Day 5 of Kids Summer Shake Up 2023 at Parma Heights Baptist

small group devotions

Today was the last day of Summer Shake Up for this year.  Last night we had a big storm so the grass was all soaked as well as it being much cooler, only 69 degrees at the start, but thank God is wasn't raining!  We did some minor modifications such as playing kids vs. the leaders in a kickball game instead of the water games we originally had planned, and moving our devotional groups to the blacktop at the edge of the parking lot instead of on the grass.  The kids won the kickball game, but being fair to the leaders, we ran out of time before they all got to kick.  I forgot to get a picture of kickball because I was playing!

We were pleased to surpass our goal of $1500 for bedding for the Chain of Love orphanage in Brazil with over $1800!  The verse of the day was I am the vine, and you are the branches.  If a person remains in Me and I remain in him, then he produces much fruit.  But without Me he can do nothing. (John 15:5 Int'l Children's Bible)

game in back parking lot

Our second activity was playing grab the chicken where teams stand across from each other and number off.  One or numbers are called and those numbered kids run to the middle to try to grab the chicken and get back across their line without getting tagged.  Everyone got a turn.  

I only had to make one first-aid trip and one restroom trip today.  At the end, all the kids received a New Testament and a fanny pack.  Those with perfect attendance got to pick a couple snacks to go too.  They were very particular about what to pick.  There was plenty for the leaders to get some too.  I took the peanut butter crackers and Chips Ahoy.

It was a good week!

Day 4 of Kids Summer Shake Up 2023 at Parma Heights Baptist

Thursday we were down to 38 children in the 5th/6th group.  Our first activity today was making a bike plate.  This serves as a souvenir from Summer Shake Up.  They used markers to decorate their plates any way they wanted.  The plates were made ahead of time using a 3D printer.  There were a lot of very pretty ones!

In the skit today, the family on the road trip went to the Grand Canyon and followed "One Way" signs along a narrow path which was related to getting to heaven only through faith in Jesus which gets us on that narrow way that leads to life.  In the skit, the family wound up at a cross where the grandson presented the gospel and his aunt and grandparents trusted in Jesus as their Savior.  Today's verses were:  Jesus answered, I am the Way.  And I am the truth, and the life.  The only way to the Father is through Me,--John 14:6  and Enter through the narrow gate.  The road that leads to hell is a very easy road.  And the gate to hell is very wide.  Many people enter through that gate.  But the gate that opens the way to true life is very small.  And the road to true life is very hard.  Only a few people find that road. Matthew 7:13-14 (Int'l Children's Bible)

The kids got it rocking really well!

Our second activity was the obstacle course which made most of the kids very happy--they love the slip and slide and the water balloons!  In my earlier post from Tuesday, I forgot to show a picture of the bounce house that is also part of it so I'm showing that today.

That wraps up Thursday with only Friday left to go.  Donations for the Chain of Love orphanage in Brazil are coming in good.  

Day 3 of Kids Summer Shake Up 2023 at Parma Heights Baptist

The double white line is the finish line--
team on right had to start over

Other team had to start over too!

In the 5/6th grade group on Wednesday we reached 40 kids.  Today is a dry day for our activities.  Our first activity was a hula hoop jump relay in the back parking lot.  We had four teams with ten on each and the idea was for the whole team to cross the finish line without stepping outside of a hula hoop.  They could have up to two in one hoop.  This was a great game for teamwork because they had to work together.  The first person had like 5 hula hoops and put down one at a time in front of them and stepped into it, followed by other team members.  If anyone stepped outside of the hoop, the whole team had to go back and start over.  They played two rounds and the winner of each played against each other for the championship.  It was a close race!  

Sharks and Minnows

For the leftover time they played sharks and minnows with the workers being the sharks to start it off.  The kids had to try getting across to the finish line without being tagged by a shark.

The skit focused on Psalm 23 and was about our road trip travelers running out of gas.  The theme for the day was Jesus is the Good Shepherd and we are his sheep.  Also, John 10:9 where Jesus says, "I am the door.  The person who enters through Me will be saved.  He will be able to come in and go out and find pasture."  

