Smith Girls: Summer Bible Camp!

Hello everyone! I am SO sorry that this post is so very late!! : [ I really started it a week after it happened, (August 13th-14th) but then I never ended up finishing it. I'm sorry! I hope you enjoy reading it though. : )
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Last week was pretty full, but it was fun!
Monday, Katie had work at McDonald's and Ann had work at the farm. I (Kristen) was here at the house enjoying my Summer break. : ) We were also canning some, and getting ready for Tuesday.(camp)
After supper, we were all home, and were all doing separate things like packing, practicing our song for camp, washing shoes for indoor use, and making Tuesday's breakfast to eat in the car. I had originally thought of making raspberry muffins, but when I went out to our raspberry patch, there weren't very many raspberries. (since their season is ending) So, I thought of making tarts. One of my sisters didn't think cinnamon/sugar tarts were very fitting for breakfast, so I decided to make some tarts with cheese and hotdogs. Don't worry, they weren't sweet. I just used pie crust and put the things I wanted on the inside. Maybe that didn't sound the best to her either, but she graciously said, "I'll eat whatever you make." : ) So I made cinnamon/sugar tarts, hotdog/cheese tarts, raspberry/sugar tarts (only a few), and finally for Dad, I made jalapeño/cheese tarts.
I didn't correctly estimate how long it would take to make them! I still had to practice the song, wash my shoes, pack, clean the rabbit cage, do a few other things, and check my insulin supplies for the next day. Well, anyway, the tart-making took me a while. We all had practice time together in there, and soon after some people were going to bed. I thought, " Oh dear, this took me too long, and I need to do other stuff..." Rachel, Mom, and Katie, all helped me though. While Mom was baking the tarts for me, I was checking my insulin supplies, and replenishing them to last long enough at camp. I had replenished every thing except for one thing, and I was going to go get it, when the timer beeped. I went over to the oven to see if they were done, and tell Mama how many minutes I had put them in for. So, doing that, I forgot all about that certain insulin supply. (test strips for checking my blood sugar) So, on our way to camp the next day, I found this out and wasn't sure what to do, except make them 'stretch' and only use them when I felt like I needed to. The Lord worked it out though, and I was alright. : ) I'm thankful I didn't forget anything more important like my insulin!

This is on the way out to the raspberry patch on Monday. On one of our trees there were a whole lot of moths. This is a picture of one close up. They are really interesting. (At least that is what I thought) I took a picture of it, and showed it to Rachel and she said "oh yuck!" :D

My tiger lilies this year were great! I had 21 lilies on one plant, and 11 on the other! Maybe this butterfly thought they were great too. ; ) It was a really pretty butterfly. I couldn't get a very clear picture of it though because it would not hold still. This was on Monday too.

Tuesday, we got up and did last minute preparations for going to camp. It is a camp that a church of Japanese people organize. We travelled for about 2 and a little more hours. On the way we ate our breakfast of tarts, h.b. eggs, mini tomatoes (from the farm Ann works at) and vegetable/fruit juice. That was a little interesting but it was ok. : ) At one stop light, we saw a sign that said "rice paddy art this way." We asked Dad if we were pressed for time, and he said we weren't so, we took a left. Then went a ways, and took a left, went a ways and went straight some more, then we took a right, and went a ways, and finally took another right, and we were there!

This is a panorama shot and is a little hard to see, but on the left is a penguin then an arctic owl, then a polar bear, seal, and an arctic fox. It was all made out of rice!
We got back on our way and got to the youth hostel right at 10:00! (that's the time we were supposed to get there) : )
The camp was 2 days, with three messages. This year the theme was world missions. Even the recreation time with everybody, was themed with world missions. : ) The whole group was divided into 4 teams. The first day, we had to go on a scavenger hunt outside. Then, each team was assigned to prepare a skit and song for the next day with the theme of world missions.
Our team's name was Taylor. (After Hudson Taylor) Another team's name was Antioch, another was Paul, and the other was Cambodia.

The food was REALLY good. It was all japanese food. (Except for the very first meal.)

Mama in the Cafeteria.

The food was really yummy! (Although it might not seem too yummy to some of you) :D

This is (in the red bowl) fermented rice-and-soybean-paste soup. I know that sounds terrible, but that's really what it is, but it doesn't taste fermented, and is yummy. The white bowl is rice, and on the plate is pickled white radishes (the yellow things) then sliced-bread-crumbed pork (the slices of brown meat that has brown sauce on them) a banana (to the right of the pork) then, octopus dumplings (the brown balls with mayonnaise on them) and then potato dumplings (the half-circle brown things). They are so smooth and soft, and chewy, and so yummy. They aren't granual-y like mashed potatoes, or most potato things. And finally, on the right in the bowl, is shredded cabbage and paprika salad with sesame seed dressing. I think that was the best meal we had. : )

Emilie, Me, Katie, Rachel, and Inori. She is the saved college student who is coming to this church in Nayoro while she is going to college in this city.

Youth time. We had to do introduction which consisted of telling your name, age, something that you are doing this week, (or something you are in the middle of) if you are saved or not, and something you want to do in the future. Followed by questions. Then we did a game.

This is the married ladies' group time.

The messages were good. Missionary Mr. John Himes was the special speaker this year. They were about the great commission, and world-wide missions. Mrs. Himes gave her testimony and shared some things with the married ladies' group.
The next day we had another message in the morning, then lunch, then recreation time and the skits and songs from each team.
Team Cambodia did their skit first, and did an excellent job!! It was about John Newton, and then they sang Amazing Grace.
Team Paul did a skit of Paul getting stoned and then coming back to life, then sang a song that had sign language with it called, 'Pray Without Ceasing, In Everything Give Thanks, and Rejoice Evermore'.
Team Antioch did a story about Jonah and the whale. But when the boy who played Jonah got "thrown" from the ship, he did a really good job, but his shoe caught the floor, and he fell on the carpet-covered concrete floor! Everyone felt sorry for the minute, because it hurt bad and he started crying. : { So the skit was paused a bit, then re-continued. Their team sang "This Little Light Of Mine". Which is what our team had already chosen to sing, so we decided to sing it a little different. ; ) When team Antioch sang their song, they sang "As far as the universe, I'm gonna let it shine..." (in Japanese) so we decided to sing ours like, "Even past the universe...". : )
Our team, team Taylor, did a skit about Paul's shipwreck and landing on Malta,being bit by a snake and the people thinking
he was cursed, then thinking he was a god. We then sang our version of,"This Little Light of Mine". : )

Team Cambodia singing "Amazing Grace"

Part of the "Audience"

Stoning "Paul"

Team Antioch's, "This Little Light Of Mine"

The ship crew talking to "Jonah"

The little kids from the Junior Church class singing about the great commission.

After we left camp, we went to a famous "Blue Lake" in the area. It is a lake where the water is actually blue because of many minerals in it. It was the first time for us girls to see it, and it was really pretty.