Yesterday at 5:30pm our family came together with Beth, Emma, Taylen, & Americk for a special time of Thanksgiving! We each went around the table and said what we were thankful for and then feasted on….  turkey, honey baked ham, macaroni & cheese casserole, mashed potatoes with bacon, corn pudding, green beans, rolls, cookies, & peanut butter fudge.

I’m reminded this year especially – how important it is to come together…  to be thankful for every Thanksgiving – every Holiday –  every day – that we are able to come alongside one another and do life together as one family!

Happy Thanksgiving Y’all!

Our Children’s Church Summer Theme: SLIMED!

A LITTLE INFO ABOUT THE SERIES: 

Main Point: Use slime to teach kids about the life of Jacob.

Idea: Sometimes in life it feels like we’ve been slimed! Sometimes it’s because of decisions we make, sometimes it’s from decisions others make that hurt us. Through the life of Jacob, kids will learn that when we stick to God, He can make something beautiful out of any slimy situation.

Memory Verse: “But I call out to God. And the Lord saves me.” – Psalm 55:16

**

Lesson 1:
 Selfish Slime  – Esau sells his birthright

On June 2nd we showed a movie to help kick off our summer theme! Last week Levi and I did a skit together. Levi could either pick a present for himself right in that moment – or he could wait another day and everyone in the room would get a present. (If you know Levi – he would have waited. But I needed him to say yes!)

So he unwrapped the gift hoping it was a great toy! But when he stuck his hand inside –  it was a big bowl of slime! 

He sold out his friends for nothing…..because he was selfish!

**

Lesson 2: Lying Slime  – Jacob tricks his dad!

This week we talked about lying! I created clear slime because God sees through our lies. I put some marbles (little-white lies) in the slime and from the top it looked like they were hidden. But when you flip the tub over – it’s very easy to see. We can hide our lies from people…. but not from God.

So Gabe and I did a skit. I told him I would ask him questions. If he didn’t lie he would win money. But if he lied– he was going to get SLIMED!

So I asked things like…  Have you ever lied to a friend? Yes. Have you ever cheated on your homework? Yes. Have you ever stolen from a friend? Yes. 

Gabe said: It’s ALWAYS easy to tell the truth….

But then Malaya shouts out from the crowd: What time did you go to bed last night?

Gabe looking down: Mom said to go to bed at 10pm. So I did. 

She said: – That’s a lie because it was 11:00pm and you were playing with your legos.

OH – GABE JUST GOT CAUGHT IN A LIE!! HE MIGHT NOT HAVE LIED TO ME – BUT HE LIED TO HIS SISTER AND IT STILL COUNTS! – – SO HE GOT SLIMED!!!

**

Please keep our children’s church program in your prayers! It’s our heart’s desire to plant & water as many seeds as we can this summer!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY FABI!

It’s hard to believe how far Fabi has come!! I remember when she first came into our lives. Click here to see her story! 

Fabi is all about Sesame Street now! So of course we had to throw her a Sesame Street Pool Party! Fabi’s mom works at the mission now and she drops her off at our house every morning. We still keep her every Friday, anytime it’s rainy, and when her mom has errands to run! We think of ourselves as the grandparents to this precious girl!

Fabi is ALL about swimming! All day long she asks anyone who will listen – Want to go swim? Can I go swim? I go swim with you? 

So we thought it would be fitting to invite her mother, father, and brother over for a special pool-time bonding experience! We started the party off by eating a great meal that Tizzie cooked for us! Then everyone went to the pool where Fabi showed off her swimming skills!

After the pool, we had cake and opened presents! I can’t believe I get to watch this little one grow! I am SO thankful that God brought her through those clinic doors and into my home & heart!

Easter Family Photos…

 Sunrise Service/Refreshments! (For more pictures go to: https://wp.me/pXY1c-563)

Easter Bags….

Special thanks to Marla & the sweet families who provided ALL the treats & toys!! You guys are ABSOLUTELY amazing! Thank you for continuing to pour into my family. It means SO much. 

Rosie’s birthday is January 8th and Isabelle’s birthday is January 7th.  Our December was so packed full of activities we thought it would be better to postpone their birthday party for a month….sort of spreading out the fun!

WELL TODAY was the day! Rosie & Izzy decided they wanted a COWGIRL theme!

Now I love to decorate and I love theme parties! There’s no movie theaters, malls, pizza places, bowling alleys, or any other fun place to take my kids here.  I do my best to make their birthdays and holidays something they can look back on…knowing mommy did her best to make them special.

Now in my quest to be super mom – I thought I would tackle a horse-shaped cake for the party. Here’s a little snippet I did on Facebook about it….

That awkward moment….

