Seph's First Lenten Season

Erring on the Side of Love

I shall accommodate myself to them as far as I can, and as long as I live I shall serve God in them in unfeigned love.-St. Bernard

Last month there were a couple weeks that had some moments of funk in them. The funk came and went at random times. My funk has lead me to, at times, feel insecure as a mommy. Insecure in my abilities, in my judgement calls, my decisions, my sense of accomplishment, and more. So, after the funk coming here and there as well as trying to embrace the day-to-day (or moment-to-moment, for that matter) call to love and selflessness of motherhood, I decided that being a mommy is tough stuff (Such insight, right?! I blame sleep deprivation. That is all.). As soon as I get a grasp of all the to-do's of my little one something new comes up that I have to figure out how to approach in the best and most loving way possible.

After some thought I realized that this experience of funk is a little different for me. Let me explain.

Prior to mommyhood, I graduated from high school and went on to undergraduate school to do the same, which then helped me get into graduate school. I went to graduate school which prepared me to become a licensed professional. I sought out mentors and maintained my caliber through my colleagues, supervision, and continuing education. I then transitioned to a new profession, after some discernment, through seeking out a mentor program. This mentor program as well as my new colleagues helped prepare me to be the best that I could be. Throughout all this time I've always had some sort of feedback, educational foundation, colleague, or book I could rely on for guidance, education, and encouragement.

All these things that I excelled at previous to becoming a mama all came with specific foundational preparations and societal/cultural praises. And then there was motherhood. My vocation. A vocation that I am so glad that I was chosen for by our Lord. The vocation of being a mother full-time so that I can raise my son and be the best wife possible. A vocation (not truly considered a career by our culture) but one that has challenged me more than the careers that I have experienced up to this point in my life. One that I've desired for so long. This vocation was a seed that was planted in my heart many years ago. A seed which I then nourished with prayer and the sacraments. And yet, after everything has been said and done, this beautiful vocation came with no instructions or educational preparation.

Sure, there is always the wonderful support and ways that are passed down from parents (which I do treasure and have helped), and there's what you can remember from growing up, the doctors who know best, the internet with a plethora of information, as well as all the oodles of books and theories that each have their own say as to what is the ultimate best thing for your child. All of these things are good (Sometimes overwhelming, but good nonetheless.). But when it comes down to the day-to-day, there is nothing that can prepare you for all that comes with raising another human being with a beautiful and perfect soul.

As you can only imagine, I am not a fan of the funk in any capacity except for this: that it has encouraged me to pray more, to seek God more, spend more time meditating on our Blessed Mother, to search from within and try to better myself, and to reach out to other moms. These amazing women who have been where I am now and the amazing ones that are exactly where I am now. The beautiful thing about my reaching out to these lovely women has been the responses that I consistently received. I've found there to be a common theme. A theme of love.

Which leads me to this new blog. The month of January has been devoted to transferring my previous blog to this present one. In this time I was forced to find a new blog title, which was exciting and exhausting because I, of course, want something that is meaningful and just 'perfect'. And like I mentioned before, through all my conversations with friends and loved ones, the theme of love was constant.

These friends and loved ones reminded me that no other person will love my child the way I do. That all throughout time, God intended for this little one to be under my care, and that that is good. That I should trust that. That I should trust the deep-rooted love that I have for my son whom I carried in my womb, by the grace of God. I was reminded that, because I love him so much, all that I do is therefore done with love by default. And as we all know, God is love, making my efforts of Him and good. I was also reminded that I am not alone. I was encouraged to trust the love and the path God has given to me that ultimately pours forth onto my husband, my son, my family, my friends, and all I meet.

During these times of prayer and reflection, I picked up a book that is very dear to me - Fulfillment of all Desires by Ralph Martin. In there he was talking about the fruits of our work. He was talking about love. At one particular part he was sharing about St. Bernard and how he preferred to "Err on the side of love" when it came to all things. That statement clicked for me. When in doubt, when I am confused, when I am insecure in my own abilities, I need just err on the side of love as well as remember the value of what I am doing which I was reminded of by stumbling across Venerable Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen's wisdom below.

