May His Memory Be Eternal!

Yesterday, I lost a dear person in my life. Fr. Seraphim fell asleep in the Lord yesterday. I will miss him. I met Fr. Seraphim when I was 14 years old, when his family moved to my parish from Australia in 1993. Our church secretary had suggested a few months before that I write to his oldest daughter, since she was my age, so that she would know someone when she came to the States. Over the summer of 1993, and into the fall, we wrote back and forth about our families, parishes, and the school we both were to attend. By the time the family arrived, I felt like I had known them forever! We were inseparable from that point on, and I think I spent as much time at their house as I did at mine. I came to love spending evenings listening to Fr. Seraphim's stories (he was a layperson at that time). What an adventurous life he had! I loved taking car trips with them as they belted out "Waltzing Matilda" at the top of their lungs. I loved coming into their home, never knowing what art piece was being created at the time. Fr. Seraphim, was a talented painter and potter! They became a part of my family. I'll never forget having to make a hard decision in college, and Fr. Seraphim looking me in the eye and telling me I had made the right decision. "You've had to make one of the first difficult decisions in your young life. I'm proud of you." He has always had a way of bringing me peace. Just a simple smile, and that's all it took. I am blessed to have been able to spend time with him weekly over the past few years, and to see him fulfill his desire to serve God in the priesthood. I will be eternally grateful for his part in bringing the Kursk Root icon here, and for the tremendous healing it brought to my family. I will be grateful to him for bringing his family here, for enriching my life with a best friend who I miss every day. I will greatly miss him, and pray that his family will be comforted.

Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of His saints.

Christ is Risen!

We Worship Thy Passion, O Christ!

Today He who hung the earth upon the waters is hung on the tree,

The King of the angels is decked with a crown of thorns.

He who wraps the heavens in clouds is wrapped in the purple

of mockery.

He who freed Adam in the Jordan is slapped on the face.

The Bridegroom of the Church is affixed to the Cross with nails.

The Son of the virgin is pierced by a spear.

We worship Thy passion, O Christ.

We worship Thy passion, O Christ.

We worship Thy passion, O Christ.

Show us also Thy glorious resurrection.

Nightly Devotions during Great Lent

As Lent approaches, I have been trying to make a plan for nightly devotions with my children. My children love doing this during Advent, and so I've been looking for resources to continue this practice. As much as I love handmade, creative ideas, my life is not conducive to creating right now! It's either beautiful, handmade crafts or school work and a clean house!

Thankfully, I've been able to find some easy ways to incorporate nightly readings, and hands-on activities that will capture the interest of my children. Here are a few ideas:

Paidea Classics sells a wonderful Lenten calendar. It has numbered doors for each Sunday of the Triodion, and then each day during Great Lent. It also comes with a booklet that contains short readings for each day.

We will also be using our Advent wreath, just redecorated! There are 7 Sundays in Lent, so we have 7 purple candles, plus a white candle for Pascha.

The highlight of our nightly devotions during Advent was our Jesse Tree. Paidea also sells shrink plastic ornaments for Lent! There is a pack for the seven Sundays in Lent, and another that has an ornament for each day of Holy Week. We will be using our Jesse Tree, with a spring-time tree skirt.

I'm so happy that with just a few clicks we have something tangible for our family to embrace Great Lent at home!

A Life-Changing Morning

There's so much to say about this morning, the day when we were blessed to approach the Kursk Root Icon of the Theotokos. Honestly, though, I don't have sufficient words. Thankfully, my dear friend does! Please visit Anna's site to catch a glimpse.

Family Readings for Lent

If you're like me, you already miss the nightly readings and ornaments of the Jesse Tree. my 2 year-old embraced our devotions fully this year, and still asks to "do Advent" every night! Today I heard about a wonderful way to integrate daily family readings during Lent, which will be here before we know it! This Orthodox Mom is developing the readings and posting them as she finishes them. I am inspired, and would love to eventually come up with ornaments to go along with the readings.

