Did I forget?....

A while back I was asked to review a site and post it. Again, I won't unless I know it is legit. This one looks great, lots of resources. If this is a repeat, I apologize and blame the stress & medications! Here it is: That Resource Site. I apologize again if this is a repeat or an overlook! Adding it also to the HS resource list.

Time for bed!
Mrs. Murphy

Great article on Cancer PREVENTION

Love your temple, love your babies and family and teach them to love themselves too, do all you can to live a long life and be an example of Christ's love through his teachings. Read THIS ARTICLE HERE.

Be Healthy!
Pray!
Have faith!
& God Bless,

Mrs. Murphy

My Favorite Priest

Read about him HERE!

God Bless you Fr. Carl Subler!
Mrs. Murphy

Updating

Ok, did some work around the blog, added a few things, took off some old things, I think it's pretty well cleaned up now. I changed the scholarship section to include schools and camps, I also found Cancer Researchers who are Pro-Life. In addition, I found a link to a list (from 2007-so you may want to double check on the company's agenda as of now) that matches funds donated to Planned Parenthood. You can check out the list HERE.

Sherry, sorry to say it, but from my research Avon is a supporter of Susan Komen as well as Planned Parenthood. Sorry!

Last week, we brainstormed after getting our ashes, and our first weekly Lenten project was baking treats and making cards and pictures for the "people who help keep us safe". We then all hopped in the Murphy bus, us big Murphy girls, the Mayer girls and the Pariseau girls, and we drove to EVERY Fort Bliss gate, and also stopped by the MPs and handed them out with all the girls yelling "Thank you for keeping us safe!" at the top of their lungs! It was great.

The girls had to help bake, pack and hand them out. It taught sacrifice, because they were not allowed to eat ANY, it taught patience and dedication, because they had to make a LOT of treats, and pack them and make the cards and pictures, and it taught them the JOY of GIVING because these brave men and women were so surprised and thankful that we thought of them in this way. I would love to hear your Lent projects! Oh, I also added the link to the Holy Heroes Lenten project and 40 Days for Life.

In addition, I was given the great honor of asking to review and post this blog: Catholic Heritage. I get a LOT of bogus requests to post something on my blog, I always check it out before I do to make sure it is not a scam or website looking for your money. This blog is super cool, it is Irish, and dedicated to reviving the Latin Mass and educating us all on the goings on of the Roman Catholic Church. It is now in my "Favorite Catholic Places" and I am blessed to have had them find me!

Hope ya'll like what I've done! Send me your comments!
Mrs. Murphy

We know this Super Spelling STAR!!

Congratulations Abby!!!!

Times Spelling Bee: Home-schooled 6th-grader wins D.C. trip

By Nicole Gomez / El Paso Times

Posted: 02/20/2010 12:00:00 AM MST

Abigail Spitzer of Southwest Home School Network gets a hug and kiss from her grandfather the Rev. Julius Martin while Abigail's cousin Briana Martin, left, watches after Abigail won the 66th Annual El Paso Times Spelling Bee. The bee was held at the Ysleta Independent School District Central Office Theater. (Ruben R. Ramirez / El Paso Times)

›› Photo gallery: El Paso Times Spelling Bee

EL PASO -- Don't feel bad if you can't spell "hemerocallis" or "hoomalimali" -- most people probably can't.

Abigail Spitzer can.

Abigail became El Paso's 66th spelling champion, and its first home-schooled winner, in the El Paso Times Spelling Bee on Friday.

The sixth-grader will represent El Paso at the Scripps National Spelling Bee in Washington D.C.

Abigail beat 29 other finalists from the 175 elementary and middle- school students who competed for the grand prize, which includes an expenses-paid trip for the national competition and a year's supply of milk and ice cream from Price's Creameries.

Although Abigail says she began studying for the bee in September with the help of her father, she had never come across the word that decided her fate: "redact."

"I'd never seen it before, so I just went with my instinct," said Abigail, 11.

Her instinct was correct, and after a night of celebration with her family and plenty of ice cream, Abigail will begin preparing for the national spelling bee in June.

"I'm going to study the word roots of all kinds of languages," Abigail said, while holding a trophy almost as tall as she is. "I've studied a little Latin, so that helps."

Abigail is among the youngest students to win the spelling bee. The contest is open to students younger than 15, and winners are generally seventh- or eighth-graders. But all three finalists in this year's competition were in grades below the seventh, and fourth-grader Derek Olivas of Hart Elementary made it to sixth place.

First runner-up Julian Najera, 10, is a fifth-grader at Barron Elementary. Julian misspelled "benthic," a word that means the organisms that live at the bottom of a body of water in his second round against Abigail.

"I'm just glad I won the trophy and the ice cream," Julian said, smiling. "I've been the spelling bee winner at my school for the last five years, and I'm going to keep competing as long as I can."

Lilia Taylor, a sixth-grader at Mesilla Valley Christian Center, became the second runner-up after misspelling "senescence" in the 10th round.

Lilia, Abigail and Julian competed against one another in four rounds before Lilia was eliminated.

The students prepared for the spelling bee by studying a guidebook issued by the national bee. Students who make it to the finals are quizzed on words that come from a special list provided only to the pronouncer and judges.

"The students have to study the dictionary, too," spelling bee coordinator Mona Pacheco said. "This year was hard -- there were a lot more foreign words given -- but the students also seemed to be better prepared."

The students were quizzed on words such as "balalaika," which is a Russian musical instrument, and "gesundheit," a German word used to wish someone good health after a sneeze.

