Counting Our Blessings, Again

Well, there is a lot to catch up on. We had a good Easter weekend at my mom and dad's. It was another "first" without David. I am faced every so often, as I was this morning, to make Max understand the finality of death, especially as I teach him about the amazing mystery of Easter. He said to me this morning, as we hulled the strawberries for breakfast, "Mommy, we will share these. Some for Davey, some for Mommy, some for Max and save some for when Daddy gets back." I asked him, Max, where is Daddy?" He said, "In Heaven." "Daddy is staying in Heaven. We will get to see him again, in a LONG time." He tried to convince me that I was wrong, that Daddy was going to be back sometime. It is so hard to know what to say to him when this subject comes up.

Another interesting event this weekend was Max's first bout with vomiting. He used to spit up a great deal, but this weekend was the first "throwing up" that we have had, at a birthday party, in his brother's room (the strawberries), at Sunday School (the goldfish and chocolate cookies that were for snack- gives a whole new meaning to "tossing your cookies"!). He then promised me that he wouldn't throw up again and I told him that if he felt like he needed to, he could. He has been dragging all weekend, until about 5:30 this evening, then he was getting back to himself. We will have to see how he is acting in the morning.

Davey has a jumprope demonstration (tricks, etc.) with the other kindergarteners plus the third and eighth graders, on Tuesday. My mom and dad will be coming for it, so we will get to see them for an overnight. He is growing up! He has even been invited for a sleepover. He is not the least bit apprehensive about it, either. We have been surrounded by so many families of his classmates and buddies, inviting him to play after school, offering to take him to the skating party tomorrow, having him sit with them at Mass while I taught Sunday School. What a community and what a great group of families. I am so grateful to have this environment in which to raise my boys. I know these families will reinforce the right values and goals and I know the boys will have good male role models in the dads of their friends!

We are beginning to look toward our summer plans. We have Derby weekend quickly approaching (Thunder Over Louisville was last night, so Derby Festival 2009 has begun!), as is Mothers' Day and the end of the school year. We have several things already planned for the summer, but if anyone is contemplating coming to see us and why we love Louisville so much, PLEASE come see us! We love to have company!!

Wishing everyone a spectacular week! Take time to count YOUR abundant blessings!!


We should certainly count our blessings, but we should also make our blessings count.
-Neil A. Maxwell

Count your joys instead of your woes; count your friends instead of your foes.
-Irish Proverb

God will not permit any troubles to come upon us, unless He has a specific plan by which great blessing can come out of the difficulty.
-Peter Marshall

The hardest arithmetic to master is that which enables us to count our blessings.
-Eric Hoffer