Day 4 of VBS has come and gone. The kids had yet another day of fun and happiness. They both enjoyed it so much. At the end of Day 4, the kids got to bring home all of the crafts they made during the week. They had a bag full!!! The bag was actually a backpack made from a paper sack. The kids got to choose which ribbons they wanted to make the straps on the backpacks. This craft was amazing!!! Inside of the backpacks, the kids had made all types of pictures of Jesus, a first aid kit (complete with Holy water), a birdhouse with seed and many many many other items. On our way home from day 4, the kids sang their songs along with the CD they received the day before.
Day 5 of VBS was the final program. The kids went to their classroom for the first few minutes and then went as a class to the gymnasium. For the next 2 hours, the kids practiced their singing and played with these enormous beach balls. At 11am, the parents and anyone else got to come to enjoy the program. Even though both kiddos were not feeling well, they performed wonderfully. I was so full hearted watching them. Jelly Belly was center, in the front row. He sang his little heart out. His dancing was energizing. I was sooo proud of my little man. Poor Life Saver was seated next to this little boy who would NOT get out of the front of her for anything. My sister in law tried to take some pictures of her. This little boy saw this and he would move right in front of her ON PURPOSE!!! Life Saver is such a sweet little spirit. She just moved back out of his way and sang and danced her little heart out!!
It is sad that VBS is over. Today the kids sang along some more with their CD and asked when they could go back to VBS. They don't quite get the concept it will be a year from now. It did my heart a world of good to see how much my kids enjoyed learning about God this week. How much enjoyment it brought to them. I cannot wait until August when our SMRE (Sunday Morning Religious Education) classes start for them!!! They will love it just as much :)
Saturday, June 25, 2011
Wednesday, June 22, 2011
Day 2 and 3 of VBS
The kids had yet another fun filled morning at VBS. Hayden informed me he wants to go every day except on Halloween, Easter and Christmas!! Gosh I love that boy!!! I wish the VBS was all summer long as the kids have enjoyed it sooo much. However I am sure the ladies who run it think otherwise!!
Since I cannot drive alone, I stay at the school while the kids participate in the activities. I sit in the lobby area and I get to watch the kids during game stations. They LOVE it. I see them dance and sing and play and run. I see their expressions and I melt.
Every car ride home is enjoyable listening to them sing the songs they just sang in music. They explain their artwork to me. They tell me all about the snacks they got to make. Oh and of course I get to hear all kinds of things other kids are saying, some things I wish I didn't hear!! Kids will be kids :)
For the 3 hours they enjoy VBS, I have spent sooo much time researching curriculum choices to use in the Fall. There is a lot of work trying to determine which curriculum will hold the interests of both Jelly Belly and Life Saver. I do believe I have decided to use Heart of Dakota with a Catholic Bible. Of course I do have a few months still to pour over even more curriculum websites and reviews. I could spend hours doing so actually ;)
Today as a treat for getting halfway through VBS, the kids got to enjoy a local Bounce house type of facility. I treated them to pizza and breadsticks and hours of play...3.5 hours to be exact!! They were so surprised when we got there. Both kids were smiles from ear to ear and I almost got knocked over by their big hugs. Life sure is good!!!
Since I cannot drive alone, I stay at the school while the kids participate in the activities. I sit in the lobby area and I get to watch the kids during game stations. They LOVE it. I see them dance and sing and play and run. I see their expressions and I melt.
Every car ride home is enjoyable listening to them sing the songs they just sang in music. They explain their artwork to me. They tell me all about the snacks they got to make. Oh and of course I get to hear all kinds of things other kids are saying, some things I wish I didn't hear!! Kids will be kids :)
For the 3 hours they enjoy VBS, I have spent sooo much time researching curriculum choices to use in the Fall. There is a lot of work trying to determine which curriculum will hold the interests of both Jelly Belly and Life Saver. I do believe I have decided to use Heart of Dakota with a Catholic Bible. Of course I do have a few months still to pour over even more curriculum websites and reviews. I could spend hours doing so actually ;)
Today as a treat for getting halfway through VBS, the kids got to enjoy a local Bounce house type of facility. I treated them to pizza and breadsticks and hours of play...3.5 hours to be exact!! They were so surprised when we got there. Both kids were smiles from ear to ear and I almost got knocked over by their big hugs. Life sure is good!!!
