Comments on: 33

By: 34 | Conversion Diary

34 | Conversion Diary — Mon, 10 Jan 2011 06:01:24 +0000

[...] for a gift! I’d like to gain the wisdom of people who have already been down this path. We did this last year, and it was so wonderful that I wanted to do it again this year. So I [...]

By: Jet

Jet — Sun, 17 Jan 2010 22:17:00 +0000

Jen,
I've been thinking about this since your b'day---happy belated, btw!
I would tell myself (8 yrs ago):
moisturize and wear sunscreen,
relax and enjoy each child (then 5 and 2) as an individual--each stage, good or bad is only temporary. Love them in as many ways as possible and tell them that they're presents from God.
The pregnancy that you 1st feared/dreaded then missed so terribly after the m/c was God's way to awaken such a deep yearning that He would give you sons at 37 and another at 41 and the desire for more, believe it or not!
Pray for your husband and offer up sufferings for his conversion from lukewarm reluctance to being able to share the spiritual journey and even pray together. (Still not there.)

Yes, you CAN handle more--just pray for grace and ask for the intercession of the Saints; especially, of the Blessed Mother.

Finally, as someone told me, the days seem to drag but the years fly by.

Jen, you are much farther in your spiritual development than I was at that time and am now.

Thanks for your blog. You are so inspirational!

Caritas, pax et salus,
Janet

By: Erica

Erica — Sat, 16 Jan 2010 20:15:17 +0000

When I was 33, I was 50 pounds over weight and still STILL extremely lacking in either the husband or the children I so desperately yearned for, prayed for, yelled rather loudly and cried rather consistently at God about for years and continued to.

Since then, I surrendered my eating to Jesus and lost the weight, God FINALLY got me to my husband, God FINALLY gave me my kids, and now after two pregnancies I've been reunited with my original 50 pounds. And I've never been happier. So I think I would tell my 33 year old self, "hang in there. All those things you're wishing for and yearning for and praying for are coming. God knows the plans He has for you, and they are plans for wicked amazing mind blowing awesomeness beyond your wildest imagination and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope. God has not forgotten you and He really does love you. Really. Hang in there. Stick with your Shepherd, keep with your flock. He's leading you on a good path and he's got you with a good group. Sure, they're all sheep, but ... so are you, so, cope."

Happy Birthday,
Erica

By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Sat, 16 Jan 2010 02:02:20 +0000

Happy Birthday, Jen..
I am 60. If I had a do over,
I would say two things to myself:
a. You will regret very much not having children.
and
b. You will regret that you somehow,
almost subconsciously, turned your back on God until He got your attention most powerfully when you were 47.

By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Fri, 15 Jan 2010 14:07:05 +0000

If I could say anything to my 33-year-old self, I'd say:

"Have more kids!"

and

"Revel in Catholicism!"

Don't just identify as Catholic. That's too easy. Live Catholic. Breathe Catholic. Eat Catholic. Pray Catholic. Parent Catholic. Decorate Catholic. Sing Catholic. And above all, die Catholic.

By: eulogos

eulogos — Fri, 15 Jan 2010 05:22:19 +0000

Oh, by the way, I am 59 1/2. I was 33 in 1983.
I had six children and was pregnant with the seventh.
Oh, and Happy Birthday.
God grant you many years.
Susan Peterson

By: eulogos

eulogos — Fri, 15 Jan 2010 05:13:25 +0000

I wish I understood what a privilege it was to be home with my children. I wish I understood how wonderful it was to have them all home with me, and to be so important to them. I wish I had the courage to teach them my faith, which I was embarrassed about because I had been brought up with ideas about indoctrination being bad, and I guess I also thought it was so wonderful they would automatically see its truth without my making more of an effort, also I trusted to religious ed classes which were worse than useless.

I wish I understood many things about my husband and our relationship that I don't even know how to express. That I had been less needful, and less resentful, for one thing. This deserves more space by its importance.

I wish I had known about the Eastern rite and had started attending an ER parish and taken my kids there. Because the Latin mass at that point was like only at the SSPX and streng verboten,for schismatics only, and the Catholic churches I was going to were a danger to my faith, as well as my children's.

Mostly, the kids, and how very special and precious that time was with them, that I had valued it more and wasted no time resenting that I wasn't a college professor or a doctor.
Susan Peterson

By: Dymphna

Dymphna — Fri, 15 Jan 2010 02:38:15 +0000

Don't worry about what other people say! Have the guts to raise your kids the way you want to raise them–not the way everyone else says you have too.

By: Judy

Judy — Thu, 14 Jan 2010 23:30:15 +0000

One huge thing I wish I had known was that most of the things I blamed my husband for were really my fault. I needed a lot of time and prayer to begin to see this.

Not that we haven't been happy together--quite the opposite! We're crazy about each other, and just had our 45th anniversary.

But I had some issues with self-esteem, and was never particularly patient, and...I could go on and on, you get the picture. My husband is very loyal, patient, humble,and tolerant, loathe to argue, just a super guy, but I pushed a lot of my dissatisfaction with myself onto him. Now I can see it plainly; how I wish I had known to look at the situation honestly back then.

By: RueMom

RueMom — Thu, 14 Jan 2010 23:16:36 +0000

A belated Happy Birthday!! I'm 61 years old, and I'm sorry to say I FEEL old! Probably because I didn't take good enough care of myself when I was 33! Moral: Take care of your body and your mind NOW!

But even more important is your spiritual health - and you, my dear, are way ahead of me and most definitely, way ahead of where I was at your age. I wish I had known more women like you when I was 33 with young children. I would have been a better Mother myself I think.

Oh, my kids turned out great - by the grace of God - but I know I coulda, shoulda, woulda spent more time with them - reading to them, praying with them, teaching them, loving them - if I could do it over. (I tell my sweet step-daughter that I wish she had been a mother before I was - I could have learned so much!)

Keep doing what you are doing. I have a feeling that you are on the right path. God is blessing you and you in turn are blessing us with your blog and your writings.

Thanks for being you and sharing who you are with us.