Revolution of Love

Revolution of Love

Do small things with great love.

“Honeymoon with the Pope”

I received an email that read in part:

My name is Teresa Grodi and my husband and I recently had an opportunity to attend the Sposi Novelli audience with the Holy Father in Rome. This opportunity is available to all newlyweds within the first year of their marriage, but it is a HUGE undertaking to plan. So, upon our return, we decided to make a website to help other couples who would like a chance at this blessing! We are not selling a product or anything, it’s just a way to assist people šŸ™‚

The website is http://www.honeymoonwiththepope.com/ and I looked over it. It has lots of great info and tips and I’m sure it was be a invaluable resource for those interested.
We’ve had friends who had their marriage blessed by the Pope. Brian and I celebrated our first anniversary with a trip to Rome and although we didn’t get a blessing from the Pope it was an incredible experience just to be there. (If I knew about this website and had the chance to do it over again, I definitely would have tried!) So if you are thinking that it might be a possibility for you, check it out!

rome.jpg

Brian and I at St. Peter’s Square celebrating our (recent) First Anniversary, Jan 2000.


Where’s the Screwdriver?

This morning the boys and I were in the car ready to run some errands but I didn’t get very far. The van was dead in the driveway. Andrew was upset that we couldn’t leave but he quickly became excited when I told him it seems like the battery was dead.
His latest love is changing the batteries of toys…and actually, anything electronic that uses batteries. He has his screwdriver kit ready and waiting. When I told him a man will come fix the battery his eyes lit up with the thought of what kind of huge screwdriver would open the van’s hood!
UPDATE: As it turned out, it was Andrew who drained the battery, so to speak. Yesterday I let him play with the steering wheel while I took the groceries out of the car. Usually he just plays with the wheel and turns on the blinkers but this time he turned on the “headlight lock” which disables the auto shut off on the lights and it kept them running all day and night.
At least now I know what to check for the next time he decides to “drive.” Oh, and I think he was a little disappointed that no screwdriver was needed to open the hood. šŸ™‚



Your Laugh for the Day

I know this video has been posted all over but I couldn’t help sharing in case you haven’t seen it. There is nothing more contagious than a baby’s laughter!
On a side note, Bella tried the ripping paper with John-Paul and was a little upset that instead of hysterical laughter she only got one of his little half-smile smirks. Oh, well.


Betty’s Wedding Dress Round-Up

Betty at Betty Beguiles.com asked bloggers to share about their wedding dress and if they still loved it or wished they had done things differently.

When I was prepping for my wedding and looking for a dress I was a little worried since I hated wearing dresses to begin with and I’m a plus size and didn’t have as many choices as other brides-to-be. I remember my sister BC and I were shopping in Orange County and we decided to stop into a bridal store just to see styles and prices. After looking at the stick-thin girls and big price tags, I felt really out of place and didn’t stay very long. Shortly after, my family moved to the Calif high dessert where it was more “cowboy country” than we were used to. I was driving with JC, another one of my sisters, and we came across a local wedding boutique. It looked more home-town humble than high-class snooty so we stopped to take a look.

The sales lady was really nice and brought out some dresses in my size. The first one I tried on confirmed all my fears. It had a “western” look to it and in it I looked like a big, white marshmallow cowboy bride. I looked over at my sister who was in the dressing room with me and we bust out laughing. Not quiet-giggles laughing but the I’m-going-to-wet-my-pants-if-I-don’t-stop laughing. The sales woman came over and asked if anything was wrong. I bit my tongue hard enough to make myself calm down and told her that we were fine. I quickly changed and after a few more tries we came across a dress with an empire waist and I loved the way it looked and fit. I looked at the price tag and even the discounted $800 was more than I could really afford. But at least I now knew that there was a dress style that would work on me and not send me into hysterics.

The next few days I went online and searched for a dress that matched the one I liked in the store. I came across a beautiful dress with an empire waist, beaded bodice and longer train. I loved it. The price was half the amount at only $400. I loved it even more. After checking the return policy, I said a pray and ordered it. As it turned out, the dress worked perfectly after some tailoring and for the first time in my life I felt like a princess and actually loved wearing a dress.

Looking back, the whole wedding dress fiasco pretty much summed up the majority of my life experiences – a little craziness, a few tears, a lot of laughter, loved ones with me, and eventually everything working out great in the end.

Here I am with Brian and Fr. Ryan, the priest who married us.

Here’s a closer look at some of the detail.

Thanks to Betty for a fun post to write. šŸ™‚