Our second activity was back in the woods again, only instead of playing Capture the Squirrel, they played helpers tag.  Most of the mud from Monday was dried up.  This time the ones doing the chasing wore yellow pennies which made them easy to spot.  I was having so much fun watching that I forgot to take a picture!  By the time I remembered, it was too late.  The kids loved chasing each other in the woods!

5th & 6th graders waiting with leaders to be picked up

At the end of each day, leaders bring their small groups back to the tent where they checked in at so parents can pick them up at noon.  The children give their name tags back to their leader when their parent comes to get them and the leader checks them out.  Each grade has their own tent.  

I was a busy runner today making two restroom trips, returning some extra snacks, trying to find the group that was missing a couple socks left by the slip-n-slide, and one trip to first aid at the very end.  Only two days left.  Be sure and check out the posts of the first two days if you missed them:  Day 1, Day 2.   

Day 2 of Kids Summer Shake Up 2023 at Parma Heights Baptist

Opening Rally with kids sitting with leaders by grade

Every day starts with some singing with all the grades and their leaders in the pavilion.  They also review the verse of the week all together.  Our first activity today was the obstacle course which the kids loved!  It not only included different obstacles to do, but also a fun water balloon fight against another group.  If the kids didn't get wet enough with that, there was also a slip-n-slide they could enjoy.  Here are just few pictures of some of the obstacles:

tunnel

hurdles, tunnel, hay bale climb

Water balloon fight

Taking jumps together

Bouncy Ball Ride

Slip-n-Slide Threesome

Most went 1 at a time on slip-n-slide

Heading to pavilion after
obstacle course for skit 

After the first activity, we all return to the pavilion for a skit that somehow relates to the lesson of the day and is usually pretty funny.  I really enjoy the skits.  They are made up by the skit crew and they do not follow a script.  They do a great job!  Today's was that the grandpa got all tangled up in his sheet when sleeping and sort of looked like Lazarus when Jesus raised him from the dead.  When groups move from place to place, the director leads with a flag raised that has the grade on it and each leader walks with their small group of kids holding up their group color flag.  Below are a couple pictures of the skit:

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Day 1 of Kids Summer Shake UP 2023 at Parma Heights Baptist Church

This year I am helping in grades 5 & 6 as a runner (aka gopher).  The first day we had about 33 in this group and split them up into 7 smaller groups with 4-7 kids in each.  Some groups had one leader and others more than one that stayed with their small group the entire morning.  After the opening rally in the pavilion, our first activity was capture the squirrel (similar to capture the flag). The kids got to run around in the woods which most of them seemed to like.  One girl slipped and got her shorts all muddy so I took her inside to call her mom to bring another pair.  She missed the skit, but got back to her group in time for the snacks and devotional.  Today's lesson was Jesus is the bread of life and the feeding of the 5,000.  

Our second activity was crafts where small groups worked together to build a city scape using cardboard rolls, boxes, crepe paper, bottles, and some other miscellaneous items.  The kids really got into this and worked well together.  Here are some of the things they created:

Pink Group getting started

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Summer Shake Up 2018--The First One Ever for Parma Heights Baptist Church

This year Parma Heights Baptist Church called it quits for sports camp which ran for 10 years and instead of VBS, had one week for a large ministry to kids in the community called Summer Shake Up which combined some good things from Sports Camp and VBS into something brand new.  I took this week for my vacation so I could be a small group leader for 4th graders and had a fun week with the kids, going along through all the activities with them.  I took some pictures and some video of some things and made this video.

Our theme of the week was Philippians 1:6:

God began doing a good work in you and will continue it until it is finished when Jesus Christ comes again.

They did five different main activities twice during the week:  create, Wacky Science, Obstacle Course, Large Group Games and Nature Alive.  It was set up to have something for everyone, not just kids who like sports, but some active things for those who do like to run around.  I felt it was a pretty good mix.  Most importantly, the kids had fun and enjoyed the week.  Everyone who came got caps and a prize bag with several items depending on how many days they came.

