Night time rituals

The Sharps are hanging in there--I think. I think the the most difficult thing for me is to actually have to give my attention to another other than Sam. He too is struggling. I love Sof, that goes without saying, but my heart breaks for Sam. He claims she cries all the time. She really doesn't. He claims I hold her all the time. I don't. He is terribly sad that she gets to stay home and he has to go to school. That is a bit of a bummer. But with all that said. They love being together. They have formed a sweet bond and when they are good they are very good--but of course the flip side of that is ....when they are bad they are...horrid! Ahhh the ugly green monster has visited us quite a bit the last few days. However, I think it is driving me more crazy than either of them. They really do claim of being happy to be brother and sister. Even tonight Sam wanted to lick one of Sofie's candys. She said no because she didn't want to spread germs. He told her that now they were brother and sister they now had the same germs. Ruse to get the candy?...possibly, but nonetheless sweet to hear. And she did, by the way, quickly agree.

Last night for FHE we talked about building a loving home together. We played an FHE game I took off the internet that had a path, you rolled die and decided whether the description on the space in which you landed helped build good, happy families. With each roll we put together a piece of a puzzle which in the end, of course, ended being a home with a "happy" family standing right outside. We then decided to build our own haunted (home) mansion. I know you all thought I was trying to poison my children with all the orange and green dye in the frosting...the thought may have crossed my mind after the first 30 disagreements but murder is foul and Dave and I couldn't possibly build a happy family without kids.....or could we??? I jest of course, we love them both more than either one of us could possibly imagine. When I look at these two loves of my life I am over come with joy and gratitude. So of course this too will pass but I think Dave and I are aiming for the eternities for the happy part--this is kind of hard. But we're good. We really are.

Dave took some pics of the kids before bedtime last night. I thought he was a regular Ansel Adams with the lens. Of course the objects don't hurt being so dang cute!

Here she comes......

Well it's been almost a week. We feel so blessed to have Sofie here with us. What a dream. She and Sam play so well together--mom is quick to remind me that this is the "honeymoon" period and to prepare myself when real life hits. It almost hit today. Sof was ready for a nap and so she wasn't ready to play--rather ride bikes with him. That really is their bond right now and I'm not going to lie a huge relief for me not to have to play (always) with him. He LOVES her. He's protective of her and he loves her toys. Her dishes to be exact. But what could be better than a working toy blender? I'm not sure what we were thinking by buying car, after car, after, car when we could have just gone down the girl isle at Target and purchased a blender! Much time and money could have been saved.
This is Sofie's first day of school outfit. SO CUTE! I wish you could see it all with her darling silver shoes. She wouldn't stand and pose I was so bummed but Carrie seems to think she was done after having to have had to pose continually for her photo shoot previously. Could be. This child is remarkably beautiful and smart. Really smart. As a whip.
I cannot get her to stand and pose. I am thinking I need to change my approach. Here she is before school. She likes school ok but she's says everyday "I'm a little shy". And she is but wow will she open up when she gets comfortable. She's a talker.....a little different from my not so shy but non communicator boy. Girls!
We've had a good week and really trying to keep things in our routine. Mom came--thank heavens, to help me with the homeless dinner. She of course saved the day and it was a success due to, I'm certain, mom's help. She certainly keeps on task and works so very hard. Needless to say the 70 year old woman kicked my tail.

We're all so happy she's here but Sam was especially happy because Grandma brought this terribly soft KU sweatshirt. It's OK if it's a little big. It will be good to grow into--he thought. Don't say it dad--I know he needs a (very little) trim!
Here's my soccer player. He's not the most skilled but he can sure beat anyone down the field. We figure we have time to work on skill. Coach Scott by the way is one of the best coaches ever--and I might add--with all my loved pledged to Dave of course--easy on the eyes.

Triathlon

When all is said and done, what really matters to Sam is the medal.

