Summer is the PERFECT time for
Body Restoration!!
It’s
time to finally make peace with our bodies…to stop
abusing them and start honoring them as beautiful homes
for our souls. We're doing this class right along with you...come join us!! Details here.
Registration is OPEN for the next few weeks. Jump in and
join us...we welcome you!!
It is an incredibly beautiful Friday morning at Brave River Ranch… and we are getting so excited to have another Brave Girl Camp here in a few days! I think we get just as giddy as the campers do. So that’s what we’ve mostly been up to this week– preparing for camp! We have the best team ever who just GETS STUFF DONE and we could never even think about doing Brave Girl Camp without them.
Enjoy the picture party of our good times getting ready for our guests to get here!
Sabrina’s brilliant technique of cleaning the art tables.
Patrice makes the prettiest name tags for everyone… hand embroidered and all.
My dad wasn’t going to waste any time cleaning out the (dead) garden… whip out that tractor, baby! Can I just say we LOVE Michael? A lot. He came over with Patrice this week to help the men with the yard… here he is getting the tree beds immaculate. Every litte thing matters! Hilarie does EVERYTHING with a giant smile and contagious laugh… even when she’s dusting the top of art supply jars. Carrie is wonderful at going around making sure things are as beautiful as can be… She’s the master of the Art Barn, really. The kids helped us clean out the flower pots from the sad, sad frost… But then my mom and I got to go shopping for some new pretty flowers! Patrice, Kathy, and my mom did the last touch-ups of deadheading and planting… I promise you they’re having a good time! I think this is such a sweet picture of them together. Their own version of Golden Girls?
It’s a common sight to see my dad walking around with his weed sprayer.Brock and Michael weeded all the areas that couldn’t be sprayed. Brave Girls Club wouldn’t be Brave Girls Club with out the guys!
And now we’re on to making all the little treasures for our guests… they’re going to be here before we know it!
Happy Friday, braves! It’s a happy, happy, happy day over here today… it’s warm and sunshiny, and everyone is smily, and the whole world feels so fresh. Brave Girl Camp is in a few days and we’re just workin away, preparing for our sweet girls to arrive!
If I gave this post a title other than “Behind the Scenes: This Week at Brave Girls Club”, it would be something like– The Week of Piles and Stacks… and Flowers, too. Because that’s really what it was! The whole week before camp, everything is just in piles and stacks all over the place. And as I was taking pictures of all the piles and stacks of things, the plainness of it became so amazing to me. Each pile and stack is made up of individual things that will each go to one special soul… and that one thing will mean so much more as ONE than it means when it is in a pile with a bunch of others. So right now, the stacks which are laying all around are just stacks… But next week, they will become so valuable! The piles and stacks of gorgeous decorations that we put away in boxes don’t look at ALL the same as when they are hung and placed beautifully throughout the house. It is such a cool transformation to see all these piles and stacks become what we call… Brave Girl Camp!
Here are all the decorations to be put up… just in piles right now, but just wait until you see next week’s pictures!
Today I will fill these tote bags with goodness so Amy can give them to the girls as soon as they hop on the bus!
Carrie does an amazing job sewing these adorable pom pom flowers to pin to the tote bags… she spent some time at the Art Barn doing that this week…
And while she sewed, Kathy and Patrice crafted these beautiful name tags for the campers…we get super excited when we start putting their names on everything!!!
Good thing this week consisted of flowers, too… because piles and stacks can get pretty boring to look at. My mom (Melody) and dad went on a fun shopping spree with Patrice and Michael for tons and tons of pretty flowers to put the finishing touches on the Ranch. I’m certain that they all had a blast together that day!
Then our awesome team came over to plant and deadhead and water and move stuff and groom stuff… and let me tell you, it looks SO AMAZING out there.
Now we just have to finish getting ready and impatiently wait until Tuesday when our nineteen guests get here!!! We’re not excited or anything.
And I’m off to do some camp shopping… Have a wonderful, WONDERFUL weekend… We love you so much!
I have to admit…the team was a little concerned about March camp because we have never had camp in March before…and we had forgotten that in March, the trees have not started to grow their leaves back yet…and the flowers are waiting til summer too…..little did we know…that the magic of camp can show up times a million no matter what the weather….and as it turned out…we had absolutely spectacular weather…and a kind of end-of-winter beauty that could not have been more perfect… (and before we go much further…there will be a few of you who know you just HAVE to come to camp NOW….so I will tell you now that every camp for 2013 is sold out except for 2 spots in May….so hurry and go HERE if you want to register)
Because…..love and care was still put into every washed dish…
and every color of paint…
and we had a completely restocked art barn with all sorts of new stuff that made our art making time even more other wordly…
all of the food, just like always….was made from scratch with love and care…right in the ranch kitchen….with grandkids as visitors on some days (this is Jeff and Kallie’s oldest boy, Jackson….Kathy’s grandson…we adore him and he sometimes comes to visit us at camp)
the art tables really did look this orderly before the beautiful mayhem began….
and we made sooooooo many beautiful, soulful, healing things in the art barn…here is Terry working on a new piece…
and every journal prompt book was hand bound differently by Sabrina…
We decided to remake all of the decor in the ranch house to match the gorgeous river rock fireplace……so it’s all earthy and heavenly chic in the ranch house and all happy color and bohemian in the art barn…..such a fun new makeover…
and guess what? Mother Nature showed up to show us all that March has its own kind of spectacular…we loved our evening walks along the river…
Walking back to the ranch house is always comforting….knowing there’s a beautiful meal being prepared while we are out on our walk….and seeing the ranch house at dusk is one of the most glorious sites to behold!