The devotions for the week were:  God is the Master Builder (sin entered world), Built Right (Nehemiah), Built New--Inside & Out (Zachaeus), Built with Power (Saul/Paul) and Invited Home Forever (John's vision of heaven).

Over $1,000 was brought in for hygiene items the Chain of Love orphanage in Brazil. 

I was disappointed on Thursday when I took some video with my Flip camera to find out later that I didn't have it on record so missed some really good shots of our group playing that pirate game.  I went over Friday to take some of the younger group, just so I could include it in the video.  Our kids really had fun with that one!

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Share a Photo that Best Represents Your June (Writer's Workshop)

I am so glad my husband and I discovered the game of Pickleball--it is great exercise and a lot of fun!  I enjoyed teaching others to play so that they could teach kids to play at our Focus Sports Camp in June at Parma Heights Baptist Church.  I had the privilege of being the Pickleball director in June when we added the sport for the first time this year.

Practicing dinking (ball bouncing in kitchen close to net)

It is an easy game to learn but one that has lots of aspects to practice and improve.  It is a game of patience, ball control and strategy that all ages can enjoy!  It was fun seeing how fast the kids at sports camp caught on and were playing some close exciting games by the third day!

 
Pickleball is played with paddles slightly bigger than ping pong paddles and with a whiffle ball. It is played on court the same size as is used for badminton, much smaller than a tennis court so involves less running.   It is very similar to tennis in strategy but the serve must be underhand and the service box is positioned in the back of the court as opposed to the service box in tennis at the front of the court.  Pickleball has a couple quirky rules such as the double-bounce rule and not volleying the ball in the kitchen area or the "non-volley zone (the area 7' from the net).  The double-bounce rule is simply that you must let the ball bounce once before hitting it on the serve and the return of serve.  A game is to 11 points but you only score when your side is serving and must win by 2.

The game can be played indoors or outdoors.  Outdoors is harder due to the wind and sun, but it just makes it a bit more challenging.  To view some actual games or to learn to play, just do a search for pickleball on YouTube.  There are tons of short video clips describing how to execute specific shots as well as actual tournament games.

Pickleball is the fastest growing sport in America!  Have you played yet?  If not, what are you waiting for?  Join the fun!

See other Writer's Workshop posts and link up your own.


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Instructions for How To Make A Western Vest From a Paper Bag (Writer's Workshop)

As a kid I loved anything related to cowboys so would have loved our VBS this year which uses a cowboy theme.  For the Kindergarteners, one of the suggestions was to make western vests for them to wear and add a patch to each day using a grocery bag.  Thanks, Giant Eagle, for donating the bags!  Gerard and I made 50 of these! 

1.   Get a paper grocery bag and cut it open, cutting a straight line up the back of it.
2.   Cut out a diamond shape in the center of the bottom of the bag for the head to go into.
3.   Put strips of masking tape all along the four edges of the neck to soften the edges by the neck.
4.  
   
   Cut along the side edges of the bottom of the bag.
5.   On each side of the bag starting at the bottom of the bag, cut out big arm holes.
6.   Turn the bag inside out.
7.  
   
   Cut 2" long strips around the top edge of the bag for fringe.
8. Set it aside if you have a cat, and I bet they will either enjoy sitting or lying on it!
   

Joining up with Mama Kat's Writer's Workshop using the prompt:  Write a post with 12 lines.

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Being Flexible

Sometimes it does no good to plan ahead.  Sometimes what we think is going to happen doesn't, so we need to be flexible.  This is what we are told when we sign up to work in Sports Camp at our church.  Our best laid plans are always subject to change because we o not always know what God has in mind.

I was originally told I would be coaching first grade girls basketball so planned some games to play at the beginning during registration geared to that age level, such as Johnny Can't Cross My Ocean, Mother May I, Mr. Fox, Red Light, Green Light and Spud.  I touched base with my assistant coach and felt ready.

