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Childermas

by Filed Under: 12 December, 12 December Saints, Holy Innocents 2 Comments

innocentsDuccio

reposted & updated from 2010

HOLY INNOCENTS
Martyrs

Within the Octave of Christmas

DOUBLE, SECOND CLASS / PURPLE
There is mixed joy and sorrow in the feast of the innocent victims of the first persecution. The Church rejoices at the spiritual victory of the young witnesses to Christ. The purple vestments of the Mass denote the Church’s common grief with the mothers of Bethlehem, who saw their babies massacred by the jealousy of Herod.

Triumph of the Innocents, by William Holman Hunt, 1883-4

While it is easy to get lost in the nightmare of what happened to the Innocents, it’s to be remembered that they ultimately triumphed! They are Saints of God, as this painting by William Holman Hunt shows. The Innocents are seen with the Holy Family, in spirit, during the Family’s Flight to Egypt. ~ Fisheaters

RESOURCES:

Let us pray. O Lord Jesus Christ, once You embraced and placed Your hands upon the little children who came to You, and said: “Suffer the little children to come unto Me, and forbid them not, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven, and their angels always see the face of my Father!” Look now with fatherly eyes on the innocence of these children and their parents’ devotion, and bless them this day through our ministry. (The father signs the forehead of each child with the sign of the cross.) In Your grace and goodness let them advance continually, longing for You, loving You, fearing You, keeping Your commandments. Then they will surely come to their destined home, through You, Savior of the world. Who lives and reigns forever and ever. ~ Blessing of Children on Holy Innocents

May God bless you, and may He be the Guardian of your heart and mind —  In nomine Patris et Filii et Spiritus Sancti. Amen.

Christmas {p,h,f,r}

by Filed Under: {phfr}, Christmas, Picture Recap

 

~ Capturing the context of contentment in everyday life ~

Every Thursday, here at Like Mother, Like Daughter!

{PRETTY}

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The girls and I helped with clean-up and set-up at our parish on Christmas Eve.

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{HAPPY}

Our happiness is found in Him, alone.  Dad and I give thanks for the stripping that He has allowed. We have been freed to seek Him first with limited attachments.  This year was no different, we had no budget for gifts.  Our eyes were solely on Him.  All were joyful and ready to celebrate His birth with humble surroundings. 

The good Lord was generous and blessed us through Dad’s parents.  They gave us cash during the week of Christmas.  It was enough to cover our monthly expenses and provide some modest gifts for the kids and loved ones.  DEO GRATIAS!

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Christkindl exchange.  Each sibling had a max of $5 that could be spent on their Christkindl.  Dad took them shopping.  The girls received yarn, on sale at JoAnns.  The boys received a box set of cars.  The total of the exchange was $21.

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Sweetie and Sparkles received a toy horse and couldn’t have been happier. (Costco – $9.98 ea)

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Dragonfly got a set of tractors from his Christkindls – all the kids. (Wal-Mart – $5)

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Papi was so excited with a simple dino book that I couldn’t capture a clear shot of him. (TJ Maxx – $3)PC250018

Rose got a plush robe. (Kohls – $20.  It was a bit more than we would have liked but it worked out.  Between her robe and 2 Fisher Price Nativity Sets ($13 ea), we earned $10 Kohl’s Cash)

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Dad received the one and only item he requested, gloves. (Costco – $12)

I was happy with my gift of a clean house pre-Christmas and a coupon for a guaranteed clean house for the remainder of the Christmas season.  In other words, I am exempt from cleaning until post-Baby G. (PRICELESS)

{FUNNY}

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The lengths we have to go through to get Papi in a picture.

{REAL}

We left our home at 9:00 pm for Lessons & Carols and Midnight Mass.  It was a very long night – ALL FOR!!

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We look forward to keeping CHRIST in Christmas and continuing our celebrations for the entire duration of the Christmas season.  The Christmas season does not begin until the first Mass at Christmas Eve, and doesn’t end liturgically until the Octave of the Epiphany on January 14. It goes on in the spiritual sense until Candlemas on February 2, when all celebrations of Christ’s Childhood give way to Septuagesima and Lent.

