This week was Vacation Bible School at our church.  This ain’t your Grandma’s VBS.  For the past several years our church as been doing an “ancient bible times” theme.  This year was Hometown Nazareth.  Our fellowship hall was transformed into the village of Nazareth.  Children were encouraged to dress in “bible times” costume (church provided) and experience what Nazareth was like when Jesus was a boy.  They are divided up into “tribes” and spend the time w/ their tribe and tribe leaders learning about Nazareth and the miracles that Mary experienced from the time Gabriel told her she was going to have a baby up to Jesus’ first recorded miracle at the wedding in Cana.

Dear Husband and I have helped out the past 4 years and plan on continuing to do so.  This is such a fun thing to do with the kids in our church and nearby community.  It’s a far cry from the VBS I remember.  No crafts made out of popsicle sticks here.  After singing time and individual “tribe” time the kids explored the “marketplace”.

Each tent was a different craft but not just your every day, run of the mill crafts.  Oh no.  I think these kids might have actually learned something while having a good time.  (Gasp)

For snack the kids could spend their pretend coins at the Food Market.  No sandwich cookies and punch here.  Fresh and dried fruit, olives, bread, cheese and nuts!

These brave souls helped the kids tie-dye their VBS t-shirts.

We had a barn yard set up for the last two nights.  The donkeys didn’t like walking on the linoleum floor so they were dragged, pushed and coaxed into the room.  Once there one of them took a nice little poop and it was soon after that our leader decided an indoor barn yard wasn’t such a good idea after all.  Outside they went where they mowed the lawn.

BFF trying to gently coax this poor thing into the room.

Back outside where barn yard animals belong.  Harry got to enjoy the miniature pony and rabbits.

During the Market Place time the tribes would go and visit with Mary (the mother of Jesus).  Guess who got to play Mary?  Yup, yours truly.  I told them stories about Jesus as a baby and little boy.  The message was that although Jesus is the Son of God he was also a little kid just like them.  It was tons of fun.  I think some of the littlest ones really thought I was Jesus’ mommy.  They may never look at me the same way again and grow up thinking Addison and Harry have a third brother out there preachin’ the word.  I guess you could say that they do…have another “spiritual” brother.

Singing and dancing time to open and close our evening together.

See ya’ next year, VBS.