Third Trimester

I am now officially in the third trimester!!  Also known as, do I really need to pick that up from the floor at this moment stage.  Yes, when you have to be clever on how you get things done without hurting yourself.

My daughter is excited about our little one on the way.  Every day she rubs my belly and says, "baby" and gives my belly a kiss.  The other day she surprised my husband and I.  She was pretending to be changing her baby doll's diaper.  She was cleaning her baby doll with a baby wipe.  When all of the sudden, she stops, walks over to my belly and starts to wipe my belly while saying "baby".  Does she really understand?  She is only 23 months.  She never cease to amaze me.

A piece of heaven

This past Sunday after Mass we went to the zoo.  We had an amazing time.  We strolled around the zoo, had ourselves a little picnic and enjoyed a piece of heaven.  That is what my husband called it, a piece of heaven.  He said, "Sundays are a piece of heaven.  We go to Mass and we spend the whole day together as a family.  I wish everyday was Sunday.  I guess that is what heaven is going to be like.  A man and his beautiful bride enjoying the wonders of God’s creation and love." 

My husband works very hard so I can stay home with our little one.  It certainly does make us appreciate the time we spend together.  I pray that soon he can go back to normal hours so we can enjoy a piece of heaven more often.  Please keep our family in your prayers.  Thank you.  

Rosary Giveaway

Cam from A Woman's Place is having a Rosary Giveaway.  These Rosaries are beautiful!
Check them out at A Woman's Place.

Steve Jobs adopted. Thanks to a woman who said YES to life.

I was not aware that Steve Jobs was adopted until I read an article today by The Radiance Foundation.  All thanks to a woman who said YES to life we are able to enjoy the outcome of a creative genius.  Imagine all we would be missing out on.  It also makes you think how much more we have missed out because of abortion.  


R.I.P Steve Jobs.  Eternal rest grant unto him, O Lord, and let perpetual light shine upon him. 
May he rest in peace. Amen. 

40 Days for Life

When my husband and I found out that I was expecting for the second time we were over joyed with happiness.  God has blessed us with another little miracle.  I have gone to every prenatal appointment with excitement to hear our little one's heart beat.  


When you are pregnant, your OBGYB will usually ask if you like to take a few genetic test.  One of them is to see if the baby has down syndrome.  The first time I was asked by my doctor if I would like to take the genetic test for down syndrome, was during my last pregnancy.  I asked the doctor why I had to take the test.  She explained to me that it was optional.  "Some parents like to know," she said.  I asked why, can something be done?  She said, "well no, but some parents take it so they know if they should terminate the pregnancy or not."  My husband and I were in shocked and immediately told the doctor that there was no need for the test.  The doctor went on to mention that she did not agree with the test because all babies develop at a different rate.  When the genetic test is done and the test results come out positive, it doesn't necessarily mean the baby has down syndrome because every baby develops at a different rate.  At that moment, the only thing I could think of was of all the babies who were aborted because their parents thought they had down syndrome but really did not.  So sad.  


A few months later, a friend of mine told me that she had taken the genetic test for down syndrome while she was pregnant, not to abort, but to be prepared.  She was told her baby had down syndrome.  Her and her husband prepared for the baby.  When their precious baby was born they were shocked because their baby did not have down syndrome. 


Imagine how many babies are aborted due to this genetic test of down syndrome?  At least 80% of these babies are being aborted.  It lets you see what people really think of children with down syndrome.  These babies are not given a chance at life.  Who fights for their rights?  

Today marks the beginning of 40 Days for Life which runs from September 28th-November 6th.  You might be wondering what is 40 Days for Life,  "40 Days for Life is a focused pro-life campaign with a vision to access God’s power through prayer, fasting, and peaceful vigil to end abortion in America."


Let us stand up for all the babies who were not given a chance at life.  Let us not look back at our generation with shame but with gratitude for standing up for life.  Get involved at 40 Days for Life.



    

We Are Catholic.

I came across this video.  Check it out.  Awesome!

Peas and Carrots

Today my daughter started to cry when I dropped her off at the nursery for bible study.  It was so hard for me to hear her cry.  I wanted to go back.  You see, my daughter and I are like peas and carrots.  We are always together.  As I walked away from the nursery my eyes watered up and I began to pray asking the Lord to calm her little heart.  Praise God she did stop crying, played a little and had her snack.  I was only away for about two hours in the next room.  You must be thinking, really Lisette, you teared up.  I know.  Imagine when she goes to kindergarten.  At least I have a couple of years to prepare myself.

