In our family we do birthdays big. I think everyone should be celebrated at least once a year. A day when everything is about you. When people notice the contributions you make. A day to be pampered and have all of your favorite things.

When it came time for our oldest to turn 16, I started asking early when he wanted to do for his 16th birthday. He told me, his mother, that he thought he would probably just go out to dinner with some friends. When I explained to him that idea didn't really work for me, we sort of walked away - and an idea was born.

​Surprises all day long.

With the help of some of his friends, we planned a parking lot party.

I designed a shirt for him and had his friends sign it.

We got him an old 1984 Dodge Ram Truck. It's so old it has a tape deck!

He was genuinely pleased.

We got him a few of his favorite things - just little things hidden around.

He said one of his favorite things about the day was wearing his birthday button around all day.

One of his dear friends help me by decorating his locker for us.

So we're an hour away from home running on 5 hours of terrible sleep a night and our 3rd movie of the trip. There are kids all over this bus, literally. Its starting to smell a little.

For those of you who have been ohh-ing and ahh-ing over the photo overload all week, here are a few things you need to know and going to camp as a sponsor:
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1. Arranging to go on the trip is just part of the adventure. Taking off work and making preparations for life to go on while you're at camp is a bit like being a ringmaster on the moon. Plan to take off an extra day to recover after camp. You'll thank us.

2. The twin bed life is exactly what you remember. 2 inch mattresses and bunk beds for adults is just as harrowing as you might imagine, especially in the morning when everything creaks and crackles and nothing works the way you expected.

3. Everything is up hill both ways in the snow at Glorietta. Even in July. Trust us.

4. Don't miss the morning leader meeting. It's good for your soul. They teach you and then you in turn teach it to your life group. It's always got some blessing inside that speaks to you.

4. Mornings can be an amazing 70 degrees until the second it is time for Rec and then the clouds roll back and it feels like the face of the sun. Pack sunscreen in your back pack and aloe in your suitcase.

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5. After Rec, it's free time. Take a nap. Trust us. Its that or don't plan to shut your eyes for prayers for the rest of the day.

Twice a day, we meet with everyone else at camp, about 2,500 others, for worship. It was always incredible. As I asked the youth what their favorite part of camp was, student after student, told me worship. It was phenomenal to watch our kids worship with total abandon.

They dove into the Word like it was finals time, cramming every bit they could in before the closing prayer. Students were not only attentive, but enthralled with the speaker, the content, and their Savior.

After Celebration in the evening, we had a meeting with our whole church group. Wednesday Zack invited a man who was a Compassion International sponsored child and is now working with Compassion, just finished his Bachelor's degree in Accounting, and is serving his people back in Kenya as a pastor.

Each church is added to one of four spirit teams. This year we were Green Rumble... and we went for it. We like to win! You were green, paint yourself green, yell for green... all week long. We saw capes and tutu's, tribal paint, and even fanny packs! in team colors!

Water Day

Each day at Rec students play and are challenged It's just for fun - lots of fun. At the end of Rec there is always a devotion, led by one of the camp staff.

The first day was water day and each station was designed to soak the kids. They played with sponges, tarps, baby pools, and lots and lots of water.

Mud Day

This was the most fun and most logistically awful day. Trying to get 60+ girls through 8 showers in 30 minutes was a challenge. Zack told the kids to wear clothes that they could just take to the dumpster.

Quite a few were hesitant, at best, about mud day, but after it started they were all in. The looks on their faces - and mud in the eyes and ears - speaks volumes about how much fun they each had playing in the mud.

Squad Wars

This day was Shallowater against like 5 other churches and we dominated. Over 96 tasks were arranged at various stations, each with a point value attached. Points earned plastic ball in baby pools. Upon the completion of your task, you were allowed to move "points" from their pool into your pool. Whole team challenges offered opportunity to earn lots of points all at once.

Our students were in it to win it. When it was announced they we won at the end the students even sung the fight song - twice! 

