Merry Christmas!

Mmmmmmmerrrrrrrry Christmas! And happy birthday Baby Jesus!!!!!!

Hope your Christmas is amazing and full of countless blessings!

Christmas Spirit

This is so true! I LOVE this quote!!! :)

Yay! Christmas is coming!!!! And it's almost here!!!!

I'm getting in the Christmas spirit!!! What about you?!?! I already put up the mini tree in my room, and we decorated our house! I just made my 2014 Christmas playlist, and I'm sitting here by the fire blogging and jamming to Christmas tunes! 

Hope you're all having a wonderful Advent season as we prepare for the coming of Christ:)

Happy Advent:)

"I Thirst for You."

This made me cry....actually it made me bawl! So beautiful...

It is true. I stand at the door of your heart, day and night. Even when you are not listening, even when you doubt it could be Me, I am there. I await even the smallest sign of your response, even the least whispered invitation that will allow Me to enter.

And I want you to know that whenever you invite Me, I do come – always, without fail. Silent and unseen I come, but with infinite power and love, and bringing the many gifts of My Spirit. I come with My mercy, with My desire to forgive and heal you, and with a love for you beyond your comprehension – a love every bit as great as the love I have received from the Father ("As much as the Father has loved me, I have loved you…" (Jn. 15:10) I come - longing to console you and give you strength, to lift you up and bind all your wounds. I bring you My light, to dispel your darkness and all your doubts. I come with My power, that I might carry you and all your burdens; with My grace, to touch your heart and transform your life; and My peace I give to still your soul.

I know you through and through. I know everything about you. The very hairs of your head I have numbered. Nothing in your life is unimportant to Me. I have followed you through the years, and I have always loved you – even in your wanderings. I know every one of your problems. I know your needs and your worries. And yes, I know all your sins. But I tell you again that I love you – not for what you have or haven’t done – I love you for you, for the beauty and dignity My Father gave you by creating you in His own image. It is a dignity you have often forgotten, a beauty you have tarnished by sin. But I love you as you are, and I have shed My Blood to win you back. If you only ask Me with faith, My grace will touch all that needs changing in your life, and I will give you the strength to free yourself from sin and all its destructive power.

I know what is in your heart – I know your loneliness and all your hurts – the rejections, the judgments, the humiliations, I carried it all before you. And I carried it all for you, so you might share My strength and victory. I know especially your need for love – how you are thirsting to be loved and cherished. But how often have you thirsted in vain, by seeking that love selfishly, striving to fill the emptiness inside you with passing pleasures – with the even greater emptiness of sin. Do you thirst for love? "Come to Me all you who thirst…" (Jn. 7: 37). I will satisfy you and fill you. Do you thirst to be cherished? I cherish you more than you can imagine – to the point of dying on a cross for you.

I Thirst for You. Yes, that is the only way to even begin to describe My love for you. I THIRST FOR YOU. I thirst to love you and to be loved by you – that is how precious you are to Me. I THIRST FOR YOU. Come to Me, and I will fill your heart and heal your wounds. I will make you a new creation, and give you peace, even in all your trials I THIRST FOR YOU. You must never doubt My mercy, My acceptance of you, My desire to forgive, My longing to bless you and live My life in you. I THIRST FOR YOU. If you feel unimportant in the eyes of the world, that matters not at all. For Me, there is no one any more important in the entire world than you. I THIRST FOR YOU. Open to Me, come to Me, thirst for Me, give me your life – and I will prove to you how important you are to My Heart.

Don’t you realize that My Father already has a perfect plan to transform your life, beginning from this moment? Trust in Me. Ask Me every day to enter and take charge of your life. – and I will. I promise you before My Father in heaven that I will work miracles in your life. Why would I do this? Because I THIRST FOR YOU. All I ask of you is that you entrust yourself to Me completely. I will do all the rest.

