Good Friday
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| An Alphabet of the Altar And Other Holies |
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| Hot Cross Buns – a simple lunch for all the kids – between Stations of the Cross/Divine Mercy Chaplet and the Good Friday Service/Veneration of the Cross 🙏🏻 Catholic Cuisine: Hot Cross Buns – A History |
Holy Thursday
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| An Alphabet of the Altar And Other Holies |
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| The Jesus Tree • A Lenten Calendar for Catholic Children |
Stout Grove :: Visiting the Coastal Redwoods
After the boys’ high school golf tournament, we made one last stop before heading back home. I always love visiting the Redwoods! It had been awhile since our last visits to Stout Grove (here and here) and a first for our youngest two. I haven’t been able to walk much the past month or so (due to some issues I’m having with my hips/spine/joints – most likely from when I broke my tailbone combined with the added pregnancy weight) but my current weekly visits to the physical therapist/chiropractor have been making a big difference and I was so happy to be able to walk the beautiful loop trail through these colossal 300-foot+ ancient coastal redwoods!
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| “Even the Shamrocks here are huge!” |
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| “We are making a triceratops!” |
Overnight Getaway to the Coast
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| Ranger got his first birdie (outside of his home/practice course) on hole #4! |
Thankfully golf carts were available for this tournament, making it possible for me to watch while we all enjoyed the sunshine and fresh ocean air!
We got to watch Ranger par hole 15, but missed his birdie on hole 17 since we circled back to watch Captain for a few more holes.
On Palm Sunday
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| 🌿Gloria, laus et honor tibi sit, Rex Christe Redemptor, Cui puerile decus prompsit Hosanna pium.🌿 |
Update: The picture book is called My Holy Week Missal. I recently ordered a couple EF missals (A Young Catholic’s Daily Missal for our soon-to-be 10 year old and Blessed Be God for myself) from Angelus Press (affiliated with SSPX) and added this book to my order. I really like it! It includes illustrations and explanations (based on the Latin Mass) for Palm Sunday through Easter Sunday.
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| Lent and Easter Blocks (or Craft Sheets to make your own!) • My Holy Week Missal |
The Jesus Tree :: A Lenten Craft and Bible Study
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| First Communion Bible • Lenten Jesus Tree Verses |
I didn’t have any poster boards large enough for the crosses, so we just printed them out on card stock and glued the four sections together. I’m pretty sure our little guy used a different shade of brown for each section.. lots of variations in the wood of his cross!
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| Looking for the perfect shade… |
The Shadow of His Wings: A Graphic Biography {Book Review & Giveaway}
One of the books our soon-to-be ten year old will be recieiving in his Easter basket this year is the powerful story of Fr. Gereon Goldmann’s WWII experiences which is now available as a graphic biography. (For older readers I highly recommend The Shadow of His Wings: The True Story of Fr. Gereon Goldmann, OFM.) I was sent a review copy of this new version last year and asked my husband to preview it, and type up a short review to share with you all, but I never got around to posting it here on the blog… Here it is now:
A twenty-two year old German seminarian is drafted into Hitler’s SS; facing nazi hostility towards his religion, deadly military actions, and doubts from Church superiors, Gereon Goldmann nevertheless will pursue the Sacrament of Holy Orders – or die trying. This is the true story of Gereon Goldmann and the incredible account of his experiences in answering God’s calling. Drafted into the German army four years from ordination, Gereon crosses paths with Sister Solana May, the sacristan who taught him how to serve mass. With unwavering faith and zeal she is convinced God will answer the prayers of her convent that Gereon will become a priest within the year. Gereon embarks on a journey retold by Max Temescu that can only be described as miraculous.
Adapted from the extended original biography, Temescu illustrates and writes a condensed version that would be appealing to young readers, especially boys. Young readers, ages 10 and older can retrace Gereon’s experiences in this fast paced story adaptation that begins with a harrowing assault to conquer a hill. It then recounts Gereon’s journey in a graphic format, that we recognize in comic books.
The story itself is only captured in the first 61 pages and the remaining half of the book, like the original, includes an epilogue, photographs, and sketches from the author and illustrator. Parents may want to preview the book to screen for age appropriateness due to violence and graphic drawings of war experiences. The story reveals that with trust in God, nothing is impossible.
Ignatius Press has generously offered to send a copy of The Shadow of His Wings: A Graphic Biography to one of my visitors here at Shower of Roses.
The Catholic Child and Saint Joseph
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| Making Symbolic Rolls for this year’s Saint Joseph’s Altar |
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| Wine & Fruit • Symbolic Fig Pastries • Traditional Breads in Symbolic Shapes Mudica (Breadcrumbs) with Pasta • Fish • Italian Treats including Cream Puffs and Tiramisu |
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| A special gift to celebrate one of his patron saints! |
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| St. Joseph from Naturally Catholic • IHS Candle from SaongJai |
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| The kids all worked together to set up this year’s St. Joseph’s Altar using our pictures and statues of St. Joseph, along with candles, blocks from Almond Rod Toys, and Holy Cards from their collections! |
St. Teresa tells us that he will never fail us.
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| I had picked out a bottle of Châteauneuf-du-Pape (I loved that the bottle is embossed with the Keys of St. Peter… Perfect for this dear Patron of the Universal Church!) at Trader Joe’s along with a few bottles of “Joseph” themed beer and a couple bottles of Sparkling White Chardonnay Grape Juice for the kids. |
when you need a favor, a grace, a help of any kind.
Ask him often to be at your side when you come to die.
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| St. Joseph from Catholic Folk Toys Incorporating the traditional St. Joseph’s Altar foods of Figs and Grapes, we also included an Autoimmune Paleo Pizza that I could enjoy for dinner. It was so delicious! Here’s the recipe: Prosciutto & Fig Bistro Pizza |
ever to lead a pure and blameless life.
Celebrating the Solemnity of the Annunciation {Swedish Waffles and AIP Waffles for Lady Day}
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| The Annunciation from Rosary Flip Book |
Ingredients:
- 3 1/2 oz butter
- 1 2/3 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 2 cups plus 3 tablespoons milk
- 2 eggs
Directions:
In a bowl or blender (I used my Vitamix) whip together flour, baking powder and salt with half of the milk until you have an even batter. Pour in the rest of the milk, eggs and the melted butter, whip until thoroughly mixed.
Heat the waffle iron and brush with butter. Pour in 6 tablespoons of batter and bake until golden brown. Makes 8 waffles. Top with berries. (Lingonberries are traditional in Sweden. We used Marionberries in honor of Our Lady!)
After baking waffles for everyone else, I was really craving a waffle too… I decided to try to adapt an AIP Belgian waffle recipe to use with our waffle maker and the Cassava Flour I recently purchased. It turned out great! I’ll definitely be making these again.
{gluten-free, grain-free, sugar-free, egg-free, dairy free, nut-free, seed-free}
Vegan, Paleo-friendly, AIP-friendly, and still delicious!
Ingredients:
- 1 1/4 cup cassava flour
- 1/4 cup arrowroot starch
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/4 teaspoon sea salt
- 3 teaspoons apple cider vinegar
- 2 tablespoons honey
- 1/4 cup melted coconut oil
- 1/4 water
- 1 13.5 oz can full fat organic coconut milk
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract (alcohol-free for AIP)
Directions:
In a large bowl, combine all of the dry ingredients and mix well.
Place all the wet ingredients in blender (I used my Vitamix) and blend until well combined. Add dry ingredients and blend again until well combined. The batter will be thicker than pancake batter but should still be pourable. You may need to add a little additional water or coconut milk.
Lightly brush waffle iron with coconut oil. Add about 1/3-1/2 cup of batter to your pre-heated waffle iron and cook until done. I use this waffle iron, preheated and very hot, with setting number 4.
The recipe yields 5-6 Swedish style waffles, using approximately 1/3-1/2 cup of batter for each waffle. Be sure to cook the waffles long enough or they can turn out gummy.
Top with marionberries. Next time I’ll make some Coconut Whip too! Serve immediately or store in the refrigerator and reheat in the oven.
Celebrating the Feast of Saint Patrick
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| From Instagram on St. Patrick’s Day 2017: I haven’t spent much time in the kitchen this St. Patrick’s Day, but the kids did wake up to some new picture books and yummy treats! ☘👊🏻 #whathappenedtostpatricksfinger #fistpumpinsaint #seescandies #happystpatricksday |
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| May you have: A world of wishes at your command. God and His angels close to hand. Friends and family their love impart, and Irish blessings in your heart! 💚☘ |
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| Download my printable images to create our St. Patrick Gold Coins over at Dropbox: Regular Size and Small Size. (Pictured in the archives here and over at Catholic Cuisine here.) |
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| Photo Credit: Twinkle Toes (who is still recovering from a bad case of poison oak) “What do you get when you cross poison oak with a four-leaf clover? A rash of good luck. 🍀 Happy St. Patrick’s Day!” |
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| Photo Credit: Captain (St. Patrick is one of his patron saints) “Thanks Dad and Mom for the Saint Patrick day treats.😋” |
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| St. Patrick Handmade Saint from Naturally Catholic • Saint Patrick Tee from Totally Catholic Tees |
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| The boys requested Irish Beef and Guinness Stew and Traditional Irish Soda Bread with Kerrygold Irish Butter for this year’s celebration ☘ I served it a day late since St. Patrick’s feast fell on a Lenten Friday this year, plus they were gone all of St. Patrick’s Day for their first golf tournament of the season! |
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| Our kids decided that our annual Shamrock Cinnamon Rolls (also pictured here) were too much of a “dessert” (which they choose to give up this lent – the older kids saved the St. Patrick’s Day candies I gave them too) so I put them back in the fridge on Friday and made them for our Sunday brunch instead! ☘ |
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