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I'm STILL sayin' Oy Vey over yesterday! You wouldn't believe! First, I came downstairs to find Kitty had left a mouse in my shoe! (not the first time... but still...) Then, I'm ready to leave the house at 8:10... and at 8:15 Tammy still has not arrived. I called her and she thought she wasn't supposed to get here until 10:00!!! Oy Vey! So of course, I had to LEAVE - which meant I had to take Mom with me again! (which really isn't a problem - she doesn't get in the way or anything ... but it gives me one more thing to worry about - because she DOES need to use the restroom from time to time - and if she goes by herself, she'll get lost!) So we got there and things went WELL for the first 3 classes - except that this was a day that I reallllly tried to pack too much into 25 minutes!!! I had 2 crafts for them to do! One was their picture frames, and the other was a little bear magnet with the day's bible verse on it! Real cute! I couldn't NOT do it!!! And I thought I had it planned out PERFECTLY -- everything was either peel and stick, or for gluing the frame fronts to the backs, we were using glue dots -- ultra cool! They work GREAT and there is NO drying time!!! So, I was suuuuure I could pull this off! And I managed GREAT ... up until the last class came. Did I mention the LAST class is BIG? 25 kinders and first grade... 7 of them who are ... um... a challenge. (Quilly's kids!) On top of that my 3 teenage helpers for this group are a little less mature than some of the other groups teens! So it's one of those classes that you just take a deep breath a split second before they walk in - and you get through it! Well... yesterday a STORM started coming right before the last class! While they were out on the playground for outdoor activities... and some of them came in a weeeeee bit apprehensive scared to death of the thunder and lightening. Now... as the TEACHER in this class I have 25 kids I have to worry about getting through the craft. So if ONE child is crying, I can't take time to be the comforter. I gently tell the child to go see their Team Leader. Team leaders are only supposed to have 3 or 4 kids each (at this age group). SOMEHOW we ended up with only 3 team leaders for 25 kids. (this is another contributing factor to the problem with this group!) On top of that, this age group was going to require their Team Leaders HELP on this project! Cuz Mz. Lantz can only work with 3 maybe 4 (okay - max 6) kids at one time! Period! LOL! So, things were not going tooooo great... and then the FLOOD came! No no... not crying kids. The FLOOD. Like as in hang on Noah! I'm gonna make it RAIN! We ended up with about 2 inches of water on the floor of my classroom! It even passed through MY classroom and into the room where snack is served! So then we had ooooooooohhhhh maybe 12 hysterical kids! I had PROMISED them the storm wasn't going to come in the basement! It made a LIAR out of me! So what did I do? I ignored it all and pretended NOTHING was happening. I just kept working and helping kids and saying ever so quietly to each concerned child, It's okay... it will be taken care of. And it was! Pastor had a mop! Shawn had a mop! A couple of other adults who were not actually responsible for TEACHING classes had brooms and sponges and buckets... and the rain stopped and the water was gotten rid of -- and the kids only had to walk across pretty wet but no longer flooded floors to get back upstairs for closing ceremonies! And after they were all gone for the day and I was cleaning up my room and preparing for tomorrow, Shawn came down and she said "Melli, you handled yourself SO gracefully today! I really appreciate that!" ROFL! I said gracefully my eye! I was IGNORING it!!! But I thanked her anyway! And then I praised God for making me LOOK graceful to somebody in my lifetime! Then I packed up all the UNfinished picture frames that I had to take home for homework to finish for the kids... and then Mom & I headed to Annapolis to go babysit wee granddaughter! And by the time I got home last night I was crosseyed, but DID finish those picture frames, AND got today's lesson in order! And I didn't visit anybody's blogs... hardly even my own!


Today was a MUCH better day! Tammy showed up - on time! She and mom did some of my work for tomorrow's class and got me caught up! Gave them something to do and helped me out all at the same time - love it when that happens!

Today's craft was a very easy one and very relaxing for all parties concerned -- and best of all, we didn't need any mops! Today the theme was Friends Give... and Jesus - our forever friend, gave sight to a blind man in today's story. The kids made TWO suncatcher crosses each and were told that while they were both THEIR crosses, it might be nice if they GAVE one to a friend -- perhaps a friend who didn't get to come to VBS and didn't get one! And that way they would be giving AND sharing God's love! They mostly really liked this idea and chattered away happily about who they were making their other cross for! One little girl told me she was going to send BOTH of hers to her Oma & Opa in Germany - because they think of her often and always send her nice things! She was 6. Soooooooo sweet!

The gift that I gave to the kids today was pencils that said PAWS for PRAISE on them and had little woodland creatures and paw prints on them! I was sO excited when I found them because they were just PERFECT for this VBS! The children were reminded that any time God blesses them with a gift, they should thank Him and PRAISE Him!!!

Even the LAST class today went smoothly! When the kids finished their crosses, I had coloring sheets for them - some were bible pages that went with our themes for the week - and others were just woodland animals. For the most part this worked GREAT - but there are two little boys who are not only "challenging" to teach - but also a bit LOT of a behavior problem! Well, yesterday while I was babysitting Luz, we had gone to Michaels for more paintbrushes for today's craft, and while there I saw these 2 cute squishy squoozy FROGS in the clearance bin! They were only a $1 each so I got them both! I was just getting them to add to the decor ... there I go again! But they turned out to be GREAT! These two little boys had NO interest in a coloring page, and no amount of talking was going to convince them that coloring MIGHT be fun! They just wanted to tear through the room, sticking fingers in other kids projects and wandering over into the snack room and just being little terrors! It finally grabbed each one by a hand and some come with me! I have something for you two to play with! I took them over to the credenza and gave them each a frog and they were happy as clams! They squooshed and squoze and pulled and stretched and thought they were great! It actually did keep them happy for the entire remaining 10 minutes of class! I was SO happy for that compulsive buy!!! Thank you Lord!

