Craft Binge

by Shannon

If I were a better blogger, I would stretch out this post over daaaays. But I'm not, so strap yourself in. This weekend was all about wrapping up some long-procrastinated projects, plus some Lenten inspiration. I tend to do crafts all at once, rather than one new project at a time. I like to call it Craft Binging.

Lent never fails to sneak up on me. By the time Shrove Tuesday arrives, I'm running to the grocery after work on Tuesday to buy latkes mix and meatless meals, rushing to Hobby Lobby for supplies, and desperately trying to decide between which penances to juggle for the coming liturgical season. This year was no exception, but I did manage to put off the crafting until the weekend. 

Four projects, clockwise from top left: "REPENT" letters for Lent prayer reminder, no-sew purple family-altar cloths, Scrabble-tile magnets and faux pull-down map.

I bought the letters and paint for the "REPENT" letters along with an "ALLELUIA" to bury, on Tuesday after work. Between frying potato pancakes and helping Cruncher with homework, I tore down all my winter décor and put up the REPENT with some Lenten-inspired items, but I knew the area needed some work.

By the way, those crowns of thorns (or mini grapevine wreaths) hanging down from Hubert represent each Friday in Lent, and we remove one each week to help Cruncher gauge how close we are getting to Easter. 

I had recently painted some unfinished wood with craft paint, and it had and almost chalkboard-like quality to it. While the dry-look worked fine for that project, I wanted REPENT to have more pop off the wall, so we'd really stop to take notice and reflect on the redemptive nature of the season. I gave glossy craft paint a try, and it turned out well.

After painting a couple letters, I found that applying heavy paint around the edges first and then applying broad paint strokes on the fronts made the process pretty fast and easy. Probably the easiest project of the day, but not without mistakes. I should have lightly sanded before painting. You can see the finish is a bit rough. (Though, Ryan says everything should be rougher during Lent — bah-dum-chhh.) Also, I should have let the letters dry on perhaps wax paper. My handy dandy archdiocese newspaper (the only paper we receive) stuck to the backs of the letters. In the end, not a huge deal, since the backs of the letters were to go up against the wall.

Before and after. I also no-sewed a cloth for this family altar. I had to be extra careful to ensure the hems were squared up, but the cloth resulted at exactly the right size. I'm happy with how clean and simple the altar turned out, perfect for Lent. I also no-sewed a cloth to place under some other blessed objects on the bookshelf. And I might do one more cloth for the coffee table, where we have a big family bible and a pillar candle inside a larger grapevine wreath.

Next up: Scrabble-tile magnets. We bought a fancy-schmancy wooden Scrabble board a few years back (complete with engraving), so the old, sad cardboard Scrabble box has been sitting in a drawer for too long. Ryan recently started using Scrabble tiles to help Cruncher cultivate his new love of spelling, so I decided our tired plastic letter magnets had to go and be replaced with nice wooden ones. Besides, we couldn't spell anything decent since there was only two of each plastic letter. Anything decent = Shannon. No fun! 

I used a hot-glue gun to reinforce the self-adhesive on the magnet strips. The magnets were easy to cut to size with plain ol' scissors. The worst part was picking off all the glue strings after the finished product dried. Well, I guess the worst part was actually the burns on my fingers. But it wouldn't be crafting if there weren't injuries, amiright? I love the smell of a hot-glue gun in the afternoon. You know the glue is ready for action when the gun makes that "I'll burn your flesh off, fool!" smell.

Old letters versus new. We gave most of those colorful letters away to another family a few weeks ago, but they keep cropping up all over the house. We're hoping that won't be the case with the Scrabble-tile magnets, because I figured out how to hang the drawstring bag off the fridge. Badabing!

