Wednesday, May 27, 2009

Sad News

Fred died this afternoon. He was 46 years old. He leaves behind his wife Beth and 2 sons, Daniel, 14 and Thomas, 12. He also leaves behind his parents, 5 sister, nieces, nephews, aunts, uncles, cousins and whole host of friends and loved ones who will dearly and sorely miss him.

My poor Michael, who is a sensitive guy to begin with, is struggling to wrap his head around this whole situation. How does a man, who is his same age peer, a man whom he grew up with, a childhood playmate who was "fine" a matter of weeks ago become so critically ill as to be hospitialized, then die less than one week after his admittance to the hospital?

We are all still in shock. Thank you for your prayers. We appreciate them and we know Fred's family appreciates them too.

For the obituary click here: ***

Monday, May 25, 2009

Gardening with Zayde

Another Memorial Day weekend has come and gone. Ours was a mixed bag, quite frankly. We didn't plan anything, and I am quite glad we did not. Friday night we were up most of the night fighting Camille's nosebleeds. She hasn't had them quite like this in quite a while and we are not sure why they are reoccuring with fury again.

We also received a phone call from the sister of one Mike's close childhood friends, Fred. Fred had not been feeling well for a few weeks and as it turns out, he has a rare and aggressive form of cancer called adenocarcinoma. The cancer is everywhere and the opinion is the best thing to do is make Fred as comfortable as possible for the time he has left. As you can imagine, everyone is devistated. My heart is heavy for Mike who is now watching two close friends die... His friend Fred, from cancer and his friend Kieran from ALS. And of course, our hearts go out to their families who are impacted even more deeply than we are...

On a lighter note, Camille spent some time gardening with Zayde today. I captured the day with some photos. She loves to help and loves to garden and I think the two of them had a truly enjoyable time.








Welcome summer! And on this Memorial Day let us honor the memory of all of those who gave their lives, because as we know freedom does not come free! Amen!

Monday, May 18, 2009

I <3 Faces - Put You're Best Face Forward


I am submitting this photo into the http://www.iheartfaces.com/ Blurb book photo contest. If chosen, I grant I ♥Faces permission to use my photo in a printed version of a book for commercial use and possibly advertising of a photo book on both the Blurb and I ♥ Faces web sites.

Wednesday, May 13, 2009

Why I love being Catholic - A top 10

I am compiling this list out of genuine thankful reflection and I have no intention of being provocative (and every intention of being funny). I am very much of an ecumenical mindset and know full-well the Holy Spirit works outside the Roman Catholic Church, that is why I use the term “Christian mysticism” instead of “Catholic mysticism”. Indeed, much of Christian mysticism comes from the Eastern Orthodox church. Anywho… I felt compelled as I have greatly enjoyed my life in the Catholic Church and wanted to send out some kudos.

#10) Social Drinking - Seriously, I love being able to go out after a parish event with fellow parishioners and know I can order a drink without worrying about offending the “Jesus turned water into grape juice” guy.

#9) Cool Accessories - I admit, I love accessories. Rosaries, medals, scapulars, etc. add a textile elements to religion I enjoy. What I really like is that I feel less stupid holding a Rosary during a prayer, which has generations of history and meaning, than a “Prayer of Jabez” lucky coin.

#8) Art and Style - I love great art (like art that requires hard work, not that “my kid could paint that” stuff). The Catholic Church is stuffed full of centuries of art. I am always surrounded by works of expression by those who love Jesus Christ.

#7) Bigger Bible - I always wanted a sequel to Proverbs.

#6) Catholic Radio - This is probably one of the major factors that lead me to the Catholic Church. I listen to the American Catholic Radio podcast every week as well as Catholic Answers and my local station. I virtually never hear a word about Iraq, Hilary Clinton, or the real estate crash. Catholic Radio is timeless, talking about things that are relevant to our souls and everyday life instead of fads and temporary issues.

#5 ) Knights of Columbus - Great life insurance! I’d tell you more, but then I would have to kill you… (just kidding… or am I?)

#4) Blessings - I have been using blessings and purifications for years. Most evangelicals consider that “voodoo”, but now I get the bonus of having a priest who can do it with the whole authority of the Church!

#3) I Can “Come Out” - Many evangelicals think you attend Hogwarts and ride a broomstick when you say you are a “mystic”. When I tell Catholics I am a mystic, they usually know what I am talking about and start talking about St. John of the Cross and St. Teresa of Avila.

#2) Saints - It is like collecting baseball cards as a kid. The Catholic Church has a vast history of people who broke the norms and rose above the world they were in. It is hard to find role models these days for genuine faith, so having a well documented history of thousands of individuals who overcame the world and achieved the miraculous is an inspiration. It is also nice everyone has a “Patron Saint” that relates to their particular circumstances.

#1) The Real Eucharist - No more Welch’s and saltines for me! Reading letters by the Early Church Fathers lead me to realize just how much they cherished the Body and Blood of Jesus Christ. The Catholic Church’s dedication to keeping the sacred and divine nature of Eucharist in tact is probably the greatest driving force for myself, and many others, to convert.

Pope Benedict XVI

Monday, May 11, 2009

I <3 Faces - Laughter

For many years I have volunteered at a summer camp for disabled children. Over the years I have had the good fortune to watch many of these children grow. One of my favorite kids is Nick. Born at only 24 weeks gestation and given less than 5% chance to survive, Nick is an amazing boy who does not let his Cerebral Palsy slow him down. As you can see from the photo below, Nick's laugh is infectious!



Thursday, May 07, 2009

It's hard not to be proud...

Camille is changing schools in the fall. The decision was difficult, the reasons were many and, unfortunately, primarily economic. But we've spent some time at the new school and as we get to know the kindergarten teacher and the staff, we're really starting to appreciate all of the benefits of the new environment and I have high hopes that Camille will have a great year.

Last week we popped in to drop off some paperwork and look in on the class. Camille asked the kindergarten teacher if she could write on the chalkboard. "Certainly!" the teacher replied. Not knowing Camille personally, she asked, "Can you write any letters?" Camille cocked her her head and exclaimed "I can write words!" "Then by all means, please write some words." replied the teacher. Camille proceed to write, very neatly, the words yellow and red on the chalkboard. "There." she said. "And you know what?... if you add F to red you get Fred!" as Camille said this she added a capital F to the word red that she had written on the chalkboard. The kindergarten teacher just stood there and asked "How old are you, Camille?" Camille answered, "Four. How old are you?"

It's hard not to be proud...

Tuesday, May 05, 2009

I <3 Faces - Hats!



Here's my entry for the kid's catagory, taken at the Delaware State Fair last year...

And here's my entry for the adult catagory, taken at Camille's 4th birthday party, left to right her "Bop" (my dad) "Zayde" (Mike's dad) and her dad... the "Three kings" all there for the princess' big day! Maybe not a winner, but too funny not to share for the hat theme!

Saturday, May 02, 2009

Facebook

I haven't been blogging lately mainly because of Facebook. That's right, Facebook. I really like it. It's a much more controlled environment to share information about what's going on in our lives and I'm more apt to post regular updates there. Plus, I can get feedback on what's going on with YOU (and that's important to us to you know!) We love to know what's going on with you too!

So, if you a regular reader, we'll probably still post updates here, just not as often as we used to. If you want more current stuff, sign up for Facebook and "friend" me (if you know me well enough, you've probably already done that!) Until then... happy social networking!