Summer Fun » Four Against Two

Summer Here I Come

A Mom's Job, It's all about me!, Stuff, Summer Fun 2 Responses »

May 182012

Source: maxwanger.com via Amanda on Pinterest

I won’t go into detail, but the last couple of years have been a struggle at times. At the end of the summer I felt like I had survived rather than enjoyed them. Sure, we had some great vacations and wonderful times, but my stress and anxiety levels were way to high.

This summer I am not only looking forward to, I am planning. Planning beyond the normal camps, activities and how to keep your kiddos reading throughout the summer. I want to make it EPIC. Okay. So maybe I am setting myself up for disappointment, but I have this yearning inside of me to breakout from the normal, go beyond the stress, ignore the anxiety.

So what does EPIC mean to me? It means me having fun as well as the kids. The kids always have an EPIC summer (though they don’t always see it that way). That is why I am going to fall in love with my camera a little more. Learn how to actually use more of the settings? I also want to do some fun shots with the kids with the inspiration of Pinterest.

I am also going to start running again. My post-op no exercise rule was up a long time ago. It’s time to take my new, improved and smaller bust to the track and she how they do!

So my EPIC may not be as EPIC as some, but it is mine, and I am going to do it.

What are your summer plans?

The Girls Keep Growing!

Family Pictures, Moments with Elle, Moments with Enu, Moments With Meg, Moments with Mita, School Issues, Summer Fun 1 Response »

May 112012

As it is mid-May and summer is upon us. My girls are revved up and ready to start the long summer days full of camps, swimming and a lot of nothing! The fact that they are growing up slaps me in the face almost everyday.

Ella bridged from being a Daisy Girl Scout to a Brownie Girl Scout. She is extremely proud of this and the fact that her first overnight camp will be this summer.

Meg went to sixth grade camp. She climbed the Alpine tower and is planning on zip-lining this summer. Adventure awaits her for sure.

Mita is furiously making plans for becoming a sixth grader that include playing soccer and the cello. She will have to be at school at 7:30am next year, and while she thinks it is no big deal, I am dreading getting her up that early!

Enu, in Fourth grade, hit the jackpot for field trip years and has been busy running around the state visiting Amish Country (not a real country mind you), the high school FFA ( a different world) and has plans to visit the State House soon. She is ready to rule the intermediate school next year in the fifth grade with NO other sisters to bug her.

Goodbye 2011-2012 school year. May we have a long, long summer full of fun times, empty afternoons reading in the shade and popsicles. Lots of popsicles.

Sunburned from camp!

Keep Your Children Reading This Summer!

A Mom's Job, Education, Parenting, Reading Challenge, Summer Fun No Responses »

May 022012

If you ever look at my blog, you know that I am a reader. I love to read. I could read all day. I have to stop myself from reading to actively participate in the real world. My mom used to make me put down my books and play outside. I’m addicted, it’s just a legal drug and is generally a good thing to be addicted to!

Seeing a parent read is the best way to raise readers. I truly believe that. I also accept that not everyone is going to be as crazy about books as I am. But I will try to convert you I promise.

Summer time at our house is a great time. We are either crazy-busy or crazy-lazy. For the crazy-lazy times it can be challenging to keep the media to a low-roar. In our house media is TV, computer or non-active Wii games. For the last two years I have used media-bucks to keep the kids on limited screen time and to keep them reading. Last year I had yard sales at the end of the month where the girls could buy fun stuff with media bucks if they saved them. This is great because they are earning the media bucks, but not using them on TV! I also had a read-so-many-minutes over the summer you get a book series. All the girls earned great book series. Meg got the entire 39 Clues series, Mita got The Hunger Games Trilogy, Enu got a huge Junie B. Jones series and Elle got… I cannot remember, I thinks she just chose a few books instead of a series.

While I was happy with last year’s success, I am ramping it up a bit. This year I am doing a stamp card. This way they hopefully don’t loose it the way they could the media bucks. Here is how it goes:

1 Media Stamp = 30 minutes of media time

Level 1 books = 1 media stamp for 30 minutes of reading

(age level books the kids like to read)

Level 2 books = 2 media stamps for 30 minutes of reading

(Book that push them to read at a higher level)

Level 3 books= 3 media stamps for 30 minutes of reading

(any non-fiction reading, classic or a book that Mom would like you to read)

Learning Lab = 3 media stamps

( A workbook or experiment.)

