Matthew 7:1

Here's the deal.

I'm a Mormon.
And I'm stating flat out, that this post you are about to read, has no affiliation with the Mormon Church: The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints.
This is not church beliefs I am stating.
This is the belief of Katie Jo.
A simple-minded young Mormon, with a big heart, and a lot of words.

As a woman of Christian beliefs and values, I have certain beliefs when it comes to marriage.
I believe that marriage is a sacred ordinance ordained of God. 
I believe that Heavenly Father created marriage as a way for man and woman to join together to procreate - a commandment from the Lord. 

However, I believe man has turned marriage into a legal affair. 
And as a legal affair, I do not believe marriage should be limited to one type of couple. 
Making gay marriage legal is not a religious issue.
Making gay marriage legal is a social justice issue.
And denying the right to marry the one you love simply because of who it is that you love, the type of person you love, is, plain and simple, so incredibly unjust. 

How can we claim we live in a land of freedom, but deny freedom to citizens of this country?
How can we claim we live in a land of justice and equality for all, and treat so many with such injustice and inequality?
Gay marriage is about social justice. It is a legal issue.

Now, if you want to make it a moral issue, we can.
Isn't it against Christian morals to judge others?
Isn't it against Christian morals to not love one another no matter who they are?
Isn't Jesus Christ the biggest, most perfect example of loving people of all walks of life? Of treating everyone the same: as the daughters and sons of God they are?

As I said earlier, my morals, my beliefs, are that marriage is a sacred ordinance of God. I believe it was created by our Heavenly Father as a means for men and women to fulfill the commandment of procreation, and bring life to this earth. 
That being said, I don't think anyone who is gay and wants to marry their gay partner, is any less loved by God. 
I am not one, and neither are you, to dictate that someone must live their life according to my beliefs. 

If you are gay, I love you.
If you are gay and wanting to marry the love of your life, I still love you.
I get the wonderful opportunity to marry the love of my life - why shouldn't you? 
Because your type of love is different than mine?
Where is the sense in that?
Where is the freedom and equality and justice all of us Americans claim to stand for?

I am not one to judge. 
That's not my job. 
We'll all find out at the end of time how everything was meant to go.
Maybe you're lifestyle will be right and okay.
Maybe mine will.
Maybe they both will. 
Maybe they both won't matter.
I have my beliefs about it - you can believe something different.
I will not love you any less. 


God gave us this amazing gift called "agency."
The power of choice.
We are all free to make our own choices. 
I am not one to tell you what choices you should make. 
I am not one to tell you that your choices need to be the same as mine.
I am not one to tell you that your choices must conform to my beliefs.
If you want to sit down, and talk with me openly about my personal beliefs, I'd love to do that sometime. 
But I will never force my beliefs upon you.
That's not very Christlike. 
Teaching. Teaching is Christlike. 
I will teach you what I believe. 
And then you can teach me what you believe. 

Matthew 7:1 - "Judge not, that ye be not judged."

Mark 12:30-31 - "And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind, and with all thy strength: this is the first commandment. And the second is like, namely this, Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself. There is none other commandment greater than these."

Let's Try This Again!!

You know that feeling you get when you go to the OB's office, and you get to hear your 11-week-old baby's heartbeat from the womb? And you cry tears of joy because the doctor says everything is going perfectly this time?

I do.

:) 

That's right folks, it's time for round 2.

Thomas and I are expecting again!

I am 11 weeks along today, and after two appointments of seeing and hearing our baby's heartbeat, we're thinking it's safe to announce we are expecting our little peanut this fall, September 29, 2013!

We're not quite out of the first trimester, but things have been going perfectly so far.

At 7 weeks, on February 11, we had an ultrasound performed. 

At this appointment, we got to see our little peanut and take home some souvenir pictures!

The specialist told us baby was 1.06 cm, perfect length for 7 weeks.

The heartbeat was 146 beats per minute - another perfect.

At this appointment, we didn't get to hear anything, but it was pretty incredible to see the baby and it's tiny heart fluttering in the pictures!
Things were going good! But we still wanted to wait to tell the world...

And I'm glad we waited...because a few days after that appointment, I all of a sudden stopped getting sick.
My nausea just vanished.
And my heart sank. 
That's exactly what happened last time.
And then about a week later, I had miscarried.
It was all I could think about, all day, every day. 
I thought for sure I had lost my baby again. 
I cried thinking I had lost it again, even though I had no other proof that it was happening.
But the days passed, and no bleeding...
Even still, I was super nervous for our next OB appointment.
I was nervous there would be no heartbeat...

Today, we had an OB appointment where, for two hours, I had a battery of tests performed, and finally got to hear the baby's heartbeat!!
A beautiful 164 beats per minute!
(According to the wive's tale, above 140 is a girl, below a boy...)
It was the most beautiful, miraculous experience ever!!
My heart melted, and I cried. 
We never got to hear our first little peanut's heartbeat, and those beautiful beats melted so many of my fears and worries. 
It was truly music to my ears. 
We decided, with everything going smoothly so far, and being so close to the end of the first trimester, it was time to tell the world. 

"We are pregnant again!"

Our baby is the size of lime, moving its little arms and legs, it has a face complete with nose, eyes, and mouth, and is in the beginning stages of developing organs such as intestines and kidneys.

Life is amazing.
I couldn't be happier.
I am feeling so blessed. 
So. Wonderfully. Blessed. 

How I told Thomas...

Our little peanut at 7 weeks and a day!! 

Growing perfectly!!