Advent Traditions

As parents of four small children, my husband Ryan and I learned very quickly that starting family traditions can go one of two ways.....fun and chaotic, or just chaotic. Images in our heads of our children sitting around creating the perfect Advent wreath translated into a scene from a horror movie as someone grabs the wrong end of a glue gun, someone knocks over the glitter and someone else is eating the candles, while mommy huddles in the corner thinking “why do I do this to myself?”

After several years of “failed” expectations, I learned quickly that the problem was not my children being out of control and wild. It was us (Ryan and I) having unrealistic expectations for creating that perfect kodak moment. Looking back at pictures from when the kids were “really” little, my favorite moments are not the ones that look perfect. My favorite moments are the ones where glitter is everywhere, a kid has wax in his teeth and our wreath is less than perfect. Some how along the way, even though we stumble through, get sidetracked and desperately try to avoid ER trips, our kids “get it”. While we may not do EVERY craft Mom pins on Pinterest, those we do are done with few expectations and LOTS of laughter; all the while stressing the story of Jesus and his birth. Here are a few that we have incorporated into our celebration of the birth of Jesus:

Making a wreath

Good Shepherd has provided a wonderful opportunity for families to come together and make a wreath that can be enjoyed for years to come. There is also a book called Advent Begins at Home . I use this every night during advent. It is full of prayers, crafts and ideas for things to do as a family.

Sing

We are always singing songs about christmas during the advent season. We have a song book and our oldest is very good about finding the Christmas songs and leading the younger children.

Attend a concert

We have been attending the Good Shepherd Choir Concert for years and the children look forward to it every year. They even believe that some of the singers are famous because of how beautiful their voices are.

Adopt an Angel

We save our change in a jar throughout the year and with the money we adopt a family. We also go through our things and donate what we don’t use to charity. There is a fantastic book by Dave Ramsey for kids that speaks to the spirit of giving called The Big Birthday Surprise. It really drives home the act of giving in a way the kids understand.

Advent Calendar

This is a great way to focus on Jesus during the Christmas season. This, for us, is not the commercialized calendar that you see in the store.  While those are great, the Advent Begins at Home book provides a daily activity for you to do as a family or individually. Each day provides an opportunity to do something for someone or reflect on what Christmas means to you. For example, my kids’ favorite activities are the ones that have them draw a picture.

Of course these activities are not all perfectly played out.  The effort is there and the kids look forward to them every year. While in the trenches of parenthood these opportunities of sharing and talking about our faith really make the days of tantrums and tears all worth while. I leave you with my favorite “Kodak moment” and yes this went on the Easter card......

                

Bio-
My name is Leslie. My husband Ryan and I are high school sweethearts from Colleyville. I went through RCIA at Good Shepherd in 2003. Ryan and I were married at Good Shepherd in 2004 and have four children, Cameron (7), Riley (5), Bradford (3) and Elijah (1).

When Does Christmas Begin for Me....

Right after Halloween, I went to Walmart to pick up a few items, by myself (a rare occasion) and found myself walking through the Christmas isle.  I was immediately transformed.  A warm fuzzy feeling, excitement and anticipation radiated through me as I looked at all the glitzy ornaments and mesmerizing lights.  I LOVE Christmas! I love the smells, sights, sounds, and feelings involved in Christmas.  Growing up, Christmas was always such a magical time for me.  My parents made it so special.  We would decorate, make cookies, have parties, give presents, get presents and, of course, go to church.  With all that said...ONE HOLIDAY AT A TIME, PLEASE!

My Jack-O-Lanterns haven't even rotted yet!  I still need to pull out my Thanksgiving decorations.  Why is Christmas pushed so early?  For me, the Christmas season begins the week after Thanksgiving.  I can only do one main event at a time. 

