Wednesday, January 18, 2012

I really hope I am not getting a stomach bug again.  I have felt slightly nauseous all day and it doesn't seem to be easing off. I went to cantor practice tonight and the cold air made me feel a little better, but then the nausea started creeping back in again.  I think tomorrow will be a rest day.

Meghan and Madison were here yesterday.  Madison has taken a liking to the Shirley Temple movie, "Heidi."  This is her version of the Heidi look.  

Actually, she reminds me of when my cousin and I used to play Jesus and Mary.  This looks very much like the "Mary" we portrayed.  And for the life of me, I cannot find the lace table runner that Madison used to create her look. 

The Flyzone this week is the bathroom and one other room.  I really didn't want to do bathrooms today, so I am getting my bins in order downstairs.  I wasted too much time in my day looking for things because they aren't where they belong.  Organizing the bins lets me know at a glance what I have in the way of inventory.  I discovered a lot of soap bars (we have switched to cold process slices) so I spent a lot of the day taking pics and getting them listed on Etsy.

I also worked on some Valentine tea lights.  Tomorrow, if I feel halfway decent, I need to get caught up on stockings.  I should have at least a dozen made by now and I don't.  I do not want to be caught short next fall. 

Oh, and I placed an order on Vista Print for notecards, post cards, shelf cards, and a magnetic sign for the car.  All free except for the shipping which was quite reasonable.

Word of the day:
Wednesday of the Second week in Ordinary Time
Saint(s) of the day : St. Jaime Hilario, Martyr (1898-1937)
Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint Mark 3:1-6.

Jesus entered the synagogue. There was a man there who had a withered hand.
They watched him closely to see if he would cure him on the sabbath so that they might accuse him.
He said to the man with the withered hand, "Come up here before us."
Then he said to them, "Is it lawful to do good on the sabbath rather than to do evil, to save life rather than to destroy it?" But they remained silent.
Looking around at them with anger and grieved at their hardness of heart, he said to the man, "Stretch out your hand." He stretched it out and his hand was restored.
The Pharisees went out and immediately took counsel with the Herodians against him to put him to death.

Friday, January 13, 2012

Finally made soap again. I'm kind of out of my routine because soapmaking is a Monday night activity, however, due to some unexpected, but very welcome stocking orders from Etsy and Ebay, plus a few from our website, I've been too busy to make any soap.  Tonight I made Maple Syrup Festival.  It's been a little frustrating because my suppliers keep changing out the maple scents.  Grrrrrr.  I don't know if this one will darken.  I hope not, because I swirled it with a light cocoa and I would really like that to show.  But we'll see.  I have it in the oven so that if it gels, it will do a full gel and not a partial gel.  A partial gel does not affect the quality of the soap, but soapmakers do not like to see it.

 I've also been assembling various donations.  We did a Valentine Basket for a fundraiser for a cancer patient.  I wish I had thought to take a picture of it.  It turned out very nice.  I also assembled items for a fundraiser for my nephew.  And then there is the St. Mary Mardi Gras.  I love how this basket turned out!

I had intended to do a Mardi Gras theme, but couldn't find a way to tie that in with our Primitive Sugar Bush style, so I decided to just be what we are - a Country Primitive kind of business.

Today we had our first significant snowfall of the winter.  The roads were slippery going into Alma for Mass today.   I came home from church and had a nice lazy afternoon and spent some quality time with our youngest grandbaby. He is such a tiny little thing.  He's 2 months old but only weighs 7 pounds 12 oz.  He looks like a tired little old man.  Grandpa and I were able to coax a couple of smiles out of him today, though. 

Word of the day:
Friday of the First week in Ordinary Time
Saint(s) of the day : St Hilary of Poitiers, Bishop and Doctor of the Church (c. 315- c. 367), St. Veronica of Binasco, Religious (144-1497)
Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint Mark 2:1-12.