Even now I behold the place My Father has prepared for you in My Kingdom. Remember that you are a pilgrim in this life, on a journey home. Sin can never satisfy you, or bring the peace you seek. All that you have sought outside of Me has only left you more empty, so do not cling to the things of this life. Above all, do not run from Me when you fall. Come to Me without delay. When you give Me your sins, you gave Me the joy of being your Savior. There is nothing I cannot forgive and heal; so come now, and unburden your soul.

No matter how far you may wander, no matter how often you forget Me, no matter how many crosses you may bear in this life; there is one thing I want you to always remember, one thing that will never change. I THIRST FOR YOU – just as you are. You don’t need to change to believe in My love, for it will be your belief in My love that will change you. You forget Me, and yet I am seeking you every moment of the day – standing at the door of your heart and knocking. Do you find this hard to believe? Then look at the cross, look at My Heart that was pierced for you. Have you not understood My cross? Then listen again to the words I spoke there – for they tell you clearly why I endured all this for you: "I THIRST…"(Jn 19: 28). Yes, I thirst for you – as the rest of the psalm – verse I was praying says of Me: "I looked for love, and I found none…" (Ps. 69: 20). All your life I have been looking for your love – I have never stopped seeking to love you and be loved by you. You have tried many other things in your search for happiness; why not try opening your heart to Me, right now, more than you ever have before.

Whenever you do open the door of your heart, whenever you come close enough, you will hear Me say to you again and again, not in mere human words but in spirit. "No matter what you have done, I love you for your own sake Come to Me with your misery and your sins, with your troubles and needs, and with all your longing to be loved. I stand at the door of your heart and knock. Open to Me, for I THIRST FOR YOU…"

Writing About Roses...

Roses are red, 

they smell really sweet.

But thorns they do have,

and that's not so neat.

I took this picture of a rose while my mom was sick…someone had sent it to us with a "get well soon card." I took the picture out of bordom and never really even thought about it. It was just another picture…nothing special. But today, that changed.

I was going through the pictures on my phone today, looking for a certain picture for my blog, when I came across this picture. I totally had forgotten about it…it wasn't anything special, just another picture, one of thousands (literally) of pictures of flowers that I have taken. For some reason, it caught my eye, and I couldn't stop thinking about it. While I was at mass this morning, God helped me realize something that I hadn't thought of before: Life is like a rose, beautiful, delicate, and amazing, but along with its wonderful scent and beautiful petals, are thorns. Now I'm sure I don't have to tell you that thorns really hurt to touch, kind of like some things in life…some things in life just hurt. I found a really cool poem (at the beginning of this post) that I thought that it was a cool way to remember that life just isn't perfect…nothing is, except God.

You're probably like, "Yeah, duh! Life isn't perfect!" and you're correct. But the reason I brought this up is because I never really thought of suffering this way. Suffering is beautiful and amazing, and sometimes you just have to get past the thorns to see the rose. This really made me think about all the suffering and sadness that me and my family went through when my mom was sick…always worried and wondering what the next day would bring. But like I said before, suffering is beautiful… sometimes we just have to make it through the thorns before we get to the roses in our lives.

We still can't forget, though, that getting past the thorns and to the rose doesn't necessarily mean that we won't suffer again…if anything, it only means that we will suffer again, because no one's life is ever perfect. Even the happiest people who seem to have perfect lives, have their thorns. 

During the hard times in our lives, we have to remember to put our trust in God. He is always there for us, and the suffering that you're going through, as awful as it may seem, is all part of God's divine plan for us. He knows what is best for us, even when we think something is exactly opposite of the "best for us." He has a reason for everything. Your suffering might just be an "awakening" for you, helping you to realize something you hadn't really noticed before…like when my mom was really sick, I realized the importance of family, and how we are never promised another day. Thats just an example, though…suffering can show us so much more!

