Hey!!!  Great news!!  Sarah wants to write a special edition Skinner Update and tell y'all about camp!  Without further ado . . .

This year for girls camp we went up to Heber Valley as a stake, which meant that we started the day with devotionals as a stake and ended them with devotionals, which were all very good, spiritual and we learned from them. Also our cousins Emily and Rebecca came with us to add to our fun.  It was great to have them there. Here's a rough outline of what we did:

Monday- 7:30am get to the church, then at 8:00am load buses and leave! It took roughly about an hour and a half to get there. Once we got there we got a packet from the stake with a notebook (journal), a necklace schedule with our names on it which made them even cool, and a shirt that were different colors according to the year that you were in. Unloaded our things and got settled in, then we planned a skit for that evening, ours was about ninjas, avengers and choosing the right and it ended really well actually. For dinner which the 3rd years helped with was Chicken Alfredo Pasta, after dinner all the wards preformed their skit and they really were quite funny. Before we went back to our cabins the stake leaders showed us a presentation of believing your mission was possible which was the theme this year.

Tuesday- It was a really good day and which made it even better was that my amazing dad got to come up and spend it with us! The 1st through 4th years went to Legacy Lake which took us an hour to get to!!!!!!!! When we got there we got into canoes for about 15 mins and it was great. I love canoeing!!!! 

    

This was the view from way up high where we had a hike.

Megan, Rebekah Grigg, Emily  

Sarah, Sidney, Rebecca

Hiking back which ironically didn't take as long

When we got back from the lake everyone who was in camp went to work on the service project which was making bracelets, head bands, blankets, and hygiene kits for people in Africa. For lunch which the 2nd years helped with was turkey sandwiches. Later we worked on our certification which them quite fun.   

This is Sidney my fellow 3rd year friend holding mine and her
play doh  pictures because we as 3rd years were supposed to observe
nature and then share it so mine is the sun and hers is the pink clouds.

The 2nd years learned about clouds and so were supposed to
do a picture representing one of the clouds. Savannah a YCL
helped with this one.

For dinner we had Hawaiian Haystacks which were not even close to as good as my moms. Later we had a "Believe you can" presentation by four amazing women from our stake that talked to us about their Fridays (bad days) and their Sundays (good days) it was rather moving and I personally learned alot.

Wednesday- My dad left early in the morning which was kinda sad, but he did need to leave. Anyway I  a 3rd year didn't do much, but the 1st and 2nd years went to the challenge course and the 4th years and some YCLs were still on their over night hike. So since I wasn't doing anything, I decided to get a pedicure from my leader who was doing this all week until she left that night it was a great service to all of us. I love my sparkly toes, plus it felt great. 

Dad leaving

At challenge course

Megan on the high wirer 

Megan getting her toes done

Savannah getting her toes done

Then the 3rd years (me) went to prepare lunch which was Taco soup which also not as good as my moms. I helped with a type of onion that made my eyes sting and water. After we had more certification, then we had a lot of free time, later we had Cafe Rio Salads for dinner which was really good. That night we had CARMEN RASMUSEN HERBERT come and talked to us about our worth and how she kept her worth while she was on American Idol. It was really cool to see her there and she also sang to us and she has amazing music.  

I also got my picture taken with her

Oh I forgot something else that we did, we cleaned the showers and that was really gross. 

And smelled really bad!!!!!!!! 

Thursday- Oh I forgot to tell you that we had breakfast in our own wards. Anyway after breakfast the 3rd and 4th years went to the challenge course and we did a lot of different things that we had to work together as a team, and we did pretty good. One of the things we had to do was climb up a swinging pole then walk across a high wire and my favorite part personally because I read about it in a book was, the zip line!!!!! 

Sidney!!! I took a lot of pictures it was really FUN!!!!!

Me, Sarah on high wirer 

After that we had Orange Chicken for lunch, later we celebrated the 100 years of girls camp with cake and ice cream. For dinner we had Country Fried Steak for dinner and that was ok. After dinner the YCLs in our ward handed out our awards, then we had our testimony meeting and it was really good, to make it even better was that their was no awkward silences. 

