"The Word"- this LIFE was the LIGHT!/2021 comes to an end with snow, prayers for our family to come together, sending New Year-LIFE cards

4 years ago with our military family in Washington on base at Fort Lewis.  These 5 have added two other siblings since.  They are gathered around the manger that has a wonderful soft bed of straw for baby Jesus - all of which they put in straw by straw with good deeds and penances they gave to make a bed for Jesus.  Talk about living their faith and sacrificing as our Lord asks of us also.

The last day of the year - the 7th day of the Octave of Christmas.  The Vigil of Mary the Mother of God, and today St Sylvester is memorialized.... each day filled with Jesus in Sacrament and Word!  I will never forget one of John's Farmhouse brother's, who loved the Lord - "Wouldn't it be amazing to go to church and worship every day?"  John and Brad looked at each other - "You can!  In the Catholic Church - Jesus is there every day and we can go and receive Him at mass!"  

Thomas is 6 weeks old today!  He is growing so quickly and he is a wonderful baby!

Peaceful and looking at the light!  

The Gospel today is John 1:1-18

Gospel Jn 1:1-18

In the beginning was the Word,
    and the Word was with God,
    and the Word was God.
He was in the beginning with God. 
All things came to be through him,
    and without him nothing came to be.
What came to be through him was life,
    and this life was the light of the human race;
    the light shines in the darkness,
    and the darkness has not overcome it.

How right and true is that?  This continues now with the new LIFE we are blessed with!  That those lives have been taken through abortion is absolutely unforgivable!  Lord, end this horror, and protect lives in danger today!

2 years ago we were on the road to visit our military family in Washington.  Icy roads caused many to end up in the ditch including many semis!  Lots of prayers!

On this last day of the year - 2021 - there is a light snow making the world bright white.  Our Lady is silently being surrounded by snow as today is the Vigil of her huge Feast day tomorrow - Mary the Mother of God!  

Pat and I started the day with morning prayer and a big prayer is that it can work out for our family to come together in 2 weeks with all that will take including flying for Pat and for Captain Joseph.  Flights are being canceled due to to not having the staff to fly with the passengers, so we are very uncertain that we can plan on our weekend of Verly Christmas Camp.  Prayers and our famous fake plans is where we need to focus at this point!

The shirts we each had from our last VCC... we are in the process of making our 2021 VCC shirts.

Half way through introducing our newest 3 from 2021.  The best gifts of all!!! 

And Happy New Year - New LIFE!  

Mother and child this year?  Yes, please!

Pope Francis with good words today reminding us that we are "in the last hour" of our journey - Jesus Come!!!  

From a sermon by Saint Leo the Great, pope
(Sermo 6 in Nativitate Domini, 2-3, 5: PL 54, 213-216)

The birthday of the Lord is the birthday of peace!

Although the state of infancy, which the majesty of the Son of God did not disdain to assume, developed with the passage of time into maturity of manhood, and although after the triumph of the passion and the resurrection all his lowly acts undertaken on our behalf belong to the past, nevertheless today’s feast of Christmas renews for us the sacred beginning of Jesus’ life, his birth from the Virgin Mary. In the very act in which we are reverencing the birth of our Savior, we are also celebrating our own new birth. For the birth of Christ is the origin of the Christian people; and the birthday of the head is also the birthday of the body.

Though each and every individual occupies a definite place in this body to which he has been called, and though all the progeny of the church is differentiated and marked with the passage of time, nevertheless as the whole community of the faithful, once begotten in the baptismal font, was crucified with Christ in the passion, raised up with him in the resurrection and at the ascension placed at the right hand of the Father, so too it is born with him in this Nativity, which we are celebrating today.

For every believer regenerated in Christ, no matter in what part of the whole world he may be, breaks with that ancient way of life that derives from original sin, and by rebirth is transformed into a new man. Henceforth he is reckoned to be of the stock, not of his earthly father, but of Christ, who became Son of Man precisely that men could become sons of God; for unless in humility he had come down to us, none of us by our own merits could ever go up to him.

Therefore the greatness of the gift which he has bestowed on us demands an appreciation proportioned to its excellence; for blessed Paul the Apostle truly teaches: We have received not the spirit of this world, but the Spirit which is from God, that we might understand the gifts bestowed on us by God. The only way that he can be worthily honored by us is by the presentation to him of that which he has already given to us.

But what can we find in the treasure of the Lord’s bounty more in keeping with the glory of this feast than that peace which was first announced by the angelic choir on the day of his birth? For that peace, from which the sons of God spring, sustains love and mothers unity; it refreshes the blessed and shelters eternity; its characteristic function and special blessing is to join to God those whom it separates from this world.

