Battle Hymn of the Republic

A friend sent me THIS LINK of a high school performing the Battle Hymn of the Republic, they did a beautiful job!!

"Get a load of these high school kids. At the conclusion listen to the highnotes on the trumpet, played by a high school kid! One of the fathers recorded it, added some graphic enhancements to the recording, and posted it on the web.The song, of course, is the 'Battle Hymn Of The Republic.'Be prepared....It will definitely send a few shivers up your spine."

Celebrating the Baptism of the Lord

As the girls are getting older, we are trying harder to incorporate and celebrate the liturgical year in our home. Not only to increase their knowledge of our faith, but also to encourage them to live it, enjoy it, and celebrate it!! Their young ages still limit the amount of information you can give them or activities you can do, but is allowing me to start forming traditions and gather ideas for the next years!! Here are some things we enjoyed yesterday to help us remember this special day all day long!!

Angel enjoyed coloring THIS PAGE of Jesus being Baptized:

We all enjoyed working this Baptism Crossword Puzzle...and even got stumped on how to spell anoint or annoint....hehe

(thanks Jessica for the links for these activities)

Since the Christian symbol for Baptism is a shell, I bought some fun shell necklaces to wear (although the guys opted out of this)...decorated the table with shells...and made this yummy Nacho Stuffed Shell recipe for dinner (with Marmee and Alli). The recipe definitely is a keeper and we garnished with sour cream, salsa, cheese and fresh avocados. For dessert, I made Christ's Diapers and they were yummy and MAKE A LOT!! It was an interesting dough that I have never done before...so if you like to knead, try it out. It was amusing asking people if they wanted to eat Christ's diapers...Angel was a little confused!! But, most of them did look like a diaper...except for the ones that exploded when dropped in the fryer.

And since this day is a good time to also talk about and remember our own Baptisms...I made the centerpiece of the table be Angel's, Emma's and my baptismal candle. (Jason's is still in VA...note to self we need to get!). (see picture above of table). It looked really beautiful...and I just used an advent candle holder for it. I also made books for Angel's baptism and Emma's baptism, so it is always fun to pull those out and look at them as well.

Almighty, eternal God, when the Spirit descended upon Jesus at his baptism in the Jordan, you revealed him as your own beloved Son. Keep us, your children born of water and the Spirit, faithful to our calling. We ask this through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen

Thanks Dr. Bowman

Angelica received a packet in the mail the other day from our dentist, wonderful Dr. Bowman, and since she hasn't been in since August (her only time so far)...I was curious as to what was inside. And.....here it is:

They take the kids pictures after they are done and post them on their wall....so I am thinking maybe at the end of the year they mail them to folks so they can start over again. They included a NO CAVITY certificate and several stickers. Angel was delighted and it helped encourage her even more to keep those teeth clean!! (she looks so little in that picture..sniff sniff)

Fight FOCA

We started this along with so many (hopefully) last night and encourage ALL to join in the novena to help FIGHT FOCA....it has such serious and scary repercussions should this become law....PRAY and FAST...LIVES depend on it!!

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If you are opposed to abortion, please read the information below and join us in prayer and fasting January 11-19, 2009.

The Freedom of Choice Act (FOCA) will be signed into law if Congress passes it on January 21-22, 2009. The FOCA is the next sick chapter in the book of abortion. If signed into law, all limitations on abortion will be lifted, resulting in the following:

1) All hospitals, including Catholic hospitals, will be required to perform abortions upon request. If this happens, Bishops vow to close down all Catholic hospitals - more then 30% of all hospitals in the U.S.

2) Partial birth abortions will be legal and have no limitations.

3) All U.S. taxpayers will be funding abortions.

4) Parental notification of abortions on minors will no longer be required (regardless of age).

5) The estimated number of increase in abortions is 100,000 annually.

Just as important, the government will now have control in the issue of abortion. This could result in a future amendment that would force women by law to have abortions in certain situations (rape, Down Syndrome babies, etc) and could even regulate how many children women are allowed to have.

Needless to say this information is disturbing, but sadly true. As Catholics, as Christians, as anyone who is against the needless killing of innocent children, we must stand as one. We must stop this horrific act before it becomes a law.

PLEASE JOIN US IN saying a novena and fasting from January 11-19. For Catholics, the prayer of choice is the rosary for the special intention of stopping the FOCA. For non-Catholics we encourage you to pray your strongest prayers with the same intention for 9 consecutive days. We hope and pray this will branch and blossom to become a global effort.

Please do the following 3 things:

1) Pass this information on quickly (so as many as possible can start praying on January 11)

2) Say a novena from January 11-19, asking God to prevent the FOCA from becoming law in the U.S.

3) Fast at least 2 days during this novena (either a complete fast of bread and water, or a Lenten fast of no meat and meals limited to 1 regular meal and 2 lesser meals during the day).

Remember that with God all things are possible and the power of prayer is undeniable. If you are against the senseless killing of defenseless children, please join us in prayer and fasting.

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EWTN has a good election prayer , which we will be adding to pray for our President Elect and his change of heart for life issues.