Tuesday, January 29, 2013

Re-treating secrets

Monday January 28, 2013

Some of you may have guessed from a prior post, I went away for the weekend.
No kids, men, or winged creatures allowed.

So where did I go you ask.
My church womens retreat at Jackson's Point.
That's north, up on Lake Simcoe.
No, not quite igloo country.

ohhhh....and what does a group of only women do at a retreat?
I am sure you are picturing a group of 60 women, praying all day, 
knitting socks for the homeless, sharing soup recipes, 
singing songs, feeding stray cats and dogs , making bazaar crafts...


Um, yeah...  until I showed up.

Let me take you back... waaaay back to the beginning...

First there are the bags.
One must be prepared. It did take place up on Lake Simcoe...
Extra prepared if one happens to be a Scout leader.


And, no, those bags were NOT filled with chocolate.

Might I add that this is light packing... 
compared to some that brought bins and suitcases
fit for week long excursions in the Amazon jungle...

We were NOT anywhere near the Amazon.


But it certainly was beautiful :)

I arrived early in the day, and so had time to myself.
That was one comfy bed that was needing someone to nap on it.
Someone had to do it... tough I know.

There was a theme for the weekend...
Heart to Heart Connections

There were some lovely decorations


Candles to set the tone...

...a lovely fireplace


Needless to say I had no need to go outside...
not even a wagon ride in the freezing cold night
pulled by a diesel tractor could lure me out.
Sadly I missed the part where it got stuck.
Drat, missed those fumes too.

There were even late night snacks and goodies


oh yeah....they must have known I would be there...


no need to pull out the stuff I brought.

Did I mention that I brought a sandwich 
since Friday night dinner was not included.

So what happens when one is in a rush ,
and at the very last minute realizes that one has to bring something to eat




Yup - you guessed it. 
One might forget to remove the paper wrapper from the cheese.

So I have been hounded by throngs of people wondering
WHAT did I pack.

I did decide to take some cross stitch kits... mostly Mill Hill.



Yeah, I guessed that would be enough for 2 days.
In between speakers, and planned activities...
Let's just say I was a tad ambitious ... and dellusional, lol
Did I finish any? 

Well, there were a few activities over the weekend, besides the wagon ride.
No, sadly naps were not scheduled.

There was a wonderful speaker, discussion groups and yes songs were sung.
(It is the Salvation Army after all, lol)

We all made bracelets for our prayer partner.
The one I made is on the left.
I received the one on the right.


Each evening, some of the ladies offered to paint nails.
There were some pretty cool designs.


I really wish these were my nails. I have none to speak of.

Did I mention they even had door prizes?


Whoo hoo - I won !
So did everyone, lol.


Now Saturday night, things got a bit.... interesting.
We were divided into teams and played a fun game
which involved different challenges, 



Did I mention that some of us wild women get a little 
competitive?


This is my game face - don't mess with me!

Well, I have been sworn to secrecy as to what exactly else happened.
I won't go into any more details, 
but there was one incident of charades that involved Michael Jackson 
and a 72 year old woman doing the moon walk and grabbing her crotch.

If you happened to be there and see women rolling on the floor, howling in laughter, 
you might just know why.

I did have some free time, not spent napping.
Some of this free time may have extended into the morning hours.

(Hence the Monday spent in a sleep deprived daze)

Some of the ladies decided to knit.
I did some Zen tangling.




Oh - what's that?
It's meditative repetitive pattern drawing.
I dare not call it doodling, in case they hunt me down 
and throw cotton balls at me.



 I maaayyyy just have completed 2 Mill Hill kits...



This strawberry is all beads, no cross stitching.
I added some of the extra beads to the stem on that one.

There was a heart theme in the decorations... so I thought I would stitch this one as well...



So there you have it.... some of the secrets of a retreat revealed.

Oh, I'm sure there are plenty of unanswered questions 
like when did I go to bed 
and what the heck do we do at 3am...
but some things are left best a mystery.

Tonight was a guild night and I experienced a little S.E.X.
... but that's another story...





14 comments:

Lynne said...

Sounds like a fun weekend! Love the purple bracelet you received.

Everydaythings said...

sounds like a great time there on the weekend... I love those small ebroidery kits, so do-able!

Quinn said...

I'd pack the same way for a retrea! Projects? Check! Chocolate? Check! Okay, ready to go :)
Tried to sign up for the kindcycle thing but it seems I'm a bit too far south. Oh well, it's a worthwhile thing to do even without the donation, so I'll try.
Thanks for visiting Comptonia earlier. If you'd like to be in the giveaway drawing, just let me know which prize you prefer :)

mybearsnme said...

I think I shouted by using caps lol....that coin purse looks so delicious.. reminds me of chcoclate... speaking of which is 5am to early for that? :)

Cindy said...

A retreat sounds perfect-what exactly is a nap? I will be smiling all day, at the mental image I have of a 72 year old woman doing the moon walk, thank you!

Laurie said...

My gosh, I've just had a ball catching up on your posts. Talk about a sense of humor! Thanks for visiting me earlier. I'm now your newest fan and follower.

Laurie

mybearsnme said...

awww shuks... thanks. love to bring a smile... or a giggle... or a snortle :0)

EvalinaMaria said...

Congrats on lovely finishes. The retreat sounds awesome, I wish I was there. Sometimes I think that it is time for me to move back to civilization...

Jim said...

LOL! You are an entertainer! Good to meet you and thanks for stopping by my blog today. It's good to meet you.
Sounded like a much needed weekend for you.
Jim

Barbara F. said...

This sounds like a really fun retreat, with lots of treats given out! Nice to meet you, glad you stopped by, and I am following you back. So you have a feathered baby named Kiwi, too! Can't wait to meet your Kiwi. xo

Loretta said...

Thanks for visiting my blog. I had a laugh when I read the last line of your About Me introduction. I am with Girl Guides of Canada and we use that phrase too with the newbies.

Your retreat sounds great.

Astrids dragon said...

Always nice to get away, especially with fun people! Sounds like you had a fab time.

Neesie said...

Yep you were right...I did have a giggle ;D
What a fun packed weekend.
I'm visiting from the GYB party and loving meeting so many people from all over the globe.
Thanks for popping all the way over to me here in Australia! ;D
Have fun...but then I by the sounds of it I think you always do LOL
Neesie ♥

Mosaic Magpie said...

Ladies Retreats are sooooo much fun! A real time of fun and fellowship! Glad you had a great time and WOW you finished 2 kits too!
Deb