What I Wore Sunday: Resurrection Sunday Alone

by Shannon

"Oh, the sweet joy this sentence gives: 

I know that my Redeemer lives!"

~"I Know That My Redeemer Lives"

I didn't intend on posting an Easter review until later in the week, but I have bad news — Cruncher is sick. He's had it coming out of both ends for three days (sorry for the TMI). He's pretty miserable, and we're having a tough time getting him to take in liquids. Stubborn little fella — I wonder whyyyy? This is the third-THIRD-third Resurrection Sunday he has been too sick for Mass. He usually only gets a stomach bug once a year, so hitting the same holiday three times is quite the feat.

Since Ryan is napping (tired from a three-hour vigil Mass, having a brave overnight guest to entertain, and getting up in the night to help a sick boy), and Cruncher is chilling in bed, I have time I didn't know I had today. No cooking a big meal. No traveling around town to visit friends. No having dessert guests over this evening. Too bad I have a big, beautiful cake and no one to share it with.... Aaaaand I'm a Debbie Downer on the most sacred day of the year. Sigh ... sorry.

Ho hum. Here's what I wore this morning to Mass, all alone, while worrying about my sweet little boy.

What I wore: walking into church; during Mass; after I got home; closeup on the veil; closeup on the shoes; and for the rest of the day.

Mass outfit deets:
Eternity veil: Liturgical Time (I feel a little odd posting pictures of me in a veil, but I thought I'd share since it was my Easter gift. The shop was amazing to deal with, her blog is just lovely, and I imagine they've gotten very popular since Jennifer Fulwiler's post a few weeks ago. I was excited to read Jen's post because I had been admiring a lady at church's eternity veil, and could never seem to catch her after Mass to ask where she found it. And I ordered mine before the price increase — woohoo! I had no idea I was getting luxury bridal lace. What can I say? I have good taste.)
Love knot earrings: Victoria Townsend, Macy's
Houndstooth spring coat: Beaubois, Goodwill
Faux wrap dress: Evan Picone, consignment shop in town
Tortoiseshell watch: Fossil
Everyone's favorite oxford shoes: Gianni Bini, Dillards

Mom uniform deets: 
Miraculous Medal: Tonini's (Wanted to wear it to Mass, but was in such a hurry between breakfast, getting ready, and Cruncher being clingy.)
Elegant sack top: Dalia Collection, TJ Maxx
Skinnies: Old Navy
First sandals of spring!!: Not sure. The brand has long worn off. Maybe Report?

Can you tell I'm an anxious mess in those photos? I'm pretty good at faking normalcy. I'll bet my mama can tell.

And now for a slew of pictures for my mama.

This year, I naturally dyed our eggs. My friend Gwenny taught me about red eggs last year, and I used food coloring then. I'm leery of toxins in food coloring, though, so I tried naturally dying from Spanish onion skins this year. I was able to snag a bag of onion skins from Meijer for free, since they just toss them. It was really easy to dye the eggs (lots of time, but not much effort), and I think they look better than last year's. The wreath around the eggs was part of our Lenten decorations, as a crown of thorns, reused for Eastertide as a nest. Sorry no other pictures of our big breakfast. I was too distracted. We had potato latkes with goat cheese, pepper bacon and mustard; baked oatmeal with maple syrup; fruit salad; and local coffee. Luke had Jello, Gatorade and toast.

1. Preach it, sister. This year, I went with Easter lilies, for obvious reasons, and
red tulips, because they reminded me of His Precious Blood. The little nests
were on clearance at Target last year, and I made the runner from some sale
upholstery fabric at Hobby Lobby, running me $6.

For the last three Easters, I have bought a new piece of art for our home. This year, I bought a vintage linen tea towel of the Cathedral and Abbey Church of Saint Alban. Unfortunately, the building is not home to Catholic worship, as it's now under the Church of England, but St. Alban is buried beneath. Between the linen, the fabric backing and the frame, I put it together for about $25. Oh, and I got lucky this year and found the Lindt lambs before they sold out. Too. Cute.