So on Saturday, September 19th Sam entered his first triathlon. It was held in Kirkland at Houghton Beach and there were about 57 participants ranging from the ages of 12 to 4. We were so thrilled Ashley called and told us of this event. Her 3 oldest Selah (8), Nina (5), Rollin (3) all participated. We were especially grateful that Nina hadn't quite grown into Selah's old bike and that it was a perfect fit for Sam. There are few things better in this life than an actual 10 speed bike. Sam loved it. We borrowed the bike on the Thursday before the race and he rode it non stop. In fact, on Friday morning Dave and I were coming home from our run and at 7:02 a.m. there he was in his mustard colored Jackson Hole sweatshirt, blue athletic shorts and his rain boots riding down the road. He claimed he was coming down to greet us. Likely story, I think he was trying to make a getaway to the nearest trail to ride and possibly ditch school altogether. It's actually rather heartbreaking for Dave and I, this bike matter. Sam loves to ride his bike. We really do get our moneys worth but just a few weeks earlier we told him he had to "earn" the new bike with 100 of his chore tokens. 100! Crazy talk actually, that's like 100 days. So for 2 weeks we've been trying to see how we could save face and still lower his payment in tokens to possibly 50. If Dave were out of town I think I may have even lowered it to 25. He does need a new bike after all and his birthday is still 6 weeks away. Not nearly enough time to learn the tricks of the new bike and really enjoy it before the dreadful 9 months of a Seattle winter weather set in. Just the morning of the triathlon Sam's prayer consisted of 3 things: He prayed for the rain to stop for the triathlon and Micah's birthday, that he would be the best and that he could keep Selah's bike forever. Well 1 1/2 out of three ain't all that bad. It did stop raining for Micah's birthday so they were able to play outside on the princess bouncy house, He wasn't the best but he was darn close. He came in 8th out of 57 (and as Aidan with his positive outlook and non-competitive spirit would say--only 7 guys beat him!-- Jason too echoed this sentiment, however, his reminder was a little more shall we say sarcastic. But Uncle Jason really is a little more competitive and in all honesty rarely if ever had 7 guys beat him in a race--hows that for your ego boost for the day J.D.?)

Here it is pre--race. I love this picture, It actually looks like he's a getting in the zone.

These two pictures are also pre race. He is freezing in the one to the left and getting a little impatient with his mom and the non stop picture taking. The picture on the right is a bit silly but the woman behind Sam is carrying a backpack obviously from the Seattle Art Museum (in which SAM is the acronym)

The kids started out swimming 50 yards although it wasn't really a swim and it was no where near 50 yards. It was a splash through water and I would judge the distance about 25 yards. But they're young yet and we're still learning the ropes of this triathlon gig. After the splash/swim they run to their bikes for a mile ride.

Sam looked good, getting out of the water but couldn't find his bike. Once he found his bike he put on his helmet and then started running at full speed out of the bike area without his bike. Dave's yelling "Go get your bike!" Fortunately the ear tubes put in as a child worked, he heard his dad, ran back, got his bike and rode. Here he is below with Selah right in front. Can you see the coveted bike? I'm actually surprised he didn't covet Selah's new bike as it is red.

He rode well, parked his bike and turned on the speed for the 1/4 mile run. He was focused. So focused it seems he forgot to take off his bike helmet. His time was exactly 13:00 minutes. Look at the form! :-)

We are very proud of him not only for doing so well but really for doing his best. Unfortunately his mother has a slight competitive spirit and thought his coming in 8th when all the other kids ahead of him, except one, were older, was pretty grand! And I called all friends and family to tell them about it.

I love this picture.

And now this picture below is for Jaclyn. She may think she's a pretty good volleyball coach but the Novelty Hill Ward volleyball team pictured below only lost all 3 games to Sammammish 2nd ward (who I might add all of their players I think competed in the Olympics at one point in their lives) by small margins of: 25 to 20, 8 to 25 (yikes!) and 13 to 25 (ouch). Just a thought about the uniforms. Why is it that when the men play basketball they can wear actual playing shorts but when the women play volleyball we have to practically dress in winter wear? Anyway--Go team--next week Redmond 2nd. We may just have to fly Jax out to coach.

