Top three reasons to clean your house.

There are many reasons to clean your house. Lots of good, sound, hygienic reasons. You know, like...

- so the family  doesn't pass germs

- so you can teach your children good habits

- so you don't all contract some sort of weird fungus and lose all your body hair which then grows back but only really dark and curly, and EVERYWHERE (I'm pretty sure there is a fungus like this out there...pretty sure)

...so yeah, lots  of reasons.

But  of course, if you have kids and/or a job, you do stuff all day, and then at night time you're really tired, and you have Netflix instant watch, and a whole bag of knitting projects waiting and a couple of imported beers... 

...then maybe you decide that instead of doing the laundry, the dishes, and any other mundane back-breaking task, you will sit down. And then you can't get back up, you just can't.

And so you don't clean anything.

 And so your house kind of smells like the last poopy diaper that was changed mixed with the smell of the old batter sitting in the bowl from this mornings pancakes and the air freshener plugged into the kids bathroom which always smells bad no matter what you do...

That's gross, folks. Gross. I'm kind of nauseous right now thinking about it. Y'all are gross.

 While all those basic things are *always* done, *every* day, without fault, sometimes, *sometimes*, in our house , there are just some days where a few toys are still sitting out the next morning when we wake up that didn't get put away the night before or there is the occasional wine glass resting in the shining sink that didn't quite make it into the dishwasher. It does happen. Even here. (But only about as often as those pesky power outages)

But then, you realize, shock gasp, horror, that one of two things is about to happen and you absolutely *must* clean the house. (And I'm not talking about just picking up the few stray toys, I'm talking about cleaning, like with sponges, and Lysol wipes, and actually putting real swiffer mop pads on the swiffer mop, instead of just wet paper towels...don't you judge me! (Martin is cringing right now at even this definition of "cleaning"...his grandmother is reading this... his *Grandmother*........someone, please, take away my shovel))

1. You're having guests which include other adults, not just family, but *real* other adults, whom you assume have impeccably decorated and meticulously clean homes of their own, and they will be judging every square inch of your home when they come for whatever "soiree" you have decided to throw (pretty questionable choice on your part to hold anything at your house in the first place, I might add). 

2. A new baby is about to arrive, any minute, and they cannot be born into this arena of filth and muck. Even if it isn't true, every house is indeed an arena of filth and muck before a newborn baby arrives in it. Your house. My house. Every house... dripping with it. (and in our case, because we home-birth, this is especially true, because they literally cannot be born into this filth and muck)

And yesterday friends, I added a new one to the list...

3. Your realtor is stopping by to asses your house and give you an idea of what the listing and selling prices might be.

(An aside to our realtor, who has my email and may very well be reading this... I promise that this is not the best I can do in terms of a clean house. I promise. I am so much better than it looks. Please, *believe* me!)

Yes, if your realtor is about to drop by for the first time ever, to price your house and go over what the grim, bleak future is going to hold for you crazy people who are selling your house in this horrible market... for goodness sake... clean-up! 

I'm pretty sure he couldn't tell that we did. But we did. And you know the best part of it all? We get to reap the benefits of that mad dash to clean for at least 2 or 3 days. Score! 

Red laundry chair? Empty!   Kids beds? Made!   Bathroom floors? Visible! 

I know that for some of us, we don't need these silly motivations to keep a clean home. We are naturally clean and tidy due to our own strong will and desire for godliness.  But for others, moments like these, visitors, new babies, realtor's stopping by to look in our closets... they really get us going, give us that much needed kick in the rear to get out the big guns and open up that pack of new green and yellow sponges to replace the old petrified gray one in the sink.

Ahhh... 

Add caption

We could always go this route...

 Martin and I like to look at houses online. Our plan right now, after all of the moving and what not (see how I glossed over that part, yeah, that's about the speed we're moving at these days...), is to buy land ASAP and then start looking for an architect to work with in Poland so we can break ground next spring on our house. So, while Martin has off from work, and all the kids are napping (miracle of miracles) we like to look at houses and dream about our own.

Today I came across this link on Facebook, posted by a friend...

http://www.simondale.net/house/gallery.htm

Here is just a sampling of what you will see should you choose to click on the link (all pics are of the same house, taken from the website above)...