My award was best hair flare, bet you might be able to see why

We caught 5 mice

I forgot a very important thing and that is that in our cabin we had mice in the leaders area, so it didn't bother the girls as much as the leaders.

Friday- We packed up, cleaned up, ate up, and left. Got home about 11:45!!!!!! Then I slept about 2 hours. 

Girls camp was so much fun and I made great memories!!! 

Sunday- Savannah, Sarah (me), and Megan all got a chance to talk about our experiences at girls camp in Sacrament meeting. It was great!!!! 

We sang camp songs around our house for about a week and this is what happened.

Bethany and her friend singing Calamine lotion 

That was way better than my brief summary, wasn't it?  I even forgot to report on the fact that all three of the girls spoke in church and did a great job.  It is really neat to see their spirituality as it continues to grow!  What great girls and what a great week they had at camp!

The week of June 18 to 23 was Girls' Camp!  I had three girls who went and my sister, Maggie's two daughters, Rebecca and Emily, so five girls left from my house to attend.  Wow!  From my vantage point, and however limiting that may be for you, this blog is written from my vantage point, it was heartbreaking. I spent much of the week wondering why I couldn't have gone, too and why I wasn't asked and why it was causing me so much pain and how I would ever forgive those who hadn't invited me.  It was one of my worst weeks ever.  But then, that is how self-pity works!  I have now had my girls back for a whole week and I am feeling much better.  I believe myself now when I tell myself that everything is fine!  I guess . . . I don't know.  I really don't know why it affected me so badly this time around.  I usually am a pretty non-sentimental kind of gal.  I must be losing . . . something.  In any case, I seem to need all my children with me to maintain my balance.  It's a good thing they're back!

While they were gone, Maggie's other daughter, Elizabeth stayed and hung out with Mariah.  They were as thick as thieves all week.  They had a lemonade stand, went babysitting together, slept in a different place each night, and dressed the same!

They are holding their hands like that to show you their
matching monkey rings.

We also went to the splash park while Elizabeth was here.  It's the only one like it around here, so it was pretty fun.  It was a bit windy on the day we went, so as soon as the girls were wet, they were freezing!  We had a picnic, though, and still had a good time!

The camping girls came back Friday morning!  They had a great time!  I heard stories of hiking to the lake, canoe rides, challenge courses, zip lines, service projects, secret sisters, silliness, devotionals, and a phenomenal testimony meeting.  It sounds like it was everything camp should be!  They came back tired, dirty, and very happy.  I am grateful to all the leaders who sacrificed to give them such a great experience.  It was great for them!

Yes, even Kevin got to go.

Did I mention that Carmen Rasmusen was there?
She talked about her experience on American Idol.

The YW president took the time to paint every girl's toenails.
They were all sparkly!

Home again, home again!

So, the girls came home Friday.  (Ahhh, complete again!)  And my best friend, Kim, came Friday night with her family.  (Yay!!!)  Her husband, Mitch, needed to be at their ward's scout testimony meeting which just happened to be up here in Payson Canyon, so they made a vacation of it and spent the first night with me.  Yay, again!!  First we left all the kids here at home and went out to eat, just us grown-ups.  Nice!  Then Kim and I stayed up until 1am talking.  Apparently, Kim comes over and I am a teenager again!  They left early the next morning to hit all the fun spots in SLC, or as many as they possibly could in one day.  It was wonderful to spend some time with her and get a glimpse at all her fun kids.

After that, it was off to Fillmore to return Rebecca, Emily, and Elizabeth to their rightful owners.  We had our second picnic lunch of the week with Maggie and Rick at the Fillmore city park.  I think we might be its most frequent visitors!  It was fun to visit with Maggie and Rick, as well.  I like them a lot.  They were going to stop at Cove Fort on their way home.  Fun!  As for me, I came home and went back to bed!  It was a busy couple of days! . . . and a week to which I was not sorry to say goodbye.