The Angelus

I read that The Angelus prayer is THE prayer for all wives and mothers.  If possible pray it at noon.  If you feel ambitious, you can also pray it at 6am and 6pm.

The Angelus 

The Angel of the Lord declared to Mary:
And she conceived of the Holy Spirit. 

Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee; blessed art thou among women and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus. Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners, now and at the hour of
our death. Amen. 

Behold the handmaid of the Lord: Be it done unto me according to Thy word. 

Hail Mary . . . 

And the Word was made Flesh: And dwelt among us. 

Hail Mary . . . 

Pray for us, O Holy Mother of God, that we may be made worthy of the promises of Christ.

Let us pray: 

Pour forth, we beseech Thee, O Lord, Thy grace into our hearts; that we, to whom the incarnation of Christ, Thy Son, was made known by the message of an angel, may by His Passion and Cross be brought to the glory of His Resurrection, through the same Christ Our Lord.

Amen. 

---

"Hail, full of grace, the Lord is with you" (Lk 1:28) 

"Blessed are you among women,
 and blessed is the fruit of your womb"
(Lk 1:42). 

Servant and Steward: Homily - 11 September 2011

Servant and Steward: Homily - 11 September 2011: The Twenty-Fourth Sunday of the Year (A) The Tenth Anniversary of the Terrorist Attacks of 9/11 Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, ...

Another little blessing

It has been over a month since the last time I wrote.  I have not been in the mood to write but for justifiable reasons.  I have been sick and I mean really sick with morning sickness.  I am pregnant!!!!  The Lord has blessed us with another little miracle.  I am currently 13 weeks.  Yes, I still have morning sickness but it is getting better day by day.  It is a challenge to be sick and to take care of a toddler but it is all worth it.  My husband and I are very excited and thankful.  Our daughter has no clue but she loves babies.  So I am hoping she will welcome her little brother or sister with open arms.  

Will we find out if the baby is a boy or girl before I deliver?  No.  We did not find out with our daughter.  When she was born and my husband announces that our baby was girl, it was an amazing feeling, a beautiful surprise. 

I will like to ask if you could please keep our little one and our family in your prayers.  Thank you.  

Living in Love

This past weekend, my husband and I went to the Living in Love couples retreat.  We have been on a treat before, we have been part of the team on a retreat but we have never gone to a couples retreat, until now.  I heard about the retreat months ago but I thought that there was no way we could make it.  Our lives in the past two months have been very busy so a retreat was out of the questions.  But God can make anything possible.  In the less than three days we were able to schedule everything around the retreat.  All the effort was worth it!  My husband and I enjoyed the retreat.  We came back refreshed and renewed.

So let me tell you about the retreat.  Obviously, I cannot give you specific details about the retreat because you need to experience it yourself but I can give you an overview.  The retreat includes teachings from the Theology of the Body by Blessed John Paul II.  If you have never read Theology of the Body, let me tell you, you are missing out.  Theology of the Body is deep and deserves its own post so just click on the link above for more information.  
Back to the retreat. Here is what was on the flier for the retreat.  

“Living in Love offers liberating insight into how differently men and women prefer to achieve intimacy and helps couples get in touch with the resources that draw them to each other and fuel the passion of love.”

The retreat does exactly what they mentioned on their flier.  This retreat was like a mini honeymoon but with a deeper understanding of how you can achieve that greater intimacy.  I recommend this retreat to all married couple.  It does not matter if you are a newly wed or married for many years.  It is a great retreat and your marriage deserves it.  

At the retreat they gave us some websites with different information for engaged or married couple.  The website is called For Your Marriage and they also have it in Spanish which is called Por Tu Matrimonio.  This website has great resources like I mentioned before for engaged and married couple and family.  Check out the website and share it.  If you are interested or would like more information on the Living in Love couples retreat, just go to livinginlove.org.

Viva el Amor!!!

