7 Quick Takes Friday - June 29, 2012



--- 1 ---

GREAT news on the job front. My company finally made the announcement they've been alluding to for over a month, which is that our largest client is buying a portion of the business -- specifically, the portion that I work on -- and moving it to their Tempe office. They've made job offers to about 10 of my co-workers, INCLUDING ME! In fact, I was one of the "key people" they really wanted to come on board since I'm already so knowledgeable about their documents, and have worked with their people a lot already.

Same rate of pay, MUCH BETTER benefits. They have merit raises every year, so I'll be eligible for a raise in January. My manager was also made an offer, so he'll still be my manager (he's awesome, so I'm thrilled)!

Commute is about the same, but they encourage telecommuting. The company has 5,000+ employees worldwide but my office will only have about 30. Oh, and they're letting me keep my service time, so in terms of benefits I'll already have 3.5 years in.

This is a HUGE improvement. I'm very sorry for the co-workers who didn't get offers but I'm so freaking happy. I'm going to get paid every other Friday through direct deposit! No more bouncing paychecks!

I start Monday but since I already had a vacation planned for this week (my dad is coming to visit; he flies in tonight!), I'm only working Monday (so I can do their orientation thing) and I'll have the rest of the week off.

Praise God!

--- 2 ---

Gabriel caught the bug that's been going around and was sick all day Sunday. Poor little guy was vomiting after every feeding. :( Here's a picture of my sick sweetie:



Thankfully it was a short-lived bug and he was fine the next day.

--- 3 ---

As I mentioned above, my dad flies in today! Hooray! He'll be here until July 6. I'm looking forward to spending quality time with him!

Collin offered to pick him up from the airport, but I said I might as well given I'll be in that area of town anyway. When my dear husband expressed concern that I'd have to wait around a few hours until my dad's plane comes in, I replied, "Oh, yes, it's going to be so difficult to have four hours all to myself with no kids around. Whatever shall I do?"


--- 4 ---

Have you checked out Bad Catholic's new venture, 1flesh.org, yet? If not, you should!


--- 5 ---

Terabytes of digital ink have been spilled about the ObamaCare decision, so I won't bother adding my $.02. I will say that I was thrilled with this announcement on the same day:


Venerable Bishop Sheen, pray for us!
--- 6 ---

Gabriel is 7 months old! Mommy celebrated by (finally) remembering to take a picture of him sportin' his trendy Bubble swag:

--- 7 ---

I got an update on Steven! Nicole Dewberry is overseas right now, and she spent some time with him! There's an update on him here, and she also sent me an e-mail that said,
He is very good! Just love him to pieces. Today we played together with a couple toys. He and the kids all look very good and are in good spirits. We are with them from 5 to 6 hours a day approx. Just praying and hoping to find a family for him and Lance. Lucas one of their buddies just had a family commit to adopt. AMEN! They are all such good boys that so long for a Mama and Papa gotta get the word out on them.

Steven, where are your mom and dad?? They must be out there somewhere!

For more Quick Takes, visit Conversion Diary!

7 Quick Takes Friday - June 22, 2012 - We Have A Winner!




--- 1 ---

Thanks to all who entered my giveaway! Winner will be announced in #7. ;-)

--- 2 ---

I met with Heidi, Kara, my friend Luisa (along with most of our assorted children) on Saturday for another girl's night! After we ate, we went to watch the dancing fountains at the mall:

Uploaded from the Photobucket iPhone App

In this picture, you can see my oldest three and Heidi's three boys.


--- 3 ---

We had a lovely Father's Day. Collin woke to find gifts waiting for him:

Uploaded from the Photobucket iPhone App

The kids gave him a new wallet, sorely needed (his current one is on its last legs). They picked it out themselves at Dillard's when we were at the mall on Saturday. He loved the slipcase ID compartment!

My gift to him was his very own St. Clare of Assisi Knights of Columbus polo shirt (sort of like this, only sans pocket and with the church name and council number embroidered on it as well). He'd been wanting one for quite a while and was thrilled to finally get it!


