I have a 15 month old son and a baby on the way, and I would like to start implementing meaningful, religious Christmas traditions. I try to keep items in my home to a minimum, so I am hoping to find ideas that don’t involve many materials. However, keepsakes would be nice for my kids to have when they’re older. I’m thinking of starting with a Jesse Tree.

SOS would appreciate anyone's experience here.

I am 6 weeks postpartum exclusively breastfeeding and just started using Marquette with the clear blue monitor for the first time (had the class a few days ago). I took my first test yesterday that said low but I was only able to go a little over 3 hours since my last pee. I tested again today and again was only able to go a little over 3 hours- it said low again.

This morning I'm noticing slippery mucus which I definitely would have considered peak fertile back when I was using the crieghton/mucus method and I'm panicking.

Has anyone noticed a big discrepancy between fertility readings on the clear blue and their mucus while breast feeding? Anyone's experience would be much appreciated ❤️

Hey! My husband isn’t catholic like me. We’re expecting a baby soon and want to pray a novena. He is turned off by the saints and Hail Marys, but it’s a work in progress. I am in the middle of a Saint joseph consecration for him (since June really…the book is so so long 😂🫣). We want to pray for a job for him for our family.

Any reflections or prayers a non catholic would enjoy?

I’ve heard of husbands helping with charting but curious how else men offer help with NFP.

Edit: I should add what sort of support you WISH for from your husband & not just what he currently does.

Hi everyone, I am in OCIA currently to become Catholic. I do have a question regarding abortion and the Catholic church. Please don't respond with mean comments, I am only curious. This past week at mass, the deacon urged us to vote against a bill which would make the abortions a right in our state.

I want to start off by saying I am personally pro-life, as I wouldn't want to have an abortion. However, as I understand it, in America, we have separation of church and state as well as freedom of religion. I'm having a hard time understanding why I must vote to uphold my religious beliefs on others. For example, my best friend is Jewish, and they allow abortions (at least up to a certain point). Can someone help me understand this?

I am currently pregnant and I think maybe the devil is trying to get a foothold on me since I made a promise to be “holier” with my unborn baby—which in itself is a miracle…I am only 22 weeks but I didn’t think I would make it this far at all, especially with my first.

Anyway there’s been ups and downs recently with my faith and I figured Catholic woman can help me. I’ve been very emotional this pregnancy and really just desiring intimacy with my husband. I just feel very emotional and just want to be held and I’m tired and just want to feel like I am loved and protected? My husband is very aware of this and he has been doing very well with me this pregnancy, always making sure I’m okay and cared for.

I guess I belief I am struggling with is intimacy that is not open to life. I hate the idea of having relations with my husband, and my husband only and it being a ticket to hell. Granted I don’t think it’s possible for me to get pregnant a second time while pregnant now but I am struggling with the idea if my husband and I are “intimate” with each other were sent into mortal sin because the sexual act wasn’t complete. I was intimate with my husband but I am a little upset that since we didn’t “complete the act” and opted for oral satisfaction with each other it’s damns us to hell?

I am also struggling with missing mass. Granted I am so tired at the end of the day and my husband and I go to Mass later in the evening on Sundays because I am taking that morning to rest. I am on a lot of progesterone and I work very hard on my feet all week. I hate that’s a mortal sin too, sending me to hell because I missed mass, being tired.

Any thoughts?

Basically what the title says.

I constantly go back and forth on my feelings and thoughts and how to reconcile all of these issues, but I don’t act on them anyways.

I am a lesbian and I have crushes on other women, currently, actively, but I haven’t been indulging in the fantasies as much. But it still happens. I’m only human. What do you all do when this happens, when you just can’t help yourself but to wonder and fantasize and daydream about them even though you can never be together?

I don’t feel depressed or hopeless or helpless, but I do suppose I feel a bit lonely. I don’t really have anyone to talk to. I can’t tell my family, my friends will just tell me to accept and love myself, and I’m scared of what those who have been guiding me on my faith journey will think of me if I really tell them the truth of who I am.

I really do wonder what the rest of my life will look like. I wish I could go back in the closet. I wonder what my life would’ve been if I’d kept of all this to myself. Do you ever feel the same way?

