Fun at the Zoo Boo!

Holidays, Photography

Sorry, everyone…. I’ve been quite sick lately, so EVERYTHING has fallen off my plate. Pretty sure I dropped the plate, too. I’ll try and catch up, if I ever get better. 🙂

Krystin invited me to the Zoo Boo with her family. It was so cute to see Evie as a bee, especially when she would tell us that a bee says, “Buzz!” Dad Jerad was quite the trooper, carrying his little girl most of the way. It’s always awesome to be around parents as excited and involved as Krystin and Jerad. 🙂

It was raining on the way over, but by the time we parked, the rain had stopped and we could see some blue sky peeking in:
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The Detroit Zoo had set up a short walking course dotted with candy stations manned by Zoo personnel in various Halloween costumes. Along the way, we got to look at tons of carved pumpkins and other visual delights.
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Look at the cute Kutler family! Ready to get CANDY! 🙂
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Evie-Bee getting ready to get candy at the first stop:
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She looks a little unsure, but Daddy’s right there to keep her safe!
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Then, she took off running!
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We found a maze made of hay bales and chased Mommy through that.
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On the way to MORE CANDY, Mommy and Daddy helped their little bee fly!
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Treat Station #2
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Oh, Look! Another bee!
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And a Snowman Pumpkin!
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They didn’t seem to be as interested in looking at all of the pumpkin sculptures on the side of the walkway — at least not as much as I was. 🙂 These things were CUTE!!!
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Okay, this one was kind of freaky…
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Cheezing for the picture:
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A family stroll:
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The Toy Story characters were there…
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Getting a family picture…
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The Reptile House was set up like a Haunted House of sorts. Really, they need to get creepier?!?
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Now, it was starting to get dark, but we were still able to take a look at the camels and deer.
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See how Daddy picks his Evie-Bee up?! 🙂
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Mommy and Daddy leading Evie to the next candy station:
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Glow sticks — sold for a King’s ransom. Needless to say, we didn’t buy any.
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Aww! Polar Bear Pumpkins!
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I like this picture:
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They needed to have this drink station more in the middle of the walk, not the end….
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Zebra and Giraffe and Elephant Pumpkins!
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Yay! This was a fun Zoo Boo!
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The penguins watched us leave….
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Goodnight, Zoo!
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7 Quick Takes: Gangnam Style!

7 Quick Takes Friday

— 1 —

I have jumped on the Gangnam Style bandwagon! I’m not exactly sure what it is about the song that I like.  Certainly the upbeat music is a major part of it.  Perhaps I like the fact that I can basically sing gibberish and pretend that I know how to sing in Korean.  No one is going to know the difference anyway, right?  🙂  I think, too, the part of me which is not yet conformed to Christ likes the fact that Oppa Gangnam Style, when sung, sounds like Open Condom Style, so I can get away with being a little rebellious without actually doing anything “wrong.”  🙂  That’s living on the edge, right there.  Sometimes it’s hard to contain my bada&& self.  LOL!  So, when you pass me entering or exiting the church parking lot and I seem to be dancing in my seat flashing gang signs, I’m just driving/worshipping/shopping/etc. Gangnam Style!  Join me, and we can start a flash mob.  A Gangnam Style flash mob after Mass.  🙂  We need a priest in vestments to lead this…

— 2 —

I don’t trust my priest.  Especially lately, when I ask him how he’s doing and he says, “Good.”  See, I know that answer.  That and “Fine,” are ones that I own.  Neither one of them mean what they seem to mean superficially.  What it really means is either, “Not great, but I don’t want to go into it,” or “Nothing’s changed,” or “Crappy, but not worth complaining about,” or something like this.  Sometimes, he’ll call me on it and ask, “Really?”, so I decided to return the favor and asked him, “Good – enh?  Good – great?  or??”  He replied, “Tired.  Like you.”  Which is a very dangerous statement, indeed!  “Like me” can mean anything from slight discomfort to pits of Hell suffering.  I hope he didn’t actually mean ‘like me.’  I think we will have to find new words.  One which I’ve become increasingly enamoured of  is “craptastic.”  I think that sums things up nicely.  🙂

— 3 —

Firestarters’ Bonfire is tonight! And after the week I’ve had, I’m really looking forward to some S’mores!

