Category Archives: Kids

A little education is a dangerous thing….

I know it’s not for everyone (though it really IS)……however, knowledge is power, peeps!! For us, NFP frees me up from remembering to take a pill, get a shot or have something foreign in my body. NFP is openly communicating with my hubby and growing in faith whether we decide to abstain from (SUPER challenging, BTW…and in my opinion, probably one of the main reasons people don’t want to practice NFP) or embrace the marital bed. There is ALWAYS the possibility of a new life, plain and simple. The fact is, life is FULL of unknowns, unplanned-fors and surprises. Life is fluid. Always changing. Never the same. The more we try to control it, the more restless we become in this futile act of “control”. Life IS. The better we become at “rolling with it”, the easier it becomes with ALL unknowns, unplanned-fors and surprises. For us, that is the bedrock of our faith, trusting that GOD has plans for us that we may not understand now (or ever), but His plans are ALWAYS far better than we could imagine and NFP fits right in that belief.

NFP. Natural Family Planning. For some, these words strike fear deep in the hearts, for others its a lifestyle. That lifestyle can be one deeply entrenched in faith and trusting in God’s plan for family size and being open to the children He provides us with (complete with sleep deprivation, dirty diapers, tantrums and potty training…..as well as that sweet baby smell, soft coos, chubby cheeks, and reliving life through all the “firsts”) OR perhaps it’s a lifestyle of eco-consciousness and organic living. Whatever the reasons, it’s worth learning about if you are stuck in the mentality of the “rhythm method” or would rather just trust in this amazing body we have and learn to understand it in regards to our health and reproductivity. One of the places you can learn more about “NFP” is on the long-awaited site, iusenfp, there is a wealth of information about the various methods of NFP, HOW to implement NFP as well as a blog (of course!) and a “real life” section on folks like you and me and how NFP works in their life and in their marriages. There’s even a great article by Simcha Fisher–in her usual sarcastic, tongue-in-cheek manner on NFP and marriage. (**all cute little buttons are from their site)

There’s also 1Flesh.org a site filled with (more) blogging, stories and conversational topics anti-pill, pro-life, etc, etc, etc. Geared toward a younger generation but a truly In-Your-Face, Let’s-Dialogue on the benefits of an NFP lifestyle. It’s all kinds of confrontational….in a good and positive way.

There’s the Faith and Family website, where not only are there a myriad of articles each day on, yes, faith and family, as well as each day a forum geared toward a specific topic and today is….NFP. And trust me, the questions are raw, honest and eye-opening. You can learn a lot. I sure do!!

And Catholicmom.com for a variety of topics and columns filled with testimonials, advice and information on NFP, in addition to news, homeschooling, prayers, crafts, parenting and faith topics galore!

These are but just a few areas to look around, feel free to leave your own link in the comment section if you’d like to share.

Blessings!

Speedbumps

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We all get them. Those pesky little speed bumps along the way. When life is just a plugging along and all is hunky-dorey and BUMP….not so much. Like a car, we adjust our speed, take a little more care navigating and then move on along until the next one. And there WILL be a next one. It’s just life. Therefore, there is the matter of how you react to each little (or big) speed bump. You can let it completely derail your day/week/month/year or you can accept that such is life and do what you can to live your life IN SPITE of the speed bump nuisance. I suppose personality has a lot to do with how we deal with problems, as well as faith, support systems and how we were taught to deal with life’s “unfairness” or inevitable changes.

This week we have been dealing with a “stomach ache” x several days with our youngest. I HATE stomach aches. When there are no other symptoms, I generally view it as a cry for attention. Compassionate, aren’t I? However…….when it continues for days, accompanied by sloth behavior and limited appetite? Now you have my attention. So off to the doctor’s we go and leave with a prescription in hand for Strep throat. Again. Now I just feel guilty. Blah. Stewing in it isn’t productive so I own my guilt for a bit, realize I didn’t overreact (because seriously, if I went to the office for EVERY symptom, #1 I’d be broke (more than usual) and #2 I’d be Facebook friends with the entire office!). Anyway, I went with my gut, it paid off, hugs and drugs administered….moving on.