Hi everyone, my name is Ani, 24F im beginning my journey in catholicism. I was raised a catholic and lost my faith for a few years but I have been touched by God and am rejoining my journey with christ. I am very interested in a catholic podcast to listen to as a busy mum or even a Bible group to join. Please let me know 🩷

I'm trying to be on top of it this year with Advent resources for my older kids - ages 3 and 4. We have a set of Jesse tree ornaments that I downloaded and printed for free from Shining Light Dolls. However, we tried unsuccessfully last year to read a book along with the Jesse tree ornament last year each day that had the bible passage it went along with an an explanation. I forget which book it was, but it was kind of random, we just happened to have it on hand. The Bible passages were very long and some of them frankly were not understandable to the kids and the reflections were way too long as well.

Does anyone have a better resource for daily Jesse tree readings/reflections to explain what each symbol means? Something very short and easily understandable for ages 3 and 4. A lot of what I can find online has a full page for the bible passage and a full page or more explaining about it which is way too much for this age. Short, simple, and sweet is what I'm after!

I ask this as a single 26 year old woman, with no current prospect in site for marriage (lol). I'm still discerning my vocation and would love some pointers, in case Marriage will be in my future.

Out of genuine curiosity and for learning purposes- I'd love to hear your stories!

I am not married; a 7 year old child; with the man for 18 years.

At the start of the relationship, we both said we were "Protestant" and a little anti-Catholic. We have lived in sin; the relationship was not for the glory of God

I have been Catholic for 2 years, my life has changed

I am starting cathechese for children But the father does not want our son to attend He doesn't go to church He says absurd things to our child like “it’s written in the Bible not to have a graven image” So I have to read with my son in the Bible what is really written there

I have to separate Please pray for the child, and the conversion of his father

my decision is for the good of the child, what he sees is a very bad example of a couple, and leadership from his father

I explained to our son that I will always love his father and pray for him.

The father doesn't go to church, but he would like our child to go to the Baptist church with his mother. It's so twisted

I know I'm reaping the rewards of my years of bad choices. But it's painful, I just want my Kid to find peace in the midst of the turmoil

Hi everyone! I’m getting married in a few months and have been using Oura ring with Natural Cycles, as well as inputting the info into Fertility Friend. I have also used the advanced clear blue monitor test strips to cross reference and everything usually matches. CM increases as the test strips go from low —> high —> peak and CM usually corresponds to the apps when they say I’ve ovulated. I know lots of people say you need to take a class and pick a method, but wondering if anyone does something similar? My cycles are always very regular and my body seems to be predictable. Any thoughts? Thank you!

My nine month old is no longer content to hang out on my lap during mass. He has a little "book" with different snaps, buckles, etc. that can hold his interest for about 10 minutes but after that he's fighting me to get down and play on the floor. I would appreciate any ideas you have for silent toys/activities!

Hello! I was wondering if anyone here has had success with natural family planning methods. I understand some Catholic couples wait to have children, and they use natural family planning as a method to track fertility.

I was just curious to see what NFP methods have been proven to work the best for you?

this is kind of random but i’m wondering where to draw the line when it comes to listening to secular music. for example, I’ve been really loving “Diet Pepsi” by Addison Rae lately, I think it’s a catchy song and I like the tune, but I do realize the lyrics are not exactly appropriate.

Do you think it’s wrong to continue to listen to music that have inappropriate lyrics? I honestly think I already know the answer but I just want to hear your guys’ opinions on this.

thank you and God bless 🌷 :)

Hello,

I wrote in this forum a few months ago. I had a lot of support, but also some people who thought I was lying about my abusive marriage. (To help you remember, I was the one whose husband refused to get our marriage blessed and had started taking photo/video of me without my consent) I understand why people thought it was fake, becaues it was insane. I had a lot of you telling me to leave back then, and I wasn't confident enough...but I eventually did gain the confidence because things got worse. And I need to protect my children.

I am humbly returning to ask for prayers as I navigate this. The restraining order I needed, the upcoming divorce, and also because my children don't understand....they are asking for him, and I do not speak poorly of him to them...but I ask for prayers to continue protecting them and their hearts throughout all of this.

My father is catholic, but we are not on speaking terms and I have never had a catholic education. However, this year I decided I do want to embrace being catholic. I began pre-catechumenate in July and have been working towards educating myself prior to confirming.

