Seven Quick Takes Friday (13)

--- 1 ---

So Lent starts Wednesday...I am not sure what I will give up or choose to add to my life. I think this move is absolutely stressful, so I don't know what other type of penance God would will me do. Last year I was a brand new mom, so I didn't give up much...I just gave up watching Ellen. I added receiving Eucharist on the tongue and have kept that as part of my life.
I think this year I will do what I did for Advent; add a daily mass to my week...except that we will be moving the week after Ash Wednesday, so I'll start the next week.
I don't know what to give up this year that is meaningful... What are you doing??

--- 2 ---

Next Wednesday is also my baby girl's first birthday. Her birthday actually falls on Ash Wednesday in 11 years too...I find that interesting. My mom is a third grade teacher at a Catholic school. I think her kids want to throw baby G a Mardi Gras birthday party on Tuesday. I don't know what they expect of a one year old at a school party, but I think it is cute.

--- 3 ---

I feel like I have looked at 50 homes online. We are trying to find a nice size home (3 bed, 2 bath), with updated kitchen, for rent in our new town. It's pretty tough to do online, because pictures don't tell the whole story. We are lucky to have one of my husband's co-workers in the area already who scoped a place out for us. We've decided to move forward on one, despite it being a bit higher than we wanted to pay. The area around it seems great, so I guess we'll pay for that versus something cheaper with not as nice of a neighborhood.

--- 4 ---

I could really use some prayers for the drive to my parents on Sunday. I have never driven baby G alone for more than 2 hours. I am very nervous about how our SIX hour drive alone is going to go. If you have tips for driving with a baby while not being able to attend to her, I'd appreciate if you shared them with me. I know that I should plan to stop at least once. My biggest worry is that she'll get bored/mad and cry the whole time. She throws all her toys to the side & usually I am able to hand things back to her while my husband drives. Not possible when I am alone. If you can't tell, my stress level is pretty high right now between the move & this drive.

--- 5 ---

I went to dinner with a friend Thursday night (the one I mentioned last week, whose son needs surgery). I really pray their situation ends well. I know that God doesn't give us more than we can handle, but she surely has a lot on her plate right now. I've enjoyed getting to know her and her family over the past year & I'll really miss them when we move to California. The ironic thing is that they moved to Kansas from the San Francisco area...and we are moving from Kansas to the San Francisco area.
I'm actually going to miss a lot about this area. My husband I both really like it here, so we may end up moving back later in life. I'll probably post my favorite things in the area next week.

--- 6 ---

G's top two highlights of the week:

• I swear G said "hi dada." I was talking to my husband on the phone and I told her to say hi. She started waving as usual, but then said "Hi Dada!" pretty clearly. He didn't hear it though :-(
• She's got a great fort to play in now. She likes hiding things in it and also using her lantern as a night light.

--- 7 ---

If you haven't seen it, please check out the guest post I shared this week from Mandi @ Catholic Newlywed. She wrote about pacifier use and there have been many great comments left. I really appreciate her sharing this story with me and my readers. If you have something you'd like to share regarding natural parenting, feel free to contact me!

For more Quick Takes, visit Conversion Diary!