6 Ideas for Simple Suppers during Lent

Looking for simple meatless meal ideas to enjoy at home this Lent, share with others before or after Stations of the Cross on Friday nights, or bring to others on Meal Trains?

Let me share six categories for simple suppers that I drew up after one friend asked me for ideas since her child is going vegetarian for all of Lent, another friend asked what we'll be bringing to the Soup-n-Stations event she is hosting this week, another friend posted a meal train for a new-again mom we know, and my children and I attended a Stations and Simple Supper event at a semi-local parish this past week.

Hopefully, these ideas will get you going with your own menu planning for Simple Suppers this Lent.

1. Soup and Sides: Pair your favorite vegatarian, pescatarian, or vegan soup or stew with a vegetable or fruit salad, some hearty bread, or some crackers and chips.
2. Breakfast for Dinner: Pair a baked veggie omelet, French toast casserole, todu scramble, potato-onion-garlic home fries, vegan pancakes, or something similar with a fruit platter. Or, set out an oatmeal bar: a large pot of oatmeal with loads of delicious toppings to choose from: honey, maple syrup, cinnamon, berries, dried fruit, nuts, seeds, coconut, etc.
3. Pizza, Pasta, and Sides: Put together some pasta and sauce, lasagna, margherita pizza, spinach and feta pizza, raviolis, or whatever special diet (vegan, gluten free, etc.) alternative you like with salad.
4. Dips-n-Spreads: Hummus, guacamole, hot artichoke and spinach dip, hot bean dip, baba ghanouch, salsa,... whatever your favorite dips and spreads are... Lay them ut with some crackers, bread, tortilla chips, vegetable crudites, and sliced fruit and you're good to go.
5. Salad and...: Make salads the main dish! Enjoy ruit salad, Waldorf salad, Mexican-inspired salad, Asian cabbage salad whatever kind of salad you like paired with brea, crackers, sliced avocados, or an array of protein toppings/add ins (beans, lentils, nuts, and seeds).
6. Vegetable Casseroles: Green bean casserole, sweet potato casserole, baked ziti with lentils, vegan enchilada casserole, Mercian tortilla casserole, and.... the list goes on! Pair you favorite casserole with a fruit or veggie platter or some salad and enjoy.

I'd love to hear about your favorite recipes or other ideas. Do share in a comment.

A Simple Way to Involve Older Children in Almsgiving This Lent (or Anytime!)

When I asked my youngest what he thought we should add to our Pray-Fast-Give chain this year for fasting, one of his first answers was, "Buy food to put it in bags for the homeless."

I knew right away why he had said it.

Last Sunday, as we were on our way home from Mass, we pulled up at a stoplight where a homeless gentleman was standing. It was cold, and we had a blanket in the car, so we handed it out the window to the man, but, sadly, did not have any food, warm socks, or other things on hand to gift him.

So it is that, as a part of our Lenten practices, we are hoping to repeat a Works of Mercy effort that some of our homeschool friends and us got together for during Advent: Making Blessing Bags!

To make the bags, each family that was participated shared what they would be bringing using this helpful how-to as a guide for what the homeless might find helpful or not.

Then, upon arrival at the host house, we set up a "buffet" table of sorts with piles of 25 of each item.

Younger children went in another room and made hand drawn cards and pictures to include in the bags, while older children and parents each stood behind a pile and we passed a bag from one to another, filling it assembly-line style.

It took less than an hour to assemble all the bags, inclusive of the time it took to reassemble the few bags which had zippers break or were just not closing due to the way that space-taking items such as a bottle of water, thick socks, and foot warmers had been put in amongst smaller items.

So, making Blessing Bags truly proved to be a simple project that brought us together as a homeschool community to prepare to help our larger community.

We hope to have another Blessing Bag get together this Lent and encourage you to try it with family or friends.

Among the things in ours, were all the things pictured below, plus tuna and crackers and water.

We pray this idea inspires you in your almsgiving and would appreicate hearing your ideas, too!

6 Questions to Help Prepare for Lenten Fasting

Fasting.

How do you get your tweens and teens to want to fast?

With only one older child here who seems to "get" Lenten fasting and two who now tend, sadly, to fight fasting more and more each year, I have been thinking about how to approach this part of our Lenten practice this year.

