Julia the Great...turns Eight!

Julia had a marathon birthday this year...

It began in the morning...

with a french toast breakfast and a gift opening afterwards.

Lots of packages were delivered from grandparents, cousins and friends. Julia had lots of "helpers" trying to open all of her gifts.

In the afternoon, we took her to get a "manicure" at Julie's Nail Salon. Happy, but somewhat envious onlookers, stood by.

When we came home, the birthday girl finished baking and decorating cupcakes to share with her Catechism class.

But it didn't end there...

The celebration continued the following day, when our good pal, Indeg, picked Julia up and had her over for a special birthday dinner. They came back here bearing Indeg's famously fattening carrot cake for dessert and more gifts to open! Thank you, Indeg. You're so good to us.

Day 3 of the birthday marathon continued as we got to eat the heart-shaped cake that the girls had prepared for their sister (on day 1).

And it's still not over...because Julia intends to have a sleepover with a few of her friends after the new baby arrives. But please, Julia, no more cake!

One special thing we will remember about Julia's 8th birthday is that her namesake, Aunt Julia Christie, passed away just one week earlier. Aunt Jul would have been the very first one to call in the morning to send her birthday wishes. She was always the first to call. We miss you so much, Aunt Jul.

Happy Birthday Julia Noel.

We love you and are so proud of you!

Balloons for Papa!

Last weekend, we went to Wellesley for a baby shower

given for Mommy & Auntie Tania hosted by Aunt Julia and Dabada! (It was nice to be "showered" again after four babies.)

Aunt Trina was there and brought these big giant balloons.

We brought a few home with us and Mary asked me

if we could send them up to heaven to be with Papa!

Great idea, Mimi!

So we printed big letters on each one to spell out P-A-P-A.

The girls had great fun kissing the balloons goodbye, sending them up to heaven & watching them disappear into the bright sky.

Ania is almost stunned with excitement...

...Mimi is so proud that her idea was such a popular one...

...and it was a really sweet moment for me when I realized that this might be our little way of letting Papa "Tom" know that we are having another baby!

Lent

Here are some traditions we have acquired over the years

which help make our Lenten journey more meaningful,

especially for the girls.

#1

Jesus' Crown of Thorns

Our Table Centerpiece during the Lenten Season

This crown is made from a simple recipe of flour, salt & water.

Julia used whole wheat flour this year which gave an earthy color to the crown.

The dough is braided and then formed into a crown shape.

Mary & Caroline cut thorny branches from our rose bushes.

40 small thorns are inserted into the crown before it is baked.

Each evening during the 40 days of Lent,

we remove one thorn from the crown to represent

the small sacrifices we try to make in imitation of Christ's great sacrifice at Calvary.

#2

Lenten Sacrifices Box & 40-Day Paper Chain

Caroline & Julia made a purple paper chain with 40 links.

On each link, they wrote down a sacrifice that they would do together for that day. The little girls pick more simple sacrifices out of the 'sacrifice box' each morning.

Everyone tries to do their personal best for that day.

Mom tends not to utilize any of this variety when it comes to

selecting different sacrifices as her daily struggle and mantra seem to remain the same...

"Today I will be calm. I will not yell or parent out of my own emotion.

I will embrace all small sufferings and setbacks out of love for Christ."

Sigh!!

#3

Alms Giving

Mary Katharine made this simple wooden collection box in her

Rose Buds Club last year.

The girls are collecting coins and dollars in this box

and will make a donation to Haiti through MWTS.org

This is Ania's favorite activity by far.

Emptying and refilling the box is a daily activity.

#4

Ash Wednesday Prayer Pretzels

These pretzels are a great snack...delicious and easy to make.

The significance of the pretzel is in its shape.

The criss-cross pattern represents our crossed arms

in a spirit of penitential prayer.

Caroline cuts the dough into long strips with a pizza cutter.

The girls have fun shaping, dipping, twisting and baking.

They even made a little bitty one for the unborn baby!

Ash Wednesday (with a twist of "Weird Al")

Caroline & Julia were in this music video of Nick Alexander's

which was filmed at our parish last month.

It's a knock off of the 80's hit by The Police, "King of Pain".

I think we were all shocked when we saw that it had gotten over 35,000 hits on youtube!

A little goofy, but nonetheless fun!

First Time Skiing!

Mary Katharine turned "5" in October!

We had our usual family breakfast party with daddy's annually requested "daddy/daughter kiss."

Plus she had a very special "baking party" with her little friends. They had lots of fun playing "Pin the Baker's Hat on Mary" and the little bakers were hard at work making brownies and cupcakes. Everyone got their own apron and wooden spoon along with a few little baked goods to bring home.

"Oh Mary, please don't grow anymore", we tell her. "You are so cute just the way you are." "But mom," she replies, "I can't help it. God makes me grow. I'm not doing a thing."

Summer '09 Highlights

Here are some highlights from the Summer of 2009

Our Very First Garden!

We did it...one step at a time!

It started out small....

...but then it grew and grew!

Lettuce, cucumber, tomato, cabbage, chard and lots of delicious herbs!

Our 2nd Annual Homeschool Summer Musical

"Cinderella"

starring Caroline

as

"Eutropelia"

(Cinderella's Mouse Friend)

and

Julia & Mary Katharine

as

"Alethea" and "Artemis"

(Fairies)

Franciscan Summer Camp

Caroline enjoyed another week at camp...

even though she'll miss her buddies Doh-Doh and Be-bet

The Greatest Anniversary Gift Ever

Pictures could never do this justice.

