Monday, July 19, 2010

Pine Cove ~ Crier Creek ~ 2010

Here is the Crier Creek staff, waiting for us and ready to make this the best week of our year! No exaggeration, it is the BEST!
Counselors are welcoming the car line as we all arrive.
Here we are, the Livesay Posse!


Major felt comfortable from the first meal.
Here he is dancing to some house music and he made this part of his meal routine throughout the week... eat then dance, of course!
He would return to the table for dessert.
Here Major is enjoying his birthday cake for the good ole US of A! Yes, it was the 4th of July and we celebrate Crier Creek style, singing "Happy Birthday" to the USA turing 244!

Our first club on Sunday night. They loved it and got to meet their counselors for the week.
fireworks show


MONDAY

BOOT CAMP PARTY

Hudson with his counselor "Belle"
My boot camp buddy!



Off to boot camp game that I can't remember the name of...

It was like soccer but with 4 goals and 4 huge balls???
Hudson is on the ground in the middle. He was going full force the whole time.
We followed that up with the more mellow swing and I was happy because there was shade! It was H-O-T!
The guys feeling very happy with their effort on the soccer field.
more club craziness

TUESDAY
Stephen and I got a camper call at 6:45 am so we could get some coffee and then head over to the horse barn for our morning trail ride and breakfast. It's like a mini date and very relaxing!

Lil' Bittie and me
(she had a "little bittie"attitude, but we bonded)
cowboy breakfast with coffee over the fire and cherry cobbler
Delish
We met up with the kids who were finishing up breakfast with their counselors. This is Major snuggled up with his counselor.
Pickle Ball
A cross between ping-pong and tennis
It's a HUGE hit that spurs otherwise tame people into competitive ridiculousness. There is a tournament one night and Stephen returned home very late because... HE WON the tourney and recieved the "Better Brother" award due to him and his partner beating his brother Reed and Reed's partner. He, He :)
Banquet Night
The kids are at their party with counselors while we have an adult dinner.
WEDNESDAY
This is how I spent adult free time!
Red Barn
This is where we spent the week
Christmas Party

THURSDAY

Skit that had something to do with nursery rhyme characters being abducted?
The Three Medium Size Pigs

It rained off and on all day but that didn't stop us!



Major enjoyed being an observer of the horse but not a rider of the horse.

not a rider but mama still tried
the fish were biting
snacks every afternoon
Hudson reeled in a lot of fish over the week but the coolest moment (not caught on camera) was when he caught one all by himself. Dad cast it but Hudson did the rest. He was just reeling in the line, when BAM, he got one! It was a small bass and such a cool moment for all my guys!

Headed to the red barn after some lagoon time!

Good time to mention that both boys went down the BIG slide! They rode with Stephen and me off and on. It's pretty big so I thought that was cool. Major couldn't get enough.

So...Tame horsey while wearing helmet, accompanied by mom - NO... BUT, 3 story tall slide that you climb a wooden winding staircase to ride - YES!

FRIDAY
This is White Tail Lodge where we eat all those yummy meals! It's equipped with lots of rocking chairs, and pin-pong tables.
playgrounds everywhere...
Ebenezer Stones
A tradition to write on a rock your "take-home" lesson for the week. I wrote lots on mine but the most important was "unconditional respect."
Luke and Hudson - camp buddies!
Last club of the week...

Cool swing outside that Hudson was obsessed with. He wasn't the only one, so sometimes there was a line. He didn't care so we would wait and then let the good times roll!

Cool moment Friday night as one of the young campers decided to get baptized. He accepted Christ earlier that week, while at camp. Sam is on the left, and his dad in on the right. We got to know this family last year and even better this year, so it was even more touching to witness this new believer following Chirst! This baptism inspired two more girls to get baptized the next morning. Very cool!
Late night ice cream as we wound up the week and talked with the counselors.
Major's counselors
Trix and Cutie that I can't remember you're name

We considered this picture a "keeper" because it accurately depicts how Major began his day with his counselors.
Hudson's counselors
Belle and Snappy
I could go on and on but these are many of the highlights! For us, some of the coolest moments will never be on a camera. It's a time that really bonds us all together and gets us focused together as a family on what really matters. I'm sort of addicted to family camp now. I realize how much I need a time of renewal with my family and the spiritual renewal is so refreshing! It really is a special place and a breath of fresh air to this young family. I'm still looking for some new recruits to sign up with us for next year!

Tuesday, July 13, 2010

Crutsing Crew


The Crutsinger crew came for a visit after their week at family camp. It was fun to have all FIVE boys together! Here's how roll call goes between the Crtsingers and Livesays...

1. Cooper - almost 5
2. Hudson - almost 4
3. Benjamin - 3 1/2
4. Major 2
5. Cole 1

That's right, they are 5, 4, 3, 2, and 1... wanna play! Watch out because it gets a little crazy! Girls might need protective gear. Just a thought.

Hudson arrived with the Crutsingers from a special, mini-session at family camp.

Here Hudson is running to his new playground that was installed while he was at camp.
Cooper - 5, Major - 2, Ben - 3
Ben and Hudson
They are only 6 months apart in age.
I believe we decided it was time for a movie at some point. We watched Toy Story 2, I believe, and then the entire gang went to see Toy Story 3 in the theatre!
Note to self: You can never have enough food when 5 boys are eating and 4 adults. I'll plan better next time.
Cooper, Ben and Hudson all slept in Hudson's room. The first night was hilarious as you can see a serious finger point coming from Stephen.
We got the playground slide really wet and put the pool at the bottom. The kids had a blast and I suggested adding some Crisco to the slide just to see how far they could really fly. Here are some of the highlights... (we didn't really add Crisco, maybe next time)





Laura and I took the big boys to the mall for a little Victoria Chuck E. Cheese and Chick-fil-a.
The Crutsingers live in Orlando, FL so this was a special treat for all of us!

We Start 'Em Young



Toy Story Insanity

This is Hudson, as Andy, from Toy Story

cute

Swim Lesson 2010


Coach Hackney Swim Lessons
(side note... if you say "coach" before a last name, it just sounds cooler...)

This is how they start out before lessons
Coach Hackney is in the sun hat and grey t-shirt which would normally seem dorky but because he is "Coach Hackney," it's cool, trust me. I asked someone what he coaches and is seems like that is a mystery... unless you count swim lessons as coaching?
The run down on how swim lesson played out for Livesay crew 2010...

Hudson -- not a huge fan, but did great -- he didn't want to jump off the diving board at first but by the end he was a jumping fool -- he swam by himself on day 4 of 10 and Coach Hackney was impressed and I soaked it up cause I'm a sucker for that stuff :)

Major -- another story, meaning wow, that kid can scream! -- I asked if it would be okay if I remove myself from the lessons due to my kid screaming in a way that left my heart pounding -- in the end, he did great and is very comfortable in the water -- he says "kick, kick, kick" and is very adventurous in the water now

I'm going to say, "mission accomplished" for this year!