Give Me Your Eyes

I pray that I can see my family/friends through His eyes when I don't understand reasons behind their actions.
We all have struggles and reasons for why we do things - whether it be something we went through recently or from our past. I just pray I can see them through His eyes and look past their actions with love and compassion.

Sunday

Yesterday was pretty good. Leslie ended up coming to the 9:30 Mass this morning so that was cool to see her!I stayed to help Esther lead the rosary before the 11:45 Mass and then headed to work.
After work I went to Esther's house (we were going to watch Juno but their DVD player isn't working) and Lilia ended up coming later. I had a nice time just talking and being with Lilia and Esther

Some things happen for a reason

Last night I met up with Ruth, Esther, and Lilia at Hacienda (we saw Patti, Sean, and a few other people from Q of P there as well). When we were in the parking lot afterwards we said good-bye to Lilia and she headed off.
Ruth, Esther, and I talked for a while. I was finally able to give Esther the blanket I made for her birthday and she gave me a big hug and thanked me for it. What she said to me after that meant so much and let's just say that some things are meant to happen - I appreciate and love my friends more than ever!
I thank God for bringing them in my life!!

Easter Vigil

Yesterday around 4ish Ruth and I stopped by Diane Martin's house to visit. While we were there she made home-made pizza and invited us to eat dinner there - it was delicious!
After that we went to Family Dollar to buy stuff for some of the people that were coming into the Church later that evening. We parked in the Q of P parking lot and put together the arrangements and waited until a little after 8.
I saw Linda walking in to the choir room so I went and talked to her. She helped calm me down (I was feeling a bit nervous because I have never sponsored anyone before) and prayed for the sponsors and those entering the Church this night.

I'm glad I had the opportunity to sponsor someone - it was such an honor & everything went smoothly and of course we went to the reception afterwards.

Michael, Brianne, and Mike


Aaron and Laurie


Patti


Krystal, Brady, Kira, and Brianne (I was Krystal's sponsor & Brianne was Kira's godmother)


Brianne and Me


I hope everyone has a Blessed Easter! Now you can sing your "Alleluias" loud & strong :)

Good Friday

Good Friday - Nobody asked Him to go through with this but He loved us so much He wanted to! I love the Good Friday Service at St. Pius. If you go there, they have you off your shoes because we are walking on Sacred ground. It's always so wonderful to see the Church as packed as it is on this day! Last year I got there a half hour early and there was only one parking spot available (which I ended up getting, lol) - people had to park across the street. I love to see a Catholic Church that packed...of course it's normally pretty crowded, but especially during Lent, Holy Week, and Easter it's more packed than it normally is.

I leave you with this (this is what Good Friday is all about)

Holy Thursday and Explanation of the Easter Triduum

Today is Holy Thursday already -- the beginning of the Easter Triduum. Tonight I'm going to Mass for Holy Thursday -- which celebrates both the institution by Christ himself of the Eucharist and of the institution of the sacerdotal priesthood (as distinct from the 'priesthood of all believers'). For in this, His last supper with the disciples, a celebration of Passover, He is the self-offered Passover Victim, and every ordained priest to this day presents this same sacrifice, by Christ's authority and command, in exactly the same way. The Last Supper was also Christ's farewell to His assembled disciples, some of whom would betray, desert or deny Him before the sun rose again. -- the priest will, depending on how some priests want to do it, wash the feet of 12 people or have anyone get it done. This symbolizes Christ's washing the feet of the Apostles, the first priests. After Mass there is Eucharistic Adoration for anyone who wants to stay.
On Good Friday we have a service at, depending on the Church, noon or 1pm. Father Bob had a great explanation of what goes on that day in the videos I posted a couple posts before.
The entire Church fixes her gaze on the Cross at Calvary. Each member of the Church tries to understand at what cost Christ has won our redemption. In the solemn ceremonies of Good Friday, in the Adoration of the Cross, in the chanting of the 'Reproaches', in the reading of the Passion, and in receiving the pre-consecrated Host, we unite ourselves to our Savior, and we contemplate our own death to sin in the Death of our Lord.
The Church - stripped of its ornaments, the altar bare, and with the door of the empty tabernacle standing open - is as if in mourning. In the fourth century the Apostolic Constitutions described this day as a 'day of mourning, not a day of festive joy,' and this day was called the 'Pasch (passage) of the Crucifixion.'
The liturgical observance of this day of Christ's suffering, crucifixion and death evidently has been in existence from the earliest days of the Church. No Mass is celebrated on this day, but the service of Good Friday is called the Mass of the Presanctified because Communion (in the species of bread) which had already been consecrated on Holy Thursday is given to the people .

