Sleepaway camp for the win!

The kids were at camp from July 23rd till August 18th.  My weeks without the kids in the house were very restful.  Without taking on any big projects that consume all of my time, I enjoyed the lazy days of summer.  It was delightful and I got very complacent in the art of doing nothing.

I had some time to reflect on what it means to me that we are able to give our kids this experience.  We've somehow made it a possibility to send them for 4 Summers, with more in the works for years to come.

We've seen amazing transformations in Samantha.  She has been able to be to grow emotionally and socially.  She adapts to living life in a bunk with 11 other girls and develops bonds with girls that are strengthened each year.  Her self esteem and self-confidence are on the rise.  Samantha knows she can tackle new situations and take care of herself.   Samantha won't be afraid to take chances in the future and isn't afraid to leave our side to explore a new world.  She is a brilliant thinker and comes up with creative out-of-the-box solutions to whatever dilemma she is facing.

Ian has a group of kids that he gets closer to with each passing Summer.  They pick up like no time has been lost. And it is wonderful to know these friendships will last a lifetime, no matter where life takes them.  This is a bond that transcends time and geography.  Ian has asked if he can go for the full Summer in 2020.  This is something Jeff and I are hoping to make happen for him.

One of the best things about camp is the no technology rule.  Anything that can connect to the internet and/or phone is prohibited.  And you know what?  The kids don't even miss it.  They get to be kids and enjoy running around, playing games, doing arts & crafts, singing songs, dancing, and telling stories.

It's a Jewish sleepaway camp and therefore, they are surrounded by kids who are just like them.  We do not live in a very big Jewish area, it's nice to know they are a part of this community.

I absolutely love how Samantha and Ian will randomly tell a story of something that happened months ago at camp.

A lot of sacrifices and compromises (with help also from financial aid) are needed to make sleepaway camp a reality.  It is not easy, but so worth it.  I know in a few years the kids will be too old to go, but the memories, experiences, boost in self-confidence, problem-solving, socialization, and being in a Jewish environment will last a lifetime.  That, in my opinion, is priceless.

Camp is awesome!

The kids are back from Camp Ramah!  And its a good thing too because the house was so quiet without them. 

How quiet was it?  Jeff (all on his own, without any prompting from me) said we could get a 2nd dog when Sam leaves for college.   Yep, you know the house must've been quiet. Like hear the mosquitoes buzzing around outside quiet.  The kind of quiet when Lucy was shedding some of her fur you could hear it hit the floor.  It was so quiet that we could hear the ice maker in the refrigerator make each ice cube. 

I've come to the conclusion that a month is too long for the kids to be gone.  We're used to them visiting the family in Orlando or doing Gramps Camp in Baltimore without us, but the difference is, its for much less than a month and we can still talk to them on the phone or see the kids thru facetime as much as we want.  It's hard to miss them so much when you still feel connected.

I honestly don't think I would've survived this past month without my friends Susanne and Dawn working at the camp.  Their texts, photos and videos they sent me made it bearable. I am so fortunate that they were able to check up on them, make sure Ian wasn't getting homesick, give them lots of hugs and report back to me what they were up to. 

Here's the thing -- the kids had a great time.  Even Ian who was so worried about being away from us for a month had a fabulous time.  They both want to go back next Summer.  So Jeff and I will try to work our magic and see if we can make the impossible possible again.   Fingers and toes are crossed.  Because as much as I miss them, I know this experience is so good for their development.  And to be in a setting that surrounds them with other Jewish kids is the icing on the cake.

Sam looks like she is up to no good!

That cucumber in Ian's hand never stood a chance.

It is so wonderful to see her so happy! 

 

At the airport picking up the kids! 

Everyone's happy to be going home!

It's what's happening: Sleepaway camp!

Somehow miraculously Jeff and I made it work to send both kids to sleepaway camp for a month this Summer.  Yes, a month!  From July 25th to August 20th, Ian and Sam are spending their time in Palmer, MA at a Jewish overnight camp called Camp Ramah.

I think its pretty awesome that Ian and Sam are able to have this time; to just be a kid, playing with other kids their age, doing games and activities, singing and dancing, and having fun in a structured environment.  The best part of all is, it's technology free.  No iPads, no cell phone, no xbox.

