May 31, 2022 – May was truly a time for celebration!

First off, our middle son. Nicholas, was ordained a Catholic priest the end of the month. We had friends and family in from Louisiana, Alabama, Florida, Arkansas and across Missouri. Preparing for this event seemed less like building a house and a more like preparing for Christmas or Easter or a wedding. We improved the condition of the house making it feel more complete.

We installed black iron piping in the kitchen to hang our cast iron skillets. We also installed the same type of pipe in the master bedroom closet to hang our clothes. With our son Joshua’s help we got the Saint Joseph stained glass window installed over the great room. He also built steps to the back door with railing for easy entrance. Boy is he a hard worker and a blessing.

About 1 week before the main event, the celebration began with a visit from Father Daniel, Nicholas’s pastor and Father Paul.  We had dinner and there was lots of laughter. Father Daniel gave us a housewarming gift of 3 flower paintings he painted himself. They hang beautifully in our dinning nook.

The following day a bunch of our friends came out to roast a pig. It rained and rained while the men dug the pit. The hole kept filling with water so we had to get creative and raise the pit above the ground level. Thank goodness we had a tractor! There was a lot of water and mud but we made it work and had a fun time. We put our new stove to work as we boiled copious amounts of water to process the pig. We made some great memories. Isn’t that what it’s all about?

I found a Morrel mushroom growing under a tree on our farm. Woo hoo, now it’s a party.

We ended the month with the ordination. We are so proud of our son Nicholas. It has been 10 years since he entered seminary and now he is in full service of the Lord. He returned to Poplar Bluff for another month but will transfer to Branson at Our Lady of the Lake to begin his next assignment. God Bless you Father Nicholas.