When Jesus returned to Capernaum after some days, it became known that he was at home.
Many gathered together so that there was no longer room for them, not even around the door, and he preached the word to them.
They came bringing to him a paralytic carried by four men.
Unable to get near Jesus because of the crowd, they opened up the roof above him. After they had broken through, they let down the mat on which the paralytic was lying.
When Jesus saw their faith, he said to the paralytic, "Child, your sins are forgiven."
Now some of the scribes were sitting there asking themselves,
Why does this man speak that way? He is blaspheming. Who but God alone can forgive sins?
Jesus immediately knew in his mind what they were thinking to themselves, so he said, "Why are you thinking such things in your hearts?
Which is easier, to say to the paralytic, 'Your sins are forgiven,' or to say, 'Rise, pick up your mat and walk'?
But that you may know that the Son of Man has authority to forgive sins on earth"--
he said to the paralytic, "I say to you, rise, pick up your mat, and go home."
He rose, picked up his mat at once, and went away in the sight of everyone. They were all astounded and glorified God, saying, "We have never seen anything like this."

Thursday, December 1, 2011

Started the day with a staff meeting.  That's always fun.  The day gets better from there.  LOL!  I copied some music for the Christmas choir folders, assembled music packets for the student instrumentalists who will be joining us this Christmas, came home and looked at the messy house and proceeded to ignore it.

December 1 finds me still playing catch up, but I am slowly getting there.  I actually made a batch of peppermint patty soap today. 

I made a batch last night - tried to oven process it - it wasn't pretty. It will eventually end up in the old crock pot and be re-batched. I had a customer who wanted it and I thought I could oven process it and she would have it for Christmas. I haven't ruined a batch of soap in a couple of years. Oh well, keeps me humble.

I also made 6 lamps, 2 batches of room spray, a batch of honey blossom candles, delivered an order, packaged up another order for shipping, assembled a large order for another customer, answered a third email asking us if we're still making stockings for this year (we aren't), made a dent in the dungeon cleanup, assembled folders for the Mass tomorrow with the school kids, and I need to make a couple of stockings. All-in-all, a good day's work.  

Word of the Day:
Thursday of the First week of Advent
Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint Matthew 7:21.24-27.

Jesus said to his disciples: «Not everyone who says to me, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father in heaven.
Everyone who listens to these words of mine and acts on them will be like a wise man who built his house on rock.
The rain fell, the floods came, and the winds blew and buffeted the house. But it did not collapse; it had been set solidly on rock.
And everyone who listens to these words of mine but does not act on them will be like a fool who built his house on sand.
The rain fell, the floods came, and the winds blew and buffeted the house. And it collapsed and was completely ruined."

Wednesday, September 7, 2011

Madison and Meghan were here today. When Madison is here, she always checks the spot where I set new soap and she discovered a new batch of Honey, Oats, and Milk. She loves to hold a cupcake and sniff it. It's very comical because she does this many times during the morning. This morning she went home with another couple of bath fizzies to share with Meghan Mae and a packet of peanut M&Ms to share with Mama and Daddy.

                                     
I cut yesterday's batch of Cider Mill and I'm planning to make some Pumpkin Spice soap later today. The house smells sooooooo good right now.  Here is the cider mill.  It looks a bit different from the last batch.

             

Word of the day:
Wednesday of the Twenty-third week in Ordinary Time
Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint Luke 6:20-26.

And raising his eyes toward his disciples he said: "Blessed are you who are poor, for the kingdom of God is yours.
Blessed are you who are now hungry, for you will be satisfied. Blessed are you who are now weeping, for you will laugh.
Blessed are you when people hate you, and when they exclude and insult you, and denounce your name as evil on account of the Son of Man.
Rejoice and leap for joy on that day! Behold, your reward will be great in heaven. For their ancestors treated the prophets in the same way.
But woe to you who are rich, for you have received your consolation.
But woe to you who are filled now, for you will be hungry. Woe to you who laugh now, for you will grieve and weep.
Woe to you when all speak well of you, for their ancestors treated the false prophets in this way.

Making Honey, Oats,and Milk Cold Process Goat Milk Soap

I am still queasy about seeing myself on video, but in the interest of showing the soapmaking process, I put aside my misgivings.

Thursday of the Twenty-first week in Ordinary Time
Saint(s) of the day : St. Louis, King of France (1215-1270)
Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint Matthew 24:42-51.

