Hi JRochelle
This thread is getting to be very long so please forgive me if someone has already replied to your post.
The free will given to us by God is as important to to us Catholics as it is to our Protestant brethren. I couldn't tell you the specifics of why infant baptisms are done, but we do have the Sacrament of Confirmation. As the name implies, during this Sacrament, the Confirmandi affirms that of their own free will, they want to be a member of the Catholic Church. Unfortunately, I can't be more specific as I'm not very well versed in Catholic Church teachings. I'm sure someone will be gracious enough to fill in the blanks and correct any inaccuracies on my part. My thanks in advance to whoever does this.
As to praying to Saint's, we don't actually pray to Saints. We ask for a Saint's intervention on our behalf. A good example can be found within the Hail Mary
...Holy Mary, mother of God, pray for us sinners...
It is not a prayer to Mary as much as it is our asking Her to pray for us. Sort of like asking Her to put in the good word for us, to Her Son, our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.
I hope I haven't caused you any confusion and BTW, I am envious of you...you've been to the Vatican. Wow! Maybe one of these days, I will as well.
Best Regards
Sergio