Waiting In Anticipation: IMA BACK!

Hey everybody! IMA BACK!! That's what Luigi always says when he gets to play again on Mario. We had a wonderful time camping at Land Between the Lakes in Kentucky Wednesday-Friday. The weather was amazing and the girls and parents in my cabin were the BEST!! I got to play teacher for a little while on Wednesday b/c Natalie's teacher was sick. Fortunately I knew all but 6 kids in her class so that worked out really well. It's amazing how fast it all comes back. ;) We headed out... full Dr. Pepper drank for me so I could keep up the energy with 70 fourth graders. We rode chartered buses and that totally rocked.....I'm used to taking all my field trips on a school bus so to say it was nice was an understatement. All the kids stayed healthy and safe and it was just BEAUTIFUL weather for November....Thank you Lord! Here is a pic of Natalie driving the bus (ok...she's just sitting in the seat.)

We stopped at this place called, "HomePlace" on the way. It was a real working farm from the 1850's. The guy who did the woodworking and blacksmithing was my favorite....I had to include a pic of him b/c he was so great and his accent soooooo country.

Of course we watched a little, "Little House on the Prairie" on the way to set the tone. Then, we set out for LBL. Mrs. Jones had the whole thing planned out sooooooooo awesome! She totally rocked it out. All the sessions with the staff there were fantastic. Couldn't beat the scenery...Here's a couple of shots of the lake...

We had four different sessions we rotated through and all of the sessions were educational and included a classroom component and a field component where the kids got to practice "hands on" what they had just learned. Our sessions on Thursday were "Survival", "Pond Life", "Animal Tracks", and "Beaver Life". I learned so much.....

One of the breakout sessions included teambuilding and the exercise focused on "trust". The kids had to make a circle, all face the same direction, scoot their feet up to one another, and on the count of 3 sit. If they did it correctly, everyone would sit on each other's laps without anyone falling. I've included a pic to give a visual.

I have played this game before and done it with different groups of kids. However, today when I was thinking about it, I was thinking how it reminds me of challenges we all have. Sometimes, I think I can bare the weight of it myself. Sometimes, I look around and consider the possibilities. What if God doesn't come through. Will I fall down on my butt? Then, I realize that I need others and I need HIM to hold me up. There is something about that letting go and just sitting (trusting him) that is so scary yet exciting all at the same time....

Back to the kids....they did it! They were shaky at first. Some tried to cheat, but that ultimately proved harder on the ones who weren't trusting the group. At the end though, they all sat. They were all able to hold each other up and even clap while they were sitting. That takes me back to trusting God and His provision. He wants us to trust him and then clap (give him PRAISE) when he provides.

God is so good....

Just a few more shots to leave you with of Natalie, her friends, the group in our cabin, and her class.