Whew we're tired...and a little cranky maybe

Well we haven't taken any pictures which is a shame because this kid is pretty cute. School has been pretty good although I think it wipes him out. He is always a little bit weepy and a bit impatient. As Sam is now in the 1st year (as Montessori refers--not grade) he has homework. for 10-15 minutes a day Sam must do some math, he has a spelling list and do some reading. He hates it. In his defense he gets home from school at 4ish and then that's pretty close to dinner--then it's close to bedtime. Yet another thing he hates. Nevertheless, we stick to our assignments and this week our spelling words are: cat, fat, flat, sat, can, pan, plan, man. On only our second day he didn't need to cheat at all. He spelled without looking! Yea...

We had Stake Conference on Sunday so we had Rachel her family, Cydney and Bart and the Berretts over for dinner. The Berretts brought the new Beatles rock band. I haven't ever played the rock band but this was fun. I knew Dave wouldn't dig it too much--that's a given, but I thought Sam may. He got to play the drums but he got a little bored and got up and left. That was a big surprise for me. Berkley who is just a few months older than Sam played that game all day. We're going to have to stop the sports and get him into some music appreciation apparently. Maybe he would just rather be the one guitar in Juke box hero???

Yesterday I was taking Sam and Maverick to school and we were talking about skiing. Now there are few families out there that can ski better than the Thompsons. I brought up that Sam could learn from Maverick maybe this year to ski with poles. Maverick piped in that yes indeed he could as he had been skiing since he was 3 years old. I said Sam had started when he was 4. Then Sam said "Well actually, I've been skiing since I was 1." I joked and asked who had taken him skiing and he said "My birthmother." Well it's good to know he does internalize some information after all. Maverick on the other hand had a very difficult believing that Sam was adopted. I tried to explain that adoption is all about love and I hope Maverick understood but that's a lot to comprehend. Lori was mortified that Maverick acted that way, but I could care less and Sam didn't seem to care either.

We had FHE last night and tried to learn about talents. We tried to teach that most talents need to be developed and some come naturally. We went around and asked each family member what they thought a talent might be that they had. We then asked other family members to then say what talents they thought this person had. When we got to Sam it was kind of funny. Of course he is very certain he is the fastest person in the whole wide world, which I'm quite certain he'd have to fight his Uncle Jason for those bragging rights. But then the cute part was when Dave said he thought Sammy had many talents, so many in fact that they were too numerous to name them all. Sam then replied--try! Dave did try and Sam readily agreed with all stated.

Well FHE was a bit of a failure because what I really wanted to say was that sometimes even though we don't think we're good at something we need to keep trying too---say for instance---tying a shoelace. That went over like a lead balloon. Patience is not a virtue for Chach. Seems like next FHE will be on patience.

So today we're coming home from Soccer and Sam asks if he can have a play date. We said no as it was dinner time but maybe another day. I then asked who he wanted to have over. He said he wanted to go over to someone else's home. Dave and promptly said that wasn't they way things really worked but then asked who was this person who's home he wanted to go play. He then said "I would like to go to Wendy's". It turns out that Sam is in love with her dog and wants a play date with Koda, the dog. Maybe he is more like his dad and not a people person after all.

1st week of 1st grade

There's a song in the Veggie Tales movie of "Jonah" where all the little veggies are singing about the 1st grade.....and on and on through the other grades as well. It's a catchy, happy tune and one that against one's better wishes gets stuck in your head and try as you might...you just can't shake it. And so it is every time I think of Sam being in his first year, which is every day I take him to school so needless to say that song is in my head now going on two weeks!

