Waka Waka Lip Sync!!

So, this is what all of my focus has gone toward this week and most of the reason that I haven't posted anything in a while. IT was Middle School Week this week and Friday is always the Lip Sync. This year, since I have been absolutely OBSESSED with the song Waka Waka (This Time for Africa), I put together some choreography and prayed real hard that it could come together. It all came together by the end, and the middle schoolers weren't even incorporated until last night! The staff had been practicing since Sunday, but we never got every person at every practice. What you see in this video is the first time that every participant was on stage at the same time. Thank goodess we didn't run out of stage space. :)

Sit back and enjoy! 

Blast From the Past

I worked in the store last night and I can say with 400% confidence that it was 80 billion degrees in there. We sold liquid ice cream instead of solid ice cream and I made 5 Fuzzy Freezes in a row. For those that are unfamiliar with this product, it is orange sherbet (one of our hardest ice creams) and Sprite mixed together with our Razzle machine. Basically, it's the thing that takes the longest to make, besides maybe hard shakes and malts.  But here's the good news: I made 5 of them in 12 minutes. That's less than 3 minutes per Fuzzy Freeze! Olympic champion right here.

Close to the end of the shift, I served a man his double twist (which is about 6 inches tall). This in itself was a colossal feat because the soft serve was very tippy. Anyway, he complimented me on how nice the cone looked. Here is how the conversation followed:

Man: "You know, this is a really nice cone. It's so straight and it's not leaning at all. A few years ago, I got a double twist and the girl was obviously new and not very good at soft serve and the whole thing tipped over when she handed it to me. I was so mad. It got all over my shirt and practically ruined it. I kind of chewed her out because it was all her fault and she should have made it better. I wonder if that girl still works here...and if she's gotten any better at her soft serve cones..."
Me: "Sir, I'm the one who served you that cone."

Open mouth. Insert foot.

I'm happy to say that he was speechless and then apologized profusely for chewing me out and making me feel horrible about that cone. It was my first summer, an incredibly hot night, soft serve was either so soft it wouldn't stand up on its cone or it wouldn't come out at all, and I have always remembered that customer. It felt kind of nice to have him apologize for the completely undeserved tirade he unleashed on me. :)

I guess even after 4 years, it's still worth it to apologize.

After Reading This, Please Pray For Us

A few people here have some very big decisions to make in the next couple of days.
Please pray that a solution will be found to a very frustrating situation.
Pray that we would be open-minded and slow to pass judgment during our meetings.
Pray that God's hedge of protection would surround us, physically, emotionally, and spiritually.
Pray that the staff would have the courage to speak their hearts and to live without fear.

We covet your prayers.

Sandcastles

A wise person told me once that if you're feeling stressed out, upset, or worthless, you should go play with children.

Tonight, I was on the new beach deck (gorgeous, by the way) and I was looking out over the lake and the coming sunset and the people that were sitting or playing on the beach (and the crazies that were in the water swimming), and I saw two of my favorite (well, really, they're ALL my favorite) staff kids playing down in the sand. Blaze, 7,  and Isaiah, 5,  were constructing a HUGE structure that can only be considered a sand fortress. It had a big ole wall with towers every few inches, a giant hole in the middle with an island and a "flag" (read: long piece of dead dune grass), and the hole had an island in the middle. I asked Blaze if he wanted to fill in the area around the island and make it like a lake, but he said that it actually wasn't an island, but a mountain coming out of a valley. They put me to work smoothing out the land and putting more towers on the interior of the fortress. Once I'd filled all of that in, we decided we wanted a lake outside the fortress. So Blaze and I set to work digging out a hole in which to pour bucketfuls of water while Isaiah outfitted the outer walls with smaller towers. I'm telling you, this thing was the most secure sandcastle in the entire world.

I taught Blaze how if you dig down far enough, you'll find water, and that's how you know that you can fill in your hole with water and it won't soak in. He thought this was so cool and wanted to dig a bunch of other holes, but I said that we should just focus on this one. We raced back and forth between our hole and the shore to get more water, giggling the whole time. No sooner had a turned my back to get more water when I heard a loud splash. Blaze had jumped into his little hole and his entire body filled it up. He had the BIGGEST grin on his face and I knew he was having so much fun. Isaiah was still working on his towers and shaking his head with a smile on his face, as if he was the older, wiser brother.

It was at this moment that I realized why playing with children was the cure for stress and sadness. Kids are still able to use their imaginations to see a world with no problems. They don't worry about the little things. For instance, I managed to get a lot of wet sand on my shorts, and when I mentioned this to Isaiah, he simply said, "It's okay! It's just sand! Put them in the laundry and your mom will wash them for you!" This made me laugh a LOT. Kids are just so funny, especially these two.

