Last weekend, we were blessed with the opportunity to go to a MOMYS Retreat near Mount Vernon, MO.  Interestingly enough, Mt. Vernon is where my 6 year old was born.  While we were in the area, we were able to show her where she was born. I went not knowing what exactly to expect, hoping our family would have fun.  We left saying we'd be going back next year, so I'd say it was a hit! 

I describe the MOMYS Retreat as church camp for families.  You can give your kids the fun, camp experience without the lack of parental supervision plua as an added bonus, you have the opportunity to spend quality time with your family.  It was so relaxing though because there were lots of activities planned, but no pressure to do any of them.  They were all optional. 

When I first arrived, I was greeted by a bunch of women who knew who I was, but I didn't know who they were.  LOL.  I had my picture posted on my posts on MOMYS.com, so they see me any time I post, but most of the other mothers don't, so I was a bit overwhelmed trying to figure them all out right at first.  I also had to laugh as one of them was so excited that I was wearing pants....seeing she and I were the only women in pants.  :)  That changed little by little throughout the weekend though. 

We arrived on Thursday night, checked in and went to an Ice Cream social.  After that, we ran to get our popup camper set up.  We were one of the few people who were camping, so we had to get camp set up before it got dark.  The next morning, we were to be at breakfast by 8:00 a.m.  I was really dreading that early of a rising time, but it turned out to be OK.  We naturally woke up earlier than we normally do when we're out camping.  It just so happened that Friday morning, we awoke to thunder.  Luckily, we had our internet air card with us, so we were able to check the radar.  We saw that we were about to get popped, so we got to the dining hall a little earlier than we had planned, in order to avoid the rain!  Thankfully we did, as it got pretty bad out there.  Our camper was OK, but the tent next door had some issues....they ended up moving to the dorms. 

The rest of the weekend was nice and dry.  We enjoyed not having to cook any meals for the weekend, they were provided by the camp staff.  That was a very nice added perk!  We spent the rest of the time, playing, hiking, playing baseball, enjoying a camp fire, having a carnival, doing crafts, and we even went to chapel every morning like "real" church camp.  My kids loved meeting all the new friends.  My husband and I left feeling spiritually renewed....a rather unexpected perk.  As long as all is well next year, we will plan to return!  Who would've thought the MOMYS Retreat would be so much fun?!