It was one of those really special weeks, that really did seem to go on for a long time. I swam every morning (except Friday because I met with Alexa that morning, and it was cold!) -- but each day had a rhythm that was lovely. Each step I would take away from an old friend, I would only have to take a few more steps to crash into another....it was one of 'those' weeks. I only took my camera out on the last day, but the other days I was really soaking up what it meant to be surrounded by old good friends who love me and make me laugh and who knew me before Chris and I were married......
Julie and Cassie.....she and i were lifeguards together 16 years ago.
This quick shot I got without him noticing, was of Nate, Julies husband, singing to their new 4 week old baby......it was one of the sweetest things. Nate is such a big, buff guy, with the softest voice singing to his son.
My girl.......who laughs with me, and gets mistaken for my sister.
We took in a really great seminar on focusing on our childrens strengths enstead of weaknesses. There was much great talk about the transition our kids go through from "Look what I can do? I am awesome!", to "I can't do that, I suck..." kind of self talk, and how we can build into our kids a confidence so that they can grab onto what will help them figure out WHAT it is that makes them feel STRONG, and not weak.
Jeffy came in late and snagged the best spot for back massages.
Chris explaining "Wreck in Ralph"....and though it looks as though he is a 'little tea pot"...he is explaining where to put the ribbon so your opponant can grab it during the game. Last week for teen girls, many girls hung their ribbons down the front of their pants, which made it, umm, a little more awkward to grab the ribbons off them!!
Brad and I sortof heckled from the back, Brad was my 'first boss' at qwanoes......we were going to put our hands up and ask where we should hang the ribbons.......
Here comes 'Fix it Felix!!'
GEORGE!!!
This Sarah.....Elliots first crush, he can't even handle himself when she comes around, he has resorted to hissing at her if he doesn't see her coming and she takes him by surprise before he can run away......but she said a ride on the quad was on her 'bucket list'......
Elliot chooses to be on 'everyones' team.....mainly so he can do the catching, and nobody knows what team he is on so they don't tag him.....smart kid.
Charlotte (Chris's Program assistant this summer), and Jax....plotting their strategy.
The dominator......
He was a tough guy to get.......
He's amazing.....explains the game to over a 100 people, then plays the game, seriously......
This is Makenna, the Frews daughter. I have watched this girl grow up in front of me on my screen for 9 years....so it was pretty awesome to meet her in person. She is an amazing bracelet maker (at such a young age, she understands how to make the hemp bracelet braiding techniques better than me! And she is so caring....(see shot below of her and her sister....)
Marlana and Katie........
Max working the ribbon station......
Oh sweet Kadence......now that she is 6, she is amazing company. I remember when her first summer was full of crying and she was stuck to Gina like glue! "mini-meets" for bedtime snacks, she has grown into such a sweet girl.
Hey mom, can I go use this golden hammer?
Grayson didn't feel well all week and never really left Christie's side....here they are as the builders for Wreck it Ralph.
Typical 'GAME ON' signal......
War wound.......
Sweaty boys playing hard....I love that I got all 3 boys in the shot. Isaacs job was the CyBug.......
Cutest baby I have seen in a long time......
'Fix it Felix', trying to help re-build the tower, but Gina's team lost by 3 seconds!!
Had to snag the shot of Kale pulling 'an Elliot'...crying upon losing the game.....it sucks to lose these games. I used to get SO MAD during these types of games at Qwanoes...I would have to leave the game and go to the ocean and heave rocks into the water for awhile to calm down, or else I would have pummeled someone....thats how mad and competitive I would get. And Chris was always so good at ALL the games, so heaven help everyone if he wasn't on my team!!
Congratulating Kenna on playing well......
Hard core game....this kid lost a tooth!!!
Jake......
Julie.....mom of 4, including a baby and a 1 year old!!
Time to sing!!
Singing with my friends was the highlight of my summer so far....
Andy is the lead singer....he was the other guy on summer staff when I arrived at qwanoes back in 1996. When it was announced that a new girl 'Shannon? Sharon?' was arriving on the ferry that night, Chris looked at Andy and called Dibs! When we relayed the story to Isaac, that had chris not called shotgun on the new girl, Andy could have been his dad....his eyes got REALLY BIG, and freaked out as he looked at Andy....it was really funny.
He's on the phone, she's dealing with the baby....pretty much standard.
This girl sorta became one of my new favorites around here.....her name is Caroline, and she has a sense of humor that has alluded me all these years until this summer......
Niki and I have been friends since 1997, we met at Qwanoes before she and Andy were together.
Look who's coming?
Pretty much us......
I felt like this week of camp was full of small 'moments', and I caught one here with Jeff and Gina speaking on the phone with a sweet woman who had to go home early because her husband got some very bad results back from the doctors saying that he was full of cancer, and he is in his 40's. We were all shocked.
Atom ball has been a hit with the kids, which thrills Chris..
Another moment I caught that warmed my heart....here are Niki's kids consoling the youngest who had just fallen down pretty hard....they all automatically ran together.....I got a little teary, it was the sweetest thing I saw that day.
And now begins the event of 'Cat Herding' as I try to wrangle all the old alumni with their kids to take a shot before we all split into different directions until next year!! Enjoy the process....we did end up getting it!
Funny story with Leah, she had on this nice black t-shirt that I thought would look with the paddleboard logo that Chris designed for this summer. I was able to convince her to take it off right there and let me logo it. I took off one of my shirts since I was wearing 2 that morning....doesn't it look good?
As people were leaving the property and things were calming down, I looked into the Chapel to find my sweet Elliot playing the piano....the grandparents would have been proud.
