A Colossal Set of Resources on All Saints Day

One of my most favorite Liturgical Celebrations (besides the obvious two big one: Christmas and Easter) has got to be All Saints Day!  I am enamored by the whole concept of the Communion of Saints.  Like I said in a post about Saints: Who needs Super Heroes when, as a Catholic, you have them, I love being able to ask those who are already in Heaven to pray for me and my little family!  :)  Here are some interesting facts about this beautiful celebration:

Liturgical Facts on All Saints:
Here are some facts about All Saints that I found on Churchyear.net:
Liturgical Color(s): White
Type of Holiday: Solemnity, Holy Day of Obligation (West); Feast (East)
Time of Year: November 1 (in the East, the Sunday after Pentecost)
Duration: One Day
Celebrates/Symbolizes: All Saints, known and unknown
Alternate Names: All Hallows, Hallowmas, Halloween
Scriptural References: Mark 12:26-27; Ephesians 6:18; Hebrews 12:1, Revelation 5:8

Catholic Encyclopedia:  

• All Saints Day
• All Souls Day

Awesome Ideas Around the Web 

for All Saints/All Souls Day

Costumes:

• Ideas for Boys at Catholic Icing (these are real neat because she has them by Saint Name)
• Ideas for Girls at Catholic Icing (by Saint name just like the boys one, really awesome job Lacy!)
• Saints Costume Round-Up at Waltzing Matilda
• All Saints Costume Ideas at View from the Domestic Church
• Saint Costume Ideas at St. Joseph Catholic Community (pdf)
• Saints Parade 2010 at Raising {& Teaching} Little Saints

Games:

• Games for All Saints at Waltzing Matilda
• All Saints Party Games at Memories of a Catholic Wife and Mother
• Welcome to the All Saints Day Party! at Blair's Blessings
• Pin the....Games for All Saints at Under the Starry Mantle
• All Saints Day Party Ideas at Writing.com
• Early Christian Martyrs Musical Chairs at Under the Starry Mantle
• 'Saints and Symbols Relay' All Saints Party Game at Under the Starry Mantle
• Guess Who? Saints Game by Arma Dei
• St. Martha's Cake Walk at Shower of Roses

Arts & Crafts:

• Communion of Saints Puppets at Learn to Teach.  Teach to Learn
• Alphabet of Saints at Catholic Icing
• Our All Saints pennant banner at Homeschool Goodies
• How to Make a Miter at Catholic Icing
• Catholic Saint Craft for Kids at Catholic Icing (can you tell she has amazing stuff and I love it?)
• Saint-O-Lanterns at Catholic Cuisine
• TY Saints Dolls by Arma Dei
• Christian Pumpkin Carvings at Squidoo
• All Saints Day Coloring Page at CatholicMom.com
• Matthew 5:1-12 All Saints Gospel Coloring Page at CatholicMom.Com

Educational:

• Saints and Souls Day Lapbook at My Little Flower
• Super Saints Trivia Game at Arma Dei
• Holy Souls Prayer Project at That Resource Site
• Notebooking Sheet Sets to Study About the Saints at That Resource Site
• Quotes of the Saints and Blessed Copywork at That Resource Site
• Learn about Saints - Biography Cards at That Resource Site
• My Adventure with the Saints Project at That Resource Site
• Steps to Sainthood Book by Catholic Art Works
• Classroom Activities on Saints at Resources for Catholic Educators

General Posts on All Saints:

• All Saints Party at 6Hands2Hold
• The Ultimate All Saints Day Party Post by Pape Doll Dali
• All Saints Day Party Ideas at Catholic Homeschool Resources
• Thankful for All Saints Day at A Slice of the Smith Life
• All Saints' Day Celebration Ideas at Blossoming Joy
• Saints and Such! at Family at the Foot of the Cross
• ALL SAINTS PARTY IDEAS at Catholic Parenting

Prayers:

• The Litany of Saints on EWTN
• Eternal Rest Invocation on Fisheaters
• Prayers for All Souls on Hosea House

Recipes:

• Recipes for November ~ Month dedicated to the Holy Souls at Catholic Cuisine (you just need one for this category as she's got tons of links)
• All Saints Cupcakes at Catholic Cuisine, of course
• Cutest All Saints' Day Cookies Ever! at Bake@350

En Español (All Saints/Souls Ideas in Spanish):

• Desfile de Santos con Muñecos de Paper Dali at Familia Catolica
• Más Ideas para Desfiles de Santos de Papel at Familia Catolica
• Juegos para la Fiesta de Todos los Santos at Familia Catolica
• Fiesta de Todos los Santos- 1o de Noviembre at Familia Catolica

NOTA: Si tiene un blog con ideas en Español, favor de dejarme un "link" para agregarlo a esta lista, gracias!

