Children's Ministry Blog...

WPC Children's Ministry Blog

Finally decided to start one. Mainly for the parents, but for the kids as well. They love pix of themselves! :)

Click on the link above. It does work!

ARGH!

Let me state first that I love my church and I really do like and respect (and in some cases love) our Session. They have been a true blessing for me and I love our Children/Youth Ministry Elder.

BUT...

My Nursery Procedure Manual/Youth & Children application procedure was voted DOWN. Much of session gets why we are doing this and why we need to do background checks, etc. However, there are some who do not get WHY we need to protect our kids and our church. Then, as this would also affect Communidad Latinoamericana we have to rethink because some of them are here illegally. Don't even get me started on that one.

So, it is back to the discussion board next week and we'll see what happens from there. I guess it all could be passed through other than the background checks.

My SP was surprised. I am not 100% because this is a new thing and most of the people caring for our children/youth have been here longer than I have and longer tham our SP. I told him it could be controversial and he didn't believe me.

I really hope & pray it can get worked out.

Fun Stuff...

One of my fave things to do!

NO Drama!

This year was a drama free Thanksgiving and for that I am truly thankful to God. I am exhausted from the combo cold/cooking the whole meal thing...but that doesn't surprise me.

I just cannot believe we got through one Thanksgiving without any yelling, drunken monologues, etc.

So, now I am going to watch "Nemo" (I own it...but it's on TV) and rest up. Because we don't get paid until Tuesday there is no Black Friday for me tomorrow...just a quick trip to Michael's for a craft to do with the kids on Saturday and a few items from the store in order to make treats with the kids on Saturday.

Happy Turkey Day!

I woke up feeling a ton better yesterday...except for having not a whole lot of energy...and that was good thing because I had a lot to do. Go see Toni, go see "Rent," do Turkey Day prep., etc.

Some stuff has been going on that I realized I was using (or should I say...NOT using) food to deal with. Basically, something I saw as Rob taking control of flipped my "default" switch and I ended up automatically in major restictionville. I still struggle with it anyway, but I haven't even been eating a complete meal...just a portion of one (i.e. protein and that is it). My DIETITIAN of all things made me promise to go to In-n-Out last night. I told her I would...but I couldn't ptomise a burger...but I could commit to grilled cheese. That was the only thing that sounded remotely edible to me. So, I did it and have committed to eating a full meal today...which I hate doing after doing all the cooking, but I can't slide now.

Toni also thought that with all the good stuff happening right now that I am putting all of it ahead of me since not only has food decreased but even hydration. She has a point.

So, I need to check on stuff and get offline.

Hope everyone has a WONDERFUL Thanksgiving!

My fever is almost gone but I am still pretty sneezy and stuffy and my throat hurts. I am using anti-viral tissues because if my mother catches this I will never hear the end of it! So, I finished the 5th Harry Potter and the 5th in the Abram's Daugter series in between sneezes. SO glad the office is closed this week and I don't have to be in until Saturday.

Today marks three years since I first started seeing Rob. Wow!

Double Ugh...

Runny or stuffy nose? check and check
Sore throat? check
Slight body aches or a mild headache? check
Sneezing? check, check and triple check
Watery eyes? check
Low fever — less than 102 F? check and holding pretty steady at 100.5 as of a 1/2 hour ago.

Looks like I was too late with the Zicam. I was pretty much right about a sneeze making it all official. After a day of almost sneezing (Sunday) and a couple days(Friday and Saturday) of the rest of the stuff I actually felt OK Monday morning and thought I beat it. A couple hours of moving around and a few big sneezes it all started creeping up on me.

By 10 AM my temp. was 99.5 and went as high as 100.9. So, now I am sitting here stuffy and sneezy and can't sleep...but I need to go try.

Ugh..

I am SO glad our office is closed all week. I feel like crud. Like it's inevitable that I'm going to come down with a full-blown head cold at any second. My throat hurts, my nose has been runny/stuffy at times, my head hurts, my eyes are red. I feel like one sneeze is going to bring all the symptoms out for good! I've been trying Zicam, but I am thinking I did it too late...that I ignored the little pain in the back of my throat one too many days. And, while many people do not have fevers with their colds...I usually do.

It's going around, though. I think I caught it from someone in our cake decorating class the lasty night. Either that or from "C" who caught it from her daughter. My sore throat is keeping me awake...but I am going to try and sleep it off!

My Cake...

The class is over. I lived. This was my "final." I hated it. Julie, our instructor said I was very creative and thought it was beautiful. "Whatever."

I am really enjoying Jr. High...well, that's a huge DUH. I am "Game Girl" which I actually LIKE because I don't have time to really put together a lesson and my SP enjoys that part. Last night we played "brown bag yoga" and I killed my knee but lasted a lot longer than I thought. It took up our whole game time.

