We just had the best week ever!! Jake will be leading the F.C.A (Fellowship of Christian Athletes) at his school this coming school year. Because he has never taken on this roll before the Northwest GA F.C.A wanted Jake to go to the annual coaches camp at St. Simons Island. This camp was for coaches and their families... yes, their families!! Our schedule went as follows... 7:30 breakfast, drop off kids, huddle groups, competition, chapel, pick up kids, lunch, free time, dinner, drop off kids, break out session, chapel, adult fellowship, pick up kids at 10:15pm.
It was exciting to be able to drop the kids off and to know they were having a blast but even more exciting was what we got to do while they were making new friends. We were divided, men and women, into small groups called huddles. I was in a huddle with other coaches wives who are also stay at home moms. It was great to be able to share time with these wonderful Christian women. Jake was off doing his male bonding with a great group of men. They had some great Bible study time... Jake took a lot away from their daily discussions. The greatest surprise for Jake was that every day they had a period of competition... huddle vs. huddle... football, wiffle ball, kick ball, and Jake's favorite... volleyball.
I say it was the greatest surprise for Jake but I was just as excited. The women had a choice; walking, aerobics, or competition. The first day I was unsure and I ended up following a very happy lady (who happened to be from Chattanooga) to aerobics... she just had a glow about her that I wanted to get to know a bit better. Well, "Praise Aerobics" is no place to get to know someone. The instructor was tough! I have to admit that I have never been in an aerobics class before. This was the most intense workout I have had in years... and I LOVED every minute of it!! Well, maybe I was not loving it when my leg felt like someone set it on fire but it was a temporary pain that only made me feel stronger in the end. I have to admit that being in a room full of "Praise" posters really helped me fight through the pain. Well, I wanted to go back the next day to see how much tougher it could get but I found out that the competition was going to be volleyball. Great fun. The team I was on did not win but for some reason the other women thought that I had played volleyball somewhere? I was not that good but I guess I was better than most out there. Their comments really made me feel good about my "un-athletic" self :) Then the next day came and I went back out to see what I could do in the competition. Turns out the game of the day, Thursday, was Football! Do you know how excited I was about this? I had not played football since Phi Lambda in 2000! Football was awesome. I caught passes, two-hand tackled, sprinted down the field, intercepted. The other team was pointing at me saying watch out for Lisa she's tricky... she's fast. A field full of former college athletes and coaches... They made me feel special. I know Jake had fun... he is a naturally gifted athlete. For people to say things to me like I was actually an athlete? It just topped of the already great week we were having.
The athletics was fun but what God had to teach us was even better. First of all God's creation of St. Simon's Island is beautiful. The live oak trees with the moss hanging down, the palmetto trees, the flowers, the intercoastal waterway, the sand bars, the beaches, the clouds, the rain, the sun, the sunsets... it was all so beautiful. The huddle group of stay at home coaches wives really helped to strengthen my priorities. I learned a lot from these ladies. The morning Chapel was lead by Doug Duke. He is a marriage and family therapist who specializes in coaches and their families. Of course Jake and my marriage is so awesome that we did not need his help... haha :) He always finished off his session with a music video, usually about spending time with your wife and kids and never missing a moment... can I say I have never seen so many men wiping tears from their eyes when the lights came on. The breakaway session on Tuesday was great. Jake got to hear a talk on Leadership from a "big wig" from the FCA. I got to learn how to focus on my God given dreams from Shannen Fields. She was the lead actress in Facing the giants. Her husband is a football coach in GA so they spent the whole week at camp. Our other breakaway session was on financial preparedness... blah blah... over my head... but Jake understood it all :) The evening Chapel was taught by Scott Pilkington. I believe his lessons were perfect for all of these coaches (and wives too)... especially his lesson on anxiety. The final night the kids (age 5-11) did a performance of two songs that they learned during the week. This was the first time that Caleb actually sang along to the song and did the hand motions... he is growing up (off topic... when we got home today his "need for school" list was in the mail box).
This past week was amazing. I look back at the photos and I want to go back but I look forward to this week. Now that we are home I can put all of my renewed knowledge to work for God.
To see larger photos or if you are unable to view the slide show above... follow the link below.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/lisadickey/sets/72157606019479034/
So we left St. Simons at 9:30 and arrived in Knoxville at 7:00pm. Because of the many "I gotta go potty" stops we were on the road for over 9 hours!! With the screaming shrieks from Taryn and the many stops this trip seemed longer than 14 hour the trip to Brownwood, TX two years ago. But once we got there and the screaming stopped it was a nice visit.
The boys, along with their cousins, spent all of Saturday and most of Sunday out in the yard playing baseball, golf, Power Rangers, and Ben 10. These boys had a Blast! Taryn also had fun... of a different sort. She spent all of her time rearranging Aunt Debbie's candles, Christmas Village, photos, etc. So yes, Jake and I took turns following her around... just making sure she stayed out of trouble.
