Busy Bee!

Now that classes are back in session at the University, my life has once again become very hectic, both at the job and at home. Plus, I have a year left of graduate school so I am back in classes as well. This semester I am taking Legal, a topic that I do find interesting so hopefully the discussions and projects will keep my interest.

PLUS, my wedding is 19 days away! While the vast majority of it is planned and taken care of, there is still a lot I have to do and plan for. I also have to make sure my assignments for class are completed before I go on my honeymoon! The plans are going very smoothly, thanks be to God! We finalized our plans with the DJ last week and we are going to have an awesome reception filled with a lot of great music!

I have taken the opportunity to volunteer to assist at the Pro-Life tent at the Jefferson County fair this evening from 4-8. I am not a big fair goer, but I am rather passionate about the Pro-Life movement and I thought I would take this opportunity to help out. I'm excited! I think it will be fun! West Virginia is a very conservative state and if my research serves me correctly there is only one Planned Parenthood in the entire state, and it is no where close to where I live. But Jefferson County, the county I live in, is the wealthiest and most liberal county in the entire state! (When I say the wealthiest, that doesn't say too much, especially when you see how poverty stricken the rest of WV is.)

It won't be too long and Sunday school classes will start up. This is my first year volunteering and they asked me to teach Communion Prep Level One (aka 1st grade Sunday school) straight out of the gate! I am excited and nervous all at the same time. I have not seen my materials so I have nothing to start making lesson plans. Also, when I was 6-7 years old, I was a Lutheran, so it will be kinda difficult to use my past experiences to build on.

But, really, the main thing on my mind is wedding stuff. Rick and I are so excited to finally be tying the knot that we can barely contain ourselves!

My Lord, Please watch over us as we prepare to make this commitment to You and to ourselves. And help me to keep my sanity!!!

Thanks Be to God!

Just to let everyone know that Darcy, the prodigal kitty, returned last night at 10:30pm. Rick was extremely happy to see him, so happy that he was on the verge of tears. He has no cuts or scrapes on him, so he seems perfectly healthy, just hungry and tired.

Thank you God for bringing him home safely!

Saint Francis of Assisi, Pray for Us!

Two nights ago, two of my precious kitties, Tristan and Darcy, got outside. They are indoor/outdoor cats, but we only let them out when at least one of us will be home most of the day. My cats are typically very good about staying in close proximity to the house and coming when called. We do not let them stay out past dusk. Tristan and Darcy escaped into the night after Rick and I went to bed and did not come home all day.

I panicked! I love my three cats like they are my children! I had horrible thoughts of never seeing them again. Sally, my good kitty who never gets into trouble, became heartsick for her playmates. Rick and walked all around our neighbor hood calling their names and we prayed to every saint we could think of; St. Francis of Assisi, St. Martin DePorres, St. Julian of Norwhich (Is she a saint, BTW? I can't seem to find a concrete answer on that.) I gave up my search at 11pm. On the verge of tears I took some valerian and tried to fall asleep.

I had a very restless night. But around 3:30 in the morning I heard a distinctive meow downstairs. Sally was curled up in the kitty condo beside out bed, so I go downstairs and see Tristan had returned home. I was so happy to see her, I picked her up and hugged her like I would never have the opportunity to hold her again. I woke Rick up and he followed suit, relieved to see her.

It appears that Tristan and Darcy may have gotten into a scrap with another cat in our neighborhood. Poor Tristan has a small cut beneath her eye, thankfully it did not harm the eye itself. She seemed a little shaken when she returned home. She didn't eat anything but drank a lot of water.

Darcy has yet to return. Please pray that he comes home soon and that he is safe.

My Own Flaws

I have gotten involved in a debate via Facebook with my future cousin-in-law over the topic of women priests. I think he likes to start debates on some topics just for the conversation, and I was allowed to really allow my apologetic side to shine! I beat down almost every argument he made. He is a cradle Catholic, claiming to be very devout, but does not hold some of the basic beliefs that we, as Catholics, hold.

Catholicism IS NOT a cafeteria religion. You can't believe in somethings and leave the rest behind. The main beliefs that separate us from the Protestants are:

1) Real Presence in the Eucharist
2) Veneration of Mary
3) Purgatory
4) Papal Infallibility on matters of faith
5) We don't believe in Sola Fide or Sola Scriptura

These are some of the main sticking points. How can you be a true Catholic if you don't believe in the Real Presence? How can you follow a Pope if you don't believe he is led by the Holy Spirit? If you don't really believe some of these basic principles, then you are just going through the motions. Maybe you don't understand your faith because you have never taken the initiative to study the reasons why we believe what we do. If that is the case, then it is a shame.

