SUUSI!

[rivka]

We registered for SUUSI this weekend, and this morning I mailed out the required waivers and permission forms and the deposit. Now we're really going. (We've set aside our tax refund to pay for it, so we'll be able to afford it regardless of Michael's work situation.)

We'll be sharing a suite with bosssio and her boys, currently aged 18mos and 3 1/2. The kids play together really well - they came up to visit on Saturday, and it was sweet to watch Alex and Ant walking around holding hands. I think they'll be able to entertain each other a lot of the time, giving us adults more time to relax.

I am so excited. I need a vacation badly, and I haven't had a real one since... well, I guess since last year's SUUSI. (Spending Christmas with my in-laws? Not a vacation.) I've got a great schedule planned out for myself, a mix of family and independent activities with plenty of unscheduled time - including, most notably, a whole morning when Alex will be in the children's program and I won't be signed up for anything.

Here's our workshop/trip schedule:

Sunday
Check-in.
Banner parade and ingathering, 7-9pm.
Mandatory youth-parent meeting right after ingathering.

Monday
Alex: children's programming, 9-12.
Michael: stewardship workshop, 10-12.
Rivka: meditative singing workshop, 10-12.
Michael: Texas Hold'em tournament, 7-10pm.

Tuesday
Michael: flatwater kayaking, 7:45-12:30.
Alex: children's programming, 9-12.
Rivka: meditative singing workshop, 10-12
Michael: yoga for better backs, 2-4pm
Rivka and Alex: "Enjoy a pretty place" family hike, 6-8:30pm

Wednesday
Rivka: Sinking Creek hike (with my father), 7:30-12:30.
Rivka: chocolate making 101, 2-4pm.

Thursday
Alex: children's programming, 9-12.
Michael: stewardship workshop, 10-12.
Michael: yoga for better backs, 2-4pm.

Friday
Rivka and Alex: Poverty Creek splash hike, 8:30-12.
Michael: stewardship workshop, 10-12.
Rivka and Michael: Teen Way Off Broadway (audience at the late show).

Saturday
Closing circle, 9am.

We each have a full day completely off from scheduled programming, which is nice. Not included in the above schedule are the various all-SUUSI activities, which we don't have to register for:

- Theme talks (extended sermons), every morning from 9-9:45am.
- Worship, Monday-Thursday from 8-9pm, Friday from 5:15-6pm.
- Family concert hour, Tuesday and Thursday from 5-6pm.
- Community street fair and play day, Monday and Wednesday from 5:15-6:30pm.
- Cabaret (professional and talented amateur music), every night from 9:30-midnight.
- Serendipity dance club, every night from 9:30 or 10pm-1am.

Somewhere in there, each of us will work a two-hour shift for the childcare co-op. In exchange, on all other evenings, we'll be free to go out and play from 9:30pm to 1am, and someone from the co-op will call us if Alex wakes up.

Holy cow, this is going to be awesome.

Comments

[brooksmoses]

Ah, okay -- Sinking Creek Mountain, rather than the creek itself. I think that hike is probably coming from the southeast side of the mountain, and then the "valley to the west" is the one that Sinking Creek itself is. So it looks like you won't get to see the bridge.

When you do get to that view, though, the mountain on the other side of the valley is John's Creek Mountain. The house where I grew up is near the ridgeline (but on the far side from where you'll be), way off to the left.

Regardless, it's home -- it's all home. :) If you take pictures, share, please?

Oh, another thing I was reminded of when I was looking around to see where this was: the particular bit of mountain that you'll be hiking on has some really interesting geological history.