The girls and I headed up to Northfield Friday afternoon where we got to enjoy some time with Nathan and his girlfriend Nicole. Then, my mom, Mark, Thyme, the girls, and I took off for Camp mid-Saturday morning. Overall, the girls did pretty solid on the trip - we certainly had to make more potty stops than would have been ideal, but better that than the alternative. The only negative - ironically enough, Olivia made it the entire trip only to get car sick right as we were pulling into the driveway of our cabin. Even though it was a mess to clean up, she really couldn't have timed it better.
This year we rented a huge cabin with the Woitalla family. It was so fun getting to stay all together and stay up late visiting about everything. I hope we can make that a repeat experience! The girls did absolutely awesome. While they loved all the attention from Grandma, Grandpa, Auntie Thyme, and all the Woitalla family, they certainly missed their daddy - when I told Olivia how many days we were going to be at the cabin, Olivia looked at me all wide-eyed and said, "Whoa, Daddy's really going to miss us." So sweet. We're definitely hoping that Brian's work schedule will make it possible for him to come along next year too.
Every morning, the kids all had "Age Group." The camp councilors were gracious enough to let Grace join in with Olivia in the 3-4 year group. I think being together was a comfort to both of them - but if we're really honest - it was more of a comfort for my shy little Liv. There were no tears this year though during drop offs which made me feel like dancing! It's amazing how much they've grown up in this past year - last year they were quite clingy to me, but this year I felt like I wasn't doing enough parenting as they raced around playing with the Woitalla kids. The girls went so far in their independence as to even take showers by themselves, only allowing me to help them get the soap out of their hair. I was mostly needed at nap, meal, and bedtimes, but even that was a piece of cake because they were so wiped from all the day's activities.
The weather was a bit rainy at times, but overall enjoyable. We got to spend some time in the sun at the beach, and my mom, Wendy, and I enjoyed some hiking during the morning hours while the kids were busy with Age Group activities. I attended a yoga class and got to get out for some exercise fairly consistently - a good thing considering all the sweets in the cabin! Other than that, there was plenty of excellent food, time to read, and time to just hang out without having to worry about anything. Although we were in a cabin with modern comforts, it was actually nice to be "off the grid" otherwise. I had absolutely no cell phone service, and I could only get it using the Woitalla's phone while standing on the end of the dock.
Camp DuNord is a family tradition that I really love. Each year it just gets better. Enjoy all the pictures - there's a ton, but it was too hard to narrow it down!
Fun times at the beach...
Sing along and smore night.
Grace - she gave herself a "time out" after breaking the night-light
Guess it was just an excuse to catch a few extra zzzz's.
Liv enjoying her first taste of Captain Crunch cereal.
Hiking - Me, Mom, Wendy, and Mark
Ice cream in the camp store.
Getting comfortable at Camp and racing around.
Auction night - see what I mean about the girls barely needing Mom!
Olivia and Jessica Woitalla - quality and relaxing bonding.
Thyme and I getting psyched for the "Polar Bear" swim
where everyone gathers at 7:45am to race into the cold lake.
It may be crazy, but it's fun!
It may be crazy, but it's fun!
Camp picnic.
Olivia and Mark Woitalla playing "Easy Bake Oven" on the ipad.
If you know Mark...that's really funny.
Closing camp performances (sorry, not a great picture)
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