“I want my life and my marriage to look less like the world and more like Christ.”  

- Marquis Clarke (What Matters Most in Marriage)

This is such a simple quote, but I love it because it really speaks to my life. I have lived both a life that looks like the world and am now trying to live one that looks more like Christ.  And I have seen the glaring difference between them.  

I grew up as a cradle Catholic and my family went to church every Sunday. I received the sacraments, I went to CCD every week, and went on retreats.  But throughout my youth, in college, and into my early twenties, God was neatly compartmentalized in my life. He was for Sunday mornings (sometimes), and when I needed help, I threw up a prayer to Him (you know after crying about it or trying to solve it myself).  I didn't really consider God in my day-to-day life.  My life “looked like this world”.  

I had bought into what our culture sells that as women we should be attractive and stylish, have nice things, and be adored by others.  And I had to be perfect at everything, or I wasn't good enough -- sports, school, my personality, everything.  I saw my worth in what people thought of me.  I tried every beauty product, buying new clothes, different workout routines.  I was constantly trying to be prettier.  I remember thinking, I will feel and look good if my hair is more blond.  So at 22 on a whim, I bought some do-it-yourself blond hair dye, went back to my apartment and had my roommate bleach my hair.  You can probably guess how that turned out….  But even after the emergency hair appointment to fix it and my hair was looking pretty good, I still did not feel good enough.   I was trying to find fulfillment in the things of this world.  

I was generally happy, but not content.  I was successful, but not fulfilled.

Shortly before the hair bleaching incident, I got engaged to my now husband, Matt.  Both being Catholic, we were drawn to being married in the Church and so we had to take marriage preparation classes.  The program was led by a priest and 6 lead couples.  Each week there was a new topic, like communication, the marriage vows, attentiveness, sexuality, finances.  And each week, no matter the topic, there was a clear message: put God at the center.  

At first this sounded a little impractical.  You know, I was looking for easy answers on how to be happily married and they’re telling me the answer is to change the whole way I live my life.  But these couples were so joyful and passionate and they seemed to have exactly what we were looking for in marriage.  And that was their big word of advice:  Put God first.

It was then that Matt and I started growing in our relationship with God. -- It was nothing momentous but it was the beginning of my spiritual conversion.

We started with attending weekly mass and praying more regularly.  

We started praying together, which was a suggestion from the married couples, and hearing Matt’s innermost thoughts, worries, and dreams helped me grow closer to him and put God at the center of our marriage.

I bought a Women’s Devotional bible and eventually we joined a small group bible study.  I was learning about God through scripture and the Church’s teaching, and I was started to realize how much I had been missing.  I began to understand God’s love for me, that I wished I had known all along.  I prayed my first rosary.  I went back to confession for the first time in about fifteen years, which was scary but so worth it.  I started filtering out the music and TV shows and pop culture influences that were leading me away from God.  Slowly but surely, I started to see the fruits.  Life was starting to look more like Christ.

Our  marriage was stronger and much happier.  I was becoming less self-centered, which made me a better wife and a better person.  

Now up to a certain point in our marriage, Matt and I were still resistant to the church’s teaching on contraception.  But we were having issues that stemmed from using contraception and following the world’s teaching on sex.   It seemed like God was telling us to trust Him and start using Natural Family Planning.  Both Matt and I will tell you that this change transformed our marriage in ways we never would have dreamed. (Maybe that's for a future post...)

Shortly after becoming pregnant with our first daughter, I developed severe morning sickness.  For those of you have had this, you know how debilitating it is.  My two pregnancies were the hardest times of my life, and it was through prayer and trying to offer up my suffering that I got through it.

After we had a few years of marriage under our belts, we got involved in the same marriage prep program that we had gone through, only this time as a lead couple.  Getting involved in our parish helped us grow in our faith tremendously and we made lifelong friends with others who share our values.  

So when we moved to our new home and joined our new church last year, we knew that to continue growing in our faith, we needed to become a part of parish life.  On our second time coming to mass, I was invited to join a women’s bible study group starting up called Walking With Purpose.  It was exactly what I needed, and I certainly don't believe it in coincidences.  Being a part of a program that brings women together to learn about our faith has been such an incredible blessing for me. And my family. And pretty much anyone who has to interact with me.  It helps keep me focused, learning, praying, and building relationships with other women on the same path.  It’s through studying God's word that I finally understood that my dignity and worth rests in simply being a daughter of God.  