It used to take forever from Thanksgiving to Christmas and now with the advertising and decorating starting so soon, it may be physically longer--the Christmas season-- but it seems like Christmas is here before you know it.  I know, that sounds crazy, but stick with me.  I will give you a quick glimpse into my brain's train of thought...My philosophy is that we are so used to seeing Christmas stuff up and think, “oh, we have FORVEVER until Christmas,” that when it actually gets here we are so desensitized to the holiday “stuff” that it really does surprise us and we feel like it sneaks up on us.  That may not be right, but that is what I am sticking with.

One reason I loved Christmas so much as a child is it was stress free.  Now with all the stresses involved, we forget the most important part of Christmas: Why we celebrate.  We are desensitized to the point that we miss our focus.  We are all so worried about what to get for people, who is coming, what parties we have, what our house looks like, what cookies we are going to make...all to impress others.  When our real focus should be WHY we celebrate Christmas.

I put up all of the decorations this weekend (except the tree – my live tree will be in on Monday!) But the first thing I put out, front and center, was our Nativity scene.  This Nativity scene was Tony (my husband) Grandmother's and there are all sorts of animals and shepherd from all sorts of sets.  It has seen lots of Christmases and it is just beautiful to have in our house.  I had the girls help me and really wanted to emphasize the true meaning of Christmas.  If you ask my kids why we celebrate Christmas, they will tell you it’s Jesus' birthday.  I hope that by teaching my children the true meaning of Christmas, it will help ME refocus on what's truly important.  I hope that by refocusing, I can again feel the excitement and anticipation of this magical season. Just let me get through one holiday at a time...if I start seeing Fourth of July stuff next week, I may implode!

Bio -

Kathy is blessed to be a stay-at-home mom of three girls and one baby (unknown gender) due in May. She has been married to her extremely understanding and handsome husband for seven years.

"Thanks Be To God"

First off, a little about me. My name is Channan and I was just “inducted” into the Catholic church this past Easter of 2012. It was one of the greatest experiences. I married my husband in the summer of 2007 and life took off. 5 years into our marriage and we have been blessed with 3 beautiful children. I grew up in the plains of Oklahoma, Sooner born and Sooner bred, and now make our home in Texas. Hope you enjoy my first of hopefully many blogs to come!

“I do therefore invite my fellow citizens in every part of the United States, and also those who are at sea and those who are sojourning in foreign lands, to set apart and observe the last Thursday of November, as a day of Thanksgiving and Praise to our beneficent Father who dwelleth in the Heavens.” (President Abraham Lincoln, Proclamation, October 3, 1863)

Thanksgiving. A time for crisper weather, changing of leaves, a roasted Turkey, gravy, cranberry sauce, and football! I’m sure any human would automatically revert to this thinking when hearing the word “Thanksgiving.” That, and pilgrims. Abraham Lincoln wanted to ensure despite American’s differences, we were giving thanks to the source from whom all blessings flow.

Growing up, I have a ton of wonderful Thanksgiving memories of my grandmother and grandfather’s home, her cooking like a mad woman, hiding the rum in her coke somewhere in a corner, all of us grandkids with our fingers constantly in the relish tray, and all the men miserably full from the amazing food she would prepare. Sure, these are all fabulous memories to me. But one memory that has to be my most favorite Thanksgiving memory is my Thanksgiving with my 2^nd born, Ainslee.

There was a turkey, there was gravy, there was a relish tray. There was my baby. She was perfect in every way at only a month old. She of course slept wonderfully up until it was time for me to enjoy my Thanksgiving meal. Then she wanted her Thanksgiving meal. I took her upstairs to nurse her and remember how incredibly blessed I felt to have this beautiful dark haired baby to spend Thanksgiving with. Another wonderful blessing to be truly thankful for.

That would be our only Thanksgiving together but it would lead me to a place I never thought possible to reach. Her love and short life lead me to Him, our Creator. Sure I always had a faith filled life and considered myself to be a Christian. But she would lead me to His love and ultimately experience the satisfaction of what Thanksgiving meant.

