Havin’ a Hoot

This July marked 22 summers.

22 summers of rain and sun,

Mission Impossible,

and Talent Night.

22 summers of energetic teenagers and crying babies,

soccer on the field,

and bandaides.

22 summers of chapels and firesides,

silly songs,

and heartfelt stories.

22 summers of swingin’ on the ball swing and riding horses,

shooting arrows,

and paddling canoes.

It dawned on me last week that I was participating in my 66th family camp…

in 22 summers.

Yep, this camp life we live is a crazy one.

And a blessed one.

***

Last November, I started praying that God would place in my heart a fresh passion and excitement for our ministry and work here at camp.

I didn’t want the fact that we’d been here so long to equal  weariness.  I wanted Him to place His vision for this place in my heart…

to make it NOT seem like it was the 22nd time we’ve done this whole camp dance, and instead, make it as fresh and exciting as Summer #1 ~

22 Summers ago.

I wanted Him to open my eyes and heart to appreciate the fact that the blessings far outweigh the burdens of this life.

He has done that ~ in His perfect and wonderful way.

I’m beyond grateful.

***

The days and weeks are flying by at the crazy pace of our summer days.  I always think (a little too late!) that I should get guest posters and projects all ready for you before the wildness of summer begins, but alas, that didn’t happen again this year.  As much as I love the whole  creative process of blogging and DIY projects, the reality is, when summer hits, my priorities need to be elsewhere.  Thanks for sticking with me as my posts are few and far between these days!

Next week, I head back out to Woodsman to cook for a family camp (a FIRST for me!).  But, this week, I had a chance to just be home and catch up on some things here.  I even had a creative spurt and pulled out my paints.

I wanted to try something a little new and different, and decided to try some “owl” art.

Yep…it was a hoot!!

How’s your summer going?

***

And on a completely unrelated note, do you WordPress users have a recommended plug-in for filtering spam out?  I’ve had a crazy amount of spam comments lately…