Active outdoor play for 30 minutes= 1 media stamp

You can see where I am going with Level 3. Meg doesn’t want to read the classics right now, but I am bound and determined to get some Little Women in her this summer! This should all equal to plenty of TV time as well as great reading time and some fun prizes. This year I am doing gift cards to Amazon, Barnes and Noble and iTunes instead of a yard sale. The kids are stoked!

This may seem like a lot of work, but for my family it is how we function. We have to have clear, set guidelines or it is chaos around here.

We also do the Summer Reading at our local library. This is a family favorite, but as the kids get older I really push content over how many books are read. I try to get the girls to set a content goal over a number goal, like “I will read 20 books this summer, 10 of them chapter books, 2 of them classics and 8 off them non-fiction.”

Scholastic has a great summer reading site that you should check out. We did this last summer and the kids had a lot of fun on it. It is a fun way for them to keep track of how much they read. It also lead to a great discussion on honestly and integrity when one of my girls cooked the numbers a bit! Click here for a video tutorial on how it works. They also have great book lists for all ages.

If you want to keep your kids reading this summer the first thing you should do is pick up a book and read it yourself, let the kids see you read and talk about what a great book it is. Then take them to the library!

Not Ready For School

Education, School Issues, Stuff, Summer Fun 2 Responses »

Aug 212011

Keep Wearing the Flip-Flops! It's Still Summer!

I’m not sure why, but I am not ready for school to start yet. The girls are at each-other a lot lately, a sure sign that they are ready for the distraction of school. Elle just beams when you mention the first grade. Meg is so ready for middle school. Mita is happy to have her entire school to herself for a while and Enu is ready for a semester of home schooling.

I will miss the girls as usual, but that is not the reservation I am feeling. I cannot place this feeling, but my chest feels heavy. Maybe it is the prospect of having three different schools to juggle or the two different time schedules? I’m not sure.

Are you ready for school to start? Will you be doing the hula dance and drinking margaritas or crying your eyes out?

photo credit

Chuck E. Cheese Tickets

BlogHer11, It's all about me!, Mom's Free Time, Summer Fun 1 Response »

Aug 142011

Last week at BlogHer11 (yes, I am still talking about my trip!) I got to do the coolest thing. Well, I got to do a lot of cool things, but one of the best was getting to go in the Chuck E. Cheese Ticket Blaster! It is a lot harder than it looks and I only got about 15 tickets during my time in the blaster.

Very classy I know!

Now I must fill you in that I LOVE CHUCK E. CHEESE. Always have, most likely always will. I don’t know why really, but I do love taking the girls and watching them grow up through the games. Watching Elle having to be held on the helicopter while I pedal to make it fly to seeing her do it on her own just makes me burst with love and pride (cheesy, but true…the illustration and the pun.) So getting to go in the Ticket Blaster when it was not even my birthday was awesome!

I also got to try out the new picture machine. Gone are the black and white paper pictures of child and Chuck E. There are suave and sophisticated cards that identify me as a Hip Hop Dancer. They must have seen me bust-a-move at Sparklecorn.

An hour or so after my amazing blasting experience we were walking back to our room I glanced down. There was a Chuck E. Cheese ticket in between my bosoms. I had never thought to use them as a storage space! Okay, I have thrown my cell in a few times when I need two hands, but never had I used them for tickets. A great idea I must remember the next time I go play me some Skee-Ball.

Then later Julia found one by the toilet…I guess those tickets can hide just about anywhere!

Gotta love the Chuck man and his tickets.

Not actual ticket mentioned in the story.

: I like the B&W grainy look here.

Vacation Rocked

BlogHer11, It's all about me!, Summer Fun, Travel 1 Response »

Aug 112011

OutnumberedMom, FireMom and FourAgainstTwo...The three blogeteers!

I’m just getting over my jet-lag, which is why it has taken me so long to get a new post out.

San Diego rocked in many, many ways. Not only did I get some kid-free time, I got to spend good time with my mom and a couple of my friends. I heard some fabulous speakers, met some really neat woman and of course got to dance around wearing a McDonald’s bag on my head. I learned about some amazing international bloggers who I will write about in the future and I found some new products that I will be reviewing and giving away.

I hit a personal goal. I ran a 5K. I ran the entire way. No stopping. I credit the sea air and the low altitude. Of course I take some credit as well as I had been training for several weeks. I also gave blood, which made me feel good about myself.

That is a lot of “I” statements. I guess that is what a vacation is all about. Time for me, with me and not doing the same old, same old.