I have seen firsthand the truth in what Jesus says in John 15:5 “I am the vine, you are the branches. Whoever remains in me and I in him will bear much fruit, because without me you can do nothing.”

Looking back it’s these small steps of pushing away worldly things and bringing God closer that have led to enormous changes in my life -- I feel an inner peace that comes from knowing God’s love and forgiveness, no matter what I have done in the past.  He has given me greater clarity and I feel driven to do His will each day.  

I know that I still have a long way to go in becoming like Christ, but I have seen how seemingly small changes can have a big impact.

Lent is the perfect time to reduce the many worldly distractions and focus on growing in our relationship with Christ. He is inviting us. All we have to do is accept His invitation. And remember, we are all on our own faith journeys. Don't ever be discouraged.

Catholic Family Meeting {Prep for Sunday, Dec 28} - Feast of the Holy Family

Seeing as how Christmas Eve is just two days away (!!!), I am not exactly sure when I'm planning to do our family meeting on the mass readings this week.  I first want to focus on Christmas mass and making sure the children understand the nativity story.  We've been reading it, watching it on video with The Nativity Story (without viewing the scarier parts) and The Nativity, and the girls have been reenacting it with their Nativity play set.  I think I just have to continue to emphasize the importance of the real reason for Christmas, while still letting the girls enjoy Santa and other traditions.

We will probably discuss Sunday's readings on Friday or Saturday, and celebrate the Feast of the Holy Family on Sunday.  It's a great time to discuss with our kids what a family is and the commitment that a family has to each other in good times and in bad.

So without further ado, here is this week's family meeting slideshow:

Keeping Christ in Christmas: Celebrating Advent 2014 {Starting November 30th!}

**This post is an updated post from last year.  All the links and calendars have been updated for 2014.

Even though I am a cradle-Catholic, I never grew up celebrating Advent.  Not intentionally, anyway.  We went to mass during the Advent season, but I guess I just didn't pay much attention, and I figured our family's Advent wreath was just part of our regular holiday decorations.  I honestly had very little understanding of what Advent was up until a few years ago.  Since then, I have been on a slow, but steady, journey to celebrate Advent with my family.  

Ada and Grace at our church's nativity scene

So what is Advent?  

For Catholics, Advent starts the beginning of the liturgical year, and is a season of anticipation for both the birth of Jesus Christ and Jesus' second coming.  It is celebrated the four weeks leading up to Christmas.  What I love about Advent is that it helps us focus on the reason for the season: Jesus.  All those other details (Christmas gifts, cards, baking, decorating, etc) become less stressful for me, if they are put in their proper places, as ways to glorify God and celebrate His only Son.  

This 2 minute video gives a great overview of Advent:


Now, here's some music to get us anticipating the birth of Jesus!

FYI - Only when you try to compile a list of Advent songs, do you realize that pretty much every Christmas song has to do with post-Jesus' birth.  Thus, a 5 song playlist that includes 4 versions of O Come, Emmanuel (which are all pretty awesome, by the way.)  

Being pretty new to celebrating Advent, our family is trying to add one new tradition each year until we have some basics covered.  I do not want it to be overwhelming or feel like one more thing piled onto the already crazy list of "stuff" to do.  The important thing is preparing our hearts for Jesus.  I will remind myself: Advent does not have to be Pinterest-worthy.  

So, here are some simple ways to celebrate Advent with your family:

Advent wreath

Advent Wreath

An Advent wreath is a pretty simple tradition to start.  We bought ours on Amazon.com, along with the candles, for a very reasonable price.  You can also make one quite easily.  Here is a quick read about how this German custom started.  

This page on Catholic Culture provides the blessing, prayers, and explanation of what to do with your Advent wreath, and Our Sunday Visitor has an Advent guide, as well.

On the first Sunday of Advent (December 1st this year) , we will be blessing our Advent wreath and lighting the first purple candle, along with a prayer.  This is done each night of Advent.  By the second week, we will be lighting the two purple candles, and the third week sees the additional lighting of the pink "joyous" candle.  The fourth, and final, Sunday of Advent observes the lighting of the last purple candle.  The Advent wreath is a simple, yet significant way to incorporate our preparation for the birth of Christ into our daily lives.

Advent calendar

This is a tradition that you are probably familiar with.  There are so many different Advent calendars, and you can buy them at stores, online, or make your own.  Last year, my 4 year-old, Grace, looked forward to it everyday, and I'm sure she's excited to get her little sister in on the fun.  Sometimes we end up with more than one, which is no problem for us!  But to emphasize the true meaning of Advent and Christmas, I want to be sure that at least one of my Advent calendars is religious.  

