The past couple days

Just returned from the airport. Jack and I drove Nick to DFW to catch his flight to Annapolis, listening to "leaving on a jet plane" while driving up to the terminal. This was our last time to see him before Thanksgiving, and Nick will be out of contact at Plebe summer for the next 8 weeks--it's weird to think about that. His parents took about ten of us to the W last night for dessert, and then we all headed back to the Castilla's for a final "Kronos" in Colson's room. Nick only took a duffle bag with him--the kind you would pack for a weekend, except his is for a year. His room is rather bare--sort of perfect. The books lined up from shortest to tallest, the bulletin board blank. Austin leaves tomorrow to head up to Annapolis, too. It will be weird not to have them around. They will definitely be missed.

We returned from Joni and Friends on Sunday after saying goodbye to the Week 1 families. On our way home, we decided to take our time and make a day out of the 3 hour trip. After eating lunch in College Station, we headed back to Mollies house and took a short nap. Around 5:30, we began our trip home, stopping in Ennis to watch Knight and Day at the drive-in. I was rather impressed with the movie--not as cheesy as I had expected. The

movie was definitely made with both girls and guys in mind--a rarity for action films. We finally arrived back in Dallas around midnight, ready to rest up before we head back down to camp on Thursday morning.

Shaving Cream Wars

We started off the morning with devos again. Then Melina and I headed to the pool--she is a fish in water! We swam for a short period, but then Melina decided it was time for us to be done. She handed me my shirt and shorts to put on, and meanwhile stripped out of her swimsuit. We sat in the sun and rested until the rest of the group was ready to head to Bible. We almost made it into the classroom! Standing in the doorway, Melina decided she would rather watch Elmo, so thats exactly what we did. We sat on the couch outside and watched Elmo for the next hour. Lunch consisted of hoagie bread and cheddar cheese with Diet Dr. Pepper for Melina and a salad and pasta for me. This was the end of our group activities. Melina and I rode the elevator again today, getting off each time we got to the first floor so that we could blow some bubbles in the Jr. High room. This continued until the bird lady came to talk. Melina was more interested in wandering than sitting and learning about birds, however. So we wandered around the room--at one point opening the cage for the great horned owl--one of the more frightening experiences of the day. Dinner tonight was split--the campers and STMs eat frozen pizzas and fruit cups while the parents enjoy chicken wellington and chocolate mousse. After eating, we went outside to get messy! It was a shaving cream frenzy---cans of Barbasol lined the walkways and white blobs ran around rubbing shaving cream into one another's hair. Melina loved it! My hair still feels like straw.

Tonight we had the ladies' spa. The moms (and dads if they wish!) come and receive back massages and pedicures. This is one of my favorite activities at camp--the moms finally get a chance to relax and be pampered--a rarity for many of them! Sometimes the STMs get a bit of pampering, too, at the end.

A wonderful end to an exciting day!

Tomorrow is the talent show--a tear-jerking, wonderful evening. I can't wait!

Learning to Love the Elevator

Well today began with a great devo and a bowl of oatmeal. Melina and I headed off with our group to go fishing. We took a "hayride" down to the lake, which Melina loved--the "tractor" as she referred to it. We weren't too excited about specifically catching a fish, but rather enjoyed letting out the line and reeling it back in towards us.
We had to be careful that we didn't give someone an unwanted piercing. A couple of the campers kissed the fish that they caught--they are braver than I am! That was the end of our participating in group activities. We preferred to do our own thing--putting together puzzles and watching Dora. At lunch, Melina and I were sitting and watching more Dora and Elmo when another camper came up and stole all of Melina's cold cuts and stuffed them in his mouth. Unfazed, Melina continued on watching her TV show and ate another roll. After lunch, we headed downstairs and blew bubbles for a while. Melina liked to say that the bubbles were dancing. We danced along with them. And then we went to the elevator to ride up and down over and over again. We went from the Mezzanine to the second floor to the first, repeating the sequence from 12:30 until 3 with brief intermissions to dance with the bubbles.

Tonight, we had the annual camp dance--a camp favorite for sure! We discovered that Sam's camper, Peter, was quite the dancer. Larsen, Mollie's camper, is certainly camp's dancing queen!

