Sunday Reflections
Happy Sunday morning, friends! Welcome to the return of my weekly lifestyle post…Sunday Reflections.
Sunday Reflections has always been about what is on my heart…and it continues to be a mix of great joy and great sadness at this time.
My joy, of course, centers around the gift of time with my own family.
And the sadness is for those who lost loved ones and are still looking for loved ones in Central Texas.
Today, I want to join my grandson, in the feature picture, and jump for joy as we complete the first ever GIGI’S COUSIN CREW CAMP…a week of special time together.
I could not have done this without my wonderful daughter helping me out with the activities, and also the assistance of my oldest grandson with the youngest granddaughter.
I am so thankful to our family for pulling this together.
So, please allow me to share a few of the details.
SUNDAY REFLECTIONS – GIGI’S COUSIN CREW CAMP
We packed so much into a week, and all of us are tired…but it was fun!
The Cousin Crew is composed of six grandchildren from age 12 – 4.
(We did have time with the two babies, who make the crew 8, but they went home with their moms and dads after the July 4th weekend.)
I ordered our Cousin Crew T-Shirts and Onesies from this Etsy link.
Before the babies left, we took a picture of all eight grandchildren in their Cousin Crew outfits and it is already hanging in a frame on my wall!
Just like a mama duck and her littles, we gathered the crew daily to enjoy our new community.
The picture of the feet above was taken at the movie theater where we were the only ones in this particular theater that day for the entire time.
So helpful, when you do not have to worry about bothering anyone else.
So, we thoroughly enjoyed How to Train Your Dragon.
Then we went to a popular new way to eat ice cream in downtown Abilene…called Roll Shack.
The ice cream was delicious and everyone enjoyed their selections, as well as, to stand and observe the making of each one.
Around all of our daily special activities was swimming…always a crowd pleaser.
Another hit one day was making their own pizzas.
Jess knew exactly how to navigate this activity.
The week culminated with a trip to the zoo. …where just like Paris, the zoo is always a good idea.
The Abilene Zoo is excellent and we went on a cool morning so all of the animals were out and about.
From hand feeding the giraffes…to riding the train…to eating snow cones and drinking hand squeezed lemonade…to riding the carousel…to selecting stuffies at the gift shop…it was a perfect way to end our week.
We also loved the Dr. Seuss section of ABILENE’S STORYBOOK GARDEN, and we plan to visit the entire garden again soon. The kids loved it.
We still have much to do here and all said that they wanted more Cousin Crew Camps!
My joy-cup was full to overflowing.
SUNDAY REFLECTIONS: SCRIPTURES OF THE WEEK
I actually have two verses I have read often and prayed over this past week.
Spending time with my grandchildren, always includes talking of God and prayer…with the ones who stayed at my house, I would spend time showing them the gratefulness and blessings in each day.
And, I will continue my Sunday Reflections throughout the week…with prayer over these exact words…asking God to heal the wounds of every shattered heart in our state.
Thank you so much for joining me today for Sunday Reflections…some of you also asked that I share the gifts the kids brought to me from their European adventure…I will do that tomorrow.
I will also share tomorrow what I purchased in the
It is a great sale for my husband’s favorite menswear brand.
Until tomorrow….
BE GRATEFUL FOR EACH DAY AND KEEP SMILING!
By Pamela Lutrell
For all your shopping, please use the links on my SHOPPING PAGE…thank you, thank you to all who shop this way. Especially now, it is very helpful.
Wow, what a fun filled time for your family, memories that will last. I am sure you are tired, a happy tired. Well done.
A new tradition. Hundreds of memories made and to be discussed during their lifetime. Such joy.
It is a happy tired…thank you, Irene.
I kept saying to myself over and over to “make memories.” At the end, they all wanted to do it again…memories made.
What a spectacular week you had! Always to be remembered. The Cousin Crew! What a blessing.
My heart is so full this morning… and I am getting a massage this afternoon! 😂
What an amazing Gigi you are! Such a fun-packed week! You earned the badge of honor! I like your phrase “ happy tired”!
Pam, what some families are enduring right now is just unimaginable! Sorrowful .. I loved today’s Scripture to heal by. 🙏🏻 No words.
I could not have done the camp without MrB…my daughter and her wonderful boys! We all worked together to make it happen.
You are right about the flood…no words.
Thank you for sharing your special week. What a creative and fun grandma you are! And making memories that will last .
Memories that will last was the major plan…thanks Dorothy.
What a fun-filled week! I can only imagine how full your heart must be and also how tired you probably are now that it’s over! I’m sure it was well worth it though.
Worth every minute! Thanks Elaine.
What a wonderful week the Cousin Crew had at Camp Gigi. These are memories all of you will share for a lifetime. Now’s some time for some R & R for the “staff”.
The staff is for sure on R & R…I had to ask Mr. B for one morning without an alarm…sleep must happen! Thanks Kathie.
what a wonderful time, I would like to attend your camp as well. Loved the pictures you included. We are praying for the families and workers in central Texas.
What wonderful memories you are giving your grandchildren. They will forever remember the cousin week and I hope you will have many more. It seals their relationships with you and with each other. I remember a summer at my grandmother’s farm with my cousins still after 70 years.
Thank you, Audrey!
Oh a farm cousin camp sounds awesome! And so meaningful that you still remember it, Sydney!
What a blessing this week was for you & your precious grandchildren! The picture of your oldest grandson with his little cousin is so sweet. I am sure you did make many memories to cherish.
I rejoice with you at the time you got to spend with your own “campers,” making memories that I know will be with them the rest of their lives. Thank you for this uplifting post, which is such a refreshing departure from the heaviness that has overwhelmed Texas in the past week. I had to attend three funerals this past week (none flood related, thankfully) which intensified the sadness we were already feeling. I think my pastor said it best in his weekly letter to our congregation, quoting pastor William Sloane Coffin, who lost his son in a car swept away in water: “My own consolation lies in knowing that it was not the will of God that my son die; that when the waves closed over the sinking car, God’s heart was the first of all our hearts to break.” God knows the pain of losing a beloved Son, and I know that God weeps with Texas as we all try to process the magnitude of these losses. My playroom furniture and my grandson’s bed will be delivered this week and I look forward to a shorter version of Camp Gigi soon. I have no other adults to help out, so having all three of mine is a LOT for me, but I want to give them the gift of memories that you’re giving your Cousin Crew. Thank you for sharing this joy with us!
Have fun with your grandson…though tired, it was such a blessing. I let go of expectations going in and did not try to over organize it…just let things develop.