Well, Lent didn't go quite as I had hoped. I didn't get Ariana's room done, I didn't go through the clothes in the basement, I didn't get any more schooling than usual done, or the yard set up and I didn't get any new things together for the 40 trash bags (though adding the garbage in the truck I did get to 40 bags).
We did manage to listen to Mass on KBVM often enough that it seems odd to skip it (so we've continued listening as often as possible), which is a step in the right direction. And, while I didn't get Ariana's room done, a lot of progress was made and I learned some new things about construction.
My "free time" during Lent did enable me to come up with a new idea for celebrating the seasons at home. I have a short bookcase that has become a kind of Religious space with holy pictures and kid's crafts like our crowns of thorns and I had, during Ordinary Time, a green cover under the items. I figured it wouldn't be too hard to make one for every season and have the kids help with putting up whichever we needed, so after Lent began I started searching for something that would work. I discovered flat twin sheets on sale for $3, so I bought a red and purple one. I had white at home, so then I started looking for gold fabric. The twin sheets offered another "problem" in that I would have way more fabric than I needed, so I came up with the idea of making a long piece to hang in the front window, a table runner (to go under a clear plastic cover - something I have wanted to do for years), and possibly pieces to hang on or behind each crucifix throughout the house. We'll have to see how it goes. I'm sure we can manage the purple, white/gold and green, but I'm worried the red and (if I manage to get it) rose, will be more difficult. I did manage to find beautiful gold fabric and with a coupon it wasn't too bad, but it was still $27 to get enough to augment the white. I tend to push penny-pinching to an extreme, so $27 on top of the $6, means that I am committed to this project. I started cutting the purple just before the end of Lent, which wasn't the best decision I've made lately, but I was nervous starting with the more difficult and nicer looking white and gold. I finally got the house clean enough that I should be able to work on sewing today. I have only done real basic sewing before, so this will be a bit of a project. I will post more on it as I make progress.
All my old goals for Lent are now my new goals for Easter! Let's see if I can manage to get them done!
