Have you planted your sunflower seeds?

All PeeWees received them at church on Sunday. Plant them and then watch them grow. Use the growth chart attached to the seeds to document and measure the growth. Take pictures of the flowers when they bloom and send them to Mrs Lisa at:
lcarden@clearcreek.org

You have to be very patient while you wait for flowers to grow.

Patience.........smatience

Patience.............it is really an ugly word! It either reminds me of how impatient I am.......or it is too much a part of my vocabulary with PeeWees.

I remember one Easter...........

Haleigh (2 1/2) and Drew(4) both woke up sick. I left them in the den while I helped Marisa with her pretty Easter outfit, so she and Mark could go off to church. When I returned, Haleigh and Drew were hiding behind the couch - Easter baskets in their laps - surrounded by candy wrappers, with chipmunk cheeks full of candy. Patience and self control flew right out the window when they looked at all that candy!

Every afternoon, I leave the church parking lot and zip down the road, only to wait at the light at 270 and 518 for an eternity! I tailgate the car ahead of me hoping we can both scoot through on the green.........usually it does no good.........I must wait another eternity for another green. Then there is the school zone........after that the bus unloading right at my street - I can see my house but I can't get there. Patience and Self control fly right out the window when I see the finish line of my house at the end of the day!

We aren't born patient - have you ever been around a hungry baby? It is a learned behavior......of course that makes it a forgotten behavior too.

This week, focus on your patience as well as your child's. Be a good model behind the wheel, in the grocery store, or while helping your PeeWee "do something myself". Remember - it is a learned behavior, but we only master it when we seek God's help, because He is the only master of patience and self-control.

God living in me can help me wait in line patiently..............God in me can drive with patience.................God in me can wait patiently for chocolates..............

Food Drive at Clear Creek Community Church

Don't forget to fill your bag of food.
Drop it off at the big truck at West Campus Sunday!

PeeWee School Registration for 2010-2011

Open Registration for the

2010-2011 School Year of

PeeWee School

February 23

1pm in PeeWeeVille

Pick up your application today.

Job - a Story of Peace

Our third study in Fruit of the Spirit is Peace. Sunday your PeeWee heard the story of Job. If you haven't read it - I recommend it - although it is a hard read. It is hard because your heart aches for all that Job lost..........money, stuff, his children, his health. And those are all things that all of us enjoy, and truly don't want to lose.

God took them all away from Job. Job lost them all and remained peacefully sure of God's love for him. Now, there were a few chapters where he acted cranky and testy..........but for the most part he rested in God's control of everything. Job had peace with God so he was able to find peace in awful circumstances.

Remember, peace isn't the absence of chaos..........it is order within chaos. We live in a fallen world - this isn't Heaven. Stuff is gonna happen to us. We can find order within that chaos if we have made peace with God. He will give that order and peace.

John 14:27 Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid.

Have you made peace with God?

Joyful or Happy???

Joy and Happy are two words that we use interchangeably. But they really are different. Happy is a feeling and so is Sad. And we go back in forth from one to the other weekly, daily, sometimes hourly.

Joy is different. True joy comes from being a Child of God. It comes from realizing that Christ gave Himself for us. True joy never goes away - it is forever! We can be joyful whether we are happy or sad. That is a weird concept. But true. Even in the worst times when we feel very sad, we can remember that Christ died for us and we can have joy in that no matter what is going on around us.

This week as you reinforce our lesson in PeeWeeVille on Joy, think about the difference in your own life. Try to share this with your PeeWee as you dance together, or have a bike parade, or go to a party, or laugh together. Happiness is a choice and can change as we choose not to be happy. But joy will last forever if it is found in our relationship with Christ.

PeeWeeVille Valentine Making Party!

Don't forget the ................

