GiddyUp Junction

Tonite, the boys graduated from their first VBS program of the summer!

Since Sunday nite, they've been participating in the Giddyup Junction VBS at Mrs. Shana's church, Burnett Siding Missionary Baptist Church. They have had a BALL, and I have LOVED the incredible crafts they've brought home. The first nite, they painted rocks to look like cactuses; they also   made "WANTED" posters, and for the grand finale, they made mop horses, which was perfect, because ever since week started, Jones has been tying up and taking care of an imaginary horse. As soon as he got the mop horse, he told me his pretend horse died.

Ain't that a shame?

Here are the most memorable parts of the week:

1) I walked in on Tuesday nite and noticed "You'uns Prayer Wall." The kids had given their prayer requests, and the teacher had written them on the wall. I saw "People at St. Jude's" and immediately assumed Freddie'd made that request - he's been praying for the kids of St. Jude's ever since he heard about them during the Trike-a-Thon last month. I was thinking what a tender hearted little fella I am so proud to have. When I talked to him, he confirmed that he'd made that request. It wasn't ten seconds later that Jones told me Freddie had punched a little girl in the nose, because she kept cutting in line. That's pretty much the yin and the yang of Freddie Bear. He has the softest heart I have ever seen in a kid - but he's also has him limits when it comes to classroom etiquette.

We talked about the thousand reasons why hitting ANYONE - especially a girl! - was wrong, and Freddie was humbly remorseful ("I'm just sorry," he said with his head down). At bedtime, I was curious as to how hard he'd hit her (Jones said her nose bled. Freddie said it just "got red"), so I asked him. He very earnestly told me, "Like a baseball hard? I don't know. SHE knows. I don't know."

In retrospect, I guess it was a stupid question.

2) After the graduation ceremony and subsequent pizza supper, the boys went out to play on the church playground. Jeremy overheard a little girl ask Jones why his daddy walks like he does. Jones said, "He walks like he's got a sprained ankle," and then he did what Jeremy called a pretty spot-on imitation.

3) As Jeremy told me about the exchange, we commented about the abundance of gnats bedeviling us under the church's picnic pavilion. Later, as we drove him, Jones got whiny and said, "Mama, I feel like there's a bug in my ear." I'm on HIGH tick alert, so I pulled over as quickly as I could and looked. Sure enough, there WAS a bug in his ear. It wasn't a tick, thank God, but it was one of those gnats that'd been bothering Jeremy and me earlier in the nite.

So that was week one of VBS. I'm assuming there'll be a few more weeks of the same - our church hosts its VBS in mid-June, and I'm planning for them to attend at both of our lake churches (Oakwood at Hartwell and Mount Pleasant at Chatuge). They seem to really enjoy it - Freddie asked every nite, "Are we gonna play GAMES?!?" I think he loves the physical aspect of it, while Jones prefers the imagination component. I'll be honest: I love a couple of hours off, that churches up here serve DINNER before Bible school, and that the boys are hearing the Gospel over and over again and from different people, so it's a win all around!

"Oh, the things we used to do in Vacation Bible School!"

The boys ... well, Freddie ... spent this week doing Bible School two-a-days. With our "new neighbors," Olivia and Wren, Freddie did our church's early afternoon Five Day Club (presented by Child Evangelism Fellowship) at Vicky Godfrey's house in Canton. After a break, they headed to VBS at Canton First. Jones missed out on all but the first day of fun, because of his tonsilitis, but the rest of my van-full of pupils had a great time!

There is not a word to describe how excited I am to have Olivia and Wren so close by. I have DREAMED of neighborhood kids, since I had kids of my own. Now, we've got the Scott girls and their brother, Jasper, and Gideon Greene. I also just found out a six year old boy named Henry lives just around the corner from us, and I'm praying that the parents of one of Jones's preschool pals ends up buying the house that they love in the 'hood. Can you imagine the mayhem this crew could get in to? I am so excited and grateful just thinking about the potential of this little community.

I am also grateful for the seeds that were planted in my little boys' minds this week. I'd always ask what they learned when I picked up the kids. I didn't get a whole lot of specifics, but I know Freddie was ruminating on what he heard. Randomly last week, he asked me about Jesus dying on the Cross and if God and Jesus were boys or girls, so the wheels are spinning, and for that, I am grateful!

I hate that Jones missed most of the fun, but I'm hoping he's able to get in on things next Summer!

