Each evening, after our nightly prayers with the children, my husband and I make the sign of the cross on their foreheads. We have been doing this since our daughters were born. Our girls, now eight and three, have begun to sign us in return. This ritual is so much a part of our evening routine that if one of us is absent at bedtime, the girls will remember to bless us the next morning.

My husband contributed this signing to the nightly prayer session. His father gave bedtime blessings, and we hope our children will pass along the custom to their children.