OK, it's been super cold.

I can't believe that Cora wants to be outside as much as she does. She just really wants to play and she gets lonely in the backyard, so I try to go out with her when it's not too terrible. I also try to get her out for a walk every couple of days, but she is just so small and I don't like to have her out for that long. 

We may get a little snow tomorrow, but next week it may hit 50 or higher!

Tomorrow is Nina's Birthday! My little girl is going to be 37... Her life seems to be going very well and I couldn't be happier for her! I love Fin and I am so glad that they have found each other. I pray that tomorrow is a nice day and that it is the beginning of the half of her life that is all that she has worked so hard for. Of course it may snow, but that is par for the course for her birthdays.

Lilly has been going to school for a week now! She seems to like it, even though today she missed the bus. She just has to be sure that she stays awake after her mom wakes her up. 

Laura had Covid last weekend, but she came through it fine and has been feeling better over the last few days. It was a true breakthrough case, after having been vaccinated and boosted. She should have a good immunity now! 

John came by a couple of days ago and it was nice to see him and hear about some of the things that he has been doing. He checked in on Charlie the hamster and got his mail. 

Brendan has a good plan for the future. He is going to boost his hours with Amazon and do that while he works on his web design plan. I think that when he gets going on that and gets a few gigs he will fly. He is very serious about eating healthy and taking good care of himself after he moves. I am really glad that he is making that a priority. 

Paul is into his semester at school. I know the weather is not the greatest, but hopefully that will change soon. Not sure when we will see him again, but I am glad that it's going well. 

I am looking forward to the weekend! Playoffs! We are going over to the home of some friends for the first game. I am so happy about that! 

I will be leading a zoom call for Walking With Purpose on Sunday so I guess we'll have to go to Mass on Saturday, but actually the weekend is pretty tame. 

I really can't wait until I can say that we have hikes planned for the weekend! I am going to love this Spring and so is Cora! Playing in the backyard is her best life, but a nap in a lap makes her top 10. 

Winter....Blah

 Today was a pretty typical winter day. 

Cold, wet, blah.

Couldn't go to Mass because when the schools are closed they don't have Mass. 

I got some things done though. 

Tomorrow is supposed to be super cold. 17 degrees. 

Blah.

New School!

 

Lilly had her first day at her new school on Wednesday!

At 7:30 in the morning, I watched her, and Fin's son Jordan, get on the bus together at the end of the driveway. 

I prayed for her all day, and I was so happy when she called me in the afternoon to report that she had had an awesome day! She made some new friends, and likes most of her classes.

Today she stayed home because the schools were closed due to the weather. 

Tomorrow morning she will go for her second day. I can't wait to hear about it!

Something Exciting

 We have a pretty exciting project happening at St Patrick's! 

We are preparing to do a major renovation project on what used to be the Convent. 

The building has been underused over the past few decades, and Fr Francis needs a place to lay his head, so this building will become the new Rectory! 

You can read about it here

Sweet Sunday

 I am typing this on my Chromebook and it is always such a pain to adjust to this tiny keyboard. 

This is turning out to be a very nice day. 

We got going early to get Paul packed up and on the way back to Franciscan. He wanted to leave early to beat the incoming weather. He just texted to say that he made it! That makes me feel better. I always feel better when I know they have gotten where they are going. 

I was supposed to go down to the Church to lead a Bible study for the religious ed parents, but that was changed because of the weather, and since they were zooming I couldn't do my part so I got to stay in, and that wasn't so bad because baby, it's cold out there. 

We are supposed to be getting some weather for a few hours, with snow and such, but then the temps are going to rise, thanks be to God, and it will turn to rain and be gone by tomorrow! Yay!

I talked to Nina and it sounds like Ivy is all tucked in at the new place and much happier. SO glad to hear that. 

Paula said that it looks like Maria may be getting ready for a baby! I am almost done with the baby blanket that I have been working on since about the time she conceived. Sheesh. I am so slow.

I am sitting and watching football for the rest of the day. I can crochet and work on a few projects during halftimes. Maybe I'll add to this later.

Weekly Update

 I shouldn't be doing weekly updates. I should be doing daily updates.

Well, every day has been cold. The snow went away and then it just got really frigid. I think that was Thursday. Cora has had to be satisfied with playing in the back yard, because I can't get out and walk in the wind. She really shouldn't either. 

Last Sunday we had an Open House at the Convent after the masses.

It was supposed to be an ice storm, so mass was not well attended, but we did have quite a few people come through. The open house was to help create awareness of the renovation project that is about to begin in that building. I wrote up the project for the parish website and I am planning to update that page once I can show some progress. 

I had some time this week to do some decluttering and donation. I have gotten a lot of closets done and I also got a nice set of shelves that Nina was giving away and put them in the front entryway. I really think it looks a lot better. I will be replacing the old cubes with new baskets.

