Catholic in the City: A Woman's Journey to Living Out Her Faith

Our story was written in our wedding program and on http://chineaandshawverbaby.ourbabychannel.com/ . Here is how it was written: We would like to thank God for bringing us together almost three and a half years ago on June 5th, 2008. We truly believe that God was preparing us for each other. We believe that through God we found our life companion and true love in one another. Many of you know our story...but for those of you who don't...here it is: In early 2008 we both independently signed up for a summer trip sponsored by Maryknoll to Peru & Bolivia with other campus ministers from all over the country. Rosie was the director of campus ministry at the Newman Center in Albuquerque, NM and Mike was a campus minister at Xavier University in Cincinnati, OH. Rosie sent an email to the group and asked if any of us wanted to extend the trip for some personal vacation before we met up with the rest of the group. Mike gladly signed up along with another young woman named Becky

When Sofia was in my belly I kept a journal on another website, http://www.thebump.com/ . Now that Sofia is born the website will not let me update anything. It's actually quite annoying. Anyway, I am going to transfer all of that information into this blog so that I consolidate and don't loose information. Also, for now, since I am busy raising Sofia Rose with Mike, I am going to do very short posts. They will mainly revolve around things Sofia Rose is doing. I will include pictures. Occasionally, when inspired, I will include longer posts. http://chineaandshawverbaby.ourbabychannel.com/ This is the journal I wrote on http://www.thebump.com/ . Rosie & Sofia's Journal: 01/10/11: She is kicking often. Last night she woke me up about four times with her little kicks and punches. At this point I am adoring and in awe of every kick, punch, twist, and turn. Mike has felt her kick at least four times in the last few weeks. Every time he feels her mo

Dear Friends and Family: I just want to take a minute to thank you for your prayers and support given the journey that we have gone through in birthing Sofia Rose. Prayers were asked and on Friday April 1st, 2011 we witnessed an epiphany. Sofia Rose Shawver Chinea was born vaginally at 6:49 PM in Albuquerque, Mountain Standard Time, her weight was 5 pounds 15.2 ounces, 19.75 inches, Apgar 8-9; she even latched on immediately to the breast. Sofia was delivered to Michael and Rosie. It has truly been a manifestation of God's love to us via Sofia's Life. Truly Sofia Rose is a gift from the Lord to all of us. Thank you Lord for again being a witness of love. We had an AHA moment in the delivery. Rosie fainted and loss consciousness due to the loss of too much blood in her fast delivery of 40 minutes...her blood pressure came down very low and we became a witness of an emergency and my adrenaline spiking off of the roof...We reacted very well and I can truly say... that I

(This article was written for the People of God, the Archdiocesan Newspaper for the Archdiocese of Santa Fe. It will possibly be published in May.) When one is an undergraduate in college, sometimes, the world one lives in is similar to living in a “bubble”. College students tend to focus on their school work, outside work to pay the bills, their social lives, and maybe their families and religion. Thinking about issues of social injustice in our world is something that is merely beyond their view. I know these are generalizations and there are always exceptions to these generalizations. However, for the students that this does characterize exposure to social injustices both locally and globally are essential to broadening their minds and hearts. From Sunday, March 13th to Wednesday, March 16th, two students from Highlands University’s Newman Center in Las Vegas, New Mexico, their campus minister and staff advisor came to learn about and volunteer with Catholic Charities and othe

Rosie & Sofia (36 weeks) The last few weeks have been life changing. On Thursday, March 10th, I received a phone call from a doctor asking for me and my husband to go Lovelace Woman's Hospital for a follow up appointment (following up on an appointment I had on Tues. March 8th) as soon as possible. Because my fluid levels in the amniotic sac have been consistently in the normal-low range they wanted to do another follow up ultrasound. The day I received the phone call I was thrown for a loop. Just two days before my midwife had told me not to worry. She said the fluid was in the normal-low range but that we would just wait things out. I was in a total panic when I received the phone call. I felt a rush of anxiety and stress. I cried and I apologized to Sofia for not producing what she needed. What I do naturally in a time of distress is turn to God, I went to mass with my husband. We prayed. We asked God to watch over our little Sofia. After mass I felt somewhat relieved. At

