Saturday, June 18, 2011

40 weeks and 1 day...


At every occurrence we should say: Dominus est. It is the Lord; and in all circumstances we should find a gift from God: we should consider creatures as very feeble instruments in the hands of an Almighty Worker, and we should recognize without difficulty that nothing is lacking to us that God’s constant care leads Him to give us each instant what is suited to us.  -Fr. de Caussade



The due date of our little one has come and gone. And today we are 40 weeks and 1 day :) Yup, our little Junebug is cozy and comfy in my womb and is showing few signs (up to this point) of making a full exit. Naturally, I (and many beloved family members and friends) are sitting at the edge of our seat waiting on this child and on God. Admittedly, having had our first born on the due date would have been so exciting! So, part of me is a bit sad that the day has passed. But as His Will would have it, we are still being called to patiently wait on Him. 


I like this quote from Fr. de Caussade, because it reminded me to be grateful and to Trust that It is the Lord who is working in each moment that passes. And not only is He working but He is giving us a gift. Gifts that I have only been able to recognize with some evening time spent in prayer and reflection.


Our Gifts thus far:


Friday, our due date was spent at an enjoyable morning Doctor’s appointment where we heard that this Mama and our little one are as healthy as can be at this point. That is always a joy to hear and definitely a gift. GeekMan and I had lunch thereafter and then I was able to spend some wonderful quality time with my brother who is visiting. Not only did I get to spend the afternoon with him but GeekMan and I were given the opportunity to have an early dinner with my brother as well. Then later, GeekMan and I enjoyed a movie, relaxation, and needed conversation. Dominus est.


Saturday, our 40 weeks and one day, were spent catching up on some much needed to-dos in the morning followed with a brief but wonderful time with my brother - again! These gifts were followed by our good friends calling us up for a delicious dinner out and we suggested getting some raspas for dessert (snowcones, something I’ve been wanting since this past Monday;)). After receiving these evening gifts we are now home enjoying each other and relaxing. Dominus est.


So, thank you again Fr. de Caussade and Holy Spirit for opening my eyes to see the goodness in the time that we have had and pray that my eyes continue to stay open in the days that come. Who knows when God and this little one will decide to exit my womb? Am I excited? YES! Am I ready? As ready as I’ll ever be :) But, for now I’ll try my best to focus on all the little gifts that God is sharing in moments that have passed and are yet to come. Dominus est.


haha, just a side note:


My guess is that our little Junebug doesn’t want us to miss Mass tomorrow morning. Perhaps he or she already sees the great gift in that and we’ll go into labor after celebrating Mass :D Will keep ya’ll posted!!!

Friday, June 17, 2011

Memorare


Remember, O most gracious Virgin Mary, that never was it known that anyone who fled to thy protection, implored thy help, or sought thine intercession was left unaided.

Inspired by this confidence, I fly unto thee, O Virgin of virgins, my mother; to thee do I come, before thee I stand, sinful and sorrowful. O Mother of the Word Incarnate, despise not my petitions, but in thy mercy hear and answer me.

Amen.


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EWTN: Memorare

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Definitely a favorite prayer and Danielle Rose sings it beautifully!  Mr. GeekMan and I had this song/prayer played by our dear friend while we were asking Mother Mary for her continued prayerful presence in our life and now marriage while honoring her with a bouquet of *roses*.

Mother Mary, pray for us.


Memorare by Danielle Rose on Grooveshark

Tuesday, June 14, 2011

Why will we always substitute our own action for that of the divineWorker, who labours ceaselessly in us at the work of our perfection?How much more progress would we make if we made it our principal studynot to get in the way of His action, to abandon ourselves to Him and wait. -Fr. Jean-Pierre de Caussade



How much more?...


How much more progress would we make if we made it our principal study not to get in the way of His Action, to abandon ourselves to Him and wait.  -Fr. Jean-Pierre de Caussade



Definitely something for me to be thinking about.  I’ve been mostly at home these past few weeks preparing for all that is to come.  I’ve enjoyed the peace and quiet, moving things around, waiting for my GeekMan to come for lunch or from work, helping prepare/train our lil pup (Lily) for our little Junebug, cooking, baking here and there, cleaning of course when I have the energy, going for walks, and few other random things here and there.  Amidst all of this, my thoughts return to all the unknowns surrounding our little one and it’s arrival.


