Grands' Camp 2012

It is time for the annual Grands' Camp!!  Last year was crazy and this year was even CRAZIER!  To hear it straight from the horses mouth, Mimi herself is a guest blogger and did a GREAT recap for a GREAT week!

Grands’ Camp – 2012

The week began with Leslie and her family arriving on Saturday.  It was a big night for Anna because she got to sleep on the top bunk for the first time.  How exciting and she is “almost 5 (Mimi’s rule), so it was okay!”  Early Sunday, Leslie and Will left on a business vacation, so Mimi walked with Anna and Jack to her school and played on the playground.  FUN!!  Sarah and her family arrived Sunday afternoon.  Anna, Jack and Caroline were SO excited to see each other.  Jason and Harley headed back to Winston for football.  Leslie’s family brought a recordable card to Mimi for her birthday a couple of weeks ago.  On that card after Anna and Leslie’s message was a song recorded in 1950 by Doris Day, “I love you, a bushel and a peck, a bushel and a peck and a hug around the neck…”!  Well, little did we know that it would become our theme song for the week!  All the kids learned it, sang it and danced to it a hundred times – PRICELESS!!!

Day 1:   Nia and Penelope arrived early, so we got things started!  Everyone made T-shirts with their handprint fish.  SO cute!! Then two pools filled with cool water and a Slip-N-Slide made for a fun filled morning.  All the cousins played and swam and slipped and slid and drank pink lemonade (Thanks, Mrs. Mabie for the PERFECT gift!!!) and just had the BEST time.  Papa, Mimi (yes!), Sarah and Michelle just couldn’t let the kiddos have ALL the fun!  The ‘big people’ had their turns on the Slip-N-Slide, too!  It was an AWESOME way to spend a HOT summer day!!  We had a picnic with sandwiches, chips and lemonade for lunch.  A warm bath for the little ones and dry clothes for the big folks and then nap and quiet time!!!  Nice!   The evening was spent just watching the cousins play.

Day 2:  Day 1 was so much fun, we did it again!!  We did add Papa’s tractor ride to the fun.  He attached the wagon to the tractor and he and Jack (the drivers!) pulled the rest of the kiddos around the yard and up and down the street.  NOBODY wanted to stop-especially Jack the driver!!  Greg showed up for lunch and we had another picnic and added watermelon this time.  It is FANTASTIC to eat watermelon outside, with bathing suits on, sitting on the slip-n-slide!  Mimi’s nephew, Oren, arrived in time to get a little fun time in his bathing suit.  A warm bath and naps for the babies and Mimi and Papa took the three ‘big’ kids for the afternoon at the N.C Aquarium, followed by a trip to Sweet Frog for a treat!!

Day 3:  Today is beach day!!!   We packed up all six kids (yes, there WAS a time that Sarah and Mimi looked at each other and asked if they were crazy!) and headed to Oceanic Pier.  The water was PERFECT and everyone had a BLAST!!!  Michelle met us there to lend a hand and we were SO glad.  All the babies liked-or didn’t like-different things about the beach.  We are expecting to get a letter from Wrightsville Beach fining us for taking so much sand away-Jack loved eating it!  We arrived home, filled the pool and everyone dipped in for a while to rinse off.  Then dry clothes, lunch, and naptime for the babies.  The older three made yummy strawberry jam.  Then Mimi took them to the Teeter to get all the fixings for pizza.  We came home and made the dough, rolled it out and topped the pizzas with favorite toppings.  We have some excellent chefs in this family!!  Our neighbor, Mrs. Shirley arrived with some donuts right as we were finishing the pizza.  Boy, was that a real hit with everyone!  Nellie yelled, “Nonuts!”  THAT will surely stick with the Collins fam.!!  Nia and Nellie spent the night – there were kids sleeping everywhere, but we could get it done for one night!!  Next year there will be no pack-n-plays and they can all stay in the same room!!!???!!!  A quiet house was a wonderful thing!! 

Day 4:  The big kids had SO much fun at the beach in Day 3, we decided that all the big people would go back for the morning.  Papa, Sarah, Nia, Oren and Anna headed to meet Greg and Michelle for sun and fun.  Mimi stayed home with the three babies and they just played and played.  We read and sang and counted and played!!  FUN!!  After lunch, Oren left with his mom and dad-we LOVED having him!  All five kids that were left took a really good nap.  Papa headed to the airport to pick up Leslie and Will and we all met at the pool at Greg and Michelle’s apartment.  Jason surprised us and joined us there, too. We swam and played and laughed and had a great time.  G and M grilled delicious hot dogs and we even had s’mores for dessert at the fire pit!  A wonderful way to end precious days of cousins being together!!

All of this fun would not have been possible without my girls, Sarah being here from beginning to end and Michelle for coming during the days to help out. Thank you from the top and bottom of my heart!  I love you a bushel and a peck!!!

I am writing this Saturday morning.  Leslie and Will had to leave yesterday for other family functions.  Sarah, Jason and Caroline are staying until tomorrow morning.  Yesterday afternoon, as Sarah and I were sitting in the den floor watching Caroline play, the quiet was overwhelming.  Caroline was missing everyone terribly!  Good thing we are getting together with Jeffro and the girls and Greg and Michelle tonight for one last burger and a laugh!  Tomorrow afternoon will be totally quiet – I think I’ll take a nap!!!

 God is good and we are a blessed family!