Tuesday, August 24, 2010
Georgetown!!!
I know I haven't posted since May. It's been a busy summer. An absolutely amazing one!! But busy.
I spent the majority of my time at Aldersgate! (surprise, surprise) I was there four weeks again this summer. I went as a camper to Leisure Ministries again, my favorite camp of all time, then I counseled three other weeks. So many good, funny, happy memories, and many many stories. It was so great.
And now I'm at college!!! We moved in Thursday and had orientation all weekend. One day my orientation group went to the nursing home as our service project and played Bingo with the residents, and some of us girls painted the ladies nails and stuff. It was cute. Also one of the ladies there turned 100 yrs old that day!!! So we sang her happy birthday :)
The best part of orientation was the hypnotist. I was skeptical, but one of my friends who did it said it actually worked. It was hilarious, and they were doing some crazy things. But no worries, the hypnotist said he couldn't make them do anything that would be against their ethics.
Then we started classes yesterday and they went really well. And I've been meeting so many new people and making so many new friends!!! So I'm soooo super excited about this first wk of school, and this semester, and these four years, and my life!!! I'm just loving this!!!
Well, I may try to keep up, but you know how it is. I'll probably write in another three months.(Or five.)
I LOVE GEORGETOWN!!!!!!! :D
Wednesday, August 12, 2009
Girls' Grandcamp!
It started on Sunday when our little cousins Anna Keren and Joseph had their birthday party. So after we celebrated and ate cake and such, Aunt Barbie and Uncle Kevin (Anna Keren and Joseph's parents) told us they'd rented a pontoon, and we were all going to go out to Grayson Lake. So we did and we had such a fun time. We and Anna Keren would laugh so hard when we went over the waves from other boats because water would splash up on us, and we managed to get pretty wet, actually, even though we never got out of the boat. It was really fun.
Then we went back to Mimi and Papaw's house and were going to pick out a movie. We had about decided on The Last Sin Eater when we realized we'd better choose something Anna Keren could watch too. The Aristocats is was! :) Mimi made us popcorn and peanut butter fudge, and we watched the classic disney movie and laughed and had a good time. Then we got out a bunch of blankets and pillows, and all camped out on Mimi and Papaw's living room floor. It was great.
Monday morning we woke up around eight o'clock to the sound of Joseph's talking/ laughing/ baby noises. haha. We tried to doze a while longer, then got up to Mimi's delicious pancakes. They are seriously the best ones I've ever eaten. They're so good! So I ate three of those, then we went on a nature walk outside on the quiet little streets of the neighborhood behind Mimi and Papw's house. Then we decided we'd go and help Randee and Mark in their apartment, cause they still had a lot to do in it. And Kentucky Christian University (where they both go to school) is only 5 mins away from Mimi and Papaw's, so we drove over there, washed dishes and such for around two hours, then went back to Mimi and Papaw's house and got ready to go to the fair! We try to go to the Carter County Fair each year we can, and we have so much fun! The only problem was, when we got there, very dark clouds were overhead an quickly traveling our way. So we waited a few minutes, then decided we'd do it anyway. It didn't look like they were going to close down the rides, so off we went! We did the scrambler, the pirate ship (my personal favorite =]) the superman, and quasar, or something like that, and that one was not cool. It made a couple of the cousins sick, so we took a break for a couple minutes (it's been raining for a while now, and it's beginning to lightning too), did a few more rides, then decided we were ready to go. It was dark, pouring the rain, and lightning hugely! So we went back to Mimi and Papaw's, got into warm, dry clothes, and just relaxed a little before heading off to bed.
Tuesday morning (again we awoke to Joseph! lol) Mimi made us cinnamon rolls, cherry turn- overs, and bacon for breakfast, then we just chilled and watched tv until Anna Keren got back from her dentist appointment. Then we went swimming in the neighbors' pool, and it was sooo super duper fun. We had a good time. After over an hour of that, we came back and did music. I played the guitar and we sang for a long time, then Leanndra got out her fiddle, and we did a few more songs. Then we went in, and Mimi and Aunt Barbie wanted to hear some of our songs, so then we did some for them, and little Joseph played along by doing percussion w/ whatever he could. And he'd bounce up and down and clap to the music. It was very cute. Then Papaw brought us all pizza, and we ate and visited, then said our good-byes. It was so much fun, though. It was a very relaxing, happy time together with family. My cousins are like my best friends ever, and my Mimi and Papaw are the greatest! I'm so glad we still keep up the tradition of "grandcamp." :)
Thursday, July 30, 2009
Tenth Avenue North and Dance Camp!
