Slime Happens

This summer the kids in Planet KidZone (our church's children's ministry) have been earning points by being at church, bringing their Bibles, inviting friends, etc. They've been working towards a big group total, which they earned, so we're all heading to Tampa Grand Prix to play putt-putt and ride go-carts somewhere in the near future. In addition to that, however, last Sunday each kid who reached a certain individual point total was rewarded with the opportunity to pour sticky green slime (of the Nickelodeon variety) over the adult of his or her choice.

And aren't the pastor's kids always the overachievers? (Well, either that, or they're the most rebellious ones, and they're peering into a future that includes at least some jail time.)

So, dutiful parents that we are, Tony and I donned our best sliming apparel and subjected ourselves to the green goo. At first, I tried to fight the system and cover myself. I knew I would eventually be cajoled into removing my protective gear, but I figured I could at least get my picture taken, and I could use it for my submission to the 2009 "Pretty Pastor's Wives" calendar. I'm hoping for Mrs. March.

Then it was slime time. I stood there over the drain and allowed my sweet son to pull the cord, tipping the bucket of green nastiness over my head. It really was gross. That stuff is made of Egg Beaters, flour, milk, frog saliva, salamander juice, worm guts, and a couple of other things. And a LOT of green food coloring, of course. If you look closely you can see the look of determination on Ellis' face in the background. He was enjoying himself.


Naturally, I couldn't miss the golden opportunity to do my best Charlie's Angels hair toss. That way I was able to "give back" to the crowd of onlookers, allowing them to share in my green glory. Just a little splatter. I figure if I'm going to have slime dumped all over me, I might as well really get into the moment.


Tony went under the bucket, too, at the hands of our sweet little Gillian. And even Caroline got in on it. She and her best friend, Loren, chose to slime one another as their rewards. Fortunately, we were able to rinse her hair out right away so that the green food coloring didn't leave a lasting tint to her beautiful blonde locks.

Oh, the things we do for our children. It was fun for all of us. :-)