7 Quick Takes Friday (Already?!?)

THAT was a fast week wasn't it?

Jennifer would love you to join her on ConversionDiary blog...just click the image in my sidebar for this meme...her Quick Takes are a way for us to publish 7 mini posts, which give a summary
of thoughts for the blogging week.
There are plenty of other great posts to read on Jennifer's blog daily!

MY QUICK TAKES:

1) Many people are expressing to me lately, that they feel a need to spend more time with their family at home. Too much running, too much schedule, too many outside things that distract and
clutter, leaving next to no time to JUST BE together and enjoy daily life at home. I must say that I felt a similar "nudge" from the Holy Spirit several years ago and have been very blessed and happy with what has come about from our making these sorts of changes in our family life.
I believe that strengthening the FAMILY bonds is the secret to combating the enemy in this darkened world. We modern people (especially we modern AMERICANS) have grown much too
accustomed to a constant need for noise, self-instant-gratification, outside entertainment and input, and a myriad of "extras" needed for supposed contentment. We need to slow it down...bring our family indoors and shut out the world for a while. The majority of time for our precious families should be spent AT HOME WITH ONE ANOTHER. I was reminded by a friend recently that the Hidden Life of the Lord (before His public mission) was most likely spent at home...working along-side Joseph, praying, learning, and sharing life with Mary, His mother, and gathering for family festivals and celebrations and ceremonies when the occasion called for it.
So too, our family lives could benefit from being more HIDDEN...time to ourselves...working in our yard, or on the rooms of our house, cooking, playing, singing, talking, praying, or doing not much of anything but sitting quietly in the same room.Try it...you'll like it.

2) SOUP...I am thinking about SOUP.
Gotta' favorite recipe? Share it with me, please!

3) The Holy Father, Pope Benedict XVI, has named this the "year for priests". Each year is dedicated toward a particular prayer focus and honor and this year, it is the year for our shepherds...goodness knows they need the prayer! So let's not forget them...if we think it's difficult to raise godly children in this dark world...imagine what it's like to be a Catholic priest now-a-days...talk about carrying the Cross! If you know a priest...THANK HIM...invite him to your house for supper! Make a spiritual prayer card for him to let him know that your family has prayed for his intentions. There are many crucial and controversial issues facing our priests today. Let's keep them close in our spiritual care so that they would have courage, JOY, and integrity in their vocations.

4) My daughter, her husband, and my sweetie pie grand-daughters are coming home for brunch with us after Mass this Sunday! YAY!!!!!!!!

5) Weather providing, we are headed to Harpers Ferry WV this weekend. We lived there for more than 10 years...it is a hub of historical significance. My older kids are studying abolitionists, Civil War, and slavery, with a special focus on John Brown...considering the question: Was he a martyr or a criminal? Harpers Ferry was the location where he siezed the armory and began (and ended) his raid. There's a great wax museum there so my husband will take the students in while I buzz about town with the younger ones...it's a great time of year for it as there's an annual OLD TYME CHRISTMAS FESTIVAL! The final assignment for our unit will be for the kids to choose a controversial topic of the Civil War era...and write an essay which offers the various viewpoints of the topic...and concludes with their own personal opinion as to which side is correct. We are really loving our history lessons this year.

6) WHY do these coughs and colds keep coming back?!?!?!?

7) Please pray for my friend Jen P. She is expecting a baby and that little bugger has settled in to a position that is causing severe hip and back pain for Mommy...which lead to fatigue, which leads to school not getting done, which leads to..........you get the picture. Jen will appreciate your kind thoughts on her behalf.