EFY Provo 04A

WOW, this past week was amazing. I spent my first week at EFY, and I've already learned and grown so much.

Here's a run down of how things went down this past week:
Monday:
- it was amazing!!! I got to meet pretty much all of the counselors in the morning. Then, in the afternoon, we got to meet our kids. I met all 10 of my girls (THEY were AMAZING). Ashlie, Lauren, Jade, Kyla, Erin, Emily, Melissa, Babe, Hayli, and Shailee. Then, we got to meet all 10 the boys in our company: Tyler, Robin, Shea, Tyler, Michael, Alex, Kyle, Josh, Jonas, and Riley. We had a wonderful night, it seemed like everyone was getting along well, and that it would be a great start to a great week.

Tuesday:
-we went as a company to breakfast. At breakfast, Hayli started feeling sick, so she went back to her room for the day. I went back and checked on her about every hour or 2, but still had a blast bonding with my kids. That day, all of the kids started calling me "Mom", I think it's because I cared for them and looked out for them like a mother would, but honestly I have no clue why they started calling me that. Then, that night there was a dance. It was so much fun. I loved getting to dance with my kids and just have fun with them. Hayli started feeling better in the afternoon so she went to the dance with us, but at the dance got sick. At the dance, we all bonded so much and got so close, when we got back from the dance, you could not shut us girls up. We were all just growing so close and comfortable with each other.

Wednesday:
-Hayli was still feeling sick, so she didn't go to breakfast, and decided that it would be best if she stayed in her room all day. The whole company was sad that she would be missing out on the fun and the bonding, but we wanted her to feel better. Later in the afternoon, Hayli decided that it would be best if she were to go home, so her sister came and picked her up, and then there were 9 girls. That night, we had games night. It was so much fun. The company (my family) won every game, and even won the banner contest. After games night, it was PIZZA NIGHT. We had soda, candy, chips, crackers, and don't forget... PIZZA!!! The girls thought it would be funny to hear what the boys were saying about us, so they called the boys and were listening to their conversation. That was when I found out that one of my boys had a crush on me, and it was really funny. Then, they thought that they would play a prank on the boys, so they called them and let them listen to our "staged" conversation. Everything said in that conversation was true, just a little bit embelished. The girls and I had so much fun!!!

Thursday:
-On Thursday, I was sick. I think I caught the flu from Hayli, so I wasn't feeling so great in the morning. I skipped breakfast, went to our morning gospel study, went to the Young Women's activity (because I would be speaking), then I went back to my room and slept. Then, I got a phone call from my BC telling me that I needed to come back so I could teach my girls "The Living Christ" lesson. I was still not feeling good, but I knew that I had to go back. I am so glad that I went back. I don't think that I have ever felt the spirit as strong as I did while teaching and discussing "The Living Christ" with my girls. After that, we had lunch and just hungout. I was finally starting to feel a little bit better, but still not 100%. Then, we had the "Variety Show" which I helped with, it was great. Out of the 12 acts, 6 of them were from my company. So, my kids kept joking that it was the "Differeth From Another" Show with special performances by other companies. It was really cute. Then, it was free time. For the first time all week, I actually got to have a free time. It was nice to just relax for a little bit. Thursday night, we had testimony meeting. My kids have helped strengthen my testimony so much, and I love them for that. When we got back, a few of my girls told me how hard they had had it back home, but that coming to EFY and having me as their counselor, has made all of the difference. And, it was so nice to hear that from my kids. To hear that I have made an impact on them.

Friday:
-Friday, I think, was a kind of somber day. All of us knew that this would be our last day together. The last day of the kids calling me "Mom" and my co (Ryan) "Grandpa". The kids celebrated Ryan's birthday, and then gave both of us these adorable BYU mugs, mine said "MOM" on it, and Ryan's said "GRANDPA" on it. We continued to grow and learn, and become a family. Ryan and I decided it would be nice if we gave the kids a little gift, we got them CTR rings, and "Mormon Ads", reminding them that God is always on their side and that they need to remember to Choose The Right. Banquet was that night, and I personally felt attacked. 6 of my girls were told that their outfits were immodest. I thought that they looked adorable, and didn't see the problem with their dress (other than one girl's) and the girls didn't understand it. I had to tell them that it is the EFY standards, and that they needed to comply. Because of how a few of them were told, they felt like they were being called sluts, and I was on the break of tears for awhile, because it really was just frustrating. I couldn't do anything, and I felt helpless. But, my boys were great. They refused to eat until I came back with the girls, and they really were true gentlemen. The girls and I finally went back to the banquet, and we had a dance that night. It was awesome, and so much fun. I was asked to dance by 2 different guys, and also, I got asked on a date. The guy who asked me is not the greatest looking guy, but he is a sweetheart and I couldn't say no to him. He is also waiting for a missionary. At the end of the night, many of us girls were in tears. We didn't want to say goodbye to the family that we grew to know and love, and we knew that in the morning we would have to.

All in all, it was an amazing week. I love my kids, all 20 of you. And, I will always be their "Mom" because, I will always remember my first group at EFY, and everything that they helped me to learn and grow spiritually.