After the devo this day, Zach encouraged the students to do everything with that level of commitment and zeal - study, worship, play.. .all of it.  

Time away. Time with your thoughts. Time with Jesus allows for room for relationships to form, others to strengthen, and others to heal. It was amazing, but not surprising, to watch the Lord work in the lives of the students and heal some deep hurts. He brought people together to inspire one another and light fires to take what they've learned with them into the school year.

Adventure is typically a given when you move 100+ people 5 hours on way and this trip was no different. At least one bus over heated each way, Jeremy told football stories from back in the day, and we watched movies - and mostly slept - to pass the time.

Each morning these group leaders would meet with others from LOTS of other churches to learn about the theme and the lesson for the day. After the meeting each day, as a group, we stopped to visit and to pray. It was a wildly diverse group - and just who God intended for this trip.

I just woke up from a 48 hour nap after returning from camp. Last week, I took off with 104 of our youth to Glorieta, NM for 5 days of Student Life Camp. On our way to camp - a 5 hour drive on two packed tour buses - one of my youth minister friends told me that going to youth camp as a sponsor was like taking care of newborn triplets and advised me to sleep when I could.

The week was exhausting. It was wild. It was a blessing. It was memorable. We learned so much throughout the week and by day 2 the other adult sponsor and I were already talking about, "next year we should..."

On the last night the youth leaders were asking who was going again next year. They didn't want to break up "the dream team." Even with the sleep deprivation, I think that I'd still like to go again. However, I can't imagine why there isn't an application process and a waiting list of adults clamoring to go. I feel like I should have to rotate with others who want to go.

We are blessed with some incredible kids. So for those who think they might want to jump on the big bus next year, here are my top tips:

Plan on it. We often think nothing of plunking down hundreds of dollars for soccer camp, gymnastics camp, band camp, or (fill in the blank with any other activity) camp. We will even schedule family vacations and other commitments around them, because we recognize the benefit of concentrated efforts in those areas. 

Imagine what could happen if we put as much effort and financial investment into our children's spiritual development! 

​Take the time off. Reschedule. Commit to it. 
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Mentally, get ready for this, as much as possible. Pray. Pray. Pray. Get ready for anything. Be open to whatever God has been preparing for you and the youth. 

I left the night before from a baseball tournament in Sweetwater, drove home, tossed stuff in a suitcase, and left with the youth at 8am the next morning. I forgot all kinds of stuff - like a towel (Thanks for saving me, Danae) and had too much of others - like clothes. I thought that I would change for chapel each night. That didn't happen.

​Practically, bring stuff. The kids will forget stuff, lots of it. Bring some stuff. Hairdryers. Band-aids. An extra towel. Extension cord. If I get to go on the trip again, I will have a very different packing list.

I brought a backpack and that was wonderful. I packed things for the day in it and it came in handy.

Although it looked like we brought two of everything, I was surprised by the things that youth asked, "Hey, do you have a..."

My own child wore the same clothes SEVERAL days in a row. Not sure why. Don't want to know.

The more you put in, the more you will get out. Go. Get out. Jump in. Be part of the group by participating in activities, not standing on the side.

That said, I didn't participate in the Rec activities, except by encouraging, cheering and taking photos - lots of photos. The youth were probably thankful for that, although they would have been gracious and allowed me to mess up their groove. I am glad that I went to Rec time, walked around, and visited with them. Watching them play allowed me opportunities to observe the group dynamics too. It also allowed me a different avenue to create relationships with some of the students I didn't know.
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Some of the best moments of camp are the unscripted times.

Share. Be ready to share with the youth about your testimony and your faith. They are curious. Once they know that you listen and will keep their confidences, they will start to open up. Remember though, you share to get them to open up.

Camp played a significant role in my spiritual life as I grew up. I learned to have a quiet time at camp. I learned to recognize God's Spirit speaking to my heart at camp. I learned to work out my faith at camp.
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At some point, our kids will choose to either make your faith their own or reject it entirely. You can't make that choice for them, but you can give them opportunities along the way.

