Youth Conference

Last Friday and Saturday we went to Youth Conference. We met at Church at 8 AM and divided up 41 kids and a ton of adults. They put all the names of the youth in a bowl and then drew them out for each vehicle that was going. That way the kids were mixed up in hopes they would make new friends. We had 4 kids in our car, 2 boys and 2 girls.

In preparation of the long 3 hour drive to the camp, we made some goodies to eat on the way. We had brownies for the trip there and chocolate chip cookies for the trip home. The kids really enjoyed that. The food for the whole conference was great.

Upon arriving we all ate our sack lunches and put our belongings in the dorms we were going to stay in. The weather was perfect, not to hot and not to cold. After lunch we attended four workshops on several different subjects. One had games to help get the point across, another one had a treasure map, and the others used pictures and stories. Of course they all used the scriptures to teach their subject. I think the teachers all did a great job and I think the kids enjoyed them.

After the workshops we had free time for a few hours. The facilities were great. The kids could swim, play basketball and volleyball, horseshoes, board games, or just enjoy the beautiful setting. We practiced for the talent show that night. We also just talked and visited with one another.

As dinner time approached, several of us volunteered to help in the kitchen. We fed over 55 people and did so in a fairly timely fashion. Clean up went well too with everyone pitching in to make light work. After tables were cleaned up and chairs were set up again we heard from our keynote speaker. As usual, Troy did a fantastic job. The kids love him and can really relate to him. He definitely has a way with kids.

Then it was time for the "main event"…The Talent Show! I was so impressed with the talents of these young people. We had a group of three girls who could sing like angels and harmonized beautifully. They also wrote words to a fun song that they sang just for Troy all about the Trek they went on last year. Others played instruments such as a flute type instrument, mandolin, violin and guitar. One young man juggled and all participated in several cute skits. We shared our feeble talent of singing new words to "If I Had a Hammer." The final act had us rolling in laughter. Three members of the other ward Bishopric performed a "synchronized swimming" routine. It was hilarious. A good time was had by all.

The kids played capture the flag before final call to end the night. Of course nobody settled down completely once we were in the dorms. We had a devotional, sang a nice song and had a closing prayer. Then the talking and singing started. Thankfully that didn't last toooooo long. The singing was beautiful as a small group of girls sang in perfect harmony several hymns. The talkers were on the other side of the dorm room so I got to enjoy the singers. After a while everyone quieted down and went to sleep.

Morning came early as I once again joined the kitchen crew to help prepare breakfast. I was amazed how quickly we were able to feed nearly everybody before they caught up with how many pancakes we had prepared. The last several people had to wait to get the freshest pancakes. With breakfast over we once again all helped with the cleaning. This time we cleaned everything as we packed up our belongings and stowed them in the vehicles and trailer. Then we headed to the fire pit for a beautiful testimony meeting.

Lunch was Subway sandwiches and goodies on the lawn so we wouldn't dirty up the kitchen again. Then we piled into the vehicles and headed home. The kids in our car slept most of the way home so they didn't eat nearly enough cookies!

To finish out the weekend we attended Stake Conference Saturday and Sunday and were truly fed spiritually the whole weekend.