A Little Dusty, but Still in Good Condition

The girls left for Girl's Camp on Friday morning. The theme this year is All-S.T.A.R.S. (Standing Together as Righteous Sisters). Here they are sporting their Team Spirit.

Erik got to go up to camp for the weekend to participate in the Bishop's game, giving a Sunday School lesson to the girls, and participating in the Bishop's skit for skit night. The Stake President told the bishops the other night that they should include their families, when it is appropriate, in their Bishopric duties/responsibilities . . . so, the boys and I tagged along for this assignment. I'm glad we did. We had a really good time.

Here's a little beauty that we found as we went rock-hopping down the stream at Camp Lomia.

We stayed at Orchard Camp, which has apple trees planted around the addies. When we came back from dinner on Saturday, we found these two deer eating their own dinner right next to our addie. We saw them again Sunday night as well, along with a squirrel running around with a little green apple in it's mouth.

Our outdoors-men.

Glad to be together . . . and look . . . no kids hanging on us.

There was little sleep for anyone on Saturday night. Though the kids got to bed late, since we stayed up to watch all the skits, it was hard for them to settle down to sleep (first they worried about spiders, then they were anxious to catch all the moths that came in, and then when we finally turned off the light, they just tossed and turned - the plastic covering on the mattresses making noise with every movement.) I admit, I did plenty of tossing and turning too. At one point, James requested a little closer proximity to an adult (both the older boys had chosen to sleep on the top bunks), and Erik finally just pulled some mattresses onto the floor, so that James could sleep next to him (and not be scared anymore). Joseph joined them on the floor a little later when he woke up. And look . . . just like any time the kids are involved . . . Dad got the best place to sleep - on the seams of the two mattresses. Lucky guy!

Jalen Andrew slept the best out of everyone. He fell asleep at the end of the skits, and after putting his pajamas on him I put him down in the pack-n-play never to hear from him again until early Sunday morning when he started calling a little nervously, "Mommy? Mommy?" I held him for a little bit outside while Erik studied his scriptures, but then he fell asleep again. We went in to warm up his little hands, and well, it seems, I was still a little tired.

A great, non-dusty place to sit.

Brothers make good friends!

It was good to see the girls up there. We didn't hang out much, but they would check in on us every now and then, at mealtimes, when it was time for bed, or whenever they needed a "little brother time."

On Sunday, James fell asleep, stretched out on the bench we were sitting on as we ate our lunch. When I finished eating, I moved him to this camp chair, and then moved him again a little later to the craft room, where he slept a bit more on a bench in there.

"Little Man" was at peace in nature as long as he was sitting down throwing rocks into the water.

James is "sharpening" his stick into an arrow.

Erik, along with some of the other priesthood leaders, participated in a spiritual skit for the girls. Erik represented Alma the younger, from the Book of Mormon. He memorized his part, and did a fantastic job.

All in all, we had a good time . . . got real dusty and dirty . . . slept very little . . . ate well, but are glad to be home again (although the boys wanted to stay an extra day or two).