Barn dance fun has just begun!

Dance your heart out everyone!

Saturday afternoon after trail pace, we collapse. Everyone in camp has the option to sleep the afternoon away and most campers and staff take advantage of the extended rest hour. Supper is served late - 7:00 p.m. - and believe it or not, many catch their zzzzz's until 5-6 p.m. That's three or four hours, and when we all wake up, we feel like we still need more sleep!!!

Our barn dance happens Saturday night, and yes, we stay up past the regular bedtime. That's because we can sleep late Sunday morning. Breakfast isn't until 9:30 a.m. We all saunter in wearing our pj's. Just like home.

Feel the rhythm and move. What wonderful fun!

So the barn dance happens in the indoor riding arena. This time around every cabin was responsible for introducing and sometimes teaching a dance. Everything from line dances, the electric slide, the hokey pokey and the chicken dance filled our evening with fun and giggles.

This is a wonderful opportunity for kids who know nothing about such dances to get an education. They learn these dances exist and many of them join in, practicing the steps and feeling the rhythm. Very few wall flowers at Sprucelands!

So this is how you do the chicken dance. Really.

The best part is everybody lets loose. No school stress. No obligations anywhere. Just friends and music and jumping around and popcorn for refreshments. Good clean fun like this is invigorating. For me, it's inspirational. I love seeing the kids feeling so free. Makes me wish even more kids could take advantage of Sprucelands fun.

Our boys were funny. They introduced the chicken dance and attempted to teach it. Funny part was I think it was the other way around. I think the group taught the boys how to do the chicken dance. That made it even funnier. Dylan, Mark and Daley got a big kick out of being dance instructors. Lots of belly laughs took our breath away.

There's a special bond in this group, and we love them all.

I of course was the observer again, snapping photos for you folks in hopes I could tell a story about the evening. Interesting to me was how different campers grouped themselves together. I saw friend combinations that I hadn't noticed in the day-to-day. Made me wonder if they connected with new friends through the dance itself, especially as they tested their courage to try new things.

There were some photo ops we made available to the kids. It all started when I said I wanted to snap a picture of the whole bunch. So they agreeably gathered on the far end of the arena and within seconds made me a positively lovely picture.

We want to remember this day.

What a special group we have this session. Sad to say not everyone is in the picture because some campers and staff were out of camp, and yet this gives you the high stepping barn dancers here for first session.

Taking photos for special friends is rewarding too. Many of those photos will make it into the end of the session DVD that will be done for a Friday night showing. It will also be available for sale at the horse show on Saturday. A good number of the kids like this memory to take home with them. Just warning you folks ahead of time so you tuck an extra $20 into your pocket. 

Our voices are magnified in the indoor arena. I need to make a recording.

At the end of the evening, we did our closing circle under the indoor arena lights. Sang our three traditional closing songs, shared good night hugs, and then bubbling with the joy of a satisfied evening, campers and staff straggled back to their cabins for more delicious sleep.

In my book, this was a successful day. I didn't oversleep in the morning so the trail was marked and ready on time. Our trail pace was safe. Horses and riders cooperated. The weather was ideal. Bugs weren't too bad. The afternoon's sleep was deep and sound. Our meals were healthy and satisfying. The barn dance was great fun, and as the night began, we all nestled in with cabin good nights: "Goodnight, Jenny." "Goodnight, Kaela."
"Goodnight, Nadia." "Goodnight all."

Do you love barn dances? Your comments are welcome.