We've booked our tickets to fly back to Ontario for the Thanksgiving weekend in October. That is, so far we've booked tickets for the trip out, but not any return ones yet. Maybe we'll just stay... No, but Joseph and I are going to visit for a week or so after my sister Maddy's wedding -- which is, of course, our reason for going in the first place.

This boy can't hold still!

 

We're pretty excited for our visit and my family is even more excited (desperate?) to see Joseph -- ahem, I mean all of us. But our biggest problem is how to possibly get there alive and still in one piece. Dan alluded to this issue in an earlier post. You see, we have a little boy that doesn't stop moving. Or should I just say, we have a boy -- because I seem to be hearing that most boys are like this. In order to fly into Hamilton, the closest airport - so as not to have people facing brutal Toronto long-weekend traffic and a crazy airport to pick us up - we have to first fly further west to Calgary, before backtracking to Hamilton. How the heck are we supposed to get Joseph to sit nice and calmly, without yelling through two flights, one of which is 4 hours??? He can't last 1/2hr in his carseat and he definitely won't be in a hurry to fall asleep since he likes to nurse for that, but gets way too distracted with other people around.

We've narrowed it down to three options:

1. Sedate him: Have you ever seen those other kids on flights who just sit nicely in their parents' arms and then fall asleep? I have witnessed this and been utterly amazed. They must have given them something! However, I have no idea what you sedate a kid with nor does it sounds too appealing.

2. Buy/borrow/steal an Ipad, download kids shows, and glue him to the screen: First, an explanation. We do not sit Joseph in front of a computer or tv just to keep him busy and entertained all the time. Usually, he watches a music video from Mulan when I cut his nails -- yes, the only way to get him to hold still. But, he is totally enamoured with kids shows, so it might work... On the other hand, Ipad's are so darn expensive, I don't know who would lend us one, and stealing is a sin.

3. Kargo Kids: Thankfully, WestJet -- our favourite company to fly with -- came up with a solution to this very problem in April. If you haven't seen their promo video, you really must. Although I seem to remember many people up in arms at the idea of Kargo Kids, I think it's a wonderful way to travel!



A Look Back

As we near Joseph's first birthday, I thought it would be fun to post some of my favourite pictures of him. There are so many to choose from; inevitably I am leaving out some gems. Nevertheless, I've selected from what I have available on my computer. Here, then, is a look at this past year. Enjoy!



This is one of the first smiles we ever captured of Joseph. He's hardly stopped smiling since!

For a while we though Joseph was a charismatic ("NOOOO!!!"). But then I realized he was practicing saying Mass in his sleep. Here he is during the Eucharistic Prayer number 1.

Note the reverent expression and confident appearance.

And then he started moving around...

...and moving around... until he got stuck one day.

 As soon as Joseph moved to the Saskatchewan he was quick to get in touch with his prairie roots, or in this case the grass roots.

What could be more peaceful than a kitten and a kid falling asleep together?

"But mommy, I want it!"

How on earth are we supposed to say no to this?

Note the crossed legs which beckon a sense of innocence and worthy anticipation.

There was a stage where Joseph would only have a poop while on the toilet. Soon, though, he learned to pull himself up and stand up, so now his favourite place is under the table while leaning against the chairs.

There's nothing like a fresh sandwich!

Here Joseph scratches another item off his bucket list...

"Peek-a-boo!"

One of his favourite games.

Joseph is a big Rider fan!

Lately, though, that's meant a lot of tears.

Thankfully this stage of pouting seen here did not last more than a couple of weeks.

Like father, like son.

Joe Cool?...

I'd say there's some resemblance.

Finally, Joseph's first corn on the cob.

There's nothing like putting your feet up and enjoying a fresh piece of corn!

Random Thoughts...

Here are a few random thoughts as we begin another week:

Fat Hummingbirds

This year the hummingbird feeder has turned more into Chan's All You Can Eat Buffet. We, and by we I mean Becca and my dad, can't fill up the feeder fast enough. The result has led to a rising epidemic of obesity in hummingbirds. As obesity rates rise amongst these birds, I expect heart, joint, and other health problems to rise. Who's going to pay for the increased medical costs?

Mantracker

The first full season with the new mantracker has been making the rounds on the OLN channel. Though Becca and I appreciate the big saddle the new mantracker had to fill, it's just not working. The new mantracker is younger, more willing to get off his saddle to run after people, and is very skilled at recognizing tracks. However, he's just not like the old guy, Terry Grant. Grant had an element of personal vengeance when tracking his prey. He played mind games with them, got upset when outran, and was all-around more entertaining. The show is suffering without Grant.

