Also available as a YouTube video here! Well, you've done it. You AND your children have, somehow, against all odds, survived through to these last few days of Lent. Though for a while there, it looked like you might succumb to acute lack of coffee / Netflix /...
Happy Fat Tuesday, y'all! Scroll to the bottom for a Mardi Gras party printable freebie. Note: Illustrations are from vintage crime novel covers Lent, you guys. Here it comes again. Late this year, but coming nonetheless. I've written about how my general approach to...
It's a solemnity and a Meat Friday, I hope you're celebrating today! I posted last week with some celebration ideas and free printables for the feast of St. Joseph. But I had to pop back in today to share one of my ALL-TIME favorite poems. We read it for St. Joseph's...
Get this as free printable here!Download Well, here we are on Monday of the first week of Lent. Happy feast of the Chair of St. Peter! (See how our family celebrates the day here.) If Ash Wednesday crept up on you this year, not to worry . . . it's never too late to...
The triduum is upon us! Let's talk Holy Thursday. No, wait, for a Holy Thursday overview, see this post The “You Can Still Do This” Guide to All Things Holy Week Here, let's talk about the Seven Churches Visitation. Under normal circumstances, following the Holy...
Happy Spy Wednesday! Today we'll be hiding thirty quarters. Here's why: https://youtu.be/2alx0jkg1Jw See the April Booklet for the collects and readings for Spy Wednesday and each day of the Triduum. We've done the quarters thing for many years now, and love it. New...
Palm Sunday is tomorrow you guys! I'm inadvertently VERY prepared for an at home Holy Week and Easter, but definitely mourning the prospect. The images of Palm Sunday from old picture Bibles are kinda punching me in the gut right now. The sea of humanity, the crowd,...
We are a week into Lent. Probably we've all had some moments to be proud of, and some fails, right? That's to be expected. The spring Ember Days begin today, Wednesday, and continue on Friday and Saturday. Ember Days are seasonal days of fasting and repentance that...
Liturgical Living heads up! Lent is quickly approaching. Ash Wednesday is February 26th this year, so we've only got a couple weeks to get our acts together here and figure out what we're going to do. Also, it's Catholic Mom Bundle time again! This year's Lent bundle...
Spy Wednesday "Spy" Wednesday 🕵️♂️ is the name traditionally given to the Wednesday of Holy Week. This is the day Judas betrayed Jesus, telling the high priest when Jesus would be in a place where he could be more conveniently...
There's an all new Catholic All Year Liturgical Living Video up, all about the Stations of the Cross! Scroll on down to check it out. And because I love you guys . . . you get a bonus video this time. I die. every. time. It's the cutest. If it looks like Mary Jane is...
Mailbag Question! Q: I've heard people talk about Advent and Lent both being seasons of penance during the liturgical year. Can you help me understand how to explain the differences in the seasons to my family, and how to observe them in the home? A: Ooh, good...
Lent . . . is coming. Finally. It's super late this year. Almost as late as it can possibly be. The latest since 2000 and the latest until 2030 when Easter will be on April 23 again. In 2038 it will be on April 25th, the latest possible Easter! I might be the only...
The Catholic All March booklets, plus a bunch of new printables for Lent, are available now in the shop and on Amazon. More details below. 👇 Ash Wednesday is coming up in less than two weeks! (It's super late this year.) The actual REQUIREMENTS of Catholics...
Mailbag time! The Question: Hi Kendra, I was wondering if you were going to write a post about how Valentine’s Day is on Ash Wednesday & how you guys will address that at your house. My thought was to celebrate St. Valentine’s Day the day before like the vigil....
Mailbag time! The Question: Hi, Kendra! Thanks so much for your blog. I was hoping you could offer some advice on a question regarding living out the liturgical year with young kids. Our parish Easter egg hunt is scheduled for Holy Saturday morning and I don't know...
It's still Easter today! Happy Easter! Let's jump in the ol' T.A.R.D.I.S. and take a look back at the Triduum, just for posterity's sake, shall we? And let's, um, go backwards. 'Cause, why not? In case you missed it in all the hubbub yesterday, here are all the Easter...
Every year, during the first three days of Holy Week, we do a big declutter and donate. This is how I get motivated . . . We Can Do It! Here's why it works for us . . . 1. Since it's tied to a big event - Easter - I can't "forget" about it, or put it off...
Today is the fifth Sunday of Lent, traditionally known as Passion Sunday. This is the day on which images and statues are often veiled in churches. We like to do this in our home as well. (I used think we were supposed to do this for all of Lent, but have recently...
Blogger was having some technical difficulties last night and this morning, so most people (including me) got a "server down" error message when they tried to access Catholic All Year and many other blogs. But it seems to have been resolved. So if you missed today's...
I shared a bunch of these photos on Instagram and a couple on Facebook, but not all of them. So I figured I'd throw them up here as quick as I can, in case you didn't see them there. AND I want to announce the winners of the Lent giveaway in time for the winners to...
Lent is nigh, you guys. It is NIGH. Hope you're ready. If you're not, I might be able to help . . . with some recommendations, and some free printables, and a contest. But let's not get ahead of ourselves, shall we? Because before Ash Wednesday, comes Fat Tuesday (aka...
