God is Good!

As many of you know, our 2nd daughter, Gianna, or "little g", was born yesterday morning. This pregnancy has been rough: morning sickness for all but a few days, couldn't eat dairy in the mornings, horrible heartburn, insurance nightmares, and sciatic pain for the last 5 months. I could not wait to be DONE!! I'd been feeling "done" for most of March, but one of my aunts reminded me via Facebook that everything happens on God's schedule and in the way God plans it for our own GOOD!

That was proven to me yesterday morning. I'd been having contractions for 18 days. Everyday just teasing me from 8am to 8pm like clockwork. Every morning I was convinced I'd go into labor, but I see now all the things I got to do for God because I didn't have a newborn, especially helping teach a Theology of the Body class for the teens of our parish.

I do have to say that the events of yesterday morning were so surreal. I woke up at 4am with contractions and then I woke up Matt half hour later when they didn't go away. By 5am I was in the shower then I took a bath. For most of the next couple of hours I was trying to offer up the pain from the contractions, but I was mostly complaining "I'm so done. Let's just go to the hospital, get me an epidural and a nap, and then we'll just have her by 10:30/11am." But my loving husband refused since we had to wait for our doula to come and for San Diego morning traffic to subside. I ended up on the floor during the worst part of my labor, just lying super still and Matt thought I was asleep. The doula finally came and I was convinced I had to push so we got in the car. Let me tell you: worst car ride of my life. I had contractions every 3 minutes and I totally just wanted to push. But I couldn't since we were in the car (turned out I really almost did have her in the car). We got to the hospital at 9:30am, checked in at 9:50 to find out it was go time. The nurse didn't even have time to put in an IV, and barely got the fetal monitor on me just to check Gianna's heartbeat. Between pushes she asked me and Matt questions for the paperwork. My fave moment was when my water broke. It was just so funny how it exploded and I couldn't stop laughing for the next couple of pushes. Finally I was just so done I decided to squat and 2 pushes later there was our baby! Per the usual, our doctor didn't make it but blessed be God all the nurses and on call doctor were totally fine with me going naturally. It was so cool to see how everything worked out for everyone. I'm even feeling strangely well after delivery which was soooo not the case last time. So that's my little story about the birth and how God placed a lot of things into perspective for me over the last 24 hours.

(No pix yet, I'll post a couple later)

I love BLUE

Today, my friend, Tasha, and I were hanging out. For some reason or another, color and what colors mean came up in the conversation. 

I decided to look up my favorite color, blue. I love every shade of blue. I used blue for my wedding colors, and if you looked at our gift registries, most of the items were a shade of blue. So, when I looked up what the color blue means, I was surprised at what I found. 

According to Emily Gems' meanings of colors, Blue means....

"Blue is the coolest color - the color of the sky, ocean, sleep, twilight. The ancient Egyptians used lapis lazuli to represent heaven. Blue symbolizes the Virgin Mary. A pure blue is the color of inspiration, sincerity and spirituality. Blue is often the chosen color by conservative people. Blue is the calming color. That makes it a wonderful color to use in the home, especially for babies. Blue is so soothing that is a good choice for pajamas. Dark blue is the color of truth and moderation. A blue iris means your friendship is very important to me. Wednesday's color is blue. Blue gemstones to wear to feel calm are blue sapphire and blue topaz."

"Blue Energy

Blue gives a feeling of distance. Artists use it to to show perspective. This is a good way to understand the energy of the color blue - it allows us to look beyond and increase our perspective outward. It contains a cool vibration that is helpful to communication.

The vibration if blue can be used to open energy flow where it is blocked. Using blue to relax will encourage feelings of communication and peace.

Put some blue in your life when you want:

• calm and relaxation to counteract chaos or agitation
• to open the flow of communication
• to broaden your perspective in learning new information
• solitude and peace "

As I was reading this, the first thing that hit me was how blue symbolizes the Virgin Mary. As a wife, and hopefully, God willing, a mother as well, the Virgin Mary is definitely someone who I should try to follow. By surrounding myself with blue, I can remind myself to be more like the Virgin Mary, Completely obedient to God's will, always. 

Another thing about the color blue that I found interesting is that blue is the color for inspiration, sincerity, and spirituality. I hope that my life can inspire others with my life. I try to always be sincere in all of my relationships and in every situation. I hope to bring spirituality into every aspect of my life, even the day to day things, such as work and chores. 

