Day 9 - St Anne Novena (final day)

Most holy mother of the Virgin Mary, glorious Saint Anne, I, a miserable sinner, confiding in your kindness, choose you today as my special advocate. I offer all my interests to your care and maternal solicitude. O my very good mother and advocate, deign to accept me and to adopt me as your child.

O glorious Saint Anne, I beg you, by the passion of my most loving Jesus, the Son of Mary, your most holy daughter, to assist me in all the necessities both of my body and my soul. Venerable Mother, I beg you to obtain for me the favor I seek in this novena…

(State your intention here.)

…and the grace of leading a life perfectly conformable in all things to the Divine Will. I place my soul in your hands and in those of your kind daughter. I ask for your favor in order that, appearing under your patronage before the Supreme Judge, He may find me worthy of enjoying His Divine Presence in your holy companionship in Heaven.

Amen.

Pray for us, Saint Anne and Saint Joachim!

That we may be made worthy of the promises of Christ.

Day 8 - Saint Anne Novena

Remember, O Saint Anne, you whose name signifies grace and mercy, that never was it known that anyone who fled to your protection, implored your help, and sought your intercession was left unaided. Inspired with this confidence, I fly unto you, good, and kind mother; I take refuge at your feet, burdened with the weight of my sins. O holy mother of the Immaculate Virgin Mary, despise not my petition…

(State your intention here.)

…but hear me and grant my prayer.

Amen.

Pray for us, Saint Anne and Saint Joachim!

That we may be made worthy of the promises of Christ.

Day 7 - Saint Anne Novena

O Good Saint Anne, so justly called the mother of the infirm, the cure for those who suffer from disease, look kindly upon the sick for whom I pray.

Alleviate their sufferings; cause them to sanctify their sufferings by patience and complete submission to the Divine Will; finally deign to obtain health for them and with it the firm resolution to honor Jesus, Mary, and yourself by the faithful performance of duties.

But, merciful Saint Anne, I ask you above all for the salvation of my soul, rather than bodily health, for I am convinced that this fleeting life is given us solely to assure us a better one. I cannot obtain that better life without the help of God’s graces. I earnestly beg them of you for the sick and for myself, especially the petition for which I am making in this novena…

(State your intention here.)

…through the merits of our Lord Jesus Christ, through the intercession of His Immaculate Mother, and through your efficacious and powerful mediation, I pray.

Amen.

Pray for us, Saint Anne and Saint Joachim!

That we may be made worthy of the promises of Christ.

Day 6 - Saint Anne Novena

Glorious Saint Anne, mother of the Mother of God, I beg your powerful intercession for the freedom from my sins and the assistance I need in my troubles…

(State your intention here.)

What can I not hope for if you deign to take me under your protection? The Most High has been pleased to grant the prayers of sinners, whenever you have been charitable enough to be their advocate.

Therefore, I beg you to help me in all spiritual and temporal dangers; to guide me in the true path of Christian perfection, and finally to obtain for me the grace of a happy death, so that I may contemplate your beloved Jesus and daughter Mary in your loving companionship throughout all eternity.

Amen.

Pray for us, Saint Anne and Saint Joachim!

That we may be made worthy of the promises of Christ.

Day 5 - St Anne Novena

Great Saint Anne, how far I am from resembling you. I so easily give way to impatience and discouragement; and so easily give up praying when God does not at once answer my request. Prayer is the key to all heavenly treasures and I cannot pray, because my weak faith and lack of confidence fail me at the slightest delay. O my powerful protectress, come to my aid, listen to my petition…

(State your intention here.)

Make my confidence and fervor, supported by the promise of Jesus Christ, increase as the trial to which God in His goodness subjects me is prolonged, that I may obtain like you more than I can venture to ask for. In the future I will remember that I am made for heaven and not for earth; for eternity and not for time; that consequently I must ask, above all, the salvation of my soul which is assured to all who pray properly and who persevere in prayer.

Amen.

Pray for us, Saint Anne and Saint Joachim!

That we may be made worthy of the promises of Christ.

Day 4 St Anne Novena

Glorious Saint Anne, I kneel in confidence at your feet, for you also have tasted the bitterness and sorrow of life. My need, the cause of my request, is…

(State your intention here.)

Good Saint Anne, you who did suffer much during the twenty years that preceded your glorious maternity, I beseech you, by all your sufferings and humiliations, to grant my prayer.

