This Sunday is the Seventh Sunday of Easter, but many parishes (including mine) also celebrate the Ascension, which is 40 days into Easter.

Jesus ends His work on earth to take His place at the right hand of the Father.  Beforehand, He tells His disciples

He does not leave them to do His work on their own, as it says in Mark 16:20, "But they went forth and preached everywhere, while the Lord worked with them and confirmed the word through accompanying signs".  

We too are not alone.  We do not have to do God's will all by ourselves.  Jesus is in heaven helping us.  All we have to do is to ask and be open to His grace.

When I am attentive to my relationship with Jesus, I am best able to do His work and live out His will.  

I hope to continue to grow in this area in my own life and pass this on to my children. 

 
Click here for the Our Catholic Family Meeting slideshow document.

Catholic Family Meeting {Prep for Sixth Sunday of Easter, Cycle B}

This week's readings seem to be about one thing: love.

In the gospel reading, we hear Jesus tell His disciples:

It sounds so simple, "love one another as I love you".  

For probably as long as I can remember, I have been struggling with my short-temper.  I like to say that I'm not that analytical, in that I don't spend a lot of time pondering and analyzing each word someone has said, what they meant or didn't mean, how I should interpret it, etc.  This also means that I don't think a whole lot before I say things myself....which often times means that my short-temper gets the words out before I've even had time to think enough to stop it.  It is something I pray about and struggle with everyday, especially with small children who tend to fight against control (which I tend to impose too much of) and who have their own God-given personalities and ideas that can sometimes run counter to mine.  Life doesn't fit into the perfect little box that I seem to be inclined to fit it into.

Needless to say, I want to live each moment of each day selflessly loving my children, my husband, my family and friends, my acquaintances, and strangers.  I know that to do this will take prayer and practice.  

Recently I heard Matthew Kelly speak, and he said that the saints didn't lead lives of complete holiness.  The saints lived many holy moments.  So from this, his idea for becoming holier was to aim to build moments of holiness.  First for 1 minute of holiness, then when you've got that, go for 2 minutes, 3 minutes, etc.   

So that's what I'm going to try to do.  Live moments of holiness in which I am loving all others as Jesus loves me.

Pray for me!   

Here is this week's Catholic Family Meeting slideshow:

Click here for to open the Google Slideshow

Catholic Family Meeting {Prep for Fifth Sunday of Easter, Cycle B}

This week we celebrate the Fifth Sunday of Easter.  I really love how the Easter season coincides with the renewal of spring.  And what a perfect time to discuss this week's gospel reading (John 15:1-8), where Jesus instructs His disciples at the Last Supper:  

How true this is too.  There are so many examples in my life of how I was unable to "bear fruit" (solve a problem or achieve a desired result) simply because I remained in myself instead of Christ.  For most of my life, when difficulties arose, I simply turned inward to see if I could solve it, assuming that I should be able to figure out things on my own.  I was pretty smart and capable, I thought.  How proud I was.  In hindsight, I could have saved myself much difficulty throughout life by abiding in Christ.  Keeping Him close, as He keeps me close to Him.  

I realize now that the only way that anything I do or say can bear good fruit is by abiding in Christ.  

It is something I have to remind myself of daily:  To put Him first in my life.

Click here to view Our Catholic Family Meeting slideshow document

Catholic Family Meeting {Prep for Fourth Sunday of Easter, Cycle B}

If you didn't see it last week, I shared about the new and improved Catholic Family Meeting slideshows and how our family meets.  

This Fourth Sunday of Easter is called Good Shepherd Sunday because the gospel reading always comes from the tenth chapter of the Gospel of John on, you guessed it...the Good Shepherd.  

This year, Cycle B, the reading focuses on Jesus telling that He is the Good Shepherd, who "lays down his life for the sheep" (John 10:11).  It is definitely worth reading up on the background of this gospel and how provocative of a statement it was.

As I read John 10:11-18 I thought of how thankful I am that Jesus is our Shepherd.  That He knows us, He laid down His life for us, and that He continues to speak to us.  He is the perfect example of selfless love.  We are also blessed as Catholics to have the shepherding of Pope Francis and the Catholic Church, that unites as one flock.  

On the other hand, there are many "shepherds" in our popular culture who are leading us and our children away from God.  I think it's imperative that we stay watchful of who we are allowing to shepherd us and whether he is a good shepherd or a "hired man" who "works for pay and has no concern for the sheep" (John 10:12-13).