Jones's buddy Luke Franklin -
they were in the same class at Clyde -
came to join Jones for the week.

Jones rehearses; Freddie interrupts.

There's a chance that there's never been a video to more perfectly sum up the differences between my boys than this one. Jones is practicing the choreography to his favorite song from "Space School" VBS at Clyde First Baptist; Freddie is digging around everything in the house, trying to find another mess to make.

And there you have them.

I love this so much I can't hardly stand it.

They tell me I'll miss the Romper Room that I feel like my house has been for the last four and a half years. I'm not so sure about that, but I will definitely miss moments like this one.

Vacation Bible School, Take Two

The boys are back in Bible School this week - this time attending Lifeway's "Maker Fun Factory" at Canton First Baptist.

Because I was at a LeeAnn Womack concert with Leslie last nite, Jeremy was in charge of getting them checked in for the first nite. From there, Haylee took over. Thankfully, the boys were placed in her group, which meant I got text updates throughout the evening, making my nite away that much more enjoyable.

Haylee texted me this picture. I LOVE IT.

Tonite, I took them. The festivities began with dinner and concluded with a big group session, which Jeremy and I arrived from our dinner date early enough to attend.

I imagine VBS at Canton First will be a mainstay of their summers until they're too old to attend. That's pretty cool, I think. Not only are they attending Bible School at the church where their daddy grew up, but it's also the church where they were both dedicated, marking the beginning of their spiritual journeys.

Here are some pictures from their "journey" through Nite Two of VBS.

UPDATED (July 27th): Here are a few pictures from the end of Bible School week.

"Space School"

Jones and Freddie continued learning the ropes at Clyde First Baptist by attending VBS at the church this week. The theme was Lifeway's "Galactic Starveyors," and after the first nite, Jones was already referring to it as "Space School." And so it shall henceforth be known ...

Freddie was skittish when I first left him on Monday. By the time we picked him up later, he was already asking to come back the next nite. Jones, on the other hand, did GREAT. I mean, like, SURPRISINGLY well. He wanted me to wait with him while they all lined up along the brick wall in the church hallway, and he wanted me to process in with them, but once I did that, he took his seat just as pretty as you please, and I walked away to meet Jeremy in the corridor. When I got there, I was crying. I didn't even know why. Probably a mixture of relief (yes! He didn't pitch a fit!) and sadness (he doesn't need me anymore?) that Jones was so blessedly blasé about my leaving.

Anyway, I anticipated they'd be taking an offering at VBS. I intentionally didn't send the boys with any money on Monday nite, because I wanted to see how they'd respond to being asked for it. Jones, like he did in Children's Church at our Lake Church, said, "No. I'm not giving MY money."

Freddie, however, said he wanted to give HIS to Jesus. When I asked where he could get some money, he said, "From my bank." That's "from his Disney bank." I was so proud that he wanted to give, and sure enough, the next nite - and several nites after, until the final nite when he dumped out his bank and gave it ALL to the offering - he gave his quarters to Jesus.

I told Jones I wasn't going to make him give. I sang him the verse song we know to "God loves a cheerful giver," and I reminded him that "it's more blessed to give than to receive." I left it at saying I'd be praying that God would change his heart about giving. But I didn't feel like it'd do any good to force him to give. As I said, "God loves a CHEERFUL giver." Maybe Scrooge Mc-Son-of-Mine will be ready to part with the dollars (that I've put in his bank) by next Summer.

The second nite of VBS, when I went to pick the boys up, the director asked me if Freddie was mine. I said, "Yes" and immediately followed it with "What'd he do?" Instead, she pulled out her phone and showed me a video of Freddie dancing his fool head off. It was PRECIOUS and hilarious and evidence that they were having a BALL at Space School.

On Friday nite, the boys had their Space School graduation. Mom and Daddy made the drive up for the big event - and the hot dog dinner before hand. The boys were thrilled to have them there. They did so well during their program. As soon as he took his place on the stage, Freddie waved at me and said - for the whole crowd to hear - "Hey, Mama!" One day, I'll talk to him about poise and not breaking the fourth wall when he's in a show. Until then, I'll treasure the memory of that super sweet voice and that super sweet little wave.

Here's an Instastory detailing the whole evening.

Oh, and they MADE those t-shirts they're wearing. I think they're the most spectacularly awesome things I've ever seen.

Next up: Maker Fun Factory at Canton First Baptist. Being old enough for VBS is AWESOME.