Loyola Press has an awesome online Advent calendar for kids, which is also printable.  

Here is one from the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops that can be used online or printed.  It includes the Catholic feast days, suggested prayers, and activities that can be done to prepare for Christmas.

Interactive and Printable Advent Calendar
USCCB

I also love this fabric Advent calendar because the kids can add a new piece to the nativity scene each day.  I am thinking of making this with paper nativity pieces.

Fabric Advent Calendar

Jesse Tree

Jesse Tree

Up until a couple of years ago, I'd never even heard of the Jesse Tree.  So what is it?  The Jesse Tree is an Advent tradition that focuses on Jesus' family tree, as shown in the image on the left.  For more information about the background, check out this article.  Similar to the Advent calendar, a new symbol or ornament is hung on the Jesse Tree each day of Advent.  As the ornament is hung, a corresponding bible passage is read.  

There are so many different ways to do a Jesse Tree:  some simple, some complex.  I even Googled it for you.  You're welcome.

Felt Jesse Tree
Catholicseeking

More Printable Jesse Tree Ornaments
Domestic-Church

Last year was our first with a Jesse Tree.  It went over big with my then-4 year old, Grace.  We opted for printable symbols, which can be found here or here.  Then, we hung them on a small Christmas tree that I found at a local crafts store.

Other resources

Looking for some basic printouts on Advent?  Check out this page:

Free Advent Printables
Good Ground Press

Good Ground Press also makes this printable Advent Traditions Game that looks like a lot of fun.

Advent Traditions Game
Good Ground Press

Here is a short video from Catholic News Service with ideas for how to celebrate Advent:

 

May your family have a blessed Advent!  

- Jessica

Catholic Family Meeting {Prep for Sunday, November 16}

"His master said to him, 'Well done, my good and faithful servant.  

Since you were faithful in small matters, I will give you great responsibilities.  

Come, share your master's joy.'"

Matthew 25:21

This Sunday's gospel reading (Matthew 25:14-30) is the parable of the talents.  A master leaves for a long journey, leaving talents (money) to his three servants.  Two of his servants go off and use the money he's given them to earn more.  The third servant buries his talent in the ground.  Upon his return, the master celebrates with his two servants, saying (above), "Well done, my good and faithful servant."  The third servant, who buried his talent, is reprimanded and thrown out.

God has given us talents, gifts, and abilities, and He has given them to us for a reason.  He wants us to use them to serve Him and others.  

What good are our talents if we bury them in the sand?  

We must each discern what talents God has given us and how He wants us to use them to further His kingdom.  

This is the focus of this week's family meeting:

Catholic Family Meeting {Prep for Sunday, November 9}

Preparing for this week's family meeting was the first time I've heard of The Feast of the Dedication of the Lateran Basilica in Rome.  The Lateran Basilica is the Pope's cathedral and is known as "the mother and head of all the churches of the city and the world".  Information for this feast can be found here at Catholic Culture.

Sunday's second reading explains that God created us to be His temple.  "Do you know that you are the temple of God, and that the spirit of God dwells in you?" (1 Corinthians 3:16).  If we truly believe that we are all created as temples of God, then that should dictate how we treat our bodies and how we treat others.  

The gospel then tells the familiar story of Jesus cleaning the temple of those who were not treating it with the proper respect.  And later, Jesus refers to himself as the temple that will be destroyed and raised again three days later.

"As we celebrate the Dedication of the Basilica of St. John Lateran in Rome, we focus on how Jesus cleansed the Temple, challenging us to respect his Father's house and all that it stands for, especially his people." - Loyola Press

Here is this week's family meeting:

Catholic Family Meeting {Prep for Sunday, November 2}

I don't know about you, but this time of year gets so busy with fall activities, Halloween, and the impending cold of winter.  

This week there are three important holidays:  Halloween (Friday), All Saints Day (Saturday), and All Souls Day (Sunday).  

I have not been good in the past with celebrating All Saints or All Souls Day, except with going to mass.  This year I really want to do better, but as I said, things have been hectic.  So I'm aiming to have my family celebrate these two special days with limited preparation or time.  

This week's family meeting focuses mainly on All Souls Day, as that is Sunday's mass.  However, I tried to tie in a little about All Saints Day in some of the family activities.  

Check it out and I hope you have a wonderful week of celebrating!

