He is Risen!

Alleluia!

The baskets are brimming...

Our Resurrection plant is green again...

And the Good Shepherd has returned!

Happy Easter to you all!

Basket Blessing

We took our Easter foods to church for the basket blessing.
The kids as always enjoyed it and we have a lovely assortment for our meal after Easter Mass.

Good Friday

A Blessed Good Friday to you!

We always go to the lambing barn during Lent. Because of the early season
it fell on Good Friday this year.

The newborn lambs were as always adorable but the children were a little quieter and more thoughtful this year as we walked through the barns.

We set up our family altar and talked a bit about the "Lamb of God"

Then our 3 hours of Fast and Silence -they really try but its HARD to be totally silent at their age- a video of the Crucifixion and a set of Easter stickers helped .

The kids get a gluten free Hot Cross Bun after the 3 Hours.

We will have a Short Adoration of the Cross at Bedtime.

Science Experiments...

If asked, Iddy Biddy will tell you we do not do enough experiments. She has taken to experimenting on her own.
Q: What happens if you mix a bunch of salt and a bunch of water and leave it to evaporate?

A: The kids fight over who gets to eat the dried salt out of the bowl -belch.

Holy Thursday...

Its Holy Thursday. It is one of the first liturgies The GM and I attended together when we first were married. The liturgies at our current parish are not the easiest to attend with small children so back when Biddy was little we started a home Holy Thursday Tradition.

Biddy read the passage about Our Lord washing the feet of the disciples from her children's bible as we took turns helping to get ready. One to find the stool to sit on, one to the lay the towel, one to add the soap, each adding water in turn. We took turns washing each others feet. Littlest first up to big daddy feet.

We talked about how we can serve each other today and everyday. And we talked a little about the liturgies that will occur at the Parish tonight.

Blue Eyes was especially taken with the proceedings and got more than a little wet.




A Blessed Triduum to you all.

Paper Pysanky

There are lots of fun books about Pysanky eggs for children.
One of our favorites is Rechenka's Eggs by Patricia Polacco.

Since it is our turn at the Craft of the Week again we thought we would make paper pysankys with a surprise inside.

My dc 3 and 6 made them using :
construction paper ,
beeswax crayons (regular crayons will work)
black tempera diluted with water (watercolor paint will work)
craft scissors
glue sticks
and a brad (a stapler will work)

Trace an egg on construction paper and draw traditional symbols or just use lots of your favorite color like Monkey Man did.


Paint over with black paint.


While they dry read your favorite Pysanky books
*Easter Eggs for Anya by Virginia L. Kroll
* Chicken Sunday also by Patricia Polacco

Then cut them out and cut off the top 1/3 or so of the egg in a zig-zag "cracked" appearance.


Glue the bottom off the egg to a piece of construction paper adding a little paper gosling made from scrapes or drawn and cut out.
Add the top of the egg with a brad or staple to make a flap.
Happy Crafting!

Iddy Biddy E, F, G, and H

E:


F:


G:


H:

If she is doing it must be cool!

Well Monkey decided that its not fair that Biddy has a "cool " desk but he doesn't.
So he has appropriated 2 foot stools to fill the need. They decided to do some "work" with a bunch of erasers aka math manipulatives we have.

Monkey is sorting butterflies and fish and Biddy is trying to get the hang of adding above ten but in the end she decided making patterns was more interesting.

Sick day games...

The kiddos were feeling too under the weather to go out and enjoy the weather so they decided to make a game.
File folders and stickers were just the ticket. "Roll you dice and move your um... mouse!"
It kept them happily tucked under the covers on the couch and mister mouse managed to find his friends after a long trek through the shamrocks. You think statistically you wouldn't roll ones so often!

Iddy Biddy ABC and D

Iddy has been praciticing a presentaion for the homeschooler's showcase at the parish.
Of course that would be the day everyone came down with high fevers and drippy noses.
Poor Biddy was so disapointed and asked if I could post her presentaion online instead.
A:


B:


C:


D:

A corner of one's one...

Iddy Biddy had been asking for a desk which I had resisted as we are not very "schooly" but she reasonably pointed out Daddy and Mommy both have one. The parish custodian happened to be throwing out a couple of perfectly nice flip top desks from back in the days when the church housed a school so Biddy got her desk. The aha light went on for me as I watched her arrange her favorite books and projects proudly inside and hang a little motivational page on the wall. And of course a flower and lacy doily for inspiration was needed. Iddy Biddy had been craving a creative space that was all her own and now she has it.

BTW in the first picture she is tracing her hand over and over again on that work book page :)

Geese

Haven't been able to get to the computer because The " GM" has started Graduate school but March has been busy so far.
The flocks of canadian geese came through by the thousands. We could hear them over a mile away and came to inverstigate the noise.
These pics only show a small fraction of the birds. Hundreds more were circling above, landing and taking off. The kids loved it.