Saint Onesimus

SAINT ONESIMUS Bishop of Ephesus and Martyr(†95)
Onesimus was a Phrygian by birth and a slave to Philemon, a person of influence who had been converted to the faith by Saint Paul. Having offended his master and been obliged to flee, he sought out Saint Paul, then a prisoner for the faith at Rome. The Apostle baptized him and sent him back to his master, with the beautiful letter we know as the Epistle to Philemon, asking for the liberty of Onesimus, that he might become one of his own assistants.

Meatball Alphabet Soup

I have had this recipe from an old Family Fun magazine. We tried the soup today and it was great, I only made 1 change, I used ancini de pepi pasta instead of the alphabet pasta.

Crispy Butterscotch Bars

I saw this recipe the other night at http://www.tastenc.blogspot.com/ and I had all of the ingredients at home so I made these treats for dessert tonight.

Saints Faustina & Jovita

SAINTS FAUSTINUS and JOVITAMartyrs(†122)
Faustinus and Jovita were brothers, nobly born, and were zealous professors of the Christian religion, which they preached without fear in their city of Brescia in Lombardy, during the persecution of Adrian. Their remarkable zeal excited the fury of the heathens against them, and procured them a glorious death for their faith.

Lenten Calendar

I am about finished making out Lenten calendar. I saw a great post at Shower of Roses detailing her Lenten calendar from last year. For the calendar i used a sheet of white poster board, with a square for each day of Lent. For all of the weekdays I used foam fish, a full fish for Wednesdays, Fridays and Saturdays and a half of a fish for Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursday. On the days with a full fish we will be abstaining from meat the whole day, we fast from meat all Fridays of the year, but the Wednesdays and Saturdays will be an extra Penance this Lent. On the days with a half fish we will only eat meat at the main meal. I decorated the calender with Penitential images. On each day i labeled the item to be counted for the penny jar and I noted a few Feast days that fall during this Lenten season. On the bottom of the calendar I listed the prayer intention for each day , some things to ponder during Lent and our Lenten rules.

Saint Valentine

SAINT VALENTINEPriest and Martyr(†268)
Valentine was a holy priest in Rome, who assisted the martyrs during the persecution under Claudius II. His great virtue and influence became known, and he was apprehended and brought before the emperor’s tribunal. “Why, Valentine, do you want to be the friend of our enemies and reject our friendship?” The Christian priest replied, “My Lord, if you knew the gift of God, you would be happy, and your empire with you; you would reject the cult of your idols and would adore the true God and His Son Jesus Christ.” One of the judges interrupted, asking the martyr what he thought of Jupiter and Mercury. “That they were miserable, and spent all their lives in debauchery and crime!” The judge, furious, cried, “He has blasphemed against the gods and against the empire!” The emperor nonetheless continued his questioning with curiosity, pleased to have this opportunity to know what Christians thought. Valentine had the courage to exhort him to do penance for the blood of Christians which he had shed. “Believe in Jesus Christ, be baptized and you will be saved, and already in this life you will insure your empire’s glory and the triumph of your arms.” Claudius began to be convinced, and said to those in attendance, “Hear the beautiful doctrine this man is teaching us!” But the prefect of Rome, dissatisfied, cried out, “See how this Christian is seducing our prince!” Claudius, weakening, abandoned the holy priest to another judge.

Green Bean Casserole

Tonight with out tuna melts, the kids made a green bean casserole. I did follow the recipe except for the topping, used crushed saltines and melted butter.

Tortilla Pizza

Today we made the kiddie pizzas and color page. We also colored the cover page for the cookbook. For the pizzas: I took a whole wheat burrito shell on the bottom, sauce, cheese and black olives on top. I cooked the pizzas for 10-15 minutes at 375 degrees.

Oriental Trading Company

Oriental trading Company is having a great sale for 4 days only. Save $10/$30 with the code Wc97772 during checkout. They have some great craft kits.