— 4 —

Last night sucked! Just thought I’d share that.  I was all set to go to Bible Study.  I had finished my questions for the week and everything.  But everything conspired against me.  First, for whatever reason, traffic was horrible.  Apparently there was an accident on the highway which had everything stopped up for miles.  By the time I got up to the crash site, I didn’t see anything, so I can’t verify that there was actually a reason for the delay, although my GPS promised me that it was due to a crash.  As I’m writing this, I realize that I forgot to pray for the people involved in the accident.  I usually try to.  But by this time, I was not feeling well at all and wasn’t so much sitting in the driver’s seat, but slouching with one elbow on the window ledge trying to hold my brain inside my skull.  I was pretty sure from the headache that it was trying to swell and escape, and I had at least an hour’s drive ahead of me.  By time I got off the exit for my house, I just wanted to sleep.  I knew that I should eat something, but didn’t want to cook and didn’t have an appetite for any of the 1 billion fast food options in the mile radius of my house.  I ended up picking one, and then tried to eat it while laying prone on the couch, with some Bewitched reruns playing on the TV for company.  I had to cut both activities short and jump into bed.  Blessedly, I was able to fall asleep.  Being unconscious was so much better than being awake.

— 5 —

I’m dismayed to look at the clock and realize that I have 2.5 more hours at work.  Why?  Because I feel horrible again and don’t think I can make it another few hours, plus be able to drive home.  😦  Does anyone want to take me in for the night?

— 6 —

I am too sick and tired to finish my 7 quick takes with meaningful, exciting words.  So, I will fill it with pictures instead.
Sunflowers

— 7 —

Yep!
Need More Coffee

That about sums it up!  🙂

For more Quick Takes, visit Jen at Conversion Diary!

Hungry?

Food

We had pre-planned to order lunch today, and sent Tracy out to pick up our Applebee’s order. I know, you’re used to having this blog be full of my exciting adventures. But sometimes, eating is as exciting as it gets! 🙂

I had the Berry Spinach Salad:
Berry/Spinach Salad
which was *delicious*! Raspberry vinigrette was super-yum. The only thing I would have changed would be to sub the bleu cheese for feta.

I also had the Classic Clubhouse Grille sandwich:
Clubhouse Grille Sandwich
It was okay, but I’ve had better sandwiches.

So, what did you have for lunch today? 🙂

What Are You Doing for the Year of Faith?

Of Trials Opportunities and Gifts, Of Vice and Virtue
Year of Faith

Today marks the beginning of the Year of Faith! It runs from 10/11/12 to 11/24/13. It celebrates the 50th anniversary of Vatican II, as well as the 20 year anniversary of the Catechism of the Catholic Church.

Pope Benedict offered Mass this morning for the Year of Faith and NBC News has some great pictures of the Mass posted.

The USCCB also has a great website with information and materials to help us grow in faith during this year. They state that during this year, Catholics are asked to study and reflect on the documents of Vatican II and the Catechism so that we may deepen our knowledge of the faith.

There is also plenary indulgences available during the Year of Faith. Here are the details on it:

(A) Each time they attend at least three sermons during the Holy Missions, or at least three lessons on the Acts of the Council or the articles of the Catechism of the Catholic Church, in church or any other suitable location.

(B) Each time they visit, in the course of a pilgrimage, a papal basilica, a Christian catacomb, a cathedral church or a holy site designated by the local ordinary for the Year of Faith (for example, minor basilicas and shrines dedicated to the Blessed Virgin Mary, the Holy Apostles or patron saints), and there participate in a sacred celebration, or at least remain for a congruous period of time in prayer and pious meditation, concluding with the recitation of the Our Father, the Profession of Faith in any legitimate form, and invocations to the Blessed Virgin Mary and, depending on the circumstances, to the Holy Apostles and patron saints.

(C) Each time that, on the days designated by the local ordinary for the Year of Faith, … in any sacred place, they participate in a solemn celebration of the Eucharist or the Liturgy of the Hours, adding thereto the Profession of Faith in any legitimate form.

(D) On any day they chose, during the Year of Faith, if they make a pious visit to the baptistery, or other place in which they received the Sacrament of Baptism, and there renew their baptismal promises in any legitimate form.”

Given the call to Catholics, I found a website that will send you a portion of the Catechism, I think every day, so that you can read through it completely within the year. You can sign up to participate in this here.

In addition, I want to use this time to really grow in my faith. Fr. John gave a talk yesterday on prayer and emphasized that our prayer should be a wrestling with God. After all, how am I going to conform my will to His if I am not willing to bend it to fit the mould more closely? Conforming my will is going to cost me. If I’m not grappling with something, then maybe I’m not really growing. Perhaps, if it is easy, I am only superficially accepting of God’s Truths. I’m really going to have to change things if I want to have a deeper relationship with the Lord. But what relationship is more worth fighting for? And it is a fight. I fight that I will be having with myself. As I try to move from where I am to where I want to be.