This is not my first time sending my sweet boy off to school for an entire day. He did it last year and so I thought I would be "over" the tears of yet one more year of independence under his belt. I had been talking to Kolette telling her it will be fine and gosh after about the first semester it's quite nice to be able to get some things done without worrying whether the kids are entertained. Independence goes both ways I guess. However, as solid and as brave as I thought I was feeling, when the morning of Monday, August 31st came, I was a bit shaken. I was appointed to say the family morning prayer and I burst out in tears and had a difficult time finishing it. Poor Sam just loving his mom and giving ME the comforting words of "it'll be OK...I'll be fine mom...etc...etc" As I see it Sam is a little too comfortable with independence.

But the day came and went. As you can see from the picture above Sam's combing his own hair nowadays, he loves red and he now has big teeth.

Sam's requested breakfast was pancakes from the oven (Danish Pancakes) and we started out the school day lunch with Miso soup, veggie sticks, chocolate chip cookie, box juice drink and a love note which he claims he never reads. I don't care he's getting one even if it's on the bright pink sticky heart paper.

When he grows up he wants to be a professional snow skier. I told him he's going to have to get used to poles then which totally bummed him out. He is still never going to leave me and I'm still his number one girl in the whole universe. I know Nina was running a close second as she grows plums and that is pretty impressive and maybe in another year could pull his heart strings away from me. Fortunately for me now however, his heart belongs to momma.

All in all Sam loves school. He walked in and gave Nik Osborne a big hug and as he's his only friend right now they play every day. I like Nik, he's a great boy and so I have no problem with this. Sam's teachers are LeAnn Brown and Alexa Plunkett and he's in the Spruce class. Mercedes say's that's the smart class. I WANT to believe her but I wonder :-). We still give Maverick a ride every day except Wednesdays. And every day they play "action fingers". Just use your imagination on that one. I couldn't do it justice with a description.

I can't imagine my life without Sam. He is my world. I love the mornings with him. He slips quietly down the stairs, tries to scare me and laughs as he thinks he does. His hair is reminiscent of Albert Einstein's and as he hates jammies his cute little six pack body sports his transformer underwear. He'll curl up under a blanket right next to the fire place 1st thing and lie there until breakfast is served. It's peaceful and an incredibly loving time for us. After breakfast well that's another story---the rush begins..........

And so it seems it is with life.....it just rushes by. Because of my impatience I sometimes think I want it to rush so I see the man that Sam will be, hoping he'll be good and true and brave......but then I step back and remember I don't want to see it now I think I just want to be involved in the process of how he'll get to good and true and brave. That should hold me for awhile. I have a lot of learning to do yet of my own.

What a day

This has nothing to do with today. Just showing off our Sam on the tramp in Jackson Hole

Since we've been home I can't say I've been much fun. The stress of getting my home back in running order and mentally preparing to begin our routine was tiresome. So I decided to mix it up a bit and have fun today. I do love being back in Seattle. It's such a lovely time of year here and I have missed my friends immensely. Today, Sam and I went over to Ashley's. Dave calls it our day of Ashley envy or more appropriately Ashley worship. And quite frankly she deserves all the envy and praise. She's quite remarkable. Lori, along with Maverick and Micah came as well as Wendy. Ashley, Wendy, Lori and I were making plans on taking some cooking classes together. It seems we all feel we're in a bit of a rut so what better way to mix up our kitchen time then with some new recipes. Well we really never got around to planning as it was so much more fun to visit. And besides the kids thought so too.

The Serafins built this amazing tree house that the Swiss Family Robinson would envy and so the kids were not seen or heard from for about 4 hours. After the 4 hours Nina, Rollin and Sam showed up with faces and bodies covered with dirt. Nina looked like a dalmation and quite happy it seemed to be one. They were looking for worms to feed the fish of course. It was a joy to see, just earlier Mav had shown up with face covered in popsicle leftover. This is what I love to see, kids being able to be kids: Exploring, playing, inventing, running, climbing, digging..........

As we were driving home Sam said, "I love Ashley. I loved today it was the GREATEST day ever. I want to live in her house and have those orange plums every day. Weren't those apples delicious mom? Do you think Dad will build me a tree house like that?"......he went on and on and on. He really did have a most fantastic day. I could tell, he usually doesn't say too much in the car but he talked to me the entire way home.