Therefore, may those who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God, offer to the Father their harmony as sons united in peace; and may all those whom he has adopted as his members meet in the firstborn of the new creation who came not to do his own will but the will of the one who sent him; for the grace of the Father has adopted as heirs neither the contentious nor the dissident, but those who are one in thought and love. The hearts and minds of those who have been reformed according to one and the same image should be in harmony with one another.

The birthday of the Lord is the birthday of peace, as Paul the Apostle says: For he is our peace, who has made us both one; for whether we be Jew or Gentile, through him we have access in one Spirit to the Father.

Dad and Pope Leo today...  in the Office of Readings on this last day of the year.

"The birthday of the Lord is the birthday of peace."  Hear our prayer, O Lord, for our families, our country and our world!  PEACE!!!

This from Venerable Fulton Sheen here!  I love this and I take it to heart, but I also know how important it is for the head of the house to lead the family in their Faith!  

St Mother Teresa today... yes, we start anew each day of our journey - tomorrow 2022 is here!  "Let us begin."

Pope Benedict XVI today.

Dad and his man, Brother Victor... "eternity is much closer"

We certainly are helped on our journey by the Saints, Mary, Jesus and The Church!

So true!  We are given so much with each new day!  Bless-bless, Barbara

Peter Mayer - Holy Now

Danielle Rose - writes all her music in front of Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament in Adoration!

 

Family is under attack- Domestic Church/Faith/Family/Farm... Wisdom of my Most Cherished Cross/Caring for livestock to feed the world

19 month old Birdie Barbara is so smart!  She knows just what to do with the stethoscope and listen to her grandpa Pat's heart.  Pat is such a loving grandfather to his 22 grandchildren!  One of the things that makes my heart go pitty pat with love is to see him with the little ones! 

Now 2 1/2 year old Jude checking his blood pressure at his wrist.  He has huge arms and that is the only place it will fit.  When he squeezes the dial spins around, and that is fun for them.  

Since sharing CCC with Jude and his buddy cousin, George, it seems that we have gotten closer to Jude.  How we love to share family times and we are all getting excited to cone together in 2 weeks for our Verly Christmas in our shop on the farm!  Pat will be flying out to help Maria come here in their new van!  

Pat and little kids is quite a beautiful sight to behold!  

It seems that we have our best time to share and visit when we do our morning prayer together.  Pat is a wealth of information from "the news".  Today he shared an item about a liberal news reporter that had criticized Mitt Romney about having numerous children - "They should give out vasectomies for Christmas to these people."  

Pat and I both find this very offensive and such an example of how Satan is laughing in hell at how he is instilling these lies and misleading so many - depriving the world of LIGHTS through birth control and abortion.  

Regina over Christmas was rarely put down - Pat always wanted to hold her!

I personally know of a life that was saved from abortion years ago.  I was working in the Birthright office when a young girl came in asking for an abortion.  We talked and met a few more times - I even wrote a letter so she could see how she could tell her parents.  Then I did not see her for many months.  When I heard from her again she was close to having the baby and had a beautiful little girl, Amanda Hope!  At Christmas I heard from them... she became a nurse and works with children!  I am deeply moved to hear about those that were in danger of being killed by abortion and the difference - the LIGHT they have brought into the world!

One hand to eat and one for the baby while he sits next to his best buddy, George, who will be 3 in February.  How George adores his farmer grandpa, Pat!

A common sight over Christmas in Delano!

Santa bottom is cute... listening to the heart beat of her big loving grandpa Pat!

Today in I John - the first reading from mass we read words directed for families that put the Lord first with the help of Our Lady, and His glorious wise Bride, The Church!

Reading I 1 Jn 2:12-17

I am writing to you, children,
because your sins have been forgiven for his name’s sake.

I am writing to you, fathers,
because you know him who is from the beginning.

I am writing to you, young men,
because you have conquered the Evil One.

I write to you, children,
because you know the Father.

I write to you, fathers,
because you know him who is from the beginning.

I write to you, young men,
because you are strong and the word of God remains in you,
and you have conquered the Evil One.

Do not love the world or the things of the world. 
If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. 
For all that is in the world,
sensual lust, enticement for the eyes, and a pretentious life,
is not from the Father but is from the world. 
Yet the world and its enticement are passing away. 
But whoever does the will of God remains forever.

Pat had adoration overnight at 4a and shared how he read I John 2, and the Gospel.  "It was interesting."

I find that in our marriage and that of our children - the sharing of our Faith and the morals and values that come to us from the Wisdom of The Church and Jesus in The Word each day... this is the rock upon which our domestic Church/family takes root and holds fast in the storms of LIFE!

