Today at Embracing Motherhood, Donna-Marie Cooper O'Boyle features this clip about a toddler who takes a daily "Mary break" -- a moment when she stops her play long enough to amble over to the statue in her mother's garden and prattle to her in her own secret "baby language."
I recently came across an article in which another little child -- this time a boy --refused to cooperate with toilet training until the mother suggested that it would please "Mommy Mary." And so the boy did it ... for her.
Sarah was only about nine months old when she began to request (by imitating the first few notes, as she was too young to speak) two songs as part of her bedtime routine, always in the same order: "I Love You (A Bushel and a Peck)" and "Ave Maria." She would drift off to slumberland with the most enchanting smile on her face as I sang to her.
"A little child will lead them," the Gospels tell us. This is as true about devotion to Mary as it is devotion to her Son. If we introduce them to their heavenly Mother from the earliest moments, they soon respond to her of their own free will with unmitigated love and trust.
As we prepare to enter Holy Week, consider whether this might be a good time to introduce your little one to her spiritual mother. Place her image beside or over the crib or a little music box beside it.
I recently came across an article in which another little child -- this time a boy --refused to cooperate with toilet training until the mother suggested that it would please "Mommy Mary." And so the boy did it ... for her.
Sarah was only about nine months old when she began to request (by imitating the first few notes, as she was too young to speak) two songs as part of her bedtime routine, always in the same order: "I Love You (A Bushel and a Peck)" and "Ave Maria." She would drift off to slumberland with the most enchanting smile on her face as I sang to her.
"A little child will lead them," the Gospels tell us. This is as true about devotion to Mary as it is devotion to her Son. If we introduce them to their heavenly Mother from the earliest moments, they soon respond to her of their own free will with unmitigated love and trust.
As we prepare to enter Holy Week, consider whether this might be a good time to introduce your little one to her spiritual mother. Place her image beside or over the crib or a little music box beside it.Aquinas and More has a lovely collection of music boxes for under $40 that plays the "Ave Maria." These are two of my favorites (above and at left) that make a wonderful place to keep sacramentals such as rosaries or vials of holy water as well as baptism mementos or other keepsakes such as the first lock of hair. If your budget is a bit tight for that, here is a simple Madonna night light from Amazon at only $8.
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