I love that they get to experience this. But boy do I miss them!  The house is super quiet.  And the camp photographer is not the best this year at taking photos.  Fortunately I have my friends Dawn and Susanne working at the camp.  They have been wonderful in sending me lots of awesome photos and videos and giving me great reports on what Ian and Sam are up to.

Reports from my spies:  Sam is eating nothing but noodles for lunch and dinner.  Ha!  Actually one morning's breakfast consisted of 3 (!) cinnamon rolls.  This bothers Jeff more than it does me.  You got to pick your battles, right?  As long as she is happy and eating something is all I want for her.

It's gotten to be something of a joke that Sam is eating so many noodles.  Susanne asked her at one meal where are her veggies?  Sam answered with "At home."   Dawn saw her holding an apple and commented on how much she loves apples too.  Sam replied with, "Don't get so excited, I am only holding it.".   Ha!   The best was when Dawn stopped her and recorded her reaction when she informed Sam of the unfortunate news that the camp ran out of noodles.  The reaction on Sam's face is priceless.  

Just another 10 days to go until I get to hug my babies again.  XOXO

My little stinker!

Even with Samantha at Sleep away camp 500 miles away, she has found a way to mess with me.   Yes, really.  While our communication is all one-sided with me emailing her and sending her packages, Samantha took what little she could and turned it into a moment to drive me crazy.

Due to our inability to find rain boots prior to finalizing packing Sam for camp, I Amazon Primed them to her to arrive the day after she did.  In each email I sent (on a daily basis, thank you very much), I'd mention how I hoped the rain boots fit; did the rain boots fit?   I even asked her to give me a thumbs up in one of the pictures she took as a sign to let me know all was well with the rain boots.  I gave myself an extra big pat on the back for thinking up this idea as a way for her to communicate back with me. 

My friend Susanne sees her one day and asks her about the rain boots.  Sam starts giggling and says she finds it funny that I keep asking her about them.  Yes, the rain boots fit fine, but she won't let me know that because it is too funny how I keep asking. 

THIS is what I am talking about....even with us being apart for 12 days, she managed to use what little spark she had and turn it into a flame.  I am both impressed with her ingenuity and frustrated by it too.   Got to give the girl credit; it is hard to be worried about her when she totally knows what she is doing. 

After studying in great detail every single picture I could find of her posted on the camp website, I have come to the following conclusions: 
1. She looks very happy. 
2. She looks at peace. 
3. It looks like she has made a few friends as some of the same girls keep showing up in different photos with her.
4. Someone must be doing her hair and having fun putting cute braids in it. 
5. Samantha truly looks like this is where she is meant to be. 

As much as I miss her dearly, I have this feeling of satisfaction that this camp is doing wonders for her confidence and self-esteem.  If I am reading these photos correctly, Samantha is flourishing. It is a beautiful thing to witness.

Sam at camp

Sam is at sleep away camp in Palmer, MA. I dropped her off on Tuesday, Aug. 9th, and it will be more than another full week until I get to see my little girl again on Aug. 21st.

I am doing my best to keep it together and not jump on a plane to go to the camp and see how she is doing.  I've got my spies and they've done an excellent job reporting back how it is going, but there is nothing like seeing firsthand what's up.

Oh, what I'd give to put on my cape to make myself invisible and really get close to her.  Make sure she isn't too homesick.  Make sure she is being friendly to the other girls in her bunk.  Make sure she having fun and enjoying all this camp has to offer.  And make sure she isn't swimming too deep at the lake.  Is she brushing her teeth every day?  Is she using enough shampoo and soap in the shower?  Is she realizing she will need to wear each pair of her pajamas her few times before they will get washed?  Oh my!  I know her.  Sam will not be happy if she puts her pajamas in her laundry bag and then realizes in 4 days that she needs to fish them all out to wear again.  This will not go over well. 

