So, for those of you that don't know, I'm Catholic and it has always been a dream of mine to get married in the Catholic church. This, however, is not a quick and simple process. In order for the church to agree to marry us, we have to go through something called Pre-Cana. Pre-Cana consists of going through what I would call couples counseling with the priest, a family planning meeting, a conflict management seminar, and something the church is calling 'Engaged Encounter Weekend' (thank goodness I have such a patient and loving fiance!). However, before the church confirms our date and we can do any of that, we have to take a test; the FOCCUS test (Facilitating Open Couple Communication, Understanding & Study). I have heard from other couples that it is actually kind of fun, although I typically wouldn't use the word "fun" to describe a 190-question test! The test deals with everything from family issues to drinking and gambling to careers. They take the results and incorporate them into our counseling sessions so that we can talk through any areas in which we might have differing opinions. I guess it actually sounds kinda cool. Nathan and I have never really talked about some of the issues, so it might be interesting to see his views on something like gambling. Anyway, the big test date is tomorrow night (October 9th). Everyone wish us luck! We'll post again once we find out our results!
Side Note: We are not officially divulging the name of the church we would like to get married in until they have confirmed our date, so as not to jinx it (I know everyone is sooo crushed)! But, that is a picture of the church above. For those that know which church that is, you're a step ahead of everyone else!
Every year my mom and I and a couple friends walk in the Race for the Cure. It is an incredible opportunity to celebrate those women who have won their fight against breast cancer as well as honor those that were taken from us entirely too soon. It is unbelievable how many lives this disease has touched. 32,000 people were a part of the event this year and almost every single one of them walked in honor of at least one person who has 
fought this terrible disease and 1 in 8 women will be diagnosed with breast cancer this year. The numbers are staggering. In fact, most people reading this have had their lives touched by breast cancer in some way, I know Nathan and I both have. If you have never been a part of a Race for the Cure event, I urge you to sign up next year! Although, it was a women-only event in the past, men are now encouraged to participate. After all, they are all affected as well. If you don't want to walk, then you can register and come take part in the festivities. All the registration money goes to finding a cure for breast cancer. It would be well worth your time, I promise you. The whole morning is a great big celebration of life! The survivors wear pink shirts and it is absolutely incredible to see all of these strong women in one place. It's experiences like these that really put me in my place and make me think about all of the insignificant complaints I have from day to day. To see all those women in pink shirts who have fought or are fighting this disease with grace and dignity is eye opening. I only wish that I had their strength. It is truly inspiring.
After lunch with the Nelsons, Nathan and I went to the Fort Worth zoo to kill a little time before the football game. If you haven't been to the Fort Worth zoo, I suggest you go pronto! It was so much fun! The lions and tigers both just had cubs, we got to see the penguins (my favorite) and, although I couldn't look, Nathan was mesmerized by the bald eagle tearing apart some sort of rodent. I know he was mesmerized because when I downloaded all of my pictures, there were about 6 of the bloody massacre. Yuck! 
I was really excited to hear the lion roar! Nathan thinks
Pregame Ritual
