Contraceptive Mentality Clear in New Homes

I just spent the afternoon with my mom and brother looking at some new model homes that opened in Irvine. It deeply saddened me to see how present the contraceptive mentality is in this area. The houses had for the most part 3 very small bedrooms and one huge master bedroom. I turned to my brother and said "obviously these builders do not plan for anymore to have more than 3 kids." Yes kids can share rooms but these rooms were so small it would be tough to get two beds in there. $700-900,000 and only enough room for a small family?? As someone who would embrace as many kids as God would bless me with I better start brushing up on my house building skills...

An Important Autobiography

I recently read Somaly Mam's autobiography titled "The Road of Lost Innocence". I was absolutely shocked by her raw and heartbreaking accounts of human trafficking and the sex trade of Southeast Asia. I feel very naive about how unaware I have been about the lack of human dignity found in this area of the world.

Somaly Mam is of mixed race, Kmer and Phnong, and because of her dark skin she faces much discrimination. This broken and unloved child spends her earliest days living on her own in a forest, until a man claiming to be her missing family takes her to his village. There he abuses and beats her, sells her virginity to a store merchant, and eventually sells her to a brothel in Phnom Penh. Somaly Mam describes the horrors found in the brothels and the severe mistreatment of the girls who are enslaved here. She recounts the girls being raped and abused, and even tells of a few girls who were killed. After discovering the advantages of finding foreign "clients", she eventually breaks the cycle and ends up marrying a Frenchman.

When she returns to Cambodia from France, she cofounds a non-profit, AFESIP and the Somaly Mam foundations, which have rescued thousands of enslaved girls-- as young as 5 or 6 years old. She shelters the girls and teaches them employable skills so that they too can rehabilitate and find their place in the world.

Overall, I find this book to be an important read. This truly is an inspiring story of strength and healing, but it also effectively spotlights serious issues that are occuring today all around the world (she mentions incidents even in our nation). The events she has endured are heartbreaking, but just as worst is the fact that this cruelty and horror is very common-- She is not the only one. We need to stand up for these silent girls and women who are being mistreated beyond words, and fight for the culture of life.

"It's still happening, today, tonight. Imagine how many girls have been raped and hit since you started to read this book. My story doesn't matter, except that it stands for their story too, and their stories are why I don't sleep at night. They haunt me." (61)

(I have to add a note that the foundation also distribute birth control to the sex workers due to a growing AIDS crisis. I am not sure whether this is justified protection for these girls, but ultimately I don't think it is a reason not to read the book and be aware of the issue).

Victoria's Abortion Reform Act 2008

A little over a year ago, abortion was "decriminalised" in the State of Victoria (where my husband and I are currently living) in Australia. As a result, abortion is available on demand up to 24 weeks gestation. From 25 weeks and up to birth, abortion is also legal if the woman has the consent of two doctors.

In addition, nurses and pharmacists can distribute drugs to cause the abortion of babies less than 24 weeks gestation, without consulting a medical practitioner. This is also possible after 25 weeks under the supervision of a doctor. The law also requires doctors who have a moral objection to abortion to refer a woman seeking an abortion to a doctor who will perform it.

Basically, Victoria has implemented one of the most liberal abortiona laws in the world. The unborn fetus has virtually no rights. There is no requirement to record abortion procedures or even report the negative effects it can have on women. Women seeking an abortion have no access to accurate information or speak to counselors about the risks involved for them and their child, so that they can make an informed decision.

I find it ironic that in hospitals of this developed country, one doctor may be making a great effort to save the life of a premature baby, while in an another room an infant, perhaps even older than the premature baby can be killed.

I realize this is shocking and discouraging, but I felt the need to write about this, so that we can pray for the Australian women facing difficult pregnancies, and for the health care practitioners that are standing up for life. The law is too new to study the effects it has had on the nation, but I have no doubt that consequences will soon follow.

The Catholic Church of Australia is speaking out against this Reform Act. Even Pope Benedict XIV observed during his visit to Australia for World Youth Day 2008:

"This secularist vision seeks to explain human life and shape society with little or no reference to the creator. Its presents itself as neutral, impation and inclusive to everyone. But in reality, like every ideology, secularism imposes a world-view. If God is irrelevant to public life, then society will be shaped in a godless image. When God is eclipsed, our ability to recognise the natural order, purpose, and the "good" begins to wane. What was ostensibly promoted as human ingenuity soon manifests itself as folly, greed and selfish exploitation".

