My Summer (So Far) Part 2 By Rachel

So I left off at Canada Monday. Well I should describe the place we were at. We were on a island on the French River, 4 hours east of the Sault. The only way you can have electricity is by a generator. There are 3 cabins. The middle has a kitchen, 2 bedrooms, and a bathroom with a toilet and a hot shower. This was the girls cabin. The boys had the other 2 cabins. The only electricity they got was from a light bulb. The boys got to use an outhouse for the week! And if they wanted a shower they got to take it in the river! Now because the girls had the kitchen, we spent most of our time in our cabin. At night after the boys left we had to get our sleeping bags out and lay them out on the floor. Then in the morning we had to pack it up and get dressed by 8:30 so that the boys could come in. Well everyday there was a kitchen and boat crew. The kitchen crew made the meals and the boat crew took care of the boats. Every morning after breakfast we went out to the rocks and did our God and I time until lunch. After lunch we got to do different activities that Art had. (Art owns the camp and is a pastor. His wife Judy was there too along with Sharon (Beaver) the nurse). On Tuesday half of the group was blindfolded. the other half was to lead them and follow Art. We had to go around trees, OVER DITCHES, and over a beaver dam. The reason that I capitalized over ditches is because my leader lead me into a little ditch and I twisted my ankle! On the way back it was really hurting. Also it was thundering. When we got back, that was when it started to rain. Well part of the boat crews job is to got all of the water out of the boat after it is done raining. So after they thought it was done raining the boat crew went done to bail the boats and everyone else who had nothing to do went with them. When they got down there the whole back of the biggest boat was underwater!!! They came back up to get Art and some buckets. As they starting it begins to rain again! It then turned into a big water fight and everyone was soaking wet when they were done. I did not have any part in it. I was watching from the cabin and keeping off of my ankle. After the rain stopped and everyone was dry and done eating Art did a devotional on John chapter 21 every night. Afterward we got to play "Simon Says." Now you may say what is the big deal, but you have not played "Simon Says" until you have played with Art. He is so good at getting you out. He got one girl out by asking what her name was! On Wednesday afternoon we got to go tubing and skiing!!!!! That was a lot fun! When it was my turn, I had a rap around my ankle and when I fell off I felt like seaweed was tangled around my foot but it was the rap mostly undone. I just took it off. Before we went back to the dock to trade with some kids so take they could tube, one of the leaders named Avery was trying to windsurf. She was a ways away and she was to tired to swim back with the board. So we got to bring her back. That was interesting trying to get the board back. Later after the devotional, Art made a circle with a rope and had us kids try to pull on it so that we didn't fall on each other. After we did it the leaders got to try it. We then did a challenge were we all had to close our eyes and keep them closed. We all were put some where on the rope by Art. Well when he said he had everyone on the rope I to say that I was not on there. He forgot me because I was behind someone. So while keeping our eyes closed we had to make a square without Art and Beaver's help (Judy was sleeping). We did a good job for the space that we had. Well on Thursday the morning schedule stayed the same but lunch was postponed until later so we had a snack and we got into canoes and started our trip. We were supposed to go 2 hours have lunch then go 2 hours back. We didn't even get 1/4 th of the way and there was thunder, so we had to turn around and go back. So while it was raining, we did another challenge. This one two people were tied with shoe laces that crossed each other and the object was to undo it. The girls didn't give up, every one else had Art tell them how to do it. Afterward we got to go to a different island and climb up the rocks. It was an amazing view! We then climbed down and went swimming. Friday, we all got on boats and they spread us out at different spots close to the camp for a hour. That was a nice quiet except for when a train went over the bridge. When that hour was over we went and had a picnic lunch on "exile" island (the island across the river). We then came back, got our bath suits on, and went cliff-diving. I only went once, but everyone else was doing a lot. For devotional we went outside and had a fire. We got to tell everyone what choices we had made that week. After the generator went off we waited a few minutes and we scared the boys by making them think there was a bear outside when it was only the female leaders. But when they came over to our cabin to make sure we were all right, we went outside and we saw the stars. They were amazing! Well Saturday, we were getting on boats and leaving and started the rain, again. That was a terrible cold ride. We were going to try to leave by 8:30, we didn't end up leaving until 9:30! We had so much fun on the 12 hour ride home. Except for 1 boy who throw up. We were hypper then we all fell asleep then we were all hypper again. We ended up back at the church at 10:30 p.m. The next morning, we got to sing our theme song for the week for the church wearing our Canada shirts. That was fun! I ended up sleeping in until 11:30 to catch up on sleep on Tuesday becase on Monday I had to babysit. But I had lots of fun in Canada!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