Check out this week's Catholic Family Meeting slideshow:

To view the actual slideshow click here: Our Catholic Family Meeting {Fourth Sunday of Easter, Cycle B}

Catholic Family Meeting {Prep for Third Sunday of Easter, Cycle B}

So with an updated, simpler blog format, I was motivated to give an updated and simpler look to the Our Catholic Family Meeting slideshows.  As you can probably tell, I'm into burlap, chalkboards, and distressed wood, so yeah....

I also thought it would be a good time to give some more information on how my family uses the slideshows and links to guide our family meetings.

Here's some basic info about our Catholic Family Meeting

What

The creation of the Catholic Family Meeting came out of a desire to set aside one night each week that tied together prayer, scripture, and fun family time.  I also wanted us to be better prepared for Sunday mass by knowing the readings in advance.  I described how I came up with the various parts in my first post about family meetings.  

The reason that I made the Our Catholic Family Meeting slideshow was to have something that I could easily adapt each week and to give a visual for the various things I wanted to include.  

Time

We don't have a set day of the week because the evenings each week can look a little different, but we always aim to do it in the beginning of the week.  I find if we try for later in the week, things get crazier and we run out of time or forget.  So, typically we try to set aside about 30-45 minutes on a Monday or Tuesday evening each week.  And I usually plan them on Monday, so I hope to have them posted on the blog by Tuesday.

I've found that focusing on the readings early in the week and then referring back to them throughout the week has made a huge difference in understanding the mass for both us adults and for the girls.  Well, Grace (5) anyway.  I have been really impressed by her understanding of bible stories and her ability to remember them and key verses.  Young kids are sponges!  As for Ada (now 3!), she mostly exists in the room during the meeting, reading or quietly (sometimes) playing.

Place

Really, this could take place anywhere that has comfy seating because all we really use is my Chrome book and any books or basic materials that we've chosen from the Family Activities section of the slideshow.  For us, it usually happens in the living room.  

Yup, that's our living room.  Complete with Hello Kitty boombox and baskets of children's books.  This is pretty much exactly what it looked like when we did our family meeting last night.  But with people.  

  

A few key notes about using the slideshow:

1. They are named (from about a month ago on) by the liturgical day and year (Cycle) instead of the date.  This should make it easier to reuse them in the future, since our awesome Catholic Church goes through the entire bible in its three year cycle.  
2. Anything underlined is a hyperlink to a webpage that is either very or moderately helpful.  
3. The Family Activities page lists a variety of activities that are meant to be picked and chosen for what your family is interested in doing.  We never do all the items listed.  My girls always want to watch a video if there is one, and then I usually choose what I think will work best for us.
4. The last page has links for many of the resources used to prepare the prayers, activities, and feast days, so they are great sites to check out.
5. The things on the slideshow are just suggestions that can be used, but there is no set way to do such a "meeting".  At least not that I could find.
6. You will probably want to glance over the readings and background information before your family meeting.  It helps me tremendously to research a bit before our meeting, so that I have adequate knowledge to pass on to my family.  

So here is this week's slideshow:

To view the actual slideshow click here: Our Catholic Family Meeting {Third Sunday of Easter, Cycle B}

I'd love to hear how your family does family meetings.  Let me know in the comments below.  :)

- Jessica

Catholic Family Meeting {Prep for Second Sunday of Easter / Divine Mercy Sunday - Cycle B}

Happy Easter!  I love that the Easter season continues for 50 days!  It gives me time to do all the fun Easter stuff that I haven't gotten time to do yet.

This week we are preparing for the second Sunday of Easter, which also happens to be Divine Mercy Sunday.  The gospel reading tells of Jesus appearing to the disciples after His resurrection.  One disciple is missing, and would not believe the others that they had really seen Jesus.  I think you know who I'm talking about...

When Jesus reveals himself again to the disciples, Thomas is present, and sees that Jesus really is alive.  Jesus says, "Have you come to believe because you have seen me?  Blessed are those who have not seen and have believed." (John 20:29)

I would like to think that I am not a doubting Thomas.  I have been blessed to have an unwavering faith in God's existence for as long as I can remember.  When I wonder if I need proof of God's existence, I would be quick to answer "no".  But I realize that I do have proof of God's existence.  My beautiful children, the beauty and complex perfection of nature, my selfless husband, the lives of the saints, the good that can come out of a terrible loss...  

