Getaway to the Keys

Well, I know our summer has been busy, but sheesh....I can't believe it's been almost a month since I last updated the blog.  I guess it's safe to say we have had a fun-filled July.  And I'm just now getting the chance to share it.  

Let me back up to a few weeks ago. We had been planning a little camping getaway to the Keys with our camping friends since, oh, last summer.  And well, the time finally arrived for us to hit the road.  We managed to get down there late Friday morning and promptly hit the water.  Well, we tried to anyway.

 See all that seaweed?  Well, it made it a bit of a pain to get in and out of the water.  Water shoes definitely helped minimize the ick factor.  But the shore is very shallow. So we had to walk quite a bit through the seaweed and then some until we finally got to water that was deep enough to relax in.  It was a chore but worth it.

  The kids played games back on shore too, like ring toss. And when the sun got too hot, they hung out at the restroom right across from our site.  See that space below?  Well, even I could stand up straight underneath.  So that provided some much needed shade at times for the kids (and me too.) lol

 Our campsites sat right along the shore.  It was a pretty amazing view.

The second day was more of the same.  When the kids weren't swimming, they were playing board games inside to stay cool.  Then, of course, they couldn't wait to get back out in the water.

 One of the kids managed to spot a tiny crab inside this sponge.  Can you find it? (Hint, it's almost in the middle among a dark patch.)

 Day three rolled around and was filled with more of the same- swimming and trying to keep cool.  One of the kids decided to hunt for coconuts.  She found four of them.  They were such a hit!  So delicious.  Poor Shail, though!  He was in charge of the cracking.  After the third one, he called it quits.   The sweat pouring off him made it look like he just took a dip in the ocean. It was that grueling.  In fact, I think he rinsed off under the outdoor shower right after I snapped these photos, clothes and all!

We had a short but lovely time in the Keys with our dear friends.  We always enjoy their company, no matter how brief our visits are.  And boy, we're so thankful that the mosquitos and no-see-ums gave us no trouble.  That was a shocker.

Well, after our trip to the Keys, we were busy celebrating Madeline's Family Day, Caleb's baptism, aaaand having all our dumplings foreign adoptions recognized in the state of Florida (so they can obtain Florida birth certificates.)  See, I told you we were busy around these parts.  So check back a little bit later for all the rest!

Playing in the sand and surf

Most of our Saturdays are spent hanging around the tennis courts. And depending on the draws and how Caleb does, he sometimes plays on Sundays as well.  Last weekend was no different.  He made it to the semi-finals on Sunday but couldn't pull off a win against a higher ranked player.  Not playing in the finals meant he had an earlier return home....which meant we decided to scoot on over to the beach for a little bit.  We didn't stay too long, maybe an hour or so. But it was long enough for everyone to get wet and sandy and have some fun.

With the longer summer days approaching, we will surely be hitting up the beach even more.

Hand Camp

{Warning: This is an extremely long post.}

Last weekend, we had an opportunity for the dumplings to attend Hand Camp, an action packed weekend full of activities for children with upper limb differences.  It was put together by a great group of people at Hands to Love, an organization run by Dr. Paul and Ruthie Dell, that believes difference does not equal disability.  Volunteers put together a weekend camp that allows children with upper limb differences to participate in all sorts of activities and parents to network.  This year they celebrated fifteen years of Hand Camp.  They have gone from 10-12 kids to over 90 kids in that time, truly amazing.  Many of the kids have been attending camp for a while. And while it was our kids first year, they quickly made some friends and had a blast.  

Since we found out pretty late about camp, all the cabins were booked.  No problem.  We hit the road in Charlie and dry camped right there at the camp.  We had our own "cabin" on wheels, for which we were grateful.  We arrived Friday afternoon, cut an air hose underneath the RV trying to park (fun!), checked in, and proceeded to rummage through all the goodies in our welcome bags.  Since the Dells live in Gainesville (Dr. Dell is a hand surgeon at the University of Florida), there was a ton of orange and blue...and boy, did the Gator in me get a little homesick for the home of Gator Nation! lol

After check-in, we met our "family pal" Kristin and had some dinner.

Patrick ended up taking Havi back to the RV, and Kristin and I headed down to the campfire for a welcome presentation and s'mores.

Saturday was filled with activities galore.  The dumplings did sessions on music and soccer while Patrick and I did small group discussions for parents.  Our group leaders were AULDS (adults with upper limb differences).  It was a great time of reflection and learning.

Then it was time for Caleb's favorite- archery.  He shot lefty and did awesome!  Madeline wasn't interested.

Then it was off to tennis.  The dumplings were all looking forward to this one.  After doing some basic volley and groundstroke drills, the activity pal played with Caleb.  They both had a lot of fun.  And just to let you know how crazy small this world is, I happened to talk to another mom who is not only living Gainesville right now, but she and her family attend the church my sister attended as a student and know the pastor and his family well!  What a blessing to meet this mom!  God is GOOD!

After tennis, it was time for lunch and then right back out to activities. Next up was the ropes course.  Caleb and Madeline were both too intimidated to climb the course (I think it was like 50 feet high.)  So they climbed around the "grotto".  Even Havi got in on the action thanks to Kristin.

Havi was so little, her helmet kept slipping off her head.

After watching so many kids go up, the dumplings decided they would go up to the half way point and then come down.  But unfortunately, time ran out before they had their chance.

So they headed over to art and STEM. They decorated these cute clay pots.

Then they came outside and put their handprints all over the 2015 banner.

After art/STEM, it was time to swim in the lake. The water was a little chilly, but the girls didn't mind too much.  Caleb preferred to play a little badminton and volleyball (with a beach ball) with the big kids.

Because of his limited range of motion with his left arm, he tried using his right for hitting most of the shots.  Any ball to his left side was hit like a tennis backhand.  It was pretty cute to see...even on the volleyball court, the tennis player in him came out.

After swimming we had dinner and then a parade down to the rec hall for the evening activity.

Once down to the rec hall, the dumplings went on a hay ride.  See that little head in front of Caleb along the side of the hay bed?  That little munchkin really enjoyed the hayride and promptly fell asleep...face down in the hay!!! lol

Then it was time for some fun booths- cupcake decorating, face painting, photo booths and dancing.  Rion Paige, who has appeared on the X Factor, also sang a song for everyone.  What a sweet gal she is.

Sunday morning was time to pack up and prepare for departure.  The children sang a song they all learned at music the day before.  I still hear Caleb and Madeline singing it around the house.

There were also a couple of slideshows, highlighting previous years hand camps and even some photos from this year. There was also a graduation ceremony for the CITs (high schoolers), as they will have their own weekend retreat geared toward teens in the fall.

Then it was time to say goodbye.  Caleb really hit it off with a boy named Sam, who happens to be 2 years and a day younger than him...also from southern China..and just a few hours drive from us.  So we will definitely try to get together with him and his family.

Kristin, our family pal, was great.  She is graduating from UF next month, and then she begins graduate school in Occupational Therapy.  The girls really took to her.  (Caleb was too busy playing with Sam and his younger brother Joey. lol)  It was nice to know the girls were in good hands when out and about the camp.

We all had such an amazing time.  

We're grateful to Dr. Dell for extending an invitation to us.  

And we can't wait until next year!