Family Resources
Advent Resources
Resources for the Best Advent Ever!
Advent is a time of preparation, but it often gets bypassed, and the culture moves right to Christmas. Don’t get swept up on the hustle and bustle and miss this special time of preparing our hearts for the Christ Child’s coming.
Explore our Advent resources designed for every stage of faith — from family activities and teen reflections to materials that invite a deeper spiritual dive into the season of waiting and hope.
Resources for Families
Resources for Teens
Click on the links to get more information!
Resources for a Deeper Dive
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The Meaning of the four Advent Candles
Submit a song or prayer.
Music/Prayer Playlist
Strong Catholic Family Resources:
https://nfcym.org/programs/strong-catholic-families/leader-parent-resources/
The Strong Catholic Families website has many free resources for parents and families to help you nurture and develop the domestic Church of your home. It includes video’s, print materials, parent resources and family resources to support parents in your central role of living and sharing our Catholic faith in families.
Scripture: “I give thanks to my God at every remembrance of you, praying always with joy in my every prayer for all of you, because of your partnership for the Gospel from the first day until now. I am confident of this, that the one who began a good work in you will continue to complete it until the day of Christ Jesus.” Philippians 1: 3-6
Movies and Essential Conversations: There is much to be enjoyed by family members of every age when watching the movie, A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood, together. The main character is a writer who is doing a magazine article on Mr. Rogers. It is based on the true story which included that the writer’s father was dying and the family did not know how to have a conversation about his impending death. Mr. Rogers says, “Death is something that many of us are uncomfortable speaking about. But to die is to be human. And anything human is mentionable. Anything mentionable is manageable.”
This simple wisdom rings especially true for parents for having conversations with your children about death. By having conversations about a topic that is uncomfortable for so many of us, we are giving our children a great gift that will serve them and us when we need it most.
I am reminded of this due to the recent and untimely deaths of young people from our parish as well as our family experience when our 23 year old son Vincent died suddenly 20 months ago. In the pain and anguish of that moment, our children were able to draw upon the many conversations that we had along the way about death and its meaning. Learning how to think about death and how to have conversations about death is difficult at any time, even more so when children and families don’t have the tools because they haven’t had those conversations.
By having conversations about death and dying with each other and with our children along the way, we are opening the door for their mentioning their thoughts and fears which can in turn lead to managing them as people of faith. When we embrace the amazing gift of life and the truth that nobody knows the day or the hour when we leave this world, it can lead us to value each other more and to treat each other with kindness and dignity every time we are together.
Peace be with you from your St. Ambrose Community, where Jesus Christ is everything to us.
Physical Activity and Fun
Create a Paper Crane, a symbol of World peace.
“Peace I leave you, My peace I give into you” John 14:27
s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com/lpress-craft/files/ocf-files/family-files/craft-july.pdf
Technology Tip
Great resources for finding different apps for different purposes for your child to explore. They will promote interactions, as well as enable them to explore their interests and be creative.
www.commonsensemedia.org/social-media/is-there-any-social-media-thats-good-for-kids
8 Simple Ways to Celebrate Sacred Time as a Family
Even with hectic schedules, it’s easy for families to grow in faith together by celebrating the sacred in eight simple and routine activities.
1. Teach your children to start each day with prayers.
A good prayer to teach them is a morning offering…
O Jesus, through the Immaculate Heart of
Mary, I offer you my prayers, works, joys,
and sufferings of this day, for all the intentions
of the Sacred Heart, in union with
the holy Catholic Church throughout the
world and the communion of saints.
Amen.
2. Put a saint-of-the-day calendar on your breakfast table.
For more in-depth information, pick up a copy of Voices of the Saints for your family. Reading the passage of the day gives you the chance to teach your children important lessons about holy people whose example we can emulate, and it also conveys a sense that our days have meaning and worth.
3. Celebrate ethnic holidays and feasts—even if it’s not your ethnic group.
My German mother-in-law always made shamrock pancakes for her children on St. Patrick’s Day. The growing number of Hispanics in the U.S. is enriching our culture with traditional feasts for Our Lady of Guadalupe, Our Lady of Charity, and Los Posadas. There are countless ways to spice up the calendar year with special celebrations. They convey without words that all the days are special. The whole year is bathed in holiness.
4. Make birthdays special.
Celebrating a person’s birth is a central way to convey a sense of time’s sacredness. The point of celebrating is to convey how much you cherish this child, and straightforward and simple are usually better than elaborate, as expressed through “things.”
Find a time to sit together with your child and share a special message just from you. It might be about the day he or she was born, about how much you were looking forward to having this child. Or mention traits of this child that bring you joy. If you do that early in the day, I’ll bet the rest of the day goes well, no matter how many kids show up for the party.
5. Make more of your time in the car together.
Do yourself and your children a favor and abstain from asking questions in the car. Instead, sit and listen. Your children may not talk to you—especially if they’re with their friends. But pretend you’re the disinterested chauffeur, and you’ll hear an earful.
If you’re alone with your children, let them take the initiative. You can ask something leading: “Have you got any questions about life that are on your mind?” Then sit back and listen. Your listening attitude can draw your children out. The more listening you do, the more you’ll find out, and the closer you’ll become.
6. Create a quiet area or room in your house.
Find space where there is no TV noise or other distraction. This area can be a place the kids do their homework, a spot where you can have a quiet and serious conversation or just daydream. With all the noise of modern life, times of relative quiet can indeed be sacred.