I wish my life now was as easy and carefree as it was when I was their age. Blaze's biggest worry this evening was the fact that the walls of our "lake" were caving in from the water in it. My biggest worry is paying for college. Isaiah's biggest worry was not having enough towers around the outside of the fortress. My biggest worry is never finding someone who will marry me. Getting a job after graduation. Figuring out how to keep my closest friends in my life while we get pulled in different directions. No comparison, eh?

I'm happy to say that for 1 hour and 7 minutes, I was able to forget everything that was on my mind and just build sandcastles. And even though I was running around and all over the place with those two, it was the most rested I've felt in a loooooooong time. Ironic, right? Never underestimate the power of time spent with children.

Isaiah 40:29

So I'm going to do something that I haven't really done with this blog yet...write entirely about myself.

Usually I try to disguise writing about myself by adding funny anecdotes or doing the post in a unique way, but today, I have no funny or uniqueness.

I am tired. And I have been tired for a long time. People that know me know that I am in no way a morning person. But some days I feel like I never really wake up. You know that feeling when you wake up but don't feel rested? Getting going is a little slow, and you feel foggy for a little while? There are days when I have that all day. Not really conducive to teaching Bible School and being wild and crazy, wouldn't ya say?

Somehow, God always knows when I need strength and He gives it to me right when I need it. 8:00am-9:45am is probably my most sleepy time of the day. For Tuesday through Friday, that means Staff Devotions and Bible School prep time. Some days I just walk around like I'm in a haze, trying to plan the lesson and organize materials and do all the other stuff. But God knows just when to give me that strength I need. The garage door goes up at 9:45, the kids are all waiting, and it's like He's pulled a switch on my energy. I have the strength to be wild and crazy, play games in line with the kids, sing and do motions during the song time, teach the lesson with patience and charisma, and, basically, act like I'm not tired. Only on God's strength. Certainly not my own.

There are still a few days where I don't feel energized during Bible School, but I know that those are the days where I have to trust the other teachers to carry the lesson or activity, which is something else that I have had to learn to do this summer. Two of my teachers are new staff members, and it's easy for me to hand the simpler stuff off to them (like the Bible verse or rules for a game) and take the lesson upon myself. But God is teaching me that there will be days when I simply can't do it all by myself and that I have to trust them to do just as good of a job.

 "He gives strength to the weary and lends His power to the weak." (Isaiah 40:29).

And that's a promise. :)

Twins in a Kiddie Pool - A Three Word Sentence Story

(Internet issues prevented me from posting this yesterday, so bear with it)
Woke at 8:30.
Cottage cleaning today.
But first: breakfast.
Toast and Pop-Tart.
Strolled to Store.
Need iPod dock.
We sing always.
Makes cottages better.
Normally, takes forever.
Today, went fast!
Only 3.5 hours!
Did victory dances.
Now, free time.
On a Saturday?!
No me digas!!
Put on swimsuit.
Anticipating empty pool.
No such luck.
But, no problem.
Scored comfy lounge.
Sun so hot.
Submerged self often.
Later, Jessica arrived.
Twins in tow.
(Brenda's cute grandsons).
Nikki came also.
Jessica brought noodle.
Rips it apart.
Half to each.
Splashing and slapping.
Screaming and smiling.
"I'm gonna getchu!"
Twins try escaping.
All while grinning.
Time well spent.
Work beckons (again).
Gather my things.
Glasses thought lost?
Esther finds, retrieves.
Andrea is grateful.
Otherwise, can't see.
Time to work.
Scoop, scoop, scoop.
Restock, refill, replace.
Plating many pies.
Much easier distribution.
Clearly, hottest commodity.
Dinner rolls around.
Offering two plates:
BBQ or Brat?
Three side choices:
PotatoSalad, pasta, beans?
All is delicious.
Normally, HUGE rush.
Less rush tonight.
Is somewhat unsettling.
Break for dinner.
Come back prepared.
Campground needs dessert.
Scooped past 10:15.
Used 300+ cones.
New record? Maybe.
Great revenue generated.
We're professional scoopers.
Don't mess. Dig?