Valentine Making Party

Saturday - February 6

9am - 11am

PeeWeeVille at the Egret Bay Campus

Come and go

Make some Valentines for those you love

We can never show as much love to others as Christ showed to us. Never. But we should try. We should live a life that reflects the love Christ has lavashed on us. We should love others the way we want to be loved and forgive them the way God has forgiven us.

Discuss at dinner how your family can show love to your neighbors - even the grouchy ones! Share your ideas with others by leaving a comment below.

Don't forget to come to the Valentine Making Party on February 6 at 9am - at PeeWeeVille/Egret Bay. Make some valentines and share the love with family and friends.

John 3:16 For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.

Lemony Love

Yesterday in PeeWeeVille, we talked about love. We talked about God's perfect example of love........He loves us all the time no matter what.

I'm curious........as you discuss love with your PeeWee this week, what does your PeeWee say about love? Ask him/her what it means to love someone. How do we show our love for people? What does love mean?

Leave his/her definition or thoughts as a comment this week so we can all enjoy!


John 3:16 For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.

Valentine Making Party - Feb 6!

Make plans now to attend the PeeWee Family Valentine Making Party

February 6

9am - 11am (come and go as you please)

PeeWeeVille - Egret Bay Campus

We will have all the supplies: glitter, markers, stickers, etc for your PeeWee to make some valentines for friends and family!

Invite a friend to join you - siblings are welcome too!

2010 - The Year of the Copy Cat

1Corinthians 11:1
Be imitators of me,
as I am of Christ.

This verse haunts me...........I am to so imitate Christ that I can invite others to imitate me. Wow! Too many times I hope no one sees or hears me, because I'm so not imitating Christ. And as a parent, you can't hide from your kids. They know what happens behind and in front of closed doors. How many times do you see and hear them imitating you? Sometimes we swell with pride - but many others we shrink in embarrassment!

January 3 we will begin a study of The Fruit of the Spirit in PeeWeeVille. This is a study in what it is like to imitate Christ. Christ has mastered - and is the master - of the fruit. I want to encourage you as parents to study the fruit with your PeeWee.

Let's all make a resolution to be better imitators this year. The only way to imitate is to know and study the person. So get to know Christ. Study Him this year. Imitating Christ will make you the very best parent you can be for your child. Live in a way that invites your child - and everyone around you - to imitate you ........... and when you stumble, apologize - that is another thing you want your child to learn and copy.

I've resolved to be a Copy Cat this year. So hold me accountable - and join me if you dare.

Taking Care of My Mom

My Father-in-Law had a mild stroke yesterday. He is doing great. But what a scare!

It reminded me how important Grandparents are to families. My kids adore their grandfather - he makes them laugh a lot.

I also thought about how children learn how to care for their parents by watching their parents care for their grandparents. My kids are gonna care for me like I care for my Mom.

How do you care for your parents? Is that what you want as you age? Just a thought.........

It's Roland or You

It was 1969. I was in the 5th Grade - yes, I'm old! I sat behind Roland Rodriquez. I was a sweet little 5th grader, raised in church - very naive. Roland opened my mind - maybe not in a good way. He taught me all kinds of 4 letter words - complete with definition, spelling. He definitely expanded my vocabulary! Which is funny because I don't think he did very well in school himself. My parents would never have talked to me about the things Roland talked to me about. They definitely never used those words. I really didn't think they did those things...........(of course I'm the baby of 4 girls..........maybe they did just 4 times by accident.??...) All day long I sat at my desk spellbound learning new things from my friend. I learned it all at the age of 9 at school - and that was way back in 1969!

I've had a couple of conversations with PeeWee parents in the last week about SEX - not really about sex, but about things of the world that they didn't want their child exposed to -yet. These conversations reminded me of my friend Roland.

As a parent you want to protect your child from worldly adult things - and you should. As a parent, you don't want to use the word sex and your child's name in the same sentence. It creeps you out. You want to avoid. You want to wait. Especially PeeWee families think they have plenty of time to talk about that subject.

