Theme Thursday: Google Me

Cari chose today's theme to prove that my name is as common as my face...

Kidding. (Right, Cari? You didn't, did you?)

Anyway, I googled my name, clicked "images" and got this:

Nope. Not me. And, no offense Other Mary Kate Dempsey, but I don't want to look like you.

A few more pics and I got this:

Strike dos. Although, I would love to have a room that looks like this.....once the kids are grown and moved out and bring the grandkids dressed in hazmat suits. 

Soooo, where the hel-eck-eck-HECK am I? 

There I is!! 

8 pictures down. I'm so famous.

And, for the promised bonus points, here is the screen shot:

(As you can imagine, googling my name

also elicits a lot of Olsen Twins images. I liked Full House, so I will forgive Mary-Kate Olsen's use of a hyphen, but Ashley? As my husband says, "she's a no-talent hack.".)

Happy googling!!!

Theme Thursday: SWIM!

Woo-hoo!

"Cari is back! With her own invention! Camera grabs an image tightly! I am clickin' daily and nightly!"

(Yes, I just commemorated my friend and her link up with a Vanilla Ice song; so what?)

This week's theme is "Swim". So apropos!

We've done a lot of swimming and splashing over the last few weeks -- at the pool, the zoo's splash pad, and in our little lake. So, without further ado,

I give you The Dempsey Swim:

Theme Thursday & 7in7: Fences

Linking up with Cari and Jen for.....

Fences at Sunset (be jealous of my photog skills)

Theme Thursday: Ridiculous!

The problem for linking up with Cari today isn't that I can't come up with an appropriate picture.

Nope.

Around here, we have ridiculousness in spades.

Today, I give you the ridiculous that is having your furnace break -- for the THIRD time -- during the coldest and snowiest winter we've had in a decade.

Also, the ultimate in ridiculous is the return of Kyle's webshow.

Theme Thursday: Lights!

Linking up with the prolific Cari for Theme Thursday this week!

"Lights" was a pretty easy subject matter to find this week, so I thought about going with this...

But, Faith reminded me something she learned in her Catechesis of The Good Shepherd class: Jesus is the Light of The World. So, I'm going with Faith's suggestion and making this my "official" ThTh submission...

I would also like to take this opportunity to announce a holiday gift-giving guide link-up that I will begin hosting on Monday. I know that there are a lot of you looking for ideas for good, quality and fun gifts to give your family members for Christmas. So, I thought I could share a few of my ideas and have you link up with your own great ideas. I'm not even remotely tech-savvy, but I will try to add it as a separate page and keep it open through the end of the year. 

Don't leave me hangin', mmnmmkay?

Theme Thursday: Cold

Welcome, welcome to all you Clan Donaldson peeps!! I'm happy to be guest-hosting this week's Theme Thursday for Cari! 

Today's theme is Cold, which I find highly apropos as the Chicago area is having a bit of a cold snap right now. This didn't stop my Faith from fixing herself what she refers to as a "grown-up's beach drink" (in her case, an iced tea with a lemon slice and a cocktail umbrella).

Let's see how you're chilling this week!

An InLinkz Link-up

Theme Thursday: Secret

Linking up with the famous Cari (did you know she has a book coming out next month and it's been endorsed by Jim Gaffigan?!)...

I thought I hid the ginormous bag of Costco chocolate chips in such a good place:

But, no, he was in on my secret as soon as my back was turned. Good thing he's so stinking cute!

Theme Thursday: Out

As in, he's finally out like a light!

It's been a long week over here; go see who else is out over at Cari's!

Theme Thursday: Recess

Linking up with the much bloggier Cari for Theme Thursday: Recess!

I only have one at home for "morning recess" time! 

Theme Thursday: Faith

Linking up with Cari for this slam dunk of a subject for Theme Thursday: Faith!

You can read more about Faith's arrival here, but let me tell you a few things about her here, as well.

Faith was aptly named, as her birth (and the days leading up to it) required much faith in God. I must have said "Jesus, I trust in You!" a million times in the 3 days preceding her birth. 