Traditionally, the organ is silent from Holy Thursday until the Alleluia at the Easter Vigil , as are all bells or other instruments, the only music during this period being unaccompanied chant.

The omission of the prayer of consecration deepens our sense of loss because Mass throughout the year reminds us of the Lord's triumph over death, the source of our joy and blessing. The desolate quality of the rites of this day reminds us of Christ's humiliation and suffering during his Passion. We can see that the parts of the Good Friday service correspond to the divisions of Mass:
- Liturgy of the Word - reading of the Passion.
- Intercessory prayers for the Church and the entire world, Christian and non-Christian.
- Veneration of the Cross
- Communion, or the 'Mass of the Pre-Sanctified
And of course Saturday is the Easter Vigil (which we celebrate with Baptism, Eucharist, and Confirmation) when those who have been preparing to join the Catholic Church finish their steps in becoming Catholic. This is always such a happy time =)

Chrism Mass

Last night Linda picked me up at the church around 6ish and from there we went to St. Matt's for practice.I went to the Chrism Mass with Carol last year but this year I decided to sing with the choir. It was a pretty neat experience. Linda, Shane, Cathy, and I (we're in choir at Q of P together) were the only ones from Q of P that sang.
It's always so nice when the priests renew their promises - what a loving sacrifice for them to serve as preists! I saw Fr. Dan, Fr. Bill Schooler, Fr. Bill Sullivan, Fr. Bob, Fr. Derrick, Fr. Terry Fisher, and (the newer preist) Fr. Kevin Bauman.
When it came time for Communion Fr. Dan ended up coming up to the choir loft with the Precious Blood. He realized he was on the wrong side so he had to go back down and come up the other way, ha. It was cool he was up there though.

Well today is the only day I don't have choir - so I have a free day! Tomorrow we practice; Thursday I work 8-1 and then we sing at the Holy Thursday Mass; Friday we're singing at the Good Friday service and then I work from 5 to close. We're singing for the Easter Vigil and then again on Easter Morning at 9:30
It'll be a busy week but a great week since it's Holy Week

Holy Week

I hope you all have a good Holy Week!
This is what it's all about:

Soup Supper, Stations, and Birthday

This afternoon Ruth and I helped prepare the soup and set up for the soup supper. The staff from Q of P was suppossed to be in charge of tonight's soup supper but Carol and Laurie were the only ones available and needed our help...so Ruth, Arlene, and I helped out.

After the soup supper we went to Stations of the Cross and afterwards I noticed Luke had tried calling me. I called him back and it turns out my parents wanted to go to Pizza King tonight to celebrate Luke's birthday a day early since they were going out of town.

Here are pictures from pizza king:

Dad and Luke


Mom and me


Luke putting the pizza in a box (he made this face on purpose)

Oh and tomorrow is Luke's birthday - Happy Birthday!

Dollar General

I now have a job at Dollar General -it's kind of cool how it all worked out.
We have 3 new members in choir (Laura and her son Joseph and also some guy named Ed).
On March 12th we had a surprise birthday party for Ruth after choir. I bought fruit punch at Dollar General for the party.
Laura had only been in choir for a week at that time and when she saw the juice she made a comment about it being the best juice ever. She mentioned she only said that because she's the manager at Dollar General.

After the party I was in Aaron's office and Laura happened to be in there too so I asked her if she was hiring at all. She said she wasn't but that she always takes applications.
Then that Sunday at our morning practice before Mass she came in and sat next to me. She asked me if I was willing to do a couple days a week because she was willing to fit me in...also I can be her on-call girl.

Of course I accepted and now am working there! :) Thanks Laura!

Weekend and Vespers

My weekend was busy but fun :)
~ Friday Ruth and I took communion to Anne Monhaut. Small world - so this is Katie's aunt and it turns out she also used to teach music at St. Thomas when I was in first grade!
After that we went to lunch and helped with preparation for the soup supper and had Stations at 7.We stayed after and talked to some people we know.

~ Saturday I helped out at the Science Fair at ND (I got to see Mr. A was there and talk to him a little bit)Then I had dinner with Bethany and watched a movie with Jonathan (The House Bunny).

~ Yesterday was 9:30 Mass then we stayed for 11:45 also. Ended up getting lunch and cleaning out Ruth's van before vespers at 5:00.
The ND Basilica Schola did vespers last night along with a concert after - it was really awesome!

