One thing I love about Central is that it’s a place where it’s okay to not
be okay.  Guess who’s included in that category…moms.  Yep, I am one of
those moms.  I’ve faced numerous challenges in this wonderful role;
frustrated with nursing, challenged by my a two year old, struggled with
potty training, a child with health issues and strong will.  And those are
just a few of the preschool challenges where I struggled to be “okay”.

Some days it might seem that you are the only mom struggling.  This is where
it is so important to lean on relationships; your relationship with God and
a network of other moms who can relate…who can be authentic.  I love that
I have a short list a people to lean on when I need to share the good, the
bad and hilarious parts of motherhood.  Include God on that list; thank him
for the good days and small blessings that he sends your way, but turn to
him for the small challenges as well.  I have said that prayer in the middle
of Target, “God, give me the patience to handle this tantrum.”

I am blessed to be a mom and I am okay with not always being okay.

Andrea Kessler

Centralkidz

Hello Parents,

We are getting the cabins cleaned now and then we are eating at 11:00 am.  One word…PIZZA!!!!  After that, we are on the road (hopefully by 11:45 am).  That means the buses should be back at Central Christian Church by 5:00 pm at the latest (barring something crazy…insert a prayer against craziness here).  I plan on being back by 4:30.  So, if you want to come early and watch the video from camp, please do!  We will have your kids’ leaders calling when the buses are roughly an hour from the church so you can make the call to come early or not.

Please do me one favor…please have your phones near you to receive those calls and get to the church promptly.  I want to serve your kids’ leaders one last time by getting them to their beds and baths as quickly as I can.  Thanks!  Speaking of that…thanks so much for trusting us with your kids and THANKS EVEN MORE for all your faithful prayers!  God has worked in awesome ways through them all!  We will see you soon!

Kurt Pflegl

Central Kidz

Hey Parents,

Have you ever asked you child, “How was school?” and the reply was, “Fine.” Many times I would become frustrated when I asked a kid a question and received a one word reply.  Many of the parents that I have worked can relate.  I hear parents say “My kid never tells me anything or My kid never communicates with me.” However, I learned that in order to get the response or answer we are looking for from our kids, we have to ask the right questions.  If you ask a general question like “How was camp?” most likely you will receive a general one word reply, “Fun”.  So what’s the secret to getting your child to spill the beans? It’s simple, asking specific questions that require your child to think outside the box.

Here are a few specific questions to ask your kids about their experiences at kids camp. Another great way to find out more about camp is to ask your child’s small group leader about how God is moving in their lives.  All of the leaders have powerful stories about how God is working in the lives of your children.

Spiritual Questions

What did you learn about the Life of Jesus this week at camp? Who is Jesus?

What was the one thing you remember most about your small group time?

Did you memorize any bible verses? What bible verses did you read?

What is a quiet time?  What are the 4:1′s?  (Hint – R. P.W. T)

Did you learn any new worship songs?

Can you describe chapel time? What did it look like? (Paint me a picture with your words)

What was your favorite part of the chapel time? What are the 3 H’s?  or 3 I’s?  P’s? or 3 lights?

What was the more exciting thing you learned about God this week?

Where did you see God this week at camp?

Other Questions

How did you sleep at camp this week?

Did you have any embarrassing or funny stories?

Did you make any new friends?

How was the bus ride?

What activities did you do at camp? What was your favorite?

What did you eat all week for meals and snacks? What meal was your favorite?

What was your most exciting part of camp?

Parents thank you so much for your prayers.  As we will be leaving camp today continue to pray for safety as we travel.

Michelle McLemore

Central Kidz

Good Afternoon Parents,

We are well into our last full day at camp…(sob)!  I have been traveling amongst the groups, taking a survey to find out their favorite activities thus far.  Here is the intel I have gathered on my little recon mission.  The majority of the groups thought the zipline was the best activity of all in their rotations.  The groups that voted for it included those of Bryce, Emily, Deanna, Amber, Kristi, and Bridget. 

Paintball target shooting was in a distant tie, being popular with the groups under the hawk-like eyes of Debbie and Elmer.   The other activity that tied with it was Slip-N-Slide (fondly called Slip-N-Die by the kids).  The groups hangin’ with Moises and Preston voted for it.  Lastly, Brittney’s group liked Capture the Flag the best.  They said getting really muddy was the attraction there…wait…that’s a girl group!  What’s up with that?

One of the other favorite things kids are doing today is throwing water balloons.  For a dollar, they are given a certain number of water balloons, with which they get to pummel leaders!  How fun is that?  The best part is that all the money collected for the water balloons goes to an organization called OneMission, which exists to serve poor families in Mexico.  That is more than fun, as Tony the Tiger might say…”That’s Grrreat!”  There you have it, folks, that’s the update for this afternoon.  Come back tonight for another one.  Talk atcha then!

