We are about to jump straight into February, the month of love! There is so much to love about February…oh I know that in your head you are thinking that I must be mad. After all, the weather is still cold, we are more likley to get snow than the warmer temps we are so longing for and lets be honest…it is depressing to wake up at 7am and its still dark!
If you have followed my blog for any length of time you will know that I love each and every season and I love to find the joy in the small things that cross our paths each day. Yes, February is cold and spring seems a long way away but it’s also the month where we start to see the first signs of spring, we get to celebrate Valentines Day and it’s the start of Lent.
For me the beginning of Lent marks the approach of Spring. By the time Easter arrives the garden has come alive with spring colour and the world is looking decidely more rosey!
If you are unfamiliar with the liturgical church year, Lent is the period of 6 weeks (40 days not including Sunday’s) leading up to Easter. It is a season of prayer, self-reflection, sacrifice and drawing closer to the Lord as we prepare for Easter.
In our home I would aways look for ways to make Lent as interactive as I could for our children. I have a few ideas that worked really well for us over the years that you may want to impliment in your own homes this Lent.
Ideas To Celebrate Lent In Your Home
Pinterest has a wealth of free Lent resources. We used the above Lenten path calendar one year in the following way:
- Print a copy of the above Lenten Path Calendar for each of your children
- Make sure you have purple stars to hand or a purple crayon to mark each day as you move through Lent. Once we had done our days Bible reading and devotional we would mark off the day. As my girls got older we found this a great way to assist in establishing them in their own personal quiet times.
During Lent we make sacrifices and think of ways that we can do good to others. We sacrifice our own desires and practice thinking of other people. This next activity was not only fun but such a great living learning tool.
- have a bowl of plain dried broad beans next to a jar (I covered mine with purple paper and placed a tag named “sacrifices & good deeds” around it).
- Explain to your children that for every act of sacrifice and every good deed done without having to be told or reminded, your child will get to place 2 beans into the jar. This is a great way for you to notice all the good and kind things that your child does. They love this!
- Now here is the fun part – on Easter morning (before the children wake) replace all the broad beans with colourful jelly beans. The message which you will explain to your children is that when we make sacrifices and put others before ourselves, we are storing for ourselves treasures in heaven.
Free Celebrating Spring and Lent Seasonal Copy Work Book
I have created this free copywork book for you to use in your homeschools which I hope will support and enrich your Lenten observances this spring.
I have a great collection of ideas in celebrating Lent, Easter and Spring on Pinterest. Do hop on over and have a look for some inspiration in celebrating this time of the year in your home. Please do consider signing up for blog updates and other news.
