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Daily Lenten Meditations

«  March 2010  »

Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat
  • Pray Light a candle. Every time you pass that candle today, offer a prayer of thanks. Don’t ask for anything. Just thank him.
  • Fast Don’t cut corners. Even if no one will know, complete today’s work thoroughly.
  • Give Touch is a powerful thing. Make an effort today to touch your children: a hug, a shoulder rub, a tousled head -- especially the bigger ones
1
  • Pray Make five minutes in the morning, at midday and in the evening to be still, silent, and alone, only asking God to infuse your soul with his will.
  • Fast No noise today. Turn off the TV, the radio, the iPod. Find God in the silence.
  • Give Pay particular unsolicited attention to your least demanding child today.
2
  • Pray Begin a gratitude journal. At the end of the day, jot down five things for which you are grateful. Think upon these things.
  • Fast Remember the first time you had a moment alone with your first child. What did you promise him? Do that. Be that.
  • Give We can only expect what we inspect. For every task you assign today, follow through and before it’s truly finished ensure that there is praise from you.
3
  • Pray “My sheep listen to my voice. I know them and they follow me." -- John 10:27
  • Fast Every time a child interrupts you today, stop what you are doing and look into his eyes as he talks.
  • Give “Kind words can be short and easy to speak, but their echoes are truly endless.” -- Blessed Teresa of Calcutta Speak kindly all day long.
4
  • Pray Ask God to show you how weak and small you are. Open your heart to see it.
  • Fast Don’t argue today. As much as possible give up, give in, give way.
  • Give When you are tempted to put on the TV for kids today, pull out a stack of favorite picture books instead. Invite the kids to join you on the couch.
5
  • Pray Take a walk, even if it’s cold or raining. Leave your iPod at home.
  • Fast Think of someone whose life you are tempted to envy and then choke out these words: Thank you, God, for the blessings you have given to X. Help me to see my own.
  • Give Think about the kind of person your husband married. Be that person for him today.
6
7
  • Pray "Love consumes us only in the measure of our self-surrender." -- St. Therese of Lisieux
  • Fast As you go about your daily routine today, remember that you are expecting someone very important for dinner tonight. Together with your children, work towards your husband’s homecoming as if you were expecting to welcome a king back to his castle.
  • Give “You can do nothing with children unless you win their confidence and love by bringing them into touch with oneself, by breaking through all the hindrances that keep them at a distance. We must accommodate ourselves to their tastes, we must make ourselves like them.” -- St. John Bosco
8
  • Pray Take this quote to prayer today and listen to God’s answer: “Real love is demanding. I would fail in my mission if I did not tell you so. Love demands a personal commitment to the will of God.” -- John Paul II
  • Fast Stop looking for encouragement and approval. Genuinely encourage and affirm someone else instead.
  • Give Let your child choose a huge stack of picture books (use that word “huge” when you ask her to gather them). Read them all to her today.
9
  • Pray Persevere. “He who does not give up prayer cannot possibly continue to offend God habitually. Either he will give up prayer, or he will give up sinning.” -- St. Alphonsus Liguori
  • Fast Don’t forget that the only pedestal you need ever stand on, is the one your husband and children build for you.
  • Give Focus on your home today. The world can find another volunteer, but your husband and children have only you.
10
  • Pray Insist on quiet from all your children during naptime today. Pray the Divine Mercy chaplet.
  • Fast We’re half way through. Compare yourself now only to yourself when Lent began. Tweak the plan.
  • Give Reach out to a local friend today. Reconnect.
11
  • Pray Ask God to make you humble and lowly.
  • Fast Don’t compare or complain. Do compliment.
  • Give Pack a picnic and go somewhere to eat it with your children. If the weather is prohibitive, build a tent in the living room and it eat there. Sit on the ground with them. Be fully present.
12
  • Pray Sometime before bedtime tonight, make time to pray with and for each of your children.
  • Fast Rise a little earlier and bring your husband breakfast in bed. (If it’s too late today, plan for tomorrow).
  • Give Plan a date night.
13
14
  • Pray Give thanks for food, clothes, and shelter. Listen to His plan for stewardship.
  • Fast Clean out the refrigerator today instead of eating lunch. Pull everything out and wipe it all down. As you do it, thank God for the food he provides for your family.
  • Give “We think sometimes that poverty is only being hungry, naked and homeless. The poverty of being unwanted, unloved and uncared for is the greatest poverty. We must start in our own homes to remedy this kind of poverty.” -- Blessed Teresa of Calcutta
15
  • Pray Before you read or do anything else today, pray this prayer, taken from the writings of St. Louis de Montfort: Lord, help me to imitate Mary's deep humility, lively faith, blind obedience, unceasing prayer, constant self-denial, surpassing purity, ardent love, heroic patience, angelic kindness, and heavenly wisdom. Amen.
  • Fast Give up thinking things have to be perfect.
  • Give As you do laundry today, bless the person for whom you are folding. With every crease, offer a prayer.
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Bloggers

Meet the Faith & Family bloggers. We invite you to join us in encouraging and helping the Faith & Family community grow in faith!

