Category: Small Success Thursday

Small Success: Just Add Grace

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Small-Success-Thursday-400pxThursdays at CatholicMom.com begin with a look at the past week’s Small Successes!

I said YES to grace this week. I was thinking, Tuesday morning, that I really need to make a way to get to Adoration. We have Perpetual Adoration in our parish–and I’ve been ignoring the opportunity. On my way out of Mass Tuesday, the lady who organizes the schedule for Adoration approached me and asked if I could take over an hour for someone who is ailing and unable to attend anymore. I think it took a whole 2 hours, if that, from the time I originally had the thought of Adoration in my head to the time Pat spoke to me in the church foyer. I start today.

I learned a new song this week. Our folk group is preparing to teach Matt Maher’s “Your Grace is Enough” to the assembly at Mass before the end of Lent. It’s a perfect song to meditate on during Lent (or any time, really.) And I figured out how to download the MP3 to my phone so I can have it with me everywhere. Give it a listen:

And in more practical matters, I came in under budget this week at the supermarket. By shopping the sales and using coupons, I saved $105.44 on my order, paying only $116.78. AND because I bought some stuff in the Dollar Days sale, I walked out of there with $7 in coupons off my next shopping order AND a coupon for a free reusable shopping bag. (WIN!) I buy supermarket gift cards through Little Brother’s school (we get a tuition kickback for that) and it does help me to stay on budget. Since I buy the gift cards every 2 weeks, I’m under budget about $16 for the 2-week period. Just in time for Middle Sister to come home for Spring Break and stock up on laundry detergent, Gatorade, granola bars and other staples of dormitory life.

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© 2015 Barb Szyszkiewicz. All rights reserved.

Small Success: Neat and Tidy

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Small-Success-Thursday-400pxThursdays at CatholicMom.com begin with a look at the past week’s Small Successes!

I’ve been doing a little tidying-up around the place, since it’s too cold to GO anywhere.

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My refrigerator door has gone from MESS to MESSAGE CENTER. I have a whole basket of the things I removed:  soccer-team-logo magnets that The Kid wants, a big SpiderMan magnet that I should really send to Mancub, a prayer card that my grandmother kept on HER refrigerator (yes, I inherited the Stuff My Grandmother Kept On Her Refrigerator Door and most of it moved straight to mine)…but they’re not going back on the fridge. Which means I must permanently get rid of some of it before TheKid gets home from school.

fridge door AFTER

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On Tuesday, TheKid and TheDad had Snow Days. I cleaned out the linen closet. Bye-bye, bag of cough drops from 2012 lurking in the back corner!

linen closet AFTER

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I’m all out of neat accomplishments. My limit seems to be 2 per week. But that’s better than 0 per week.

I also survived a half-day of middle-school substitute teaching on 30 minutes’ notice plus a seventh-grade sleepover capped off with a waffle-eating contest. The winner had 6. Perhaps Kelloggs would like to sponsor TheKid’s next sleepover…

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Small Success: Getting Things Done Edition

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Small-Success-Thursday-400pxThursdays at CatholicMom.com begin with a look at the past week’s Small Successes!

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I’ve been inspired by my friend Lisa Lawmaster Hess and working on getting things a LITTLE more organized around here. It’s a slow process. I did figure out that the set of small rocking chairs behind my desk, while cute, were too much of a temptation for me. They’re toddler rockers–one for each of my kids–and 2 are so small that no one but a small child can sit in them. So…they became tables for my Desk Overflow.

too much stuff on couch
Shameful.

I took All The Stuff out of those chairs (and out from behind those chairs) and it pretty much covered the whole sofa.

So I moved an upholstered chair into the space where the rockers had been, because I know I won’t pile stuff onto that chair. Then I put away All The Stuff.

And my living room looks a lot nicer now.

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It’s time to get ready for Lent, and I’ve been working hard over at Cook and Count to load up all the meatless recipes I can find. You can find all of them right here:  Meatless Recipes at Cook and Count.

Grilled Veggie Burrito: recipe coming soon to Cook and Count!
Grilled Veggie Burrito: recipe coming soon to Cook and Count!

There are more to come, and as I post them, you can access them through this same link.

(AND I learned how to add a copyright line to my photos!)