Kurt Pflegl

Central Kidz

Yesterday afternoon we were rained out of a few of our activities.  We all met inside and participated in the Banana Olympics.  Each group was given a banana to name and decorate as their mascot.  We then played a huge game of Hot Banana with them.  The bananas took some abuse and got super soft and smushy.  Then to make them even better looking we had a game of Over-Under with the bananas.  By the end of that all of the bananas were broken open and oozing.

Fortunately, for some of our leaders, there was one more event – a Banana Eating Contest!  Four leaders were chosen to eat two of the passed around, smushed, soft bananas, with the fastest eater earning 1000 points for their team.  We had two of the participants who really did not want to have to eat those yummy bananas.  Here are a few pictures of the events.  We are excited about the last full day of camp today.

Daniel Carnahan

Central Kidz

Hello Parents

Continuing with the life of Jesus, today during chapel time, the campers learned the phrase, “L.E.S.S. is more, so Hit the Floor.”  This phrase was the 1st step for the campers in learning the importance of living a life like Jesus through service.  The Word L.E.S.S. is an acronym; the L represents LOVE, E represents Emulate, S represents Serve and the final S represents Sacrifice.  The children have realized that following Jesus means living a life like Jesus.  This includes showing love to others even when it is difficult.  It means living a life that reflects how Jesus lived, and being willing to humble oneself to serve others. And finally living a life that requires sacrifice by giving of their time and talents.

During Small Groups, the children learned about how Jesus served by washing his disciples’ feet (John 13:2-17).  They were challenged to serve each other by washing each others’ feet as well.  My heart melted as I walked around camp and observed the fourth and fifth graders washing the dirt off their peers’ feet.

Throughout the afternoon, I have also observed and heard of different ways the Small Groups are serving others.  Some of the campers were opening and holding doors for different people.  Other kids were helping out by carrying bags.  One leader challenged her girls to serve two people in line by giving them their dessert at lunch. It was amazing to see the light bulb turn on as the kids became more aware of the possibilites in applying the lessons from the Chapel sessions.  Needless to say, camp is going amazing!  Despite the occasional rain, God continues to bless us with sunny skies during the afternoon for children to enjoy the camp activities.

Michelle McLemore

Central Kidz

I wanted to share a few pictures of some of the fun we are having.  We have already flown through all of the morning goodness and just wrapped up lunch.  Everyone gets a short rest time before the afternoon round of rotations through the great activities.

Daniel Carnahan

Central Kidz

On June 3^rd my 83yr old grandmother passed away peacefully and surrounded by all the people she loved.  It was my very first experience walking with someone to the end of the road here on earth.  I will say it was one of the hardest and most rewarding experiences in my life.  I had the awesome blessing of spending her last 2 weeks taking care of her 24/7.    The first week was unpredictable. One day she was the pillar of health and the next she was frail, weak and struggling to take a breath.  Just before the second week began, God handed me the most precious memory of my time with Gram (that’s what I called her).  Gram and I sat curled up on her hospital bed as if I was 12yrs old again.  Leaning over the side of her bed, Gram presented an antique ivory padded jewelry box with her initials embossed on the front.  When she opened the box, the sunlight made all the pieces sparkle and dance.  My 83yr old grandmother and I played dress up with her jewels as she told me the stories behind each piece she had treasured over her 83yrs.  My favorite treasure was the whitest pearls I had ever seen.  She shared the story that my grandfather (who died 2yrs ago) had hand picked every single pearl to have strung for her as a necklace for their anniversary. Well I have those pearls now in that same antique ivory padded jewelry box now that Gram’s passed away.  Those white pearls remind me of many things treasured; the pure love my grandparents shared for each other, the very special dress up time when Gram shared how she acquired those white pearls and the promise of Gods pearly white love and grace that’s abundant in my life.  What treasured white pearls have you received today? 

Marlene

Family Ministry Team

You have already found out many of the fun things going on at UCYC with your kids this week.  It’s such a cool thing to be around as kids have new experiences and achieve new victories.  I have seen kids conquer the climbing wall, hit the target with a paint ball, make it safely to the wading pool “base”, and discover some of what knowing God is all about.  You get to see some big smiles on their face as the discover new things they enjoy and new things they can do. 

Last night a kid sitting next to me during our chapel service said, “I thought this would be boring, but it’s actually pretty fun.”  I love hearing those words.  We always have people around who aren’t so sure about God’s love for them and the church scene.  And it’s awesome to be there in their new experience.  Your kids are having a blast and doing all kinds of great things.  We will have some pictures up tomorrow so you can see some of what’s going on.  But even better, get ready to experience their joy, and exhaustion, from the week.  I know you’ll get to hear them make some unique cool observations about life and God as you hang out with them after camp.

Tuesday has been a great day.  Everyone is in bed, rejoicing about today, and getting their energy back for more great victories tomorrow.

Daniel Carnahan
Central Kidz