Here’s a fun quiz to test your reaction time.
You have to shoot the little sheep with the tranquilizer dart before they escape across the football field.
There are 5 sheep that will run across the field.
My score is “Bobbing Bobcat.” Not bad. Of course, Big Brother, who enjoys video games, archery and riflery, thinks he can do better, but HE keeps getting the 3-second penalty for shooting the dart before the sheep runs anyplace. (Neener!)
Via Here in the Bonny Glen. Thanks for this addicting bit of fun, Melissa!

…but I had to take this quiz, to see if my brother actually reads this blog!
I saw plenty of “Star Trek” as a child since both my brother and sister enjoyed the show. Dad made us all “phasers” (mine was Plexiglas) and my brother had a homemade “communicator” too.

You scored as Uhura. You are Lieutenant Uhura. Wow, you are a sweety. You are a quiet supporter of those you care about, and are always ready to listen. You have a secret yearning for the spotlight, and a fine talent, but you tend to find yourself in supportive roles. More of us should hear your song, so make sure you get up there and belt it out every once in awhile. It’s good for your ego and our ears. Uhura 71% Spock 57% Nurse Chapel 57% Dr. McCoy 50% Pavel Chekov 46% Captain Kirk 39% Hikaru Sulu 32% Montgomery Scott–"Scotty" 25%

Which Star Trek Character Are You? created with QuizFarm.com

Hmmmmm.
The characteristics (mostly) fit, but there is NO way that mini-uniform she wore would!
H/T to Paul for this quiz.

Today the children and I will make Moravian Heart Cookies.

Ginger cookies are often used as a symbol of Mary because of the words in Sirach that describe her:

I gave a sweet smell like cinnamon and aromatical balm;
I yielded a sweet odor like the best myrrh;
and I perfumed my dwelling as store,
and galbanum, and onyx, and aloes,
and as the frankincense not cut,
and my odor is as the purest balm. (Sirach 24:20-21)

And a favorite line of mine comes from the Gospel of Luke: His mother treasured all these things in her heart (Luke 2:51).

So, to honor Mary today, we will make these spicy cookies in a heart shape.

Sometimes I forget that Little Brother is so little. With Big Kids involved in school, sports, Scouting and Brazilian martial arts, I have a lot of places to go. He also comes along with me twice a week to volunteer in the school lunchroom–and he actually HELPS! His favorite job is stacking the trash cans at the end of the lunch seatings. He gets very annoyed if someone else starts to do that job.
But Little Brother is only 3 1/2. And despite the fact that he still needs help dressing himself, zipping his jacket, and buckling into his car seat, it’s easy to forget that this quite articulate little guy really is a LITTLE guy.
Today, though, he got to do some things that were just for him. First of all, we attended the Open House for our town’s “Play School” run by the high school child care class. It’s a little over an hour, up to 4 days a week, free of charge. Little Brother will hear stories, make crafts, play with play-dough, paint pictures and play with toys. If only there were a school bus he could ride, it would be perfect in his mind!
Naturally he left Play School with play-dough on the brain. But our play-dough was hard as a rock, from not being covered properly the last time he and the neighbor kids played in it. Then I remembered that “way back when” I used to make play-dough for Big Brother and Middle Sister. I dug out the recipe and found all the ingredients. 10 minutes later Little Brother was in his glory at the kitchen table, mashing away with some old cookie cutters. Meanwhile I started getting some things ready for dinner.
Sometimes it’s Good To Be 3. And Little Brother needs to be 3. He spends a lot of time trying to keep up with the Big Kids and their friends. I don’t want him to miss the fun of being 3 because he’s busy hanging with teenagers.

I had to laugh at Danielle’s story about the Madonna Christmas stamps.

I had my own “Madonna Moment” last week when Big Brother was confused about my use of the term. I had to clarify: “The BLESSED MOTHER! Not the rock singer!”

As for the stamps, I ordered mine from the Post Office over the internet, since last year I had to go to 3 different post offices to get the “religious” Christmas stamps. The postal clerks were pretty surprised that I’d rather leave with nothing than take Frosty the Snowman in place of the Holy Family. This year, with the price of gas as high as it is, I paid the $1.00 handling fee to be sure to get the stamps I wanted.

