2012: Highlights

Honestly, 2012 has largely been a blur for me. Let's recap it, shall we, before I lose track of 2013, too.

January:

I wrote story after story and enjoyed a visit from two sets of friends! I got my first real taste of Oklahoma weather, and was deeply touched by a group of local students and their teacher.

February:

We headed to Lubbock to celebrate my only nephew's first birthday, watched my brother jam out with his band, and laughed at the weird books I get in the mail at work. I got a double-dose of Disney, both at work and in Orlando.

Journal

I was packing our little apartment up a while back to move up the street. When I was packing up the book shelf, I couldn't help to stop and read my college journal. It definitely tugged on my heartstrings as I read my own experiences with friends, the boy that broke my heart, the one that tried and then the one that stole it forever! 

Girls Camp 2012

Where do I begin with camp besides saying it was an absolutely amazing experience? I went to camp this year as the ward camp director, hike leader and lifeguard. I was also a "cabin mom" and got to chill with the 4th year girls. I was busy, it was exhausting, but totally worth it!

Where we had our nightly firesides.

Girls Camp and Callings

A while back I was called as my ward's camp director. I wasn't too thrown because I did it last year. But then I was called as the ward's young women second counselor. I'm young enough to have been in young women at the same time as some of my girls...and that just seems scary!

I headed to a leader's retreat this weekend, and on my way there I was totally miserable. I felt overwhelmed and out of place. I don't feel like I have enough experience to be guiding youth — beyond camp, anyway!

At the retreat. This is where we'll have camp in the summer.

But by the time I left, I felt uplifted and ready to conquer my new calling. During the drive home I pondered all the thing I learned (or remembered) — about teaching, listening and loving — and I felt like I could really do this.

So here's to faith and hoping I'm actually a positive influence!

Always,

P.S.
All clergy members in the LDS church are volunteers and are specifically asked (or called) to volunteer for certain positions. A ward is a congregation, and a stake is a group of congregations in one area.

Camp, part 6 -- day 3

Before I got to camp*, and when I first arrived at camp, I must admit I was very concerned with impressing the other leaders. I felt like the underdog. Being older than the girls I was leading by just a few years, and literally decades younger than my fellow leaders, I felt certain the other leaders would view me as a snot-faced-teenager. And not that some of the girls viewed me like that, but I got confused as being a camper more than once -- I felt like that definitely stacked the odds against me for my "peers" as viewing me as such.

As the week went on and I started bonding with my girls, I realized I wasn't there for myself, but I was there to serve my girls. That meant building friendships with them, spending time with them, laughing and joking and being silly with them, not with the older ladies. And by the end of the week, I was seriously impressed by the girls I was leading as well as some of the other girls I had the privilege of meeting.

Camp, part 5 -- Day 2

Day two of camp* started off with breakfast, followed by a "hike." I went with the second level girls, who were supposed to go on a 5-mile hike. The hike turned into more of a less-than-a-mile-stroll. The only thing that made it difficult was the change in elevation. We did have to take a break so one of our girls could get a serious breather. But all's well that ends well!

After our walk around the campgrounds, the girls had four hours of free time. We had way too much free time on our hands, but it's okay -- we decided to bust out this bad boy: our "water front." Angela and Abby blew it up, and fetched some water from the shower with a scuzzy old bucket that we found in our cabin.

"Swimming" in our "lake" because the camp doesn't have any water. Angela got really into it.

Camp, part 4 -- Day 1

Dance party! Cassie has the camera, Angela and Dysteny are in the back.

Tuesday morning we loaded up the car for camp*. The girls spent most of the drive sleeping, but once we hit New Mexico I woke them all up by yelling that we had crossed the border. Naturally, we had to have a dance party -- three little Mexican girls and a white lady dancing in the car on the way to a Christian over-night girls camp. Classic.

Camp, part 3 - flower headbands

Tonight with my girls camp girls we made flower headbands. I prepped as much as I could before hand so all they had to do was glue flowers to headbands and add bling to their little hearts' desire. They seemed to really enjoy making them, and we are all excited to sport them -- during camp, at least.

BriAnna, Dysteny and Angela. Don't worry...they're mostly normal. ♥

Camp, part 2

 My camp girls are so cute. Tonight we made a banner to hang in front of our cabin. All the girls were so excited when I showed them what we could do. Even though they were apprehensive, and most of them felt their art skills were seriously lacking, their banner turned out perfectly. In fact, I heard a few of them excitedly say something like: this-is-way-better-than-last-year's! It made me remember what I felt while I was preparing for my own girls camp -- excited!

All the girls are fun, enthusiastic and of course, so beautiful. I definitely can't wait to get to know them more through this whole experience!

 Melanie, Angela, Danielle and Mandie cutting out the freezer paper stencil for the banner.

Camp?

For whatever reason, someone decided to trust me with their teenage daughters.

Yesterday, I got called as my ward's girls camp director.*

My first reaction: Yeah!

After I heard my name called over the pulpit, my bishop asking the ward to sustain me as the camp director, I heard several people gasp. Yes, gasp. And one sister in front of me grabbed my hand and said something along the lines of, "how great."

My second reaction: Really? Are you sure? Me?