It was a good excuse to wear pretty dresses!
Sunday, October 19, 2008
Having a ball
Last week church held a ball. Why? Why not?!
It was a good excuse to wear pretty dresses!
It was a good excuse to wear pretty dresses!
Friday, September 26, 2008
Perhaps the busiest week in my life so far...
It has indeed been a hectic one this week. Yesterday was Open Day/Evening at school, starting at 1.30 in the afternoon (still in classes) and going on until 8 in the evening with an hour for tea. After half a week on residential last week and then 2 days of unproductive activity to fill up the rest of the week with a classful of exhausted small people I had only 3 and a half days in which to complete a piece of quality writing each and put it up on display. Yesterday morning was a highly stressed environment, a class of children in the ICT suite as journalists and editors putting together a newspaper about their trip to Kingswood. I ran with the role play scenario in a 'YOU ARE 5 MINUTES AWAY FROM YOUR DEADLINE!' kind of way, closely followed by 'THE NEWSPAPER IS GOING TO PRINT, IF YOUR ARTICLES AREN'T IN YET YOU'VE MISSED IT!' We did get it all done and magically displayed on the wall with duplicates backed and up too (all thanks to Mrs H - well done indeed!). Open Evening isn't something that I take to easily and with my own fast approaching presentation to parents it was quite stressful.
This morning was school harvest in church and all classes presented a 'something'. We did a Fischy Music song 'Wonderful World' with actions and instruments including a couple of djembes that we have for our drumming club. Finding time to rehearse this week hasn't been easy as I'm sure you can imagine, but it went well in the end. Choir sang a number as well which was very well received. The numbers for choir have swelled this year to over 30 now - I'm so proud! I love leading choir so much and we have even managed to recruit a few boys now as well. I'm still on a recruitment drive for boys though - there are none from my class in it yet - I'm determined to draw them in through those lunchtime doors!
In the meantime I think I'm in for a well deserved weekend.
This morning was school harvest in church and all classes presented a 'something'. We did a Fischy Music song 'Wonderful World' with actions and instruments including a couple of djembes that we have for our drumming club. Finding time to rehearse this week hasn't been easy as I'm sure you can imagine, but it went well in the end. Choir sang a number as well which was very well received. The numbers for choir have swelled this year to over 30 now - I'm so proud! I love leading choir so much and we have even managed to recruit a few boys now as well. I'm still on a recruitment drive for boys though - there are none from my class in it yet - I'm determined to draw them in through those lunchtime doors!
In the meantime I think I'm in for a well deserved weekend.
Monday, September 22, 2008
Residentials, sleep deprivation and wedding happiness
Woo hoo, blogger has let me in today!
Well last week was a crazy one indeed. The first 3 days of the week were spent down in North Wales at the Kingswood Activity Centre in Denbigh with my class. I did have some trepidations, specifically about times that younger children wake up and the noise that they make when they wake each other up (I like my sleep!) but was pleasantly surprised to wake on the first morning at 7 and on the second morning after 7! Wonderful indeed. We had such a brilliant time, though the weather was wet, the staff were absolutely brilliant and the kids were well behaved. Marvellous. However, the remaining two days in school were somewhat of a blur... really was so exhausted by the Friday that it was almost all I could do by the lunchtime to lift my sandwich to my mouth and chew! An afternoon PE lesson woke me up a little but I was so very glad come 3.15!
Following on from that I have been down to Birmingham this weekend for another lovely wedding. It was a fabulous day for it, possibly the best Saturday that we've had all summer - definitely well chosen, Roz!! The bride was stunningly gorgeous as ever and the whole day was a wonderful event. It was great to catch up with friends again and to look forward to seeing them all again in 5 weeks at the next wedding! No-one introduced me to the best man though, shame on them!!
Well last week was a crazy one indeed. The first 3 days of the week were spent down in North Wales at the Kingswood Activity Centre in Denbigh with my class. I did have some trepidations, specifically about times that younger children wake up and the noise that they make when they wake each other up (I like my sleep!) but was pleasantly surprised to wake on the first morning at 7 and on the second morning after 7! Wonderful indeed. We had such a brilliant time, though the weather was wet, the staff were absolutely brilliant and the kids were well behaved. Marvellous. However, the remaining two days in school were somewhat of a blur... really was so exhausted by the Friday that it was almost all I could do by the lunchtime to lift my sandwich to my mouth and chew! An afternoon PE lesson woke me up a little but I was so very glad come 3.15!
Following on from that I have been down to Birmingham this weekend for another lovely wedding. It was a fabulous day for it, possibly the best Saturday that we've had all summer - definitely well chosen, Roz!! The bride was stunningly gorgeous as ever and the whole day was a wonderful event. It was great to catch up with friends again and to look forward to seeing them all again in 5 weeks at the next wedding! No-one introduced me to the best man though, shame on them!!
Sunday, September 07, 2008
Busyness returns
It was the Southport airshow this weekend, so more opportunities to see the Red Arrows in action! As I was driving towards home they flew up in front of me, drew a heart in the air and threw an arrow through the middle. How kind of them to draw that just for me! Later on in the house we heard them coming back to Blackpool to land so rushed out into the garden to see them do their landing loop le loop and them whizz over the house - always worth a viewing!
