JOYfilledfamily BLOG

Preciousness of Silence

December 1, 2011 by Lena {JOYfilledfamily} Filed Under: Blessed Mother Teresa, Humility, LMC, Missionaries of Charity, Mother Teresa of Calcutta, Prayer 5 Comments

Preciousness of Silence

"Lord, set a guard over my mouth; keep watch at the door of my lips." Ps 141:3

"But Jesus was silent." Mt 26:63

The Silence is Meekness.
When you do not defend yourself against offenses;
When you do not claim your rights;
When you let God defend you;
The Silence is Meekness.

The Silence is Mercy.
When you do not reveal the faults of your brothers to others;
When you readily forgive without inquiring into the past;
When you do not judge, but pray in your heart;
The Silence is Mercy.

The Silence is Patience.
When you accept suffering not with grumbling but joyfully;
When you do not look for human consolations;
When you do not become too anxious, but wait in patience for the seed to germinate;
The Silence is Patience.

The Silence is Humility.
When there is no competition;
When you consider the other person to be better than yourself;
When you let your brothers emerge, grow and mature;
When you joyfully abandon all to the Lord;
When your actions may be misinterpreted;
When you leave to others the glory of the enterprise;
The Silence is Humility.

The Silence is Faith.
When you keep quiet because you know that the Lord will act;
When you renounce the voice of the world to remain in the presence of the Lord;
When you do not labour yourself to be understood;
because it is enough for you to know that the Lord understands you;
The Silence is Faith.

The Silence is Adoration.
When you embrace the cross without asking "Why?";
The Silence is Adoration.

"But Jesus was silent."

~MC & LMC Prayer Book

Christmas Novena

November 29, 2011 by Lena {JOYfilledfamily} Filed Under: 12 December, 12 December Saints, Advent, Christmas, Novena, St. Andrew 21 Comments

Starts on St. Andrew’s Feast Day – November 30 ~ Ends on Christmas Eve – December 24

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St. Andrew Christmas Novena

Hail and blessed be the hour and moment in which the Son of God was born of the most pure Virgin Mary, at midnight, in Bethlehem, in piercing cold. In that hour, vouchsafe, O my God! to hear my prayer and grant my desires, through the merits of Our Saviour Jesus Christ, and of His Blessed Mother. Amen.

~~~

I created a printable novena card. You may print and share, freely.

***UPDATE***

Christmas Novena Chaplet

Advent Mix-up

November 29, 2011 by Lena {JOYfilledfamily} Filed Under: Advent, Papi 2 Comments

Papi had a bit of a mix up. He was so excited to see the Advent box come in from the garage, that he mistook his Advent wreath for the girls’ St. Lucia Crown.

May we all have Papi’s excitement this Advent as we prepare our hearts for Jesus.

Be Watchful! Be Alert!

November 29, 2011 by Lena {JOYfilledfamily} Filed Under: Advent 4 Comments

“ Be Watchful! Be Alert!…to receive Christ, in whatever form he may come to us…As we know neither the day nor the hour, let us keep our hearts clean and free and ready to meet Jesus when He comes…”

~Bl. Teresa of Calcutta

Let us allow the Virgin Mary, Mother of the God-who-comes and Mother of Hope, to guide us in this waiting.

May She whom we will celebrate as Immaculate in a few days obtain for us that we be found holy and immaculate in love at the coming of Our Lord Jesus Christ.

~Pope Benedict XVI

New Pancakes

November 27, 2011 by Lena {JOYfilledfamily} Filed Under: Breakfast, Recipes

The kids needed a break from eggs for breakfast. Dad and I decided to try three recipes this morning. We wanted to find a go to pancake recipe for our new family recipe book.

We have a winner!!!

~~~

The Best Paleo Pancake Recipe

This was our winning recipe. The consistency and taste was perfection.

Coconut Flour Pancakes

This was our second fav. They were tasty but the consistency was a bit off for us.

Almond Meal Griddle Cakes

This was our least favorite recipe. Perhaps its because we substituted the almond meal with coconut flour. We couldn’t even cook these babies. My eldest daughter used this batch for her pie crust. It worked great as a pie crust.

Little PEACE of Italy

November 26, 2011 by Lena {JOYfilledfamily} Filed Under: Birthday, Marriage, Retreat

we escaped for the weekend in celebration of dad’s birthday. it was a last minute getaway that came together within four days and managed to stay within our very limited budget. praise God!

we traveled to a near-by getaway that seemed like we were in another country—Castillo de Amorosa in Napa, CA.

it was a first for us, on many levels. we haven’t taken a weekend getaway (without kids) in 6 six years, first trip to napa as a couple, and first wine tasting.

we were a king and queen for the weekend while rose manned the home front.

our trip started with sun. Mass (in the Extraordinary Form)at the castle’s chapel.

then we ventured on for a full tour and wine tasting. we were blessed to have a semi-private tour. there was only one other couple in our group. dad and I did not want to leave the authentic, medieval castle.

we laid low after our visit to the castle. we had no plans and winged the rest of the trip with whatever our hearts desired–simple food and relaxed days.

we thoroughly enjoyed discussing our date night questions.

it was a blessed weekend. we give all thanks and glory to the GOOD LORD!

