Yarn Along and pondering Lent

For the Yarn Along this week, I'm working on a waffle hat for a gift, using some supersoft baby alpaca, and I'm reading aloud The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe to the kids in the evenings.

We've been talking about and preparing for Lent over the last couple of evenings and decided to follow in Ginny's footsteps and have the kids keep a gratitude journal for the 40 days of Lent.

{Shrove Tuesday pancakes}

They seem enthusiastic about the idea, well, except maybe Finn who doesn't seem to understand what gratitude or thankfulness means. Even he got on board once I made a list of things he enjoyed throughout the day and asked him to pick the thing he liked best. If anyone has a surefire way of explaining gratitude to a 4 year old, I'll take any suggestions you can offer!

Paulie and Philip were both thankful for our Shrove Tuesday King Cake, which was sweet to my ears, and Elizabeth is grateful for the new unit of study that she recently began at school on Appalachia. She's enjoying the new project that she's working on at school.

I decided to personally take the journal and gratitude effort a bit further by adding generosity, patience and kindness to my list. I plan to record an act of each in my journal each day and to concentrate my efforts on my family. My hope is that by making a concerted effort to perform acts of generosity, patience, kindness and gratefulness toward my family each day of Lent, those intentions will become a mindful habit.

{Shrove Tuesday King Cake}

Maybe my mindful intentions will even raise the level of generosity, patience, kindness and gratefulness between the kids. Wouldn't that be a wonderful gift during this Lenten season?