Daniel and Gianna, at age 9, were the cutest couple--a relationship which began last year at camp. Both blind, they danced in their own world amongst the crowd, joyful and smiling. After two hours, we all were ready to head to bed, exhausted from a wonderful night of dancing!

Tomorrow we go swimming--Melina's favorite!

Day 2: The Families Arrive!

7:30 Mollie, Amanda, and I rolled out of bed and headed to breakfast--our last breakfast without the campers. We proceeded from there to do more training of various intensities and then headed back to the dining hall for lunch. After lunch, we had our final meeting, and the campers began to arrive. The next two hours were filled with cheering and smiles as the families piled out of their vans and RVs, and the STMs helped unload the luggage, our light blue t-shirts tinged with dark patches as a result of the 95 degree weather. Melina and her family got there about an hour into the process, pulling up in the white RV they take down from Oklahoma City. Dressed in her bright orange top, orange miniskirt, and purple crocs, Melina climbed down the steps of the RV and gave me a hug. So excited to have my camper back for the third year! She is almost to my shoulder now--definitely growing up! I ate dinner with Melina and her family, and then her mom took her back to their room pretty quickly because Melina was tired. They had spent the day before at Great Wolf Lodge water park so she was ready to sleep! Larsen, Mollie's camper, arrived with her mother. Donned in pink attire and ready with her famous one-liners, Larsen hopped out of the car and gave Mollie a giant hug.

Tomorrow Melina and I will go swimming and tie-dye. Should be a great day!

On a different note, we found out today that Joni, the founder of the camps, has been diagnosed with breast cancer. Although tragic, this cancer has not gotten Joni down. We read her email today as a team and she is wholly trusting in God and excited for him to work through her and this cancer.

Joni and Friends: The Beginning

8:15 am. Sam and William drive up to head down to Navasota for our first day of training. Today is the day we find out who our campers/families are for the week.
11 am. We pull into College Station and head over to Mollie's new house--it is so cute! The four of us went to Potbellys for lunch and then the boys headed out to Joni and Friends for training. Mollie and I hung around the house and ran a couple errands before heading to camp.
5:30 pm. All STMs (the counselors) are present at camp. Mollie, Amanda, and I are rooming together, just like we did two years ago. There are so many new STMs this year!
We broke out into our age groups and were assigned our campers--I am with Melina for the third year in a row--so excited to be with her again! After our assignments, we all gathered together again for singing outside and s'mores. Tomorrow we will do some more training and get to greet the families in the afternoon. Whitney and Albert, Melina's parents, are so great--their family has quite a personality. Diego is Melina's older brother, and he has Aspbergers. He always has a big crush on his STM--I am curious who that is this year!
Got to clean up the room and go to sleep!

To Joni and Friends I Go

Today is my last day of work at the Y for a while. Tomorrow I will head down the the lovely Navasota, Texas where I will spend my next two weeks. Population: few. Activities: 1. Joni and Friends. Joni and Friends is a special needs family camp where I will be working for my third summer. I have a camper named Melina who is now 7 years old. She has moderate autism and loves to run. I get to chase her when she pops up from the table at meals and we run together all around camp. The picture is from a shaving cream fight last year. Shaving cream fights are always a bit chaotic, and when you mix in children who are in wheelchairs or cannot see, it always adds to the excitement. Lots of screaming and laughter. That pretty much sums up the whole camp--joy overflowing everywhere. I truly believe that Joni and Friends is the happiest place on earth.