One more thing I wanted to mention was Jesus' suffering on the cross. His "thorns" were coming to earth to suffer and die for our sins…for our lives! He died so that each and every one of us could live! Now, thats pretty cool! A speaker at a retreat said something once that I will never forget. He said that while Jesus was on the cross, He thought about each one of us individually, and He whispered our name…thats how much He loves us. God loves us so much that He sent His only Son to suffer and die for us. So when you're going through any sort of suffering, just think of that. Think about how much suffering Jesus went through for us, and try to imitate Him. And it always helps to say a prayer for help through a hard time…and I also want you to know that I'm specifically praying for each one of you reading this, and for you to have strength as you go through whatever hard time you might be going through:)

Anyways, I want to finish with an inspirational quote, that I thought was fitting for the subject of this post:)

"Although the life of a person is in a land full of thorns and weeds, there is always a space in which the good seed can grow. You have to trust God."

- Pope Francis

Love and Prayers,

Madison ♥

I Am HIS

So true.

Schoenstatt Camp

Last week, I went to Schoenstatt Camp in Lamar, Tx! (Never heard of Schoenstatt? Thats ok! You can check out their website here.) It was an awesome, and very unforgettable experience! I had so much fun getting to hang out with so many amazing catholic teenage girls!

I'm in a group called the "Roses Ablaze," and my group and I had the wonderful privilege of being able to make our Covenant of Love to Mary together!

Here are some pics:)

It was a 7and a 1/2-ish hour drive, so we stopped to get some treats:) ICEES!!!!!! 

The property that we were on is GORGEOUS!!! You can see the ocean from just about everywhere, and there are tons of flowers! It's sooooooo pretty!

THE SHRINE!!!!

Isn't the shrine soooooooooooo soooooooo soooooo adorable?!?! It looks like it came out of a fairytale book!!!!

The inside of the shrine is absolutely beautiful! 

Inside of me and Claire's room, we found a little carving of the shrine on the wall…..well, it wasn't a carving, it was actually a natural carving from the wood! Isn't that amazing?!?!

Me and my friends! We're the Roses Ablaze!!!!!

(top: Claire; middle left: Marcy; middle right: Veronica (Roni); bottom left: Cassidy; bottom right: Me!)

Random pic of flowers…yeah I took it! In case you haven't noticed, I LOVE photography, especially nature, and more specifically, trees and flowers! I saw the beautiful white flowers and just had to take a pic:)

Dear Jesus,

Thank-you for such a wonderful week at camp with my amazing friends! Thank you for all of the blessings that you give to me, especially for this opportunity to get to go to such an awesome camp, where I got to grow closer to You, and Your Blessed Mother, Mary! I love you:)

-Madison

The Hardest Thing I've Ever Experienced

(Here is another idea from the "list" ☺)

The hardest thing I have ever experienced was having my mom in the hospital...it was sad, scary, and difficult. But our Lord truly gave me and my siblings the grace, courage, and strength to get through our hard time! God is Good...All the time! And all the time...God is Good!

There's No Greater Love Than This…

Found this on Pinterest and had to share it…

So true.

Confirmation

On Friday, I was confirmed! Yay! It was totally awesome! I'm so happy to finally be filled with the Holy Spirit in such a special way! It was a wonderful day!

Me and Claire (One of my bestestestest friends ever!) at the Confirmation reception after we got Confirmed! Claire's Confirmation name is Claire Gabriel (after the archangel Gabriel)!!! ☺

My Confirmation name is Madison Clare! My Confirmation Saints are St. Clare and Bl. Chiara Luce Badano. I was able to get a "double package" because "Chiara" means "Clare" in Italian, so I kinda got to have two in one! ☺I will post their biographies below!

Ever since my Confirmation, I really feel like the Holy Spirit is helping me through my daily life. There are times when I would usually be upset about something (for instance, she Nick tries to annoy me), but somehow, I feel peaceful…which is not like me at all! lol! ☺

I also was blessed to have such an awesome sponsor! My old challenge team leader, Allie, was my sponsor! She is so holy, beautiful, funny, and altogether amazing! If you get a chance, please check out her blog! It's really cool! (Allie's Blog)

Ayways, here are my Confirmation Saint's biographies!

