Missions

Yesterday was our Missions Day at church. Since Craig comes from a family of pastors and missionaries (including his parents, who are retired missionaries to Mexico) we appreciate the chance to celebrate and honor those that are doing God's work. We have a big banquet where everyone brings food from different countries. The children have their own special time and dress up from different countries to parade around the main sanctuary. Preston is dressed Jamaican and Kaitlyn is European (Sweden, Austria, Germany-take your pick). A friend let us borrow the dress she had made for her daughter years ago. It fit Kaitlyn perfectly, I added braids, and voila! Here is one of the tables that my Care Group set up. It is Australian. I actually tried Vegemite and will never do so again. Yuck!!!

As we were eating, the kids came in and paraded around the room. Here is my little Austrian.

Here's my Jamaican, proudly holding his flag.

This is my plate with a smorgasbord of food. In the top right corner you can see the little piece of bread with some brown stuff on it. Yes, that's the Vegemite.

After we ate, the Men's Choir from Life Challenge performed for us. It was so nice to hear their testimonies about God changing their lives for the better. Someone reached out to them when they were hurting and helped led them down the right path. We don't have to travel across oceans or continents to be missionaries. We are all called to tell the Good News to others.

Children's Fine Arts

The Assemblies of God denomination, which we belong to, has a yearly event called Fine Arts. It's a chance to showcase Human Videos, Drama, Puppets, Sermons, Instruments, Baking, Photography, Drawing, etc, all within a certain Christian theme. There are so many categories to choose from. At the Youth level, it is a competition. I personally think sometimes there is too much emphasis on the competition part and not the ministry part. At the Children's level, it is a chance for them to become familiar with the different aspects of Fine Arts while simply getting critiqued and not having to compete against each other. This also gives them several years of experience so they can be fully prepared for the competition in Youth Fine Arts. Fortunately, this year I was privileged to be a coach to our children that wanted to be involved in Fine Arts. Performing is such a passion of mine and I am always so thrilled when I can share it with others. Along with our amazing Children's Pastor and his wife, I got to work with 11 kids in puppets, drama, and human video. We worked hard and had lots of rehearsals and it all paid off. Yesterday was the big day! We went to a big church in the area along with lots of other churches and the kids got to showcase their gifts. I was so proud of all their hard work and they were phenomenal. I know all the scores, but can't announce it yet. I'm just so proud of what they've accomplished. One thing that we were sure to emphasize was this is a ministry. This isn't to see if we're better than other churches. This was their chance to minister to others using their talents. I'm so sad it's over now. I wasn't the only Kelley to participate. Kaitlyn decided she wanted to enter the baking category. She actually picked out her own recipe, Chocolate Chip Bundt Cake. The rules state the children have to do a majority of the work with minimal help. That's exactly what she did! Here she is mixing all the ingredients together. I helped her pour it in the bundt pan.

Then, we baked it. It smelled so good coming out of the oven.

Finally, chocolate frosting was poured over the top. Yummy!

We took the cake to the designated area at Fine Arts and they closed the doors as all the baked goods were being judged. I wonder how you become a judge for the baking category? When the doors opened, she had a Fine Arts medal next to her cake (all the entries received one). You can see the tiny slice the judges cut out.

After a long and busy morning at Fine Arts, we came home and had Kaitlyn pose next to her cake. You can tell she was exhausted! I can say that she received a Superior rating from all 3 judges and they commented how tasty it was.

It was an amazing day and I am so proud of the kids. I'm so thankful to the parents for allowing me to be part of their children's lives. Stay tuned for the scores and cake recipe!

Spring Decorating

It's finally Spring and time for some new crafts at the Kelley house. The kids decorated their own eggs made from white cardstock. I attempted a 3D egg I saw on www.familyfun.com. It's pretty but so time consuming. The kids tried to accordion fold the paper, but they weren't interested in it. The egg is supposed to be hung from something, but I'm not quite sure what I'm going to do with this.

I also made a "Spring/Easter" wreath. This was the most time consuming project ever! I'm noticing a pattern on the projects I pick out. I originally saw a heart shaped wreath made of red felt circles on www.theidearoom.net/2010/01/felt-heart-wreath. It was very pretty so I thought I would try my own variation and make one for Spring. It took forever!!!!