Whether you are ready or not, your PeeWee sees people at the store and in the neighborhood. Whether you are ready or not, they talk to other children that may not be raised in a home like yours. Whether you are ready or not, there is someone in your life that:

• Is divorced
• Is living with someone they aren't married to
• Is pregnant
• Is getting married
• Is married

All of these subjects bring questions to a child's mind. Most of these involve sex. Now, believe me, I'm not a proponent of exposing small children to adult subjects. But I do believe that as a parent you need to be entering conversations about marriage and family with your PeeWee. You need to help them see what God says about these subjects. You need to make sure that they know that you are available to talk about these subjects with them. One day they will have really deep questions and concerns - who do you want them to ask then?

Roland or you?????????

There is a reason I remember his name 40 years later, because I only had 1 class with him that year. He played a role in my life.......he wasn't chosen by my parents.........but he played that role. In 1969, you didn't talk about that stuff.

Today..........there are a wonderful set of books that help you start those conversations. The wonderful thing is that they are written from a Biblical perspective. They are not crude, and they present God's perfect plan. They can help you talk to your children about the fallen world we live in and God's plan in all of it. They help you celebrate with your PeeWee the beautiful way God created each one of them. God's Design for Sex is a set of 4 books. Each is written for a specific age child. I recommend all parents get them and use them at the appropriate times.

Remember..........it's Roland or you?

Your choice............

Discipline Part 3: Discipline on Your Feet/Not Your Seat

When I was teaching, my district had a motto.............

Teach on your feet, Plan on your seat

The meaning was that teaching was an active sport. Don't be tied to your desk. Move around. Be where the kids are.

Parenting is an active sport............especially discipline. You can't discipline from across the room. You must be near the child. It is active - so being tired is normal. The good news is that if you will be active and consistent now...............as your PeeWee grows up, the sport gets easier because you are both "in shape".

So start each day ready

• Plan ahead with your spouse by setting rules, boundaries, rewards, and punishment.
• Pray for wisdom and grace and love for your children, and don't forget energy and strength.
• Then get in the game! Enjoy your children. Take responsiblity for their learning and training. Get off the bench, bed, couch, etc. and get active with your kids both playing with them and loving them, and disciplining them.
• Be consistent all day long.
  

Discipline Part 2: Are You a Slot Machine?

Ever been to Vegas? Go ahead and admit it.......I will. The slot machines fascinate me - and so do the people sitting at them! You become mesmerized by the spinning fruit. You continue to put money in even with no reward..........because there is always the hope of a reward. If you get 1 prize, you will be motivated to continue trying because there is a chance it will happen again. Sporadic rewards can be very motivating for behavior to be repeated.

Did you know that you can be like a slot machine to your PeeWee? Your random punishment is like the random rewards from a slot machine. It is kind of reverse reward. Your PeeWee is willing to take a chance that you aren't going to discipline her this time - so she continues to do the same behavior.

So actually random punishment, is really a reward. It feeds the excitement of the behavior slot machine, and keeps the PeeWee pulling the arm over and over. If you aren't going to consistently punish bad behavior - don't bother to punish randomly - you are getting the same result either way.

Unplug the slot machine............and become consistent. Do what you say you are going to do every time.

James 5:12 But above all, my brothers, do not swear, either by heaven or by earth or by any other oath, but let your "yes" be yes and your "no" be no, so that you may not fall under condemnation.

Discipline Part 1: Your Child the Scientist

Remember the Scientific Method? That thing you documented when you did science experiments. Did you know that it is a natural learning technique? All those years in science and you thought the whole idea was so foreign - you really knew about it from birth; and even practiced it from birth. I'm not kidding! Let me show you what I mean.........

Hypothesis - experiment - note results - draw a conclusion

Everything your child does is an experiment - the results are written in his memory - he draws conclusions about the world around him based on these experiences. Let me show you what I mean..........