After their concert there was a really great speaker who was absolutely hilarious and really really good. I can't remember his name at the moment, but I'll put it on here when I find out. He knew what life was all about- Jesus.
Then there was like an intermission, then Sanctus Real had a concert. I've seen them a couple times in concert, but they're really good too. So it was a wonderful night! And afterward, I got to meet my favorite band! Yeah, I know! I was pretty excited. Ok, really really excited. And when I was standing in line to meet them, I saw Nathan from my small group at Sr high camp, so we talked for a couple minutes. And then when I met the band and told the lead singer Mike that they were my favorite band, he was like "Really?" I think he was pretty shocked. But I don't know why cause they really are good. So I was like "Yeah," and I talked to him for a few minutes (well, seconds probably). But I explained that I loved their songs because when I hear them they are like God is speaking right to me, and Mike thought that was great and said that he hoped I was as impressed w/ and felt the same way about their next album coming out soon. So I'm super excited about that!
So after the concert my parents dropped me off at my Aunt Debbie and Uncle Lee's house in Lexington, and I spent the night there, went to church w/ them the next morning, then went to lunch w/ Uncle Lee and Andrew's youth group at Gatti Town. I ate a lot of food.
After that, we went back to my cousins' house, I quickly packed up the laundry I had hurriedly done that morning and night before, and we packed up and drove back to Aldersgate. I fell asleep on the way because I was so tired from my extreme, adventurous, epic week before. lol.
We got to camp, I unloaded my stuff at Uncle Lee's house, and I went up to the lodge to eat the delicious dinner the cooks had prepared for us. Lasagna! Yum!
Then we went to the chapel where we had worship, went around and said our name, where we were from, what we were doing that week, and what our favorite head covering was (such as a hat). I said mine was my neon orange fuzzy hat. Hey, actually I have a pic of me wearing that last summer. (I'm actually just putting this on here because I didn't get any pics of us that wk at dance camp, or many at the concert, but I like putting pictures w/ my posts, so I'll just do this one. lol) But anyway, here's my favorite head covering:
I spent the night at Uncle Lee's house, then had our breakfast of biscuits and gravy the next morning at the lodge, got moved into our cottage, made nametags made for the kids, and had lunch. Then Thom and I (Thom was going to be the guys' counselor that week, although there only ended up being two guys coming to dance camp- they were brave little souls) went back to the cottage and awaited for the arrival of the nine kids that were coming. It turned out to be a fun week. So Lauren Lile, a cook on staff, was the dean of dance camp because she danced for like 12 yrs and she is really really good. She taught the kids a dance that they performed at the end of the week, and they did so well. They were really good dancers. One of the little guys (he was about 10 yrs old, I think) was an amazing hip-hop dancer. He could dance so well, and he made me laugh a lot.
Since I was still tired from LM the week before, though, I found times to squeeze in little naps, like one day at pool time, and another day when we were letting the kids watch Monsters Inc. It was kind of a muggy day outside, and the kids were exhausted, so they all got in the floor of the cottage in their sleeping bags and were allowed to rest and nap if they wanted to during the movie, and I ended up falling asleep on the couch. It was a nice nap.
But although I was kinda tired, it was a very good week. One day I got to the lead the kids up to Sugar Camp Cave, and another day to the clay wall, and I led a couple Bible Studies. So I had a really good time. And even though sometimes I tried to nap at pool time, the kids really wanted me to swim, so on Friday, since it was the last day, I decided to get in. I didn't really want to at first, but then when I did, the water felt really good, and I played football w/ Shumar and Roberto (the two boys), and it ended up being really fun. So that week went well, and I had a really good experience counseling. I enjoyed it, and the kids were good too. So I had another very great week, and I was so glad that I got to spend it at Aldersgate.