Sacred Triduum

Lent ends tonight and the Sacred Triduum begins.  I remember growing up my mother would not allow us to listen to music or watch TV staring Holy Thursday night through Good Friday.  My mother tried to explain to us (the best she could) that the Sacred Triduum was a time of silence and reflection.  Now as wife and mother, I practice the same tradition with my family.  Instead of watching TV or listening to music, we reflect on the last 40 days, pray, do some spring cleaning in preparation for Easter and some reading before bed.  

Easter is coming and we must prepare for the Lord.  I hope you all have grown closer to the Lord these past forty days of Lent and are ready to receive Him on Easter.  

Have a blessed Triduum!  

When you eat this bread and drink this cup you proclaim the Lord's death, until He comes again.  -I Corinthians 11:26

Get Clean

Student from JPII College put this video together.  The video says it all in one minute.  Great reflection for Holy week.  Get clean!

The Budweiser Room

You might be thinking, what is the Budweiser room?  Let me explain.  A few months ago we moved into our new home.  Our home was built in 1968 so it is a little bit outdated but it has great bones if you know what I mean.  We look at our outdated home as a white canvas.  We can fix it up to our taste.  But there is one room that I just need to mention which is the Budweiser room.  One of our bedrooms has a mural of the Budweiser logo.  Take a look.    

According to the previous owners, their son (who was a teenager at the time) asked if could paint the Budweiser mural is his room.  As you can see, they agreed.  The amazing part is that the young man painted this mural by hand.  Yes, by hand.  The mother so loving made specialized window valances to match the mural.  Let me clarify, I believe she made it because I do not think they made Budweiser valances in the 70’s.  Plus eBay did not exist at that time.  Check out the valances.  A madres love.  I feel bad taking them down and painting over the mural because it was all done by hand.  So I had to make a tribute. 

Our project this week is to finally paint this room.  It will no longer be the Budweiser room but a prayer/study room.  I am excited!  I think every home should have a special place for prayer time.  It does not have to be a room but a reserved area for prayer.  Plus it is a wonderful example to your children.  It shows you take prayer time seriously and it reminds them (and you) that we all need to take some time to pray. 

The Catholic View for Women

EWTN has a new show called The Catholic View for Women.  Finally a show for Catholic Women! Check out their website at TheCatholicViewforWomen.  


Here is their first episode.  No commercials online ;-)  Enjoy! 

Through the eyes of a child

I enjoy taking my daughter on walks.  She is at awe of how it feels to walk on grass or any other surface.  She pull my hand so we can walk on the grass instead of the sidewalk.  I take her to the park but she does not want to be on the swing.  She want to walk on the mulch.  She want to touch the trees, bushes, flowers, cement, everything else, except the swings.  She is so curious because everything is new to her.  

As adults we sometimes forget the beauty that surrounds us.  But if you take the time to look at the world through the eyes of a child, you definitely can appreciate all the Lord has created and all the blessings one has received.

I remember when a load of laundry was just another chore but not no more.  I actually look forward to laundry day.  My daughter enjoys helping out with the laundry.  She enjoys throwing the dirty clothes down our laundry chute, sort out the dirty clothes, watch the clothes in washer and dryer, fold the clothes and finally putting them away.  Seeing the joy in her face makes laundry day a day I look forward to.  

Children also help you take care of yourself a little better.  They definitely remind you when it is time to eat.  You go to sleep at a decent time because you know they will wake up early.  They keep you fit because they love for you to chase them around.  And they give you all the love they can give from their little heart.  The amazing thing is how much love comes from their little hearts.

What are some ways your little one has help you appreciate life?  Feel free to comment.  Help us see through the eyes of a child.  

More than just a three leaf clover

As we all know today is St. Patrick's day.  I was planning to blog about how St. Patrick is a great role model for all of us.  But I read my friend Alison's blog and she explains it the best.  Check out Alison's blog (<-----click).  I recommend it.  Alison expresses herself very well and she is quite a genius.  She is also hilarious.              


Here is a video about St. Patrick.  The kids will enjoy it.  It's short and to the point.  
                                       Happy St. Patrick's Day!

Why pray the rosary? Why not just pray to Jesus?