Thanks go out to my hubby for taking the girls camping while I was away! It was good to get away and great to get back into their arms.

In Between Summer Fun and School Supplies

A Mom's Job, Seasons, Summer Fun No Responses »

Jul 202011

My care-free summer days of June have ended. We are rounding out July with a full calendar and while the kids enjoy having things to do and places to go, the hotness that is South Eastern Ohio is keeping us indoors way to much. I cannot send them outside when they are lacking the gills needed to breathe comfortably.

Girl Scout camps are over (except for Twilight camp next week which has nothing to do with the movie btw), rehearsals are starting for Meg and Mita’s upcoming local production of Children’s Letters to God and I have started working a few hours here and there. Is this the end of summer? I don’t want it to be. I want my carefree days back. Must I lose my calendar to do this?

I refused to buy school supplies at the beginning of July, but just yesterday ordered a backpack and thermos’ from Land’s End as well as hit Staples up for the fifty cent sale they were having on paper clips and hole punches. I want to ignore the sales, to protest that I still have summer left. Thriftiness wins out with me just about every time though.

When my head clears from this horrible headache that has to be caused by the weather (something to do with air pressure I’m sure) I will celebrate summer again. Right now, I feel as if I am grabbing on to threads of summer 2011.

Are you in the middle of the summer-blahs too? What do you do to keep the fun alive?

Photo Credit

See Mandy Run Some More

It's all about me!, Mom's Free Time, Summer Fun No Responses »

Jul 112011

I’m half way through my experience with the Couch to 5K running program I mentioned a few weeks ago. I cannot believe it either. I am now running 16 out of 30 minutes, no consecutavly, but still 16 minutes. Unbelievable. I feel great! So far no painful side “stitch”, shin splints or anything else. My back is sore, but there is only so much sports bra can do! (TMI I know).

New shoes made a world of good happen to my feet. I also am running with Hubby when we can both find the time together, and it is good to have time with him. He wants to find a 5K to run in September. I could be ready by then. The kids occationally come and watch, make a few comments on how slow I am and then get bored quickly.

The funny thing is that I am proud of this, but still hesitant to say I actually like to run. It’s almost as if once it is said, I will have to always like it. Funny me I know.

Also…Does anyone know of a podcast for the Couch 2 5K program using Def Leppard songs? This one I’m using is from the UK and it’s getting a bit boring. I need some guitar when I run!

Don’t forget to enter my contest!

I’m In Love With Green

It's all about me!, Seasons, Summer Fun 4 Responses »

May 232011

It’s no secret that I hate winters in Ohio and always wonder why I live here during those long months. This past Saturday I went on a little nature hike with a few of the girls and was giddy with all of the greens. I could sit under a tree forever and just read right now.

Elle loves being outside as well. She found a toad and the naturalist there told us how to tell if a toad is a female or a male. It’s not what you think either! Apparently if you hold a toad a certain way it makes a funny sound if it is a male. This is how a male toad tells other male toads to get off of him. Interesting stuff, this nature is.

Daisy - Fleabane Keeps the fleas away.

The reservoir was really high. I wore my mud boots!

Baltimore Oriole nest

I learned a little, exercised a bit and had a nice morning with my girls. Most importantly I got my green intake. May these next few month pass sl-ow-ly please!

Wordless Wednesday:My Kids Didn’t Miss Me While I Was Away!

Summer Fun, Wordless Wednesday 2 Responses »

Aug 112010

For More Wordless Wednesdays check this out….

Pictures by Hubby or PM 2010

NYC Was Fab!

BlogHer 2010, It's all about me!, Mom's Free Time, Summer Fun 4 Responses »

Aug 092010

My Peace Out sign for the girls in the back of a cab!

I am back. Back from the weekend trip I have been planning for months. I must say that BlogHer10 in New York City was fabulous, wonderful and all the other great adjectives I cannot remember right now!

Some of the sessions I went to focused on writing, giving advice and loving the little blog. Inspiration was oozing out of everyone there and I feel like I have been to a pep-rally!

Touring New York on the night bus was spectacular. The lights, city noise and smells are always fun. Mom Outnumbered and I caught a John Legend performance in Central Park with Good Morning America at the spur of the moment. The best moments tend to be surprises!

