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 get their downloads while it’s still Ash Wednesday. Scroll down to the bottom for those.
And, probably, you’re just dying to know what one particular barfy pregnant lady is doing and not doing for Lent.
Hope your Ash Wednesday is going great, or that it’s penitential in a good and useful way . . . somehow. +:0)
Ash Wednesday
We’ve been busy little bees around here today. We went to Mass for our ashes (among other things) . . .
Then we came home and between errands and dentist appointments and some school squeezed in there, we got the house ready for Lent.
I never, ever remember to bring our Palm Sunday palms back to church before Ash Wednesday, so we burned them ourselves and scattered the ashes in Mary’s garden.
The boys love it when their chores for the day involve setting things ablaze.
Jack made us an Alleluia rock to bury.
And Gus put the Clipart Lent Calendar on the door. By the way, a couple folks have said they couldn’t get it to download properly so they could print it out. If it didn’t work for you and you still want it, send me an email and I’ll send it to you as an attachment. If it DID work for you, will you let me know in the comments, so I know if it was an isolated glitch or a total failure.
And the mantle got some cacti and rocks and burlap.
And the front step got some new cacti, too. I love that giant one in the back. I feel like he needs a name.
I made a thorny wreath for the spot by the front door from branches off of our bougainvillea bushes. I love the way it turned out, but making it was very stabby. I should have found some gloves.
For dinner we are going to have my grandfather’s german potato and dumpling soup recipe. Which is good news. So tasty.
The even better news is . . . Betty is making it! I taught her how to cut the little spatzle dumplings into the soup to cook and she’s hard at work as I type.
For a day of fasting and penance, I’m pretty pleased with how it’s turned out.
The husband just landed in Las Vegas, where he’ll be trying to reconcile Ash Wednesday with a work dinner at the Venetian. Poor guy.
I’ve finally decided on my personal Lenten Disciplines. It’s been tricky for me this year with being pregnant and still feeling pretty lousy. I want to have a meaningful Lent, but I’m pretty tapped into my reserves as it stands. So, here’s what I have planned for Lent 2015:
To do LESS . . . yelling.
To do MORE . . . reading.
To NEVER . . . stay up past 11pm.
To ALWAYS . . . say the Angelus.
We’ll see how it goes.
And a little recap of yesterday . . .
Fat Tuesday
And while I am a BIG fan of from scratch eating, I do have a weakness for canned cinnamon rolls. Anita found the ring AGAIN. So she was our Queen of Epiphany and our Queen of Mardi Gras. The brothers were so happy for her.
In case you need further proof that Lulu is the best baby ever, she totally didn’t mind her mask. I’ve never had a baby who would wear one for more than a few seconds.
After dinner, we did our family tradition of attempting to eat up all the treats in the house.
The kids make these ridiculous ice cream sundaes. And then EAT them.
This was the aftermath in the kitchen . . .
What is it about those canned Cinnamon rolls? I am a big fan of from scratch baking too but I always love it when we have a guest since it's an excuse to make them! Thanks for the Lent ideas!
That Lulu is the cutest!
You must share your potato and dumpling soup recipe. Sounds like it's yummy!
BTW, I'm three weeks post partum, so I feel the lent discipline struggle. I might have to follow your lead….
I'm not a decorator, but your ideas are very nice and simple. Looks like a fun Mardi Gras and a good start to Lent!
Looks like an absolutely terrific time!! What fun!!
I used the download with out a problem. The quite is now printed out and hanging on our kitchen window. I love the ice cream Sunday idea. And smarties on ice cream is all sorts of gross awesomeness.
Wooooooooow what great traditions you and your family have!!!!! that's amazing that you plan all these great activities so that your children can fully participate in our liturgical year. When I'm a mom, I want to be like you!
I love your Lenten home makeover. That printable is fantastic!
This is so cute! Thanks for taking the time to share your family with ours. As a homegrown Cajun girl, I will say the cinnamon roll king cake is totally allowed! I started making those in grad school when I couldn't get the real stuff from home. The only thing I would say I do differently is braiding the cinnamon strips to make it (visually) more like a traditional cake. Otherwise, it's all the same (minus the fillings, I suppose).
Wonderful events to share and after lobster and ice cream we are ready to fast and off on vacation which doesn't seem to go together. We'll make it work.
I loved your post, but what I loved most (sorry) was realizing that it's ok to let the toe kicks of my kitchen cabinets get dirty. Currently I find myself down on my hands and knees scrubbing them clean about once a month. I think I'll back off a bit.
Hah! Well, I'll just put that on the to do list when I get all weird and nesty in a couple months. The, I'll wait and do it again before the next baby. 😉
Did you ever post what you decided to do about Sundays during Lent? Did the USCCB ever write you back?
I didn't ever hear back from the USCCB, but I talked with Scott P. Richert of the about.com Catholicism page. He pointed out that the Q&A section of the USCCB website is written by paid laypersons, not by bishops, and he wrote me a whole, super amazing, very detailed explanation of the history of the forty days of Lent. See that here.
So, we are once again firmly in the feasting on Sunday camp.
Thank you! I would have been quite disappointed to not feast on Sundays. I need treats.