We ride horses come rain or come shine.

Seems appropriate to ride a horse named 'Stormy' in the rain.

As I read back over the blog, I realize it's been a while since I've put many photos up here about what's happening at the barn and in the riding program. So the next several posts will take you there. I promise to share more of the horse end of things.

First I'll share that I happened up to the barn this last week right after a rain shower. Actually, it was one of those days when it was hot and the rain felt good. No thunder and lightning. Just rain. I can't remember. That may have been Thursday. Because the rain was so welcomed by everyone, our classes simply continued in the rain. The kids thought it was a great adventure, and the horses went 'ahhhhhh'.

Waiting their turn for a jump.

Anyway, this particular class was taking their horses over small jumps. Getting a sense of what to do with their eyes, balance, hands and feet, they popped small crossrails and smiled. Not sure if they were smiling at the camera or smiling because the ride was going well.

Some like Anna on Gus are a little more serious about their riding. Anna is all about concentration so that she is taking care of Gus while Gus is taking care of her. The two are a great match.

Anna makes her riding serious business.

You can see the photos actually look a little hazy. The mist rising from the warm ground made the afternoon photography look a bit like riding in a dream. That of course is what the riding experience is like for quite a number of the kids, especially those who are only able to ride in the summer at camp.

Those of you campers who attended the first session remember Twiggy. He was the little bay thoroughbred who hooked his feed bucket through his nose - go figure - and ended up with five or six stitches in his left nostril. I'll never, ever figure out how he got himself in that predicament. Thankfully the barn staff happened along so they could get him disconnected from his beloved feed bucket.

Isn't Twiggy a cutie? Rider too.

Hope is having a lot of fun with this little guy.

Anyway, Twiggy is now healed and doing well in the program. Hope is riding him. You can see that she is a perfect match for his size. Twiggy is starting to muscle up as he works into a regular schedule. I do think he is enjoying the relationship he has with Hope. You can see he is very sane and he takes easily to jumping.

Well, now I've completed my blogs for today. As soon as I get the photos from the trail pace worked up, I'll upload them to another article for you. We did have a wonderful time yesterday and the weather cooperated so nicely. Come rain or come shine, we find a way to connect with our horses. It feels so good.

Comments welcome, especially as you pop in here to catch up on our fun.

Sewing is a perk of third session at Sprucelands.

This is how you work the machine.

One more thing I want to add about Sprucelands. We don't just do horses here. I think as you read the blog you'll discover there's a lot more going on. You may actually be amazed.

We primarily focus on horses, horsemanship, and riding skills. However, there's also leadership and follower-ship development that happens so the kids learn a balance of leading and then following when the time is right. It's about being supportive of other leaders.

There are also all kinds of community service contributions and independent living skills - doing dishes, sweeping, and recycling, to name a few - and character building exercises. The mix is so wonderful. I watch our campers and staff grow before my eyes.

Kalayne sews her pillowcase very carefully.

Buzz Lightyear oversees sewing and ironing.

On top of everything, we add some perks. With a very talented staff - a staff that changes across the summer - we offer different activities in different sessions. Like there are sheep here this session, and they have been an adventure, especially when they jumped the fence one morning. What a trip!

And the other morning I happened into the lodge when the kids were actively making pillowcases. They even talked me into making one. Amazing.

Now you may laugh and think this is an activity just for the girls. Not so. Not so at all. Actually, the boys were the very first ones to man the machines and get their pick of fabrics. They were so excited with their pillowcase projects especially as they had a choice of Pokemon and Toy Story fabrics. Then there were fabrics that replicated cowboy red handkerchiefs, patchwork patterns, and beautiful butterflies. Add in the choice of flannel or plain fabric. They were ecstatic and very proud of the results.

Tricia shares her creativity with all of us.

So this is another of my shorter posts. Take a peek. Maybe this is an idea for holiday presents come December. Either learn how to make the pillowcases or buy your son a sewing machine! You never know what is going to happen at Sprucelands horse camp.

Comments always make my day.