Danielle Bean

Danielle Bean
Danielle Bean, a mother of eight, is Editorial Director of Faith & Family. She is author of My Cup of Tea: Musings of a Catholic Mom (Pauline 2005) and Mom to Mom, Day to Day: Advice and Support for Catholic Living (Pauline 2007). Though she once struggled to separate her life …
Read My Posts

Rachel Balducci

Rachel Balducci
Rachel Balducci is married to Paul and together they are the parents of five lively boys. Besides being a mom, she is also a writer and a newspaper columnist for the Diocese of Savannah, Georgia. For the past four years, she has maintained her personal blog at Testosterhome.net where she …
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Lisa Hendey

Lisa Hendey
Lisa Hendey is the founder and editor of CatholicMom.com, a Catholic web site focusing on the Catholic faith, Catholic parenting and family life, and Catholic cultural topics. Most recently she has authored The Handbook for Catholic Moms. Lisa is also employed as webmaster for her parish web sites. …
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Arwen Mosher

Arwen Mosher
Arwen Mosher lives in southeastern Michigan with her husband Bryan and their young children Camilla and Blaise. She has a bachelor's degree in theology. She dreads laundry, craves sleep, loves to read novels and do logic puzzles, and can't live without tea. Her personal blog site is ABC Family. …
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Rebecca Teti

Rebecca Teti
Rebecca Teti is married to Dennis and has four children (3 boys, 1 girl) who -- like yours no doubt -- are pious and kind, gorgeous, and can spin flax into gold. A Washington, DC, native, she converted to Catholicism while an undergrad at the U. Dallas, where she double-majored in …
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Robyn Lee

Robyn Lee
Robyn Lee is the managing editor of Faith & Family magazine. She is (yikes!) an almost 30 year-old, single lady, living in Connecticut with her two cousins in a small bungalow-style kit house built by her great uncle in the 1950s. She also conveniently lives next door to her sister, brother-in-law …
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Hallie Lord

Hallie Lord
Hallie Lord married her dashing husband, Dan, in the fall of 2001 (the same year, coincidentally, that she joyfully converted to the Catholic faith). They now happily reside in the deep South with their two energetic boys and two very sassy girls. In her *ample* spare time, Hallie enjoys cheap wine, …
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Fr. John Bartunek, LC

Fr. John Bartunek, LC

Fr John Bartunek, LC, STL, received his BA in History from Stanford University in 1990, graduating Phi Beta Kappa. He comes from an evangelical Christian background and became a member of the Catholic Church in 1991. After college he worked as a high school history teacher, drama director, and …
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Guest Bloggers

Melissa Wiley

Melissa Wiley
Melissa Wiley is a homeschooling mother of six and the author of The Martha Years and The Charlotte Years, two series of books about the ancestors of Laura Ingalls Wilder. She blogs about children’s books, family, and home education at Here in the Bonny Glen.
Read My Posts

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Dough!

You, too, can make your own

Posted by Rachel Balducci in Food on Monday, February 01, 2010

After hearing from all the readers who both have pizza on a regular basis AND make their own (as opposed to calling their Papa John, as we did on Friday) I am now convinced that making my own pizza on a weekly basis will be fun, affordable and delicious.

In the comments section, there were a few suggestions for good homemade dough. (Here is one Arwen posted a while back.) Today I also came across a recipe from Martha Stewart that looked tasty as well.

I won’t lie—dealing with yeast intimidates me a little. But I’m going to give it a shot and pray that a new family tradition is about to arise!

Comments
28
Filed under delicious, homemade, pizza, recipe

Favorite Family Meals

My cousin shares her tips

Posted by Robyn Lee in Food on Saturday, November 21, 2009

It is Saturday again when I call out to readers for ideas for Sunday dinner.

Last week I was traveling, so my cousin Colleen offered to make Sunday dinner. It was so wonderful to walk in the door after a long car ride and sit down to an already made meal!

Colleen made this delicious Stuffed Pepper Soup. So good, that my nephew Joe had thirds and asked for a thermos to take to school the next day.... READ MORE 

Comments
8
Filed under dinner, family, recipe

Appetizers: They're What's for Dinner

Easy preparation and easy clean up works for me

Posted by Danielle Bean in Food on Wednesday, July 08, 2009

It’s July and we in New Hampshire are still wearing sweatshirts and flannel pajamas more often than not. But since I know some of you are actually enjoying lazy hazy days of summer, I’m going to just go ahead and pretend it’s summer, okay?

What do you make for dinner when it gets hot?

One of my favorite summer dinner ideas is one I happened upon out of pure laziness. When it’s hot, cooking feels... READ MORE 

Comments
6
Filed under appetizers, dinner, dip, recipe, summer

A Grand Ole Flag

and a yummy one, too!

Posted by Rachel Balducci in Family on Monday, June 29, 2009

The following is an award-winning Fourth of July cake—I know this to be true because a few years ago I took second place in our neighborhood July 4th dessert contest! (Long-time readers will understand why I wept with joy upon hearing the news.)

The cake comes to us by way of The Barefoot Contessa, Ina Garten, and is every bit as delicious as it is patriotic and cute. I’m including the recipe here... READ MORE 

Comments
5
Filed under baking, cake, dessert, family, recipe

Spa Treats on the Cheap

Homemade beauty regimens make you feel pretty for less

Posted by Danielle Bean in Just me on Wednesday, June 17, 2009

I’m not an extravagant mom. I’ve never been to one of those fancy spas where they scrub your body with papaya and slather your face with cocoa cream.

But I have always been a sucker for homemade spa treatments you can replicate at home. I can remember kneeling beside the tub in my parents’ house as a teenager, rinsing my hair with strong tea ... to make it shine, of course.

So imagine my delight when... READ MORE 

Comments
3
Filed under beauty, girls, recipe, retreat, spa

Juicy and Delicious

The peach cobbler of my dreams

Posted by Arwen Mosher in Food on Friday, June 12, 2009

I’m not a chocolate person.  I will hardly ever say yes to the offer of a brownie, because I just don’t enjoy them that much.

And I will never say yes to a brownie if there is any kind of fruit dessert in the area.

I am all about the fruit desserts.  I adore blueberry pie, apple tart, and lemon bars.  (I have sought and found great recipes for all of those things.)

But at the top of my list is peach... READ MORE 

Comments
4
Filed under cobbler, dessert, fruit, peaches, recipe

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