My visit to the Scholastic Headquarters was the highlight of my trip (which is saying something as the whole weekend was amazing). We had breakfast on the top floor, which had more of a restaurant look than an office building look, overlooking Soho. The speakers were very inspirational about getting kids to read. I’ll write more in the future about the new books coming out with Scholastic, but I will say that Mita is already devouring the new Babysitters Club prequel!

As you know Chevy gave us (FireMom, MomOutnumbered, 2princessmama) a brand new Traverse to drive to New York! We had a great time figuring out (and not figuring out) the gadgets in the car and playing with the On-Star.

Having friends and having the fun time we had was such a welcome experience for this stressed-out-mama. I encourage anyone who is tempted to start blog writing to do so! It is an amazing way to meet new people and make new opportunities. My site is hosted by Surpass Hosting and here is a link to find out about a bargain to get you started with blogging.

BlogHer11 San Diego here I come!

(Disclaimer: The book link above is not an affiliate link. I did receive free childrens’ books at a breakfast hosted by Scholastic, Surpass Hosting provided gas money for our road trip. Chevy provided a Traverse for our drive to and from NYC and one tank of gas. Thanks to all of you for great products and great fun! )

Photo Credit Mandy W 2010

Worldless Wednesday: Holiday at Lake Erie

Summer Fun, Wordless Wednesday 5 Responses »

Jul 212010

(For more Wordless Wednesday visit: Life Down Our Lane

Photos by Mandy W. 2010

A Great Weekend

Family Pictures, Summer Fun No Responses »

Jul 122010

We had a great weekend: Parades, a Firemen’s Festival, a bike ride, creeking and more! Here are some family shots to share with you!

I gave the girls Silly Bandz to remind them of a few things: Meg was not to break any bones, Mita needed to make sure she didn't rot out her teeth with junk food and Enu and Elle needed to use their ears to listen!

Meg selling things for Girl Scouts.

Enu coloring up a storm at the Firemen's Festival.

Elle was in her first Parade!

Handsome Hubby on his bike.

Mita and Elle washing my car! It so needed it.

Eclipse Movie Review (and some mommy ranting)

Entertainment, movies, My Soap Box, Summer Fun 3 Responses »

Jul 052010

Eclipse came out last Wednesday in the early morning hours. I was not there I must say. My advanced age kept me from tackling the early morning hours. Okay. So I am not that old, but life does get in the way sometime and it did this past week. Hubby and I were babysitting our friends’ four children for ten days (four plus four does equal eight remember!) and needless to say I didn’t need a Twilight Hangover the next day! I also didn’t have goodie bags this time around either, but I hope to do better for Breaking Dawn.

The movie was a lot of fun. I will be the first to admit that the Twilight movies can be a bit cheesy, but so are the books and yet so many of us like cheesy! I have to admit that I did cringe at Jasper’s sudden Texas accent. It was a bit overdone, but at least they lightened up on his look a bit and he doesn’t look as freaky as he did in the first two movies.

It had a lot more action than the first two films and I appreciated the bloodless action. It was great fun to see Edward rip off the head of Victoria. I never knew I was this gore-seeking!

As far as going along with the book, the film did pretty good with that. Of course they cannot ever match the book page by page, but there was one part I wish they had gone word for word with. After Bella kissed Jacob and she is looking at Edward he says,”You love him.” She then says,”I love you more.” and that was about it. I so wanted this:

“…when I left you, Bella, I left you bleeding. Jacob was the one to stitch you back up again. That was bound to leave its mark – on both of you. I’m not sure those kinds of stitches dissolve on their own. I can’t blame either of you for something I made necessary. I may gain forgiveness, but that doesn’t let me escape the consequences.” Stephanie Meyer ~ Eclipse

Maybe some producer will read this and add it to the DVD? Yeah I am sure that will happen!

My mommy rant of the day (hour?) goes to Burger King. On our way to an animal park with the kids we stopped at Burger King for lunch. The kids meals were giving away TWILIGHT TOYS! You heard me toys of Edward, Bella and Jacob. My stomach turned and I was ashamed of being a Twilight fan at that time. The Twilight series is a young adult series plan and simple. Marketing toys to kids under ten is ridiculous and is one more way were are letting our children grow up to early and be exposed to adult things.

Oh, and I totally agree with FireMom: The sparkling has got to go. It just looks so tacky, silly, stupid and more! FireMom is on the fence at this point with the whole Team Jacob team Edward thing. MomOutnumbered is a solid Team Jacob. I am team everyone wins-because-I-read-the-books-and-they-have-a-happy-ending!

