No more campers...

Well, I guess CVP 2009 is officially over, as far as campers go. This upcoming week, the staff will be cleaning up around camp to prepare for retreat season and mentally preparing for the "post camp transition". It's a little weird this year because I really don't see God leading me back to camp after this summer (because I have to be a big girl with a grown up job--eep!).

The summer was incredible. For those of you that have worked at camp, you know how indescribable a summer at camp is. For those that haven't, I wish I could sum up any of my 4 summers in a short blog, but words never seem to do justice. Camp is a little glimpse of heaven and I am already realizing that the transition will be so different this year.

For one, I won't be going back to Athens to start back my usual routine of classes. Instead, these next few weeks will be spent resting, seeing family and friends, re-organizing my life in Marietta, helping out with recruitment in Athens, and most importantly--looking for a job in Chattanooga!!

I'll be posting some pictures on facebook/here once I'm at my own computer, but until then you'll just have to wait with anticipation. :)

Mid-Summer Update

Right now, I'm sitting at home in Marietta in air conditioning and it feels so weird! Right now, everyone at camp is getting ready for Friday Night Live! :(

If you know about camp lingo, I'm on my 24 (one of my two days off from camp, other than weekends) right now for some rest before a busy weekend. I drove home this morning to have my mom make me a sandwich before I took a much needed two hour nap. And now Kirby and Daniel are on their way over with their dog Sully, the most recent addition to their family, to have some homecooked dinner. I am so excited to see my family and have some much needed down time. On the other hand though, I hate missing out on stuff when I know my friends are all together at camp and I'm not there...so 24's are bittersweet.

But what I'm really looking forward to this weekend is going to see Matt and Kim get married!! Kim is a sorority sister of mine and my best friend, Kathryn's little sister in Alpha Gam. Matt proposed to Kim on their 7!!! year anniversary in December and their big weeked is finally here! I am so excited to see them get married and to see a bunch of girls from Alpha Gam! :) It's going to be a fun and busy weekend so hopefully I'll find some time in there to rest before heading back up to camp!

We have two weeks of campers left to come, followed by a clean up week and I cannot believe how quickly it's flown by!! Sarah Guin's wedding on August 8th is the last set thing that I have in my planner because I have NO idea what I'm doing after that...which is good/bad.

Good: I'm looking forward to some time to sort through everything because I feel like my life has been like a non-stop move in, unpack, repack, move out process since I have gone from school to camp and back to school for the past three years. I'm anticipating a chance to see friends, family, and catch up on rest before I start the next chapter of my life.
Bad: I still don't have a job and I would love to know what God has in store for me. I am still looking in Chattanooga, but job hunting while at camp has proven to be harder than I expected. So it'll be nice to have more flexibility once camp finishes up...which leads me to a favor to ask of you Chattanoogans;
If any of you hear about church, non-profit, or job openings in Chattanooga, please let me know!! And while I'm asking favors, if you would like to host me for a few days as I bounce around the city looking for jobs, I would appreciate your hospitality more than you know!!

Well, that's the camp/my life update! Keep sending me mail, checking my blog, and praying for us at Vesper Point! God has been changing lives and is doing BIG things this summer!

I kind of forgot that I have a blog

Not even kidding, until I got on facebook (which today is the first time I have spent more than 3-4 minutes on facebook anyways), I forgot that I blogged, had Twitter, or really even should be checking my emails on a regular basis. The only this technology-wise that I did not forget that I had was my phone...and that's SUCH a wonderful feeling! I love being at camp and unplugged from the world.

In case you were curious, camp is as amazing as it ever has been. The staff is such a blessing! We just finished our first official week of campers. Up until this point, we've had waterfront training, a HUGE retreat that we worked, staff orientation, and family camp. Needless to say, the nap that I just took was much needed!!

I have really appreciated your prayers (and letters for those that have sent some! Just a friendly reminder that mail can make my day when I'm tired and sunburned) and hope that you continue to pray for the campers, the staff, and what the Lord is doing at Vesper Point.

Just so you know what my day looks like now that we have a regular camper schedule:

7:30 AM Wake up
8:00 AM Breakfast
8:30 AM Head to the dock to get everything ready for the day
10-12:30 Drive boats for ski clinic and/or lifeguard
12:30 PM Lunch
1:00 PM Drive boats for cabins during FOB
2:15 PM Lifeguard/drive boats for cabin activity
3:30 PM Free time...which for all of you camp folk, you know that that's the CRAZIEST part of the day at the dock and I do what I've been doing all day, lifeguard/drive boats/make sure everything is going how it should on the dock
5:00 PM Waterfront closes, which means clean up time for me, Clay, and Ryan
6:00 PM Dinner

And after that is my "off time", but I either help with the night time activities or even better, play them with the kids! I help Julia out with TAPS (which we take forever to do because we love to talk with the counselors and campers...and there are at least 9-10 girls cabins so it's a timely process, but we love it!) and then we update the points for the dock party/hang out with the kitchies...ending with me going to bed at midnight-ish and repeating the next day!! WHEW! I absolutely love it though and surprisingly have gotten to spend a lot of time with campers and counselors!

