On Bullying

It seems I can't turn on the news or talk shows or even look online without the topic of bullying coming up.  Bullying is such a serious problem, and it's really scary.  Back when we were kids, bullies could pick on us at school but then we would go home and feel safe and loved.  Now, the bully's reach is not just physical.  They can extend their reach to their targets through Facebook, Twitter, texting, emails, etc.  The madness never ends. 

And because of the anonymity that cyber-bullying can create, kids are able to be even more aggressive than they could be in person.  Kids are killing themselves to try and get away from all of the hate.  Killing themselves!!  This is so incredibly terrible, that someone is made to believe that they are as worthless as the bullies are telling them they are.  And then they gather more courage than the bully's possess and use it to end their own life.

And if parents want to get involved, God forbid they say anything to the bully, or they could get thrown in jail.  How about throwing the bullies in jail?  And what about the people who stand by while someone is being bullied?  Aren't they just as bad as the bully himself?  We need to speak up for these kids, these little ones that have lost their voice and lost their self-respect.

How much are they like the innocent babies growing in their mother's wombs.  Wanting to be protected, craving love and basic human needs, wishing they had a chance to be heard, trying to express their side of the story.  And aren't the people involved in the death of these unborn babies the biggest bullies of all? 

The doctors who kill lives instead of saving them, just for the money - Bullies. 

The men who pressure the baby's mother to get rid of it - Bullies. 

The parents who would rather escape embarrassment than embrace a grandchild - Bullies. 

The friends who convince the scared mom that her life will be ruined if she has to care for a baby - Bullies.

The media/political figures/celebrities who spread lies that it's your body and your choice - Bullies.

The people that do nothing to stop our Holocaust of Abortion - Bullies.

Stand up to the bullies!!

Bullies disrespect people's intrinsic value, they  want to get rid of anything that is different, scary, or inconvenient.  They make themselves feel better by crushing others down.  Being anti-bully means being respectful of all life, and being respectful of life means being pro-life.  So if we are going to really talk about the affect bullying has on children, let's not forget all the children whose lives were snuffed out before they had a chance to join the discussion.

Sick Mom and Healthy Pancakes

I've been under the weather...sore throat, runny nose, headache, and lost my voice.

Every time I get a cold in the past few years, I lose my voice.  I don't remember that happening when I was a kid, but it happens about twice a year now.  At least Phil probably enjoys it :)

Did you ever notice that if you whisper to your kids, they will pay more attention and whisper back??  I think I may never have to go back to raising my voice again.

And because I hardly ever post a recipe here, I made these pancakes for dinner last night, and they turned out very yummy.  I sort of made the recipe up, so I'm going to call them "Colleen's Autumn Pancakes"

Wet Ingredients:

2 cups buttermilk (room temperature)

3 eggs

2 TBS vegetable oil

2 TBS honey

1 cup canned pumpkin

Dry Ingredients:

2 cups whole wheat flour

1/2 cup ground flax seed

2 tsp baking soda

1 tsp cinnamon

1 tsp nutmeg

Mix all wet ingredients well.

In separate bowl, mix all dry ingredients, and then combine wet and dry together.

Butter or spray griddle, and cook on medium heat.  They take a little longer to cook than normal pancakes, but they come out so moist and yummy that it's worth it.  I added some mini chocolate chips to make sure my kids would eat them, and they LOVED them.  Serve with apple sauce for dipping, unless you like syrup :)

Journey to Phil, Part 4

You can find the previous parts to this story on the last three Tuesday posts :) 

SO we were officially now Boyfriend and Girlfriend. And we were very happy with this arrangement. Phil was always a perfect gentleman while we were dating, and made me feel like a princess. He was thoughtful and funny and perfect in very way. Except that he wouldn't kiss me.

 (Mom, cover your eyes)

 I was dying to kiss him, really, and every night my roomie Annie would ask if he had kissed me yet, and for three weeks straight after we were a "couple" I had to tell her no. Until the day I could finally tell her yes, but we'll get to that later :)

(Okay Mom, you can open your eyes now)

So we only had the chance to start our relationship when my now ex-boyfriend (who happened to look just like Zach Efron) came over to visit. I tried to explain to Phil that I had to spend time with my ex (we'll just call him Zach) because he knew nobody but me. Phil said he understood, and we even made plans to travel with a big group of friends to Hungary that weekend and stay at Buddy's house. Phil went ahead with the group to Hungary, and Annie and I went to the Vienna airport to pick up Zach and then travel on to Hungary to meet up with everybody. We were able to pick him up and get on the right train just in the nick of time, which was good, because back then we didn't have cell phones to let people know of a change in plans. Hanging out with Zach on the train was a bit awkward, but he was trying very hard to act like normal friends. Phil and Buddy met us at the train station in Hungary, and everyone was introduced, and we all headed to Buddy's house for dinner.

