Enjoying the Journey through April

Second month of Autumn
♥ Faith: Month of the Holy Eucharist
Liturgical season Easter (Paschaltide)

2010:
1st Maundy Thursday
2nd Good Friday
3rd Holy Saturday
4th Easter Sunday
11th Low Sunday
11th Divine Mercy Sunday
19th Anniverary of Election of Pope Benendict the XVI in 2005
21st St Anselm
22nd Sts. Soter & Caius
22nd Sts. Epipodius & Alexander
23rd St. George
24th St. Fidelis of Sigmaringen
24th St. Euphrasia
25th St. Mark
25th The Greater Litanies
26th Sts. Cletus & Marcellinus
26th Our Lady of Good Counsel
26th St. Alda
27th St. Peter Canisius
27th St. Zita
28th St. Paul of the Cross
29th St. Peter of Verona
30th St. Catherine of Siena

Liturgical Books to Read : Lent and Easter Books and April Books

Seasonal Books to Read: Autumn Books
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♥Homemaking:
-Autumnal cooking-
-Make applesause to freeze
-Make Apple pies
-Make Apple strudel
-Dry apples on a rack
-Make up our Hot Chocolate Mix (link to it)
-Stock up on firewood and kinderling
-Make popcorn for treats
-Cookies and cakes for treats
-Soup and homemade bread for comfort food
-Make Hot piced Cider:
Apple Cider crock pot or saucepan
Put spices into a piece of cheescloth and simmer in crock pot or stove top
Add 6 sticks of cinnamon
8 whole cloves
½ lemon cut into thin slices ¼ cup of honey
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♥Crafts:
-Make the feast day crafts
-Start to prepare May Day Baskets
-Build a scarecrow
-Crayon leaf transfers of Autumn leaves
-Apple craft- star apple
-Make little old Apple people
-Make a clove apple
-String together garlic and onions
-Make a walnut shell tutle
-Make crafts for St Benedict
-Make drop spindles
-Spinning fun begins as the girls and I start spinning together on the spinning wheel.
I am teaching the girls as I try to remember hwo to do this myself. It has been about 14 years since I did this.
-Make some liquid soap using this recipe from Down to Earth Blog
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♥Nature:
-Daylight saving ends
-Watch the Robin Redbreasts as they seem to be everywhere
-The blue wrens are a fimiliar sight and the Kookaburras are laughing with us.
-Harvest of pumpkins and Apples
-Go to Arborutum for the day and do the activites planned.
-Autumn walks on the beach
-Look for empty nests and mark for next year
-Walks in the rain observe the nature and see what is different to regular time
-Plant bulbs for spring
- Go to Cradle Mountain for an Autumn Walk.
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♥ Goals:
-Cultivate a quiet and calm spirit
-Get the daily routine (with Moran esp. Using her chart) happening
- start reading some more of my reading list
- finish Corbyn's patchwork quilt and Arwen's handprint cross-stitch
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♥Rituals:
-St George and the Dragon Re-enactmaent
-Yearly Anzac routine- ritual of trench digging and Anzac cookies etc
-Afternoon tea times
-Candles around the house
-Start of the Board game fever as we come inside earlier
- Set up the Autmn seasons table after Easter theme
- Have "the bookcase" set up with the Easter Theme still untill the end of Eastertide
- Change the bulletin board to Autumn
- Make sure we do the Rosary Every day
-Keep family altar fresh with changing the linens and fresh flowers (when we have them) and Change Father Pine to match.
- Re-establish the Bible Reading and Chapter Reading (we have been lax with sick children and holidays
-Friday cooking day of goodies
- encourage "creative time" especially with little ones at 'happy hour'. Read, Make or Do.
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♥Learning:
After Holidays get back into Term 2 routine (see learning blog)
- Alphabet Path with the Girls
- Catechism of the Good Shepherd presentations the little ones really enjoyed the Lent Easter ones
- Science experiments
-Craft specifically weekly with everyone
-Use Catholic Mosaic books for the month
- "Orchard House Circle" every Tuesday evening and Scribbling Squires with Saxon and Rogan

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♥ Special Days:
-11th Corbyn’s Birthday (St Leo the Great)
-16th Corbyn’s Baptisim Anniversary ( St Bernadette)
-1st April Fool’s Day
-2nd Hans Chrisitan Anderson’s Birthday
-16th Pope Benendict’s Birthday
-19th Anniversary of Electionof Pope Benedict XVI in 2005
-23rd William Shaekspeare
-24th Anniversary of Enthronment of Pope Benedict the XVI in 2005
-25th Anzac Day

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♥ Inspirational Thought:
Autumn ~ Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

With what a glory comes and goes the year!
The buds of spring, those beautiful harbingers
Of sunny skies and cloudless times, enjoy
Life's newness, and earth's garniture spread out;
And when the silver habit of the clouds
Comes down upon the autumn sun, and with
A sober gladness the old year takes up
His bright inheritance of golden fruits,
A pomp and pageant fill the splendid scene.

There is a beautiful spirit breathing now
Its mellow richness on the clustered trees,
And, from a beaker full of richest dyes,
Pouring new glory on the autumn woods,
And dipping in warm light the pillared clouds.
Morn on the mountain, like a summer bird,
Lifts up her purple wing, and in the vales
The gentle wind, a sweet and passionate wooer,
Kisses the blushing leaf, and stirs up life
Within the solemn woods of ash deep-crimsoned,
And silver beech, and maple yellow-leaved,
Where Autumn, like a faint old man, sits down
By the wayside a-weary. Through the trees
The golden robin moves. The purple finch,
That on wild cherry and red cedar feeds,
A winter bird, comes with its plaintive whistle,
And pecks by the witch-hazel, whilst aloud
From cottage roofs the warbling blue-bird sings,
And merrily, with oft-repeated stroke,
Sounds from the threshing-floor the busy flail.

O what a glory doth this world put on
For him who, with a fervent heart, goes forth
Under the bright and glorious sky, and looks
On duties well performed, and days well spent!
For him the wind, ay, and the yellow leaves,
Shall have a voice, and give him eloquent teachings.
He shall so hear the solemn hymn that Death
Has lifted up for all, that he shall go
To his long resting-place without a tear.

Enjoy your Month
Blessings