FUMC Women's Retreat

The weekend we've been planning for a year is finally here!  Our FUMC Women's Retreat!   This retreat was just what I needed to feel recharged and refreshed.  The theme was "rest" and boy did we get some rest in!  

I was honored to be on the planning team with some amazing people.  We had 2 missionaries fly in from Costa Rica and Romania to speak and pray and they really brought the word!  It was just so uplifting to be in their presence.

I got to arrive early to help "set the stage" and do a mic and music check.  A microphone is my love language.

Ashley (one of the most amazing godly people ever, Stefania (from Romania), me, and Sweet Yolanda from Costa Rica)

We put these on each lady's pillow before they arrived

We had lots of small group time and it was just so good to be together.

Look how sweet!  ladies able to relax and rest while looking at the lake

The breakfast at Pine Cove was out of this world!  I had to send this pic to my breakfast buddies because they know I'm an oatmeal junkie!

When Ashley and I started talking about the retreat-we both started praying that 20 ladies would want to join us.  We didn't tell each other this number until later and we ended up with 72 ladies!  We filled up the whole camp and we were just praying for 20!  God just worked it all out for us!

So happy to have my besties there!

Retreat team!

Girls from my Sunday school class: Emily, Crystal, Kay, Christy, Stacie, Brigette, me, Ashley, and Emily

Me with the fabulous Yolanda!

This is the song that was sort of the theme song for the weekend.  When I got in the car to leave-this was on!  Coincidence? I think not!

Great Sand Dunes National Park

The Great Sand Dunes National Park was something to see!  With Bennett going into 4th grade he has access to the 4th grade Every Kid in a Park program.  This allows all American 4th graders to get in free to EVERY National Park, Monument, and Waters.  What a neat program!  His pass gets his whole family in for FREE!  $20 value at GSD!  Thanks, Bennett!

What an experience!  We were thrilled to be able to sled down the dunes!  We got to the town and stopped at the only convenience store called "Oasis" to rent the sleds to the tune of $42. The visitors' center was so nice!  SK and Henry both got Junior Ranger books and had fun doing those.  We never made it back to the visitors center to turn them in.  We got the park and found a picnic area for a picnic and then loaded up and went to the dunes.  The dunes were an experience...if you ask any the kids they NEVER want to go back!  We had about a 1 mile walk to the smallest dune because that's all we could make it up.  We thought we had gone to the summit of a mountain, but it was a small foothill of the actual dunes.  We had lot of smiles, but also lots of tears!

We were excited to wade in the river after the hot, windy, hill climbing, sand in your mouth experience.  After we searched and searched for it, we realized that the reason why it was SO HOT and our walk to the dunes was SO LONG is because the river was DRIED UP!  Bless it.

Loving making it to 2 national parks on our trip!

Self-timer wins every time

Ready to sled!

Goooooo Favrots!

Experts!

Right when you get to the bottom you get basically an enema of sand up your shorts

I went down 2 times...total.

Poor kids!  I had just sunscreened them up and sand was stuck to every inch of them!  Like Bennett's face here where he looks like he has a beard.

Good job Boys!

Neil and Sister

Sand ERRYWHERE

It really was pretty!

Favorts

Earnests

Henry and I brought up the rear of the crew walking back to the cars.   The wind was so strong I stopped to get his picture with the sand flying out of his hands.   Where the people are to about where Henry is is usually river! ha!  We trekked alllllllll the way through the desert.

I am so glad we did this.  I don't know that we would go back without the river!  So, we got back to the Oasis after to turn in our sleds and to have ice cream.  Too bad they didn't mention to us the whole no water thing!

We made great memories and are still cleaning sand out of our shoes and cars!