Like and for-sure! I’m such a teenager after writing this!

Photos by Mandy W. 2010

Wordless Wednesday: 8 kids 10 days

Summer Fun, Wordless Wednesday 1 Response »

Jun 302010

(Meg went to Girl Scout camp for 5 days :( We miss her.

For More Wordless Wednesday check out FireMom (and vote for her to!!) and Five Minutes for Mom

My Take On Toy Story 3

movies, Summer Fun No Responses »

Jun 242010

I cannot possibly write a better review/non-review than the one that FireMom recently wrote, so I won’t even try. I will tell you why the third installment of the Toy Story series is my favorite and probably will forever be.

First of all I have to tell you that Toy Story is my all-time favorite children’s movie ever. I love the good-natured humor, the music, the graphics, the voices…everything! I watched to first two movies before I had children and I kept the Toys from Burger King kids meals for at least 10-12 years! I recently passed them on to Big Brother and Little Brother (FireMom’s kiddos) to play with as my girls never caught on to the movies like I have.

The stories inspire play. True playing with some toys and a lot of imagination. No plugs, a few batteries maybe, but again a lot of IMAGINATION. If I had not had my imaginiation as a kid I would have been quite bored and lonely! I hope my kids learn such innocent play while they are young and are able to have great memories of toys, much like Andy has!

I won’t spoil the movie but there is a character in the film named Bonnie. When you look at her, think of my Elle. She has on a tutu over her clothes with rain boots on…that alone would have made me cry during the movie!

Oh yeah! My kids did like the movie as well. I gave them Toy Story Valentines and Toy Story Silly Bandz in goodie bags at the theater. I am a sucker for party favors!

On a side note: Here is the bag I got when I ordered popcorn….

It must be fate :) Cannot wait to see this!

Hasbro Game Night Get a $5 Coupon

Stuff, Summer Fun No Responses »

Jun 232010

The ladies won!

Last Saturday I had a Hasbro Game Night party through House Party. I love having parties through House Party because I get great party packs full of fun things to give my friends and it gives me a great excuse to have a get-together!

My good friend and fellow blogger Outnumbered Mom was able to come with her family. My mom also stopped by and we had five adults and seven kids playing games.

Hasbro has a fun and useful website to help set up Game Nights. I easily printed off tournament play pages for Twister and Connect Four. They also have certificates, invitations and other family-oriented items to help families plan a great party. I will be using this site in the future for sure, as having fun printables can really make a difference in a party without costing a lot of money.

Three of my girls helping me set up!

For the adults, we played the new Trivial Pursuit that is due to come out in August. I have not played Trivial Pursuit since I was a kid. This new version is great as it allows you to bet for or against the opposite team, depending on if you think they will get the answer right or wrong. The ladies won this game (yeah me, coming up with the winning answer!) but I must confess it was two against three!

We also tried out the game Taboo that Hasbro sent me and got a lot of laughs with it. While we played the children actually left us alone (more or less). I had set out a table full of games for them and they had a great time with little arguing (miracle). The Harry Potter Clue seemed to be quite popular with the eight to ten year old crowd!

We came away from our party with a great attitude and a resolve to host more game nights. They are easy, fun and most of all CHEAP, as we all seem to have a lot of games!

Since a few of my guests couldn’t make it, I still have five coupons from Hasbro that I would like to give away. This coupon is for $5 off one of five different games: Taboo, Pictionary, Scattagories, CatchPhrase and The Game Of Things. It expires at the end of August. If you would like a coupon and live in the US, just be one of the first five people to leave a comment and then send me your snail mail address to FourAgainstTwo@gmail.com and I’ll mail it out to you!

Thanks again House Party and Hasbro!
( I received a party pack from House Party that included: 20 coupons, Trisket and Wheat Thins crackers, Dark chocolate M&Ms (yum) and the games: Trivia Pursuit, Taboo and CatchPhrase. I was not asked to blog about my party, but since I love my House Parties I want to!)

Our First Camper Outing

Camping, Family Pictures, Summer Fun 2 Responses »

Aug 172009

Our New Camper Is Very Roomy...Only Kidding of Course

The Family in Front of Our Camper...Or is it?

We hit the road last Saturday with our new camper. We stayed close to home for a trial run and all went well! We had a good time together and had a lot of fun learning the whole campground thing. We made lists and two runs to Wal-Mart and feel ready for a three-night trip this weekend.

