Random Quick Takes - Vol. 6 - The Just a Few Edition

1. I have mentioned it before and I'm writing it again, I love early mornings! The getting out of bed part can be hard and I'm really not all that great at it just yet, but I absolutely love the time. When I actually follow my morning routine, my whole morning feels like I prayer. (Note: some mornings I just shoot for a mini routine. Leaving the house at 6 AM for work either means you better get up REALLY early or you have to cut the routine. I choose to cut the routine.) My favorite things to do are:

1. Acknowledge Jesus and Mary and say a prayer as I struggle to get out of bed.
2. Make my bed.
3. Put a load of laundry in, start cooking up some beans that have been soaking , or some other small task that you have to get started and let the work load go while you move on. (The cooking beans is new. I saw bags of beans at Carrie's and thought, "Ok, I should cook my own beans too." It's cheaper and I would love spending money on cooler things than canned beans. It all adds up! Sometimes you just need a little encouragement/silent peer pressure from a friend's pantry.)
4. Make coffee or tea.
5. Prayer time! On longer mornings this includes my typical morning prayer and Scripture reflection. On the weekends, I also like to add in other reading or a Rosary if I have the time.
6. Work out
7. Start in on my to do list!

This is definitely not what I do EVERY morning, but the mornings I do are the ones I love best. They set the tone for my whole day and with all of this accomplished by 7:30 or even 9:30, I still have the whole day ahead of myself!

2. I put some more work in on the garden this weekend...with Marc's help of course. My favorite part was carpooling with my parents to Lowe's :) or it could have been jumping up, waving my arms, joyfully shouting "grow"! There was just such satisfaction in planting things! I realize my excitement is a little premature and I should wait for things to grow, but there was just a feeling of empowerment. It was probably exactly what Chuck (Tom Hanks) felt like in the movie Cast Away when he built the fire. Really, I'm sure it was totally the same! (PS I just got 20 swagbucks for googling "Tom Hanks Wilson" while trying to find the name of the movie and Tom Hank's character. Sweet!)

3. Last night I ran a youth night on abortion for the Life Teen group at my church. It was put on by the Respect Life committee I chair and it went soooo well! I can say that because I really did very little. We had testimonies from Silent No More Awareness members and the regional coordinator of Project Rachel present (Project Rachel is for women and men suffering from the abortion of their children). I added a very brief teaching on the Church's position, talked about available resources for pregnant women, and covered the 9 ways we participate in others' sins. After that, we broke into 3 small groups (guys, gals, and parents) and talked over some different scenarios they might encounter. The night started off with the question: "How many of you know someone who has had an abortion?" Sadly, almost every person (out of 50+ people) raised their hands. I wasn't surprised, but it did reinforce the importance of the night meant to show what abortion really is (the intentional killing of an innocent human life), the real affects of abortion on women AND men, and how we, as Christians, are called to support, love, and share truth with those around us. Please say a prayer for all that were there!