Driving To Camp

When the big day arrived, Ashley woke up at 2:00 in the morning, which really lessened my guilt of taking her to camp. At 6 in the morning when everyone else started getting ready, I noticed that some signs of an infection we had fought and medicated the previous week were back. So as we drove, I called the doctor and made arrangements to get a refill on the antibiotic. I picked up the antibiotic at the next Wal-Mart we passed. We spent 45 minutes at Wal-Mart getting the refill, not fun with three kids. It also wasn’t helping us make good time on a 300 plus mile trip. The rest of the trip was pretty uneventful, except a brief stop at a convenience store, where Ashley had a complete meltdown. We are not sure why- but it was bad. I was feeling so anxious all the way to camp, unsure of what to expect and praying Ashley handled it well. Let me just stop here and explain my anxiety revolved completely around Ashley. Hailey and Josh go to all sorts of activities, spend the night with other people, and they can verbally tell me when they are scared, unhappy, or uncomfortable. They also understood they were going to camp for a week and then we would come back to get them. Ashley does not have any real activities, and she does not spend the night away from us. She cannot let me know how she is feeling. I do not know how much she understood about being left at camp and when we would return. I know that it is unhealthy to have her this attached to us at age 11, and for her not to have any other significant bonds. It is also not good for me to believe no one else can take care of her. But this is our reality; she has never had the opportunity to spend time with other people outside of school and church. Nobody, other than Jason and I, has ever cared for her more than 24 hours at a time. And the very few times other people have cared for her overnight; they have left us feeling like it was just way too much for them. So I was very worried about her being 11 years old, away from her parents and home for the first time. Thus, when God presented us with this opportunity, we went to camp to prove to us and Ashley that she can survive without us. Originally posted July 2011