Monday, July 27, 2009
Leisure Ministries!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! :)
Ok, I guess I'll just start on Monday. The way down to camp is sooooo long because it's so exciting to know you're about to go spend a week at one of the best places on earth- Aldersgate Camp!!!
So I got there, super super excited, and I found out I was in a cabin w/ my cousin Chelsey, my friends Mash, Sarah, Lindsay, and my two new friends now: Brittany and "Kri". Oh, and my amazing counselor Cara. So of course I was already so pumped for the week. Then when we got to choose our majors (there are four amazing ones, btw- Adventure Learning, Outdoor Adventure, Drama, and Production), Chelsey and I decided to do Outdoor Adventure! (something I didn't think I'd do, or at least this yr!) But oh my goodness, it was like the most incredbile major I've done! I loved it! The people in my major were Chelsey and me, obviously (lol), Savannah, Anna, Josie, Zane, Brent, William, Alex, and Luke. And, of course, our fearless leaders Matthew (the same counselor of the guys cabin in my small group at Sr High Camp) and Sarah Noble. They were amazing. My whole group was amazing, and we became very close friends.
So every morning we started out w/ morning platform, then had breakfast, then the rest of the morning was our major time. So on Monday afternoon, we made compasses out of a bowl of water, a sponge, a needle, and a magnet. Tuesday our major group was gone all day because we were at Red River Gorge rock-climbing and canoeing, and it was soooo much fun. It was like one of my favorite days of the week. And that was actually the first time I'd ever rock-climbed, and I loved it! It really was challenging, but it was so extrememly fun. So was canoeing. Anna and I shared a canoe, and it was so great and peaceful on the little lake. There was like no one else there. We jumped off a huge rock into the lake (fun but scary- I screamed as I jumped! =]) and one of the coolest things about it was that we had Bible Study in the middle of the lake that day. We just all canoed to the middle, and the lesson that day "happened" to be about Jesus walking on the water. It was way too cool. Then on our way back to shore (we were dried off now, of course), Brent and Zane just felt the need to tip our canoe, so sure enough, over the side we went into the water. But it was ok. Actually it was really fun. =]
For Wednesday's major time, we learned how to build fires, then our group of ten was broken up into two groups and we had a contest about who could build a fire and burn through the twine (tied between two trees) first. All we had was a box of cheap matches, and anything else we could get to burn. Our team won, but only because the other team gave us matches when we ran out. It was a fun morning.
This was us after our fires were burning, and we were having our daily Bible Study.
Thursday morning during major time we went to Windy Cave. It was sooo incredible. The hike up part of the mountain was really hard, but the cave was so worth it. Once we got inside the cave, we had to get down on our stomachs and wiggle through a hole/tunnel sloping downward. It was actually really cool. Then once everybody got into the lower part of the cave, we had to climb up ropes and then go through another larger tunnel above us into a room called the "Cathedral Room" or something like that because it had like 60 foot ceilings. It was really awesome.
This is us after we finished making our shelters.
So after major time in the morning, we had lunch (and we actually only ate two lunches at the lodge because Tuesday we had our sack lunches of peanut butter and jelly when we went rock climbing, and Thursday we had turkey sandwiches at the cave because we wouldn't have made it back in time for lunch at the lodge), then quiet time. We would choose minors at lunch, then have them after quiet time.
Outdoor Adventure didn't have a minor on Tuesday because we were gone all day, but on Wednesday I did high ropes (and did all the elements, which was really cool), Thursday we had girl/guy time in the chapel (which is a nice, relaxing time where all the girls and counselors just rest in the air-conditioned chapel and talk and share stories and have a fun time. It was really great.), and Friday I did a games minor, where we learned how to play/teach games to a group of people. That was fun too.
So after minors we had swim time, which was always a lot of fun except that I only swam on Friday. But it was still nice to just go hang out at the pool, and talk to friends and stuff. But I did put my feet in each time, and the water felt really good. So everyday that Chelsey and I would do this, our friends would beg us to get in, but it just takes so long to change into/out of swim suits, and we were always tired from our morning "adventures", so we'd just sit there and put our feet in. So finally they convinced us on Thursday that we had to get in on Friday since it was our last day to swim. So, we got in, but it was kinda cool that day cause it had rained earlier, so we were very cold, and then after we were only in there for like 20 mins. it started to pour the rain. So much for swimming that day. lol :)
After swim time we had free time where we just hung out in the field in front of the lodge, and just talked, or played frisbee or basketball or football or four-square, or pretty much anything you wanted. That was always a good part of the day. And then directly after that we would go up to the lodge and eat. Yum yum!
