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One of the biggest complaints about NFP is that it’s too hard to follow the guidelines; there are too many rules; or you mean we have to wait THAT long before we have marital relations again!  One thing that you will want to know about NFP is that it is very effective in both preventing pregnancy, and acheiving pregnancy.  The catch is that you must follow the guidelines of the women’s cycle.  If you flirt with the rules, you flirt with pregnancy, and if you abide by them, there is a good chance that your wife will not get pregnant. 

More than acheiving or preventing pregnancy, NFP is effective on the marriage.  I’m sure you know that right now, there is a 50% + divorce rate in the United States.  Did you also know that there is a 50% divorce rate in the Catholic Church?  But, of the 10%-15% that follow NFP (yes, only 10%-15% of catholics follow this teaching) 95% + remain married until the death of one of the spouses.  (You may lift up your jaw now).  This probably comes as surprising to you, but if you try to understand the purpose of NFP, you begin to realize why.  Contraception encourages and makes the woman ready on demand.  If a man asks his wife to contracept, the man is asking his wife to be ready for his desire 24/7.  This does not foster a deep relationship among the marriage, it fosters a SELFISH relationship among the husband and wife (the man expects his wife to be willing, and the couple is closed to life; children teach the act of selflessness.  You see, NFP promotes communication among husband and wife, and it also promotes selflessness by the controlling of one’s desires, and fostering of children. 

As you can see, NFP is effective in two very important ways: it prevents or acheives pregnancy, and it helps the marriage bond.  If you want to know more about birth control, and how one Pope prophesized how it would effect the world, visit this link: http://www.papalencyclicals.net/Paul06/p6humana.htm

You’ve seen the ads; a teenager is promising to be one less.  The mom is standing beside her stating that she wants her daughter to be one less case of HPV; and that’s why she’s having her child get the vaccine.  Studies are being conducted, and it’s not sounding too good for the girls who get the vaccine Gardasil.  The area where the teenager gets the shot hurts for days, girls pass out, need surgery, and some girls may have died (these cases are still being investigated).

If you have a teenaged daughter, and you allow her to get the shot, you are literally telling her to go out and have sex.  How is this good parenting?  You’re not protecting her, you’re giving her an excuse to be unaccountable for her actions.  Abstinance gets a bad wrap these days, but it’s the only full proof method out there.  The success rate is much better (100%)  than the other options, but people look at the failure rate instead.  Look, my wife and I abstained until marriage.  We did not have out of wedlock children, we do not have STD’s, and best for me; my wife can’t compare me to anybody else.  We’re told these days that woman are strong, well, it takes a strong mom to teach abstinance, and a strong teenager to practice it.  I’m not going to let me children get this shot when they turn of age; I want them to be strong, and if they don’t practice abstinance; then that’s the choice that they will have to make.  My children are going to be one less, one less to get the vaccine.  The choice is up to them what they do without it.

It’s not easy being a dad. Going to bed late, getting up a couple times during the night, and then leaving early in the morning to go to work. But being a dad is the most rewarding thing that I have ever been able to do. One of the things I love the most about being a dad is seeing things through my daughter’s eyes. This year I have seen many things through her eyes: Christmas morning with her bike under the Christmas tree, walking into our hotel room that overlooks the ocean, and seeing Shamu jump out of the water only to come down and make a gigantic splash. Seeing all of these things through her eyes has made me realize how precious life is, and how easy it is to take things for granted. As adults we take so many things for granted, but children cherish everything they see and do. As adults, we need to view our lives more like a child views theirs.

There are some people out there who believe that having a child is one of the most selfish things that can be done.  “Parents are just trying extend their gene pool”, “Imagine the carbon imprant that the kids are going to leave on this earth.”  Um… no.  I have two children, and the children represent the outward sign of my love for my wife.  Also, kids make me unselfish; I pick up their toys when I’m tired, grab them a midnight snack when their hungry, and play tee ball when I want to lay down after a long day at work.  I’m far from being a perfect parent, but I grow less selfish everyday because of my kids.

My wife and I got into a little tiff the other day over what we wanted for dinner.  This tiff began to escalate into an argument, and our two and a half year old daughter got into the middle of us and decided to play mediator.  With her arms flaring she turned to my wife and said, “Mama, calm down, calm down.”  She then turned to me and said “Dada, chill.  Chill dada.”  Needless to say, our argument ended immediately.  This serves as a little reminder; watch what you say around your kids.