BABIES!!!!

I saw 2 babies being born by C-section today!!

OH MAN WERE THEY SMALL AND UNBELIEVABLY CUTE!!

SO BEAUTIFUL AND TINY!!

Praise God!!!

Rose petals, rings and other wedding things

Not much of any serious excitment has been going on in my life recently; my internet has been broken for the last couple of days, which was a real eye-opener as to how dependent I am on the internet...

I had my hypnosis "exam" last week, where I had to hypnotise a friend in front of the examiner and then talk about how great hypnosis is, and how many ways I am considering incorporating it into my medical practice when I am a doctor...

Next week I start back with proper medical work, only now about 50 times more serious than in the last 6 months because I will be a 5th YEAR student and ignorance is no excuse for not knowing something.

My first medical topic, which lasts 8 weeks and will take me straight up to the summer holidays (and the wedding) is "women's health" - so I am getting my anti-abortion and anti-contraceptions arguments ready, and preparing myself for the you're-not-fit-to-be-a-doctor discussions which will, almost inevitably, follow.

On the plus point though, I get assigned to an entire 24hour period with just the midwives for company, and I have to help them deliver any babies born!!

YEY!! tiny new babies! I am looking forward to that!

Wedding news update....

Rose Petal Confetti

My mum does the flowers in our church, so for the last couple of months she has been saving all the roses that they've used in their arrangements and drying them out for me. The other day we spent a good while picking off the petals from about 60 dried roses! Instead of paper confetti or rice (which apparently is not allowed to be thrown because pigeons eat it and die...), guests will throw these rose petals onto Chris & I after the wedding mass.

Me attempting to artistically throw rose petals

Wedding Rings

When I went to Italy a couple of weeks ago I was given my grandmother's wedding ring and because she is so special to me, I have decided to use it as my wedding ring! It's a bit big for me though so I am going tomorrow to get it made a bit smaller.

Bridesmaid dresses

I know that in March I said that we had got our bridesmaid dresses sorted...but actually we hadn't. We ordered them off to net, but when they arrived one of them didn't fit one of the bridesmaids (too small and too short). So we sent them all back! and so, after much searching & begging of St. Joseph, we got new dresses 2 weeks ago! They are baby pink, satin-y and perfect! Plus it has a nice long and non-see-through shawl to wrap the girls up in during Mass.
Unfortunatly I dont have picture handy on this computer, but if you keep reading till August I will post pics after the wedding!

Men

Tomorrow Chris & I have an appointment with a men's clothes place and we will get the men's suits. The best-man, ushers and father-of-the-bride will be dressed the same (and maybe also Chris's dad, not sure what what Chris has decided), and then Chris will be dressed a bit different.

Hm, I think that is all we have done recently for the wedding... oh, my mum & I also went to a flower wholesalers to buy a load of flower-related stuff for the Church & reception venue.

Only other big thing that stills needs to be sorted is WHERE ARE WE GOING TO LIVE?!

At the moment we obviously live in separate places, but we are starting to search the property market for a flat for mid-July so we can start moving our stuff into it before the wedding.

Only problem is that
a- we dont have a lot of money

b- the hospital where I need to be every day, and Chris's lab are on opposite sides of the city. Because I am definitly the slowest of the 2 at cycling (and we have no car), we need to find a flat in the centre of the city, or more towards the hospital end....but that is the most expensive district! We can just about afford a box with a sink in the corner!

*breeeeaathe*

I had decided not to stress about this, but to rely on St. Joseph & Divine Providence and have faith that something will come up!

anyway, I better go start reading some women's health for next week!

-x-x-x-

The Oral Contraceptive Pill

The World Health Organization (WHO) reported in its July 29, 2005 press release that the birth control pill increases a woman's risk for cancers of the breast, cervix and liver, and so the WHO classified them in Group 1, "sufficient evidence of carcinogenicity in humans."

and yet it is given out like candy

2 MONTHS, 8 DAYS

Sunday 30th July 2006 is fast approaching...