Father's Day

Back at the Y today. Tomorrow will be my last day before heading off to Joni and Friends, a special needs family camp which I work at in the summer. Today is Father's day. 11 o clock church was relatively empty--I presume that people were out enjoying Father's day brunches. It is weird this year to have no one to whom I can say "happy father's day". Last year, I remember sitting at my dad's apartment, he in bed, barely able to sit up, and his four children, his mother, and one of his brother's cramped into his small bedroom. We sat around and exchanged stories, my grandmother telling us about her ex-boyfriends and how, oddly enough, many of her children were named after them. But this year, I am spending my day working at the YMCA. My view of a father has changed many times over the past few years. I grew up with my father, but he left when I was 9. I didn't really like dads after that. And I had to seek out a father figure in the Lord. He is and has always been the perfect dad. My father and I mended our relationship, but now he is gone after a three year battle with lung cancer. In the past couple of years, he became a rock for me, a counselor, and a wise mentor. He has helped shape me into who I am today--always pushing me to pursue my passions, even if they were absurd or pointless.
On a different note, last night I went to my friend Neesha's graduation party. It reminded me of a Bar Mitzvah party or wedding reception. I walked into the room, and all I saw was a room full of saris. I made my way over to the tables reserved for Hockaday students and quickly took my seat. After a night of wonderful Indian food, singing, and speeches, the dancing commenced. My friends and I slowly made our way to the dance floor, unsure how exactly to dance. We gravitated towards a small Indian girl, Neesha's five-year-old cousin, and decided to follow her. She showed us her best moves, and we attempted to copy her complicated hand motions. And these motions were not unaccompanied by spunk and attitude in her step and facial expression. As the dance floor population dwindled, we made our way to gather our purses and left the hotel ballroom--fully pleased with our Indian party experience.

Happy father's day to all the dad's out there-what a blessing to have father's who love and care for us!

Day 2 of Blogging

Little leaguers run the fields. Parents watch eagerly, but not without reservation imposed by the heat. Texas weather really has it in for those who want to be supportive. Some spectators multitask--finishing phone calls with their bosses, catching a quick nap, or perhaps doing some running themselves. Then there are the parent who are standing on the sidelines, looking as if they would like to jump into the game themselves.

Trash cans overflow with half eaten sandwiches, typically accompanied by nearly full waterbottles--waterbottles spectators bought and then forgot about. But today all the waterbottles are empty. No one is willing to forget about a single drop of water, not in this heat. I am looking forward to the steady 70s of Southern California.

Last night, we had a going away party of sorts for Nick and Austin--they head off to navy in 11 days, and at this time will abandon all forms of electronics and relenquish all rights to privacy. I am grateful God calls some people to serve, because to me it sounds miserable, but I know it is an integral part of our society. After the party, a group headed down to The Door-Dallas to watch Jack and his band, Empire, perform in a battle of the bands. 7 bands performed (including a simply lovely metal screamo band...) and two advanced, one of which was Empire! They will play again on July 30 to compete for $1000.
I went home and again watched an episode of Veronica Mars.
Tonight is my friend's Indian graduation party--should definitely be an interesting experience!

Well Cath, I Caved

Thoughts: I have spent the past two weeks making fun of one of my best friends, Catherine, for having a blog. Truly an 18 year-old's life cannot be all that interesting. But as I sit here at the YMCA with nothing to do, I have decided to give blogging a try. I figure I would blog, even if for no other reason than to have something to do while sitting outside with nothing to do. I am afraid I do not compete with the Chesnut sisters on artistry, I think my creativity ended with my attempt at clothing design at age 12 (which I cleverly named "Just for Fun", most likely as a disclaimer for any uncovering of my work in the future).

So this summer I am back at the Y, working on the membership team. This basically means I check people in and get to parooze the internet and read. There is one little boy who comes up daily and tells me about his swimming escapades. I've gotten to know the regulars and learned to identify the guests.

Music: Last night, my friend Nick and I went to see Idina Menzel sing with the Dallas Symphony. I would definitely put it on my list of best concerts, right up there with John Mayer and Pat Green. I wish I were able to sing.

TV: Over the years, I have almost prided myself in the fact that I do not watch TV. But the occasional TV show will catch my attention and pull me away from tasks at hand. At present, that show is Veronica Mars. About 3 years ago, my sister, Gillian, gave me the first season for my birthday. I began watching, but soon forgot about it in the midst of other activities. Recently, however, a friend reminded me of the 3 season show. I have since become addicted, and I am now half way through the second season. Why it was cancelled? I do not understand.

Books: Right now, I am reading Franny and Zooey by J.D. Salinger, also given to me by Gillian. Although I have not read Catcher in the Rye (a big surprise for a Hockaday graduate), this is an easy read during work. Salinger writes a slice of life for two characters, who are actually siblings, and brings them together in dialogue in the end.

Back to work for me.