manrymission.com

Over the weekend, we received a few days of sleet and freezing rain. I made a sleet cake to celebrate and this morning, the kids got a two hour delay for school because of the freezing rain. Not quite the joy that a snow day brings, but two extra hours of sleep certainly brings a smile.

We had a mild autumn and winter has not yet arrived. I took some of the flower photos while on a field trip with Zeke this autumn in the gardens behind the Kenmore Plantation in Fredericksburg. Although there have been nights below freezing, my fourth of July rose was still blooming on the fourth of December. On Saturday, 7 January, I saw my quince shrub blooming. The quince must have decided we are not going to have winter at all. Dale put the photos together for me over the weekend and I planned to post them today. Old Man Winter must have been annoyed at being mocked, because he decided to show up today with a brief snow shower.

As expected, the old Army motto held true. Whenever you go to the field in the Army, it is bound to rain. The storms threatened the campout on Saturday night, but held off. Sunday night, as the thunder boomed and the lightening flashed, we packed all the gear except the tent, air mattresses, and blankets into the car and van. We Manrys then huddled in our tent as the rain poured down. The tent stayed fairly dry (Always borrow a tent from Mike Katsarelis) and I slept soundly (It was nice and cool and the rain drowned out the cicadas).

When we awoke in the morning, I packed Josiah, Abby, and Zeke into the car, drove off in search of a drive thru window, and left Dale and Gabe to collapse the tent and load the remaining gear.

When we were all safely home and clean from warm showers, Dale asked me if I had a good time at the campout. I looked at him and replied, “It would be better if you asked, ‘What parts did you enjoy?’”

“What parts did you enjoy?” He asked.

“Seeing the mist rise off the mountains after the rain. Listening to Denise tell the story of her and Bob’s marriage ceremony on April Fool’s Day. Going for a hike with Fearless Leader Mary. Occasionally finding the luck while playing dominoes. Hearing Josh sing the cartoon praise song. Eating shrimp tacos with Becky, Mark, and Bonnie.. Watching Dillon’s hands turn black with ash. Hearing the retelling of Denny’s excursion in the women’s shower. Eavesdropping on the Katsarelis’ fantasy football draft. Savoring a perfectly made smore.” I said.

“O.K.” Dale said, “There are some items we didn’t have this year that we will need to bring next year: oven mitt, tinfoil, canopy, lanterns, outdoor extension cord…”

The list grew and grew as I sat in silent dread of next Labor Day weekend.

We had a short church service at the campout on Saturday evening. Mac gave Dale specific instructions that his sermon was to be no longer than 10 minutes. Unfortunately, Dale got carried away with his preaching and in the process a few of his listeners faded out.

Mac McKinney is in charge of coordinating the campout. Last week, I asked his daughter, Robyn, what she does during the campout. “I just hang out in McKinneyville,” she answered. Having now survived the campout, I can testify that McKinneyville is a sight to behold. I have never seen one family bring so much gear. There were tents, tents, and more tents, canopies, chairs, tables, sleeping bags, grills, coolers, food, food, and more food and anything and everything anyone else in the church could possibly need over the course of the weekend. If a troop of Marines suddenly showed up having lost their gear, I am certain the McKinneys could feed and house them all.

McKinneyville in the Background

Mac arrived to setup camp on Thursday prior to everyone’s arrival on Friday. I was not there to watch the setup, but I did watch Mac and his crew tear down McKinneyville on Sunday. It took them four hours of hard labor to pack it all up.

Breaking Down McKinneyville

Manryville was a bit less elaborate.

Manryville