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Becky Parker
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I pm-ed Helen about how I have been struggling to find time in my day to say the rosary. It seems that in my life I have had times of grace when saying the rosary was effortless - I craved it! I remember, in particular, just after graduating from college. I would say a complete rosary - 3 times around if you will - every day on my knees. Now, I'm lucky to get in a decade! I love Our Lady. I am very devoted to her and want to be like her. I'm just really struggling right now with the whole notion of actually sitting down for a while and praying it. I do pray every morning (The Morning Office) but I don't have time to add a rosary there, and I've tried at night, but I fall asleep! So, when do you say the rosary? Any advice on making this a "peg" in my day that I wont put off?
I also have to share one other thing. I have been praying for grace to say the rosary daily. The other day I walked into our family room, and there was my 7yo dd, on her knees saying the rosary along with EWTN! It was very humbling. Now, if I could just get my rambunctious boys to sit down long enough, we could all say it together!
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Becky
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Paula in MN
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We say it every day, and the actual clock time may vary, but it is our official start of school. That way it gets done, and it teaches my children the importance of Mary, Jesus, and religion in our lives.
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 Paula
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alicegunther
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Wow, Becky, what a beautiful story about your seven year old. That is an answer to prayer in itself!
You might try saying the Rosary in snippets here and there--perhaps a decade before breakfast, another at lunch, another in the afternoon, one after dinner and one before bed. Or you could just find time--often a quick car trip is more than enough time for a rosary, and there are rosary tapes available to keep in the car if it would help.
Or, you could take the idea to your children, particularly your devout little seven year old. "Mommy wants to say the rosary each day. Would you help me to remember?" My guess is that she will help you find the time!
It sounds as if you are already so close, and Our Lady is calling you. How great that you manage to say the Morning Office. So beautiful.
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BrendaPeter
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Hi Becky,
I don't know if this is a help at all but we pray the Rosary every evening right after dinner & clean-up but before baths. It's part of our daily schedule. Believe me though, it's not our best praying time as the kids and dh & I are tired and the little girls are hugely distracting, but, it seems to calm everyone down for baths & bed.
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Cindy Mac
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Becky -
For me I find that praying the Rosary at night is the only time I have for myself. I used to fall asleep while praying. Now I take myself into the nursery and sit in the rocking chair after everyone else is asleep and I'm able to stay awake (I keep the light on  ) and pray. Not sure if that helps you, but it's what works for me.
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Ruth
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We also begin our school day with the Rosary. Evenings are just too chaotic around here. I have books for the children to look at and meditate. We just started praying the Litany of Loreto after the Rosary.
I get up an hour earlier than the kids and pray 10 decades of the Rosary. I pray the other 5 mysteries, which ever one is for the day of the week, with the kids. It refreshes me for the day and the chaos that follows
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Meredith
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Lately, most of my rosaries come in the middle of the night, and probably most are unfinished, my guardian angel works overtime here for sure
Beautiful story, and like Alice and the others have mentioned, your grace is not measured in our human sense, it just comes...
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Meredith
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HeatherNY
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For me the key is getting up earlier than my family. This was a major difficulty for me. I finally prayed that Jesus would wake me up early enough and give me the desire to actually rise out of the bed. Previously, my intentions had always been good at night but I had trouble following through in the morning. My advice would be prayer--- sounds funny doesn't it???
Heather - Mom to 4 here and 3 in heaven
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mavmama
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Thank you Alice, for mentioning that the rosary could be said "in snippets." I have been feeling badly that I am unable to say it all at once, but can do it this way.
Thank you again for the encouragement!
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ElizLeone
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We have found that the best time in our family to make sure the rosary is said is to say it directly after dinner, before dishes are done. That way no one scatters or gets busy with other things. For us, it's a nice quiet down period that segues into games and family reading (after the dishes).
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aussieannie
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We use to say it in the evenings but we have found with summer walks by the beach and renewed reading time for the children at night, that it wasn't all fitting well.
We have now changed it to the morning, straight after Mass (with Our Lord still inside) driving home (1/4 - 1/2 drives for us) or straight after breaky.
The thing is, we DO change our times so that we keep everything acheivable (this time last year in Summer we were saying them on the beach but the walks are more brisk this time) - and that's a good thing! 
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mariB
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I'm sad to say that in the past we have not been consistant in saying the Rosary as a family.
The past 2 months we have been saying it together as a family during school hours, but just 1 decade. It is amazing the graces we all have been recieving. I'm planning to ease everyone into 5 decades.
There is much more peace during the school day,we get much more accomplished than we did in the past,
but most of all is the attitude and reverence toward Our Lord in our children!
I love the story of Becky's daughter. Our children are so precious in the Lord's sight.
Also, after studying the Baltimore Catechism chapter 11 with my son, it really hit me where it says we are the Church militant, while the Saints in heaven are the Church triumphant.
Now I walk around our field saying the Rosary thinking about the church militant!