Now, I am coming to the realization that I am a rather judgemental person. At least I think I am. While I am debating my future cousin-in-law, I am thinking to myself what a bad Catholic he is. I should not think that. I do not doubt that he has a relationship with God, and even if he does not fully understand Church teachings that does not make him a bad person. I should not judge someone to be a 'good Catholic' or a 'bad Catholic'. That is not really my place, is it?

Darcy the Bird Killer

We have three cats; Sally, Tristan, and Darcy. Sally and Tristan are my sweet females, and Darcy (Named after Mr. Fitzwilliam Darcy for the Austen fans out there.) is the somewhat standoffish, but occasional affectionate, male. They are litter mates and are about a year and a half old. Today, Darcy killed his first bird, and not a baby bird either, an adult bird so that says something about his hunting skills. This surprises me because when I have observed him stalking in the past he would always give himself away before he successfully pounced on his prey, so it seems he has suddenly developed some serious pouncing skills.
Now, I have a soft spot for birds because I think they are so pretty, and it tore at my heart a little bit when Rick told me that Darcy caught an adult bird today. All cat owners know that we cannot punish cats for killing prey, it is in their nature. When Darcy brought the struggling bird to show to Rick, Rick praised Darcy, but took the bird away from him and took it a block away and placed him under a tree. Unfortunately, the bird was too severely injured to survive. So, Darcy is going to be nicknamed BirdKiller from now on.

The wedding is 38 days away. We met with Deacon to go over some wedding plans. I have only been to one Catholic wedding in the past, and since I was the singer I was all the way up in the choir loft and I don't remember much of it. We discussed some simple questions and now things are looking clearer.
Rick and I have always talked about having a handfastening, which is an old Irish/Scottish tradition that was adopted in the early church from the pagans. (Think back to Braveheart.) When I was a practicing Wicca I was gun-ho on having a handfastening. When we were planning an elopement it is something we wanted to do. Now that I have moved away from the whole Wicca thing, I am not as gun-ho on doing the handfastening because I do not want to turn back to that life, at all. But since it is an old Scottish tradition it is a little important to Rick.
The priest who will be marrying us, Father Larry, is an expert on cults, the new age movement, demonic possessions, and things of that nature. I don't think he is going to be too keen on incorporating an old pagan tradition into the wedding ceremony, even if the Church at one point practiced it. But, we'll see. It is no longer very important to me. The only thing I care about is being married to the man I love in the sight of God. I cannot wait! I am so excited that I can barely sleep at night. I feel like a little kid getting ready to go to Disney World!

Get Your Free Birth Control!

There are approximately 43 days until our wedding and I am so excited that I can not find the appropriate words! So far everything seems to be going smoothly. The DJ, photographer and bagpiper have been booked, so has the reception hall and the florist. So, things are moving along rather smoothly.

I am sure you have heard by now that Obamacare has decreed that pregnancy is a disease and should be prevented using free birth control, paid for by the taxpayer. Is it just me or is this the stupidest thing you have ever heard in your life? The government is basically subsidizing promiscuity and promotes sex without consequences.

In all honesty, when I was on the magical pill, before I started practicing NFP, it cost me $5 a month with my health insurance, and boy did I have a hard time paying it every month! It was very difficult for me to give up my monthly McDonalds binge to instead pay for my birth control.

The government is not promoting NFP in any way, which in my mind makes no sense. America is in financial straights and the AAA credit rating we had has been dropped, which is not good. So, instead of promoting NFP, which is natural, hormone free, eco-friendly, and FREE, the government wants taxpayer money to go toward that magical pill, which, in the end, will cost America more money. How is this logical?
Instead of teaching our teens that it is best to save sex to marriage, we are saying, 'Well, you're gonna end up having sex anyway, so we'll pay for your birth control so you don't get knocked up'.

Ok, enough venting. Honestly, the government is putting it's nose where it does not belong and is becoming too big for it's own good. The Founding Fathers warned about big government. Obamacare has announced clearly that it has an anti-life agenda, which is terrifying. When November comes it is going to be more important than ever to learn the stances of everyone running for office. If you do not have a Pro-Life agenda, you will not get my vote. Period!