I'm once again striding boldly into the dangerous, churning waters of Lenten "breaks." This time to answer a mailbag question . . . Question: Hi Kendra! My youngest is celebrating his first birthday next month and I'm wondering how to celebrate a birthday in Lent. I...
Okay, folks. Now that Candlemas is over and all things Christmas are officially behind us, it's time to quit being in denial that Lent is coming. Fast. It is for me, anyway. Two weeks from today is Fat Tuesday. Then, it's on. A pretty significant percentage of my...
How much of Jesus' suffering and death to share with little ones is a question many parents struggle with. It can be overwhelming to feel like you have to introduce so many facts and concepts and characters all at once, especially if your kids are perhaps more...
It's Laetare Sunday! If you just said, "Huh?" You're not alone. But here's a hint: You know how almost never, but it seems like maybe a couple times a year the priest wear pink vestments? That's today. From Scott P. Richert at the very excellent About.com Catholicism...
UPDATE: I'm now back on board with my original post, thanks to some advice from Scott P. Richert of the About.com Catholic page and your comments. Whew. But I'm leaving this up because it happened, and because the photoshopping is pretty profound. Dear...
Sundays in Lent seem to be a genuine source of confusion among Catholics. Both the "I don't cheat on Sundays" people and the "Sundays don't count" people believe that Church teaching is on their side. Or perhaps they just think there isn't a formal Church teaching on...
Pshew, we did it. It took a whole day, and we didn't get ANY schoolwork done (double day tomorrow!) but we went to Mass, got our ashes, decorated the house for Lent, and . . . Cleaned Out the Toys! Here's our day in pictures . . . ashes remember, baby, you are...
Don't look now, but Lent is nearly upon us. Here are a few ways to make sure we get to the end of these 40 days a bit holier than we were when we started. 1. Choose Lent Disciplines that Challenge You It took me a while to understand that tendency folks seem to have...
--- 1 --- Don't adjust your screens ladies and gentlemen (mostly ladies), you read that correctly. I am getting rid of our toys. WITH MY KIDS' BLESSING! Last year's big toy closet organization scheme helped. But the playroom is still a major source of heartache and...
Through my various Lenten fails over the years, I've learned a different way of approaching Lent. In our house, we now view Lent as a time to try adding or taking away things from our personal and family lives to see if we are improved. We make it a time, not of...
Exactly as I had always planned it and in no way because I totally forgot about it, today you get a recap of Lent . . . And there will be prizes. Extra prizes. So keep reading.I had a big list of stuff that I wanted to try doing or not doing for Lent, but...
I've been posting photos from the last couple of days on the Catholic All Year Facebook page, but I know not everyone who reads the blog is on Facebook. So while I'm waiting for my hot cross buns to rise, I figured I'd put the photos up here too. Happy Holy...
Yesterday I wrote about what we do for Holy Thursday. (I had intended to write about what we do for the whole Triduum, but, as usual, it got a little long, so here's the second installment.)Good Friday is meant to be a solemn and somber day. But little...
As the end of Lent comes in to sight, I like to focus on one of my favorite things about this time of year: saying the word Triduum. Seriously, how great is that word? It's right up there with trousers, gubernatorial, and ladle. ...
As the light of Easter morning slowly begins to lighten the horizon of our Lenten journey (seriously you guys, can you believe I'm writing this stuff for you for FREE?), I thought I would address a concern that seems to plague good Catholics all year, but especially...
--- 1 --- Two of my boys can say they were named for a Pope, but only one can say that a Pope was named for him. (Sorry Gus!) When Gus was a toddler, a priest once remarked to me,"If you didn't want him to give you trouble,you probably shouldn't have named him...
I have already posted about our family's Lent undertakings. And what I'm doing this year. But not everything I have tried to do (or not do) for Lent has worked. Today, you get to hear about what I don't do during Lent, what I avoid not doing during Lent, things I...
I don't see this jar as mostly empty,I see it as a tiny bit full Our clipart Lent calendar and our Lent RemindersOnly forty-three pictures to go Our school/dining tableWith purple cloth, potted succulent, and rocksAlso, in-progress mortification(Just look at that...
Happy (?) Ash Wednesday everyone! Lent 2013 is upon us. Here's what I'm doing for Lent. Our family goal is to live a perfect Christian life for 40 days. We've never managed it yet, but maybe this is the year! We don't include Sundays or Feast days in our fasts...
Adam from Arma Dei: Equipping Catholic Families has issued a challenge to Frankie and me and all of you too! This challenge is now closed, however, you can still take up a Chore and share with me on the Catholic All Year Facebook page! Every time you tackle a special...
We expect a lot from our kids. We demand good behavior in church, kneeling up straight for evening prayers, and speaking up when saying the Rosary. We keep Lent (and Advent). We fast and abstain when the Pope says we're sposta. And all that's great. It's its own...
This post is one in a series of Catholic Toddler Letters. To see more, click on the tab above. Last week, Adam from Equipping Catholic Families asked Frankie, What kind of things does your family do during Lent, Frankie? Dear Adam, Thanks for introducing me to your...