Sam is only 8 years old.  I am still in awe that this was her idea to want to go.  She was so excited and had the biggest smile on her face as we left for the airport at 5:45am to catch our flight.  I am not ready for her to want this much independence.  I know this is a good thing.  I know this is all part of growing up.  I know Jeff and I are giving her a fantastic opportunity that a lot of kids (especially ones that are only 8!) don't get a chance to do.  It's all well and good to remind myself of this --sometimes hourly -- but it doesn't fill the void of how much I miss her.  How much I want to speak with her and hear her voice.

I've been obsessing checking the camp website each night for pictures of her.  It's not enough for me to find a photo and see her looking clean, well-fed, doing a fun activity, smiling with a new friend or two.  Nooooo, I have to literally pick apart every single thing in the picture -- what is she wearing? Is this the same outfit in each photo posted of her that day or has she changed once, twice or three times?  Is she going to run out of clean clothes before they do their wash?  Can I gaze into her eyes and really figure out what she is thinking at that moment?  Is she truly as happy as she appears or is it is a fake smile for the sake of the camera?  What's going on with her hair?  Is this a ponytail she did herself or is the counselor helping her put her hair up?  Is she too hot?  Too cold?  Too wet from rain?

Since I left her on Tuesday, I've sent her a pair of rain boots, a new hair brush (one of my spies told me hers broke), 2 pairs of shorts, 2 t-shirts, (again, a fear of her running out of clean clothes) and a deck of Uno playing cards.  Thank G-d for Amazon prime.  I've also sent her an email each night, put 3 real cards in the mail to her, and had Ian send her a card.

No, I don't think I have a problem. :)  Nothing that can't be solved around 10:00pm on Sunday, August 21st when Sam returns home.  

Ian is back from camp! (Part 2)

Ian writes about his time at sleepaway camp.  These are Ian's direct words:

Day Four:  I lost my hat and one of my water bottles.  Other than that it was a pretty good day. It was our first day for free swim in the lake where we had to have buddies and I was fine with that.  One of the 5 Eli's (not the Eli with digital photography) was my buddy.  Also today was Friday, which meant we would have a special service at night before dinner.  It featured the Miriam dance, an Israeli dance that is for celebrations.  For dinner on Shabbat, there is chicken noodle soup, vanilla chicken (It was surprisingly very good!), and some challah.  We made our own challah the first shabbat.  I learned quickly that the Shabbat brownies were absolutely delicious.

They let us stay up extra late -- only 15 minutes.  We played Mafia again and then finally went to bed. 

The next day we could do whatever we wanted.  It was free time for the whole day.  There was no cleaning up the cabin.  Instead of waking us up at 7:10am, they woke us up at 8:10am, so we could be ready for services.  In the middle of services we had breakfast.  Shabbat breakfast was danish, fruit salad, hard boiled eggs.  After breakfast was the Torah service.  In the middle, my edah (age group) left so we could do our own activity.  After that the whole day was free choice.  For the first hour I went to the lake.  After that I played Ga-ga and then it was time for lunch.  Lunch was cold cut meats and bread.  I was not a big fan of the cold cuts. 

After lunch I went back to the lake.  Then I played card games with Myon (one of the girl's counselors).  We played Apples to Apples.  After, I went down to the basketball court and played basketball with some people I knew and some people I didn't know.  Then it was time for dinner.  We had chili.  It was very bad.  That was the end of Shabbat.

The next day I found my water bottle.  Then I lost my other water bottle.  I still hadn't found my hat.  It was a normal day besides that.  And so was the next couple of days until Thursday.  That's when we had a special day where we had no activities and did something called Yom Galaxy.  This is where the counselors dressed us up in tin foil and pretended those were armored suits to fight the aliens (counselors).  They said to defeat them we needed to make them laugh and then capture them while chasing them.  I made the counselors laugh by doing the hokey pokey and tripped over my water bottle on purpose but made it look realistic.  I also captured Nir, one of our counselors.  That was a very fun day!  I also found my hat.

The next Shabbat was exactly like the last Shabbat, except instead of chicken noodle soup it was matzo ball soup.  I had a lot of fun.  After that it was day 10 and I was going home soon.  Instead of me packing, the counselors packed for us. But they put 2 days of clothes in a trash bag for us that we would live out of for the next 2 days.  I survived.  Finally Tuesday came.  I was ready to go home.  I ate breakfast early and was off to the airport at about 9:00am.  My luggage was under the weight restriction at the airport for 50 pounds.  I got on the plane and went home.  I met dad at the gate. 