Do I only see the proof because I have faith?  Or do I have faith because I see the proof?  I'm not really sure.  But I do know that the more I grow in my faith through conscientious actions, the more proof I see around me.  The scriptures, 2000 years of church teaching, thousands of saints that show us the way...Thomas didn't have these things.  We are blessed to have them.  May we always stay strong in our faith!

Michaela Evanow

Here's this week's Catholic Family Meeting slideshow:

Catholic Family Meeting {Prep for Palm/Passion Sunday - Cycle B}

This Sunday is known as Palm or Passion Sunday, and it marks the beginning of Holy Week.  It is really important to prepare our families for this mass for several reasons:

1. There will be two gospels read, one at the beginning of mass with Jesus entering Jerusalem (with people waving palms) and the other during the Liturgy of the Word.
2. The gospel reading of Jesus' passion and crucifixion will be read and it will be long.  If children can follow along, it will be easier for them...well, for everyone!
3. As it is still Lent and the focus is on Jesus' passion and death, it is a solemn occasion.
4. Your children will be given a palm, which without any guidance, could will become a toy, a way to harass their sister, or an origami lesson.

I will hopefully remember to talk with my girls about what to do with the palms, which of course can be folded later...

There are also lots of great ways to prepare our kids for Holy Thursday, Good Friday, and Easter linked in the slideshow for this week.  I know my family is really anticipating them after all these weeks of Lent. :)

Easter is just getting started!

I hope you all had a very blessed and joyful Easter Sunday!  Our weekend was full of family, which was wonderful and busy!  The best kind of busy.  

Most people think that Easter is over, but not for most Christians!  Easter is a season, not a day, and lasts for 50 days.  Woo hoo!

This makes me happy because there are lots of fun Easter things that I did not get done on my hectic (but awesome) Easter weekend.  Now we have about 45 more days to celebrate!

So, here are some ways that our family is going to continue celebrating Easter until Pentecost (June 8 of 2014):

Track the 50 days of Easter.

Just like with an Advent or Lent calendar, we will print out and color in each day.  I got some fun springy stickers with the egg dye kit I bought, so maybe we will cover it in stickers instead!  Yes we are a little late getting started...better late than never, right?!  Here are a couple to choose from:

Free Printable Easter Calendar
Erin Crisci

Free Printable Easter Calendar
Catholic Icing

Watch kid-friendly Resurrection videos.

We read about the Resurrection of Jesus from our various children's bibles and story books, but videos are another great way to teach them about the Easter story.  The one below starts off just after the Crucifixion and follows through to Jesus' Resurrection.  It gives some great information that is good to know before doing the Resurrection rolls below.  And if you google "Bible Stories New Testament", there are a bunch in this series that tell Gospel stories.

Make Resurrection rolls.  

These are so simple, and such a delicious way to teach about Jesus' Resurrection.  I've seen several posts about Resurrection rolls, but I like this one from Happy Home Fairy because it includes a story to tell as you make them that connects it to Jesus' death and resurrection.

Resurrection Rolls
Happy Home Fairy

Complete our Lenten goals.

During Lent our family set some goals, which are detailed in my post Preparing for Lent with Kids.  We have been collecting money for Lenten Almsgiving, which we decided to send to St. Jude Children's Research Hospital because  Grace's school is doing a trike-a-thon fundraiser for it.  

We also collected toys, clothes, and other items to donate.  Some were already given to a homeless shelter, but we will have to figure out where the rest are going. 

We will also continue with our daily rosary. 

Make an Easter prayer jar or chain.

Grace really enjoyed the Lenten chain to count down the days of Lent, where we prayed for different people each day.  

This is a similar idea for the 50 days of Easter.  I love this Easter prayer jar from Wee Little Miracles.  

Easter Family Prayer Jar
Wee Little Miracles

There are 50 free printable prayers for the Easter season that can be cut out and put in a jar to pull out each day or made into a chain to count down the days of Easter.

Set a new faith goal.

Prayers and Praises Chalkboard
Kijsa

A few weeks ago, I posted this prayer board in my Faithful Favorites #1.  I know that I can be a bit of a procrastinator on making fun objects when there are soooo many things on my to-do list.  So, my plan is to choose at least one tangible thing I want to accomplish during the Easter season that will help bring my family closer to God.  Mark my words, I am going to make a prayer board.  Even if it is on the 50th day of Easter!

Color Easter pictures.

My kids always love coloring pages, and many of them can be used to explain the events or lessons of the Easter story.  I'll be printing a few of these!

Easter Coloring Pages
Free-N-Fun Easter

Have a wonderful Easter season!

