Summer Camp on Father's Day

So, we drove the kids up to Summer camp yesterday afternoon.  I have to tell you that while they are there I can't help but think what they are doing at certain times of the day.  This is Rhys' first time heading off to Summer camp and she is a shy sort of kid, not one to put herself out there.  At, 11 pm, when I finally made into the shower, all I could think about was what she was doing at camp.  Was she already asleep?  Had she found a friend to sit and chat with on her bed until they were told "lights out"?  Had she pretended to read Black Beauty while others sat and talked?  I guess I won't know until Thursday, when we pick them up.  Tyler has been to camp numerous times and always loves it.  He is one of those people that has fun wherever he goes, never one to meet a stranger.  This camp is one that I appreciate for its no frill look on camps.  There are 2 bunk houses, one for girls, one for boys.  They are wall to wall bunk beds and then a spacious bathroom with plenty of stalls for showers and toilets.  The girls bunk even has bright polka dots painted on the walls.  There is a lake, a simple pool, and a dining hall where they also meet up for an old fashioned talent show and dance.  They have a moonwalk slide as well, to keep them busy all day.  
I never went to Summer camp, my parents never mentioned it to us as an option really, I honestly thought all the kids up North did that, not us.  Our family vacations were always great, a lot like the ones I have now with my own family.  We always visited our family in Alabama which also meant trips to Panama City Beach and my aunt and uncle's lake house on Compass Lake in Florida.  My mom recently told me that she never brought up the option of camp because she couldn't imagine us being around water without her, not safe in her mind.  So, I remind my kids how lucky they are to get to pack up and head off to Summer camp and be free of their parents for a while and relish in being a kid.  Even as I worry about Rhys, I know that she will get a lot out of this experience.  She will grow from being away without us and this in turn will help her in other parts of her life. 
We try to head with friends to camp, following one another the 2 hours to camp.  Yesterday we did the same, following our friends who kids go every year as well.  On the way, about 15 minutes from our destination, our friends were cut off and had a fender bender.  It shook everyone up, especially the kiddos that were in the car, but thankfully, everyone was okay.  We loaded all the kids...and luggage, into our car and checked everyone in at camp while our friends handled the car wreck incident.  We picked them back up on the way home and even stopped off to have a much needed margarita. 
We celebrated Father's Day early because we knew we would be loading the kids up on Sunday.  So, Saturday Bryan and Tyler headed to the Dynamo game where I had bought surprise seats for Father's Day.  Excellent seats,  I must say.  They had a blast and got plenty of autographs to add to their already extensive collection.  Father's Day morning, we woke up and told Bryan  Happy Father's Day and that was about it.  We had camp to go to!


I wouldn't mind spending a few days here with no electronics




Griff touring the grounds




Tyler and his bud




Heading to the cabins to change after their swim test. That's the boy's bunk house to the right




Rhys all fixed up at her bunk, it was deemed uncool for us to take pics of the Tyler and his bunk this year




On the way to camp, my friend's pretty car all smashed up




The view for Father's Day!




And, Tyler's view....he always ends up with a picture like this every Dynamo game. Hmmm.