An eight year old birthday at Sprucelands.

Wow! Look at these cards!

I know it's difficult to have your son or daughter away on their birthday. For that reason, I'm slipping in a post here for Sarah's mom and dad. We want you to know that we do our best to make a camper's birthday really special and hopefully memorable.

We pulled out all the stops for Sarah. Everyone was alerted the day before about Sarah's birthday. Everyone in camp made her a card in the art room so that when she came to breakfast on Sunday morning, her table was totally decorated with positive birthday wishes. She was quite surprised to say the least and had a ball reading every single card.

Happy birthday, Sarah.

During announcements in the morning, we happened to peek across the lake. There was a doe standing there. I think she got the message that this was Sarah's day. I know in my family we have a superstition that if we see a deer in the morning, then the day will be good. While I can't promise a deer appearance for every birthday, this one was definitely well timed.

At suppertime, there was corn on the cob and cupcakes served on a Toy Story platter, all requests from Sarah. The cupcakes were decorated with rainbow colored frosting  - orange, yellow, pink, and blue - and if I'm not mistaken there was whipped cream in the frosting.

Don't I look more grown up now. I'm eight you know.

So I pass along these photos and the belief that Sarah had a great birthday. By the way, your presents, mom and dad, were on her bed so that when she awoke in the morning, she received your surprises first.

Comments always welcome.

A Sports Toto evening at Sprucelands.

The lodge became our playing arena.

There's an evening program that is a Sprucelands hit. It is called the Sports Toto. The actual idea comes from Switzerland. I wrote about it and published it in a games book years ago. I believe other camps use this concept as well. What fun it is!

Here's the scoop. There are four teams and they sit on the four corners of a large rectangle size playing area. We played this last week inside the camp lodge. Pushed all the tables aside and made ourselves playing room.

Once the teams are in place four players or four teams of players are asked to come to the front of the room. The leaders of the Sports Toto stand those four players in front of the four teams and ask each team to vote on who they think is going to win. The catch is that no team knows what the players are going to be asked to do.

That means a team can vote for their player or they can vote for the player on another team. It also means that team only gets a point if the player they vote for wins. So then the fun begins.

This is a real test of brute strength and wily skill. 

Guess who won in this one. Girls rule!

In one exercise each team sent a player to the front. Voting was done. A big circle was drawn on the floor and players were pitted against each other in an abridged version of Sumo Wrestling, elimination tournament, in an attempt to push their opposition out of the circle.

The boys had their representatives. The girls had theirs. All kinds of tricks were played to stay inside the circle or fool an opponent into stepping outside the circle. The roaring in the background as teams cheered for the person they had chosen was off the Richter scale.

Please don't make me laugh.

Just give me a moment.

Another event that surprised us all was feeding a partner whipped cream while lying on their bellies. This was a hands free exercise. So two reps from each team came to the front. Teams voted for who was going to win although no one had a clue they would be feeding each other sweet white nectar of the whipped cream can.

When everyone realized what was going to happen, the noise began and so did the laughter. This was not a physical feat. This was a matter of who loved whipped cream and could inhale it the fastest from the spoon their partner provided.

If I get my tongue just right...

Now something we tried last session that worked well was the Oreo Cookie challenge. Here's the deal. Four people sit in chairs. They are given an Oreo cookie and told to lean back, place the cookie on their forehead, and then figure out how to get that cookie into their mouth. First one to slide the cookie down their face and into their mouth is the winner.

Actually, my Whacky Wednesday outfit will do the trick.

Sarah, Ben, Julia and Amelia were the four players in this one. If you thought there was noise in the previous challenges, this one was amazingly competitive and really stumped the players. They worked and worked and worked at getting that cookie into their mouth, using head movements, tongue contortions, and wishing for pure luck to pop that cookie where they wanted it to go.

I'm not telling how I did it. It's my secret!

Finally, Amelia reigned victorious, giving the Oreo Cookie challenge a two thumbs up. At the same time, I think Amelia went up in everyone's estimation. She is a hero today!