Community Life was always after dinner, and it was always fun. Monday evening, they brought us inflatables (yes, us 10th- college freshmen) and we raced down the inflatable slide and jumped in the bouncehouse. It was great. And I don't know if you can tell, but in the pic on top, I'm going down the slide. hehe! =]
Always after community life, we'd go get ready for campfire, then go have snack time w/ everybody, then go straight to campfire. The cool thing about LM campfires is that you never know exactly where they're gonna be, cause they're not always in the campfire ring. But they are always super incredible with absolutely amazing worship. Monday night we had campfire out in the horse field, and there was a humongus bonfire (I mean, seriously, they were burning logs instead of sticks). Tuesday night it was by the creek, and that day was about getting out of the boat to follow Jesus, so near the end of campfire, Derek Robinette (our absolutely wonderful dean) said they would play a song, and when we felt led, we could take off our shoes and go wade in the creek. So we did. It was cold, but it was amaing. Awesome actually. Wednesday night campfire was at the campfire ring. Thursday it was behind the chapel, but we took the long- way to get there-- like a mini hike. That day was about Jesus' last day before He died, and we watched a clip from the Passion and had a really powerful service. Friday night we carried and followed the "body of Jesus" (someone was actually lying stretched out on boards w/ a sheet over them- it was really cool) around to different points of the field, then went and finished our campfire at the large pavilion, and had Communion and everything.
See, a really sweet thing about LM is that there's always a drama major, so all through the week there are great skits and dramas. And LM is like on a four year rotation kind of thing- the Beginning, the Prophets, the Life of Jesus, and Revelation. This year was the Life of Jesus, and all week it was like we were His disciples. So the drama major would always do scenes from Jesus' life, and it was kind of like His last week. On Thursday "Jesus" was taken by the Roman soldiers, and Friday He was beaten and nailed to a cross. And a really amazing thing about this was that it hadn't rained all week, but on Friday, the day Jesus was to die, it rained. We were woken up that morning to shouts of "Crucify Him", and after lunch, right before quiet time, they did. They "crucified" Him. (her, actually) And it rained. It was pouring the rain. So for quiet time, instead of spreading out like we usually did, we all gathered around the cross. And we prayed, and we contemplated, and we realized our Jesus really went through all this for us. It was amazing.
After campfire on Friday night, instead of sleeping in our cabins like we usually did, our Outdoor Advenure major got our sleeping bags and went to the backpacking area where we had put up our shelters. We built a fire and made s'mores, and it was really fun. Then we slept. It even rained on Friday night, but our shelters must've worked, because not one of us were wet!
Sunday, June 28, 2009
Sr. High Cabin Camp!!!
I don't even know how to begin to describe this week, and it's waaay too much to tell, but I'll try to tell the major points. So to begin...
I had an amazing cabin with an amazing counselor, Katie. Here's a picture of us on the last day of camp. From left to right, it's Katie, me, my cousin Bethany and friend Brandi, Callie, Helena, Danielle, and Cristina. We had an absolutely wonderful group of girls in our cabin, and we got really close this week.

Campfires are always so amazing, and God's presence is always so strong there. The food, of course, is sooo good, and the pool is too. Every evening we had Community Life, which is some activity the whole camp does together. Monday we had the option of swimming, basketball, or volleyball. We chose swimming, though I don't think we even got in the pool. Tuesday was Folk Dancing, which is always a blast. Wednesday we played Mingle, a game which gets people in different groups to meet other people and talk about different things either about yourself or world issues or anything. It's quite interesting. Then we played Ninja and Wa. Thursday was Coffee House. That's where we all went to the chapel and had different stations to go to, like snacks, games, music, art, prayer for the world, etc. It was really fun. Then Friday was the talent show. My small group did "Cleaning the Bathhouse". We got like the whole camp to stand up and do the motions with us like wiping the mirrors, sweeping the floors, plunging the toilet, taking out the trash, etc. It was fun and funny.