I think that this message could easily be addressed to the United States as well... Let's pray for Australia's conversion to a culture of life and love, as well as for our own nation, to avoid following in these footsteps.

Going Organic

I am currently reading a book called "The Omnivore's Dilemma." The author of the book takes the reader through the life of a meal from growth to dinner table. I was amazed to find out just how much we have altered the natural growth of food so that it can be produced quicker and cheaper. I won't get into too many details because you can read the book (and you should) but I will tell you a few big things I discovered that have really convicted me. Did you know that cows naturally eat grass but the meat industry has forced them to eat corn instead? It is cheaper and fattens up the cows faster so they can more quickly become steaks and hamburgers. This might not seem like a big deal but it really is. Not surprising at all to me, this makes the meat a lot worse for human health. Something happens to the cow when it is forced to eat something so contrary to its natural diet that alters the nutrition of the meat. Eating grass fed meat and dairy is leaps and bounds better for our health. Imagine that, when we do things the way God designed, they turn out well and when we go against God's design, bad things result. It's almost as if God knew what he was doing.

A second shocking thing to me is the pesticides that are used on produce. The make up of produce has actually been altered by these chemicals. There is a vitamin (for lack of a better word) in vegetables that is extremely healthy for humans. That vitamin is created by the vegetable as a defense against the bugs the chemicals kill. They have found that vegetables treated with pesticides have far less of that vitamin than those grown organically without pesticides. It makes sense that over time the vegetables would stop producing that vitamin because it is not necessary. We are actually making our vegetables less nutritious.

So what does this all matter anyways? I have two thoughts to offer you today. First, I believe that we have dominion over the earth because God told us so but I do not believe that dominion is absolute. We do not have the right to treat God's gifts to us however we want. It is evident that when we abuse our dominion we negatively impact God's plan for his gift of food for us to eat. Second, I think this has big implications for women feeding a family. If you are a wife and mother one of your duties and privileges is feeding your family. Women should be aware of exactly what they are putting into the bodies of their loved ones and be sure that it is the best that you can give them. This is especially important if you have daughters. I have a good friend who is struggling with infertility and the doctors are attributing much of it to all the processed and hormone injected food she has consumed in her life. She now eats a strictly organic diet in the hopes of clearing up some of the issues. Girls are reaching puberty much earlier because they are receiving extra hormones through their milk and meat. Do we really want our nine year old to have the ability to become mothers?

Spring... is that you?

By the by - I like the blog's fresh look.

Untold Stories of the Last Three Popes

So I listened today to a talk called "Untold Stories of the Last Three Popes." It's one of those talks from Lighthouse Catholic Media that you sometimes see in a stand outside of parishes. It was so beautiful to hear these anecdotes and stories from the priest who served Pope Paul VI, John Paul I, and John Paul II as their personal secretary.

My favorite is that a vatican historian wrote to John Paul I, and after a paragraph said that his name was improper because you can't call yourself "the first" - history does that later if there's a second. John Paul I told his secretary to write him back and thank him for the first paragraph of the letter, but as to the second "My name is John Paul the FIRST."

He also said that Paul VI's dad was a journalist and he went to see Pope Pius X (I think it was him) one time when Pope Paul VI was 7. He went in with his father, and was all in white because he had just made his first communion. When the Pius X saw him, he asked "Who is this little pope?" He then called the boy to him and told him he would be pope one day.

But they're not all stories that are amazing like that. Some are amazing in sweeter ways, like once when the secretary couldn't find John Paul II, and thought he lost the pope (!). He was told to look in the chapel again, and he found that he was indeed there, but he didn't see him the first time because John Paul II was laying prostrate on the floor in front of the Eucharist.

So beautiful!

I also think that I need to pray for this Irish bishop, because he has had a lot of grace in this life (living with *three* popes!) but also, he was accused of murdering John Paul I - which is why John Paul II immediately appointed him his personal secretary - and now I just googled him and found all this mud slinging at him.

