankful for.

Other times, I don’t have five sweet things to ponder since I am just happy to have made it through the day…

…like Wednesday when all I could write was “#1-5 I am thankful I survived this freaking day! ” Baby steps. 😉

So with thanksgiving on my mind, here are some moments of gratitude from this week.

{pretty}

I took this photo today after the rain stopped. You can still see a few droplets on the petals. It’s easy to be grateful for God’s gorgeous creation.

I snapped this sunset with my phone the other day. After a long day I am extremely grateful when 7:30 PM arrives because it means the kids are in bed (despite their protests that it is still light outside) and I can enjoy a little respite with Brian. (I love my babies but I need some uninterrupted hubby time too. ;-))

{happy}

When I am cooking in the kitchen I usually chase the wild boys out but this time I was grateful for their laughter and humorous antics. So I hugged them and laughed with them and snapped their photo. (Although, afterwards I did send them outside so I could finish cooking. ;-))

After two days of rain we were all grateful to get back outside in the sun. (I don’t know how people with real winters stand months and months of cold weather!) I was going to set up a shot but Andrew was determined to photobomb it while riding by on his scooter.

That face. How can so much cuteness cause me so much trouble. 😉 I’m grateful for a camera that allows me to record these precious moments that fly by way too fast!

My lovable boys are always eager to pose for the camera but Bella, not so much. I was grateful that she agreed to let me snap a picture of her. I love my sweet girl.

{funny}

For some reason Matthew loves going to the doctor and he gets upset when he can’t go with Brian to the cancer center. So instead he walks around the house singing “Time for a Check-up” but he was upset that his stethoscope kept falling down so he asked me to tape them to his ears. 😉 LOL.

Have a great weekend!

Revolution of Love

Do small things with great love.

Category Archives: theme thursday

A Week in My Life 2014 – Tues & Wed: Mama Said There’d Be Days Like This

7 Quick Takes and the Link-up Palooza!

Theme Thursday: Google Search Image

7 Quick Takes (6/13/14) & {p,h,f,r} vol. 88 & Theme Thursday – Old Fashioned: Beach Bonfires and BBC/Masterpiece Love

Restore Workshop – Lessons Learned (Vol 2): Remember Gratitude