Christmas Giveaway

by Filed Under: Giveaway, Organization, thirty-one 24 Comments

I have recently enlisted as an Independent Consultant for Thirty-One.  I fell in love with their product design and quality.  I’m thankful that I have the opportunity to make extra income to help my family (without leaving my home), give back to great causes, enjoy great products at discounted prices, and share such an opportunity with others.  ALL FOR!

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OUTLET SALE

Thirty-One is offering a pthirty-oneost-Christmas Day sale.  The Outlet store opens for shopping at 7am PST on Dec. 26 (Feast of St. Stephen)  and ends at 9am PST on Dec. 28 (Feast of the Holy Innocents). 

The sale includes favorite discontinued prints and products from previous Catalogs.  These products are perfect for any gift-giving occasion.

Shop early so you don’t miss out on the deals!

15% of all profits (from my shop sales) will be donated to charities!

You may leave your suggestion for charities for future donations.

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SHOP THE OUTLET SALE

How to shop the Outlet Sale:

Online:

  • visit me at https://www.mythirtyone.com/joyfilledfamily/
    • select the Outlet Sale advertisement

    Email & Phone:

  • Contact me via email to place your order or request a phone call. 

    gelfamily{at}att{dot}net

    Note:

  • Please be certain that Lena Flores (238738) is specified as your consultant before finalizing your purchase.  Thank you!

    For this sale, all sales are final. No returns or exchanges will be accepted. All styles are only available while supplies last. Thirty-One Gifts reserves the right to cancel or hold an order based on the product quantity or product availability.

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    GIVEAWAY

    I will be running my giveaway concurrently with the Thirty-One Outlet Sale.  The giveaway will start on Dec. 26 (Feast of St. Stephen) and end on Dec. 8 (Feast of the Holy Innocents).

    organizing utility tote

    The first winner will receive an Organizing Utility Tote (valued at $30). (The print may vary from that displayed in the pic above.)

    The runner-up will receive a mystery prize from the Thirty-one collection.

    All winners will be announced by Jan. 1 – Feast of the Circumcision.

    Enter the giveaway via the Rafflecopter widget below. 

    a Rafflecopter giveaway

     

     

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    CONSULTANT INFO

    spring enrollment kit

    New consultants will receive the spring enrollment kit* (above) for $99.   In addition, all new consultants who host their first party in January can double their Hostess credits (with any party over $500).  In other words, a new consultant has the possibility of receiving $180 in free product as the "Hostess" and a $125 commission (which in turn will cover the enrollment costs).

    Contact me to find out how you can earn extra income, get great incentives, and more!

    *The Spring Enrollment Kit features:
    • Cinch Sac in Punch Bowl
    • Keep-It Caddy in Turquoise Cross Pop
    • Large Utility Tote in Party Punch
    • Lil’ Expressions Mini Zipper Pouch in Natural w/ Grey
    • Organizing Utility Tote in Island Damask
    • Pocket-A-Tote in Turquoise Cross Pop
    • Retro Metro Bag in Lotsa Dots
    • Scarf in Pink Punch Bowl
    • Small Rosette Clip in Turquoise
    • Thermal Tote in Punch Bowl
    • Thermal Zipper Pouch in Island Damask
    • Timeless Wristlet in Party Punch
    • Top-A-Tote in Grey
    • Start-up business supplies

    • Merry Christmas ~ Family Christmas Cards

    by Filed Under: Christmas, Christmas Card

    May you and your family be merry on this blessed day & season.  MERRY CHRISTmas!!

    be merry blowing kisses

    JOY to the world JOYfilledfamily

    christmas blessings

    peace on earth JOYfilled family

    JOYfilledfamily PEACE LOVE JOY

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    Our Christmas photos were taken early this year with an impromptu trip to the park since our scheduled shoot didn’t work out. I was happy with the photos but a bit disappointed with the photo cards. I put it off for far too long then life happened and the Christmas cards almost got nixed. Dad encouraged me to get them done in the eleventh hour. I opted for a simple, less customized, inexpensive option – Costco 1hr photo. I paid $15 or 50 6×7.5 prints with sturdy silver-lined envelopes.

    The cards above are some of the outtakes from Shutterfly, before Dad made his way to the hospital.  The card below is a slightly modified version of my family’s Costco photo card.

