Advent

The last few years we have focused more on Advent before we jump right into Christmas. I didn't grow up in a home that focused much on the liturgical calendar which is not un usual in many churches and homes. I knew all my Catholic friends gave up something for Lent and then during Christmas we would light candles in "Big Church".  It wasn't until I was newly married that I began to understand what Advent was and even then never really practiced it. A few years ago I decided to start Advent in our home and really it began just with lighting a candle once a week and that was it. Over the past few years we have become more intentional in our celebration of Advent and the entire liturgical calendar. There is something truly wonderful to celebrate the same calendar of reverence and celebration that millions of Christians use all around the world and have been using for thousands of years. I am humbled to think that I am just a single soul in the thousands of warriors for Christ that pilgrimage towards Him through the practice of liturgy.

I found Jennifer Naraki's curriculum for Lent/Passover and dove head first into it this past year. After the Easter season I began counting down the months until we could tackle her Advent curriculum. Her studies have projects and recipes that accompany the lesson. Our first week in Advent was focused on seeds and I was finally able to attempt an old fashion orange garland that apparently is all the rage again. We even baked a cake from complete scratch, which if you know me, you know I don't bake! It turned out delicious even with the vegan substitutes I used.

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Orange Garland
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What you need:

oranges
twine
heated oven
paper towel
sewing needle

Instructions:

Preheat the oven to 170-200 degrees
Slice oranges width wise in thin slices
press between paper towel to absorb as much liquid as possible
Place orange slices on baking sheet and bake for 4-6 hours until completely dried out
dry over night on cooling rake
after they are completely dry (to avoid mold) use sewing needle and weave the twine in between the orange to make a garland

Happy first week of Advent 2018!