The rest of the goodies: books, books and more books; lion and lamb; spring puzzles and a Stow & Go — genius!; and a St. Luke figurine. We gave our overnight guest Robert The Seven Story Mountain and a book of short readings by Matthew Kelly. I was really excited to find a book on St. Francis of Assisi by Chesterton for Ryan, as well as Not Your Average Joe.

The loot in the hidden eggs: St. Francis coin; Sacred Heart of Jesus coin;
rosewood finger rosary; and St. Michael figurine. 

Peek-a-boo egg, hidden-in-plain-sight egg, bookworm egg and sleepyhead egg.

What Cruncher would have worn today. He's pretty opinionated about his clothes, so the last Easter he got sick, we all joked it was because he hated his outfit (because he really did hate it). This year, that's not the case. Oh, well. He'll wear it next week. 

What he wore instead. Or at least one of four outfits so far today, since he keeps getting them ... erm ... messy. Here he is looking for his eggs.

And here he is in outfit two, dueling with Robert. One minute, Cruncher is bouncing off the walls, and the next minute, he's groaning in pain. Such the boy. 

I feel HORRIBLE that I didn't think to get a picture of my handsome husband before he left the house last night. Like I said, he's sleeping, or I'd totally make him put on his outfit for a quick staged photo. I'm that kind of wife.

Linkin' up with Fine Linen and Purple tomorrow and Grace at Camp Patton today. Now I'll continue sitting in Chruncher's beanbag and asking him, "How do you feel?" every five minutes.

Five Favorites

by Shannon

I love...

~1~

... this link up! Sooo easy and simple. Thanks, Hallie!

~2~

... this post from Apartment Therapy on Tuesday. It makes me want to actually finish the kitchen upgrades we started years ago. We're in style! We've got the butcherblock counter, the open cabinetry and the subway tile. The rest of the cabinets need painted (green on bottom, white on top), and we need to install the new hardware that's no longer new because it's been sitting in a box for three years. 

~3~

... Cruncher's new Easter outfit, which I bought a full month early!

And the children's consignment shop where I found it. I will be returning. Monthly. 

~4~

... sushi! Ryan and I have been abstaining from meat on Wednesdays, so we went out for sushi last evening. Doesn't much feel like a sacrifice, now does it? Oh, but it was sooooo gooooood...

~5~

... the Way of the Cross book I ordered for Cruncher, and the very patient bookstore owner and parishioner who helped me find it!
 

Go visit the rest of the ladies who are appreciating the small things!

A Sorrowful Christmas

by Ryan


One of the litany of stereotypes against Catholics is that we are joyless and even that we make a funeral out of our religion. Ironically, I just deleted a post trying to defend against these ideas, but it never felt like it came together. Maybe there's a reason for that ... perhaps a topic for another time.

What may strike the (practicing) Catholic as interesting is that tomorrow, the beginning of the Christmas season for us, also coincides with the Sorrowful Mysteries as prayed in the Rosary. These include: The Agony in The Garden, The Scourging at The Pillar, The Crowning with Thorns, The Carrying of The Cross, and The Crucifixion and Death of Jesus Christ. These are probably among the last things the average person observing Christmas wants to think about on what has came to be known as a joyous day. Even the likes of Penn Jillette recently chimed in on why Christmas is for everyone, even the non-religious:

"And I don't care if you're talking about Walgreens, if you're talking about sending out Christmas cards or your setting up something on a town square. Why do you want to leave people out? ... Why do that? What's your motive? And trying to turn around a 'we want to leave you out' into 'why are you forcing us to not have our joy' is insanity. It's backwards"

Personally, I agree quite a bit with Jillette, though there are plenty of other non-believers that are not friendly to the season in any capacity. And, sure, there are some believers that would like to draw a line in the snow (what snow?) between their observance and the observance of the non-religious. This observer often thinks that how the average Christian and the average Atheist celebrate Christmas are just about one and the same, in terms of their real reason for celebrating at all — to get some really cool gifts and to spend time with loved ones, with just the slightest reference to religion.