We got home had dinner: salmon, rice with olive oil (Ashley's recommendation--thank you very much--delicious!) and really truly the yummiest Kale. Ashley had a little to spare so she offered us some and I (AND Dave) were so grateful she did. We sauteed it with some olive oil, garlic then when it was soft(er) we added some balsamic then at the last minute a few tbs of Feta. Neither Dave nor I could get enough. It's just remarkable how yummy veggies are fresh. You kind of forget and then you get it and it's hard to go back to chilean cherries or peruvian cucumbers......You get my drift here I 'm hoping? Oh how I love late summer (local) harvest.

We were in a hurry after dinner as Dave had to be at the church for a meeting and Sam and I had a meeting at his school. Sam was excited to go see our blackberry bushes so he took of on his bike carrying his man with the parachute. I told him I would pick him up on the way out. As I headed out I noticed him on the side of the road in the midst of all the blackberry bushes. He had crashed his bike and was pretty scraped up. He was bleeding and crying and then he'd see a thorn and cry louder and harder and he was a miserable mess. I picked him up, gave him lots of loves and kisses and when I had finally got him settled and we were driving off he said with his sad voice, "This is the WORST day of my life....." Just a blink of an eye and the world can change in the mind of a 6 year old I guess.

The ranch

I have loved the ranch since the first time Dave took me there. We were newly engaged and as much as I didn't want to love it, hating myself for it, as I was a girl loyal to Northern Wyoming and the Big Horn mountains, I fell desperately, completely and utterly in love. Jaclyn was there with me my virgin visit as she has been part of the Sharp family long before I ever entered into the picture having befriended the Sister's Sharp at an early age. It had snowed that visit and Jaclyn and I needing a little Davis sister time, strapped on some snow shoes and hiked to the mid mountain, looked down at the beautiful valley below we then sat, faced the sun and soaked in some vitamin D. It was lovely. It was amazingly peaceful. We were far away from the cares that seemed to beset us. We still snow shoe for exercise and a gentle cleansing of the cluttered mind in the winter and the scenery is still as lovely as ever. But the summers there... The care free summers grab tight and almost haunt you, begging you to stay until the bitter cold and wind of November sets in. This summer was no exception. Wyoming had an early summer of plentiful rain so by the time I arrived in August the hills and surrounding areas were still green. The hay fields were newly cut and the sprinklers were watering constantly for the next crop due late August or September.

Dave introduced me to an amazing run through Weber canyon up 3 miles to the top of the mountain where the run down is just as amazing and can be done in 1/2 the time. One must gage your every step as to not misstep, avoiding the spring of waters that flow and having a watchful eye and open ear for the cattle that wander freely up there. Before entering the canyon we run on a beautiful path. On either side are golden fields of grain that are usually associated with vast acres in Kansas. Then up we head to the loan tree which is our turn around point and with each step the trail gets a little more narrow and uneven from corrosion of the previous hard winter. The higher you get the less trees and then you reach the top. The openness of the trail allows you to see a panoramic view of the valleys below. It's quite amazing. I love the run. Aside from the pesky grasshoppers that grab by the hundreds at your moving legs, it is a most perfect activity. Coming down is a thrill. You run fast. So fast that you can out run the grasshoppers and most certainly the terrified cows trying desperately to escape human contact in fear that they may become dinner I imagine.

Aside from my selfish behavior at the ranch I love the way Sam loves the ranch. He plays, he digs, he runs. He is one of the lucky ones as his dad is the favorite son. Dave is the one who can drive the tractors. Dave is the one who knows many of the secrets. Dave will allow Sam to use his imagination and make whatever his dreams may be and oft times bring them to reality. Dave is kind of cool that way........

