A Final Thanksgiving at Camp Inspiration Hills

Thanksgiving Dinner 2010

 Our families have arrived at camp Inspiration Hills near Congress, Ohio on alternate Thanksgivings for the last 12 years. This year's was to be our last.

Griffin Gets a Bath

It's been a great run, with days of four square, ping pong, catching up, reading, and games by the great stone fire place in Cherry Lodge. Some years it's snowed, some years we've taken bike rides in sun and shirtsleeves. Always we hike the paths and ravines here, and visit the pond along Kilbuck Creek.

Dinner is Served - Family Style

Inspiration Hills is full of memories for all of us. Many of us went to camp here as children, Mom and Dad have worked in the district on its behalf for decades, and I worked a summer here, even helping construct the dorm-style addition we now sleep in at Cherry Lodge.

The Boys Networking

Abby Vanquishes the Creepy Space Angel

The lodge is rustic, with rows of bunk beds and plastic mattresses in the dorm, a small commercial kitchen in back, painted concrete floors, a large stone fireplace, and lots of open space in the great room - perfect for active families. Old couches surround the fireplace making a cozy nook. This year the four-square lines had finally worn off the floor so we stuck to ping pong.

For dinner, turkey, stuffing, mashed potatoes, and cranberry sauces for all tastes - always. And always we celebrate the fall birthdays.

This year we had several special outings in rainy weather. One was to collect fresh spring water from a long-ago remembered spring in the wall of a ravine. Ben's fresh water shrimp needed real water - something with no chlorine or plasticizers. Another was a fun GPS treasure hunt for small treats Mom had collected.

The Craft Table

A fun game of Apples to Apples kept us all laughing at night, and the craft table was busy for hours making glitter accented acorns to adorn the holiday table. The older boys wasted no time on arriving and set up the network game station along the west wall. This is another long Thanksgiving tradition - except now they handle the networking themselves.

Baby Griffin entertained us all with his energy, happiness, and love of tractors and trucks.

As the older kids start heading off to college and organizing the travelling feast becomes more difficult, we all decided that a new tradition is in order. Our years at Inspiration Hills will remain dear memories for us all. Thanks, Mom, for all those years of planning, organization, and packing up the kitchen for the drive to camp.

Treasure Hunt!