St Patrick's Day 2011

Our Leprechaun cake hill.

Welcome to our home for the rundown of  what we achieved yesterday for our St Patrick's day ideas.
ooo
I really was trying NOT to do too much, but I think we still did a fair bit. I am soooo thankful for our older children who are happy to join in and help for our feast day celebrations.

Arwen with the Leprechaun

The Leprechaun cake hill was the item I really wanted to achieve with our children. I was just so really keen to try making the Leprechauns and the idea of a cake came to me one day.....I just couldn't wait to try it.
As I had finished putting it together Arwen and Myffwyn kept wanting to play with the Leprechauns.

For lunch we had these cute little shamrock open sandwiches: bread with mayonnaise and cucumber on top in the shamrock shape.....very yummy.

The children coloured in pictures from Irish Legends/folk tales and did a couple of word searches, a maze and crosswords. 
I love these cute little riddles to share with everyone
I have been wanting to get S is for Shamrock for ages and here is an excellent Lapbook study to go with it.

Corbyn and Myffwyn

Moran

Arwen

Eden

Eden will take ages on her colouring. She loves to create and colour.

Myffy getting 'Irished'

This is probably the only time of year I let the children have painted on pictures on skin. They really love this and Autumn seem to be the master painter.

Arwen having a turn

Arwen was OK for a while and then didn't want to sit anymore

Myffy all finished

Corbyn was very keen to have Celtic designs on him and immediately took his shirt off.

Moran

Moran was a bit upset at first as Autumn was using a pencil and her Sensory Issues weren't up to it.
When Autumn changed to a paintbrush she was fine with her Irish painting.

We try to remember to put this up each year and I was going to make a similar ribbon banner like the one for Valentines Day,  but tried to remember to not overdo it.

I had to wait all day to make these little guys...the pity of feast days is the fact that children will expect to be fed.....hence all the food preparation.

LEARNING ABOUT ST PATRICK~
Essential viewing is St Patrick for all
Younger children can watch Darby O'Gill
Keen to watch this movie again The Wind that shakes the Barley
and of course Michael Collins 

FOOD for the Day~

We made these super cool Irish Cream Brownies~ (note they are extremely Irish Cream flavoured)
4oz. semisweet baking chocolate,
coarsely chopped
1/2  c. butter
1/2  c. sugar
2     eggs
1/4  c. Irish Cream
1     c. all purpose flour
1/2  tsp. baking powder
1/4  tsp. salt
 Irish Cream Frosting (recipe follows)
Oven 350F
Preheat oven to 350F. Grease 8 inch square baking pan. Melt chocolate and butter in medium heavy saucepan over low heat, stirring constantly. Remove from heat. Stir in sugar. Beat in eggs, one at a time, with wire whisk. Whisk in Irish Cream. Combine flour, baking powder and salt in small bowl; stir into chocolate mixture until just blended. Spread batter evenly in prepared pan.
Bake 22 to 25 minutes or until center is set. Remove pan to wire rack; cool completely.
Prepare Irish Cream Frosting; spread over cooled brownies. Chill at least 1 hour or until frosting is set. Cut into 2-inch squares.
Yield: 16 brownies

Irish Cream Frosting:
(2 oz.) cream cheese, softened
2  tbsp. butter or margarine, softened
2  tbsp. Irish Cream
1-1/2 c. powdered sugar
Beat cream cheese and butter in small bowl with electric mixer at medium speed until smooth. Beat in Irish Cream. Gradually beat in powdered sugar until smooth.

For dinner we were attempting Shepherds Pie with vegetables but the maker of the pie forgot to put the mashed potato on top so we had a lovely meat pie. As it happened though as I was putting the vegetables on the plate I realised we had a Vegetable  Irish Flag

Green Jelly is essential and we made Lime Spiders Like last year (no picture sorry)

Shamrocks

I asked Moran to pick me some clover for a table decoration and she came back with this whole basket full of them, a very enthusiastic girl.

Table Decorations

Here we do have our Table decoration: Our Lenten Log, some shamrocks in a vase and my little
Leprechauns I made yesterday

LEARNING ABOUT ST PATRICK~
Essential viewing is St Patrick for all
Younger children can watch Darby O'Gill
Keen to watch this movie again The Wind that shakes the Barley
and of course Michael Collins 

And of course the famous St Patrick's Breastplate Prayer:

I bind unto myself today
The strong Name of the Trinity,
By invocation of the same
The Three in One and One in Three.
I bind this today to me forever
By power of faith, Christ’s incarnation;
His baptism in Jordan river,
His death on Cross for my salvation;
His bursting from the spicèd tomb,
His riding up the heavenly way,
His coming at the day of doom
I bind unto myself today.
I bind unto myself the power
Of the great love of cherubim;
The sweet ‘Well done’ in judgment hour,
The service of the seraphim,
Confessors’ faith, Apostles’ word,
The Patriarchs’ prayers, the prophets’ scrolls,
All good deeds done unto the Lord
And purity of virgin souls.
I bind unto myself today
The virtues of the star lit heaven,
The glorious sun’s life giving ray,
The whiteness of the moon at even,
The flashing of the lightning free,
The whirling wind’s tempestuous shocks,
The stable earth, the deep salt sea
Around the old eternal rocks.
I bind unto myself today
The power of God to hold and lead,
His eye to watch, His might to stay,
His ear to hearken to my need.
The wisdom of my God to teach,
His hand to guide, His shield to ward;
The word of God to give me speech,
His heavenly host to be my guard.
Against the demon snares of sin,
The vice that gives temptation force,
The natural lusts that war within,
The hostile men that mar my course;
Or few or many, far or nigh,
In every place and in all hours,
Against their fierce hostility
I bind to me these holy powers.
Against all Satan’s spells and wiles,
Against false words of heresy,
Against the knowledge that defiles,
Against the heart’s idolatry,
Against the wizard’s evil craft,
Against the death wound and the burning,
The choking wave, the poisoned shaft,
Protect me, Christ, till Thy returning.
Christ be with me, Christ within me,
Christ behind me, Christ before me,
Christ beside me, Christ to win me,
Christ to comfort and restore me.
Christ beneath me, Christ above me,
Christ in quiet, Christ in danger,
Christ in hearts of all that love me,
Christ in mouth of friend and stranger.
I bind unto myself the Name,
The strong Name of the Trinity,
By invocation of the same,
The Three in One and One in Three.
By Whom all nature hath creation,
Eternal Father, Spirit, Word:
Praise to the Lord of my salvation,
Salvation is of Christ the Lord.

PRAYING YOU ALL HAD A BLESSED AND ENJOYABLE ST PATRICK'S DAY!!

Blessings to you and your homes,