There were a multitude of other activities. Pairs of teammates wrapped each other in toilet paper. Of course, the first ones done were the winners. Big dilemma here is how to make that toilet paper really strong when it's only one-ply toilet paper. None of this two-ply stuff. That makes it too easy!

Turn. Turn. Faster. Faster.

At one point, one person from each team was elected to gargle a song while drinking a glass of water. The song they chose was Little Willie. Kiersten, Mark, Daley and Taylor did their level best to make the song sound like something plausible through the liquid in their throat.

Gargling a song makes for silliness all the way around.

Then individuals were voted on yet again and their task was to balance a plate on their head, build a house of five blocks, and then keep them on their head. Gabby, Madeleine, Cheyenne and Tsz accepted their fate with a smile.

Oh my gosh! I did it!

Easy as pie. Here's our runner up.

The person balancing the plate/blocks the longest was the winner. But this fooled even the Sports Toto leaders. Two people ended up in a tie. Their plate was staying in place quite easily I might add. Perhaps these were two folks with a flat head or raw stamina.

Tsz holds the title for this event.

Finally they were asked to walk and the winner - ta-dah - was Tsz. With a twinkle in her eye, she accepted the kudos handed her way and bowed to the teams who had voted for her.

More and more challenges were handed to the kids. Each one got better. However, the biggest of all was trying to blow all the cards from a deck of cards off a cafeteria tray onto the floor, leaving only the Aces on the tray. I dare any of you to try this and succeed.

One card down, 51 to go.

This is worse than blowing up a balloon!

Sarah, Ben, Meghan and Taylor happened to be chosen to represent their teams. And to their credit, they put forth the best effort imaginable. They blew and blew until they about blew the lodge down.

They tackled their task with energy, humor, and serious dedication. They did their level best to find those Aces and keep them on the tray. I of course had a hard time keeping the camera steady as I snapped photos. The kids were so funny, making faces and cracking jokes. I laughed right along with them.

This blog post could go on and on. I don't have the time to keep writing and I'm sure you're needing to get on with your life. The evening was so much fun though I just had to share. Isn't it fun being a fly on the wall? At least you know that Sprucelands educates your children in skills that are even more sophisticated than riding. Maybe you'll thank us. Maybe you won't, but we're having a great time in the process.

Comments from you? But of course. Anytime.

Photographs say so much at Sprucelands.

No matter what you say, we're forever friends.

I take so many photos during the course of a two week session. I take even more photos across the entire summer. Many of them are filled with fun. Some are throwaways.

What I love are the photos that give me a message or tell me a story, and in my photographer's book of books, even though they may not be the best photo in the world, they convey a message. So to me, they are priceless. I thought I would share a few from this first week of third session.

There's the photo from the first night of camp when everyone was getting acquainted. Many of the kids were new to our craziness here. They were looking for new friendships and desperately wanted to grasp the Sprucelands spirit. The photo above happened during an interactive game.

On the far left is a counselor. There's a counselor-in-training in the middle (CIT) and then there are new campers in the mix. Doesn't matter whether they are new. Somehow there's an immediate sense of trust at Sprucelands, and I love that. The hugs are good for everyone and best of all they are spontaneous.

Hi Mom! I'm having a great time!

Then there are photos of a small camper who is in fact brand new. There was lots of worry at first whether she would be homesick. Some of us on staff wondered whether she would feel lost and alone or whether she would jump right into things and have a ball.

Thankfully the later has happened. She struck up friendships with us all. She's quick, spontaneous, has a sense of humor, keeps up with our schedule, and flashes smiles that are worth a million dollars. This photo certainly let me believe that camp is agreeing with Sarah.

Hi Lily! Where have you been? I couldn't find you.

Sarah has a new friendship with my dog Lily. It's not that this is a particularly special photo. Just wanted to share that there's a unique love relationship going on here that connects the two. I happened to walk out of the camp lodge and Lily was all excited to see Sarah. What fun is this. I think they communicate in 'dog-speak' because sometimes Lily talks to Sarah the same way she talks to me.