In getting back to the matter at hand: Why would one want to make a season like Christmas the least bit sorrowful? I have no answer for the non-believer in this regard — they have liberty to celebrate the season as they will. But for the Christian, we cannot forget the very serious reason why Jesus "was made flesh, and came to dwell among us" (Jn. 1:14) — to save us from our sins.

The text of the Exsultet, found in the Church's readings for the Easter Vigil, contains a text that sums up the joyful and sorrowful aspects of Christmas perfectly:

"O felix culpa, quae talem ac tantum meruit habere Redemptorem!" or "O happy fault, that merited such and so great a redeemer!"

This "happy fault," resulted in the Incarnation of Jesus Christ at conception, continued at His Nativity, or birth, and was fulfilled with His death and resurrection. The Nativity is just one in a chain of events that led to the redemption of mankind. And, indeed it is a happy fault — a paradox, as is true with many things in the Christian religion. The Venerable Fulton Sheen illustrates this beautifully in his Life of Christ, which is worth obtaining a copy to read this passage in it's entirety:

"In the filthiest place in the world, a stable, purity was born ... He, who would call Himself 'the living bread descended from Heaven,' was laid in a manger, literally, a place to eat ... the stable would be the last place in the world where one would have looked for him. ... No worldly mind would ever have suspected that He Who could make the sun warm the earth would one day have need of an ox and an ass to warm him with their breath ... that He, from Whose hands came planets and worlds, would one day have tiny arms that were not long enough to touch the huge heads of the cattle ... for God to be homeless at home- that could only mean one thing to the worldly mind: the Babe could not have been God at all. And that is just why it (the world) missed Him. Divinity is always where one least expects to find it." (pp. 13-14)

My Christian friends, take time to meditate on the paradox of the Christmas season. Find the quietest place, and the quietest time, at the least important hour for your meditation. Take a moment to be cold, hungry and forgotten, even if only in your mind. In short — reflect on the first Christmas, reflect on your Christmas, and discover the meaning of meekness from your God at his most helpless moment in life.

Albrecht Altdorfer- Nativity (1513)

What I Wore Sunday

by Shannon

Prepare yourself for a loooong blog post. If you stick through it, I'm giving a fashion lecture at the close of this post — YAY!

What a busy time of year. I took photos for last week's link-up, but blogging wasn't even close to happening. My busiest weeks of the year are the last week before Christmas and Holy Week. Now that the family Christmas gathering (both sides at my house at one time!) has passed, you'll get a double-dose of WIWS here this week.

For Gaudete Sunday, I did not partake in rose/pink. I have zero rose in my wardrobe, for serious. There are a couple hot pink accessories and a pale pink sweater with moth holes, so I went with black and brown. Why not.

This is my first LBD. Ever. I don't know how I made it nearly 30 years without one. It goes with everything. Everything! 

Deets:
Dress: Old Navy
Scarf: Vintage
Earrings: Betsey Johnson, Macy's
Necklace: gift (Fashion Bug?)
Belt: Kohls, Simply Vera
Watch: Fossil

Without fail, I always get a comment on these earrings when I wear them. That Sunday was no exception.

Huh. There's the TEENY TINEST BIT of rose in that bead near the conjunction of those chains. That's all I've got, people.

I used to fear combining black and brown together, but recently I've gotten over that. Rather, I am very picky about finding the right color tights for these boots. This color is juuuust about right.