Faith is a firecracker and a honey badger. She doesn't take "nothin' from nobody, no how!" and it is always clear where she stands on any issue pertinent to 3.5 year olds. We nicknamed her "Sassy" around 7 months old, when these tendencies first made their appearances. The name has stuck and she answers to both "Faith" and "Sassy" now.

Faith is also a sweetheart -- according to Kyle and to my dad. She yearns to help out her baby brother, even when it's not really "helping" and to "teach him things". She is very much a Daddy's girl, just like her big sister Maeve and uses this weakness of his to acquire many favors.

She is the perfect little sister for Maeve. Maeve, who waited 9.5 long years to have a "sister who would stay with me here on Earth", can talk Faith into any hairstyle or outfit. They also share the same shoe obsession and artistic talents.

Faith's godfather is her oldest brother, Killian, and he calls her by her middle name: Therese. Faith's godmother is Kyle's sister-in-law, Liz, who Faith calls "Aunt St. Liz"-- a fitting title for a godmother of a Honey Badger!

Faith's is a girly-girl and loves pink and princesses. She is big on etiquette and has been known to growl out "LADIES FIRST!" while kidney-punching Eamon when he dares to enter a room before she does.

We love our Faith and our faith!

Theme Thursday: Statues

I have to admit that when I saw Cari's theme this week, 2 thoughts popped immediately into my head:

1) The childhood game, Statue-maker, wherein 1 person (the Statue-maker) takes the hands of each of the other players and whips them around quickly. Whatever pose they land in is their "statue pose", which they must hold until they are the last person standing still.

2) This:

Weeping Angels

Then, after a lengthy eBay search for Weeping Angel statues, I calmed myself down and looked around.

Hey! I have a lot of statues around my house! Many are religious, like this statue of Mary and Jesus that my mom gave me after we lost Fiona:

And, my favorite statue of Mary and Jesus, which I received as a wedding shower gift 2 decades ago:

But, I also have a collection of Willow Tree figurines which I love:

Although, some small peoples in this house reduced the Willow Trees' population a few years ago in a massacre of epic proportions that caused me to cry out dramatically, "WHY?! They're the only nice things I have!".

I'm excited to see the other Theme Thursday posts this week, but until next time....

Theme Thursday: Knots

Linking up with one of my newest BFFs, Cari, for ThTh: Knots....

Theme Thursday: Bright

Linking up with the inspired CareBear (Housewifespice says you love that nickname!)....

Today is Eamon's 6th birthday. Six years ago at 10:02 in the morning, our grief was assuaged. The pain of the last 15 months was soothed in the most amazing way. We held a healthy, living baby in our arms and sobbed tears of joy. His big sister in Heaven sent us a gorgeous baby boy and kissed his forehead to remind us she was always watching over him and us (true story: Eamon was born with a red birthmark between his eyebrows and on his right eyelid. When the pediatrician checked him out he told us those birthmarks are called "angel kisses".)

"Bright joy" is the mental image I associate with our Eamon. He brought sunshine and peace back into our lives and has continued to do so ever since.

Happy 6th Birthday, my bright ray of joy!

We love you!

The birthday boy holding one of his brightly-colored new Magna-Tiles while standing in front of the bright sunshine!

Theme Thursday: Rooms

Thanks to Cari, it is about to get real up in this blog!

This week's theme is "rooms", and while someone's suggestion of going for a

Stepbrothers'-themed shot is appealing, I opted to go for honesty and nostalgia (I think).

A wonderful photographer (and all-around beautiful human being) once told me to take pictures of my kids' rooms and toys as they are today so that I will not forget the places and things that occupied so much of their young lives. It's an awesome idea, right? So, just after they all woke up this morning, I thought I'd capture a shot of their bedrooms without any bed-making or straightening up.

(Deep inhale) I present you, Bedrooms of the Dempsey Kids!

Jack's and Eamon's room

Killian's and Joe's room

Maeve's and Faith's room

Will's bed in our room...

Will's future room.

Here's what I learned:

1) my kids can't close a drawer to save their lives

2) my kids should spend more time cleaning their rooms and less time "hanging out" in them.

3) I should spend more time enforcing bedroom cleanings and less time cleaning the rest of the house

4) my photographer friend's advice is based on the fact that she has no teenagers yet and she is a better mother than I am.

5) I now know why I yell so much.