St. Martin de Porres is a saint dear to my heart and his feast day is coming up. I have no idea what the proper way would be to celebrate a feast day. Any suggestions or advice?

My child attends a catholic school, and they read a book about Diwali last week. I figured it was okay to learn a bit about different cultures. Then my child told me they will be making lanterns.

I started to get a bit more concerned.. did a quick google search. I found that other than it being a festival of lights in India, it also celebrates the birth of some gods of wealth.

Would have loved to have them learn about All Saints Day instead :( ….

Am I overreacting? Or are my concerns valid? Any thoughts are welcomed.

A 7 pound, 7 ounce gift from God. I'm feeling tired and sore but pretty good overall. We're parents!! We're still settling in with a beautiful boy.

Yesterday my fiancé (Protestant) and I (reverted Catholic) got into another religious argument. It started out as us going through the history of how the Bible was written together because we really do just want to understand why our Bibles are different and try to find things we can come to common ground on. The Bible conversation wasn’t heated but I did feel kind of defensive. But then we started talking about wedding and getting married in the church and how I’ve been sad and not wanting to plan because my family does not like him and I don’t even know if anyone would come if things with them aren’t fixed. Everything then took a turn when I started talking about mortal sin and not wanting to live in a state of sin that could have me end up in hell. He started yelling and said “How dare you think that what Jesus did on the cross wasn’t enough!” And then proceeded to point his finger at me and say “That is disgusting!” About 5 or so times. And then said it was “psychotic” to believe that you’d go to hell for anything if you’re a believer when Jesus died on the cross for you. And then went on to say “I will not let my children believe that! That is completely unacceptable!”. And each time he raised his voice. I don’t know what the point is of me posting here other than asking for prayers that God’s will would be done in our relationship and either we come to understanding or one of us would have the courage to end it if it isn’t what God wants. I’m just so discouraged and feeling hopeless.

ETA: I probably won’t get to responding to every comment but I appreciate your support and prayers. I think it comes down to… I’m afraid. I am afraid of being alone and losing him. I’m afraid of how he will act if we break up. I’m just living in a state of contentment hoping it will get better and somehow he will have a change of heart. I’ve been praying about direction and discernment but have yet to work up any courage. This conversation was just the first one of many that God has been nudging me to have. I am almost done with the Undoer of Knots novena and also working on a Surrender novena. But I can use all the prayers I can get. Thanks everyone 🩷

I could use some prayers and advice. My boyfriend of 2 years broke up with me yesterday to discern priesthood. Everything about our relationship was great but he says he’s been having this nagging to seriously discern his vocation. He told me if he doesn’t end up in seminary in May, he wants to get married because then there will be no reason we can’t. I don’t know if I should just cut my losses and move on, or wait for him. I really believe it’s Gods will for us to be together but I’m gonna be a wreck if I keep my hopes up and he does end up becoming a priest.

Hi everyone! I was baptised in 2022 but have been attending mass (on and off) since I was 9 - for context, I am turning 25 this year.

I had always stayed rather true to my relationship with God, but have never really been very involved in actually following the Catholic practices of chastity etc.

I have had a pretty traumatic break-up recently, discovering that my ex (non-Catholic, but was going to church and even praying regularly with me) was a sex addict and had been visiting prostitutes behind my back while collecting a disturbing amount of pornographic materials. It was otherwise a happy relationship and he had moved into my place with me.

Now that we have broken up I have been drawing much closer to God and trying to wrap my head around chastity and modern dating. On one hand, I do know that is what I must do, but I still struggle to reconcile the fact that the last memory I will have of being able to share intimate (and not sexual) moments with a partner will potentially be my ex, for instance, cuddling to sleep, showering together, etc.

Please be kind in your replies - I know these aren't thoughts I should be entertaining but I'm really struggling to accept that my future relationships will lack such intimacy and that I might forever be yearning for the non-sexual intimacy I shared with my ex in the past.

Apart from these it also feels quite hopeless that there might be a man out there who would share my beliefs and be willing to remain chaste with me till marriage - there's many aspects of pursuing a Catholic relationship that I am struggling with and I would love to hear all your inputs.