1-when you realize you aren’t an artist
2-when Momma Gigi laughs so hard she cries
3-when Rosie gets excited seeing the horse baking pan and then an hour later asks – Momma what’s that supposed be?
4-when you don’t have any of the right colors or tools to do the little dots like the picture but you know even if you did it wouldn’t look much better!!😂😂😂😂
5-when Malaya said she would help fix it but took one look and washed her hands of it saying “It can’t be saved! Trash it and start over.”

#1stworldproblemsin3rdworldcountry#aintnobodygottimeforthat#cakefail

Yep…not my best work! LOL! But the rest of the decorating I did for the party wasn’t too bad!

**

EATING

When the kids arrived the first thing we did was roast hot dogs outside. Then they came into the living room and watched cartoons while they ate.

**

PICTURE TIME

All the kids got their picture taken…picking whatever props they wanted!

**

GAME TIME

There were 26 kids…so we divided them into 2 groups of 13. Rosie’s team was the robbers and Izzy’s team was the police. They would then compete in 3 games outside.

Game 1

Using sticks the kids had a relay race. They were supposed to pretend the wooden sticks were horses and gallop to a rock…touch it…and then gallop back.

Umm…..they’ve never been horseback riding or seen it on TV. They have NO clue what it means to gallop. So pretty much they just ran the entire way! LOL!

Game 2

The Cops & Robbers lined up on opposite sides. Each kid had a number. We placed a “Money Bag” in the middle. Susan yelled out numbers. If she called your number –  than that kid  – from each side –  had to race to the middle and try to grab the bag …. and bring it back without being tagged by their opponent.

Game 3

We hid the “Money Bag” in out front yard. Each group was timed as they searched for it. Izzy’s group did not find it…and they timed out. Rosie’s group DID find it – so they won.

**

CRAFT TIME

The kids then made paper-plate ponies! I try to remind myself that doing crafts with little kids is NEVER fun! But we thought this one was pretty easy. NOPE….still took forever and they each needed a lot of help.

**

CAKE TIME

Each of the girls held their own cake. We sang to Izzy first and then we sang to Rosie! After that we passed out their goody bags, popcorn, and cupcakes!

**

PINATA

We thought we would do the piñata with everyone but we also thought that might cause quite a bit of drama with 26 kids rushing to get candy. Instead – we did it with the adults and family – AFTER the kids left! I wish you could have seen Fabi. This was her first piñata.

As the candy fell upon her – she laughed. Instead of grabbing candy and putting it in her bag – she just took the candy and threw it up in air laughing. I’m pretty sure it’s every little girl’s dream to have candy rain down on them. She made sure to enjoy it as she continued to throw it up again and again with glee!

**

PRESENTS

We always wait for the kids to leave before we open presents….so we don’t cause any unnecessary jealousy.  The kids are NEVER asked to bring presents…instead we always feed them and load them up with little goodies.

**

Well I am COMPLETELY AND TOTALLY EXHAUSTED! I’m SO thankful for Susan, Beth, Jose, Momma Gigi, Malaya, & Mikela  for helping to make this party a successful one! It takes a village…..

This dance group has been looking forward to this party for weeks! Everyone came dressed in their Sunday Best! They were SOOO cute!!

In November they drew names for their secret kindness partner. They each had to perform 3 acts of kindness without getting caught. Then Saturday afternoon they guessed who had their name. If they guessed correctly then they got a prize. If they guessed incorrectly then the person who had their name got a prize. Saturday night was our party which was also the big reveal!

The party started with a plate full of food! And I’m talking about plates FULL of food!! We also had a Candy Buffet!!

GAME TIME

Then we divided everyone into two teams to play games. Malaya and Mikela were team captains. There were 14 kids – so 7 rounds of playing – one against one for each game.

Game 1: We colored 3 popcorn kernels. They had to dig through a bowl of popcorn and find the 3 kernels! First one wins.

Game 2: Stacking plates/cups….3 cups, 1 plate, then 1 cup – repeat. First to complete this combo twice AND their stack not fall for 5 seconds… wins.

Game 3: Stacking cups – You had to move the first cup which said START from the bottom of the stack to the top of the stack by placing one cup after another from top to bottom. First one to complete it wins.

Game 4: Rolling dice – first one to roll doubles wins.

Game 5: Drawing circles on paper plate: Person who draws the most circles on the plate which is on their head wins (circles much touch – each round is 30 seconds).

The winning team 19 to 15 was Malaya’s team!

SECRET SANTA REVEAL

**

SANTA HAT WALK

The night ended with my famous Santa Hat Walk! We placed Santa Hats with numbers on the ground. When the music stopped I drew a number. If you were standing on the number you got to select which Santa Box you wanted. In each box Santa Box was a cash prize. You didn’t know how much was in each box. A heavier box might be a bunch of smaller bills and a lighter box might have a bigger bill. No way to know! Each box weighed differently…you could shake the box – but no peeking inside! (It was my goal that everyone would have a Merry Christmas this year – by having funds to purchase needed food or gifts for their family!)