First Communion Gift Ideas?

Lily's First Communion is in three weeks and we're struggling to come up with a simple gift to give our daughter. We want her to have something to remember the special day in her sacramental life, but just can't seem to come up with the perfect idea.

I already know that our parish gives each child a rosary and that she is also getting a nice prayerbook from one set of grandparents. She has already received a pretty rosary bead bracelet with a chalice charm to wear that day. She also intends on wearing a gold cross necklace that she wore on her baptism day.

So, what do we get her?

It's also unique and extra special that on the day she receives Jesus for the first time, it is the Feast of Divine Mercy and also is the same day of the beatification of Pope John Paul II. I'm not sure if we should somehow incorporate one or both of those in the gift?

Please Help!!

What did you give your child? Any unique, inexpensive, memorable gift ideas out there? I'd love to hear them!

Thankful Thursday

Thankful for...

Brown grass and signs of spring, even if it is just my rhubarb peeking out.

Robins in my yard.

A budding artist that loves to draw and humor me with his creations.

The return (almost) to my pre-pregnancy weight.

Piano practice right away in the morning, without prompting.

The sound of my boy reading to me.

A husband who enjoys spending time with his family and would do anything not to miss a single moment with us.

Shout and OxiClean and their attempts at getting all of the mud off of the kids' socks and pants.

Baby feet and the little girl they belong to.

Working For Me Workouts

Or otherwise titled 'I *love* Leslie Sansone'!!

I've been a fan of Leslie's Walk at Home workouts for a while and have used a 30 minute quick walk, as well as her Walk Slim 4 Fast Miles in the past.



After reading a number of posts from Jamie about her workouts, I was eager to once again jump in with Leslie. Just as before, I'm loving it!! The workouts have been perfect for me postpartum and ideal when getting outside isn't possible due to the weather or even to fit in while Gianna naps. Leslie keeps the workouts fun with her laughter and high spirits and she doesn't annoy me as much as some workout DVD's tend to do. I like that she keeps with the same simple moves in her series, but increases the intensity along the way too. It's easy to follow along and not become frustrated. That's MY kind of workout!

I went online at Walmart to order two more DVD's and I'm really liking these as well.

The Three Mile Walk even includes some of Leslie's walkers who have lost significant amounts of weight and are still on their weight loss journey. It even has "Mary Kay's mile" which is one of the other women leading that mile, instead of Leslie. A fun way to change things up a bit!



The Two Mile Hips & Thighs came along with the fit cuff in the box to work on those problem areas. I'm enjoying adding this one to the mix too.




It feels so good to be exercising again and feeling fit and healthy too! I highly recommend giving any of her DVD's a try!

The View From Here

Captured moments.

Some by camera and others by heart.

Treasured and priceless memories.

How sweet it is.

Forgiven

After much preparation, Lily made her First Reconciliation just before the beginning of lent. With the arrival of Gianna, the day kept getting pushed back and we were uncertain when it would happen. Finally, after talking with our parish priest again it looked like we'd have to wait another week. Lily wasn't having it. She was ready and she wanted the opportunity to receive this sacrament before lent. So, I made the arrangements to take her into church during the week when Father would be here for weekly confession.

It was so peaceful and special. It was only the kids and myself in church and Father had soft music playing in the background. Lily wasn't nervous at all and was ready to rush right in. After some time in prayer, I sent her in and she came out smiling. Upon leaving church she asked if she could go again on the following Sunday when we had regularly scheduled confessions at our parish. I told her if she needed to that was fine, but that as much as she wanted to go again she still should try her best not to sin. It was wonderful to hear her eagerness to receive the sacrament again, especially since just weeks prior this was the girl who didn't want to go and was nervous.

We celebrated Lily's First Reconciliation with supper and ice cream treats from Culver's that evening, so daddy could be a part of the special day as well. It was a wonderful week to celebrate since that was also the same week that Gianna was baptized. What a Sacramental week for our family!! Now we're looking forward to her First Communion in May.

Welcoming

We celebrated Gianna's baptism two weeks ago already. She has settled in quite nicely into God's bigger family, the Church. The day was celebrated with some family members, grandparents and Godparents and turned out perfectly. The timing turned out to be just right since that was right about when I started to feel a bit more like myself and bouncing back after childbirth.

Although we had contemplated asking our beloved Fr. G to do the baptism prior to Gianna's birth and he eagerly agreed to do it if we wanted, we decided to wait until our parish priest returned from vacation and have him do it instead. As it all turned out, our priest got sick and we ended up with a visiting priest instead. It all turned out fine though since this older priest did a wonderful job of making baptism memorable.

After baptism, which was during Sunday morning Mass, we had brunch at our house. Most everyone took turns holding Gianna and taking in the beautiful scent of the Chrism oil. Love that smell! It was a very special day to celebrate and be reminded of the beautiful miracle that we hold in our arms each day. Truly precious beyond words.

Settling In

It's been three weeks since Gianna arrived and blessed our family with her presence. It's hard for me to believe that there was ever a time when our family did not include this little girl. It's difficult to remember a day when things didn't just feel like they were turned completely upside down with diaper changes, feedings and a baby cradled in my arms. And yet, over this child we wept and waited for so long. Here, in the midst of all of these changes and transitions I can still easily forget the struggle. This new time has its own set of hurdles and mountaintops.

Yes, we're settling in and adjusting, day by day, hour by hour. A blessing as wonderful and big as this is bound to do that to you. Life with a newborn tends to do that to anyone.

Time certainly is fleeting and furiously passing by and I don't want to miss a minute of these precious moments with Gianna or with Lily and Jonah either. I'd like to blog more, but don't find the time or the brain energy that is required and that's okay because this season will one day come to pass. I've realized that Gianna's perfect timing is ideal with the coming of the Lenten season and the final weeks of winter (hopefully). We look forward to the springtime for so many reasons, but we are equally embracing these weeks as well.

Thank you for all of your kind comments upon Gianna's arrival and for your continued thoughts and prayers for our family. I know they have helped throughout some of the tougher days postpartum. I hope to be back writing as I can and if nothing else, to be able to post cute pictures along the way. I'm hoping to get posts up soon with Gianna's birth story, her baptism and Lily's First Reconciliation as well.

May your Lent be blessed and fruitful in the meantime!

Until next time, we'll be busy lovin' on this sweet little girl, our baby blessing.