Join Me in Snarkville

Week one of Summer Camp was AMAZING.  I want to put summer camp in my pocket and take it home with me and keep it with me always.

Duke loved playing with new friends, he loved getting away from his mother for a few hours a day, and he got to SWIM in a pool for him on Friday.  Seriously, I couldn’t have made camp any better if I’d soaked it in chocolate and put sprinkles on it.  All my worries about a late night camp decision is gone and I’m trying to decide if I’m going to extend his camp experience into August or try out other camp options (like Soccer Camp — who knows.)  However, there is one very sad bit from Camp - Week One. Duke did NO art.  Like seriously, the boy didn’t pick up a crayon, paintbrush or anything all week.

No, I have no idea why.  All I know is that I’d ask him how his day was and he’d happily declare “I don’t do art.”  Then he’d ramble on about the playground or the cars or that swim day was coming.  But no art. No painted something or other to hang on my fridge, no piece of painted ceramic something that I will hang in my kitchen FOREVER (ala a certain ‘Kitchen Prayer’ that I believe my parents might still have).

So, we chatted about art.  “Do you like to do art?” “No” “You used to, what happened.” “I don’t do art.” “Do you like the kind of art they are doing?” “Mama, stop.”

Ok, ok.  So as I dropped him off this morning, wait, let me explain how this went better.  He ran as fast as he could in front of me to get to camp FASTER and I struggled to keep up and when he got to the door of the camp room and I was barely around the corner to go down the hall, he looks back and screams, “Mama, come on….camp is HERE!!”  Ok, yes, he’s a little excited.  So, I wait to sign him in (which by the way, note to all the parents that have to drop little Johnny off with 3 adults to 1 kid — please have the rest of your family wait outside of the classroom so those of us who are dropping off can sign in and move on — we don’t like having to wait while the 3 of you –who are related, came in the same car, and will be leaving together — need to discuss something about the next thing you are doing that morning.) and I turn around to find him at the playdough table — because hello, their playdough has glitter in it!

I go to give him a hug and kiss and he tells me again, “I don’t do art.” I say, “Fine, sweetie, you don’t have to, but have a good day.”

I pick him up at noon and he comes running towards me and tells me, “Mama, I do art today.”  Ok, so I haven’t seen it yet, but apparently he does do art — and he’s really looking forward to tomorrow’s art project, painting wooden snakes!

[In other news, no, we are not on fire, though we are a little smoky.  The kids had to stay inside today because of the smoke (yeah for no sand) and there is a lovely bonfire smell to everything.]