Vacation Bible School 2011 - Big Apple Adventure

The kids got to spend a week in NYC in the middle of June! Not really, but we pretended we were there. (Ahem, "good" parents try to feed their child's imagination. Or something.)

We spent some time up at church before the week started, getting everything ready for the mass of children that come to visit each year for Vacation Bible School. Due to the fact that I had a newborn and three other young children, I wasn't able to be as helpful as I would have liked to be beforehand, but it all worked out. 

I was so lucky to get to work in the crafts room with Kim Deviney again this year. I love her, and I love working with the little kids on their art projects. The crafts this year were pretty cute! Anyway, our room...

Ooooh...so "artist-y."

Yes, I made up that word.

 And Lady Liberty herself.

On cardboard boxes.

Hey, it's cool! You just wish you had one.

It was such a busy week! We had so many kids coming through the church each day - the daily average was over 200! I didn't have much time to go and take pictures of my kids enjoying VBS, but I got a few shots. On the last day, Uncle Pete came and helped out, and I sent him off with my camera to find the munchkins. 

And now, for your viewing pleasure (or just mine), gratuitous photos of my children:

The NYC, um, "skyline."

Zoe, making a taxicab.

Nicky's taxi.

Zoe and her new best friend, Kassie, making a T-shirt.

Nicholas making his shirt.

Ethan with his group during Bible study time.

Nicholas and Zoe with their group, making a craft.

Other than crying and eating, this was the extent of Anna's participation in VBS. Next year, she'll be tearing it up!

Ethan, sewing an apple.

He has a "bubble" in his mouth.

(That's a nice way of getting large groups of loud kids to be quiet.) 

All in all, it was a great week! A little hectic with a couple of small panicky moments, but it all worked out. VBS is such an amazing ministry tool, and I'm so glad that I was able to be a part of it this year. I'm already looking forward to next year!

Saddle Ridge Ranch: Day Five

Yay! We survived! It was a fun week, but I am so tired. Now I can sit back, relax and wait for all this sickness to morph into bronchitis and a sinus infection. I think I'm on my way! Yee-Haw!

Today was good. The kids made picture frames so they could take home the photos we took earlier in the week, and they were pretty cute. I spent a lot of time on the floor during craft time, Cinderella-style, scrubbing up the encrusted paint from yesterday. Let me tell you, my right arm is going to be sore tomorrow! I just wanted to get it done, because I knew we wouldn't be able to stay up at the church all afternoon. My kids were in desperate need of naps, and I had to go pretty quickly after VBS was over. Luckily, we were able to get the room cleaned up, tear the decorations down, and walk out of the building before 1:30!

There is a really sweet family in our church that has horses, and they were nice enough to bring them to the church today for the kids to ride! Talk about adorable! 

Check out the horse.

I guess it doesn't like Nicholas much.

He wasn't scared at all!

Once Ethan saw that Nicky didn't die, he decided to go for a ride.

Turns out, he really liked it!

I think this year's VBS was awesome! Total offerings from the kids were over $650...wow! Because of this (and the offering competition between the boys and the girls), our pastor and associate pastor ended the day by getting "pie" in their faces! The fact that the "pies" were made of beans, mashed potatoes, and who knows what else only made this event more disgusting. I'm guessing the kitchen staff was trying to use up the leftover food? (Hurl.)

Of course, the embarrassment of our church leadership wouldn't be complete without some photographic evidence! Heehee...

Bro. (Dr.) Bill and Dr. Edge

Check out those cocky smiles.

Yeah, those will disappear...

Oh, yeah!

Nice throw, Cole!

That's nasty.

Hope you guys didn't eat dinner prior to viewing this.

So, Saddle Ridge Ranch is over. I'm glad, because I'm tired, but I love working with the kids at VBS, so I'm already looking forward to next year! Whether I'll be brave enough to actually volunteer to work is still up in the air. Talk to me next week, when my arms aren't sore anymore and I'm feeling better. :)

Saddle Ridge Ranch: Day Four

Just in case I never mentioned this before: I love my husband!! He is the best! The poor guy gave up a money-making day of work to stay home with two sick munchkins so Mommy could go and splatter paint all over the FBC fellowship hall with a bunch of kids. So sweet! :)

I'm still feeling awful, but I made it! I'm so glad I was able to get through the day, because we were very busy. The kids painted bandannas, and they all turned out to be really cute! It was messy and hectic, but so much fun!