We also had an issue come up with a dear friend who is really dealing with some challenging life choices and a denial of sorts as well as with poor coping skills. It’s truly turning into a snowball of complications and it’s difficult to watch it happen. Hubby was able to begin a dialogue with him, as his friend, and hopefully it’s the beginning of SOMETHING. Sadly, we can only make our own decisions. Sometimes we have to be the friend who steps in and speaks the hard truth out of love. And that’s a tricky situation, stepping way out of the comfort zone. At the end of the day though, we have to live with the choices WE make and if we’ve done the best we could, sometimes that has to be enough.

Here’s to navigating life’s speed bumps one at a time, fully focused and wisely adjusting our speed for each one!

He who fights even the smallest distractions faithfully when he says even the very smallest prayer, will also be faithful in great things.

— St. Louis de Montfort

Weekly warbling..

Life giving friendships

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These girls, ladies, women, amazing friends and sisters in Christ. They’ve been an integral thread in my life for a dozen years. We met during a women’s retreat at our parish and many of our husbands participated in the men’s retreat that took place after ours. Our retreat group was probably twice this size after formation, but this group……THIS group struck a bond. A bond that went beyond formation and providing the next retreat. A bond strengthened over bible studies, rosaries, dinners and desserts. In spite of busy lives and season changes, we’ve managed to stick together, each taking a piece of the other’s heart so that we are all forever sisters regardless of distance and life’s plans for us. These are life giving friends.

This picture captures a rare moment of togetherness recently, and marks the move of one friend and her family to Washington D.C. The fact that we were ALL able to make the dinner (with school over and summer ON, one with laryngitis, one leaving the next day with her husband and 6 kiddos on vacation, myself being 4 hours away, and one with a newborn) was an amazing accomplishment in itself–on a Wednesday night no less! It was a bittersweet dinner (saying goodbye is NEVER easy) however, we were ALL able to take turns “catching up” in a roundtable discussion and enjoy each other’s company, laughing at stories and enjoying super delicious food, too–BONUS!

12 years brings much opportunity for prayer, encouragement, hope, love and comfort. What a blessing in these friendships, an abundant harvest resulting from following the prompting of our Lord to attend a weekend retreat.

These friendships are a tapestry of prayer and God reveals the image one story at a time. Through the years He’s weaved that tapestry through praying for one another and sharing in each other’s lives.

Prayers for struggling marriages and praises for God’s gift of forgiveness, compromise, commitment, and strength in fighting through the challenges and the fruit of healed hearts.

Prayers for babies born and unborn and praises for those who took their sweet, sweet time.

Prayers for being open to life and praises for the many varied gifts of life in this culture of death.

Prayers for children’s health, novenas for treatment and praises in God’s gift of talented physicians, compassionate nurses and a network of prayer warriors storming heaven.

Prayers for children lost in the sea of peer pressure and hurt as they spread their wings and fly solo, praises for God’s path and the gift of healing through angels on earth who allow the Holy Spirit to form their words and gently redirect their path.

Prayers for the unfairness of cancer and all the promises it robs, praises for the power of prayer, God’s will and the promises of His plan far exceeding our own.

Prayers for guidance and advice in the ongoing vocation of motherhood and marriage, and praises for God’s wisdom and love provided through friends as we all weave our families through this obstacle course of life.

Prayers through job loss and financial struggles and praises for jobs found, opportunities presented a faith to step out of comfort zones into Trust.

Prayers throughout a family’s prison ordeal and praises for a family restored.

Prayers for friends who move away and praises for the unexpected gifts received in stepping out in love and hope.

Prayers spoken, fears whispered, tears shed, hope restored, love shared, faith renewed. Prayer warriors and lifetime friends. A bond not weakened by distance. A bond strengthened through prayer, sharing, love and faith.

Thank you, Lord for the gift of friends. I am truly blessed.

Proverbs 11:14

Where there is no guidance, a people falls, but in an abundance of counselors there is safety.

For more on friendship Scripture check here…