Every morning we would get up and get ready, go to breakfast, then have morning aerobics with Emily Kemp, the fun and hilarious assistant camp director. That was so much fun. Then we'd have quiet time, which is so awesome at Aldersgate because it's out in nature in the quiet, and it's just so beautiful. Then we would have small group time. Our small group would have Bible Study for the rest of the morning, then go to lunch. After lunch, we'd swim, then do another activity. Tuesday we went to Sugar Camp Cave. You start out walking inside it, then get down on your knees, then eventually you have to pull yourself along on your stomach, and it's kind of difficult, and it's wet and cold. But it's so cool. Then when you get to the back of the cave, everyone can stand up again, and we talked, then turned out all the lights and just stood in the dark and quiet for a few seconds. It was really cool. Wednesday we did low ropes, which are wonderful, fun group elements that get your group closer by teaching us team work. Low ropes are one of my favorite things at camp. Then on Thursday, we switched our Bible Study and activity time, so that morning after Quiet Time, we went to the clay wall. As the name hints, it's just a huge wall of clay in the creek, going up the hillside, and it was fun. We got the clay and put it on us, and I made designs on my arms and we put clay under our eyes like football players do, and we went to lunch that way. Everyone liked it. So that afternoon, we hiked up to Buffalo Cave and had Bible study up there. It was sooo cool because during Bible Study, it started pouring the rain super hard and thundering and lightning. But we were completely safe and sheltered because the top of the cave stretched out over the edge of the mountain where we were, and it was like we were watching a curtain of water pour down over the trees below us on the mountain. We played the game Bacock (I really have no idea how to spell it-- that's just how it sounds!), then when the rain nearly stopped, we hiked back down the very steep trail and slipped and slid the whole way down. But we had so much fun. Then on Friday we did high ropes, which I loved. It's like probably between twenty and thirty feet off the ground, but of course you're harnessed in. I mean, it's still kind of scary all the way up there, but it was so much fun. I tried three different elements that I'd never done before. They were harder, but they were a lot of fun. I really enjoyed them.So anyway, after pool time and our small group activity, we had free time with the whole camp, then dinner. Then we had Community Life, then campfire. Oh, campfire. I just absolutely love it so much. Here's our campfire ring.

The last day, they told us that if that day we'd eat at Pizza Hut in Irvine, Aldersgate would get 20% of the profit from our meal. So of course, we thought it'd be a great idea to eat there for lunch. So we went, and there were like a bunch of people from camp, and it was so exciting! I mean, we'd just seen everyone like fifteen minutes before, but it was still cool. Bethany, Brandi, and I all rode down together on Monday, and my mom drove us down, then Uncle Rocky and Aunt Denise picked us up on Saturday. Here's a picture of Brandi, me, and Bethany at Pizza Hut. Then before we left we got a picture of us with the jute box in the restaurant. We had a good time.

So I have absolutely loved this week, and I made many friends- my cabin girls, my small group guys, Eryn, Mary, Sarah, Sara, James, Sammy, Shawn, Jerrod.... and so many many more. I miss them and Aldersgate, but God is the same God here as He is at Aldersgate. It's just so easy and wonderful to go there and get away from everything-- all life's troubles and problems and kind of just escape for a week. I'm exhausted but so so happy. I'm so blessed to be able to go to Aldersgate each year, and I'm so very very glad that I'm going back in a week. But until then... : ) I love camp!!!
Sunday, June 21, 2009
Aldersgate, Here I Come!
This has been a wonderful week home, and a very good weekend. Saturday Mom and I went shopping, then went to Mimi and Papaw's where we had our Father's Day celebration. Jacqui, Bethany, and I sat out on the front porch for hours in the beautiful summer weather. Then, of course, today was great! Happy Father's Day, Daddy! : )
But tomorrow...
I'm headed to camp! I'll be at Aldersgate all week for Senior High Cabin Camp with my friends Brandi and Bethany. We will have an amazing week, and I'll be sure to write all about it when I get home. I'm sure I'll have so much to tell. But for now...
Aldersgate, here I come!
