Today's Advent/Christmas Party

Our English Christmas

Dear All,

As you are enjoying your days at the beach, we are filling our short days and long nights preparing for our English Christmas. We have not had any snow, yet, but lots of frost and it is very cold.

We have been studying our Salvation History through the Bible, using a Jesse Tree. We are also reading, "The Christmas Mystery", by Jostein Gaarder. It's a terrific Christmas read.

Nathan, Ted and Denise (our landlords) made some lovely Yule Logs. They cut up some logs, bored holes for candles and painted them white. Then they decorated them. We made some pomanders, using oranges that we then stuck cloves into. The oranges will shrink and the pomanders will last 100 years! We also dried slices of oranges and cranberries in the oven. We put them all in a dish, with cinnamon sticks and pine cones and put the dish next to the fire. When they heat up, the give off the most delicious spicy smells!

Once a week, Nathan and I put on our wellies and walk the 50 metres to our brook, where we cut long lengths of holly for our mantle piece. It looks like plastic, but the real stuff is prickly and sharp!

We hope you have a happy and holy Christmas and we look forward to seeing you in the New Year.

Lots of love,

Nathan and Christine

Trivia Christmas Game.

There is a Advent and Christmas trivia game that has been organised for the kids at the christmas party gathering, so make sure you bring your thinking caps.
See you all there, God Bless, Lee.

The Immaculate Conception

Our next meeting is at Leonie's home, December 16. Meet at 12 noon. Bring lunch to share for an end of the year party, and we will also talk about the Feast of the Immaculate Conception - bring along those Mary Notebooks, too and we will aim to add an entry.

Anybody want to sare Advent links, recipes, ideas?

Immaculate Conception

O Father, you prepared the Virgin Mary to be the worthy motherof your Son. …Help us by her prayers, to live in your presencewithout sin. Amen.

November Gathering

This month Claire taught about a saint very close to her heart, St Andrew.

Here is some info -

St. Andrew , like his brother Simon Peter, was a fisherman. He became a disciple of the great St. John the Baptist, but when John pointed to Jesus and said, "Behold the Lamb of God!" Andrew understood that Jesus was greater. At once he left John to follow the Divine Master. Jesus knew that Andrew was walking behind him, and turning back, he asked, "what do you seek?" When Andrew answered that he would like to know where Jesus lived, Our Lord replied, "Come and see." Andrew had been only a little time with Jesus when he realized that this was truly the Messiah.
From then on, he chose to follow Jesus. Andrew was thus the first disciple of Christ. Next, Andrew brought his brother Simon (St. Peter) to Jesus and Jesus received him, too, as His disciple. At first the two brothers continued to carry on their fishing trade and family affairs, but later, the Lord called them to stay with Him all the time. He promised to make them fishers of men, and this time, they left their nets for good. It is believed that after Our Lord ascended into Heaven, St. Andrew went to Greece to preach the gospel. He is said to have been put to death on a cross, to which he was tied, not nailed. He lived two days in that state of suffering, still preaching to the people who gathered around their beloved Apostle. Two countries have chosen St. Andrew as their patron - Russia and Scotland.

Whilst learning about St Andrew the kids were asked to draw on the window (hope they don't get any ideas!) which they really enjoyed, no doubt.

They drew Symbols that represented his life. They then went to the table and using the symbols on the window they created their own mini stained glass window(s). This craft was an absolute hit as they all fully engrossed themselves in it till they finished. Thanks Claire for a great lesson and a wonderful craft.

We then had a relaxing lunch out the back in the beautiful spring weather, chatting away while the kids played. Looking forward to seeing you all at the Christmas party. Danielle.

Jesse Tree

Sear All,

Nathan and I are going to do a study of the Jesse Tree for Advent. We are taking our programme from one prepared by the Reformed Church of America, whose teaching looks sound on this topic.

If you go to www.rca.org and go to the section on Seasonal devotions, you can find it. It has readings for each day of advent and a symbol to hang on your own Jesse Tree. Perhaps we can post photos of our tree as we go along.

God bless you all and, as the wonderful time of Advent approaches, I wish you all the joy of Christmas.

Christine

All Hallows Eve, All Saints and All Souls

I love these feast days - so much to plan for, so much fun to have, prayers to pray, activities to undertake, Masses to attend, parties, perhaps, to plan... We can't do it all so each year I just select a few things on which to concentrate...


Halloween

Halloween, All Saints and All Souls

Soul cakes - we've made these for several years, yum!

Prayer - De Profundus

Next Meeting

Our next meeting is on Tuesday 11th November 12pm at Leeann’s house .

Clare is doing a lesson on St Andrew.

Please bring a plate to share for lunch.

Links ~

Wikipedia - St Andrew

Patron Saint of Scotland

Catholic Culture - Things To Do for the Feast of St Andrew

Prayer for the Beatification of Louis and Zélie Martin

...and to obtain favours through their intercession:

God Our Father, we praise You for Louis and Zélie Martin, a truly faithful husband and wife, who lived their Christian life in an exemplary way through their duties in life and practice of Gospel teaching. In bringing up a large family, in spite of trials, bereavements and suffering, they showed immense trust in You and obedience to Your will.

Lord deign to manifest Your will in their regard and grant me the favours I implore while praying that the father and mother of Saint Thérèse of the Child Jesus be presented as models of family life today. Amen.

yummy banana muffins!!

Banana muffins

(170.c)
(20 to 25 minutes)


2 cups all self raising flour. (sifted)

1 cup sugar.

1/2 cup margarine.

3/4 cup water.

2 large eggs.

3/4 cup milk.

1 teaspoon vanilla essence.

2 mashed black bananas.

Add all ingredients in a large bowl and wizz them together with an electric beater until all combined. Put mix in oiled muffin pan and cook till golden.

Warning - As they are best eaten hot these muffins won't last long.

Love Alessia Cauchi.

St. Therese Activities

St. Therese Chaplet Beads

This little set of prayer beads is a great example of using uniquely shaped beads in a chaplet. The beads chosen for this St. Therese chaplet are, appropriately enough, little pressed glass flowers! Either a St. Therese medal or crucifix can be used for this chaplet, but in this example, we have used both. The 24 beads are symbolic of her 24 years on earth. May praying this lovely chaplet help you to imitate St. Therese’s “little way” of following Christ.

School and Family Activities on St. Therese

Puzzles and Crafts about St. Therese.

Links for this week's meeting

St Francis of Assisi

Conventual Franciscans

St Therese of the Child Jesus

A Mary Blue Cake for the Feast of the Holy Rosary

And what we did last year for the feast day of Our Lady of the Rosary.

Saintly Warriors

A group of Catholic homeschooling families, we meet monthly in each other's homes. We pray together. We learn about the Faith. We talk. We play. We eat.

"Education," said Sister Miriam Joseph, in writing on classical education "is the highest of arts in the sense that it imposes forms not on matter, as do the other arts, but on minds."

The Church clearly notes in the Catechism that parents are responsible for their children’s “moral education and spiritual formation.” This responsibility is so intertwined with the family “that it is almost impossible to provide an adequate substitute” to the parents' involvement (CCC 2221).