I had a very good time at camp. I made a couple of friends.  I am thinking about going back next year.  Now I am done.  Good-bye.


This is from Me (Robyn):

Pictures posted of Ian on the camp website were far and few between.  Here they are:

These last few days Ian has been randomly saying, "If I was at camp right now, I'd be...." and filling in the blank on what he'd be doing.  I think he really had a great time.  I also asked him if he had gotten homesick at any point.  Ian said once on the 2nd day.  It happened at 9:00pm as he was trying to fall asleep.  Ian said it lasted about 10 minutes. 

I love that Ian was able to experience this.  He exceeded his expectations and mine on being away longer than a week and still having a great time.  I am proud of him for wanting to give it a try.

Ian is back from camp!

It has been an exciting couple of weeks.  I will start my blog about my trip to Israel very soon (so much to write about!), but first I wanted to give a recap of Ian at sleepaway camp (Camp Ramah in New England).  It is so good to have us all back under one roof. 

 

I am letting Ian tell you about his adventures in his own words:

 

Instead of driving, I decide to fly with the other kids going to camp.  My mom walked me to the gate and I boarded the plane. When I got to the airport in Connecticut, I got off the plane and followed the group of the people going to Camp Ramah.  I got my luggage and boarded a big school bus that took us to camp.  When we got there we were welcomed to a big carnival and BBQ.  I had a lot of fun.  At the BBQ, I had a hot dog, a bag of chips, and water.  After that I met everyone in my cabin and unpacked.  The counselors helped me with making my bed and unpacking.

 

I was having a lot of fun so far and we had dinner after the carnival. It turned out today was luau day and it was a Hawaiian themed dinner.  Which included sweet and sour chicken, which was not that good.  Rice that was ok.  And some other stuff like Hawaiian punch.

 

After dinner, we went swimming in the agam (lake).  I had my swim test like everyone else.  I was a level 3 swimmer out of 5 levels.  I was able to swim in B water.  There was 4 waters.  A water was the lowest, B water was second lowest, then C water and finally D water was the highest.  The majority was in A water.  After the swimming (2 hours later) I got checked by the Marp (doctors office) to see if I had lice or had a cold. I was fine.  After that we took showers and we met up with the other Kochavim bunk and did an activity.  Finally we went to bed at about 8:45pm.

 

The next morning I woke up around 7:10am when one of the counselors put on music from the 70s to wake us up.  It took awhile to wake up one of my fellow bunk mates.  And it took everyone in the bunk to wake him up.  It took about a half hour.  After that we got ready for the prayers.  After prayers, we went to breakfast.  Breakfast was eggs, diced potatoes and onions.  The eggs were scrambled.  The food was pretty good.  And I got some blueberry yogurt from the yogurt bar.  It was a good breakfast.  At about 9:00am, we went back to the cabin and cleaned up, which was very dirty to our surprise.  My job that day was sweeping.

 

After we cleaned up we went to Hinuch (learning about the Torah).  We went to our first activity.  Mine was football.  We met the coach and he was very nice.  The first day we didn't do any real games, just a lot of drills.  After we were done, we went to singing and dancing.  First came singing which was very boring.  Then came dancing, which we only learned Zeben Zeben (an Israeli dance), which was sort of fun, but not that fun. After came lunch, a very important meal.  The dance teacher told us we were having grilled cheese for lunch and she was right.  It was ok, not the best. 

 

After lunch came rest hour, where they forced us to rest and also handed out the mail.  That day I got a care package and about 20 letters.   In the care package from Aunt Lori, I got a card game called Uno.  I played it with my new friends I made.  After rest hour with a guy named Eli (one of 5), we went to digital photography, which we both agreed was very boring.  All we did was take pictures of stuff and look at them online.  I quit digital photography and took hockey instead.  I went to get my bathing suit, because right after was had agam (lake).  Today was swim lessons and I was doing relay races in B water.  The water was warmish.  After agam (lake), I had to rush back to the cabin and I had to get back into my clothes because I had softball.  During softball we played a game called pickle and did an actual softball game.  My team won 2-1. 