A Bible-believing camp is the perfect opportunity for  kids to step into their own relationship with God. For a few days they are not distracted by home life, sibling squabbles, or pressure from school. It's just them and God.

Serve the youth minister and the kids. Help create opportunities for those encounters to occur. 

The 5th and 6th grade girls that I have been teaching on Wednesday nights since they were in 1st grade, were invited to sit in on youth group for the first time. There was a special speaker and an extended worship time. You could tell they were nervous as we filed into "big church" and as the service progressed, they relaxed. As we were leaving, they were talking about how they couldn't wait to be in youth.

Being in a youth group was essential to my well-being. I cherish the relationships and lessons I learned there.

Those years can be difficult and lonely, struggling to fit in, taking on new responsibilities, and filtering messages from all sides. Teens can use as much encouragement and love as we can give them!

I had a verse taped inside my locker each year. One of the most memorable I remember, I traced a picture our of my Precious Moments bible. The verse read, " I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord...." Reading Jeremiah 29:11 between classes offered comfort many times.

Here are a few options for middle school or high school lockers you may know of...

• 1 Corinthians 10:13
  13 No temptation has overtaken you except what is common to mankind. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can endure it.
• 1 Timothy 4:12
  12 Don’t let anyone look down on you because you are young, but set an example for the believers in speech, in conduct, in love, in faith and in purity.
• Deuteronomy 31:6
  6 Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or terrified because of them, for the LORD your God goes with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you.”
• Ephesians 4:29
  29 Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen.
• Exodus 20:12
  12 “Honor your father and your mother, so that you may live long in the land the LORD your God is giving you.
• Galatians 6:9
  9 Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.
• Isaiah 41:10
  10 So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.
• Jeremiah 29:11
  11 For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.
• Psalm 119:9
  9 How can a young person stay on the path of purity? By living according to your word.
• Psalm 119:105
  105 Your word is a lamp for my feet, a light on my path.
• Romans 15:13
  13 May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.
• Philippians 4:6-7
  6 Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. 7 And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
• Proverbs 1:8-9
  8 Listen, my son, to your father’s instruction and do not forsake your mother’s teaching. 9 They are a garland to grace your head and a chain to adorn your neck.
• Proverbs 3:5-6
  5 Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; 6 in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight.
• Matthew 11:28-30
  28 “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. 29 Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. 30 For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”
• Isaiah 40:29-31
  29 He gives strength to the weary and increases the power of the weak. 30 Even youths grow tired and weary, and young men stumble and fall; 31 but those who hope in the LORDwill renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint.
• Ephesians 6:1-3
  1 Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right. 2 “Honor your father and mother”—which is the first commandment with a promise— 3 “so that it may go well with you and that you may enjoy long life on the earth.”

My sister made appointments for all of the girls to get a royal make over at the Bippity Boppity Boutique during one of the first days on board. She booked it online weeks before we ever set sail. With the on board credit we recieved from our travel agent, it was virtually free.

Girls can be princesses, mermaids, Tinker Bell, Minnie, or a pirate. When you make the appointment they ask for dress and shoe sizes, and the child’s personal dress package is compiled and ready when you arrive. My tween choose to be a Disney Diva and was embarrassed by all of the attention and fru-fru, but at the end when she saw how adorable she was, she was pleased.

She giggled the entire time. The bet part was that she made friends with the girl in the chair next to her. They ran around and played together the rest of the trip.

I have  no idea how I first learned of this dog ball. (My husband brought it home) I have no idea what ever possessed me to actually buy one. (He bough it) Perhaps I thought that it would be funny.  (You guessed it,  he thought it was hilarious)  It's not. (It was for the first few minutes.)

This Bable Ball is the MOST annoying dog toy ever.

This is a video we found on YouTube. It's proof that others find it annoying too.

It's so anoying that we actually hid it - months ago. However, you'll never guess what amazing discovery one of of kids made this week. And then gave it back to the dog. Yep. The Ball.