I sent Martin an email ( he was in the other room at the time. Clearly there is not enough time in the day for me to get up and walk over and look at it with him).


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From: Olivia
To: Martin

Subject: We could always go this route...


http://www.simondale.net/house/gallery.htm


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------------------------------------------------------------------------
From: Martin
To: Olivia

Subject: Re: We could always got this route...


<unsubscribe>


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That man has no imagination! No imagination, I say!

I guess it's back to the drawing board...

Felix says...

"Tata, remember in Poland, when we were walking inside the darkness? It was so cold."

Main Square, Old Town Krakow.

30 years ago today, Reagan addressed the nation.

I got this link in a forward from my sister. I wanted to share it on my blog.

Here is the link to the original article.

Christmas 1981: A Flame for Freedom in Poland

December 2011 might not be an anniversary on the minds of American Catholics, but it is close and near and dear to the hearts of Polish Catholics. As American Catholics, we ought to pause here, today, to consider why. The reasons are historically and even spiritually inspiring.

It was 30 years ago, December 13, 1981, that martial law was imposed upon Poland by the communist government. Poles were aghast, horrified, frightened. And so was the man in Rome, a Polish native named John Paul II, and so was another man thousands of miles away in Washington, DC, President Ronald Reagan.

When word of the communists’ actions reached the White House, President Reagan was furious. He wanted to help the people of Poland in any way he could. At that very moment, Reagan committed to save and sustain the Polish Solidarity movement as the wedge that could splinter the entire Soviet bloc, as the first crack in the Iron Curtain.

One of Reagan’s first responses was to call someone he deeply respected: John Paul II. On December 14, he told the Holy Father: “Our country was inspired when you visited Poland, and to see their commitment to religion and belief in God. It was an inspiration…. All of us were very thrilled.”

At that point, Reagan had not yet met John Paul II in person. Reagan had been president only for 11 months. Both he and John Paul II had been shot earlier in the year. Reagan told the Pope that he looked forward to a time when the two men could meet in person. The imposition of martial law added a special urgency. Reagan wanted to meet with the Pope to plan ways to cooperate.

Reagan followed up with two letters to John Paul II, dated December 17 and 29, 1981, neither of which was declassified until July 2000. In the December 17 letter, he asked the Pope to urge Poland’s General Jaruzelski to hold a meeting with Lech Walesa and the Poland’s Archbishop Glemp. In the second letter, Reagan explained the counter-measures his administration was taking against the USSR; he also asked the Pope to use his influence with the Polish Church to lift martial law, to gain the release of detainees, and to resume a dialogue with Solidarity; and he requested that John Paul II press other Western countries to join the United States. “If we are to keep alive the hope for freedom in Poland,” said Reagan, “it lies in this direction.”

There is much more I could say about all of this, having written books on the subject, but one item that happened precisely 30 years ago, right now, on December 23, 1981, is especially moving and notable:

On that date, Reagan held a private meeting in the White House with the Polish ambassador, Romuald Spasowski, and his wife, both of whom had just defected to the United States. Michael Deaver, a close Reagan aide, witnessed the meeting. Deaver later recorded:

The ambassador and his wife were ushered into the Oval Office, and the two men sat next to one another in plush-leather wingback chairs. Vice President Bush, and the ambassador’s wife, sat facing them on a couch.

The ambassador had in his hand a pocket-sized note pad with wire rings and lined paper, and he was obviously referring to notes he wanted to give to the president of the United States. Meanwhile, his wife, a tiny, delicate-looking woman, kept her head in her hands the entire time, while George Bush put an arm around her shoulders to comfort her.

The ambassador said, “It is unbelievable to me that I am sitting in the office of the president of the United States. I wish it were under better circumstances.”

He begged the president never to discontinue Radio Free Europe. “You have no idea,” he said, “what it meant to us to hear the chimes of Big Ben during World War Two. Please, sir, do not ever underestimate how many millions of people still listen to that channel behind the Iron Curtain.”

Then, almost sheepishly, he said, “May I ask you a favor, Mr. President? Would you light a candle and put in the window tonight for the people of Poland?”

And right then, Ronald Reagan got up and went to the second floor, lighted a candle, and put it in the window of the dining room.