This morning I am up early to continue my training regime - I'm aiming for 75 lengths in 45 minutes today!Wednesday, August 27, 2008
One and a half kilometres and a word from the Lord
Swam 60 lengths in 45 minutes today. Came home and then came the free newspaper through the door to spur me on... 
Saturday, August 23, 2008
What should be my Olympic sport?
I have got ridiculously into the Olympics this year. I have found myself wondering whether to stay up to watch sports live (never actually did, but it was a serious consideration) and then have watched sports back to back on BBC. All this competitive sport action has got me angling to get into sport again and make it for the 2012... I'm not to old am I?! So, spurred into action I have been swimming twice this week already and swum 50 lengths both times. Yes indeed! But which sport to choose? Joy sent me a link which chose for me! It is a good choice I think! Just let me dust off that wet suit...
You Are Kayaking |
 You have a competitive spirit, but you don't like to compete alone. You do well in a partnership, where you can feed off the other person's energy. If you have the right partner, nothing can stop you. Your energy is infinite! |
Thursday, August 07, 2008
New Wine N&E 2008
I have recently returned from another enjoyable week at that Christian gathering, New Wine (North and East). It tickles me that they have added 'East' into the name this year, perhaps realising that it gives the name some credibility; Newark not really being in the north....
*Warning: this post has become excessively long!*
I have been working on Boulder Gang again this year, the children's group for 10-11 year olds. In the evening they join with Rock Solid (8-9s) for Dream:Factory which is entirely led from the front with silly games, praise and worship songs, a talk and response and the inevitable gunging. As last year I took on the role of 'Age Group Leader' again for the 10s. Even more so this year I felt like I got to know my team and really tried to own my role. It is difficult to get to know the children's names when you don't own just one group of 30+ but are general overseer of upwards of 100 10 year olds. I really made the effort this year to sit in with the groups in the evenings and to try to engage with the kids. I did, however, get asked on more than one occasion if I was a yellow... or if I was a red... or whose group I was supposed to be in? Explaining that you're in all groups is a bit tricky! The children are quick to pick up on a hierarchy that I was keen to avoid - my role really is a whole lot less important than the group leaders who are the ones building real relationships, praying for and encouraging their group of children.
On the first day as everyone started to arrive I was overjoyed to be walking through the site when one of the children, recognising me from previous years, waved enthusiastically at me! What a lift it gave me! As the week progressed I remembered why I take this bus man's holiday each year. Although exhausting, I am convinced that I learn an awful lot more about God and about myself from the children than I would if I were an adult delegate going to the main meetings and going to seminars. Each day begins at 7.45 with a team meeting and worship before the doors open at 8.45. The morning sessions consist of a short together time with the 10s and 11s then onto rotations which take up the majority of the morning. The rotations are sport, craft, floating activity (this just means that it is different everyday, for example one day it might be learning a dance and the next day it might be science etc) and finally application. Application is the teaching slot which links into the evening talk and gives the group leaders a chance to talk to the children about their responses and to pray in different ways for what has been brought up. Finally the morning ends with half an hour of together time for 10s and 11s, some action songs and some silly games, finishing at 12.30. I seem to spend the majority of the mornings taking groups of children on toilet runs!! I think that in the morning craft is a very important time, that is when the leaders really have a chance to sit down on a table with some of their group, get to know them and chat to them about things that matter to them. I am convinced that craft time is vastly underrated in its value.
In the afternoons team members can do things like go to seminars and such like. I do nothing. Last year Sarah and I decided that we would not try to do anything extra in the afternoons - the children's work is tiring enough without trying to overdo it! Fortunately we were blessed with good weather this year which is so so very important when you go as a single person... sounds daft I'm sure, but it's mightily difficult to be sociable with the rest of your church when it is raining and everyone is holed up in their tents or else out at seminars. When the weather is good everyone congregates outside and it's so much easier to go up and join a group. This year our housegroup were mostly camped together slightly apart from the rest of the church group (not because they are antisocial but because the area we had been given to camp on was considerably too small for the number of people and tents we had to camp on it!) and so afternoons were generally spent chatting and lazing about outside someone else's tent, housegroup or not.
Evenings start again for the worker at 5.45 with another team meeting and worship time followed by doors opening for Dream:Factory at 6.45. This year our evening themes followed the story of Peter. There was also somewhat of an emphasis on healing this year, which I can't say I was entirely comfortable with. It seemed a bit falsely hyped as a result of the Florida thing (I suspect) and I was uncomfortable with so much focus on physical healing when I would suggest that most children suffer more from emotional scars like family break ups, bullying and friendship problems and feelings of self worth more than with their eczema. I did have to eat my thoughts, however, when a child who had fallen earlier in the week and broken their arm, had been to hospital and had a temporary cast put on it then was prayed for one evening and when they went back to the hospital their arm was no longer broken and they did not need to put another cast on it! I agree that that is an amazing story of God's healing power. Though as with many I struggle with why God heals some people and not others... a struggle I doubt will ever get resolved!