 

After softball we had free time.  I played a game called Ga-ga.  It's an Israeli sport like dodgeball in an enclosed space.  Except there are no teams, its every man for himself.  I lost.  And so did mostly everyone else.  After free time, we had dinner.  I don't really remember what it was, but it was probably good.   After dinner we had an activity.  We played Mafia - like a game where someone is a doctor, a murder, etc.  I was the murderer and I won. I can cover up lies very well.  After that we took showers and got ready for bed.  Liron, one of my counselors was singing to help us go to bed. 

 

The next day we went to prayers and I led the Barchu.  The rest of the day was a normal day at camp.  The only thing that wasn't normal instead of digital photography I switched hockey, which was much more fun. I scored one goal.

 

The first 3 days of camp was fun. I was looking forward to more days like those. 

 

(STAY TUNED FOR MORE FROM IAN.  HE HAS LOTS TO SAY!)

 

From Me (Robyn):

 

Even while in Israel, I was still stalking the camp website every day looking for pictures of Ian during his time at sleepaway camp.  July 3rd was the best yet in terms of what I found. I had to share. I think you will get a good laugh.

Can I just say the kid with the green shirt looks like he is barely moving, and Ian (wearing his favorite red Nationals shirt) looks like he flying! However, when you see the follow-up photo, it is quite obvious the kid with the green shirt must be moving pretty fast.

Kudos to Ian for keeping it interesting while he is away. I loved getting to see the before and after photo on what happened with trying to stop the kid who had the football.  

 

 

 

 

And he's off!

It was a crazy scene and there were 75 kids on Ian's flight going to camp.  He didn't know anyone!!

I can't believe I was okay putting Ian on a plane by himself.  What was I thinking!?!?!   When the big day came, I started questioning my judgement.    Maybe I should quickly purchase a last minute ticket and join him.  I could go there and back all in the same day.  As long as I was available to get Sam from school at 3:45pm, it could've been our little secret.

However, Ian was great.  He didn't cry or look like he was even close to wanting to cry.  At one point he did look a little nervous and I asked him if he wanted to be able to sit next to Lori, the one adult chaperone assigned to his flight.  Ian nodded yes and I went to work.  I liked being a mom with a mission.  Anything to help me (and him) feel better about this experience. 

Lori was amazing and immediately said "Yes".  In fact she went one step further and immediately told Ian she would LOVE to sit next to him.  Lori instructed Ian that once Ian gets on the plane, save a seat for her next to him.  She would take the aisle and he would have the window.  She said she needed to board last, but he should get their seats closer to the front of the plane and she'll find him.

It was only after Ian got on the plane that I allowed the tears to flow.  All the parents who were doing drop-off waited around until the plane backed away from the gate and started down the runway.  A big cheer could be heard at Gate 7 as the plane took off.  Aw, there goes my baby.

Lori (completely on her own, I didn't even give her my cell phone #), texted me a few hours later and told me that Ian did great on the flight and she was very happy to have him as her seatmate.  She then said she made sure he connected with his counselor once the bus pulled into camp. And Ian instantly went to him and took off.  Lori is now my new BFF.  Love her!!

Ian is now at camp.  I am now a mess.  I am stalking the website looking for him posted in the photos section.  I've doubled my efforts in communicating with him and send him emails daily (sometimes 2 a day) and also put cards in the mail.  It has become a full-time job letting Ian know we are thinking about him.  I am doing my best to not write "I miss you".  I want him to have fun and not worry about me missing him.  But PUHLEEAZE!!!!  How can I not miss him!?!?! 

I can only hope that he writes me a letter (that I get) before I leave for Israel on Sunday. Ian can only do snail mail.  So this not-so-patient mom is doing her best to occupy herself with other things than waiting for the mailman to deliver the mail. 

I don't know which was more momentous -- Ian getting on a plane not knowing anyone or me being ok with it.  It's hard to be a helicopter parent in these conditions. 

Sleepaway camp...it's happening!