First thing I was told when I arrived was surprise--there's been a change.  I would now be coaching 5th grade boys instead of 1st grade girls.  OK.  We are short on men coaches this year but I assisted with 5th grade boys last year and have taught that age in Sunday School so felt comfortable with the new assignment.  Quickly, my mind is thinking of new presession games because what I had planned clearly would not be good now.

Monday went very well, better than I even expected as far as my morning session.  One even prayed for forgiveness and asked Jesus to be his Savior!

I volunteered as a blue shirt worker in the afternoon which is basically just to be available to assist coaches if needed, taking kids to first aid or the restroom.  I was assigned to 1st gr. boys soccer and had the pleasure to assist two of my former 5th grade boys I had in Sunday School and watch them coach soccer.  They even invited me to play to balance out teams for a little time, it was fun! 

We had a record attendance of children this year and for the first time had to close out some sports.  This outreach ministry into our community takes the whole church working together to make it happen. 

I look forward to another great day today and am excited to see what happens!  This is my idea of a fun vacation--I LOVE it!  What is your idea of a great vacation?

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Table Tennis Exhibition--Very Interesting!

I went to a Table Tennis exhibition at Parma Heights Baptist Church last weekend and learned several things I didn't know about it.  The main difference between Table Tennis and Ping Pong is the speed of the ball.  In Table Tennis at the Olympic level, the ball makes approximately 8,000 revolutions per minute as opposed to two or three in ping pong.  That is a huge difference!  Here is a list of some of the other facts I found interesting:

• There are as many as eight different spins you can put on the ball.  They gave the spectators an opportunity to try to return the serve from one of the second top-ranked player in Ohio, Keith Pech.  Several tried and one was actually very good.  I didn't because I didn't want to make a fool of myself.

• Table Tennis has passed up soccer as the number 1 sport with the most participants in the Olympics.

• A game used to consist of 21 points, but it's been changed to 11 to make it more interesting to the spectators.

• Another change is that instead of serving five balls in a row, it is now just two in a row.

• Colleges now give scholarships for Table Tennis and the top ranked player who also is a Table Tennis Coach/Instructor charges $55 for an hour lesson but guarantees his students who take lessons from him four years will be able to get an $80,000 scholarship.

• In singles, you can serve the ball anywhere on the table and from either corner.  He said you should serve from the left corner of the table if you are right handed so are in position to return the shot with a forehand stroke.

• They can call time outs to dry their hands off and some players wipe them off on the table near the net.

• Players at this level recover their paddles once a month.

•  In tournament play, players must wear a shirt that is a different color from the ball.

•  Every so often, the players switch sides like in tennis, but I don't remember how often they do that (I took notes in my head so I'm relying on my memory here).

• To determine who serves, they do not p-i-n-g and hit the ball until someone misses.  Instead, they used one of these ways:  (1) flip a coin, (2) rock-paper-scissors, or (3) on player hides the ball in one hand and the other guesses which hand it is in.  If he guesses right, he gets to serve, if wrong, the player hiding the ball gets to serve. 

• A person burns approximately 700 calories an hour at this level of play (varies depending on weight).

It was an entertaining demonstration.  I really enjoyed it and regret that I didn't go to the actual tournament the next day for at least some of it.  It was fun watching these guys.

Hope you learned something by reading this post.  Now I feel like playing some ping pong.

This is just a short clip of their warm-up before they played a game.  See how far away from the table they are?  That's because the ball is moving so fast.

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A Spaghetti Dinner and Dessert Auction--What Fun!

There were so many great looking desserts!

I went to the spaghetti dinner/dessert auction at church last Sunday determined to bid this year but didn't want to go over $50. It was a fun time and the youth raised a lot of money for their mission trip to Haiti and camp for this summer. I love seeing the boys I taught when they were in fifth grade continue to be actively involved in the youth group. There were over 50 desserts auctioned and when bids reached $100, all the servers did a cute little dance. If someone bid $200, they got to smash a cream pie in the face of a Pastor of their choice who were all good sports.