I also love group photos. There's the picture of kids listening to directions in evening program. Makes you wonder what is being said or what is on their mind. Just the kind of photo that makes me smile. Thought it might hook a smile in you as well.

Don't you just wonder?

Preoccupations? Perspectives? Hmmm.

There's also the photo of a bunch of kids standing together in a group. It's almost good enough to be the source of a short story or essay. Hmmm. Interactions. Distractions. Jokes between friends. The freedom of fun at summer camp. No stresses. No worries. Thoughts. Peer dynamics. Who knows?

Now sometimes I say to a group, "Make me a picture. Quick. 1-2-3!" And I get wonderful photos like the one with ear to ear smiles that come easy at Sprucelands. Just hanging out together after supper, during interest hour, talking and sharing their day.

Quick picture. Fast friends.

And so this gets us going again on the blog. I took a bit of a break because I needed to ready the trails for today's trail pace. More on that later in another post. This afternoon I slept three hours after marking the trails this morning, and so after my long summer's nap, I am feeling as if my mind is working again. I have so much to share with you. Both staff and campers are keeping me very busy. I'm having trouble keeping up!

Comments always welcome. Share your thoughts with me. Make my day.

Sprucelands tag night includes something new.

Counting off 1, 2, 3, 4, 5.

Tag night always gives us some kind of new challenge. First of all, the kids love to run. Second of all, they find all kinds of reasons to laugh. And third, they love a new game added to the mix of old versions of breathless fun.

This time around a game called Spokes in the Wheel was inserted into the summer. The kids lined up and counted off from 1 to 5. Then they gathered in their groups and were told to sit in a straight line facing the middle, creating a big wagon wheel, if you can go with that vision.

Spokes in the Wheel...looks tame doesn't it?

So here's the game. The person who is 'it' walks around the outside of the wheel. When they tap the last person in a line, they say either "Go!" or "Come with me!" If 'go' is the command, then everyone in that line stands up and runs in the opposite direction, jumping over all the other spokes, and sitting back down in their original line. The person on the outside is supposed to run as fast as possible to get a seat in that original line. Object: Last person standing becomes the next 'it'.

If the command is 'come', then everyone goes in the same direction as the 'it' person, jumping over all the other spokes. Of course, everyone ducks their head and there is some wild and crazy fun as bodies leap over bodies.

Get ready!

Go!

Run! Run! Oh my gosh! Duck! Duck!

It's always hard to get photos of a game like this, but I snapped a few so you can see the kids in their active mode. Quite frankly, this game was the hit of the evening. In addition however they played about eight other versions of actual tag, each version having a different name like Fox and Hound, doctor tag, you name it; they played and played until dark and then laid in the grass and laughed and laughed.

Comments always welcome. Don't you wish this energy could be bottled?

Team building at Sprucelands is about new challenges.

Even Pudge participated in the stations of fun.

Monday night's program was terrific. The counselors and CITs who planned the evening came up with the most clever ideas that basically were team building exercises. Balancing some of our old favorites with new challenges made the evening loads of fun.

Small groups gathered together and then moved from station to station. We find this is a wonderful way for the kids to keep focused on one activity for a short time and then move on to another when someone shouts "change". It helps the evening feel progressive.

Okay. Everyone strike a pose.

Oh no! I think I'm dead in the water!

So one station was the karate game. The kids have played this across the summer and loved it.  They start out in a small circle making karate moves. When they connect with another player, that player is eliminated until there are only two people left. Reality is that they often get into hysterics. This particular group of campers really gets into their games so it is royally fun.

Another station was pterodactyl. This is another old favorite. The kids sit or stand in a circle. They roll their lips over their teeth and say the word pterodactyl without laughing. That of course is the object of the game. But what happens is they start making noises like they're a live pterodactyl and one by one they drop like flies, laughing themselves silly.

You want us to what?

We have to flip this tarp over?