Catholic Family Meeting {Prep for Sunday, October 26}

This week's gospel message is such a great one for kids and a much-needed reminder for myself.  

The Pharisees are again ready to trick Jesus into saying something for which them can arrest him.  One of them asks, "Teacher, which commandment in the law is the greatest?" (Matthew 22:36)

Jesus responds:

 "You shall love the Lord, your God, with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind.  This is the greatest commandment.  The second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself."

(Matthew 22:37-39)

My family had a very fruitful discussion about how we can love God and how we can love others.  It can be hard in today's world to put God first.  Our family is trying to put certain structures in place to help us be successful.  

Here are some practical ways we are trying to love God first:

• Go to mass every Sunday
• Make Sunday a day of rest, God, and family
• Pray regularly throughout the day as a family (morning, meals, bedtime, etc)
• Pray the rosary as a family
• Have these weekly family meetings to read scripture and learn about God together
• Celebrate saint feastdays 
• Read the bible at bedtime regularly
• Take part in adult bible study programs 
• Spend time with other families from our church

Here is this week's family meeting slideshow:

Have a blessed week!

Catholic Family Meeting {Prep for Sunday, October 19}

Hello and welcome!  

This week's gospel reading has a couple different focuses, with Jesus' response to the pharisees on whether or not they should pay taxes.  Rather than let himself be tricked, Jesus states, "repay to Caesar what belongs to Caesar and to God what belongs to God."  There is a need to pay taxes and live in earthly, human ways, as we are humans of the earth.  However, everything belongs to God, and it's important not to lose sight that He should be the center of our lives.

Life often seems too busy; full of things that are vying for my time.  So many commitments and responsibilities, and sometimes it feels like I'm on a hamster wheel and can't get off.  

In my bible study, I was reminded of this quote by Rick Warren from his book, The Purpose Driven Life:

"If it impossible to do everything people want you to do.  You have just enough time to do God's will.  If you can't get it all done, it means you're trying to do more than God intended for you to do (or, possibly, that you're watching too much TV."  

This week's gospel is an important reminder to put God where he belongs: first and foremost in our lives.  When I do that, everything else falls into place.  

For our family meeting this week, we are focusing on putting God first in the way we spend our time, how we treat others, and how we use our resources.   

So here is this week's slideshow...

Catholic Family Meeting {October 12 Sunday Gospel}

It's really feeling like October here.  Cool air, leaves starting to change, and a pumpkin candle burning as I write this.  I hope your family enjoys this week's Catholic family meeting on accepting God's invitation.  Everything you need is linked right in the presentation below.  Enjoy!

Catholic Family Meeting {October 5 Sunday Gospel}

It's already time to get ready for Sunday!

Things have seemed to get really hectic lately with the start of school, sports, and other activities.  It has been a challenge for us to schedule a night each week for our family meetings.  I really have to think it out well in advance to carve out that time, but it has been so worth it!  

We are far better prepared for church on Sunday, and Grace has been asking after Sunday, "what's our next verse?"  She is a little sponge!  There is also few things cooler than listening to your 5 year old recite John 3:16 and explain its meaning.  Winning!

I spent a lot of time sifting through various websites to compile the prep materials for this Sunday, October 5.  Be sure to check out any links, as some of them give great background information on the readings.  I am certainly no theologian, so they have been incredibly helpful in understanding the deeper meanings of these biblical passages that probably sound like another language to our kids....and to me!

So here it is:

Have a wonderful family meeting!

-Jessica

Building our domestic church and starting weekly family meetings

"The family is, so to speak, the domestic church.  In it parents should, by their word and example, be the first preachers of the faith to their children..." - Dogmatic Constitution of the Church

I want our home to truly be a "domestic church".  Over the last few years, we've incorporated the ideas listed by the USCCB here for making our home and family a domestic church, and they have made a big difference with both us as parents and with the children.  In fact, just having crucifixes on the walls has led the kids to constantly find crosses and mention Jesus when we are out and about.  Although these ideas have worked well, we have been meaning to do a better job of preparing the kids for mass by discussing the readings in advance.

I'd heard a couple years ago about how the LDS (Mormon) Church has something called Family Home Evening, which is a special family night once a week that includes prayer, scripture, and family bonding time.  This is such an awesome idea, and I want to start something like it (a Catholic version) with my own family.

The Catholic Church doesn't have its own structured program, but after searching, I did find this Family Catechesis program from The Apostolate for Family Consecration.  There are some great materials here (especially the discussion guides that you can access by clicking English Set A, B, or C), but I think this program may be a little much for our family of young children (5 and 2 years old).  