I decided that I will start with six reflective questions, see what my family's private and shared answers are, and, then, go from there as we choose fasting ideas for our Pray-Fast-Give chain and personal Lenten practices.

Perhaps the questions will help lead your and yours into more meaningful fasting this Lent, too.

1. Are there habits that we engage in that are destructive to our spiritual health?
2. Which areas of our lives feels unbalanced?
3. What causes discord in our family or disorder in our days?
4. To what are we devoting too much time or not enough?
5. To what materials things are we too attached?
   
6. Where do we think God is asking to to grow or to let go in order to better love Him and others?

My hope is that in reflecting upon and discussing these questions, my children will find plenty of purposeful fodder for fasting during our Lenten journeys.

How do you approach ideas for fasting with your growing children? I would love to hear about it!

May God draw each of us closer to Him as we enter into Lent and place increased focus on prayer, fasting, and almsgiving (service and Works of Mercy.).\

20 Prayer Ideas for Lent

Okay, I admit it: I have not even gotten all of our Christmas books and nativity sets put away and, yet, Lent is almost here.

With the way our life's been rolling, I don't think we'll embrace many of the traditions and customs which we have for Lent in prior years. I do, know, however, that I will attempt to keep my family focused daily on the three pillars of Lent - prayer, fasting, and almsgiving.

Thus, I sat down and quickly brainstormed ideas to suggest to my children for for personal Lenten prayer practices as well as for our collective pray-fast-give chain this year. Although most of these are no-brainers, I am sharing them here in case they might inspire you in deciding what to focus on or add to your own Lenten journey with prayer

1. Attend Mass daily whenever possible.
2. Make a spiritual communion together on days when we cannot get to Mass.
3. Make frequent confessions.
4. Get to Adoration.
5. Spend extra time reading Scripture.
6. Get back to praying the Rosary together more often (as opposed to Mom praying it on her own.)
   
7. Read The Creed in Slow Motion together.
8. Attend all or part of a local Lenten mission.
9. Pray the Stations of the Cross.
10. Make a special prayer notebook and list all of the people in our lives that need prayers. Pray for them daily, and add someone new daily.
11. Return to doing a guided examen at nights.
12. Pray the Jesus Prayer throughout each day.
13. Reflect daily on which of the seven capital sins we have been slave to and pray for an increase in its corresponding virtue.
14. Pray together every time we get into our vehicle, not just the first time each day.
15. Pick someone new each day to offer our challenges and sacrifices for.
16. Pay special attention to the intercessions at daily Mass and choose one to pray for especially throughout the day.
17. Go to bed five to ten minutes early and spend extra time chatting with God.
18. Spend an extra five minutes a day in Spiritual Reading.
19. Notice what world event pops up on our screens at the start of each day and pray specifically for the people involved.
20. Spend several minutes in silence each day inviting the Lord to speak to our hearts,

I would love to hear some of the ways you'll be adding extra prayers into your Lenten journey.

A Real Look at Our Lenten Journey Thus Far...

Last week, I shared 15 Ways to Prepare for Lent with Kids. Today, I thought I would offer an honest look at which of those steps we actually took this past week.

Why?

Because plans and reality are often different, and I never want to be one of those folks that gives a skewed vision. Life is real here - with ins, outs, ups, downs, plans that don't come to fruition, and, yet, still, blessings. So many blessings.

So, here goes with a real look at how the week's Lenten plans unfolded...

1. Lenten Chain: None of the kids were into actually making our Pray-Fast-Give Lenten Chain this year even though some of them wanted to have it up. So I simply printed out the list we had pulled teeth for brainstormed. I then colored the backs of the print out backs purple, cut the list into strips, assembled, and put up the chain myself, wondering why I was even bothering.

The Lord answered quickly when one of my children eagerly ran to the chain to take one down, and since, two of my children have been taking turns taking a link each day, while all three of the kids and I have been pausing to pray, fast, and give accordingly, albeit sometimes with the need for some extra "encouragement" to prompt participation.

2. Pretzel Prayer Pals:  Life surely is what happens while you are making other plans, and as such, we did not get our pretzel bags to give to chosen Lenten Prayer Pals together by Wednesday, and, so far, only one child has actually gifted a bag to a friend.

