VBS

one of our science experiments was to make raisins "dance" in Sprite... it worked.

Pastor Ty our fun scientist (left)

(right) Genevieve can't wait until she can join the big kids

Emma went up front to help with the singing at the end. She's posing (r) after the finale.

Emma helped me and had a nice math lesson by sorting 100 each of 5 Bible memory buddies. She counted by 5's, 10's, and 1's. She sorted colors and characters. It was a FUN math lesson. Our church had VBS this week (b.k.a. Bible-cation-school, by Emma). Our theme was Power Lab and we learned how Jesus gives us the power to: be thankful, help others, be brave, live forever, and tell others the Good News! It's a fun, science theme w/ lots of cool experiments. (SEE PHOTO TOP RT.)

Genevieve stayed in the nursery and had fun w/ one other little girl. We taught her to say the catch-phrase of the week: AHA! It's adorable to hear her, but she will NOT perform for people at church when I try to make her say it.

Emma is having such a great week. She's in a group that's mostly visiting kids.... only 2 from our church. This has been good for her because she isn't bossy at all. She struggles w/ that, but she usually doesn't boss strangers around too much (although she has been known to scrap with new kids if she feels like they are wronging her or someone else... she's got a keen sense of justice, but a 4 year old approach to handing it down- not a good mix).

She has a girl in her group w/ a cast up to her thigh. Emma was really concerned about the little girl's inability to "have any fun" or "play the games", so she decided, with some helpful suggestions from Mama, to bring her magnetic dolls and play with the girl during recreation time. It was a blessing for Emma and for the girl- of course Mama was so happy to see her developing a sense of giving and sacrificing for others, too.

She's learning SO much about God's Word, His Plan through Jesus, and lots of great songs and motions. This week has brought up lots of questions too... I see a new awareness and interest in spirtitual things... so I am going to answer her questions and encourage her to keep asking.

We are worn out tired and the girls have been taking 2-3 hour naps all week... Genevieve is still sleeping and it's going on 4 hours (she's missed her morning nap every morning, but is making up for it in the afternoons). Friday is the finale and we'll be done w/ VBS for another year. It's so great for the kids of our church, for kids in the community, and it's a great way for us to reach out and shine the love of Jesus into a dark world. Enjoy these photos of our week.

Well.... this is a continuation of the post and we're all done with VBS. We survived. Emma thrived! It was a great week and I heard her this morning singing one of the songs- word for word. Too cute!

No comment.....

I have to say that it is no fun to check my blogs and feel like nobody is reading them. I haven't had a single comment on the last 2. Part of the fun of blogging is feedback and conversation with others. If you are reading the blog and enjoying the photos of my family, then please leave a quick comment to let me know. Thanks.

Our Little Dancer!

As promised, here are more pictures from Emma's dance recital.

She loved dancing this year. We were blessed to find a dance studio owned by a Christian woman. Emma's teacher was the best... a formerly homeschooled young lady who's in her first year of college. She was so sweet, taught the girls alot, and most important for me; she was a positive role model for Emma to look up to in dance and in life.

They danced to VY Word (that's how Emma says Thy Word) for ballet and I've Got A Halla-Ree-A Heart (that's how Emma says Hallelujah Heart) for tap. They really did a great job to say that they are only 4 years old (2 were five). They kept looking at one another for reassurance, though.

The entire recital was great... the older dancers were amazing... all of the music was good- it seemed more like praise and worship time at church rather than a recital. There were dancers, singers, musicians, and dramatists... encompassing all of the arts.

Photos from the LASTS!

Emma's ballet recital was the last dancing day for this year! She did a great job and had lots of fun praising the Lord through dance! More photos and writing about the recital later...

Emma went to Rainbow's for part of this year with her friends. She had a great time there, singing, playing, and learning about Jesus' love. She blew me away the last night when she recited their little pledge perfectly... I'd never heard it before then.

Emma's class enjoyed one last hurah at a local park the Friday before school was out. We had a picnic and then they played for a long time on the new playground equipment. The had the most fun chasing one another I think.

This is Emma on her last day of preschool! She had a great time learning this year and made 11 great little friends. Her teacher was great, too! The last day of school was fun because the moms got to come in and see them singing their songs for a while before we left. Although it started out rocky and emotional, the WEEK OF LASTS turned out to be a good one. We're glad it's over and we are looking forward to all the FIRSTS coming up now!

A week of LASTS!

This is a week of lasts for Emma. Last day of school. Last day of ballet. Last day of Rainbow's. She's having a tough time processing it all and handling the emotions she's feeling. After all, she's only 4.

She had a tough day at shchool Monday: misbehaving, not being too kind to other kids, and disobeying the teacher... followed by crying. She's far from perfect, but that was over the top. I put on my Mama investigator hat and tried to find out what was up. It took about 2 minutes to realize that she's sad about school being over tomorrow because she'll miss all of her friends and her teacher. She also didn't get to share in the birthday snack at school because the child's mom didn't choose a cake mix that was safe for Emma to eat. Emma is allergic to peanuts and all tree nuts. (People not being diligent about her allergies is one thing I won't have to deal w/ while we homeschool... yeah!)

I explained to her that feeling sad and angry about these things is perfectly normal, but being naughty b/c of them is not OK. We discussed that she should pray to God and tell Him how she's feeling and she should tell an adult that she's sad and angry... instead of acting out.

My prayer is that tomorrow is a better day for her and that I've given her the tools she needs to begin handling her emotions in a healthier way. She is such a sweet girl. She wanted to make cards for EVERY kid and helper in her class. She dictated to me, I typed the cards up w/ cute clip art, and she colored the insides, drew hearts and rainbows, and signed her name. She's very thoughtful and sensitive... just two of the many things I love about her.

TANKS A LOT!

We belong to Focus on your child, through Focus on the Family. They sent our cd and I listened to it on the way to ballet today. They mentioned a very neat giving opportunity to help orphans in Africa. Got to www.clubhousemagazine.org and click on Tanks A Lot to learn more. You basically buy or collect new tank tops for children ages 3-18, send them to Focus on the Family and then they will distribute them to orphans in Africa. I'm trying to get our church organized really quickly to collect some tank tops... the deadline for getting them back to Focus is June 30th, so if you are interested, move swiftly! Just a small way to help and a fun project to do with your kids.