This week’s bible study was about Our Blessed Mother Mary.  It made me remember about a book I once read a few years ago.  Maybe you have heard of it, Hail Holy Queen by Scott Hahn.  If you have not read it, you should read it.  It is a great book.  Hahn mentions in his book that some of us seem to be embarrassed of our blessed mother (if I remember correctly).  For example, when a teenage boy gets embarrassed when his mom gives him a kiss in front of his friends.  I think it is a lack of understanding of who Mary is.  Not only is she the mother of our Lord, but she is also the mother of the Church (which is us).  Mary is our blessed mother.  The Lord picked Mary out of all the women in the world to be the mother of our Savior.  

“For he has looked upon his handmaid’s lowliness, behold, from now on will all ages call me blessed” -Luke 1:48 

At that moment, Mary became the first disciple of Jesus.  Blessed indeed she is and blessed are we for Mary saying yes to the Lord.  

Some people question why Catholics pray the rosary.  Why not just pray to God?  Catholics pray to God and we ask our blessed mother to intercede for us.  If you pray the rosary you will see that the mysteries point to Jesus.  We ask our family and friends to pray for us.  Why not Mary? Back in the day (Old Testament) everyone went to the mother of the king to ask for a request (check out: 1 Kings 2:13-20, 2 Kings 24: 12-15 and Jeremiah 13: 18-20).  The king had plenty of wives but only one mother.  

If you remember in the Wedding of Cana, when they ran out of wine (which was a problem), they went to Mary first, not Jesus.  At Mary’s request, Jesus transformed the water into wine which became his first public miracle.  All at the request of our blessed mother Mary.  

If we respect our own biological mother here on earth.  How could we not respect and honor our blessed mother, the mother of our Lord?  

One mother in bible study shared with us that when praying the rosary it is like looking at Mary’s scrapbook of Jesus.  I had never thought of it that way but what a great way to look at it.

We can find so much strength in our blessed mother.  Imagine having to see your child be tortured, humiliated and crucified.  Yet, she was faithful to our Lord.      

I know some of us do not like praying the rosary.  You just repeat, repeat, repeat.  Let me ask you a question.  Do you ever get tired of saying I love you to your loved ones?  

Lent is a great time to pray the rosary and meditate on the sorrowful mysteries through the eyes of our blessed mother.  You can pray the rosary online with others.  There are CDs you can purchase.  You can listen to the CD on your way to work, train or while folding laundry.  Lent is not only about giving up but also about doing something more.   

Mom groups are awesome!

This past summer we moved into our new home which we love but we were new to the area.  So, we really didn’t know anyone.  One day when I was looking at our church bulletin, I noticed an announcement for a women’s bible study; which included a group for moms with babies in arms.  My daughter was 9 months at the time so it was perfect.  My husband and I always enjoyed attending the bible study (by Jeff Cavins) at our old parish; which were led by some great parishioners.  When I read about the women's bible study I was excited to join because I would continue to study the word  of God and meet new moms.  I told my best friend (who lives an hour away) about it and she joined for the fall semester.  It was great!  I was able to hang out with my best friend and meet new moms.  

Let me tell you, it is a blessing to have join the group.  Not only do we study the word of God but we also share the struggles we go through as moms.  I have learn so much from these amazing women.  We have become such a great group of moms with the same common goal of raising our children in the faith.  We hang out all the time.  We pray for each others, take turn hosting play dates, go to each others children birthday parties, hang out at the public library and now we are setting up a moms night out once a month.  It truly is a blessing to have join this group.  God is great!

If your parish offers a group for moms, you should make the effort to attend.  You will not regret it.  If you do not have a moms group in your parish, you should try to start one yourself.  Talk to someone at your parish office who could help you out.  I’m sure if you put at announcement in your parish bulletin for moms who are interested in starting a group, you will get a few responses.  That is all you need.  A couple of moms to get the ball rolling to start a group.  Usually there is a women’s group at each parish and I’m sure they would be glad to help.  Pray on it.  Speak to someone about it at your parish office and I’m sure the Holy Spirit will help you out.  It truly is a blessing for you and your family.        

The pressure we put on ourselves

One day my husband (who is my best friend) and I were talking about life and the unnecessary pressure we put on ourselves.  I especially see this in us women.  We have this ideal image of what a woman, wife, mother, friend, etc should be.  Plus, the media does not help us.  So we fall into a trap of trying to be someone we are not meant to be.  