I was forever blown away by the privilege it is to pray with children, something that has been a growth in me completely over the last few years. I don't remember much about New Wine in Harrogate, but I remember being completely paralysed with fear 3 years ago when group leaders were asked to come to the front to pray for the children that had come forward in response to something. Then I didn't move and hoped that no-one would notice that I, a group leader, was still sat down. This year I had no such inhibitions and relished the opportunity to pray encouragement and strength into a child's life.
By 10pm my team worker's day was done. Just enough time to spend a little while with church people in the 'wine tent' for a drink and nibble and then it was time to go to bed ready to do it all again the next day!
I'll be back again next year. For sure.
*Warning: this post has become excessively long!*
I have been working on Boulder Gang again this year, the children's group for 10-11 year olds. In the evening they join with Rock Solid (8-9s) for Dream:Factory which is entirely led from the front with silly games, praise and worship songs, a talk and response and the inevitable gunging. As last year I took on the role of 'Age Group Leader' again for the 10s. Even more so this year I felt like I got to know my team and really tried to own my role. It is difficult to get to know the children's names when you don't own just one group of 30+ but are general overseer of upwards of 100 10 year olds. I really made the effort this year to sit in with the groups in the evenings and to try to engage with the kids. I did, however, get asked on more than one occasion if I was a yellow... or if I was a red... or whose group I was supposed to be in? Explaining that you're in all groups is a bit tricky! The children are quick to pick up on a hierarchy that I was keen to avoid - my role really is a whole lot less important than the group leaders who are the ones building real relationships, praying for and encouraging their group of children.
On the first day as everyone started to arrive I was overjoyed to be walking through the site when one of the children, recognising me from previous years, waved enthusiastically at me! What a lift it gave me! As the week progressed I remembered why I take this bus man's holiday each year. Although exhausting, I am convinced that I learn an awful lot more about God and about myself from the children than I would if I were an adult delegate going to the main meetings and going to seminars. Each day begins at 7.45 with a team meeting and worship before the doors open at 8.45. The morning sessions consist of a short together time with the 10s and 11s then onto rotations which take up the majority of the morning. The rotations are sport, craft, floating activity (this just means that it is different everyday, for example one day it might be learning a dance and the next day it might be science etc) and finally application. Application is the teaching slot which links into the evening talk and gives the group leaders a chance to talk to the children about their responses and to pray in different ways for what has been brought up. Finally the morning ends with half an hour of together time for 10s and 11s, some action songs and some silly games, finishing at 12.30. I seem to spend the majority of the mornings taking groups of children on toilet runs!! I think that in the morning craft is a very important time, that is when the leaders really have a chance to sit down on a table with some of their group, get to know them and chat to them about things that matter to them. I am convinced that craft time is vastly underrated in its value.
In the afternoons team members can do things like go to seminars and such like. I do nothing. Last year Sarah and I decided that we would not try to do anything extra in the afternoons - the children's work is tiring enough without trying to overdo it! Fortunately we were blessed with good weather this year which is so so very important when you go as a single person... sounds daft I'm sure, but it's mightily difficult to be sociable with the rest of your church when it is raining and everyone is holed up in their tents or else out at seminars. When the weather is good everyone congregates outside and it's so much easier to go up and join a group. This year our housegroup were mostly camped together slightly apart from the rest of the church group (not because they are antisocial but because the area we had been given to camp on was considerably too small for the number of people and tents we had to camp on it!) and so afternoons were generally spent chatting and lazing about outside someone else's tent, housegroup or not.
Evenings start again for the worker at 5.45 with another team meeting and worship time followed by doors opening for Dream:Factory at 6.45. This year our evening themes followed the story of Peter. There was also somewhat of an emphasis on healing this year, which I can't say I was entirely comfortable with. It seemed a bit falsely hyped as a result of the Florida thing (I suspect) and I was uncomfortable with so much focus on physical healing when I would suggest that most children suffer more from emotional scars like family break ups, bullying and friendship problems and feelings of self worth more than with their eczema. I did have to eat my thoughts, however, when a child who had fallen earlier in the week and broken their arm, had been to hospital and had a temporary cast put on it then was prayed for one evening and when they went back to the hospital their arm was no longer broken and they did not need to put another cast on it! I agree that that is an amazing story of God's healing power. Though as with many I struggle with why God heals some people and not others... a struggle I doubt will ever get resolved!
I was forever blown away by the privilege it is to pray with children, something that has been a growth in me completely over the last few years. I don't remember much about New Wine in Harrogate, but I remember being completely paralysed with fear 3 years ago when group leaders were asked to come to the front to pray for the children that had come forward in response to something. Then I didn't move and hoped that no-one would notice that I, a group leader, was still sat down. This year I had no such inhibitions and relished the opportunity to pray encouragement and strength into a child's life.
By 10pm my team worker's day was done. Just enough time to spend a little while with church people in the 'wine tent' for a drink and nibble and then it was time to go to bed ready to do it all again the next day!
I'll be back again next year. For sure.
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