Sippy Cups & Chalices

I have had the chorus from "Just Give Me a Reason" by Pink rolling around in my head. 

It's in the stars It's been written in the scars on our hearts We're not broken just bent And we can learn to love again.

Our now 7 year old wants a dog so badly he can hardly contain himself. Unfortunately, we are not getting a dog any time soon. In order to remind us of the fact that we don’t have a dog, and he would like a dog, he decided that his 7th Birthday Party would be a Puppy Party, celebrating the puppies he doesn’t have! He also wanted this puppy party to be at Peter Piper Pizza and he didn’t want to invite anyone from school, because they might make fun of him for not having a violent, shoot em up kind of party(that’s a blog post for another day.) So we decided to have a puppy party at Peter Piper Pizza, say that 3 times fast.  And actually this made it super easy on this money, but still allowed us some fun and creativity as well.

First were our super awesome, puppy party invites. I think they turned out pretty cute myself. They had all the information and were fun to make with my little guy.

As I said, we kept it simple because the party was done at Peter Piper Pizza so we had dog bowls, with each child’s name, a puppy hat and a stuffed puppy for them to take home. Below you can se my littlest sporting his puppy hat while playing games.

Finally, we had “puppy dough” cupcakes, which were AMAZING! You can also see the dog dish, hat, puppy combo in the background. 

So, our youngest son, Zachary, turned 3 at the end of July and we celebrated in style with his very own Fire Fighter Party! There were more firetrucks and little fire people than one could possibly imagine. And the whole day was filled with fun, games, presents, cupcakes and pizza. Here's a look at what we did, simple yet effective Fire Station right in our own home. And pretty cheap too!! Enjoy!

We started off with everyone being welcomed to Fire Station #3 by pictures of the Fire Chief himself, Zachary! We took these pictures at a 4th of July parade and then I had them blown up through Costco Photo for less than $9 for all three of them.

Once you entered the station it was time to get "suited" up. Every child had a fire fighter hat that I got from Amazon.com. As everyone walked through the house they quickly found the "hydration station" where everyone firefighter had a fire hydrant straw cup with their name on it. These I found at a party supply store.

The hats and cups were part of the take home "goodie bag" After people had settled in and the firefighters were ready we headed out back for a good old fashion Rescue. The boys and I had made fire trucks out of paper boxes, paint, paper plates and ribbon. They are big enough for a 6 year old, but not much more than that.

First each firefighter drove their truck to the tree and rescued the cat that was stuck up inside of it.

After rescuing the cat they headed over to the water station where they prepared their extinguishers(we had some but couldn't find them, so we used water guns.)

They used their extinguishers to put out the balloon "flames" After putting out the flames they ran up the stairs, down the slide and then hopped back in their trucks to make it back to the station.

Once they got to the station they go to adopt their own Dalmatian to take home with the rest of their stuff!

After that it was good eats all over the place, presents and then our little birthday dude got his very own Spraying Fire Truck! You will see below our creative names for the snacks and that we just used the emergency vehicles we already had to enhance the decorations!

Licorice- Rescue Ropes

Chocolate Covered Raisins- Dalmatian Spots

Mix of Cheetos- Flames

The FireFighter himself!

I'm a full time working mom of 2 little boys, which means we are always going, going, going. But, one of my greatest joys is to be able to plan creative birthday parties for my boys every year, and this year is no exception. Even better, as they get older they love to help make and create the party with me!! So without further ado, Colby's Monster 6th birthday!!!

For our invitations we made student ID badges and then spray painted pringles cans to look like "scream cans". Each can then got a Student ID invitation with a monster inside.

We headed to Enchanted Island, an outdoor, self contained amusement park in the heart of Central Phoenix at Encanto Park. We had an area just for us where we could set out the monster food and the kids had ride bracelets for unlimited rides the entire time we were there. The beauty of where we were located meant the kids could run around and we would see them if they attempted to leave the park!

Our food was simple food, but with silly names to tie into the theme. Carrots were our "monster claws." We had "Mike's Eye" PB & J roll ups and Sully's Turkey Rollups. Using graham crackers, frosting and chocolate we made "Smore Doors" To top it all off we had Mike & Sully Cupcakes to celebrate the day!!

Each goodie bag was filled with things that were a part of the Scare Games from Monsters University. We had a spiky light up ball for the urchins, we had a maze pen for the maze. We gave Monsters Fruit Snacks as well. 

   A lot has been going on in the church, in our world, and in the State of Arizona for the last little while. And every time I am driving around and lost in thought I find that the song “Say Something” by Christina Aguilera and A Great Big World comes on the radio and it strikes me as a plea in so many of the cases and situations that we find ourselves in right now.

            For those of you that don’t know the song here are the lyrics:

Say something, I'm giving up on you I'll be the one, if you want me to Anywhere I would've followed you Say something, I'm giving up on you   And I am feeling so small It was over my head I know nothing at all   And I will stumble and fall I'm still learning to love Just starting to crawl   Say something, I'm giving up on you I'm sorry that I couldn't get to you Anywhere I would've followed you Say something, I'm giving up on you   And I will swallow my pride You're the one that I love And I'm saying goodbye  

It’s so striking. Think of it from the perspective of a young person or a gay person or a person considered less than others in the church:

Dear Church Say Something, I’m giving up on you You’ve promised so much and yet you have failed to follow through I’m sorry that I couldn’t get to you That we couldn’t find ourselves on the same page Say something, I’m giving up on you   I will stumble and fall I’m learning to live But I’m starting to crawl   So say something, I’m giving up on you I wanted you to be there to see me through I’ve stood by your side But you’re letting me down Say something, I’m giving up on you.

  Or, think about it in the middle of all that was happening in Arizona, it’s like speaking to the Governor waiting for an answer, or the legislators not listening to the people they represent:

Dear Legislators Say something, I’m giving up on you We want to include all people I’m sorry I couldn’t get to you That we couldn’t find ourselves on the same page Say something, I’m giving up on you   We might disagree We might make mistakes But we can listen to each other   Say something, I’m giving up on you Excluding others isn’t what we are meant to do Anywhere I would have followed you But now you can’t even hear what I’m saying So say something, I’m giving up on you.

  Or, even all the clergy in the denomination who are fed up with their voices going unheard and wanting to do what’s right and including ALL people:

Dear Church Say something, I’m giving up on you I’ve pledged to always be there for you But that doesn’t mean I have to agree with you Say something, I’m giving up on you   And I, I will swallow my pride I’m still learning to love But I’m saying goodbye   Say something, I’m giving up on you I don’t want it to get this far But I can’t exclude others too Let’s love as Jesus loved Say something, I’m giving up on you

Do you remember your first love? I remember mine. Aaron was a year older than me and we had been friends for years in church youth group. We had been dubbed the “Gossip King & Queen,” not because we always had the gossip, but because during youth group dinner we would sit on the old fire place together and lead the discussion around everything that happened that week in our lives. It began as a friendship, it turned into a crush and later my first love. The summer after my freshman year my family and I moved back to Arizona because my parents had finished seminary and were receiving their appointments in their conference. Our last thing with our youth group was Youth ’95 in Utah and my first kiss with that first love. We parted ways after that, what high school teenagers can keep a long distance relationship going? It was bittersweet. Aaron would always be my first love, but even later, and to this day, he would remain one of my best friends.

            I have another first love. One who has broken my heart, who has caused me to question its beliefs, who has made me pause and think and re-evaluate. This past week the UMC has been in the news because of the Schaefer trial and I have a lot of thoughts swirling around in my head, some frustrations and at the bottom of it all, a lot of heartbreak. Yet, I know that our faith teaches us that out of the death, out of the heartbreak comes resurrection.

            I should probably say that I think Rev. Schaefer did the right thing. I think that we are called to love as Jesus would love and that includes loving everyone unconditionally. I think Rev. Schaefer will continue to do the right thing and in 30 days I am quite sure that he will hand over his orders if that’s what it comes down too. And I hope that those of us United Methodist Clergy who support Schaefer and all that he stands for will stick around in the UMC and continue to do the right thing.

            While it saddens me that The United Methodist Church(the big institution) can’t accept all people as they are, that they think some are of less worth than others, it saddens me more that people would want to leave the denomination, give up and not continue to work for a church and a world where all people are loved, accepted and appreciated for all that they are. I look at my first love and know that if I had given up and never talked to him again, my life would not be the same, the same is true of my first church love The UMC.

Better late than never is the motto with this blog. Zachary turned 2 on July 30th and the theme for his party was construction. Zachary loves cleaning and “fixing” things and so this was the perfect theme for his party. I did not have as much time to make my own decorations for this party, but I think we did pretty well, especially with the help of Box Play 4 Kids!!!(recycling household items with stickers for fun, imaginative kids play.)

On to the party. We used the many construction vehicles we already had around the house to hold our snacks for the party. 

The overal snack table. Used Happy Birthday caution tape to decorate some of the “plainer” bowls. 

The bulldozer holding rocks or glitter grapes(jello and grapes).

Dump truck filled with chips and some oreos and worms.

Scooping up “energy ball” rocks.

The games in our party came from an outside dig in Zachary’s new construction sandbox(a birthday present from grandma) and the Box Play build center that we set up. 

Digging for treasure. We figured out how many of each thing every child could get and they put their prizes in their tool belts(pics coming in a minute)

Zachary on his sandbox with his tool belt:)

Creating our buildings out of Box Play stickers and toilet paper rolls!!!!

For our cake we went away from traditional cake or cupcakes and did worms in dirt to go with the construction and digging theme. 

Chocolate pudding, crushed oreos and gummi worms. Can’t get much easier or anymore delicious!!!

Finally, our take home for everyone was a tool belt with a tool(this they got at the beginning as they became workers on the construction site) and then they were sent home with a clipboard with their name on it, and a box play tractor sticker to make at home(they graduated to the foreman level as they left). Such great fun!!!

