a week without Daddy. winshape you are my friend.

I had known this week was coming for a few months.  The week Brady had to be on a business trip to Missouri from Sunday to Saturday.  I wasn't too worried about it since (1) the kids were out of school and (2) grandparents weren't too far away.  About two weeks before Brady was scheduled to leave and after approximately 6 weeks of summer vacation, I began to wonder what in the world I was going to do to keep the kids from being bored.  Working from home with bored kids equals no fun at all!

So when opportunity knocked, I acted!  I received information that a WinShape Camp was coming to Tuscaloosa August 1-5.  I had heard of WinShape before and knew it was sponsored by Chick fil a.  Perfect timing.  Great camp.  Lots of fun.  Totally FREE!  Plus all of the snacks, drinks, and lunches were being provided by Chick fil a.  WinShape was offering this camp to all Tuscaloosa children (1st grade to 6th grade) at no cost.  WinShape wanted to provide a positive experience for all of our children who had witnessed such damage and destruction from April's tornado.  What an awesome thing to do!

When I dropped the kids off Monday morning, I couldn't believe my eyes!  The college kids working the camp were standing on the side of Hwy 69 S, waving pool noodles, jumping up and down, and yelling.  They were totally excited to see all the campers!  There were over 400 campers registered!!  The parking lot was filled with kids, huge inflatables, and games where the kids played until drop off time ended.  At drop off each child was given a sticker that stated their name, animal, and skills.

Drop off

The campers were divided into 3 different villages:  Alpine (green flag), Safari (red flag), and Ocean (blue flag).  Within each village, the kids were divided into different animals.  Emma was a Gorilla in the Safari village, Abby was a Warthog in the Safari village, and John Brady was a dolphin in the Ocean village.  Each morning they divided into their villages.  Each village had their own cheer.  It was really fun to hear their cheers!

Village Time

After village time, they went inside for an interactive "wake up time".  Each day the camp workers put on a skit on stage with lots of lights, sounds, dancing, etc.  The Bible scriptures for the day were introduced.  After this they went to "connectreation" and then they met in Town Square.

Interactive "Wake Up Time"

After Wake Up Time, they went to their first skill (activity).  At registration they chose 6 activities and were placed in 3.  They went to the same 3 activities each day.  Emma's skills:  Wacky Science, Gymnastics, and Painting.  Abby's skills:  Painting, Gymnastics, and Archery.  John Brady's skills:  Wacky Science, Fast Food (the kids got to "cook" fast meals like pudding and rice krispie treats), and Painting.  John Brady's skills were different depending on which day he lost his sticker!  The last day he went to Wacky Science twice!  LOL

Wacky Science Skill

Each group of kids were given a plastic bag, a straw, a tongue depressor, and a piece of scientific tape.  They had 10 minutes to make a boat that would float.  

Emma's team working on their boat

After the boats were made they had a boat race.  Each boat was put in front of a fan at one end of a lane.  The boat was timed as it sailed down the lane.

Gymnastics Skill

Archery Skill

Painting Skill

Family Fun Day Friday

All of the parents were invited to Family Fun Day which started at 8 and ended at 12:00.  We got to attend their daily activities, attend a parent's meeting, and eat lunch with them.  Chick fil a provided lunch for all of the parents, too!  I've never seen so many Chick fil a nuggets in my life!!  

The parents got to participate in some of the activities.  Abby just had to take a picture of me!  :)

The campers participated in camp Olympics on Friday.  Medals were given to the winners of each skill.  A silver, bronze, and a gold.

Winners of archery

The kids really had a great time at WinShape!!  I was really impressed with the camp (an organized, upbeat, fun, Christian camp) and highly recommend it.  

By Friday we were missing Daddy terribly!!  Brady was planning to leave at midnight Friday, but was able to leave Missouri around 4 pm.  It was a comfort to tell the kids that he would be home when they woke up on Saturday.  We decided to make a sign and hang it on the door.

What a week!  It's stressful to handle 3 children with both parents, but it's extremely stressful with only one parent.  I really don't see how single parents do it!  I feel incredibly blessed to have a wonderful, helpful husband and father!!  We love you Daddy!!

Admission---I was pretty darn proud of myself for making it a week mostly by myself!  I did have a little help on Monday evening for a couple of hours and then again on Wednesday morning for a couple of hours.  Thanks MeMe and Nanny!