My Camp report for Spring 2002


Tuesday evening on the thirtieth of April Daddy packed the car and early Wednesday morning before the sunrise we were on our way to Camp. Daddy parked the car at the Camp parking lot at about 10:00AM. I was surprised and pleased to find that a bunch of other girls had decided to come to Camp early. By Wednesday evening there were twelve girls at Camp. We joked that if someone wanted to be early, from now on, they would have to arrive on Tuesday!

After the usual routine of registering, unpacking the car, and bringing my contribution of toys for the toy collection to the lobby, I appeared wearing my pink fluffy skirt that has tiny white dots and white bows with a white blouse. I took a walk around Camp and was very happy to see that their Lilacs were starting to bloom. I love the fragrance of Lilacs and they are such a pretty color. Wednesday was sort of cool so I was glad my blouse had long sleeves. They had quite a bit of rain, so Camp Pond was looking some better than it was last Fall. This area has been having a draught for about three years now and Camp Pond was still about two feet lower than normal. There were lot of squirrels and birdies around, but I did not see or hear a Cardinal. I was a little sad about that. I love Cardinals and there is usually one at Camp.

I sat at the tree table / bench next to the main lodge and starting working on my Japanese vocabulary words. I have the goal to be at four hundred words by this Fall so I didn't want to miss my study time. Afterward, I went into the main lodge and played board games and talked with the others until diner time. The lobby at the main lodge was a very pretty sight as there were cute stuffies everywhere! Heather brought a huge bunch of stuffies for the toy collection. There were so many that they were sitting all over the lobby sort of decorating the place. On Sunday morning they were gathered together with the other toys so Mr. Jay could deliver them to the agency. I got a very nice surprise when I looked into the dining room. They have redecorated it. Now the main color is yellow with aqua blue and white trim. I think it's very pretty.

Thursday morning I got up, put on my white and red sailor dress and went out for a cup of tea at the main lodge before taking a little walk. The weather was quite chilly so I wasn't out walking long. Since there weren't any activities scheduled until afternoon, we decided to have breakfast early and so most of us sat down for breakfast around nine o'clock. The weather was warming up a little by the time we were done with breakfast. I returned to my room to get some things and when I was ready to go back, it was raining quite a bit. I was kind of excited because I was finally going to get a chance to try out my umbrella. I got a pretty umbrella in a party gift exchange a few Camps ago and I always bring it with me to Camp. I went out, put up my umbrella, and walked slowly to the main lodge. I loved the sound of the raindrops on my umbrella.

By afternoon all the girls had arrived and were gathering for Easter Egg decorating and the first Ballet class. This time we decorated eggs in the lobby. They set up a table with everything on it and we took turns going through a line in front of the table to decorate eggs. I did not go to Ballet class on Thursday, but I did go down for May pole dance practice. I was looking forward to the May pole dance very much. Later I found out that Daddy and I had a little accident with the radio/CD player I bring to Camp. Daddy put new batteries in it before we left home, but apparently the switch got turned on somehow and the batteries were now dead, but the good thing was that I brought the AC power cord.

By now, it was getting close to dinnertime so I went back to my room to change. I put on my yellow cotton dress and returned to the main lodge. As usual the buffet dinner was very good and dinnertime was a great time to talk with friends we met for the first time or had not seen for a long time. After dinner, we played table games and talked together.

Friday morning I was up early and got ready for Ballet class. Instead of wearing my school uniform over my leotard like usual, I wore my yellow pop skirt. This was because there were no school classes planned for this Camp. I also left my practice tutus home and I just wore my pop skirt during class. I stopped at the porch at the main lodge for a cup of hot cocoa because I was way early for Ballet class and I love hot cocoa. I was so happy about being able to dance again! I was careful, and there were a couple of things I did not do because Daddy needs a little more healing time, but I had a great time. After Ballet class we had May pole dance practice again, but only a few girls came for that. Many girls had gone to town to go shopping. After May pole practice, we went for breakfast. I really enjoy the buffet style breakfasts because I get just exactly what I want and it is quick so I can get back to playing with my friends.

After breakfast I went to change and get ready for the Dollie and Teddy Bear picnic. I wore my sparkly yellow fluffy dress with the white lace trim. This time I brought my new Bunnie to Camp. Her name is Haruko. Haruko was a gift to me from Aunt June; she is bright yellow with a little white on her paws, pink inside her ears, and a pink ribbon around her neck tied in a bow under her chin. I think she is very pretty and I love her lots. Haruko went with me to the picnic. The weather was unsettled and trying to rain so we decided to have the picnic in the lobby instead of outdoors. We had a great time with sandwiches, cookies, and soft drinks. Taffy teased me quite a bit because I had not brought my Dollie Michelle to Camp this time. You see, Taffy had brought a new dress for Michelle as a surprise. I was sad and very sorry that I had disappointed Taffy like that. Taffy knows though that Michelle and I think that her new dress is very very pretty and we are ever so happy with Taffy's kind and thoughtful gift.