YEY FOR NFP!!!

So today Chris & I had our first class Natural Family Planning (NFP) class. We have chosen the Couple to Couple League, because I like that their method involves charting both cervical mucus and temperature as a cross-check that ovulation has occured, and also how they focus on the active participation of the husband.

Our teachers were AMAZING!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Seriously, AMAZING!

It was so so wonderful to hear of their own personal marriage experiences with NFP and how MUCH it enriched their marriage and what a big difference it made to their relationship (they used to use the pill before another married couple explained NFP to them).

I have read of so many similar experiences of married couples who started using NFP after having used artificial contraception (ew! ick!) and what a drastic change it made to their marital life, but it was so touching to hear it first hand, and see how genuinely and honestly they meant it!

Today was our first class of 4, and I can't wait to go back!

GO NFP!!! woooohoooo!!

God's ways are always THE BEST!

All the people who should be...

Moneybags has a very meaningful post up about JP2:

Yesterday was the anniversary of John Paul ll's birth. He was born
May 18, 1920, after a difficult pregnancy. The doctors even recommend to John Paul ll's mother that it would be better if she aborted her child. Think about that. Abortion could have killed this man, the man who became the Holy Father and lead the Church for years! Abortion is the greatest holocaust because it does not just target one race or religion. Abortion attacks everyone. It is the greatest insult and evil in our world today.Pope John Paul ll, pray for us that abortion might become illegal so that children will have the gift at life.John Paul ll, pray for us!

My friend & I were talking about this a while ago....

there are friends we should have, people we should know, cousins, husbands and wives, nuns, Priests, teachers, mothers, and father who will never ever be, because they have been killed by their own families by abortion. The world is a worse off place because of it.

I think we calculated that, in my University there should be something like 4 more people who are doing medicine in my year with me who aren't here because they were aborted.

And the scariest thing is, it's not *just* abortion in the traditional sense of the word....the CONTRACEPTIVE PILL does exactly the same thing. It ends the life of a human being and woman take it ALL.THE.TIME.

If we imagine how many people are being killed, even in our very street where we live, because of the pill and abortion.....it's horrific. These are all humans who exist and are alive, but who have been denyed the chance to be born.

How much pain we must cause to Jesus's Most Scared heart.

Oh Lord Have Mercy.

"you are feeeeeling sleeeeeeepy....." No ,really, you are....

So my 5 weeks of hypnosis is almost up, and soon I am going to start having to do some real work. I am seriously worried that I have forgotten how...

Anyway, as part of our hypnosis assessment we have to hypnotise 20 people in our own time. I think I mentioned a while ago that Chris recurited me to hypnotise the guys in his rowing crew to help them to row better. He wrote me a 7 page script basically getting them to imagine that they are sitting in the boat going through different parts of the rowing stroke.

I had to hypnotise them one-by-one and so in the last 2 days I have spent almost 10 hours hypnotising rowing guys and going over their rowing technique with them....over and over....

Yesterday evening they then had a rowing outing and when I saw Chris later on I asked how it went...

and I quote


"It was the best rowing outing we have had in almost a year...."


Now, dear readers, I will let you speculate and make up your own minds as to why yesterday was such a particularly successful rowing outing for these boys....


All I can say is, I may consider going to confession later today with the amount of gloating I did after I heard that!!

Disclaimer: I too find that picture above very freaky. No, nuclear radiation does not come out of my eyes when I hypnotise people (and neither does it radiate from any other hypnotis's eyes). This was just one of the bizzaire, but strangley amusing, pictures that came up when I googled 'hypnosis'

another death

So those of you who have been reading for a while, will know that in November one of my Uncle's died totally unexpectantly....and last month another of my Uncle's died after a very short period with an aggressive cancer...

well, yesterday morning one of Chris's Uncles died, also totally unexpected. His wife brought him breakfast in bed, then she came up a few minutes later, and he was dead.
He leaves behind a wife and 4 children, aged 24-15.