I think the problem is that we try to be perfect.  The scary part is that we sometime want to be perfect like God.  Only God is perfect.  We are humans.  We are sinners.  We can never be like God or the ideal image we have in our mind.  Why?  Because we are not perfect.  Once we realize that we are not perfect and release that ideal image from our mind, we don’t have to put up this front anymore.  It is a liberating experience! You feel free!  You actually start to live life.  I speak from experience.  I remember when I was younger, I would try to be this perfect person.  Once I realized (thanks to the Holy Spirit) that I was just kidding myself, I started to appreciate life.  You see, I’m a work in process.  We all are.  The Lord is not done with you or me.  If He was, I would not be blogging and you would not be reading this blog.  So lift up the pressure off your shoulders and live.  Instead of trying to be perfect, practice on being present with the Lord.  You will be at peace.  You will start to live life.        

You might be thinking, yeah Lisette, but my friend has the perfect life.  She is happy.  All her facebook/twitter post are ideal.  Why can I not have that life?  

God has a different path for everyone.  My friend, we all struggle in life.  We can be happy and blessed but we all struggle with something.  Why?  Because we are not perfect.  The Lord has blessed us all with different gifts.  If you are struggling to find or see what gifts the Lord has blessed you with, pray.  Ask the Holy Spirit to help you see and understand the gifts the Lord has given you and how you can put them into practice.     

It all starts at the dinner table

February is the month dedicated to the Holy Family (Joseph, Mary and Jesus).  The Holy Family is a perfect example for all Christian families.  Make sure you take time to meditate and celebrate the great example of the Holy Family.  One of the best ways is at the dinner table with your own family.  I follow this blog called, Catholic Cuisine, which includes great recipes you can prepare for every feast day.  You should check it out.  They already have recipes for March.  

Catholic Cuisine

Motherhood is a humbling experience.

I remember when I was pregnant, every parent would warn my husband and I to sleep as much as we could because once the baby arrives, no more sleep.  I heard it so many times, I was like ya ya ya.  Well, they were all right.  Once my daughter was born, I did not sleep much.  My cuarentena was tough.  La cuarentena is what Hispanic call the 40 days after you give birth.  Don’t ask me where it came from because I have asked and searched and the best answer I found was that it is a tradition.  Maybe they thought of it when they herd of Jesus praying in the desert for 40 days.  Who knows.  According to tradition, you cannot clean, cook, in another words, you cannot do anything.  The only thing you need to do during the cuarentena is rest as much as you can and attend to your child.  If you do not practice this tradition, you should.  It is awesome.  

OK, back to what I was saying.  My cuarentena was tough.  My daughter had her days and nights mixed up at first.  Our family lived 900 miles away and most of our friends worked. I was trying to figure out how to nurse, which was one of the toughest things I have ever done.  Yes, more than birth.  Nursing every two hours can be exhausting.  I was not use to it.  It was a challenge for me.  I was ready to throw in the towel so many times.  Thank the Lord for sending me an angel, Bree, who listened, advise and encourage me to keep going.  She even helped me to set small goals for myself.  She was awesome.  I thank the Lord and her for helping me get through it.

I had to give you a bit of the back round of what was going on with my life (during my cuarentena) to help you understand why I say motherhood is a humbling experience.  After almost 30 something years, it was not about me anymore or my husband, our attention was now to this beautiful fragile life who was counting on us.  God entrusted us with our amazing daughter.  We have to sacrifice everything for her.  Work twice as hard for her.  All in the name of love.  I thank the Lord for blessing me to be a madre (mother) because it has humbled me.  I have mature not only as a woman but in my relationship with the Lord.  I love being a madre!  It is truly a blessing.     
I hope I did not scare any soon to be madre.  It is challenging at first because it is all new.  The saying is true, you do not know what it means to be a parent until you become one.  But once you get the hang of it you will be great.  If you are a first time madre, hang in there you are not alone.  The Lord is with you, always.  There was a verse that helped me get through my cuarentena.  

“Fear not, I am with you; be not dismayed; I am your God. I will strengthen you, and help you, and uphold you with my right hand of justice.” -Isaiah 41:10

We are all called to be saints. Yes, even you!