Saint Catherine of Ricci

SAINT CATHERINE OF RICCIVirgin(1522-1590)
Alexandrina of Ricci was the daughter of a noble Florentine. At the age of thirteen she entered the Third Order of Saint Dominic in the monastery of Prato, taking in religion the name of Catherine, in honor of her patron and predecessor of Siena. Her special attraction was to the Passion of Christ, in which she was permitted miraculously to participate. During the Lent of 1541, being then twenty-one years of age, she had a vision of the crucifixion so heartrending that she was prostrated and confined to bed for three weeks, and was only restored on Holy Saturday, by an apparition of Saint Mary Magdalene and the risen Jesus.

snowman On a Stick

Today's lunch. I improvised with what we had at home. I used peanut butter chips for the buttons, Twizlers for the top of his hat and craisins cut up for the eyes.

Pumpkin Apple Streusel Muffins

I made these muffins today and they were so tasty. I loved how moist they were.

Easy Saint Valentine's Day Dessert

This was super easy. I used 2 pouches of Betty Crocker brownie mix( added ingredients according to package directions). I cooked the brownies in an aluminum foil lined 9"X13" pan sprayed with cook spray. I baked the brownies for 25 minutes. I then cooled the brownies in the refrigerator for 1 hour. Next I cut the brownies with a star shaped cookie cutter and topped each one with a jelly heart.

Zuppa Toscanna

2 lb. hot Italian sausage
2 cans of sliced potatoes, drained
2 bunches escarole
4 cups chicken broth
1 quart half and half

salt and pepper to taste

In a skillet brown sausage in a tablespoon of oil oil. Remove from pan and slice. Add sausage, potatoes and half and half to a crockpot. Boil green just until they are wilted. Add to crockpot. Season with salt and pepper. Towards the end of cooking my soup was a bit thin so i removed some of the liquid, into a bowl, whisked in 2 T of corn starch and then added it back in. Serve with grated cheese.

Mini Hotdogs

The kids also made these today, minus the sesame seeds and using mini hotdogs and cheese single slices cut up.

The Seven Holy Servite Founders

THE SEVEN HOLY SERVITE FOUNDERS(Mid 13th century)
Can you imagine seven prominent men of any large modern city banding together, leaving their homes and profession, and going into solitude for a life directly given to God? That is what happened in the cultured and prosperous city of Florence in the middle of the 13th century. At this time, the city was torn with political strife as well as by the heresy of the Cathari; morals were low and religion neglected.

Heart Shaped Herb Rolls

Taste of Home has these really cute coloring sheets. You can compile a really nice little recipe book for a budding Chef! For some other free printable worksheets you can go to www.learningpage.com this months theme is animals.

Our Lady of Lourdes

OUR LADY of LOURDES(1858)
The first of the eighteen apparitions of the Blessed Virgin Mary to the humble Bernadette Soubirous took place at Lourdes on February 11, 1858. On March 25th, when Bernadette asked the beautiful Lady Her name, She replied: “I am the Immaculate Conception.” The Church for long centuries had believed in Her Immaculate Conception, Her exemption from every trace of the original sin which through Adam, our first and common father, separated man from his God. It was never proclaimed a dogma, however, until 1854. Mary Herself, in 1830, had asked of a Vincentian Sister at the Rue du Bac in Paris, that a medal be struck bearing Her likeness and the inscription: “O Mary, conceived without sin, pray for us who have recourse to Thee.” Our Lady by Her apparitions at Lourdes in 1858 seems to convey Her appreciation for the formal proclamation of Her great privilege, by Pius IX, in 1854. Countless and magnificent miracles of healing have occurred at Lourdes, confirmed by physicians and recorded in the Lourdes shrine “Book of Life.” To name but one: a doctor wrote a book describing the great miracle he had witnessed for a dying girl, whom he had observed on the train that was carrying handicapped persons from Paris to Lourdes. He had not expected her to survive and return home from the sanctuary.

Recipe Shoebox's Cafe Rio Salad

I found this recipe at Recipe Shoebox a few weeks ago and i have been wanting to try it. We finally tried it tonight and it was excellent.