We all thought Ian didn't want do sleepaway camp again...at least not this coming Summer.  While he had a great experience at his Yotair session (3 nights, 4 days for first-timers) at Capital Camps last year, he said going for anything longer than a week was way too long to be away.  Despite Ian breaking into funny stories throughout the year of his time at camp, he held his ground on not wanting to go back every time I'd say, "You SURE you don't want to go?!!?!"   By January we stopped talking about it.  I didn't want Ian to feel persuaded to do something he wasn't ready for.  He did ask if he could take this Summer off and maybe go again the following year (Summer 2015). 

About 2 weeks ago, the Rabbi at our synagogue came to us with a special opportunity.  Camp Ramah had added on a few mini sessions (12 days in length) to the beginning of the Summer.  Someone (don't know who) had made a very big donation for a few kids to go at a reduced rate.  It would cost us 1/2 the usual amount to send Ian.  Sleepaway camp is already a crazy-amount of money.  At 1/2 off, it is now only 1/2 crazy.  But somehow we could make it happen for Ian, if that is what he wanted.  We told the Rabbi how Ian didn't want to be gone for that long, but we would present the opportunity to him (yet again!) and see what his reaction was.

Later that night, Jeff and I sat Ian down and told him what the Rabbi talked to us about.  Right away Ian said no, 12 days was too long.  If it was a week, it would be ok, but not 12 days.  I wrote an email back to the Rabbi and said, thanks but no thanks. Ian is still not interested.

Two days later Ian gets in the car and says his friend asked him if he was going to Camp Ramah.  Ian told him, "I might be."  WHAT!?!?!?!  I stopped driving, turned around and said,  "Huh?  You might be?"  I guess Ian was thinking about it for the past two days and he decided he would go for it.  Even if he didn't know anyone else going.  WOW!!!  

I figured out that Ian was scared.  Scared to be gone that long.  I told him he can't live his life in fear.  He will cut himself off from so many wonderful experiences if he lets fear get the better of him.  I told him I will track down a kid or two and get them a play date before camp starts.  I also told him he can meet the Rabbi's wife who spends all summer at the Camp.  She has offered to be a point of contact for Ian if he needs anything.

As we continued driving home I made a comment that we will now be kicking off our summer by driving to the New England area (where Camp Ramah is located) and dropping Ian off at camp.  He quickly replied with, "No mom, I will fly there with the other kids."   I was shocked that he was okay with that.  The camp sends an adult to accompany the minors, but Ian is going on his own.  Drop off happens at BWI.  Yowzer!!

Ian is officially registered for camp. From June 24th to July 6th he will get to experience Camp Ramah.  Summer has just gotten real!

Ian's thoughts

Ian takes over my blog and becomes a guest writer.  There is no better way to hear about his week at camp then directly from him.

As told to me by Ian:

I thought it was a good experience for me to try out.  I had a good time.  The food was good.  My favorite food was the spaghetti and meatballs.  And my favorite breakfast food was the scrambled eggs.  Both of them were DELICIOUS!  For the desserts, there were cookies, brownies, one time we had cake, more cookies and brownies, chocolate bars.  To drink they gave us: fruit punch, orange juice, water, and lemonade.  For snacks, they gave us the choice of chocolate bars, twizzlers, oreo cookies, and I don't remember the last one.  To drink with the snacks they gave us all different kinds of gatorade.  My favorite kind of gatorade is the red kind.  Also to drink they gave us the choice of water.  And that's it; water and gatorade.   On the last day for breakfast, we had french toast with syrup, yogurt, oatmeal, and bagels.  For lunch we had taco meat, hamburger buns (but they forgot to give us these until we were cleaning up).  And for every meal there was salad, buttered noodles (even for breakfast) and tuna fish.  I had salad with every meal.  Basically all I put in there was pineapple and lettuce.  Sometimes we had french fries.  The french fries were delicious!  And when we had hot dogs and hamburgers, I had one of the best hamburgers I ever had!

My favorite thing to do was go to the mud course.  What we did was what the Marines had to do.  But the Marines had less than a minute to do this.  And our times were about one minute, five seconds.

My least favorite thing to do was go to the lake.  The water was way too cold. It was freezing!  And I just wanted to get out of there.  But on the second time we went to the lake, me and Dagan built a castle with a waterfall with beach toys the lifeguard gave us.  And we used the bucket to scoop up water and made a waterfall that connected into the lake, in small creek we made.  It looked very cool!

