Finally, we have a winner!

Violet and I returned home from camp this evening. Exhausted but excited. We had a wonderful time. To recap, two weeks ago we went to a Girls Weekend Out at a camp over two hours away. The staff hated the weekend and hated us being there. Practically ruined camp for Violet forever. She was talking of never going again after this last trip we were signed up for.

This time we were at camp only one night, for Family Night. There were moms, dads, grandparents, brothers, and even a baby brother there. It was at the camp I grew up going to. The camp was about an hour and fifteen minutes away (only half as far as Camp Icky), on a route I'm very familiar with. It rained all morning Friday and threatened to keep it up. We were a bit worried.

But it didn't rain or storm. The sky cleared up and we had wonderful weather. There were some showers overnight long after we were tucked snugly in our cots in our platform tent. There were about 50 campers there and probably 15 staff members. We had our own tent and lots of room it in.

The staff was all working over the weekend (not understaffed like the previous experience because they'd miscounted how many of us would be there). Plus they had six CITs (counselors-in-training, high school girls who've attended camp many years and were spending two weeks there shadowing the counselors and learning what it really takes to be a counselor). All the staff from the camp director on down to the CITs were so warm and welcoming. They seemed excited that we were there. A few counselors had their families there (a pair of brothers drove one poor counselor batty the whole time). Even the camp director's parents were there.

There were so many activities to choose from, we couldn't possibly do it all. Violet was in the pool 3 times, did arts and crafts, tie dyed, went on the "adventure hike" (proclaimed her favorite thing in our evaluation), visited the trading post, did the corn maze and even had her finger nails painted.

Side note: remember the last camp when we were told the only thing we moms want to do at camp was shop and have our nails done? Well, it turns out we do enjoy those things (I'm currently typing with purple fingernails), but when we can choose to do it and have a ton of other options as well.

Violet had a blast. Sure, she was nervous last night in the tent. And she got a bit overwhelmed just after lunch when she wanted to call it quits. But she did great and it paid off. It is a really great camp and really well run and a super program. I think we'll be back again next year.

We took a bunch of photos and I'll post some tomorrow. But I wanted to let you all know we were back and we're camping again! Violet is even thinking more about trying a short trip on her own. She hasn't done much in the way of sleepovers yet, she's just not ready, so we'll see about camp. But there's no rush. There are always older girls at the family style weekends. Violet can go on her own if and when she's ready. And honestly, she isn't quite ready yet. But that just means I get to go a while longer.

And since she had fun again, I won't have to borrow a kid to take with me next summer. I think she'll go back with me to Family Night again. But we won't go back to Camp Icky.