Negative Nellies

Every summer my big girls go to Bible camp a couple hours drive away from home. Every year when I pick them up, they rattle on about all the funny stories, the great food and list off all the cool things they did. Their standard complaints are about the heat or bugs or having to get up early but overall they have a great time.

Then why is it that I have to practically drag them there and nearly chuck them and their bags out of the truck on my way out of the camp? Every year it's the same thing, everyone's excited to go until the day were actually going. The whole drive up there, both girls are moping around, won't talk, and acting all sad. They carry on like I'm dropping them off at military school in Vermont.

They whine and fuss like two big fat Negative Nelly's. Their counselor probably won't like them and what if they don't know anyone or none of my friends will be there, blah, blah, blah. "I hate taking showers with everyone and I hate getting up so early", they repeat every year. They bellyache that their cabins are always so hot or how that one girl shows up every year and is so rude and how they can't wait till I pick them up.

That is just in the car ride up, then when we actually step foot on the campgrounds, both of them act like it's their first day at a new school. Although the counselors and camp directors call them by name when we register and tell them they're glad they're back this summer, my girls still look at them as if they're total strangers. They get all shy and quiet. I have to do all the talking as if a 13 and 11 year old aren't able to verbalize a reply. It's ridiculous.

When their cabin counselor comes up to greet them, they remain silent and motionless, barely making eye contact with her, which is when I want to pipe in and say, "Hi, cheerful, smiling counselor, let me introduce you to my girls, Ms. Grouchy Pants and Ms. Party Pooper." "They are SO thrilled to be here and just can NOT wait for me to leave and their fun to start!"

I don't know why they do this, if other than to just make me feel guilty cause it's all a sham. By the end of the first day, they are already having a good time and have met several new friends. Thank goodness the camp posts pictures online of what's happening out there, so daily I can see what my girls did. They can act as miserable as they want in front of me, but the evidence in the pictures shows my whiney girls smiling and having high ol' time! There has been the occasional picture where my 13-year-old is standing in the back of the crowd, in her usual teenage pose, arms crossed, shoulders hunched with a pouty bottom lip but I'm guessing that activity was for the outgoing kids who like to show off and that's not her so I'll let that one go. Mostly, however, the pictures reveal that my girls are actually having fun and all that carrying on in the car ride up was a bunch of baloney, just like it is every year.

I don't know what the solution to make "going to camp" more exciting. They make good friends, learn new songs, and do super fun activities and then talk about it for weeks afterwards. Maybe since it's only once a year, they have time to forget the good stuff, I'm not sure.

Oh well, I go pick them up in a few days and get to listen to all their fun stories. We'll see if my Negative Nelly's have turned into my Positive Patty's.