Is it Thursday Already?

We're over "hump day"!  Can't believe it's Thursday already - but we're ready to work!

At the beginning of the day (end of the day on Wednesday) this is what our work site looked like...

One row of siding and kick boards have been placed on every side of the community center... Soffit and fascia board continue to go up around the over hang on every side of the building - it's just harder to see, but we promise those boys are working hard!

The back of the community center is mostly sided with only a little bit more needed after we add a second layer of scaffolding.

The two multi-purpose rooms have all the doors installed, trim around all the doors and baseboard, all have been caulked, and all has been painted!

The same can be said for the hallway!  It still looked like quite a construction site when we got here - but it's so great to be able to see the progress and watch it transform into a community center!

When we're not acting a little crazy...

Or getting hurt....

Or taking water breaks....

Or just hanging out the windows....

Or eating the WONDERFUL food that Lucy and the kitchen crew make for us....

We PROMISE we're working!

Carol and Amanda took to painting the bathrooms and kitchen today!  Only one more room after this!

We continue to be very grateful for Elise!  Caulking is very tedious - but very important - and Elise has become the master caulker!

More scaffolding has gone up for more siding!

The soffit and fascia  team continue to work hard...

And again....

We always make time for fun!

We played farkel again tonight... but it just wasn't the same.  Some of us were tired, and some of us quit half way through.... it's just not the same unless our whole group is together!

More soffit... more siding.... more caulking.... more painting!

We continue to make great progress on the house.  We've been working in teams this week and have developed some good working relationships and "routines" with those teams, which makes us all the more efficient :)  At the beginning of the day, the site looked like this...

 (It's hard to see in this photo - but underneath the porch, there's no soffit, there will be by the end of the day though!)

 Amy and Laura continued to work on siding - and the scaffolding went up - which is quite an accomplishment since Laura is afraid of heights.  Thank you to Amy and our partner in crime Barry (from Kansas City, KS) for helping Laura work on this!

Michael came for a visit and took Laura's place for a while.  Steve (one of the long term volunteers) had to stand watch and make sure Michael was doing it right. ;)

Tom took some more breaks....

Just kidding!  Tom continues to be an important part of our team and works very hard!

Carol donned the painting gear and helped paint the inside of two rooms!  It's looking more and more like a real building EVERY day!

Even though we're all from Louisiana and know about the heat - we still take our water breaks!

Carol continued to use the meiter saw - and found a good place for it under the shade of a big tree!  Good thinking Carol!

Amanda and Elise continued to do one of the most tedious jobs - caulking!  But Amanda found some refuge outside when she also went to help Carol for a while.

 Ian and Jake, Interns Gabe and Corey, worked on the porch for what seemed like all day... One stubborn piece of soffit.... don't ask them about the day they only put up four pieces of soffit, they are still a little frustrated!

But we all continue to learn new skills and help one another when we are still learning and need a little guidance.

And every now and again we make time for a nap....

Which we apparently needed tonight - because we all decided we were too tired to play Farkel!  Look for tomorrow's winner and loser on tomorrow's post!

Feelings of Accomplishment

Just in case you were wondering... Jake lost at Farkle again last night.  By almost the same spread.  But Carol swept up the game with her 10,000 points!

Today was another great day of work. At the end of the day each day, after worship with the entire group, our FCC group has been debriefing together and telling each other our “high’s and low’s” for the day. Tonight, many of us made comments about the feelings of accomplishment we had. Whether it was accomplishing learning a new task, or getting a task completely done, it was nice to hear that we all had very positive days. We debrief at the end of the day, to bring our group together and to pray for and with one another. At the same time, we pray in the mornings, praying for safety and that we all may be the hands and feet of Christ each day. And at the beginning of the day Tuesday, this is what our job site looked like.

But the job site didn’t look “empty” for long, we all got right to work! Ian and Jake got right to their job of “hanging soffit.” Many times this included cutting the soffit to fit where it was needed. And sometimes it meant Jake’s skin got pinched in-between. Don’t worry… Jake is OK – but we liked his response – looking around for someone to give him a band-aid.

Elise, Amanda, Carol and Carol did lots of work inside today – so much that at least one of the rooms is ready for painting tomorrow! Whether it was caulking, scraping, putting up trim or learning to use the jigsaw, they all accomplished a lot today!

Amanda seems to get to go to Home Depot a lot… we’re not sure how she gets “volunteered” to go SHOP in the AIR CONDITIONING – it seems a complete mystery to her!

Amy and Laura spent most of the day outside doing siding work. Amy had already done some siding work in Galveston, and Amy and Laura both did siding work with a FCCBRLA group at Habitat for Humanity in BR last year, so it was fun to use those skills again! Amy is a mad “leveler” and Laura became quite fond of her “nail gun.”