Sadly, one of my children participated in making the bags only with "encouragement", because said child "does not really believe in praying much anymore, Mom." It hurts this Momma's heart to have a child who has strayed so far from believing in God and living our faith. I welcome prayers for this child's reversion.

3. Pray-Fast-Give Jars: Our Pray-Fast-Give jars  did not get out of our attic until Wednesday, but were updated for this year, and are in an accessible space.

It makes my heart smile that one child was pleased to see these out again and also encourages me when some of my children quietly go and drop a seed into one more more the jars. 

4. Special Intention Collection: One of my children specifically asked for a this tradition again this year, but we have yet to get together to pray, and decide which cause we'll collect for this year. Guess I know what will be part of this week's agenda for together time with the kids.

5. Stations of the Cross Sticks: I got our Stations of the Cross prayer and Sequencing Sticks Wednesday and put them out as simple decor.

6. Lenten Resurrection Eggs: Our Lenten Resurrection eggs did come out and get put up.

7. Picture Books and More: Some of our books got put in our basket and one child has read a few, but our evening read together time has been unrelated, so far.

8. Ash Wednesday Mass and Distribution of Ashes: We gratefully were able to drive about half hour to get to Ash Wednesday Mass and confession.

9. My Lenten Prayer/Sins and Virtues: We had a goo chat about Capital Sins and Capital Virtues using a free pdf Examination of Conscience from the Fathers of Mercy, and, then, after some reflection, chose our personal Lent practices, which we recorded on individual copies of My Lenten Prayer printables.

10. Lenten Path Countdown: While finally beginning to listen to The Bible in a Year (with Fr. Mike Schmitz) episodes, we colored our Lenten Path Countdown sheets and some of us are now using out colored sheets to track our Lenten journeys.

11. Bury the Alleluia: We have yet to get to creating Alleluia posters to bury, but may yet create some when listening to more Bible in a Year episodes, which is something we are trying to make a habit of this Lent.

12. Stations of the Cross: Because there was no local church we could go to for Stations, one of the children picked a Youtube Stations of the Cross for us to do.

13. Abstinence: We are going quite light on meat and dairy overall this Lent and I am asking everyone, no matter the age, to observe abstinence on Fridays.

14. Missions: I may not be able to get to the local chapel that is giving a series of Monday night Lenten reflections afterall, but I hear they will be posting a recording on Facebook. Yay!

15. 12-12 Fasts: So far, so good for me with joining in the tradition of our Maronite Catholic friends who fast from 12 to 12 throughout the weekdays of Lent. .

So, some "hits", some "misses", some challenges, many blessings. Little ideal. All real. And all a part of the journey.

I pray however your Lenten journey has begun, it brings you closer to Our Lord.

15 Ways to Prepare for the First Few Days of Lent

As Lent nears, I have been praying about how my family may best journey through the season this year. 

• What forms may our prayer, fasting, and almsgiving take?
• Which traditions may we continue?
• What practices we may focus on?
  
• Where do we each need to grow?
  

And, of course, how might we respond to the involuntary penances that will undoubtedly arise as walk the road to Easter.

I am also thinking about practicalities: What do I need to pull down from the attic? Which things do I need to put on the calendar? What will be more free-flow?

In doing so, I made a 15 Things to Remember list for myself and thought I'd share it here in case it inspires you for your families first steps of Lent this year.

1. Lenten Chain: The kids and I sat down to brainstorm ideas for our annual Pray-Fast-Give Lenten Chain, which we will hang up, and, beginning on Wednesday, take off of each day  before praying, fasting, or giving accordingly.

2. Pretzel Prayer Pals:  By Tuesday night, I need to get shopping so I can pick up some pretzels for us to make pretzel bags to give to our chosen Lenten Prayer Pals.

3. Pray-Fast-Give Jars: By Tuesday night, I also need to get to our attic to get our Lent bin with our Pray-Fast-Give jars in it. These will go on our table with some seed, which I will pick up when I get the aforementioned pretzels. That way, again this year, we can hold ourselves accountable by slipping seeds - which will eventually "grow" into "Easter sweetness" - into our jars.

4. Special Intention Collection: We no longer Count, Pray, Fast, and Give during Lent, but we still do set out a container for moneys to donate to a special cause. Tuesday night, we'll chat, pray, and decide if we want to pick a cause before Lent begins or begin collecting change and, then, choose a cause as God reveals one to us.

