Beach Bash

So Beach Bash is only two days away and the last minute planning is becoming serious. Our outside plugs for North Beach aren't exactly working right now, so I hope we can get them fixed. Otherwise the inflatable games will have to be blown up with my good old lungs. The food is coming along well, and Brooke and Bethany have made stops at every Mejier in town getting the good deal on pop. It takes a lot of stops when the limit is 2 per customer and your looking for 50 cases of Coke. It's going to be a sweet event. One that you won't want to miss, let's just all pray that it doesn't rain!!!

Last Friday at North Beach was what I would call a "joyful" night. The atmosphere was pretty crazy, even though my game totally flopped, the rest of the night was so much fun. I hope everyone got a chance to sign up for D.I.V.E. It's going to be sweet this year and when I say sweet, I mean Totally Awesome. It might even be more awesome than watching a Rex-Kuan-Do match between Chuck Norris and Vin Diesel.

Paint, food, and dancing-who could ask for more!

Oh,where to begin...Parents-just be happy you aren't here! Only kidding-there is some incredible bonding going on, and the kids really seem to enjoy the work they are doing. Remind them of this the next time they complain about cleaning their rooms!
Today part of Sesley group returned to the Senior center to put up border and do some touching up-who said teenagers were detail minded. As soon as we arrive, the sweet ladies in the cafeteria asked if Scotty came back. He found himself at the center of attention-who can resist those puffy cheeks! I think he just likes wearing the hair net!
One other group spent the morning painting a barn for an elderly gentleman. We were a little unnerved to see a severed,dried fish head hanging from the barn. John, the great fisherman, told us the story of how the fish was caught and provided a great banquet for him. However, I don't think the girls appreciated the sentiment.
The Mountain View Baptist Church provided lunch for the kids today. WOW! Personally, I had 2 desserts, and Kurt had to be dragged away kicking and screaming from the watermelon. God Bless this town-I'm sure they will never be the same after these North Beachers touched down.
The deck staining continues, much to the delight of Liz. However, I believe the body art the kids came away with in various colors of stain and paint are a testiment to their good natures. Let's hope the paint comes off!
We will spend another afternoon at the river. It's Chad excuse for not taking a shower-again. It's amazing the nature that God has provided us.What a gift! The kids continue to enjoy the services. Last night we were taught about the Fruits of the Spirit. Kurt designated each student a "fruit" and they are being challenged today to fulfull that "fruit". No one is supposed to know which one each other is except by the way they are acting.
We are looking forward to the rest of the week. God Bless!

Car rides, unknown smells, and screaming

So we made it to Mountain View with no troubles. The car ride was a blast although I had to have a short discussion with the guys about letting girls put make up on them. I had to remind them of the kid that allowed the girls to make-up on him during my junior high mission trip and how when he got to camp that night, He was the first to get the swirly. Also I noticed that the boys van in front of us drove most of the way with the windows down. I don't believe Taco Bell was the wisest of choices for their lunch. I'm also a little disappointed that we paid for tickets to go to Six Flags on Friday because I think the girls screamed enough going through all the hills of Missouri, that they don't need to ride roller coasters. We might just drive around the country side, that should entertain them. But all in all, we made it safe and had a lot of fun in the process.

Last night we have our first worship session. The band was great and the message sparked a lot of conversation afterwards. We had a great small group time.

Now today we are working on two different projects. Half of us are painting some rooms at the senior center. I know we are only supposed to paint the walls, but I think a couple of the teens are wanting to paint the floor also for some reason!!!! Also Scott, Austin, and Chad have been rewiring their sound system, so know the seniors can rock out to their tunes. The other group is working at Crestview health center and they are staining a huge deck. I feel a little bit bad for them beause they are out in the heat, while we're enjoying the Air Conditioning.

After this we are headed to river to do a little swimming. I'll send you another update as soon as I can get back to a computer. We're all doing great and are looking forward to a great week.