I meant for this to be a short post, but I really felt the need to update you on everything! :) I love you all, I wish I could read your blogs (for those that have one), and send me mail please!!

So much for that goal of mine...

Well, I tried--that counts for something, right? This week flew by and before I knew it, I hadn't uploaded any pictures! I have been running around like crazy and when I haven't, I've been sitting with my nose in a book in efforts to finish it before heading up to Chattanooga (which I still have at least 6-7 chapters left).



So I don't know when I'll get pictures up, much less the next time I'll have a chance to sit at a computer.



Oh! And SEND ME MAIL!! I have the address on my facebook page in the little box under my profile picture, but here's a refresh of what it is...(I have no shame when it comes to nagging people to send me mail.) Even if I'll see you that next weekend, send me mail! :) You remember how much it brightens your day at camp when you get mail from wonderful friends.



Camp Vesper Point

3216 Lee Pike

Soddy Daisy TN 37379

I'm worn out just thinking about what I have to do!

Since graduating, I have moved out of Athens, spent the night with a high school friend, picked up running again, and spent 5 days at the beach in Destin. (Well, acutally I didn't spend much time actually on the beach because my days were instead filled with long walks, games of golf with my dad and brother in laws, shopping, and reading...but a great vacation nonetheless.) Since getting back late yesterday afternoon, I have had brunch with my oldest friend (since 1st grade!) before getting a pedicure (that took way too long, but was worth it in the end) and having some lunch at home.

All of this is to say that I'm super busy! I am coming up to Chattanooga on Friday afternoon to spend the weekend with my best friend Kasey (and anyone that wants to hang out with us, since we come as a package deal :) haha). I'm moving into camp anytime late on Sunday because waterfront training starts on Monday afternoon so I'm free through dinner time on Sunday.

My long list of "To Do's" this week include uploading pictures from graduation and vacation onto Facebook and my blog before my computer access is about to be severely diminished, collecting clothes to give to Goodwill, run TONS of errands, hang out with wonderful friends, finish unpacking/condensing my junk from Athens, and of course packing and more packing for camp.

My goal is to post at least one, if not two more blogs before heading to the exciting city of Soddy Daisy for the summer. :) I hope you're all doing well--and since most of you live in Chattanooga, I cannot wait to see you a whole lot more very soon!

Destination: Destin, FL

Tomorrow morning, I'm loading up the car and riding down to Destin, Florida and will be enjoying the beach until next Monday. My dad works with a wonderful man who offered his FIVE STORY!! beach house that's literally across the street from the beach for our WHOLE family to stay at--when I say whole family, I not only mean both of my sisters and their husbands, my niece, and my parents, I also mean my four cousins on my dad's side of the family (2 of them are married and of course bringing their spouses, and then there are 2 kids under the age of five from those marriages), my 2 aunts, 2 uncles, and my dad's cousin...not sure what her "relative title" is, but we just call her Sandra. Yes, I'm aware that's the longest run-on sentence ever.

My dad even hired a professional photographer to take pictures of the whole family on the beach too!! We're wearing khaki and white and he wants us to bring kites to fly together too...I know, how cheesy movie-esque, but I still think it'll be a good time. I'm so excited to spend lots of time with my loud Mississipian family, relax on the beach, go for runs by the ocean, read a book for fun, and play lots of card games! :) I know, I'm a 75 year old trapped in a 22 year olds body. I'll be sure to takes lots of pictures and upload them...after I get around to uploading my graduation pictures...details, details.

But I need to get started on what I should have been doing rather than blogging, start and finish packing before going to bed tonight so I can wake up bright and early to hit the road!

It's official--I'm old.

I am officially a graduate and now an alumnus of the University of Georgia. I'll have a ton more pictures to post later, but I just wanted to post this as a thank you to all of my wonderful friends and family who have supported me through my years at UGA. I would not have made it through school, especially in only 4 years, without the prayers and encouragement from each of you. I am so grateful to be a college graduate and ready for the next chapter of my life...whatever God has is store for me! :) In the mean time, I have a couple of weeks to hectically pack /unpack/etc. , catch up on sleep and with friends, and relax on the beach with the fam...Ahhhh! Again, I love each of you dearly and thank you from the bottom of my heart for your prayers and support during my years at Georgia. Keep praying though because now I need to get a job and a place to live after camp!!