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SIMPLE Lent Activities

by Filed Under: Crafts, Lent

Lenten Calendar
I found my inspiration from Jessica and have modified this year’s calendar.
Lenten Cleaning
We attempt to prepare our physical house as well as spiritual house in preparation for the Resurrection of Jesus. 
Here is our cleaning outline for the year and pictures from our Lenten cleaning in 2009.
Sacrifice Beans
Each child is given a jar and she is responsible for depositing a bean for her act of kindness or sacrifice. We generally do not have the children remove beans but this year we have decided to have the children remove beans from their jar for not being “Christ-like.” We wanted to try it this way this year since Sparkles is preparing for her First Communion.
Resurrection Eggs
**UPDATE**
Resurrection Eggs Tutorial
Rose made her first set of Resurrection Eggs with Sparkles’ Godmother years ago.  We have incorporated them every year since.  I’m not sure where she found her material but I have continued to use her narration and eggs contents.   I hope to have a tutorial soon since I’m planning this as the craft for my next Little Flowers meeting.
Almsgiving
We forgo treats, daily pleasures and wants to donate to our local Life Center & Catholic Bishop’s Maternity Home.  We attend Mass on Holy Thursday. The girls present their Lenten collection. Rose presents the family’s flower offering for the Altar of Repose. It is a long evening for the children. Mass starts at 6pm and ends at 9:30.  Mass is followed by Adoration.  (We’ve yet to last through Adoration since we drive 1 hr each way to Mass).
Fasting
We observe Good Friday in solace. This hasn’t always been the case but we finally answered God’s prompting placed on our hearts. There are no activities (sports, entertainment, and the like) – only Mass, family prayer, viewing of the Passion and our Good Friday meal.
For years we have eaten tomato soup with a grilled cheese (for kids). The kids We have grown to enjoy this soup very much. So much so, that I’m rethinking its place as a Lenten meal. However, Sweetie does call it Jesus’ blood.
Lent Link-Up

Lenten Calendar

by Filed Under: Lent

It took me more time than anticipated but it’s done!

I wanted to create something that could be used for years to come without having to start from scratch every year. I had a wonderful magnetic calendar idea in my head but I decided to go with the less labor intensive option, photo calendar created on my computer. Hopefully I’ve shaved off some of the prep time this year.  I’m sure I’ll add more to it over the years.

If anything, it’s more colorful than our last year’s calendar.

The calendar was printed at Costco Photo in 16×20 for the family down stairs and 8×10 for Rose’s bedroom. 

It’s a pleasant reminder of our family goals for lent*:

  • Grow in CHARITY
  • Increase prayer life
  • Learn more about the lives of the saints
  • Reclaim our family Adoration time
  • Clean physical house by simplifying and purging
  • Clean spiritual house by almsgiving, works of mercy, and spirutal readings   
 *these are in addition to our personal Lenten programs

These are the Lenten Activities we have listed on the calendar:

  • Lent for Children: A Thought a Day (daily)
  • Update the bean jar for sacrifices/almsgiving (daily)
  • Review personal Lenten program chart (daily)
  • Pick Cleaning item out of jar & perform assigned task from the Lenten Cleaning Calendar (Mon.-Sat.)
  • Adoration (Thursday)
  • Stations of the Cross (Friday)
  • Select family almsgiving activity for the week (Sun.)
in addition to the children’s collection for Life Center and simplifying our home by donating new and old items to the homeless shelters. 
– visit the elderly/sick in the rest home
– pray at the abortion clinic
– provide service to the pregnancy resource center
– cook meal for Father
– cook meal or invite family to home for meal
– invite someone to Mass
– provide additional service to Parish

Each weekday has been assigned a permanent prayer intention.

  • Mon – End to Abortion
  • Tue – Conversion of Family
  • Wed – Godparents & Godchildren
  • Thur – Pope Benedict XVI & Priests
  • Fri – Souls in Purgatory
  • Sat – Vocations
  • Sun – Poor, homeless, and those in great need 

We will also be using these resources:
kids

adults

Here’s where I found my inspiration:
The photo calendar’s background paper is from Shabby Princess. 

**UPDATE**
2011 Lenten Calendar

Our Lady of Lourdes

by Filed Under: Marian, Monday's with Mary, Our Lady of Lourdes

Things didn’t go as planned desired.  We made due nonetheless and had a blessed feast day of Our Lady of Lourdes.

Sparkles (Bernadette) and Sweetie (Mary) acted out Meredith’s retelling of the apparition of Our Lady.  It was the first time we made reference to Monday’s With Mary.  It’s beautiful.

Here are the treats we had in honor of Our Lady of Lourdes.  Sparkles was in charge of finding the correlation between the treats and feast day.

Piglets in a blanket are always enjoyed by the little ones when they get to make them on their own.  They like to add cheese.
What can I say!  I can’t resist Sonic Happy Hour and I’ve been craving all things tart.  It’s very refreshing!

Holy Mary, Mother of believers, Our Lady of Lourdes, pray for us.

Amen.