As you all can tell I’m new at blogging.  I was not sure how to start it, design it, etc.  One day when I was trying to figure something out on my blog, I came across another blog called Our Catholic Life.  So I’m checking it out, enjoying the music and read the “about me”section.  Which reads:

“My name is Grace, I am a Roman Catholic, and homeschooled along with my seven brothers and sisters. I was inspired to do this blog because I love to learn and share about the richness of my Catholic faith, particularly the saints, because we are all called to be saints.”

My first thought was, wow it’s a young girl.  When I clicked on the “My Family” tab I found out that Grace is 13 years old and would like to be a religious sister when she grows up.  I was so impressed.  A young girl, serving the Lord through her blog.  So, I became a follower.  Every day Grace will post the Saint of the day and she does a great job.  We could all learn from the Saints.  I know you might think, I’m no Saint, I can never live up to those expectations.  No one is born a Saint.  Like Grace mentions, we are all called to be saints.  When you read about the Saints, you realize they were regular people just like you and me.  St. Paul prosecuted Christians before he converted and now he's a Saint.  I'm not saying to go harm someone.  What I'm saying is Saints have sinned too.  It was in the little ways they serve the Lord and lived their life that made them Saints.  Like Grace with her blog.  
We are all called to be saints (yes I’m talking to you) and we are all called to help one another to be saints.  You can start be learning about the Saints and ask the Holy Spirit to guide you.

You can become a follower of Our Catholic Life and say a little prayer for Grace and her vocation.  Here is the link.

http://ourcatholiclifeofgrace.blogspot.com/

(When you check out her blog, the banner on the right top corner might look familiar ;-) Thanks Grace)  

Check your attitude

Last year (2010) was an interesting year.  We moved out of state with our precious baby girl when she was only 3 months (I do not recommend moving with an infant).  We stayed with my parents (for 5 months) while we looked for a place.  Once we found our home we had to move again.  At least this time we didn’t have to pack everything.  Did we have this planned?  No.  We thought we were all set.  We had our home, updated a few things around the house, had the nursery ready, we were set but life through us a curve ball.  Sometime I would complain.  It can be a challenge moving back to your parents house after 7 years.  Ok, maybe I complained a lot.  I would ask God to help me with my patience.  One day I was loosing my patience and I was trying to stay cool.  So I decided to visit Jesus himself at the Adoration Chapel.  So there I was trying to not be selfish and be present with God.  I complained a little and asked why I was being so impatient.  I had my pity party but I felt at peace.  The Holy Spirit help me realized that I was being blinded by my negative and selfish attitude.  I started to thank God for all His blessing.  Blessing our family with a job, food, shelter, great health and most of all the love from our family and friend.  I thanked God for letting me see that I had nothing to complaint about.  I needed to put on my big girl panties (I think the new term these days is "man up") and be a woman in God's spirit.  

I think we all have our days when we want to feel sorry for ourselves but it is nice to know you have friend, Jesus, who is going to tell you how it is.  He is there to listen to you even when you are complaining about life.  Here I thought I was a positive person, when only negativity was coming out of me.  I had to change my attitude.  With the guidance of the Holy Spirit, I was able change my attitude to a positive one.  Now I ask myself every morning, what is your attitude today?  We need to keep our attitudes on check.  I know I do, if not the poor me attitude will appear and she is not pretty.

It is a life lesson I am still working on.  It reminds me of a joke I once herd.  You probably heard it.  It goes like this, if you want to make God laugh tell him your plans.  God knows what is better for us.  Thank God!

Stay focus

I remember when my daughter was first born a few people told me to turn on the TV so she could hear voices in the house since it was only the two of us at home during the day.  So, I turn on the TV.  Sometime I would tune in and sometimes it was really just on so she can hear voices.  Recently, my husband and I noticed that our daughter now sometimes stops and watches TV.  What I started to do during the day is,  no TV, turn on my computer and tune in to either Sacred Heart Radio or Catholic Juke Box.  We also listen to children music CDs and dance silly.  


One thing that I did notice from tuning into these radio stations is that it has helped me to stay focus.  Focus on our Lord and what it means to be a wife, mother and homemaker.  We really do need to fill our minds with positive and faith filled information.  There is too much junk out there and it easy to get wrapped up in it.  Stay focus my friends and be present.     

I really like Sacred Heart Radio because they have the daily reading reflection, the rosary and you can listen to Daily Mass from the EWTN Chapel.  They even have a segment called Women of Grace.