We also had to do some chores at camp.  We made our beds. We helped clear the tables. And, no one asked us to brush our teeth or get dressed, but we did that on our own.  We did this when the counselors were still sleeping and surprised them.

I went with two of my friends, Dagan and Jeremy.  And I met a new friend named, Zach.  There were also two other kids in my cabin named Bennett and Micah.  And we had four counselors for the six of us.  Their names were Ron, Joe, Aaron, and Adir.  My favorite counselor was Joe.  Ron let me borrow his back pack.  I had so much fun with all my counselors.

I shared a bunk bed with Jeremy.  He got the top bunk and I got the bottom bunk.  Just like both of us wanted.  Zach and Dagan shared the bunk bed right next to us. Zach got the bottom and Dagan got the top. And Bennett and Micah shared another set of bunk beds.  Bennett was on the bottom, Micah was on the top.  There were little closets on the end of the bunk beds.  Jeremy and I both unpacked our clothes and hung our laundry bags on the bunk beds. We were the first ones to pick out our bunk beds.  That's how we chose where we wanted to sleep.

I had so much fun at Sleepaway camp.  But I don't want to go next year because I don't want to be away from my family for 2 weeks, 3 weeks, or 4 weeks.  I wish they had one week sessions for the regular campers who return.

The first night we put on a little play.  And we did our bunk name (Mem) and we did "Mem was for Madness" and acted it out.  Then we went on with all that and did "Mem was for Magic", but most of all "Mem is for Menucha (rest)"  And then we all acted like we were asleep.

On the third night, there was a talent show.  Our talent was soccer and I kept diving in trying to block the ball from getting into goal.  Zach tried kicking it in, but I kept blocking it. He did all these tricks.  He kicked the ball into the crowd.  Then the last time he finally made a goal on the 5th time.

On the last day of camp, they had a slide show and I was in there 11 times!!  I had no idea I was so popular at camp!  And every different picture, I was in a different set of clothes.  Mom thought that was very weird that I kept changing my clothes so many times.  But I didn't think it was weird because they told me to change clothes every time.  Every time I changed clothes, I felt more comfortable and lighter. 

After we woke up, got dressed and packed our bag for the day, we went to breakfast about 8:00am.  Then we did some activities after breakfast, then we had lunch at 12:00pm.  Then after a couple more activities and showers (during the 5:00pm shower hour), we had dinner at 6:00pm.  Every time we had breakfast, lunch and dinner, everyone of us was so hungry. 

I liked camp a lot. 

And....he's back!

It was a very long 4 days not hearing from Ian.  I was glued to my computer each morning, eagerly (and obnoxiously) checking for the newsletter and photos that were taken of the kids from the day before.  Boy, did I miss that kid.  The photos all looked like he was having a blast. But hearing from him "I'm ok." would've been worth millions to me.

As mentioned previously, we were able to send emails, but no return communication could be given.  Kudos to my family and Jeff's for going above and beyond on writing to Ian.  He said he received more email than all the other campers in his bunk combined!  

Finally, Friday afternoon came and it was time to go meet his bus.  I picked Sam up from camp early and we got to the meeting spot a good 10 minutes before necessary -- you know, just in case.  Unfortunately, the bus was more than 30 minutes late (it was supposed to arrive between 3:00 to 3:30pm and didn't show up until close to 4:00pm).  Each minute waiting felt like an hour. 

Sam entertained herself playing with my sunroof.

I've never been so happy to see a bus pull up. 

Here comes the bus!

Ian getting off the bus.

As I am hugging Ian and giving him lots of kisses, he says to me, "Can I have control of the tv for the rest of the day?"   Yes, Ian, Yes!  Of course you can.

Sam:  NO WAY!  I WANT THE TV TOO!  I haven't had it all day.  I've been stuck at camp.  That's not fair to let Ian have it the rest of the day.

Me:  Sam, let's remember we missed Ian and want to welcome him home.

Sam:  I DIDN'T MISS HIM!  I DIDN'T MISS HIM AT ALL!