St. Patty's Day

The other day a guy I went to high school with started a facebook chat with me. I haven't talked to him since 2000...although I added him as a friend on facebook a couple years ago. When we were in high school my brother ended up punching him for a comment he made (which ended up getting him in trouble). When he sent the chat message the first thing that he wrote was about that comment: "Hey Katie my hand is better now ". I couldn't believe he put that as the first thing!

Anyway last night was fun. My parents, brother, and I went to Don Pablo's for dinner. Here are pictures and a video:

Dad and me (I started to blink)


Dad and me giving bunny ears to each other


Luke and Mom


Luke and Mom giving bunny ears to each other



I hope everyone had a fun St. Patty's Day yesterday!

Pius and Minelli's

Last night Ruth and I went to St. Pius to hear Fr. Dan talk about Purification and Enlightenment. Mrs. Fitzmaurice and her boys were there along with another lady from Q of P that was at Bible Study on Friday. We all ended up sitting together. Fr. Dan sure likes to tease Fr. Bill, lol.
Afterwards we waited for Fr. Dan so we could do the wave like he had mentioned after Mass on Sunday.
Since it was taking a while I ended up going for a bathroom break and to put my program thingy back. As I was putting it back someone tapped my shoulder and I looked behind me - It was Mrs. Minelli! We talked for a little bit and then I went back to sit with Ruth and Mrs. Fitzmaurice. Her boys went to get a drink so I went to get them since Fr. Dan was walking our way. I saw Mr. Minelli as I was heading back to my seat and talked to him and Mrs. Minelli for a little bit.
It was pretty neato seeing them since they live in Italy now.

Mardis Gras/Lent

Last night's Mardis Gras party at Q of P was pretty fun. Ruth and I helped out in the craft room where the kids were able to make 2 kinds of masks and tamborines. There were also other games and activities going on as well.

Well today is the beginning of Lent! I hope you all have a blessed lenten season and grow closer to Christ through fasting and prayer.

Falling

Saturday morning I went to the SFO meeting with Ruth to see what it's like. I kinda liked it :)We all ended up going to Mass in a small chapel there and I happened to notice the crucifix above the Tabernacle. The thing that stood out to me was that Jesus' knees had some blood on them. It really spoke to me! I just thought how many times do I end up falling and not want to get back up (whether the falling is due to fear of a new situation or a mistake I make) yet Jesus fell many times with the weight of the world on his shoulders (the heavy cross) and got back up to fulfill what he had to do for us! It just shows how much he Loves us!! Even though we fall sometimes and we think we want to give up we just need to remember that Jesus loves us so much that he fulfilled the ultimate sacrfice.
"I Love You" could not be said a better way!

Realize

I realized something about myself when I watched an episode of Wife Swap tonight. One of the mother's (Mrs. Myers) had a break-down and an emotional conversation with the teen girl (in the house where she was staying for 2 weeks).
She told this girl how she felt belittled by their family because they made her feel she was less intelligent than them by their actions and words (the dad and the son told her she wasn't intelligent).
Mrs. Myers also said that she loves people and when others don't like her as much or even hate her, she works harder to love them by doing nice things for them. In the end she feels "stepped on" because she gives so much but they don't appreciate her.
I tend to do the same thing at times - Love the people I know because they mean the world to me and I'd do anything for them.
Some people don't appreciate it as much and I need to remember that not everyone is the same as me and I do have high expectations at times.
I'm glad she said that out loud because I realize that's how I am with people in my life - give so much for people that don't like me as much or even dislike (hate is such a strong word) me.

Donuts and Father Bob

Yesterday morning Ruth and I picked up the donuts that are for after the 7:30 and 9:30 Masses. As I walked in the door with one of the boxes, I thought I heard Father Bob's voice, so as I made my way to the gym I looked in the sanctuary and sure enough it was Father Bob giving the homily! =)
It was pretty neat seeing him there.

Family Time

OMG! For once I wasn't at home over the weekend. =O
Friday night my parents, brother and I drove to my Grandpa's (my mom's dad) house to stay the night. Saturday afternoon (before we left to see my dad's side of the family) Penny, my mom's cousin, came over for a little visit (it was nice seeing her).
Saturday evening Grandma, Grandpa, and Jeff met us at the hotel for a drink and snack before going to grandpa's birthday dinner.
This morning the four of us went to Mass and then went to brunch. Amber, Chris, the girls (Marisa and Julia), Aunt Carol, Uncle Steve, and Grandma and Grandpa met us there. Jeff was going to come but he wasn't feeling so good. It was a fun weekend but I'm glad to be back!

