Kids Kamp 2006

Gillian here. It was another great year at Kids Kamp in South Congaree, South Carolina. We registered over 1,000 kids again this year. Kids Kamp is a mega-VBS. It lasts from 6-9pm for five consecutive nights, one week every summer (this was it's seventh year!). The kids (ages 4-16) are divided into three groups according to age, and then they rotate among three sections: Ministry, Dining, and Activities. It takes hundreds and hundreds of volunteers. As far as I know, it is completely run by volunteers, right down to the coordinators and directors. The awesome part was that we had camp even though it was POURING for three of the five nights. How is this possible, you ask? Because it all takes place under a covered outdoor arena. The South Congaree rodeo is held there every year, and now it's home to Kids Kamp, too.

Justin was a Go'fer again this year, and I worked in the craft area. Our son, Alex, is four this year, so he was old enough to be a camper. It was tough for us to let him go, but after a discussion about sticking with his group, we sent him on his way. He LOVED it. Nathan had a blast up in the nursery at our church, too. They had crafts, Bible lessons, and fun games up there for the little ones. On the last night we brought Nathan down the field and Justin acted as the boys' leader for the night. It was so much fun to watch them enjoy Kids Kamp together. This is an awesome ministry, and it will be one of the big things we will miss when we're on the field. We consider it an honor to serve these kids with the love that God has for all of us. Thanks for another great year, community!! If you would like to hear more about Kids Kamp, contact our church, Ebenezer PH Church at 803-755-2883.

In <><,
Gillian

Best Birthday EVER

That's right, folks, I'm now 28. Justin will be joining the ranks of the 28 year-olds in July, so for these six weeks I have bragging rights to being older and ...wiser? Okay, just older. Why was this the best birthday ever? My dad and Linda came down for a surprise visit! On Friday, June 9, I innocently call my dad's cell phone for a regular chat. He asks, "Can you get pulled over for talking on your cell phone while driving?" I respond by saying, "I don't know, Dad, I think that's a state by state law." Obviously I assume he's driving down a Minnesota freeway on his way home from work, but he's actually driving down a South Carolina highway after checking into a hotel, and realizing his flub, he quickly changes the subject. Justin has already announced his plans to take me out for birthday dinner on Friday night. What he didn't share was that, within an hour of my brief chat with Dad on the phone, Dad and Linda would be at the restaurant when we arrived! It was awesome. I was SHOCKED to see them sitting on the bench outside Fatz Cafe. It took a few seconds to put the pieces together...okay, I'm still in South Carolina, at a restaurant I've never been to before, but Dad and Linda are here....OH! They're here for ME!! It was AWESOME.
I was glad I had the house pretty cleaned up that day, but we hadn't cleaned the bathrooms yet. When you have two boys ages 3 and 4, cleaning the bathrooms is (or SHOULD be) an almost daily ritual...one that we hadn't completed that day...eek! So, I have no idea what state our bathrooms were in when Dad and Linda first saw our house, but I made it a point NOT to check. This visit was a wonderful surprise, and it was high time I just let it go and receive this gift without worrying about the state of my bathrooms!! Besides, there was nothing I could do about it :) .
So Dad spent the weekend spoiling us, and we loved it. We went to Bill's Pickin' Parlor for some Blue Grass, a minor league baseball game, Zesto's for dipped ice cream cones, to the movie "Cars," and more! Alex and Nathan (our two boys) are still talking about what they did with Grandpa Bucky and Grandma Linda. Thanks, Dad and Linda, for making that special visit.

Love,
Gillian