Palmyra

Shortly after we came back from Girl's Camp we all went to Palmyra, New York. For a Young Men/Young Women trip the families were invited to camp on some 200 acres about 40 min. from Palmyra. It was beautiful and we were glad there was no rain! We left on Wed. night and came back Sat. morning. It was loads of fun.

Walking around

After we went to visit my grandmother in Indiana we thought we wouldn't do any more long trips with the kids (26 really long hours), but I really wanted to see the Pageant. So I told Adam I would take the boys and Maddy.  Hannah would stay with him because that would be too much for me to do on my own. He decided at the very last minute to go and I am glad he did because we all enjoyed it.

Fishing

Daniel's 1st fish (he caught 7)

Poor Jacob caught 0

Maddy is gonna play chicken
 (if she doesn't drown her friend 1st)

Canoeing

We had a pond to fish in and we did some canoeing (which I had never done before). Of course there was lots of land to hike on and we had to do s'mores over a bonfire. Maddy and I played a lot of games like Ultimate Frisbee and volleyball. Adam and the kids were looking for frogs when we were goofing off.

The last day we were there we went to the Palmyra temple. I stayed outside with the younger kids and walked around while Adam went in with Maddy.  It was very peaceful and lovely and the kidlets did surprisingly well. It is funny to see the variety in the clothes of my children. We forgot Hannah's dress. Then we toured the Sacred Grove.

Aw, how cute

Service project to say thanks

That night we went to the Hill Cumorah Pageant, which was a very interesting experience. Hannah slept through most of it but Maddy and the boys said they enjoyed it very much. A family that we knew participated this year and they shared how it all worked as far as "auditions" and practicing. (I am including a picture of the Doneys, Laura, for you to see.) It is amazing the way it all works and to see the end product, it is incredible. If you don't know and are interested, just let me know.

In the Sacred Grove

From the top of Hill Cumorah

The next day we cleaned up and left. It was a long journey (really it was about 8 hrs), but worth it.

Out of order Pageant pics here on out

 

The Doneys

Quick! Get A Catcher's Mitt!

Time sure does fly, doesn't it. Well, at one point I was thinking I needed to put up pics from July, then August and now, really summer has ended and fall has begun. Before I get too close to winter, I shall do as I told Amy I was going to do and post a darn blog. However, we have been pretty busy so I am going to break it up a bit. I will start with the beginning of July.

Camp Joseph

Girl's Camp! It was a blast. It was not my first time going, but it was the first time I actually got to go for the whole week. It was so wonderful to see all the girls in such a spiritually empowering experience. It was truly a peaceful place. So many of the girls walked away with their own testimony and I was truly blessed to be there.



Our campsite



I didn't cramp Maddy's style. We did some things at our site as a ward, but I went with the 4th year (we had one) for the other activities when they broke up by years. I was so pleased that I completed the tortuous (for my aging out of shape self, but still pretty rough for the younger girls) Patriarch Hill hike. Once upon a time a friend of mine tried to get me to run up Grand Ave. in Spring Valley. I didn't make it all the way and I have always regretted giving up. I'm glad I didn't this time. We had good conversation between huffs and an uplifting message at the top.

Fire is Fun!

The funniest thing I have to say was a team building exercise. This was at the campsite so it was just our ward under the direction of a couple YCLs. They were divided into 2 groups and they had to move one person from each group across and they were racing each other. The trick was they had to do it several different ways so they couldn't just carry the person. Maddy was one of the people and so I am going to put a few pics up.




First Way



Second Way... Oops!

Third Way

Really there were many great moments and I am so grateful I had the opportunity to go. I am so glad these girls have a place like Camp Joseph to go to. For many of them, like Maddy, they are the only members of the Church at their school. I know it is difficult for them and I am glad they can get spiritual strength and see that they are not alone in their beliefs. It honestly amazes me how much these young women really know and how much they truly shine.

Watching skits

Their skit



Pond scum makes a good facial, right?



Another team building exercise



Service project



Morning devotional

At Joseph Smith Memorial

The memorial



Last night



The leaders