Happy First Monday of March! I haven’t done an Online Daybook/ Currently post since last summer! I miss it, so I’m doing one today. January and February were hard months, but I survived and there’s something to be said about celebrating the small victories in tough times. 🙂

 

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Grateful for…

• A new month and a new week to begin anew again.
• Plenty of rain instead of being in drought mode.
• Online community love.
• Family time.
• Date nights with my sweetie.

Praying for..

• Those fighting cancer, illness and mental health issues.
• Many special intentions from family and friends, especially those carrying heavy crosses.
• For people mourning the loss of loved ones.
• 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…

When times are tough, or you just have a day that sucks, it’s easy to forget the blessings around you. I know I am often guilty of this. God has reminded me that I need to stop for a moment and instead of looking at the one thing that is giving me a stress headache, to look at the bigger picture and find something positive about the situation. This applies even to mourning the loss of my mom. I can be mad that she was taken from us too soon or I can accept it and be thankful that we had so many wonderful memories with her.

When we first learned of Mom’s cancer two years ago, she set three goals for herself – to make it to her 70th birthday, to make it to her 50th Wedding Anniversary, and to make as many memories as she could in whatever time she had left. She accomplished all three goals and for that I am filled with gratitude. So taking that lesson, I am trying to look not at what is wrong at a given moment, but to turn it around and see it as a small glitch in a much larger positive picture. It’s not always easy, but it keeps the stress headaches away. 😉

 

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Family Chit Chat…

As I said, January and February were hard, although there were happy moments weaved into the months. We are all doing well, but busy as usual. I shared the details more in my Instagram Stories, but here is a recap of the highlights.

 

January Memories…

Saying goodbye to my mom and best friend, in my heart, at the funeral and in her eulogy. // On the plus side, mom got her final wish and all her family – including her nine children and twenty grandchildren were together celebrating her life and carrying on the love of family. // We returned back home and after so much heartache and so many tears. I am starting to feel like I am getting back to my old self. // The boys run a mile to help raise money for the Children of Compassion, that helps orphaned and disabled children in Africa go to school.

February Memories…

Brian had a work thing that allowed us a night away. I enjoyed being spoiled for a night. // On Valentines, I celebrated the love of God, my spouse, my children, family and friends. // I continued to use (and love) my Every Sacred Sunday Mass Journal. // After a break during the holidays and family mourning, Andrew continued with his violin lessons. // During an impromptu trip to visit my family, I visited my sister and her snowy home. The kids saw and played with snow for the first time in their lives. 🙂 // I’ve been enjoying evenings with my boys doing #readaloud on weekdays and watching movies or cooking shows on weekend nights. <3

 

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Cooking…

I’ve been looking for a Greek Pasta Salad recipe. I am going to try this one. Do you have a fave you already love?

Greek Pasta Salad by Pasta Fits

 

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Reading…

Rich People Problems (Crazy Rich Asians, #3) by Kevin Kwan

I finished the final book of the Crazy Rich, Asians trilogy. Of the three, the first book was my favorite and this is my second favorite. There were a few parts that lagged a bit, but I enjoyed reading about the continuing adventures that make me want to exclaim alamack! All in all, it was a fun trilogy and I’m looking forward to the next movie. (Content warning: I’d rate this hard PG13/soft R because of language and definite adult situations, but not explicit.)

One Day in December by Josie Silver

I listened to the audio version of this during last week’s road trip and it made the miles just zoom by. The story was right out of a Hallmark movie – a woman and man see each other and sparks fly as they fall in love at first sight. However, circumstances keep them from actually meeting each other. The girl searches for the guy and a year later she finally finds him, but things don’t work out as she dreamed. The story was fun and I loved the will they-won’t they tension. However, this was definitely written from a worldly point of view and not a sanitized Hallmark version. I’d consider the content as Rated R for language and various sexual situations. It wasn’t so explicit that I stopped reading (as I have with other books) but it’s not one I could freely recommend unless I knew the content wouldn’t bother you. If you watch rated MA TV shows, then you may enjoy it. If you don’t, skip to the next book review.

The Innkeeper of Ivy Hill (Tales from Ivy Hill, #1) by Julie Klassen

The Ladies if Ivy Cottage (Takes from Ivy Hill, #2) by Julie Klassen

After reading one or two books like the ones above, I need to cleanse the palette with a wholesome book with Christian values. One of my favorite authors in Julie Klassen. I decided to read her Ivy Hill trilogy for Modern Mrs. Darcy’s Reading Challenge book category “three books by the same author.” I really enjoyed the first book because it wasn’t her usual  romance book (as much as I love those.) The greater theme was of a young widow navigating life life as a business women, during a time when that was highly unusual. Seeing her grow, navigating friendships (new ones and old ones lost) was a refreshing change of pace.

The second volume of the trilogy had more romantic content and I enjoyed rooting for certain couples to get together and also enjoyed solving the puzzle of minor mysteries. I really enjoyed both books and just started book 3.

 

Watching…

(ON TV)

After the kids are in bed and sleeping, we’ve been watching shows like Manifest, This Is Us, A Million Little Things, Lethal Weapon, Big Bang Theory, Brooklyn 99, Mom, Speechless and American Housewife. We just watched the pilot of Whiskey Cavalier. I’ve got Victoria on DVR but I’ll watch that alone since Brian is not a big fan. What are your faves?

(MOVIES)

I used to go see at least two movies a month, but I haven’t gone to the movies in ages. I’m just now starting to watch all the Academy Awards Best Picture nominees. What was your personal pick for Best Picture?

 

Listening to …

Added to my Alternative Faves Playlist…

Sea Blue by Bloxx

Over My Head by Judah & the Lion

Bee Sting by The Wombats

Blur by MO & Foster the People

You’re Somebody Else by Flora Cash

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Added to my Cooking with the Kids Playlist …

Elements by Tobymac

Changed by Jordan Feliz

If You Ain’t in It by Danny Gokey

Native Tongue by Switchfoot

Face to Face by Mat Kearney

 

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Recent Posts:

Mom’s Eulogy: Saying Goodbye

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My 2019 Word and Saint(s) of the Year

From the Archives:

Unbound and Our Sponsored Child (March 2017)

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How I Use My Bullet Journal – Spring 2016 Update (March 2016)

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I Am the Handmaid of the Lord (March 2015)

 

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Around the blogosphere…

Here are some posts I’ve been reading…

• Stations of the Cross Clickbait Title Alert: Are You Doing This One Important Thing Wrong? by Catholic All Year
• What Does Non-GMO Mean? by 100 Days of Real Food.com
• What to Give Up and Take Up for Lent (Prayer, Fasting, and Almsgiving) by Blessed Is She Blog
• Pursuing Beauty Must Be an Intentional Choice by Carrots for Michaelmas.com
• Making Time for Teens by This Ain’t the Lyceum.org
• 20 wonderful books about books and bookstores by Modern Mrs. Darcy.com

 

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For a few brief moments, the rain stopped and the sun was shining once again.

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So that’s what I’ve been up to lately. What about you? What’s currently happening in your life? Any book, movie or TV show recommendations? Do share.

Have a great week!

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