At Considerable Cost

Catch-up Post!   We had a fun, but low-key Mardi Gras season and Fat Tuesday this year.   We didn't try any get-togethers.   On Fat Tuesday, we were fortunate to have gumbo in the freezer, so all I had to cook was a decadent dessert before the Lenten season would commence at midnight.   Even though King Cake is a traditional Mardi Gars food, it's not what we wanted.   We wanted a homemade key lime pie and it was delicious!   The fleur-de-lis was an after-Christmas find at Kirklands.   If you don't have beads, you can find them at Dollar Tree.   My masks, as well as the gold balls in the hurricane glass, came from King Dollar: This little tree was our Dr. Suess tree at Christmas.   On Epiphany, it became our Mardi Gras tree.   The garland on the mantle was a new find this year from Kirkland's after Christmas, for just $3.00.  I threaded clearance Christmas ribbon thr...

Each year at midnight, the hour which begins Ash Wednesday, this is the scene in the French Quarter.   Behind the last of the parades and revelers comes mounted policemen who line up across the entire street to sweep the crowds away.   They are followed by clean-up crews and street-sweepers so that by the time the sun casts her first rays on the Crescent City on Ash Wednesday, all but the smallest signs of the season's excess and sometimes, debauchery, have disappeared. There's something so hopeful, so decent about this physical, concrete image.   Even in a city that prides itself on good times, there is still some respect and some solemnity left.   How many more tourist dollars could they bring in if they just allowed the party to continue?   Maybe turn the French Quarter into an amusement park where it's Mardi Gras all year?   But no, the streets are swept and the party people are sent home to assess their damages, regro...

I think we'll all be a little tired come Saturday! Monday : News that we're losing our Papa Benedict XVI as he announces his abdication. Tuesday : Laissez les bon temps rouler because it's Fat Tuesday, cher! Wednesday : Penance and Fasting on Ash Wednesday as Lent begins Thursday : Celebrate because it's St. Valentine's Day! Friday : Penance and Fasting for the first Friday of Lent

My post this month is up at Bourbon and Boots.com and it’s all about the star attraction at any Mardi Gras gathering: King Cake. Check out a little history of the holiday and a recipe for a delicious homemade King Cake: One common element of the celebration, enjoyed by schoolchildren, families, and French Quarter revelers, is the King Cake. Made from a traditional yeast dough, the ring-shaped cake is frosted and decorated with colored sugars. The cake is named after the Three Kings who visited the baby Jesus and it is first served on Epiphany, the day which commemorates their visit. It is the custom to place a small baby figurine inside the cake. The person who finds the baby is responsible for bringing the next king cake or throwing the next party. Every teachers’ lounge and break room in south Louisiana will have at least one of these pastry treats every Friday during the season.    To read more:  http://www.bourbonandboots.com/let-them-eat-king-cake-...

My latest post is up at CatholicMom.com: By the time this is posted, my family and I will hopefully be settled in, snug and happy, in our home on Christmas Day.    While our family is still trying to find our way through our Advent observance, we have made some progress when it comes to celebrating a Catholic Christmas. To read more :  http://catholicmom.com/2012/12/27/the-twelve-days-of-christmas-and-beyond/

Last year was my first time to decorate for the season of Lent.   I felt like we needed a visual reminder of the season and its purpose.   I was inspired by the beautiful Lenten decorations at our church and my favorite psalm of the liturgical year.  Mardi Gras mantle: bright and cheery during the dreary weather of Jan. and Feb. Very noticeable change for the kids when they woke up on Ash Wed. and found the mantle changed to this.   I bought a grapevine wreath and unwrapped it.   The empty vessels came from Hobby Lobby and had flat sides for easy display. My favorite psalm to sing in church.   Although I miss the Gloria, this always speaks to my soul.  This is the Good Friday mantle, with the plaque  showing Jesus carrying the cross.   I didn't take pictures of the rest, but we have one for Holy Thursday and the Last Supper and then a Resurrection one for Easter morning.   On the Easter Vi...