Another cool thing that blue does is it can be used to encourage feelings of communication. Communication is key in all aspects of life. By surrounding yourself with blue, it can opens up communication in situations that can often be rough and calm them down and allow the communication flow better. 

In my life, using blue for calm and relaxation in order to counteract chaos is a very good plan. My life is always full of chaos, and by surrounding myself with the color blue, I can remind myself to act like the Virgin Mary.

site used: http://crystal-cure.com/blue.html

A Leg Up on Fashion

I've never been against leggings-- just on the fence about whether or not we should bring back anything that reminds us of 80's fashions. I have apparently chosen a side however, because I now own a pair.

Why this change of heart? I began to admire the practicality of them. On most days, I tend to grab my pair of jeans rather than a skirt, mainly because I feel more comfortable and less restricted in them. With leggings however, you easily play on the floor with your baby in a skirt or dress, without worrying about being immodest. They also come in handy during cool nights, cold weather... or when you simply forget to shave. Not to mention, they also make great work-out clothes.

So there you have it: just a few reasons to sport some not-so-1980's leggings.

Happy Palm Sunday!

Honestly, the weaved cross impresses me. The rest are just ridiculous!

Full of Grace

God does not ask the impossible from any of us. What he asked of Mary on the day of the Annunciation, he asks of us every day as well. It is true that rather than asking me to become mother to His Son, God is simply asking me to make dinner for my baby right now. No situation, however is without purpose in God's eyes.

Sometimes we feel overwhelmed, disappointed or frustrated by what God is asking from us, but this is only because we are forgetting that He also offers His grace to assist us. Perhaps Mary did not even understand exactly what Gabriel's proposal meant, and even if she did, she responded as God would want us all to respond- YES, I trust you.

Just like Mary, God asks me to forget myself and accept His will. Not what I envision as His will, or what I believe should be His will, but truly what is presented to me at this moment. Once I accept this truth, I accept His graces, and from there my actions will serve a purpose in His providence.

Dear Mary, help us to follow in your example and be open to our loving God's purpose for us and accept His graces to guide us through our days.

Time to Grow up

Did you know that Obama's new health plan includes health coverage for young adults up to 26 years of age living with their parents? You can read an article about it here. I tend to agree that these are unnecessary costs that undermine our generations' ability to grow up and become independent contributors to society.

I found this especially interesting since one of the criticisms of an abortion-funding restrictions on the health reform bill was that more children being born means higher health care costs. It is terribly saddening that abortion is being seen by politicians as a cost-cutting measure.

What about the value and contributions that each new human being will bring to society? Of course, by encouraging new generations to depend on their parents for so long, it is easy to perceive the young as the problem...

Homesick for Heaven

Yep, I said it: I am homesick. I've been in Australia for 3 months now while my husband is on a work assignment and although we are living in one of the most beautiful cities in the world, I am starting to yearn for the one of the few things I cannot find an Australian substitute for... Home sweet home.

At night I dream about my bed, during the day I dream about my old routine. And of course, on top of this, I miss my friends and family terribly. Poor, poor me.

Ironically, I am aware that after the excitement of the flight home wears off, and my responsibilities and jobs start up again, I will yearn once more for something new. Perhaps I will even wish I could return to my extended "vacation" down under.

St. Augustine definitely had it right when he said, "God, you have made us for yourself, and our hearts are restless till they find their rest in you." It is a common human desire to always yearn for more, better, different. We think that traveling, more wealth, gadgets, promotions or television will fill that God-shaped hole in our hearts. If only I was thinner, if only I had more money, if only I worked less, if only I worked more-- THEN I would be satisfied.

The truth is however, that only God can satisfy this void, and it is this void that will keep us searching until we find rest in Him. Thank you Lord, for giving us this wonderful longing in our hearts to find you and draw closer to you. Thank you for humbling us, and reminding us that we cannot live without your love.

3 Awesome Catholic Movies

Since my husband and I turned off our television set for lent, we thought that it would be a good opportunity to explore that shelf of Catholic movies that we have never found the time to watch. I was pleasantly surprised by each of them-- I definitely did not expect to enjoy these films so much! If you haven't seen the following, drop what you are doing immediately, head to amazon.com and click on buy (or update your Netflix queue).

1) Into Great Silence- This documentary of the Carthusian monks provides a fascinating and inspiring glimpse of the order's contemplative way of life. The monks live a life of solitude, silence, poverty, fasting and prayer. One aspect about their daily schedule that I found most interesting was that they pray their matins every night from 11:30pm until 2 or 3am. I thought parenthood was the only sleep-challenging vocation!

