JUNE--WE HAVE 22 GRANDCHILDREN NOW! & GIRLS, GIRLS, GIRLS!!

We were so excited when Becca went into labor 10 days early...no one likes to be late! Welcome to your new world, Charles Okell Gorden!...Chuck's and Grandpa Lee's namesake...born on June 1, 2012. After his bath, he came back with fluffy black hair...like our Becca baby! Jack does not know what to think!! Chris and Andrea are in Arkansas for with summer sales. Nine month-old Jocelyn visited her new baby cousin, Charlie. She looks like a giant next to him. Newborns don't stay tiny for long! Addysin looks so cute in bed with Becca!...little girls just naturally love babies!

The generosity of some people is hard to comprehend!  A member of the Church donates 13 truckloads of gravel every other year to Camp Zarahemla. He even travels 2 1/2 hours to bring it here! The gravel is used to resurface all of the loop and parking areas. Chuck graded the gravel after it was dumped. The new gravel made the Camp look so clean and beautiful!

The Sintay family from Richland has a tradition of coming to Camp Zarahemla the first week of summer vacation to stay in Cabin One. They also like to come caroling to the caretakers with treats. They had such a beautiful spirit!...And sang like birds!

We love bringing bouquets of wildflowers in from outside to adorn our desk and dinner table!

The third week in June, Moses Lake Girls Camp came to stay! "Elder Lee" helped the girls bury railroad ties to create a nice area for horseshoes. Carol joined in on one of their games! The girls were so proud of their project! The highlight of their camp is always repelling...their YW President's husband discovered this perfect rock face a few years ago.  He brings all of the equipment. They gave us camp T-shirts with a girl climbing the side of the Columbia River Temple with "You Gotta Wanna!" printed on them! The girls were assigned to help in the kitchen with each meal and clean-up. We have loved watching them serve with enthusiasm!! It was so fun to have the Bishops come up their last day to participate in games and a celebration meal. While the Cinnamon Rolls were rising, they went on a Treasure Hunt Race. The head cook was Michele Dodgen...we knew her when we lived in Cheney when she was newly married! She was proud of all those Cinnamon Rolls! The "Cookies" work harder than everyone else combined!One of the clues was in a floating milk carton, with a rock tied to the handle to keep it in place on the lake!

We had a few visitors in the early morning hours (deer) in spite of all the girls! Dareld and Lynn Lookabill came to visit during this first girls camp. They got to see the girls in action.  Lynn even went with me to their testimony meeting. The guys went fishing...but were skunked!

After the girls' camps leave, the families come in, and then there is usually some quiet time Saturday for Carol to prepare for Primary, and for Chuck to go fishing!

Our 2nd Girls Camp was the Kennewick Stake where we lived before moving to St. George.  They had a Wizard of Oz theme with rainbow balloons and signs all over camp! Each Girls Camp has an Orientation Meeting the first day. Chuck and I each take a turn talking to them about our beautiful Outdoor Temple, and the importance of showing respect for it like they would for Temple Grounds!  These girls had so much enthusiasm and fun!  Our favorite part is their singing! Christine Jones (from our Meadow Springs Ward in Richland--Kennewick Stake) had some awesome ruby red slippers! They had a "Crazy Hair Day"...the Cooks won 1st Place!