Happy Birthday, my love. May you continue to seek the intercession of the Holy family and surrender to His will.

New Pancakes

November 26, 2011 by JOYfilledWELLNESS Filed Under: Breakfast, Recipes 2 Comments

The kids needed a break from eggs for breakfast. Dad and I decided to try three recipes this morning. We wanted to find a go to pancake recipe for our new family recipe book.

We have a winner!!!

~~~

The Best Paleo Pancake Recipe

This was our winning recipe. The consistency and taste was perfection.

Coconut Flour Pancakes

This was our second fav. They were tasty but the consistency was a bit off for us.

Almond Meal Griddle Cakes

Fast Food

November 26, 2011 by JOYfilledWELLNESS Filed Under: Dinning Out Leave a Comment

Dad and I got away for the weekend. We ate clean, majority of the time away from home but we did splurge. We found a drive-in burger stand in St. Helena—Gott’s Roadside. The line was out to the street so we figured it had to be good.
It far surpassed our expectations. Gott’s serves up a mean grass-fed beef burger.
The menu is packed with mouth-watering items but Dad and I craved a juicy burger.

On our visit, (yes, we visited Gott’s more than once), we tried the Cheeseburger and Wisconsin Sourdough. We also had the sweet potato fries. I begged for more so Dad took me to their other location in Napa. I ventured out and tried the Western Bacon Blue King and Dad had the Texas Burger. We shared the garlic fries.

Healthy Options for Thanksgiving

November 25, 2011 by JOYfilledWELLNESS Filed Under: Dinner, Recipes, Sides, Thanksgiving Day Leave a Comment

We celebrated Thanksgiving at my sis’s house. She is very supportive of our new lifestyle change and was very diligent to be certain that we would have options come dinner time. We brought some of our own dishes to help us with our choices.

~~~

Garlic and Herb Mashed Cauliflower

This was a delicious dish once we got the cauliflower to the right consistency. Rose ended up using the hand-held emulsion blender. We never missed the mashed potatoes.

Slightly Sweet Cranberry Sauce

Dad can’t go without homemade cranberry sauce. This definitely topped his traditional recipe that was loaded with sugar. Those who like cranberry sauce, loved this recipe. I could have used some honey for more sweetness but overall, I enjoyed it.

Garlic Roasted Sweet Potatoes

This was my favorite side. It was good hot or cold. This would be a great snack to have handy in the fridge.

Stuffed Mushrooms

This is a family favorite and it was one of our splurges. Maybe, one day, I’ll be able to find a suitable substitute. I did eliminate the Worchester Sauce.

Grain Free Carrot Cake

Yummmmmmmmmmmmm!!! I’m sure there was a time when I would gawk at the idea of a healthy dessert option, this dessert did away with all my past hang-ups. We have been eating it non-stop since Thanksgiving Day. Dragonfly has even led the troops in eating it for breakfast.

Papa’s Turkey

This was the star of the show.

Another Year Closer to….

November 23, 2011 by Lena {JOYfilledfamily} Filed Under: Birthday, Dad

…Our Heavenly Father!

Dad celebrated a birthday on Nov. 18 – Dedication of the Basilicas of the Holy Apostles Peter and Paul.

We celebrated Dad’s birthday by fulfilling his simple requests. This included a deviation from our normal diet to accommodate his cake request–Tiramisu Cake. It was delish!

He was showered with gifts from our GFG. They gave him slippers, shirt and tie, suit, iPhone accessory, money, and plenty of drawings. Rose also gave Dad, my favorite gift, a weekend of babysitting for the Little’s so that Dad and I could take an overnight trip.

In addition to celebrating Dad and gift giving, I love reflecting on they ways that Dad blesses me.

I am blessed to…

grow in faith with you.

have you by my side for constant encouragement and a good laugh.

receive your unconditional love.

watch you shower our GFG with love and affection.

be led by your humble headship of our family.

have my needs met by you on a regular basis.

serve you.

grow old with you.

hear from you on a regular basis via phone/text while you’re out.

have you include me in all of your experiences.

witness your ever growing devotion to all that is good and pleasing to Our Lord, Jesus Christ.

reach a higher level of intimacy with you, year after year.

share everything with you.

be called your wife!

May the Good Lord continue to lead us closer together so that we can truly become one and give Him glory.

Papa’s Turkey

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