2) Molokai: The Story of Father Damien- This biography tells the heroic story of Saint Damien, the first missionary priest who went to the Hawaiian leper colony of Molokai. Knowing that he would never be allowed to leave the miserable island, Father Damien brings the love and hope of Christ to the sick and exiled, caring for their bodies and their souls.

3) Padre Pio: Miracle Man-- This made-for-TV movie surprised me the most. It was almost four hours long, but I honestly could have watch it for even longer! The film tells the beautiful story of Saint Pio, a great modern saint who, as he describes, witnessed many of God's miracles. Experiencing this excellent movie felt more like a meditation than a form of entertainment.

Casting Stones

This Sunday's gospel is one that always hits home for me, because of Jesus' call to forgiveness and humility. He tells the scribes and Pharisees who are circling the woman caught in adultery, "Let the one among you who is without sin be the first to throw a stone at her" John 8. Similarly, we can often be quick to judge others, while forgetting to focus on the one person we can change: ourselves.

In our present culture it would not be acceptable to stone someone for committing adultery. Although it is a grave and hurtful matter, we know that the sinner can be forgiven. While reflecting on this reading, I was reminded of the current sexual abuse accusations made about Catholic priests, which is once again being focused upon in the media. There is no question that horrible crimes have been committed, and that the victims deserve our prayers and help to rehabilitate from these dreadful events. At the same time however, we cannot ignore Jesus' teachings. In this gospel reading Jesus not only called the Pharisees to examine themselves before stoning the woman, but more importantly, He also forgave her.

Will we join the media and continue to condemn the Church? Like the adulteress woman who humbly accepted her sentence before Jesus, the Church and the pope have asked for forgiveness. Will we drop our stones and follow Jesus' example to accept the Church's apology?

As the season of lent draws to a close, we will soon reflect on the Last Supper. There, Jesus broke bread and washed the feet of all twelve of his disciples. He knew that his betrayer would be among them, but He loved them anyways. Let us pray for the healing of those who have been hurt by Church officials, and also for the conversion of those who committed the crimes. Let us be reminded that we are all sinners, and that Jesus himself calls for us to forgive. Let us pray for our Church, and remember not to abandon Peter because of what Judas did.

Move Over Facebook

As of 24 hours ago, I have a new online obsession: Goodreads.com. It is a type of social networking site for book lovers. It helps you keep track of the books you've read, and allows you to read and share book recommendations with your friends.

Face it, choosing a new book is a big commitment. I do not want to waste my precious time on reading something not worthwhile. I usually ask around for recommendations from people I trust before picking up a novel or some spiritual reading. What a great idea it is to have a common website for everyone to share their reading opinions and recommendations!

I am truly hoping that after reading this post, you will all sign up so that I can get some book recommendations from you too!

Can't live without it...

All of the pregnant bellies I have seen lately confirm the fact that Spring is in the air! A new "mum" recently stopped me in the store to ask me what baby items she needed. I am far from being a baby expert, but there are a few things that definitely made my life easier that I would recommend splurging on.

1) A realllyyyyy comfortable rocking chair with an ottoman. You would not believe how many hours you spend rocking. If it isn't comfy enough to sleep in it, it isn't good enough.

2) A good quality carrier/sling. My favorites are the Moby wrap and the ERGOBaby Carrier. Don't waste your money on the baby Bjorn-- by the time I had recovered from my csection to use it, Dominic was too heavy to be carried comfortably in it.

3) A video baby monitor. I do not technically own one (yet), but now that my baby is a little older, I can see the value in it. It would be helpful to be able to see if the baby truly needs me while he is napping, or if he is just resettling himself.

4) Muslin baby blankets. Babies love to be swaddled any time of the year, and with these thin blankets you don't have to worry about them overheating. They are also great to throw over a stroller or infant car seat when the baby is napping.

5) Baby Bouncer Seat. I didn't think I would need this initially, until I realized that I only have two arms, and realistically cannot hold the baby all day long. Thanks to the bouncer seat, I was able to take a quick shower (once in awhile).

6) A king-size bed. I don't have this one either, but for all engaged couples out there-- splurge on this one. Even if you swear you will never have the baby in bed with you, just do it. I promise you will thank me one day.

Ok Mommies... What other items would you add to this list??

I love nuns

They just make me happy...