New Ride!

Finally!  My sister counted. 80 days since our accident and we finally have a new van!  

 It was the first one we test drove, and the price went down as we put in our patience and waited, and kept looking.  When we came back to it, the price went down and Tommy negotiated!  We went out for Slurpees to christen it properly.

I told the kids that we needed to pray to Saint Anthony to find us a new van, Saint Joseph to take care of our family, and Saint Nicholas when it came to money matters.  William says, "Might as well add Saint Jude too, Mom."  Well, when you are right.....

 And 2 days later, we asked Father Noah to bless our ride.  He blessed our last van, and not that we are superstitious, but we did want to be sure.  :)

I feel really spoiled, and it is crazy how much we appreciate sliding doors!  God is good.  All the time!

Winter Odds and Ends

The incorrupt heart of Saint John Vianney came to the John Paul II institute in DC, and we brought the 3 little guys to visit.  It was a true pilgrimage: Mass, confession, relics, and rosary.  I realized we don't often make a trip to such a wealth of tourism and fun in DC, and we will try to fix that over spring break.  But the best plans of mice and men.....

 We also visited National Arboretum, and will try to come back when there is more green on the trees. It was lovely!

 William prepared our home for the birthday of Dr. Seuss.  One of my favorite photos of their time together.

The day after my birthday turned out to be snow day (one of many this winter) for everyone in the family!  Tommy made a cake, we watched Henry V and spent a quiet day together.  Introverted me loves being home with all the family!

Since we live in Virginia, our seasons have such a variety, and sometimes the weatherman is spot on, and other times we are surprised with the result. Our superintendent of schools has been calling a holiday the night before, even when some of the area doesn't get "weather" that has been predicted.  It has made for some interesting "rain" days, but when it is cold and Flu season, there are some days that I think it's okay to keep the kids away from each other.  It has made each school re-evaluate their decision on how to call snow days, so we shall see.  I'm such a chicken that I don't think I would drive on bad days anyway, so we will have to see.

First Confession For James!

The same day James was winning 2nd place in his den in the Pinewood Derby, he was also going to Confession for the very first time!  It was a very busy penance service, and I was super proud that James decided to go to a shorter line instead of trying to visit a certain priest.  He knew he would be going to Confession very often, so he knew he would have many more chances.

Clean soul!

Scout Business For William

The first few months of the year are always busy in the Scout world.  We start with pinewood derby, the last one for William, Lucy getting to participate in the sibling races, and James winning 2nd place.  It was a good day all around!

William then received his Arrow Of Light, reminding us all that he is growing up and finishing Cub Scouts soon! It also came on my birthday, which combined with my grey hair, made me feel extra old.

Crossover to Boy Scouts came later in the month, with an Outdoor camping cake competition, won by the Web 2's.  It was a joy to see all my boys in their uniforms together, and see the excitement from William continue as he came home and started to work on his Boy Scout Requirements as soon as he could.