Remember, You Are Dust

And to dust you shall return.

O Lord, who hast mercy upon all,
take away from me my sins,
and mercifully kindle in me
the fire of thy Holy Spirit.
Take away from me the heart of stone,
and give me a heart of flesh,
a heart to love and adore Thee,
a heart to delight in Thee,
to follow and enjoy Thee, for Christ's sake, Amen
St. Ambrose of Milan (AD 339-397)

Sun Catcher Art

I came across an idea on Pinterest the other day; letting your kids paint on windows.  I mixed washable tempura paint with clear Dawn dish soap, about a 50-50 mix. The soap thins the paint so it lasts longer and also makes it super easy to clean off. 

I put down some drop cloths, dressed each child in a smock, set them at their own windows, and gave them each a palette of sorts.   I cut an 18 egg carton into thirds so each child had a 6 well container.  I filled the cups with red, yellow, and blue (2 cups for each color), and let them mix them as they pleased.

I also gave them very thin brushes so it would take them longer to paint and hopefully cut down on large drips and splashes.   To say they enjoyed this is an understatement.  They spent almost as much time making custom colors as they did painting.

  This is a messy activity, no getting around it, but the mix of washable paint and dish soap eliminates any hard scrubbing or stains. 

The end result is really beautiful; colors back-lit by sun streaming in the windows.  This is Juliana's masterpiece:

Gabriel's:

Addison's:

I think it would be fun to make some black paint and paint intersecting lines over the whole window, then have them fill each section with a different color. Custom "stained glass!"

Happy Birthday, Aunt Jenny!

The kids made a birthday banner for one of their beloved Aunts today. We wish we could have given it to you in person! Much love from us all!!

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Happy Epiphany!

We ended this Christmas season on a high note, having an Epiphany party at my parents house.  This feast day celebrates the Three Kings journey to the baby Jesus and their acknowledgment of Him as the promised Messiah.  As this feast centers around three kings and the King of Kings, crowns were a central decorating theme.

The kids helped me make a yellow paper garland, cut with a fancy border which we strung above the counter.  Front and center was the nativity cupcake scene.  I printed out cross cupcake wrappers (with my new silhouette cameo!) and nativity silhouettes for cupcake toppers.

Yesterday the kids helped me bake a couple loaves of Three Kings Bread.  A tasty sweet bread, it's packed with yummy additions of oranges, pineapple, coconut, raisins, and chocolate chips which represent the gifts offered to the infant Jesus.

Before we dug into our pizza and goodies we had a procession through the house. 

 The kids dressed up as the three kings, complete with gifts, and I held a paper star and a flashlight, leading the way.  

We marched through the house, winding through the up and downstairs, singing We Three Kings as we made our way to the baby Jesus in the manger.  When we arrived the kids all took turns placing their gift in front of him; small boxes of gold foil wrapped chocolates. 

Then we said a short prayer and made our way to the dining room for our little feast.  We all had a wonderful time, the kids even asked to march and sing some more after dinner; each taking turns being the star and guiding the way. 

Dear Jesus, as You led the Three Kings to You by the light of a star, please draw us ever closer to You by the light of Faith. Help us to desire You as ardently as they did. Give us the grace to overcome all the obstacles that keep us far from You. May we, like them, have something to give You when we appear before You. Mary, Our Mother, help us to know Your Son. Amen.