Monday, June 20, 2011
Day 1 of VBS
Today was our first day ever for VBS. We attended at Our Lady of Greenwood. The kids have never made me more proud as their mother. I was a bit nervous about Jelly Belly. He does NOT like being around strange people. This is partly due to his ADHD. He was so excited when he woke up and hurried to get us out the door. Once we arrived, he became nervous. However, after dropping him off in his classroom he got less nervous. The children were lead into the gym and met as a larger group with all the classes for opening to VBS. I could see Jelly Belly and he could see me. Next the kids rotated to snack time (Kindergarteners). Jelly Belly could no longer see me, but when the next rotation came (gym exercise time), he was so full of happiness it about broke my heart. My little boy turned into a big boy in a matter of 20 minutes!! He was having the best time. The next few rotations, Jelly Belly could not see me at all and he was ok with that!!! Matter of fact, he asked to go right back after we enjoyed lunch with Life Saver and Grammie.
Life Saver is a completely laid back girl. She was excited to go to VBS and not nervous at all. Once we arrived in their classroom, she stood by Jelly Belly's side acting like his protector, taking care of him. She talked to him and I believe this calmed him down a bit. Any time she would see me, she would wave and go back to ignoring me!! lol. For the most part, there isn't a shy bone in her body. She had a great time today as well, as I knew she would. Just like Jelly Belly, she cannot wait to attend tomorrow!!
I was so very impressed with the ladies running our VBS. I have never seen such organization!!! Before each rotation, a lady would announce it was time to line up and rotate. Of course it helps our VBS is held in a school where there is an intercom system!!! From what I heard, this was a super turn out this year. There were a total of I believe 6 groups and a toddler/baby group. The oldest group looked like it had 50 or more children. This is awesome!!!!
While I believe Jelly Belly and Life Saver would be fine if I just dropped them off and left, I am going to hang around each day and spend the time preparing for our upcoming school year. At least I will be focused on preparation instead of finding things to do around the house!! I have done so much research the last few weeks trying to determine which curriculum to choose. It is not easy!!! Especially because there is a such a limited choice when it comes to choosing a Catholic curriculum.
Life Saver is a completely laid back girl. She was excited to go to VBS and not nervous at all. Once we arrived in their classroom, she stood by Jelly Belly's side acting like his protector, taking care of him. She talked to him and I believe this calmed him down a bit. Any time she would see me, she would wave and go back to ignoring me!! lol. For the most part, there isn't a shy bone in her body. She had a great time today as well, as I knew she would. Just like Jelly Belly, she cannot wait to attend tomorrow!!
I was so very impressed with the ladies running our VBS. I have never seen such organization!!! Before each rotation, a lady would announce it was time to line up and rotate. Of course it helps our VBS is held in a school where there is an intercom system!!! From what I heard, this was a super turn out this year. There were a total of I believe 6 groups and a toddler/baby group. The oldest group looked like it had 50 or more children. This is awesome!!!!
While I believe Jelly Belly and Life Saver would be fine if I just dropped them off and left, I am going to hang around each day and spend the time preparing for our upcoming school year. At least I will be focused on preparation instead of finding things to do around the house!! I have done so much research the last few weeks trying to determine which curriculum to choose. It is not easy!!! Especially because there is a such a limited choice when it comes to choosing a Catholic curriculum.
Friday, June 17, 2011
Summer fun
Today was a great day. Daddy and Monkey spent lunch together. Monkey's choice was Golden Corral. I was pleased because it is far from my favorite place to eat!! Monkey enjoys eating their fruit, rolls, more fruit, more rolls, noodles and candy!!
Diva, Grammie and I spent our lunch at Steak n Shake, Diva's choice. After we ate, we ran a few errands and came home.
While we are not technically in school right now, we still enjoy any learning experience we find. Tonight the kids and daddy planted their own indoor garden. They loved it. They also got to help daddy pull weeks and "mow" the yard!!