I pray to you, through your love for your glorious spouse Saint Joachim, through your love for your immaculate child, through the joy you did feel at the moment of her happy birth, not to refuse me. Bless me, bless my family and all who are dear to me, so that some day we may all be with you in the glory of heaven, for all eternity.

Amen.

Pray for us, Saint Anne and Saint Joachim!

That we may be made worthy of the promises of Christ.

Day 3

Beloved of Jesus, Mary and Joseph, mother of the Queen of Heaven, take us and all who are dear to us under your special care. Obtain for us the virtues you instilled in the heart of her who was destined to become Mother of God, and the graces with which you were endowed. O model of Christian womanhood, pray that we may imitate your example in our homes and families, listen to our petitions,

(State your intention here.)

Guardian of the infancy and childhood of the most Blessed Virgin Mary, obtain the graces necessary for all who enter the marriage state, that imitating your virtues they may sanctify their homes and lead the souls entrusted to their care to eternal glory.

Amen.

Pray for us, Saint Anne and Saint Joachim!

That we may be made worthy of the promises of Christ.

Day at the Museum and Saint Anne Novena - Day 2

Today is Day 2 of the Saint Anne novena and it has been a wonderful day! Aside the fact that I just found out that I have to have a colonoscopy, woo! (can you feel my excitement!) EM, S and I spent the afternoon at the Chrysler Museum. It was so much fun, I absolutely love museums. Though I am not a big fan of central american sculpture and pottery, I am a huge fan of european classics! You always see the "usual" paintings of the Virgin Mary, or the many different depictions of Christ...All which I love. However today we stumbled upon St. Sebastian! I was so excited I had a total Catholic nerd moment! #youknowyourecatholicwhen ... you pose your stroller in front of paintings with your son's patron saint. #noshame

Earlier on however we saw this gorgeous statue...of St. Anne. I was pretty surprised, St. Sebastian and St. Anne are two which are not seen very often. It was fitting that during the novena in her honor, asking for her intercession, we see of sign of her presence in our lives.

With that here is Day 2!

Glorious Saint Anne, how can you be otherwise than overflowing with tenderness toward sinners like myself, since you are the grandmother of Him who shed His blood for us, and the mother of her whom the saints call advocate of sinners? To you, therefore, I address my prayers with confidence.

Vouchsafe to commend me to Jesus and Mary so that, at your request, I may be granted remission of my sins, perseverance, the love of God, charity for all mankind, and the special grace of…

(State your intention here.)

…for which I stand in need at the present time. O most powerful protectress, let me not lose my soul, but pray for me that through the merits of Jesus Christ and the intercession of Mary, I may have the great happiness of seeing them, of loving and praising them with you through all eternity.

Amen.

Pray for us, Saint Anne and Saint Joachim!

That we may be made worthy of the promises of Christ.

XOMB

Novena to Saint Anne

Today marks Day 1 of the Novena to Saint Anne. (the mama of the Blessed Mother!) I am beyond excited to be saying this novena. Novenas are my favorite way of strengthening my prayer life while also learning about all the great saints and devotions that are available to us. God is so great in His infinite mercy and we are truly fortunate to have been given these saints to help us by their example. People are known to pray to Saint Anne for a holy spouse, however you can ask her for any intention. I will be praying for my future daughter and son-in-laws, the strengthening of my own marriage, and for a special intention.

Day 1

Great Saint Anne, engrave indelibly on my heart and in my mind the words that have reclaimed and sanctified so many sinners:

“What shall it profit a man to gain the whole world if he lose his own soul?” May this be the principle fruit of these prayers by which I will strive to honor you during this novena.

At your feet renew my resolution to invoke you daily, not only for the success of my temporal affairs and to be preserved from sickness and suffering, but above all, that I may be preserved from all sin, that I may gain eternal salvation and that I will receive the special grace of…

(State your intention here.)

O most powerful Saint Anne, do not let me lose my soul, but obtain for me the grace of heaven, there with you, your blessed spouse, and your glorious daughter, to sing the praise of the Most Holy and Adorable Trinity forever and ever.

Amen.

Pray for us, Saint Anne and Saint Joachim!

That we may be made worthy of the promises of Christ.

