The Investigation Begins!

Last night was a great night because I was able to

train my Awana volunteers for the upcoming year. 

The theme for this year is "Investigating Truth"

so everything has a special agent/detective/spy twist to it. 

Basically any information that I have sent out has been

authenticated with a "top secret" stamp in red ink. 

I absolutely love that stamp and have become a little stamp happy. 

The following pictures are of the tables I decorated for our Training Sessions.

I thoroughly enjoyed rumagging up some great props for these tables.

I found these spelling tiles and created different phrases for each table.

This one says, "Crack the Code" since there are several decoder wheels on the table.

This phrase says "Look beneath the surface."

I took one of my college textbooks and partially cut out the middle of page

to create one of those false middles where you can hide secret gadgets or whatnot.

This phrase says "Don't blow your cover."

And I was able to borrow my dad's vintage binoculars, as well as

find prop beards from my drama box. 

This phrase says "It's Top Secret."

Especially since there's a confidential folder and envelope on the table.

Not to the mention the classy briefcase.

"Be on alert!"

You can never be too careful when training to be a spy.

"Meet me at nine o'clock."

Yes, it's true.  Special Agents will be exchanging

information contained inside the Top Secret folder.

Overall, the training session was great because I have an excellent team of volunteers!

Can't wait for the kids to come next week!

The Push

I've needed "the push" to get back into blogging.

So I will divulge to you my new favorite TV shows.

AMERICAN PICKERS:

I absolutely love this show because I learn

something new everytime I watch it. 

Plus, I'd like to think that I'm an amateur picker myself,

even though, I have yet to visit a garage sale this summer.  Oops. 

Still, watching Mike and Frank interact is quite a treat.

PAWN STARS:

You never know what will show up in the store.

People bring in the weirdest and coolest things ever.

It's fascinating to learn the history about all the items.

I highly recommend checking it out.

Tomorrow I will be driving down to Normon, Oklahoma

for a church-related conference.  I am very much looking

forward to this mini roadtrip. 

There's just something I love about driving.

And I hope that this conferencewill help recharge me

and give me that push that I need

for the weeks to come. 

I'll keep ya posted!

i'm not a big city kind of girl

i have returned from a wonderful trip to washington d.c.

it's a great relief to be back.

yes, i thorougly enjoyed my vacation.

yes, i thorougly enjoyed being a tourist.

yes, i thoroughly enjoy spending time with tina.

but i belong in a small town and it feels so good to be home.

and it especially feels wonderful to be back at work.

i know i'll be asked what my favorite part of the trip was,

and i'm sure i will have different answers.

but there's one thing that i will remember most:

the fact that friendships can pick up where they left off.

it doesn't matter how often you talk or don't talk to each other,

or how often you see or don't see each other,

you still pick up where you left off from the last time you were together.

i'm thankful for friendships like this.

and i anticipate many more vacations and get-togethers will friends

when we'll be able to pick up where we left off,

as if time were non-existant.

Leaving for DC...

i will be leaving for washington dc in less than 36 hours!

i am so excited about this trip for many reasons:

1. i get to spend some quality time with tina!

2. i get to ride a train to union station!

3. i get to visit the international spy museum!

4. i get to visit all the national monuments!

5. i get to use a groupon for a harbor cruise around the city!

6. i get to visit an aquarium! this hasn't happened since i was a kid.

7. i get to visit georgetown cupcakes from the tlc show "dc cupcakes."

i'm also excited to navigate my way through the city and metro system.

i absolutely love using maps and figuring out how to get from a to b.

i will definitely be memorizing this on the train ride up.

everything is laid out in the spare bedroom and just needs to be packed.

and i will definitely not leave with my neck pillow.

i think it may be one of the best travel inventions ever.

at least it will prevent what i call "floppy head syndrome."

can't wait to post some pictures when i get back!

Sunday Matinee Room

one of the rooms that we use for sunday school is the Sunday Matinee room.

this is our gathering room for the kids and where we watch movies. 

i added the final touches to this retro room just this past week.

here's a look!

mmm...i can smell the popcorn :)

my skirt looks like a confused zebra...

my skirt looks like a confused zebra.

or maybe what a zebra would look like if you looked through a kaleidoscope. 

but that's what my life feels like.

a kaleidoscope.

i'll let you think about that for a while.

because I had to.

my summer is turning out to be just as busy

as the other nine months of the year.

summertime is a time for me to get a good jumpstart on

writing curriculumfor next year's children's ministries.

and boy is it going to be exciting!

it will be full of mystery, suspense and intrigue :)

it's a long process, but i wouldn't have it any other way. 

at least i will be in washington d.c. in two weeks to see tina!

i have most of my visitors' guide highlighted and most of the city

map has been filed into my long-term memory. 

i can't wait to visit such a vibrant city.

until next time...keep twisting that kaleidoscope!

More Preschool Room Decorating

I have definitely had the decorating bug these last couple of days. 

Sunday afternoon and evening I painted the preschool room a lovely yellow.

Then I added these fun animals stickers to the wall

which made the room even more adorable.

I can't wait to see the kiddos faces when they walk into their room!

I really love the alphabet stickers!

And the coat hooks!

And the little bench!

After all this decorating,

I've discovered that my favorite animal is a giraffe.

The quality of the pictures makes the yellow look mustardy,

but the color is much lighter than that. 

I guess you'll just have to come to church and take a look for yourself.

Next project: The Sunday Matinee room.

This room is where all the kiddos meet on Sunday mornings.

And it's our movie theatre room, too. 

So, I wanted to give it that feel. 

I painted this room on Monday and I have most of the decorations,

but I just need to figure out the placement of them on the walls.

Pictures will come!