These boots are beat. They are not supposed to be slouchy, if that tells you anything. I'm in the market for some new ones after the season starts to close. I've had these for three years, and I've gotten my money out of them. I even wear them one or two times a week in the summer. Stank boot, I know, but they look cute with summer dresses. I want something different this time. I really like these, but they're awfully trendy. Plus, Ryan says they look like shoes a kid with polio braces wore back in the '20s. I'll keep looking.

Tights: Target
Boots: Born, Zappos

This was our visitor last weekend, my kindred spirit Amy! She attended Mass with us. I have to give her a shout-out for being such a fantastic role model for Cruncher. Back story: We were college roommates. We ran in the same circle in high school and ended up at college together (much by my doing). On many Sundays, we'd go to both Mass and the service at the Methodist church. Her father is a minister. Today, she's an educator and often works at the Catholic schools back home. When she attends Mass with us, she follows right along, which really helps cut down on Cruncher's distractions. She's an amazing friend.

You'll notice the pictures of me are better than mine of hers. She's a fantastic photographer. And I'm guessing on her outfit's rundown. She's visiting family for the holidays right now or I'd factcheck.

Amy: 
Dress: Jessica Simpson
Earrings: 1928
Necklace: Vintage
Shirt: Heck if I know
Watch: Fossil
Other wrist: hairband?
Tights: TJ Maxx
Boots: Unsure, but FABULOUS

This was a gift from me. I knew she'd love it because I loved it. And because it's also a brooch.

We loooove 1928 jewelry.

BAM! How fabulous are those?

Here's Cruncher's picture of us together. One day, he'll grow. Or point the lens up.

Well, that concludes last week. I'll try to keep this week short, then onto the lecture.

Now that is some Fashion with a capital F! Mama brought this down yesterday (my family lives two hours away). She found it at Goodwill for $8. She swore to me it was a wool dress, but the back has a slit up to THERE, so it's definitely a coat. Probably a springtime coat, as it is not very heavy. Appears vintage, but the tag looks newer (Beaubois?). I kept it on the entirety of Mass (who wouldn't?), and was very comfortable.

Underneath I wore...

...something no one saw. The purple wool skirt, again. Last Sunday of Advent, so why not.

Earrings: gift
Sweater: hand-me-down (Style&Co, Macy's)
Skirt: Consigned, H&M
Brooch: my grandmother's
Tights: Target
Shoes: Calvin Klein, TJ Maxx

Next week, the WIWS photos will no longer feature our lovely Advent Jesse Tree. The rest of the Christmas decorations go up tomorrow! Sorry about the mess of opened gifts in the background. Tradition is to leave them out on display with the tree through Epiphany. We'll need to make room for Christmas morning's gifts but — ahem — someone needs to wrap them first.

The earrings were a Christmas gift from my parents my first year out of college. I didn't wear them for the longest time, because they're diamonds, but I've worn them a ton since I got my hair cut. I decided it's best to enjoy something lovely than to just let it sit and get dusty.

Last Christmas, my sister gave me a bunch of my grandmother's old jewelry. I usually wear gold jewelry, but I felt like this one gave a Christmasy sparkle to my sweater. I always pin this sweater with a brooch, for modesty and fashion's sake.

Holla if the toes of your nicest shoes are busted from kneeling at Mass?

I bought these shoes for a friend's wedding last winter. I feel like they look a little bit ... witchy. But they're classic and go with a lot of my church outfits.

And here's the lecture. My baby sister was among those visiting this weekend. As we were getting ready for Mass this morning, she asked me how I came to find my personal style. She's been struggling with her style since a.) she had a baby, and b.) she matured. In high school and partly into college, she was kinda punky. She's changed (as many of us do), but she's a wife and a mom and a library assistant at a middle school. These things don't often push you to up your fashion game.

I told her (more reminded her) of a few things. I think a woman often needs to have a style revelation before discovering (or searching for) her personal style. Mine came when Cruncher was about 2. I had stopped breast feeding him probably six months prior, and I was at my biggest dress size ever. I had a sick day, home all by myself (give it up for sick days for moms!). So what I did I do? I was a bum in front of the TV, watching a marathon of What Not to Wear. It was then I realized I needed to throw out most of my clothes. For serious. I realized I was too intimidated by being trendy, so I had given up.

