My husband just took G on her first camping trip.  For two days the house has been much quieter than usual.

It’s been peaceful, actually – less fighting, less tidying.

More time for being a mother.

Our Lady, Queen of Peace

We’ve been in a pretty negative cycle lately, brought on by the incredible busy-ness or our daily lives. This fed into my cycle of grief over half my family’s mini-vacation:  at first, I was a teary mess, staring down the barrel of a weekend without my partners in crime.  Then I got irritated, realizing how much easier things were with them gone.

Why did they add so much work to my daily life?

But here’s the thing: it wasn’t their absence that made life easier.  The truth is that their trip forced all of us to slow down and do less.  For G and my husband, it was time spent outdoors.  For B, F and me, it was time spent reading, exploring, pumpkin patching and hanging out with Grandma.

Our usual craziness got put on hold.

I loved it.  And I want to replicate it now that they are home.

How?

By looking to Our Lady, Queen of Peace  We don’t know what her daily life was like, but I doubt she spent a great deal of time rushing Jesus to various activities and commitments.  She didn’t have the distractions of social media or the burden of an overly-filled schedule. Instead, Mary devoted her entire existence to the God of love and peace. In him she found her solace; through him she found her peace.

Here’s hoping I can follow her example.

Family activities

• Cancel everything on the calendar for one weekend and spend time together as a family
• Unplug your devices and your life for a few days
• Go to daily mass or adoration; sit in the church afterward and soak in the silence

Family prayer

Our Lady, Queen of Peace, pray for us, that we might learn to soak in the peace of your son, Our Lord, Jesus Christ.

This post is part of the 31 Days of Devotion to Our Blessed Mother.  You can read the rest of the series here.