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HeatherNY
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mariB wrote:
The past 2 months we have been saying it together as a family during school hours, but just 1 decade. It is amazing the graces we all have been recieving. I'm planning to ease everyone into 5 decades. |
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I have been doing a decade a day with my children and I can always tell the days we forget. Our focus is all off!!! I too hope to ease into 5 decades but with my two-year old even a decade is challenging!!!
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Heather
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Lissa
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During & after our move, we completely dropped all attempts to say the rosary. Bad, I know. Upheaval like moving just means you need those graces all the more.
After Christmas I took a cue from Helen's blog and started a cocoa-and-rosary time in the afternoons. We've managed it about three days a week, and we pray two decades at a time, more or less. I make the cocoa very hot and by the time we are finished w/ our prayers, it is cool enough to drink.
As for me, I recently received the beautiful gift of a one-decade rosary bracelet (with lapis beads--more blue!!) and I wear it always in hopes that I will be better about saying a decade here and there when a quiet moment appears in my day.
I was extremely interested to see that at the school affiliated with the Maronite church I posted about in the Welcome thread, the children pray a decade of the rosary every hour on the hour! Goodness, doesn't that put my little homeschool to shame!!
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Rebecca
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I am enjoying this thread so much. I had never said a rosary until I was well into my twenties. My family did not practice this devotion while I was growing up. I have been warm and cold (but never hot  ) about saying it, even to this day. After I have said it, I am so happy that I did so and vow to do it again the next day. Sadly, I rarely seem to string two days together in a row. The children and I say a decade in the morning before lessons. I would like to be more diligent to finish it throughout the day.
I have always been under the assumption that I needed to complete it all in one sitting. I like the rosary bracelet idea, a reminder that I can say it all day long, rather than all at one time if necessary.
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mariB
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I love the Rosary bracelet idea.
Today on the way to church I asked my husband if the 2 girls and I could have Rosary bracelets please.(My husband is a jeweler so he would make them.) I asked that they be sturdy and he assured me that they would be. I thought it a beautiful gift as my 7 year old dd is receiving FHC this year.
Heather, I so glad that we are not the only ones that manage only a decade.
I'm thinking with all the graces we are receiving with only 1 decade how much more with 5 decades!
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Bridget
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We have gotten quite regular with the family rosary every night. Right before the little ones bedtime. It's not always pretty but the graces are almost tangible. Everyone five and up can lead a decade and the three year old is learning.
Tonight I smothered laughter through the whole "Hail Holy Queen' over the antics of a toddler, so it isn't always the kids who make it hard to be reverent.
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Elizabeth
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I shoot for twenty decades a day, but rarely pray them all at once. Kim Fry and I encouraged each other to make the rosary the thread running through our days. And then we reported to each other on the tangible graces we received. It's been amazing! I try to pray a decade before I even get up in the morning. Then I pray a decade with the children before we begin our studies. I usually can get in five or ten while nursing the baby at naptime after lunch. And I easily get in five or ten at bedtime. I always pray the rosary until I fall asleep. And if I'm up at night, I pick up where I left off . Years ago, I got into the habit of praying those nighttime prayers for Aidan Ryan. Now, he's always my first thought at night and then I usually drift to the intentions of people here at the message board. The other decades are scattered throughout the day. I did have a moveable rosary bracelet but I can't find it .
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Elizabeth Foss is no longer a member of this forum. Discussions now reflect the current management & are not necessarily expressions of her book, *Real Learning*, her current work, or her philosophy. (posted by E. Foss, Jan 2011)
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Becky Parker
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Thank you, thank you all so much for your helpful replies! What wonderful ideas you have. I really like the hot coco idea. We try to have tea time in the afternoon, maybe we should say our rosary as a family just before tea time, and I'll serve hot coco. What a treat! For me personally, I love the idea of saying the entire rosary throughout the day. I think my "all or nothing" tendency tells me that if I don't have time to sit down and say the whole thing I may as well not even bother. I know that it really silly; something I just need to get over. Of course, when this baby comes I know I'll have time while nursing - can't wait for that excuse to actually sit down and not do anything else but pray or read! That's another 5 months though so I don't want to put off saying the rosary til then. Thanks again ladies, you have been such a blessing!
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MicheleQ
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Elizabeth wrote:
I shoot for twenty decades a day, but rarely pray them all at once.
I try to pray a decade before I even get up in the morning. Then I pray a decade with the children before we begin our studies. I usually can get in five or ten while nursing the baby at naptime after lunch. And I easily get in five or ten at bedtime. I always pray the rosary until I fall asleep. And if I'm up at night, I pick up where I left off . |
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Elizabeth,
How do you keep track of where you are at? Or don't you? I like this idea of praying 10 decades here and there throughout the day but know I would at some point forget what mystery I was on.
Curious.
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4Real Forums : Hidden Treasure
Topic: Daily rosary
