Nah. Where's the fun in NOT telling an incredibly crazy story?

So, I went to camp last week and had a wonderful time. I was so surprised to see how quickly I snapped into "photography mode" {beginner's mode at best, but still...}. My job was of utmost importance to me and the opportunity to meet almost 60 children and capture their memories was really not a job at all.

Everything was going great, minus the nausea and food aversions, until Wednesday. In "camp time", Wednesday is the day to play catch up with photos to even out how many pictures each child has. There's a carnival set up at camp and basically myself and 2 other people chased specific children down to get extra shots of them. It's busy and a bit tricky. Since the children are all wards of the state, their photo cannot include another child in it...at all...not even a profile of another child can be in the background. Anywho...things were going well until I walked by a bounce house and tripped.

That's where this happened. Ouch. 

No, really...big time ouch. 

I just took this picture today so it's been a week since the incident.

Basically, my thigh met with an iron stake that was anchoring down the bounce house. In an effort to not fall on my stomach, I had to use it as leverage to lift myself up again. I did some major muscle damage and couldn't go up stairs or squat down without making my muscles spasm like crazy.

Actually, I find it kind of ironic that the white of the bruise is almost in a heart shape. Oh, the things we do for the people we love. And yes, I had just met these children but I fell in love with each of them while I was there. Because of that love, I kept going. Nausea didn't stop me. Boo-boo's didn't stop me. Extreme exhaustion didn't stop me. I love those children and only had a week to show them what love means. {I'll share a neat story about camp another time.}

Speaking of exhaustion and loving children...

How to begin?

I got home from camp and I was more than excited to wrap my arms around my kiddos until they couldn't take it anymore. I had just gotten settled in my home and the next day, with temperatures in the high 80's with massive amounts of humidity, the condo's AC unit went kaput. 

UGH!

We had someone come out and look at it right away and he said we needed to replace the whole thing and it would cost us about $3700. Seriously. But, since I'm never willing to accept the first quote until it's been confirmed, I got on Google to search some things out. Luckily, I found a very talented man who could replace the broken part for only $750 and give a one year warranty on it. Phew!

In the meantime, we had to stay with my in-laws to beat the heat and keep everyone comfortable. We arrived on Sunday and the hubster got a flu bug that day. Monday evening, the bug showed up in Alex and a fever started spiking in Eliana. Late night Monday is when the bug caught me...all night and into yesterday. Eliana went to the pediatrician's office yesterday because we couldn't get rid of the fever for good and he couldn't find anything wrong but gave us a lot to look for. And today, here I sit. 

Finally. 

Recovered and keeping a close eye on the kiddos but all is well. 

Is it really only Wednesday? 

Thank God for His faithfulness. 

Should I Spare You The Story?

• Alex camp cfl champions for life kids camp eliana
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I've been going through a lot of emotions since I arrived home from camp. Today, my feeling is that of frustration.

But before I get into all of that, let me share a little bit about Vision Hope and its Champions For Life Kids Camp for those of you who are not familiar with it. Vision Hope and Champions For Life Kids Camp were founded as a way to bring summer camp to foster children. This camp is not just your ordinary camp, though. There are camp Grandparents and an Aunt and Uncle who visit with the children to give them more of a family feel while at camp. The meals are served family style as well which gives great opportunity to chat with the children there about the day and any other topic that comes up.

Champions For Life Kids Camp also offers many opportunities for the children attending to try something new. The camp schedules technical tree climbing, a mud walk, archery, swimming, a carnival, a camp birthday party, a day of beauty shop where special photographs are taken, and more. These are ways to bring new experiences and show the children what they're good at to help build confidence.

The camp takes place two weeks a year. Each week, a different group of children and staff come up to the campground. This makes it possible for even more children to have an opportunity to attend summer camp. There are volunteers who go both weeks. I've considered it, but one week is really exhausting on its own so I really respect those who go up both weeks.

Need more info? Just visit VisionHope.org to get your questions answered or find out who you can contact should you want to volunteer or make a donation.

Alright, back to the thoughts on my week there.

I met some tremendous children while at camp and I heard some horrific stories. And while their stories have moved me to tears over and over again, my frustration is not stemmed from a feeling of hopelessness. Rather, my frustration is rooted in the desire to do more. I just don't know what that means yet.

For me, I feel like volunteering at camp once a year is just a small way I can be helping these little ones.

So, I'm praying. I'm asking for guidance on how I can do and be more for the children I've met and others like them. I'm considering being a mentor at a group home while I wish I had more room in my home to take in and adopt a foster child. All I know is that my heart is broken for these children and I have to find a way to do more...whatever that means.

 

Vision Hope: The Call Is Great

• adoption camp champions for life kids camp detroit foster care vision hope
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