Preparing for Lent with Kids

Lent is actually one of my favorite parts of the year.  It sounds strange because we often think of Lent as a time of discomfort and sacrifice, as we give up vices and fast.  But I find Lent to be a great time to refocus my life on the Lord and become holier. 

Catholic Culture has this very informative Lenten Workshop, with links to information, activities, and prayers. 

As the girls are still so young, I haven't included them in many Lenten practices in the past.  But this year I want to start some traditions for our family that emphasize the importance of these 40 days before the joy and celebration of Easter.  

Lenten Calendar

Printable Lent Calendar
Catholic Icing

We used this printable Lent calendar from Catholic Icing last year, and it was a great way for Grace, who was 3, to track the 40 days and special feast days, like Ash Wednesday, Palm Sunday, Good Friday, etc.  All you have to do is print it out.  Pretty easy!  There is also this one from Holy Family Classical Academy.

Below are some other ideas for including kids in practicing Lent.  They are organized under the 6 principle works of Lent.

Principle Works of Lent

1.  Fasting

Children aren't obligated to fast during Lent, but they can fast in very minimal ways.  For example, they could give up special treats or drinks or not have dessert.  They could also focus on not complaining about meals.  This is one that Grace could definitely try!

2.  Prayer

Lenten Prayer Chain
Reasons to Praise God

As a family, we have prayer time before meals and bedtime, but Lent is a good time to add to those traditions.  We can add special Lenten intentions during our nightly prayers. 

Another idea, that I'm sure my kids will love, is to create a Lenten prayer chain, like the one to the right.  Simply cut out 40 strips and write a person to pray for on each one.  Then, staple into a circle and create a chain.  Each day, take off one link and say a special prayer for that person.  Mary from Reasons to Praise God also adds an Our Father and a Hail Mary for each petition.  Such a great idea!

As I was making our Lenten chain, I created this header using graphics from We Lived Happily Ever After.  

 CLICK HERE to print the 40 Days of Lent chain header.

Part of my own Lenten plan is to pray a rosary everyday.  Grace can pray the rosary with me using her own children's rosary, and it can be beneficial for the toddlers to hear prayers, even if they can't say them just yet. 

3.  Almsgiving

Almsgiving means charity, or giving of our money, time, or goods to others.  

As a family, we are starting an Almsgiving box to collect food, household items, toys, etc. to donate.  

As Pope Francis said in his Lenten message, "I distrust a charity that costs nothing and does not hurt."  That means not just donating food we don't like or old happy meal toys.  Our acts of charity should require sacrifice and be a challenge.  

We also have a jar to save money as a family for a special charity.  If you want to do the same, Catholic Relief Services, Catholic Charities, and Heifer International are a few of my favorites.

If you'd like to print and use my Lenten Almsgiving labels, just click below:

Small label (for jars)
Large label (for boxes)

4.  Good Works

Good works can include charity, like helping someone or doing a good deed.  According to Catholic Culture, it also involves doing our regular duties to the best of our abilities.  As a mother, that means striving to be patient and calm with the children, and going about housework with a positive attitude, serving God through serving my family. 

For the children, this could mean not complaining, doing chores without being asked, or being kind to siblings.  It would probably be good for them to focus on just one, so that this does not become overwhelming.  

5.  Education

What better time than Lent to learn more about our faith?    

Lenten Adventure
Holy Heroes

We plan on reading bible stories from the Gospel that will culminate with Jesus' death and resurrection on Good Friday and Easter.  

Another fun, easy way for kids to learn during Lent is through Holy Heroes Lenten Adventure.  It is free!  All you have to do is sign up with your email, and you will receive 3 emails each week that provide activities and learning for each day of Lent.  I'm excited to try it this year. 

6.  Self-denial

Giving up something can test us, but it should also help purify our soul.  Keeping this in mind helps me stick to it, and get back on board if I happen to falter. 

For kids, self-denial could mean putting away a favorite toy for the period of Lent.  It could also be limiting or eliminating TV, video games, or time on the tablet or computer.  Kids could also choose to give up desserts or treats.  

It might be easier to hold everyone accountable by displaying their sacrifices, like the Lenten Sacrifice Garland below by Karen's Adventures in Mommyland.

Lenten Sacrifice Garland
Karen's Adventures in Mommyland

I always find it easier to stick to a plan if I write it down.  If you'd like to use the printable Lenten Plan worksheet I created

CLICK HERE

Have a peaceful and fruitful Lenten season!