Emmy's Junior Retreat

Emmy just returned from her very first overnight church camp! When we signed her up for our church's Junior Retreat, I knew it would be a big 'first' for all of us. While we have certainly spent nights apart with our various travels and trips, it was a new thing for Emmy to be completely on her own without family. But we knew she would be in great hands with our children's pastor Mr. Tim and the rest of the TBC counselors. The Junior Retreat is specifically for 3rd and 4th Graders, and they left on Monday morning and returned on Wednesday afternoon. They stayed at the Blowing Rock Convention Center, and Emmy enjoyed all the activities of creek wading, the duck race, play time, their skits, the ice cream sundaes, and the time in the room with her friends Maddie, Addie, and Adeline. I'm so thrilled that she enjoyed her time at camp and that she is growing closer to Jesus while developing friendships at church. The pictures tell the story - she definitely had a lot of fun! 

I can't say that Eli missed his sister too much. He quite liked directing our itinerary and enjoying the 'only child' status for three days. On Monday, he accompanied me to the grocery store and even brought along his wallet to do some shopping of his own. After much deliberation, he decided on a Hot Wheels loop track and walked proudly out of the store with his purchase. Then we met up at the pool with Aunt Megan and Zander, who were also down to only one child with Maddox on the Junior Retreat too. After the pool, we stopped for an icee at Sheetz, which was a perfect treat for a hot day. Later that evening, the 7U All-star team had a scrimmage in Winston at South Little League. The boys are preparing for their upcoming tournament this weekend. On Tuesday, we went to Science Center, and Eli was enthusiastic and cooperative for photos - "Take a picture of me on this!"  Today, we spent the morning at Triad Park, and we explored the walking trail with the fishing pond. After a picnic lunch and some time on the playground, we headed back to the church to pick up Emmy. While it is special to have the one-on-one time with each child, we were missing Sissy - all feels right in the Kennedy household with her back home again.