Happy 4th!; Morning Mass; Prayers; Last Day of Giveaway

I want to wish all my fellow Americans a Happy Independence Day (a.k.a. "Oh, you mean the 4th of July!", lol). Let us all thank and pray for all the brave men and women, past and present, who've risked (and continue to risk) their lives in order to protect this country and to help maintain our freedom. :) Fr. Stan said some lovely words about the significance of today in the 7 a.m. Mass. It was one of those things where you wish you had some sort of recording device to share with everyone. All those in attendance said a prayer for those in the armed forces. :)

Have I ever mentioned how much I LOVE morning Masses? It's the one thing about school that I will miss... along with the deposits they refuse to return to me. In all seriousness, I love starting my mornings with prayers... especially if I get a chance to do it at a parish. I haven't been to a morning Mass (that wasn't on a Sunday, of course) since I was about 19 years old, usually because of classes or other things I have to do in the morning. Going to today's Mass made me realize how much I miss going during the week. I am going to try to attend Mass as often as I can... and hopefully I'll be able to a couple of times during the week, if not every day. :) Oh, and because I'm often asked, YES, I DID wear my mantilla (chapel veil). I wasn't the only one either. There was another woman who wore one as well. :D I was, however, the only person under (maybe) 50 years-old at the Mass. lol. :)

After Mass, I spent nearly an hour just praying for my family, friends, and anyone who asked and/or needed it. My knees don't hurt as much as I thought they would from all the time I was kneeling. :D I prayed the Rosary, the Chaplet of Divine Mercy, a couple of prayers to different saints for different intercessions (see, twitter people? I came through for those who asked. heehee. :D) Before I began to pray, I got the idea of keeping a book with a list of all the prayer requests I get (you'd be surprised how many emails I've gotten from people who have found me through this blog and/or twitter) so that every time I'm at church I can pray for y'all in front of the Tabernacle. Any time any of you want/need prayers, please do not hesitate to ask me. I'd be more than happy to pray for y'all. :D If it's to a particular saint, I'll ask for their intercession. If it's a novena, Rosary, or chaplet, I'll do it. It makes me very happy to be able to pray for others. :D

Alright, I'm going to go enjoy the Love Comes Softly series movie marathon that's on the Hallmark Channel all day today. I'm a sucker for these movies. lol. It's not all romance for all you chick flick haters... you know who you are. There is love, but most of it has to do with the love between families and their faith. Really great message. :)

Don't forget that today is the last day of the Bl. Pier Giorgio Frassati giveaway. You guys have until 11:59 p.m. PST to enter. Oh, and someone please remind me to tell Fr. Stan how to pronounce his name; he had a bit of a problem with it today. :D I'm going to miss Fr. Stan when he gets transferred to another parish in a couple of days. :(

Oh! And, for those who ask me on a daily basis how dad's doing: I talked to my mom about an hour ago. He ate all his oatmeal and drank all of his coffee... and was able to hold it down. Yeah!!! He's doing so much better than yesterday too. If there was ever a day for him to be alright, it's today. :D

Okay, that's enough stalling. I hope everyone has a great, blessed day... and that some of you don't overdue it with the food at picnics today. lol. As always, thanks for reading and God Bless. :D