We fish at Murphy's lake, we swim and float in the Salt River (or at Lava Hot Springs) we eat outside under the white canopy, we ride bikes, we ride four wheelers, we go to Rocky Mountain Seafood in Afton for some seared tuna or fish tacos. We shoot arrows at the target that is attached to the wall of hay in the barn and yet still lost an arrow or two. We get to see the most remarkable meteor shower because the skies are clear and the city lights are too dim. We walk home from church, we ride bikes to the park, we see elk, hear wolves and coyotes cry in the cool evenings, water ski at the Palisades, go to the Alpine slide in Jackson, go to the rodeo in Jackson. Escape from the valley to the big city of Jackson (Hole). We roast marshmallows, have fireworks, go to Valley Market at least 2 times a day. We hike, we play, we love. We are with family. Either extended or we three. We are happy there

Aidan's ranch experience

Here's our boy Aidan. He turned 8 in December but actually waited to be baptized in the Salt River until it got warmer. Brave soul. It's a cold river even in August. It was an extraordinary venue even with the visiting horses. Aidan's paternal granparents came up from Orem, his dad of course and then us (Jaclyn, dad, mom, Carolyn, Jason, Merissa, Sam, Dave and me.) Gramps (as Aidan refers to him--bob) baptized and his papa (Mikes dad) confirmed him. Merissa sang and Dave and Sue gave short talks. It was a perfect day. It really was.
Here we go.......
Pre baptism BBQ
The uninvited guests that were most welcome.
I hesitate to post this picture because I should have cropped me out of it. However, I wanted to show this picture of Mike with Aidan. He does love his dad (AND mom!)
Proud Papa

Besides the big Baptism at the ranch below are other activities Aidan enjoyed while at the ranch:

Trout never looked so good
Another great activity for Aidan was riding a bike 1/2 his size down to see the Elk.

He caught the big one up at Murphy's lake. Well maybe not THE big one--but one anyways.

He was a great sport and rode the ferris wheel with Aunty Lisa at the county fair. The good news is we saw the whole valley and fortunately spotted the star on the mountain side.

This was a GREAT ride. Bob, Dave, Aidan, Sam and I rode our bikes 6 miles to Thayne. Sam took a break or two but Aidan rode sans break. He earned a huge milkshake. The picture above is the end of the ride. I had driven the truck to the end point and allowed the boys to ride home in the back after their super ride. We all slept well that night.

Below is picture of Aidan and Uncle Jason going down a fall in lava hot springs (they are the ones in the white raft) That was just one of many falls Aidan went down.

Aidan loved exploring around the ranch. He especially loved going out past the metal building and looking for bones--cow bones that is. Well he found a rather good skull, he cleaned it and from what I've heard he plans on displaying it in his room. Good luck with that Jacks.

When I was a little girl and we were visiting my grandparents we would go to the "mountain" on Sunday. That was out idea of keeping the Sabbath day holy I guess. How I loved it. While at the ranch we decided to keep the same tradition. We made some ice cream and brownies, took the four wheelers and up we went. Mom was terrified and ended walking down most of the way but Aidan and Sam enjoyed sneaking in their own ever so slight drive of an ATV.
Aidan was so darling his entire trip at the ranch. He would go out an explore almost everywhere. Another favorite activity was climbing trees. It doesn't look like it here but he's quite high in the tree which overlooks the gorgeous valley below
Aidan also couldn't believe he could see two states from where he was. Here he is pointing to Wyoming, standing in Idaho. This was very exciting for him
Walking with Mom
When in Rome or rather---Wyoming--one must have a rifle and a cute cousin that will hold the frisbee.

The Missionary

Last week I had the opportunity to go to California to visit Deidra and her family. This was a particularly big weekend for the Rader family as Deidra baptized her youngest and was sending her oldest out on a mission to serve in Buenos Aires. Two quite remarkable rites of passage. Cal's baptism went off without a hitch. His brother the now infamous missionary baptized him and his father confirmed him. Deidra and Jeff both spoke, Haley and Megan (along with some girls from YW) sang a beautiful arrangement of Beautiful Savior. Dad was a witness, mom led the singing and I served the refreshments. A mighty handy job for me and one that I enjoy. What could beat being around food? Cal requested snickerdoodles, brownies, rice crispy treats and chocolate chip cookies. Then of course Milk and water. Surprisingly enough the milk was the first thing gone.