To value only what can be "sold" is to defile what is truly precious. The innocent joy of childhood, the devotedness of a wife, the self sacrificing service of a daughter--none of these have an earthly market. To reduce everything to the dirty scales of economic values is to forget that some gifts, like Mary's, are so precious that the heart that offers them will be praised as long as time endures.
―Venerable Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen

After all the thoughts, prayers, and readings, the title of this blog was born. In my life, I do want to remember this. I want to remember how St. Bernard lived his life erring on the side of love rather than caution (i.e. fear, insecurities, doubt, etc). I want to emulate this way of love, all the while, remembering the value of motherhood - the vocation I have been gifted by my sweet Lord.

Hopefully I can continue on remembering this way of love and choose to live it with all that I am; meanwhile, soaking up all the amazing goodness my son and husband, family and friends all share with me.

Have you ever experienced feelings like the ones I mention? How did you discern them? Or was transitioning to motherhood one filled with grace and ease? If so, what's your secret?

St. Bernard, Pray for us.

Archbishop Fulton Sheen, Servant of God, Pray for us.

I love these two!

8 Months and Counting

The goodness just keeps on coming. Lots of foods, hanging out with friends, family, and more.

You love looking through your books. There are a couple of favorites you have: Stories Jesus Told, Ten Little Fingers and Ten Little Toes, and Busy Bible Storybook.The third book listed of these three has a pop-up page that you absolutely love. You will open and close it till you find it again. Fun stuff for you, little man.

You also love story time with Daddy. You and him read a book every night before bed. You are so engaged the whole time!

Our friend, Jessy, lost her Daddy this past month. You got all dressed up and brought many smiles to many faces. You were such a sweet boy and Jess loves you very much!

Daddy and Mama celebrated our 2 year anniversary. While we went to dinner you spent some quality time with Rebekah. You have tons of fun with her and she loves seeing you!

You look forward to play time with Daddy. I think it's definitely your favorite time. You laugh, squeal, roll, army crawl, face dive, push up, pull, and so much more. Daddy loves this time too.

We all go to Bible Study every Thursday still. You continue to enjoy watching all the kids playing while we have our Bible Study discussion.

Baby boy you have 6 teeth! Your top 4 have been making their way out this month and definitely had a break through.You've been exploring your little chompers and all their functionality.

You are army crawling and getting on all fours. You have yet to master full-on crawling but you definitely know how to make your way around.

Bath time is a favorite for you. You love the water. It calms you so much. You take one every night with Daddy and Mama's help.

You continue to love solids. You've had: zucchini, yellow squash, sweet potato with garlic seasoning, kiwi, chicken, cucumber, potato, celery, and apple sauce. You continue to enjoy all the other foods you gobbled in the previous months as well as your new sippy cup! Oh, how you love your sippy cup with a straw. Thank you, BLW for a healthy eating baby boy who loves his food!

You have had tons of fun seeing all of your friends! You've had quite a few playdates this month. We went to hang out with Gianna and Theresa, Daniel, George, Laura, and Max, Ben, Em, and Greg, Claire and Anna, and even Molly and Lucy made an appearance while all the Dad's were getting to work! You and I are very blessed, little one. God has blessed us with some amazing friends to share good times with.

It appears that you and Daniel are having a very intriguing conversation in the picture above.

Below, is when we went over to George, Laura, and Max's house while Daddy helped all the other Dad's move our friends into their new home. You liked the pop up toys.

You enjoy your mornings in Daddy and Mama's bed. You roll around everywhere. You would even roll off the bed if I let you. You enjoy waking up Daddy and, as much as he appreciates his sleep, I know he loves your little hands waking him up.

Also, you are quite the babbler. You have the skill of baby babble down. And of course we have to throw in some mad squealing abilities. This house will never be the same and we have you to thank for that.

There is something about this purple lid that you love. You will take this lid on and off as many times as we put it on. It's a challenge that you are always up for. 

You've been signing Milk this month. It's so exciting seeing you communicate with us through sign! Excited for you to start using more signs we've been learning.

Mama's friend from grad school, along with her two daughters and husband, visited us on their drive through Texas back up to Wisconsin. They loved meeting you and Mama was so happy to see her friend that she hadn't seen in so long!

Uncle Godfather ran a 1/2 marathon trail run! Your uncle loves challenges like these and would love you to grow up and enjoy them too. He drove over to our place after our run and spent some time with you. Y'all had fun, as always.

This month, we actually got to see Uncle Godfather three times! He loves you so much and is so proud of you and all you are doing. We also got to see Uncle Godfather's girlfriend for lunch one Saturday, which was so nice.

You are so wonderful at restaurants! You wait patiently for your meal and sit up like a big boy; meanwhile, observe all that is going on around us. 

