shadow mountain secrets

Today is Tim's official last day of camp...Yay for me! It will be so good to have him home again. That being said, the kids would rather he spend the entire summer on the mountain, because it's their favorite place to tag along. Carter spent a good 2 weeks up there, Maddy almost the same, and even Lady and Jace each spent two nights. Kenzie made one trip up...she had girls camp (pics of that later). I went and spent an afternoon too. This was the first year my kids were old enough that I didn't have to chase them around and keep them safe. If I would have known how well Lady and Jace would do up there, I would have spent a few more days playin' at camp. There's always next year...of course, Tim wouldn't be sad if jobs change and he is busy doing other stuff. We'll have to wait and see...

Tim, Dave, and the newbie putting up tarps to make some shade on the porch.

So many uses for pots and coolers...for instance, seats.

Tim, telling one of his many campfire stories. His stories can last up to an hour now, and they change constantly. This year, on the first day, he told the campers about the BYU Gorilla Refuge just over the next mountain. Later, around the fire, Tim would get an official sounding call on his walkie talkie.. "this is _____ from the refuge, we have a code red." Tim would repeat this loudly, many times. He would then instruct the campers to get in groups of 5, link arms, and head for the cabins slowly. Once they were a safe distance from the fire, Zach, a.k.a "Escaped Gorilla", would come tearing out of the woods on all fours. You can only guess at the mayhem that ensued following the appearance of the gorilla! Hee! Hee!

Gorilla Zach after scaring the you-know-what out of a group of campers.

The famous "hippie bus". I don't know the whole story, but supposedly a group of stranded hippies lived in this bus decades ago.

Getting ready to slip n' slide. The camp invested in a new slip n' slide this year. If I had brought along a swimsuit, I may even have given it a run. And the garbage bags...duh...they make you go faster!

I think just maybe, Jace does not love the cold water.

Carter and Maddy raced...Maddy won. Notice the glow sticks hanging from the top. They did a couple of night time slides and lit the slide with the glow sticks. It's like a camp being run by a bunch of 12 year old boys.

Tim giving Maddy some help down the slide.

Dancin' to the tunes on the sidelines.

...the little boy said nothing. He was fast asleep. It had been a very, very busy day".

First....Be so impressed that I figured out how to load a camera video. I am! This is Maddy and one of the counselors. At the end of the 3 mile hike, there is a lake at the base of a glacier. There is still snow all around the lake. Maddy did the polar bear plunge for the first time ever this year. What a girl! And what a fun month for the kids!