A Monday with Heidi

I'm thankful for…each & every one of the 65 kids who came through the church doors this week…and each & every one of the 58+ people who helped make it happen!!!!!!!!!! Thank you Lord for a wonderful week of VBS!!!

I'm listening to…not too much…

What's for supper tonight…taco salad.

Highlights from last week…Well, you may or may not have noticed that I didn’t do a blog last week. That’s because I was spending basically every waking moment doing VBS!!! I didn’t have too much to right about anywaysJ…spent nearly that whole week getting ready for VBS. The kids enjoyed their first reading club meeting at the library.

Last week was much more excitingJ. On Monday we did Moses & the burning bush: True heroes know God is with them! Tuesday was Gideon defeating the Midianites: God can make ME a hero! Wednesday brought Shadrach, Meshach, & Abednego: True heroes do the right thing! On Thursday we took to the water with Peter reaching out to Jesus: True heroes reach out to Jesus! Friday brought some stormy weather with Paul’s shipwreck: True heroes share God’s love! All the kids learned Philippians 4:13: “I can do all things through Christ because He gives me strength.” It was a lot of work, but soooo worth it!

We were at the church each day just after 8. The kids went over to hang out at Pastor Kent’s house & play with their kids. That allowed us leaders about 45 minutes to do last minute prep before kids started arriving. Once all the kids were gone for the day (just after noon) then we would work on setting everything up for the next day. All but one day I was at the church till 3 or 4 o’clock getting ready. There were so many details…and it was exhausting…but it went so smoothly, thanks to many prayers…and it was a LOT of fun!

I think my favorite part of the week was the opportunity we had to make some connections with non-Christian families…and kids who had never been in a church before! Now we will pray that the seed that was planted will growJ.

On Saturday we got to sleep in…which was a huge treat after a week of early mornings & late, late nights. After lunch we headed to Olds for our nephew, Carver’s 2^nd birthday party! It was really hot, but fun to see family & hang out.

I got 1 ¼ hours of sleep on Saturday night…Sunday morning we had a big VBS presentation. I’d been working on a power point presentation since Friday afternoon & thought it wouldn’t take too much longer…but it took a lot longer than I expected! Oh well, I survived (& Ben tooJ) & the kids did an amazing job! They recapped what they had learned during the week & sang some of their songs. The stage was still all decorated too…it was fun to show everyone what we’d been up to all week! After church we had to “put the church back together” which went amazingly quickly with a lot of people helping. By the time we got home, ate lunch & got the kids in their rooms for quiet times it was about 2:30…I was sleeping on the couch by about 3:05…woke up briefly at 4:30…and then slept till 7! I was still tired, but it felt good!

What's happening this week…This week is some catch up from the weeks that I’ve been busy with VBS…laundry & cleaning house, & some more laundry & cleaning house…with some bookwork on topJ. The kids also have reading club at the library which they’re excited about…they were sad to miss it last week. Other than that…I’m going swimming with Cheri & Max which will be fun…and we’re having company over who I haven’t seen in 16 years!!! They are friends of ours from when we lived in Africa! It’ll be fun to catch up. Thursday night & Friday I’ll get ready to go so that we can leave for BC whenever Ben can swing it to leave work. We’re going to stay with my grandparents in Kelowna…although I need to talk to them & make sure they’re still OK with it, with all the fires there. On Saturday the kids are staying with them while Ben & I go to a Steven Curtis Chapman/Michael W. Smith concert!!!!!!!!!!! I’ve wanted to go to an SCC concert since I was in high school, but he’s rarely in Canada & we just never made it happen. Ben’s taking me as an early birthday present. I’m soooooooooo excitedJ. Ben will fly home on Monday & I’ll stay with the kids till mid weekish. I’ll try to blog while I’m there, but we’ll see how it goesJ.

I am missing…can’t think of anything right now…

I am praying for…my aunt & uncle who have been evacuated because of the fires in Kelowna area. At one point the fire was within 3 blocks of their house. Praying for a peace that passes all understanding for them & their 3 kids (very close in age to ours). Praying that their house would be spared & that fire fighters would be able to get it under control soon so they can go home! Also praying for Ben’s cousin & his family as they live in the same area.