This week: World Dairy Expo, Teaching again & feast of St Francis of Assisi

This has been another crazy week!

First up: new things!
I got a bunch of binders, florescent post it flags (which I am really liking), and page protectors (some rather practical things). and best of all, I was gifted a $200 Amazon gift card. I am going to (try to) hold off until November to spend $150 of it and save the rest (not sure what for. A  bad day or something probably). I am super excited about this gift card! So many possibilities!
I started a new notebook. It feels great to  be back to my classic red 70 paged college ruled notebook.
I bought this book: Off the Hook: God, Love, Dating and Marriage in a Hook Up World by/from Timothy O'Malley. He came to speak at UW Madison Last night.
The Benedictine Sisters of Mary, Queen of the Apostles are coming to Madison!!!
I am back to teaching a 2nd grader and 3rd grader. (I taught them last spring as 2nd and 1st graders). Back to Seton Religion books, reading seasonal/fall picture books out loud, and reading old catechism books for me. It's great! Its good to be back doing that.

Currently reading: The Catholic Hearth Magazines. Adventure Lands (Abeka grade 6 reader-a copy from 1954). blogs. texts. and 2nd + 3rd grade level home school curriculum.
I printed off a "Latin Mass Study Guide" from the Crusaders for Christ blog. I haven't started it yet but its in a binder and ready for me to read.

Feast of St Francis of Assisi
I don't know what it was but this feast day seemed different this year than in other years.... Maybe because I have been to Assisi (including San Damiano and other magnificent "st Francis places" in Assisi)? (I will have to -read my notebooks on my adventures in Assisi)
Fr gave a really good sermon yesterday. I took lots  of notes. Random thought of yesterday: I was thinking about how people often comment how "generous" I am and I was thinking about how much I appreciate other peoples generosity to me and I was thinking of how I want to be "more generous". and that was the basic extent of my thoughts.

This week is the world dairy expo, and I am so glad that I have been able to go twice! for what ever reason, I have collected ZERO freebies. But I did get to look at nearly all the venders and had two grilled cheeses so I think the week was a success! I am now even more jazzed up for our new steers (only a few more days! + lots of work before then)
I did my first set of observational hours at a 4K class. It was an interesting experience.
This week we went to a funeral for a girl/woman who died from drug overdose. We knew the girls parents, one of her sisters and her brother so that's why we went. Wow,  was that ever a depressing event. Don't do drugs, kids.

Listening to lately: its the end of the world  as we know it. the Beverly hillbillies theme song. the creed in Latin (I am trying to memorize it) and still a wide variety of songs on my Spotify playlist and on my YouTube playlist.

Life is good.

from my notebooks// some thoughts lately

This was written when we were on our trip to Italy. I wanted to share this because I've been thinking a lot about priests & me praying more for priests lately. I don't know if its because of the recent scandals outbreak (every time I go on Facebook or Instagram I just have articles and such of all kinds coming constantly through my feed about that), or because my seminarian pals are going back to school, or because I saw a seminarian pal the other day (he and I had two different "first week of school" experiences!) or what but this has been on my mind a lot lately, so, I wanted to share this as a letter of encouragement, I guess.

"we are on the train now and our theme for writing is going to be Rome, Assisi & Vocations. I have begun to think that the necessary place (&tool!!) for vocational discernment (for me & women) is here. Its a whole different feel & vibe here. Nuns/sisters, priests & seminarians of all colors, kinds & ages are here and they are everywhere, just going about their life. And there are all of these powerhouse churches & places filled with richness & great history. nuns & priests walking with a rosary in hand, wearing different kinds of garb. the clerical collar. familiarity. Beauty. example. a sense of  'they are just like us' learning and exploring. seeing them all inspires and challenges me to pray for current & future vocations even more. those living out religious vocations here are a sight to be seen. it really is beautiful. vocations are alive here. what an honor for seminarians to study here. what a great blessing. what a gift. what a gift, joy, blessing & service to the church this place is. .....I need to pray for familiar priests more frequently. I need to make a schedule/habit of the spiritual motherhood for priests & seminarians. like mass, Holy Hour & archbishop Brady's prayer for vocations. I need renewed dedication to/for this habit."
-May 2018 (I don't have the exact date)

"...the devil does not want us to succeed, but Christ has already won the victory!"-in a card to me from a new priest in our diocese.