VERMONT - BRANBURY BEACH

So Meg, Tim and I decided to go to JR's diner just down the road. It was so American and the waitresses name was something like Bobby-Joe which we found hilarious!

Probably unfairly so. Dodgy foreigners that we are.

We then went to Branbury Beach and lay around in the sun, reading, listening to music and eating junk (just for something different). We had such a great time.

I did however fail to re-apply my sunscreen and my fat belly and the tops of my legs got really sunburnt. It didn't seem that bad at the time but as the day went on it got redder and redder.

Silly, silly girl.

VERMONT - PITTSFORD

I can't remember if I mentioned that my sinus infection spread and I ended up with an ear infection (and then I got conjunctivitis) but after it all cleared up I felt like my ear was still blocked. Not full of water like it did initially but just solidly blocked and I couldn't hear properly out of it. I tried stuff for swimmer' ear and then the nurse syringed hydrogen peroxide (or something like that) in my ear which was apparently supposed to help.
But no.
So Jed said I should do an ear candle. It's supposed to draw stuff out of your ear that might be blocking it. It can take up to 5 days.
So here's a photo of Meg and Tim helping me. They had to stick the beez wax candle in my ear and then light it. There's tinfoil to protect my face from the flame and a towel over my head. Just in case. The smoke goes into your ear and it apparently draws out anything that is blocking it.
Apparently.
Anyway it was pretty hilarious.

VERMONT - PITTSFORD

Today was just another Monday except that at 4.30 today I have 24 hours off!!!!

Yay.

Slow news day so here is another Chirrup.

VERMONT - PITTSFORD

It's Sunday seminar time again and this time Holly and I decided to do chalk art on the tennis courts. It went really well apart from when the older boys came and started drawings guns and inappropriate kind of stuff that we then had to scribble out. But they weren't too bad and knew that we would do that to it anyway.

Cabin cookout out again (our second last!!!!) but it was pouring with rain so this time we had it inside the cabin which the kids seemed to really love. There were a few cabins that still had theirs outside. Why you would want to do that is beyond me!

VERMONT - PITTSFORD

Today was old Vermont day. We had to get the kids up early and do exercises and then collect wood as they did in ye olden days. We had delicious apple pie for breakfast and then headed over to the girls camp for lots of olden day type activities.
There were things like arm & leg wrestling, wood chopping, pretzel making, whistle making, lumberjacking, bread, icecream, cheese and maple syrup making and heaps of other fun stuff. The photos are Grant and Malone doing some old fashioned log cutting and Amy and I leg wrestling (she me but I beat both her and the other Tracy at arm wrestling).
In the afternoon there was a game of Mission Impossible. I was actually working on the Chirrup and talking to one of our first session kids who came back with his Mum for a visit and to look for a missing coat. We then had to set up for the Sanga Fair that was happening after dinner. Our cabin ran the “popping balloons with darts” game. There were lots of other like the dunk tank, tractor rides, fortune telling, wrestling on a log (see the photo), strong man etc. etc. etc. The kids won tickets at each activity and could then trade them in for toys or lollies.
It was a great night (the B.C.girls came over too) but needless to say there was a lot of noise in the cabins that night after lights. I was on row duty and had to go to a bunch of cabins to tell them to be quiet and go to sleep.

VERMONT - PITTSFORD

Today I was supposed to take a bunch of kids to an Arts and Crafts fair for the day.

But surprisingly enough it rained. It was an outside event so we didn't go.

Anyway here is a photo of a typical Vermont house. They are mostly all weatherboard (usually with a high pitched roof) and often have lots of American flags and that kind of stuff on them like this one. I am so used to seeing timber houses now that when I see a brick one it looks really odd and out of place.

VERMONT - PITTSFORD

Thursday!
Day off!
Bring on 11.45!
Although by the time we actually left it was more like 12.30.
So anyway Holly, Farney and I went to look at more cars (the mechanic didn’t recommend the van to drive across the country). We have found one for sale on the side of the road that the mechanic is looking at for us but just wanted to see what else might be out there. Then we went to Rutland to pick up a few things and on our way back to camp to drop Farney back we went via Dunkin Donuts.
Yum.
Then Holly and I dropped our stuff at Gary’s place where we were staying for the night and went back to Rutland to do some more shopping.
And Holly bought a mini laptop just a little bit bigger than mine. She is very excited.
So we cooked steak, mushrooms and corn on the cob for dinner, followed by chocolate chip cookies and Ben & Jerry’s icecream (we tried one called Chubby Hubby which had peanut butter, chocolate and pretzels in it - it was nice but it doesn’t beat cookie dough) and played on our computers!