Young Women's Stake Girls Camp 2012
i was asked to be the camp director for tanaya's girls camp this year, which meant i got to go to camp with her. she wasn't totally thrilled with the idea at first, but i told her i'd keep my distance and at camp i wouldn't be her 'mom'. it was really hard not to hug and kiss her for a week but with the exception of one mishap i succeeded. by the end of camp she said it wasn't that bad that i was there :)
camp was held at camp zarahemla this year, which is up immigration canyon. the girls were in a cabin and the leaders were in a tent. the girls were all so amazing and fun to be around. there was no fighting or drama - just lots of playing and good times. i was so proud of them.
the theme was pirates so we named ourselves the 'knotty angels'. with the other wards coming up with churchy pirate names we made some heads turn when we announced our name. and for that we were a bit of the rebels of the group, but of course i was okay with that.
our ward with our 'knotty angel' pirate flag
the girls decorating their cabin. pirates with an attitude! :)
the inside of their cabin on the first day. this is the cleanest it ever was
a view from our fire pit to the back of the cabin. all the white stuff is cotton from the cotton trees.
flag ceremony
i made a list of survival skills the girls could pass off and for each one they passed off they earned a bead. they could do the same skill as many times as they wanted to earn an unlimited amount of beads. some girls, like kanasha (in the blue), took this to the extreme without any hesitation.
her favorite survival skill was bug eating. i lost count after 6. she ate a box elder bug, a potato bug, a warm, a spider...made me so happy :)
another survival skill was the polar dip. for each dip they did, staying in up to their chest for 30 seconds, they earned a bead. tanaya was another extremest and this was her favorite survival skill. she did it 3-4 times everyday and the water was SO cold! (that's my girl!)
hanging out at the bridge
craft time: they made t-shirt bracelets
the hike: the younger girls did a 3 mile hike and the older girls were thrilled they got to do a 5 mile hike ;)
tanaya cut up parts of her camp t-shirt and tied knots and twist all over it. once everyone saw how cute it was they all wanted her to teach them how to do it. she's such a trend setter, i love it!
tanaya draws a pirate patch on the girls in preparation for our skit
the girls with their props
their skit. it turned out amazingly cute.
the camp fire. they look so tired and worn out don't they?
umm...not so much :) the girls were so loud other wards heard them and came over to join in. they were having SO much fun and even though it was after hours i just couldn't stop them. we were eventually asked to quite it down :) oops! ;)
prepping for the marshmallow gun fight
and with such team work and procession the mighty 'knotty angels' conquered!
and then they ate the marshmallows and got a sugar high
the service project: it was SO hot and they worked hard picking weeds and grooming the trees.
the water slide: a great way to cool off after a working so hard
another survival skill: fire building with a flint and stone
(a proud mom moment i couldn't resist) tanaya was the only one able to start her fire and keep it going - and she did it on her first try! yep...i'm one proud momma!
no surprise that tanaya received the 'chatty camper' award. i love this girl!
GOOD JOB CAMP DIRECTOR!!! I am so glad that you got to have this experience with Tanaya. This was a good time in her life to have you be involved with her and her friends. I am sure that she is very proud of her Mom and happy that you took the time to be with her. ALL OF YOUR ACTIVITIES LOOK REALLY FUN AND IT APPEARS THAT THEY ALL LOVED IT!
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