--- 4 ---

To celebrate, we visited The Shrine of St. Joseph in Yarnell, AZ. It's basically an outdoor stations of the Cross, and absolutely beautiful. This was our first visit but definitely won't be our last. A few pictures:

Uploaded from the Photobucket iPhone App
William contemplates the Agony in the Garden
Uploaded from the Photobucket iPhone App
Jesus is taken down from the Cross
Uploaded from the Photobucket iPhone App
The meditation for the above station

--- 5 ---

After visiting the Shrine, we traveled up to Prescott, AZ and ate at the Prescott Brewing Company. Amazing food and amazing beer. I highly recommend it!

--- 6 ---

Elanor continues to delight me with her family portrait creativity. A few days ago, she drew us all as cats, and helpfully put our first initials above the respective feline so we knew who was who:

Uploaded from the Photobucket iPhone App


--- 7 ---


And now... the moment you've all been waiting for...

There were a total of 33 entries. I put them all in a numbered list format, and then used Random.org to pick an entry.

 

The winner of "A Book of Saints for Catholic Moms" is...

DELTAFLUTE!

Congratulations, DeltaFlute, and thank you to everyone who entered!


For more Quick Takes, visit Conversion Diary!

7 Quick Takes Friday - June 15, 2012 - Giveaway Edition!






--- 1 ---

Yes, I'm going to have my very first ever giveaway! However, I'm going to make you scroll through 6 more quick takes before getting to it. Mwahahahahaha.

--- 2 ---
Gabriel got his Yoda hat (thanks to my winning bid in Bidding Malcolm Home)!

Adorable, I am!
 
Thank you Mary's Originals! The craftsmanship is incredible! I can highly recommend her work.

--- 3 ---

Sign me up for Mom of the Year. I registered Elanor and William for swimming lessons and marked the start date down as June 23. Turns out it was actually June 2. Oops. They've missed the first two lessons. *headdesk*

--- 4 ---

I'm still waiting for someone to explain to me exactly how I'm being controlled by the Church. Anyone? Anyone? Bueller? I even e-mailed the guy who drew the first cartoon and asked him, but so far he hasn't gotten back to me.

--- 5 ---

I also had a guest post on Little Catholic Bubble earlier this week, fisking a truly atrocious article by Katholic Kathleen Kennedy Townsend. I was braced for a bunch of haters but so far it's only gotten positive feedback. I even posted a link to the article on the Facebook page of Catholics for Choice, but nada. Oh well.

--- 6 ---

Also, I need to say how much I now adore the Religious Sisters of Mercy.

As religious women, our whole life is based in faith. Apart from faith, religious life has no meaning. The doctrinal assessment from the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith (CDF) regarding the LCWR is in the language of faith. The responses of opposition are being expressed using the language of politics. There is no basis for authentic dialogue between these two languages. The language of faith is rooted in Jesus Christ, His life and His mission, as well as the magisterial teaching of the Church. In addition, the language of faith does not contradict reason, but elevates it and secures its integrity. The language of politics arises from the social marketplace. The Sisters who use political language in their responses to the magisterial Church reflect the poverty of their education and formation in the faith.
You nailed it, sisters. Nailed it.
--- 7 ---

So, the giveaway!

I had my two three four-year blogiversary on June 13, and completely forgot about it (see Quick Take #3 - and yes, I also had to look up what year I started blogging...). But better late than never, right?

In honor of my four years of blogging, and in deference to the "stars of hope" who inspired the name of my blog, I'm going to give away a copy of Lisa Hendey's A Book of Saints for Catholic Moms:



Winner gets the choice of paperback, Kindle, or Nook version.

Here are the rules:

1. You get one entry if you leave a comment on this post.

2. You get one entry if you share the link to this giveaway on Facebook (please tag me, or leave a comment on this post with a link to your FB post).

3. You get one entry if you share the link to this giveaway on Twitter (please mention @joannawahlund, or comment on this post with a link to the tweet).

4. You get FIVE entries if you donate $10 or more to Steven's Reece's Rainbow account (please leave a comment telling me you did so - no need to mention the amount).

The giveaway will end at midnight exactly one week from today (June 22, 2012), and I'll announce the winner (chosen by Random.org) in next week's Quick Takes.

Good luck!

For more Quick Takes, visit Conversion Diary!

How Does the Church Control Me?

