Dora, Nora and Laura Go To Camp!

It can't possibly be true but it is. My sweet little Eldora is old enough to go away to camp. Trout Creek Bible Camp, In fact. The same camp that her big sister has been going to each summer for the past five years. This is the first year that she is old enough to go and I really did not expect her to be interested yet, but as soon as the idea of going to camp was brought up, she beamed with excitement and counted the days until it was time to leave. And just when I thought she might be getting cold feet, we found out that two friends from church were going to be going at the same time and that sent any little jitters she may have had flying fast and far away, never to be seen again.

These three girls, Dora, Nora and Laura, were all born just a few months apart and have known each other since they were babies. Their rhyming names were a simply adorable coincidence when they all started playing with each other in the church nursery and still, more than 7 years later, brings me to giggles every time I say them all together. The 3 girls find this fact endlessly amusing as well, and had big plans to play off the rhyming names and confuse all who encountered them while at camp.

So early on a Sunday morning, we drove out a small winding road to the tiny nearby town of Corbett, to this sweet little camp nestled cozily between mossy green trees and babbling brooks(based on the level of filth and excessive number of bug bites on the little girl when she got back, there is plenty of dirt and insects nestled out there too). We had not been out there more than 10 minutes when Dora looked over her shoulder at me while skipping about happily with a friend on each arm and said to me in a firm and matter-of-fact tone, "Mom. You can go home now." And at that, I took a few obligatory photos, left her to her grand adventure and made my exit.

Dora and her cabin group sit down together for the first time
Laura, Nora and Dora
Dora with her two camp counselors(LuLu and Schmoey)

Dora came home 2 days later........ grubby and exhausted but as happy as could be. She reportedly had a FANTASTIC time.

Here is her "Top Ten Best" things about her stay at camp(in her very own words).....

1. Swimming.

2. Chapel.

3. The snack shack- ICE CREAM!!

4. Rock Climbing.

5. The shower party we had after we went swimming.

6. Horse-back riding!!

7. Spending time with LuLu and Schmoey.

8. Playing "toilet tag".

9. We played this game about a queen and whatever the queen said the person has to say what she wants. And once while I was wearing flip flops we tied one sneaker to TEN flip-flops! Ten Flip-FLOPS!

10. Spending the night in chapel.

Hmmmmm......... toilet tag...... sounds fun.