Saturday, July 17, 2010

VBS

I have had a very busy week going to "Saddle Ridge Ranch" each day. I helped with our Vacation Bible School this year by teaching the 3-year-olds. This was my granddaughter, Sophia's class! I had 3 wonderful helpers!! Such a great team!

Sharon Nickel

Jana Church
and Drew Friesen.


Each morning we would go to the opening. The kids would bring offerings each day. There was a boot for the boys and a boot for the girls to put their money in. Daily it would be announced who was ahead - boys or girls. You should have heard the wooping and hollering of the girls or boys when they would win! In the end the boys won overall and over $700 was raised to send 6 inner-city kids to Morning Star Ranch.



The children would sit on blankets with their class. Our class of 7 children sat on the yellow blanket. At least we would try to keep them contained to the blanket. They are 3-year-olds so it wasn't always easy.



Hannah was with the 5-year-olds and she sat close by.



The kids loved to sing and do actions with the songs.





Even little Luke who was with the two-year-old class.




After the opening, we would go back to our rooms and start the day with some more songs. Cowgirl Molly would invite them to sing with her. We'd sing
"If you love Jesus, Moo like a cow"
"God made me"
"If you're happy and you know it"
"Zacchaeus was a wee little man"
"Jesus loves me"...

The kids LOVE to sing!






We had a different story each day. You can read what Oliver had to say about the story. (click on Oliver)

After a story and a craft, we would go outside to play. The first day we couldn't because there were sooooooo many monstrous mosquitos!! The next day we brought some bug spray for all of us and by the end of the week, somehow the mosquitos had left.
















Ollie enjoyed this little craft. Ummm....exactly how many legs does a horse have?







I had brought a horse and teepee from home that the kids enjoyed.




Three-year-olds sometimes have attitudes:







But mostly they were just plumb happy.




I made stick horses for each kid. I had purchased some towels on sale at Wal-mart and could make 4 horse heads from one towel. Found a whole bag of fringe at Et Cetera for 50 cents. In all, I think each horse cost maybe around $3 and just 1/2 day to put all together.


Each day we would ride our horses out on the range (around the church).










The watering hole.




VBS was so fun - but exhausting by the end of the week.







I heard that 11 children gave their lives to Christ. I have a poster that says "Fulfill the Great Commission - one child at a time". That's what it is all about! A very fun and fulfilling week!!


Sunday, July 11, 2010

Wow!


Seen out my front door. Wow! Just glad we aren't under that cloud though.

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Tomorrow we start Vacation Bible School. I'm going to be teaching the 3-year-olds and am so excited about it. Bible school is for kindergarten through 6th grade, but we do have nursery for the children of workers. While our kids were in Wisconsin for 10 days, I spent my time preparing for VBS. Lots of crafts to prepare, stories, decorations. I am so happy to have my granddaughter, Sophia in my class as they came back late last night! And Hannah is right next door with Miss Joan, who was her pre-school helper last year. Excited to see how God will work in children's lives and also in all of us who are working too this next week.