Growing Kids Ministry

Family Friendly Summer Activities for Erie, PA!

By Lindsey | May 21, 2013 | Erie, My Thoughts | 1 Comment

Welcome to the third annual Erie Staycation post here at Growing Kids Ministry! You can check out Year #1 here and Year #2 here for even more ideas. This year, I decided to start with asking some of “the locals” about their favorite activities here in Erie. With two little ones, my outings generally consist of the zoo, the Children’s Museum, and Chick-fil-A (all of which I would highly recommend, of course!). I wanted to grab a few more ideas from my friends. Here’s what they said:

Mary, age 22: One of my favorite things to do in Erie is drive around with my friends and stop at a random restaurant downtown, then find a place for dessert, which would mostly likely be Sarah’s, then watch the sunset at the beach, and either end the night by going to see a movie, ride the ravine flyer at night, or head back home and rent a bunch of movies and have an all nighter.

Leah, age 21: It’s a pretty obvious attraction, but my favorite thing to do in the summer in Erie is to go to Presque Isle in the afternoon followed by dinner at Sarah’s restaurant and get a hamburger, a large container of curly fries and, of course, a shake. That’s what I think of when I think of summer in Erie, PA.

Michelle, age 40: Let’s see – my favorite summer stuff is gardening, reading in the garden, garage sales and thrift stores (currently looking for bird bath and planters), going to auctions, drive-in and camping not to far from home cause I hate to tow the camper. We have so many cool thrift shops in Eries. I always make the rounds at Wheezies Kove (if she doesn’t have it, she knows where to get it!) in Harborcreek, Claudine’s consignment on W. 8th, Sal Army on Peach St., and can’t remember the name on 26th and Brown’s Ave. Auctions are fun too! Go to Auctionzip.com to find out the auctions in our area.Of course, love to go the beach and just sit around in the sand and listen to the wind and water. These are just a few of my favorite things….

Tracy, age 30: I love going perch fishing on Lake Erie with my husband on our boat. It’s so peaceful and beautiful and we have a lot of fun! I also enjoy Presque Isle…running on the trail or just cruising in the car with an ice cream cone from Sara’s!

CJ, age 27: My favorite thing to do is probably go to Presque isle – sounds cheesy but there are a ton of options once you are there plus it’s really incredible to think about – we had a boat growing up so I took it for granted but having so much history right here on our beaches is pretty amazing!! It’s a great place for couples but families at the same time – plus on top of that its the place with my most childhood memories

Carol, age 50: The Peninsula, without a doubt. Pack up lunch and dinner, your tabletop grill, assorted books, lawn chair etc. Get there at 10 and stay til the sun sets. Camping! Cooks Forest and Clear Creek state parks are only 2 hrs away. Pymatuning is less than that. Love, love LOVE to camp!! And of course Creation. About 5 hrs away but so worth it.

Lyle, age 30: I am a huge fan of the Wintergreen Gorge. I know of an nice path to a good waterfall and swimming hole where you could even cook hot dogs on a fire!

Sara, age 27: Some things that i enjoy are going to Freeport beach in North East, Harborview Mini Golf, down by Dobbin’s Landing, and Claytopia.

Do You Sense a Theme?

It seems like everyone loves a trip to Presque Isle. Perhaps because summer is so short in Erie, people want to make sure to soak up as much sunshine and outdoor time as we can! So, this edition of Summer Family Fun will focus on the great outdoors! Some of the most popular outdoor spots include:

Presque Isle: You’ve already read all kinds of fun things to do at this national park, but you can also visit the official website for calendar of events, things to do, details on bike trails, picnic spots and more!
Asbury Woods: The thing I love about this place is the wooden-plank trails and the “off-road” trails. You can head out for a more rustic feel, but if you’ve got the stroller, you can still easily manavuer on the wooden trails. I also love the “Little Woods” section filled with things for kids to discover and explore. Check out the website for special events, summer camp dates, and much more!
Tom Ridge Environmental Center: Hop on over to the website to find movie listings, sales, as well as events

Facebook Pages to Follow

Sometimes the best family outings are those spur-of-the-moment events. Follow these facebook groups and people in order to stay up to date on the latest happenings.

Erie History Facebook (be sure to check out their recent post on the history of Waldameer!)
Friends of Lake Erie Facebook
Friends of the Erie Library
Presque Isle State Park Facebook

Parks and Nature Centers

In addition to Asbury Woods and Tom Ridge, there are plenty of parks and nature centers around Erie worth checking out. This article from Erie Times News highlights quite a few including Pfeiffer Nature Center located in Portville, NY and the Audubon Center & Sanctuary located in Jamestown, NY. The author, Jan Hutchinson, also mentions The Bookamer Family Farm in Meadville which sounds like a terrific day trip! Last year, we journeyed to Pymatuning Deer Park (read all about my experience via my guest post at Crafty Mom 101) and had a blast! Here’s a few more ideas:

Woodcock Creek Nature Center in Meadville: Special events, education opportunities, and picnic areas
Cherry Springs State Park: Located in Coudersports, about a 2 hour drive from Erie, Cherry Springs has the darkest nighttime skies in the eastern United States. Once a month during the summer, Cherry Springs offers public stargazing events. Admission is free.