A New Chapter

Some of you may have visited the Festal Celebrations Gallery, especially to get more information on the Jesse Tree project. I'm excited to announce that I am the new owner of that site!

With God's help, I hope to continue the work of the previous owner, and continue to offer ideas to families who would like tangible ways to bring the Church's Feasts home. Please visit the site, and look forward to contributions from several individuals over the next few months.

I hope to add pictures and updated reading lists for the Jesse Tree project in the next few days. Please pray for me that I am able to live up to the task given to me.

Advent Activities

Since I am starting to gather my Advent activities in one place for my own use, I thought it might be helpful to write about some specific activities my family participates in.

Let me preface my first posting by giving you a little background info. If you are not familiar with the Orthodox Church's fasting periods, our Nativity Fast begins on November 15th and is a 40 day fast that ends on Christmas. The word Advent is the Latin word for "coming". We Orthodox use other Latin terms, such as "Trinity", so I personally have no problem using the word Advent when speaking about this time period. Here's a great article on that topic.

Instead of writing one long (and possibly overwhelming) post about everything my family does in our home, I thought it would be more helpful to post about one at a time. To me, the best way to do this is to first write about the activities that may take longer to get ready, in case anyone would like to incorporate them this year.

Activity #1 40 Books in 40 Days

One fun way to involve my children in our nightly activities is to have a children's book about the Nativity Season for each night. In our house my husband and I wrap each book individually and place them under our tree on November 15th. (More about our tree later). Each night our 3 children take a turn picking a book and unwrapping it. Then we read the book aloud together, and the book is placed in a basket so that the children can read it again during the rest of the season. There are some books that are designated for special nights, like the feast of the Entrance of the Theotokos, or St. Nicholas, and I do this by writing on the wrapping paper, so we don't forget!

There are several ways you can do this activity, and I encourage you to make it YOUR tradition. If you don't put your tree up until later in the season, you can put your books in a big basket. If it is overwhelming, you don't have to wrap the books at all.

I will share some of my favorite book selections with you, but don't feel the need to duplicate them in your household. You may be surprised at how many you already have, if you gather all your Christmas books in one place! Some families may want to include secular Christmas books about Santa Claus, reindeer, etc. Because every family has their own beliefs on this topic, I will only share my top choices that are religious in nature, and some that are specifically written from an Orthodox point of view. I have linked as many books as possible to websites where you can take a closer look:

The Nativity of Our Lord by Sister Elayne (This is one of the books from The 12 Great Feasts for Children)

The Entrance of the Theotokos into the Temple by Sister Elayne (we read this book on the feast, which falls on November 21st.)

The Saint Who Became Santa Claus

Who is Coming to Our House? by Joseph Slate (there is also a board-book version for toddlers)

Baby in a Manger by Julie Stiegemeyer

On This Special Night By Claire Freedman

The Little Drummer Boy by Ezra Jack Keats (also available as a board book)

The Legend of the Candy Cane by Lori Walburg

What Star Is This? by Joseph Slate

The Legend of Saint Nicholas by Demi (We read this book on the Feast of St. Nicholas, Dec. 6th)

The Usborne Advent Nativity Book (This book has pop out characters for each day that make the nativity scene. It starts on Dec. 1st)

North Star: St. Herman of Alaska by Dorrie Papademetrious (read on Dec. 13th)

Great Joy by Kate DiCamillo

Room for a Little One by Martin Waddell

Tonight You Are My Baby: Mary's Christmas Gift by Jeannine Q. Norris

Please feel free to add any great books from your collection by leaving a comment!

Musings

Well...it seems that every time I come to post I am either uninspired, distracted, or pulled away. It has definitely been hectic around here. I do feel the need to write, however, as it helps me to come and re-visit my own postings. So forgive the personal nature of this post as I muse about the ups and downs of my household.



From the prayer corner:


I have really tried over the past month to improve our family prayer time. The kids and I pray in the morning before starting school, but I was inspired by Mary to try and bring another element into our day by implementing the prayers of the hours. She came up with these great visuals for the daily hours, and for each day of the week. We have added our "visual aids" to our altar, and they have been a wonderful reminder to all of us, kids and adults alike!



