Girls Camp 2015

Girls camp this year was fun, tiring and spiritual all rolled into one. 

These are the women from our ward that went this year and I was happy to be up there with them. 

We started off camp with a reveal of our cabins and unity games. 

After that I drove some of the leader girls up and we decorated our cabin. My decorations weren't anything compared to some of the others. If I'm a cabin mom next year I'll have to step it up. 

It's fun to be at camp and see Ashley having fun with friends and her cousin but still be busy enough with my own group to not get in her way. 

Jolene is used to having more of her family at camp with her. Ashley and I were glad she was up there with us. 

Every day there were rotations. The girls learned skills, spiritual things and had fun activities. 

The second day was the hike. 

I went with Ashley's group and she did a 3 mile hike up a trail that ended with a great view of the lake. 

Along the way the girls were taught survival skills by the older girls. 

More unity games happened when we got back, including ones that got the girls wet.

That night was a variety show...with a VARIETY of talents displayed.

The next  day we had the opportunity to do some service. Some groups helped paint around the camp, others gave flowers to the neighbors of the camp and we got to drive to a community garden and help out there. 

Pretty much we did a lot of weeding. It was an organic garden so it had a lot of weeds. 

The guy that owns the garden was very happy for all the help and was pleased that we all came.

When we got back we had some first aid/survival rotations that included ways to help victims that needed assistance. 

With some coaching from the victims the girls explained what to do in an emergency...such as a shark attack.

and getting a compound fracture. There was a lot of screaming as we approached the victims but it was a fun and memorable way to learn first aid. 

After the afternoon rotations that were a combination of spiritual and things like tomahawk throwing they did a mini version of the color activity from the year before (with the leftover powder).

The girls that didn't get to do it last year enjoyed it. 

Simone is photobombing in the back. Even though everyone else thought it would be too messy she pushed forward and did the color activity anyways. 

Even one of the cooks got in on it. She wanted this picture sent to her grandchildren and was proud of her blue hair the rest of the time she was up there. 

Other girls (like Ashley) remembered how hard it was to get out last year and left the circle before the fight happened.

That night the Stake presidency came up and did a skit. 

We all had to stay in the gym for awhile while an activity was being prepared for. 

Then we were told to blindfold ourselves and line up. 

We followed the iron rod (a rope) and had to make our way up to the fire pit passing people that were trying to get us to let go of the rope and other people encouraging us on our way. Being blindfolded let us experience it on our own and reflect how it related to our own life. 

At the top there was a tree lit up with lights representing the Tree of Life and we heard a talk. It ended up being the most spiritual and powerful activity of camp. 

Here is Scott Williamson teaching us how to tie knots, but not really. The real knot guy canceled and Scott filled in. The thing was he could care less about knots so his class ended up being a cross between halfhearted knot tying, comedy, life lessons and some scriptures thrown in. I felt like I was getting a glimpse of what his seminary students got to see every day and I wished I had a teacher like that growing up! He did great.

That night the bishop came up and ate dinner with us. Afterwards we did a game and he gave a spiritual thought before we went up to testimony meeting. 

Friday morning was just getting up and packing and cleaning the camp.

While the girls were waiting to get their ride home they were playing hand clapping games.

The ride home in my van was full of talking, giggling and singing of camp songs. 

We ended up at Wendy's to feed them lunch regardless of messy hair and some with pj bottoms. 

This was Ashley's souvenir from camp, a nice size hole in her backpack. 

I asked her if she had put food in her backpack. She reached in and pulled out an empty wrapper from peanut butter crackers. 

I knew it was a chipmunk. We kept seeing them sneak into everyone's cabins.

A girl in my cabin had the same size hole in her suitcase when a chipmunk ate a chocolate bar she had brought for her pincone pal gift. 

I guess the "no food in the cabin" rule isn't so much for the bears as for the chipmunks that will eat through your luggage!