Over the River and Through the Woods

So, here it is... a late blog about my trip to Idaho. Let me explain! The morning I was supposed to head back to Arizona, my sister had mentioned she forgot the battery for her camera and she would not have a camera for the rest of the camp. Well, I was heading back, mid-week so there were still several days left of camp; and besides my parents were supposed to be arriving the next day.
So, before dropping me off at the airport, my sister and I made a few stops and in so doing, my camera somehow got left in her car. I did not notice this until I was already on- board, I sent her a text to confirm its location. Unfortunately, she was headed into the mountains and there was no reception, so I had to wait until I arrived to verify its whereabouts. I was glad she found it in her car, and told her that, "God must have answered her prayer" about needing/wanting a camera for the rest of camp. I let her keep it, only after she promised she'd promptly send it... so this is the first I've seen of these pics since they were taken.

Visiting with family is ALWAYS a highlight of my year. I may only see them once (seldom twice) a year. I so enjoy spending time with my niece's & nephews. I have also not been to a BMC camp in many years, so it was nice to see old friends and meet new ones. I had not ever been to McCall, Idaho, and had NO idea, there was such beauty there. I fell in love with the Payette River the second I saw it. Wow, what a beautiful river. It had miles and miles of rapids and placid waters to rest your paddle, as well. On my way to the campgrounds my sister asked me to please watch the road for wildlife, but there was no way I could keep my eyes on the road while I was surrounded by that beautiful scenery. All I could think about was: rafting, camping, hiking, campfires... and so forth.

(The minute I saw these rapids, I began to wonder when I would raft them...
and that thought consumes me even now.)

The weather was DELICIOUS!!! I have to admit, I did not expect it to be 'that' cold... brrr... it got down to the low 30's at night and one day it didn't even break 60. Crisp and cool! MMMmmmm!!! Loved it!!! See for yourself. :)

(Awe yes, winter clothes all toasty warm by the fireplace, what could be better?
Especially in June. With Megan and Kyrsten, my nieces)

I always strive to be the Aunt every kid dreams of, so I made sure I had plenty of greenbacks in my wallet for every niece or nephews 'snack shack' emergency... you know the... "I'm-hungry-and-nothing-in-this-world-could-satisfy-my-hunger-right-now-except-one-of-Joe's-exceptionally-grilled-hamburgers-or-maybe-one-of-Valerie's-perfectly-served-nachos." You know, the kind of emergencies I'm talkin' about... the main reason every kid loves to go to camp (well besides children's services, of course) ---- the SNACK SHACK!!

Well, it wouldn't have been right of me to deprive my kids... so I insured we had a bag of chocolate bars and ice creams an arms length away, at all times -- IN CASE OF EMERGENCIES, of course! :o)

Oh, did I forget to mention Carmel Apples... yes, those are my favorite.. except, for some reason, every time I went into McCall to get one... I didn't end up eating it - at all! By the time the wedges were dispersed, the core was already claimed; as you can clearly see. Haha!!

I was hoping to see a bear or bald eagle, since I've not seen either in it's natural habitat... didn't happen, so now I HAVE to go back. ;-s

The services were wonderful! The messages were exceptional and I remember the Spirit coming in a special way during one of my favorite songs... "Arise, My Soul Arise." Oh how wonderful to worship among such beauty and with so many old friends and family and oh what privilege to have the Holy Spirit as a guest.

I had a wonderful time... I only wish I could have stayed longer and enjoyed being at camp after my parents arrived.

Valerie and my sister, Jazminne are pretty good friends. It was nice to see Val, or excuse me, Sister Howard again. I must've said something retarded because she's laughing and I'm making a lame face in this pic. Hehe!

(in my new McCall sweatshirt)

I call my sis Dora, because that's her first name, and what we always called her when we were kids, she's since been called by her middle name, Jazminne, and she hates it when I call her Dora, so it only inspires me to keep calling her that...haha.. no really, it's hard to break old habits. Yeah, right!! :)

We had a great time! Well, some of us did.. if we were tall enough.. haha! David Todd is hilarious, he's such a gentle giant and I mean GIANT! We had so much fun the night before I left.

Uh-oh, he's in BIG trouble now... not sure what he did.. musta' been bad!! I just followed my sister's lead... he looks terrified, huh?!?! She's so good at being intimidating!

Can't forget a pic of my boys. Nathan wasn't able to be there until after I left... missed him. :( They're growin' up
too fast!

The following pics were on my camera. UH-HUH?!?!
EVIDENCE:
they had a ton of fun without me!

My parents with my sis and her fam...
My parents love the outdoors and traveling. When we were growing up, we were seldom home... we visited National Parks, camped, hunted, fished, hiked... and the list goes on. I am so glad they raised me to love the outdoors and that the television in our home was seldom on.

I'll follow-up another day with California Camp pics. I do, however, thank the Lord for the victories that were won in that Camp meeting.

*** FYI: I realize I look like the Michelin Man (photo attached in case you don't know what he looks like), in most of my pics. Haha!!! I was wearing so many layers to keep warm... I'll tell you how many but you'll have to leave me a comment to find out!! =)

Signing off....