I picked out 5 different "Spring" colors in felt sheets and bought several sheets of each (4/$1 at Hobby Lobby). Then, I cut out about a million 3" circles from the sheets. Fold the circles in half and then fold again. Get a straight pin and poke it through the corner of the circle. Pin it to a foam wreath. Repeat over and over and over...

Here's a closer look. I just fluffed out the circles a little to give it a "full" effect. I pinned a ribbon to the back to hang it to my door. It's a very simple project but takes time. I like how it turned out. Perhaps I'll forget how long it took and make the heart wreath for Valentine's next year. :)

For a final "Spring" touch, I added some heirloom ceramics to some fake Easter grass and placed it on my dining room table. These ceramics were made by Craig's great-grandma many, many years ago.

The decorating is done and now it's time for some Spring events. We'll keep you posted.

Grasshopper Fudge Cake

You can't celebrate St. Patrick's Day without something green. For us, we had a green dessert. I found the recipe for Grasshopper Fudge Cake on www.bettycrocker.com. I loved the way it looked, so I decided to make it. Yes, it tastes as good as it looks.

First, you make a white cake batter according to the box directions (yes, I used boxed cake mix and not embarassed about) and add some mint extract. Reserve 1 cup of the batter and mix in drops of green food coloring.

Then, you drop spoonfuls of the green batter on top of the regular batter that has already been poured into the cake pan.

Swirl.

After it bakes, allow the cake to cool. Then, spread a jar of hot fudge topping all over the cake. The recipe calls for 2 jars of topping, but 1 jar was plenty. It depends on how much you want the fudge taste.

Next, you spread the whipped topping over the cake. The whipped topping is mixed with mint extract and green and yellow food coloring.

For the final touch, break up pieces of Andes mint candies (which always reminds me of Olive Garden) and garnish the top of cake.

That's it. It looks like it would be difficult to make, but it's actually very easy. It has a strong minty taste, but it's really good. Remember, to keep the cake refrigerated due to the whipped topping. Enjoy!

Rodeo Day and Open House

It was Rodeo Day at school. So we got dressed in our cowboy/cowgirl garb and got ready for a fun day.

Preston is on his way to play some country games.

Preston was riding his stick horse around the barrels.

He's patiently waiting for a pony ride.

Yee Haw!

Meanwhile, I led the kids in special country music at our Campfire Sing-Along. We sang "She'll Be Coming Around the Mountain", "Skip To My Lou", "Old McDonald", "Shoo Fly, Don't Bother Me", etc. It was fun and the kids enjoyed having music outside. However, I danced in boots and my feet were hurting by the end of the day.

But, we still had a special night ahead with Kaitlyn. It was time for her 1st grade Open House. She had this letter waiting for us on her desk. It says:

Dear mom and dad,

Thank you for coming to Open House tonight. I am going

to be good tonight. We love you very much.

Love, Kaitlyn

We had to send a long sleeved shirt to school. The kids drew a picture of their face and traced their hands. Then they stuck the head and hands in the shirt so it looked like they were sitting at the desk.

Kaitlyn had all these different projects on her desk for us to look at. She is such a great student and does awesome schoolwork.

Hanging outside the classroom were silhouettes of each child. Another parent and I traced the children's silhouettes last week and someone else cut them out. They turned out great!

It was a very fun, but tiring day. Craig and I were in bed by 10:30 pm which is unusual for us. Thank goodness we are now on Spring Break!

If You Make The Time...

I had recently posted this picture in a previous post. To be recognized for hard work and dedication is always nice and uplifting. But making the time for such things isn't always easy.

Craig and I always say "People will make time for what they want to make time for." Because of our hectic schedules, we're always looking at our priorities and seeing what can be squeezed into each day.

Of course our #1 priority is God. We make sure we are at church on Wednesday nights and Sunday morning. We have such a close relationship with God and rely only on Him. Our faith continues to grow through the years and God has never let us down.

Our #2 priority is family. We are raising our kids to know and live for God. They know the importance of church and why we go. We also make sure the family comes first in any of our planning.