You can see the kids listening to daddy explain what the seeds will become!!!
Diva, Grammie and I spent our lunch at Steak n Shake, Diva's choice. After we ate, we ran a few errands and came home.
While we are not technically in school right now, we still enjoy any learning experience we find. Tonight the kids and daddy planted their own indoor garden. They loved it. They also got to help daddy pull weeks and "mow" the yard!!
You can see the kids listening to daddy explain what the seeds will become!!!
Tuesday, June 7, 2011
Our break away from school
The kids were getting really restless. I decided to give them a break away from school. We only have 5 days left in which to finish. At least 5 days of book material. In the meantime, the kids have been unschooling and have loved every minute of it.
When we start school in the Fall, we are going to use another curriculum which has a much more hands on approach. We are going to be using My Father's World and both kiddos will be doing the Kindergarten level. I had planned to use Sonlight for their Kindergarten year, but the program is a bit too advanced for Monkey's attention span at this point. Diva is far from ready to begin that particular program so... MFW it will be!!!
During our break, the kids have enjoyed a trip in April to North Carolina to enjoy the beach and attend our cousin's wedding. We have enjoyed trips to Bounce Spot and Incredible Pizza. It is much nicer to visit both places while other kids are in traditional school. The crowds are much, much, much more tolerable!! ;)
Once our school starts in the Fall, we are taking a 2 week vacation. Poor daddy doesn't get to go with us as he will be in nursing school. It will be a great trip, but we will miss daddy. We are traveling to Disney for a week and then the beach for 4 days and taking our time getting home. We have a few Outlet Mall trips in mind! lol
Right now, our days are consumed with a variety of outdoor water activities. Spring decided to skip us in Indiana again this year and instead we have been hit with Heat and LOTS of it. My free time the last few weeks has been taken over with Monkey's upcoming birthday party!! I cannot believe I will be a mommy to a 6 year old. Time really does need to slooooooooooow down. After his birthday, I plan to try to catch up on my scrapbooks and work on getting things ready for our 2nd year adventures in Homeschooling.
In a few weeks, my kiddos are attending their first ever Vacation Bible School. I'm not sure who is more excited! I have promised Monkey I would stay at the church/school so if he needs me, I will be there. I have my doubts he will think twice about me once he walks in with Diva. They will love every minute of it!! Part of me wishes I could join them in the fun, but I will refrain at least for now and not be "one.of.those.moms"
When we start school in the Fall, we are going to use another curriculum which has a much more hands on approach. We are going to be using My Father's World and both kiddos will be doing the Kindergarten level. I had planned to use Sonlight for their Kindergarten year, but the program is a bit too advanced for Monkey's attention span at this point. Diva is far from ready to begin that particular program so... MFW it will be!!!
During our break, the kids have enjoyed a trip in April to North Carolina to enjoy the beach and attend our cousin's wedding. We have enjoyed trips to Bounce Spot and Incredible Pizza. It is much nicer to visit both places while other kids are in traditional school. The crowds are much, much, much more tolerable!! ;)
Once our school starts in the Fall, we are taking a 2 week vacation. Poor daddy doesn't get to go with us as he will be in nursing school. It will be a great trip, but we will miss daddy. We are traveling to Disney for a week and then the beach for 4 days and taking our time getting home. We have a few Outlet Mall trips in mind! lol
Right now, our days are consumed with a variety of outdoor water activities. Spring decided to skip us in Indiana again this year and instead we have been hit with Heat and LOTS of it. My free time the last few weeks has been taken over with Monkey's upcoming birthday party!! I cannot believe I will be a mommy to a 6 year old. Time really does need to slooooooooooow down. After his birthday, I plan to try to catch up on my scrapbooks and work on getting things ready for our 2nd year adventures in Homeschooling.
In a few weeks, my kiddos are attending their first ever Vacation Bible School. I'm not sure who is more excited! I have promised Monkey I would stay at the church/school so if he needs me, I will be there. I have my doubts he will think twice about me once he walks in with Diva. They will love every minute of it!! Part of me wishes I could join them in the fun, but I will refrain at least for now and not be "one.of.those.moms"
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