Staying Connected

Linked together for one month already!

Kids' Connection opened nearly a month ago praying that children would find a fun and nurturing place to go after school. And here we are, one month later, enjoying approximately 70 children every Tuesday and Thursday. We will finish out the month of September with organized games on Tuesday and on Thursday, Apple Pie baking with Jo Hop and 'How to be a Kind Kid' with Anita Bomgaars. Your child will be able to sign up for baking cookies again in October.

Last week Northwestern Bank hosted a birthday party for the children born in August and September complete with treats, candles, games and gifts. Thank you Northwestern Bank! Anita Bomgaars began her 4-part series on "How to be a Kind Kid'. The children learned good manners at a tail-gate party and how to greet someone new. Also, Shelby Baker and Angel Andersen baked cookies with 5 Kindergarten and first grade children. I sampled one and they tasted delicious. Thanks Anita, Angel and Shelby for your dedication to the kids at Kids' Connection.

Parents, please check our Kids' Connection calendar posted right here on the blog for October activities, the October Bible verse and 'fruit' and a list of the other Fruits of the Spirit. Also, look for a bulletin board at the registration table with 'donation tickets' posted. Feel free to take one or two tickets as a contribution to our program. Thanks so much!!!

Running in Circles

We had a relaxing and low-key day at Kids' Connection today. Brady, Kelsey and Sam performed a skit called 'Running in Circles' about a boy named Peter who thought he could do all of his exercise in one day so that he could watch TV for a whole month. Our theme is self-control and we found out that you need to exercise moderately and that maybe TV isn't good to watch everyday. It was a fun lesson!
I hope you enjoyed the rousing pictures of our Western Hoedown last Thursday. Thanks to the many volunteers, the party was a huge success! We enjoyed petting a 'real' horse, jumping the 'canyon', ringing the 'cactus', roping a 'calf', playing tic-tac-toe with cowboy boots and cowboy hats, and listening to fiddle/accordion music!
On Thursday, Anita Bomgaars will introduce a 'How-to' class with several children. They will learn how to give a tailgate party, use a cell phones properly and explore other life skills. Six K and 1st grade students will 'Bake With Shelby'. It should be another fun day at Kids' Connection!

YEEHAW!

Apples, apples everywhere!

Self-control is the theme for the month of September. We were blessed by Lisa Laird and her puppet ministry on Tuesday. She introduced us to the word self-control and gave us many examples of how to control ourselves and our actions. Many of us learned how to actually drive a long sharp needle into a balloon without popping it! That took lots of self-control...and patience! :) The real 'fruit' that ties into self-control is the apple. We think of the story of Adam and Eve and being tempted in the Garden of Eden and we think of the apple as the fruit they picked from the tree God asked them not to eat from. Yesterday we celebrated showing self-control by having an apple party in the Fellowship Hall. The children wrote what they were thankful for on a paper apple that they held while running an obstacle course in the Fellowship Hall. The older children put an apple puzzle together, and played 'apple fencing.' The younger children ran the 'apple on a spoon' race. Thanks so much to Suzanne, Alyce, Arlys, Shelby and Angel for their important part in organizing and helping out at the apple party! Thank you!

Next week Tuesday we are celebrating our Grandparents. National Grandparents Day is Sunday, Sept. 12 and we want to honor our Grandparents on Tuesday, the 14th. Many children have Grandparents living close by, while others do not. Some children may have 'adopted' Grandparents in the area. All are welcome to spend the afternoon with their grandchildren. Come for snacks, a Bible lesson and FUN!

Next week Thursday at Kids' Connection we are having a Western Hoedown in the Fellowship Hall of First Reformed Church. There will be fun stations for the children to enjoy like crafts, games, animals, and...FUN!! Come dressed in your western clothes and be ready for a rip-roarin' good time!

I feel strongly about taking a moment to thank ALL of the volunteers at Kids' Connection! Its because of them that your child is safe and having a great time at Kids' Connection. The next time you encounter one of our many volunteers be sure to say a big thank you to them. I am SO thankful for their enthusiasm, encouragement, energy and LOVE!!! Thank you so much!!

Pockets Full of Fun teaching us about "Self-Control"

Week #2 at Kids' Connection!

Kids, this week at Kids' Connection we are introducing the "Fruits of the Spirit". If you look in your Bible at Galatians 5:22, you'll find all 9 of the "fruits": love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. We will start with the "fruit" of self-control. Lisa Laird is coming tomorrow, Tuesday, Sept. 7, with her puppets and Pockets Full of Fun to teach you an important message about self-control. The real fruit that goes along with self-control is the apple. We have an Apple Party planned for Thursday, Sept. 9.

Please join us for ALL of the fun and excitement of learning God's Word together!!

We had a GREAT first week at Kids' Connection!!

God is so good! Two buses we needed to bring ALL of the children to Kids' Connection. 70 children walked through the doors on Thursday and blessed us with their smiles and their excitement. Our volunteers were on board with hugs, smiles, rice krispie bars, juice and fun activities!! The children and volunteers decorated blank puzzle pieces to show that we are 'connected' to each other as people of God.

The Bible story for the 3rd-5th grade children was about blind Bartimaeus found in Mark 10:46-52. In this story Jesus touches his eyes and and he is healed of his blindness. I asked if anyone would like to volunteer to be Bartimaeus and a precious girl jumped up! I retold the story and at the end of the story, she shouted, "I can see!" It was priceless!

New toys were displayed in the doll/dress up room, Aaron, BreElle and Reese mastered the Domino Rally game, 3 new crafts were out on the tables and clipboards were available for children to sign up for baking cookies, making apple pies and learning how to sew on a sewing machine.

All children, K-5th grade, are welcome to join us at Kids' Connection . Just a reminder: All children must fill out a Child Information Form available at the First Reformed Church office or at our church website at www.frcoc.org.

Our First Day at Kids' Connection!

What an exciting day at Kids' Connection on Tuesday, August 31, our first day together! Volunteers showed up excited and ready to greet the children around 3:00, Cindy went off to Orange City Elementary to gather up the children and found that we needed return to the school for a second group of children! Orange City Christian had an early dismissal because of the heat, so parents from OCCS brought their children to Kids' Connection themselves. Many children walked through our doors and were greeted warmly and shown by some very capable volunteers, where to hang up their backpacks and find their name tags. The children had popsicles, a cookie and apple juice for a snack and then they gathered on the floor for a Bible story about how much Jesus loves them. Following the story, the children were thrilled to find the playrooms, toys, games, pingpong tables crafts and coloring/sticker pages! The afternoon went by so fast! Parents started picking up their children around 4:45 until 6:00. God blessed us with many precious children yesterday and we are excited to see what He has planned for tomorrow's enrollment! Thank you for your continued prayers for Kids' Connection!!

Our first day together!