One more Mass with Fr. Tom before goes home!

We have so enjoyed having Fr. Keller with us for the past few days. It was a rare treat. Bear got to know his God-Father again. Pooker and Goobers got to feel close to their old friend again. Sugar and Moogie got to know Fr. Keller as young people and not babies. The rest of the group got to know and love this man. His last day he was asked to say the morning Mass for the parish priest. We were thrilled that he agreed.

Jason and I have been friends with Fr. Keller for years. We were at his ordination. It was a beautiful blending of two worlds to have him saying Mass down here in Houston. Our past was blending with our present. It was a wonderful feeling.
We gathered all of Fr.'s stuff and headed for some donuts after breakfast. We didn't stay long but I noticed that each one of the kiddos found the time and way to spend some one on one time with our visitor.

He was so wonderful to listen to each one of their questions. He made them all feel special. Princess and Bagel understood that he would be leaving soon and enjoyed getting his attention and telling him stories.
Pickle was very calm this day. He felt very peaceful. I loved that toward the end of the visit, Pickle said that he might want to be a priest after all. I asked why he changed his mind. He said that he didn't know that priest could still have fun and be as cool as Fr. Keller.

Bear enjoyed the time with his God-Father.

After the donuts we headed to the park. After several days of rain and some site seeing we wanted to just fly kites again. Maybe Fr. Keller has a few more tricks up his sleeves.

We were not there for very long before the little ones headed off to the play set while the older ones starting working on their kites. The goal was to break the record of flying 6 at one time.

The boys got into this big time. But the winds were not that great today.

The girls wanted to sun bath and not get to sweaty from running after the kites.

Before it was time to leave a few friends showed up. We continued to fly for a short time and them it was time for good-bye.

Every single day for the past week one of the children has come up to me and said, "I miss Fr. Tom, Don't you?!" Yes I do! Thanks Fr. Keller - we all love you and miss you!

The new Co-Cathdral Visit

We went to see the new co-Cathedral for the Galveston-Houston Arch Diocese. I have heard o much hype over this building. After it was open we heard many say how wonderful it was. I didn't see it.

Loved the spacious bathrooms. For us that is not usually a draw for a church.

It didn't take long to look around. The walls were simple. Not much to look at at all. The saint statues were the only decorations and not very many of them. This windows contained stain glass angels. The stations of the cross were around as well. Very simple, but not too modern.

Having grown up in St. Louis I grew partial to the St. Louis Basilica. That building is a world renown for its mosaic walls and ceilings. One could spend days just looking at the walls and not have enough time to see at all. God's beauty and story is reflected in each design around the room especial the dome. Not here in Houston. Very plain and simple. I felt that it did not glorify our creator at all.

Our Lord was truly present. Our creator, our God our Lord and Savior was there. He was present in His humble appearance of Bread tucked safely into the Tabernacle. This was not part of a side chapel devoted just to him but in what looked like a black cave. This should be the focal point of the entire church not a blackened closet to the side. As you turn to leave the building there is a huge stain glass window with the a version of the risen Christ. This was a huge let down for all of us. It made me long for the "real" churches of the mid-west. I so miss the beauty. I often find simple to be nice but it just didn't feel good enough for God.

Body-Blood-Soul-Divinity on Mercy Sunday! 4-19-09

The Party was just like the old days. We were not in our back yard, and we missed all of our cousins but we still had a stellar game of wiffle ball.





















What a great day this was! Pickle was so happy as he received our Lord. The joy on his face was seen by anyone that looked. That pure joy that you can see in children. We were blessed that our Fr. Tom was asked to be the main celebrant. It was wonderful except that our families could not all make it down. They were missed. We were very blessed to have so many friends for our homeschool group. They stuck around after Mass to congratulate Pickle and his friend Danielle. After the Mass we headed to the park. The rains had stopped and we were able to spend that day playing t-ball just like the old days.

Another day of Rain in Houston 4-18-09

So Saturday was just as green and wet as Friday. My mom said that she has never seen this much rain. The truth is that it rains very different here than in the mid-west. Sometimes I miss those storms that would roll in, storm and then roll out. Here it seams to rain for longer periods of time. I feel like we are always saying that we can use the rain. So another day of searching for indoor activity without driving too far. We ended up at the mall at the Houston Museum of Natural Science mini location. The best part was the room full of blocks. We spent hours in that room.
Pickle and Goobers working on a puzzle.

Bagel and Sugar building a tower.
Fr. Tom and Princess working on a Cathedral.

The boys joined in the tower building. Jumba loved all these blocks.

Sugar and Jumba moved on to chair moving. Jumba spent at least 30 minutes moving the tiny stools around. Sugar would sit where he told her to sit. She is such a good big sister.

Moogie started her own building.

Dad, Bagel, Goobers and Pickle end up with a huge box of Lincoln Logs. They also started buildings.

The girls were very proud of their creations.

Fr. Tom would still be making changes if we let him.

Mimi didn't enjoy the blocks as much as the rest of the gang. Pooker was at work so that is why you are missing her here. Our plan was to visit her after this.

Moogie's final building.

Our tour ended with time in the dinosaur dig pits. The have huge bones placed in the ground with tire shavings over them. The kids get to pretend to find the remains and dig them out. This made the kiddos very happy and very dirty.

Another good day. Dani loved having us visit. Another good day with our visitors.