5. Stations of the Cross Sticks: Some years ago, we made Stations of the Cross prayer and Sequencing Sticks. We no longer use them to pray our Stations, but they have become a traditional decoration around here to remind us to go pray the Stations, so I will dig them out of the attic, too.

6. Lenten Resurrection Eggs: Our Lenten Resurrection eggs will also come out of the attic to be placed upon a shelf for Lent as a daily reminder of the season.

7. Picture Books and More: Although my children are growing and we are not using the library as much these days, I will still put out a basket of picture books, audio books, and longer books. For nostalgia can be strong here, and I would like to facilitate curling up to read a few of our past favorite read alouds during a cozy Lenten evening.

8. Ash Wednesday Mass and Distribution of Ashes: With all the closings, changes, and hoopla at some churches this year, I was concerned that we would not be able to get to a traditional Ash Wednesday Mass. With thanks to some relatively local friars, though, we will! I am so grateful.

9. My Lenten Prayer: Again this year, I will encourage each child to keep at least a minimal Lenten journal. As a part of that, I will print out some copies of My Lenten Prayer printable again this year and encourage each child to make at least one special commitment for the season. I will do the same.

10. Lenten Path Countdown:  While I am at it, I will also print out copies of the Lenten Path Countdown sheet we use each year so the children can track their personal Lenten commitments and journey how they see fit.

11. Bury the Alleluia: My children are outgrowing their desire to spend much time creating Alleluia posters to bury, but tradition and nostalgia hold fast here. Thus, we will spend some time this week making and "burying" simple Alleluia posters that will return on Easter.

12. Stations of the Cross: We've come a long way since our Babysteps towards Prayerful Weekly Stations of the Cross with Children. Yet, we still have our challenges, including a wayward child who attempts to eschew most things faith-related. Knowing this, I am realistically expecting push back as we enter into six Fridays of including the Stations of the Cross, but I am going to aim for this practice anyway.

13. Abstinence: Although not everyone in our home is over 14 and, therefore, not bound to all Lenten fast and abstinence guidelines, I intend to make meat-free, and, I hope, dairy-free meals only on Fridays again this Lent. Menu planning and shopping lists will be made this week.

14. A local chapel is giving a series of Monday night Lenten reflections that I hope to get to throughout Lent. There are also other online "mission" offerings. I'd like to add as many of these into our Lent as life allows and am starting to bookmark links. If you know of good ones, please do share them with me!

15. 12-12 Fasts: Our Maronite Catholic friends fast from 12 to 12 throughout the weekdays of Lent. Although my children are not ready to adopt this practice, I am planning to this year and praying it will be fruitful

I would love to hear what you are doing to prepare for Lent and how you plan to spend the first few days of this penitential season. Please do share in a comment or message. Thank you.

May your Lenten journey bring you closer to Our Lord.

Have You Read the Easter Storybook? { A Review}

Disclaimer: I received a FREE copy of this product through the HOMESCHOOL REVIEW CREW in exchange for my honest review. I was not required to write a positive review nor compensated in any other way.

If you're looking for a picture book to read together with your family next Lent or one to read during the 50 days of Eastertide, The Easter Storybook: 40 Bible Stories Showing Who Jesus Is from David C. Cook could be a good choice.

The Easter Storybook: 40 Bible Stories Showing Who Jesus Is by Laura Richie with illustrations by Ian Dale is a sweet 92-page hardback picture book that aims to show the beauty, love, and grace of Jesus as our Rescuer, Redeemer, and Friend.

Each of the 40 stories in the book - which trace Jesus' footsteps from his boyhood time in the temple to His Ascension - is written and illustrated in such a way that a 4-8 year old can understand and remember while an older child or adult can remain engaged.

At the beginning of each story, a day, title, reference to the Bible, and quote from the Bible are listed.

Then, text brings Bible stories to life with child-friendly writing which includes some embedded commentary and insights.


An example of the way the author includes the truths of Bible stories at a level appropriate for a variety of ages was pointed out by my children when we read the story "Jesus Offers Grace".  This story explains that "a woman was dragged in front of the crowd" and announced to be "a bad sinner." It does not, however, speak of adultery as a actual Bible story where Jesus tells those without sin to cast the first stone does.