Therefore, stay awake! For you do not know on which day your Lord will come.
Be sure of this: if the master of the house had known the hour of night when the thief was coming, he would have stayed awake and not let his house be broken into.
So too, you also must be prepared, for at an hour you do not expect, the Son of Man will come.
Who, then, is the faithful and prudent servant, whom the master has put in charge of his household to distribute to them their food at the proper time?
Blessed is that servant whom his master on his arrival finds doing so.
Amen, I say to you, he will put him in charge of all his property.
But if that wicked servant says to himself, 'My master is long delayed,'
and begins to beat his fellow servants, and eat and drink with drunkards,
the servant's master will come on an unexpected day and at an unknown hour
and will punish him severely and assign him a place with the hypocrites, where there will be wailing and grinding of teeth.

 

Tuesday, August 9, 2011

I am way behind on things. This week is VBS and it takes up a lot of time. The morning is spent at VBS and then I come home and learn the music for the next day.  The music is very energetic and we're all kind of dragging by the end of the morning.

I came home today and packaged up the Rainbow Sherbet and Honey Blossom soaps.  Next week I really have to get on the stick and make some more.  I mailed out a couple of orders and did a little more cleaning of the dungeon.  I also finished a set of 5 Teddy Bear stockings for Anna to sew up. I'd like to have at least 100 done by the end of August.

Anna and I went up to the rail trail again tonight.  My time for the 5K is slowly improving and my knee isn't bothering me much tonight.  I think the stretching at night has really helped.  Kelli won't be running the 5K with us in August.  She doesn't want to put too much stress on her ankle.  Sam probably won't do the race either.  :(   But Nina is coming up (hopefully her knee will be better) so she and Anna and I will run it together.

VBS is over on Thursday and then I have to get busy cleaning and making snack mix for a pizza party that Harold is hosting.  The patio is finished, but the guys still need to come back and put another coat of sealant on it.  It's rained the last couple of nights, so hopefully it will be done before Saturday.

I got our papers for our first craft show of the season.  It's coming up fast.  This show is in Carson City and it has been our lowest show in terms of sales.  This year we won't be taking candles and the only soap we'll be taking will be the cupcake soap.  People there like our nightlights and Christmas novelties and our mixes sell pretty well, but my stuff doesn't go as well in Carson City.  Not sure why because we sell out of a lot of soap and candles in this area, but each show is different. 

Word of the day:
Tuesday of the Nineteenth week in Ordinary Time
Feast of the Church : In Europe: St Teresa Benedicta of the Cross (Edith Stein), Virgin, Martyr, patron of Europe - Feast
Saint(s) of the day : St Teresa Benedicta of the Cross (Edith Stein), co-patron of Europe (1891-1942)
Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint Matthew 18:1-5.10.12-14.

At that time the disciples approached Jesus and said, "Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?"
He called a child over, placed it in their midst,
and said, "Amen, I say to you, unless you turn and become like children, you will not enter the kingdom of heaven.
Whoever humbles himself like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.
And whoever receives one child such as this in my name receives me.
See that you do not despise one of these little ones, for I say to you that their angels in heaven always look upon the face of my heavenly Father.
What is your opinion? If a man has a hundred sheep and one of them goes astray, will he not leave the ninety-nine in the hills and go in search of the stray?
And if he finds it, amen, I say to you, he rejoices more over it than over the ninety-nine that did not stray.
In just the same way, it is not the will of your heavenly Father that one of these little ones be lost.

Thursday, June 9, 2011

Here are some things I've been working on.  The picture below is of some Bridal Party Gifts that were ordered.  These were ordered back in May.  There are cupcake soaps for the women and soap slices for the men.  These were done in Lemongrass. 

 Below is a batch of fudge that I made with fresh goat's milk.  The taste is the same, but the texture is much creamier.  I had extra milk this week so I tried it.  I think we may be changing our recipe. 

Remember the batch of Primitive Blessings soap that I did the other day?  Here is a pic of it cut up.  It hasn't darkened yet, but it will.

Word of the day:
Thursday of the Seventh week of Easter
Saint(s) of the day : St. Ephrem the Syrian, Deacon and Doctor of the Church (c.306-373)
Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint John 17:20-26.

