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Rebekah chose Saint Philomena. A favorite of hers! She is wearing a store-bought Greek costume with a white shirt under it for modesty. We made the anchor, arrows, and lily We made the anchor from 2 wire hangers and duct tape. First, shape one of the hangers into an anchor shape and wrap it in duct tape. Add part of another hanger and wrap it in duct tape, too. Finished Anchor Add the accessories : The arrows are made from straight sticks, arrowhead-shaped gray felt, hot glued into the ends, with a red marker “blood”. The feather ends are made with brown felt cut into 1 inch by 2-3 inch pieces. (3 for each arrow) Cut fringes into one edge and hot glue the other edge to the sticks. The lily is made the same way we made them for our St Joseph’s flowering staff project. Click Here (Made with a yellow pipe cleaner, a green pipe cleaner, white paper, and green paper) or just buy a fake lily. Attach the arrows with string and the lily with a green pipe cleaner: We all love it!!

Our kids chose a nice mixture of saints this year! They like to keep mom’s brain active when it comes to creative thought! 😉

St Therese’s Feast day is Oct. 1 and this is a perfect craft project to celebrate her feast day! This cute little craft doll/statue can be used as a doll for young children, or as a statue. It is a beautiful reminder of this wonderful saint! This craft requires  the use of hot glue, so if you plan to make these with small children they will need help. Older children may be able to do these on their own if they are accustomed to using hot glue. Materials: dark brown felt dress *(see felt cutting instructions) black felt head covering (habit) * light brown felt cloak * white felt collar * white felt forehead covering * wooden old fashioned clothespin 4-inch piece of string mini roses wooden ring (to help the doll stand, if it needs help) hot glue Felt Cutting instructions: Materials when cut: After cutting out your felt pieces, slip the round clothespin head into the hole of your dress. You may need to add a drop of hot glue at the upper chest and upper back of the doll clothespin to keep the dress from sliding down the clothespin.  Pull all the dress-parts down against the clothespin and tightly knot a string around its waist. You may need an extra hand to hold the dress down while you knot the waist string. Now, cut off the extra string ends. If the dress is too long, cut it to the correct length. If the opening on the sides of the dress are showing, hot glue it together.   Now, wrap the collar around the neck and hot glue it in place. Make sure the collar’s opening/seam is in the back.   Take your cloak and fold the corners in. Be sure to test it to see if the neck size and the length is correct for your doll.  When the size is correct, hot glue the corners down, (see pic) and hot glue the cloak to the doll’s neck, leaving the front of the doll’s neck uncovered.  Be sure the folded corners are inside against the doll’s dress. Add some hot glue just above the doll’s forehead at its “would be” hairline. Place the center of the forehead cover to the center of the doll’s forehead. Add hot glue to the top and sides of the doll’s head and cover the top of its head with the black felt habit. Be sure the ends of the forehead cover are tucked in under the habit.   Note: You may have to cut a slit in the back of the habit, (from the bottom of the habit up to the head)  so it will lay down properly. Then hot glue the back of the habit together so you don’t see the cut. The final step is to add a few mini roses to the doll to symbolize St. Therese and her Shower of Roses. We used three different clothe roses on our doll. Use the cloak or dress wrinkles to kind of look like arms.  If the doll has a hard time standing on its own you may need to buy a wooden ring to help it stand. If you can’t find wooden rings, you may be able to hot glue the doll to a small wooden flat shape.  I hope I explained this well enough, If you have any questions please post a comment and I will respond. I hope you enjoy making this little doll/statue as much as we did!!   Take care and God bless. ~Jen-Marie St. Therese the Little Flower, Pray for us.

