Showing posts with label Fertility Journey. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Fertility Journey. Show all posts

Wednesday, October 5, 2016

{JEI}: Respect Life Month

Welcome to my favorite linkup of the week called Just Enough Info with The Zelie Group. This week we are discussing the theme of October, which is Respect Life Month. In addition to this link up I would suggest you take a look at Instagram and follow the #Rosaryathon. I have so enjoyed participating in the Rosayathon this far and hope to see you join in the fun!



Time to get back to the JEI Linkup and I'd love to introduce you to the other hosts of the Just Enough Info Linkup:


Jessica (myself) – Pinot Noir and Prayers | Instagram | Facebook
Alicia – Sweeping Up Joy | Pinterest | Facebook
Kirby – Under Thy Roof | Instagram | Facebook

1. Does your family or parish mark the month in a special way?


October is Respect Life Month but it is also Breast Cancer Awareness Month, ADHD Awareness Month and Spina Bifida Awareness Month which are all important issues in our family. Cancer has taken the lives of several of my close relatives over the years and we have had some Breast Cancer scares. My youngest son is ADHD and I continue to fight for him to get the assistance he needs to cope with his overactive mind and body. I have Spina Bifida. Spina Bifida is a birth defect and cannot be "cured". I had surgery as a child to close the opening in my spine and I have been lucky to not have any complications until now. I think I will save my story dealing with this disability for another time though. 

Back to the question: We do incorporate intentions for the unborn into our family rosary but that is really the extent of anything we have done in the past. This year I plan on doing a Spiritual Adoption because I am on a new fertility journey that I hope leads us to adding a child (and more) into our family. 


As for my parish, I'm not sure yet. We haven't been registered with our parish for even a year yet so we are still learning about all the amazing things they have to offer to us and the community. We were given signs to display in our yards in protest of proposition 106. It would allow physician suicide assistance for the elderly, people with terminal illness and others who are not strong enough to fight for themselves. We should respect all life. God does not make mistakes and although our lives may require suffering, it is ours to endure and part of our story. 


2. Do you have any books or resources to recommend on the Respect Life theme?

I am sad to say that I don't have any books or resources that i could recommend. I am in the process of doing some research for another project that will hopefully help me come across some suggestions if I get asked in the future. I would also love to hear about your suggestions if you have any!


3. What do you wish others understood about the Respect Life message?


I wish that everyone understood that life is a gift. It is not meant to be bad or carry a negative connotation. Unplanned pregnancies, terminal illnesses and so many other unforeseen events that can occur in anyone's life are milestones and crossroads in your life. You can either embrace the things that scare you and face them head on or fight against God's plan for you. As Christians we are asked to embrace the uncertainty knowing that God knows what he is doing. It is when we decide to fight against his plan that things can get messy. I pray that we are all strong enough to put our faith in God and know that his plan is perfect for us and the whole world. Let his will be done.

Well that is my take on Just Enough Info this week. I would love to hear your thoughts! Feel free to use the beautiful picture below in your linkup post if you so desire!


Please Join us and Link Up with your answers to this week's questions about Respecting Life Month (October). Here are the questions:

1. Does your family or parish mark the month in a special way?
2. Do you have any books or resources to recommend on the Respect Life theme?
3. What do you wish others understood about the Respect Life message?

Next week we will be discussing Autumn/Fall Family Fun:

1. Best fall flavor: apple or pumpkin?
2. The leaves are changing colors, and the air is crisp. What are you looking forward to about fall?
3. Do you decorate for the season (and which is it: fall or autumn?)

Feel free to check out the last few weeks of JEI to learn about the link up rules and other fun topics we have already discussed:


The Zelie Group has some fun questions coming up in the next few weeks so make sure to follow us on Facebook and we would love to hear what you are interested in! What are you looking to learn about? Do you have questions about the Faith? Questions about the Liturgical Year? We want to help and learn and grow with you and your families!

Thursday, September 29, 2016

{SQT}: Farewell September


Am I the only one who blinked and September was over?! I am honestly in complete shock that tomorrow will be the first day of October! Don't get me wrong... we had an exciting month, September but I am looking forward to what October brings. As Anne of Green Gables said best, “I'm so glad I live in a world where there are Octobers.” Let me give September that final farewell with my Seven Quick Takes for this week.