Of course, when I went to implement the new magnets, I realized the fridge was a disaster. See that heart with arms and legs on the freezer door? That's from LAST Valentine's Day. I'm the most horrible mom on the planet because I don't keep all of Cruncher's awesome artwork, so I got rid of everything you see here except for the O Antiphons coloring page he worked on during Midnight Mass. I have an accordion file where I keep his best work. I put all of the thank-you cards in a photo box, and threw out everything else. Plus, I scrubbed the outside of the fridge (it was dusty — whaaaaat?), and I added a basket up top for Cruncher's lunchbox. Now I can breathe.

The last project is one I've been putting off the longest: a fake pull-down map for Cruncher's room. We moved our old computer into his room when he started school, and I thought a vintage-looking map would really top off the desk. I had already hung a shelf (that's the other project I painted with black craft paint) and added some collected items and some organizers. 

A real pull-down map to fit above that desk would retail for only about, oh, maybe $150. Since I have gobs of cash to spend, I rather like a challenge, so I decided to instead make my own. (Lies. All lies.) I did some research months ago and decided to go with this tutorial, but use 3M Command Strips. Well, it didn't work. The 3M Command Strips made the map look super wrinkly and sloppy. So, I rolled up the map and threw it in a closet. 

Today, I tackled the map once again! It was not a project without its difficulties (though there were no injuries). I did not take pictures of the process because it went so horribly (ripping the map, running out of staples for the staple gun, Ryan buying the wrong staples, me hammering in staples, ripping off one dowel rod and starting over, blah blah blah). The easiest part was the gel stain I applied to the dowel rods.

Doesn't look super awesome there, but wait until you see the dowels hanging on the wall.

I also added a little hook to the center of the bottom dowel, to really give it that retractable look.

Before and after! I'm really pleased with how it turned out. All the colors are jiving, the textures and layers are working, and — AND! — I can finally say I have a room in the house finished! That might be a first. 

And Cruncher's response when I asked him what he thought of his new map: "That's not new. We got that a long time ago." Well. Hmm. Can't fool him. 

Did you tackle any long-forgotten projects this weekend? Did you prepare for Lent before or after Tuesday arrived? Are you a craft binger, or do you spread the love of crafts across your calendar? 

See ya tomorrow. I have no idea what I'm wearing. 

By the way, I've linked up with The Pinterest Challenge (CHALLENGE, Challenge, challenge, challenge...) with Sherry at Young House Love, along with Bower Power, The Remodeled Life and Décor and the Dog.

Come See Me at the Zoo!

by Shannon

"...Mary kept all these things, reflecting on them in her heart. Then the shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen, just as it had been told to them."

– Luke 2:19-20

Happy Feast Day of Mary, the Mother of God!

We visited another beautiful parish in our archdiocese for Mass today, but we also checked in at our parish so I could shoot some pictures before the Christmas decorations come down in a few days. We're very blessed to worship in such a timelessly beautiful church.

Á la Catholic Icing, Jennifer Fulwiler and Brandon Vogt, our family is choosing a patron saint for 2013. I've been trying to think up great ways to celebrate the Year of Faith, and this one is a clear winner. Since this is our first year trying out this devotion, and I tend to overwhelm us with new traditions to try with the arrival of each liturgical season, we chose an easy one: St. Francis of Assisi.

I called him "easy" not because his life is simple to emulate (Which saint's is?), but rather because there are abundant opportunities to connect with him, which will make our devotion more difficult to forget.

We conveniently already own a St. Francis statue, a St. Francis icon, two framed copies of The Prayer of St. Francis, the first two volumes of The Adventures of Loupio for Cruncher (a fictional story about a little boy who is friends with St. Francis, illustrated in graphic-novel style). We (opportunly) bought Cruncher a family zoo membership for Christmas, which ties in so nicely with St. Francis' connections to animals and the environment. There are loads of literature, movies and music inspired by St. Francis of Assisi, not to mention St. Clare of Assisi and other saints who were Franciscans or Poor Clares. It is additionally helpful that his feast day of Oct. 4 happens to fall on a Friday this year. We'll probably plan a big Italian meal, as he is a patron of Italy. I would love, love, LOVE to do some sort of pilgrimage relating to him, but Italy and San Francisco are out of the question. Please let me know if you have any ideas.