I pray not only for them, but also for those who will believe in me through their word,
so that they may all be one, as you, Father, are in me and I in you, that they also may be in us, that the world may believe that you sent me.
And I have given them the glory you gave me, so that they may be one, as we are one,
I in them and you in me, that they may be brought to perfection as one, that the world may know that you sent me, and that you loved them even as you loved me.
Father, they are your gift to me. I wish that where I am they also may be with me, that they may see my glory that you gave me, because you loved me before the foundation of the world.
Righteous Father, the world also does not know you, but I know you, and they know that you sent me.
I made known to them your name and I will make it known, that the love with which you loved me may be in them and I in them."

 

Sunday, May 1, 2011

We're into the third day of our craft show at the Maple Syrup Festival.  Our sales are down a bit from last year, but given the price of gas and what's going on with the economy, we are extremely grateful to be doing so well. In a time when people are watching their finances much more closely, we are blessed that they find our products worthwhile to buy. I have pics and video, but I left my camera at the booth and will update later. Each craft show is a surprise as to what will sell.  This year we sold a lot of soap and candles.  Some shows we don't sell a single candle.  Last year there was a fudgemaker down the aisle from us.  This year she wasn't there and we have sold all but one box of fudge.  Last year there was another soapmaker - this year she wasn't there.  You just never know.  Another factor is that the weather was nice so we had more competition from the outside vendors.  Last year it rained and a a lot of them went home.  Sunday is generally our lowest of the threes days, but again, the weather is nice so we may get people who come by before the parade.

One of the fun things about doing craft shows is now that we are into our 5th year, we are getting to know the regulars.  One of our favorites is Catha Thomas from CT Treats.  Her granola is, well, decadent.  If you haven't tried it, look her up on her website or on Facebook.  Not only is her granola super yummy, but she is a fun person to get to know.  We don't do the Highland Festival Show in Alma because outdoor shows are not a good venue for us, but we do participate in the 5K and you can bet that we make a beeline for her booth after the race.

Back later with pics from the weekend.

Word of the day:
Second Sunday of Easter or Divine Mercy Sunday – Solemnity
Feast of the Church : Second Sunday of Easter, Divine Mercy SundayToday Pope Benedict XVI presides at the beatification ceremony of Pope John Paul II
Saint(s) of the day : St Joseph the Worker
Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint John 20:19-31.

On the evening of that first day of the week, when the doors were locked, where the disciples were, for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood in their midst and said to them, «Peace be with you.»
When he had said this, he showed them his hands and his side. The disciples rejoiced when they saw the Lord.
(Jesus) said to them again, "Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, so I send you."
And when he had said this, he breathed on them and said to them, "Receive the holy Spirit.
Whose sins you forgive are forgiven them, and whose sins you retain are retained."
Thomas, called Didymus, one of the Twelve, was not with them when Jesus came.
So the other disciples said to him, "We have seen the Lord." But he said to them, "Unless I see the mark of the nails in his hands and put my finger into the nailmarks and put my hand into his side, I will not believe."
Now a week later his disciples were again inside and Thomas was with them. Jesus came, although the doors were locked, and stood in their midst and said, "Peace be with you."
Then he said to Thomas, "Put your finger here and see my hands, and bring your hand and put it into my side, and do not be unbelieving, but believe."
Thomas answered and said to him, "My Lord and my God!"
Jesus said to him, "Have you come to believe because you have seen me? Blessed are those who have not seen and have believed."
Now Jesus did many other signs in the presence of (his) disciples that are not written in this book.
But these are written that you may (come to) believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that through this belief you may have life in his name.

Tuesday, April 5, 2011

Just a quick update and then I'll be back. I have the little girls this morning and the littlest one wants to be held. I made the oatmeal milk and honey soap last night but completely forgot that I wanted to try the honeycomb thing with the bubble wrap. Duh!! I used some new silicone molds that I bought last week. I needed to pop them in the freezer to unmold, but I am totally happy with the result. I sprinkled ground oats and brown sugar (sand colored glitter) on top.  It didn't gel so it is a bit too soft to continue cutting right now.  I just love the way this turned out!  I'll be doing a YouTube cutting video later on.