We love mealtime….and always try to make it an opportunity to show deep, healing love in every single detail….from the handmade placemats, napkin holders and flowers to the handcrafted soulfood that is lovingly prepared and served to the beloved brave girls who sit in these seats…
and then there are lots of dishes to do again……but done cheerfully and thankfully…..because dirty dishes around here mean that something wonderful just happened…..
and of course…..we do art, we make things, we build things, we collage things, we sew things, we mold things, we pound things…we create things….SOUL ART…each project done to seal in the lessons that we are learning each day at camp….
…and we take time to get VERY honest with ourselves…..about what is still hurting us…about what it is time to let go of…about beliefs that we have that are either expired or that never should have ever been a part of us….and we work very very very hard to identify and extract all of those things….and then we thankfully cheer each other on as we witness each other letting go of those things in the fire….
and then the joy comes…..and it comes BIG TIME….
and we make a commitment to continue to heal….and then to let our light out into the world…we make a commitment to try very very very hard to not hide in the dark, or contribute to the darkness by not letting ourselves shine…..but also to always always always light up every dark space, whenever we can….to send out light into this world…….because we all can…all of us…
and every camp plants a tree at Brave River Ranch to make a commitment to growing a beautiful new life……this time,we planted a mighty oak….
and I even got some projects done of my own….one of my new passions…STITCHING…and I’ve been stitching all over my clothes after Patrice taught me how…
I can not tell you how much I love the women who make camp happen. We have THE MOST INCREDIBLE STAFF and we are all so incredibly blissed out every time we get to welcome in a new group of our sisters at camp…….there’s always a lot of singing, dancing, and general goofiness…..all wrapped up in a whole lot of soul, meaning, and hard work to dig out the good stuff…
This is where love lives………all over this place…
Our hope is that everyone will be able to experience camp at least once in their lives……We love our March 2013 Brave Girls….and we love YOU.
So…here’s the announcement. We are working on launching a series of 1 and 2 day workshops here at the ranch so that more Brave GIrls of all ages can experience the magic here…so that we can do more art together…and so that there are offerings of all different time limits and prices so that everyone who wants to can come see us here…….no matter what, no matter where you are….no matter whether you are reading our blog or our truths…or taking online courses…or if you have come to the ranch to be with us…..YOU ARE ALL BRAVE GIRLS AND YOU ALL BELONG. And we do what we do for YOU and for ALL OF US. We are ALL SISTERS…….let’s be good to each other.
We love you all so much.
Stay tuned for announcements about our workshop series…coming soon!!!!
We’ve been doing Brave Girl Camp for a little over 3 years now, and we haven’t really publicized it much for a year or so, maybe even two. That means that a lot of Brave Girls who have joined us recently have probably never heard of it, or if they have they aren’t sure what it is. So we are going to share this page right on our blog so that everyone knows about this phenomenal camp. We love everything about camp! We plan for months, we live and breathe camp for weeks and weeks before the incredible moment when the Brave Bus turns the corner into the lane bringing a new busload of Brave Girls to the Ranch where we get to spend the week together. SO…below you’ll find photos, a little video, descriptions, faqs, testimonials, even a sample menu…everything you ever wanted to know about Brave Girl Camp:
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Brave Girl Camp is a magical, amazing, all-inclusive 4 day art + life retreat, with perfectly planned days of meaningful fun and connection, designed to help you move forward joyfully into the rest of your life.
Come join us for art making and soul healing at the beautiful and secluded Brave River Ranch, nestled right along the Boise River in the tiny little country town of Star, Idaho. Let us cook for you and pamper you while you make meaningful art projects in the fully stocked, funky art barn and while you experience the life changing curriculum of Brave Girls Club…making lifelong friends and having the time of your life!
2013 Camps:
March 12-16 (click to register) May 7-11(This camp includes special projects for mothers and daughters or sisters 18 and above; but all brave girls are invited as individuals too. There will be a mix of individuals and mother-daughter pairs) (click to register) June 18-22 (click to register) October 8-12 (click to register)
Includes 4 nights’ lodging at the Hilton Garden Inn, all meals, snacks, and beverages, daily art/life classes personally designed and taught by Melody Ross, nightly firesides, transportation to the lodge from Eagle, Idaho (and back), live music, and countless surprises and keepsakes. Bring an extra tote or duffle for everything you’ll be taking home with you. Brave Girl Camp is truly a once in a lifetime experience. (Note: tuition does not include airfare or other transportation to or from Boise.)
What is Brave Girl Camp?
a beautiful Idaho experience that we want to share, as 4th Generation Idaho Girls
a place to rest from every-day life
a place to be lovingly pampered
a very artsy place, filled with unforgettable surprises
a place to eat exquisite, handcrafted foods for every meal and snack (made with oh sooo much love)
a place to be a part of our big, crazy family, fun-loving family (including Grandma and Grandpa and whoever else drops by during the week)
a place to make and see and share beautiful things
a place of belonging
a place for girls of every age (we’ve had campers from 18 to 84)
a place to be safe
a place to play
a place to laugh
a place to rest
a place to think
a place to dig deep
a place to grow
a place to breathe
a place to heal
a place to make decisions
a place to learn what it means to be brave (and it means something different to everyone)
a place to make meaningful and lasting friendships
a place to learn some of the thousands of ways to really live with bravery
a place to be very well taken care of, pampered in every way
a place you will crave until the next time you come back
A few other ways to describe it:
a completely unforgettable experience
a dream come true (for us and for you!)
worth any price or sacrifice to get there
a completely life changing experience if you choose to let it be one!
What’s included with the tuition?
