My Weekend At Camp Kudzu by Brother Bear

Over the weekend my family and I went to Diabetes camp, and (besides the walking and running) we had a heck of a time!

It took an hour and a half to get there. When we were ten minutes away we hit a Zaxbee’s for lunch. When we pulled out of the drive through and were on the road I wanted to eat my chicken sandwich but my stomach didn’t agree with me. I almost threw up, so I closed my eyes. I didn’t mean to go to sleep but I did.

Day 1: When we got to the camp, Dad pulled up to the nametag table in the roundabout, and Mom got out and went to the back seat (my side) and woke me up...on purpose. I said, “stop it, stop it, stop it”. When we got are nametags we went to our cabin and then I had my sandwich from earlier.

Then we went to the gym for a metaphoric welcome mat, along with 20 other families. Me and a couple other kids played a line /running game called Pacman, where two people are the squids and the other players are the pacmen. You have to play in a basketball court because you need connected lines. It’s ummmmmm…it’s like tag on lines.

Day 2: The first activity that the owls (that’s my age group’s name) did was we went canoeing! The second activity the owls did was puppetry. The instructor (Mr. Puppet Dude) told us about different puppets and where they came from and then he showed us how to make bat puppets. Then it was Drop-in time (a time for the families to do anything). It was break time for all the families. First my family went for a hayride (because we had signed up for it). It was fun until we got stuck in some mud; the load was very heavy. Then my family and I went mini golfing A.K.A Putt Putt. I got 5 holes’ in one in a row (holes 15, 16, 17, 18 and 19).

The next activity that the owls did was archery. My friend N came in first, my other friend B came in second, and I came in third. Then it was time for Drop-in time #2. So in that case we went to the tree house. It was awesome. They had an under side of the tree house, there was a tire swing and a trap door and a plaque with a famous poem called “Tree House” by Shel Silverstein, and a slide and telescope. Then Dad, BooBoo Bear, and I went rock wall climbing and I rang the bell at 40 feet in the air. Then Dad, BooBoo, and I went paddle boating and I steered and poor Dad was the engine.

Day 3: The last activity that the owls did was arts & crafts. We made Geckos and foam trees and necklaces and wooden fishes. It was awesome.

If you know someone with Type 1 Diabetes then you should tell them about Camp Kudzu.

(Edited by Mom)

Camp Kudzu Day Two

Day Two was FULL! Scheduled activities for the kids and adults. Scheduled meals AND snacks (with carb counts!). And "scheduled" free family time.



During free time, we headed for the hay ride. The tractor got stuck on a muddy hill, so we all piled out and helped guide and advise the young driver out of the situation. Then piled back in for the rest of the trip.

The boys hit the "putt putt" range on the way to lunch.

Then, after another scheduled session, more free time for the families.

The "tree house"

Paddle boating

A new friend

Finally, after dinner, the evening program.

Brother Bear lines up

Dr. A...gotta love him.

Preparation for....

...self-inflicted pie in the face.

Our fearless leader/organizer, Kat.

Camp Kudzu Day One

Camp Kudzu is held at Camp Twin Lakes, not too far from our home so the drive wasn't too bad.

The staff and volunteers were all super friendly and helpful. A nice gentleman with a golf cart and trailer hauled our luggage to our private bunk house. Someone had very thoughtfully left a welcome note on the porch, as well as on the door. Sweet.

After the evening's introductory "getting to know you" session in the gym, and a scheduled snack (very nice), we were off to bed.

Oh, and we all got our very own "Camp Kudzu" t-shirts.

More tomorrow!