Poor guy. I have the feeling that he has some great friends in heaven pulling for him though...

Great Quote

Archbishop Sheen was very wise and he knew how important proper femininity was...

"To a great extent the level of any civilization is the level of its womanhood. When a man loves a woman, he has to become worthy of her. The higher her virtue, the more her character, the more devoted she is to truth, justice, goodness, the more a man has to aspire to be worthy of her. The history of civilization could actually be written in terms of the level of its women."
-Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen

Applesauce Oatmeal Cookies

(Posted at Robyn's request)

I got this recipe a while back. It goes great with a cup of coffee in the morning or a glass of Pinot Noir at night. I'd recommend putting some Nutella on it. It's excellent. Enjoy!

Applesauce Oatmeal Cookies

INGREDIENTS

1/3 cup butter, softened
2/3 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1 egg
1/2 cup applesauce
1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour (I substituted whole grain pastry flour)
1 1/4 cups rolled oats
(I also added 1/2 cup of shaved coconut and 1/2 cup of mini semi-sweet chocolate chips)


DIRECTIONS

In bowl beat butter till creamy. Add brown sugar, cinnamon, and baking soda. Stir until combined. Mix in applesauce and egg. Add flour, a little at a time. Stir in oats.

Drop dough onto ungreased cookie sheets. Bake at 375 degrees F (190 degrees C) for 8 to 10 minutes or until lightly browned. Bon appetit!

Wisdom from unexpected sources

Even Freud and Darwin knew that contraception was dangerous and perverse...now what will those who claim we are just radical Christians say?

One reads in Sigmund Freud's Introductory Lectures on Psycho-Analysis, "It is a characteristic common to all the (sexual) perversions that in them reproduction as an aim is put aside. This is actually the criterion by which we judge whether a sexual activity is perverse-- if it departs from reproduction in its aims and pursues the attainment of gratification independently."

Charles Darwin worried that contraceptive technology would "spread to unmarried women and would destroy chastity on which the family bond depends; and the weakening of this bond would be the greatest of all possible evils to mankind." (Charles Darwin, letter to Charles Bradlaugh, June 6, 1877, in Janet Browne, Charles Darwin: The Power of Place (New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 2002), 468.

BUMP +

In 1973, the U.S. Supreme Court gave women a choice. Thirty-seven years later, we're giving them a voice. BUMP+, a provocative web series from Yellow Line Studio that follows three women facing unintended pregnancies, premieres January 22nd. Watch the episodes. Share your story. Join the conversation.

Recently, I have been working on a show called Bump+. Yellow Line Studio is trying an experiment. These decisions go farther than a checked box or a yes/no decision. Real life, real situations are more complex than that.

So instead of checking a box, share a story. Share your story. 

Watch, and then join the conversation.

The Experiment: http://bumptheshow.com/?page_id=100

The Show: http://bumptheshow.com/

The Business of Being Born

Last night hubby and I watched The Business of Being Born because our doula recommended it. It was actually much less biased than I thought it would be. Basically it shows the births that Ricki Lake, producer, and Abby Epstein, director, had while filming the documentary and questions the necessity of a lot of medical practices such as the widespread use of Pitocin for augmenting labor, etc. It also shows several midwives attending home births and just explaining the benefits of using a midwife if you are a low risk pregnancy. One thing I learned is that around the world, even in developed countries in Europe, midwives are the standard and usually higher risk pregnancies go to doctors for their prenatal care.

My favorite thing about the movie was that it was constantly stressing the concept of informed consent. I truly feel that that is missing from most births. It seems that people will just go along with whatever their doctors say without questioning it. I'm not saying you need to interrogate your doctor and his motives, but more women need to be asking questions like "Why do you feel this drug/procedure is necessary?" "Are there any alternatives?" "What would happen if we waited?"

The only thing that kept irking at me during the movie, was that while they were against women taking pain medications and Pitocin because of the negative side effets they can have on labor and the baby, they never said anything about contraception. As I see it, using contraception for 10, 20, or even 30 years (and taking it while breastfeeding) is probably going to have more of a lasting impact on your baby than taking a shot of Pitocin after labor or even having an epidural.