It all went so smoothly that I actually made it upstairs for closing ceremonies today! FIRST time this week! I don't know how I did it last year - I was there for opening and closing everyday! That's my favorite part - when we sing the songs!!! And dance!

We talked about how Jesus "reached out" to us and LOVED us and that he calls on us to reach out to others and love them too. And that SOMEtimes he calls on us to reach out to people that we don't really want to love... but He needs us to love them anyway. Then we talked about critters in the yard that maybe we wouldn't normally love, but that we were going to LOVE making CUTE wiggly little snakes ... I wanted to make sure we weren't making Satan! Most of the kids did pretty well with this concept! They all had FUN!

A month or two ago, right after I joined his photo meme, Tom Wiggly, from Friday SkyWatch, emailed to tell me that my blog shuts him down. He was the first person who ever told me this, so I explained that I have NO special effects on my blog, and I can't imagine WHY it would shut anyone down, but that I apologize anyway... I truly AM sorry! I just don't know what to DO about it. So, Tom & I agreed that he just wouldn't visit my blog and really that's OKAY! I have been shut down by other's blogs and it's NOT FUN! So I totally understand!

Then a few weeks ago, my very own DAUGHTER - and my very own SON both told me that they have headaches viewing my blog! Well NO WONDER they don't read it! Sheeeeeesh! Honestly though... neither of them is terribly IN to blogging, so I didn't really worry about it toooo much. Just SOMEtimes I would really like them to read what I write - so it would be nice if they could.

Then yesterday Yellow Rose left me a VERY NICE note in my blog apologizing for not visiting more often -- but explaining that my blog shuts HER down! So now that's FOUR people in just a couple of months. Now I'm wondering... HOW MANY of you are out there reading me on a feeder reader and are not able to comment and let me know you.

Well, this evening I took a GOOD look at my blog. I do not use music on my blog... I do not have any little leaves or flowers or hearts drifting down all over my page... I have a very very minimalist blog really. Soooooo... I took OFF the 3 animated graphics that WERE in my sidebar. If it's not one of them, the only other things I can think would be my Unky Moods, or my site meter. I had actually removed my site meter back in December & January because it was causing ME problems... but it's been working fine since I put it back.

Anyway... if any of you who DON'T visit because my blog shuts you down, are big and brave and want to give it another try... you can let me know if you get in!!! I'm really SORRY to all who have this problem! It does seem to be just a few... at least I HOPE it's just a few!

Sooooo today, after church, I am meeting with the gal who will be teaching the Middle Schoolers at VBS. They do everything off in their own little group -- except the games. They join the 5th graders for games. So SHE will be teaching them their crafts -- and THIS year I decided they are going to do leather work! On Friday the younger kids will be making friendship bracelets. One for themselves - and one to share with a friend! So the middle schoolers are going to make leather bracelets - and they get to do the tool work, and the painting or staining of the leather. It will be GREAT fun and they will LOVE this craft! But they DO have to learn to do it properly and leather is totally UNforgiving... so you want to try to avoid mistakes at all cost! This means that I need to teach the teacher, so that she can teach the kids! This is the ONLY part of VBS that really makes me wish I could be two people at the same time!!! I would LOVE to be with the kids on this project! (of course, I also want to be with all the little kids on their projects!) Dennis has done leather work in the past, and so he had MOST of the tools that the kids will be using. I DID buy a few new stamps... folded hands, two different crosses, the fish... 5 more mallets for hammering. WELL! I wanted them to have options! It IS Bible school after all! OKAY! I've spent a bloomin' fortune on the Middle Schoolers - I admit it! But it's WORTH it! I like the kids to get gOOd stuff....

So, after I teach Debbie how to teach Leather Working 101... then I get to go down in the multi-purpose room and DECORATE for the week ahead!!! I'm sO excited! Of course, I can't WAIT to put up the shower curtain! But I also got a BIG Tree to put up! (the kind that goes on the wall in a classroom... ) And I've got butterflies and dragonflies and ivy and STUFF. I WISH I had some BIG mountainous rocks... but what I have will have to do! And ... and ... I have little "giveaways" for them - something for each day! The first day I have some ROCKS for them! (the mom's and other teachers are gonna love me to death... givin' kids ROCKS! Go Ms. Lantz!!!) *nods* Yea... I'm givin' 'em rocks! WHY? Because VBS ROCKS! ... of course! On day 2 I'm giving them each a LEAF! Why? Because... We BEE-LEAF that Jesus is our Savior!!! After that I quit being corny and I just have some pencils and tattoos and JUMPIN' Bugs! (unless Y'ALL have some other corny ideas to share -- cuz I dig bein' corny!!! The kids practically expect it!)

So this is IT! TOMORROW starts Vacation Bible School! I am sO ready! I will NOT be around much this week guys! Besides VBS, I have a niece in town this weekend that I haven't seen since around 1990... we're meeting her & her hubby for late lunch tomorrow afternoon, and then Tuesday after VBS I go to babysit Luz ... and same on Thursday! So it really is going to be a crazy hectic week! I will try to post something each evening... and then visit as many as I can... but I make NO promises! ;-) Prayers for GREAT success and that God touches all of these little lives this week would certainly be appreciated though! Thanks!