After a week in Switzerland, we then went to Germany to help a local church prepare for Vacation Bible School. This church goes ALL OUT for VBS, so we had plenty to work on! We got in late one evening and set to work first thing the next morning.
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| We started with this - styrofoam, duct tape and spray foam. We would transform these simple items into a vast amount of cave decorations for "Cave Quest". :) |
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| We started by gluing the foam together to make much larger pieces of foam.... |
We traced patterns onto transparencies and then used a projector to mark the pattern on the large pieces of styrofoam....
..........and then used a hot knife to cut them out.
On Sunday, we worshiped together with the church in Germany - one of my favorite things to do in a foreign country. Afterwards, we went to Tiria's house for lunch.
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| Lauren playing with the kids at church |
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| Andrew and I taught the middle school Sunday School class. We played this game afterwards - everyone enjoyed it. |
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| We met Morgan who is from Oklahoma! (bad quality cell phone pic) |
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| Tiria and a little friend. Tiria was at the church with us every day helping prepare for VBS. Her parents invited our whole team over for lunch after church. They were wonderful hosts! |
We had a blast working on transforming the church into a cave. Long days at the church literally flew by as we worked hard, enjoyed good company, encouraged each other, and met new friends. Working with Pastor Jeremy was amazing. And it was fun to see all the changes.
Painting a "rock wall":
Maddie & I transforming the hallway into a walkthrough cave....
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| ....adding the finishing touches..... |
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| Done!!! |
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| We usually brought our lunch to eat at the church - this day, we bought this amazingly delicious chicken. Best I've ever had! |
Chase, Amanda, Maddie & Laurel transform the stairwell into a descent into the depths of the earth.........
Meanwhile, Tara & Andrew continue work on the cave, stalagtites and stalagmites..........
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| painting..... |
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| .......and more painting. O, and some glitter too. That was fun! |
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| The finished cave. Andrew worked on this and did a magnificent job (with a little help from a few others!) |
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Lauren with our "mummy". :)
(paper mache projects - this is actually an owl) |
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| Matt & Chase work on more paper mache |
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The Owl
Created by: Chase and Amanda |
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The Salamander
Created by: Tara, Chase and Lauren |
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The Butterfly
Created by: Tara, Laurel and I |
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The Glowworm
Created by: Maddie & Andrew |
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| Here we are with Kevin - he was at camp in Switzerland and then came to the church nearly every day to help us out. On this day we said goodbye - he was leaving for Portugal. |
During our time in Germany we stayed a little ways out of the hustle and bustle of Frankfurt. The little village of Dorfweil has true storybook charm. Our evenings were spent here in this super peaceful, relaxing locale.
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| The view from my balcony: such a charming little town. |
Our first night in Dorfweil, Tara, Laurel and I went for a walk in the woods. I love both these images - especially the one of Tara. She looks so small in the midst of those huge trees!
Every evening as we came home, we were dropped at the bus station along the main road. We then had a huge hill to conquer in order to reach our rooms. This was always a welcome site as we rounded the curve.
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| Our rooms were on the third floor |
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| My favorite spot for devotions |
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One night we missed our bus - by 5 minutes! So we made good use of the hour at our disposal by
encouraging one another, telling stories and enjoying the cool evening. |
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| Dorweil from my balcony at night |
We had a little time for sight-seeing and enjoying the culture in Germany. We went to the "Old Town" in Frankfurt on the Main River and also explored St. Goar for a day.
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| It was the 1st Wedding Anniversary for these two! |
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| We sang Amazing Grace in this old church - amazing sound! |
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| On the Rhine |
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| Photo-Op! |
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| The famous Rhine River in Germany |
We explored an old Castle in St. Goar:
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| Love this huge old church with my team walking along in front |
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| Lauren overlooks the Main River in Frankfurt |
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| Cool Cats. :) |
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| Our last day in Germany. One last selfie with Jeremy and Tiria before we say good-bye. |