We then talked to the kids about the Lock-in next month and did some lectio divina (did I spell that right?) which the kids really got into. It was a good night.

Friday I absolutely did NOT want to go to small group. I wanted to drop off dessert and then go back home. I didn't do that. I stayed. Nothing earth shattering happened, but I do love my small group and am really glad I stayed. It was much better than sitting at home in somewhat of a daze.

I am still not doing great. The "urgent" urge is fading along with my appetite, but I am doing what I can to keep myself from sinking. I ate because it had been almost 20 hours and thought it would be a good idea. Did I enjoy my sandwich? Nope. But, not eating will make things worse and I know that. So, for all you DBT fans out there...I made a mental list of pros and cons, tossed in a little opposite to emotion and ate my lunch.

I decided not to go home between lunch and youth group. So, I am up here in my office getting some stuff done I should have done Friday. Quite honestly, the end of last week was one of those people are lucky I showed up period because all I wanted to do was either crawl into a ball and sleep or sit up here and not make any effort at all. Toni was sick and that was a HUGE bummer. Normally, I am so okay when life gets in the way of seeing Toni and/or Rob or they need to make a change. After Thursday session with Rob...I REALLY needed Toni. She was sick. Sigh... I rarely cry...but I was in tears Friday when she called me. I really needed her. The upside, was I was as vulnerable as I could be with my small group and that was a huge blessing. It's hard to walk the line between me being in the small group and being who I am at church and I really think when I am there, the people that have kids in my program ignore that part. Maybe not 100%...but it does become a non-issue.

I am looking forward to Jr. High tonight. While I really don't like my SP's philosophy that Youth Group should be all fun and games...I figure if I stick it out now...when they hire the new Youth Director, the philsophy will be different and we can actually dig deep.

Today our 4th graders received their Bibles. For one I know it was no big deal...she got one from Kids Club...but for "V," I think it meant a lot. Her parents don't come to church, they allow her to come but they don't allow her to do the "extra stuff." The donate doughnuts for Coffee n' Conversation yet do not allow "V" to participate in Operation Christmas Child. So, we take what we can get. Somehow I am getting her to camp this spring!

Some Days...

...I wish I had an anonymous blog and I bet you do too!

I mean I know I can easily create one and all that, but hey, I started this for a reason and while I also talk about ministry stuff and will more often since I'll be working with Jr. High, the blog was created to talk about recovery stuff and the ups and downs. By and large I AM doing well...but it's like when you have some solid recovery (pretty much) under your belt, it is as if you are no longer able to struggle because others may think you are no longer in recovery.

Honestly? The last two weeks have been a HUGE down. The last few weeks really, but most of that has been insomnia which has probably compounded the rest of what's going on.

I have been really fighting the urge to cut the last two days. I cannot figure out what triggered it, but I am having a hard time fighting it. Rob was shocked when I told him I still wanted to and if I could've in his office I probably would have. Not that he'd let me. Yesterday I left the house and then stayed up until I knew I could fall asleep for a couple hours (or more...ha!). Tonight I am pretty much stuck.

I've tried all what I usually do to distract and relax about it. I ate, I took deep breaths, I prayed, I chatted on AIM (okay, not about this...but still), I read...nothing has been helping.

To top it off...not only is the urge there...I really WANT to cut. That is so hard to admit. Not just that I want to cut...but to admit I want ANYTHING...even if it is unhealthy. It was so hard to say the words, "I want..." to Rob. And you know what he does? He looks at me and says, "But you said it. You are telling me right now." HELLO!!! Just because I SAID the words didn't mean it was an easy thing to do. Then he tried to distract me by telling me I want to cut because the 49ers are starting what was their 4th string QB. Normally, that would be funny. Okay, it WAS funny...but on further review it was also rather tacky.

Rob did say I have cut myself off so much from my feelings that it's hard for me to process the whys or even identify what has triggered me. He also said the urge can't last for long. I totally agree with the first and am thinking he is full of it on the 2nd.

I keep thinking if I could just get one full night's sleep that would help soooo much. I miss my Ambien.

Back in the Saddle Again...

In my small group we are working through the Bible Studies that are based on PDL. When we started the group last spring, we went through PDL and decided we wanted to stay together and keep going. So, Purpose Driven offers studies based on each purpose and they gor for six weeks each. We are starting with fellowship and I have one thing to say...it really helps that we had been together for a few months because it really digs deep in the sense of us being vulnerable with one another. It's been a great experience.

Part of the study is making a plan on how you are going to live out the five purposes on a daily basis. About two weeks ago as my partner and I were going through the ctegories I was telling her I don't have a non-pais ministry. With us not being able to have a Kids Club this year, I wasn't involved any place else and not all the ministries at church work well with my schedule. I had thought about the Women's Retreat, but when they started planning I wasn't sure if I was going to get the boot or not so I didn't want to jump in there.