After the Dollies and Teddy Bear picnic we all went to a field below the motel style rooms to hold our May pole dance. The wind was blowing quite strong and Mr. Frank was having a hard time holding on to the pole to keep it from breaking or blowing away. We got ourselves organized, or so we thought, and then the girls who skipped the May pole dance practice had a chance to rethink that. We finally got started and even though we wrapped the ribbons less than perfectly, we had a wonderful time. I remember on a few occasions during our circuits of the pole when I thought I would fly away with the wind. My yellow sparkly dress is very fluffy and that helped the wind push on me. Then, all at once, a big gust of wind tugged at the ribbons and the pole and the pole snapped off. Mr. Frank could not hold it any longer, so we decided the May pole dance was at an end. Perhaps we will try again another year.

While we were doing the May pole dance, Ms. Farida, Ms. Patty, and Cheryl were hiding the Easter Eggs. So we only had to wait a little while and they told us the Easter Egg hunt was ready. I was especially excited because I had provided three dozen plastic eggs to be used in the hunt and inside one was a little slip of paper with the Japanese Kanji for "Usagi" (Bunnie) written on it. The person who found that egg would get a cute little white stuffy bunnie that I brought to Camp for the Easter Egg hunt. I had not announced it before so it was going to be a surprise. I found a couple of eggs, but mostly I was watching to see if someone had found the special Bunnie egg. After it looked like all the eggs had been found Ms. Patty and Ms Farida told every one to look inside the plastic eggs they found to see if they had the one with the paper inside. There was a flurry of egg opening and Heather held up the paper and received her prize Bunnie. Heather was very happy to have her new Bunnie and said she would be sure to keep it with her.

Now it was getting time to change for dinner so I returned to my room. I changed into my white fluffy dress with pink sash and a big pink bow at the back of the waist. Before dinner some of us took a walk around Camp Pond. We saw some squirrels and I heard a chipmunk, but I still did not hear a Cardinal. Our walk around the pond was very nice and somehow passed to quickly. When we sat down for dinner I took a suggestion from Petricia and sat at the end of one of the tables. As it turns out, being at the end of the table is a good thing if your dress is very fluffy.

Saturday Morning, I got up early again and this time I wore my cherry blossoms pop skirt with my Ballet class things. When we arrived at Ballet class, Ms Farida told us she had decided to change our routine for the recital. She gave me a very easy part because she wanted me to be gentle with Daddy's still healing body. I was a flower sleeping in a garden. I'm not sure, but I think the other girls were the wind and raindrops. I was on my knees sort of all folded up and the others came to wake me up. After they woke me up, I danced around with them for a while then we were done. We practiced quite a few times and then we went for breakfast.

After breakfast, I went to change my clothes. This time I put on my white fluffy dress with pink lace trim on the ruffles, pink sash and fluffy pink bow at the back of the waist. At one o'clock we started to gather for the Ballet recital and Birthday Party. Those who wanted to participate in our gift exchange put the presents they brought on a shelf and their names were added to the list of who would get a gift. The Ballet recital was first so the girls who were dancing got ready and the other took seats to watch. Since I was the sleeping flower I took my place in the garden all by myself and waited. In a little while the music started and the breezes and raindrops started dancing around me. I had lots of fun pretending to be a fluffy flower dancing in the breeze and gentle rain. The recital did not take long, but I had a wonderful time!

After that, the Birthday party started. We had deviled eggs (the Easter Eggs), sandwiches, cake, ice cream, and soft drinks. Everything was very yummy! When we were done eating we had the gift exchange and then we played some games. One of the games we played was hot potato. We tossed a small Hello Kitty purse around the group and if you were the last one to touch it when the music stopped, you were out of the game. I was Very Surprised that I actually won the game! I'm usually not very good at that sort of thing. After the games, the music was still playing so several of us danced and twirled around having a wonderful time. When the party finally ended, I returned to my room to change.

This time I wore my new white fluffy dress with yellow lace trim on the ruffles and a yellow sash with a big fluffy bow at the back of the waist. We planned to eat dinner early on Saturday night so we would have more time to play and talk after dinner since it was our last night at Camp. Before dinner time I took a short walk and stopped to talk with friends a couple of times. I remembered during my walk that I had only taken one short turn on the swings, but I knew it would not be a good idea to go on the swings in my pretty new dress. I will remember to take an extra turn on the swings at next Fall Camp.

Dinner on Saturday night was served at our tables and again I took a seat at the end of one of the tables so my very fluffy dress wouldn't be a problem. I have been thinking that perhaps I will try going to dinner less fluffy. I suppose I can make up for it by dressing very fluffy in the afternoon. We were done with dinner early so we had lots of time to talk and play games. I particularly had fun playing a game called Uno. The game goes quite fast and you have to pay close attention to what's going on because there are quite a few complicated rules or so it seems. On a couple of occasions there was discussion about what the rules really were, but they were settled with smiles and the conclusion that playing should not be interupted to much by discussion of rules.

By ten o'clock, I was getting very sleepy so I returned to my room. I got all of my things packed and went to sleep. In the morning Daddy loaded the car, checked me out of my room, and after saying our good-byes, we departed for home.

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