Our Christmas dinner was a "farm dinner" with steak from Pat's raising of cattle from start to finish!  Recently we preg checked to see who was pregnant - most all!  Then we have calving in a few months, which is very labor intensive and thanks to Cow TV we can watch them around the clock.  Then they are put out on pasture and watched there for any problems that need to be addressed.  This last year we had a severe drought, which made keeping them with water and grass a huge challenge.  Finally now they calves are weaned and fed up to slaughter weight in about May.  

It was very interesting when we were preg checking that there were some cows that had 15 calves or more making them close to 20 years old!  It speaks of the care that Pat gives to his farm animals and crops and how big this business called farming is!  HUGE!

Over to pick Pat up in the cold and the dark.  He carefully cared for a bull that seemed to be a bit under the weather.  "He went to lay down quickly after eating a little bit."  He knows them well and is very observant of problems that come along.

Hay and feed... Pat also prayed for him this morning when we prayed together.  We know that the Lord is listening and helping us on our journey... Faith/Family/Farm!

Pat is very serious about his lifetime profession - more than a job is farming - it is a way of LIFE!  "I will only retire when they put me in the ground."

Time with his Joy-Joy and baby brother, Thomas.  Joy's face lights up when she sees her grandpa... since she could crawl up to him - Pat would step in the house for his Joy hugs and kisses each day!  I am sure that Tommy will be the same soon, as fast as time flies!

I am sharing this picture again today of St JPII with children!  It is just so right to see him beaming ear to ear as he is a shining beacon of respect for ALL LIFE and protecting families from all that is attacking them and trying to destroy them!  Pat's sharing about the falsehood of birth control and sterilization, the epidemic of pornography that is destroying families and individuals with sexual addiction and leading to adultery, abortion is horrific in how it takes the life of the innocent baby in the womb with great pain!  How did this horror ever get to be accepted and protected legally?  How did it ever happen that we are looked down upon that hold these values and morals as sacred and to be cherished and protected from conception to natural death.  

My own father faced the dilemma of weather to take more drastic measures towards the end - even though he was 95 and had been on hospice for 6 months!  Finally, we just said "no", dad is ready to go and meet his maker and we allowed it to play out "naturally."

Beautiful Regina Maria is 2 weeks today and glowing with health and LIFE!

A peaceful thoughtful moment with her 5 year old sister, Josephine yesterday

Jesus and Mary... today in the Gospel you entered the temple and Anna greeted you...There was a prophetess, Anna,
the daughter of Phanuel, of the tribe of Asher. 
She was advanced in years,
having lived seven years with her husband after her marriage,
and then as a widow until she was eighty-four. 
She never left the temple,
but worshiped night and day with fasting and prayer. 
And coming forward at that very time,
she gave thanks to God and spoke about the child
to all who were awaiting the redemption of Jerusalem.  Luke 2:36-40

How we adore you!  We are reminded of Pat's mother, Anna Verly, today and how she was a farm wife exceptional, who taught me all that I know about being a farmwife, and loved her family with such selfless service.  Such an example to me, and my daughters and her daughters and her son, Patrick, who held close to his Catholic Faith due to her and also his love of Family!  "I will only marry a Catholic" he told his sisters years before we met.  I am thinking that knowing the determined man that he is - he could have been responsible in part for my entire family of 13 coming into The Church 50 years ago, so thankfully I was a Catholic when we met, and he was well aware of our amazing conversion story!  Jesus, we trust in you.  Amen and Hallelujah

Family Soul Story - Choose Life!: Our marriage stories - "The world needs LIGHTS!"

Family Soul Story - Choose Life!: The amazing story of the 13 becoming Catholic! 

Pat's mother 6 years ago after having pizza night in her home!  She died the following year on hospice in her home for almost 2 years!  She wanted to stay in her home and her family made that happen and our time with her was a blessing to all of us!  Bless-bless, Barbara... how I LOVE Hospice!

Once again so much today in my prayer time with dad's prayer book of The Church!  Praying with him for those 6 months - I learned that Colossians is amazing and used often for a good reason in morning and evening prayer! 

Today I was overjoyed to see how my dad pointed out to me these pearls of great price!

Knowledge of the mystery of God - namely Christ!

Then the writing by Hippolytus 

Calling us to heaven as we look to Jesus!

LOVE and miss you, dad.  Yet, you are with me still each new day!  LOVE the prayer of The Church and how I have been allowed to share in your religious life of being a Permanent Deacon in The Catholic Church for 44 years and now in heaven united with mom!  

Mom left this daily meditations by Pope Benedict XVI which she read daily for 10 consecutive years!  Today Pope Benny wrote deeply about family!  Looking to The Holy Family  to grasp what is meant by the human family.  Yes!!!

