Lenten planning 2020 - Catholic nerd alert!

Happy Friday everyone, and happy last full week of Ordinary Time before Lent begins! I am getting SO excited for this particular Lent! Maybe because Anne is making her 1st communion this year, maybe because I've been doing so much discernment lately about both of my kids and their schooling and hobbies situation. But whatever the reason, I want to be armed for a fruitful Lent!

This year, I feel called to do a lot of reading during Lent. I was contemplating tackling a larger spiritual work on non-fiction that I'd had in my personal library for quite some time, like perhaps the mammoth John Paul II biography. 🤔 But then I saw this at all of the entrances to my parish, next to the bulletins:

33 Days to Morning Glory

...and Father announced at Mass recently that anyone who completed this retreat by May would be able to participate in a special consecration ceremony that he would hold in the church sometime around the feast of Our Lady of Fatima. And I was inspired. :-) I have completed 33 Days to Morning Glory in the past, but it's been several years, so I figured this was an excellent opportunity to approach it anew and also connect with my parish community in the process. Win/win! In the past, I've used the full size book to complete the daily reflections, but these little guys that Father gave us are booklet size, nice and convenient to carry around with me in my daily routine. So I'm going to be starting this during Lent! But THEN...

*gleeful hand rubbing*

I saw this:

33 Days to Greater Glory

This whole 33 Days phenomenon by Fr. Michael Gaitley has it's own little fiefdom, and I'm FASCINATED:

Sorry about the glare! That middle one is 33 Days to Merciful Love

I AM SO EXCITED. Doesn't the Greater Glory book look PERFECT for Lent?! Look at all of this shouting I'm doing, I'm so excited!! :-0 I kept admiiring it online when I discovered it (it's fairly new), and next thing I knew, the Marian Helpers had sent me a review copy in the mail and I was like: "Holy cow, this is obviously meant to be!"

SO! It's going to be a consecration kind of Lent for me. I'm going to start with 33 Days to Greater Glory on Ash Wednesday, which will take me through to the 3rd Sunday of Lent. Then the following week, I'll begin 33 Days to Morning Glory, which will bring me into the Easter season, and to the first few days of May, depending on when I actually begin. I'm really stoked for the spiritual benefits that are to come, and think this will really keep me focused this Lent! I'm also going to single out each of my children to do something special with them this Lent of their choosing: Stations, adoration, they can pick. But I'll take them so that it'll just be the two of us, and then we can grab a bite to eat and chat about what we learned. :)

Super excited! Anybody want to join me with either of these 2 books this Lent/Easter? What are your Lenten plans? I'd love to hear from you in the comments!