The missionary "farewell" went well. Jordan did a great job speaking and was remarkably calm. Me on the other hand was a bit of a mess. How does a mother handle it if the aunt can't even keep it together? Deidra is the chorister and played the I'll sit on the stand the entire Sacrament meeting because if I sit where I see his face I'll cry card. Well she made it, and again as I stated before, sobbed. Two years is a long time. Now I know ever so slightly how Lori feels. I don't like this 2 year gig and so I've determined that Sam can't go. Especially after today when he told me I was his favorite girl in the whole wide universe. He will never marry because of that very reason. Dave said that was fine he didn't want him dating until he was 26 anyways, besides why date before then he would just be buying some other guys wife dinner. As horrible as that seems I'm going to have to agree. 10 years is too soon for that kid of mine to date. Especially with those lips of his.....But I digress....Jordan was ready to go, ready to be a missionary, ready to teach and preach and do as missionaries do. And so that's what he's doing. He has grown a foot or two and is in the MTC as we speak. I can't stand it. Here I am at Education Week hoping to see him. Stalking him rather. They're not nice at that MTC any more. The parents don't take their sons and daughters in, they just have to drop and dash. Perhaps it's better for the missionary but what about a mother?? It's heartless. But needless to say, Jordan was fine with it. In fact, he preferred it. We Love You Elder Rader! Good luck.

Owlets

I thought I would catch up by telling about our 2 weeks at Owlets. However, I couldn't pass up the picture of the 2 Spidey's above. One spidey, it seems, is a little more modest than the other. But too it seems he takes his super hero play very seriously. The half naked spidey it seems is wearing his cousins undies--however they did fit the color scheme.

Kolette and I were in charge of the archery at Owlets. Surprising too most as neither one of us had a clue really how to teach. I had taken a class in high school--how many years since that! And Kole is married into the archery pros. As she is married into the archery pros we felt a little pressure going into this. As we should. The pro archers frown and often "fire" the incompetent. That could not be an option for us. After all we do have our pride! 

With owlets the "mothers" take on an activity and for 2 weeks, 30 minute sessions the kids go to various activities: arts and crafts, climbing (wall), archery, horseback riding, drama, nature and trampoline. The kids learn songs, earn patches for their vests and there is usually a nice swim at the end of the day. So for 2 weeks Kole and I fretted over which activities, challenges, games and events for our archers. We learned the commands: (1) stand in shooting position (2) stand in loading position (3) knock your arrow (4) fire position (5) fire at will......I have heard from more than one camper that archery was their favorite. Above is a picture of Sam's Horned Owl group on Indian day. Other days were William Tell Day (one of my favorite days as we had drawn some apples(rather Matt did) and put them atop some pictures, but we had also put some real apples and challenged some of the groups if they could pierce the apple and if they did we would make them an apple cake--well Matchy did it twice! It was remarkable! Other games-- Hit the balloon day, best score day (an obvious choice) 
Robin Hood day. Here Sotir is a fox. As in the Disney feature of Robin Hood--Robin Hood is a fox. Kole and I slaved over making the hats. We were pretty proud of ourselves until we found quite a few thrown at leisure about camp. 
Here's Sam on Midnight--Led by Mary
LuLu on the first day at archery. I'm not certain she returned as she favors the equestrian world a little more. However, she would come over for visits and gummy bears.

At the end of the two weeks the groups get to put on a play they had "written" themselves with Ms Judy as the director. Above is Sotir ever in character, below is Sam as the astronaut and right in the middle Sotir is holding the owl necklace as he was one of the first campers to win Camper of the day. Sam won it toward the end--he had a lot to learn it seems.

All in all we loved our owlets camp. Sam even mentioned he liked it better than Calleva. I think because we had archery--and possibly mom too. That always makes for a good combination. 

Next off to Seattle for a day on the hottest day of the year no less and then on to Wyoming to reunite the family!