Author: Wanda

I am a Catholic widow, mother, grandmother, friend and according to my kids just a little bit crazy. My faith is paramount in my life. Spending time with my family, especially my four grandchildren is one of my most treasured blessings. I love Redskins football, Phillies baseball, NASCAR, quilting, genealogy, and am a bibliophile and struggling blogger.

Solemnity The Sacred Heart Of Jesus

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This devotion goes back to at least the 11th century but was a private devotion. On June 16, 1695 Jesus appeared to St. Margaret Mary Alacoque (1647-1690) and asked her to request that the Feast of the Sacred Heart be celebrated on the Friday after the octave (or eighth day) of the Feast of Corpus Christi, in reparation for the ingratitude of men for the sacrifice that Christ had made for them. After the death of St. Margaret Mary the devotion became popular in France but it took until 1856 for Pope Pius IX to extend the feast to the universal Church. This feast is celebrated 19 days after Pentecost and therefor is a movable feast. This year the Solemnity of the Sacred Heart Of Jesus is June 12, 2015.

Here is the novena I am saying in preparation for the Feast of the Sacred Heart of Jesus. It is prayed for nine days.

Novena to the Sacred Heart

O my Jesus, Thou has said: “Truly I say to you, ask and it will be given you, seek and you will find, knock and it will be opened to you.” Behold I knock, I seek, and I ask for the grace of [state your request here].

Our Father, Hail Mary, Glory be

Sacred Heart of Jesus, I place all my trust in Thee.

O my Jesus, Thou hast said: “Truly, I say to you, if you ask anything of the Father in My name, He will give it to you.” Behold, in Thy name, I ask the Father for the grace of [request].

Our Father, Hail Mary, Glory be

Sacred Heart of Jesus, I place all my trust in Thee.

O my Jesus, thou has said: “Truly I say to you, Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my words shall not pass away.” Encouraged by Thy infallible words, I now ask for the grace of [request].

Our Father, Hail Mary, Glory be

Sacred Heart of Jesus, I place all my trust in Thee.

Let us pray.

O Sacred Heart of Jesus, for Whom it is impossible not to have compassion on the afflicted, have mercy on us miserable sinners and grant us the grace which we ask of Thee, through the Sorrowful and Immaculate Heart of Mary, thy tender Mother and ours.

Hail, Holy Queen

It’s Race Day Sunday!

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Today they are racing in Pocono, PA. Kasey has done well at this track in the past and has a win there. He needs a win to get into the chase and I’m hoping it will be here. He was third fastest in final practice yesterday. I’m all ready to watch the race with my son and his fiance and hubby. Can’t you tell?

Go Kasey Winnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnn!!!

Photo Friday

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I shot this photo outside of my kitchen window. I think this is a wild magnolia tree. I keep meaning to look it up to make sure, but I haven’t done it yet. We trimmed it back last fall and it really has taken off this year. Taking pictures of flowers is a favorite of mine. This tree was in the ice storm we had a couple of years ago. I got a great shot of ice dripping off of a leaf.

New Addition To My Quilt Themed Jewelry

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I have been making jewelry for a while now. I started with quilt themed earrings. Recently I branched out with kilt pins. I make them in two sizes. One that holds three charms and one that holds five charms. They have been a really big hit at the quilt shows and guild meetings. Here is what they look like.

They really are fun. Making jewelry is new for me. I have always envied people who are creative like that. My talents have always run toward needle work. My walls back home were covered with cross stitch, crewel, candlewicking, embroidery and needle punch rugs and wall hangings. After I moved down here to North Carolina I learned how to quilt. This has become my new passion. My grandchildren get at least one quilt every two years and many years they get one a year. Now that they are bigger I’m sure that will slow down. I actually just got all the fabric to make each one of them a new quilt. They are long overdue.
I have been making table runners and wall hangings for myself now. You can only use so many bed quilts. Right?

It’s been raining here all day. We have had so much rain I can actually see the grass growing as it is coming down. OK maybe it’s weeds instead of grass. We don’t really have a lawn. Our house is in the middle of the woods. It’s so nice not to have to worry about all that yard work anymore. Gardening was never my strong suit, but we entertained a lot in the summer when we were in PA so it was necessary.

Well I think I have played enough on the computer today. I just love reading the blogs I follow. But before you know it hours have passed. So until next time.

Collapsible Thread Catchers

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Have you seen these? They are too cute. They are collapsible thread catchers. This past Tuesday at guild meeting we had a workshop on making them. You make them with a four inch wooden embroidery hoop. (inside hoop only) and a fat quarter of fabric. Very clever. I can’t for the life of me figure out how anyone came up with this. And I can’t figure out what makes them stand up. They are very handy to take with you to guild or wherever you go. Here is a link to directions. Give them a try. Bet you can’t just make one. 🙂 Last night my grandchildren had their dance recital. I was unable to attend, but my daughter sent me a photo she took after their dances. Here are Andrew and Alannah holding their trophies.

Today was the Dover race. I am a big, big Kasey Kahne fan. Well he had the best run he’s had in a few weeks. He finished 4th. I am so happy. I just love racing season. He was driving the Farmers Insurance 5 today. Congrats Kasey!

Sunset

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On Mother’s Day weekend I was with my daughter and granddaughter at a dance competition in Myrtle Beach, SC. I took this shot of the sun going down from our hotel room. I love to take pictures of sunsets. They make me feel all warm inside. I think that might make a pretty addition to a quilt.

Spring Has Sprung

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I have been in a terrible funk.  It was rainy and damp, cold and grey outside for so long that it really did me in.  But I am back to myself again.  I made a quilt top for one of the charity projects that I am involved with.  I had to order new side clamps for my longarm and got them last week.  I just tried them out quilting a baby quilt for my local hospital.  I love them!  They hold the tension to the back of the quilt perfectly.   However, I just caught some grief from my husband because I put my very last needle in the machine.  He is my acquisitions person and he hates to have to pay to rush an order.  So since the clamps work so well, I will start quilting the top I made the other day.

This Tuesday is my guild meeting.  I am giving a demo on one seam flying geese units.  It’s pretty cool and they add a bit of dimension to your piece.  Let me tell you, I have never been good at making flying geese units.  No matter what I do they always look wonky.  But I will definitely make them this way. My very first one was perfect.

I am in charge of my guild’s website.  I love working on it and I am always looking for interesting things to put on it.  It’s amazing how much of a resource it has turned out to be for our members. When I joined this guild in 2005 many of the members didn’t want anything to do with a website.  I think they were afraid of it.  So I designed a site and put it on a free server until their questions could be answered and I could show them how to navigate it.  It has been a huge success.

Well my driver NASCAR driver, Kasey Kahne, isn’t having a wonderful spring.  Hopefully tomorrow in Texas he will come alive and show the talent he has.  But win or lose, he’s still my favorite driver.  🙂

Have I ever said I love Pansies?  Well I do, I really do.  They are one of my all time favorite flowers. They are just happy and when I see them I am happy.  In November my daughter was organizing a plant sale for a fund raiser for her masters program association.  She got me a flat of pansies.  I waited forever for them to start to bloom.  They usually bloom all winter long down here in North Carolina, but this was a horrific winter.  Finally!   Here’s one of the pansies.  See?  Happy!

I cannot believe that it is April already.  Easter will be here before we know it.  It seems like it was just Ash Wednesday.  I have failed miserably this lent.  I try to fast and not eat between meals, but my blood sugar goes way too low.  I am happy however, with the progress I have made in my prayer life. And I feel that I have drawn closer to our Lord.  My son travels for his work and when he was in Puerto Rico in March, he got me a Rosary that was being sold for charity.   It’s got wooden beads and it is corded.  I love it.  What a nice thing for him to do.  He also sent me a table scarf from St. Thomas.  He was there on the same trip.  It’s very Springy  🙂

Feast Of Saint Joseph Husband Of Mary

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Today is the feast of St. Joseph the Husband of Mary and the foster father of Jesus.  It is one of the feasts of St. Joseph celebrated by the Catholic Church.  The other feast is St. Joseph the Worker celebrated on May 1st.  St. Joseph is the patron of the dying because, assuming he died before Jesus’ public life, he died with Jesus and Mary close to him, the way we all would like to leave this earth.
Joseph is also patron of the universal Church, fathers, carpenters, and social justice.  
All we know about St. Joseph we learn from Scripture which is very little.  We know he was born of the house of David in Bethlehem, lived in Nazareth and was betrothed to Mary.   There is no mention of him after Jesus was found in the temple in Jerusalem.  Scripture has left us with the most important knowledge: who he was,  “a righteous man” (Matthew 1:18).
Prayer to Saint Joseph

Oh, St. Joseph, whose protection is so great, so strong, so prompt before the throne of God. I place in you all my interests and desires. Oh, St. Joseph, do assist me by your powerful intercession, and obtain for me from your devine Son all spiritual blessings, through Jesus Christ, our Lord. So that, having engaged here below your heavenly power, I may offer my thanksgiving and homage to the most loving of Fathers.
Oh, St. Joseph, I never weary of contemplating you, and Jesus asleep in your arms; I dare not approach while He reposes near your heart. Press Him in my name and kiss His fine head for me and ask him to return the Kiss when I draw my dying breath. 
St. Joseph, Patron of departing souls – Pray for me.

Rain Rain Go Away

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It seems like it’s been raining forever.  It’s gotten cold again.  I guess I should be sewing or quilting, but I’m not.  I just don’t feel like doing anything.  It’s awful.  I have walked into my quilting room twice today.  I look around and walk out.  So, I am in front of the TV watching old reruns of SVU Law and Order and playing on the computer.  I guess we all fall into the doldrums when the weather is bad for days on end.  I really thought spring was on the way.  Actually, we need the rain so I should be happy for the blessing.

I have been trying to compile a list of UFO’s.  Seems the more I look to see what I have not finished, the more projects I find.  So what I have is a list that is a UFO.  See what I mean, just can’t get myself moving.  
I did accomplish one thing today.  I signed up for the March Madness on Yahoo.  Every year our family picks teams to see who wins.  It’s just for fun.  When the kids were little we would play for a prize but now it’s just for bragging rights.  It’s a lot of fun.