Gloria in Excelsis Deo: {SQT} Too Much Wonderful

For the past week or so, it has felt like our family has been going 75 miles per hour and I've been reduced to heart-pounding moments of anxiety. The gift in all of this is a reminder from God that Chris and I don't want to live like this. Our lives have been "full of wonderful" this week, but too much wonderful still means that our home has become like a pit stop, we're constantly eating junk or restaurant food, homeschooling becomes an angry rush to finish a to-do list, the house is a pig sty, everyone is short on sleep, and the Laundry Queen (me) actually ran out of pants for one of her children.

We will be seeking to slow down the calendar.

1. Fishing

It's a good thing Chris and John got in some relaxing fishing last Sunday before our Very Busy Week.

2. Arts and Crafts

The children and I have been much busier than usual with arts and crafts. The girls' floor is covered in a confetti of thread, notions, scraps of fabric, and pins scattered about haphazardly, and let's not even talk about the state of affairs in the Bonus Room.

First, the two girls created Preschool Scouts for my four-year-old boy, and are busy guiding him in making a bow and arrow and quiver, and sewing countless handkerchiefs, with plans for more activities. Joseph also earns badges (which he will proudly show you) for completing lessons like Climbing Trees or Racing Around. I vacillate between feeling like such a loser of a parent--because I am not doing those crafts with child #4 like I did with children #1 and #2, nor am I signing him up for something like Boy Scouts--and feeling warm at the fruits of having a large family: the older children form strong bonds with the younger ones and there is a 'trickle down effect' of all that the older children learned before.

Additionally we've also been using all our "spare" moments to sew and assemble costumes for the All Saints party and Halloween (which involved an outing to Michael's Art Store this week from the Mama Who Does Not Go on Errands). It's not so easy to sew with an infant alongside, so the children are doing a lot of their own sewing. (Again, cue vacillating feelings . . .)

3. Social Events

On Tuesday we celebrated Chris' birthday with a pancake breakfast and gifts, my having my first emotional meltdown day of the week, and a later-than-usual evening out to have dinner at a restaurant.

On Wednesday, we enjoyed a beloved family coming over for a play date.

4. Bishop Athanasius Schneider events

Bishop Athanasius Schneider of Kazakhstan came across the world to our wee parish on invitation of the Charlotte Latin Mass Society to say a Pontifical Solemn Mass in the Extraordinary Form, which was the first time in 30 years in this diocese.

As my husband founded the Charlotte Latin Mass Community and remains on its Steering Committee, he and I were included in a small, formal dinner to welcome His Excellency. The women who hosted it (not me) did a superior job and I laud them. One bishop, eight priests, and about 16 lay people--plus my infant!--enjoyed the event. I publicly thank those--especially my father--who drilled etiquette into me as a child so that whatever I've retained helped me get through the evening without utter embarrassment.

I felt like Lowly Worm for all I merited or could offer to the event, and I got about five sentences out all night, but David received two special blessings from the bishop, so maybe that is the sole reason why God allowed me to be there.

Blessing Joseph

After that late night on Wednesday, we had another late night on Thursday because we took the whole family to the private reception before Mass to meet the bishop, the Mass, and the public reception after the Mass. We had practiced role-playing at home (during which there was much giggling), and my heart was happy when my four-year-old and upward each said solemnly, "Your Excellency" while kissing his ring. My two-year-old gets a pass for staring silently with big, solemn eyes.

Blessing David

This was perhaps our first attempt at taking all the children to a night Mass. I do not think we will be doing it again for some time unless there is a compelling reason . . . and next time I will notice on the calendar that the night is followed by a very early waking!

John missed the photos with the bishop because he was already vested for Mass . . . but his was the greater honor to get to serve with His Excellency than simply to be in a photo!

Click here for beautiful photos from the Mass.

After Mass, John got to meet the bishop at the reception.

Our typical attendance for Mass is 200-250, but there were more than 650 people at this Pontifical Mass. Our parish wasn't even properly prepared for such success!

Chris and I had taken two cars so I could leave early, so when I tried to take the little ones home at 9:00, I discovered I was boxed in by cars double-parked. The children were all wailing in the dark in the van while I just sat there and waited for someone to drive away or for my husband somehow to rescue me, and eventually both things happened, but we still didn't get them all in bed till 10:30.

5. New Home, Sweet Home?

After getting the kids tucked in at 10:30 on Thursday night, they were up bright and early for CCE the next morning. A bunch of crabby children and bleary-eyed mama got the first hot cocoa of the year.

We departed immediately after CCE to go tour for the second time a home we're looking at buying (yes, that is an announcement of a potential big change!). Will we take the plunge and move out into the boonies on our own little acreage? (This stressful but exciting process of trying to buy a house has been going on in the background of our life this last month.) Stay tuned . . .

John and I walking the property line through the woods

6. Reel Scottish Weekend

And Friday night and Saturday, half of our crew will be attending the Reel Scottish Weekend: performing violin and piano in the Friday night concert and taking Scottish County Dance classes with expert teachers all day Saturday.