4 nights lodging in the beautiful Hilton Garden Inn in Eagle, Idaho, including full service breakfasts
Transportation on the Brave Bus between the hotel and Melody’s riverside home
Luscious healthy homemade gourmet lunches, snacks, and dinners each day, served at beautifully set tables
Assorted soft drinks, juices, hot beverages, and water available all day
Artsy, meaningful, soul-restoring classes, developed and taught by Melody Ross, in the amazing turquoise Art Barn
Artfully packaged class kits in hand-made keepsake cloth envelopes
Red Carpet sessions with new friends
A Brave Girl Camp journal/sketchbook (for thoughts and ideas)
A roomy and wonderful Brave Girl Camp tote-bag with hand-made touches
Access to literally hundreds of art supplies and tools, plus instruction on how to use them
A basket to borrow to hold projects in progress while at Brave Girl Camp
Many other treats and surprises! Too many things to list here
The time of your life if you choose to make it so
What will we be doing?
At Brave Girl Camp, our schedule will include lots of time together, beautiful lessons by Melody around the Red Carpet, luscious meals together around artfully set tables, instruction in art techniques and mediums, “art & life” projects created around huge tables in the colorful/magical turquoise Art Barn, evening firesides, live music, and lots of downtime and surprises.
With an experienced staff of over 12 women, your every need will be considered and attended to. If you need a special menu, just let us know and we’ll make sure that your meals are delicious and lovely so that you can experience pampering just like anyone else. We strive to make every detail memorable and special…nothing isoverlooked.
Almost all of the art supplies you will need are included in the cost of the retreat so that you can ‘travel light’ and just enjoy yourself. Our job is to pamper you in a way that you have never been before!
Brave Girl Camp is the vacation from life that you have been waiting for and the experience of a lifetime. Our goal is to make sure that you have the time of your life while making lifelong friendships, and especially that you go back to your life a stronger, more joyful woman, feeling on-track and ready to be exactly who you are and to do exactly what is in your heart.
Location
Brave Girl Camp is held at the most perfect place we could find…Melody’s home on the banks of the beautiful Boise River…a place we’ve named Brave River Ranch. We have spent over a year making it beautiful and magical, a place where you will feel how important you are to us and a place where you can feel comfortable and peaceful. We love Idaho and want to share all of the reasons why, and the Ranch is the perfect place to do that.
The décor is artsy mountain rustic. The gathering room in the Ranch House is warm and roomy with plenty of windows to take in the breath-taking views from every room. The wood-burning fireplace is cozy and the living room is wrapped in a huge custom sofa with a
red carpet in the middle…just waiting for our Red Carpet sessions that are such a memorable and important part of each camp. This is a place where we hope you will feel right at home.
Brave Girl Camp includes 4 nights’ lodging at the lovely Hilton Garden Inn in Eagle, Idaho, a short 10 minute bus ride from the Ranch. You’ll share a room with one of the other Campers; you’ll have your own comfortable queen bed. (Private rooms are available.) You’ll have time to enjoy the decks overlooking the peaceful river or the spacious, comfortable lobby with lots of areas for relaxing and conversation. Each morning you’ll have a delicious breakfast at the Hotel before boarding the Brave Bus, bound for the Ranch! You can learn all about this beautiful hotel here.
The Brave Bus
This is the wonderful old bus that will take you from the Hotel to spend the days at the River Ranch! You’ll be invited to leave your permanent mark on the inside of the bus….we’ll show you when you get here! (Note: The Brave Bus will not stay plain for long…she’ll be dolled up in true Brave Girl style soon!)
The Weather
The Treasure Valley enjoys four distinct seasons with snow in the winter and hot, sunny days in the summer. We’ll let you know exactly what to expect for your retreat date.
What to Bring
We’ll contact you personally well ahead of time and let you know exactly what to bring. It won’t be much besides clothes (layers for unpredictable weather), a few art supplies, and your tooth brush!
The River
The lovely Boise River is just steps from the Ranch (and the Hotel although they are six miles apart)…depending on the weather we’ll take daily walks along the wide, meandering river path…guaranteed to create some of the warmest memories you will take home from your camp experience. Bring a camera! You’ll want to remember every minute.
Photo Album
Click here to view an online photo album of selected photos from our past 3 years of camps. These photos are in no particular order…just lots of fun photos to give you a better idea of what we do and what to expect.
Testimonials
Below are blog excerpts from some of the incredible women from our Brave Girl Camps — diverse in age, background, experiences, talents, personalities, families, life stories, goals, dreams, struggles, challenges, stages of life. We’ll never forget each of the beautiful, soulful, creative, amazing women who have come to Camp.
From Jeanne …
To say we were being spoiled would be an understatement!Our morning walks were so beautiful and a quiet time with some of the girls. Besides being such a great way to start the day….it was gorgeous. My heart and mind came home so full of ideas, joy, creations, promises, truths. I keep thinking about the amazing women I met. Their stories. Their pain and their bravery. I really miss them.
One of the most powerful writing exercises for me during the camp was the day we made our promises book. I don’t think I have EVER written promises to myself. It is the only exercise that made me cry. Not because it was hard….because it was precious. I felt like I was making promises to myself as a little girl….and that I would fight for her…I would support her…I would believe in her dreams. I then went on to write promises to each of my three children, my husband and then our marriage. Sometimes you just need a little quiet to hear the truths, make the promises and remember that you were born to fly.
