Happy Camper

Today was a big day in the Speer household, and I mean a BIG day.  For one very excited little girl, it must have seemed bigger than Christmas, her birthday, and the last day of school all rolled into one.

Today was the day we sent Crisana – our “baby” – away to summer camp for the very first time.

She was a great helper, labeling all her clothes and getting all her gear packed.  Somehow we managed to get the suitcase closed.

We arrived at the Joann Fogg Service Center in Dallas with all the necessary forms and paperwork, properly labeled medications, not to mention the girly sleeping bag, pillowcase and required stuffed animal.  Crisana could hardly contain herself as we worked our way through the registration process, having her feet checked for blisters and her hair checked for lice, turning in the medications, and loading up her store account.

As I was finishing up the check-in process, I discovered Matt talking to another dad in the waiting area.  Turns out, they had both worked together at Matt’s last firm.  They had an 8-year-old daughter who was also attending the same session of camp, alone, that Crisana was.  We introduced them and they hit it off right away.  They couldn’t wait to get on the bus and load their things.

As we said good-bye, we saw them sitting together, laughing and having a great time.  God gave me the peace I needed to say good-bye without any tears, the reassurance to know He was with her, and the joy of watching her take these first big steps toward independence.