Lent begins today

As you can see, I have changed the colors of the linens in my living room and hallway. The first picture is from the hallway right next to the bathroom door and the back entrance to the house. The second picture is the living room home shrine or prayer corner, like I like to call it. I recently read in other blogs that they call it the "feast table". You can see the new window panels that I made. I used 2 yards of fabric per panel.

The last picture is what I decided to do for displaying the liturgical vestment for this lent season. I have to redo the alb again and later use the standing cross again for after lent. I found this cross at Michaels and it has a whole in the back to hang on the wall. This wall is between two window in my living room. Right above my arm chair where I sit to pray and read my bible.

Today we are attending Mass to receive the sign of the cross on our forehead. We beging a season of preparation for Easter. This a time of penance, fasting, and a deeper conversion.

So how do I teach this, to my children?

As a child, I remember that grandmother will not allow us to watch tv or hear the radio on holy days. We will abstain from eating meat on Fridays. But I never quite really comprehended the reason for all of this. Until a few years ago when I returned to the Catholic faith. I finally realized the significance of all the things done in lent. No water in the holy water fountains, the color purple used in the linens of the church. All those thing became more clear know. And I want my children to know the real meaning. I want them to be able to respond to their children when they ask, "why do we do this, and what does it mean for us?"

I thank all those other Catholic Moms who share their ideas for lent. Now I have resources and I think I can give my children a better explanation than what my Mom gave me. "We do this because it is a tradition that has been done for many years." period. No more. ? So I continued participating in a tradition that in reality did not have real meaning to me, until now. Thanks to EWTN, teology classes, and Catholic radio, I am learning so many things about my Catholic faith, and I am finding real meaning to all the traditions and feasts celebrated in the Catholic faith.