It was a great month, sweetheart! We are really enjoying watching your sweet and fun personality develop. We're so proud of you!

Love you, 

Mama

Happy Anniversary, my love.

It's so hard to believe it's been two years! Only because it has flown by and so much has happened - so much good that is. We've been so blessed in our marriage. I have loved being married to you. You, the amazing man that God brought into my life so many years ago.

Thank you for being so wonderful. Thank you for being so kind. Thank you for your patience. For your goodness. For your gentle heart. For the way you care for me and our son. Thank you for your strength and determination. Thank you for always encouraging me to be me and to strive to be better. Thank you for the way you father our son. It's beautiful. It's more than beautiful. Thank you. In all, Thank you for the way you love me - your wife and mother of your son.














Image of happy wife below.

Happy anniversary, my love, my husband, and my best friend. 

Do not look forward in fear to the changes of life; Rather look to them with full hope that as they arise, God, whose very own you are, will lead you safely through all things; And when you cannot stand it, God will carry you in His arms. Do not fear what may happen tomorrow; The same everlasting Father who cares for you today will take care of you today and every day. He will either shield you from suffering or will give you unfailing strength to bear it. Be at peace and put aside all anxious thoughts and imaginations. -St. Francis de Sales

Month 7 (a month late)

Ice cream, home videos, lots of tissue/meds, and missing our families

First of all, Happy New Years’s Eve to everyone! The start of a new year is always such a great time, normally spent with family and/or friends. Bringing in the new year with special loved ones has always been important to GeekMan and I and we fondly can look back on all the wonderful NYE get togethers we’ve been blessed with.

But this year is turning out to be a little different.

I am curled up under a blanket, in bed, with a low grade fever, a cough/itchy throat, sinus pressure along with a mild headache that refuses to go away, and a runny/stuffed nose. Yes, thank you sinus infection. It has been awhile since we met but as you would have it you are here with me now.

Meanwhile, I am listening to my wonderful Husband sing, dance, and play with our sweet Bigfoot. I love hearing them interact and listening to them while in bed is definitely making my soul happy.

This NYE is a bit different from many that we have had previous. First off, I’m sick (boo!); secondly, we are away from family and friends; and thirdly, we have the sweetest new addition to our family - fresh from my womb just a little over 6 months ago.  All of the above just means we have to get creative. GeekMan and I decided a perfect way to bring in the new year would be to watch old home videos from 2011, which I am so excited about. We’re talking family trip videos, many of Bigfoots firsts, Bigfoots arrival and all that led up to it, holidays, family, friends and more! I can’t think of a more perfect way to spend our time tonight given my health isn’t up to par for anything else.

I guess, the point in getting this post out is that, while in bed, I remember Sister K (Special K) and how she always encouraged me to see the blessings in all times and to be thankful. Without being sick the idea of reflecting on our year via all the videos we took may not have happened at all. And now we have this to hopefully do every year (whether that be a few days after the NY since we’ll be with family+friends or on NYE like today). As much as we’ll miss bringing in the New Year with family we love, I’m thankful that we get to have this special time to do so with our little family - not to mention, dear husband got me a pint of some delicious looking Blue Bell ice cream! Yes, our NYE plans had to be changed a bit last minute. But, thank you Lord for the wonderful family that you have given us that always have a place ready for our little family come the holidays.

I admit, I was pretty bummed and really missing that we wouldn’t be celebrating the new year with family. And, I really don’t like being sick! But, after some bed time and listening to my amazing husband and wonderful little boy I think I have things in better perspective. All it took was opening my eyes, ears, heart, and soul to our God who is always loving us and desires good things for those who love Him. How a thankful heart can change everything!

Family, we miss you, love you and are so grateful for you! Holy Family, pray for us all, near and far, those we know and those we don’t.

Any others out there doing something different this year? Prayers for a wonderful time bringing in the new year as well as a blessed 2012!

Family, become what you are…the family has the mission to guard, reveal, and communicate love, and this is a living reflection of and a real sharing in God’s love for humanity and the love of Christ the Lord for the Church His bride. -Blessed John Paul II

Married couples ought to pray together each night, for their commonprayer is more than the separate prayer of each. -Archbishop Fulton Sheen

Holy Family, Pray for us.

Husbands have 3 jobs: Protect her. Provide for her. Position her togrow in Christ. -Jimmy Needham