At some point during this weekend, Zach took Phil outside for a "talk" and basically told him that he was going to win me back. I didn't know about this little occurrence, and I was trying my best to let Phil know I wanted to be with him, but was forced to hang out with Zach as well. On the train ride home from Hungary to Austria, Phil spent a lot of time talking to the girls in the group, who informed him to break up with me because I must need more time between boyfriends. What Phil didn't know was that one of those girls had a HUGE crush on him, and all her friends wanted nothing more than to see them together. Girls!

So, once we arrived back in Gaming, Phil asked me to take a walk with him, and he told me he thought we needed to break up. I was shocked, and ran off to my room and cried for a long time. I was so mad at myself for hurting Phil by spending time with Zach in front of him, even though I had tried to prepare him for it. I truly cared about Phil's feelings, and I shouldn't have cared quite so much about being polite to Zach. Phil was really upset over everything as well, and when he saw I wasn't at dinner, he came to find me. We had a good long talk, and I told him he should go talk to a priest because he was getting mixed messages from everywhere, especially those silly girls.

So off to Fr. Dennis he went, and it was the.best.thing he could have done. Fr. Dennis was clear-headed and impartial, and could see that the girls were creating unnecessary drama. He told Phil to follow his heart, and Phil followed it all the way back to ME. He apologized, and I apologized, and that was the first and last time we ever broke up :)

As we rekindled our relationship, we were realizing how serious we were, and how fast it was happening. We were both taking a class on Christian marriage, so we were able to talk a lot about our ideas of marriage without it being too personal. We openly discussed everything from chastity, the length of time for an engagement, Natural Family Planning, children, career goals, and we were always on the same page.  I just knew he was The One :) 

I had mentioned to my mom on the phone one evening that I was dating Phil (she had known that we were friends) and she said "I told you so! I just knew it!"  I quickly remembered her prediction back when I was 16, that I would meet my husband in Austria. I got goosebumps then, and still do now, when I think about that vision of hers. When I had left for Austria, it wasn't even on my mind because I was dating somebody else, and I had written it off as her being crazy years before :) And here I was, dating a guy I met in Austria.

I got off the phone, and went to see Phil, who could tell I was pretty shaken up about something. I warned him he was going to think this was crazy, and then proceeded to tell him of my mom's prediction for me. Now, most guys would have probably freaked out, but not Phil , he just smiled and gave me a big hug. What a man!  He said he was planning on keeping me around for a long time too.

Our school was planning the 10 day trip we all took together to Rome and Assisi. We all boarded buses and drove to Assisi for a couple days, then to Rome and eventually to a Wednesday Papal Audience (this year, it would occur on Ash Wednesday). Because I was so in love with Pope John Paul II, I was beyond excited to see him again. And this trip would be even more special now that Phil was at my side...

Andrew's 6th Birthday Pictures

Somebody is Six

It's him, not her :)

 Andrew's big birthday present was a bunk bed!

 Andrew gets the bottom bunk and J-P gets the top.

 It even has a desk for homework legos.

 And some nice drawers and shelves on the other side.

Thanks to craigslist, we got a great deal on this gently used set.

Tonight we will be celebrating Andrew's 6th birthday with the dinner of his choice: Taco Bell and Make-Your-Own-Sundaes (he prefers ice cream to cake!)

Oh, and Andrew would like everyone to know that today is also St. Francis' Feast Day.  He's a good doobie like that :)

Andrew, we love you so much, and you make us proud every.single.day with your handsome charm, your intelligent ponderings on life, your sensitive side, your helpfulness and awesome behavior, and your love of being part of our family.  We have been blessed to know you and even more blessed that you know us. 

Hi Lo: October 1st (a day late and a dollar short...story of my life!)

HI's:

1) Happy Feast Day, St. Therese!

2) Tonight my parents are having their house blessed.  We did this a couple of years ago, you can read about it here.  I think it's a VERY important thing to do for Catholic families.

3) J-P and Andrew have been winning their soccer games, and Andrew even scored again in his last game.  And we all know it's winning having fun that is truly important.

4) For a couple of months, I can finally say that Eamon and Maggie are 2 years apart (at the ages of four and two).  But come Dec. 1, they go back to being only a year apart.  And then the judgement/concern/rudeness begins again.  It's so much easier to just say they are twins. 

5) I've found some great new blogs that I can't seem to get enough of.  If I've been appearing in your combox lately, then you know who you are :)

6) Lots of fun times spent with friends this past week.  Love it!

LO's:

1) Pimples, pimples everywhere.  I'm talking about MY face.  When does the madness end?

2) Got a haircut and it's too short.  I always do that.

3) Sticky, summer weather has been here all week.  Today is OCTOBER, so where's that autumn weather I love so much?

How were your weeks?