VBS!

We spent this past week doing vacation bible school, or "church camp" as Chloe calls it. I volunteered to do arts and crafts, Chloe was in the 3s class and Luke was in the baby class. Fun was had by all! 

I've loved hearing Chloe sing all the songs she has learned throughout the week, but the best part was at dinner tonight. I was asking her about her bible story from today and what she learned, she replied "God knows everything about me!" My heart is so full. 

Wrapping Up April

Clarke's parents have been here this weekend and we've enjoyed having them. Friday night they watched Chloe so we could serve at a spring carnival for a local elementary school. Our church has made this an annual event, and the kids absolutely love it. It's a school where 100% are on free breakfast and lunch, so they normally wouldn't get a spring carnival with bouncy houses, snow cones, hotdogs and fun games.

Saturday night we got to go on a date. We tried out Hutch and Harris and we really liked it. This is the best selfie we could get that night, ha!

I didn't get any good pictures of Chloe, I think that's a first, but she loved having her grandparents here. So despite the rainy cold weather we had this weekend, we enjoyed time with family, and hopefully some nicer weather will come with May!

CCFA Walk 2011

This past Saturday we participated in the Crohn's and Colitis Walk. I posted about it here. 

The race was held at Richmond International Raceway. We got to walk on the actual racetrack, which was really neat. Although some parts were kinda hard to walk around because of the incline. (I never knew how steep the inclines are around the corners of a racetrack!)

Here we are at victory lane. This was a neat little area inside the track. I'm not sure if this is where the racecar drivers actually go or not? I've never been to a race before.

And here is the reason why I walked and fundraised. To support my hubby. He is blessed that he hasn't had a flair up from his Ulcerative Colitis in about a year. We are hoping to keep it that way!

Overall it was a great event, so glad the rain held off and we were able to still go!

Shameless Plug

I don't normally do this on here, but this is a good cause, so here we go...............

My husband and sister-in-law both suffer from ulcerative colitis. (It's a digestive disease that effects mainly the colon.) It's very painful, and they don't know much about it. They don't know what causes it, what makes it flair up and most importantly what cures it. I've witnessed first hand how hard it can be to live with this disease from my husband.

So this Saturday we are participating in The Chron's and Colitis Foundation's Take Steps Walk. We did it last year for the first time after my husband had a bad attack. I'm excited to be participating in it again.

CLICK HERE
if you want to donate to this cause and help me reach my goal. (If you click and see, I'm not doing too well on the fundraising part of this!)

Thank you so much for your support, as we help to find a cure for this awful disease!

Miscellany Monday: March Edition

I haven't done one of these posts in awhile, so thought I would today!

1. I am loving that spring is almost here. I am loving making plans to finally landscape our yard and make it look better. I am loving that warmer weather is around the corner. It makes me so happy.

2. We had a great lazy Saturday. After traveling to the other side of the country it was nice to relax and sleep. We raked more leaves in our yard on Sunday, but they just won't disappear! I don't know where they are coming from, but I can't wait to be done.

3. I have really been enjoying teaching the preschool Sunday school class at church. When someone at church asked me to volunteer because she thought I would be good at it, I admit I was doubtful. I have never worked with this age before, but I am loving it. And it surprises me how much I am loving the little ones, but I really do.

4. The 10k is 3 weeks away! I am really excited, I can't believe how close it is. Got a postcard in the mail, and it's on my fridge now. Makes me want to run more, which is always good.

5. My heart breaks for Japan. I honestly try not to think about it, because it is so sad. But, I know I need to pray for them, and pray things get better. I can't imagine not knowing if my family is safe or not, and loosing so many loved ones at once.

6. I start training for my job tomorrow. It was optional, but they are paying me to go, and I find special ed interesting, so i'm eager to learn more. I really enjoy learning and will take most opportunities to do so. I hope I get something out of it that helps me do a better job at work.

Clean Up Crew, Year 2

This past Saturday me and Clarke volunteered with our church. We met early in the morning, and headed off to do yard work for people who can't do it themselves. This year we had a lot of debris to clear away, there was a small tornado that hit earlier this month and tree limbs were everywhere.

We did this event last year. (It was one of my first blog posts.) And we always look forward to it now. It's fun to see the before and after. How after just a few short hours the yard is really transformed. Can't wait till next year.

Extreme Days 2010

This week I have been volunteering at my church, helping with Extreme Days, our version of vacation bible school. It has been fun, exciting and exhausting.

Our theme for the week has been hero. We have been talking about different themes that heros and Jesus stand for.

Opening session praise and worship. We had over 200 kids this year!

Awesome stage.

Pastor Kevin and Pastor Alan giving a lesson.

One of the many messy games they got to play.

They had 7 different extreme classes they could take. I was in charge of the karate group.

We had a bunch of inner city kids come from the YMCA and Richmond police department. This was especially neat because most of these kids have never even been in a church before.

I am so tired, and there is one day left. But, despite my lack of sleep I am so happy I did this. It was an experience I will never forget.

Reach

I just realized the other day that I have yet to write a post about Reach, so I thought I would tonight. Reach is my church's group for young adults. It is for married couples and singles alike. Me and Clarke have been going for almost two years now, but it is not until recently that we have gotten really involved.

Towards the beginning of the year, the pastors realized that there needed to be a leadership team, to help plan events, the small groups and get the word out about the group more. Me and Clarke are both on the leadership team and we are loving it so far.

I am really getting involved and I have met some wonderful people through this group. I have loved meeting other women my age who are married. In my group of close friends I am the only one who is married, so it's nice to have some other girlfriends who I can relate to about that.

I have loved seeing how God is growing this ministry as well. As we try new things, and pray about what steps to take next, God has been so faithful to provide. I can't wait to see where God takes this group next!

The Clean Up Crew

I couldn't believe how cold it was this morning. I woke up early for a Saturday morning and me and Clarke headed off to volunteer with our church. There was a group of about a hundred of us, all gathered to help out various people in our community. We went to 13 different homes and did yard work for those who could not do it themselves. The house I was at was owned by a single mother of four who worked and went to school full time. I couldn't imagine being in her shoes. I should have taken a before and after picture, it was amazing how much we got done in a couple hours. We raked up leaves, cleaned gutters, got rid of trash, trimmed the hedges, etc. It probably hadn't been done in years. I think I counted about 25 bags of leaves by the time we finished.

My group (pictured below) was great. I am always reminded of how lucky I am to belong to Richmond Community Church. It's not your ordinary church, it's modern and full of young people who are involved. All the pastors are great, their leadership has made it a wonderful place to be a part of. I was reminded of this as I worked with Pastor Rick today. I am so thankful for the opportunity to serve today, and to be reminded of how blessed I am as well.

Pictured Left to Right: Shelley, Clarke, Melanie, Kerry, Me, John and his Daughters, Casey, Michelle and Pastor Rick. Bottom: Lucas, Home Owner's Little Girl and Colin.