Photo Credit: Wikipedia

Allegheny National Forest: This is the only national forest in Pennsylvania and is located in Warren which is about an hour away from Erie. The forest has camping, fishing, hiking, horseback riding, and hunting. There are nearly 200 miles of hiking trails as well as beautiful scenery abounding.
Double Diamond Deer Ranch: This attraction, which is near Cooks Forest, is a very unique experience for families. A herd of twenty deer have been raised from birth and are very tame. They will walk right up to you and children can even bottle feed the babies during the Spring. For more information, check out http://www.doublediamonddeerranch.com/.
8 Great Nature Parks: Lou over at Bianchi Honda outlines some features and highlights of parks around this area in this article. Check it out!

Biking and Hiking

Interested in hitting the trails? Check out the Bike Erie site for great events like the Escape to the Lake event coming up June 8-9th. If Hiking is more your thing, check out the following sites are worth a look:

Every Trail: Shows hikes others takes along with reviews and ratings. I especially like the one entitled “GE Lunch”. :)
Trails.com: Use the map feature to pick a hike right where you want to be
PA Hikes: This site features pictures as well as information about the trail
Hiking in National Parks

Books to Check Out

Here are some titles I ran across that might be of great benefit in mapping out a staycation plan for your family. Be sure to ask at the library first since many of these are available there as well. Even if the physical books are not available, you may be able to borrow a digital copy.

What About You?

I’d love to hear about your favorite Erie adventure! Leave me a comment and let me know what you and your family are planning this summer.

PDF

Find Great Party and Decoration Ideas!

By Lindsey | May 20, 2013 | Ministry Ideas | No comments

As a Children’s Ministry director, I’m always looking for great party and decoration ideas. I bet you are too! Recently, I stumbled upon Birthday Planet. It’s a fun site that has tons of pictures and party ideas to get you headed in the right direction. You can narrow down the search by the type of energy your looking for (lounge to adrenaline rush) as well as budget. You can scope out other people’s party ideas and pictures (like this Jungle Themed party) and fun party game ideas. I was a little bummed they didn’t have a search feature, but maybe it’s coming soon! Take a look at see if you can find some great ideas too!

PDF

Feeling Like Something Fresh? {Chick-Fil-A Giveaway}

By Lindsey | May 15, 2013 | Erie, My Thoughts | 8 Comments

Hey Friends! Does anyone around here love Chick-Fil-A as much as me? I mean, “Cow Appreciation Day” is a permanent fixture on my calendar and I have been known to drive across town just to get some of their lemonade. I recently received an email inviting me to give away 2 coupons for their new FreshMade Salads.

Chick-fil-A is helping you make today #FreshMade, by creating new menu options that you can feel good about! They are introducing 3 new premium salads and an improved wrap all under 430 calories made with premium ingredients.

Take your taste buds to greener pastures.

Interested in trying the new menu items for FREE?? Leave a comment telling me your favorite Chick-fil-A item to enter! Contest ends May 26, 2013.

PDF

Taking the Gospel Beyond the Walls of Your Church {The Gathering}

By Lindsey | May 15, 2013 | The Gathering | No comments

Yesterday, I attended a breakout session with Dawn and Kwan entitled “Taking the Gospel Beyond the Walls of Your Church”. Our church has just begun to explore “the great outdoors”, so I was excited to hear more about strategies and logistics from this name-rhyming dynamic duo!

To begin, Kwan explained that the kids program at his church is called HQ (Headquarters). He loves this name because it implies that kids come into the the church to get their mission assignment and marching outdoors but then head back out to in order to execute the mission. I have to admit, I love the picture of church being Headquarters. It’s someplace we can go to recuperate, share problems, brainstorm strategies together and get new assignments — but we don’t spend the majority of our time there. The majority of our time is spent in the world, in the community, on the mission field. I can’t wait to share this word picture with my team!

Additionally, Dawn and Kwan really emphasized waiting on God’s timing. Change is a slow process and something you need to take a whole year or a few years really preparing the church and rallying the troops. Dawn told us about her experience with Vacation Bible School. Here’s the quick version:

Year #1: Real Assessment of VBS: Are we happy with the results? Are we satisfied with the experience? (150 Kids in attendance)
Year #2: Cut Decoration Budget (150 Kids in attendance)
Year #3: Changed the format to evening VBS and focused on equipping parents to lead kids toward Christ (48 Kids in attendance)
Year #4: Took VBS to the streets and hosted the program in back yards (1,000 kids in attendance)

Talk about growing pains, huh? If the church didn’t go through year #3, it would have never been prepared for year #4, but I’m sure there was a lot of head shaking and nay-saying in the process!

The point is… sometimes we have to wait. Sometime we catch a vision from God, but the timing isn’t right. Sometime the change is a SLOW process, but that doesn’t mean we aren’t on the right track.

PDF

Tru: The 10 Environments

By Lindsey | May 14, 2013 | Holidays and Events, The Gathering | No comments

If you’re a user of the Tru curriculum, you are already very familiar with the 10 Environments. I love how RockHarbor built the idea of the 10 Environments right into their everyday decor. Take a look at some of the artwork lining the halls in their children’s wing:

Pretty cool, huh?

How do you keep your vision front and center at your church?

Do you use Tru? How do you highlight the 10 Environments?

PDF

Teaching Kids About Patience

By Lindsey | May 12, 2013 | Elementary Age, Ministry Ideas, Preschoolers, Preteens | 2 Comments

We’re learning all about Patience this month during Wednesday night Kids Club and I thought I’d share a post I wrote over at 3 Boys and a Dog. Hop on over to Kelli’s blog to read about 5 ways to teach kids patience and pick up a free handwriting practice sheet of Psalm 27:14!

Also, be sure to check out the Kid’s Quest blog — they were using 252Basics back in 2010 as well and have some great graphics and posts about patience on their sight. Check out this cool virtue sign: