Welcome to Camp Ladybug for Women
Do you ever feel like somewhere between falling in love, getting married, raising a family, developing a career, taking care of parents, and trying to meet everyone's expectations of the superwoman you've become, that you lost something? Do you ever feel like you've put aside your own dreams, aspirations, hobbies, and sense of adventure for the sake of practicality? Do you long to sit quietly and relax without hearing your name called? It's time to reclaim yourself, take a break, and turn your focus and energy to yourself! It's time for Summer Camp for Moms and other weary women at Camp Ladybug for Women.
Camp Ladybug For Women 2012
Seven weeks have passed since the start of Camp Ladybug 2012. I am at a loss for words this morning… and so I will share my daughter Sara’s words along with some of the other women who attended camp this year.
From Sara @ http://thefootballwife.com/2012/07/when-end-just-beginning/
Two Thursdays ago, as I closed the door on our weekend playhouse, I was haunted by its emptiness. In the same way that a church is not a building, camp is not a place. It is not defined by any one thing. It is not in the buildings, the s’mores, the vintage linens, or the bottles of paint. Camp Ladybug is defined only by the love and the spirit of the women who were there. And in a way, Camp Ladybug never ends… it lives on throughout the year in the hearts of the dreamers.
It is an emotional thing to hear the screen door close one last time, to shut the wooden door, and flip the latch. Suddenly, it’s as if it never happened at all… the shortest, longest weekend of my year. I want to soak in all the goodness, to remember each conversation, catalog each laugh, feel each hug one more time.
Each ending is just the beginning… the beginning of new friendships, new routines, a chance to stay connected with the girl inside, and to share that spirit of adventure, love, acceptance, and playfulness with the world. We cannot dream alone.
And so, my fellow dreamers — until next year, I will let the spirit of Camp Ladybug inspire me to live out my dream. And in the quiet, I will pray for yours.
“We cannot dream alone. ” ~ Rev. Jasmine Loney 
Jasmine Loney encourages us to have a Dream~
“Camp Ladybug 2012 was a wonderful experience. I would definitely look forward to coming again. Thank you!” ~ Gale Hoffman
Girls weekend at Camp!
“I loved yesterday’s trip to Camp Ladybug Ladies to guide them in creating and filling affirmation boxes! This is the one I created while there, it is now waiting to be filled with goodies! It was great to get to play with y’all.” ~ Carmen Taggart
Lola Musing
Register For Camp Ladybug For Women Today!
Camp is just around the corner and spaces are filling up fast!
Don’t miss your chance for a wonderful weekend at Camp Ladybug For Women. No worries, no cooking, no kids, no phones! Just relax, play, create, pamper yourself! Swimming, massage, reiki, painting, creating and all sorts of fun!
Who says summer camp is just for Kids? Sign up today!
http://www.campladybug4women.com/2012_Registration_Form_FINAL.docx
Spring Awakenings at Dancing Bear Lodge ~
When I think of the word or season of Spring, these are my immediate thoughts ~ jump forth, break through, emerge, fresh air, new start, renewed energy, glistening windows ( at the neighbors house) new beginnings, rebirth, blue skies, green grass, flowers, blossoming trees, children’s laughter in the wind, awake from winter’s slumber.
On Sunday , 12 women entered as strangers at Dancing Bear Lodge .
The first part of the day was an experiential program designed to help us awaken to our own aliveness and shake off the doldrums of winter. The guest presenter and owner of Dancing Bear Lodge, Lucy Heggenstaller taught us through discussion and gentle movement exercises to become more aware of the energy in our own bodies.
The next couple of hours we ” worked really hard at putting down our perfectionism, our I Cant’s and Picked UP our Ordinary to Create an Extra -Ordinary sense of creativity!
We played with pens, watercolors and pastels. We laughed, talked and shared stories on how to tame those dragons that keep us from doing so many things. We discovered new ways to tap into our creativity.
We shared much more than a meal that day; we shared our hearts, our lives, our dreams. With open arms we embraced and at the end of the day 12 women drove away from Dancing Bear as friends.
Camp Ladybug for Women Comes to Dancing Bear Lodge
Carmen Taggart https://www.facebook.com/Musidoras
Find Your Life by guest writer Julie Dorman
So much of who we are lies within where we’ve been, and who we’ve been with. I look back on my life and realize I am who I am because of my parents, my siblings, my grandmother, my closest friends, my teachers, and my experiences. I‘ve always felt like the journey does not lead to a destination, it leads to the definition of who and all we have become. It is the choices that we have made, it is the attitude in which we have faced a trial. It is the never giving up even when you just want to run away and start over. It is in those hard times that we reach deep down and realize we’ve become stronger and more courageous than we ever thought was possible. The trial changes us for the better.
Facing fears, standing up for only what you are willing to accept, remaining faithful, following a dream, pursuing a passion and living in the moment…these are the experiences that allow you to find who you really are.
So often we find ourselves living on the surface of this life. We don’t really allow anything to soak in. We are just going along doing what the whole world is doing…working and being so busy with trying to get ahead that we don’t realize that what we leave behind is US.
Do you remember being a kid and hanging out with your friends? You spent your days laughing and just living in the moment. You were not really sure what the next moment would bring. I liked living that life. There was still exciting things coming. Things to look forward to. There were surprises yet to be revealed and there was time to just “be”.
In our adult life things aren’t that easy. We are consumed by the lists of things we need to get done. We don’t take the time to notice the beauty all around us. We don’t allow ourselves to treasure the rareness of a best friend or the solitude of just taking the time to relax…even for a single moment.
We also make the mistake of letting other peoples thoughts of who they think we are, become what we think we are. Take heart! You know who you really are, your true friends know who you really are and God knows who you really are, isn’t that what really matters anyway? Besides that, we all know the life we need to live and what will make us happy. I want to challenge you to go out there and get it! I dare you to follow a dream, pursue a passion or just find yourself lost in the solitude of an uninterrupted moment. There is such peacefulness in a moment that is filled with nothing but thoughts and daydreams.
Remember there is more to life than work. There is more to do than check off tasks on a list. There is fun to be found. There is joy to be felt. There is a friend that needs you to reconnect with them. There is a moment to dance. There is a song that needs sung loudly and proudly. There is a great, fulfilling life to be lived by you…and only you can decide to become everything you were ever meant to be.
Cleaning my Cinderella Corner ~
For those of you who’ve read my blog, you may recall that I have small spaces in my house that I have claimed as my own. I affectionately referred to them in that post as my ” Cinderella Corners.” https://campladybug.wordpress.com/wp-admin/post.php?post=150&action=edit My little space to do my own thing, whether it be sewing, writing, drawing, painting , I’ve marked my territory.
Well, you know how things just sort of accumulate… yeah, well my walls felt like they were descending upon me in my art corner and so it was time for Cinderella to get out the broom and the trash can to clean up and reorganize, so that I can get back to creating. I really don’t feel very inspired in a cluttered mess and so I went to work in my little corner.
Now, that I’ve cleaned it up, I’ve promised myself to FINISH all the projects that I have started. Anyone else out there with good intentions and 1/2 done projects? Well, let’s get to work. Have fun, create, smile, laugh, don’t worry about mistakes and being perfect, just enjoy the process.
Spice Racks become Paint racks!
Ballerina in progress...
Spring Awakenings at Dancing Bear Lodge
Hi Ladies,
Looking for a day away,a little “me time”,no worries,no cooking,no kids,no husbands? Well, Camp Ladybug For Women is hosting a little taste of camp with a one day event called Spring Awakenings.
Please click on the link below for all the information you need to have a relaxing, fun day at Dancing Bear Lodge, near Loganton, PA .
Hope you can join us!
Click here: Enjoy a taste of Camp ladybug
Here’s a few pictures from the last time we were at Dancing Bear Lodge…
The Promissory ” Note”
It’s officially the start of the 8th week of 2012 and I find myself reflecting on all those New Year’s resolutions. I’ve decided that while I may not be at full throttle with some of them, I am at least chugging along . I am a list maker and so to remind me ( because I am easily distracted ) I like to write things down… several times and put them in a variety of different places. For instance, on the back of a crumpled piece of paper in my purse is a little list that reads:
pray, read & reflect } inner peace
paint
Experience new things
camp
photography
exercise
And so, as I am rifling through my purse looking for my mystical disappearing keys, I find the note and take a deep breath and remember the goals I’ve set for myself . There’s also another note in my Bible to remind me of promises I’ve made to myself:
Take time to…
Be Still
Be Quiet
Read
Play
Stay in Touch with people you Love
I’ve been getting up in the morning at a regular time to take the time to read & pray and sometimes exercise a bit ( I’m talking 20-30 minutes in the basement) before getting Little E off to school. Other days, I consider walking with the dog to the bus stop and around the block my exercise for the morning. I’ve also decided that taking the stairs at work up & down three floors several times a shift definitely counts as exercise. I may not be breaking a sweat, but I am moving. And I am happy to report that I feel stronger and healthier. So, even just making a few changes can make a big difference. Don’t beat yourself up if you haven’t moved mountains, just keep your feet in motion.
Now, as for the rest of my list, I have been painting, playing and taking photos. Not as much as I would love to be doing, but it’s NOT MY Fault! There are just not enough hours in the day. I’ve come to the conclusion that I need at least 30 hours in a day and then perhaps I could accomplish all that I set out to do.
I have taken a couple of art classes, that have been amazing and fun. I’ve visited with a hospice patient and written letters to friends. I am working on Camp Ladybug for 2012 and living in the present moment, enjoying the journey and taking in the beauty of the world around me, living intentionally as a wise friend taught me to do.
New Year’s Resolutions tend to have a negative connotation attached to them, so I would like to suggest that instead of Resolutions we create Promissory Notes for the New Year. Promissory is defined as prom-is-so-ry ( adjective) concerning, containing, or implying a promise. I like that idea, it’s more heartfelt and personal. Promises are meant to be kept, resolutions tend to be amended or broken all together, so here’s to Personal Promissory Notes!
Remember ~ be good, be kind, to those you meet and especially to yourself. Seek joy & wisdom, live in the present moment and be grateful.
Camp Ladybug 