6) Kids don't need huge bedrooms all to themselves filled with many things in order to have good childhoods; they are better off having a smaller room filled with other siblings.

Now, play nice and don't call authorities on me because I just made you feel really good about your housekeeping abilities, didn't it?

Theme Thursday: Black and White

Linking up with my homie, Cari, for another Theme Thursday!

Today's theme is black and white and so I threw on a black and white filter to the shot of Will at the lake earlier this month....

Here's the original....

I was surprised to find that I liked the black and white a tad bit more than the original color shot. I think it's because the black and white forces you to focus on Will's cute face and fine physique, whereas the color -- while giving an overall feel of summer -- draws your eye to all the bright colors involved. 

In any event, here's a little theme song for today's link up...

7 QTs: Father Knows Best edition

Hampa cheering on Joe at a wrestling meet.

Linking up with  Jen for 7 QTs and with Cari for Theme Thursday...

1) My dad. Or, Da-Doo as I first dubbed him when I was a teeny baby. Or, Hampa as his 10 (soon to be 11, when my nephew is born!) grandkids call him. This guy loves all things spicy and crazy. I'm talking Dave's Insanity Sauce, wild roller coasters, Tim Conway. He also knows every one of his 5 kids' favorite foods, books, movies, and jokes. To top that off, he knows all the same things about his grandkids! Dad is a regular at the local bakery and after his Saturday morning stop there, makes his rounds dropping off the goodies for all the grandkids. Yes, he delivers our Saturday morning doughnuts. Dad is our biggest cheerleader, eternal optimist, best comedian, and fiercest protector. He is the reason I chose such an awesome husband for myself and father for my kids.

2) Kyle. Or, Dad, Daddy, DaDa to our kids. Never a day goes by that this man doesn't make me smile and laugh. Nothing gives him greater joy than spending time with his kids and it plainly shows on his face. He is hugely biased in their favor and will not tolerate anyone (including me!) criticizing them. He's very much a sucker for his Princesses, while still remains a rough-and-tumble "cool guy" for his boys. He is unashamedly devout, sings in Church, and reminds all of us to pray regularly. He is my hero -- in every way.

Joe and his godson and brother

3) My father-in-law. He gave my husband the perfect example Response Error.
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502 Bad Gateway - Response Error, a bad response was received from another proxy server or the destination origin server.of what a good husband should do, and isn't that the very best thing a father can do for his kids: love their mother? He is a brilliant man, who still tries to learn new things of all kinds and I admire that so very much. He is battling a debilitating neurological disease for which there is no treatment, and the humbleness with which he accepts this fact is inspiring. Please keep him in your prayers.

Killian and his goddaughter and sister

4)Godfathers! Mine is long passed away, but I'm sure he prays for me still. Our family prays for our kids' godfathers, 2 of which are my 2 oldest kids! Killian is Faith's godfather and Joe is Will's godfather. In a large family, it is a special way for those older kids to have another connection to the babies of the family. Godfathers everywhere tend to get forgotten after the baptism is over, but their role is huge and we are so grateful for them!

5)  Uncles! All tolled, my kids have 9 uncles: my 2 brothers and Kyle's 7 brothers. They are all equally insane and fun. Isn't that what an uncle should be?!

6) Father-figures. My kids are so blessed to have so many wonderful examples of good manhood in their lives. From the selfless religious education teacher my 3 oldest have had for their Confirmation I class to the many wonderful family friends we have, my kids can easily see the many good and different ways the Father's love is shown to them.

7) Priests! Kyle and I were so lucky to grow up having good priests around. Having a priest over for dinner or a "personalized" baptism or First Communion was the norm for us. My dad's childhood friend is a Colomban Missionary and he performed our wedding, 3 of my siblings' weddings, 2 baptisms, and 4 First Communions for us! My brother's good friend is a priest (a vocations director!) and my brother and his wife attended his ordination. My son Joe is currently in a program geared towards helping high school boys discern a calling to the priesthood. Mothers of priests have a guaranteed place in heaven, right? RIGHT?!? 

Fr. Brendan giving Jack his First Eucharist

So, Happy Father's Day to my dad, to my Kyle, and to all the fathers out there! God bless you!