The Old (and better)



The New

Weddings

Becca and I knew of four different weddings that took place on Saturday. We attended a grand total of 0 of them. Joseph was sick with a fever. That's just an excuse though, because we weren't planning on going to any of the weddings. Congratulations to all of the new married couples.

We will, however, be attending Becca's sister's wedding on October 6th in Brantford, ON. At the moment we're desperately trying to think of a way to keep Joseph occupied throughout the 3 hours of driving and 5+ hours of flying it will take to get there (Saskatoon - Calgary - Hamilton). He just wants to move all of the time! Anyone have an ipad or something to lend us, filled with kid's videos? He sometimes settles in to watch kid's shows, and I suppose it would be ok to let him watch when we fly.

Saskatchewan Roughriders

They've lost five in a row now. It's starting to feel like last year.

I was at work on Saturday, and so was unable to watch the game. But to me they still lack the right pieces (i.e. they need some more talented players). I would prefer they start Mike McCullough at middle linebacker as opposed to Shomari Williams. Both are Canadians. While Williams is more physical, McCullough just doesn't make mistakes. They need solid football players in there. Also, I think it might be time to start Butler at safety again over the veteran James Patrick. But who am I kidding? The problem has been on offence. I don't think starting 3-4 new receivers every game helps Durant at all. Basically this team has been a 2 receiver team for the last two years (Dressler and Getzlaf). They need stability there. As for Durant. He is streaky. There is no question about that. Still though. Give him the weapons, and a bit of time to throw or run the ball, and he can get the job done. The injuries on the O-line have hurt. Actually, pretty well the whole team is banged up right now.

An Injured Dominic Picard

Ugh though. They are a better team than what they've been showing. They better win the labour day classic! I ordered a win for Joseph's first birthday.

Oh my, he's turning one in less than a week!...

Laughing at B.S.

Ahh B.S.
My how Becca and I look forward to B.S.!

Yes, you guessed it, B.S. stands for Burger Saturday.


You see, back in Ancaster we started a tradition where every Saturday evening we would eat burgers and fries and watch a T.V. show. We got the idea from our friends the Platts who, growing up, had a tradition of eating pizza while watching a movie on Saturday nights. So, if the Platts, holy that they are, could watch T.V. while eating once a week, surely we could too! The one variation, though, is that Becca and I opted for burgers instead of pizza. Burgers, pickles, fries, ice cream sandwich, and I Love Lucy...

We were given two seasons of I Love Lucy for Christmas this past year, and so we eagerly looked forward to watching them. We both hadn't watched I Love Lucy in years! However, there was a problem. During those years of absence from watching I Love Lucy, a certain show called Corner Gas appeared. Herein lies the problem.

As we began watching I Love Lucy something very noticeable happened. We just weren't laughing. Sure we'd appreciate Fred's jabs at his wife Ethel, or Lucy's funny faces. But it just wasn't "lol" material (lol meaning "laugh out loud", not "lots of love"). And what stood out the most was the show's writing. Yes, every episode revolved around Lucy wanting to be a star at the club, with Ricky saying no. Most shows did not actually have an ending. One show in particular got so out of hand that by the end Lucy brought a baby elephant into their apartment (?) in order to get her own way. There was no set up for that gimmick, nor was there a follow up. The show simply ended with an elephant walking around, and the crowd laughing hysterically. Becca and I sat there confused, ketchup dripping down our cheeks, and half choking on our pickles.

The problem is that we've grown accustomed to Corner Gas. In Corner Gas every little detail of the show makes sense, is woven in to the larger story, and is usually pretty darn funny. For instance, in the episode "I Love Lacey" (ironic), all the friends get Grey Cup tickets. Brent and Lacey end up running out of gas on the way to the game. Hank and Oscar miss the game because of the death of a friend, Davis and Karen lose their tickets (in the glove compartment) and get busted for trying to buy from a scalper, while Wanda and Emma get busted for threatening a dollar store employee. Every single story fits in with the other. It is extremely funny, entertaining, and makes it difficult to watch I Love Lucy.

As Brent might say, we're in a new comedy bracket. And that ain't no B.S.

Lazy Summer Days with Cousins

Last week we had a long-awaited visit from David, Roxanne, and their four little munchkins. We had a great old time hanging out together and I can't tell you how much Joseph loved playing with his big cousins. Every morning he was all smiles when he realized they were still here and delighted to find all the little toys around that are for big kids and probably have choking warnings all over their packaging -- we hide them when it's just him to avoid the inevitable toy-in-mouth game.

