Summer

is here and I am SO glad!! I feel so blessed to have just a little more time in the day and much more time to spend with my wonderful kiddos. I am reading several different things - just finished Three Cups of Tea about Greg Mortenson, as well as Anne Rice's novels about the life of Jesus. I can't wait for the next installment in Rice's series, but in the meantime I am reading The Catholic Vision for Leading Like Jesus as well as one of JD Robb's latest paperback (surprised me that it had Catholics in it, lol). I am planning for a busy couple of weeks coming up. Next week is Duncan's first Boy Scout activity - he and I, the brave parent volunteer (I guess I won't EVER learn to say no, Poppa) are going to day camp in McKenzie tues, wed, thur, and fri. Then, wed, thur, and fri evenings the fabulous Holy Cross VBS (ya'll come now, ya here?) which I think is going to be a LOT of fun, will be under way. July brings lots of fun for us with the Catholic Youth Conference in St. Louis, our nephew's wedding and a trip to Houston, and the Bosco Conference which I am SOOOOOOOO thrilled to be attending this year. I really feel like this summer is going to be such a great learning experience for me and full of fun for the kiddos. The weather has been so great - not too hot (yet) and not too rainy. My Dad is home and we are loving the extra time that we get to spend with him. I am just SO blessed.
Love you guys!!
TK

I know it is a total cliche, but as my calendar begins to fill up for May I am feeling as though this year has really flown by. Duncan is finishing up his Kindergarten year. While he has not quite learned to tie his shoes yet, he is reading and writing as well as doing some awesome phonetic spelling. He has had an enormous growth spurt this year and is maturing a lot as well as learning to control his frustrations. Riley has had a wonderful year in Ms. Maria's classroom. Their little corner of the school has just been a blessing and a sweet little learning community - I know she will hate to see that end. Darcy is almost done at Grove and is anxious to move on to HCHS and "the big leagues" next year. She has had her first beaux and her first heartbreak this year - grown about 4 inches, and just gets more beautiful with every day. She will be 15 in a few days and yet, I can remember bringing her home from the hospital and have a difficult time reconciling the gorgeous young woman she is today with the nearly bald toddler with bowed legs that she was just yesterday. Chelsea - oh my heavens I can't believe I am about to say this - will be a senior next year. She took her ACT yesterday and has scads of college apps arriving for her to work on over the summer. My sweet, loving, beautiful Chelsea only has about a year left at home before she goes away to college and "the real world". Chelsea is gorgeous inside and out and of all of my babies, has grown the most in the last year. She has really taken on the mantle of young womanhood with grace and poise - she is not a child anymore, although she will always be MY baby.
My children are growing up so quickly and every year I resolve to slow things down a little and enjoy them more. Every year, I get caught up in the 10 million things that we "DO" and a little more time slips by. I think maybe that is part of the beauty of the world - while we are busy with every day things, we grow and learn and laugh and love, and then the tough times fade in our memories while the smiles and laughter remain.
Kiss your babies for me!
TK

Prayers for Haley and her family.

Just wanted to send out a note and ask that you all pray for a UKC family who lost their son in a tragic motorcycle accident last night. I don't know a lot of details, but think Tyler was about Chelsea's age - maybe a year older. I can't even imagine coping with that knock on the door, and my prayers and thoughts keep coming back to his family as I go about my daily business. Please be with them in thought and lift them up in prayer as they deal with arrangements while mourning their son.
Kiss your babies for me!
God Bless!
TK

