Ridiculousness

Kevin and I spent the day in Chattanooga the other day....it was Date Day. We get so busy around here that we try to make it a point to spend some QT (quality time) with each other occasionally. We went to see the movie Valentine's Day (two thumbs up), had lunch at Olive Garden, bought some new bedroom furniture (its lovely by the way) and strolled around Hamilton Place Mall. Lucky for all of you I had my camera handy.....

Kevin rocking the sweater vest....I had no idea four years ago that I was marrying Mr. Rogers. Don't worry, I made him put it back on the rack. I'm no fashionista but I'm pretty sure button-up sweaters aren't allowed for at least another 30 years.

I was shocked to discover that there is such a thing as a store dedicated solely (pun definately intended) to the proliferation of ridiculous rubber shoes. I know some of you out there LOVE crocs. I have to give them at least one brownie point for being the only completely recycleable shoe out there. And I'm sure they're comfortable, yada yada yada but I am not a fan....never have been...they come in riculous colors and patterns, are made entirely out of rubber, and people everywhere seem to think its okay to wear them with socks and shorts in the summer. Once again I'm no fashion expert but something about these shoes makes my left eye start to twitch. You'd expect to be openly mocked if you wore wooden clogs in public but somehow if its made of rubber its suddenly okay. Do I wear my blue, furry slippers with the pink hearts on them (thanks sister in law Nat :) out in public?? No, of course not - that would be silly, right? I argue that a croc is nothing more than a naked, furless slipper (same shape - admit it); therefore, if it must be worn, it should remain in the house.

I may stand alone, but I must stand against the ever popular croc. Sorry folks.

Expecting 43 pairs on my next birthday from disgruntled croc enthusiasts everywhere,

Mandy

Construction Progress

Our plan for discouraging construction site visitors. It works about as well as it looks like it would.

Carpet gone....Its wall-framing time.

You are looking through the wall to what will be the youth area.

Drywall is up! This is the chilren's church side.

Front wall in youth center (soon to be covered in drywall)...the stage has been cut down by 2/3 and a TV will hang in the center.

Newly constructed wall on youth side. A couch will sit in the middle. The door on the right will connect the two new rooms because we needed a second exit in case of fire....it should be closed 95% of the time.

We have been under construction for about 3 weeks now and the transformation is great! All the old carpet has been ripped out, the new wall is framed, all electrical is run, and drywall is going up like crazy. The only way this could be more dramatic for our teens and children is if we got to smash something with a bulldozer first (Ty does have us beat there)! We hit some minor electical hiccups because this is an older building but our genius electrician Bill (also our project supervisor) found a way to make everything work...or he'd send Susan and I back to Lowe's and tell us to pick out something else. The way I see it as long as we end up with a functional youth space, the rest is negotiable. I'm flexible.

The teens voted and the main wall behind the stage (where the flatscreen TV will hang) will be Garden Gate Green. The three other walls will be Celery Root Green and the flooring is a cherry/walnut color. The furniture will be chocolate brown, tangerine, red, and chrome (yep, that's right...metal can be an accent color). :) They'll have a new couch with chrome accents, a bar (for Capri Sun and snacks...no alcoholic beverages....promise) made from metal sheeting, stools, stage, game tables (foosball, pool, and air hockey), and lounging areas. We hope this will be a space where they can be comfortable, have fun, and grow closer to Jesus and one another.

The other half of the former sanctuary is being remodeled into a children's church. It will have light maple floors with light yellow, terra cotta, and blue or green on the walls....they also get a big mural on the new wall and miniature sized furniture for the teeny tinys (Wes....I know what you're thinking...its not for me...it really is for the actual kids). We're including a stage for story time and cubby's for storage. We're hoping that an area that's designed specifically for them will give them the tools they need to learn the basics about following Jesus. Its all going to look fantastic when its done!

This space was the church sanctuary until 2004 so it holds a lot of memories for most of our people here. After the new sanctuary was built it was used for storage, children's church, and vbs, but only the front 1/3 of the room was usable. They have been very graceful and excited about taking a space that means so much and re-purposing it to be used on a regular basis by our teens and kids.