Joseph, Claire, and Marie eating breakfast with Grandpa

We did loads of things with the cousins while they were here -- playing "little people", Barbies, going for walks and picking flowers, trimming beans for Grandma...

But, we didn't take pictures. Except a whole lot from our one big outing to the Nipawin splash pad.

Roxanne and little Sophia -- she has such an adorable giggle!

Claire loving the swings

We started out with a wiener roast lunch at the picnik sites, then headed for the playpark and the water. The weather was on the cooler side, so despite wildly wanting to get into bathing suits in the beginning, the kids were a little less enthusiastic to actually get in the cold water.



Marie trying to get her Uncle Danny

Although Joseph and I stayed fully clothed, we managed to get as wet -- or maybe wetter -- than the kids in bathing suits. This little park has some kind of timer on all the different toys -- we never figured out the order of it. Part of the fun was running around where the water wasn't spraying and hoping you didn't suddenly get splashed by another stream starting up.



The highlight of our water play was watching the antics of David as he jumped through rings of water, fully clothed, for our entertainment. One particular time he got successfully through the loop and was running across the concrete when...

The big orange flower bowls tipped their water supply... right on his head. We couldn't have timed it if we were trying to trick him. It was just too perfect. Needless to say, the rest of us laughed and laughed.

Check out that smile! Yay! He loves water too.

The Blog Days of Summer

Actually, if anything, these haven't been the blog days of summer. I was quite busy the past week and neglected the old blog. Sorry blog. It's not you, it's me.

What was I doing? I was writing an essay, an exam, a final assignment, and then another essay. The real story, though, is the essay.

I started writing an essay for Liturgical History (STD629) regarding post-Communion posture. Many bishops in Canada, including ours in the Prince Albert Diocese, came out last year and said that everyone had to remain standing following Communion, "in the spirit of unity." They claimed that this was an ancient custom that must be returned to the Mass. So I figured what better way to know more about the issue then to write a research paper on the history of this practice.

There was just one trouble, I couldn't really find anything to support the bishops' claim. And thus my essay turned into a rough and tumble search for anything to write about. With the deadline looming, and no end in sight to the essay, I ended up having to miss the Collective Soul concert in Saskatoon.

Yes, my favourite band, ever.

So I hacked out an essay that weekend, working day and night. By early last week I submitted it to the prof for feedback. And... he basically told me to start over.



Yes, Elvis, I could've cried! My essay, the prof said, was too kind towards the position of the Canadian bishops. In other words, he said their arguments for trying to institute post-Communion standing lacked historical truth, organic development, and proper authority in forced implementation. I sort of knew all this, but I thought I might get in trouble if I didn't try and be kind to the bishops' position.

Well I learned a lesson: academic integrity. The integrity of my academic research, in a demanding upper level graduate theology course, demands that I research and present the truth of the matter, regardless as to whether or not I have to say someone's, or some bishops', position is not accurate. I, for lack of a better term, was too nice. The prof taught me a lesson in academic integrity.

So I rewrote the essay last week, in addition to all my other work. It was a very difficult and busy few days. But I finished it. The essay has been handed in, graded, and let's just say I'm happy with the result. The new essay tackles the post-Communion posture from a different perspective (using the experiences of Evelyn Waugh, a famous Catholic convert, as a guide). It worked out. I came down harder on the bishops. It's quite clear that, with a firm understanding of the history and development of the liturgy, as well as the somewhat vague appearances in the new GIRM which don't exactly shout out "Spirit of Unity Baby!", the bishops in favour of this change are off-base. But that's enough on that.

We all take a wrong "stand" from time to time.

We also forget our integrity from time to time.

Ode to Thirty Years

August 14th, 1982...

Sounds like a good day to get married!

Happy 30th Anniversary to my dear inlaws the Mombourquettes! I *schucks, gorsh, ahem* wrote a poem in honour of that happy day:

Ode to Thirty Years

T’was 1982, the sky was baby blue;

and love was in the air that day.

Stockings were the fad, the good they did call “bad”;

and happy folks were still known as gay.

The church bells rang so sweet, e’choing a glam rock beat;

a lovely couple to each other vowed.

They left the church in style, moon-walking down the aisle;

happy music (and clothing!) oh so loud.

Their new life started great, a baby before too late;

and another, and another… and another.

And still another child, a slim boy nice and mild;

yet soon outdone by one last brother.

The happy family grew, despite bills, school, and poo;

nothing beyond the cure of some beers.

