Seasonal Snapshots

Might as well start with the seasonings...  Don't worry, the subjects do get better.

BEFORE: Cacophony in the cupboard

AFTER: Salty, spicy, seasoning sweet  melody.  It's amazing what a $5 organizational rack and turntable will do to a spice cupboard much in need of a makeover.  One of those taunting tasks on the "to do" list that I finally got around to sometime in November.

Cake for Luke's feast day-previously mentioned but not pictured.  Simple yellow layer cake from scratch with chocolate frosting (best luck I've had with frosting yet) , sprinkled with almonds and a little bit of cherries on top for color.

Praline pumpkin torte which I'd been wanting to try for a while but was given the perfect opportunity when Jen Jab and Fr. Lehnard stopped by for a visit.  Yes, those are raspberries on top.  Apparently the previous cake took all the cherries I had.  Apricot almond chicken, noodles, and broccoli was the prelude.

Luke's new ride and his many co-pilots after hanging the clothes out in late October and enjoying the sunshine while it lasted.  Lucky for Luke this activity is transferable to the basement where he enjoys a thorough spin and slide in the laundry basket through my legs, under the table, and with plenty of bumpy roads and sound effects.

Preparing the pile.

High knees through the leaves.  He was quite tentative in exploring this new medium as he walked gingerly through the outskirts of the pile.

Little man's preference to toss the leaves in the air rather than run or jump through them.

Wouldn't sit still for a photo shoot so I added a little tickling and extracted a silly grin.  Luke Francis 21 months. He is quite the character and has a new found interest in "buod-ders" (aka boogers).  Don't worry folks, for Luke the novelty is in talking about them not extracting or consuming them :-).  Recently, we've been working on "boy" and "girl".  He is far from mastering the concept but it's oodles of fun to hear him say "boy" and "dir-dle" which sounds an awful lot like "turtle" as he shrugs his shoulders.

"Tamra" investigation.  Only still shot I got from the whole batch.

Hey there bright eyes.  Augustine John at two months.  The eyes are still blue and his hair is still dark.  Doctor seems to think his eyes will stay blue but we'll see.  I'm leaning toward the prediction that his hair will stay dark which I'm sure daddy won't mind.

Two month tummy time training session for tiny tot #2. Now almost a month later he's getting in an intense workout as he kicks his legs and twists for a windup to roll over and Guess what?! Guess what?! Guess what?! .................................. Today (1/4/2013) he pulled the banana on his buzzy chair all by himself! Woot! Woot!

Seriously mom....now?!!?  Can't you wait until I turn to my better side???

Sleep sack and  hat made for Augustine by my Godmother and Aunt.  Thanks Aunt Karen!  Can you make these in adult sizes? :-)

Capturing the cozy.  Other notes that register on the cuteness scale include the giggles and squirms that Augustine exudes when we take an outfit off or put a new one on on the changing table.  He has a very many tickle spots.  Augustine watches Luke like a hawk and is affectionately known as "Dust- tin".  Just yesterday, Augustine was letting out some serious yelps as Daddy was finishing up with Luke on the potty.  Once Luke got his pants on he ran into the other room, looked at Augustine in his bouncy chair and said a quick "Hi!" in a higher pitch voice and Augustine immediately stopped fussing.  Too bad mommy and daddy's efforts aren't rewarded with such a quick result.

Augustine John Schafer two month official statistics. 13 lbs. 13 oz. 23.5 inches long.  Harmless blood blister on top of head that appeared between 1st and 2nd month will likely disappear before age four.  Survived administration of five vaccines: one oral and 2 in each leg handled expertly by a team of nurses followed instantaneously by an eruption of tears and a fire red face.

Luke and the homestead.  If you look closely you might be able to see Yute's boots.  An eligible title for a Dr. Seuss tale if you ask me.  Those boots have gotten a bit of wear including sled riding at Grandma and Grandpa Francis's.

Our very own frosty with a pumpkin stem nose, onion set eyes, and a shell for a mouth.  Frosty is a new found celebrity in our household due to the cartoon Christmas classic but probably more appreciated thanks to Aunt Mary Rita's gift of a snowman container that shelters "tandy!!" and "teets".

