Christ has Ascended! From Earth to Heaven! Alleluia!

We are within the Octave of Ascension for most of this week, and are praying the Novena to the Holy Spirit through this Saturday. We are near the end of the entire Paschal season. There is a sadness that comes with that, but we get to celebrate the second highest feast of the Church year, as well. Pentecost is the commissioning of the Church; it is Her birthday, and without that authority and power, we could not live. Glory to God!

My observation about the local weather pattern around Ascension and Pentecost held true this year. Rich said that maybe Jesus needs a headwind to ascend (that is a joke!). We had hotter weather earlier last week, and it is cooling a bit with wind this week. This week is yet another busy week. Sometimes I wonder if we will ever have an easy going, slow week again. There is a lot going on this week, including an end of year potluck for some of the girls' classes. God bless our parish family who took over the meal for tonight so I could handle all the other things thrown at me this past week. Several of our meals this week are garbage management so we can use the bits and bobs that were left over from other meals this past week.

I scheduled some things wrong and thought we were getting our last load of asparagus this week, but it was last week, so I am having to rush our pickling this year. Nearly all of our fruit tree blossoms froze this year, though we are hoping the apple blossoms will make it (they come later in the season) and we might get apples this year. No apricots, peaches, plums, or cherries. Maybe we will see pears, though.

As we approach Pentecost, I am filled with gratitude to the Church. I always appreciate Apostolic authority, but I am especially glad for it now. Without it, after all, we couldn't eat bacon, or cheeseburgers, or crab! As we grow in faith, I see how important it is to have it. There is so much confusion in the modern world, and the clarity brought by the Church is so valuable. God has undone the confusion of Babel for us, and it is our vocation to follow Him. We will be hosting our traditional Pentecost Tongues of Flame Barbecue next week, and I am really looking forward to that.

• Sunday
  Breakfast: Leftovers, Coffee and Tea
  Dinner: Chili, Salad, GF Cornbread, Roasted Asparagus, Fruit
• Monday
  Breakfast: Cereal and Milk, Sliced Apples, Coffee, Tea and Milk
  Dinner: Creamy Champagne Chicken, Basmati Rice, Steam Sautéed Asparagus with Garlic and Summer Savory, Fruit Plate
• Tuesday - Feast of Saint Dunstan
  Breakfast: Egg and Labneh Bagel Sandwiches, Oranges, Milk, Coffee and Tea
  Dinner: Korean Style Ground Beef, Stir Fried Sesame Asparagus, Jasmine Rice, Sliced Oranges
• Wednesday - Feast of Saint Alcuin
  Breakfast: Peanut Butter Toast with Honey, Sliced Oranges, Tea with Honey
  Dinner: Thai Style Coconut Rice Salad with Ginger Peanut Dressing, Fruit Plate
• Thursday
  Breakfast: Asparagus and Potato Scramble, Toast, Sliced Apples, Coffee, Tea and Milk
  Dinner: Pizzas, Salads, Cookies
• Friday
  Breakfast: Potato and Asparagus Breakfast Hash, Home Canned Peaches, Tea and Honey
  Dinner: Eggplant Gyros, Flatbreads, Fruit Plate
• Saturday
  Breakfast: Yemeni Lahsa*, Bread, Home Canned Peaches, Milk, Coffee and Tea
  Dinner: Kabuli Pulao, Laban bi Chiyar, Orange Rum Cake

What is on your menu this week? If you want a recipe, ask and I will provide it as soon as I can. If there are any starred recipes, I will follow up separately with a weekly recipe round up on Saturday.

Labels: Ascension, Church Year, Faith and Morality, Family, Fesh'a, Homemaking, Homesteading, Keeping the Feast, Menu Plans, Pascha, Preserving the Harvest, Tales from the Kitchen