So I decided to take some of the basic ideas found in the program and tweak it to create a simpler format for our family that hopefully won't take too much time or effort to prepare for each week. 

For easy reuse and to limit paper, I created a simple slideshow that includes pages for each main part of the weekly family meeting or "domestic church".  I plan on keeping one as a template and typing into it each week.  

This is what I'm going to use this week for our first meeting:

Here are some basics on how we will use it, some of which come from the Family Catechesis program described above:

• Opening Prayer 
• Start with spontaneous prayer asking for the Holy Spirit's guidance
• End with the Our Father, Hail Mary, and Glory Be

• Liturgical Calendar
• State whether it is Ordinary Time, Advent, Christmas, Lent, etc.
• Tell about any feastdays in the upcoming week.
• Read the readings for the week, which can be found here.
• When preparing you may also want to watch the video reflection for the Sunday's readings, which can be found in the left sidebar.

• Family Activity
• This can be anything that relates to the scripture readings, like videos, children's books, crafts, coloring pages, a family outing, planning a service project, baking, etc.
• I am making sure whatever we choose to do is not simply fluff, like coloring a sheep because it was in the story.  I really want to teach the meat of the story, and this can be done in lots of fun ways.
• Some ideas can be found at Catholicmom.com

• Scripture Verse of the Week
• Choose a part of one of the readings or a related bible quote to focus on for the week, and maybe even memorize.
• We will be displaying it on a Weekly Verse chalkboard frame that I'm in the process of making.

• Closing Prayer
• Start with a spontaneous prayer related to the week's focus.
• Every member of the family can add petitions, which can be added to a family prayer board
• Could include common prayers (Our Father, Hail Mary, Glory Be) or a special prayer from a saint.

If you're interested in having your own family meetings, feel free to use the template below.  I believe you can edit it by clicking the settings gear and then download as PPTX.  

I'm sure I will be improving this as we go along, but I'd also love to hear any suggestions or how your family does family meetings.

Good Friday for the Family

Good Friday is one of those days that does not get the recognition it should.  Probably because we enjoy the joyous occasions more than the suffering.  But what would spring be without winter?  What is the joy of the Resurrection on Easter without the sorrowful Crucifixion on Good Friday?  

The last few years, as I have grown in my understanding and appreciation of my Catholic faith, I have developed a love of this day.  

Happy Festives

To be quite frank, my family and most in our country are spoiled.  We don't know real hunger.  We don't know what it's like to live in constant fear or danger.  We don't go without the things we need, let alone many of the things we simply want.  This is a true blessing that is often taken for granted.  

On Good Friday, I am reminded of real suffering and sacrifice.  Fasting, abstaining from meat, and reflecting on Jesus' death on this day are ways that I can give up some of the comforts in my life to grow closer to God.

There is some great information about Good Friday here.  The following are ideas for having a reverent Good Friday with your family.

1.  Learn about Jesus' death.

Obviously the story of Jesus' death is a disturbing one, and it should be carefully considered what and how to share it with kids.  Grace (almost 5) knows pretty much all the details from the scouring at the pillar to the Crucifixion.  She has heard the story right from the bible, and she has seen a couple animated shows depicting the events.  I am careful that what I share with her is age-appropriate and isn't too graphic or scary.  However, some books seem to gloss over it a little too much, and I think that it's important for kids to understand the pain and sacrifice that Jesus went through for us.

One of the better videos I've seen is a short animated film called The Witness, which tells the story of Jesus' arrest, death, and Resurrection from the perspective of Barabbas (the murderer released instead of Jesus).  

But if it's already Good Friday, here is a good video and you don't have it, here is a better option.  It doesn't go through Jesus' arrest, scourging, or crowning of thorns, but it gives a good overview of Jesus carrying the cross and His death.

Good Friday Coloring Pages
9 Coloring Pages

Coloring pages, like these can also help kids better understand the events of the Lord's Passion.

2.  Pray the Stations of the Cross

The Stations of the Cross are depictions of Christ's journey carrying the cross to His Crucifixion.  Like me, you may have seen them along the walls at church and not known exactly what they were for (oops!).  

Most Catholic churches set aside time during Lent to pray the Stations of the Cross, especially on Good Friday.  Here are some resources for praying the Stations of the Cross with your family:

Stations of the Cross for Children Powerpoint by Loyola Press

 Audio Stations of the Cross by USCCB

Printable Stations of the Cross Book
CatholicMom.com

Printable Stations of the Cross Booklet
Catholic Playground

And here is a simple video Stations of the Cross, perfect for kids.