    ~~~

    Comfort and JOY JOYfilledfamily 2012

    2011 I 2010 I 2009

    CHRIST in Christmas

    by Filed Under: Advent, Christmas 8 Comments

    I’m participating in the Keeping Christ in Christmas Blog Carnival, hosted by Arma Dei/Equipping Catholic Families, Raising (& Teaching) Little Saints, Truly Rich Mom. We’ll be sharing different ways, tips, stories and real-life experiences that will help us focus on Jesus as the Reason for the Christmas season. Please scroll down to the end of the post to see the list of carnival entries.

    greatest-nativity

    Keeping our eyes on Christ is my family’s daily goal.  During Advent it becomes even more important for us to work on keeping Christ in Christmas.

    Our primary objective for keeping Christ in Christmas is to observe each liturgical season in it’s entirety.

    Here are a few examples on how we try to keep the focus on Him during Advent & Christmas.

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    The focus of Advent is preparation for the coming of the Lord — both in commemoration of His Nativity and His coming again at the end of time… The Christmas season does not begin until the first Mass at Christmas Eve, and doesn’t end liturgically until the Octave of the Epiphany on January 14. It goes on in the spiritual sense until Candlemas on February 2, when all celebrations of Christ’s Childhood give way to Septuagesima and Lent.

    Sole focus is on preparing our hearts for Jesus.

        • Simple practices that help us keep this a penitential season.
        • Limited celebratory events.  No extracurriculars.  Similar to our Lenten practices.
        • Advent List, Christkindl, Jesse Tree, Christmas, Novena, and more.
        • We take a mock pilgrimage, Journey to Bethlehem.  Journey To Bethlehem is an interactive walking tour from the recreated town of Nazareth to Bethlehem.  The journey Gloria Holy Reflectionsrecreates the events that happened on the evening of Christ’s birth. 
        • Decorations are focused on Christ, only.  Nativities are the primary décor.  The lights must wait for Christmas.
        • Christmas music is limited (to the best of our ability) until Christmas day.
        • Gift giving is not emphasized.  That means no wish lists or presents stuffed under the tree.  Instead, acts of charity are discussed and encouraged.
            • Absolutely no Santa Claus.
        • All family members receive the sacrament of Confession during the Third and Fourth Sunday of Advent.
        • All family members present their hearts (gifts) during the Third and Fourth Sunday of Advent.  This is done by way of Adoration.  Each leaves a wooden heart at the nativity manager in Church.  The heart symbolizes their offering for Jesus. Our hearts are with Christ at His time of birth.  The hearts are picked up during the Christmas season and placed on the family altar as a reminder of our offering.

    40 days after giving birth, Mary goes to the Temple to be purified and to “redeem” Jesus per the Old Testament Law of the firstborn. Christmas truly ends as a Season with Candlemas and the beginning of Septuagesima.

        • Put a small offering of gifts under the tree for the children on Christmas Eve.
        • Visit Our Lord and Savior at the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass on Christmas Day.14820268-brussels--june-24-nativity-paint-on-the-wood-from-saint-antoine-church-on-march-2012-in-brussels
          • We visit Him before we ever turn towards a present. No opening any gifts on Christmas eve or Christmas morning – CHRIST IS FIRST!
        • Have a birthday party for Jesus on Christmas morning.
          • Happy birthday, cake, and the works.
        • Keep the Christmas decor up for the entire span of the Christmas season.  (Many think we’re nuts or lazy but it’s done all for His glory!)
        • REJOICE!!! Sing and play Christmas music all season!
        • Increase daily Mass attendance.

    It is, that, from the day itself of our Saviour’s Birth even to the day of our Lady’s Purification, there is, in the Calendar,an extraordinary richness of Saints’ Feasts, doing homage to the master feast of Bethlehem, and clustering in adoring love round the Crib of the Infant-God. ~ “The Mystery of Christmas” from Dom Gueranger’s “The Liturgical Year”

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    Keeping Christ in Christmas Blog Carnival Entries:

    Please take the time to visit other blog carnival participants and leave a comment on their posts! The list will be updated throughout the day, so please do come back and check on them.  ALL FOR!

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