What I Wore Sunday ~ The Beginning of Our Good-Byes

After a long week filled with the mental, physical and emotional demands of packing up hearts and home for yet another move, I was completely and utterly drained.  Trying to peel my lifeless body out of bed at a decent hour this morning was a mortification of great proportions.  But, miraculously I arose, thanking God, from the depths of my being, for creating Sunday, a day of rest for his children, a day to be revived and renewed, a day to just be.

As Steve and I went through our normal Sunday morning razzle-dazzle routine, both of us knew, without saying a word to one another, that today would be the beginning of a series of good-byes, as we prepare for our departure on Tuesday. We're not completely immersed in the life and happenings at our church, so we don't actually know everyone who belongs to our parish. Aside from sponsoring the Guardians of the Alter program, we're, just the funny couple with the troop of boys that (tries) to sit towards the front on Sundays, so that our kids can see "Fahder" up close. Nonetheless, the friends we did make at St. Dominic's are very special to us, and we hoped for the opportunity to thank them for being a part of our lives.

To our great surprise, our friend, Sister Mary Pieta, from the Franciscan Sisters of the Renewal was at Mass. We have known sister Mary since she was in high school, and were blessed to be a part of her vocation discernment process.  One of our family goals is to let the boys choose any place in the U.S.A. that they would like to visit in honor of their 8th grade graduation.  Benedict has asked to see New York, City.  After visiting with Sister Mary about her order and their ministries, we learned that we can spend at least a couple of our anticipated vacation days volunteering with the Franciscan Sisters serving the poor.  What a tremendous experience that would be for our family!!

Today, we also extended parting wishes to our close friend, Joel McClure, who will be heading to the seminary in Denver for his first semester of study this week.  Both Joel and Sister Mary were able to join us for lunch after Mass today.  What a joy it was to share a meal with two incredibly beautiful souls!  Rich conversation in matters of faith and family life filled my cup with gladness and gratitude. As I looked down the table at our five sons munching on chips and queso, trying to ignore the drips down happy chins and onto untucked shirts, I smiled, knowing that God has a great plan and purpose for their lives too.

This morning I was in the mood to put on something un-fussy, something fresh, something I didn't have to iron.  This is what I came up with:

Skirt - Target

Tank - Target

Cardigan - Old Navy

Shoes - Sketchers from Shoe Carnival

Accessories:

Belt - Target

Necklace - Old Navy

Earrings - Target

Bracelets - Francescas

Friendship is unnecessary, like philosophy, like art... 

It has no survival value; rather it is one of those things that give value to survival. 

- C.S. Lewis 

More lovelies here!