3.  Celebrate the Lord's Passion at church.

Interestingly enough, I just learned that the Celebration of the Lord's Passion service on Good Friday is technically not a mass.  It is unique in that the Eucharist is not celebrated (although Hosts consecrated on Holy Thursday are received), and it has a very solemn overtone, as Jesus' death is mourned.  The service begins and ends in silence, and also includes the Veneration of the Cross.  These are important details that I'll be sure to explain to Grace beforehand, so that she will understand what's happening and be more engaged.

4.  Focus on the cross.

Good Friday is a great time to focus on making the sign of the cross with young children.  Ada and Lucas (both 2) are starting to try to do it on their own.  Which is super cute.  Here's a very short little video from the Brother Francis series:



There are also some simple crucifix crafts that can be used as decorations throughout the year. 

Easter Cross Decoration
Sister-Dipity

Easy Foil Cross Craft
Mumma Made It

And Allison at Learn Play Imagine made my life easier by compiling a bunch of other cross crafts:

10 Cross Crafts for Kids
Learn Play Imagine

4.  Eat special foods.

Good Friday is a day of fasting and abstinence from meat for adults.  But there are also some special foods that could be eaten on this day.  

Hot Cross Buns are a European tradition, supposedly started by monks who gave them to the poor.  They have a cross on them to remind us of Jesus' Crucifixion.  There are plenty of more complicated recipes, but I'm going with this one from Pillsbury!  Because that's how I roll.

Crescent Hot Cross Buns
Pillsbury

I also like this idea for a symbolic lunch or snack from Catholic Icing.  It would be great to read the gospel reading for Good Friday as you explain each item.

Easter Story Lunch
Catholic Icing

 I hope that you and your family have a blessed Good Friday!

A simple and holy Holy Thursday!

So far this Holy Week I have been doing a lot of spring cleaning and working on my Lenten goals, as Easter is this Sunday!  Even though Grace has been home from school this week, I have to admit I don't feel like I've done enough with the kids for Holy Week, so I'm going to do the Easter Triduum right!  (That being Holy Thursday, Good Friday, and Holy Saturday).  

Holy Thursday commemorates The Last Supper, where Jesus instituted the Eucharist and celebrated Passover with His disciples, on the day before His death.  Read more about Holy Thursday here. 

Here are some simple ideas I found for celebrated Holy Thursday with your family:

1.  Learn about the Last Supper.  

We will read about the Last Supper from our various Children's bibles.  There is also a simple reading here.  As Catholics, it is  important that any telling of the Last Supper is true to the bible and doesn't use phrasing, like "this is like my body"when discussing the Eucharist.  This wording leads the reader to believe Jesus was merely speaking of the bread and wine as symbols, and not His actual body and blood.

I also reviewed many Last Supper videos from YouTube before deciding on the one posted below.  Most of the videos exclude important parts of the story, like Jesus washing the disciples' feet or the institution of the Eucharist.  The whole thing is about 24 minutes long, but if you want the shortened version you can start around 14 minutes.

 

2.  Attend the Evening Mass of The Lord's Supper

Before mass, we will read the readings aloud as a family and discuss what we will see at mass.  It helps to explain in advance the ritual washing of the feet that takes place at mass and relate it to the gospel reading from John 13:1-15.

3.  Bake unleavened bread.

As He celebrated Passover, Jesus and His disciples would have eaten unleavened bread.  Here is a simple recipe that I plan to make tomorrow with the kids:

Unleavened Bread Recipe
Catholic Icing

4.  Color scenes from the Last Supper.

Print and color.  That is all!

Jesus Washes Feet Coloring Page
Coloring Book 4 Kids

Last Supper Coloring Page
Holy Bible Coloring

5.  Create a Holy Thursday craft.

I'm not going to lie, I probably won't get as far as crafts this year, but here are a couple that I might come back to next year!

Chalice and Eucharist Craft
Roses for Mommy

P.S. - Roses for Mommy looks like a pretty great little blog that I hadn't seen before.

Last Supper Craft
Catholic Icing

This one would be better for older kids, as it requires a lot of fine motor skills and cutting.  And if you haven't noticed already, Catholic Icing is pretty much awesome, and I should pretty much just forward everything she does there.  

Well I now feel a little more organized for Holy Thursday, and hopefully you have a few ideas, as well!