Oreo cake

The Oreo cake was the first item I bid on but it went for $60 to a kid one table over from me.

Four of the teens were auctioned off: two for yard work, one for housework and one for child care for four hours each.  David and John (the two for yard work) were the first item to get a $200 bid, but the lady who bid said she didn’t want to throw the pie so she let John do it. He chose to throw it at his dad, our main Pastor.

Kraig, the worship Pastor got chosen twice, and the Pastor of Youth and Pastor of Outreach all got included too. Pam, the children’s minister almost escaped until she and her mother got into a bidding contest for the candy cake baked by Kylie (her niece and fellow puppeteer) which finally went to Pam’s mother for $300! That was the highest bid of the day! (I bid on her cake too, but wasn't about to go anywhere near that high.)

Servers Mallory and Kylie (baker of the candy cake that went for $300)

The spaghetti was good too. The teens were the servers and the Family Life Center was full with a good crowd of people all willing to support the youth. It was a fun afternoon and my server, Mallory (a fellow puppeteer), was kind enough to keep bringing me brownies for dessert—I had four! I was excited to bid this year and got the item I most wanted for just $45: a strawberry chiffon pie! It was a fun few hours from noon to 3:00, an hour later than anticipated!

Lots of people went home happy with delicious desserts.  This lady who was at my table bought the cupcake bouquet--actually, her husband bid on it.  Another couple at my table bought the coconut cookies and a cake.

Here is a video showing some highlights of the event and all the desserts, including the dessert I bought:


P.S.  I tried to take notes and record all the bids but sometimes it was hard to tell which cherry pie it actually was although the bunt cake in the box sold for $30, there was another chocolate peanut butter bunt cake with a container that went for $200.  Since I didn't have a good picture of that one, in the video I used the bunt cake in the box for the $200 bid.

This is a great fund-raiser and I am already looking forward to bidding again next year!  How much would you bid for a cake or cookies?  Here's a link to Parma Heights Baptist Church where you can see upcoming events and learn more about it.

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Advent Conspiracy: Something To Think About

Our Pastor has been speaking about phases of Advent Conspiracy (worship fully, spend less, give more and love all. This video below really spoke to my heart. Every Christmas for years now I've always given an extra offering to my church as unto Jesus as a gift to Him since it is His birthday I celebrate at Christmas. I generally make it equal to or more than what I spend on the person I gave the most to. This year, after viewing this video, I'm doing it a bit differently.



I decided to give through World Vision this year to help make a difference in the world the way Jesus did when He lived on Earth. There are plenty options to help the poor, feed the hungry, provide care and help to people in crisis, provide medicine, clean water, help for orphans and widows and even animals to help people support themselves, plus more! To view all the "gifts" check out www.worldvision.org.  Is Jesus the most important person on your list?  Does your checkbook/credit card statement reflect it?

You can make a donation in honor of anyone you want and they will get a card and/or email card notifying them that you made a donation in their honor and what gift you gave. I wasn't too sure how this would be received, so I started with a couple of our pastors (before I realized I could send them an email notification but they'll hopefully get a card in the mail.)

Have you heard of the Advent Conspiracy before? This is the first year I've heard of it. What do you think?

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Tips on How To Make Your Buffet Table Beautiful

A Thanksgiving Holiday Buffet (Image from Side-by-Side Facebook Page with permission)

First of all, these are all tips I got from Julie, the hospitality workshop speaker at this month's Women of Wonder (W.O.W.) meeting at Parma Heights Baptist Church.

1)  Cover table with 3-5 different pieces of material (big napkins draped, basic white base).

2)  Add boxes to create tiers for bringing food dishes and center piece up higher.
 
3)  Use pretty platters and bowls.
 
4)  Keep cold food cold by using one bowl with crushed ice and set a smaller bowl with the food on top of it.  

5)  Use warming trays to keep the hot food hot, hide cords under material.
 
6)  Add protected candles and put a layer of little colorful Styrofoam balls around the base.
 