To the greatest parents we’ve seen yet: those crazy Mombourquettes,

happy anniversary of thirty years!



Happy Annivesary!

Every Rosary Has Its Thorns

Today is the Feast of St. Dominic, one of those super saints. Yes, all saints are super, but some perhaps are more super than others.

Why is St. Dominic so great?
Two reasons:

1) From his order, the Order of Preachers (O.P. - better known simply as the Dominicans), comes St. Thomas Aquinas. Anyone who is the founder of an order that St. Thomas joins must be great. Period.

2) There would be no rosary without him.

As the legend goes, Our Lady appeared to St. Dominic in 1214 A.D. and instructed him on how the rosary should be prayed. Many of the rosary prayers probably already existed (they do come from Scripture, afterall... take that haters of the rosary!), but through St. Dominic a more standard and accessible form became known. Now St. Dominic, being that he founded the Order of Preachers, was a pretty good preacher. Through his preaching devotion to the rosary grew. Thank you St. Dominic.

 

Now the rosary really is a beautiful prayer. I am always surprised at how powerful it is. Often when I sense our family is having a bad day (never me though) I can notice a calm, peaceful, tone once our nighttime rosary has been said. The rosary has that effect.

You may not know this, but I am an expert at praying the rosary. I can say the rosary faster than 98% of all Catholics. Obviously I could not be this fast unless I absolutely was an expert at praying it. In fact, often I can say two rosaries in the time it takes another person to say just one!

"What, you're still on the third decade?! Clearly you don't pray it too often!"

 "But I like to focus on the mysteries!"

"The only mystery is how you can be so slow at praying it after all these years! Take a deep breath. Now get out as much as you can. Cut off the prayers a little if you have to. And for crying out loud keep your eyes open! You should be able to say a whole Hail Mary in one breath... but try to work yourself up to two Hail Mary's... My grandma used to be able to do four! That's it... there you go!"

St. Augustine once said singing is praying twice. But I say, why not just pray twice as fast?

I'm kidding, of course. Well, I'm not kidding that I pray the rosary (too) fast, but I obviously would never recommend praying as fast as you can. Nor would St. Dominic. And he is a real expert.

Thank you St. Dominic.

Holiday or HolyDay?

It’s a holiday Monday, though I’m back at the grind today. Actually, I’m re-reading Pope Benedict’s The Spirit of the Liturgy and his Motu Proprio, while writing a response to them. I wouldn’t consider it a grind to read any of his brilliant works. Still though, the weather looks nice outside, and it would be fun to be out by the garage building something with my awesome Makita power tools (best wedding gift of all time) and scrap lumber swiped from the Co-op lumber yard.

 

Here are a few bits and pieces for today:

  

Today is the Feast of the Transfiguration! It was always a confusing Feast. Jesus goes up a mountain with a couple of buddies, becomes all dazzling, meets a couple more buddies, Peter offers to build some tents, and then everything returns to normal and Jesus leaves for Jerusalem to be crucified. Thankfully my studies have taught me otherwise. The Transfiguration is really a central part of our faith, and is especially revealing when studying Christology.

But while I'm on the topic, I do have a bit of a rant. Why, on this incredibly important Feast day of the Church, is there no Mass today? I'm told that it is because today is a stat holiday that the bishop requires priests to take it off... Hmm. I, as well as most Christians, only take one day off per week. Sunday. What do I do on Sunday? I go to Mass. If I didn't go to Mass on Sunday then it would be a mortal sin. So we're required, under pain of mortal sin, to go to Mass on our day off. Priests are told, on the other hand, to not have Mass on their day off...  Make sense?

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Apparently today is also Saskatchewan Day (formerly known as "Civic Holiday"). To celebrate, I'm wearing a Rider shirt. I'm not sure how that is different from every other day though.

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To be from Saskatchewan means you have to be able to pick yourself up after difficult times. For instance, after two months of what looked like bumper crops, this past Friday's rain (over 3 inches here, and up to 6 inches in places north of Nipawin) flattened the crops significantly. Hope and Ruin. You put so much into something, and then in an instance it's gone.

But, most people here are used to it. I think Saskatchewanian's are among the most resilient people in the world. Why, we couldn't live otherwise. Who else could survive winning a Grey Cup, only to have it taken away by a too-many-men penalty? It's devastating, but we learn to move on. Now one might say, because of this, we have a losing mentality. There is some truth to that, especially if, as radio host John Gormley says, you vote for the NDP. But, otherwise, I don't think it's possible to have a losing mentality while being the only province in Canada to *enter dramatic music* have a balanced budget, or outsell every other team combined in CFL merchandise, or have more NHLers (or golf courses...or roads) per capita than anywhere else in the world, have the best fishing, produce Saskatoon berries, have the best skies, the most potash and uranium, ... it's all here. So happy Saskatchewan Day.