A few months ago, Mike and I, took a drive to Las Vegas, NM. I had an appointment with the campus minister at Highlands University in Las Vegas, NM for my job at Catholic Charities. I had decided to ask Mike to join me because at that point I knew I was already pregnant with baby Sofia, it was the first trimester, and there were times during that trimester where I was feeling nauseated. Anyway, during this trip there were two goals for me when meeting with the campus minister: 1) to listen to their, the college students and the local communities, needs, 2) to tell them what Catholic Charities in the Archdiocese of Santa Fe already does. In the end I was eagerly surprised that there were many things that came from the brief one hour meeting. In Albuquerque, from my experience of living in Albuquerque (five years), there are several social justice issues that are prominent: poor school system that translates into poorly educated people, immigrant rights, lack of housing for low income i

Last night as I was laying in bed the number 40 struck me. As many people know women are pregnant for 40 weeks. In the Bible the number 40 is repeated several times; it rained 40 days and 40 nights when God wanted to cleanse the world and start over (Gen. 7:13), the Israelites spent 40 years in the wilderness (Ex. 16:35), Jesus fasted for 40 days in the wilderness before starting his public ministry (Matt. 4:1-2), and Jesus' ascension to heaven occurs 40 days after the Resurrection (Acts 1:3). These are only some of the examples in the Bible where the number 40 is referred to. While our Catholic faith teaches us that numbers in the Bible should not be taken literally but symbolically, it's an interesting comparison, for me, that the number 40 in the Bible could have some connection to the number of weeks a woman is pregnant. In the Bible the number 40 denotes a time period when God made major changes so that transformation could occur. Usually it's a time period of

(This article was written for the People of God, the Archdiocesan Newspaper for the Archdiocese of Santa Fe. It will be published in April.) Parish secretaries and receptionists, in my opinion, are the unsung heroes and heroines of our Catholic parishes. First, they greet all people who walk into our parish doors. They are the first face that all people meet and are the first impression of our parishes. Second, they tend to have many projects, atypical of a regular secretary or receptionist, which the parish needs to function. For example, many secretaries/receptionists put together the weekly bulletin, others schedule liturgical ministers, one particular secretary I just met does all the behind the scenes work for baptisms, weddings, and quinceañeras. Third, they interact with a population that is in desperate need of social services. Many times secretaries/receptionists receive walk-ins or phone calls from people in need of assistance for rent, utilities, food, clothing, an

I know this blog is about a week late but I still have a desire to write about Valentine's Day. In Catholic history, there is discrepancy on who St. Valentine's was. Some say he was a martyr of the Christian faith because he would not renounce the faith. Others say he was a priest whom was jailed for defiance of marrying Christian couples and aiding Christians whom were being persecuted during the reign of Claudius in Rome; both of these things were considered a crime. Then once in jail Valentinus (true name of St. Valentine's) attempted to convert the emperor leading to Valentinus' death. While another account states that he was a bishop in Terni where he was beheaded in a purge of priests in an effort to eradicate the faith. Since there are no clear details on who St. Valentine's was the Catholic Church in 1969 decided to drop him out of the Roman calendar and we therefore do not celebrate his feast day. However, he is known as the patron saint of love, lo

A few days ago I finished reading Fr. Greg Boyle SJ's book, Tattoos on the Heart: The Power of Boundless Compassion . I was inspired to read this book following Fr. Boyle's visit and presentation to a group of us in Albuquerque. The book is set in Boyle Heights, inner city Los Angeles. Fr. Boyle, a native of a more affluent part of Los Angeles, has been working in the Boyle Heights neighborhood for over 20 years. In Los Angeles county, according to Fr. Boyle's book, there are approximately 1,100 gangs and 86,000 gang members. In Fr. Boyle's time in Boyle Heights he has buried over 170 young people whom were connected to gangs. One of the poorest, high drug dealing, and most gang inhabited areas in Los Angeles is Boyle Heights. From my reading of his book, Fr. Boyle knew from the start of his placement in Boyle Heights that something needed to change. In 1986 Fr. Boyle created what is now known as Homeboy Industries ( http://www.homeboy-industries.org/ ). Home

