Monday, April 11, 2011

International Chapel Women's Retreat

Last weekend I attended a women's retreat, organized and sponsored by my church here in Vienna. There were about 60 ladies in attendance. Myrna Alexander was the speaker; she spoke about trusting the character of God and making Him our firm foundation, upon which we can stand during the joys and trials of our lives. Betka, Molly and Kristen helped with music - the acoustics of the room made the sound of so many women singing together especially beautiful!
Friends Carrie and Amanda managed the book table at the retreat. Here they catch a few minutes of knitting between sessions.
On Saturday afternoon, I had the chance to participate in a walking tour of Krems, the town where the retreat was held. It is a quaint Austrian town, the home of Franz List's mother. I really enjoyed hearing some of the history of the town and seeing the old buildings.
This is my friend Jayne. She has been such an encouragement to me this year! We both stepped out and took part in this retreat in ways that pushed us out of our comfort zones: Jayne as MC and me as Fun Night Coordinator. God was so good to give us the courage to lead in these ways!

2011 Battle of the Books Champions

These gentlemen won the 2011 Battle of the Books competition. Here they pose with Mrs. Dax, our school librarian and chief organizer of the battle. Way to go, Wisps!

Welcoming New Friends

Our 5th grade class has grown by two in the last month. Welcome, Victor and Tyler! My students have done such a nice job welcoming them in and helping them learn the routines and procedures in our classroom. This brings our class size to 17, with 11 nations represented among us.

Goldie and the Bears

The Primary-2nd grade students recently presented a musical performance called "Goldie and the Bears". The chorus members were especially cute wearing tree and flower headpieces designed by Mr. Reynolds' high school art students! Grades 3-5 and many parents enjoyed attending the show.

Reading with 1st Graders

In March, we had a Read-In day where we read all day long. Students were allowed to wear their pajamas to school and, of course, their favorite books. The 5th graders visited the 1st graders on Read-In day and spent some time reading together. The 1st graders thought it was so cool to have their very own 5th grader to read with them!