We heard an unfamiliar voice chattering and we kept looking and looking... and then we made the discovery. The Ball was back. We have taken the ball away from our dog over and over. Yet, we still have The Ball.

We love Santa Land. Even though the kids are getting older they still enjoy this tradition. Every year when we top the hill on Broadway and can see the lights welcoming everyone to Santa Land, they kids still gasp. It was nothing different tonight.

Everyone should take the time to walk around, look at the scenes, and huddle with friends and neighbors by the fires. Most nights there are live music performances. There is hot coca for sale and of course, the main attraction is Santa Clause. 

Learn More

These days it's a given that at some point our children will have a cell phone. Just like the gift of a bicycle, there are some basic rules and responsibilities of cell phone.

When our oldest child recieved his first cell phone, which he was probably too young to have, we looked in quite a few places (There is a great list here) to creating a cell phone contract to teach him about the responsibilities that come with having a cell phone, as well as the consequences for not seeing those responsibilities through. We went through the contract, asked and answered questions, and have since edited and revised the original contract based on usage and trends.


Cell Phone: Tween Responsibilities

• I will not send threatening or mean texts to others

• I will not text or place phone calls after 9 p.m.

• I will keep my phone charged at all times

• I will not bring my cell phone to the family dinner table

• I will not go over our plan's monthly minutes, text message, or data limits. If I do, I understand that I may be responsible for paying any additional charges or that I may lose my cell phone privileges
• I understand that I am responsible for knowing where my phone is, and for keeping it in good condition
• I understand that my cell phone may be taken away if I talk back to my parents, I fail to do my chores, or I fail to keep my grades up
• I will obey rules of etiquette regarding cell phones in public places. I will make sure my phone is turned off when I am in church, in restaurants, or quiet settings
• I will obey any rules my school has regarding cell phones, such as turning them off during class, or keeping them on vibrate while riding the school bus
• I promise I will alert my parents when I receive suspicious or alarming phone calls or text messages from people I don't know
• I will also alert my parents if I am being harassed by someone via my cell phone
• I will not use my cell phone to bully another
• I will send no more than _____ texts per day via text, messenger, etc.
• I understand that having a cell phone can be helpful in an emergency, but I know that I must still practice good judgment and make good choices that will keep me out of trouble or out of danger
• I will not send embarrassing photos of my family or friends to others. In addition, I will not use my phone's camera to take embarrassing photos of others
• I understand that having a cell phone is a privilege, and that if I fail to adhere to this contract, my cell phone privilege may be revoked
• If needed, I may help pay for the cost of the phone and/or for excess charges that I incur without permission from my parents

Cell Phone Contract: Parent Responsibilities

• I understand that I will make myself available to answer any questions about owning a cell phone and using it responsibly
• I will support my child when he or she alerts me to an alarming message or text message that he or she has received
• I will alert my child if our cell phone plan changes and impacts the plan's minutes
• I will give my child _______ warning(s) before I take his or her cell phone away
• Signed ______________________________ (Child)
  Signed ______________________________ (Parents)
  Date ______________________________

The Sail Away Celebration Deck Party is not to be missed! The Sail Away Deck Party is full of excitement, has lots of music & dancing, and your first glimpse of some fantastic Disney characters decked out in their cruising gear. Captain Mickey Mouse and his friends Minnie, Donald, Daisy, Goofy, and of course, Pluto put on a fantastic show. ​The Disney Cruise Line will make you and your family feel special from the very start.

This was our first chance to see some fantastic Cast Members who want you to join in on the fun. We tried to get as close to the stage as possible so that the kids could see, enjoy, and participate in their first big Disney party. If you don't grab a spot up front, video cameras are out and about to put smiling faces and killer dance moves, up on the huge television screen on the forward funnel.

At the end of the party, the ship’s horn will blow in the tune of “When You Wish Upon a Star,” which, to be honest, brought a tear of two to my eye. It was truly magical.