Sitting out waiting for the guests, all organized and ready. Used the big dump truck for the clipboards!!!

Thanks to Box Play 4 Kids for the custom thank you caution tape and the tractor stickers for all!!

Thanks to my stepmom(and stepbrother) for making the stickers with each child’s name to make the clipboard that much more special. 

Overall we had a blast. We built, we dug, we ate, we conquered the construction theme. Hopefully your construction kid enjoys their party too!!!

It's funny. I just took our adorable, perfectly healthy little 2 year old, Zachary, in for his 2 year appointment. And what's the first thing I posted when we were done? "At the age of 2 Zachary finally hit 25 lbs." And then began the barrage of comments and comparisons. My 2.5 year old is only 26.3, he will catch her soon. My son is only 18 months and weighs 28 lbs. And on and on and on. And it got me to thinking. We have created a world where we feel like we are obligated to compare. And not just compare, but also defend our kids, our stance, our life, etc. 

And this is true in whatever we do, especially in the church. In order to try and save our denominations and churches and religions, we have decided to institute a system that calculates numbers, tells you if you are healthy or unhealthy, tells you what you need to work on. Sounds a lot like growth charts for children and babies. We constantly hear that we should be better at this or grow in this area, or hey, congratulations you're on the chart, but we don't really look at what is behind the numbers.

In education for the longest time there was a push toward "teaching to the test" getting the right answers so our schools and teachers looked good, but what was happening was that our children weren't learning how to problem solve or figure things out for themselves. They were just learning the answer. And so, the trend in education now is back to the core standards, teaching the process, fixing where we got off course, and then getting the right answer.

What if we viewed church more in this way. What if instead of comparing our class size to someone else's class size we started to look at the journey that led us to where we are. What if we started to think about the process that went in to what was successful, we looked at how we might do it again, or how we might change the process in the future. Not focusing on a right number or answer, but looking at changing lives and making disciples in the process. We have a lot we can learn from baby statistics and educational standards as we work to make a denomination that is out to "make disciples of Jesus Christ for the transformation of the world."

We all know that our mainline denominations are struggling, including my beloved United Methodist Church. We have been trying to figure out how to save churches, change churches, grow churches, build new churches, try new ministries, the list goes on and on. 

After serving for the last year in a cooperative ministry setting that included 3 dying, struggling congregations, with about 30 people in worship, mostly over the age of 70, I have begun to think about how and why we do ministry. These three congregations have a rich history, who have built buildings, relationships and memories, and are starting to see those memories, those relationships slowly fade away and yes, die. 

It occurred to me about 2-3 months into this appointment that there was an avenue of ministry that we had probably never thought we would need or use, something we had never realized would come into play in our churches, and yet is really a part of our story and life cycle as humans and as Christians.

I think we are entering a time where we need not just new church start training, or revitalization, but, if we are being truly honest with ourselves, we need to train and find those who are gifted in hospice ministry to serve our local churches, as we will have to say goodbye and let go in order to grow and change in the future.

Hospice is a wonderful gift for those who are facing end of life or serious illnesses. Hospice care is a philosophy  of care that focuses on relieving the suffering of patients and on their emotional and spiritual needs. Hospice care focuses on bringing comfort, self-respect, and tranquility to people in their final days, months and years of life. Hospice believes that the end of life is not a medical experience, but a human experience. Re-read that paragraph, think about it in terms of the church, in terms of mainline denominations, in terms of death, resurrection and new life. 

I was at lunch today, saying goodbye to a church member as I prepare for a new appointment. This particular person loves a plain hamburger, no cheese, always eats half of it and takes the rest home. So today, he had requested going to Applebee's, because again, he gets the same thing no matter where we go. 

I hadn't been to Applebee's in quite some time. With all the wonderful local restaurants around where we live and in downtown Phoenix we don't find ourselves in chain casual dining settings very often. So, when we sat down I was completely surprised to learn that they had instituted something new into their customer service experience.

As the waitress came to our table, she introduced herself as Adrienne, told us she was available if we needed anything and then began to take our drink orders. All very normal for a meal out, and then came the something new. Before she took our drink order Adrienne asked each of us our name and wrote it down on her little ordering pad. She looked us in the eye, and asked us our name. And then, throughout the entire dining experience she repeatedly used our names.

Now, I'm not going to say that we left Applebee's as best friends, but I did leave feeling like she cared a little bit more, and in the process, I think I cared a little bit more about her, using her name multiple times while we were there instead of just saying generic things like "thank you" and "it's wonderful." We did share any earth shattering information about ourselves, but we did take the time to treat each other as human beings, as people with stories and names and lives.

So, that's it. My big ah-ha moment of the day. Perhaps we as people, and especially as the church can learn a little customer service from the people of Applebee's. We weren't wearing a nametag, and yet Adrienne took the time to get to know our names, as well as the names of the other tables she was working out. She put in a little extra effort to make us feel welcome and wanted. When was the last time we did that in the church. Went up to someone we didn't know, or someone whose name we could remember and said, "Hey, I'm Melissa, your name is?"