Luke adding a helping hand in penguin, camo, and plaid.

High knees again.  Consistent in his workout regimen I guess.

Much to Grandma Francis's disdain we do indeed still have pumpkins on our porch.  Someday I'll find something to do with them whether it's a splattery physics experiment or gently stirring them in with the other garden compost for adding nutrients to the earth and likely some random pumpkin vines.

Excuses Excuses

In addition to starting a new job and raising two boys under two years of age, half of November and practically all of December was swallowed up by sneaking around and constructing Pete's Christmas present. We have a three gift formula modeled after the gifts presented to the baby Jesus by the magi.

Gold:  frivolous or expensive gift fit for a king
Frankincense: something to be used for spiritual purposes
Myrrh: something homemade

Here's what I came up with...

Gold and gems of ministry quilt

Close-up of Blue Base gold gift

Frankincense: Service Quilt

Red quilt zoom

Sham Wows

 I pulled Pete's mom into the project in mid-November when she attempted to drop off  some of Pete's t-shirts that he was storing at her house since we got married by saying, "So, I hear you've been saving t-shirts to make quilts for your kids someday.  What do you say about making one for Pete?"  And so the adventure began.

I am quite the amateur when it comes to sewing.  I don't even have a machine of my own so I borrowed my mother's and proceeded with the guidance of a small book that Cathy bought about t-shirt quilts made simple.  After rifling through Pete's closet and remaining t-shirt collection at his parents we acquired some 24 ministry t-shirts  or so from various conferences, mission trips, retreats, or events.  The original plan was to make one queen size quilt.  I wish I would have had a photograph of Cathy's face when I said, "I think we might as well just make two."  There was a momentary silence than an exclamatory, "Two!?!?" followed by a nervous giggle that dissipated quickly when she realized I was serious.

The workdays to follow were driven by the ongoing struggle between the intrigue of possible beauty of the finished product and accomplishment and the devastation of blundering, beyond repair, the beloved archive of a comfortable wardrobe.  I only wish I would have kept a journal of the various episodes to document some of the drama.  At this point, however, I shall only document some of the highlights and lowlights that contributed to the rollercoaster experience.

In no particular order...

Lowlight #1-  Keeping secrets from my husband.   I mean, I definitely wanted him to be surprised but it was very difficult to conceal so many joys and sorrows and laughs and frustrations from the person I am one with.


Highlight #1 - Pete's mom describing the adrenaline rush and saying "I feel like monk" during one of our many secret meetings while an unsuspecting daddy was away earning a living.

Lowlight #2- Realizing that there was a tangle in the bobbin thread that was messing up the stitching after the top of the 1st quilt was nearly complete.
 
Highlight #2  -Grandpa Schafer as the stealthy Subway supplier- taking orders, running out for sandwiches, and seriously helping to leave no traces of evidence by smuggling out wrappers and other incriminating remnants to be discarded elsewhere.


Highlight #3  - Making the pillow shams ALL BY MY SELF.

Lowlight #3  -  Hearing Pete say upon opening the third and final gift, "No.... Not the orange shirt."  (He assured me later that he was just joking but I'm not entirely convinced)

Highlight # 4 -Aunt "Yinda's" expression and exclamation as she and I were moving the extra table back under the stairwell when the creak and clatter of footsteps above announced that Pete arrived home earlier than expected.

Highlight #5 -Getting to know Pete's sister Lisa's in-laws better while having the privilege of using an open arm quilting machine Ed's father got for his mother many years ago

Lowlight #4  -Hearing the news of the Newtown, CT school shooting while working on the quilting at the Snyders.

Lowlight #5  -Ironing.... although it's growing on me.

Highlight #6   -Finishing the quilts entirely on  Monday, December 17th. A whole 8 days before Christmas.

Lowlight #6   - Neglecting some of my wifely duties or postponing them to a later date to have more time to work on the quilts.

Highlight #7   - Pete mentioning on the way over to his parents' to open his gifts, "It sounds like everyone knows about this gift except for me and my dad" and me, unable to contain the laughter, "You think you're dad doesn't know about it!!!!????!!"