So, when things like this happen (thoughts rambling, questioning etc) I usually will find myself in an old book that made sense at some point in my life.  Lately, my go-to book has been Abandonment to Divine Providence by Fr. De Caussade.  In one of his letters, Fr. de Caussade was writing to a Reverend Mother seeking spiritual guidance.  In this letter to her he focused on Peaceful Waiting.  Again, the whole theme of “waiting”.  But not just any kind of waiting - he calls it peaceful.  While thinking about peaceful waiting I remembered St. Gianna’s words:



All the Lord’s ways are beautiful because their end is one and the same: to save our own soul and to succeed in leading many other souls to heaven, to give glory to God.  -St. Gianna Beretta Molla



Needless to say, at 39 weeks and 4 days pregnant, I am waiting.  But, am I waiting as patiently as I can so as not to get in the way of how God is working in me each waiting moment?  I’m going to venture and say no.  But after reading Fr. de Caussade’s letter to a Reverend Mother and remembering St. Gianna’s words, I definitely have a little more perspective on what is being asked of me today and in the days to come.  Not to stress, or be anxious about how and when everything will happen and thereafter, but to Trust that He has His ways that are Perfect.  More Perfect than I could ever fathom.  And, again, in the waiting will my path be sanctified.  In the waiting, I have the opportunity to grow to know Him more.  How much more?  …I don’t really know.  Will I be successful moment to moment each day that comes - definitely not.  But, I do know that I’m being called to wait.  And so, wait on You the best that I humanly can, I shall  (with Your Grace, of course! :))


All I do know is that I am just so thrilled, excited, and happy (as well as every other word that means excited for that matter) to meet this little Life that God has shared with my GeekMan and me.

There is no place for selfishness and no place for fear! Do not beafraid, then, when love makes demands. Do not be afraid when loverequires sacrifice. -Blessed John Paul ll

(via catholicanswers)

Monday, June 13, 2011

We know that all things work for good for those who love God, who are called according to his purpose. Romans 8:28


‎A joyful heart is more easily made perfect than one that is cast down. St. Philip Neri

you and me...now that's something to celebrate!

Ahhhh, so I know I’ve been jumping ahead to get to where we are today.  And a lot of that has been focused on us journeying towards the soon to be BIG occasion of having our first child.  However, I did not want to miss sharing that we celebrated our 1st anniversary this year!!

We had such a great day!  A day set apart to reminisce and truly celebrate.  God truly blessed us with a wonderful first year.

Our first year blessings:  our wedding day!, our first home together, sacramental graces that come with marriage!, our immediate family, in-laws which have been such a blessing, extended family, growing together, birthdays!, learning together, making our life decisions together, time with our siblings, talking, sharing, trials, going to many of our friends weddings, compromising, beautiful friends, blessed with work, becoming one, becoming a family - a domestic church, kisses, kind and gentle touches, when we look at each other in that way, finding out we were with child!, our baby journey!, and sooooo much more!!!


We started our celebration day off by going to Mass in the morning, followed by brunch at a local favorite place.  We went home after that and watched our wedding video and skimmed through wedding day pictures.  We then renewed our wedding vows in the comfort of our little home and danced to our first dance song :)  And we finished our celebration off with a lovely dinner at Magic Time Machine where we had our caricatures drawn up (we felt it was only appropriate to go to MTM  for dinner since we were remembering all our time within the past year) and dessert at a another favorite place.  All in all, a wonderful day filled with love, remembering, and celebrating!

*lyb*

Preparing



Each of us must prepare ourselves for our own vocation and prepare ourselves to be givers of life.  -St. Gianna Beretta Molla


To prepare ourselves to be “givers of life” sounds overwhelmingly huge!  But, through the good Grace of God, this too is possible.  In His own time and in His great Will, He is always nourishing and preparing us for all that is to come (something I am *constantly* reminding myself!)

Posted below is a picture that shows my womb at 30 weeks of pregnancy. Oh how there were so many fun changes that came with it.  My womb has swelled with new life, which has been such a blessing and an incredible gift.  It’s still hard to believe everything that has taken place these past 9 months.  Our little one has been growing as God has intended.  Our little ones Guardian Angel has been journeying with us all along the way.  I imagine my husband’s Guardian Angel, my Guardian Angel and my little one’s have definitely become good friends these past months :)


                
My GeekMan has been wonderful - tending to me, caring for us in so many different ways.  His Joy and excitement regarding fatherhood has been such a gift for me to watch.  And I just can’t wait to see how the gift of who he is will translate once the baby is out of my womb and in our arms.

So, a great big THANK YOU, to God for always preparing us for our vocation.  You call us and provide us with all we need.  I just pray that I remember all this Truth and Goodness when labor and delivery time comes!  We are 39 wks and 3 days along today!  Still hard to fathom that we are where we are!  I just hope that I embrace these days to come and wait on the Lord with Joy.  Admittedly, it has been difficult.  When will baby come?  What will it feel like?  Where will it all start?  Will I be able to manage all that comes with participating in my labor and delivery experience?  Will our baby be a little boy or a girl?  How long will labor last?  And sooo many more questions!  Again, I pray that I remember to Trust in His Will and remember Romans 8:28, a verse that Sr. Kathleen shared with me during our time together.

We know that all things work for good for those who love God, who are called according to his purpose.  Romans 8:28

Thursday, June 9, 2011

Strength and Waiting


…if He wants anything of you, He will fit you for the work and give you strength.” -St. Philip Neri


Our Lord has done just that.  He brought us together and gave us the strength to build a special and tender union of heart, He gave us strength in our engagement, He brought us to our wedding day, and now He called my husband and I to the beautiful gift of Life.  The day we found out we were pregnant with our first child, our hearts swelled and we began the new journey set before us with the strength and grace that can only be given us by Him.


My pregnancy has been wonderful.  We’ve been very blessed.  There was, of course, the minor morning sickness, my ever changing body, and all the amazing milestones of watching my tummy swell, feeling our little one flutter in Mama’s tummy while at Christmas Mass this past year, feeling the kicks and movements become more pronounced and strong, Daddy being able to have his first look at my rolling tummy, Daddy *feeling* his little one in my womb for the first time, and so much more.


Our joy has since abounded and we continue to take these steps with eyes wide open always awaiting whatever will be around the corner.  Our pregnancy journey and life itself always seems to have a theme of *waiting*.  A number of people might not like the idea of waiting, and I know I definitely am one to struggle with practicing joyful and active waiting.  But, I do believe that there is a joy and active participation in the waiting that we experience and are called to.  In the waiting, if we find ourselves present to each moment, there is so much joy and comfort to be found, knowing that God has planted His Will and that something is happening.  After reading, Abandonment to Divine Providence by Father J.P. de Caussade, S.J., I gained this understanding and try to be aware of it is often as possible.


Throughout our pregnancy we have been waiting: waiting to be out of the first, second, and third tri-mester, waiting to see the heartbeat, waiting to hear the heartbeat for the first time, waiting to see our little one at his/her earliest stages, waiting to see our little one grow in my womb, waiting each new opportunity for a sonogram so we can sneak a glimpse of our little one dancing around, waiting to share the news with all our loved ones, waiting to know if I would have had morning sickness or not, waiting for the sweet and wonderful baby showers, waiting to know if our baby is a boy or a girl, waiting to grow so big that I waddle, waiting to share new experiences with all our loved ones, waiting to take our natural birthing class and prepare as much as possible, waiting to find the right name, waiting to share all these new moments and findings with my spouse and him with me, waiting for each new kick or movement, waiting for the next time our little one gets hiccups in my womb, waiting for home to change into a home that is awaiting its newest member, waiting on all the different stages of this Life in my womb, and ultimately, waiting to get to where we are today.


In our waiting we have been blessed.  In retrospect, I can say there has been joy and always something happening in each moment we breathed, all from His Hand who holds us.


The secret of waiting is the faith that the seed has been planted, that something has begun. -Fr. Jean-Pierre de Caussade

Cast yourself into the arms of God and be very sure that if He wantsanything of you, He will fit you for the work and give you strength.

Cast yourself into the arms of God and be very sure that if He wants anything of you, He will fit you for the work and give you strength.
St Philip Neri (via my-crazy-catholic-life)

Tuesday, June 7, 2011

Still Fast-Forwarding!

With all these slideshow posts I’ve been trying to catch our story up to where we are today.  Over a year has passed and so much has happened in our journey.