Watching What Not to Wear that day made me realize they had been dressing women the same way for years. It's the same clothes over and over and over again. But what they also were consistently doing was dressing the BODY FIRST, and then the personality second. I started looking at clothes for cut and silhouette, not fabric and color. I'm drawn mostly to paisley, plaid and stripes, but not every paisley, plaid or striped piece of clothing is going to look good on me.

I very (VERY) slowly started to build up my wardrobe, trying on tons of items I never would have looked at twice before. Finally, my clothes fit my body shape and height, and then I added in accessories. For accessories, I buy quality (usually vintage) pieces I love and trendy pieces on deep clearance.

I hope the What I Wore Sunday link-up is helping women to see that confidence and femininity are crucial for contentment.

Rant over. I might talk on this some more another week.

Please visit the other ladies over at Fine Linen and Purple

What I Wore Sunday

by Shannon

I had to get in on the liturgical-color action this week. Actually, wearing purple was completely unintentional. After I was dressed and picking out accessories, I looked in the mirror and thought, "Oh! Perfect." 

What was completely intentional, however, was wearing tights. I. Love. Tights. They're like a security blanket for me. I know a lot of women can't stand to wear hose or tights. I guess it comes from years of ballet lessons. I would change into tights and a leotard after school to wear under my clothes until I got to dance class. It just feels ... familiar. Plus, in case you haven't noticed, my skin is pink. I prefer to cover my legs, if at all possible. I would wear tights year-round if I could. I love dark, textured tights like this pair. This is probably my third pair of cable-knit gray tights. Despite lots of practice with tights, I still get runs in them more than I would like.

I also wore boots again this week, due to the nasty rain. This pair is pretty busted and could use a shining. I'm horrible at walking in heels unless the shoes are securely strapped to my feet, so heeled boots fit the bill. I love how these boots have a mod feel with tights and this skirt.

I remembered detail shots of the accessories this week. I used to have long, hugely curly hair. I gradually started cutting it off last year. I don't think people knew I had ears until I cut off all that hair. Now that my ears are clearly visible, I always wear earrings. I prefer studs to dangles when my hair is short, and I have lots of novelty earrings like these butterflies. No story for the necklace except that it's chunky, and I like it.

I forgot my vintage blazer and brooch, which I took off when I came in the door. 

Deets:

Paisley top: Target

Wool skirt: Consigned, H&M

Gray tights: Target

Black boots: Sears

Butterfly earrings: Target

Chunky necklace: Target

Watch: Fossil

Please visit the ladies over at Fine Linen and Purple to check out everyone's Sabbath attire!

EDIT:

I forgot my husband this week! This is his "What I Wore Sunday While Watching Football After Mass" part of the post, displaying the sword portion of Sword and Stein. He's totally stoked for The Hobbit this weekend. He is also displaying the Cincinnati Bengals on the front of that sweatshirt, which you can't see. Good thing. I hear (though I try to close my ears to it) that they're 7-7. It's a tight one this year.

What I Wore Sunday

by Shannon


Actually, it's what we wore on Sunday. Ryan and Cruncher wanted in on the action, as today was the first Sunday of Advent, and they both wore purple (yes, on purpose). Here are the gentlemen:

We didn't take the picture fast enough for Cruncher, who put on his slippers as soon as we walked in the door.