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If you’re reading this through a link at CatholicMom.com, that’s because I successfully installed the link tool in the CatholicMom post. I’m in training right now to be the Substitute Blogmother during Sarah Reinhard’s upcoming maternity leave. (And she is super patient while she gets me up to speed on All The Things.) This was my very first linky-thing, and it worked! It worked!

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In other CatholicMom.com related news (AKA more shameless self-promotion), I have two posts about Lent that you might want to visit. Click on over!

Book review of 40 Days, 40 Ways

Tech Talk:  Lenten Inspiration from CRS Rice Bowl

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© 2015 Barb Szyszkiewicz

Small Success with a Side of Bacon

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Small-Success-Thursday-400pxThursdays at CatholicMom.com begin with a look at the past week’s Small Successes!

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The Kid’s blood sugar ran high all night and into this morning. We don’t know why. Sometimes diabetes is just random. And frustrating.

BACONSo Hubs suggested that he have a low-carb breakfast instead of his usual meal (a double bowl of instant oatmeal and an over-easy egg).

That meant I made bacon on a weekday.

I hate making bacon because I’m left with a huge mess all over the kitchen. Actually I almost never make the bacon. Hubs makes it. And then I rant that I want him to clean up the mess, and then I wind up cleaning up the mess myself, and it’s never pretty.

But today I maintained a good attitude about the bacon and its mess, and I hope it bodes well for The Kid’s blood sugar later today.

We’re not worrying about cholesterol right this minute. One thing at a time.

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baked salmon 1In other food news, I tried yet another recipe from Jeff Young’s cookbook, Around the Table with the Catholic Foodie. And it’s yet another winner. Baked Salmon with Olive Oil and Salt. Seriously, that’s all you need. No pepper. No lemon. Nothing creamy or fancy. It’s simple and delicious.

Every recipe I’ve tried from that cookbook, so far, has been a great success.

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In the name of cleaning up my act, I tossed a large basketful of the Personal Journal section of The Wall Street Journal. I enjoy reading those, but I got way behind when I was teaching every day, and I would just take the section out of the paper and recycle the rest. Finally I just admitted that I’m not going to get to these ever. And I threw them into the recycling bucket.

That felt good. I wonder what unused stuff I can let myself let go of today?

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Last Minute Shrimp Fried Rice (7)That bacon grease in the griddle pan? I’ll be using it in tomorrow night’s Last Minute Fried Rice.

Waste not, want not.

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Small Success: Introvert’s YES

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Small-Success-Thursday-400pxThursdays at CatholicMom.com begin with a look at the past week’s Small Successes!

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I don’t even KNOW how long we’ve been connected online, but this Sunday I finally got to meet Christine of Domestic Vocation and her lovely family.

At Amys Diner with CatholicMomVA Jan 25 2015We even have photographic evidence. See?

We are both introverts by nature, but that didn’t seem to be a problem. I’m glad we got the chance to visit and said YES to the opportunity to finally meet IRL. Christine no longer falls into the category once labeled by my kids as “imaginary friends.”

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Monday and Tuesday were tough for me; people were home because of the Snowstorm That Never Came which meant that I was trying to get some writing done around conference calls (Hubs) and SportsCenter or Super Smash Brothers (Little Brother).

This snowstorm wasn't yardstick-worthy.
This snowstorm wasn’t yardstick-worthy.

I normally do my writing when it’s quiet and all I hear is the dryer and the refrigerator and the magic timer on the living-room lamp. But I managed to do most of the work I’d planned and even baked some chocolate-chip cookies, because what’s a disappointing snowstorm without cookies?

Seriously, though, we lucked out here in the Philadelphia area. We got 3 inches, had a half-day of school Monday and a day off Tuesday (both for no good reason–a delayed opening Tuesday would have been plenty) but that’s really the worst that happened here, and I’m thankful for that.

And cookies. Yes, you CAN stuff Milky Way Bites into a chocolate-chip cookie. I’ll be sharing all the delicious details in an upcoming post at RealHousekeeping.com.

As our new pastor would say, these cookies are Confessional Matter.
As our new pastor would say, these cookies are Confessional Matter.

Don’t worry. I’ll remind you when it’s ready!

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Sometimes the introvert’s YES comes in the form of a NO. When I decided that it was best all around if I didn’t teach 5 days a week, that decision was made with an eye to what’s good for my family. And my own mental health, which is good for my family. I’m not helping anyone around here if I’m frazzled and cranky.