A few things I learned:

1) Yes, it is work to put it all up and together, but once it is done you can relax. That was the beauty of it. I actually had time to read, write, nap and listen to my Shuffle. If I had been at home I would have been doing laundry and cleaning or worrying about laundry and cleaning.

2) Kids sleep well after cooking over a fire (pizza pockets and smores) and a three mile bike ride. I should wear them out more often!

3) I learned I can work the special break thing (the technical phrase I’m sure!) for the camper. I practiced in the school parking lot, so as not to cause an accident! Don’t look for me to be parallel parking anytime soon though.

Meg and Mita Inside the Camper.

Elle and Enu Lounging Away

I Got Caught With Two Smores!

Our Real Camper and Bikes.

Do you have any camping in a camper tips for me?

A Day At The Lake

Family Pictures, Summer Fun No Responses »

Aug 042009

salt-fork We had a good time with friends at the lake today. This was Mita and Enu’s first time to a “beach” with sand and all the fun that comes with sand. They got to learn what happens when you shake out a sandy towel (people yell at the sand storm) and that there are birds and bird droppings to deal with.

All went well and they had a great time. We beat out the bad weather and were one of three families at the beach at that time, which was lovely and made it easier to keep track of the girls!

A fun day in the Ohio sun!

An Ethiopian Family

Ethiopia, Family Pictures, Summer Fun 1 Response »

Jul 282009

We just spent the weekend in Virginia at an Ethiopian Heritage and Culture camp. We had a wonderful time dancing, eating, playing and learning all about Ethiopia. I’ll let the pictures do most of the talking for me.

Going to the traditional dinner/dance.

Meg looking lovely!

Mita tasting some authentic Ethiopian coffee.

Elle had her hair braided.

Enu making smores.

We had a great time!

What I Learned At Girl Scout Camp

Summer Fun No Responses »

Jun 132009

I was a counselor at Girl Scout Day Camp this week. Don’t ask me how I got roped into this, I don’t have a clear memory of it, just the lure of getting one of my girls getting to go for free. I really don’t mean to be so negative about this. It was a good time. The girls had fun. Meg just adored it. Mita and Enu were exhausted and didn’t go the entire week, but had a lot of fun. Elle went for two days, and then spent the rest of the week being treated like a queen by the Grandma’s.

A few things that I learned. When dealing with 9 year olds, they are torn between wanting to play on the playground and doing “big kid” activities. We balanced out this struggle pretty well I think with fun crafts and activities that were not to “babyish” and just letting them run and play octopus tag and red rover. Some of the things we made: Flower boxes, body glitter, fruit pomanders, wildlife journals, toilet paper tube planters, grilled banana boats. Of course the thing the girls worked on all week and loved were the keychains, necklaces and bracelets made out of that plastic laynard string that is so popular right now. I also had charcoal drawings and stress balls planned, but we didn’t have enough time for it all.

On top of those crafts, we hiked, learned canoe safety, learned archery, fishing, survival skills, local plants and trees, water games, team building exercises and we picked up literally bag upon bag of trash to clean up Dillon State Park. Dillon is a cleaner place this weekend thanks to us Girl Scouts. I hope others will learn to use trash cans and ash trays!

I was so proud watching Meg learn new things and work on her leadership skills. We worked on decision making skills and how to work as a team. These skills are sorely lacking in many adults as you may have noticed and I really want my girls (and their friends) to learn how to work with others and make decisions.

Enu really made herself known this week. She was in the Kindergarten-First Grade group, and they only had four kids most of the week. This group was sooooo loud that no-one could miss them. They had an adorable candence that used their group’s name,”The Chattering Chimpanzees”. They did two skits at the end of the camp program and did great!

Mita’s group was very busy. They earned nine Try-Its and did 54 activities in five days. She missed Thursday and Friday day programs as she was so very tired and overdone! She did do the skit tonight and stood with her group proudly. I think she did extremely well for her first year at day camp.

So what did I learn? I took a fish off a hook for the first time. I also learned how to get in a canoe without tipping it over! Mommy-wise, I learned that next time I cannot be a counselor again, but should volunteer at each of the girls groups instead. It was hard on everyone having me with Meg with whole time, and jealously ensued. I also learned that I cannot keep up with this pace anymore, and will be looking for someone to help take over my troop next fall…. anyone interested?

P.S. We did not teach Elle how to start a fire, but she did watch well enough to build her own A-frame pile of wood correctly. This is scary I know!

Four Against Two