I posted this blog on MySpace. It's a fun story. I laugh about it now...okay, I was laughing about it then too!

In the summer of 2005, we took some of the kids camping in an area in southern Romania. This trip was particularly memorable and fun. We bought fish from a fish farm and taught the kids how to play "Big Booty" during a thunderstorm.

We spent a lot of time hiking and this is when I first decided that Romania is one of the most beautiful places in the world (once you get away from the dirty cities). There was a large stream that flowed through this area and the waterfalls were amazing.
On our second day of hiking, we planned to hike 8 hours (4 hours going and four coming back). This entire area had been flooded only weeks before we had been there so it was still very muddy and there were a lot of fallen trees and debris that had been washed ashore during the flood. We came to one part of the trail that ended in a rock wall.

Now, we were not prepared to climb with 11 kids so we back-tracked a little and figured out that the trail actually crossed the river. This part of the river was moving a lot faster than the other parts so I thought that we would just turn back to camp. Haha...no, I assumed too quickly. Our adult chaperones (namely Matt, Walter and Raluca) thought it would be a great experience for the kids to cross the river. They thought that it would teach the kids about overcoming challenges and give them a sense of accomplishment. Plus, it was hot that day and it would cool everyone off.
Doina, one of the Romanian staff members firmly declared that she would not be crossing the river and instead volunteered to take pictures of this grand event. A couple of the kids (Sanda and Robi) also decided not to cross. Originally, I opted for the dry look and decided to stay with Doina and the kids.

This was very entertaining and I have some great pictures as Matt, Walter and Raluca carefully guided the kids across the river. It was about thigh-deep on the adults and well over waist deep on the kids. The current was very strong so when it got deep, Matt and Walter would lift one kids between them and carry them across. Raluca carried Teodora and Simona across on her back. Eventually they managed to get all of the kids safely across.

Then Matt and Walter came back and began begging me to cross with them. I am not afraid of water (in fact I love being in the water) and I'm a very strong swimmer (I competed in high school and worked as a lifeguard and swimming instructor for three years), but I did not want to walk all the way back to camp dripping wet (it took about 4 hours). I was also wearing jeans so they would get wet and wouldn't dry for a long time. So I ignored them at first.

However, somehow they managed to convince me and I found myself wading into the river with my jeans rolled up to my knees. Here, I discovered the challenging part. The river bed was not soft sand, but was covered with rocks, some rough and some smooth and slippery. Wading hurt my feet so bad! So Matt and Walter came along to carry me across like the kids. I argued that I was too heavy, but I knew this argument wouldn't go far because I'm just as little as the kids and probably weigh less than some of them.

So I found myself being carried across between Matt and Walter. But it doesn't end there. Matt took two steps and then stumbled on a rock. He tried to steady himself, but managed to lose his balance and we both fell in. Matt's really tall so he barely got wet at all, but I went completely in. The only part of me that didn't get wet was my head. The water was so cold and I stood up but we were still in the current so I fell in again.

At this point, I figured I was already as wet as I could get so I waded the rest of the way across by myself. Matt and Walter were no help! So much for their promise, "Oh, you won't get wet. We'll carry you." Ha! All of the kids managed to get across without falling in but of course I'm always the lucky one.

Afterwards, the kids were joking about my "baptism" with Doina, but she firmly proclaimed that it didn't count because my head didn't go under.