Camp Kreitzer Swimming Hole Gets a Facelift

When we opened the pool this year we knew it was the time to replace the liner. It was coming away in all the corners and around the filter and the flow point. In May, after weeks of heavy rain, the water table was too high to do it. But after a dry six weeks of summer and after all our Texas campers headed home a week ago, it was time to get the project underway.

The pool people came last Monday and, in no time, the swimming hole was empty and dry. They returned the next day and in only a few hours they had the new liner in and the pool ready for filling. Twenty-two thousand, five hundred gallons later we are back in business with a water temp that started at a brisk 65 degrees.

The new liner is beautiful, as you can see. The darker color makes the pool look much bluer than the old pale liner and I really like the "pebble" look. We went in Saturday for the first time since replacement when the air temp was 90+ and the water temp was 78. It was hot so the water was really refreshing.

So Camp Kreitzer is ready for more visitors, but you better hurry because we'll be closing up soon.

The Joy of Being a Gramma

One of my grandchildren just came up and asked me to come down and sing him a song. "You forgot to come down and sing to me last night," he said.

And that, friends, is the reason we fight so hard for the faith -- so there will be something left for our grandchildren. Ora et labora.

More Drama at Camp Kreitzer/Jurassic Park

I have a window on the world of violence. My office overlooks our side yard which is a hunting ground for a hawk who apparently considers it his personal diner. Two times in the past week the vicious raptor stalked a poor innocent squirrel. The first time the intended lunch hunched on one side of an apple tree's trunk opposite his enemy. When the hawk flew around the tree, the squirrel ran around to the other side. Then he ran up the trunk into the full branches which made him much harder to get at. The hawk finally gave up and flew off.

A few days later, the hunter was back. This time he had the squirrel holed up in our peach tree which offers very little shelter. The squirrel came to the same conclusion and jumped off and ran over to the closest apple tree. The hawk went for him, but the squirrel won the race. At that point Larry went out to interrupt the natural order of things and chased the hawk away. Squirrel rescued! Why we want to rescue the rapacious birdfeeder pirate is beyond me. Just call us soft-hearted.

Meanwhile, enjoy this video of a squirrel with a death wish. When the hawk finishes eating the mouse, the squirrel is likely to be dessert.

Swim Lessons

This week is swim lesson time for the youngest two grandkids at Camp Kreitzer. For more about the swim method go here.

Waiting for class to start.

Teacher explains that it's "One, two, three...under, bubbles, kick."

 Now try it. Swim to the wall and reach up and hold on.

Next it's time to go down and get rings. "Good job! You got two rings."

 In the deep end practice kicking to the wall, holding on, and then climbing out. 

You can do it too, girl!

And off the diving board!

Popsicle rewards for a job well done.

Coming Soon: Baby B, our new little granddaughter

Well, guess whose coming soon? Our latest grandbaby. We can't call these her "coming out" photos since she's still in. We'll call them her "Welcome to My World" pictures. Can't wait to hold and cuddle the newest Kreitzer grandbaby -- and they are all grand indeed from our oldest "sweet sixteen" to our youngest soon to be born. Let's hear it for grandchildren! Any caption suggestions? I've posted mine.

ZZZZZZZZ....

Why are you waking me up?

 I hate this profile' don't take my picture.

This is my better side!

May I go back to my nap?

No? You really are annoying! Just wait...No sleep for you either!

The Texans Are Coming! The Texans Are Coming!

Our Houston beau and belles are coming this weekend to stay for awhile. They are right on time to enjoy the Winchester 4th of July Fun Run and all the patriotic activities including the Woodstock fireworks, a display that rivals any we ever saw in Fairfax County. 

So the past few days have been a flurry of activity as we make beds, clean the bathrooms, put out towels in a variety of colors so everybody can keep track of whose is whose, and, of course, filling up the granola jar and the alligator's belly with cookies. (Yes, I have an alligator cookie holder that says, "Mm-mmm, them are tasty cookies!" when you open his mouth.) I have instructions to have s'more fixins on hand for the campfires in the field and little cereals for breakfast. No doubt there will also be animal pancakes, popsicles by the pool, and lots of kid friendly meals.

This is an exciting time of year for us because we only see our Texas families about twice a year -- once when we visit there and once when they come to see us.

Our Austin family will arrive in August and I trust that there will be some overlap with Houston so we can get that one family picture of all of us together, which will be promptly out of date when Baby Bianca is born in September.

Family is what gives Larry and me so much hope for the future. I'm not sure who said it, but it is certainly true that babies are God's opinion that the world should go on. And we rejoice at each new precious little life. It means one more set of hands to raise up in praise of God and to throw rocks in the river. If you are passing Camp Kreitzer drop in and say hi. Maybe a mommy deer with a tiny fawn will be passing through or you can help us catch a groundhog or chase butterflies. There's never a dull moment here at Camp Kreitzer at the foot of the mountain in the Shenandoah Valley.  

Is Camp Kreitzer a Mini Jurassic Park?

I was sitting innocently at my computer when I saw violent nature in action even here at Camp Kreitzer. An Eastern Phoebe (also known as a gnat-catcher) landed on the hummingbird feeder. He was cocking his head and looking up and, I thought to myself, "how cute." Then he flew up and came back, landing on my other birdfeeder with a wriggling creature in his mouth. It was either a moth or a small butterfly. Well, he made short work of his "lunch." Someone should call PETA and demand that phoebes adopt a strict vegetarian diet to protect smaller species from their disgusting dietary habits. Don't let the innocent look of the phoebe fool you. He is a hungry predator who will eat you if he can.