Our Lady of Lourdes Craft

For todays Feast day we just did a simple color page and made a grotto out of cinnamon sticks to go around it. The kids also watched The Song of Bernadette today. Here are some great ideas for next yearon the Feast of Our Lady of Lourdes.

Happy Feast Day of Our Lady of Lourdes

I made a simple treat today as we are just getting over the flu. White for The Immaculate Conception.

Saint Scholastica

SAINT SCHOLASTICAAbbess(480-543)
Of this Saint but little is known on earth, save that she was the very pious younger sister of the great patriarch Saint Benedict, and that, under his direction, she founded and governed a numerous community near Monte Casino. Saint Gregory sums up her life by saying that she devoted herself to God from her childhood, and that her pure soul rose to God in the likeness of a dove, as if to show that her life had been enriched with the fullest gifts of the Holy Spirit.

Saint Cyril

SAINT CYRIL of ALEXANDRIADoctor of the Church(c. 376-444)
Born at Alexandria, Egypt, and nephew of the patriach of that city, Theophilus, Cyril received a classical and theological education at Alexandria and was ordained by his uncle. He accompanied Theophilus to Constantinople in 403 and was present at the "Synod of the Oak" that deposed John Chrysostom, whom he believed guilty of the charges against him.

Saint John of Matha

SAINT JOHN of MATHAFounder(1160-1213)
The life of Saint John of Matha, born in southern France of an illustrious family, was consecrated to God by a vow at his birth. His life from his youth was exemplary, by his self-sacrifice for the glory of God and the good of his neighbor. As a child, his chief pleasure was serving the poor; and he would say to them that he had come into the world for no other end but to care for them. He served every Friday in a hospital, and obtained for the sick whatever they needed. Later he studied in Paris with such distinction that his professors advised him to become a priest, in order that his talents might render greater service to others. For this purpose John gladly sacrificed his high rank and other worldly advantages.

Saint Romuald

SAINT ROMUALDFounder and Abbot(906-1027)
In the tenth century Sergius, a nobleman of Ravenna, quarreled with a relative over an estate and, in a duel to which his son Romuald was witness, slew him. The young man of twenty years was horrified at his father’s crime, and entered a Benedictine monastery at Classe to do a forty days’ penance for him. This penance led to his entry into religion as a Benedictine monk.

Artisan Bread Olive Oil Dough

Today I tried the Artisan Bread in Five Minutes A Day Olive Oil dough. made pizzas with it. The dough was excellent.

Saint Titus

SAINT TITUSBishop(† Towards the end of the first century)
Saint Titus was a Greek-speaking convert from paganism and a disciple of Saint Paul, one of the chosen companions of the Apostle on his journey to the Council of Jerusalem. He became his fellow-laborer in many apostolic missions. From the Second Epistle which Saint Paul sent by the hand of Titus to the Corinthians, we gain an insight into the disciple’s character as a peacemaker and an administrator, and understand the strong affection which his master bore him.

Bob's Red Mill Oatmeal Pancakes

Breakfast for today was oatmeal waffles from this recipe.

Saint Agatha

SAINT AGATHAVirgin and Martyr(†251)
Saint Agatha was born in Sicily of rich and noble parents, a child of benediction from the first, for she was promised to her parents before her birth, and consecrated from her earliest infancy to God. In the midst of dangers and temptations she served Christ in purity of body and soul, and she died for love of chastity. Quintanus, who governed Sicily under the Emperor Decius, had heard the rumor of her beauty and wealth, and he made the laws against the Christians a pretext for summoning her from Palermo to Catania, where he was at the time. “O Jesus Christ!” she cried, as she set out on this dreaded journey, “all that I am is Thine; preserve me against the tyrant.”

Fried Brie

Take a piece or a wheel of brie, dip in an egg wash then bread crumbs( today i used the italian seasoned breadcrumbs) Fry in olive oil until golden on all sides. Garnish with parsley.