XOMB

Pulled Pork

10:30 pm a few night ago my sweet mama texts me asking if I'm awake. Knowing she is usually in bed by this point it had me a little concerned. I quickly responded with an "of course, what's wrong"...typical Italian assuming the worse! Nothing...no response then after many texts on my part freaking out, she finally asks if she can call me. At this point I'm really freaked and am running through every possible horrible scenario in my head. I answer with a quick "are you ok?! what's going on?!" and she proceeds to tell him how her phone is possessed and wont send text messages and that she simply wanted to tell me about the super simple pulled pork crock pot recipe that she made that night.

Yes...I had a mild heart attack because my dear sweet mama wanted to share a recipe! Gotta love her! After we both cracked up at how scared I had been thinking of the first doom and gloom situation I could possibly come up with she proceeded to tell me of the yumminess she had made that night.

As every true self respecting southerner knows coleslaw is a must on top of any bbq sandwich. 

Crock Pot Pulled Pork 

* Pork, any fairly priced cut will do

* 1 can of Rootbeer

* Bottle of favorite BBQ sauce

All you do is place the pork piece into a crock pot and pour in the rootbeer. Then allow it to cook on high for 4-6 hours (depends on size of meat). After the meat is fully cooked pull apart with two forks. Allow it to sit in the turned off crock pot absorbing as much of the juices as possible. When you are ready to serve strain the cooking liquid and place the meat back into the crock pot and add the bbq sauce...again quantities are based on how much meat you have...can you have too much bbq sauce?!

The coleslaw was super easy and you could definitely just buy some already made from any grocery store. I made my own and used pre-made coleslaw mix and then added mayo, apple cider vinegar, dry mustard, celery seed, salt and pepper...all to taste. Of course there are plenty of very yummy coleslaw recipes on the internet so just make your favorite. Let me know what you think! I just love easy crock pot meals that taste as though you have slaved away in a kitchen! What are your favorites?

XOMB

First Meal Plan

                                                 

So I used my Home Base Binder (more info in my previous post) for meal planning, something that it is definitely not my forte but it sure was fun! Anytime I can color code things I'm a happy girl!! What do you think? I love how structured it all is! 

I tried to stick to main things I already had in the house. ie...chicken breast, LOTS of burger meat, pork, quinoa, rice and pasta (but what self respecting Italian doesn't always have a few boxes on hand) then I googled. I found this great blog called Damn Delicious and I found lots of goodies! She too tries to meal plan in a similar manner! I'm going to be trying her quinoa stuffed bell peppers and tonkatsu pork cutlets! The 19th will be EM's 25th birthday ...HURRAY...he requested homemade pizza and I am going to surprise him with a cake (already had the mix!). Now the next step is to see if I can manage to get all this within our budget...guess I shall have to learn to coupon! Any coupon queens out there?

XOMB

Meal Planning

I must admit I have been very bad at staying accountable and posting regularly! Sorry ya'll! S is truly amazing yet has been incredibly clingy recently and getting used to juggling all my mommy duties has not been the easiest. I hope to have finally mastered it...ha! Well at least I got the gist down so I can manage to do more than one thing at a time. Mothers should all be renamed...we are all officially master jugglers!

Recently S has discovered his insane strength (though he has always possessed it) and has refused to sit in his swing for more than just a nap...do any moms have some advice on keeping the babe occupied while trying to clean? Suggestions welcome! I cannot seem to get anything done...the few minutes he remains in his swing I take advantage and eat...you know survival and all. As I type this he has decided it is a good idea to steal my right hand and suck/chomp on my thumb...never his own. How convenient for him!

So something I have wanted to start and have mentioned in the past is simplifying our lives. I have been known to be far less than organized and it is time for a change! Well due to a very generous friend (M) I am now the new owner of the Emily Ley Home Base Binder ! I am so excited for this! Not to mention the Simplified Journal which was also a gift! This has it all! Sections like...Family, Contacts (to simply paste business cards in! how GENIUS!) projects, MEAL PLANNING, Finances and Heart. It really has everything a mama would need to help her family stay organized! With Gorgeous colors and tabs! Head on over to Emily's site...linked above and check it out!

Thanks to this little beauty I am attempting to meal plan. Something I have never been very good at. EM really would love for me to a little more structured, and honestly I completely agree! It's is a skill I have always wanted yet have never attained. So here we go...meal planning!

Any words of advice before I dive in?

XOMB