“Do this in memory of Me.”

Jesus Christ offers Himself under the form of bread and wine. He surrenders Himself unto us for our nourishment, for our salvation, for the cleansing of our humanly bodies, to save us. By receiving Him, we accept rejuvenation for ourselves and divine vitality which can only come from His Thanksgiving. So naturally the sacrificial banquet of remembrance is called the Eucharist, or “thanksgiving.” “Let us give thanks to the Lord our God.”

Thanking Him during this time and for our salvation and giving all praise to Him is what has always been intended during this time of thanks. He gave His whole, entire self to us-body, blood, soul and divinity.

Thanksgiving isn’t separated from sacrifice and the Mass itself is a celebration of God’s undying love through His very own sacrifice. This is how we truly accept Christ and live a Christian life, by allowing Him to be our nourishment, our Thanksgiving. True thanksgiving means self-giving. This is the meaning of the Eucharist.

I can think of no American holiday that so closely resembles the symbolism and meaning of the sacrament of the Eucharist. We celebrate Thanksgiving as a sign of American unity and thanksgiving to God who has given us great gifts.

Today I am thankful for my family, my job and my home. I’m thankful for the salvation of Jesus Christ and the hope of Heaven. I am thankful for His sacrifice. I thank Him every day for that dark haired baby girl. That she lead me to where I need to be spiritually. I am so incredibly thankful to have spent a Thanksgiving with her and for the chance to be shown and taught about true Thanksgiving. I’m thankful God trusted me to be her mother, knowing what her 3 months on this earth would do for this broken Christian.

Today I am thankful for the Eucharist. I am thankful for Thanksgiving.

I Am Mute

Today is my 4^th day without a voice.  No, this is not a political statement, I mean I am not able to verbalize my thoughts.  I was fighting a cold, stressed my vocal chords and wound up with laryngitis. The first day without my voice was funny.  People, my children especially, would laugh at my voice; I would laugh at my lack of voice.  My husband joked that this was an early Christmas gift to him.  By day two, annoyance with not being able to communicate set in.  By day three, I realized that I had to make the best of the situation.  I have always been a “glass half full” kind of gal, and for those of you familiar with Living Your Strengths or the NY Times Best Seller, StrengthFinders my third top strength is “Positivity.”  So, I started to pray about how I could put this muteness to good use.  I researched figures presented in the bible as mute and learned that most of those people were struck mute due to lack of faith.  Not really the uplifting message I was looking for.  But as I delved deeper into The Word, this is what I discovered.

Picture Zechariah, father of John the Baptist, wife to Elizabeth.  When the angel Gabriel foretold of Elizabeth’s pregnancy, Zechariah was doubtful.  He was struck dumb due to his disbelief and his speech was not returned until the prophecy was fulfilled.

Now this, along with the myriad other individuals in the bible who were also struck dumb due to lack of faith made me start to wonder if God was trying to tell me something.  I read the Gospel account further and learned that once John was born, on the 8^th day when he was to be circumcised and named, Elizabeth said “He is going to be called John”  (Luke 1:60).  This surprised everyone because none of their relatives had this name.  When Zechariah, still mute, was asked what name he wanted to give is son, he requested a tablet and wrote, “John is his name” (Luke 1:63).  Immediately Zechariah’s voice was restored and he began to speak, praising God.  His first words were not about himself or his son.   Zechariah, filled with the Holy Spirit, said “Blessed be the Lord God of Israel.”  (Luke 1:68) He first wanted to give glory to God.  Zechariah did not praise God for ending his muteness or for giving him a child in his old age.  He praised God for sending a Savior and for keeping his promises to Israel.  Zechariah realized that God had not done this to make Zechariah and Elizabeth happy, but to keep His covenant with Israel.  Here is the rest of The Canticle of Zechariah:

“Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel,

for he has visited and brought redemption to his people.