He was so proud of his work.

Kathleen told me that we had 162 kids today. Awesome! Also, we had 161 yesterday, I think...I didn't get those numbers until after I already published my post.

I hope we can make it tomorrow, and I really hope that we're all feeling lots better. Day Five, here we come! I love VBS, but I'm looking forward to getting back to our normal routine. This week is killing me.

Hope you all have a great night!

Saddle Ridge Ranch: Day Three

Oh, boy. Today was a difficult one. Not only were we insanely busy in the craft room, but I had some drama with my kiddos that threw me for a loop.

The boys went home with my mother in-law yesterday to spend the night, so it was just me and Miss Zoe this morning. When she woke up, I noticed that her nose was running like a faucet and she had the cough of a an emphysema patient. Lovely. I took her temperature, and she didn't have a fever, so I wasn't sure what to do. After an hour of indecision, I finally called my mother to see if she could watch her while I went to VBS. I didn't want to risk spreading the plague to the other children, because I don't know if she's contagious.

Shortly after setting up in the church, I got a message from Nathan. Apparently, Nicholas started running a low-grade fever, and my brother and sister in-law were going to watch him so my mother in-law could come work at VBS. Ethan was the only child with me at the church today, and that was so strange. I'd forgotten what it was like to have only one kid! It's EASY!

Anyway, we made it through the day. Lots of painting, bolo-making and picture-taking went on, and we managed to surface at the end. I'll have to ask Kathleen how many kids we had today; I didn't get the official count. I would share some more pictures, but my memory card is out of commission at the moment, as we are having photos of all the VBS kids developed to send home with them. I hope I get my card back! There are some cute pictures of the boys on there, too!

Unfortunately, I'm still feeling extremely icky...fever, sore throat, stuffy nose, etc. I'm planning to try to be there tomorrow, depending on how the munchkins are doing. We're painting bandanas, and it should be really fun (and really messy)! A room full of young, hyperactive kiddos + fabric paint = interesting stories to tell parents. Fun times. :)

Saddle Ridge Ranch: Day Two

Oh, boy...today was a long day. I'm sure the number of hours were the same as any other day, but it just felt longer, okay? I woke up this morning and was not feeling well, and it's only gotten worse as time went on. I cannot afford to get sick right now, so I'm praying that a good night's sleep will help and I'll be back to 100% by tomorrow. If not, I'm just going to hope that I can survive for the rest of the week!

VBS was great! Our attendance went from 154 to 163, and I know we're going to keep adding to that. We have some incredible people working with the kids, and I know everyone is having a fabulous time! I didn't post pictures yesterday, so I'll share a few now:

Check out our mini stalls! Aren't they cute?

(Way to go, honey!)

My home for the week.

Check out this awesome covered wagon!

Stuart Baker built it just for us (or because Kathleen told him to).

Cathy Sizemore's Bible study bunkhouse.

The other Blazing Star Stables...upstairs...for the old people. :)

Okay, I'm just jealous because they actually have horses.

Aren't the decorations awesome? I thought so. Anyway, I am having a blast, and I know the kids are, too! Check out my kiddos:

Awww...

I would like to take a moment to mention that the closest I've ever been to a saddle is while I was shooting pictures today. See? I'm getting in touch with my inner cowgirl. Or something.

Well, folks, I'm feeling pretty crummy about now. I'm going to my room to drift off into a coma and hope that some miraculous healing takes place overnight. Hope you all have a wonderful evening!

Saddle Ridge Ranch: Day One

Wow! Today was CRAZY, but awesome! There were 154 kids at VBS for the first day, and that number is only going to get bigger as the week goes on. 

The church looks really good. Everyone did such a great job decorating! We spent about 11 hours up there on Saturday, trying to transform our fellowship hall into "Blazing Star Stables." Nathan came up and built the coolest horse stalls using just foam and cardboard! (Note: They weren't as "cool" once we remembered we had to paint them. Boo.) On Sunday afternoon, we went back and finished the room. Boy, do I have a lot of laundry and cleaning to do around here now! I don't really think about how much I do around the house during the day until I'm gone for a while and have to play catch-up.

Anyway, the first day was a big success, I think. I'm looking forward to tomorrow, and I know it's going to be great! 

Pictures to come!