From Teresa …
On the first day, I met up with the other BRAVE GIRLS and we got on a shuttle bus to the cabin, I was a little nervous. What had I gotten myself into????? I would have NO computeraccess, NO cell phone coverage and communication with my family or work for 4 days. (did I mention I have huge work deadlines?) The ride up to the cabin was wonderful. I could FEEL something big was going to happen. I felt an instant connection to the BRAVE GIRLS…Melody met us just before we got to the cabin and we agreed to “be there” and leave our concerns, guilt, fears, etc. RIGHT there…
(we threw bird seed in the AIR- yes, worrying is for the birds- right?) A short time later…we arrived to beautiful girls who hugged and welcomed us. I felt like I was a sister and that I was returning HOME. BEAUTIFUL lights and Green Lanterns were hung… It felt peaceful and inviting. We listened to beautiful playlists of music as we created. This entire event was needed for me to REFLECT on MY life…Can you imagine – WRITING to yourself? it was like an AH HA. moment. I fought back tears. I was thinking and reflecting on my past- joys, sorrow, pain, lessons learned… and I focused on the positive, and I have a tin full of cards/letters to myself that I keep rereading to myself.
We took lots of breaks for FOOD and snacks. Kathy showered us with the most amazing food. I felt like I was at a CELEBRITY retreat. I know Kathy and the girls put their HEART into the menu and presentation. THANK YOU SO MUCH- I felt so pampered and special.
We are BRAVE women…we connected, we laughed, we cried, we created, and went on little sleep. We are better wives, mothers, friends by all that we learned. I will NEVER be the same. It was deep and intense and honestly…the ART was merely a vehicle of pure love self expression to each of our souls. I KNEW I was supposed to be at the event to make friends and to see LOVE in action within the women there. I met so many women that FILLED my heart with love and that I consider FOREVER FRIENDS.
From Becky …
How do you put into words a life changing, out of this world experience?
I guess I knew Brave Girl Camp was going to be pretty special when we stopped at the base of the road that led to the cabin and Melody had us toss bird seed to the ground and leave all of our worries behind. She said we were to let go of our bills, every day details, worries about our families and all that would entangle our minds for the next 4 days. It worked too. I didn’t worry about anything for the rest of the week! When we walked in we were surrounded with the smell of home cooked food (the best ever), and personal touches that made us feel overwhelmingly loved. They had our pictures spread all throughout the cabin. Isn’t that just the best idea? Nothing makes you more at home than seeing your children’s faces or your little Fergie staring up at you. It was wonderful. Everything had our name on it. They personalized everything and lavished us with supply kits. They thought through every little detail to make us feel special. They memorized our profiles and thought of us as they sewed and labored and prepared. When we got there they all greeted us and gave us hugs. I’m telling you it was a love fest!! And I have to think really hard to a remember a time where I felt more at home and honored. It was magical!
It was just beautiful to walk in to that dreamy world. What would come next would be days of soul searching, creating, exploring and ultimately rediscovering who we were and what we wanted out of life.
From Lissa …
Upon arrival we walked into a beautifully lit cabin with twinkly lights and yummy smelling candles. (you know how that’s my thing…) There were pictures of our families, even photos of our pets hanging around the room to cause us to IMMEDIATELY feel at home! It felt like one big, HAPPY family!
Melody and Kathy along with the rest of their family just make you feel like you’re at home. I read on a blog today that real friends are the kind of friends who you feel comfortable enough with to invite them over for dinner and serve left-overs. That’s the kind of friends I made at Brave Girl Camp.
What an HONOR to be able to attend. I met the most wonderful women! I met FIGHTERS!!! I met women who left not only determined to fly but determined to SOAR! I met women who INSPIRE me! No detail was spared! Nothing was too much! I remember Becky saying over and over “I feel so blessed… I feel so blessed…”
Beautiful, amazing, lovely, funny, joyful Melody is instructing us on our projects. She was so ready to open up her heart to each one of us! You have never experienced such generosity! We were surrounded by beauty! inside…and then outside…The beauty of God’s amazing creation.
Thank you for all of your hard work! I wish I could put into words how much you mean to me! Thank you for making every meal, snack, dessert “the best food you have ever tasted!
From Kallie …
It was life-changing….all of it. I learned (again) that women need each other…we just do. We have a gift for nurturing and inspiring and comforting and we ought to share that not only with our husbands and our children but with each other. I learned that everyone struggles, and that it doesn’t matter what our individual problems are, and if they’re big or small to us, our struggles are the same. But the biggest lesson I learned is the lesson of CHOICE. That crap happens…life isn’t perfect and if we’re lucky it never will be, but no matter what happens, we have a choice about what to do with it.
There was a project about making promises to yourself. How incredible to make promises to yourself on things you don’t want to fudge on. Here are some of my promises – I promise to take care of my body…to get to my right weight and stay there both for myself and for my family and loved ones. I promise to be true to the musician inside of me and to take the steps needed to develop my talents even further. I promise to use those talents to bless others. I promise to be more forward, open and honest with myself and others about what I really want. I promise to start breaking down the walls around my heart that prevent me from making deep and lasting friendships.
This is an amazing, inspiring revolution – come be part of it…come be a BRAVE GIRL!!!
From Jenny…
This was the scene of our arrival to Brave Girls’ Camp. Participants from all over were driven from the airport to our lodge…Snow, beautiful snow. All around us was snow.
This is the scene within the lodge when we entered. A beautiful table welcoming us with a most delicious meal served to us by an incredible staff.
Melody shared stories of overcoming challenges throughout her journey, and offered some creative prompts centered on the concepts of protecting that which is most important to us and in so doing, finding strength to always move forward, and always have hope.
The prompts were accompanied by tools and materials and techniques that aided us to create book projects…I focused on words that I find comforting when the going gets tough …
The most exciting technique I learned from Melody was how to use her new line of chip art tools by GCD Studios to create a letter press effect by inking her metal stamp and then hammering the stamp into mat board with a mallet. TRUE innovation.