The week of June 10 to 16 our computer broke!  That's why there was no Skinner Update last week (you make me feel more loved if you noticed . . .).  So, what happened that week?  I don't really know. It was a whole two weeks ago.  Actually, I know that Sarah and Megan went to tennis Wednesday and Thursday mornings and basketball on Tuesday.  Sarah loved all of it and Megan hated all of it.  Savannah worked and spent time with her new best friend, Scott, who she also finds very nice to look at and smile at and laugh with.  Calianne talked me into making "fireworks cookies" with her which she saw in a magazine.  She can be very persistent!

She also played with lots of friends and has been very diligent in reading 25 minutes every night for the library reading program.  Cheyenne also played with lots of friends, but has not been quite so diligent in the reading department!

As for me, I sewed four pairs of shorts for the twins!  I even did them all in one day!  That's pretty fast, right?  They were super easy and I used fabric I had already and I think they turned out really cute!  Now they can even wear shorts that fit instead of ones that always fall down.  :)

Bethany wakes up asking to play with friends every day.  I always make her wait until ten.  I am not sure if my neighbors appreciate that even though I might be annoying, I am being less annoying than I would otherwise be.  She does find her way home everyday and joins Cali and Cheyenne in their adventures for awhile and always takes a break at least once a day for "a show and some milkie."

I am beginning to recognize that Benjamin's obsessions, while taxing, are only temporary.  For instance, past obsessions (which you may remember from past updates) such as the dishwasher, the sink, the stove, vacuuming, electrical outlets, and the need to never set foot indoors, have, thankfully waned.  I am enjoying his present obsession very much as it actually involves toys (which have the advantage of being safe for himself and the rest of the family) and it can even be done indoors.

Ben has decided that he does indeed like cars.  He got a bunch of these for Christmas but back then he was much more interested in the stove.  Now he pushes them around, lines them up, pushes them around some more, and lines them up in other places.  He once found a Barbie doll at the end of his line.  He was so disgusted, he picked up the Barbie, threw it down the hall and went back to arranging his cars.

The other big event of that week was that Sarah got her hair cut short!

It looks so cute!  She has gotten tons of admiring comments from everyone who sees it!  As for herself, she says it is hard to get used to having her hair in her face.  She thinks everyone is exaggerating how cute she looks.  I just say, "Whatever.  You're totally beautiful."  Then she just says "Whatever!" back to me.  It's totally like having a conversation with a teenager.  Wait a minute . . .

So, finally, the last thing I remember about that week was that I finally got to compete in my triathlon!

This is my friend, Ivory, who did the triathlon with me.
She was great!

This is me zooming into the "transition area" after I was
done with the bike.

This is Kevin trying to keep up with me
because I am going SO FAST!! (ya, right!)

Everyone came to see me finish!
(except Savannah who had to work)

It was tons of fun!  And I really mean that!  The real accomplishment and success of the triathlon was that it kept me active and exercising for nearly four months.  Everything in the triathlon (which was a "sprint" in triathlon distances btw) was doable.  The swim was less than 1/4 mile, the bike was 11.5 miles, and the run was 3.1 miles.  People are very impressed when I tell them I did a triathlon.  They are impressed, that is, until I tell them the distances.  Then they're like, "Oh . . . well, that's not bad."  Yeah, well, I don't see YOUR triathlon shirt.  Heh, heh.

What I liked about it was the variety.  I didn't get bored because I was alternating between three different sports.  Swimming was like learning a whole new sport and how often do you get to learn new things at my age and in my situation?  And it did keep me active for nearly four months.  During that time I watched the world turn from just barely thinking of becoming spring, to the full green everywhere of summer.  I also listen to audio books, so I traveled with Frodo to face Smaug, met Captain Naismith and escaped to Barrayar, fought with Captain Naismith as she fought to save the life of her unborn son, then, in another book met her grown son and cheered as he proved his worth to the house of Vorkosigan, and finally traveled with Captain Nemo as he escaped mankind and hid in his submarine under the sea.  See?  Doesn't that sound exciting?  Being active CAN be very, very fun.