Now if only the Riders could stop their losing streak...



SJ Baby! SJ!

Three cheers for SJ!

No, I'm not talking about Social Justice. Nor San Jose, Saint John, or Singing Jews.

I'm talking about the Society of Jesuits! Yes, I know I took a swipe at them the other day, on their founder's very feast day, but they deserved it. However, it's only fair to give credit where credit is due...

Have you heard of Missy Franklin? With a name like Missy, obviously she's American. She's from Aurora, Colorado, actually. The place where that terrible movie theatre shooting happened. Well she's taken the Olympics by storm so far. She's a young swimmer who has been packing away the medals.


Normally I'd say "who cares"... actually, I think I did say that... but today I read that she is very seriously considering becoming Catholic!

But why?

The Jesuits!

Apparently she went to a Jesuit run high school which has had a very positive role in her life. Such is the impact a true Catholic high school can have. Her time at this high school has led her to seriously consider coming home to Catholicism.

So I say good job to the Jesuits! Break out the folk music church songs!

Or not.

"Stop Reading This Blog!" - St. Alphonsus Ligouri

Today is the feast of the great St. Alphonsus Ligouri, Bishop, Moral Theologian, Writer, Founder of the Redemptorists, Doctor of the Church... and on and on.

1696-1787

Now St. Alphonsus once bound himself, under pain of mortal sin, to never waste a minute of his life. In other words, it would be a mortal sin for him to doing such things as reading our blog. Yikes!

"Forgive me Father, for I have sinned. I read the Millette Family Blog..."

"I've never heard of it, but it sounds bad.

For your penance pray 12 rosaries."

Can you imagine never wasting a moment of your life? How much more would get done? That Olympic woman's weight lifting I watched yesterday... could have been some organ practice at the church. Those checkups on facebook and tsn.ca today... could have been some extra grass cut outside. I can't imagine what life would be like.

But getting back to St. Alphonsus, his vow of usefulness is certainly inspiring. He was a remarkable man. A very smart, holy, and sometimes angry, man. His life was all about giving the highest quality to God, born out of zeal for souls.

There's a story about how when he was first made Bishop he immediately travelled to visit his new diocese' seminary. After meeting all of the seminarians there he promptly kicked them all out. They weren't there for the right reasons. Can you imagine a Bishop doing this today?

After moving into his Bishop's residence, or mansion, he sold all of the furniture, yes all of it, and gave it to the poor.

St. Alphonsus was such a prolific writer that it is said once someone showed him a book and St. Alphonsus, after reading some of it, asked who wrote it. "You did," was the reply.

When he was old and sickly, St. Alphonsus pleaded to be relieved of his duties as Bishop. Further, he begged God to have him depart from this world. Not so. The Good Lord saw fit to have him remain a bishop for another 15 years, until the age of 90, while being bed-ridden for a large chunk of those years.

This still did not stop St. Alphonsus. He would insist on being carried to all remote parts of his diocese. He would preach, offer the sacraments, lead his flock. The man never ceased to work.

While there are many other stories about St. Alphonsus, I think the point is clear: we all waste too much time. I think it would be great if we all could honestly examine our lives and begin to prune away our wasted time and energy. Or better yet, ask St. Alphonsus to help.

Uh Oh.

I hear the Olympics on T.V. in the background...

it's just reruns from earlier...

Ooooh... I wonder what sport is on...

St. Alphonsus... pray for us!

The Splash Pad is OPEN

Calling all cousins: the water play park in Nipawin is now open!

It turned out to be a beautiful, hot, and sunny day this past Sunday, so we headed out to the Regional Park. Thinking the water might be finally hooked up on the splash pad, we brought along Joseph's bathing suit. And it's a good thing we did.

There were lots of families and kids out enjoying the cool water. And that's not all! They took out a lot of the older play equipment and have replaced it with new and very cool stuff for kids. Joseph wants all his cousins to come and play with him now! We can't wait to see Marie tackle these monkey bars:

Joseph went in a swing for the first time:

Took a ride on the new slide with Daddy:

Played peekaboo:

And went on a flying ride:

Later, we also headed down to the river to check out the fishing boats and dip our feet in off the docks. Joseph just about jumped off the dock and threw his hat in -- we can't keep this kid away from the water. So, when are you coming to visit, cousins?!