Later, in what I still recall as the most human picture of the Reagan presidency, he escorted his guests through the walkway and out to the circular drive on the South Lawn of the White House. In a persistent rain, he escorted them to their car, past the C-9 Secret Service post, holding an umbrella over the head of the wife of the Polish ambassador, as she wept on his shoulder.

That candle might have brought to mind those lit after Mass by a young Karol Wojtyla. Then and now, they burned bright for Russia’s conversion.

But Reagan did more than that. That evening, with Christmas only two days away, the president gave a nationally televised speech watched by tens of millions of Americans. He connected the spirit of the Christmas season with events in Poland: “For a thousand years,” he told his fellow Americans, “Christmas has been celebrated in Poland, a land of deep religious faith, but this Christmas brings little joy to the courageous Polish people. They have been betrayed by their own government.” He made an extraordinary gesture: The president asked Americans that Christmas season to light a candle in support of freedom in Poland.

This was a remarkable display, one that placed all Americans on the side of freedom for Poland—and against the communists.

I’m sure it was appreciated, too, by a Polish Catholic named Karol Wojtyla.

Thirty years ago, December 1981, the communists tried to turn out the lights in Poland. But like a candle in the White House window, Ronald Reagan and John Paul II and the people of Poland kept a flicker of hope alive.

It may seem like a long time ago, distant to the interests of Americans today. In truth, this was a crucial turning point for the world, for freedom, and for faith. It is a history lesson worth taking to heart, especially this Christmas.

Paul Kengor is professor of political science at Grove City College. His books include The Judge: William P. Clark, Ronald Reagan’s Top Hand (Ignatius Press), God and Ronald Reagan, and The Crusader: Ronald Reagan and the Fall of Communism.

Stream of Consciousness: Light a match and walk away!

Frustration. I am frustrated. I am living in an episode of Hoarders, except, ironically, I have less stuff in my home than I did 6 months ago. And by less I mean about 6- 8 large boxes less. And yet, and yet, I can't walk through my own home.

I am going insane. And Martin, well Martin doesn't have to live here does he? He comes home around 8pm every night, eats a bit of dinner in the semi-clean kitchen and comes to our room, hops on the computer for a couple hours and goes to bed. In the morning he gets up, makes breakfast in the semi-clean kitchen and comes back to our room to get ready for work, and he's out. Weekends we do our best to get out of the house as a family. Wonder why?

I have to live here, all day, every day!!!!

Please can I just take it all outside and light a match? Why do I have to go through everything and decide what to do with it? It's not important. Most of it is not important at all and if it is, it will be easy to just toss it into a box and throw it in the car and onto the boat.

Before the move got serious everything was in its place. There was still a lot of stuff but it was put away. And now, it's all out. And the walls are crusting in on ol' Olivia. It stinks. It really really stinks.

I'm kind of at my wit's end. I have been throwing stuff away every day and it isn't making a dent. How scary is that?

I need this stuff gone. Now. I can't live like this anymore!

 It's impossible. I'm officially overwhelmed by our stuff. Stuff I don't even want and don't care about and have no emotional attachment to.

Enough is enough!!

It's raining outside. No one will notice, right?

The worst corner in my house, right in my bedroom.. A lovely sight to wake up to. :(

Missing everything Mexican

Happy Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe!

Now, for serious. You cannot encapsulate everything that is the Mexican culture in one blog post. I'm not even going to try. I am really going to miss these days where the culture and the faith of the Mexican people really shine. It has been a part of my life since I can remember. I want my kids to grow up remembering the same things.

 I guess I'll just have to do whatever I can to represent the *entire* country, all by myself,  within our own little circle of friends and family over there in the Central/Eastern quadrant of the European Continent. 

It's a good thing...

I am an expert at making paper flowers. 

 ... downloading Mariachi music... 

...and marrying men who are "conversationally proficient" in Spanish (well, I've only done that once but I got it right the first time so I think I can consider myself an expert).

See how he charms the ladies? 

BUT, PEOPLE.... PRAY,TELL....

What am I going to do without Mexican food?!?!

The night my parents were married, 1978, they came directly from their wedding reception to  this restaurant to eat dinner.  30+ years later, it still serves the best Mexican food in the world.

