What Do You Do at First Chance Camp?

Where could you find my three little (and me) June 3rd-6th?  No where else but Camp Calvary - a place near and dear to my heart since childhood.  We were there for First Chance I camp, and it just so happened that my lil' brother was the dean.  There were 40 campers and some great faculty and staff all together to worship and learn more about God, and of course, have LOTS of fun.  The theme of the week was right up my kids' alley... Animals in the Bible.

How many are your works, Lord!
In wisdom you made them all;
the earth is full of your creatures. ~ Psalm 104:24

So... what do you do at First Chance Camp?  Well, you arrive late Sunday afternoon to get registered and make your bunk.  Then, out for some free play until everyone is rounded up to divide into their family or team for the week.  Jeremiah, Caleb, and their buddy Emmanuel ended up on my team.  We were the "Ninja Turtles."  Rachel and her friend, Ember, were on the "Kingdom's Kung Fu Pandas" team.  (No, the theme wasn't martial arts... just coincidence, I suppose!) 

Sunday night's dinner to everyone's liking is traditionally pizza.  Following the meal, it's back to the chapel to sing worship songs and hear our evening speaker.  There is free time to play, snack time, an evening event, campfire, family prayer time, and then off to sleep.

Sweet Rachel all cozy in her top bunk!

Mornings begin with some wake-up exercises and pledges to the Christian flag, American flag, and the Bible.  Then, off to our corner of the basketball court to get directions on the competition to eat first.  It usually involves using the kiddos bodies and creativity to construct something such as:  a donkey, a cattle drive, a church, a campfire, etc.  Win or lose, we all head inside to enjoy a yummy breakfast.  It is followed by clean-up and then off to our classes.  Miss Jessica & Miss Taylor made the classes fun for the kids.

After class, you could find the kids using their free time to swing, see-saw, play on the playground, and play carpetball or basketball. 

Late morning, it is in to the chapel for missions time.  The kids sing some fun action songs and learn about the mission they are financially supporting for the week.  Our offering went towards a local team of 15 who would be traveling to Port au Prince, Haiti to rebuild a church and hold a VBS later this summer.  By camp's end, $350 was given.

Next on the agenda, lunch time!  Afterwards, we disperse as teams to clean various areas of the campground, and then it is off to the faculty's very favorite activity...  REST TIME!  Oh what a glorious hour :-)  It is short-lived though because we have to be up and moving for recreation time.  Being that it is summer and camp, that usually involves water play.  The highlight for most is the massive water slide.  This year, Rachel went down by herself two times.  Caleb went 3 times, and Jeremiah only went once because he was cold.  (I wasn't outside for the boys turn, so I didn't get their pics.)

Look at her go!

It was a bit chilly... Rachel & Ember stayed wrapped up in their towels!

Water kickball uses swimming pools for bases... my kids didn't grasp the concept of the game.

Usually paired with rec time, craft time allows the kids creativity to shine through.  This week, they made picture frames, bookmarks, and puppets...  all in keeping with our animal theme.  It seems that craft time brought out the sillies in the kiddos.  Yes, that is my son proudly sporting a uni brow and a mustache.  Such a funny boy!

 Once the kids are showered and clean, the series of events repeats. Supper time, family time to work on memory verses, and back to the chapel for our evening speaker.  An evening event, snack, campfire, and family prayer circles, and it's bedtime again.

Even Papaw was able to come to camp as one of our "animal experts" - my kids loved that!

As always, the little ones had an amazing time at camp.  They were completely wiped out by the time we got home, but they still managed to report to Daddy all the cool stuff they did.  They proudly showed him their camp picture, t-shirts, and crafts.  Now, the wait until next summer's First Chance week begins...