Eternal Rest Grant Unto Him Oh Lord, May Your Light Perpetual Shine Upon Him, May He Rest in Peace. Amen

2p coins now worth 3p

Britain's 2p coins are now actually worth 3p - thanks to the soaring price of copper.

Any 2p coins made before 1992 are now more valuable as scrap metal than loose change.

Earlier 2p coins contain 97% copper which has hit an all-time record price of $8,000 a tonne.

It means that 145,000 2p coins would be worth £2,900 at the bank - but about £4,400 as scrap.

One penny coins from the same period are also worth roughly 50% more than their face value.

in 1992, the Royal Mint introduced new 1p and 2p coins made of steel with just a thin copper plating.

Excavations & New Beginnings...

While at his conference in Chile, Chris was talking with some of the guys about his upcoming wedding, and how we'll begoing to Rome for our honeymoon. One of the men there said he had recently come back from Rome and reminded Chris; "don't forget you have to book if you want to go on the Vatican's tour under St. Peter's...". Chris didn't know what tour he was talking about, so the guy promised to email him the details:

Visit of the excavations below the St. Peter Basilica

You get to go on a tour under St. Peter's Basillica to have a look at the excavation work done there. Apparently it is pretty cool and well worth going!

So this morning I wrote off an email to book our places.
I filled in the forms with all the usual info....number of tickets required, contact details, dates desired...and then I got to 'names of visitors', where I wrote Christopher *surname* and Antonia.....and stopped......

and then, for the first time in my entire life, I wrote Chris's surname afterwards!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
(because, obviously, when we go on the tour we will be married).

That was the first time I have filled out an official document with my *new* surname!!

It felt so odd and it looked weird too! If I have to honest, it didn't feel like it was me! There was a transient twinge in my heart as I realised that I only have another 2 and a half months left before I have to abandon my dearly-loved surname of the last 22 years.



I can't believe I am getting married...?!!

Chris is back!

Chris is back from Chile full of stories about llamas and smog (apparently you cant see more than 5 miles in any direction in Santiago cos of the smog) and about all the free food he got etc! He also came bearing presents for all!

These are some neat things he brought back:

He brought me a traditional Chilean poncho! It is so warm and soft! here is a picture of Chris wearing it in his hotel room in Chile (he sent it to me a few days ago before he came back so I could see it!)

Mini statues of the Virgin Mary & baby Jesus, and Jesus crucified, all hand carved out of a MATCH-STICK!!! I think it's pretty impressive! (you can see the end of the matchstick if you look carefully at the base of the carving!)

I found it quite hard to take a picture of them cos they were so small (and are in a little glass contained which reflected the camera flash!)

Mary & baby Jesus

Crucified Christ

I have yet to see evidence that there was any work involved in this two week 'conference trip'. The most convincing picture he had was of him at the big end-of-conference meal!

:)

St. Isidore the Farmer (1070-1130)

The importance of Mass

When their son died, Isidore, and his wife St. Mary de la Cabeza, made vows to live celibately together. They attended Mass together everyday. Once, when he was accused of neglecting his work to attend Mass, angels were found plowing the fields in his place.

Spring has sprung!

Spring has finally arrived in England! Only 2 months late, but it is here! yey! sunshine and warmth! trees full of blossom and flowers everywhere! simply beautiful!

I have been having a lovely day. I was working on an essay as part of my hypnosis course. My essay is on 'Hypnosis during pregnancy and childbirth'.

Basically it is a discussion of the research which shows the effectivenss of hypnosis for:

- antenatal depression

- postnatal depression

- tokophobia, which is a condition in which the woman has a phobic fear of dying during childbirth (to the extent that, despite really wanting a baby, women do anything and everything to avoid getting pregnant, and ending a pregnancy if they do, because they are terrified of dying while giving birth).

