Tuesday

Reading Partners


 Do you know about Reading Partners yet?? It is a fabulous organization, connecting adult volunteers with children who need help reading.

One of my hopes through getting volunteers to local schools via Girls 101 workshops, is that volunteers will fall in love with reaching kids and want to share their time even more, outside of our workshop time. My friend Laura volunteers with Girls 101, but now with Reading Partners also. Once she got into Sequoyah Elementary where we've held Girls 101 workshops, and met the children and saw the need, she was hooked. She started giving her time weekly to tutor a couple of children who need some extra help. I recently got to meet some ladies who head up this organization. I asked Laura to share a few words about her experience. If you love education, love to read and want to be part of the solution, this is an organization I'd recommend. I'll let Laura say it in her words:
If you are the kind of person who loves to read, enjoys spending time with children AND you feel drawn to do something very special.... someone is looking for you.  There's an awesome program in place at a few local elementary schools called "Reading Partners".  It's an educational non-profit organization that provides one-on-one literacy tutoring to students struggling with reading.  As one of the volunteers I have been gifted with watching children develop a true love of books, reading and a more vibrant curiosity about learning.  I have seen them go from bored to eager and from gloomy to confident.  Ever thought that you could be a Hero?  Through this program you can be a mentor, a leader, and a friend to a student in need.  I encourage you to contact Jill Stillwagon at jill.stillwagon@readingpartners.org or call 918-949-1979.  I tutor at Sequoyah Elementary in Tulsa and would love to see you there.   Laura Francis

Thursday

Easter Lamb Bread


Easter celebrations. What do you do? The one tradition that has been consistent in our house is the lamb bread. 


Be careful what you start when they're young, moms! :)  Actually, I love making this lamb bread, though I admit this year it is a stretch. I'm tired, but I have two days to rejuvenuate before then. Over the years it's finally become easy to make. Not so much in the beginning. 

It represents the Passover Lamb, and ultimately, Jesus. When the kids were younger, we'd comment about what the Lamb symbolizes as we made it or had dinner. Last time I asked,  I was met with silence and stares. Time to move on. HA. They all know already. 

It's sad to tear it apart and eat it.  Especially the head. But it brings giggles to young ones too.

I'm sure it was sad to give up the cute little lamb to be sacrificed back in Bible days too. 

Here he is before he's cooked. He gets so puffy when he's done! Wait, I can't figure out how to 
reposition the picture. Oh well, here he is, uncooked and sideways.


I'm so thankful this Easter weekend for Jesus being the Passover Lamb, the final and perfect sacrifice for us all. 

A group of college girls and I have been studying the subject of Covenant in Bible study this semester. 

The lesson this week was perfectly timed with Easter. Knowing that Jesus was the Lamb of God, sacrificed for our sins, and seeing it so detailed in the Bible, is something that never gets old. God has gone to great lengths to make an amazing covenant with us. It's my favorite Bible study I've done.

Here is a dedicated group of young ladies:


Happy Easter everyone! You now know about lamb bread, and have enough time to try and make it!

Oh a recipe. Basically, make your favorite kind of homemade bread. Roll it out flat. Cut the shape of the main body out. Use extra dough to add on feet, a head, ear, and a little tail. Half the dough you will use to roll out bread balls to put all over the body. Let is rise like you normally would and bake!