From the kitchen:


I am so ready for fasting! I know that sounds crazy, but I am so much more organized with menus during fasting times. I have a weekly rotation that is constant, and right now I could use some of that! I may share my whole weekly menu later, but here's a link to my favorite!



From the schoolroom:


Oh, how time is flying, and yet sitting still! You may know that I started homeschooling the kids after Christmas last year, and we began this school year at the end of August. It has definitely been an adventure. The kids are still loving it, and I admit to having days where I love it, and days when I REALLY miss their old school. My one challenge right now is that school feels very monotonous to me. I still don't know how to get out of making it more without adding more. You can always read more about our school days here.



From the church:


If you know me, you know that I LIVE for the Nativity fast. It is so close! I am doing my best to get the Christmas shopping, card sending, cleaning, planning done by November 1st so that when the 15th comes, we can relax and embrace! I am giving a small talk on Advent at our church's womens' retreat next month. I had a great conversation with my Dad (who's also our parish priest) about the difference in this fast from Great Lent. This fast is meant to be fun and exciting. He compared preparing for the Nativity to preparing for the birth of a baby. Preparing the nursery, knitting the blankets, etc. can be just as exciting as the actual event! Here's a post from last year on how my family embraces the Nativity Fast.



On a personal note:


Last week we were able to visit family and friends on a 5 day trip to Michigan. We stayed with my husband's cousin, and the kids had a blast with their cousins. Dan and I left the kids for the weekend to attend a wedding of an old camp friend. We were able to spend a couple of days with friends we have known since we were kids! We both really needed that. I am always so amazed at how attending a wedding or baptism, or even funeral in the Orthodox Church can be so renewing! Participating in these sacraments is a huge confirmation of our own marriage, our own childrens' baptisms. You realize how connected to the people who share your faith you really are. So Many Years George and Suzy! Your wedding blessed us in more ways than you'll ever realize!

I'll leave you with two pictures from last week. One of my 3 (girl in front, boy in back, and the toddler who still has the paci) with their cousins and Tete (grandmother), and the other from the wedding:

How To Raise An Orthodox Christian Or Possibly A Saint

Last night my husband and I were discussing how to help our children to be less self-centered. I stumbled across the following today. It is written by an anonymous author, and I came across it here. It was just what I needed!

1) When the child is yet young, begin to train him/her in sympathy and consideration for others and in unselfishness. By these means he/she will grow up to understand that the materialthings of this world are not the most important things for Orthodox Christians. Your life-style and example will be the greatest influence on your child in this matter.

2) Teach your child how to chant the psalms and the hymns of the Church. This will encourage him or her to learn to love the holy services, and to reject the foul language and immodest songs that are so widespread today in our society. Your example in this will have the greatest influence on your child.

3) Never cease from finding occasions to train your child in spiritual matters and in the love of God and others, and always bring them to the Church. When we were small, we were never asked "if" we were coming to church - or anywhere else, for that matter. The fact that we were going to church was a foregone conclusion. Your child must learn this from the very earliest years. If you wait until your
child reaches adolescence, it will already be far too late.

4) Teach your child the meaning of the words "right" and "wrong," "sin" and "virtue," "truth" and "falsehood" ; also teach your child to know the Church's Faith, and to recognize erroneous belief. In this manner, your child's understanding and spiritual discretion will grow as the years go by, and he/she will be prepared for the future, even if he/she has to endure hate and persecution for his/her convictions.

5) Give your child spiritual duties appropriate to his/her age and understanding. These could include such activities as reading the Lives of the Saints written for your child's level, or reciting some of the evening prayers together with the rest of the family, or fasting and making prostrations, or helping out in church if he or she is old enough.

6) Aside from providing your child with plenty of Orthodox spiritual literature appropriate for his/her age, make sure that material of an impure or inappropriate nature is not in your home. Unfortunately, today this includes most of television programming. Remember: whatever goes in, comes out. Your example in this matter will have the greatest influence on your child.

7) Your own life-style, your personal tastes, your words, the books you read, the music you listen to, and the things that draw your interest and attention will all speak louder to your child than anything else. Hallow your child's eyes with the holy icons. Sanctify his hearing with the holy hymns, his sense of smell with sacred incense, and his entire body and soul with the holy Mysteries. If your home is a haven of spiritual sanity, love, and peace, your child will know where to turn when he or she inevitably encounters the blasphemous, shocking, and sordid things that fill our society. Teach your child the Jesus Prayer.

8) Instruct your child in almsgiving and compassion towards those who are in need. And teach them also that they should help in house duties and, if they are old enough, that they should labor at various odd jobs, so that they may learn from an early age that, as the Holy Apostle Paul tells us, one who does not labor should not eat. Idleness and affluence together have, in our society, destroyed countless young people and led them into sin and even an early death. Never be ashamed to say to your child: "We can't afford it."

9) Teach your child by your own example - and by the examples found in the Holy Scriptures and the Lives of the Saints - that abstinence from food and drink and personal comforts is a noble and beautiful thing, taught to us by our Savior Himself and by the Saints.

10) Be fair if it should ever happen that
your child gets into a dispute with another child, or with teachers, or with other authorities. If your child is wrong, he/she is wrong, and
show him/her, together with your love and support, why he/she is wrong. Your child will learn something of God's justice from your example.

11) As the years pass, if you persist faithfully in these matters, as you must, you will discover, much to your surprise, that you have grown spiritually also. Saint Paul was quite serious when he said that "a woman shall be saved by childbearing"- and we know and understand that, especially in a society such as ours, both parents are essential for the proper kind of Orthodox Christian spiritual nurturing that is needed.

12) Prepare yourself for a life of spiritual struggles and prayers. You and your children will need them and the grace of God, for we are not living in the world as God originally created it. We are living in occupied territory - a land occupied by the enemy. But, by our holy Faith and God's grace, we are nonetheless a free people, living in hope and expectation of our deliverance in our true and everlasting country. And if we are heedful in these matters, we will have the boldness to say to our Savior in that last day, "Behold me, your servant, and the children which Thou hast given me."

By the intercessions of Saints Joachim and Anna, O Christ God, may we, together with all our little ones, be deemed worthy of the Heavenly Kingdom. Amen.

Orthodox Children's Bible for only $4.99!

We have an Orthodox children's Bible reader that we adore. It's called the Greek Orthodox Children's Illustrated Bible Reader. It's a beautiful hard cover book, and the illustrations are in the style of iconography. My son has absorbed so much from this book, that I recommend it to everyone. Here's a review done by the Director of Christian Education from the Antiochian Archdiocese

Go here to get yours for only $4.99! They usually cost $20, and this website offers free shipping, as well. I have a feeling that these won't last long, so grab one while you can. I just bought 3!

A Day of Rest

Yesterday I read an article on taking a day of rest. This was by no means from an Orthodox, or even Christian viewpoint, but never the less it made me think. I have a very hard time resting. I always feel like there's SOMETHING that needs to be done, and Sunday is no exception. Sundays are busy. It's just a fact. After Liturgy, my family (including my parents, sister, and her family) always have lunch together. This usually takes awhile, since my Dad is our parish priest. He usually gets to lunch late, and by the time we get home it's around 2. My youngest then goes down for a nap, and I always feel like I need to USE that time. I usually grocery shop on Sunday afternoons, and the house always seems to be more of a mess from the hurried weekend activity. By the time all is said and done, it's 6pm, I need to make dinner, and then it's the usual evening chaos before bed. Then my Sunday has somehow disappeared! I also usually have a feeling of resentment towards my husband. He spends his Sunday afternoon lounging with the older two kids, and I always feel like I'm the only one contributing. I think I may have it backwards.

Today, I forced myself to rest. After my youngest went down, I just hung out. It's HARD! I see all the things around me that need to be done, and I still need to grocery shop. I guess I need to move the shopping to a different time, and either I have to do more on Saturday to keep the mess at bay, or just shut my eyes to it on Sunday.

Either way, I think taking time to rest is important, and I need to learn how to do it! Why is it so hard to do nothing? No one else around here seems to have any difficulty!

June Happenings

It has been a very busy summer! We've been doing a lot of work in the backyard. I'm very proud of our little patch, as you can see above! We have continued our Latin studies at home, and all last week we were busy with our church's Vacation Church School. It was a wonderful week, and my good friend has lots of info and pictures from it here.

A few days ago, I took my oldest to Camp St. Thekla. This was his first year as a camper, and I think my husband and I were just as excited as he was! I spent all my summers at Antiochian Village, and that's where I met my husband. We were both counselors there, and I actually served as a counselor for the first two years of Camp St. Thekla. My son has been ready since age 5!

Turning into the driveway of the camp was just as emotional for me as a parent as it was as a camper and counselor! My dearest friends are those I met at camp, and there's a bond that only those who have experienced camp can understand. I found myself tearing up constantly during my son's first hour there, but it wasn't really sadness. It was the overwhelming feeling of coming full circle. This was a HUGE milestone for him. He now shares something with his parents that his siblings don't, yet. That same bond that connects camp friends now connects parents and child!

I will admit that after 12 hours of driving, I collapsed at home and let out some Mommy tears. It was hard to come home to his empty room, and we won't be able to speak to him for a week, which is a first. I left him in good hands, though! I'm sure he's having a blast.

Here are a few phots of his first day.

Gassing up for the trip.

Our parish's caravan

Officially registered!

Mom felt much better after helping him make his bed!

Outside his lodge with his counselor, and first cabin-mateOn the left is Fr. Philip, the Camp Director. (I actually had Fr. Philip's younger sister as a camper MANY years ago!)

The Angel Cried

I love that hymn, and I love how my two year-old jumps up and dances in the middle of Liturgy when the choir sings it! Tonight is the last time we'll hear it sung, and what make it so much sadder is that the hymn will be sung without the beautiful voice of one of our tenors. The servant of God, David, passed away yesterday. I have such fond memories of his strong voice, as it led the choir during my childhood. My nephew had a particular fondness for him, and whenever his voice was heard alone during an antiphon, Julian would yell, "There's Mr. David!" If angels do cry, they will cry tonight. Memory Eternal!

This Paschal season has been very special for me. Having the kids home allowed us to participate in more of the services, and our lessons taught us so much! We had our first experience with kulich, tsoureki, and our new cheese mold. It has been a wonderful 40 days.

Christ is Risen!

Winding Down and Gearing Up!

It seems that even though our school year is winding down, scheduling and planning are gearing up! I have spent the past several weeks not only planning next year's school schedule and curriculum (which you can read about here), but I have also been working on plans for my home and myself! I have serious plans to declutter my house this summer. My 3 children will be spending 2 weeks with my in-laws in New Jersey, and instead of my husband and I taking any major trips, I asked to spend most of the "vacation" at home. I am hoping to work on the kids' closets, attic, and basement while they are away.

I thought I'd share my 4 favorite books/websites for organizing your home, family, and self!

For the Home: Flylady has been my saviour since my 9 year-old was an infant. As life changes, I definitely fall off the wagon, but I always have her routines to get me back on track.

For the Family: Managers of Their Homes has been a Godsend. My good friend Anne Marie recommended the book, and though overwhelming at first, it has changed everything! I have been considering Managers of Their Schools, but would love any opinions of those who have used it.

For Me: A Mother's Rule of Life has really put everything about MY life in perspective. It goes through the 5 P's (prayer, person, partner, parent, provider) and has helped me tremendously. My new favorite book is not a self-help book really, but it feels like one! If you haven't gotten a copy of Close to Home, by Molly Sabourin, get one! It's a very candid look into the life of an Orthodox mom, struggling to get it right, just like the rest of us. (BTW, Conciliar Press is doing maintenance, so the link to the book above will not work until 5/16/09)

So here's some good summer reading! If you have any specific questions about any of the books or Flylady's system, ask away!