My children, having heard the real Bible story multiple times at Mass, asked why the author left out details, and, then, when I asked them why they thought she did, had the "Oh..." moment of realizing that adults, older children, and children who are familiar with the content of actual Bible stories can fill in details themselves while younger children can understand the story without being tripped p by such concepts as adultery, which they might not be ready for.

Likewise, my children, who are ages 9-14, noted how the author seemed to add some background and commentary to stories. For example, in "The Good Samaritan", she offers simple details about the typical relationship between Jews and Samaratins and about the good Samaritan's choice to love.

The stories, therefore, unfold with enough simplicity for children to understand, enough embedded commentary for them to connect dots, and enough interest to help readers and listeners to recognize the purpose and spiritual significance of each event from Jesus' life that is told.

At the end of each story's text, a simple question is offered for thought and conversation.

Accompanying each story is a full page, brightly colored illustration to capture and engage attention and enhance interest in the stories.

My children and I have, of course, been reading our way through this book as a part of our Lenten practices and are finding that, although we are familiar with each of the Bible stories retold for young children in the book, we can appreciate how they are told and illustrated.  

I am also wishing I had this book when my children were younger, because I think it would have been a gentle and lovely introduction to Jesus' life, death, and resurrection. (Some of the picture books we read when my children were younger were definitely not as gentle when dealing with Jesus' death, especially.) Thus, I recommend it, especially, to those with young children or grandchildren and to those with sensitive young ones.

Further, I recommend The Easter Storybook: 40 Bible Stories Showing Who Jesus Is to those whose attention may have been diverted during Lent - especially with recent world events - as a way to refocus on Jesus as alight for the nations  our Rescuer, so filled with love and mercy.

Truly, our Lord has not abandoned us. He loves us and will draw us closer to each other and to Him this Easter season and forever!

Learn More

Over 40 Homeschool Review Crew families received this delightful picture book for review. See what each family thought by clicking through the review links on the Homeschool Review Crew website. 

You can also connect on social media with David C. Cooke, a publisher of music, books, Bible studies and more for children and adults, whose The Action Bible Anytime Devotions book I recently reviewed.

Website | Facebook | Twitter | Pinterest | Instagram | YouTube

Happy reading!  May your Holy Week and Eastertide be blessed and beautiful!

Make Passion Pizza Toast {Living the Liturgical Year}

If you'd like an easy, meaningful, meat-free meal for a Friday during Lent or for Passion/Palm Sunday, how about trying Passion Pizza Toast?

So long as you have some bread, cheese (or dairy-free subsitute), and sauce in your fridge and pantry, Passion Pizza Toast makes for a super simple way to help children live the liturgical year, recalling the story of Christ's Passion as the pizzas are made.

When we made them last year, we simply looked at what we had in the fridge:

Then, set to work making our pizzas, talking through the events of the Passion of the Christ and of Holy Week. Jesus - the Bread of Life - entered Jerusalem on a donkey. (Take your piece of bread.)

People covered the roads with palms.

The very large crowd spread their cloaks on the road, while others cut branches from the trees and strewed them on the road. The crowds preceding him and those following kept crying out and saying:

 

"Hosanna to the Son of David;

blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord; hosanna in the highest."

Matthew 21:8-9

Jesus and the disciples ate the Last Supper together. (Have children retell all the parts of the story that they know.) After they ate, Jesus went to the Garden of Gestheme and prayed. While there, he cried tears of blood. (Put some sauce, tomatoes,or other red item on.)

Jesus was arrested, taken to Pontius Pilate... and was made to carry a cross. (Have children narrate more of what they know of the story before placing down ingredients in a cross shape.)

They nailed Jesus to a cross.  (Add more red sauce or ingredients.)

A centurion pierced Jesus' side with a spear, the fifth of Jesus' wounds.

Pause for a moment of silence and pray, "My Jesus, mercy," or another appropriate prayer.

Jesus died for our sins - a sacrifice of love. (Add white cheese as a symbol of Christs pure love.)

Once the story has been told, toast the pizzas, pray, and eat. While waiting, read portions of the Passion of Christ from the Bible or a storybook or ask children to sit and pray in silence.

Serve with a side salad with "five wounds" for an extra boost of nutrition.

May the last leg of your journey through Lent be blessed and may Christ have mercy on us all.