Grammy spent over one month with the girls,

learning songs, dances, making costumes and props

for a special surprise performance of

"South Pacific"

Mommy and Daddy were given fancy cocktails,

special tropical appetizers and

front row seats for our 12th wedding anniversary surprise.

The girls did a GREAT job.

You brought us to tears with your sweet voices,

little dance steps and all that you learned

and kept a secret for such a long time.

Thank you!

We love you so much.

Summer Film Project...our First Movie!

We are so blessed by the talents and dedication of the families in our community.

The girls had the special privilege of filming a documentary

on the life of Saint Bernadette of Lourdes.

This project involved over 100 children from CT and Westchester County.

It was a lot of fun and was a fantastic experience

in many ways.

And last but not least...

Caroline's 9th Birthday in August

This year's party theme was a

"Johnny Rockets" Hamburger Party

cutting fondant "tomatoes" for her cheeseburger cake!

Our coolest cake so far (and the easiest one too)

Waiting to greet her customers at the JR Cafe!

St. Mary's Church ~ New Haven...

Congratulations

Julia Noel Christie

on receiving your First Holy Communion in May.

You prepared your heart well.

May you continue to come to the table of the Lord

to receive Him in this holy way as often as you can

throughout your life.

We love you honey!

"Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood

remains in me and I in him."

John 6:56

We miss you, BJ!

Water Babies

You two little chickadees are becoming quite compatible lately. Tubby time and bed time seem to be your favorite activities of late. Perhaps you've developed this strong bond because you are roommates! Perhaps it's because you see a great divide between yourselves ("Team Little") and the your older sisters ("Christie Bigs"). Whatever the reason, it's a sheer delight for daddy and I to see you playing, giggling and snuggling together. You both have so much spunk and personality that you must have gotten from your lovely mother.

Now that Miss Marysia has her very own "big girl bed", suddenly her little friend in the crib across the room is very interested in "Mimi bed." So tonight we tried to sing some songs in Mimi's bed together. But there was way too much giggling so Mommy put the littlest of the littles back into her crib. As I walked out of the room, I clutched my heart as I heard Mimi say to her baby sis, "Shhhh, it's time for bed now...lie back down in your crib. Mimi will sing you your songs."

Lord, thank you for these precious moments.

Forgive me for all of the times I'm too busy cleaning.

Julia & Mommy...on Retreat

This past week, Julia and I went down to our favorite place...The Convent of St. Birgitta. It's so beautiful, quiet and peaceful there. I hated to leave! We had the house to ourselves and the sisters gave Julia lots of time and attention...and she loved every minute of it.

Julia, you are growing so quickly. What happened to the little baby with the huge brown eyes? I was so blessed to have this special time away with you. The highlight of the trip for me was seeing you kneeling in the chapel with all of the sisters around you during Adoration. You are so grown up to stay with them all by yourself. They loved being with you. I hope we can go again next year.

This is your belated 5th birthday gift and a special mommy daughter overnight in preparation for your First Holy Communion this Sunday...Jesus is waiting to draw close to you in the Holy Eucharist.

Some Highlights to Remember:

1. Cooking in the kitchen with Sister Gina

2. Mass offered just for you and the other First Holy Communicants in the chapel

3. Going for a walk in the morning before we left

4. The hot fudge sundaes from Sister Floriana

5. Pictures on our private balcony

6. Throwing pebbles into the water

7. Mother Eunice's special gift to you (not to be opened until Sunday)

Christ is Risen!

~Easter Morning~

Daddy with his favorite girls

Thanks Aunt Jul for the beautiful dresses.

At Church with our handsome cousins!

After Mass, we did...well, what we do every Sunday after Mass....we got donuts at the best donut shop around....Whitney Donut Shop. Our cousins from Massachusetts love these donuts too. And it's been said that their father is willing to make the trip to Connecticut just to get the donuts (and New Haven style pizza).

Thanks to all our cousins near and far (and grandmas) for coming to spend Easter weekend with us. We're still eating chocolate bunnies and jelly beans.

Egg Hunt at Papa Bob's

Julia's 7th Birthday

Happy 7th Birthday Doobs!

We love you so much.

You are a GREAT kid.

And we are so blessed to be your parents.

We pray for you as you prepare your little heart

to receive your First Holy Communion.

Only a few more weeks until the big day....

Can't believe you're already SEVEN!

We remember the day you were born.

You were so quiet and so pretty.

Your big sister was so proud to have a little sister to hold.

We love you and wish you a happy 7th birthday.

We hope you enjoyed your special trip to Kid City with your sisters,

your favorite dessert (brownie sundae) and your new HSM sweatshirt from Grammy.

Love, Mommy and Daddy

Spring 2009 Activities

Stations of the Cross

The girls participated again this year in the Living Stations

with the AMDG Drama Group up in Avon.

This time around, both girls worked "behind the scenes"

helping with costumes and with the Latin choir.

They also created their own "station" made out of clay

depicting Simon of Cyrene assisting Jesus as he carried His cross.

The Cast of Living Stations

Spring Semester Art Class

All three big girls are taking art class with a few friends at their home on Mondays.

Our art teacher agreed to come to give us private at-home lessons this spring.

Last week, the girls made mosaics and next week, 

they will make and decorate their own terra cotta planter.

Ballet...and Tap Class

Mary Katharine is taking her very first dance class.

She just loves ballet with Miss Debbie and will be learning a little dance to The Nutcracker.

Caroline and Julia are also taking a ballet and tap class together.

This is their second semester with Miss Debbie.