The Pat and Barb Verly family and their 5 children, in laws and grandkids along with many prayer warriors have been drawn together by John's cancer... sharing daily for 8 months started this blog- Family Soul Story - Our faith, family, farm and now our cancer journey called HEALING have colored and deepened our world. WE continue to share and depend on the support of our prayer warrior community, that has lowered us into the Lord's presence for His healing!
Our two red heads together.. it has been over a year since John and Bobbi's wedding on June 2nd as these two were too young to go to France in August for Hallel's final vows.
I have this list of pictures in my mind to help me celebrate this most precious occasion of having our family here for a most rare visit! As someone observed; "You had a large wonderful group of family there with you at mass today and it was great to see!" Yes!!!
The two 2 year olds were good at mass today. Evie found a chaplet of Divine Mercy Holy card that she thought was very special!
It was great to see our new priest, Fr Todd, who is a TEC friend and family. I told him that I have him on Fridays as I one of the Seven Sisters, who prays each week for our parish priest. "This week I will be praying for you in St Joseph's in Taylors Falls while I am visiting my parents."
Mary spending some time with Hector... He met most of the family for the first time on this trip. I had been there for his birth ,but Pat and the rest had yet to meet him!
All our new grandsons are wonderful happy and healthy babies! We are so filled with JOY at how wonderful they truly all are!
A classmate of Maria's - they were in the hospital together at birth and all the way through school. Glen farms just down a mile from our farm, and just had a new little baby girl last week! So fun for them to reconnect at mass after sharing Jesus in Body, Blood and The Word!
We share Sunday mass with John, Bobbi and Jude, too! How we love our family time sharing our Faith!
St Paul today in the second reading Gal. 5... Paul speaks to us of the freedom we have gained through the Spirit within us! "serve one another through love. For the whole law is fulfilled in one statement, namely, You shall love your neighbor as yourself... I say, then: live by the Spirit."
Such a magical time... I had gotten an old fashioned dress on Evie, and when we took supper out to grandpa just about sunset... grandpa took her down to see some water running into a pond.
Little girl by the hand barefoot in the hay...
Not too sure about putting her feet in the water.
"OK Grandpa, I will trust you."
That's enough... I think grandpa was hot enough that he wanted to get into the cool water, too.
Checking out grandpa's tractor... then they went out to check the cows on the 4 wheeler.
Grandpa has been talking about spending time with his Evangeline. She lived with us when she was a baby and Joe was in JAG training for some months. Grandpa and Evie got super close! So it was fun to have her come along with me to take supper to grandpa while he was raking hay, put her feet in the pool with him, check out his tractor in the shop, and come home with him and check the cows on the 4 wheeler behind our house... Evie Time!
Evie with Tyler the kitten, who is very good to allow her to carry him around in various positions.
This girl is so verbal and expressive and loving along with loud and yelling at times for her mom and sister. She is a wonderful companion for grandma and grandpa!
I got these two old fashioned dresses at the thrift store about 10 years ago when Mary was their ages. Josephine put on the other one and did I have fun!
These two girls are about 6 months apart and they got more and more acquainted over the week. JoJo is now gone to her new home in the Cities. Maria and I will visit them on our way to the airport on Tuesday.
Old fashioned girls just to make grandma smile more and more!
Riding on the gate...
Mary and two girls in old fashioned dresses...
Grandpa giving Evie lessons in drinking out of a liter bottle of pop... fruit snacks and pop... some girl was pretty lucky and spoiled by grandma and grandpa.
11 year old Therese helping me with the 3 girls in their bibs. LOVE!
Luke with Tyler after mass when we share breakfast on Ruth's porch!
Adding another table for the big group of family - the more the merrier!
The Gospel ringing in our hearts - Jesus calls us to follow him today... our response in Luke 9 "I will follow you wherever you go." Jesus answered him, "Foxes have dens and birds of the sky have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to rest his head."
Jesus, may we be open to your Spirit which allows us to live by your Spirit led down the narrow path as we carry/drag our Most Cherished Cross which if we embrace it brings us LIFE/LOVE/LIGHT! How my heart is full after these last two weeks of KC with Hallel, TEC retreat with our growing TEC family as we come closer to you in prayer and Sacrament and now a huge ocean of family time with 4 of the 5 kids and all 18 grandchildren! Jesus, our cup if full to overflowing and we follow You with no hesitation or reservations! Jesus, we trust in you. Amen and Hallelujah
Breaking bread all... 20 of us now that Nancy has left...
Paul put the cows and calves in the pasture by the house... they were over our shoulders while we shared our meal after sharing our Lord's presence in Word, Body and Blood!
"To contemplate Christ
involves being able to recognize Him
whenever He manifests Himself,
in His many forms of presence,
but above all in the living sacrament
of His body and His blood.
The Church draws her life
from Christ in the Eucharist;
by Him she is fed and
by Him she is enlightened.
The Eucharist is both a mystery of faith
and a 'mystery of light.'"
Pope St John Paul II
My hero of LIFE and Family!
My Champion for LIFE and Family- My Most Cherished Cross with baby Hector, who will be leaving in two days.
Jude was 3 months on the 26th! He sure liked that big strong arm of grandpa and watched grandpa and Hector sharing a Sunday nap!
Grandma got some smiles and snuggles!
Two babies cradled in his big strong arms! One of their last times together for a while, but we all know that they will be best cousin buds as the years go forward. LOVE the groups of cousins and how they love to share those precious family times we carve out. There is no price tag for family time! Bless-bless, Barb
This is the weeks that we would be together in lovely gorgeous Lake Michigan - Manistique, MI! This picture came to me yesterday and I must say that as much as I miss it... this week on the farm with most all of our family has been equally wonderful. It takes a lot to come close, but I realize now that it all was the family sharing that made it so wonderful.
