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How do I even begin to describe training camp?!?
 
(photo creds:Cassie Wilson)
 
From the very minute we pulled into the retreat center and signed in at registration, til an hour before I boarded my flight (10 hours after departing from training camp) I was involved in a whirlwind of neverending activity.

The staff at AIM worked tirelessly to prepare us for the next CRAZY 11 months of our lives. From fish head soup for breakfast on the first morning, to waking up every morning at 6 am (something that I am NOT at all used to) to pack up all tents, sleeping bags and gear and be ready for "Healthy Living" (in a nutshell…..30 mins of morning exercise done as a squad) at 7 am, to 62 of us sleeping on a 40 person capacity school bus with all of our gear. Each and everything that they packed into these 8 days was preparation for what is to come.


The notorious Fishhead Soup (gag worthy)

(photo creds:Cassie Wilson)

And I've gotta say…..It. Was. Hard.
 

But in a good way. Training camp was absolutely incredible!!!!! Everything about it was amazing. All of the hard things forced me to stretch myself, made me do things that I maybe wasn't comfortable with (fish head soup, morning exercise, lack of showers, sleeping on a bus…….the list could go on) but that I am more than capable of doing, especially now that we have been walked through it. AIM staff did everything that they possible could to help us prepare for this race mentally, physically, emotionally, and spiritually. We had teaching sessions on everything you could think of. Rights and Expectations, Healing and Forgiveness, Personality Differences, Prayer for Healing, Listening/Prophecy, Giving Feedback, Vulnerability (just for us women), an a whole bunch of others!
 
Most uncomfortable, yet warmest night of sleep all week 

(photo creds:Cassie Wilson)

 
Worship Session

(photo creds:Cassie Wilson)

Our squad leaders are absolutely fantastic!!! The three of them are so loving, encouraging, and willing to give of their time, prayers, and just about anything else we might need. They have incredible amounts of energy, staying up every night past 1am praying for us and our potential teams. They are open about their own experiences on the race, and answered every question we had for them. From "What was the food like?" to "what do you recommend that we pack, or don't pack?" "how were the squatty potties?" (I shudder at the thought) "what was the most amazing thing that happened to you on the race?" "what was the worst thing that happened to you?" Looking back I don't think that I utilized our squad leaders knowledge or willingness to share as much as I should have…….that being said….Note to self: open up and talk more to squad leaders at launch and following……

SQUAD LEADERS! Tiffany, Josh, & Kelly

(photo creds:Cassie Wilson)
 

AND my squad…………………..AMAZING!!!!!! There's nothing else I can say….I am about to embark on an incredible adventure with a group of some of the coolest peeps I have ever had the pleasure of encountering. (notice that I said "some of" as the rest of the coolest peeps I know are probably reading this right now…….YEAH THAT MEANS YOU!) Each and every one of them have awesome gifts and personalities that makes them like none other. I can honestly say that without all of them there I probably wouldn't have been as willing to do all of those uncomfortable things that I did, there is power in numbers I guess. They are loving, encouraging, fun, graceful people…….that absolutely love to dance! Haha! My squad is a dance party squad!!! We had dance parties in the lodge, in the pavilion, at one of our 7am "Healthy Living" sessions…….pretty sure we will even have a few airport terminal dance parties while we are overseas.(dance parties also a little bit out of my comfort zone….(my squadmates just seem to make me feel less awkward than usual) And, the laughter and joy that these people brought to me over the span of a week was just a prelude to what is in store for the next year.

!!!DANCE PARTY!!!

(photo creds:Cassie Wilson)
My Amazing Squad! N SQUAD

(photo creds:Cassie Wilson)

 And last but not least……..DRUMROLL PLEASE!!!! Team Favoured!!! This is my team that I will be spending the next 11 months with….granted teams could change….but we all already love each other, so I'm praying that it sticks! WOW, they are all amazing! That's all I can say for now, but you will read more about them in the very near future, as long as you stay tuned…….


My fabulous team! TEAM FAVOURED!!!

(photo creds: Lauren Leabhart)
 
All I have left to say about training camp is that AIM takes preparing us for this next 11 months of our lives very seriously, and they do absolutely everything that they can do to transition us into the crazy amazingess that will be life on the mission field. So…..A BIG HUGE THANK YOU TO THE STAFF AT AIM FOR HELPING US TO GROW AND STRETCH OURSELVES FOR THE JOURNEY THAT IS AHEAD, WHILE ALSO PROVIDING US WITH A SAFE AND FUN ENVIRONMENT TO DO IT IN. YOU GUYS ARE DA BOMB!