Living At Wit's End

You probably know by now that we are a family of serious movie watchers.  I especially love Christmas movies, particularly old ones.  One of my absolute favorite holiday movies is "It Happened  on Fifth Avenue".  If you're unfamiliar with it I highly recommend getting a copy and watching it, you won't be sorry.  IMDB lists the synopsis as "A homeless New Yorker moves into a mansion and along the way he gathers friends to live in the house with him. Before he knows it, he is living with the actual home owners."  The movie has all the charm of an old holiday movie, wit, drama, romance and the elements of surprise and hope. One of my favorite quotes comes from this movie.  “For to be without  friends  is a serious form of poverty" -  Aloysius T .  McKeever , It Happened on Fifth Avenue (1947)".  While this quote has always spoken to me, it especially means a lot to me this year.  A childhood school mate lost his 12 year...

(This post was meant to be much earlier in the year but life has been a bit more hectic than usual around the Living at Wit’s End abode.   I hope it will spark some ideas for you, for next year.) Our family has a lot of traditions throughout the year, but especially during the holidays.   Lately I’ve explained one of our traditions a lot.   Since so many people seem to be interested in the idea I thought I would share it with you as well.   My kids aren’t sad when the holidays are over, mainly because very soon after New Years we celebrate again.   On January 6 th , Epiphany, we have a great party to celebrate the three kings visit to see Jesus. On Epiphany we start the day by going to mass together.   In the evening we have a nice dinner (no real traditional meal), sometimes it is party finger food and other times it’s a little more formal, sit down, dinner.   That all depends on how busy we have been during the week and or how tired I a...

Christmas is almost here, are you ready?  Not only am I not ready in the worldly sense (shopping, house clean, wrapping, food bought and prepared, favorite movies watched etc.), I am really not ready in the spiritual sense.  Almost every year I vow that this will be the year I really prepare during advent, for the coming of our savior.  Almost every year I start out with a bang and quickly go down hill.  This year I didn't even start with a pop, let alone a bang.  I am really not in the Christmas spirit and I'm feeling very uninspired. Of course I have guilt about my feelings for so many reasons, the biggest being that there are so many people in the world that are suffering, right now.  Me, I'm just cranky and uninspired.  I am truly blessed with a great family and wonderful friends.  I have a fairly, lovely, roof over my head, clothes to wear, and enough food for a three day Christmas feast.  So why do I feel so cranky and disconnect...