Monday
Drop Linus off at camp. He went with his friend, Alex. Linus was a little annoyed to find out he was in Tonga again. I think he had dreams of Snoqualmie Lodge. Another boy from school happened to be in his cabin too.
From camp, we drove to first to Target and I did some school shopping with the other two. Then we were off to Ballard to take Robin to the doctor for a massive ear infection.
Tuesday
We had a nice slow morning. I cleaned house. We had frozen yogurt. I got to go to the eye dr.
Wednesday
I drove Eileen to camp for mini-camp (4 days instead of 6). She was so excited. Apparently, it was former staffs' kids go to camp week.
Thursday
We enjoyed another slow morning (ie I slept in and let Robin play on the ipad). Then we investigated a new park (Bothell Landing). We walked the trails, climbed and slid on the playground, and played Pooh sticks on the bridge. Let it be known that I won.
In the afternoon, Robin patiently allowed me to have a 3 hour meeting with my school principal about the master schedule.
Down to one kid, it was a little simpler to find childcare. Dave and I went on a date!
Friday
In the morning another teacher friend and her two little ones came over to play. I graciously offered to hold the baby and put her to sleep. I was surprised that Robin actually engaged the little 18 month old boy. Generally, Robin is not awesome with kids younger than him.
In the afternoon we helped Aunt Sally run errands in Ballard. We took her to a toy store. We introduced her to Full Tilt Ice Cream and made time for a little video game and pinball playing.
Robin with Blue Moon.
Saturday
We picked up the kids from camp. Eileen was in a cabin with the kids of two former staff. She had a great time.
What were the names of the other kids in your cabin? I don't know.
What was the name of your counselor? I don't know.
What was the best part of camp? Pool. Everything. I even went off the diving board ten times! (This is huge as Eileen is generally scared of things like water slides and diving boards.)
Why yes Eileen is wearing 3 shirts - the shirt she put on before breakfast, her new camper t-shirt, and her new tie dye shirt that you can tell she did "with no help."
Linus had a mixed experience. He liked his counselors and had fun. It sounds like there were some boys in the lodge that made things difficult. Linus had his heart set on a few activities that didn't happen. Good news? He still wants to go back and he has big plans for next year.
When he packed for camp, Linus only packed one change of clothes and no underwear. He straight up told me it wasn't going to be necessary to change his clothes. I went ahead and added some more clothes and underwear to his bag. I can confirm Linus did change his clothes at least twice. He brushed his teeth once. He did shower, but did not use soap.
Robin missed his people. He had a hard time sleeping at night, knowing Linus wasn't there.
I missed the big kids, but I loved the relaxed nature of just one kid, particularly one who is more likely to go with the flow. I think Robin enjoyed all of our special time together. I went back to work when he was one. He didn't get as much time with me as a stay at home mom.
"Helping" me with the laundry.
Camp continues to be a happy place for my kids. They talk about summer camp all year long. Some people are shocked when they hear I send my kids away overnight, even as a 6 or 7 year old. My response, "Why wouldn't I? It's awesome."
- They have fun.
- They gain independence.
- They play hard.
- There is no screen time battle. There are no screens at camp.
- I get a guilt free break.
- In this case, my youngest got some much needed alone time with both his parents.
If they let kids entering kindergarten go to mini-camp next year, I will be signing Robin up. He is insanely jealous that his siblings got to go.
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