Experiment#1 - Grab something that is a no-no

2 Different Results Could Happen:

• Mom says no and takes away ~ Conclude that this didn't work
• Mom trades the no-no for a toy ~ WooHoo :) That worked beautifully!

Experiment#2 - Take a toy away from a friend

2 Different Results Could Happen:

• Mom says no and takes away ~ Conclude that this didn't work
• Mom lets you keep the toy and gives the friend another ~ WooHoo :) That worked beautifully!

What did your PeeWee learn today? Or maybe I should say.......what did you teach your PeeWee today? Without planning to, if you use the 2nd result, he now knows the fastest, most efficient way to get a toy. Whereas, with the 1st choice of results, he will eventually experiment with asking nicely - and then learn this is the best way to get a toy.

Sometimes one experiment that ends negatively is all that a child needs to reach a conclusion. Some PeeWees want to complete the same experiment over and over hoping for a different result. It is very important that the same lesson is learned each time, so be consistent.

Remember Consistency is your friend!

Parenting Lesson: look at the end result of an encounter..........what did my child learn from this. You may be teaching lessons that you don't even realize. Some of them may be counteracting your intentional lessons. Just something to think about.........

Gig 'Em Kids!

School is about to start ...... again. You would think I would get used to it after all these years. You see I taught 1st grade for 5 years, preschool for another 4......... I've directed a preschool for 8 years now........ I've sent 3 children off to school for the last 18 years! So, (counting my school years) - for the last 44 years, I've enjoyed the excitement of the first day of school. I love new beginnings, fresh starts, new notebooks and backpacks and lunch boxes and cool new pens.

In the next couple of weeks I will enjoy the newness of:

• Another year of PeeWee School
• My daughter's 2nd year of teaching
• My college kids' new semester

Which are all very exciting and good................but the next few days will be a little sad too.

Haleigh drove off this morning. :( With the wind in her hair she set off to conquer another semester of college. She is so smart and witty......... and she is gonna do great. She is headed off to where she is supposed to be......... it is a good thing. She spoiled me all summer with her time. We laughed - mostly at me. We watched movies. We ate together. We talked. But now she is gone.

Drew is home right now. I've missed him all summer - he was busy with a job in Austin. I'm enjoying this week together. But he will leave Sunday. :( He needs to go and finish his degree and be challenged at school and do great things - but I'm gonna miss him.

Sunday Mark and I will stand on the driveway and wave goodbye............like I did today. Then we will proceed to take the house back! It is a good thing. We can get back into our routines and healthy eating. It will be quiet............

Everyone is where they should be........... Marisa and Steven in their house, Haleigh and Drew up in College Station, Mark and I at home. But I will still miss them.

So kids, here are some verses for this new beginning.........from your mother's heart:

Joshua 1:9 Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be frightened, and do not be dismayed, for the LORD your God is with you wherever you go.

Psalm 46:1God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.

Psalm 46:10 Be still, and know that I am God.

Gig 'em kids in all you do! Love God more today than yesterday.

Love, Mom

Helping the Body Grow

Lately, my body seems to grow without any help at all! Or as my dad used to say: "I'm watching my waist......I'm just getting it out there where I can see it." But truly, I digress, that's not what this is about.

We are bombarded everywhere we look with healthy habits and ways to stop the unwanted growth. We as Americans are getting bigger every day. But our church body is starving.

Ephesians 4 and Romans 12 are all about how the Body of Christ - the church - has many parts that all need to function together. It resembles our own bodies in that. So how do we get the church body to grow - to become strong - to get bigger and bigger?????

Ephesians 4: 16 - ".............when each part is working properly, makes the body grow so that it builds itself up in love.

How does the body grow - when everyone is doing their part. When everyone is working together. When everyone is on board.

Believe me our church doesn't need a diet - we don't need to downsize - we need everyone to serve in their gifts and do their part.

So join a team and help us grow.