Now dad's man, Brother Victor, allows us to share in his life as a monk and prayer!  LOVE!

I discerned a call to become a nun and it lead me into The Church!  How much I LOVE to be able to share in this amazing LIFE thanks to my daughter, who is a nun, and my dad being a Deacon for 44 years and leaving behind his prayer book and wisdom, also thanks to dad's man, Brother Victor!  I am overwhelmed by the graces and blessings that pour over me!  

Danielle Rose - on discerning a call to beome a nun.

 

" the true light is already shining..."/Family fills me with hope and Joy!

A call from John to help out with the kids gave me some time with sweet Birdie and her baby dolly in the cradle.  So sweet!

Then time with a true baby Thomas at the farm.  A full day of family time really reminded me of how blessed we all are to have each other.  How we love to have our two Marshall families!  Today Pat came in looking for helpers, and we all help each other out!  We love to have our young farm family there living and loving the farm life!

Birdie giving her dolly hugs and kisses like she receives from mom and dad, and her family.

So loving!  

So much like my girls!  I am so filled with wonder and awe at the gift of LIFE and how they bring so much LIGHT into our lives - making our love grow more with each new little one!

...whoever keeps his word,
the love of God is truly perfected in him. 
This is the way we may know that we are in union with him:
whoever claims to abide in him ought to walk just as he walked.  I John 2:3

Jude likes to rock the cradle as grandma sings - Rock a bye baby in the tree top.

Rock a bye baby....

A sure sign that it is very cold - zero degrees is sun dogs on either side of the setting sun last evening.  Thankfully it is cold and calm today.  The wind chill is really the worst!

Grandpa, Joy and Thomas by the glow of the Christmas tree on this cold night on the farm.  With these dark cold days the referral to LIGHT by St John today in the first reading really warms the heart!

 I do write a new commandment to you,
which holds true in him and among you,
for the darkness is passing away,
and the true light is already shining.  I John 2

Just lost power for an hour, so this will be much quicker than I had planned.  After the last couple days I have realized that our talk about "Fake plans" makes a lot of sense when the unpredictable happens, and with a family our size that happens at the drop of the hat.

Precious family Christmas 7 years ago!  With our Verly Christmas Camp just a couple weeks away - we are hoping to include another live nativity with new babies galore to have for baby Jesus!  Maybe we will have to go back to the story of baby John the Baptist and then baby Jesus!

Shepherds with grandpa's ties and towels of many colors.  LOVE!

Baby Dominic - "I want to be a sheep!  Baa, baa, baa, baa."

Romeo was a dream boat for baby Jesus - he was 3 months old!

2014 - so powerful, sweet and filled with LOVE of Jesus and Family!

Angel Therese

Sheep Patrick was 2

Awaiting the arrival of the Son of God - the newborn King!

Mary is a perfect namesake adoring her sweet son.

The Holy Family and the sheep - one year old and younger

Baby sheep!

Talk about a cherub!

Praise to the highest heavens!  Hallelujah!

My hero, St JPII with children.  He loves all LIFE and protects Family from the evil influences that are trying to destroy them - abortion, pornography, divorce, birth control...

9 years ago at CCC adding our little Sister Hallel!

St Thomas Becket today and dad pointing out that our beloved Church faces storms yet it will not sink and we are not to abandon ship!  We love, love, love all we are given by our Church!!!  

My companion in prayer 

Soft warm Ignatius laying on my foot while I prayed this morning.  

From Nancy a bit ago... sweet new baby girl, Regina Maria, is 2 weeks old tomorrow.  Such a beauty and bright shining light!  Like Mary in the Gospel today - I store all this in my heart and it all adds up to so much HOPE and JOY for my growing family now 33 of us!

Simeon came in the Spirit into the temple;
and when the parents brought in the child Jesus
to perform the custom of the law in regard to him,
he took him into his arms and blessed God, saying:

“Lord, now let your servant go in peace;
your word has been fulfilled:
my own eyes have seen the salvation
which you prepared in the sight of every people,
a light to reveal you to the nations
and the glory of your people Israel.”

The child’s father and mother were amazed at what was said about him;
and Simeon blessed them and said to Mary his mother,
“Behold, this child is destined
for the fall and rise of many in Israel,
and to be a sign that will be contradicted
(and you yourself a sword will pierce)
so that the thoughts of many hearts may be revealed.” Luke 2

Learning to know and to love you... Big sister, Josephine, eye to eye and heart to heart!  Bless-bless, Barbara

Christmas continues!  We are so lifted up and given such HOPE and JOY!  

Salve Regina - gregorian chant

Danielle Rose