Yes, that's what went down in the parking lot.  Moments after getting to see Ian again.  Lovely.  Everything is back to normal.

Stay tuned for Ian's thoughts about sleepaway camp.

Sleepaway camp. It's happening right now.

Ian woke-up yesterday with a huge smile on his face and said, "I can't believe today is finally here."

All packed and ready to go. Everything but the kitchen sink is
in that bag.

Yes, the day FINALLY arrived!  It seemed like forever ago that we made the trek to Capital Camps in Waynesboro, PA and took a tour of the place.   And it seemed like it was months ago that I filled out the gazillion forms and sent them in, along with our check. 

It was easy to come up with this idea to let Ian go to sleepaway camp.  Surely, when you are talking about something back in January, the day to actually say good-bye was never going to materialize.  August 13th seemed a ridculous amount of time into the future.  We had so many plans and life to live before that day ever came. 

But. Yesterday. Happened.  Sam got dropped off at her camp at 8:00am.  We needed to be at Ian's drop-off at point to meet the bus at 8:30am.  Perfect timing.  They don't let the parents drive up to the camp to drop off the kids.  And, they don't let them drive back to the camp to pick them up.  I can totally understand why now.  I am pretty sure I wouldn't have left.  I can see myself now saying, "Oh, this twin bunk bed is perfectly big enough for the both of us.  I'll just leave in the morning."  Or, "How about I just stay through dinner and then take-off?"   Ha!  Plus, all the unpacking would've been done by me.  I would make sure everything was perfectly in its place and probably even put his clothes in the order he should wear them, making sure each top matched its intended bottom.  And don't even get me started about making his bed for him. 

I thought it would be relatively easy to say "Bye Ian. Have a great time.  I love you."  I've had a few years experience now doing it every Summer with my family.  But here's the thing that I forgot to remember with that situation -- those people he had been left with for a week or two each Summer were MY FAMILY (or Jeff's).  These are people who were responsible for our upbringing.  I know they are in great hands.  I know they will be fine.  And I know I can call as much as I want; usually 2 to 3 times a day.  And I can skype! 

With Ian at sleepaway camp, it will be a one-way communication.  And I need to be ok with that.  I sent one letter in the mail.  It had to be mailed last week to ensure it got to him while he was still there.  And we can email him each day.  There is a link to a newsletter each morning by 9:30am, letting us know what the campers did the day before.  And there will be pictures posted that we can look for Ian and hopefully see him.

I am so incredibly excited for Ian that he is getting this experience.  I know it will be good for him.  We loved the tour we took.  And this week is a special "Yotair" week.  It means, rookie.  All the campers are rising 2nd, 3rd, and 4th graders who have never done sleepaway camp before.  They are all first-timers.  I really like that.  Ian will be among 119 other kids all in the same boat.  That makes me feel better too.  And knowing he has two friends with him helps greatly.

Ian is a great kid.  He has an amazing head on his shoulders and uses good judgement.  But he is still my baby.  And I want to do whatever I can to protect him.  I like hearing about his day.  I like being excited for him, giving him a high five when something cool happened to him.  And I like being able to give him hugs if something unpleasant happened with a friend.  How can all this wait until the end of the week?  How will he remember every thing he wants to tell me 4 days later? 

This is a pretty big milestone.  Ian is now creating many memories and experiences all on his own, for days at a time.  There can be no interference or guidance from me.  I have to hope that he makes smart choices and remembers to say "please" and "thank you" all by himself. 

I held it together until I saw the bus pull away.  Then it hit me.  Ian was really going.  I looked at my good friend, who dropped off TWO of her kids for this Yotair week, and the tears started to form.  I was a bit of a mess getting in the car, making my way to work for The Crazy Man.  I took a wrong turn and went 8 minutes out of my way.   Then the email came that the bus arrived safely.  Wow, that news caused me to tear up all over again.  He is now officially there.

The bus pulling away.
I'm still stnading there, in the parking lot, waving like a big fool!

Admittedly so, I am a helicopter parent.  And I've been grounded until Friday afternoon.  By the way, before he even left, Ian had already been making plans to be gone all next summer.  I'm starting the collections now for that deposit check and the big box of kleenex I'll need.  Oy!