Jill Stanek featured the following at her blog today:


Mr. Luckovich, how, exactly, does the Church control me? If I want contraception, there are three stores within a mile of my house that sell condoms and have pharmacies that dispense the Pill. That doesn't include the Wal-Mart less than three miles away, where I can purchase hormonal contraceptives at $10 for a 90-day supply.

The Church does not physically prohibit me from going to these stores and availing myself of said contraception, nor does she prohibit me from visiting an OB-GYN and obtaining a prescription for same. I don't have Swiss Guards standing at my door and following me around whenever I leave the house, making sure I don't buy contraceptives.

If I did, that'd be pretty sweet -- think I could rope them into free babysitting?

Does the Church teach that contraceptives are intrinsically immoral? Yes. But the Church does not force me to be a Catholic, and the Church does not force me to adhere to Her teachings.

I wasn't always a Catholic, and I knew full well what I was getting into when I became one. I chose, of my own free will, to be a Catholic. I chose, of my own free will, to adhere to those teachings.  If a person was born and raised Catholic, there is nothing stopping him/her from denying the Church and going to another denomination, or leaving Christianity altogether. Again, everyone has free will.

If the Church is trying to "control" women with Her teachings on contraception, She's failing pretty miserably. Granted, the statistic that "98% of Catholic women use contraception" has been proven false, but there's still an abysmally high number of women who self-identify as Catholic that also use contraception.

I think Mr. Luckovich needs to consult with his colleague, Dana Summers. She has a more accurate viewpoint:







7 Quick Takes Friday - June 8, 2012




--- 1 ---

Collin and I went to the Stand Up for Religious Freedom Rally in Phoenix today. Despite the temperature in the 100s, there were around 1,000 people there! One bad thing: both Collin and I forgot sunscreen. Oops. I'm turning a very unattractive shade of lobster red as a result. Still, it was worth it.


--- 2 ---



--- 3 ---

Gabriel had sweet potatoes this week. He loved them!



--- 4 ---


So, you know the two paychecks I got on Friday? They bounced on Tuesday. I'm not even kidding. I was, and am, furious. The company (FINALLY) wired the money into my account on Thursday, but I'm still waiting to get reimbursed for the NSF and wire transfer fees -- and I have no clue if payroll will be made next Friday.

I'm betting not.

Needless to say, the job hunt continues...

--- 5 ---

I've been meaning to write an actual blog post, but job hunting is eating up what would usually be blogging time. Sigh.
--- 6 ---


Congratulations to Kara for running a very successful online auction to benefit Malcolm! The auction raised over $1,400! The best part? I WON THE YODA HAT!




Soooooooooooooooooo excited!
--- 7 ---


Look at sweet Parker over at Orphan Report. Sigh. Those eyes!


For more Quick Takes, visit Conversion Diary!

7 Quick Takes Friday - June 1, 2012

--- 1 ---

I finally got paid the check I should have gotten on May 16. I'm supposed to get another today (but for some inexplicable reason, they're not handing those out until after 3pm). We'll see if that actually happens.

--- 2 ---

One silver lining to this whole paycheck situation is that the higher-ups have FINALLY given our department permission to have a work-from-home program. (It was pointed out that such a program - which they've been resisting for years, despite giving other departments permission - would go a long way toward mending the trust that has been breached with the late paycheck situation.) It's only one day a week, but it beats nothing at all.

--- 3 ---

I can so relate to this after the stress of the last two weeks:

--- 4 ---

Assuming I get my second paycheck today, the kids will start back at daycare on Monday. Glory hallelujah (and thank goodness that their spots were still available!). I think I've accomplished more today, being physically in my office with no kids around, then I did all week when I was working from home AND trying to simultaneously care for the kids.

--- 5 ---

In non-work news, Elanor drew a family portrait yesterday:
From left to right - William, Violet, Mommy (holding Gabriel), Elanor, and Daddy (holding his Father's Day gift, apparently). She even included our cat, who's been missing for over a year (but who she still talks about).

--- 6 ---

Guess who's now six months old!

--- 7 ---

The Bidding Malcolm Home auction has started early!!! It'll be open through Sunday. There's a lot of great stuff; check it out!

For more Quick Takes, visit Conversion Diary!

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