Anywho, I liked that it didn't make me feel like i'm a failure or just giving into "the man" by seeing a doctor or having a c-section. The director, Abby, actually ended up having a c-section during the movie since her little boy was breech and refused to turn, even during labor. Since Certified Nurse Midwives aren't supposed to be delivering breech babies she was transferred to a hospital to get the little guy out.

Having been to both a midwife and a doctor I have to say I liked the care I received with the midwife better. I really like that they focus on what is normal while doctors tend to focus on things that are going wrong. Granted, I've now had complications in both pregnancies so I don't qualify to have a midwife right now, but God willing I will get to have 1 normal boring pregnancy and birth!!

Oh I almost forgot, the other thing that made me kinda sad is that there really are no options for women...for the typical woman your choices are what pain medication you'd like during labor. Most homebirths cost between $3000 and $6000 and insurance won't cover it and most families just can't afford that.

“So what is it that you do all day?” - The story of a real housewife (and no I’m not from Atlanta!)

This morning all I could think about was going back to sleep after Phil left for work. I just have to make his breakfast and lunch and then Nacho (our miniature Dachshund) and I can go back to sleep – I mean I didn’t have that much to so, or so I thought as I began to create my daily list in my head.

1. Go Grocery Shopping. I hadn’t been since before Christmas, since we were gone for two weeks on vacation. Since we’ve gotten back, we’ve been living on random food like cereal, frozen salmon w/ macaroni and cheese and turkey sandwiches. I’ve basically been stalling until my Costco coupons became effective. (Yes, my life is based around Costco coupons and I am getting really excited about them!)

2. I just noticed, upon getting up, that my dog still has fleas, even though Phil gave him a flea bath last night, and this means that all of his freshly washed blankets have fleas as well. His cage will have to be cleaned. I’ll need to wash all his toys, and I can’t go grocery shopping until I clean his cage since he stays in there while were gone.

3. I need to go to the bank to take out money for our tithing that needs to be donated to the Youth program we just took over (or should I saw got talked into) which reminds me…

4. Get stuff together for the Confirmation retreat that I just found out I is supposed to create and staff. Well, maybe I actually volunteered for this, cause I love running retreats and get kinda crazy if I’m not in charge, let’s be honest.

5. Go to the Post Office to mail my sister’s Christmas present. I was supposed to hand deliver it – long story and also send my cousin’s belated wedding present.

6. Go to Bed, Bath and Beyond, and exchange the overpriced pillow shams (I can’t spend that even if I use a gift card.) Anyways we need pillowcases, Phil can’t stand sleeping on a pillow with no pillowcases. We did have pillowcases before we left for Christmas, but I think they got lost in the laundry somewhere after we took them with us on vacation. We thought bringing our own pillows on our two-week vacation would be a smart plan since we never knew where we were sleeping. PS everyone should plan a two-week trip where you roam from relative to relative and enjoy having other people cook for you! If I could find our pillowcases, I could wash them – which reminds me we need dryer sheets – there’s a Costco coupon for that so I’ve been waiting to do laundry. Gotta go to Costco, have to take care of the fleas first – still need a grocery list.

7. Make grocery list. First figure out how Weight Watchers works (on my own in 10 minutes or less) since Phil just started using his points again. We were going to make a grocery list together so he could explain the points thing, but somehow that didn’t happen and instead he just handed the books to me this morning and said he likes lots of apples, string cheese and something else (check the book for snacks)

8. Don’t forget to plan and cook dinner for the Core team meeting tonight. Assume 8-10 people. We go to Mass first so it has to be able to be warmed up quickly or cooked before we leave. Have to be at church at 5:15 – still have to do laundry and deal with the fleas!

