FACES Camp: Pick Up

 Saturday might have been one of the longest days of my life. Anticipating picking up Carter at 6:30pm from Camp. I was so so excited and super anxious to see him, praying he was happy and enjoyed his week. 

What I got was more than a Mom could ever hope for. Carter soaked in the whole experience. He has been talking about it non stop for the last day. I have loved just listening to his every experience from the weather and food to the adventures and challenges. It really has sounded like the most amazing week. 

I am so grateful that the camp would post pictures daily of their adventures. I would over analyze every smirk and pray he is doing good and feeling happy. Turns out, I had nothing on earth to worry about because he loved every moment of it! 

I even saved the photos of Carter in the background lol I was so so happy to have "proof of life" each day haha. 

They did challenges every day. An 8km hike up the mountain side to a campsite where they used a hole in the ground surrounded by tarps for a bathroom.. and the 8km hike back down to base camp the next morning. They went canoeing and played games of trying to sink each others boats. They rock climbed up a mountain and repelled down it. They had so many learning opportunities each day. Carter said a total of 2.5 hours per day broken up into different lessons (morning, afternoon, evening.. large group and small group). He made friends with everyone. Connected with leaders and peers. Played cards in their tent when they should have been sleeping. He stayed warm, ate amazing food (Shout out to the cooks who spoiled our celiac kid with so much GF food for the week!! I really had nothing to worry about!). They ate pancakes, oatmeal, ramen, sandwiches, spaghetti, stew the list goes on and on and apparently everything was so so good! "We even got dessert every single day!" . Urg my mom heart is so full. 

Penny, Bentley and I took the 2 hour and 10 minute drive out to the camp to pick him up. We all missed him so much and were all so excited to see him. 

We got to camp a few minutes early and got a front row seat. When all the kids walked in and I spotted Carter it took everything in me not to jump out of my seat and give him the biggest hug! I missed him more than ever! They had a whole presentation for us. Skits and monologs. They shared a video of the whole week that we will cherish forever! It was such a great evening! 

Carter was excited to get home and sleep in his own bed and when he said all his goodbyes and was ready to leave, we headed out. It was around 8:45pm when we left. He shared so many stories on the way home. Told me about his new friends and all their experiences. I was so caught up in the awe of his experiences and the change he made within himself recognizing his worth and value. It was everything I could have hoped it would be for him. 

The drive home was great excpet for that one time the van beeped with the weirdest message and then just turned off. The gas pedal wasnt working and we were forced to pull over onto the side of the road where there was zero reception. I was nervous. We pulled over, turned the van off, said a prayer that we would be safe and be able to make it home. The moment we said "amen" Carter said "ok, now turn the van back on".. so I did.. and it worked. The check engine light was still on BUT it did get us all the way home (still over an hour drive) without problems. I will have Brian look into it when he gets home from his backpacking trip tomorrow (yay!!) 

When I asked Carter what the hardest part of the week was he said "Sleeping and on Thursday morning I woke up feeling really sick. Sore throat, chills, a cough." When I asked him what was the best part, he thought about it for a minute and responded calmly with "everything". Be still my soul. 

He told me that he would do it all over again, even if he didn't get any high school credits for it. He said the experience was awesome and making new friends was really fun. I am so proud of him. 

One thing he brought home was a mask. They did a mask making activity where they had to trust their partner enough to create a mask on them. Then they were asked to paint their mask in a way that represents them and the growth they've had. 

Carter's mask is really special to me. When I asked him to explain it, he said that the left side of his mask is truly who he is inside. He is kind, happy, funny and real. He put different colour dots (blue, blue, green, pink, purple) representing our family. The side of him he wants to show and be always. The right side of his mask represents the fake parts of him like trying to fit in, contention, darkness.  The moon says "fake" on it. He said the red dots are all the mistakes he's made. The people are fighting and the word "denial" is written within the brown paint. What a beautiful way to represent how you feel. They talked about peeling off the mask that we all have and learning to just be your true self. Such a powerful lesson. 

Carter genuinly had nothing bad to say about his week. In fact, he told me that they used to do this camp and youd stay for two weeks instead of one! When I asked if he thought he would like that he confiendly said "yes!". All day today he has been so kind, helpful, positive. Telling his siblings he missed them and hugging me lots. He truly has taken these lessons to heart. It has made such a beautiful impact on his already amazing soul. I really am so proud of him that he let his walls down, was vulnerable and found the guy he knows he wants to be. Way to go Carter. 

There is one more thing he came home with.. the BEST/WORST lifejacket burn of all time. 

I seriously am so proud of him. 

And while Carter was away this past week, I got to be spoiled with time with Bentley and Penny. We relaxed, ate all the gluten possible, went on an hour long scooter ride and to the lake. I soaked up the extra time I had with them and Im so grateful for it!! 

Bentley and Penny really were two little besties this week and it was so nice!! 

I panic'd a lot this week. Worrying for Carter... his safety, his allergies, his happiness... hours upon hours worrying and yet, it all worked out better than Id hoped for. It was amazing for him but also for me. Its given me a push to trust him more and know that he will be just fine in High School. He will make friends, be confident and that he can handle hard things. He doesn't need his mom to survive challenges and that really is such an amazing thing to feel. Of course, I will be there with an intense amount of silent panic and prayers but he's got it and theres nothing more beautiful than being given that amount of confidence as a parent. 

Im so so happy he's home and so so proud of all he accomplished. We all initially committed to this for the 10 credits but turns out.. the 10 credits are the last thing were remembering when it comes to this amazing experience. Way to go, Carter! You're amazing, you did it!