Bl. Chiara Luce Badano:

Feast Day: October 29

Beatified: September 25, 2010

Venerated: July 3, 2008

In 1971, after praying and hoping for a baby for more than 10 years, Ruggero and Teresa Badano family of Sassello, Italy, welcomed a little girl whom they named Chiara.

Even at the age of four, Chiara seemed aware of the needs of others. She would sort through her toys to give some to poor children, and would never give away just the old or broken ones, because that would be horrible for children who had no toys! She invited less fortunate people into the family’s home for holidays and visited the elderly at a retirement center. When other children were sick and confined to bed, Chiara visited them. She loved the stories of the gospel and loved to attend Mass.

When she was 9, Chiara became involved with the Focolare movement and its branch for young people. Focolare emphasizes brotherhood and unity among all people.

Chiara was very popular. She had a lot of friends, she played sports, and she loved to sing and dance. But when asked, she said she did not try to bring Jesus to her friends with words. She tried to bring Jesus to them with her example and how she lived her life.

When she was 17, Chiara learned she had a very serious form of bone cancer. Treatments were painful and unsuccessful. She became paralyzed. One day someone asked her if she hoped to walk again and her answer was no. When she suffered, she felt closer to Jesus. She even refused to take pain medication that would make her too sleepy to continue to live her life.

Despite her illness and being confined to bed, Chiara wrote letters and sent messages to other. She attended Focolare youth meetings. She inspired everyone who she encountered with her faith and love for others. She gave all her savings to a friends who was becoming a missionary in Africa. When her life was nearly at an end, she said, “I have nothing left, but I still have my heart, and with that I can always love.”

Chiara died in 1990. Within nine years, the bishop of her diocese began the work on her cause for canonization. Pope Benedict XVI declared her “Blessed” in 2010. “Only Love with a capital L gives true happiness,” and that’s what Chiara showed her family, her friends and her fellow members of the Focolare movement, the pope said.

She was a normal, everyday girl, and possibly a normal, everyday saint. Chiara’s brief life showed us how much one person can accomplish in God’s name

St. Clare of Assisi:

Clare was a beautiful Italian noblewoman who became the Foundress of an order of nuns now called "Poor Clares." When she heard St. Francis of Assisi preach, her heart burned with a great desire to imitate Francis and to live a poor humble life for Jesus. So one evening, she ran away from home, and in a little chapel outside Assisi, gave herself to God. St. Francis cut off her hair and gave her a rough brownhabit to wear, tied with a plain cord around her waist. Her parents tried in every way to make her return home, but Clare would not.

Soon her sister, St. Agnes joined her, as well as other young women who wanted to be brides of Jesus, and live without any money. St. Clare and her sisters wore no shoes, ate no meat, lived in a poor house, and kept silent most of the time. Yet they were very happy, because Our Lord was close to them all the time. Once, He saved them from a great danger in answer to St. Clare's prayer. An army of rough soldiers came to attack Assisi and they planned to raid the convent first. Although very sick, St. Clare had herself carried to the wall and right there, where the enemies could see it, she had the Blessed Sacrament placed. Then on her knees, she begged God to save the Sisters.

"O Lord, protect these Sisters whom I cannot protect now," she prayed. A voice seemed to answer: "I willkeep them always in My care." At the same time a sudden fright struck the attackers and they fled asfast as they could. St. Clare was sick and suffered great pains for many years, but she said that no pain could trouble her. So great was her joy in serving the Lord that she once exclaimed: "They say that we are too poor, but can a heart which possesses the infinite God be truly called poor?" We should remember this miracle of the Blessed Sacrament when in Church. Then we will pray with great Faith toJesus in the Holy Eucharist: "Save me, O Lord, from every evil - of soul and body." Her feast day is August 11.

Anyways, Confirmation was awesome! Thank you Lord for such a huge blessing!

