tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37842202011-04-21T16:43:43.581-04:00Simply LivingEncouragement for Life - From Someone Surrounded By ItCarolinenoreply@blogger.comBlogger151100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3784220.post-1117571265346348122005-05-31T16:21:00.000-04:002005-05-31T16:27:45.350-04:00Suck It UpBy Caroline Schermerhornscherm@ee.netI’ve got a case of the blues.It’s the Vacuum Cleaner Blues.It’s those dust-chugging, bar-beating, air-coughing, penny- jamming, loud-sounding, dust mite-filtering, money costing 237 dollar and 15 cent Blues.They began last summer when I replaced that ancient twenty-pound steel-enforced Kirby vac Mom had given me. I should have kept it. I ended up Carolinenoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3784220.post-1086622809663289222004-06-07T11:36:00.000-04:002004-06-07T11:40:09.663-04:00Finally - Teenage Fashions that Fit By Caroline Schermerhorn "There's a lot of pressure through the media that the fashion is to show off your body. I'm not interested in that." - Katy Kiracofe, 17, Newark. Katy's comment echoes a national trend that buyers are just starting to notice - and parents appreciate: fashionable modesty. The trend recently came to light when Ella Gunderson of SeattleCarolinenoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3784220.post-1084816586190504512004-05-17T13:54:00.000-04:002004-05-17T13:56:26.190-04:00The Secret Formula Having grown up in the tropical land of Florida, I should know something about swimming pools. However, we never had a pool, because most of our neighbors did – and it was a lot easier to maintain a neighborly friendship than a pool of your own. So it’s taken four Ohio Summers for this Floridian to finally learn how to clean a pool. Pool maintenance isn’t one of those Carolinenoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3784220.post-1084677043099855412004-05-15T23:08:00.000-04:002004-05-15T23:10:43.100-04:00It doesn’t get any better than this! By Caroline Schermerhorn As I write this column, I am tucked away in an elegant two-room suite at a northern Michigan golf resort. It is a cloudy, but temperate, 50 degrees outside. Between the lovely gas fireplace in our suite, and an inviting hot tub in the bathroom, some romance and relaxation are a sure bet this weekend.. Having never swung a golf club, I Carolinenoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3784220.post-831658982002-10-18T08:56:00.000-04:002002-10-21T23:52:59.000-04:00TGIF Fridays don't mean as much ever since my dear husband returned to classes. He's focused this year on attaining his MBA. We've only three semesters left! Those of you who have been through this know all too well how much sacrifice and commitment this requires from the entire family. Saturdays are full of either work or school, and another night of the week is taken away besides. But it's a Carolinenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3784220.post-828370492002-10-11T08:06:00.000-04:002005-05-31T16:18:11.566-04:00Home, Christ, and the inevitable Laundry PileWhen I last left you, I was headed to transcend my laundry pile, Mount Neverest. Don't pity me -- the washer broke, and I got a three day pass. Lucky for us, we'd just done a Walmart run for socks and underwear! LOL Hey, nothing like a few pairs of dirty socks to make you realize how much you really love to do laundry.Which brings me to my thought for Carolinenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3784220.post-826705232002-10-07T23:22:00.000-04:002002-10-07T23:22:51.796-04:00Thanksgiving Tom Abbottwas very gracious to me in his blog today, so I just had to say "thanks" publicly... And on to the business of mothering... I was thinking today about Christ and his little discourse about children in Matthew 18. As a mom, I was drawn to how Christ said in the section immediately afterward that "if someone sins aainst you", it is your duty to them to "win him over". In Carolinenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3784220.post-826065142002-10-06T17:32:00.000-04:002002-10-06T17:32:41.946-04:00Well, like every other blog out there, the time comes sooner or later when the blogger is forced to say, "how in the world do you people find time for this?" I guess it's my turn. How DO you find time? God willing, I'll figure that out. A Blessed Sunday to you. Carolinenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3784220.post-823966862002-10-01T22:49:00.000-04:002002-10-01T22:49:59.890-04:00The Pride of LifeOkay, here's an eye-opener for all you moms out there. Raise your hand if your pride makes you an angry mom! (See my hand raised.) I confess that I hadn't seen it before, but the Lord showed me very clearly yesterday how pride gets in the way of me being the very best and holiest mom I can be. Do you ever see red when you stoop to pick up that toy for the fifth time? Does it Carolinenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3784220.post-819913802002-09-23T09:11:00.000-04:002002-09-23T09:11:19.190-04:00Autumn ChillLooks like the chill mornings that herald Fall have finally settled in....and all creation is going nuts! The hummingbirds show themselves more readily now, trying to get their last fillings of nectar before they go who knows where. The squirrels can be seen in the forest, stashing acorns in a million places, half of which they'll forget come winter. The pets have wisely begun Carolinenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3784220.post-819133482002-09-21T10:27:00.000-04:002002-09-21T10:27:17.253-04:00Seasons I was whining to my brother on the phone this morning... he's my favorite whine steward; he has a knack for showing me the spiritual side of my "suffering" as a mom? Suffering? Are you sick, you ask? Or one of the children.... well, no... I'm embarrassed to say that today's suffering is a little matter of writing out a check for a well pump, rather than a new kitchen floor. I soooo wantedCarolinenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3784220.post-818038842002-09-18T23:13:00.000-04:002002-09-18T23:13:37.483-04:00I'm feeling so encouraged today... I spoke to Bishop Burke today, of LaCrosse, Wisconsin. He is a huge proponent of the Enthronement of the Sacred Heart. It is an age old devotion, which has great relevance for bringing today's family to Christ. Read an upcoming issue of the National Catholic Register for more on this subject. We had our Enthronement several years ago, at the suggestion of my Carolinenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3784220.post-817565552002-09-17T23:58:00.000-04:002002-09-17T23:58:22.380-04:00Today was one of those "earthy" days for this household of 8... the well pump blew just as Hubby was stepping into the shower. Well, I was rather taken aback by his lack of self control at the time, but I must say now that I really don't blame him. God bless 'im -- I told him today that I love him in spite of these times.He returned, "I love you because of these times." Which is the greater love?Carolinenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3784220.post-816706932002-09-16T09:36:00.000-04:002002-09-16T09:39:31.000-04:00Family DayThis little ditty appeared in our parish bulletin yesterday: "Family Day--A Day to Eat Dinner With Your Children" is a national effort to promote parental engagement as a simple, effective way to reduce youth substance abuse risk and raise healthier children. Family Day is meant to emphasize the importance of regular family activities as a way to facilitate parent-child communication Carolinenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3784220.post-816375602002-09-15T14:51:00.000-04:002002-09-16T09:38:53.000-04:00Society goes by way of the Family. So says John Paul II in his Letter to Families Gives a whole new meaning to "the hand that rocks the cradle is the hand that rules the world." Laundry, Prayer, Conversation - the profound and the mundane, all wrapped up in the task of parenting. To be Catholic parents begins with the openess to life....ultimately forming, not only a child, but an adult who Carolinenoreply@blogger.com