This is a simple and perfect craft project to celebrate the feast of Saint Margaret Mary (Oct 17) or the Sacred Heart (19 days after Pentecost-a Friday). And there’s no sewing needed! 😉 This cute little craft doll/statue can be used as a doll for young children, or as a statue. It is a beautiful reminder of this wonderful saint! This craft requires  the use of hot glue, so if you plan to make these with small children they will need help. Older children may be able to do these on their own if they are accustomed to using hot glue. Materials: black felt dress * (see felt cutting instructions) black felt head covering (habit) * white felt collar * white felt forehead covering * wooden old fashioned clothespin 4-inch piece of string mini image of the Sacred Heart  on heavy paper wooden ring (to help the doll stand, if it needs help) hot glue Felt Cutting instructions: Materials are the same as the St Therese doll/statue, but you need a *black* dress and you don’t need the cloak: After cutting out your felt pieces, slip the round clothespin head into the hole of your dress. You may need to add a drop of hot glue at the upper chest and upper back of the doll clothespin to keep the dress from sliding down the clothespin.  Pull all the dress parts down against the clothespin and tightly knot a string around its waist. You may need an extra hand to hold the dress down while you knot the waist string. Now, cut off the extra string ends. If the dress is too long, cut it to the correct length. If the opening on the sides of the dress are showing, hot glue it together.   Now, wrap the collar around the neck and hot glue it in place. Make sure the collar’s opening/seam is in the back.   Add some hot glue just above the doll’s forehead at its “would be” hairline. Place the center of the forehead cover to the center of the doll’s forehead. Add hot glue to the top and sides of the doll’s head and cover the top of its head with the black felt habit. Be sure the ends of the forehead cover are tucked in under the habit.   Note: You may have to cut a slit in the back of the habit, (from the bottom of the habit up to the head)  so it will lay down properly. Then hot glue the back of the habit together so you don’t see the cut. It’s best to have this printed on heavy paper or glued on thin cardboard. The final step is to hot glue the image of the Sacred Heart to the doll to symbolize St Margaret Mary’s vision of Jesus and His Most Sacred Heart. If possible, try to use the wrinkles in her dress as arms so it can look like she is holding the image.  If the doll has a hard time standing on its own you may need to buy a wooden ring to help it stand. If you can’t find wooden rings, you may be able to hot glue the doll to a small wooden flat shape.  I hope I explained this well enough, If you have any questions please post a comment and I will respond. I hope you enjoy making this little doll/statue as much as we did!!   Take care and God bless. ~Jennifer St. Margaret Mary, Pray for us.

These simple craft projects were the start of our felt doll/statue fun! We got a lot more adventurous after making these first few. But these are still just as cute.   St Anne with baby Mary would be a fun craft to make on Mary’s birthday (Sept 8), Holy Name of Mary (Sept 12), or the feast day of Sts. Anne and Joachim (July 26). Mother Mary with baby Jesus doll/statue would be good for the month of May, Christmas, or other Marian feast days.  These cute little craft doll/statues can be used as a doll for young children, or as a statue. This craft requires the use of hot glue, so if you plan to make these with small children they will need help. Older children may be able to do these on their own if they are accustomed to using hot glue. Materials: blue felt dress * (see felt cutting instructions) felt head covering * we used white for St Anne and light blue for Mary wooden old fashioned clothespin 4-inch piece of string mini old fashioned clothespin or a craft stick Scrap piece of white felt  (about 1/2 the size of the head covering) wooden ring (to help the doll stand, if it needs help) Hot glue Felt Cutting instructions: Materials: After cutting out your felt pieces, push the round clothespin head into the small head hole in the dress. You may need to add a drop of hot glue at the upper chest and upper back of the doll clothespin to keep the dress from sliding down the clothespin.  Pull all the dress parts down against the clothespin and tightly knot a string around its waist. You may need an extra hand to hold the dress down while you knot the waist string. Now, cut off the extra string ends. If the dress is too long, cut it to the correct length. If the opening on the sides of the dress are showing, hot glue it together.   Add hot glue to the top and sides of the doll’s head and cover the top of her head with the head covering. Note: You may have to cut a slit in the back of the veil, (from the bottom of the veil up to the head)  so it will lay down properly. Then hot glue the back of the veil down in a way so you don’t see the cut. Now for the baby: Cut or break the bottom of the mini clothespin off so it is the correct size. OR if you don’t have a mini old-fashioned clothespin you can use a craft stick. Break the craft stick in half and hot glue them one on top of the other. Now add some hot glue to the top and side of the baby’s head, wrap the edge of the felt piece around the top of the baby’s head. Then wrap the rest of the felt around the baby, covering it completely. Hot glue the blanket in place. Then hot glue it to the doll of Mary or St. Anne. If possible, try to use the wrinkles in her dress and vial as arms so it can look like she is holding the baby.  If the doll has a hard time standing on its own you may need to buy a wooden ring to help it stand. If you can’t find wooden rings, you may be able to hot glue the doll to a small wooden flat shape.  I hope you enjoy making this little doll/statue as much as we did!!   Take care and God bless. ~Jen-Marie Mother Mary and St. Anne, pray for us!