God bless all of you! x

I have a bf who’s the best, but we have a slight problem. We want to get married, but the religious differences are not very subtle. He’s Jewish, and I’m Catholic. We talked about getting married and having kids, and the topic of what religion to raise our kids came up. I’m really trying to work on my faith, I kinda feel stuck about this whole thing.

Somehow, my brother found out. I attend college in a completely different region of the U.S. compared to where my brother is, and he’s really weird. He’s a Nazi sympathizer, which is ironic because we’re African-American. He’s kinda like a “the jews run the banks” guy. My bf comes from a family of bankers/works in finance which makes my brothers conspiracy theories, even worse. So, yeah, that’s where I’m at.

I posted this in the Catholicism subreddit but I just found this sub and thought it would be better.

Anyways any advice?

My husband and I were raised Catholic (neither of us came from SUPER devout families) and participated in pre-Cana prior to getting married. At that time, we learned that NFP was the only form of “birth control” acceptable in the eyes of the church but neither of us really bought into it at that time and we continued to use various forms of birth control after marriage. We have been married for almost 4 years now and recently, my husband has taken a serious interest in deepening his faith (he started reading the Bible daily, saying rosaries 4+ times per day, attending daily masses, Eucharistic adorations, weekly reconciliation, etc etc). This sudden change in him was alarming to me but I tried my best to be supportive. I recently gave birth to our second child in under 2 years and during a conversation about resuming sex after my 6 week postpartum checkup, he informed me that he no longer feels comfortable using any form of birth control, as the church teaches it is morally wrong. He also said that he no longer wishes to limit the amount of children we have (prior to marriage, we discussed children and agreed on wanting to have 3 or 4. Now, he wants to have “as many as God wills.”) As a freshly postpartum mom, completely overwhelmed with the 2 children that we already have, I simply cannot fathom not using contraception at this time in our lives and risking another pregnancy and honestly, I resent the idea of all the work and responsibility that falls on the woman in order to practice NFP effectively, ESPECIALLY when we had been on the same page about NOT using it prior to his religious “awakening.” I simply do not feel comfortable having sex without contraceptions and he refuses to use a condom/does not want to have sex if I get an IUD or go on birth control. I have explained to him how much the anxiety of another pregnancy right now affects me and all of my reasons that I still don’t buy into the church’s teachings on contraception but he refuses to budge. I know sex is not all that matters in a marriage, but let’s be honest, it’s a critical component of marital intimacy, closeness, and overall marital health. It’s already been 10 weeks since we’ve had sex and I feel like we’re at an impasse and i’m feeling resentful. I Am I totally out of line here??

Hi all, my husband and I have been married for 3 years now and we’ve had no luck with causally TTC. I have PCOS and I had no luck for a WHILE of finding someone to help us get started, but God has provided and I have an appointment to meet with a NaPro doctor in November. We experienced pre-Cana during COVID so sometimes I felt like our marriage prep was rushed or overlooked, so no resources for NFP were specifically given.

Any tips? Experiences to share? Those with PCOS who can maybe share how the Marquette method has worked for you?

Man here. I am a husband and a father of two. I am also a Catholic revert, having been agnostic/atheist for several years. I met and married my Protestant wife (39F) while I was an atheist. She has always encouraged me to keep an open mind about Christ, and a little while ago I felt God calling me back to the Church. She has been lukewarm about my return Catholicism due to what I believe to be the sort of Anti-Catholic misconceptions/biases somewhat common in American Protestantism, but she supports me in her own way and wants me to be happy.

We have had two ectopic pregnancies so far, and given that the embryo is not viable in those cases, in both instances we followed medical advice and treated using the drug Methotrexate. This stops the growth of the embryo and essentially ends the child’s life. I wasn’t a practicing Catholic during these times, so I wasn’t aware of the Church’s stance that any direct action taken to end the child’s life is an abortion/murder and is not permissible, even in defense of the mother’s life (we were told that fallopian tube rupture was a real possibility and is quite dangerous).

We are wanting to have a third child, but have not yet started trying. I am worried that given her history that she will have yet another ectopic pregnancy. The problem is that now I am aware of and agree with the Church teaching that a direct action against the child is immoral. My understanding is that fallopian rupture can be prevented by surgery to remove the affected tube, but that this is drastically different procedure than what is common and one which negatively impacts the woman’s fertility.