I know that this year I will be adding things and changing things in my life to try and draw closer to God. I am the type of person who likes to say, “I will do this once a week/month, etc.,” but I don’t think that setting a schedule is going to help me. Too often, I miss a “deadline” for one reason or another and use that as an excuse to give up on the whole project. So, I’m not going to do that. I will introduce new things as they come to me, and as I feel that God wants me to. And I ask you, my friends, to help hold me accountable. To hold each other accountable in whatever it is that we decide to do to grow in our faith this year. If I leave things just up to me, I’ll probably let myself off the hook sometimes. 🙂

So, let’s fight this battle together. I’ve got your back and you’ve got mine!

God bless your fight and your journey!

Happy Anniversary, Uganda!

Sister Parishes, ,
Uganda Pader

Today marks the 50th anniversary of Uganda’s independence from the U.K.

Why do I know this?

This weekend, our parish was visited by Msgr. John Baptist Ssebayigga from St. Kizito’s parish in Uganda, which is one of our sister parishes. He gave a lovely homily at all the the Masses, reminding and calling us to support each other, not just materially, but in prayer. It may be difficult to remember a people so far away. They may become abstract, remote. Having him visit us makes them present to us and reinvigorates us to our commitment. As, I’m sure, the stories that he will return with will reinvigorate his parish in their support of us.

According to Wikipedia, Christians make up the majority of the Ugandan population, with the majority of Christians being Catholics. St. Kizito Parish is named after St. Kizito, the youngest (at 13 years) of the Martyrs of Uganda — burned alive in 1886.

One of the goals that Msgr. shared with us for St. Kizito’s is the construction of a youth center, so that the kids have a safe place to go, and a new parish house, so that they can house more priests to serve the large Catholic population.

To emphasize the things that we have in common, he noted that while we have the Great Lakes, they have the Great Lake: Lake Victoria, which is the second largest freshwater lake in the world — second only to our Lake Superior. 🙂

boat on lake victoria

Stunning Sunrise

Exciting Adventures of the Everyday, Photography

This morning, I’m struggling to compensate for how much pain I’m in, so I have cute clothes on, hair arranged, make-up on, got an iced chai at Starbucks and blasted happy music all the way in to work. God apparently went along with this plan, because He gave me an amazing sunrise to watch. I mean, just LOOK at these colors!

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The photo is grainy and stuff, but when you are merging from one highway to another and working with a point-n-shoot…. 🙂

Here’s another “lovely” shot…

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And here’s an “action shot,” taken over my shoulder out the window. 🙂

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Finally, I pulled into the parking lot of a nearby hotel and walked as close as I could to the highway to get a clear shot.
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I’ll give you some more shots, so you can enjoy it, too. This is straight out of the camera — no edits.

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This is also straight out of the camera, but I started playing with some of the color settings. 🙂

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Hope you have a blessed day!

Somerset Shopping Trip

Shopping, , , , , , , , , ,

My future husband is certainly in trouble! Because I spent the day shopping at Somerset, the area’s more upscale “mall,” and found that … I like this shopping thing! 🙂 Truly. I don’t mind crowds. I like browsing. And at the end of the day, I feel relaxed. The only thing that saves me (or him, LOL!) is that I don’t feel compelled to buy everything that strikes my fancy.

That said, I was able to pick up some things during my time there. 🙂

First, take a look at my surroundings:
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Pretty, isn’t it? 🙂 I want a big pool like that in my back yard. Except deeper. 🙂 And palm trees in my living room. LOL! I don’t think I’ll ever get that request granted, but I’d like to put it out there.

This is what I came back with at the end of the day:
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The bags aren’t too big. Not too much damage to the pocketbook… 🙂

My first stop was one of my favorite stores, Papyrus. They have really cute stationery there, as well as cute supplies for wrapping presents. While looking around, I found these little label sticker in a French theme. Too cute!
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The package states that there’s 80 labels inside, but there’s actually a lot more than that!

Next, I picked up some things to *finally* wrap my brother’s birthday present. I have been waiting to wrap it up for a long time. They had this sparkly black tissue paper, and due to the present itself, I picked out some Halloween-themed ribbon:
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They also had these cute little notecards in a box with a St. Augustine quote on them:
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And this super-cute box of cards with shiny sea animals on the covers!
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Next stop: Bath & Body Works!
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I didn’t find what I came here for, but picked up a couple fun things for Lindsay and me! We are always looking for ways to smell the delicious Holy Chrism. Since we can’t get *actual* Chrism, I’m always on the lookout for balsam-scented items. What do you know? Bath & Body Works have a balsam scented air freshener! I picked up some for each of us and the little clips for the car. Hers is the squirrel; mine is the boring white one.
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Next, is some Halloween-themed hand sanitizer for me and my ghoulfriend! LOL!
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For me, I picked up some lip gloss and a minty bar of soap:
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I won’t put up the pictures (although, if you really want, they are on my Flickr), but I did a bit of shopping at Vicky’s, too… 😉
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Finally, I popped into Janie and Jack and picked up this cute hat for Matthias, the little boy of my friends James and Shauna.
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Isn’t it adorable?! 🙂