Cruncher:
Suit: Macys (Actually two different ones. The vest and pants are from last year's Christmas suit, and the shirt and tie are from this Easter's suit. Cruncher put it together this morning. I didn't know a 5-year-old boy could care so much about how he looks.)
Slippers: Target

Ryan:
Shirt: Macys
Tie: Macys
Pants: Gap
Shoes: Target

I usually only allow myself to wear pants to Mass if I have a "good" reason (i.e. feeling icky, status of the laundry, etc.). Today's excuse: I shopped for Advent and Christmas supplies and gifts from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. yesterday, and boy are my dogs tired! Any of the shoes I thought I could wear without pain this morning were the ugly kind that needed pants to cover them up. So, I wore this:

Deets:
Earrings: Victoria Townsend, Macys
Gold sweater: Old Navy
Wool houndstooth sweater: vintage
Bow brooch: vintage
Watch: Fossil
Pants: Old Navy
Boots: Target

It's my first week, so I forgot to take detail shots. I'll get closer crops on accessories next time.

Funny thing is, I found myself less comfortable in these pants than I am in a skirt and tights. I shoulda just worn the clunky boots with a skirt and called it a day. Wouldn't be the first time.

Oh, and here's a picture Cruncher took of us together. Looks like we need to let him practice before the family get-togethers this month.

Please join the lovely ladies at Fine Linen and Purple to check out what other people wore today!

A "Swill Free" Independence Day

by Ryan


So, it's Independence Day, and you're thirsty — what do you do? If you aren't a teetotaler, you might be reaching for a beer in that cooler. Well, for starters, a simple question — why did you buy that beer? Refreshing? Drinkable? Water and lemonade are much cheaper, friends. If you're going to drink a beer, shouldn't it have ... how do I put it ... flavor?

If you've continued to read, I'm assuming that you are interested in some alternatives; perhaps I reach too far with that assumption. But, if you are, I hope the suggestions below are helpful. They will be organized by accessibility and will feature beers made or available widely at beer specialty retailers.


1. "I'm not too adventurous ... and I usually only drink beer on July Fourth, anyway."

Primary suggestion: Schlafly Kolsch

This beer will be more flavorful than your run-of-the-mill brands, but it shouldn't overpower even the most sensitive palate. Low bitterness, hay-like qualities and apple/pear notes make this a quenching, yet satisfying, choice.

Food pairing: chicken salad, salmon, bratwurst, lighter cheeses (monterey jack, etc.), lemon tart, transparent pie (for my homies in Mason County)


2. "I don't consider myself a beer expert, but I always enjoy a good beer with friends."

Primary suggestion: Ayinger Brau-Weisse

American alternative: Victory Sunrise Weissbier

An authentic German hefeweizen (wheat beer) with plenty of character, German hefeweizen typically carry some light tartness, making them ultra refreshing. This particular example starts with honey, gum and clove, continues with some slight pepper, and terminates with an herbal bouquet.

Food pairing: grilled chicken (especially with a lemony rub/marinade), burgers, salmon, sushi (for that international flair), weisswurst (the traditional pairing), goat/herbal cheeses, strawberry shortcake

I thoroughly enjoyed my bottle of Ayinger Brau-Weisse.

3. "One of my guests has completed the Beer Judge Certification Program. Help!"

Primary suggestion: Lindemans Gueuze Cuvee Rene

American alternative: Jolly Pumpkin Bam Biere (not a gueuze; most American "lambic" is produced and distributed in limited locales)

What on earth is gueuze, you say? Well, gueuze (usually pronounced "gooz" in the states) is a mixture of different ages of lambic, a beer style indigenous to Pajottenland, a region southwest of Brussels, Belgium. This mixture creates a secondary fermentation, producing a beer with different characteristics from the original two lambics. Still confused? Essentially, this beer is the true Champagne of beer — they have an interesting interplay of sour/tart flavors, various fruits and a very dry finish. In terms of wine, a Riesling is comparable.

Food pairing: mussels, duck, game, smoked salmon, crab cakes, bluefish, sardines, ceviche, smoked sausage, salad with raspberry vinaigrette

———

Some of these beers may be difficult to track down. If you wish to have further alternatives, just leave a comment, and I will do my best to find a comparable beer for you.