Three new stations were added. The most popular was the exercise involving our blue tarp. An entire team stood on the tarp. Then they were told to flip the tarp over and they were timed. Talk about great fun. They had to communicate with each other about how to coordinate their moves and work together. And if anyone fell off the tarp then they had to start over.

Several groups got so into it that they plotted and planned beforehand or they took breaks to think about a new approach. Then when they thought they were ready they tackled the tarp. One group managed to flip that tarp in 49 seconds. Well, that got the competition going and the next thing we knew another group managed 32 seconds.

Keep at it! 'Cmon! I think we've almost got it!

Never give up! There has to be a way to do this.

I don't care if it's dark.  We're getting it!

What was funny was watching the kids persist. They worked and worked and worked. One team was still going at it after dark. They just couldn't seem to figure out how anyone could do it in 49 seconds. But they tried and tried until they mastered the task and then celebrated their success.

A word game was added to the list of stations. It was very clever but I can't explain it here. To me it seemed complicated. I think I need to play it one of these days and then I'll understand better. The kids grasped it fine. I just don't have their mind anymore. Sad to say. The joys of aging!!!

Talk to me. Talk to me. I'm not sure I can do this much longer!

The final station timed two players from a team at a time. They were on the floor and were given a bucket of books to hold in the air with their feet. The leader started them out with a few books and kept adding them, trying to see how many books the pair could hold in the air. This was another popular station. I'll bet the kids legs are tired today and yet they wouldn't admit that if they were paid.

So that was last night's evening program. It was a much more pleasant evening temperature wise after the horrid storms we had during the day. Closing circle brought us all together before bedtime and then we called it a day. It was a good day all the way around. I know I was ready for bed and the kids didn't complain about lights out.

Comments from you folks are always welcome words. Love hearing from you.

Millie meets the sheep at Sprucelands.

Oh what a beautiful morning. Oh what a beautiful day.

One more quick post. I wanted to tell you all about the sheep we have in camp. Since the Vanderwaters are here this session, they have brought two black sheep along for everyone to enjoy.

I'm pretty amazed. They came complete with their own flexible pen and electric fencer. That means I don't have to worry about dogs or coyotes getting in there. It also means no campers can fuss with the sheep unless the electric fence has been shut off.

Now here's the deal. Georgia and Hope and Henry are trying to tame these two woolly lambs for the fair. In order to show them in 4H, they have to be able to lead the lambs by the chin. That's right, hand under the chin. No lead ropes.

These guys reside for this session on the backside of the athletic field.

So they are hoping to get our campers involved in taming these sheep. I'll be interested to watch this process. The other thing that amazes me is that this pen they are in can be moved anywhere. Just turn off the electric fence, pick up your pen and walk, moving the sheep as you go. Quite a different ball game from the days we had sheep here at camp.

Anyway, here is my funny story. Last night my dog Lily came running frantically toward the camp lodge, shaking, and wanting to sit on my lap. In fact, she pushed right through the kids and wanted inside the lodge. That was when I figured out she had met the electric fence. Dog meets electric fence. Zap!!!!! Too funny.

Millie hid behind her protector.

Well, nurse Amy also has a dog in camp. Her dog is a black lab named Millie. This morning I ventured out on an early morning walk with my two dogs: Lily and Pudge. They of course wanted nothing to do with the electrified sheep so Millie and Amy came along. Millie was so curious about the strange looking creatures inside that fence, and of course, Millie retreated with a yelp after getting zaps from the fence.

It was too cute. Millie hid behind Amy and then when Amy walked away, Millie sat right still just watching where Amy was going. We stood and talked while I snapped photos. Then I called to Millie and she turned tail and ran. Skedaddle. She was out of there as fast as you can say skedaddle.

For the longest time, Millie didn't move...and then I called her. She was gone!

We laughed so hard. I finished with my photos and snapped one of the lake. It was such a pretty morning. These sunny, summer days I like to remember in the winter when it is blowing and cold. They are refreshing, lovely days that fill the soul.

Signing off until tomorrow.

Comments always welcome.