This is the the third year that I have been helping lead the group, and we changed things up a bit this year. The girls who have done the past two years are continuing with Wreath 3, and the girls from last year and the new girls are doing Wreath 1. We have a total of 32 girls! God has brought so many Little Flowers to us to teach and share the faith - what a blessing!
So, tonight's gathering included the following virtues, saints, and flowers....
Wreath 1: Faith, St. Catherine of Sienna, and the sunflower
Wreath 3: Eutrapelia, St Mary (sister of Martha), and the dandelion
For Wreath 1, Mrs. L read the first story in Little Flowers Girls' Club Wreath 1 Virtues Stories, and shared with the girls how the sunflower relates to our faith in God, and what a great example St. Catherine of Sienna was.
Mrs. B. helped the girls create these lovely sunflowers, and they smelled SO good!! (the center was made of tea leaves!!). They turned out SO beautiful! They also used the file that Jessica shared to create their scrapbook page.
For Wreath 3, I used many of the ideas that Jessica used with her own group, during the teaching part. The girls especially loved this song and we talked about how easy it is for moms especially to get so caught up in all the work we must do and forget to see that Jesus is right in front of us, in the presence of our children. For the flower, I shared a sweet story about three little girls who were picking dandelions in the front yard and making crowns and necklaces out of them, and enjoying the beauty in a flower that most people see as weeds. (scroll down a bit using the link to see a pic of the girls). I also read Luke 10: 38-42 to the girls, which is the story of Martha and Mary. The girls recognized right away how Mary definitely showed the virtue of Eutrapelia, in taking the time to sit at the feet of Jesus. What a wonderful virtue to start the year out with, as we all tend to get so busy with fall schedules, and how we all need to sit back, relax, and renew ourselves in our faith on a regular basis!
For crafts/scrapbook for Wreath 3, Mrs. T and Mrs. H. helped the girls sew aprons out of a simple dish towel. They were so sweet and patient for working with the girls on this sewing project! They will be adding to it throughout the year as they learn the other virtues and saints. The girls also cut out and created a lovely scrapbook page. Again this wonderful idea of making and adding to the aprons at each gathering, and the scrapbook page file came from Jessica.
And, no Little Flower gathering would be complete if it weren't for Mrs. Y. serving them snacks. We have been so blessed that the moms take turns signing up and bringing the snacks each month. The girls sure love this time of fellowship and the yummy treats that go with it! Here's some pictures of both wreaths enjoying their snacks tonight....
One of my absolute favorite parts of our gatherings is that we have "mom helpers"... each mother signs up for at least two months to come and offer her hands in service to our group. The girls love having their own moms there, and us teachers love the extra hands to help. It has become such a blessing to us all and truly goes to show that "many hands made for light work".
St. Catherine of Sienna, pray for us that
we may practice the virtue of Faith.
St. Mary (and Martha), pray for us that
we may practice the virtue of Eutrapelia.
St. Therese, the Little Flower, pray for us!