3 Things I Was Wrong About For Backyard Bible Club (and a few things I learned)

Well, it’s over! We completed our week-long neighborhood Backyard Bible Club…actually in our driveway. Driveway Bible Club.

I followed the plans I laid out in “How to Host a Backyard Bible Club,” using the curriculum I wrote: “VBS Using Jesus Storybook Bible.”

We had seven adorable kids representing five different families. What a blast! The highlight of the week was a visit from the one and only (?) Chick-fil-a Cow. {Our dear friends own the local Chick-fil-a.}

It was hard to top the cow, but I tried with a really awesome painting activity.

Are you as amazed as I am that seven children are sitting still, working? It’s a breathtaking miracle.

Anyway, I’m getting off track. I promised you the 3 things I was wrong about pre-BBC. (*backyard Bible club*, in case you’re new the lingo.)

Here are three things I got wrong.

• It’s not simple. I claimed that you could do a Backyard Bible Club “without being Superwoman.”

Well, I’m just going to say that after having four adults and seven kids in my home for 10+ hours this week, with no (major) injuries, and everyone seeming to enjoy themselves, I do, indeed feel like Superwoman.

And Superwoman needs a nap. A long nap.

What I’m saying is, although I claimed my plan was simple, it still takes work and energy. But worth it? So completely worth it.

• It should not be two hours long. Initially I said we should meet from 9-11 am. Well, I started looking at my plans for each day, and realized, there is no way this is going to take two hours. I cut the time by 30 minutes…and we still finished each day in less than an hour. 🙂 But I don’t think it matters, and here’s why:

As I was putting Sam to bed the first day of our BBC, I asked him how he liked it. “I liked it, Mom, but next time could you make it not as much long?” Done, and done.

• I didn’t plan enough fun stuff. I realized we needed a bunch more “fun” things. So I improvised adding some fun things I could think of. I’m not a kindergarten teacher, so they’re not the most creative. But they worked.

We went on a “Bear Hunt.” We played with playdough, and foam.

We did ice sculpting.

And we had water day at the end of the last day (total win). I’m definitely going back and adding all the fun stuff to the curriculum I wrote.

Okay, so if you’ve made to the end of this post, thanks for reading about our Bible Club, and I just want to tell you one very last thing. 🙂 Okay, two.

1. Being able to work is a gift. If you are able to serve – be it working at your job, making someone dinner, whatever – thank God that you are strong and smart enough to do that job. It’s a gift…I know that after a few months of being not-so-strong.
2. If God tells you to do something, do it.  Do you have any ideas God’s been hinting at? Even if it’s as silly as house projects or family activities… Do them. I always find that the things the Lord leads me to do are so, so rewarding.

What projects have you been working on that have been rewarding to you lately?

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