I feel like I need to let her know where I stand. I know that ultimately it will be her decision, but I’m not sure the best way to approach this subject with her.

I am worried that when I broach the topic that a) she will feel like I’m making some sort of indictment of her past decisions, like I’m saying she’s evil because we decided to use Methotrexate the previous times, b) that I will feed into her perception of a hyper-controlling and unloving Catholic Church, and so forever close the door on the possibility of her converting, or c) I will cause a rift which will keep us from growing our family as we feel we are being called to do.

Could anyone provide me some perspective or advice on how to move forward here? Thank you all, God bless.

EDIT: Thanks to everyone who replied. I appreciate the prayers and the kind words. I think I will go with what some commenters advised and not bring up the topic with my wife unless we find ourselves with another ectopic. Upon reflection, I can think of many times previously where I ended up doing more harm than good by bringing up issues before they became real, trying to "manage expectations." I'll trust in God this time and pray for guidance if faced with a difficult decision. Thank you all

Hi all. To make a long story short I was raised “Catholic” but not in an official way. Not baptized, only went to mass with friends or for weddings and funerals, etc. Pushed away from church and religion and even God following a traumatic event in my life, but have wanted to come back for a while. Ever since having my son, my husband and I have agreed that we want to have a religion and church to be a part of, as we feel it’s what’s best for our son. My husband can’t get behind it because of his philosophy background/degree (his words, not mine) but will support any decision I make. I have decided the Catholic Church is calling me “back”. I hope to begin RCIA/OCIA classes and get the ball rolling on baptisms for both myself and my son after the holidays.

That being said, I want to start now in what ways I can. Last night my husband and I went to a movie that used religious/Catholic imagery and tropes as a tool for the horror and gore of the plot. I’ve never like that kind of thing because it’s just not for me, but for the first time in my life, I could not stop thinking about how blasphemous it felt and how I felt the need to do some kind of prayer or something to “cleanse” myself of it. Which is normally something I would roll my eyes and judge someone else for saying but it just felt so icky. In everything, I do not wish to judge others but rather focus on myself and my relationship with the Lord.

Prayers to memorize? What prayers are for what, what times should I use them? Help me out! My own mother said the other day, “What do you mean you don’t know how to say a Hail Mary?!” And I said “I went to public school. Where was I supposed to learn? 🫠🤣”

My sister is a brand new Christian and has been listening to the Girls Gone Bible podcast. I guess they're touring and she asked if I wanted to go to one of their "shows" with her. Does anyone have any real insight as to what their theology is? I know they're not Catholic, but do they preach anything totally off the wall?

I’m a cradle Catholic and fell into the New Age movement for about 10 years. I had a profound re-awakening with God about two months ago and life has been amazing. I’ve been so enthusiastic about Jesus and re-learning my faith. Though I’ve reached a point where I want (perhaps even need) Christian and Catholic female friends.

None of my friends are Christian. Most (not all) are at least somewhat into New Age stuff and/or LGBT. This isn’t particularly an issue at all, as they’re beautiful people and I love them dearly. But my boyfriend, who also has reverted within the last year, and I deeply desire strong community as we plan on getting married.

Sometimes I feel insecure because I have tattoos, piercings, hike barefoot (lol), and kind of have an “earthy crunchy” personality…heck I’m an organic farmer who loves going to different kinds of festivals (currently discerning which to keep and which to let go due to my faith). The women at my church are not particularly like me as far as I can tell, though I’m open to putting myself out there. I somewhat worry about being judged and questioned due to the Catholic “culture” in my area. I grew up here and both my childhood church, my boyfriend’s church, and my current church’s communities have this kind of mono-culture where there’s a lack of diversity (pertaining to race, how women dress, how they speak, their hobbies and interests, etc). It’s not a negative judgement at all. I just wish to make friends who are a little bit “alternative” like myself. But perhaps this is a lesson for me to be more open-minded.

I’m wondering if any women here have advice. I live in a medium-sized US city with lots of universities so I’m thinking Bumble BFF or something like that. I’m also wondering if volunteering with other churches’ food pantries or ministries may help me, because older women make up most of the involvement in my church. Praying on it but curious to hear others’ thoughts.