Our #3 priority is work. We make our work schedules around our family schedule, not the other way around. Craig and I talk every week about what's on the schedule for the next week. He tries to work around that. If we can't do everything, we start crossing off the less important things. For example, this week we had to choose between Craig being available for Kaitlyn's Open House at school or me going to a social function with friends. Obviously, we chose the first option and I'm absolutely okay with that. By choosing family first, we are creating memories for our kids that they will always know their parents were there for them. Hopefully, they'll carry on these important values to their kids and so forth.

Craig works 50+ hour work weeks since he is in retail management. He is a salary worker and does not get overtime pay ever. But he is very commited and loyal to his company and does what needs to get done. However, he also knows when our family schedule calls for his involvement and he makes sure he is there for us. When Craig comes home from work or has a day off, the first thing he thinks about is our family. He wouldn't want to be anywhere else.

I'm fortunate to only have to work part-time at our church. Tuesday and Thursday I teach music for the Mother's Day Out program. Preston is one of my students. Sunday mornings I am the preschool Sunday School Coordinator. My kids are in their Sunday School classes during that time so I'm not taking any time away from them.

I do a lot of volunteer work. A LOT. I don't do any of it just to be recognized or to fish for compliments or to be on a power trip. I do it because I enjoy giving the time I have to help others. I volunteer at our church, Kaitlyn's school, and at times, various places in the metroplex. I keep a very tight schedule of what happens where and when. However, I always keep in mind what my priorities are.

If I'm asked to take on anything new at church I always pray about it first. Is this really from God or is this something somebody else doesn't want to do themselves? How will this affect my family? Can my family be involved with me? If there are any negative answers to those questions, I say no. I'm not afraid to say no and I've done it before and will do it again. There have been social functions at church that we have not gone to because we simply don't want to give up our family time for it. There have been social functions that I've been invited to that I'll pass on because I'm going to make time for my family first. We'll still have social outings from time to time but it's not at the top our priority list.

This year will be my 4th year as the VBS Coordinator for our church. Because it takes so much time to plan and organize (March-July), I don't volunteer for the Fall Festival or the Easter Eggstravaganza. I need to make sure I spend time with just my kids during these special events. By my kids seeing all the time I give to volunteer, they are also learning the importance of helping others.

With all that being said, we still get a lot of things done. Our schedules are always jam packed with things we want to make time for. This week alone we have something going on every single night but it all involves family. Preston and Kaitlyn are happiest when the four of us are together, even if it's just playing Candyland together. Preston made up the word "huggle". That's when the four of us hug and snuggle together. I love those moments. We also eat one meal a day together. Doesn't matter which meal, but at some point during the day, we're all sitting at the table dining together.

We may not have the fanciest house, drive the fanciest cars, have the name brand clothes (which honestly, why buy $60 name brand jeans that has the same quality and look as $15 jeans?), but we have each other as we trust in God to guide our family. We know what we need to make time for.

You're A Good Man, Charlie Brown

Today was Book Character Day at school. I simply recycled Preston's costume from last year's Book Character Day and he still looked just as cute. Plus, it fit!

Preston dressed up as Charlie Brown. I made the black zig zag out of felt and glued it on (I don't sew) a yellow shirt I got from Michael's. I paired it with black shorts and brown shoes just like Charlie Brown. At school, each class had a costume parade and they were judged. Preston won a certificate for Most Accurate Costume! Yay! (I think he won that last year too)

I did some more recycling with my outfit. Last year, I dressed as Ramona Quimby. This year I dressed up as Fern from Charlotte's Web. It was pretty much the same outfit except my hair was in clips last year and pulled back this year. I went to a consignment store yesterday looking for a stuffed pig to be my Wilbur. I found one at the first store that I went to. As I got ready to pay ($1), a gentleman in front of me saw Preston holding the pig and bought it for us. Thank you stranger! I got Kaitlyn's copy of the book and carried it and the pig around with me at school. I know I didn't put much effort into it, but that's okay. I was comfortable at least.

As an added treat, I saw this on the marquis outside my daughter's school!