Sunday set apart.
It’s been one of the best things we’ve ever added into our family rhythm. A few years ago I told my husband that I wanted to make Sundays our children’s favorite day of the week. I had this goal in my head that I wanted them to grow up with a strong affection for our family Sundays, and to know that this day of rest Our Lord called for was meant to be different than every other day of the week. I wanted to make changes to how we celebrate Sundays so that they would have fond memories of this day or rest, and remember that we truly tried to make it a special day in our home.
We brainstormed a few simple ways to reach that objective, and it’s such a treasure to see it now as a vital part of our week.
Our #sundaysetapart looks like this:
• No brick and mortar or online shopping, not even window shopping or scrolling. While this unbroken teaching of the Church is hardly mentioned or acknowledged in the mainstream Catholic community, when we began attending the Latin Mass we learned that unnecessary commerce must be avoided on Sundays. For an amazing Examination of Conscience check this one out!
• No unnecessary housework or duties; we do dishes and keep the house neat, but no non-leisure projects or major chores, and no job-related work. We try to make sure the house is tidy enough to enjoy before we go to bed on Saturday.
• Mass before leisure, and the highest liturgy we can attend; we usually attend the Solemn High Mass.
• Sunday Brunch at home - and all out! Baking one or two things the day before (usually a cinnamon cake and cookies, the kids prefer cupcakes!), bacon, a main dish like a veggie frittata, waffles, egg sandwiches with rolls, and lots of fresh fruit. While we do avoid unnecessary work, we want this Sunday Brunch tradition to feel extra special, so we do work to make the meal and clean up from it! We fast from sweets all week long - we don’t eat dessert, candy, juice, etc during a normal week (unless there’s a birthday or special feast day!). So when cookies, cupcakes, and other treats come out on Sundays, they make a big impact!
• Special Sunday table setting - we added in placemats, plates, bowls, and some servingware just for Sunday. If I had china we’d use it, but we just went to IKEA and picked simple ceramic dishes!
• Family activity in the afternoon; games, nature walk, movie...something relaxing that we don’t usually do on a typical day. Movies are a kid favorite, because we don’t keep a TV plugged in anywhere it the house; it just comes out for specific movie/show watching! If we are watching a movie or playing a game, I sometimes try to match our snack to the theme of the movie and present it in a fun way! Snack trays, popcorn toppings, tiered tray for sweets…simple but things I wouldn’t do on a normal day.
If you’re looking to start a Sunday Set Apart tradition with brunch, there are a few things we’ve added over the years to make it special!
• placemats only for Sunday
• dishes only for Sunday
• special serving dishes (tiered stand, large bowls, trays, cake stand, baking dishes, butter dish)
• Sunday only table cloth or runner
• cloth napkins
• napkin rings
• large cast iron or electric griddle
• waffle maker
• whip cream dispenser
• candlesticks, vases, table centerpiece items
If you already set Sunday apart in special ways, or you make changes to do so, I’d love to see your posts on Instagram! Tag #sundaysetapart so we can all see and learn from each other’s ideas!