Seminarian Spring Break

Bear sent pictures to let us know how his Spring Break was going. He and some friends rented a cabin and had a blast. I love seeing this beautiful pictures.

Pray for Bear, pray for his peers. God Bless these men!

Our Day with Bear

J had some trade show stuff, Bear had seminary stuff so I picked both of them up after I had enjoyed a peaceful morning of relaxing.

We had to try another local spot for a yummy afternoon lunch. 

The off to do some more shopping. 

After another fun day our time was coming to a close. We would be dropping Bear off again to not see him for a few months. This was hard but not as hard as it was before. We know he is surrounded by great people. His other family is pretty cool. You can see it on his face, he is where he is supposed to be. 

We need to thank Bear for making us feel so welcome. We are most thankful that Bear had time away from the seminary to hang out with his mom and dad. Thanks for being our “favorite child” for the weekend. Happy birthday! WE LOVE YOU!

Bear's Birthday

Happy 23 rd birthday to Bear. This young man has always lived life to fullest. He never wastes time playing politics, he just gets things done. He has grown from an adventurous child into a strong confidant man. I have been beyond blessed with each of my children including this bright loving soul. I pray that this day, like each day, will bring him closer to our Lord. Love you, Bear!

To be honest I have been worried about this young man. We miss him but have each other, how is he doing. I discovered why he doesn't miss us that much. He is surround by a group of great people. He is one of 6 seminarians representing the Oklahoma City Archdiocese. These guys are true brothers Christ. They all joined us on Friday night to celebrate Bears' Birthday with him. My heart swelled as I listened to this group act like real siblings. They encouraged, and teased, laughed, taught, supported and enjoyed each other's company. Bear had found a beautiful place. Happy Birthday Bear!

Parents Weekend With Bear

Something wonderful happened Today. J and I got to see Bear in his clerics for the first time. He has dressed for occasions and for school all the time. We have never been around, only saw it in pictures. There was something powerful for J and I seeing him dressed for the job that he feels called to.

The stain glass windows in this chapel are so beautiful. J and I were both moved by the experience.  I can't wait for all of Bear's siblings to see him dressed in clerics.

St. John Vianney seminary is full of faithful, intelligent and joyful young men all desiring to serve the church. We saw so much hope for the Catholic Church in each of these seminarians, especially the crowd from the Oklahoma City Diocese. They honored us by allowing us to take them to lunch early in the day to meet them and get to know Bear's peers. Later than night they went with for ice cream. 

We heard someone pull their kid back from the boys and say something about needing to be careful around priest because they liked to hurt little boys. It hurt so much when we heard that directed toward these strong young men of faith but we also because I understood why the parent said it. The news had been full of bad reports all day.  God Bless our church and the good news is that these young men will change it for the better.

Seeing Bear's SY House

Wow, there is a beautiful seminary before us. As we drove up J and I both felt so comfortable. Bear is here and it is a good place. After all of the current scandal information hits the news we are overcome with PEACE about where our son is.

Bear room was at the end of the hall with a balcony window just outside his door. His space was very Duncan, filled with mementos of those that he loves and admires . . . and many many theology books. 

Before heading out Bear shows us some covers that he got from Mrs. W and her mom. This kid is so blessed to have so many people supporting him.  He knows it and is putting his all into it. 

Then he checked his email to make sure we were heading to right place at the right time. (He only gets his computer out one time a week.) He got a pretty special email while we were there. There are people praying for this young man from all around the world and all walks of life. The retired windowed government employee, families that he has known, priests from our previous parishes, his family, God parents and even a humble Cardinal in the Church.

God had big plans for this young man. We are so excited to see where all this leads him.