Hang this wall scapular on your wall as a reminder of the precious scapular, its story, and Mary’s promises to those who wear a scapular and obey God’s commands. Download the Scapular Images and Instructions Here ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ About the scapular:  A scapular is part of a monk’s or nun’s habit. It is the strip of fabric that has a hole in the middle so that it could hang over the shoulders and cover front and back. Its name came from the Latin word for shoulder; ‘scapula’. In the fifteenth century, Third Order members were required to wear the scapular. The Third Order are laypeople so the scapular was reduced in size, and it was eventually miniaturized in the sixteenth century. Today, the scapular is typically made up of two small double squares of cloth (sometimes only one). They are normally 2-inch squares with two long strings between them so they can be hung over the shoulders, with one square in front and one in back. The scapular is usually the same color as the habit of the religious order to which it belongs. The scapular can have an image of Our Lady or a symbol that relates to the particular devotion it recalls. Scapulars are sacramentals, they give the wearer God’s protection. There are approximately 18 different scapulars, most of them have an origin that stems from a vision. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ A Short Skit Our family does a lot of short skits to help the kids learn and remember the things we are talking about. Here is one about St Simon Stock, Our Lady of Mt. Carmel and the scapular: ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  The story Rachel wrote for the play/skit: Our Lady, St. Simon Stock, and the Scapular Simon was born around 1165 A.D. At the age of 12, Simon traveled to the Holy Lands where he met a group of hermits who called themselves the successors of Elijah. Simon joined them. His last name Stock, which means “tree trunk”, is thought to have derived from his behavior of living in the trunk of an oak tree as a hermit. When the Muslims began to take over the Holy Land, Simon and his friends fled to England. There Simon started many Carmelite Communities in areas like Cambridge and Oxford. He also started some in Paris and Bologna. He changed their ways from being hermits to Mendicant Friars. Years later the Carmelite Community wasn’t doing so well. Then on July 16, when Simon was in Cambridge, he decided to go to his room and pray to Mary. While in his room, Mary suddenly appeared to Simon holding the brown scapular in one hand and she said: Many years later both religious and ordinary Catholics have been able to wear the scapular. The church has approved 18 different kinds of scapulars. But the most popular is the woolen brown scapular which Our Lady gave Simon Stock. Simon’s feast day is on May 16 and Our Lady of Mount Carmel’s feast is July 16. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Brown Scapular Enrollment: Years ago, many Catholic parishes enrolled the children who were to receive their first Holy Communion in the Brown Scapular. Today it’s not as common. If you want to be enrolled, talk to a Catholic priest. Here is a link for the enrollment prayers. Take a look at the entire site for even more information on the Brown Scapular. May God’s peace be with you, ~Jen-Marie

How do you like the new Mass? I’m young enough to not remember how the Mass was done years ago, but I’m excited to see that the wording is being returned to a better translation of the original Latin. Sadly it can make responding at Mass a bit difficult for people like me who are just accustomed to saying those old prayers and phrases. And my kids have a hard time with it, too. But Monica, at Equipping Catholic Families , has created   to help the kids learn the new Mass. This kit includes 20 black and white templates to copy, color, and then create 10 mini books. The pages of these books go over the new phrases in the new Mass. They also cover the different vestments, symbols, church furnishings, parts of the Mass, sacraments, and sacramentals. The pictures are very well done and interesting to look at and color.   The books were a help to my older kids and my younger kids. I homeschool and I have two second-graders this year who will be receiving their First Holy Communion. These books also helped me to teach them about the Mass and all the items they see at church. Thank you, Monica! Visit Tracy at A Slice of Smith Life to read her review. Or Visit  Laura’s at Day by Day in our World  to read her review. Or Visit Monica at Equipping Catholic Families to read more about her kit and consider purchasing one for yourself. God Bless! ~Jen-Marie

St. Isadore ‘s Garden Sign and Prayer A  Short Story about St. Isadore St. Isadore, who worked for a farmer, would go to Mass each morning but the farmer he worked for threatened to find someone to replace St. Isadore because he kept coming to work late. The next day St. Isadore went to Mass anyway and to the surprise of the farmer, an angel was seen tilling the field with two white oxen! The farmer then allowed St. Isadore to go to Mass before starting his daily duties. Dedicate your garden to the saint who is the patron saint of farmers. St. Isadore’s feast day is May 15, which is the perfect time of year for planting and starting a garden! -Just don ’t expect the angels to do your weeding while you ’re at Mass! Print the image, cut it out, and laminate it. Be sure the laminating is properly sealed around the edges so the rain cannot damage it. Then attach it to a stake or hang it on a gate or post at the entrance of your garden. (If you are using nails or staples to attach the sign, puncture only the clear laminated areas where there is no picture. Otherwise, the rain may damage the picture through the small puncture holes.) Make your own St. Isadore garden sign with wood and non-washable paint! St. Isadore, intercede for us!

