at Calvary Lutheran. For the past year, a few of us have been participating the secret sister program. Today was the big reveal. At the photo booth, all of our Nicki’s: Nicki Sadek, Nicki Williams, and Niki Weber.Coincidentally, Deena and I were each other’s secret sister.

Leone does a great job of taking pictures, then printing and creating photo bulletin boards of events in the hallway.Everyone gathers in the courtyard:Rita, Gabby, and Vi:but then I snuck out a bit early to …

This was a very-well attended event at Calvary Lutheran. Members from other small congregations were invited to attend. Lots of decadent appetizers and dessertsand a talent show.

The youth group at Calvary Lutheran put on a fundraiser. Ready to deliver dessert!

I’ve been working on a new directory for Calvary Lutheran Church for about one year. It turned out to be a much bigger project than I originally thought, but that’s usually the case, right? Today I passed out the finished directories! Hurray!

at Calvary Lutheran Church. For the past couple of weeks, in between everything else, I’ve been preparing a few outdoor activities for the Harvest Festival. Nine numbered butternut squash that did not like to stand upright and bowling pumpkins with handles instead of finger holes.6 rolls of toilet paper encased in clear plastic bags.Meanwhile, inside the Social Hall,lots of good food,guessing how many root beer barrels were in the container,checking out the prizes for the bingo game,and lots of raffle prizes.

We met in the Social Hall because brunch was served in the middle of the service.Every Pre-K through 6th grader participated in the story from last Monday, Jesus is the Good Shepherd. We had lots of lambs (and a little chaos) for this performance.Everything went well. Even the mistakes and sparks of silliness were appreciated by the audience. This is the entire adult crew (except for the picture-taker) that made this year’s Vacation Bible School a huge success.

Jesus Appears to Mary in the Garden. Mary discovered the rock no longer covered the entrance to the tomb.Mary went to tell John the Apostle and Simon Peter. John arrived at the tomb first,looked in and saw the cloths that wrapped Jesus’ body but didn’t go inside.Simon Peter arrived,went inside the tomb and found the folded cloth that covered Jesus’ face.When Mary went inside the tomb, she saw two angels who spoke to her.Mary spoke to a man she thought was the gardener until he spoke her name, then she knew He is risen!This week was so busy and a lot of work, but turned out quite well. I heard later that one of the youngest children who participated acted out this story with her Barbie’s at home in the evening. Cool!

Yesterday’s story was Jesus Tells about a Sower. We sowed seeds in a path where people walked but birds ate the seed, rocky ground (rocks laying on a dark brown towel), ground that also grew vines, and finally good soil. Managing all the birds, seeds, vines, and plants must have been overwhelming – I took no pictures.

Today’s story was Jesus Tells about a Lost Son. Note: two boys wanted to be the wayward son, so we had two sons. Here the father is giving his sons money to go out into the world:The sons spent the money foolishly including buying pizza and soda for two party girls:The sons are hungry and desperate and find work on a farm. One son took care of the pigs while the other intently raked the green grass.The father welcomes home his lost son:A few pictures from the other groups I worked with:Thinking about eating the pig food:The older brother was unhappy as the father greeted the son:Isabella and the horse became immediate and fast friends. She named him Hot Cocoa and gave him a hug before she left each day.As a little break from storytelling/acting, we used the props from the party scene to take group photos.Lunch served by the lunch crew. Deena Nickel (at right taking a picture) organized Vacation Bible School this year.

Tu – Day 2: Jesus feeds 5000 people. The miracle produced small cups of goldfish crackers and wheat thins (bread) for snacking. Then everyone took different parts, we did the 15-minute skit again, and we had a little snack. Repeat.
From Psalm 23: He makes me lie down in green pastures, He leads me beside still waters.