(On the second day…) Melody offered a new set of prompts about how in life, there will be challenges. There will be naysayers. There will be heartache. And the thing about life is that we all know heartache. But that regardless of all that, we can choose to move forward anyway.
Anyway. What a great word. Yes indeed … I do know heartache. But I will keep building anyway. In between the projects and prompts, the best things were created. Like
Roars of laughter … New friendships … Fun and joyful times … Insights from books … And the resolve — regardless of what life throws at us — to be good, supportive, and brave.
From Camille -
And oh… the supplies. Everything you could imagine and hope for. Huge containers of found items of all shape and styles. Paints and glitter, MOD PODGE. Lots of Mod. We love MOD. Mod is our friend and constant companion.
And we really bond. Fabulous beautiful brave girls create fabulous beautiful art….and bond into fabulous loving friendships…
From Cheryl
Hello dear friends. I want to start by sharing a favorite quote of mine and something that really rang true of Brave Girl Camp.
“My Friend, if I could give you one thing, I would give you the ability to see yourself as others see you . . . then you would realize what a truly special person you are.” ~ Barbara A. Billings
Such a great quote
and reminder that we are all special, unique and cherished individuals. I had mentioned that I was eager to share about some of the things I created at Brave Girl Camp. While Brave Girls were being pampered by Melody and Kathy’s family . . . there was time to create. Melody would prompt exercises and themes for creating. Some did mini books, some canvas’, some aprons.
But whatever crafty thing folks were creating there was meaning behind it prompted by Melody’s message, words and phrases. The wonderful thing . . . there was freedom to create with your own style . . Everyone’s was different . . . unique . . . a message special only to them. It was awesome and so meaningful.
It was about life infused in art . . . expressing yourself. It was about sisters I made for life. About living and loving the best you know how. It was about leaving lighter in some respects and gaining freedom. It was a creative and musical experience. It was about detail and servanthood. About facing the tough stuff and being brave. It was about tools being used to create, express, heal and grow. Yes, tools like Fiskars help heal! It was about building and rebuilding lives through art and lovingly serving. I was so grateful that I could take a part in this experience. It is absolutely unforgettable and I am so very blessed.
From Sheryl…
How can one not feel the love, love, love from this kind of detail, knowing that our hostesses put their hearts into every single step taken to ensure our knowledge of wondrous things about to happen.
And wondrous things did happen under the twinkle lights and lanterns. Life-changing experiences are just that and the best ones are the least expected. They can knock your socks off, take your breathe away, dispel the gloom and open up those doors one thought forgotten and closed.
One lesson for the day was truth and lies. I chose to make a book of affirmations of what I know in my heart to be true; miracles, blessings, the becoming of who we are meant to be and all the help along the way if we let it.
I hope everyday (the projects I created) will remind me that I’m great at what I do, even if it is different from someone else. I’m not someone else; I’m me and I’ll be brave in my own little way, every day. And that is the best lesson – ever.
This art gives me a simple peace whenever I look at it. By the third day at camp, I truly did have hope which leads to peace and joy. Peace in knowing that I have what I need right now and joy in knowing that is enough. We al
l hope for more and that is okay too, but I’m learning to have peace and joy in the moment.
From Margie…
We were up in the beautiful mountains of Idaho, away from the “world” away from home, family, TV, internet, and yes…Cell phones…I was worried at first…
But as the experience unfolded so beautifully I knew I needed the break…Taking the time away when I have so much going on was a gift to myself…
From the moment we met up I knew this was going to be great! We were met by Marq at the bus stop and he greeted us with beautiful handmade bags filled with treats, a journal, a beautiful map and a secret bag that said “don’t open yet.” We rode together toward camp with some mixed feelings…I was excited and nervous at the same time…
Each meal was to die for…The detail was in every little thing…We ate like queens…
We learned some new tools for ourselves, some new ways of looking at our lives, we shared stories, some very painful, raw, and true…We cleaned house…Then we created to remind us…
We shared ideas, learned new techniques, played with paint, mist, mallets and and used the chip art to pound words that meant something to us…
We listened…We slept very little…Too much “work” to be done…We made friendships that will last a lifetime…
The Menu
All of your meals will be lovingly prepared and served on our collection of beautiful vintage tableware & flea market finds. Kathy will be joined in the kitchen by Malary (Melody’s daughter) and our permanent staff, some of the best cooks you’ll ever meet. You are welcome to hang out in the kitchen at any time throughout the retreat for a snack or a cooking lesson or just to sit and relax and keep the cooks company! We hope you make yourself at home while you are with us!
SAMPLE MENU
Tuesday
Welcome Dinner Party:
Cafe Rio Sweet Pork Salad
Lemon Mousse with Lemon Blossom Cookies
Wednesday
Lunch
Kathy’s Kicked-Up Chicken Salad on Wheat Nut Bread Pasta Salad with Garden Vegetables
Turkey Croissant Sandwiches w/ Strawberries and Poppy Seed Dressing
Fresh Fruit
Homemade Brownies
Mid-Afternoon Snack
Cheese & Crackers
Fresh Fruit
Dinner
Roasted Chicken
Glazed Honey Carrots
Fresh Green Beans with Lemon and Garlic
Corn Bread
Mascarpone Chocolate Toffee Bars
Friday
Lunch
Maple Pecan Chicken Salad with Apples, Feta, and Candied Pecans
Kathy’s Ultimate Grown-Up Mac & Cheese Muffins
Chelsea’s Famous Chocolate Chip Cookies Mid-Afternoon Snack
Homemade Orange Poppy Seed Cookies
Vegetables and ‘You Won’t Believe It’s Low Fat’ Dip
Dinner
Luke’s Smoked BBQ’d Tri Tip Steak
Rosemary and Garlic Roasted Red Potatoes
Green Salad with Balsamic Dressing
Hilarie’s Homemade Dinner Rolls
Extreme Bite-Sized Dessert Buffet
*Note: This menu will no doubt change as we find ever-more-delicious recipes and fresh ingredients to share!