Apparently, I’m One of Those Annoying People

Exciting Adventures of the Everyday, , , ,

Because all “morning people” are annoying, right? 🙂 I can’t help it. I wake up happy. Sometimes giggling. Sometimes I jump out of bed. It doesn’t typically take me long to get going in the morning. While I like coffee, I don’t need it to function like a human. Etc, etc.

Consequently, I tend to be loud and boisterous in the morning. So, it’s a blessing that I live alone. That way I don’t bother other people. Take this morning for example.

I woke up about 5 am and decided that I wanted to listen to some music. While showering. Which meant that I had to blast the music on the stereo in the living room, so that I’d be able to hear it in the shower. You can’t do this if you live in a condo or apartment. At least if you don’t want to be killed in a slow and torturous manner. 🙂

This is the song that I was blasting, a throwback to my Navy days:

It played once through the shower, once for dressing, and then as a final measure, I played it a third time while dancing around the living room brushing my teeth. Because I do that. 🙂

I don’t think my stereo noise goes too much beyond the confines of my house, but I left the doors open to my car with the radio on (loud — I like to feel my music) while wiping the condensation off the windows, and thought that it might be disturbing to my neighbor, Dominic. Fortunately for me, Dominic was getting into his truck to go to work, so I wasn’t waking him up. 🙂 Plus, it’s cool enough outside lately that it’s not likely that he would have his bedroom window open, which is right next to my driveway.

Calm, peaceful, lazy, relaxing, grumpy… These are not adjectives for me! 🙂

So, yeah, I’m one of those annoying morning people! And happy for it! 🙂

Songbird Cafe

Food

Yesterday for lunch, I tried a new place in town. To be honest, I entered the shopping plaza for the Baskin-Robbins. 🙂 But right next door was a place called Songbird Cafe, so I wandered in. (More information about them in the linked article.)

They have quite the unique menu. There’s coffee drinks that I’ve never heard of, as well as interesting sandwiches. I tried their Brown Sugar and Spice Latte, which was very good and not at all overly sweet, as I had expected. It was in fact more “spice” than “brown sugar” and that was a good thing.

I was looking for a more traditional sandwich — just your basic turkey and cheese. Luckily for me, they were willing to change things around. I ordered their Ham & Gouda and subbed the turkey for the ham.

Turkey & Gouda from Songbird Cafe

As I came in to work this morning, I arrived in Ann Arbor early and was thinking of the best place to grab a coffee. I love Starbucks, but unfortunately there is not a convenient Starbucks on the north side of town. (Well, there’s one in Kroger’s, but that’s not *really* a Starbucks and it’s not really convenient to dash in and out.) Espresso Royal used to be my coffee place of choice many years ago, but that was more because I liked the baristas there — the coffee really wasn’t that good. Sweetwater’s is okay, but they are overpriced — and this is coming from a regular patron of Starbucks! Biggby is a little out of the way, and I like them, but their drinks tend to be rather sweet and I wasn’t sure I was in the mood for that. Still indecisive, I was heading toward Biggby when I suddenly pulled in the plaza for Songbird Cafe. Even though their “large” is only 16 oz — a medium anywhere else — I’d give them another try. Yesterday’s latte was good and I kind of wanted to try all the different flavors they had.

This morning, I picked up a nutella mocha. I’ve tried nutella in the past and have been rather unimpressed with it, but let me tell you, in the mocha it’s great!

Nutella Mocha

When I walked in, the server was setting out the morning pastries and I saw one which looked good. It was an apricot and almond scone.

Apricot & Almond Scone

I am so glad that I picked it! It’s the perfect combination of soft and crunchy and flaky! 🙂 Yum!

I must be hungry, since so many of my posts lately are of food! 🙂 I hope you are enjoying vicariously. 🙂

Thursday Yums!

Adventures in Cooking, Exciting Adventures of the Everyday, Food, , ,

Thursdays are when my biweekly shipment of organic fruits and veggies come in! This week, I was particularly excited, because they just started offering home delivery of milk and dairy products! I love milk and I hate the grocery store, so this is a little piece of heaven just for me! 🙂

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This week, I also got a head of lettuce and some tomatoes. Which pretty much means “salad” to me. I don’t get too fancy usually with my salads. Doesn’t it look great, though?!

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And there you have it! My Thursday dinner! 🙂