I don't know if I wrote about this or not, but on February 5th I ordered a mold from a moldmaker on Etsy.  On February 25th I ordered a cutter.  The listing says 7 to 14 business days.  It's now been 26 business days since I ordered the cutter.(He offered to ship mold and cutter together to save shipping)  This seller does not keep you updated unless you hound him.  I was reading his feedback and several buyers have the same complaint. If they complain about it he leaves retaliatory negative feedback.  Last week I couldn't wait any longer for the molds so I ordered the silicone ones.  Since the moldmaker told me he was shipping last Saturday (that's the third date he gave me) and since Saturday came and went without a shipping notice, I emailed him to ask him to cancel the mold.  Well, lo and behold, his wife emails me back to tell me he's in the hospital, but that his kidneys are "waking" up and that he should be back in operation at the end of the week. Due to several other excuses that this man has used, I am highly suspicious - especially with the way the email is worded - very emotionally manipulative.  I will definitely not order from him again.  I don't mind waiting for something, but I expect to be kept updated if my order is not shipped when it is supposed to be.  Apparently his workmanship is excellent, but unfortunately, I cannot attest to that since I don't have anything to prove it. I am not a happy camper.  Now I am off to rock my little Meghan.  I'll be back later with a link to the YouTube video.





Word of the day:
Tuesday of the Fourth week of Lent
Saint(s) of the day : St. Vincent Ferrer, Priest (1350-1419)
Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint John 5:1-16.

There was a feast of the Jews, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem.
Now there is in Jerusalem at the Sheep (Gate) a pool called in Hebrew Bethesda, with five porticoes.
In these lay a large number of ill, blind, lame, and crippled.
One man was there who had been ill for thirty-eight years.
When Jesus saw him lying there and knew that he had been ill for a long time, he said to him, "Do you want to be well?"
The sick man answered him, "Sir, I have no one to put me into the pool when the water is stirred up; while I am on my way, someone else gets down there before me."
Jesus said to him, "Rise, take up your mat, and walk."
Immediately the man became well, took up his mat, and walked. Now that day was a sabbath.
So the Jews said to the man who was cured, "It is the sabbath, and it is not lawful for you to carry your mat."
He answered them, "The man who made me well told me, 'Take up your mat and walk.'"
They asked him, "Who is the man who told you, 'Take it up and walk'?"
The man who was healed did not know who it was, for Jesus had slipped away, since there was a crowd there.
After this Jesus found him in the temple area and said to him, "Look, you are well; do not sin any more, so that nothing worse may happen to you."
The man went and told the Jews that Jesus was the one who had made him well.
Therefore, the Jews began to persecute Jesus because he did this on a sabbath.

Monday, April 4, 2011

Yesterday Harold and I celebrated our wedding anniversary.  I drove home from church in a snowstorm.  I guess it's not that uncommon because people drove home from our wedding reception, 35 years ago, in a snow storm.  We didn't even know that until a few years ago. 

Melisa and Claire were in the paper yesterday because Melisa is one of the co-ordinators of the Mom-to-Mom sale.  Clayton did not want his picture in the paper.  He's funny about getting his picture taken.  If it's his idea, he's fine with it.  Otherwise, not so much.

I'm planning to make soap tonight.  I saw a cool technique where soapmakers put bubble wrap on top of honey scented soap and it looks just like a honeycomb.  I'm making oatmeal, milk, and honey tonight so I can't wait to try it.

Sales have been non-existent lately - normal for this time of year, but it seriously puts a crimp in my soapmaking because my supplies are running low.  I don't seem to be having much success on Etsy, except for Christmas stockings but I'm going to give it a while.  It's only 20 cents to list and item - that's fairly cheap advertising.

  Harold just told me that there is water in the basement.  My stuff is protected, but I had hoped to put a pretty rug down there.  All of the snow and rain yesterday and caused the basement to get wet again.  Oh, well, thank God for plastic tubs.  LOL!

Word of the day:
Monday of the Fourth week of Lent
Saint(s) of the day : St. Isidore of Seville, Archbishop (+ 636)
Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint John 4:43-54.