A Kiddie-Sized Dairy-Free Gluten-Free Raspberry Sorbet Miracle

I have a story for you.
This week, there is a little guy named Joey who is allergic to gluten and dairy. On their own, even one of these allergies makes one's life so much more difficult. Constantly checking labels, getting sick from even the smallest contact with the allergen, being deprived of so many great foods...and then put them both together. For Joey, all of the ice cream flavors are out, most of the novelties have dairy and/or gluten, almost all of the grill choices are off-limits, and he can't eat probably 90% of the candy. What's a kid to do?! Joey's allergies are so intense that he can't eat ANYTHING that has even come into contact with dairy or gluten, even if the item itself doesn't contain those things. It would be like one of us scooping an ice cream cone, rinsing our hands, and then handing him an apple. He wouldn't be able to eat it because of the most trace amounts of dairy that COULD be on our hands.
Enter dairy-free, gluten-free Raspberry Sorbet.
After carefully reading the label on a tub of Raspberry Sorbet, Joey's mom concluded that he could eat it. But here's what had to happen first:
1. Luckily, we were at the bottom of one container of sorbet and it was no big deal for us to open an entirely new tub, one that could not have been contaminated with dairy (even though we rinse our scoops between every flavor, even in 2-flavor doubles, Joey couldn't risk there being any trace amount of dairy or gluten).
2. The person scooping had to wash their hands extra-well.
3. The raspberry sorbet had to be scooped into bowls away from the general ice cream area of the store.
4. The bowls had to be placed in a styrofoam take-out box, which was then wrapped and twist-tied shut in a plastic bag.
5. The plastic-wrapped boxes were then stored in the backroom freezer, away from containers of ice cream that had already been opened.
6. Before retrieving a bowl of sorbet, the store worker had to wash their hands and remove the entire plastic-wrapped box from the ice cream area.
7. Before putting the box away, it had to be sealed tightly in the styrofoam and bag, and the person had to wash their hands again.

Can you imagine having to go through all this just for some ice cream?! And as a 6-year-old?! It kind of blows my mind. Anyway, so many things came together all at the right time for us to get those sorbets for Joey. One person prepared all of them at the same time in order to minimize the risk of contamination. It was a miracle that we were at the bottom of a container so that we could open the new for Joey (and that we even had a new one available in the first place, since sorbet is one of our lowest-selling flavors). It was a God-thing that one of our staff-members had to start a gluten-free diet and decided that sorbet would be a good alternative for the store; without that decision, we would have had no ice cream options for Joey. All of those things came together for him this week.

Even though we get many customers that complain and frustrate us, this makes it all worth it. We were more than happy to make this happen for him, and his mom could hardly believe that we were so willing. How many other ice cream stores would go so out of their way for just one customer? Not many, I can tell you that much.

This is what it's all about.

Valió la Pena: Parte II

What a beautiful day.

1. Rachel and I have been reunited. Her family is camping here and she scared the CRAP out of me today. I was vacuuming one of the rugs in the store, mostly bored, when all of a sudden BAM!! Rachel literally bursts into the store (the door almost came off its hinges) and screams. I scream, drop the vacuum (still running) and we hug like there's no tomorrow. Seriously, it lasted at least a minute. I was so excited to see her. I had been looking forward to this for about a week and it was just so awesome!! Anyway, we caught up for a little bit, hugged about four more times, did some more screaming, and then she left. Best part of this little story? Jana is coming out tomorrow to visit us and we are hanging out the whole day!! Spain/Paris/Rome reunion! Such a great end to an otherwise terrible and stressful week. :)

2. Two Hispanic families came into the store today for ice cream and I got to help them in Spanish! James took one family whose son spoke English, and I took the other. This is how the original conversation went:
Man: "Ice cream?"
Me: "Yes, would you all like some ice cream?"
Man: "Ice cream."
Me: "What kind would you like?"
Man:"....Ice cream."
Then some rapid-fire Spanish happened between the man and his daughter, who said, "Ice cream cones?" That's when I knew we'd get farther with Spanish. :) I helped them figure out what flavor they wanted (luckily, I didn't have to worry over describing Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough, Bear Hug, or some of our other somewhat outrageous flavors) and they decided on vanilla and strawberry. I was so excited to be able to help them and once I stopped using the vosotros (I only slipped up twice on that one), they were very happy to have a Spanish speaker helping them out. Once all the ice cream was squared away, the man asked me to teach him some of the words he needed to know about ice cream (ice cream, cone, bowl, vanilla, strawberry, 1 and 2 scoops, etc).
I was so impressed by this. I don't know how much he'll remember, but his wife wrote them down with help from the boy from the other family and he promised he'd study them. I think that a lot of Americans have the impression that Hispanic immigrants are freeloaders and are only here so that they can take advantage of the system and just live in their Spanish-speaking communities without making an effort to learn English. But I can tell you right here and now that even if some immigrants are like that, many are not. This man and his family are trying to learn English, even if it's only a few words at a time. We need to have patience with them.
Why should we have patience with them? Because I've been on the other side. I know what it's like to stumble through trying to order something in a restaurant or trying to ask for help in another language. And because those people were patient with me, I'm going to return that favor to someone else who is learning my language.

3. This one is smaller: one of the families that I've known for several years came in for ice cream tonight accompanied by a Spanish student that is living with them. I found out that she's from Madrid but then they got their ice cream and had to leave to make room for more customers. I hope that maybe I can talk to her again while they're here.

Three more reasons that made Spain worth it.

And here's a funny story: I had a dream that I didn't get any credit for my semester in Spain and that they were forcing me to go back. So actually, kind of a nightmare. Haha. Anyway, Ge (one of our Spanish profs) made an appearance in my dream, except that she was speaking English. That was totally wild, because the real-life Ge doesn't speak a WORD of English. Dream-Ge said that she was only pretending to not speak English so that our Spanish would get better. Only in a dream. :)