We also chose him because, despite his popularity, we've surprisingly never included him in our family litany of saints. I really wanted to choose someone we could add to our arsenal, so to speak. I'm really excited about all of the prayer, teaching and learning opportunities a devotion with St. Francis will provide us this year. I'll try to keep everyone updated on how it goes.

If you're interested in connecting with a new saint, perpetual nerd Jennifer Fulwiler programmed the Saint's Name Generator. I gave it a spin, and it shot out St. Raymond Nonnatus, whom we already have a statue of in our home, plus we ask for St. Raymond's intercession for one of our godsons whose middle name is "Ray." A schoolteacher friend clicked "Find a Saint for Me!" and was ironically connected with St. Jerome, patron of schoolchildren! Give it a whirl.

Here's to a blessed 2013 for you and all your loved ones!

Edit: I discovered another St. Francis find in our house! The Little Flowers of St. Francis by Raphael Brown. We are EXTREMELY lucky to have a local used and new bookstore owned by two parishoners. Their Catholic section is Ah. May. Zing. Guess I know what I'm reading next...

A Day at the Museum

by Shannon

"Let the wise hear and increase in learning, 

and the one who understands obtain guidance."

– Proverbs 1:5

Cruncher, Orland* and Daddy went to the history museum today. Kids 4 and younger get in free, as do teachers, so they just had to cover parking. Excellent. 

Cruncher's review: "Well, it was kind of boring. Daddy wanted to do boring stuff, and I wanted to do awesome stuff." Well, Ryan isn't here to dispute that accusation, so I'll take Cruncher's word for it.

According to Cruncher, all things pictured here are awesome except for that vase (which
I happen to think looks awesome, but what do I know). "It was kind of weird," he says.

And Cruncher said this was really cool. (Aside: I love his fluffy hair. And maybe I should
buy him that tea set he's picked out on Amazon.)

There just happened to be a small collection of Catholic items from the 16th and 17th 

century, so the museum must have heard Ryan was coming for a visit. The plaque said 
Japanese Christians were forced underground back then, and they had to hide symbols 
like these items. Cruncher says the "Jesus things" were "kind of impressive." Hah!

So, this mama thinks if Cruncher says all things above were impressive, awesome and cool except for a lone vase, then it was a trip well worth $5 parking. Educational and inexpensive — good job, Daddy!


*Cruncher's happy little doll baby that he takes EVERYWHERE, pictured top left of first photo collage.

Of Saints, Skeletons and Saison (Part 1)

by Ryan

"One of the major highlights of Fr. Zabler’s pastorate came on December 31, 1901, when St. Martin received possession of the relics of two martyrs, St. Magnus and St. Bonosa. During the early third century A.D., the emperor Diocletian vented his fury against Rome’s Christians. In an effort to purge these 'heretics,' he put to death more than 15,000 persons in a single month. Among those who died were Magnus, a Roman centurion who cast his lot with the Christians, and Bonosa, a Roman virgin.[1]"

This, according to Church legend, is the account of SS. (saints) Magnus and Bonona, whose remains have called St. Martin of Tours home since December 31, 1901. Recently, with the permission of Joseph Kurtz, archbishop of Louisville, Fr. Frederick Klotter allowed archaeologist Philip DiBlasi and four students from the University of Louisville to examine the remains while the side altars, where the saints' bones rested, could be repaired.

So, this naturally raises the question: Why would a parish have any interest in keeping the bones of saints anyway? What sense does that make? Fr. Klotter explains below: 

After Fr. Klotter spoke briefly on the legends behind the saints, Professor DiBlasi began to explain his team’s findings:

This ceramic container holds the blood of St. Magnus; these samples will be tested in the future.

Professor DiBlasi with his team and SS. Magnus (right) and Bonosa (left). Notice that Magnus and Bonosa are both holding palm branches; these are traditionally signs of martyrdom and the paradise (Heaven) that awaited those who died in faith. (Click the photo to enlarge.)