My Summer (So Far) By Rachel

I was told that I had to write about my trips I took this summer. We got out of school June 6th. When we got home we left for Detroit so we could go to my cousin's open house. That was a really hot ride. On the way home we had to travel through a lighting storm. The follow 2 weeks I helped the church prepare for the garage sale. Whatever money that we made was divided up between the people who worked, and it went to their summer trip. After that was over we went to Lake Ann on June 30th. That was a lot of fun! I got to do the Flying Squirrel. What that is is where one person with harnesses is pulled 40 feet into the air by everyone in their cabin. Going to the sleeping bear dunes was fun too. When we were to come down, they recorded everyone doing it all at once. We also got to race blue barrels with people inside. It was awesome!!!:):):) And because we were there on the 4th of July, we got to see some amazing fireworks over the lake! Well we came home on Saturday, but we all wanted to stay. I am hoping that next year I can work there. Grandma had her surgery while we were there, so when she left she took Stephen with her!! Hey!!! That meant 1 less brother around. On the 13th, we went to Birch Run to help celebrate dad's uncle's retirement. We also met Grandma so that Stephen and I could switch places. I had fun. We went to the museum and I really enjoyed that until when we were coming out and I wasn't paying any notice that a curb was there. I tripped and scraped up my knees. We also went sidewalk shopping at the mall. On Friday and Saturday we got to go garage saleing. On Sunday I went to the ditch that is at the end of the driveway and as I was going into it, I slipped and scraped the side of my left leg. Well on Monday we drove 5 hours home. Starting the 28th, I helped take care of the preschoolers during VBS for the week. On Saturday, we left early in the morning to go to a campground in Omar (the smallest city in MI) for the Berry family reunion. We left later that evening. I spent most of Sunday packing. Monday, at 6 in the morning, I went with 16 others kids and 6 adults for a 12 hour bus ride to CANADA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Plus when we got there we had to go another 35 minutes on a boat!!! And because not everyone got to go at once we all weren't there until 8:30 p.m. We endedup going to bed at 11:30! Have to go will finish blogging later.

Canada

Well, Rachel is off to Canada for the week with our junior high youth group from church. They left at 6am this morning & have a 14 hour trip today (10 to the Sault then another 4 to the east), then they unload the bus & put all their stuff on a boat for a 1/2 hour trip to the camp. It should be a great experience for her. She paid for it all herself between her Advance newspaper route & all the fundraisers that the church put together. They will be coming home on Saturday. They don't even give us an estimated time of arrival for Saturday because of the length of the trip. When they have a good idea of when they will reach town, they start a "phone tree" to notify parents.
There were 17 kids & 6 sponsors that are going. What is really interesting, is that we just had a new "Pastor of Family Ministries" that officially started with our church on Aug. 1 & he left with the group this morning. How's a trip to the Canadian wilderness with 17 junior highers sound for the first full week on the job for someone?! Hopefully, we don't have to start a new pastoral search the minute they get back! Also interesting, is that our "Lead Pastor" will be at home with his 3 children all week as his wife was one of the chaperones that went on the trip.
I had to work last night & am not supposed to get off till 7:30a.m. I didn't tell Rachel but I made arrangements to have the last 2 hours of my shift covered so I could see her off. She was really excited and came running across the parking lot with a big hug when I showed up at the church. It feels rather good to know that it still matters to her whether I am around for things like that.
Last week was VBS & I'll have to blog about that later. I need to get a few things done around here this afternoon.