At that time Jesus left [Samaria] for Galilee.
For Jesus himself testified that a prophet has no honor in his native place.
When he came into Galilee, the Galileans welcomed him, since they had seen all he had done in Jerusalem at the feast; for they themselves had gone to the feast.
Then he returned to Cana in Galilee, where he had made the water wine. Now there was a royal official whose son was ill in Capernaum.
When he heard that Jesus had arrived in Galilee from Judea, he went to him and asked him to come down and heal his son, who was near death.
Jesus said to him, "Unless you people see signs and wonders, you will not believe."
The royal official said to him, "Sir, come down before my child dies."
Jesus said to him, "You may go; your son will live." The man believed what Jesus said to him and left.
While he was on his way back, his slaves met him and told him that his boy would live.
He asked them when he began to recover. They told him, "The fever left him yesterday, about one in the afternoon."
The father realized that just at that time Jesus had said to him, "Your son will live," and he and his whole household came to believe.
(Now) this was the second sign Jesus did when he came to Galilee from Judea.

Saturday, April 18, 2009

I made the maple fudge yesterday. It tastes really good, but it didn't cut as nicely as the others. I'm guessing the maple syrup had something to do with it. I am going to make a batch with walnuts today and do a little tweaking.

Yesterday, Claire helped me cut the latest batch of soap. Later she was my helper as I boxed fudge. She handed me the boxes. It's nice to have another pair of hands around. While we were doing that, Clay was busy crafting some more pictures for me. He loves to make the pictures and then he will snuggle up in the chair with me and show me all the little details he put in them.

I had a few sales last night so I have to make sure I replenish the inventory for next week.

Here is a picture of our booth from last year's Shepherd Maple Syrup Festival. Pictured are Anna and Summer.



****************************************
Word of the day:
Saturday in the Octave of Easter
Gospel
Mk 16:9-15

When Jesus had risen, early on the first day of the week,
he appeared first to Mary Magdalene,
out of whom he had driven seven demons.
She went and told his companions who were mourning and weeping.
When they heard that he was alive
and had been seen by her, they did not believe.

After this he appeared in another form
to two of them walking along on their way to the country.
They returned and told the others;
but they did not believe them either.

But later, as the Eleven were at table, he appeared to them
and rebuked them for their unbelief and hardness of heart
because they had not believed those
who saw him after he had been raised.
He said to them, "Go into the whole world
and proclaim the Gospel to every creature."

Friday, October 17, 2008

I got up late again this morning so I fell behind on my morning routine. My program is going very well, although I didn't get a workout in yesterday. The motor burned out on my dryer so I needed to clear the mess from around it so the poor dryer fixer man would not be buried alive in piles of music, balls of yarn, and myriad mounds of other stuff. Then I had to make a batch of Hunter's Green soap because I am selling out of it now that hunting season is here. Oh, this batch turned out gorgeous. I poured it at just the right time and the green swirl is amazing. The house smells like freshly turned soil. I love making soap. Then, after that I needed to pour a flameless tealight shell. That one was cranberry. The 2 smells together were awesome.

Tonight I will be making stockings. I have about 10 waiting in my craft room. I am going through the Criminal Minds series from Netflix so I have a pleasant evening ahead of me.

The rotation seems to be working very well for me. It is the best of several worlds. I like Atkins, but can't stay with it for long periods of time. With this program, even if I am derailed, I have my daily plans in place so there is no excuse for staying off track. Knowing that I can have whatever I want 2 times a week (limited, of course) makes it very easy to stay focused the rest of the time. When Mary Ann rears her needy little head, I can appease her with the knowledge that the answer is not "no." It's "later."

Last night I stopped by to see Clay and Claire. I go into withdrawal if I don't see them every couple of days. Just since Sunday, Claire has gone from calling me Amma, to Gramma. When I come in the door they both run to me, and Claire will say "book." I know better than to stop if I don't have time to read each of them their book. Ah, fun times.

Daily stats:
Scheduled rest day
Down 2.8 from last Friday (whoo hoo!)