Over the next few weeks I will be sharing my curriculum for the next school year, and my yearly school schedule for 09/10 over at St. Artemius Academy.

The Best Mother's Day Gift

I have to share my special moments from Mother's Day! Since my children are still fairly young, anything done for me on Mother's Day is still orchestrated by my husband. (So you never know!) This year, however, I received three gifts that I will remember forever: The first is a simple sentence that my husband wrote in my card, but it means the world. He wrote, "I can already see a huge difference in the children since you have started homeschooling, and it is really the ultimate in selfless things to have given up your free time to devote totally to the children." I have not been the most confident teachers, so his reassurance raised my confidence a lot! The second gift was my Kindergartner reading the card from her and her siblings to me. She is such a reader now, and I'm so proud. The third gift was a special project that my husband lovingly and painstakingly created. This was a project I had come up with for my gift to my mother, grandmother, his mother and the kids' godmothers. After helping me with all of them, he stayed up late Saturday night and made them again, for me. They are silhouettes of our children, and I LOVE them!

My children, oldest to youngest

My youngest, almost two, with all the curls!

Thank you, sweetheart!

Christ is Risen! Truly He is Risen!

Holy Friday

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The Three C's

Today is the half-way mark! We have spent the past three nights singing "Behold, the Bridegroom Cometh at Midnight!" (I, myself, have been mostly singing it from the narthex or comfort room with "Little Miss almost-two") The older two have done quite well during the services, and I think our daily lessons from The Children's Garden of the Theotokos have really helped my Kindergartner connect with the services. She has been working on her "Lent to Pentecost" book for several weeks, and it has been a blessing for all of us.

The next several days, and especially nights, are wonderful and yet so hard!

Today my oldest two are at an all-day enrichment class. I always try to make Holy Wednesday
"Three C's Day". The C's are for cooking, cleaning, and clothes! Have you noticed that your home seems to explode between Holy Thursday night and Agape Vespers? I know that in our house we're barely here, and when we are we're either sleeping, or getting ready for the next service! I really do not enjoy spending Bright Monday sifting through the rubble! So today I tried to do some extra chores that I won't have time for this weekend. I also put away all the laundry and set aside the children's church clothing for the next several days. (Tonight's are already laid out). Now that the little one is napping, I'm going to do my preliminary cooking preparations. My husband is the gourmet cook of the family, and he usually takes care of most of our Pascha basket food (at least, he cooks all of the meat!). This year however, I'm trying to make a few of the traditional items. I'm trying kulich, the Paska cheese, and tsoureki.

I also finally got a lamb mold for the butter. Hopefully, everything except the tsoureki will be done by tomorrow afternoon. (Let's pray!)

Holy Week Burn-Out

I sat down this morning to write a wonderful post about all the things that I am planning on doing with the kids this week, Holy Week. I was going to write about the food we're going to make, the lessons I plan on teaching on the various services, the egg decorating...(you get the idea).

I've decided, however, to not write about any of that! Why? To be perfectly honest, it will probably just make me frustrated at the amount of things we will truthfully NOT do, and it will frustrate you because you will feel like you're not doing enough.

I'm starting to see too much Martha in me, and not enough Mary! I am quickly losing my focus on the one thing needful!

Last night was my first lesson in not making too many plans this week. I spent the ENTIRE Bridegroom Matins service in either our church's baby comfort room or outside (my toddler was actually screaming so loud that I had to leave the building).

So, just to mix things up, here are some things we will NOT do this week:
We will not beat ourselves up if we are exhausted by Tuesday night.
We will not expect our children to make it through every service quietly.
We will not see the end of every service.
We will not stress out over what food doesn't make it into our Pascha basket.
I will not worry too much about what my children or I will wear to the Pascha service.
We will not try to force understanding into our children about what each service means.
Most of all, we will not make this week about eggs, gifts, food, etc.

So my new goal this week, is to just live this week to the best of my ability, to be at the services, and to make it through. The light at the end of the tunnel this week is the brightest of all!

I wish you a blessed Holy Week.