Leaf Piles!

What good is the Fall without a big leaf pile to jump in! For the last few weeks, the number one question at Granny's House has been "Can I have a rake and make a leaf pile?!" Whether it's burying each other in a pile of leaves, or running around with a pile to throw in the air, I'm sure the kids will enjoy playing in our front yard until the last leaf falls!

MU Basketball Game

Thank you to Cleeks Rent to Own who provided Granny's House with basketball tickets to last weeks game against Lincoln. The kids had a great time! Many of them had never been to the new Mizzou Arena, so it as an exciting experience!

If I Had A Million Dollars

Just seven minutes. That's all the time it takes to watch "IF I HAD A MILLION DOLLAR$" featuring the children of Granny's House. And that's all the time it will take for you to fall in love with the precious children who appear in our little movie.

As you watch, you'll howl with laughter, you'll cry, and sometimes find yourself awestruck as you listen to the depth of love and appreciation they have for all the goodness God pours into their lives. Sometimes their profound responses to our questions belie the fact that they're only children.

At Granny's House, it seems that every season, not just the holidays, is filled with joy and we are thrilled to be able to share a little bit of that joy with you via our latest DVD project. This is just a sample, just a little bit of what we get to experience every single weekday afternoon on Trinity Place. Enjoy!!
-Granny Pam

Halloween!

Thank you to the Christian Medical and Dental Association (CMDA) of Mizzou who helped provide Halloween costumes to Granny’s House kids this year! What a fun time it was seeing everyone dressed up as pirates, princesses and action heros! Several of our younger children went to the Christian Fellowship “Fall Festival” to show off their outfits as well as play games and bounce the night away in the many bounce houses at the event! Thank you again to everyone who helped make the night so special!

CALEB-Cow Eye Dissection

Members of Caleb the Science Club dissected cow eyes during Saturday’s meeting, as they participated in a telemedicine link with St. Louis University. After learning about the parts and functions of the eye, the students examined each section of the cow eye, as doctors and medical students walked them through the dissection process. I think we might have a few surgeons in the group!

The Learning Loft

Anyone who has visited Granny’s House for more than five minutes, knows that finding space for 40-60 kids to play is a bit of a challenge. Between our “302” side being used for only dinner, and our “304” unit typically being used for various groups and activities every evening, we are limited in space for our active children. Oftentimes, when you walk into our 304 side, you bump into kids playing Candy Land on the ground in front of the door because there is no other place to play, and as you walk further into the apartment, you notice kids coloring in the hallway, and volunteers reading with kids next to a boom box blasting Lecrae's Christian Rap Cd!

Since the start of the school year, a new challenge has arrived. Homework has always been something we stress to the kids, and we even have a “Show Us What You Got” bulletin board where kids can post their good grades. In the past, however, most of the kids would do their homework at home and come to Granny’s House afterward to play with friends. This year...is different. On any given day, 10 or more kids are running to Granny’s House (homework in hand) right off the school bus begging “Will you help me with my homework!”

When this “crisis” first started, we would grab a volunteer, and head straight to the Craft Room to quietly work on their homework (and when we say “quietly” we mean radio blasting, kids laughing and doors slamming). Soon we realized: something needs to change.

Although we typically do not allow children upstairs in our office and storage room which is on our “eating” side, we realized we had no other choice! Because of this, when you visit Granny’s House at 4:00 pm and head upstairs, you have to climb over children, books, and an occasional stack of flashcards in order to find a seat in the office.

We knew God was trying to tell us something when I walked upstairs and took the pictures of a volunteer working on homework with one of our elementary kids (at that time we did not have calculators so the volunteer's cell phone calculator was being used). When I viewed the picture, I noticed Serenity and Starr in the back corner of our storage room piled up against birthday presents and random donations as they worked on their homework. On that day that the staff looked at each other and said “Something has to change!”
We immediately began praying for guidance, and all of us started brainstorming about how great it would be to have the adjoining upstairs apartment that would be dedicated to just homework and tutoring. It was then that we came up with what we believed was the perfect name for a area for tutoring: “The Learning Loft.” We would have a “homework room” a “quiet room” and maybe even a “computer room” where kids could work on schoolwork without interruption. And, with more and more older kids (13-18 year olds) still hanging around Granny's House, we thought it would be a perfect place to teach them life skills; filling out job applications, practicing answering interview questions, etc.

As we proceeded to inquire about acquiring that “perfect” apartment, we discovered one huge obstacle. The apartment that we believe would be absolutely perfect for our “Learning Loft” is currently occupied by a public housing resident. After talking to the housing authority on several occasions, it seems as though our dreams of the “Learning Loft” are more distant than we thought. Our rent would significantly increase, and the current resident would have to agree to be “transfered” to another unit, incurring all the expenses associated with moving (paying deposits for transferring utilities, telephones etc.) Not to mention the actual drudge of moving all of your belongings… down the street.

Regardless, we know God put this need into our laps for a reason, and we are confident that a solution is right around the corner. Please join us in prayer as we ask God to provide space for the kids to learn. It’s been incredibly exciting watching the kids grades increase and to watch them get motivated in school! What a blessing.

Mom's Banquet

Just like every other Moms' Banquets, our burning desire was to unveil the heart of God, His extravagant love 3-D to all the moms, grandmothers, and special guests who gathered at the University of Missouri's Black Culture Center on October 12. We so wanted them to see that they really are just “One Step Away,” one choice away, from an intimate relationship with their Heavenly Father.

Our guests feasted on Buckingham's Bar-B-Que and were given lots of “TLC” from our older Granny's House girls who were among our servers. During the banquet, we premiered “IF I HAD A MILLION DOLLAR$,” a DVD featuring the children of Granny's House. We were thrilled to, again, have Candace Ingram's (Ourpouring Dance Ministry) expression of worship as she danced to “Broken.”

The centerpiece of this year's event was our guest speaker, Bridget Thomas, Senior Women's Director at Kids Across America (KAA, a Kanakuk Kamp). Everyone would agree that we were all encouraged and challenged as she shared an incredible and oh-so-practical message with us.

If I had a million dollars, I would invite all of Columbia to our next Mom's Banquet!

-Pamela Ingram

(If you would like a copy of our 7-minute DVD, “IF I HAD A MILLION DOLLAR$,” please contact Pam@grannyshouse.org)

Multimedia Slideshow

As many of you know, this summer, Julia Robinson (a Columbia Tribune photo journalist), followed the Mustang girls and captured their journey as they "tamed the wild." She took some amazing photos, and put together a multi-media slideshow that will blow you away! Check it out here and make sure to watch all three "shows!" It will really give you a 3-D view of what the girls experienced this summer.

Part Three-Mustang Girls in the News

Part three of the Spirit Rider's journey with the Mustang Makeover has been posted! Check out the pictures and story in the Columbia Tribune!

Part Two-Mustang Girls in the News

Part two of the Columbia Tribune story on our Mustang girls is up and running. What amazing pictures! Thanks Julia for following us all summer and for capturing such incredible images of our journey!