This children’s craft project is a great craft for Holy Week and Good Friday. It uses clothes pins to create Jesus and brown paper for the cross. Materials: Printable instructions (below) 2 sheets brown construction paper small 1 inch circle of yellow paper small piece of white paper 3 clothes pins taken apart with metal center removed tissue (1”x 2” piece) tape glue (white glue and/or hot glue) colored pencils (brown, black, red and orange) scissors -*Download the Instructions Here*- Instructions: Fold the construction paper every 1 inch to make a flat 1” x 9” long stiff vertical cross section. (Fold in one direction, not back and forth like a fan ~ It’s like rolling up the paper but flattening the roll as you go.) Tape the end of the paper to one of the flat sides. This side will be the back of the cross. Cut the other piece of construction paper down to 9”x7”. Fold it like the first but to make a 1”x 7” horizontal cross section. With a brown crayon or colored pencil add some brown lines lengthwise to each section to create a wooden look to the paper cross parts. (This only needs to be done on the front of each cross part.) Tape the two sections together on the back side to create a cross. Glue two clothespin parts back to back to create Jesus body. Then add the two clothes pin parts to create his legs. (see image below) Hot-glue works best for this. White glue will work, but can be a more time consuming and difficult. With the brown pencil draw hair on the head of Jesus. With black, add two lines for his eyes, a smaller line for his nose and a longer line for his mouth. Also, add over-lapping x’s around his head to create a crown of thorns. Add some red for blood. Cut out a small 1” x 2” piece of tissue to rap it around Jesus hips. Glue it on the back side. Cut out a 1” circle of yellow paper and color the outer edge with orange and glue it down at the center of the cross sections where the two parts intersect. Glue Jesus body and legs to the cross placing his head at the center of the halo. Add the arms to the cross as shown in the pictures. Color some red on his feet and hands, then add a black dot for the nails. With a black pencil write INRI on the white paper and draw a brown square shape around it. Cut it out and glue it to the top of the cross. Your cross is complete! You can tape a looped string to the back to hang it up. Or just use some sticky putty or double sided tape. God Bless! ~Jen-Marie

Elizabeth and I had a great time creating this staff!  It was fun one-on-one time for us!  And now she won’t quit making lilies of every color!  A Story about St. Joseph’s Staff Some images and statues of Joseph show him with a staff which is topped with lilies. This is a symbol to remind us of a possibly true story which told of how Mary’s spouse was chosen: Walking sticks of widowers in Israel were collected and one was to be chosen from among them. The owner of the chosen staff was to marry the young virgin Mary. Joseph’s staff burst into blossom, thus identifying him as divinely chosen. The Craft: Supplies: 5 or more green pipe cleaners 5 yellow pipe cleaners (orange will work, too) 5 sheets of white paper 1 sheet of green paper A walking stick from outside (A wooden rod from a craft store will also work, but you may want to paint/stain it brown.) Pencil Scissors Tape and/or Glue Hot Glue (maybe) Download printable instructions here. Instructions: The yellow pipe cleaner will be the center of the lily flower. Cut the yellow pipe cleaner in half (should be about 3 to 4 inch pieces). Crisscross and twist the two halves together at the center. Curl the ends down just a little to make a small ball on each of the 4 ends. The green pipe cleaner will be the stem. Take the green pipe cleaner and twist one end around the yellow pipe cleaners at the center. The yellow pipe cleaners should be up and the green down. Trace two hand prints side-by-side on a sheet of white paper and cut them out. (I stacked the 5 white sheets together and cut them out at the same time.) The fingers are the flower’s peddles. Wrap one hand cut-out around the yellow pipe cleaner with the green coming out the bottom. Tape it together. Then wrap the other hand cut-out around in the same way. Use a pencil to carefully curl down some of the peddles of the lily Repeat the above steps to make more lilies. Make about 5 lilies total. Wrap/twist the green pipe cleaner stems of your lilies around the top portion of the walking stick. You may need to hot glue them to the stick or use an extra green pipe cleaner to help secure the lilies to the staff. If you have any extra pipe cleaner ends hanging out, it looks best if you curl the ends using your finger or a pencil. Cut out and hot glue or tape some long narrow leaves to the green pipe cleaner stems. Now you have St. Joseph’s staff blooming with lilies!! Makes a great prop to go with a St. Joseph costume for All Saints Day, too! God bless! ~Jen-Marie

Every year on March 17 our family watches a movie about St. Patrick! It’s been a wonderful tradition and we look forward to it every year! St. Patrick’s day often gets lost among the  leprechauns  and Irish glamour and this has been a great family event to help us stay focused! St. Patrick: The Irish Legend (2000) Patrick Bergin, Luke Griffin, Robert Hughes St. Patrick: The Irish Legend (2000)  an excellent made for TV movie.  While it does have a bit of the “made for TV” look, it wonderfully tells St. Patrick’s story and explains his life in a way that makes me want to watch the movie again and again! There are a few parts that may be a little scary for young children – if they are easily frightened, b ut all in all, we love this movie! I recommend seeking it out and buying it!

“Minute Meditations on the Mysteries of the Rosary”   — By Rev. Thomas M. Feeley I found this book to be a wonderful help to focus on while praying the Rosary. If you are like me, you can’t stay focused on prayer and meditation, and your mind just keeps jumping to all the things you need to do. This book has been a great help to me. Another good book to use while praying the Rosary is: Rosary of Praise” — By Larry and Connie London This is a good book to read when praying the Rosary with young children. Both are excellent for young and old!