Y Camp through the seasons

It has been almost a year since John and I moved to Y Camp. Throughout the year we have had the opportunity to experience Y Camp through all seasons, each season bringing its own unique moments to appreciate. In the spring, Y Camp comes back to life. As the snow melts, you can hear it rushing through Lost Canyon Creek as it makes it way to the Des Moines River. Animals that took a winter vacation return back home, the birds are singing and the leaves begin to show signs of revival. The camp becomes buzzing with the sounds of excitement coming from the children who are visiting with thier schools as they discover the wonders of the natural world. As spring turns to summer, new changes take place. Staff begins to arriveas well as the thousands of children that attend summer camp each year. With the window wide open through the house, I can hear campers singing the songs that have been sung for decades, the splash of enjoyment coming from the pool, and the shrieks of laughter and chatter coming from the new Dahl Lodge. As summer comes to an end and autumn begins, there are new moments to enjoy. It is during this season that leaves turn brilliant shades of yellow, red, and orange which eventually fall to the ground. In the woods, you hear a rustling that is so loud that you think it must be a bear to find out it is just a small squirrel busy preparing for the cold weather ahead. It is no wonder fall is a popular time for groups to come to Y Camp to escape the business of daily life. The cold weather eventually arrives along with the snow. As I walk to work work after a fresh snowfall, it is not only my tracks that get left in the snow, there are the track of animals who like me call Y Camp thier home year round. The quiet and peacefulness of the valley allows me time to think. It is during this time that I have come to the conclusion that no matter what season it is, Y Camp truly is "The Closest Place to HEaven on EArth."

Closest Place to Heaven on Earth

So that is the Y Camp motto when you first enter camp. Today, I definitely believe it! It is such a beautiful March day and that doesn't get said too often. When I think of March I think of snowy rainy wet weather.

Here I am with the afternoon off and this is what i am doing. Sitting on the couch, catching up with e-mails and blogs (I haven't had internet acess for 3 weeks) and with all the windows in our house open (which there is a lot of them) listening to the creek in our backyard rushing with water. It is such a peaceful afternoon. Something I feel I deserve.

It has been a crazy few weeks. Work has been keeping me pretty bsuy. We are slowing getting settled into our new home. I promise to post some pictures here soon! This weather is getting me anxious to get outside and do some yard work.

This weekend we will be up to MN visiting family and friends. I am hoping to get to see my friend Mel's new little baby. I am so happy for them! The pictures I have seen are sooo adorable. My other main goal for the weekend is to see my sister, brother-in-law and my little niece Allie. It has been a month again since I have seen them and I know she has grown so much!

But for now I am just going to enjoy my afternoon.

Fun Weekend

I had a really good weekend. Yesterday, my friends and I threw my our good friend Mel a baby shower. She is such a cute preganant lady! I can't wait for her little one to arrive. It was so nice to see everyone and to visit. It feels like it has been a long time for all of us to just hang out and chat. My friend Randi did such a great job of setting things up and getting things together for the shower. Thanks Rand!

Tomorrow is the big day!

Well tonight will be our first night sleeping in the new house! I can't wait. I am excited and nervous for tomorrow. I have no idea what my first day will be like.

Moving in went VERY smoothly. Thank you everyone for all the help. We really appreciated it. The whole thing took 8 people, 2 trucks, 2 trailers, 1 trip to camp, and 3 hours. That is just the moving part. Now the unpacking part is taking a little bit longer. I spent a couple of days over there last week during my "unemployment". I am super glad I decided to take a couple of days in between the two jobs.

Right now I am just trying to find window coverings for all of the windows in the house. It feels like there are so many. As for pictures, I still need to post them but we currently don't have a computer or internet so . . . Right now I am using my parents.

A small kink in the plans

Well yesterday I went to camp to sign our housing agreement and to clean the house before the big move this weekend. Well, when I got there I found out that at some point this week the furnace stopped working so they had to do some plumbing work and replace the toilet. And it was sooooo cold in there that when I tried to spray some cleaner and wipe it up, it was slush haha. So it looks like I will be going tonight to try to get the cleaning done. Hopefully it will be warm.

I think that the guyss are going to do some moving tonight and then the rest tomorrow. I am so happy that is it going to be in the 40's tomorrow and sunny so it will be a great day to move! I took some pictures yesterday but I packed my the cable to upload them to my computer. Maybe after the weekend I can share some photos.

Up and Running

Well, I figured if I am going to do this, I better get it up and running so here it is! News from the Valley, which I found to be appropriate since we are now moving to the Des Moines River Valley. If anyone comes to visit you may be surprised by the lanscape. Like Amber said "I didn't know Iowa had hills like this". It is really a beautiful location. I am going to go there on Sunday to clean the house so I will post pictures next week.