Nancy with her husband and 5 children just left after living with me for the month of June. I am shedding tears at the loss of sweet baby George, who I have hardly ever heard cry in that time here. He has graced me with so many smiles to fill my cup with love!
When will they get together to hang out again? Only God knows the answer to that one!
John, Bobbi and Jude having heavenly family time for our family photo shoot!
Maria minus her husband, Joseph, with her 6! So happy to have them come and share a week on the farm!
So fun!!
Grandma is tired on this feast of St Paul and St Peter... Paul and Simon were here for a big family breakfast/farewell to the Bandzuch family!
Pure Sweetness!
Big wonderful Therese with the 3 little girls!
The biggest and kindest helper!
This was fun!
Ruth's flowers in front of the farmhouse she grew up in... now her home on the farm with her 6 kids!
The climbing tree was our last spot.. so many pictures and memories taken here!
We have a group of girls from 2-3 years old.. they are within 11 months spaced about 5 months apart.
It has been so wonderful to watch them share happy times as they get acquainted now that they are out of the baby stage. We were all together a year ago for John's wedding, so this gathering of all our grandkids only happens about once or twice a year if we are lucky. Grandma had so much fun dressing the 3 alike as I did when I had my 4 girls! How my heart sings with happiness and JOY!
The two 4 year olds water coloring on grandma's porch. Painting together is a grandma with the grandkids thing to do!
2 year old Joy and the other 17 spent the afternoon swimming and playing at Camden State Park where her mom and her sisters and brother spent most hot days in the summer!
The girls sharing together, and now their kids are catching frogs and swimming where they spent many hours practicing their swim strokes and cooling off in the summers on the farm!
These two!!! Wonderful 11 year old Therese with her little 2 1/2 year old sister, Evie! It brings smiles and tears to my eyes to see them. They are so much like my girls and like each other. Therese is such a loving and giving girl!
George and Hector in the bath tub last night! These boys along with Jude are such happy and healthy boys! Nancy is taking George to their new home tomorrow.. he has been an absolute delight and we will miss his smiles and coos!
We are the luckiest family to have these new wonderful boys to make our love grow more and more!
Chicken butchering with the help of kids and adults make it go well on this humid day in June.
The three baby boys awaiting the photo shoot on Wednesday night... My kids indulge my obsession with pictures. I have a really big reason to insist as we have 3 new baby boys to add!
The quad track was a fun play place as the farm adventures continued!
The cows and calves as a backdrop is always part of farm life. Paul told me that he put the cows in the pasture around the house just for my pictures! Thank you so much family for spoiling me the way you all do! I love you!
Brave little Dave catching chickens this morning.
Bye bye chickens! Now I can go my parents after I drive Maria and kids to the airport and have a clean slate. I am very excited to see my parents after a month or more and my dad in the hospital for a week! But I am savoring every minute with my family! My heart is so full and my head is spinning with so much love and joy!
Cheerful 11 year old getting the pin feathers left after the plucker did its job. Therese learned to cut off feet and neck skin too! "I like the feel of the skin." "You should think about being a nurse." "I am!"
A family job is the Best!!!
David was a good helper giving the chickens cooling baths...
Love doing girls' hair after all my girls! The granddaughters spoil grandma that way too!
A bouquet for Our Lady with the little girls!
LOVE!
5 year old Luke with the girls and neighbor cat on the green green grass of home.
Happy times on a beautiful day of Heavenly Family time!
Mullberries!!!
Joy loves them with her first mulberry mouth!
Strawberry jam!!! Another big family job we shared in. The Best!!
They picked 14 pails and we made lots of jam for our 7 families!
Nancy has gone through lots of jam and will take a lot along with them tomorrow!
Therese and Little Dave were the top pickers!
Luke and Romeo are in the group of 4-5 year old boys!
13 year old Mary putting them in jars. So good!
Stir 3 minutes Big Dave!
Working as a family to put up food for 7 families!
The 18... Heavenly Family Time indeed!
Two 5 year olds and a 4 1/2 year old... 3 boy buddies!
LOVE them!
Evangeline/Evie liked hanging out in the loader tractor in the shop!
Maria with hers and Nancy's while we butchered this morning..
Hector and mom. He is 3 1/2 months and so wonderful in every way!
Nancy's George is 4 months and has been a ray of sunshine with his smiles for us and seldom any crying at all! I will miss him so much! It is wonderful that they are only 2 1/2 hours away now, and hopefully we will see a lot more of them!
I must end this for tonight! My heart is so full and I am overwhelmed by the LOVE that we have shared in this week of FAMILY sharing our Faith and the Farm! Jesus, how we are overwhelmed that you have come into our deserts to rescue us... your lost sheep! The Gospel today reminds us of how much you love us and care for us... you are in control in our lives! Jesus, we trust in you. Bless-bless, Barb Jesus addressed this parable to the Pharisees and scribes: "What man among you having a hundred sheep and losing one of them would not leave the ninety-nine in the desert and go after the lost one until he finds it? And when he does find it, he sets it on his shoulders with great joy and, upon his arrival home, he calls together his friends and neighbors and says to them, 'Rejoice with me because I have found my lost sheep.' I tell you, in just the same way there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous people who have no need of repentance."
Luke 15 - The Gospel for the Solemnity of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus! We are loved!
