3 years ago we were at Nancy's wedding - today we celebrate with a huge job -50quarts!

Ruth came over with two heaping pails of tomatoes and two kids- the other two are suffering in their hot classrooms and are getting out early to ride on the hot bus for 1 1/2 hours.  Starting school in August is not looking so smart!  I then went out and picked about 2 pails from my garden - grand total of a big days work - 50 quarts mostly of spaghetti sauce!  Little Rose found her own fun canning by putting tomatoes straight into the jars - after she took a bite out of them as she loves tomatoes! 

I carved out some morning prayer with John - it is his feastday too as he chose St Augustine - the Doctor of Grace - as his confirmation saint.  His sisters had very much given him input on this and suggested Augustine to him... I think that they realized that St Augustine could be helpful in John making his Faith his own.  John's complaint over the years - "I don't know what I believe.  I don't feel anything, because my faith has never been tested.  Life has been easy for me and there has never been any challenge to make me turn to Jesus and truly believe in HIM."  This was before he half-heartedly prayed for Faith and before the storm hit called Brain Cancer!  All is different now including a "new John" and St Augustine and his finding Faith after struggling and wandering seems like an amazing patron Saint to him now with his new Faith and new outlook called - Cancer/ Healing/Now where do you want me Lord?  It happened then the year after his battle that Nancy and William married on this exact day 3 years ago.  They met and dated through our shared family drama of John's cancer and at the same time Hallel's taking the habit and changing her name.  Bill is a wonderful cook and made us a wonderful Thanksgiving turkey and all the rest up at Maria and Nancy's home during the second week of John's radiation.  Hallel and little Sister Judith came and drove John to Rochester for that week and we all gathered at Joe and Maria's for a family feast thanks to Nancy and Bill!  They say that the way to your heart is through your stomach, and we certainly fell madly in love with this wonderful kind and thoughtful man of Nancy's!   Their dating was a bright spot in the midst of all the craziness, as was the arrival of our new grandson, David, to Joe and Maria about a month later on Dec 21! 

John helping out on his feast day with the family work we share to make it go quickly and efficiently.  We pretty much have canning down to a science around here.  It is fun to see the next generation helping out - 5 year old Dave was running the colander just before John came in and took over.  We are discovering that David is a worker, and enjoys helping for more than just a few minutes.  So we are thinking of our sweet little family up in the Cities today.  Being married on this great feast day carried over to their first child - a son born in May - yes, they celebrated their first anniversary with a 3 month old!  The math works, and so it should as they waited for marriage!  They named their precious boy, Augustine/Gus for short, so he too is having a feast day today!  Happy anniversary Nancy and Bill and feastday to Gus! 

Getting the last into jars!  Pat is quite happy these days when we use the huge pots he picked up at a auction of old things at the Catholic School a number of years ago.  Today we filled them to the brim!

Jesus, we are filled with wonder and awe on this special day for many of those close to us!  What JOY we experience in the beauty of your Church.  All the ways we are blessed on our journey by the Sacraments, the Saints, your Mother Mary, the sacramental that cause us to pause and meditate on YOU throughout our day!  Our day is filled to the brim... just as our huge pots were today, with all the goodness and beauty of Truth that comes to us from Jesus and His Bride, The Church!  We are pulled up from the day to day grind by all that glistens and glows in the crown of Sainthood with each of these great Saints standing at the foot of your throne and always there to intercede for us and show us how to walk down your narrow path embracing/carrying our Most Cherished Cross and through that finding LIFE eternal/everlasting!  We are aided by such powerful and real examples of sinners that have found YOU and rejected their world of darkness and sin.  St Augustine, help us to reject sin and darkness and come into the LIGHT of Truth!  "Through your LIGHT we find light, O Lord!"  Jesus, we trust in YOU.  Amen and Hallelujah

Rose and mom and the baby are tired after our big day together.  Home for a nap and wait for the other hot school kids to get home.

Bless-bless, Barb

“Man is one of your creatures, Lord, and his instinct is to praise you…. The thought of you stirs him so deeply that he cannot be content unless he praises you, because you made us for yourself and our hearts find no peace until they rest in you.” (Bk. I, 1, p. 21) St Augustine from his Confessions

“...I was born into this life which leads to death—or should I say, this death which leads to life?” (Bk. I, 6, p. 25)

Happy 3rd Anniversary - May your day be filled with JOY and your year with great LOVE and Happiness!  St Augustine, pray for us!