Catholic Adventures: Pre-Cana

Mr. Pudding and I completed our Pre-Cana classes this Sunday. We opted not to do the weekend long "Engaged Encounter", and went to classes on Thursdays and Sundays for two weeks instead. Although we were both a little hesitant about the classes (Mr. P in particular), we actually thought them to be quite enjoyable.

Our sessions were mostly centered around group discussions. They were monitored by five married couples who took us through the material by sharing their personal experiences. We were often asked to share our thoughts with a small group, and than with the whole class. The questions up for discussion ranged from "what values do you and your partner have in common" and "how will you ensure that your marriage is a spiritually healthy one" to "how comfortable are you discussing sexuality with your partner".

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Although I was surprised by the very tolerant attitude that the presenters had when it came to sexuality (several of the couples with us had kids, and this was not frowned upon in any way), I was mostly uncomfortable with the discussion.  And so were the presenters.  We spent about 45 minutes talking about ways to be "intimate" without having sex, and than got a lecture on how to figure out whether or not a woman is fertile based on her "mucous levels".  I kid you not. 

All in all though, it was really nice to sit down with other couples and discuss issues that are important to us.  Mr. Pudding and I do not have very many married friends, so it was refreshing to talk with people that were on the same page as us.  We also did this activity called "The Family Alter", during which each pair was asked to bring in a symbol of their relationship and share with the group.  I loved hearing everyone's stories, and was touched by the amount of love that was in that room.

Did you take Pre-Cana classes?  What were your favorite and least favorite parts?