The Davis Family: Camp

I had planned to send Evan and Ben to a camp at their preschool this summer. However, it was cancelled and I was left high and dry. I didn't know what I was going to do. Then, in a happy coincidence, one day when I was at the West Point in the Eno park one day exploring the river with some friends, I ran into some people who work for the Schoolhouse of Wonder. I didn't know much about them except that they have outdoor programs for kids at the park. We talked for a while, and my friend Kat and I told them we would help them start a program for preschoolers. While we were there, they also talked about their summer camp for older kids and it sounded great. I decided to give it a try and Evan and Kat's son Elliot were signed up.

Now, this camp was a whole day camp that ran for a week. Evan had never done a full day camp before so I didn't know how it would go. I was incredibly nervous as I packed his lunch and backpack and greased him up with sunblock and bug spray. I was praying that everything would go well. His group would only be 5-7 year olds so I felt good about him not being around kids that were that old. We arrived and got out of the car. He seemed excited and ready to go, and the counselors were great. They met us out in the field and signed him in.

Since the weather looked a bit iffy that week, I asked what they would do if it rained. They gave me a quizzical look and said, "Well, we do the same thing we do if it doesn't rain, and if there's a really bad thunderstorm, we go under a tarp." I thought that was really neat. They truly stayed outdoors all day and explored nature, whatever it brought. So, I kissed Evan goodbye, dropped him off, and Benny and I went off on our own adventures.

When I went to pick Evan up that afternoon at 3, they were all engrossed in some circle storytime, and I had to wait until they finished to even try to get Evan's attention. He had a great time! There was a little hiccup the next day when I mentioned something fun I was doing with Ben that day and realized I had neglected to tell him that camp wasn't just a one day affair. Evan was a little grumpy, but soon got over it. Then, as each day progressed, he kept getting happier and happier and more comfortable as the day week wore on. It was great to see him so happy, and I knew camp was a great idea.

While at camp he got to take a dip in the river every day and go on countless nature hikes. He found big rocks that he called gems. He painted his own walking stick that he found. He even met a new "best friend". While at camp he met a little girl about as old and big as he was and with about as big of a mouth. Needless to say, they were fast friends. At one point during the week, he told me that Nora was his new best friend and that he had asked her to be his best friend as they were running down the road one day. I said, "Well, what did she say when you asked her?" He replied, "Nothing. I took that to mean yes." That's an exact quote. Well, Evan certainly doesn't lack confidence. We can say that for sure.

Evan was at camp the whole day, but Ben and I didn't just sit around and wait for him to finish. We had lots of great fun including meeting daddy at his office one day for lunch. Another day, Ben even went to his version of Schoolhouse of Wonder camp. Remember that preschool program that I told you I was going to help plan? Well, the first session of this preschool program was one of the days while Evan was at camp. Now, this preschool program was a lot different from Evan's camp. It was only one morning for an hour and a half, and the parents stuck around the whole time, but Benny still had a great time. We got to wander through the woods as the guides showed us all kinds of exciting things like red frogs, sour oak leaves that you could suck on, spiderwebs, caterpillars, sycamore tress, and more. I have to say that his favorite part was when a little grub that the guide found "pooped on his hand". All of the preschools thought this was really hilarious, and a good time was had by all.

I am so glad that I found Schoolhouse of Wonder, and if I had the time or budget I would probably have sent Evan to another week of camp. Regardless, I'm sure we will be back!