I just finished reading a fabulous book called, Guatemala In My Blood: How Nursing in Remote Jungle Villages Revolutionized my Life . The book was given to me by a nurse who comes to visit Mike & I weekly to give us, as first time parents, education on prenatal care and will meet with us weekly until Sofia is three years old, continuing our education on raising a child. It's an amazing program for both Mike & I because we have a lot of questions and it's wonderful to have the extra medical support, free of charge. Anyone can enroll in this program, regardless of socio-economic status and regardless of having or not having health insurance. http://www.stjosephnm.org/ I would recommend this program to any first time parents in the Albuquerque area! Our nurse, Sarah, is also an amazing person. She volunteered through the Peace Corps in Morocco, North Africa, where she did community health education (what my mom did in my hometown). And prior to that experie

I had a tad of an idea, before I got pregnant, about the sacrifices that mothers take the moment they find out they are with child. As many people know mothers give up things such as caffeine, including coffee and soda, alcohol, and artificial sweeteners so that while their baby is in utero s/he will stay healthy. To give these things up for me have been miniscule. For me, the most challenging portion of this pregnancy has been the dichotomy between taking care of your body to the best of your ability while letting go of what your body does. By letting go of your body I don't mean driving through the McDonalds drive in every day....or stopping to work out. By letting go of your body I mean allowing the natural course of pregnancy upon your body take place without much resistance. There are many things that happen to ones body while one is pregnant that I had no clue about, such as, leg cramps (many times in one night), getting a bloody nose, nausea, less energy, shortness of

This last week I found out about three engagements! This summer, not including the three engagements, my cousin is getting married, a good family friend is getting married, and four former students (2 other weddings) I worked with are getting married! Weddings, for me, if the couple has discerned their relationship thoughtfully and prayerfully, are one of the most exciting and grace-filled moments one can experience in their lifetime. Honestly, I feel so blessed to have married Mike. He and I both dated some great people in our past...but none of them had everything that God had envisioned for us. There was always something within those relationships that left us both wanting more; something within us that was left untapped. We had to be patient and set aside our time lines to allow God to work within our lives. When we met in person, after a month of long emails and 2-3 hour phone conversations, we both knew that God had helped us to build a solid foundation for a deep faith-filled r

Twelve week ultrasound of Sofia Rose Hello!! Besides the last post on my Titi Rosie, it has been months since I have blogged! I apologize to my fans. Teehee. As many of you know I am 27 weeks pregnant today. The first trimester I was tired and nauseated all of the time. I had little energy to do anything but work, workout, cook, and sleep. The second trimester has been a lot better, health wise, but I found no time to blog due to the holidays. Now we are at the end of our second trimester...one more week until our third trimester...and I am finally finding time to blog. As I write this blog I feel little Sofia Rose kicking and squirming. Today she kicked me ten times in less than three minutes! I have started another website just for Sofia. Primarily it will give occasional updates on how she is doing while she in my belly and it also has our registry information. The registry information at this point is not completed. We have three registries up and running but we have not fini

On Jan. 14th, 2011, a woman very dear to my heart and close to my life passed away, my Titi (aunt) Rosie. She was a woman of strength and filled with the Spirit of God. I am certain that at this stage in her journey she is with God. Ever since I was young I have admired my Titi Rosie. She moved out to California when I was nine years old. Before she moved here I remember my mom talking to her on the phone, we were in my parents room and I was laying on my parents bed as my mother talked. She invited my Titi and my two cousins to move to California. My Titi said yes. She and my two cousins, Carmen and Jason, lived with my family for six months as the resettled in their new home in California. She created a sense of safeness and deep love from the first moment I met her. I remember her singing to me in the car. Since I was a hyper child, she sang fun songs to keep me calm during long car rides. One specific song I remember was about the Titanic. I remember her editing my En