Enjoy!

I am participating in the following All Saints Link Ups:

Noah's Ark and the Mind of the Homeschooling Mama

So what does Noah's Ark have anything to do with the mind of a Catholic Homeschooling Mama? Lots! Listen to this....

This is just too cool not to share with you! This isn't new information because it was completed in 2007, but to me it is! :p So here's the story:

A man in named Johan Huibers of Schagen in the Netherlands, a Dutch builder, has built a replica of the biblical ark as a true-life demonstration to his faith in the truth of the Bible names Johan's Ark. Schagen, the town he lives in, is about 40 miles north of Amsterdam.

The incredible thing is that when you see the following pictures, you will be amazed by it's immense size but this replica is ONLY half the size of the real thing! Johan created only a half size replica of what Noah made. I received this information via e-mail from a close friend and thought it was so neat that I wanted to share with you.

Also, I realized how much my mind has changed as far as receiving information and what I do with it.....I automatically wanted to save this information so that when I teach this story to my kids, we can take a virtual field trip (flying to the Netherlands with four kids, two adults, and on one income, isn't economically possible right now, lol), learn about the different metric systems around the world, also could be an architecture lesson, a science lesson on sink and float, recreating our own arks with popsicle sticks, and on and on and on! Ten months ago, I would have looked at this story read it and maybe forwarded to two or three other friends who might have thought it was interesting...today, I can stretch it to cover so many subjects for both my older child and my preschoolers! For more on Noah's Ark, click here to go to the online Catholic encyclopedia.

Enjoy the pictures:



Blessings,
Erika

Extraordinary Mass

This is a wonderful post for those of you who have considered ever visiting a Mass in the Extraordinary Form: Colleen Hammond: New Booklet: "For the Visitor at Mass".

If you've never been to one, I HIGHLY recommend you visit one. It will only make you say, "ahhhhh...." how amazing our beautiful Catholic Faith is! I promise!!! To find a Traditional Latin Mass (or now known as the Extraordinary Form of the Mass) go here: http://www.ecclesiadei.org/masses.cfm

Catholic Resources

Just wanted to share some wonderful resources I've found along the way as I've surfed the WWW. Just click on the picture to access their sites. If you have a Catholic site to add to this, please e-mail me at raisinglittlesaints {at} gmail {dot} com. Enjoy!:

Catholic Homeschool Support

Soft Saints

Live your Faith, Order your Life!




Catholic Homeschool Store



Catholic Culture Store



Sacred Heart Books and Gifts



Faith Filled Days

Coloring Contest

If you visit this site (click on the title of this post, you can download a high quality poster (like the one in this post) which your children ages zero (yes, your babies) and up can enter over at http://www.illuminatedink.com/. There are several levels for age entries in the contest (see their site). What is really neat about this coloring page is that parents can also download an explanation of all the pictures within it and its symbolism. The deadline isn't until next year but you can do it as a summer activity or incorporate it to your Religion Class in the Fall. Have fun coloring! Join me in praying for our priests!

Pro Multis celebrates 16th year in business

I received this e-mail from some friends. My DH knows them well and manages their website, promultis.com. I was excited to see this e-mail and that they are celebrating 16 years of commitment to the Lord and wanted to share it with you. Bonnie and Al Huntz are the owners, they raised six children and are enjoying the fruits of their labors as their children are now homeschooling their grandchildren! Please join me in praying that this wonderful Catholic business continues for at least another 16 years. Here's the e-mail:

Pro Multis Catholic Books and Gift Center, 1850 Colvin Blvd., Tonawanda, was opened Aug. 15, 1993, the same day as the Feast of the Assumption of Mary into Heaven. Owners Al and Bonnie Huntz were looking for something that would become an important part of their Catholic evangelization.