7)  Fill in the lower parts of the table with greenery, pine cones and ornaments.
 
8)  Add a string of small lights among the greenery.
 
9)  Label all the food dishes and add a warning if nuts are in it.
 
10)  Set up the drinks/punch bowl at a separate table.
 
11)  Set up a special buffet table for the kids with foods they like.

12)  Martini glasses work well for holding candy and/or nuts.

13)  Wait until the guests all leave before cleaning up--enjoy spending time with your company!  (I really like this one!)
 
14)  Have some music playing softly.

 I asked Julie what she included on the menu for a Christmas buffet and here is what she said:

My menu I had planned for that buffet is:  Turkey and Ham croissants, Holiday Potatoes, sweet potato crunch, Waldorf Salad, Sweet and sour cabbage salad, asst. olives, vegetable tray shaped as a wreath.  For Dessert I planned a heath bar triffle, mini choc mouse cups and mini cherry cheesecakes.  I also had tall martini glasses filled with chocolate mints and kisses.   For the beverage I will have a lime punch, which is a combo of 7-up, limeade and lime sherbert. 

I'm kicking myself for not taking a picture of the sample buffet table she had set up but I left my camera in my jacket in the other room.  The greens, ornaments, pine cones and lights really made the table look wonderful!  Hope you can use some of these suggestions for your holiday entertaining.  Thank you, Julie, for doing this fantastic workshop!

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Look What I Made at Women of Wonder (W.O.W.)

It may look like a kid did these, but it is my work (I like color)!

Once again, at my church (Parma Heights Baptist), the Women of Wonder meetings have resumed and so far, both have been extremely enjoyable! Last week I did stamping for the first time and used watercolor pencils. I didn't even know watercolor pencils existed! We made coasters, but used pretty weighty tiles that I will use as a paper weight instead since I already have a lot of coasters. Actually, I am giving one to a friend who is going through a rough time right now and gave the other to my hubby to use on his desk in the basement. (If he doesn't want it, I'll take it back.)

I like easy crafts and it doesn't get much easier than this.  Everyone got to make two.  While some of the group was doing the craft, the rest were eating.    Some of the letters got cut off when I stamped it but used the black watercolor pencil to fill them in.  Once you stamp it, you can't stamp over it and get it lined up perfectly, I tried and the craft lady was kind enough to give me another one.  I really liked using the watercolor pencils--I wasn't sure you could tell.  Once we got the stamp on and the color we wanted, one of the committee ladies sprayed them for us outside to seal them.  We did this right at the beginning of the meeting so they would have time to dry. 

The Bible study part was good too.  We are reading Power of a Positive Woman by Karol Ladd.  The discussion was on being created for a purpose and how faith chases away worry.  We had a good discussion at our table and laughed a lot!  The time flew by.  I am a clock watcher, and I know that if I am at a meeting that lasts 2 1/2 hours without looking at the time once, I am having a good time!

Next month we will be putting together some food baskets for delivery to people in the church who are struggling financially.  I think they said we'll be putting them into our food pantry.  The baskets will have items for a Thanksgiving meal.

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Fantastic VBS Vacation Week

Marmot (image source:  Wikipedia)

Last week I took a vacation week to help in our Vacation Bible School ("VBS") and had a fantastic week!  It is such a blessing to be a part of this ministry outreach into our community!  We had around 750 children attend and 77% were from outside of our church.  I helped in grades 5 and 6 again this year just because I like working with that age group best. Personally, I think the older kids are easier than the younger ones and like the competition.  We used Gospel Light's Sonrise National Park material which featured a different animal to go with each day's verse.  The children each got laminated verse cards with the animal of the day and verse on one side and the lesson connection on the other.

Each age group was a different animal for their name tags.  The 5th and 6th graders were Marmots which are like a big ground squirrel.  They live in mountains and burrow among the rocks during the winter when they hibernate.  Each day, the 5th and 6th graders were challenged to bring in facts about the animal of the day.  Very few knew what a Marmot was.