And that’s just what I have. A sticky kitchen floor.
I have kids. My floor is sticky. Those things pretty much go together.
But since my kids are all (extremely) verbal I figured I’d ask them what they’d spilled, so I’d know what I was dealing with when I get around to mopping.
Me: “Did someone spill in the kitchen?”
Middle Sister: “Yes…”
Me: “What did you spill?”
Middle Sister: “Apple juice…we wiped it up…”
Me: “Thanks for wiping it up. But when you spill juice, you need to let me know, because the floor gets really sticky. I was sticking to it just now.”
Middle Sister: “WOW! Is your shoe still there?”
Me: “It WOULD be, if it weren’t TIED TO MY FOOT….”
I’ll go get that mop now.

Paul at Thoughts of a Regular Guy has this prayer posted today:

Lord, thank you for this sink of dirty dishes; we have plenty of food to eat.

Thank you for this pile of dirty, stinky laundry; we have plenty of nice clothes to wear.

And I would like to thank you, Lord, for those unmade beds; they were so warm and comfortable last night. I know that many have no bed.

My thanks to you, Lord, for this bathroom, complete with all the splattered mirrors, soggy, grimy towels and dirty lavatory; they are so convenient.

Thank you for this finger-smudged refrigerator that needs defrosting so badly; It has served us faithfully for many years. It is full of cold drinks and enough leftovers for two or three meals.

Thank you, Lord, for this oven that absolutely must be cleaned today. It has baked so many things over the years.

The whole family is grateful for that tall grass that needs mowing, the lawn that needs raking; we all enjoy the yard.

Thank you, Lord, even for that slamming screen door. My kids are healthy and able to run and play.

Lord, the presence of all these chores awaiting me says You have richly blessed my family. I shall do them cheerfully and I shall do them gratefully.

This prayer aired on Relevant Radio on the morning show, 12.02.2005, in the “Glen’s Story Corner” segment.

On days like today, when for some inexplicable reason I am feeling kind of over-Mom-whelmed, I need something like this to keep my perspective. Perfect timing, Paul. I’d tip my hat to you, but it’s covering up the evidence of a Bad Hair Day.

First, allow me to get this rant out there: it really toasts my marshmallows that “Advent Calendars” always begin on December 1. They aren’t Advent Calendars, then….they are December calendars.

Steve at A Song of November mentioned that he’s apprehensive about putting up an Advent wreath with a 2-year-old in the house. I was going to post a comment, and maybe even bring him back to the Marauding Marsupial in the TTLB Ecosystem level but I realized that I needed more space for this. Sorry, Steve. So here goes:

Don’t skip the Advent wreath just because you have young children. The Advent wreath has been great for our children during this season. Three times now, Big Daddy and I have been through the Tremendously Terrifying Twos at Advent wreath time and I’m pleased to announce that no one has been hurt yet. However, now that we have a Teenager in the house, I’m thinking it might be a good idea to keep a fire extinguisher at hand.

Maybe you have one of those cake plates that sits high off the table. Set your wreath on top of that, if you need to keep it away from the little one. Let your kids take turns blowing out the candles. We have two older children and they want to light the candles, so Little Brother gets to blow out the candles every day.

In our house, our preparation plans revolve around the Advent wreath. When Middle Sister was about the age of your younger son, she didn’t understand why we didn’t have our tree up at Halloween like the mall does. (OK, she still doesn’t–but that was when she first expressed it). Until that time we had put our tree up toward the end of Advent, when we got to it. But she needed something concrete–so we started a family tradition of putting the tree up on Gaudete Sunday. We would tell her, “When Father lights the PINK candle at church, that’s the day we put up our tree.” We do a lot of decorating on Sundays, since the whole family can be together. It all ties in well with doing a little more preparing each time Father lights another candle.

So if you don’t have a wreath up now, it’s not too late to start. Go for it!

Catholic Fire has a news release about the updated Boycott List to be published on December 1.
The boycott in question is organized by Life Decisions International, and targets corporations and organizations that donate money to the Planned Parenthood Federation of America.
To date over 120 companies have stopped funding Planned Parenthood.
Boycotting means more than “don’t buy their stuff.” It also means “tell them why you don’t buy their stuff.” My “Advent Resolution” this year is to do a better job on the second part. For years I have consistently not been buying stuff from Johnson & Johnson, Disney, and other companies on the list. I’ve been sporadic, though, about writing to these companies and telling them why I choose to take my business elsewhere.
If I have time to write Christmas cards during Advent, I certainly have time to type out a letter or fill out an email form on a website. Perhaps a heart can be changed. If hearts can be changed, children can be saved.

A big tip of the hat to The Curt Jester for sharing the Advent wreath with all of blogdom!
I must admit, it’s certainly prettier than the no-frills version on my dining room table.