{ONE}



Earlier in the month my husband and I made a commitment to each other to spend more alone time together. We both work in the hospitality industry and we juggle a ton of extra curricular activities so it feels like it is near impossible to enjoy time alone, together, not only as a husband and wife but as a couple that wants to stay connected in faith, hope and love. This week we decided to cross off something from our Autumn Bucket List and go for our first Autumn walk to see the changing colors of the leaves. It was a gorgeous experience! We went to the Rampart Reservoir and walked around 5-6 miles around the Reservoir before we had a little picnic with a glass of Merlot. The rocks and sand around the reservoir sparkled with gold flecks and the gorgeous hues of yellow, orange and red has just begun. As much as we enjoyed this hike, we will be going on another one in a week or two to see the progression of the changing leaves. I will share more pictures later!

{TWO}


I got a flat tire on my way to our first Parish Faith Night. We managed to drive all the way to the church and when I stepped out of the jeep I heard rushing air. At first I didn't think anything about it but when I got the boys out of the jeep and we walked to the front of the vehicle the awful hissing got louder. I reached down to the front left tire and could feel the air rushing out. I ran inside to speak to the coordinator of the Parish Faith Night because I was suppose to stand at the Liturgical Year poster to give information to families about how to celebrate the Liturgical Year at home. I explained the situation and got my boys in the jeep and drove to a Loaf and Jug nearby. The tire was COMPLETELY flat at this point. I tried using the fix-a-flat but it must have been old or mishandled because the side of the can blew out. My amazing dad had packed me an emergency kit so I was able to patch the tire, refill it and get home. My boys learned the importance of being educated in tire repair and other things that don't seem important to know until it's too late. It was a little scary because it was dark, no one offered us help and I wasn't sure the patch would hold. God took the wheel and kept us safe. 

{THREE}


I love this picture of my hubby and Cloudy. Cloudy is like my husband's furry baby. He follows him around and loves on him 24/7 when he is home. My husband loves it because although he loves our children with all his soul, his heart aches for more children. So I wasn't sure I was going to share this or not but I have a pull in my heart that I am suppose to share the start of a new Fertility journey for my husband and I. We made the big leap and contacted the doctors that we have been contemplating contacting to try to find out if we will be able to have children together. Our appointments aren't until the end of October and November but I would greatly appreciate any prayers that you could give asking that God shows us the path to more children that we so desperately want. I would love to be able to carry more children but if that is not what our Lord wants, we will investigate adoption. Let thy will be done!

{FOUR}


I know it is not Halloween, or even October yet but we already have started our fall baking. We enjoyed a Halloween funfetti cake with orange icing and Halloween sprinkles. It was so good! We actually finished off the cake during our Autumn hike picnic I spoke about earlier. We didn't just enjoy Halloween cake but we have already started watching Halloween movies. We have watched The Halloween Tree, Charlie Brown's The Great Pumpkin and a few other Halloween classics. I need to pick out a new one to have another movie night with my boys this weekend! 

What are your favorite Halloween classic movies? What about treats? We do all of our feasting now because Halloween is actually a day of fasting before the All Saints Day Celebration begins!

{FIVE}


We received this banner from Mass last week regarding proposition 106. I am not a politically active person because I think politics are way too messy and most things are not what they seem but I felt it was important to show that I do not support proposition 106. I hope that the banner inspires others to stand up against this proposition too. We live in an apartment complex and I was almost 100% positive the management would remove the sign but it is still standing. I am hoping to keep it displayed as long as possible. 

Prop 106 would allow Colorado doctors to write a suicide prescription for a consenting person who has been diagnosed with a terminal illness with six months or less to live. But as 9 NEWS in Denver points out, the measure “requires the patient to self-administer the drug to end their own life.”

{SIX}


Little Man and Goalie have been LOVING their experiences with Lion/ Cub Scouts. Tonight the boys completed a booklet to receive their first badge! The Bobcat Badge! We also learned about an opportunity to go on our first Family Campout with the Boy Scouts of America. Anyone else have experience of this great group? I would love to hear all about your thoughts!

{SEVEN}


Today is the feast of Saint Jerome and he is the patron of Librarians! It was only fitting that I take the boys on a trip to the library and stock myself with some thriller books to start the month of October! The boys were excited to stock up on some Halloween and All Hallows Eve Books and a few movies for the weekend. We have always been a book loving family but I feel like the boys love for the library has grown excessively over the past few months. I am a little ashamed to say that this is our first visit to the library since the summer! We have been swamped with the Back-to-school routine, sports, altar serving schedule, CCD and the many other things we have been juggling. Seeing the smiles on my boys faces today reminded me about how important these short but sweet family outings really are to me and my boys. 
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