The In-Between Stuff

After family camp, we did the normal things.  We exercised...

we built utility belts out of Legos...

we played with empty boxes...

and got some music appreciation lessons from Grandma.

Family Camp - The Last Full Day, and Leaving

Photos from the last full day and then the next morning, all out of order...

Brad and Katie, Ryan and Ashley, Jeff and I, and all 13 of our kids took pictures together.  I'm so glad we took time to do it!  Out of a zillion photos, these are the ones I choose to share.

One of the things I love about camp is having time to myself, and using the time however I need to use it.  Some years, I need naps - or time to read - or time to sew or craft.  This year, I had a mix of social time and reading time.  On this day, I had time alone - with my Bible, notebook, a donut, hot chocolate, and a novel.  What could be better?

I just love this hymn.  I rarely hear it, but I remember its words striking my heart when I was in college, and I loved hearing it again during worship time on this day.

More family antics.

The hydrangeas were beginning to bloom!

Benjamin gave Luke some love after being busy and neglecting him all week.

The kids put on a program for the parents on Friday night.  My kids do not like to sing or participate, but here are a couple of pictures.

Earlier on Friday, Jeff and Jonathan spent some time together at the creek.

Our last breakfast with all three families sort of together.  Some kids were more exhausted than others!

And on the way, home, we grabbed some refreshments.  Jonathan and Hailey are buddies, although their methods for showing it are unconventional.

It is sometimes our tradition to see the newest Pixar movie on the way home.  We did that with Ryan and Ashley and family, and then Jeff needed to stop at a furniture store.  Looking at furniture with children is one of my absolute least favorite activities, so there are no photos of that.  But after we were finally done with side trips and could bask in the happiness of our wonderful week, we enjoyed our ride home, as you can see.  It was a wonderful sixth year at family camp, and we were so thankful to have friends come along with us.

Family Camp - Day Four

How to wake up in the forest

When your class is going to do a water activity, you get to wear your swimsuit to breakfast!  Kenzie's suit used to be Grace's, so it's fun to see both girls - and suits - together!

This day, Katy and Ashley and I spent our coffee break chatting and catching up.  We loved it!

Can you see that this squirrel has stoled a cinnamon roll and is taking it up the tree?  We loved watching this ambitious creature.

One favorite part of Thursday is the adult-only dinner!

We also love campfire afterwards.  The younger kids wear pajamas to dinner, so they Benjamin wore his to campfire, too.

Earlier in the day...

check out this lifeguard's accessories...

One more new activity for us...Dad's Big Splash!  Jeff didn't win, but we loved cheering him on.  Here are Benjamin, Kenzie, and Grace watching him.

Family Camp - Train Day!

Here are our pictures from a highlight of the week...Train Day!

We ride the train with our dear friends, the VMs, every year.  This year, as you can see from the photos, we added the the two families who came with us to our train day fun!

We usually choose a couple of rides, and one is always the historic carousel.

This year, we rode this sky thingy - I forget the name.  I remember riding it with my friend Sonia when I was a kid.

We also rode the ferris wheel.  It scared some of us.  Also, it was super windy.

I don't think I've mentioned this, but I generally bring one pair of jeans per kid for the week at camp, and they never get worn.  This year, I think, is the first year that we wore the jeans a lot!  The weather was chilly, especially at the beach.  We usually choose the option of riding the train back to camp midday, and this year we were especially glad to do that to get out of the cold, coastal weather.

When we returned, we enjoyed ice cream, of course...

and enjoyed ping pong and air hockey while the camp ground was very quiet.

Also new this year, we took advantage of an evening activity as a family that we used to forgo, unless Jeff and Jonathan went while I stayed back with the younger sleepers.  We attended Wednesday night's Improv Night.  Even though the youngers were exhausted - especially Benjamin - we laughed so hard our faces hurt.  Some of the staff members are just hilarious, or creative geniuses, or both.  We never knew what would happen next, but we enjoyed ourselves completely - even those of us who are a little more straight-laced in our humor appreciation!