Because of the snow, and because I had said YES to substituting on Wednesday and Friday this week, I said NO today. I have an errand list a mile long, and was looking toward today as the day to get that all done while Little Brother is in school.

And this means that come Monday when the kids are back in their regular uniforms instead of Catholic-Schools-Week fun-themed clothes, Little Brother will have pants and a vest that actually fit him, because the uniform store (a 1 1/2-hour errand) is one of the things on my list today.

I did discover that right next door to the uniform store, there’s a ShopRite (where I also need to visit today) but when I mentioned that to Hubs, he said, “You’d better not. Go to the regular one. You know you’ll get all out of sorts.”

That’s true. Plus, the last two times I went to a different ShopRite, things got ugly. There was a brawl in the middle of the day at the not-my-usual ShopRite a couple of weeks ago while I was there. I left before the 3 police cars showed up, which means I missed most of the entertainment, but I didn’t want to have to testify later.

 

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Small Success Thursday: 1/15

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Small-Success-Thursday-400pxThursdays at CatholicMom.com begin with a look at the past week’s Small Successes!

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January hutchI got all the Christmas things put away! Last year I never really put away the Christmas ornaments. I left them in a big plastic bucket and tripped over it in the basement all year. However, since it ain’t really over until Candlemas (February 2) I left my tiny Nativity scene on the hutch in the living room.

It’s entirely possible that this Nativity scene will remain among the angels (and the big St. Joseph statue) that sit on that shelf all year. I’m making no promises to get it put away before Lent.

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I saw my primary doc so I could get my asthma inhalers rebooted. My last prescription for those was so old that it was no longer even showing up in the online dashboard of our long-term prescription service. And then I came home and obediently made appointments for my long-overdue mammogram and annual GYN exam (which is over a year overdue).

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maple walnut muffins (4)Muffins! Specifically, maple-walnut muffins.

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Small Success Thursday: Kindergarten, Lattes and More!

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Small-Success-Thursday-400pxThursdays at CatholicMom.com begin with a look at the past week’s Small Successes!

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I’m done with my long-term sub job, and I’m at peace with that decision. “Drop-in” substituting is much more my speed, and based on requests I’ve already gotten this week, I’ll be busy enough. Yesterday I was in kindergarten, and I got lots of waves, hugs and yells across the cafeteria from my former foster-second-graders.

Tales from the kindergarten room:  I had to tell one child that Iggy Azalea’s “Fancy” is not an appropriate song to sing at school. This brings back memories of my own kindergarten days, when my teacher kindly took me aside and informed me that I couldn’t sing “Pass It On” at (public) school.

And two kids cried during math. I can’t even figure out why one was crying, because he had the answers right on his paper.

magic school bus lost in snowOf course, the best part of the day in kindergarten is storytime. I let the class helper choose the story, and he picked a Magic School Bus book. WIN!

Then the kids decided they wanted to call me “Ms. Frizzle.” I guess it’s easier to pronounce than my real last name.

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I gave myself permission to get rid of all those original boxes from my Christmas ornaments. Recycling, here we come! I’ll wrap things well in bubble paper or tissue. Matching ornaments to boxes takes forever, and it’s the whole reason I avoid putting away Christmas ornaments. Last year I avoided it completely. I just put the giant tub of unwrapped ornaments in the basement and ignored them. This afternoon I’ll turn on some mindless TV and get this job done.

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0108151303I rewarded myself with a latte (Cinnamon Dolce!) after I managed not to lose my mind during a mother-daughter trip to ShopRite that involved lots of miscommunication, at least 3 items from the list not purchased, and plenty of opportunity (for both of us) to lose our tempers. Now I’m trying to figure out how to pronounce my new first name. (It’s usually the last name that people get wrong.) Look! I got an extra vowel–and an extra syllable. Do you think that final “e” is silent?

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I finished off a case of Grumpy Martyr Syndrome (to which I am susceptible more often than I’d like to admit) by praying an Express Novena on behalf of a friend of mine who’s battling cancer. It’s really easy:  9 Memorares in a row for your intention, then a bonus Memorare in thanksgiving. Try it! And in your kindness, pray one for my friend G!

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Small Success Thursday: Thanksgiving

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It’s Thanksgiving, and it’s definitely better than last year’s Thanksgiving that we spent in the hospital with Little Brother. I am infinitely thankful for that.

Small-Success-Thursday-400pxIt’s also Thursday, which means we celebrate our Small Successes at CatholicMom.com! So in the spirit of the day, here goes:

  1. Middle Sister wanted to help cook Thanksgiving dinner. So far she has peeled 5 pounds of potatoes, made the stuffing, washed and stuffed the turkey and put it in to roast. I directed traffic and stayed out of the way.
  2. I’ve bitten my tongue a lot. And I’m praying I’ll be able to keep that up. I’m not talking about Middle Sister’s cooking, either.
  3. The apple pie didn’t leak juice all over the oven this year.

And now I will continue to enjoy “Alice’s Restaurant” on the radio for the second time today, and while I wait for it to come around on the git-tar, I will read what’s up with the other Catholic Moms! Because thanks to my Kitchen Apprentice, I’ve got some down time!

Small Success Thursday: Hanging In There

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Small-Success-Thursday-400pxIt seems like forever since I’ve written a Small Success post. I’ve been pretty busy substitute teaching these past few weeks; right now I’m in long-term for a second-grade teacher. Because there’s only so much time in the day, not everything I want to get done is getting done. So please don’t look at my dining-room table, which is covered with a stack of paper plats and little metal buckets of utensils, all clean but not yet put away after Saturday night’s Folk Group Pasta Party. And definitely don’t look at my kitchen floor.

Instead, look at this:

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I’ve (mostly) managed to get a home-cooked dinner on the table every night. Except Monday, when Hubs called to say he’d be way late and they were getting pizza at work, and I hadn’t started cooking yet, so Little Brother and I got Chick-Fil-A.

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Yesterday afternoon and evening’s crazy plan all worked out.

  • Our microwave broke a couple of weeks ago, and I’d pushed for as late an installation time as I could get, since I can’t leave school until 3:15 or so.
  • I got home by 3:20 and found the installation truck sitting in front of the house. The gentleman assured me that he’d only just gotten there.
  • He was done and out of here within an hour. I had dinner going in the crockpot since I wasn’t sure how long this would take and Little Brother had a rehearsal.
  • I got Little Brother to his rehearsal in time for me to attend the parent meeting beforehand and find out how we can order tickets for the show and volunteer for hospitality jobs during the performances.
  • I made it home in time for folk group practice, which is in my house, so if I’m not home, no one’s here to let everyone else in.
  • Hubs got to the rehearsal in time to pick up Little Brother and two other Young Thespians who’d arranged to carpool with us.

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Yesterday one little girl told me, right before snack, that she had a headache. I suggested that she eat her snack and see how she felt afterward (because once you send ONE second-grader to the nurse, many, many others will want to follow.) She never mentioned that headache again until after dismissal, when she was walking back to her mom’s classroom. I was surprised; I told her that I thought her headache had gone away and I was sorry that I didn’t know it didn’t. Her answer:  “I really liked the activities we were doing…”

And for a little religion-class comic relief:

Me: “November is the Month of the Holy Souls. We pray for them to help them get into heaven.”
Student: “I thought November is Men’s Cancer Month…”

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Small Success: Mercy, Courage and Soup

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Small-Success-Thursday-400pxThursdays at CatholicMom.com begin with a look at the past week’s Small Successes!

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I could be substitute-teaching today, but I had to decline the gig. That’s because Middle Sister asked me to take her to the funeral for her high school track coach’s wife. After the funeral I need to get her back to college in time for her 3:30 class. Whether she realizes it or not, Middle Sister is all about the Corporal Works of Mercy, and I’m not going to get in the way of that if I can help it.

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Scene from Tuesday night’s soccer practice:  It’s dark. So dark the coach can’t see the kids, and the kids can’t see the soccer ball or each other. Time to be done. The coach calls the team over for a conference while they fumble for their water bottles in the dark. “Guys! SUNDAY SUNDAY SUNDAY! I scheduled a 10:00 scrimmage game against Burlington City GIRLS team! My son will tell you how good they are. We have to play our best.”

Dead silence.

Then Little Brother piped up. “I have church.”

Half the team chimed in with him at that point.

Coach decided to reschedule the game.

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Chicken gnocchi soup (3)And because Small Success around here wouldn’t be complete without a recipe, here’s my re-creation of Olive Garden’s soup. Only my version comes with Neverending Gnocchi.

BONUS:  I made it to the gym 3 times this week and on the day I didn’t go I worked out at home on the Gazelle!

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