More to come soon!
Mandy and Kevin

Extreme Makeover: Church Edition

Eat your heart out Ty Pennington! The church board voted last Sunday night and its official...youth center construction is underway! We've begun ripping out carpet and the parts of the old stage that we won't be using. After that they'll frame the walls, run the electrical, hang the drywall, paint, and finally lay the new floor. The kids will vote tonight to determine the color scheme for their new space. All of the work will be done by church members and the kids themselves (adult supervision required of course ;) We are blessed to have so many talented electricians, drywall experts, and others who are just good at building things!....it saves the budget in so many ways! Since this is not my area of expertise I'll just show up and let them tell me what to do while I keep the kids from painting each other rather than the walls. Hopefully, (according to our project leader) this won't take more than a month. Until its finished the kids will meet over here at our house on Wednesday nights. Here are our before pics...stay tuned for progress pictures and the finished project!

An Ark or a Snowman?

When we moved here we asked, "Hey, do you guys get a lot of snow here?" We got the same response every time: "Nah, it doesn't snow much down here in the valley." My little heart jumped for joy because it assumed that the bitter cold, snowy, mess of Kansas City was soon to be but a distant memory. And then God started laughing - I mean belly-laughing- as he pointed his finger at Jasper, TN and sent the raindrops and the snowflakes flying....

I know this to be true because lately, there have been some ridiculous weather patterns moving through our little valley. All in the same week we had monsoon-like rains and enough snow to let the kids out of school for days on end (not that it takes more than a forecast of snow...no ACTUAL snowflakes needed for this). Marion County had 12 snow days built in this year and today they have used the last one. I don't think they have gone to school a full week since Christmas break. I'm not sure that has EVER happened before. Their parents have to be going crazy.

At one point I felt like we had a moat around our house and then a few days later it was a white wonderland (okay, it was white AND green since the snow didn't quite cover the grass). So since winter isn't working out so well I say we just move on to spring and hope for the best.

Mandy

Lake Nazarene....in the backyard...

Battle of the Sexes

Recently we invited my Sunday School class - high school students - over to the house for pizza and games. I had planned to do this sooner but the holidays got the best of me and every weekend has been packed since then...you know how those pastors are...only working on weekends and all.

We had a good variety of games to choose from..Taboo (a personal favorite), Apples to Apples, Cranium, etc. In fact, we probably could have just sat there and heckled each other and completely forgotten the whole game thing but since it was the reason for our gathering (other than the fact that I just love those kids AND the "all-you-can-eat" pizza buffet on the kitchen table) we went ahead and indulged in some friendly competition. The game of choice for the afternoon: Battle of the Sexes. Keep in mind that the odds weren't entirely even....4 guys against 3 girls.

I'm terribly sad to report that we lost BIG. I had no idea those boys knew the Maybelline jingle in its entirety (Maybe she's born with it....), or that "Emily" was the most popular girl's name in the U.S. in 1999, or that Susan B. Anthony led the fight to gain women the right to vote. Our downfall was slow and painful...I had never wasted my precious brain cells learning Muhammed Ali's real name or memorizing the fact that the name for a car engine with rounded pistons is a "hemi" and it came back to bite me painfully. (I knew I should have spent more time watching Who Wants to be a Millionaire and paying attention when my dad explained car repairs) In this game there is no "phone a friend" no "lifelines" and no audience vote. Its all about the tiny, useless facts ferreted away in the subconscious gray matter.

Don't worry boys...there will be a rematch and the girls will win. How do I know this?... female intuition (and I plan to memorize EVERY card and watch reruns of Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader if that's what it takes)...the same way I know that Kevin will always lose the battle over who has to get up and turn the lights off at bedtime or make sure the house is locked (I'm great at pretending to be narcoleptic and fast asleep in seconds). Its a foregone conclusion...not a question of IF we'll win, but HOW. :)

Stay tuned for "before pictures" of our upcoming remodeling project. The teens are getting a new youth room....which means I get to spend lots of time picking out flooring samples, paint, lighting fixtures....

Mandy

Putting their heads together....literally.

My teammates....Hannah and Christy

A Visit to Antarctica....

