Lenten Traditions

Lent is really my favorite season. It makes you stop and think. Slow down and remember the things that are truly important. My sacrifices this year are Facebook, desserts, no yelling, and just really focusing on my kids and family.

Today is Ash Wednesday, and we'll be going as a family to Mass. We have used the countdown calendar from Catholic Icing for the last few years, and they really enjoy counting down the days.
We put a sticker on each day. I also printed out the Giving Alms printable, and made a box for us to put food in every week for church.

The big kids will pick out some toys to put away and they'll get them back on Easter with their baskets. We've done this for a few years, and once the toys are gone a few days, they don't really ask about them. It's so fun to see their faces on Easter morning.

This is the first year we "Buried the Alleluia". I followed a tutorial on Waltzing Matilda. I used a flour sack towel, fabric paint and puffy paints. It hung in the kitchen all week last week and we hid it until Easter. We also made a crown of thorns with toothpicks. Each sacrifice or good deed, we'll remove a thorn.

Daily we'll read the reflections in Welcome Risen Jesus. I found it at our Catholic bookstore for under $2.

Friday's our Parish has Stations of the Cross and rosary at 12 noon (so glad it's not at 7 am), which we will be attending. I printed out Stations of the Cross and laminated them at the library, so we can use them next year too. I realized this morning that my 6th and 7th station got stuck together, so I'll have to make another library trip. The kids know most of them already, which I was surprised about.

It seems like a lot going on, and some things may get pushed to the side. Lent isn't about being perfect it's about focusing on prayer, fasting, and alms giving.

Here are my Links for Lent from last year.