Four champions of the El Paso spelling bee have gone on to win the national spelling bee since the event was created in 1925. Richard Earnhart was the first El Pasoan to win the national competition in 1942, at the same age Abigail Spitzer is now: 11 years old.

Suffering

There are so many kinds of suffering, physical, emotional, mental... yet they can all be so painful. I've noticed while immersed in the health care world, this new world of alternative medicines, healing and all out scams. So many are working to profit in the business of eliminating SUFFERING.

But what is wrong with suffering? Really? Why do we fight so hard to escape it, sometimes at a cost that creates more suffering than we began with? Is THAT a lesson itself? I implore you, know this is the devil at work. These are the wolves in sheep's clothing leading you AWAY from Christ and God's love.

If Christ is the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end, then it is the truth that God has already created our end, and the after, and put it all in an amazing book called the BIBLE.

I call on all of you truly embrace your suffering, and instead of trying to escape it, offer it up to Christ, for look how He suffered for us. Not only was He crucified, it is often forgotten or overlooked that in those three days before His glorious resurrection He also suffered in HELL.

Our relationship with God will never always be peaceful, or that fuzzy warm feeling after deep prayer, but it will always be a relationship, real. Christ himself, a part of God but made man even questioned "Why has thou forsaken me?" He shows the world His human side, we are all human, we will all suffer, but what we do with that suffering is what will nurture our relationship with God.

For more reading and scripture links on how God wants us to deal with suffering, click HERE and HERE and HERE and HERE.

God Bless You,
Mrs. Murphy

Faith & Family Website, super cool!

Check out what I just joined....HERE!

It's Nearly LENT!

I got passed this great blog, new to me, that has an awesomely long article about Lent. It's called: Karen Edmisten, click HERE to check it out!

Myself, well, I plan to do Rosary DAILY, participate more in 40 Days for Life, and get my girls in HANDS ON Lenten projects every Friday to really connect to helping people less fortunate than ourselves.

What are you doing? Share in a comment!

Mrs. Murphy

We're Going to Lourdes!

Happy Feast Day of Our Lady of Lourdes! I wanted to share with all of you that this year my husband and I will go on the Military sponsored pilgrimage in May! I look forward to the healing pools and the invigoration of faith to come! Please pray with me for a miraculous healing, God's will be done!

Is It All a Conspiracy?

Sometimes I think so. The more I research Triple Negative Breast Cancer, the more I find that disturbs me, and it's no longer the diagnosis. Did you know that girls/young women who have taken oral contraceptives, have had abortions or miscarriages are more likely to develop TNBC? Well, where do we get these "treatments"? Then, in the name of "cancer research", where does the fund raising and grant money go back to?

I thought I had found a group that would support cancer research as well as life through the TNBC Foundation, but then today found a link to their monies and Susan G Koman. Well, you may have noticed that link came off the blog real fast. I will continue to talk on their forum, to share health information, listen and be a shoulder to lean on, to share my story and console when I can... but...

I'm on the hunt, a hunt for a cancer research company or institute or SOMETHING that respects all life. Please, if you know of any, send me the link in a comment so I can check it out.

What do you think?
Mrs. Murphy

Who Supports Planned Parenthood?

While I have little ones, and dream of one day easily participating in the March for Life without strollers and diapers and sippy cups running out and where to throw your cheese wrapper and raisin boxes away, I know I can support the fight for all life by being educated and knowledgable about who DOES support abortion and boycotting them. In my research I have found Life Decisions International, an organization dedicated to alerting the public of which companies donate their (or really YOUR) money to Planned Parenthood. I was appalled at what I found, and you will be too.

Among my disappointments was the link between the American Cancer Society and PP as well as their support of embryonic stem cell research. While they are specific and what their grants to PP are for, (in some cases smoking cessation classes) their relationship is questionable. You can read more about it HERE and HERE and HERE.

Now as I continue to be more thorough in my research, it seems that the funds raised through the Relay for Life and ACS are distributed by which state you participate in. You can read more about that HERE. In contradiction, the national organizations statements on these subjects can differ greatly with whomever you talk to at the state level, you can read more about that HERE.

So what's my point? Obviously I will not support or donate money to any organization I have been made aware of that supports the destruction of life. But, it has prompted me to find, maybe even create, an organization that supports the thriving of all life. Oh wait...that's the Catholic Church!

Still researching,
Mrs. Murphy

Hello Again!

I'm surviving! We are settled in El Paso with the most amazing people, I couldn't have created more God loving and generous friends. Thank you, thank you, a thousand times thank you!

I finished my chemo treatments in November, got the holidays off, and just finished daily radiation on Thursday! We had a party this weekend with drinks and pupus to thank everyone who has helped with the kids, with meals, with prayers and with just being amazing people.

In the meantime, I have a mothers helper who has been living with us since I began the chemo and with her help I know things would never have run as smoothly as it has been. It has been such a blessing to have a consistent "big sister" here to help with the homeschooling and the twins as I have had one or MORE doctor appointments a DAY for the past several months....hence my reluctance and attention span to blog!!

The one thing I have the time to post about is a notice about the Susan Koman Breast Cancer program. I was motivated to create a team and be in the "Walk For the Cure". Well, thanks to a friend I now know that Susan Koman is pro-choice and donates hundreds of thousands of dollars of those "raised funds for research" to Planned Parenthood a YEAR. Her published excuse was to allow breast exams at Planned Parenthood, but COME ON, what is that place really for?

Click HERE for one article, and HERE for another. I was so disappointed to find this out, but another great friend started looking into other options to support cancer research in respect to ALL life, and I will post those.

God Bless you all! Babies need to be fed!
Mrs. Murphy