P.S. I am totally researching the cost of sending tamales in dry ice to Krakow. You think I'm joking? Think again.

6 speedy updates...Gaudete Sunday style.

In our house, Gaudete Sunday (Pink/"Rejoice"/Joyful Sunday) is the most looked forward to Sunday of the Advent season because it is the Sunday where we decorate the inside and outside of the house in preparation for Christmas! (Except for the Christmas tree which we put up the Sunday before Christmas, except this year because we are going to be out of town next weekend and we did things a bit ahead of time to make up for it. :)  )

It is also the first chance I have had in the last two weeks to sit down and catch up on some info. for the blog. So here it goes. Quickly and JOYFULLY!

1) We still have not pinned down a Realtor. BUT, the Holy Spirit was looking out for us because just as we were discussing what we should do or how to get started, we ran into a family friend, who also happens to be a realtor and he is going to be sending us some info. just to get us started. Hurray! Trusted friends with helpful info. is always a plus when doing something for the first time. Thank you, Holy Spirit!

2)  We have had many a discussion here on whether or not we should be listening to Christmas music before the Christmas Season begins. I said that we could because Advent is a time of Joyful preparation. Martin says we shouldn't because he thinks Christmas Carols are supposed to be reserved for after Christmas. I said no way was I going to to go all of Advent and not listen to one single croon from ol' Bing, and he said that we can listen to Christmas music so long as it is not Carols. To which I said, "fine." Yay for compromises!!! Bing Crosby is on around the clock! (and because I'm just a pagan American, and don't have the whole list of Carols memorized, there may be one or two that slip in there from time to time, but I promise it's not on purpose).

3) The children will be performing in their home-school co-op's Christmas Play. Hejjo is St. Joseph and Felek is a shepherd. I am thinking of asking if Lina can sidle in there as a sheep or shepherdess or something.I'll see what I can do. I am hoping that this is something we can do with fellow home-schoolers (or perhaps our local Parish?) in Krakow. Even if just for our few families, it would be great for the kids to be able to perform. Who doesn't love a bunch of little kids tripping over costumes and wearing little sparkly halo's? Am I right? Adorable!

4)We have all been well. Aside from some nasty allergies which are just plain inevitable in Austin, Texas at this time of year... we have all been not sick. Can you believe that? I have just jinxed it of course, but who cares? YAY for good health around the Holidays... there's a first time for everything!!!

4) Speaking of the holidays... remember this post? Well, we decided to just keep things the way they have been for the past 6 years. We celebrated Thanksgiving at my parent's house and will be celebrating Wigilia at Martin's parents home.  But, the even bigger news that I am most excited about is that Christmas Day, we will be able to spend the whole morning with just our little family at home! I can't wait! The way it worked out we will have the whole morning to lazily drink mugs of hot chocolate, exchange gifts and sing songs with just the 6 of us... all in our pajamas! We have never done this before. In fact I always get a little sad at Christmas because I never feel like we have enough time to just spend time with each other, just the 6 of us, calmly, without rushing about. I can't wait!

5) Martin received some encouraging news about the job situation and moving to Poland. I have mentioned before (I think) that Martin is attempting to take his job to Poland with him (a topic that I will def. talk about more once he gives me the o.k.). Basically work for an American company remotely, in Poland. This is the ideal situation for us to move to Poland and transition before he finds different work there. He has been getting a  little nervous that this is not as easy as he initially thought, BUT some recent news has helped him feel a bit better. Nothing for sure yet, but there is a smidge of light at the end of that tunnel. Hesitant, but smiling, sigh of relief!

6)The weather has been amazing! We got some much needed rain. Not enough to fill the lakes but enough to quench the threat of wildfires, for a few weeks at least. And it has finally gotten colder! This week we are supposed to have one day in the 70's but I am just going to pretend  that is a typo because otherwise the weather has been pretty nice. Finally some cooler temperatures to make you feel a bit more like Christmas is indeed going to arrive. Yay for differences in temperature and climate in general...just any change...we'll take it...thank you, God!

I hope you have had a chance to set aside some time this Advent to reflect on the year. Our family has many traditions during this time that help us prepare for Christmas and it has been really special. We have much for which to be thankful, and joyful.. Happy Gaudete Sunday, ya'll!