Lowlight #7  - All the miscellaneous threads and random straight pins that littered the floor after any given workday.

Lowlight #8   - Realizing after completing both quilt tops that we had completed "the easy part"

Highlight #8   - Luke's strawberry jam contribution to the display.


Highlight #9   -My mom needing her sewing machine back to construct my dad's "costume" for the Gospel choir concert days before the big party workday which included Aunt Linda coming from Medina.

Lowlight #9   - Cutting one of the larger square sets too small and needing to add extra fabric to correct the mistake

Highlight #10  - Meandering...the quilting pattern that I used that isn't really a pattern at all.

Highlight #11   - Taking advantage of Small business Saturday and getting a discount at A Quilters Haven

Lowlight #10/Highlight #12  - Hearing the skepticism and doubt of Aunt Linda's swimming friends as she relayed the saga and intentions of my project in addition to the fact that I have two young boys and succeeding regardless.

Highlight #13   - After intentionally wrapping the two quilts in different shaped packages to draw out the novelty and the "big reveal" Pete's dad says nonchalantly after the first quilt is opened, "Wait 'til you see the other one."

Highlight #14   - Spending quality time with family, united for a common cause.

Highlight #15    - the finished product(s) to bring comfort and warmth and suitable adornment for the boys' bunk beds someday.

Back to the Grind

I've drawn it out far too long I know.  Any suspense or anticipation has fizzled out I'm sure and finally posting this now will probably be rather anticlimactic. But I promised.


I have a job.



Pray for me.



The week after Thanksgiving I started working at Little Flower Catholic Parish.  It's actually the parish Pete grew up in and Grandma Schafer works there too as the sacristan.  For all those that are fans of "The Office"-  I am the Assistant TO THE Director of Religious Education and unlike Dwight am quite satisfied with the humble title.  Unfortunately, right now I am the Assistant to the DRE that doesn't exist.

When I first signed up for the gig it was rather exciting because I would be assisting our friend Bonnie who Pete knows from his college days at Ohio Dominican and I got to know when I started working in ministry in 2007.  I could work a MAXIMUM of 20 hours a week, pretty much set me own hours except for Sunday mornings when the Religious Ed classes are happening, and bring Augustine along since he is pretty much at the eat and sleep phase.  Since Cathy is already at the church for Mass in the mornings I bring Luke along and pass him off to Grandma and Grandpa for one "long day" a week and otherwise set the hours so that I leave once Pete gets home from work to watch the boys.

Less than a week before I was supposed to start Bonnie called me up to let me know that she got a new job and would be moving to Columbus- which was and is GREAT especially since Bonnie's parents, sisters and brother-in-laws, and growing number of nieces and nephews are all in Columbus.  Still, it's a little bittersweet since I wouldn't be working with Bonnie after all and her dedication and contribution from all her years a Little Flower will be missed.  Part of the conversation I had with Bonnie that day was that I could "opt out" since there would be quite a bit of change in the near future.  Scary as it may be,  Bonnie and I both agreed that God certainly had a plan in the making and it was beginning to unfold. So I decided to stick around and see how it all panned out.

As usual though, I am reminded  and humbled by the fact that God does not work on our time.  God works on God's time.  And so, this Sunday, January 6th Religious Education classes start back up at Little Flower Catholic Parish where there is still no DRE and I, the lowly Assistant to the DRE, am clocking in my hours, strictly monitored by my husband not to exceed twenty, and attempting to keep things functioning somewhat smoothly until a new DRE is hired.  I'm enjoying the work so far and it seems to fit rather nicely with family life with some minor adjustments like attending Mass on Saturday evening rather than Sunday morning, and instituting some crock pot meals.  But plain and simple, there is NO WAY that I could do all that is necessary in 20 hours a week and there is NO WAY that I am giving up more time away from my little men, Luke and Augustine, nor my big man Pete.

I'm managing a tiny bit of stress in wondering when a new DRE will be hired, who it will be and whether or not we will work well together- that is where  I  need your prayers.  But other intentions are welcome for the applicants, the selection process, and the parish.  And...it's not too late so if you know of someone that might be interested they can check out the job posting at  this link and scroll down to the bottom of the page for specifics or send me an email for more information.