Frequently Asked Questions
Q. I’m not an artist…will I be able to do the workshops?
A. Yes! Melody has specifically designed these projects to be for ALL SKILL LEVELS. If you are an accomplished artist, you will learn skills and techniques that will challenge and inspire you. We’ll provide an incredible variety of tools and materials to spark your own creativity and ideas, and you’ll be able to put the skills you already have to work on these amazing projects. If you’re more of a beginner, don’t worry….you will learn easy-to-apply techniques that will translate into beautiful projects that you will be proud of and that will be powerful life-tools. There is always someone in the Art Barn to answer all your questions and give you one-on-one instruction if needed. So even if you don’t consider yourself an artist, BE BRAVE – Brave Girl Camp is absolutely for you!
Q. What airport should I fly into?
A. Boise, Idaho. (BOI)
Q. What time should I book my flights?
A. Your flight will need to arrive on Tuesday by 2:00 pm. You’ll be staying at the Hilton Garden Inn in Eagle, ID, which is about 30 minutes from the Boise airport. There is shuttle service available, provided by the Hilton. You will need to call the Hilton when you arrive to schedule a shuttle pick up, or if you are getting in at the last minute, you may need to take a cab in order to make it. The Brave Bus will pick you up at the Hilton at 4:00 pm on Tuesday and take you to the Brave River Ranch. Camp ends at the Ranch late on Friday night, so you will be able to schedule your return flight at any time on Saturday. Checkout is noon, so take your time if you can and plan a relaxing morning at the Hotel with your new friends.
Q. Can I room with my friend who is also coming?
A. We have found that by far, the best experiences happen when friends do not room together. If you do come with a friend, we hope that you will be okay with being in separate rooms. We promise that you will have tons of time to enjoy Camp together. (The exception is our May 2012 Camp — if you are coming with your mother or daughter or sister, we will encourage you to room together)
Q. What kind of weather should I expect?
A. Idaho has four distinct season with everything from hot weather in the summer to snowy days in the winter. We will be in touch when your camp nears to let you know what to expect.
Q. What should I bring with me?
A. We like to keep the list very short so you can travel light! Remember to dress COMFORTABLY. We do have a tradition of taking a photo at our closing party on Friday night…please bring a white shirt/blouse and colorful jewelry for that photo.
Here is a list of basic tools and supplies you’ll need to bring with you:
Crafting scissors
Fabric scissors
Mod Podge (matte and gloss)
Paper adhesives you like
Several various sized paintbrushes, including a fine small detail brush
5-6 or more copies of photos of yourself that mean something to you
Any art supplies you already own and love to use (exacto knife, paper trimmer, cropodile, etc. – optional)
Any paper or fabric scraps from your stash to share (optional)
Ear Plugs (just keeping it real and friendly)
Q. What about computers and cell phones?
A. We are 100% unplugged at Brave Girl Camp. We ask that you leave your laptops and iPads and such at home (gasp!) and turn OFF cell phones for the duration of camp. This is a very important part of what makes camp so special. Don’t worry — your loved ones will have an emergency contact number so that you can be reached if needed. You deserve this to be the best experience possible and unplugging is a critical part of that. (When was the last time you were in a room with a group of people where no one was texting or checking their messages?) You’ll be able to really focus on yourself and the incredible experiences you are having. Trust us – it’ll be okay.
Q. What about women who are couples?
A. Because of the dynamics of this camp and as it is not a couples retreat, we do not invite women who are couples to attend together. They are certainly invited to attend separate camps, however. Because none of the other women have their partners in attendance, the interaction is far different than in a couples retreat session. We invite women in intimate partnerships to attend separate sessions.
Q. Is tuition refundable?
A. There is an enormous amount of expense and advance preparation that goes into preparing for each individual guest. While the initial $300 deposit is not refundable, up to a certain point tuitions are transferable to another person. So if something comes up that prevents you from coming, you are free to sell your spot to another person. Please contact support@bravegirlsclub.com for details on how to do that. You will see the entire refund policy as part of the registration process. Please be sure to read it carefully before you complete your registration.
Email your questions to: support@bravegirlsclub.com and we’ll be happy to answer them.
Your camp experience will be completely unique to you. What we have heard from all of our Campers is that Brave Girl Camp is an experience like nothing else. No matter what they expected, Brave Girl Camp exceeded their expectations. Our promise is that we will do everything we possibly can to make your experience something that you will never forget, something that will set your feet on brave new paths, something that will help you to live more joyfully and purposefully going forward. We hope you will come join us!
love,
melody and kathy
2013 Camps:
March 12-16 (click to register) May 7-11(This camp includes special projects for mothers and daughters or sisters 18 and above; but all brave girls are invited as individuals too. There will be a mix of individuals and mother-daughter pairs) (click to register) June 18-22 (click to register) October 8-12 (click to register)
All-Inclusive Tuition – $1799
Includes 4 nights’ lodging at the Hilton Garden Inn, all meals, snacks, and beverages, daily art/life classes personally designed and taught by Melody Ross, nightly firesides, transportation to the lodge from Eagle, Idaho (and back), live music, and countless surprises and keepsakes. Bring an extra tote or duffle for everything you’ll be taking home with you. Brave Girl Camp is truly a once in a lifetime experience. (Note: tuition does not include airfare or other transportation to or from Boise.)
A few years ago, we had a family BBQ and someone brought these tart, tiny, summery “Lemon Blossoms” to share. Lives were changed that day. Ever since then, we have all been making (and enjoying) these little gems every chance we get.