Al said, “I enjoy meeting new and interesting people just about every day and also being able to help some of them in matters concerning the Catholic faith. Today Pro Multis has become a success and the store has grown into the largest and most comprehensive Catholic store in Western New York and Southern Ontario. They are known for their wide selection of Catholic books, rosaries, medals, CDs, DVDs, wall art, wall crucifixes, and Confirmation gift items.

Al pointed out how happy and proud him and his wife are to be celebrating their 16th year in the business. They will, however, be closed Aug. 15 for the Feast of the Assumption of Mary, as is customary for them to close on all holy days of obligation of the Catholic church. Pro Multis takes pride in carrying several items that are hard to find anywhere else in the area. They sell many traditional items that were popular prior to the Vatican Council II, as well as Latin books and missals in English, French, Spanish and Italian.

They also are noted for their wide selection of used books. And, they specialize in mail orders for items that are not available in the store. Pro Multis Catholic Books and Gift Center is open Tuesday through Friday from 10 a.m. until 6 p.m. and Saturdays from 9:30 a.m. until 4:30 p.m.
To learn more about the store or to order items online visit www.promultis.com.

Gotta Share: Holy Heroes

I am totally in L-O-V-E with these coloring books and audio CDs by Holy Heroes! I can't wait to get my hands on the Altar Gang CDs! This is the description of the Altar Gang series:

"THE ALTAR GANG!® audio series takes a fresh look at the Mass. Each Sunday, AJ the Aspergillum and Skiff the Incense Boat, along with rest of the Gang, help the priest prepare for Mass and learn about the Readings and Gospel through stories and silly adventures. The rest of the Gang includes Pete the Chalice, Mary the Ciborium, Pablo the Paschal Candle, Maggie the Bells, Thomas the Thurible, Big John the Baptismal Font, Mo the Ambo, James and John the Altar Candles, Cecilia the Music Stand, Guido the Organ and Mimi the Altar Cloth. Fun, exciting, educational, THE ALTAR GANG!® will bring the Mass alive for your family and teach them about the Liturgy and the Catholic Faith."

They also have Stations of the Cross Packs with audio CDs and matching coloring books! You can hear samples of all of their Holy Heroes series! Too cute! My eldest son's first reaction was, "are they going to make a DVD out of it, too cool Mom!" Honestly, I like the idea that it is ONLY audio...like the good ol' days! :) Hope you like them as much as I did...can't wait to actually try them this school year! Enjoy!

Pax Christi,

Catholic Apologetics

Tons of Great articles on Catholic Apologetics from "12 Claims Every Catholic Should be Able to Answer" to "Whose Bible is it, Anyway"... a great resource for our faith! All found at Catholic Education Resource

A Joy-filled Catholic,

Debating Life Issues: A Resource for Every Catholic

Cut to the chase and get the facts now! This is a great resource to get up to date facts on the Pro-Life issue which is part of why we call our selves, C-A-T-H-O-L-I-C!!! I haven't finished reading them all but I wanted to pass them along for everyone to see. Enjoy!

(click on the box below)

What you will find in this link of Pro-Life Talking Points:

• Pro-Life Violence: Setting the Record Straight
• Why Women Abort
• The Abuse of Population Control
• Negative Effects of the Pill
• Does Welfare Reduce Abortion?
• Condoms
• Fetal Development
• Men & Abortions
• Maternal Deaths
• Obama vs. Life I: Before the Elections

"The Pro-Life Talking Points series is meant to provide pro-life activists with clear and concise information with which to argue against common misinformation they will encounter while debating life issues. " - Human Life International website

Looking for a Few Good Blogging Catholic Mamas

We thank the Lord that we are rapidly getting this blog going (with the help of my "tech guy" AKA my DH). In the meantime, we are in need of, and are looking for, a few good blogging Catholic mamas who would be interested in posting great ideas on any of the Menu topics above. If you have already posted something on your own blog or wish to write about something new and innovative you have tried and tested at home with your children, please contact us at raisinglittlesaints@gmail.com. Your blog will also be listed on our homepage as well as part of your article submission! (You help us, we help you!)

We welcome all Catholic Mamas (seasoned and new) that homeschool. Happy blogging!