Small Successes ~ Volume 6

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1
I made a plan for Mardi Gras and Ash Wednesday and managed to get to every meaningful activity and conversation I wanted to have. Hopefully, we've set the tone for a peaceful and productive Lent.

2
I made my peace with Facebook and Twitter. After almost two weeks playing with both, I've decided that Twitter works to fill in the gap since I stopped posted to Faithful Over Little Things. I installed a Twitter update on the lefthand sidebar and will occasionally let you know what's happening in our house. some days, I'll focus on the academic pursuits, some days the homemaking, some days the domestic church. and sometimes, I imagine, it will be all mixed together. Twitter updates Facebook, which is fine with me. I'm not a huge fan of Facebook and would prefer to just hang out here on my blog. If you want to talk to me, I still think e-mail works best. Or better yet, we could talk. Like with our voices.

3
I have absolutely no housekeeping successes at all this week. But I have held and rocked and comforted a needy baby. And I have had endless conversations with restless, emotional teenagers. I've given this vocation my very best effort and I've trusted that God's grace is sufficient. It doesn't look like much on the outside, but that's the mystery of God's inside. And I admit that I am holding fast to the fact that Katie told me in all seriousness that I am the best mom she knows. What she doesn't know is how nice it was to hear.

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What are your successes this week? This is a great exercise in holding ourselves accountable and patting ourselves on the back. Mothering and homemaking don't have built in performance reviews and bonuses. The  internet can be a source of support and encouragement. Let's encourage one another in our small successes. Share them at Faith and Family Live! 

Lent Day 2

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Fast: Let theanswering machine pick it up! Let your caller leave a message and only return essential phone calls today.

Pray: “Blessed are the ears which hear God’s whisper and listen not unto the whispers of the world”—Thomas a Kempis 

Give: “Let us not be satisfied with just giving money. Money is not enough, money can be got, but they need your hearts to love them. So, spread your love everywhere you go.” —Mother Teresa

Meditation: What Better Day to Begin than Today?

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Last time, we took a look at the difference a morning offering canmake in the effort to bring peace to our homes and our hearts. When we offer the day to God, His grace is sufficient for whatever the day holds. Our successes are gifts to Him and our “failures” are made valuable by Him.

I pray my morning offering the first time I nurse my infant in the morning. While a new baby can often cause chaos in a household (and mine sometimes seems to), this time, I’ve pegged my plan for interior peace to the indisputable items on the baby’s schedule: her feeding times. Since she’s still really little, there are many of these times and they lend themselves well to the spiritual practices crucial to interior peace. Read the rest here and

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after you read there, come back here for some resources.
This is by no means a comprehensive list. Instead, it's a smattering of the resources from several different charisms.
Books that lend themselves to meditation:
Divine Intimacy
In Conversation with God
Imitation of Christ
Listen My Son

And here's one on the web that is just great. Use it only if you won't be tempted to cut your time short or be distracted by the rest of the world wide web at your fingertips:

Mini-retreat (10 or 15 minutes) with the Salesians