For starters, when we returned from our lovely honeymoon, we settled into our very quaint apartment - haha, our starter apartment, if you will.  GeekMan was finishing up with graduate school and I was working as an ASL interpreter.  We were there for a full 5 months and as God would have it, we would be uprooted and moved to Dallas, TX in May of 2010.  There was opportunity and His Will calling us there and we listened.

With the help of our friends and family we moved into our first (non-starter) apartment!  The transition was insane filled with hours of packing and unpacking and us being the most sore we both have been since high school work outs, but all worth it.  We acquainted ourselves with the DFW area and were embraced by our wonderful family of friends that God has so generously shared with us.

Soon, after a move that has been such an incredible blessing to us, we were given a gift.  We were given a gift to expand our domestic church by bearing new life!  We could not have been happier when we found out we conceived our first little miracle in September.

Say HELLO! to our Little Junebug at 10 wks :)


Joy is what I feel when I see this picture.  God is so good and the Life He shares with us is so precious.

To maintain a joyful family requires much from both the parents and the children. Each member of the family has to become, in a special way, the servant of the others.
Blessed John Paul II


*A Toast* to our continued journey of Service and Joy! :D

Happily United



Honeymoon was sooo much fun!  We flew on the cloud we left our wedding on, which is always GREAT!  We had delicious food, met wonderfully nice people in Pagosa Springs, skied for the first time, had a couples massage, bathed in their hot springs on a snowy night, rode up a mountain on a snowmobile, went to Mass a couple times, went to their historic downtown theater and watched a movie, played in the snow, went to a couple of local micro breweries, made a trip out to Durango and saw their largest annual parade, and so many other little things here and there.  Needless to say, we were blessed with such a memorable time!


All the wealth in the world cannot be compared with the happiness ofliving together happily united. -Blessed Margaret d’Youville





Our Mutual Gift





Marriage is an act of will that signifies and involves a mutual gift…with whom they make up a sole family – a domestic church.”  -Blessed John Paul II


JPII says it beautifully!  Our domestic church began a wonderful day in January.   A day filled with such Joy and Peace.  We were surrounded by our parents, siblings, grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins, other extended family, and so many beautiful friends we’ve been blessed with over the years.

Being married in the Church was such a gift to us.  The graces that He bestows through the vocation of marriage are such a gift!  A gift we overwhelmingly experienced that day and continue to experience everyday.  The day we became one has seriously been the best day of my life thus far :D

After Mass, we had so many loved ones to celebrate with - and boy was it a celebration!  I had sooo much fun dancing the night away with so many faces that shared such great love with us by their mere presence.

Like I said in another post, His Will slowly but surely unraveling before our eyes and hearts.

So, on our wedding day, we said “I do.” and our precious family was born :)  We thought it was a pretty big deal. So even though our celebrations were incredible it was only right that we should continue celebrating by venturing on our honeymoon the very next day in Pagosa Springs, Colorado :)

Monday, June 6, 2011

God sometimes gives a certain union of heart and tender love for our neighbor…” -St. Francis de Sales



It’s true.  God does sometimes give us a certain union of heart filled with tender love.  Thankfully, there have been various unions that have been amazing and filled with tender love throughout my life- my parents, brother, extended family, best friends that I can call my sisters.  But, there has been one union like no other.  My set apart certain union is with the man I said “Yes!” to - my GeekMan.


Our engagement was filled with love and blessings.  We couldn’t be more grateful to our family and friends who helped nourish our relationship in amazing ways and still continue to do so to this day!  The pictures here are from friends who helped my then boyfriend with an engagement journey filled with clues, meaningful locations, and a beautiful proposal that had me in happy tears and engaged to the gift that God had bestowed on me - GeekMan. :)


God sometimes gives a certain union of heart and tender love for ourneighbor, which is one of the greatest and most excellent gift that HisDivine Bounty bestows on man. -St. Francis de Sales



Our Story Started Somewhere



A story always starts somewhere.  Ours started awhile back, I’d say mmm…from conception :D  And slowly but surely God continued to reveal His Loving Will for us throughout our lives.  Over the years, my GeekMan and I have been graced with amazing family, friends, major ups, major downs, and everything in between, along with a fun hodgepodge of life experiences.  Here’s just a glimpse into our time together before we made the next move to get us closer to where we are now :D

Pachanga 2008
Valentine's Day 2009 

We went by a vineyard in Virginia while visiting DC in 2009.


I ultimately have so many pics to choose from. But for now, these work :)

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