Word of the day:
Memorial of Saint Ignatius of Antioch, bishop and martyr
Gospel
Lk 12:1-7
At that time: So many people were crowding together that they were trampling one another underfoot. Jesus began to speak, first to his disciples, “Beware of the leaven–that is, the hypocrisy–of the Pharisees. “There is nothing concealed that will not be revealed, nor secret that will not be known. Therefore whatever you have said in the darkness will be heard in the light, and what you have whispered behind closed doors will be proclaimed on the housetops. I tell you, my friends, do not be afraid of those who kill the body but after that can do no more. I shall show you whom to fear. Be afraid of the one who after killing has the power to cast into Gehenna; yes, I tell you, be afraid of that one. Are not five sparrows sold for two small coins? Yet not one of them has escaped the notice of God. Even the hairs of your head have all been counted. Do not be afraid. You are worth more than many sparrows.”

Thoughts from the cornfield:
The comparison of the hypocrisy of the Pharisees and leaven is an interesting one. What does yeast do to a loaf of bread dough? It spreads throughout the dough changing its texture and form. Evil can do that. It can permeate society and change it. But God can see through it all. He, and he alone, can separate dough from leaven, goat from sheep, wheat from tare, good from evil. A God who can count the hairs on our head is more powerful than anyone or anything. And he loves us. Always he love us!





God bless our troops!

Saturday, June 28, 2008

On the lowcarb front:
The little ones stayed over last night so no workout this morning.
I am down 2.8 from last Saturday.
Not much to report so far today. Will update later.

On the home front:
Made a batch of honey, oats, and milk soap last night. Smells wonderful. I also finished curing a batch of simmering potpourri for the simmer pot Anna found for me at a garage sale. It's scented with orange clove. Mmmmmmmm. Today I will finish the grubby tags with what is left of the solution from the other day. These are also orange clove.

I made Cleochatra's Mozzarella sticks. Well, no, I didn't actually. I cheated. I melted a pile of cheese on a plate and scooped it up with pork rinds. My mouth didn't know the difference. LOL

We have baptisms at Mass tomorrow. I have to remember to turn on the pump and heater for the font tonight and to make sure that I override the timer. At the last baptism there were some pretty startled babies. We didn't realized that we had to override the timer on the pump so it kicked off during the night and the water was cold.

Word of the day:
Matthew 8:5-17
When Jesus entered Capernaum, a centurion came to him, appealing to him and saying, "Lord, my servant is lying at home paralyzed, in terrible distress." And he said to him, "I will come and cure him." The centurion answered, "Lord, I am not worthy to have you come under my roof; but only speak the word, and my servant will be healed. For I also am a man under authority, with soldiers under me; and I say to one, 'Go,' and he goes, and to another, 'Come,' and he comes, and to my slave, 'Do this,' and the slave does it." When Jesus heard him, he was amazed and said to those who followed him, "Truly I tell you, in no one in Israel have I found such faith. I tell you, many will come from east and west and will eat with Abraham and Isaac and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven, while the heirs of the kingdom will be thrown into the outer darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth." And to the centurion Jesus said, "Go; let it be done for you according to your faith." And the servant was healed in that hour. When Jesus entered Peter's house, he saw his mother-in-law lying in bed with a fever; he touched her hand, and the fever left her, and she got up and began to serve him. That evening they brought to him many who were possessed with demons; and he cast out the spirits with a word, and cured all who were sick. This was to fulfill what had been spoken through the prophet Isaiah, "He took our infirmities and bore our diseases."

Reflections from the cornfield:
Catholics will recognize the words of the centurian as the words we use before receiving the Eucharist. "Lord, I am not worthy to receive you, but only say the word and I shall be healed." And Jesus answers him, "Go; let it be done according to your faith." Again, the healing and the miracle depend on the faith of someone involved. I think of the ongoing debate about faith and works. I don't really see the argument. Sometimes I think people argue just to have something to argue about. Faith and works are so intertwined that I don't see how one could exist without the other. Kind of like the Holy Trinity. It would be like asking, which is more necessary? God, Jesus, or the Holy Spirit.

I wonder if we really think about these words of reconcilliation that we speak before the communion procession begins - this miracle of being able to receive Jesus, to take part in the ancient action of the Last Supper - not a new sacrifice, but the same sacrifice. Not an action that took place long ago, but a timeless action in which we participate today - an eternal banquet which we share with the communion of saints. If it be done according to our faith, we would do well to pray for an increase in that faith. "but only say the word and I shall be healed."



God bless the troops!