(The biography of Bl. Chiara Luce Badano is from Saints Recource)

(The biography of St. Clare of Assisi is from Catholic Online)

A Summary of the Past Few Weeks

As you all know, I've been REALLY bad at blogging for the past few weeks! I feel terrible! Hopefully some of you have been checking out my wordpress blog, because I update that more often with little bits of info on what I'm up to! If you haven't, here is the link:

http://typicalcatholicteenager.wordpress.com

Also, to explain why on earth I made a second blog, if I can't even keep up the first, check out one (or both) of these two posts:

#1. http://typicalcatholicteenager.wordpress.com/2014/04/16/updates-updates-updates/

#2. http://typicalcatholicteenager.blogspot.com/2014/04/wordpress-updates.html

Anyways, here's a summary of the past few weeks:

Welcome Baby Isaac!!!

My new baby brother, Isaac was born! He was born on March 29, at 7:06 am, and was 6 pounds and 4 ounces! He's such an adorable and sweet little man! 

He's such a handsome little man!!! 

April Fools Day!

On April Fools Day, me and my friends Claire and Roni (Veronica) made "brownies" for our teacher (at our once a week co-op)! We took brown construction paper and cut it into a bunch of letter "E's." Then, we put them into a pan and wrapped a ribbon around it! So basically, we made pre-cut (haha) "brown E's!!!" 

hahahahahahahahaha!!!!

Holy Week!

I had a very blessed Holy Week! I spent extra time praying and I also went to mass a few times! It was a great ending to Lent! I hope you all had a good and blessed Holy Week as well!

I also had to share this because I thought it was really cool:

Dear Jesus, thank you for suffering so much pain and dying to save us!!!

Easter Sunday!

Hoppy Easter!!! I hope you all had an egg-celent Easter! What an awesome day it is! Jesus is Risen!!! Yay! 

On Easter morning, the Nicholas, Savannah, and I got up and did our Easter tradition, which is looking for your Easter basket (they're always hidden), going through it, hunting easter eggs, and opening/emptying them out! Afterwards, we quickly got dressed and ready for 11:00 am Mass!!! We had a great time!!! We also dyed and decorated eggs the night before!!!

Easter Sunday was also a REALLY good day because I was finally able to listen to music and play games on my phone…….the two things that I gave up for Lent, which made me wonder whether or not I would survive until Easter!!! I know…..I sound like a baby….but 40 days is a lot of time to not be able to listen to music!!!! You have no idea how much music I listened to on Sunday….every chance I had, I put my ear buds in and listened to my awesome tunes!!!

Anyways, I had awesome Easter! I hope you did too!

Here are some pictures!!!

Me, decorating my eggs.

I painted some of them with my favorite color…..GLITTER!!!!

Gifts from Mom and Dad….cuz what says Easter more than a unicycle?!?!

All of us with our Easter baskets!!! 

Little Mr. Isaac…..he looks so adorable in his Easter basket!!!

Nick and Savannah, looking for eggs!

Me, who by the way looks awful because I had just woken up… :), on top of the rock waterfall in our pool….that bunny sure knows how to hide eggs;)

What a blessed Easter we had! Thank you, Lord, for rising from the dead!

Nicholas Makes His First Holy Communion!

Sweet little Nick made his First Holy Communion today! I'm so proud of him! Here is the handsome little man before we left for church!

Isn't he so handsome in his little tuxedo?!?! 

All three of us together!

Me, Savannah, Nick, and my parents (my dad is dressed in his special cassock because he served as an acolyte at mass)

The whole "fam" together in front of the altar at our church!

Nick and his godparents, our Aunt Kelley and Uncle Chris.

Nick and our Grandma and Grandpa.

Nick and one of his best-est buds, Joey. (they are so cute together!)

Party Time!!!!

Food!

Bundt Cakes!!!! YUM YUM YUM!!!!!!! My absolute fave cake!

I'm so proud of you, Nick! I hope you had a wonderful First Communion!!!

Jesus is Worth Blogging For.

Jesus is worth blogging for.  He is Amazing, Perfect, Just, Loving, Patient, Kind, Beautiful, and so much more.  Jesus, I love you!!!  You are my Alpha and Omega, my Life and Soul, You are my Everything!!!  I love You more than anything!!!