As I have embraced the Catholic faith with much enthusiasm, I want my kids to embrace it too. So I’ve been working over the last several months to work the faith into their daily lives.

I want to be sure that I don’t make it a “have to” for them so that they grow to resent it or want to get away from it. I welcome ideas from moms and dads out there about how you inspire your kids in the faith and make it something positive that they embrace.

Here is what I have done at home thus far and please share any suggestions for what you do with your kids:

• Nightly prayer before bed
• Make the sign of the cross on their foreheads as their “blessing” before bed and they do it for me as well. It’s become a lovely little tradition :).
• Nightly work in some sort of Bible story or information from a Catholic kids book (may be about a saint or a Bible story).
• Occasionally say one decade of the rosary for one of their friends who needs help or their recently passed Grandma. This needs to become at least weekly, I think.
• Attend Mass weekly.
• Attend religious education weekly.
• Talk more about the importance of helping others and regularly try to engage them in an activity where we are donating/giving to others in need.
• Hung crucifixes in both of their rooms.
• Recently had a visit from one of our parish priests where  he blessed us, the house and the dog ;-).

Other ideas I’d like to do but really haven’t yet:

• Have a weekly family meeting where we say a prayer together and discuss tasks for the week, concerns, etc.
• Once a month, instead of eating out, have PB&J at home and donate the money we saved to an organization we all choose.
• Put a portion of any gift money or allowance money they receive into a charitable giving fund which they can donate to the organization of their choice.
• Possibly take my almost 9 year old to Adoration for 5-10 minutes at first.

What else can I do to make this a positive experience? I truly appreciate your feedback and thoughts either here or on Twitter where I post at @ACatholicNewbie.