St Anthony/Immaculate heart of Mary kept all in her heart

I love when the cows are in the pasture in front of our house, and my pondering angel does too!  Maria placed this etched angel on the front window probably 20 years ago, and she is a continual reminder of how precious is our life on the farm... with the rains since May in timely and bountiful amounts our world is wonderfully green and lush!  My heart is rejoicing and most grateful to my Lord for answering our constant and heartfelt prayers for rain and ending of the drought!

St John Eudes, who was largely responsible for instituting the devotion for the Immaculate Heart of Mary writes today - Emerge from the filth of the world's torrent of thorns that is whirling you into the abyss of perdition!  Emerge and enter the sweet waters of the river of peace.  Give yourself up in holy ecstasy to this torrent of delights.  Properate (hasten or press forward), hasten, why do you wait?... Do you know that Jesus made Mary's heart as it is, and that he willed it to be the fountain of LIGHT, of consolation, and of every possible grace for those who will have recourse to is in their necessities?  Do you forget that not only does Jesus reside and dwell in Mary's Heart, but that he is in truth the heart of her Heart and the soul of her soul; and that therefore coming to the Heart of Mary means to honor Jesus and to invoke her Heart is to invoke Jesus?

 Power washing of the tractor is loud and interesting...  Our farm is most days a beehive of activity around here - especially spring, summer and fall. 

St Anthony of Padua is celebrated this day, too.  He is famous around the farm and invoked by my husband when something is missing.  There is a true miracle he loves to share that happened just this past fall.  They were working on the combine out in a partially combined field.  They took it apart in the dark and then returned to fix it the following morning.  They realized that a very tiny piece was missing - "about the size of a dime."  Pat knew that to find it in all the trash from the combined corn around them would be impossible.  "I prayed to St Anthony, and looked down and there it was!"  Amazing and miraculous!

 Luke climbing up the stairs with a nice railing built by dad to keep the kids safe in the shop.

St Anthony is big on the farm as are the guardian angels we pray to for protection of the farmers and the little ones, too.  Our Lady is always with me each day of my journey, and how I find the strength to attempt being a good mother and wife from her!  We were just commenting this morning about how we treat those closest to us the worst, and how that is so wrong and harmful!

 The dogs see little Luke down on their level with an icy and they are trying to get it from him.  Luke is not going to allow that!

 Tractor washing and boys playing as boys will play rough and fast!

 Rose comes to announce that she has spotted kitties on the bales in the shed!

 Luke turning the key on the tractor, and John makes sure the brake is on, and all is safe! 

 Where there is water... there will be kids with birds getting wet and having fun for hours! 

 Mary watering the flowers by Mary, Mother of Heaven and earth statue.  How did she get so tall? It used to be little Mary would lean her head against her chest and find comfort and peace there!

 An intermission of Mary with Mary many years past.... at age 2

 Peace and LOVE in a picture form!

 Adoring in humble love

 Now at 3ish with lilacs to share that heavenly scent!

 the statue at their house

a kitten?

 4th birthday...

 Big Dave with Mary at Maria's home in St Paul

Mary at 4, David at 1 1/2 and Therese at 2... such a sweet group with Our Lady.

 Luke gets a fast ride down the driveway yesterday to find he wild roses...

 Rose finds one.

Jesus, we need to look always to you and our Faith first in our lives and all the rest will fall into place.  We need to look to you each and every day and ask you to protect us and our loved one - the farmers working hard and placing themselves in difficult places and the little ones we are looking after and keeping safe and healthy and happy.  St Anthony, you certainly are a good and important saint in our journey.  Jesus, we trust in you.  Amen and Hallelujah

Bless-bless, Barbara Luke - taken about 8 years ago by the tree where our stations of the Cross began and ended.  Maria made the Stations of the Cross for me when she came out of the convent - discerning that the Lord was telling her "no" to being a Poor Clare.

Angels are always protecting us and calling us to fall on our knees in Praise and Thanksgiving for our embracing our Most Cherished Cross and finding LIFE/LOVE/LIGHT!

"The Lord manifests Himself to those who stop for some time in peace and humility of heart. If you look in murky and turbulent waters, you cannot see the reflection of your face. If you want to see the face of Christ, stop and collect your thoughts in silence, and close the door of your soul to the noise of external things."
~St. Anthony of Padua

Nancy's 3 taken on Dominic's birthday yesterday!  Happy 1st precious sweetest Dominic! 

Tea party for the Sacred Heart at Maria's house

The sweating strawberries in the 90% humidity looks appropriately like...

the picture she found second hand before they married - she has the Immaculate heart of Mary, too!  That will come out today!!