- during childbirth (amusingly called hypnobirthing) .

Apparently, hypnobirthing can:

- ease some of the pain and fear of labour
- lower the risk of medical complications
- shorten labour by up to 6 hours
- reduce the need for pain mediciation
- reduce the need for C-section
- shorten amount of time mothers and babies stay in hospital

....and so promoting a safer, more comfortable delivery for mother and child.

There are actually quite a few studies on its usefulness during childbirth and all these studies seem to have quite favourable results (website that I borrowed info from)

I guess it kind of makes sense....being very calm and relaxed, feeling in control and having a positive outlook during labour and birth can only really be help!

Hm, what else have I done today...oh yeh, I also went swimming! It is part of my new 'keep fit' regime!

Did you know that, in order to lead a healthy life we should:

1. Eat 5 portions of fruit or veg every day

2. Drink at least 2L of water a day (more if it is hot or you sweat a lot)

3. Do a minimum of 30 mins of heartbeat-raising exercise 3 times per week

4. Eat 3 portions of oily fish per week

5. Eat minimum/no salt (again, unless you sweat a lot. Apparently in a typical Western diet so much extra salt is added to processed food that there should be no need to add any extra salt ourselves)

at least according to the doctors in our hospital!

And so because at best, I do none of those, I have decided to start swimming!

anyway, better go cos it's almost time for Mass! yey!

dont go swimming in prehistoric seas

Another picture of Chris 'working hard' at his conference in Chile!
Apparently this is the jaw of some huge prehistoric shark-like beast....

Regnum Christi

Three awesome videos on Regnum Christi vocations.
The second and third one are especially moving.

I've known a couple of Regnum Christi priests and they are seriously Holy-Spirit inspired.

Thanks to Catholic Linus Monkey (aka: Antonia in Singapore)

Chesterton speaks:

"Christianity has never been tried and found wanting. It has been found difficult and left untried."
- G.K. Chesterton

how true!

I would substitue 'Christianity' for 'Catholicism' just for extra clarity (as Catholic are, afterall, the original Christians! and most "Christian" groups now-a-days have distorted Christianity to suit their own agends anyway).

Ciao a tutti!

I'm back from Italia! I had a lovely time there; it was SO SO SO wonderful to get to see my cousins and spend time hanging out with them (especially the one who lost her dad a month ago, as she is closest in age to me).
Unfortunatly I got pretty sick while out there (5 days of sore throat...it's just starting to get better! and I still have a horrible cough), so I wasn't able to see my baby cousin who is 1 year 5months old as my cousins were afraid I might infect her! It's shame cos kiddies grow so fast at that age that by the time I next see her she'll be totally different! She was still crawling and drooling last time I saw her and now she can apparently walk and talk!






My Uncles
They both have the same temporary cross till the families buy a permanent tomb stone













I don't quite know how to describe how I felt when I saw my two Uncle's graves. It's the first time I have been to Italy since they died (one in November 05, other April 06).
Last time I saw them last summer they were both fine and happy; same as always and I had no reason to think I wouldn't see them again.
And now to see their pictures on a tomb stone is...well, painful and confusing.
Because I wasn't in Italy to see them dead before they were burried, and I wasn't present at either funeral I found it very hard to digest when I saw their graves....
"this is where my Uncle is burried."
"He's actually dead and we'll never see him again."

and to have TWO Uncles both dead and burried completely unexpectadly within 5 months of each other...it's slightly surreal.

The two families in Italy are both coping as best they can, taking each day as it comes.

Time and God's grace are the best healers.

But the family is, as would be expected, pretty shaken up; two husbands, fathers, brothers, in-law gone so quickly and unexpecatdly...

*sighs*

anyway,


Like I said, I am back home now! I feel like I haven't actually done any mental work in weeks and so I better go and get something productive done!

I'll leave you with a delightful picture Chris emailed me yesterday from his holiday...err...."conference" in Chile!