Our Lady of Guadalupe Festivities 2012

In an effort to keep up with feast day recording I am sharing what we did on this most special feast.
For us this is one of our family's most favourite feast days even if it tends to be one of the more exhausting days for us.
And yesterday was no exception!!

As Kynan had been visiting us for a few days before his very exciting trip to the USA and he had to leave after lunch we had the 'feast day tea' for lunch instead of dinner as we would often have.

It is such a blessing in a family our size to have so many wonderful helpers to prepare for these days, not only the food preparation but also the entertaining of little ones who can't help at certain stages and who need some company to help pass the time till the exciting feast part.

WE gave followed this pattern of preparation for quite a few years and we can nearly do it by memory. Prepare all the different types of food that is....

Of course some parts of the preparation are much more exciting than others, aren't they Corbyn?

For a full explanation you can see this post on why the different foods are prepared and eaten on this particular feast day.

Below are the various foods and table decorating we did. All very simple this year as we can not do all as we have in the past, sigh.
Anyway it was a lovely opportunity to dwell of the special feast day with our dear son.

Trahaearn was so very into the sweet things and made quite a lot of mess

For dinner that evening we had simple mince tacos with salad

And to finish the day off the younger children coloured in while I read our daily chapter of Bartholomew's Passage

Again we are so very thankful to be able to have these days together as a family celebrating our faith and the joy it brings to us.
Thank you for allowing us to share it with you.

Prayer to Our Lady of Guadalupe~

O Virgin of Guadalupe,
Mother of the Americas,
grant to our homes the grace of loving
and respecting life in its beginnings,
with the same love with which
you conceived in your womb
the life of the Son of God.
Blessed Virgin Mary,
Mother of Fair Love,
protect our families so that
they may always be united
and bless the upbringing of our children.

Our hope, look upon us with pity,
teach is to go continually to Jesus,
and if we fall
help us to rise again and return to Him
through the confession of our faults
and our sins in the Sacrament of penance,
which gives peace to the soul.

We beg you to grant us a great love
of all the holy Sacraments,
which are, as it were,
the signs that your Son left us on earth.
Thus, Most Holy Mother,
with the peace of God in our consciences,
with our hearts free from evil and hatred,
we will be able to bring to all others
true joy and peace,
which come to us from your Son,
our Lord Jesus Christ,
who with the Father and the Holy Spirit,
lives and reigns for ever and ever.
Amen.

Blessings to you and your homes,