These bite sized beauties have joined us at many Brave Girl Camps, always becoming a quick favorite. We think they are perfect for any occasion. They have a few steps and make a bit of a mess out of a kitchen, but we think they are totally worth it.
Start out by gathering your ingredients. I usually have most of these items on hand, so they are easy to throw together. (Somehow, I left butter out the picture–but it’s a MUST.)
Glaze:
4 cups confectioners’ sugar
1/3 cup fresh lemon juice
1 lemon, zested
3 tablespoons melted butter
3 tablespoons water
Preheat your oven to 350 degrees and prepare a mini muffin tin with cooking spray. Mix together the cake mix, pudding mix, eggs & oil. It will make a pretty thick, glossy batter.
Fill your muffin tins about 2/3 full and bake for 10-12 minutes or until golden brown.
In the meantime, prepare the glaze by combining the powdered sugar, butter, water, lemon juice & lemon zest. Set aside.
Once muffins are done, cool in the pan for 2-3 minutes, then turn them out onto a towel. Flip them right side up and allow to cool for a couple more minutes.
While they are still warm, dip them in the glaze, covering them completley. Place on a wire rack to cool & dry completley.
Try not to snatch them right off the cooling rack just yet. Once the glaze dries, it transforms these ordinary little muffins into a lemony-glazed-donut-type-of-treat that you will just adore. I can promise you that.
Once they are all set and ready for thier big debut, plate them up and share them with someone you love!
I hope you love them as much as we do!
LEMON BLOSSOMS
(Modified from a recipe by Paula Deen)
Ingredients:
18 1/2-ounce package yellow cake mix
3 1/2-ounce package instant lemon pudding mix
4 large eggs
3/4 cup vegetable oil
Glaze:
4 cups confectioners’ sugar
1/3 cup fresh lemon juice
1 lemon, zested
3 tablespoons melted butter
3 tablespoons water
Directions
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
Spray miniature muffin tins with vegetable oil cooking spray. Combine the cake mix, pudding mix, eggs and oil and blend well with an electric mixer until smooth, about 2 minutes. Pour a small amount of batter, filling each muffin tin half way. Bake for 12 minutes. Turn out onto a tea towel
To make the glaze, sift the sugar into a mixing bowl. Add the lemon juice, zest, oil, and 3 tablespoons water. Mix with a spoon until smooth.
With fingers, dip the cupcakes into the glaze while they’re still warm, covering as much of the cake as possible, or spoon the glaze over the warm cupcakes, turning them to completely coat. Place on wire racks with waxed paper underneath to catch any drips. Let the glaze set thoroughly, about 1 hour, before storing in containers with tight-fitting lids.
It’s that time again, and we can HARDLY believe it’s here already. On Monday, we leave for McCall, Idaho for another Brave Girl Camp!! We are actually hosting 2 camps right in a row this time – a Brave Girl Camp and right after that, a Mother/Daughter Camp. We are soooooooooo excited…so excited that even though we had TWO camps to prepare for instead of just one, we have already finished everything (a record for us)….all the sewing, the cooking, even the packing! We are all ready to go and we can’t WAIT to meet the incredible women who will be joining us for 5 days of life-changing FUN! (The more I say about it, the more excited I get – I CAN’T WAIT!!!)
It takes a LOT of people and a LOT of work to get ready for Brave Girl Camp. We are lucky to have awesome employees and awesome friends who are so willing to help us get ready. I can’t show you EVERYTHING (I don’t want to ruin the surprise for the sweet Brave Girls we’ll spend next week with!) but here’s a peek at what we’ve been working on…
We’ve gone through a LOT of fabric and logged hours and hours on our sewing machines…
Every Brave Girl needs one of these…
Curriculum….all printed and tucked away in folders…waiting for the magic that’s about to happen!
Can’t show you what’s in here…just know it’s awesome… ; )
One of the best parts of making handmade treasures is seeing the names of our Brave Girls over and over…we love thinking of you as we sew and stamp and lovingly package each and every little gift…
Every girl deserves pretty flowers….only the BEST for our girls…
The response to our Apron Challenge was AWESOME!! And we can’t stop looking at the pictures – they are soooo beautiful! Thank you so much for sending them in!! This has been so fun!
We were originally going to do a blog post that included all of the pictures that were sent in, but there were so many that the post would have been too long! So we made a video….enjoy!
Friday at Brave Girl Camp has the structure of Wednesday with the feelings of Thursday. It’s magical…and we try to hold on to the magic as long as we can. Nobody talks about how it’s our last day….kind of like we’re all in denial about camp ending at all! We enjoy every second together.
Brave Girl Camp is full of traditions and on Friday they are in full swing…like the song, “Everybody” that we play when it’s time to eat. By Friday everyone knows the words and sings along. Sometimes dancing even breaks out around the table as we get ready to sit down. So fun!
On Friday we have some special traditions. The first is that we always take a group picture in white shirts with colorful jewelry. Look at all our beauties from camp this last February – aren’t they lovely??
We love all our Brave Girls sooooo much!! Wish you could meet each one – they are absolutely spectacular women! {YOU included…even if you haven’t been to BGC yet – you are phenomenal and we LOVE YOU! Can’t wait til we get to meet in person!!}
And then of course while we’re all prettied up, we spend some time taking pictures with each of our dearies:
And how awesome is it that even though we’re going home tomorrow {which we are all still in denial about and don’t even mention} we have all of these incredible friends to hold hands with for the rest of our lives – no matter where we live…we are connected forever.