Okay, maybe it wasn't Antarctica - just Kansas City under about a foot of snow, but it felt that cold. I think moving south has thinned my blood or something. But you have to give me a little credit...it was a high of 0 on Friday with a low of -30 and I don't care how many layers you put on, frostbite is still iminent. Last weekend Kevin and I flew back to our old home in KC to work on setting up a mission trip for our kids this summer. We're teaming up with two other churches - one in Texas and one in Memphis, TN so their youth pastor's met us in KC and the planning (and BBQ eating) commenced. The guys had several meetings each day to scope out where we might like our kids to serve. Our goal is to connect them with kids their own age who live very different lives from what they're used to. 80% of homeless people are single mothers with 2-3 kids - which means the vast majority of homeless people in general are children. Sure, we'll have them doing some grunt work: painting, cleaning, building, etc. But our main goal is to stretch them a little and move them away from some of the stereotypes they assume are true.

While the guys were in meetings....I was visiting my KC friends after 5 months away from them. I may not miss Kansas City but I do miss my friends. All their babies are getting so big! Emma, Luke, and Grayson didn't remember us since they were still teeny tinies when we moved. I was sooo relieved that Parker and Lukas remembered us. When I knocked at the Tharp house, Lukey's feet came running and when he saw me it was like we had never left...he didn't look shocked at all. Emmy was a little leary at first but she warmed up after a bit. Parker jumped right in and told me all about his dinosaurs (a recent obsession....so cute!). Luke looked so grown up and handsome. It was wonderful to get to sit and talk and eat and laugh with all of them again. I wish we could do it more often....we have many friends here but not so many right near my age and I miss my KC girls terribly! I'm hoping the Leagues can make a roadtrip in May to casa Knight. Any of the rest of the KC crew is welcome too! We'll see you all at the end of June....only another 5 months away. I can deal with that. Let the countdown begin!

Mandy

View of Union Station from my warm hotel room.

Downtown KC from our hotel.

Emma Claire engaged in my favorite pastime....snacking. She carried that bag around with her all afternoon.

Lukas and Kevin reunited at last. Let the wrestling, sword fighting, and pillow fighting begin!

Did you hear that mom?! Kevin is a pastor now. Hahhahhaahaha.

Parker and Lukas playing WWF on the couch.

Steps for Kids

Just before Christmas (Yes, I know this post is late....just consider it a belated Christmas gift from me to you) Kevin and I had the privilege of interacting with a local organization called Steps for Kids. A couple from our church is highly involved and extended an invitation for us to come and read the Christmas story at the annual Christmas party. This organization provides Christmas gifts for children in Marion County who otherwise would have none. Each family undergoes a screening process and there are some guidelines that must be met. 1. No family is helped more than once...simply because there are too many children out there who need assistance. 2. The child and at least one parent or guardian must attend the annual Christmas party and all gifts must be opened on the premesis. This makes it harder for parents or anyone else to sell the gifts later. 3. Each family must provide a list of clothing and necessities as well as toys that each child would like.

The week before Christmas we met at the local elementary school where the kids got their pictures taken with Santa and recieved a gift from him. Some liked it and some didn't....you know how that goes. Then they moved on to devour pizza and snacks. Once their bellies were full, Kevin told them the Christmas story (they're less squirmy if they're full) and prayed with them. Finally, when their little hearts could take no more...the gifts came. Each child recieves $200 worth of gifts and for most it was the biggest and best Christmas ever! We had a wonderful time passing out gifts, ooohhing and aaahhhing, wading through the wrapping paper wonderland, and carrying gifts out to the cars.

Generally, Steps for Kids helps about 105 kids each Christmas. Due to a lack of funds and help they were only able to help 34 kids this year. As a result this will be the last year that Steps for Kids is in operation. We hate to see such a good thing end. Jasper Church of the Nazarene may not be able to do all that Steps for Kids did but hopefully next Christmas we can take a more active role in helping Marion County kids.

Check out the pictures....

A mountain of presents!

This is Mack...he is one of our churchgoers and he loves helping out the kids...one of the kindest guys you'll ever meet.

Patricia Simmons and Carol Leathers. Carol is Mack's wife and Patricia is her mother. Carol has been in leadership with Steps for Kids for many years. She's so sad to see it end!

May we all strive to be generous and kind in the new year,

Kevin and Mandy