Lent reflections

Recently someone in one of my groups asked for input on how everyone juggled tradition (family) with Tradition (Church). She was talking specifically about Holy Week and how you fit all of the Masses and blessings in while still spending time with the kids and caring for your daily obligations plus cooking all of these wonderful traditional Easter time meals. It wasn’t something I could really speak to as I have really struggled with the Holidays since my Mom passed away almost 3 years ago, but it definitely got me thinking. This year for Lent, I had planned to take the kids at least twice to Stations of the Cross and my PRE kids at least once. I had fully intended to attend all of the Masses of Holy Week and dutifully drag my heathens with me. (For those of you unfamiliar with me, when I use the term ‘heathens’ I am lovingly referring to my four wonderful children.) I wanted to begin scads of new food traditions that my kids would remember fondly to their children when they are old and grey. I vowed to go to Confession every other week as well as doing lots more meditating and praying each and every day. I was really proud of all my shiny new “traditions” and certain that this would be the best Lent ever! So how did it go, you ask? Well, I did attend Stations of the Cross this Lent – Once with my PRE kids at their Confirmation retreat (thanks Kim & Kelly) and it was beautiful and inspiring, but I didn’t make it with the kids on Friday. I did do a lot of personal soul searching, but did not succeed in getting the kids to cheerfully commit to devotion each day. I did a daily devotion myself (most days) but was not successful in praying the Rosary every day. I did succeed in going meatless and fasting the days the Church asks us to – house-wide even (yay!) Everyone went to Confession the mandatory ONE time during Lent and we didn’t miss a Sunday Mass, even while out of town for a cheer competition, but we sure didn’t attend EVERY Mass on Holy Week – just Holy Thursday @ St. Leo’s and Easter Sunday at home. Food traditions – HA I didn’t even cook on Easter Sunday, instead we had leftovers and an argument about how mean Daddy was for not springing for Chinese. So how did I do? In the great scheme of things, I think it WAS the Best Lent ever. Not because I am the most devout Catholic on the block, not because I am a great cook, not because I followed through on all of my ‘promises’ to myself, but because my kids know that FAITH is important to me and that it is important that THEY have Faith. My kids understand that Easter is more than cute fuzzy bunnies and eggs – it is the GIFT that our Lord and Savior gave us freely and willingly, that because His Divine Nature conquered death we are able to go to Heaven. What it all boils down to is I worked at improving the relationships between myself, my kids and Jesus and I think that I DID accomplish that and will continue to improve those relationships in the coming year.
Alleluia - He is Risen! God Bless - TK

I am very proud and excited to announce......

that I am now an 'official' product tester/reviewer for a wonderful Catholic online store called The Catholic Company. I just ordered my first review item today and will be posting a review in a couple of weeks. While I am waiting on The Catholic Vision for Leading Like Jesus - S3 Leadership I will keep on reading Anne Rice's Christ the Lord - Out of Egypt! Stay tuned!!!
God Bless!
TK

Update on TK

Ok, so did I mention that I sometimes lack focus and have a hard time getting into routines? lol
I recently read a blog that focused on readings for the day and meditations on those readings. It inspired me, so I am going to try (again) to commit to a daily blog.

New goings on in my life :
~ I am getting ready to attend my 20 year High School reunion in June. My beloved teenagers assure me that this means I am well and truly OLD now! ~

~ I am so proud of my Confirmation Class!! They will be Confirmed in a little over a month and they have had SUCH growth this year. I can't wait to go to Steubenville with them in July! ~

~ I have been volunteering 2 days a week at a local pregnancy center (www.tomorrowshope.net ) and LOVE it. I am a "Client Advocate" and am also learning to work the store side so I can pinch hit as needed this summer. Next week is our Walk for Life and the girls and I are walking - I can't wait! ~

~ Easter was so beautiful! Not only was my Dad here with us, but Jon went to Mass as well (he pinky promised the girls ;-) ) and it was SUCH a wonderful feeling to have so much of my family together to celebrate the resurrection of our Blessed Lord and Savior! We got to spend the afternoon with my sister and her family and had a wonderful Easter Egg Hunt! The weather was gorgeous! ~

~ Only 2 weeks until I have not one, but TWO teenage drivers in my house, and as if that (and the reunion) weren't enough to make me feel ancient, we are gathering College info and scheduling Senior Pics.............~


God Bless!
TK

9/11

I can still remember falling down onto the foot stool in front of the TV and telling Jon to turn on the TV. I had the phone in one hand and was fumbling for the remote control. The older 2 girls were at school and I was just getting ready to start breakfast for Ri Bug and I when the phone rang and my Momma told me we were under attack. What in the world did she mean? I mean, this is AMERICA - no one would attack us! Numb, we watched as the second plane hit, and then glued to the television we would soon witness an attack on the Pentagon and a field in PA. Never in my life have I experienced such Highs and Lows - such pride and pain, as in the weeks that followed. As a nation, we rallied together to help survivors and support those who lost loved ones. We mourned together when search efforts were called off. We praised those who helped, and swore we would find the fiends who had caused such havoc in our beloved country.
~NEVER FORGET~
TK