No matter what we’re doing, we always make sure to have fun and support one another in our efforts this week.

We continue to pray that we can be the hands, feet, eyes, and heart of Christ in this world. Whether it is for something small like getting your neighbor their water bottle or something a little more significant, like giving up a week of time to contribute to the mission center here in Slidell, we’re striving to keep that thought at the forefront of our work this week. And we thank you for your prayers this week too – we can feel them all the way here in Slidell!

One Down... Four to Go...

We knew the trip would be interesting when it was pouring down rain when we arrived at the church to load the van on Sunday afternoon. Luckily, Amy was prepared! (Good thing Amy read the packing list that Laura provided but did not pack her own rain gear!)

So about that rain jacket… (Amy made Laura insert this terrible picture of herself NOT wearing the rain gear that was listed as a must have!)

We were a little wet – but very happy to arrive – great dinner was waiting for us when we arrived! (Thanks Lucy!)

Monday –first day work day – started out rainy too! But Carol, Amy and Elise made the best of it.

Since it started raining – right as we were getting to work in the morning - we had a small change of plans and did some cleaning up inside. Jake and Ian sweeping in a very dusty (dry-wall) room!

Even Ms. Lucy got into the action and helped us sweep! FCC Slidell is also having their VBS this week – so kitchen duties are a little crowded and uncertain. But Ms. Lucy is making sure we’re all fed and taken care of – and contributing to the building as well!

Tom on the other hand was the first to take advantage of the sun! Doesn’t he look so relaxed? (You should see this photo!)

When the sun finally did come out – we were ready to jump into action! Jake and Ian were more than willing to help, and joined DHM Interns Gabe and Corey along with Steve’s supervision in hanging up soffit.

We did have our first injury of the week – and what we’re hoping to be the last. A scratch and possibly an allergy – but all is well. Carol M - we promise we'll take good care of your scratch - as long as you promise to have the ONLY injury all week!)

Carol didn’t let a little thing like a scratch prevent her from jumping in and getting dirty – Carol learned how to use a circular saw today, and was quite good at it! So good at it in fact she had a face full of sawdust to prove it! Way to go Carol!

All in all we cleaned up the mission center to get it ready for the finishing touches on the inside. We’ve hung doors (Amy’s team hung 5 doors today – and Tom’s team hung at least as many!), hung trim, baseboard, and soffit, cleaned up the mission center and prepped it for the finishing touches we hope to make this week. Spirits are still high, energy is waning just a little, but great food and good fellowship has helped bring that energy right back! After a good night's sleep we'll all be ready for a big day tomorrow.

Now it’s on to relaxing and hang out time - on to a game of the most exciting dice game we have found to date – FARKLE!

Amy won last night – and Jake only lost by 7,000 points. He hopes to make a comeback tonight! Stay tuned to find out. :D

We've Arrived! (And we LOVE Farkle!)

We've arrived in Slidell!  First Christian Church of Slidell has opened their doors and welcomed us - and we're ready to get to work!  We met 5 Disciples Home Mission Interns that will be working with Office of Disciples Volunteering throughout the summer and we're excited to be working with them.  We also met the rest of the long-term volunteers (we already know Lucy and Tom!) and they are ready for our energy.

After a fun game of our new favorite dice-game, "Farkle," we are headed to bed and getting ready for a big day of work tomorrow!  Come back for more stories and pictures tomorrow, we're ready to show you what we're working on.

In the mean time, please consider praying this prayer with us throughout the week.  It is a modified version of a poem and a prayer by St. Teresa of Avila - and the Serenity Prayer.  We're looking forward to the ways the spirit will support us throughout the week and thank you for your support too!

Holy and Loving God, we know that Christ has no body but ours, no hands, no feet on earth but ours, ours are the eyes with which he looks compassion on this world, ours are the feet with which he walks to do good, ours are the hands, with which he blesses all the world.  Ours are the hands, ours are the feet, ours are the eyes, we are his body.  Christ has no body now but ours, no hands, no feet on earth but ours, ours are the eyes with which he looks compassion on this world.  Christ has no body now on earth but ours. Help us to use our bodies, our minds and our hearts to be the body of Christ in this world.  Help us to be carriers of your light to all those we meet.  Grant us the courage to accept change in the ways we can.  Grant us the serenity to accept those things we cannot change.  Grant us the wisdom to see the difference.  Grant us the compassion to live one day at a time, as your body here on earth.  Amen.

New Adventure!

We're off on a new adventure!  This time our mission team will be headed to Slidell, LA May 30 - June 5.  We have a group of eight willing and excited volunteers ready to help with more Hurricane Katrina recovery.  We hope you will join us in our journey by following this blog! You can also "follow" this blog by clicking "follow" on the bottom left hand side of this page, or by clicking on the RSS feed link at the top of the page.  Thank you for being a part of this important mission of the church!