"This is the best banana I've ever eaten."

Mel Lang and I have a mutual appreciation for sports and sports games and sporters. When we were CILT counselors together years ago we'd spend Friday nights playing sports with the CILTies in the Main Field during Trading Post. Today she sent me this...

I've been watching a whole lot of sports lately. I got to watch my friend Jan coach her cross country team on Tuesday night at our school. The HS teams played both Tuesday and Wednesday night. I'm lucky to have so many YL girls and old students on the teams that I can cheer on.

Both XC and Volleyball are so much fun to watch and support because they're both exciting in completely different ways. I love seeing someone dig in at mile two and try to catch the pack ahead of them. Or watching a team rally when they're down a few points and then come back with an awesome kill, saving a ball by diving for it or a trick shot over the blockers head. Sports, I tell ya they're great.

FBC officially started learning patterns today. After making potholder headbands and best friend necklaces we had just been practicing the tornado and stripe. But today we learned to make the hardcore and the V. My veteran FBC kids are working away on complicated patterns and soon everyone will be doing their own thing. I love afternoons like this when I get to just sit down with a circle of the girls and talk and laugh.

p.s. Camp T is just a week away

"Are you going to be a cat or a dog when you grow up?" "Um... a lamp!"

Today was awesome.

Top 10 Highs of the Day

1. Steps, steps, steps while I proctored my students' test this morning
2. Watching Camp Rock when they all finished early
3. Cheering at the HSE XC meet with Fudge, Grace, Elise, Lulu and the rest of the girl team
4. Seeing Cal from Session 2 run and getting to talk to him
5. Trying out Project Pie with Maddie-- great pizza, go check it out

6. Maddie's face when I gave her a canvas
7. Walking into the Vigren's house, looking at old pictures of Hope and laughing with Cecilia and Colby
8. Getting to hold Jayla's baby brother Braeden and meet her little sister Carter
9. Seeing the whole Sams' fam and be entertained by Audrey
10. Surprising Cookie with Maddie and seeing some of her favorite things

Today I was reading something Donald Miller wrote about his mother who recently passed, "Mary wanted to know how you were, for real. She wanted to know you and collected people the way some children collect baseball cards. She was proud of everybody she knew and she bragged about their accomplishments. She often admired people so ferociously they started believing they were the person she thought they were." Isn't that beautiful? Those are the kind of accomplishments and talents I long to have one day. 

Top 10 Things I Miss About Camp on this #tecumsehtuesday

1. When you get the most kind and specific love tank from someone you didn't expect
2. A new chapel that you can tell people really worked hard on and it really hits you
3. When your whole cabin gets on the Saturn together during Lake Time
4. Country Hoe Down theme night when people keep wearing their overalls to campfire
5. Rest hour best hour when a thunderstorm starts and you get to just keep sleeping
6. Coming back early from a night off and getting to sit in on devotions
7. Reuniting with old friends during staff training and being in a cabin together
8. Finding a really quality shirt at Wal-Mart that becomes a staple of your wardrobe
9. Practicing a hip-hop clinic routine over and over once you've learned all of it
10. When all of River Village sings along to Creek's cheer (C! R-E-E-K Creek Creek we're here all week. C! A-M-P-T Camp T is the place to be.)

"In one of my classes today we were learning about the Geubsi tribe that has an extremely loyal and close kinit community that all meets at the Longhouse! The Longhouse is literally the one spot in the community that they gather to talk, socialize and laugh. How perfect is that?"

I opened my mailbox today and found a package from HAPPY MAIL by A Beautiful Mess with no information about who had sent it to me. They envelope says, "We're bringing thoughtful back," and you better believe it was stuffed with cards and post it notes and stickers and coffee collars. SO MUCH FUN INSIDE. But who the hobb sent it?!

I sent out texts to a couple possibilities and a few hours later I got an email from my sister, solving the mystery.

I was thinking, "What should I do for Sarah???" because you are SO SPECTACULAR at gift giving and encouraging in tangible ways. So, you are now the proud recipient of "Happy Mail," a monthly subscription where you will get a collection of paper goodies every month for a year. I hope you end up loving it :)

I'M SO EXCITED ABOUT THIS. Easily one of the best gifts ever.

Varsity girls across the midwest are still getting their shirts in the mail-- such joy from Lexie, Erin Williams and Erin Dickett.

Tonight I got to cheer on the 7th and 8th grade volleyball girls at the Clubhouse. Highlights of the game would be the crazy rallies, sitting with Julia and her old neighbors, becoming best friends with a kindergartner, 2nd grader and 3rd grader in about two minutes, sitting with Lisa Washburn and then talking with the 8th graders after their win. I love getting to be here for girls like Avery, Olivia, Natalie, Cameron and Aubrey.

Today the question on my white board is, "If you could have one super power would you pick?" You'd expect the predictable, "Fly, be invisible, read minds..." but these are some of my favorites:

1. To not feel emotional pain
2. To be able to change other people's minds
3. Stop time so I can watch Grey's Anatomy
4. Make corn flakes out of thin air
5. Eat steak fast

"I can't believe I've been missing out on Cracker Barrel my whole life." Summit 2015

The Summit 2015 Adventure began early Saturday morning. 17 Young Life and Wyld Life leaders met up to pile into cars loaded with coffee and baked goods. Our destination? Bagdad, Kentucky. Kaelyn, Kaitlyn and Genna jumped into my car and we started the listen-to-every-Taylor-Swift-song-ever-written marathon.