And my working friends look at me with that pity face and ask, “so what do you do all day – don’t you get bored?” One of my other “stay at home” friends put it perfectly yesterday, “I’ve never been as busy as when I stopped working.”
While I don’t sit at an office, and I may not be making “world changing” decisions everyday, my job is a 24-7 job. I don’t clock out. If my husband gets home late from work, I’ll fix his dinner then, and it’s not considered “over time.” I am blessed to get to stay home. Blessed that we have weekend to relax and be together since the housework is done during the week. I’m blessed to get to volunteer at the Church whenever I want. I’m blessed with a husband that overheard someone telling me I should go back to work full-time and after he told me “I really like having you home.” I’m signing up to substitute teach and I volunteer in the Church office on Fridays. I didn’t know if I should put Friday as an available day to work, since I’m assuming I shouldn’t turn down work, to which my husband says, “Isn’t that the day you work at the Church.” While I may experience different hurdles than the “average working person,” I have my own, like for example the fleas. They are my responsibility and I need to take care of them so Phil doesn’t have to when he gets home. I’m training myself to live on a budget and while my trips at Costco can be rather lengthy as I compare prices on all the laundry detergent, I’m proud of the way I can make a dollar stretch. I’m proud of the way I respect the money that my husband works hard to make. And if living on a single salary means that I can spend weekends relaxing with my husband and someday God willing be there for the first steps of our children and those moments that just need a band-aid and a kiss, then I’ll put back those jeans and I’ll shop at thrift stores and I’ll keep my volunteer time as my influence on society. But I really better do something about those fleas!


picture credit to :http://cu1turesponge.wordpress.com/2009/08/14/housewives-and-homemakers-welcome/

Marriage on Trial

I don't know if any of you are following the current court case against Proposition 8 but we appear to be doing very well. Please keep praying for the truth to prevail. It is extremely important that marriage as God defined it win in this case because the outcome will effect other states where marriage is under attack. If you want to follow the progress of the case the following blog is planning to give updates twice daily from the Prop 8 legal team.

http://www.protectmarriage.com/blog/

The Skinny on "Plus-Size"

I thought this was an interesting article about Crystal Renn, a so-called "plus-size" model. She recently published a memoir titled Hungry, in which she discusses her battle with the modeling industry and an eating disorder.

Renn is far from being big, but wears a size 12 (the article notes that the average woman wears a size 14). Despite being smaller than average, she must compete with size 2 models for jobs, and so as a result she has been successful "plus-size" niche. One of the things I found interesting was that she describes how photographers use digital imaging to focus on her curves and make her appear even larger than she is...

Overall, I found it inspiring that this 23-year old model decided to fight how the industry standard define beauty by being herself, the way she was made to be. Let's hope there will be other models who will choose to follow her her footsteps!

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/01/14/fashion/14CRYSTAL.html?pagewanted=1&8dpc

Why me, God?

I sat down this afternoon as my baby slept peacefully in her bed, in our centrally heated/air conditioned home, I sat down on a comfy couch, and turned on our cable television to watch Fox news. The images that appeared before my eyes were shocking to me, who's only traveled outside of the US to metropolitan cities in Europe, and a beautiful tourist city in Mexico.

I watched intently as the news continued coverage of the devastation in Haiti, after a 7.0 earthquake hit. The country is in ruin, with millions homeless, needing aid. Survivors describe hearing cries from beneath rubble as you walk the streets, while piles of the bodies of the deceased tower above them. It is estimated that 1/3 of the country's 9 million people will be needing medical aid, and the Red Cross has just run out of medical supplies. Schools with children, nursing homes with elderly, hospitals with sick, and even the prisons with inmates (who are now running free) all collapsed. It is utterly dire.

I sit here, living in conditions, that a child there may dream of as the life of a princess. I am not only disturbed by the images I see because my heart aches for them, but more than anything because of my lack of gratitude for what the Lord has given me. I have been whining the last week because I'm trying to get my child to sleep through the night, and it's a challenging task. Challenging? May I rejoice every time I hear my child roll over in the night and beckon, "Mommy," because I have the opportunity to cuddle with her and comfort her once again! There are countless mothers in Haiti right now longing to hear their children's voices call their name once more, or hold them in their arms, or to comfort them as they suffer from fatal wounds.

I am perplexed with the question, "Why me, God?" Why am I not living in a third world country? Why have I been given so much? Why do I still find the tiniest things to complain about? I am blessed beyond belief and must recognize it. May we all find the joy in whatever "challenges" we face in our daily lives and recognize how immensely blessed we are. And may God bring His comfort and solace to this nation that currently lives in fear, chaos, and devastation.