We have been having such a fun time trying to do Bible stories during bath time. In fact, my 6 year old son, whom I no longer bath, now wants me to bath him so he can experience the story as well. It is working out well, but I'm not sure I should photo the bath time Bible stories :)

Scripture Memory

I have been enjoying watching/listening to the kids learning Psalm 121. Hubby ordered cute little memory verse cards titled "foundational verses" from desiringgod.org It has a bunch of cards with one verse each. On the other side is a picture to help cue you as to what the verse is. I have been so surprised at how well they are learning the verses. I think it would be fun for Von and Alyse to recite them for groups of extended family during the holidays. I want them to practice "public speaking" so they aren't as terrified as I am. We could kill two birds with one stone...

Bible in the Bath

I recently heard an idea that sounded fun. Why not teach the kids Bible truths while taking a bath? Bathtime is already regularly scheduled, what a great idea to use that time as an informal teaching time. I like scheduling a formal "Bible Time" but also having a chance to talk about the Lord throughout our day. I tried it the other day. I just started off by telling Alyse, "did you know the earth used to be all covered in water like this tub?" She looked up at me with surprise (even though she has heard the story of creation.) Because it was such a part of our normal conversation, I think it had a different affect. I was surprised how many illustrations we found while taking a bath. Talking about breathing under water before God created the air, trying to swim everywhere before God created land, etc. Of course the natural flow of conversation shows how smart God was to create the air and the land before he created the animals and people. Very cool.

Need a Title

Well if anyone has a better name for the book (other that Bible Buckaroos) I would love to hear it. We are looking for something descriptive yet fun that will appeal to boys AND girls.

Water to Wine

Well, being in and out of town for the summer has made Bible Time not too consistent. Also makes blogging not too consistent. Yesterday though we were able to do the story of Jesus' first miracle of turning the water into wine. The kids enjoyed pouring and scooping water pretending to be at the wedding. They also tried some unsweetened cranberry juice which was so very sour. I love how the stories in the Bible show us more about who God is and how we are to relate to him. However I must admit, this story is difficult to make an application for the kids. Other than of course, "Jesus can do miracles" as Von says.

Jesus calms the storm

I talked to my sister today who said she is using Bible Buckaroos to teach her Sunday School class ages 12 month-3 years. Wow, good for you attempting it with the 12 month olds! Anyway, she had a great idea I thought I would pass on. The book suggested blowing blue paint with a straw to create a wind and wave picture. Dayspring said she used blue colored water instead of paint since she didn't want the babies eating paint. Good catch. On a funny side note she said she and her friend thought it so much fun that they created wind and wave art all afternoon at home. Thanks Ping.

Jesus lost in the temple at age 12

Today we did the story of Jesus getting lost in the temple when he was 12 years old. It was time to nurse Knox at the same time so I didn't really participate as much as I like. After reading the story and singing the verse, Von (age 6) and Alyse (age 3) wanted to "find Jesus." Von wanted to use his "crock-tot" he got from Sonic to be Jesus. He hid it and Alyse walked around looking for "Jesus." But of course when it was Alyse's turn to hide "Jesus" she wanted to use her Snow White doll. We did emphasize how Jesus was not actually trying to hide from his parents. I hope they got the point... Von had a thought provoking comment. He noted, "it wasn't sin for Jesus to do that." It caused the mother in me to quiver... I sure don't want him wandering off on his own. But he was right. Because we know Jesus never sinned, we can be sure that his staying in the temple without his parents knowing it was not sin. However, I couldn't resist a quick lesson on telling/asking Mommy and Daddy when you want to go somewhere. :)

Things started falling apart since I was stuck on the couch nursing, so we also did the other activity for today's story which had a link to science. Von turned on some music and we tried to figure out ways to use a piece of paper to make the sound louder-- to emphasize listening in order to obey. I had in mind to make a cone shape to amplify the sound (small end on your ear.) However, we discovered that while a cone with a wadded up end will not work, a cape shape WILL work. A paper cone also makes a very nice pirate hand/arm/hook...