He has raised up a horn for our salvation

within the house of David his servant,

even as he promised through the mouth of his holy prophets from of old:

salvation from our enemies and from the hand of all who hate us,

        to show mercy to our fathers

and to be mindful of his holy covenant

and of the oath he swore to Abraham our father,

and to grant us that,

rescued from the hand of enemies,

without fear we might worship him

in holiness and righteousness

before him all our days.

And you, child, will be called prophet of the Most

 

for you will go before the Lord to prepare his ways, 

to give his people knowledge of salvation

through the forgiveness of their sins,

because of the tender mercy of our God
 

by which the daybreak from on high will visit us

to shine on those who sit in darkness and death’s shadow,

to guide our feet into the path of peace.” (Luke 1:72-77).

 

So, what did this scripture passage help me to learn about my present situation?  While we praise God for the things he has done for us, I was reminded that it is not about us.  He does these things for us to bring glory to Him and so that we might believe in Him.  When my voice is restored I know that my first words will be of praise to God.  Not thanking him for the return of my voice, or the opportunity for me to never take my voice for granted again, but for the gentle nudge from God for me to seek Him in The Word and thus, as always, become closer to God and getting to know Him better.

Many thanks to the generous parishioners of Good Shepherd. Good Shepherd Outreach collected enough for GRACE to purchase 450 turkeys for those in need this holiday season.

Our Fabulous Festival of Tables

"WOW" is the word that comes to mind to describe the tables that were lovingly decorated by members of the Good Shepherd Women’s Group for its 4th Annual Festival of Tables on Thursday, Oct. 4.

Nearly 200 ladies came together to not only decorate and dine on tables inspired by many themes and places near and far, but also to raise money for the Sister of St. Mary of Namur (SSMN).

The evening generated more than $3,200 for the Sisters. The wonderful ladies, who will be celebrating their 150th Anniversary in the U.S. and Texas in 2013, were our honored guests that evening.

Popular tables themes this year included Out of Africa, Casino Night, Queens of De-Nile, Angels, Life’s a Beach, Grapevine High School Senior Moms, College Football Alma Maters, In The (football) Party Zone, Winter magic, Autumn Harvest, Fishers of Men and Feed My Sheep. But three groups of ladies went "above and beyond" and were voted the best of the bunch by FOT attendees.

Winning inspirations for this year’s Fest of Tables were "Dr. Suess," which was voted No. 1,followed by the game of "Clue" (2nd place) and "Glamping" (3rd place).

 It was a wonderful evening of fellowship and we especially thank Stephanie and Janet who coordinated this event.

Have you ever experienced a miracle?

Sometimes someone will mention the miracle of life – especially their children.  Sometimes someone will know someone that was cured after a debilitating illness.

Actually, every one of us experiences the greatest miracle on Earth every time we go to Mass!  Just think about the ordinary elements of bread and wine becoming the Body, Blood, Soul, and Divinity of Our Lord, Jesus Christ!  There can be no greater miracle! 

Almost ten years ago, on my birthday, I prayed for this gift – a greater appreciation of the Blessed Sacrament.  Being a cradle-Catholic, I knew the teaching of our faith.  I was asking for an appreciation from my heart.  God always hears our prayers.  Less than a year later, I found myself coordinating Eucharistic Adoration at Good Shepherd.  I still have a very long way to go… we cannot understand many mysteries.  Yet spending time with Our Lord in Eucharistic Adoration increases my appreciation of the awesome gift of the Mass.

We have a beautiful new Daily Chapel.  I wish everyone would stop by to spend some time with Our Lord!  I wish more people would commit to spending an hour with Him every week.  This commitment is never burdensome.  There are prayer partners and substitutes for when someone is unable to go.  The advantage of being scheduled is that once it is on the calendar, we go.  Then the Blessings come! 

Our Lady is really the Coordinator of Eucharistic Adoration, all I do is send out the emails!  Her purpose is always to bring us closer to her Son!