Here are the pictures:

Grandpa (my mom's dad), Me, and Luke


Me, Luke, Mom, Dad, Jeff, Grandma, and Grandpa


Luke and Dad


Me, Dad, and Luke


Aunt Carol


Luke, Uncle Steve, and Grandpa


Grandma and Dad


Aunt Carol and Marisa (1)


Aunt Carol and Marisa (2)


Daddy and his girls (Marisa, Chris - Amber's husband, and Julia)


Amber and Me


Uncle Steve, Dad, Grandma, and Grandpa

Dinner Party at Theresa's

Last night Theresa had a dinner get together at her place. She invited Steve, Kate, Jessica, Maureen, Katie, Michael and me to come at 6ish for hors d'oeuvres and dinner at 7ish. Katie and I did the dishes for Theresa since she cooked that wonderful, delicious meal!
After dinner we played Apples to Apples (which was tons of fun).

Jessica, Maureen, Michael, and Katie


Steve, Kate, and Me


Thanks again Theresa for having us over!

What You Need

Party Weekend

My weekend was pretty fun - I had two parties to go to (one on Friday and one on Saturday). Friday didn't start out so great at first but it ended on a good note! This was the evening of the Jubilee Society party at Carol's house. It started at 6 and Ruth hadn't called to meet up because she couldn't get out of the meeting for work. I sat in my car in the church parking lot debating whether or not I was going to go and then by that time it was already almost 7. Both Carol and Esther called during that hour to see where I was...l.ong story short = Esther came to pick me up and bring me to Carol's house. I'm glad she did that and that I went because it was so much fun in the end!
Saturday evening was the choir Christmas party at Mike's house. That was pretty fun... I swear being at Queen of Peace and the people I know there - I feel like I'm with family! Ruth and I stayed until about 10:30ish.
Sunday of course we sang at the 9:30 Mass and then during the 11:45 Mass I talked with Patti a bit about a conversation I had with Fr. Dan (which will remain a mystery for you others).
At 1:30 Ruth and I went to the convent for the SFO meeting and then came back for Vespers (which is always nice). After Vespers Ruth and I went to AppleBees with Patti and Sean - awesome company to be with! :)

Diving Board

So I went to the SFO meeting with Ruth this afternoon and while we were there I really felt that God was speaking to me through someone else.
This guy there had mentioned that he often gets an image of himself on a diving board and when he looks down he is so afraid and can't let go of the diving board. This symbolizes all the fear in his life and how he has to hold on to the diving board and can't let go.
I told God I'll let go of the diving board and am now in the pool...Then I told God I'm hanging onto the wall for now and eventually will swim with a kickboard...then after that step I'll swim in the water without holding on (which will mean I'm surrendering fully to God's will and letting him control my life without any fear).

Solemnity of Mary, Mother of God

Mary’s divine motherhood broadens the Christmas spotlight. Mary has an important role to play in the Incarnation of the Second Person of the Blessed Trinity. She consents to God’s invitation conveyed by the angel (Luke 1:26-38). Elizabeth proclaims: “Most blessed are you among women and blessed is the fruit of your womb. And how does this happen to me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me?” (Luke 1:42-43, emphasis added). Mary’s role as mother of God places her in a unique position in God’s redemptive plan.
Without naming Mary, Paul asserts that “God sent his Son, born of a woman, born under the law” (Galatians 4:4). Paul’s further statement that “God sent the spirit of his Son into our hearts, crying out ‘Abba, Father!’“ helps us realize that Mary is mother to all the brothers and sisters of Jesus.
Some theologians also insist that Mary’s motherhood of Jesus is an important element in God’s creative plan. God’s “first” thought in creating was Jesus. Jesus, the incarnate Word, is the one who could give God perfect love and worship on behalf of all creation. As Jesus was “first” in God’s mind, Mary was “second” insofar as she was chosen from all eternity to be his mother.
The precise title “Mother of God” goes back at least to the third or fourth century. In the Greek form Theotokos (God-bearer), it became the touchstone of the Church’s teaching about the Incarnation. The Council of Ephesus in 431 insisted that the holy Fathers were right in calling the holy virgin Theotokos. At the end of this particular session, crowds of people marched through the street shouting: “Praised be the Theotokos!” The tradition reaches to our own day. In its chapter on Mary’s role in the Church, Vatican II’s Dogmatic Constitution on the Church calls Mary “Mother of God” 12 times.