I chose to be the green team this year because it is a color easy to spot and gave my group tickets each day they wore green which promoted a bit of team unity and also helped me find them easier.  The tickets were given to the kids by their group leader and had prize drawings at the end of each day. 

I was encouraged when several of the boys I had last year signed up for my group again this year.  Our whole group was cooperative and fun.  My small group memorized the five verses without much nagging encouragement from me and we had a come-from-behind 1st place finish!  We had rec time outside, snacks, crafts, skit presenting the lesson each day and small group time to take care of points, review the lesson, verses and play some games.

In our small group, we played the following fun games:

Match game--in groups of three they talked to find out what things they all liked and the point went to the group that came up with what I liked best such as TV show, sport to play, etc.

Fact or fiction. Each one gives three facts about yourself--two true ones and one false one.  The others tried to guess which one was false.  The one guessing most right got a ticket and if they could fool everyone, they got a point.  My facts were as follows--see if you can pick the false one:

I like animals and have 2 cats, 1 dog, a rabbit and a bird..

I never liked reading when I was in school but read a lot now.

I don't have a stove.

I fooled them all! I don't have a rabbit or bird. The last day I offered the kids in my group a copy of My Funny Dad, Harry, the book I wrote and was pleasantly surprised that most of them actually wanted a copy! I only had four though so told them I'd order more and mail it to them if they sent me an email.

Basketball review using a small ball and a wastebasket with review questions.

Animal charades giving a point to both the correct guesser and the actor if someone could guess what animal they were acting out.

It was also a blessing to see boys I taught in Sunday School when they were in 5th grade be helpers in VBS. They are in Jr. High and High School now and my heart rejoices when I see them serving our Lord Jesus Christ with me.

It was hot every day except Friday and rained Thursday so had to have most of the rec time indoors.  The kids and staff were flexible and no one complained.  Here is a picture of some of the kids enjoying the big puddle in the parking lot as they were leaving to go home.

Wading in church parking lot after VBS on Thursday.

Over $2400 was received in offering during the week that will be used to provide milk to kids at the Chain of Love orphanage in Brazil.  The video below gives a brief overview of the whole Bible School. 

Did your church have VBS yet?  Do you remember going as a kid?  Do you help in yours now?  Although none of the kids in my small group received Jesus as their Savior last week as far as I know, I did give them each a personal Bible Reading Record to encourage them to start reading their Bible.  Hope they use it!

(We are donating 50 cents for each legitimate comment we receive on all our blogs during June and July to The Wounded Warrior Project which helps wounded warriors and their families returning from current conflicts.)

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My Trip To Amish Country--Millersburg, Ohio (Part 1)

Cows and sheep

Last Tuesday I went with our senior group from church to visit Amish country for the first time and enjoyed every minute of it!  It was a two-hour bus ride there so I spent most of that time reading Never Fall Down.  Here are some pictures that I took from the bus using the sports setting to help cut down on the blur:

Horses

Lots of fields

 We saw lots of horses and some cows along the way in wide open fields where all you could see for miles was fields. I wondered how they possibly could take care of such a large area and so many animals! It was fun seeing a whole different culture just two hours away.

Horse pulling a buggy

Thanks for driving, Pat!

Along the way we saw several horse-drawn buggies but it was hard to get a good picture because we were moving pretty fast and by the time I saw the buggies, and got my camera ready, they were out of view.  At one point though, there was one on the road just ahead of us and we passed it up.  I was surprised the big bus didn't scare the horse.  I'm also surprised there aren't more buggy accidents since they plod along on main roads.

Even windmills

We also saw some windmills on the way which surprised me. I wasn't expecting to see those! We stopped at a cheese shop to pick up an Amish couple, Jonas and Edna, who shared some things about the community and its history with us and also came along with us to the home of an Amish family where we ate lunch and several stores that we visited during our trip. More about our visit at the Amish home tomorrow.

(50 cents per legitimate comment during May goes to Joni and Friends for family retreat scholarships for those having special needs children.)

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