We have a lot to do in the basement. That's our next big project. Tim got the water problem solved, and now we are working to get the stairs updated and we will paint after Brendan moves out. He is taking the couch and so there will be less in the basement. I also need to get the carpet cleaned. So there will be a few pictures coming from that part of the house soon.

Paul is heading back to Ohio in the morning. His second semester at Franciscan will begin! I hope that he has a good one! It's a cold and dreary start, but it will be lovely weather as the year goes on. 

Brendan moves into an apartment with Henry in February, and John just relocated after Nina started working on putting her townhouse on the market. 

So much change!! 

Nina and Lilly have moved to a very nice place in Joppa. Lilly will be going to school there. It's going to be different, but a good move, hopefully. They also just moved Ivy into another barn. Ironically, it's the same barn that she was living at when they bought her. It's under new management, and there is a bus stop right there. Lilly can ride the bus and go hang out with Ivy until her mom can pick her up. That should be nice for both of them. 

John has moved in with another guy down in Abingdon. It is just a room mate situation and he doesn't really know the guy, but it's OK for now. He will probably look for his own place sometime this Spring. 

Brendan and Henry will be launching and moving to Cockeysville, which is about 40 minutes away. Brendan is taking a break from formal school and trying to get himself prepared to do web design as a freelance side job, with the hope that he can turn it into a full time thing. He will have to keep working at Amazon for the foreseeable future though. 

So this house is going to be very quiet while Paul is away at school. Tim will be working in the basement, and I will be doing Spiritual Direction, Bible studies and my usual work in my various jobs at the parish. We have a lot going on down there! I am seeing a couple of people each week and doing my reading and learning about the next steps in helping people grow in their walk with God. 

A lot is happening, and it's all good! I am so grateful to be able to say that. A lot of people are facing big changes and they are very difficult.  Praying that whatever comes, we can go through it trusting in God's providence. 

Snow, No Snow, Snow

 

The winter weather has been making it's mark! We had the snow on Monday, it sat around for a couple of days, and here we are on Friday with about five inches on the ground! 

On Tuesday we were in most of the day because Lilly and I were working on school. That was a day of decisions. Lilly and I decided that the best place for her to learn is going to be at school, so Nina is working on getting that arranged.

Wednesday morning I went to Mass and I was surprised to see Jerry Andrews there at the altar as Deacon! What a blessing it was to hear him preach. He read the Gospel and gave the Homily and it was wonderful! He will be ordained in June, and the Church will be so blest to have him as a priest. 

Yesterday the snow finally melted and I was able to take Cora on a very long walk around town. We started at the library and went all the way to Tydings park! She is such a great little walker, and it is really good for her behavior too. I wanted to get in a long one because I heard that we might be getting more snow today. 

We did. Lots of it. I think it snowed most of the night and it is nice and fluffy. Cora loves it! She goes and and runs all over the place and just has the most joyful time. Then when she comes in she is covered with snow balls. I had to run warm water over her at one point, but it's worth it to see how much fun she is having. She is so tiny that I don't let her stay out very long. Tomorrow I will put one of her coats on her and let her stay out longer. 

It really is nice to have snow for a few days. It's so pretty and I know that it's good for the yard and the flowers that are hiding until Spring.

Snow Day!

 ...But not for Lilly...Starting our 2nd Semester today and here are a few of the things that she is going to be working on. I am waiting for her Science book to come from Amazon.

The Grammar workbook is pretty much the same as the 8th grade one so I am using it because I have it, but the English curriculum that I have worked out is going to be pretty challenging. I think she is up for it! We are also doing a Kitchen Chemistry course from MIT. It's an open course and it's all available online. She is going to have to take Chemistry again, of course, because this is just the principles and application of a few aspects of it, but I think it will be challenging enough for the next few months.

Happy New Year!

I want to welcome a new, and hopefully more cooperative year. 

We hope you will be gentle 2022. We are rather out of sorts. 

If you could just be more like one of those old, boring years. 

Even if we have to wear polyester, and part our hair in the middle, it would be OK.

Thanks. 

I Love This!

 Tim gave me a couple of perfect gift cards for Christmas.

One was to Joanne's, where I got some really useful plastic bins for quilting supplies, and the other was to Michael's, which also has such great craft stuff! I went in there because I wanted to get two more balls of yarn for a scarf that I am going to make, and I found THIS. 

Wow. Just what I wanted, but didn't know it! It is so awesome! It is full of recipes and details about the wonderful food that they are always eating on the show, but every detail has been so carefully researched that the recipes are all completely authentic. I have been enjoying the forward!

I am finally getting a little quilting done and I should actually have the top finished by tomorrow afternoon!