Ryan left for Houston dark and early which left me with these three for the remainder of camp. I'm pretty sure I couldn't think of a better description for our crew.
;)
My kids really love a routine and they adapt pretty quickly so by the first camptime of the morning, they were ready to go. And by "go", I clearly mean "be in charge". They kept sneaking behind stage to help give directions.
If they weren't behind the stage then they were in someone's lap...
or causing a distraction.
There's kind of this August "Lakeview effect" which means that the entire summer can be a drought until Fish Camp starts and then it storms. I was actually grateful for the rain because clouds mean cooler temperatures and adorable raincoats.
Seriously, bless these counselors. Not only were they in charge of 22 freshmen, they patiently let my three tag along wherever they went.
There's a special group of students at Fish Camp that run everything behind the scenes. "Crew" has spare sheets, toothbrushes, bandaids, and most importantly.... unlimited icee pops. We made sure to stop by at least once/day.
We did our best to work around the rain which may have included sitting in the car during free time to watch a movie.
And the best nap I have ever taken. I told them we needed to rest for at least 45 minutes.... two hours later and they finally agreed to wake up.
Want to know a Fish Camp secret? They have hospitality room for special guests... and that's where they keep the good stuff. Like cokes. Which obviously means Dr. Pepper to me.
At some point, Emmy lost her tooth during the day and miracle of miracles we managed NOT to lose it and the tooth fairy even visited that night even though she was completely exhausted from all of the things.
As the day winded down, we headed back to camp room for more DG time...
which meant riding scooters for the girls...
(can we pause and reflect on their outfits from head to toe? Those fanny packs slay me. Thanks, Aunt Kelly and Anna for letting us borrow yours!)
while Radley actually participated with the group.
I'm not sure how Elizabeth managed to run the camp and keep up with them. Also they are still obsessed with her mermaid hair.
They finished their last camptime of the day before heading to Copeland for the traditions program.
I have seen this program at least a dozen times. I have heard the stories. I have watched the videos, and I have lived some of these moments. Silver Taps, Aggie Muster, Bonfire... this is not new to me. And yet, I leave with tears in my eyes every single time. Session B was unique this year in that one of the counselors from the red camp passed away this summer. Tragedy forges bonds unlike most things can... especially in Aggieland. Watching these freshmen witness the Spirit was a true gift and I feel extremely honored to have had that opportunity. Because videos only tell part of a story, you can only understand so much and the rest you have to experience for yourself. Those freshmen felt without a doubt that the entire session wanted to honor and pay tribute to a person that some of them had never even met. Not because of anything more than the fact that she is an Aggie.
We ended our day listening to Elizabeth and Conner impart some of their wisdom on the camp and then headed to the biggest pj flashback party you've ever seen.
And I'm glad we had on our pjs because we were all ready for some sleep before day 3...
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