Saturday I was out running errands and when I came home my mom told me that my SP had called. That worried me. He has only called me at home a couple times so I thought I did something wrong. He asked me if I could help him and P with Jr. High because he couldn't be there the whole time. Both before and after I was Youth Director here we had the same three Jr. High volunteers...and they are great! The one couple has been doing Jr. High for 11 years and they need to be home right now and stepped down. For the time being our SP is heading Jr. High up with P. Naturally I said yes and was excited because 1. he actually thought of me and 2. it was an answer to my prayer!

Sunday night the three of us met after Jr. High and he asked me if I planned to stay on and I said yes. Yesterday we talked about it after staff meeting and he asked me again and told me that it would have to be volunteer...he'd like to pay me but the church just can't do it. I told him that was fine...I was just happy to be a volunteer! Then I told him on a purely selfish level I didn't want to have to say goodbye to the 5th graders moving up (not that I wouldn't see them...but ti would be different) next year!

I told him about the small group and wanting to find a ministry and S said that he has been so impressed with our small group and what has been coming from it in the life of our church. One of the men in our group has started a Thursday night Men's Bible Study and S also said he just sees a renewed energy from everyone. I hope this prompts him to make the effort to really have small groups in this traditional sense because I think it would be a great thing for our church.

I am looking forward to see what God has in store for us in the next few months!

Great Night!!

Last night went really well for a first time event and one I wasn't so sure I could pull off. Knowing that I am not 100% out of the woods with my job, this had to go well with very few glitches.

Here are a few of the pictures I took last night. The first one is the top of my car. I did a "Teddy Bear Picnic" theme and raided my room for stuffed animals and then the 3-5 year old class for cups, play food, etc. I also had stuff on the hood of the car as well.

The second car belongs to my SP. It was an awesome theme! The kids took fishing polls and "caught" their treat.

The third car was a couple in our church. The whole trunk is a cat. I never would have thought of it. I LOVED it!

The 4th picture is a family in our church! Their van was "Star Wars" themed (obviously). Lily made a GREAT Yoda! Her ears kept falling off all night though!

It was a bit of a slow start because the kids simply weren't there. But, slowly they came and we made some adjustments (like unblocking our entrances) and the feedback was all positive.

I wasn't sure at first because things were so slow. Should we have tried to do it out front somehow? Did we need to rent additional lights? Although, why the hurry -up and wait was happening...the fellowship our members were having was awesome! It was a very diverse group of people who made up this event. We had one no show and that was fine because we had one last minute "drive up" participant so I had my 12 and that was 2 over my goal! My mom did a car and so she got to know some other people from church and that was a neat thing.

Once things got going and the kids/parents realized that were there to simply hand out candy and be an active participant in the neighborhood the kids stayed and parents talked to our participants and were able to enjoy cider and hot chocolate provided at one of the cars! The parents I spoke to were very happy we had this available for their kids. As we were cleaning up, the people that participated were very happy they chose to do this and I think will do it again next year! In fact, the family that provided the hot drinks said they will do a BBQ next year! Greg owns a catering business and that was a wonderful offer! He was so enthusiastic about the whole event it was really neat to see.

I'm really trying to just stick with the positives of the event and not the things that I should have done better or organized a little better. I'm sure I will hear about that today...even though my SP was very positive last night. There should have been a little bit better signage (putting signs up to the restroom didn't occur to me), the tape should have been taken down sooner, etc. We have already decided next year I won't do a car so I am around more for logistics and to take pictures and all that "scut work" stuff. Someone suggested we do door hangers for next yesr which is a great idea! I also think the BBQ and word of mouth from this year will be a huge help! If we are back in the elementary school next year with Kids Club that would be huge help as well.

I really did like that we didn't have a lot of our own kids there except for the ones who live in the area. We really didn't push for it. While it was an all church event, it was really meant for our neighborhood. When our church was founded, the building was not where it stands today. One thing they put in the charter when looking for a new spot was to find a place with unchurched children and a place to be active in the life of the neighborhood. This was over 70 years ago! Children and outerach to our neighbors have always been core values of our church. As it grows I can see kids trick or treating in their neighborhoods and then coming to the church for additional candy and fun times, but I really want this event to stay focused outward.

We didn't hand anything out about the church, we didn't really invite people to church unless they started the conversation. From what I understand, that did happen several times. So, I hope we do have some families come and see what we're up to and what we have to offer! I know some people may think we were foolish not to do more, but I'll say one thing...the fact that no one made comments when some of the more "questionable" costumes came through our parking lot spoke more to parents and the kids than any flyer we could have handed them.