Grandma Debbie's 2013 Summer Camp!

Here it is! Photo documentation of some (not all, of course) of the fun we had this past weekend at the

2nd Annual Grandma Debbie's 2013 Summer Camp! 

There were snacks!

There was a visit from Great Grandma Nola!

There was catnapping!

There was playing!

There were singing penguins, so, of course, there was dancing!

There were blueberries!

There was banana "ice cream" Disney Jr style! "That's fresh!"

There was building!

There was a surprise visitor (who ended up sleeping some!)

There was tv watching!

There was drumming!

There was more tv watching - Sophia the First, I'm sure!

There was running (and trying to run!)

There was head patting!

There was sharing!

There was walking around!

There was a visit from Mom (Aunti B)!

There was tv fixing!

Spencer hit something on the cable box and

it took Aunti B, Mom, and Uncle TT on the phone to correct it!

There was a visit from Daddy (Uncle B)!

 There was more drumming!

There was a visit from Marilea!

There was an effort by grandma to keep her stone penguins safe!

There was bathing!

There was a visit from Tracey!

There were treatments1

There was eating!

There was a visit from cousin Karen!

A wonderful time was had by all! Can't wait til the next one!

You shall know the truth....

I would like to combat an unspoken lie that so many of us believe - not that you'll change your thinking just because I say so, but hopefully, the more we hear the truth, the more it will sink in, the more it becomes a part of who we are, and the more our behavior changes. How do I know we all believe this lie you ask? Because of the way we behave. Our behavior, as with our speech, is a direct product of how we think and what we truly believe. The lie we all behave as if we believe as truth is that we are worth more when we are so busy we can't see straight. When we are multi-tasking, when our calendars are written on in every square, when we work, work, work and stay up late to finish our dishes and do our laundry, etc., etc. - why, we must be successful, acceptable people, right? Afterall, we're soooooooo busy! Now I'm not saying you shouldn't do your dishes or take care of your children or your house or any of those things. But when you are eating dinner real quick at your kitchen counter, starting to forget (or do ridiculously idiotic things), adding "take a shower" to your to do list - then you might be toooooo busy! Well, that's just how our society is, you might say - and I would have to agree - we are all rushing around like chickens with our heads cut off (on a side note, Grandma Gardner explained that saying to me once - not a pretty picture!) all the time. However, my concern here is with the underlying thought process that is happening to us in the meantime. Here's how to test my theory - sit down. Just sit on your couch for 15 minutes. I dare you. Don't have your ipad, your nook, your kindle or your phone in your hand. No knitting, crocheting or writing of lists. Turn your tv off. Don't make a mental list - just relax. Can you do it without feeling guilty or pressed that you're "wasting time" and should be "doing something"? In my opinion, many of us have unknowingly substituted quantity for quality of life - we all have quantity, that's for sure! But what are we sacrificing? Do you see your family? Do you spend time just with yourself? Do you even like to spend time with yourself? Do you realize you're worth rest, relaxation, and enjoying some time alone? I am firm believer and have said many times that I cannot pass on or give out (to my children in particular) that which I don't possess myself - if I don't exhibit peace of mind, they won't learn to achieve it; if I don't let them see me relaxing or valuing some alone time, they won't realize how important that is for our mental state of mind. I hear it all the time from people on my massage table - there's not enough time, I wish I could've gotten in here sooner, but there's so much to do. We've kinda become "human doings" not "human beings". 

So today, I encourage you - don't shirk your responsibilities, but take a few moments for yourself and realize in those moments where you're just pondering thoughts or relaxing, you are just as valuable a person as when you're sweeping the floor while the dishwasher and washing machine are running while you're wearing your bluetooth so you can also schedule your appointments at the same time. Multi-tasking is ok, but don't feel guilty if every single moment your eyeballs are open isn't chocked full of activity. 

In my own little world....

Isn't it interesting, how we (I would speak just for myself, but I believe I am not alone in this scenario) are only knowledgeable in the areas of things that affect us personally? I like to think I am open minded, well versed, decently read and informed, yet I realize now that I really only am knowledgeable about the things that I've experienced personally or that interest me - I have rarely taken the initiative to find out about other things if they don't effect me. (Remember I don't know whether to say "effect" or "affect", so notice I've used both spellings so far to be fair - lol!) Case in point (and the point of this posting, of course) is cystic fibrosis. I want to be completely honest and tell you that I was so uninformed about this disease that I seriously thought it belonged in the family of diseases I call the "Jerry Lewis diseases". I knew nothing of its causes, nothing of its symptoms, until my grandson was born with it. Now, I wouldn't say I'm anywhere near an expert on the subject currently (partly because that would be too hard on me), but I can say with confidence that I know much more about cystic fibrosis now than I did 15 months ago. Wouldn't it be wonderful if we all expanded our borders of thinking to include more information? I'm not just encouraging you to gain more knowledge so your head gets bigger - quite the contrary. I believe the more informed we are, the more compassion we will feel for those afflicted with diseases such as cf, the more we will feel gratitude that we are NOT afflicted with said diseases, and the more compelled we will be to reach out and help others. I am encouraging each and every one you - especially those of you who have been blessed with healthy children - donate - donate your time, your money, participate in fundraisers, help raise awareness - buy one of those rubbery bracelets and wear, just so people ask you about it - whatever it takes! Not just for cf (although, at the end of this post, you KNOW I'm going to tell you how you can help there specifically - lol!), but for those afflicted with diseases, poverty, depression, sicknesses. It's up to us, I believe, to help one another out.

Our 2nd annual Spencer Thies Cystic Fibrosis Fundraiser will be held this year on June 29th at the Meadows Tap in East Peoria. It is a day long event featuring tons of musicians from the area. There will be a bake sale, a silent auction, and at alternate times, a 5k run and a fundraising dinner. This is, of course, a cause right next to and on top of my heart because of my beloved Spencer. Any of you who would like to donate baked goods for the bake sale or any items for the silent auction, please let me know. Here's a recent picture of Spencer eating a donut for breakfast.