Lent starts early this year - Ash Wednesday is February 13th. That's next Wednesday, just in case you hadn't thought about it yet.Here's a link to my post about last year's plans.
We're going to follow nearly the same plan, with a few modifications because this year, instead of working four hours a week, I'll be working twelve to fifteen hours a week. Sadly, I cannot give up my job for Lent, and I've already pared down our lessons to accommodate the increased hours, so some of of Lenten activities must be modified a little.
I updated our calendar with new dates for this year. I also moved a few fasting ideas around and removed alms from Saturdays. We only did them during the school week. Last year we kept forgetting even then, but now First Son and First Daughter are old enough to handle the alms counting nearly independently, so I decided to leave it as it is and see how it goes.
Kansas Dad requested we add a decade of the Rosary once a week. We've never successfully said the Rosary (or a decade of it) on a regular basis, so it's a bit of a reach goal, but it's a good goal.
2013 Lent Calendar to Share by Kansas Mom
Last year we rolled a die to choose a prayer for our prayer for intentions. This year, Kansas Dad has suggested we actually do night prayer with the children during Lent. We'll offer our Marian prayer each night for the intention in the calendar.
For our prayer garden, I'm going to set out the box of flowers and encourage the children to say a prayer at our prayer shelf whenever the Holy Spirit calls them, and then place their own flower on the garden. Hopefully by Easter, we'll have a beautiful garden!Last year on Fridays, I said the Stations of the Cross with the children, but I'm not sure I'll have time for that this year because I work on Fridays. (At least once, we will attend Stations of the Cross at our parish.) I'm going to ask First Son to say them with First Daughter without me if we run out of time and we'll see how it goes. (Do you sense a pattern here? We're having a "we'll see how it goes" kind of Lent this year.)
The alms jars are going to continue just as we did them last year. The children will earn beans for sacrifices and then swap them for pennies for the alms jar.We'll be reading nearly all the same books this year, but I'm going to substitute More Catholic Tales for Boys and Girls for Catholic Tales for Boys and Girls. In the Easter season, we're going to read The Young Life of Sister Faustina.
The only really new thing we're going to do this year is the Lent Faith Folder from Emmanuel Books. Sometime between now and Wednesday, I need to purchase it, download it, and then figure out how we're going to work through it together this Lent. First Son did their First Communion folder with his Sunday School class last year and it was fantastic, so I am excited for the Lent one.
I've promised the children ice cream sundaes for dinner for Mardi Gras.
I think that sums up our Lenten plans. Hopefully it is a blessed time for us and for your family as well.