Little Flowers 5th Meeting – Joy/Mirthfulness & St. Clare of Assisi

by Filed Under: Joy, Little Flowers, St. Clare of Assisi

JOY~MIRTHFULNESS
August 12
Born: July, 1194 – Died: August, 1253

 

Patron of: clairvoyance, eye disease, goldsmiths, laundry, embroidiers, gilders, good weather, needleworkers, telephones, telegraphs, television

Be very joyful and glad, filled with a remarkable happiness and a spiritual joy! [Progress] from good to better, from virtue to virtue, so that He Whom You serve with the total desire of Your soul may bestow on You the reward for which You so long. (Blessing of St. Clare, 21, 32)

Meeting Activities
Memory Verse
St. Clare Coloring Page
Embroidery Pattern
Orange Tulips
Joyful Coloring Page – Print page 4-4
Joyful Music  – #6 on Virtue Activity Page
Info on the Poor Clares – the order that St. Clare founded

Biography
Catholic Culture
Saints & Angels
EWTN
American Catholic
Domestic-Church
Women of Faith & Family


Audio & Video Resources
Homily: Feast of St. Clare
Video St. Clare of Assisi – Bob & Penny Lord
Audio St. Clare of Assisi – Bob & Penny Lord

Prayers
St. Clare’s Litany of the Sacred Wounds
Novena to St. Clare of Assisi:
Dear St. Clare, as a young girl you imitated your mother’s love for the poor of your native Assisi. Inspired by the preaching of St. Francis, who sang enthusiastically of His Lord Jesus and Lady Poverty, you gave your life to Jesus at nineteen years of age, allowing St. Francis to cut off your beautiful hair and invest you with the Franciscan habit. All through your life you offered your great suffering for your Sisters, the Poor Clares, and the conversion of souls. You greatly aided St. Francis with his new order, carrying on his spirit in the Franciscans after his death. Most of all you had a deep love of Jesus in the Most Blessed Sacrament, which fueled your vocation to love and care for the poor. Please pray for me (mention your request) that I will seek to keep Jesus as my first love, as you did. Help me to grow in love of the Blessed Sacrament, to care for the poor, and to offer my whole life to God. Heavenly Father, thank You for the gift of St. Clare. Through her intercession, please hear and answer my prayer, in the name of Jesus Your Son. Amen.
Go forth in peace, for you have followed the good road. Go forth without fear, for he who created you has made you holy, has always protected you, and loves you as a mother. Blessed be you, my God, for having created me.  – Saint Clare of Assisi

Quotes of St. Clare of Assisi

“Place your mind before the mirror of eternity! Place your soul in the brilliance of glory! And transform your entire being into the image of the Godhead Itself through contemplation.”

“He Christ is the splendor of eternal glory, “the brightness of eternal light, and the mirror without cloud.”

“Gaze upon Him, consider Him, contemplate Him, as you desire to imitate Him.”

“I come, O Lord, unto Thy sanctuary to see the life and food of my soul. As I hope in Thee, O Lord, inspire me with that confidence which brings me to Thy holy mountain. Permit me, Divine Jesus, to come closer to Thee, that my whole soul may do homage to the greatness of Thy majesty; that my heart, with its tenderest affections, may acknowledge Thine infinite love; that my memory may dwell on the admirable mysteries here renewed every day, and that the sacrifice of my whole being may accompany Thine.”

“Totally love Him, Who gave Himself totally for your love.”

Embroidery ~ St. Clare Dolls

by Filed Under: Crafts, Little Flowers, St. Clare of Assisi

Embroidery ~ St. Clare Dolls
St. Clare is the patron saint of embroiders.
This was the craft chosen for Little Flowers ~ Saint Clare of Assisi and the virtue of Joy-Mirthfulness.
 SUPPLIES:
  • Crochet Thread (weight 5-10) – thicker than embroidery thread and does not require unraveling as does embroidery floss.  I doubled the crochet thread for the Little Flowers to avoid the need for re-threading.   (Embroidery thread (ET) was used for small areas)
          dark brown – tunic 
          black – veil
          nude – face, nose, hands, feet (St. Clare of Assisi never wore shoes or socks)
          gold – halo, monstrance    
          white – wimple (starched white part of the veil)
          green/blue/brown (ET) – eyes
          pink (ET) – mouth
STEPS:
          Place printed sheet under fabric
         Trace image onto fabric with a water soluble fabric pen
  • Place fabric w/ image into an oval embroidery hoop
  • Embroider using the running stitch
Running Stitch—This stitch is used for outline and padding. The needle is carried in and out of material making small up and down even stitches. Take several stitches on needle before drawing it through.
 
Embroidery Links

West Coast Walk For Life 2010

by Filed Under: Walk For Life

We had plan on attending this year’s Walk for Life together as a family but God had other plans. I became sick and decided to stay behind with Papi and Sweetie. Gary took Rose and Sparkles on our parish sponsored bus.

Sparkles was praying hard to be able to attend this year’s walk. It didn’t hurt that Father S. reminded the kids at First Communion class. Sparkles chose her sign from the selection at Catholic Icing. Sparkles was very pleased with her sign.

Rose choose to take a line from her favorite movie, Come What May.

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