Our "Living in L.ove" retreat weekend

The first thing I have to say is that...I would recommend this weekend for everyone...even those of you who have been on a M.E. weekend. It's like the M.E. weekend in that there are presenting couples who talk about their marriages and there is writing however the topics and exercises given to us couples is so, soooooo, different. The topics are about intimacy in a very holy way...the way God meant it to be for us. I have to say....My dh and I have our intimacy back!!!! Woohooo....just like it used to be when we first got married!!!!! IF took that away...unfortunately with all the timed and forced se.x we lost the gift that God gave us. We were doing an activity...having se.x. Now...we are back to making l.ove....the love God meant for us. This weekend gave us something we haven't felt in a long time.....intimacy! It almost feels "new". I won't give you the suggested exercises and yes, we laughed out of embarrassment...but it works...trust me!!! I don't want to say much more than that...and yes...This is very Catholic based. It was a very prayerful weekend. My dh and I could feel the Lord working through us. I can't wait until this evening...when my dh gets home from work so we can practice what we learned this past weekend. There's an eight week follow up offered which we are going to do. This is strengthening our marriage and the love we have for each other.

I believe the "Living in L.ove" weekend is a new concept and I know there are plans to have these retreats offered at parishes everywhere. I believe the diocese I live in is one of the first to do these weekend retreats.....the Cath.olic Bish.ops are behind this and there are a lot of plans in the works. So, my dh and I are going to help in any way we can....we believe in this. We are not sure about presenting...it's very personal...and we both agreed that it would be "weird" talking about our intimate life to couples we know at our church. We are praying about it and may be open to presenting at churches where we may not know people (it may help). As I learn more about how the weekend is growing I'll keep you posted....I know at our retreat there were couples from St. Loui.s learning so they could bring it back to their diocese....and that is how it begins. Big plans...if you hear about it in your area...I hope you can go. What IF took away...God gives it back through this weekend.

I'd also want to say that I had a very good and informative confess.ion this weekend too. I've never had a priest hand me information so that I could learn more about our wonderful faith. I was in awe and felt blessed. I really don't have the words to describe how I felt after the confession...but I thanked God.

My dh and I also met another faithful couple on the weekend. Yes, this weekend promotes being prayerful and social with the other couples on the retreat. Anyway...this couple dated in H.S. and she got pregnant. At 18, they got married in a Catholic Church and they raised their daughter....18 years later...they are still married...and have had two more children. I again was in awe at their faithfulness and closeness to each other. Their three children have or are attending Catholic schools. They said their oldest daughter is so faithful and so giving in our faith. Why? Because they as parents modeled for her. My dh and I praised them. We hope to see them in the future and maybe build a friendship. Those are the type of couples we need in our life as we continue our journey. I thanked God for having met them.

I hope and pray when a "Living in L.ove" weekend comes to your parish you will be able to attend. Give God a chance to put back that intimacy in your marriage. It is the greatest Gift!!! After all, who doesn't want to "Live in L.ove" with our husbands??? May God bless you all with a happy, intimate and holy marriage.