The remains of St. Bonosa are noticeably more complete; both were later confirmed to have their own bones (not mixed with other skeletons).

One of the pictures of Bonosa, confirming aspects of her life believed since the third century. Other pictures confirm Bonosa was a young woman (approx. 24 y.o.) and Magnus was older (approx. 47 y.o.).

Ultimately, DiBlasi and his team were very pleased with their findings; it seems that these skeletons of Magnus and Bonosa provide nothing to refute the legends that accompany them. DiBlasi also noted how easily skeletons in Roman catacombs (where they were originally placed after death) were mixed up, and bones often filled in the gaps of other skeletons; this seems not to be the case here.

Professor DiBlasi reveals the results of his study.

In the case of SS. Magnus and Bonosa, and their skeletal remains, the future holds much promise. Testing will hopefully provide data from their blood, and computer reconstructions of their faces (at the very least, Bonosa, with her nearly complete skull) should finally reveal to us how the saints looked if we would have met them so many centuries ago or if, one day, we should encounter them in Heaven. 

---

[1] Dr. Carl E. Kramer, PhD, “The Church of St. Martin of Tours, A Brief History: 1853-1985.” In The Renaissance of The Church of St. Martin of Tours by Deborah Yetter (Shepherdsville, KY: Publishers Printing Company, 1992), 47.

In the Beginning...

by Ryan

“We seem to have our best conversations in the car.”

– Me (Ryan)

When I decided to leave Facebook about a month ago, I knew right away I would face a challenge in keeping people in my life up to date with things at our household. This blog — The Sword and the Stein — is Shannon and my solution. This may seem like a peculiar family blog name, but I find the meaning behind this title very appropriate for our lives, as well as the lives of Christians around the world. (More on that in a bit.)

A typically cliché statement when naming a blog might be: “Naming a blog is like naming a baby!” Well, in a way, I think it’s more difficult. That is, unless you are like Frank Zappa, and your children have completely zany names, such as Dweezil and Moon Unit. Anywho, needless to say, we had a hard time naming the blog and went through several ideas before coming to The Sword and the Stein.

One of the more interesting ideas we had stemmed from a visit to St. Charles Borromeo parish in Milan (pronounced: My-len), Indiana. This parish has always felt like home to me. We were attending the 8 a.m. Mass when we heard an announcement that went something like this:

“If you left your rosary at the Resurrection … I mean, The Reservation … (various laughter from the parishioners), it is available for pickup in the Parish Hall.” (The Reservation, by the way, is a restaurant in Milan with cheap Native American-ish décor and a tasty breakfast menu.)

Because of this hilarious instance, Shannon and I long contemplated playing with “If you lost your rosary at the Resurrection…” as a blog name, among others. Shannon and I usually discussed the rationale behind these choices on various car rides, bedtime conversations and other stolen moments.

Hey, girl. Nice mug.

So, I’m guessing you really just want me to tell why we named our blog after a weapon and a drinking vessel. The sword represents the word of God; in Ephesians 6:17, the word of God is “a sword of the spirit.” Hebrews 4:12 calls the word of God “sharper than any two edged sword … and able to discern reflections and thoughts of the heart.” So, while we may wish from time to time to scrutinize the behaviors of our fellow man, we will also look for opportunities to scrutinize our own hearts, since “a good heart is a continual feast” (Proverbs 15:15).

Awkward Family Photos, anyone?

The stein, the well-known drinking vessel of Germanic peoples (and the German word for “stone”), represents the world and all of its pleasures. We all have some pastime, hobby, diversion, etc. that adds dimensions to our lives and perhaps contributes in some way to our uniqueness as individuals.

Some of our blog posts may be more of the “sword” variety, with other posts addressing more “stein”-worthy topics. And then some may be a mixture of the two. I think this is the essence of the devout life, which we try to live with God’s aid. 

Either way, we hope you enjoy our blog.