And together we can build up the church and provide a place for people of all ages to experience God's love and grace. And you will be shocked at the personal growth you will experience at the same time.

Worshipping with the RITZ

Have you ever wondered why we have Goldfish and Ritz and such in PeeWeeVille?

Yes, it's true we all like to eat.........but did you know that we actually put thought into it? That there is a legitimate reason that we feed all our PeeWees every time they come to see us?

Feeding a child in PeeWeeVille is the beginning of spiritual development. Let me show you what I mean:

• Familiar - A PeeWee is familiar with their bottle or cup, or with the crackers that we serve. We want the study of God's grace to feel familiar and comfortable for every child. We want them to think of God and what they learned as they use the cup or eat those crackers in another environment.
• Satisfying - Eating or drinking is a need for everyone. As we meet that need in PeeWeeVille, PeeWees can begin to relate to the fact that God meets all our needs. They don't have to sit hungry or thirsting when they are in God's house. God can meet all our needs - it would be very ironic to try to teach a preschooler that lesson if they were hungry or thirsty!
• Comforting/Caring - As we care for each PeeWee in PeeWeeVille, we want to be God's hands to them. We want to care for them as we teach them that God loves them so very much. We want to help them feel their Father's love.

PeeWees are concrete thinkers as opposed to abstract. They need to touch and feel and see and taste something to make it real. As they get older and develop a ton of memories, they will become more abstract and be able to think about things that they aren't touching at the moment. Since we can't use our senses to really explore God.........although He did give us a beautiful creation to explore ............ we want PeeWees to feel full and comfortable as we tell them about how wonderful their Father God is.

Snack time isn't a time filler for us...........it has an intentional place in the worship hour for a PeeWee..............................just so you know!

Volunteering

I lead a very volunteer intensive organization. I started as a volunteer at the beginning of PeeWee Ministry and now I lead almost 200 volunteers. It has been a while since I was a volunteer. Today, I stepped out and volunteered in the community in a position I am very passionate about and have wanted to do for a long time. Unfortunately, the horrible experience I had today as a volunteer almost totally overshadowed the joy of serving in my passion. Let me explain:

• I left feeling disrespected........ My contact was 30 min. late for our meeting, and I was asked to wait 3-4 times during the morning.
• I left feeling unnecessary.......... No one called me for over 6 weeks. No one apologized or made excuses, but they admitted that they hadn't called me back.
• I left feeling unwanted....... Instead of trying to help me today and give me customer service, I kept hearing how someone else had dropped a ball and so they weren't ready for me.
• I left feeling unimportant........ A couple of times I was placed in the middle of other volunteers that were having personal conversations. No one acknowledged my presence.
• I left feeling awkward, embarrassed, dumb....... No one trained me. I showed up today and was thrown into a situation of performing a task I had never done before without any instruction. My contact was there to watch me and tell me what I did wrong - how awkward!

The organization is a good one. The role is great. And I'm not quitting!! This is what I need to do and I enjoyed it - in spite of the feelings above! But I learned some important lessons and I want to make sure that PeeWee Ministry volunteers never feel any of the things above.

• Returning phone calls promptly is not only an absolute but just good manners.
• When we make an appointment with a volunteer we need to be there early and prepared to help them be the best volunteer they can be.
• Good Customer Service is a must.
• We need to remember to introduce new people to our friends and not be cliquish.
• We need to refine and polish our volunteer training so that they are successful from day one.

We are not a perfect ministry. We make mistakes. But these are values we hold high and after experiencing the lack of them........I'm even more sold on their importance! We should never let our lack of preparation and manners squelch a passionate volunteer. You see volunteering doesn't just help PeeWee Ministry, but our volunteers are also growing in their faith while they serve God in PeeWeeVille. What an awesome, beautiful responsibility ............. how amazing that God chose me with all my faults to help others grow...........

Thank you for today God........... let me remember this experience forever........... make me better because of it. And forgive me for the times I have not led like you would lead.