Friday tradition number 2 is the Art Gallery. After dinner, we are all invited to get whatever art we want to share with everyone and put it on display in the dining room. As we’re getting ready for our music night (tradition #3), we all take some time to go around the tables in the dining room and see what everybody’s made. It is incredible what can be done in just 4 short days!
And then, of course, there is the variety show…or music night. It seems to take on it’s own life with each camp – each one is a little different. For February 2011, we could definitely call Friday night’s music a variety show!
We have been preparing for months – practicing our guitars and finding new songs to share…
And when Friday night comes – we are READY!
At this camp, the show started out with Grandpa (Kallie speaking – this is MY Grandpa….he is Kathy and Melody’s dad…but everyone just calls him Grandpa. He and Grandma come to every camp and love our Brave Girls SO MUCH!). Anyway, Grandpa starts out the program by singing Muleskinner Blues, which is a song I’ve heard him sing at least one hundred times and I am just as enchanted now as I was when I was 5. It’s so fun to hear -
This is what it feels like to hear Grandpa sing…just try to hear it – “Well I’m an ol’ Muleskinner {Grandma chimes in with “ya you are!” from the audience} …from ol’ Kentu-hu-hu-huhu-ky…and I can make any ol’ mule listen…or I will not accept your pay…”
Since Grandpa is already standing up, he and Hilarie (one of our regular staff who knows every campfire song there is) treat us to The Battle of New Orleans…
In a word: awesome. And the awesomeness just keeps coming…
More silly songs – this time by Betsy, who is a guest:
A serious song, sung with a silly outfit because it is the only way to make it through…we call her Super Brave Girl…and she is…no cape required.
And we all chime in with our own verses to “Michael Row Your Boat Ashore”
And more Brave Girls sing us songs…
And if this were every other Friday night at Brave Girl Camp, this would be where it ended. But this Brave Girl Camp was during the very last week of our online class – Soul Restoration. And beautiful Brave Girls all over the world were on our minds and in our hearts. We wished each of them could be with us too…so we sang a special song for them…our song….the song that has been there from the beginning….
Before we know it, it’s time to go to bed for the very last time…but we still don’t admit it.
UPDATE! We’re almost ready to show all of the INCREDIBLE aprons that you have customized! We’ve received a lot of photos of your creative, colorful, artsy, soulful, amazing aprons…thank you so much! If you still want to participate, it’s not too late…just take a peek at the examples below and then get busy putting your personal touch on any apron (or make one from scratch). We want you to be part of our Apron Fashion Show, too! Just send your photo to Kallie (kallie@bravegirlsclub.com) before the end of March.
love,
kathy
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Original post from Feb 22:
Hi, my brave friends! I have a little Apron Fashion Show for you, and then a SUPER FUN CHALLENGE…but first, I wanted to share just a tiny bit of our story.
Melody and I spent years….I mean years talking about Brave Girls Club…planning it, dreaming about it, yearning for it. We knew what we wanted to do long before we had a name…for a long time we even had secret code names for it. We would often talk for HOURS about our plans….how we wanted everything to be, how we wanted it to feel, the community of brave women we wanted to build (including YOU…yes, YOU), and the healing art retreats we wanted to hold where beautiful things would happen….
A Brave Girl can never have too many ruffles and flowers on her apron, right?
When we started planning our very first Brave Girl Camp for October of 2009, we had already put major thought into every detail. We thought about the food and how it would look and how it would taste, we thought about the art room and the art supplies and the decorations. We thought about making art together and knew that we needed aprons for everyone so their clothes would be protected from mod podge and paint and all the other lovely things they would be working with. We wanted every second to be special; we wanted our sweet, loved Brave Girls to feel our love the second they arrived.
Here’s a photo from that first camp, right before the bus arrived and we all RAN out to meet our new Brave Girl friends. We were so excited and a little nervous! (Sorry about the picture quality – the original seems to be lost now…sad because this is such a treasured picture to me.)
Christy (my daughter in law), Chelsea and Kallie (my daughters), me, and our mother...dressed in our aprons and waiting for our first camp guests to arrive...little did we know of the tradition we were beginning with those aprons!
Since that first camp, Brave Girl aprons have taken on a life of their own. Now every camp guest and staff member gets one, and one of the ‘girliest’ things we do at camp is get out in the art room and find fabrics and ribbons and buttons and different treasures to ”bedazzle” and “beruffle” our aprons.
So here’s the Apron Fashion Show I promised….
…a few of the lovely, unique, colorful aprons some of our staff made at our last Brave Girl Camp.
Maria:
Hilarie:
Daphne:
Malary:
Liz:
Terry:
Kallie:
Kim:
Jeri Lynn:
(actually Jeri Lynn’s was done by the amazing Camille McClelland!)
Aren’t they FUN?! (I wish the photos had faces, lol!!) And the best part?? Once Brave Girl Camp gets going, many of our guests bedazzle their own aprons, so by the end we are all sporting colorful, artsy, soulful aprons. Pretty awesome!
Now it’s YOUR TURN…we’re passing the Apron Challenge on to you…
Just start with ANY apron and bedazzle it up! (If you want to start out with an apron with the Brave Girls Club logo on it, they are available in our BG Store -click on BGGear in the navigation bar. I’m not pushing you to buy one, I promise! But they are available there just in case you want one.).
Once your apron is done, send us a picture and we’ll include it in an upcoming Brave Girls video. I’m going to make a new one, and I’ll even model it for you in the video… (I’ll get Melody to model hers, too…she has one that’s covered in paint and other goop, and one that’s saved just for dress up, lol!)
Can’t wait to see what you come up with,
you talented, lovely girl!!
love, kathy
PS. Please make sure YOUR picture includes your pretty face! And email your apron photo to kallie@bravegirlsclub.com.