While the rest of our friends drove South through Louisville, we ended up driving South through Ohio instead. We let our friends know by sending some Ohio River and Kentucky selfies. 

We took a quick detour at Choctaw Jim's because that giant buffalo and because Choctaw...

I made the girls walk around inside Choctaw Jim's and they were terrified. 

Right before camp we took the friendly advice of a few elderly church members passing out free water who told us to try the Amish restaurant Main Street Cafe and Bakery for lunch. 

It was quite the culinary experience and a chicken finger and french fry success. Our friend even drove over to check on us and make sure that we made it okay. 

Finally we made it to Cedarmore and met up with the hundreds of Young Life leaders from all over Kentucky and Indiana aka the Raceway Region. One of the very best parts of the weekend is reuniting with Young Life friends from different areas like rock stars Emily Sell and Katie Evans. 

KCraig was the speaker at our first Club of the weekend and she totally rocked it. Watching her on stage was like knowing a celebrity. 

"In all of my prayers for all of you I always pray with joy because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now being confident of this that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus." Philippians 1:4-6

It can be scary to stop everything. It's risky. We are creations designed to move and change and grow and transform.

"I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do, forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead. I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus." Philippians 3:13

Live in the beautiful tension of awareness. 

I love these people. We got to listen to different break out sessions and then come back together to share what we heard. Being part of the conversation together is so valuable. We've got a few years of experience behind us and we're growing and learning and living together. 

"Club becomes special when... the Gospel is boldly proclaimed and lived out, leaders are excited  to be there, it actually sets leaders up to be with kids, kids catch the vision, kids feel ownership and are engaged."

"No matter what we do-- we're going to have a blast with kids and show them what life with Christ can be like by the way we interact with them and with each other."

"We want to fill needs for other people, but we don't want to risk telling others our needs. Can you ask for what you need and find a way to offer it to the group?"

We ate together, we laughed together, we danced together. This weekend was awesome.

"I long to see you so that I may impart to you some spiritual gifts to make you strong--that is, that you and I may be mutually encouraged by each other's faith."  Romans 1:11-12

We are in this together. We are part of this family--sometimes it's easy, sometimes it's difficult, but it's always worth it. I love these people.

On the way home we continued our annual Summit tradition of stopping at Cracker Barrel for lunch. Glorious macaroni and cheese, hash brown casserole, steak fries and biscuits. Long live starch and carbs. I don't know if I've ever seen such joy around a table as when we ate together this afternoon. 

The only sad thing about the weekend was that I had to miss Lincoln and Redford's Super Hero birthday party. But look how awesome Linc is with his new Batman gloves that spray silly string. This is awesome.

"Yeah I have a lot to do. I have to take back a rug. And take a nap. Maybe two."

Fridays are great days...

Meeting early before school with Wyld Life leaders for leadership.

Matching scrunchies and Best Friend Necklaces with Emily Babb.

A Mojo Up school convocation. 

Coffee with Megan Cook after school. 

Waching Maze Runner: Scorch Trials with Fudge.
Noodles for dinner and running into a dozen friends.
Running into Lilly Waltman. Yeah
Stories and steps with Fudge.

Varsity FBC girls representing all over the place.

"I got your letter! But I'm going to open it tomorrow morning cause I know it will put a smile on my face."

Today was a very big day in the world of FBC. For the first time ever, the girls got to make Best Friend Necklaces. Hopefully they'll show up in the halls on a regular basis and become a regular accessory at Wyld Life Club. They remind me of camp when I see them and that's always a great thing. 

This year's Varsity FBC shirts arrived yesterday and I was so excited to rip open the box and then pass them out today.

Kim, Tori, Grace, Emily, Olivia, Grace and Sar represented the Varsity squad at FBC this afternoon coming from both the Clubhouse and HSJH. We've got a few more girls here at our school, a crew over at HSE High School and then the rest of our Varsity friends are spread out all across Indiana and Illinois.

Last year some of the Varsity girls wrote down the official requirements for being a member of Varsity FBC:

1. Complete at least four complicated bracelets a month
2. Do the hardcore on every bracelet
3. Know how to read and follow patterns
4. Make Earthquakes, 5 Braids and other patterns that require at least 14 strings or more
5. Never keep a bracelet you've made

Once upon a time I didn't know if Friendship Bracelet Club would be a total success or fail. Now we're in year two of have a Varsity crew. It's hilarious and awesome and ridiculous all at the same time. This year I've already had several girls ask what they have to do to join Varsity--it's kind of a big deal.

Even when my days are crazy and stressful, I'm thankful for afternoons when I get to hang out with these kids and be more of a camp counselor than a teacher. Love kids like Emily Babb, Grace and Emily who bring so much joy and enthusiasm to school every day.

Now FBC all has Best Friend Necklaces, the Varsity shirts are passed out or in the mail and we're slowly making friendship bracelets part of the culture of the Clubhouse.

Best ending to the day-- getting to hang out and go to dinner with Brookie. She's been one of my favorite people for four years now and someone that I always wish I had more time with. I love her laughter, her heart, her honesty and how we never run out of things to talk about. She's a rock star.

Honorable Blog Mention:
"We are supposed to 'shoot hoops' and 'hang out' and I don't do either of those things very well."