Ozark Family Camp

The morning after our VBS, our family took off to Missouri for Ozark Family Camp at Turkey Hill Ranch Bible Camp.  This was our 4th time attending (we think) in 7 years.  We have always enjoyed going.

We stayed in Cedar Lodge.

Our room was on the back side of this buiding which was really nice.



And this was my view every morning when I sat and read my Bible.  Loved it.

We arrived late Saturday evening, missing supper and chapel.  We found our cabin, unpacked and set things up to be livable for a week.  Then we waited for people to come out of chapel so we could go and mingle with everyone...and of course enjoy the evening snack.

We ate all of our meals in this building.  The lobby and the canteen are downstairs and the dining hall is upstairs.  The pool sits just outside of it.

Sunday morning, we enjoyed a fairly relaxing day.  We got reaquainted with a few people and I went swimming with the kids.

On Monday, I was asked to help with the little kids (ages 3-5) between their classes.  Kim and I took the kids to the playground.

I took a much needed nap in the afternoon.  I had just come off of a high-adrenaline week of VBS and hadn't had a chance to let it crash.

I took a walk with Little A to the gym when the following conversation ensued:

A: I want to be a hologram.

Me: A hologram?  Why?

A: So people could just go right through me!

Me: Oh, like Al on Quantum Leap?

A: Yes!  I wish all humans could be holograms, but that's just not how it is.

Believe me, I got quite a laugh from that conversation.

At evening chapel, I finally got up my nerves to sing.  After having attended this camp off and on for 7 years, I only got up to sing once and that was with 3 other people.  This time, I was singing by myself, while playing the piano.  Singing and playing at the same time is a new talent I have finally obtained.  I sang my own version of the hymn "Trusting Jesus."

Since I had taken the kids to the playground that morning, I missed the end of the women's class taught by Carol Bramsen.  Little did I know that after I had left, she quoted the hymn, "Trusting Jesus."  I was told a couple days later.  There are no coincidences.

That evening I was super excited to lead the devotions in one of the single girls' cabins.  I had volunteered a few weeks prior to do this, but hadn't heard whether or not I would have this opportunity.  The director asked me that morning if I could do it.  I spent some of my afternoon preparing, although I had already been praying about what to talk about if I got to do this.  I knew one of the girls already...or should I say young women?  They were all probably in their late teens, early 20s.  I met most of the others and we chatted for a bit.

I encouraged them to come to the Lord with thanksgiving.  We so often throw out our requests for ourselves without thanking Him for what He's already given us.  It was something the Lord had been teaching me through my devotional book "Jesus Calling" by Sarah Young.  I'm so quick to ask for things, I sometimes forget to still be thankful.  I used to make it a point to thank God for something every time I prayed before I went on with the rest of my prayer, but somehow that habit got lost over the years.  Perhaps when I began to truly understand "pray without ceasing" did I forget to be thankful at the same time.

Tuesday, I did laundry.  I actually got started early enough that I still wasn't in there late at night.  I also had the chance to go swimming again.

J is sitting on the edge of the pool.

I was searching for a volleyball team who needed another player.  I didn't care if it was spike or non-spike, I just wanted to play.  But it seemed as though all the teams were full.  As I was headed up to the lobby, a friend walked by asking people to join his team.  I gladly volunteered to join.  So I quickly changed clothes and headed to the gym.

We played in the non-spike tournament and came in 3rd out of 4.  Not bad!  In fact, we were all pretty excited.

The kids made some good friends, too.

Here is Little A with just 2 of them.  She got along particularly well with the boy.  Should we be worried?

Wednesday, the women got to enjoy a tea party.  We wore fun hats, ate finger food, and of course, drank tea.

K became friends with Kim's daughter (the one who helped me with kids on Monday).

At the tea party, all the newbies got to share 2 truths and a lie about themselves.  We had to guess which one was the lie.  Since I'm not a newbie, I didn't get to share.  So here are my 2 truths and a lie:

I taught myself how to play the guitar.

I have been to 48 states.

I used to work for a dating service.

Can you tell me which one is the lie?

The girls also got to go on pony rides.

Little A made friends with another little girl.  They found a worm near our cabin and named her Lydia.  Unfortunetly, it did not survive long after the girls took it out of its natural environment.  Little A wanted to make a grave marker for Lydia but she just simply had to let her go.

Thursday morning, a young woman shared a beautiful song during the women's class.  That afternoon I attended a parenting panel where 4 long-time fathers answered questions from us younger parents.  It was amazing.  I wish it didn't have to end.  Who needs to eat?

Seth and I played a little ping pong and then it was time to head to bed in our cabins for the last time.

Friday morning we got everything packed up.  K and her friend made up a skit they wanted to perform for Kim and me.  (I wonder where she gets the idea to make up a skit? haha)  It was their own rendition of "The Princess Bride" and it included Little A and Kim's younger daughter.

They did very well, including several lines from the movie.  It is, of course, the most quotable movie ever made.  There was kidnapping and pirates and eels and unwanted rhyming....but it was taking entirely too long and we needed to get on the road.  So, I said with the straightest face and in all seriousnes, "Skip to the end."

Kim about died laughing.

So they skipped to the wedding.  But by then Kim was laughing so hard and I was giggling, I have no idea what happened after that.

We piled into our van for the long trip back to Wichita.  It was a fun week.