My daughter loves to dance so she enjoys Catholic Radio Jukebox.  Plus the music is great!! 

So, I just wanted to share with you the links for Sacred Heart Radio and Catholic Radio Jukebox.  You can tune in anywhere there is internet connection.  I tune in from home, but if you are at work and you can listen to music, consider one of these stations.

Check them out.  Enjoy!

Listen to Sacred Heart Radio WNOP - 740AM Cincinnati, Ohio

http://www.live365.com/index.live  (Catholic Radio Jukebox)

Sins are like ear wax

I came up with metaphor for sins and the sacrament of reconciliation (confession).  I figure it will help me explain to my daughter (one day) why we should practice the sacrament of reconciliation.  So here it goes.

Sins are like ear wax.  How?  Well, with time if we do not clean out our ears, ear wax will build up in our ear canal and eventually we will not be able to hear clearly or at all.  Sins are the same way.  If you do not confess your sins, your soul gets clogged up with sins.  So what happens?  You do not to hear the Holy Spirit clearly.  Every time we confess our sins, is like cleaning out the wax in our ears.  The more we clean out our ears, the more we prevent ear wax build up and the better we can hear.  The more often we confess our sins, the better we can here the guidance of the Holy Spirit.  

Did you ever feel that God is not hearing your prayers?  Did you ever wonder if you were doing your part?  Prayers is important.  Silence is important.  Confession is also very important.  You cannot do just one part and expect great results.  It’s like a recipe, you need all the ingredients to achieve a delicious meal.  

Once a priest asked me if I knew where the tradition of the piñata came from.  I had no clue.  He explained to me that the piñata began when the Spaniard conquistadors arrived to Mexico.  The Spanish priests were trying to explain to the Mexican Indians why they should confess their sins and that is where the idea of the piñata was created.  The traditional piñata is circle with seven cones (not Dora or spider man) which represent the seven deadly sins.  The Spanish priests explained to the Indians that going to confession frequently was like hitting the piñata.  Every hit was like going to confession in faith of breaking that sin.  Once you break the piñata, you have broken the pattern of that sin.  All the sweet candy comes falling down just like the sweetness of breaking the chains of that sin.  Pretty sweet!

So imagine not being able to hear because of the wax in your ears.  You would miss out on some great conversations.  So clear out the ear wax from your soul and make a trip to the confession booth because you might be missing out.  Afterwards, you can celebrate with a piñata.  

Broken hearts

A couple of years ago I went to a fund raiser banquet for Room at the Inn of the Carolinas, which is a non-profit organization that helps homeless pregnant woman.  At this event, the speaker for the evening was Norma McCorvey.  I had no idea who Norma McCorvey was until someone explained to me that Ms. McCorvey was “Roe” from Roe vs Wade, decision which legalized abortion.  My first thought was why is she coming to speak at this event when obviously Room at the Inn of the Carolinas is pro-life.  I was interested to hear what she was going to say. 
Ms. McCorvey explained that she was 21 when the case was filed and had never had an abortion.  She was once an abortion right supporter, now a vocal anti-abortion activist and has started her own ministry.  You could tell that she deeply regrets supporting the decision and by the grace of God has changed her heart.
Nearly 50 million abortions have been performed in the U.S. since Roe v. Wade.  Imagine all the women and men who have been affected by abortions.  Not only do we need to focus on the innocent lives but also the wounds left behind on the parents.  Abortion clinic forget to mention to their patients that many will have their hearts broken.  If you, or if you know someone who has been affected by abortion, you are not alone.  The Catholic Church has a ministry called Rachel’s Vineyard Ministries.  Click on the link below for more information.  http://www.rachelsvineyard.org/
Let us pray for all the innocent lives lost and broken hearts due to abortion.  Our Lady of Guadalupe pray for us.   

Why start a blog?

As a new mom, I learn something new everyday.  I decided to start a blog so I can share the Catholic faith and the challenges we face as Catholic madres (mothers).  Why a Catholic madre?  Well, I am a Catholic madre who speaks Spanglish (which is a blend of English and Spanish).  If you are the first generation of Hispanic decent in the USA, you probably do the same.  I hope you enjoy the blog.  I am not an expert but I believe by sharing the faith, we come to learn and understand deeply our relationship with God.  Blessings.