7. Celebrate the night before the first day of school.
Set aside the night before school begins as story night. Each person has to tell at least one story from the previous year about him- or herself or about the family. Here is a chance to solidify connections and gather strength before beginning the adventure of a new school year. It gives everyone the chance to calm down and switch gears from summertime ways of living.
8. Make Saturday night special.
As the week segues from business-as-usual to the restful experience promised by observance of the Sabbath, mark this special time with your children by helping them switch gears. You can prepare your family to get more out of church by shaping what goes on in your home during the hours beforehand. There’s no one set formula. Find a routine that works for you; then be faithful to it.
Physical Activity and Fun
Take every opportunity to thank God for giving us our beautiful Earth to care for and enjoy!
Family Practices – Family Prayers to Pray Together
Sign of the Cross In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
Morning Offering: My God, I offer you today all that I think and do and say, uniting it with what was done on earth, by Jesus Christ, your Son.
Grace Before Meals: Bless us, O Lord, and these your gifts which we are about to receive from your goodness. Through Christ our Lord. Amen.
Grace After Meals: We give you thanks, almighty God, for these and all your gifts which we have received through Christ our Lord. Amen
Evening Prayer: Dear God, before I sleep I want to thank you for this day so full of your kindness and your joy. I close my eyes to rest safely in your loving care. Amen.
Technology Tip: Gratitude Journaling
“Gratitude can transform common days into thanksgivings, turn routine jobs into joy, and change ordinary opportunities into blessings” –William Arthur Ward.
One idea to enjoy the positives of technology together is to blog, write or even make videos (such as Flipgrid) about the blessings in your life. With Father’s Day coming up, this is a perfect time to write about your Dad and share this blessing with him! In addition to mailing a note or card, you could also use Facetime, Google Duo, Skype, Zoom or Google Meet to send your love across the miles.
Summertime and the 3 R’s
Summertime and the 3 R’s
What are your 3 R’s for the summer: Rules, Routines, Rituals? These provide structure and stability at a time when the pandemic has undermined both. Here are examples of the 3 R’s that will help your children thrive and help you lessen that feeling of being constantly overwhelmed.
3 Questions to Consider
3 Questions to Consider
At the beginning of each day, ask your child these 3 questions that are also good for us as adults: How are you feeling? What are your goals for today? Who can help you with that? These questions from PEP – Parent Education Program – help children take ownership for what they will do to make their day meaningful vs. seeking constant attention or entertainment from parents or other sources.
Family Practices - 4 B's
Family Practices - 4 B's
Practice the 4 B’s – Brakes – Breathing – Brain – Body breathing exercises are designed for young people but are a great tool for adults too. Help your children learn how to calm themselves through breathing exercises which is a critical life skill for building resilience. If your child plays a sport they can apply breathing techniques to focus their attention and improve athletic performance. Check it out: omazingkidsyoga.files.wordpress.com/2011/11/4-bs-of-self-control-a-4-step-method-for-relaxing-tension-refocusing-calming.pdf
Physical Activity and Fun
- Exercise (virtually, outside, many forms) and have fun with your children.
- Play games and create your own adventures by doing ordinary things together. Consider two of NE Ohio’s most accessible and free gems: Reading and library trips – NE Ohio library system has received national awards for excellence. www.cuyahogalibrary.org You can pick up books curbside to nurture reading alone and together daily.
- Our MetroParks system is nationally renowned with options for walking, hiking, biking, golfing, fishing, playing and more. Check out your options at www.clevelandmetroparks.com. You can go to two parks a week without an agenda and bring your dog too! Enjoy the beauty of God’s creation while knowing that being outside at a safe distance is a good way to go during this pandemic.
- Celebrate Music and the Arts – sing, dance, draw, paint, color, sketch, act – in person and virtually. HAVE FUN LEARNING and doing things TOGETHER!!
Technology Tips
Take the time to set up a technology plan that helps you and your children to enjoy the benefits and opportunities while minimizing the risks and problems. Here are a few guidelines
- Set parameters for when phones and screens can and cannot be used. It is best to not have phones on or nearby during family meals or in bed at night (crabby teens and/or parents due to lack of sleep = harm to family life).
- Identify fun ways that you can enjoy technology alone and together. Teens are adept at finding and using technology in ways that adults are not. Enjoy that gift by asking them to teach you and show you what they are enjoying and learning. Be attentive to risks regarding the dark side of the internet and pay attention if you see an uptick in isolating behaviors whereas children interact less and less with people and more and more online.
THROUGH THE KALEIDOSCOPE OF CHANGE
I look for meaning, and the meaning I find is this: For every season of my life, God has a purpose. And if God has a reason, then I am free to go ahead and love, even though I know that camp ends in seven days, or graduation is only nine months away, or my next door neighbor may move in a year.
I will reach out and embrace friendship without fear of the risk that it soon may end, for through this friendship God wants me to learn, to love, to receive, to give.
I will allow my roots to cling deeply to the soil around me, even though I know that the deeper the roots, the harder it will be to pull them up someday.
And when things begin to change and God turns over the well-worked soil of my experience, I know that a new growing period is about to begin.
That’s how God works in this world, a world which never stays the same. (Anonymous)
Peace be with you from your Saint Ambrose Community, where Jesus Christ is everything for us.