And then on one bright, sunny morning in the summer, I get to be treated like a super-athlete while I compete in the real thing and have my whole family there at the end to say, "Go, Mom!  You did it!"

Doesn't that sound like fun?  Wouldn't you like to be a triathlete, too?  ;)

Sunday was Father's Day.  We made Kevin buttermilk pancakes for breakfast and went over to his mom's for a lovely roast dinner after church.  We gave him some presents back at our house.  Isn't he cute?  We love him so much and are so glad that he's our dad!!

That night Beth decided to help him out by cleaning his computer -- with a spray bottle of shower cleaner.  Sweet girl, but not such a sweet result.  Then, of course, we were without both of our computers!  It's a good thing that he loves our sweet Beth more than he loves the computer . . . or our ability to financially take care of ourselves . . . or the chance to stay in our budget this month. . . You get the idea.

It was a busy day because on that day we also drove to Fillmore and picked up the Gillespies and dropped off suitcases and sleeping bags at the bishop's house for girls' camp.  But that, my dear readers, is a story for another week . . .

I loved having a visit from my parents this week!  My dad left to go do some fishing for a couple of days and my mom stayed and visited.  It was such a pleasant visit.  On Monday night, Savannah's friend, Scott, came over and we all watched Thor.  On Tuesday, Grandma took Beth to Build A Bear for her birthday and we all came along to watch her pick out the most pink animal she could find!  Bethany was at the perfect age for really enjoying the experience.  She soaked everything up.  It was really cute!

Now wherever Bethany roams, Sparkles is not far behind!


My dad came back from fishing Tuesday afternoon and we went out for Thai food that night, just us grown-ups.  Yum!  They left Wednesday morning.  We were so glad that they came!  Now we will just count the days until we get to see them again!

They left right before all the excitement for Art City Days!  Wednesday night was family night at the carnival where you can ride all the rides for one ticket!  Savannah and Sarah weren't too excited for the rides this year, so Savannah stayed home to watch Ben and Sarah babysat for another family in our ward.  The rest of us braved the crowds for our children's annual experience with small-town carnival excitement!

It was great fun.  We went on the ferris wheel first.  I had Cheyenne and Bethany with me.  We got about half way up and Bethany started to shake, "Mommy!  I want to get off NOW!!!"  Poor little gal.  I forgot that ferris wheels can be kind of swingy and even scary!  She managed to hold off from all-out hysteria only barely while the loading was being done.  Gratefully, when the actual rotating around and around started, she relaxed and even managed, I think, to enjoy the ride.  She is a brave soul.  After that, the dragon roller coaster was no problem!  Megan and Mariah braved some of the harder rides.  They had a great time together, though they might have gotten a bit sick!

Friday morning we saw the hot-air balloons!

Sarah took these great pictures.  I actually saw the balloons after I got out of the pool and while I got on my bike.  My triathlon is next week!

Friday was also the children's art festival at the art museum.  Megan opted out this time and Sarah and Mariah took the three little girls!

 Savannah was a volunteer this year and was manning one of the tables!  YCC had her very busy this week.  The art festival wasn't the only thing she did to help with Art City Days.  She also helped with the library's teddy bear picnic, the fireman's breakfast, and the parade.  All that and she worked 20 hours at her regular job.  With YCC, she worked a couple of 12 hour days!  She was wiped out by the end of the week!

Saturday was the parade!

Ben was pretty captivated throughout.  The karate guys must have been his favorite, though, because he stood up then and tried to do some of the moves!

That afternoon, our neighbors reserved some tickets for us at a showing of Madagascar 3.  Kevin stayed home with Ben, we invited some other friends to use up the tickets, and we even gave a ride to two of our neighbor's renters who also had tickets.  The van was completely full.  It was heavy.  Nonetheless, we made it to the theatre safely and a good time was had by all.  We love free tickets!  And we love the Komps!

Saturday night was the fireworks.  Thanks to Sarah, I even have pictures!

Hurray for Springville's Art City Days!!  What a fun week!