Summer Camp

Today was CC's first day of summer camp. It's just 4 days, from 9:30 am to 1 pm, at the school where she'll start preschool in the fall. I thought camp would be a lot of fun for CC, plus it might make her transition to preschool a little easier in September.

It was really strange for me to think about her going to camp this morning. I had to make her a lunch, wondering if she'd eat well while surrounded by a lot of other kids, and trying to decide what to include (I settled on PB&J, carrot sticks, water, and a box of raisins). She's never had a big experience without me. It was so odd to think about her meeting new people, participating in activities, and enjoying herself while I wasn't there to watch. I really wished I could have been a fly on the wall!

Despite talking our ears off yesterday and this morning about all the fun things she was going to do at camp, CC collapsed into a hysterical, red-faced, shrieking lunatic when it was time for me to drop her off. I watched through the one-way mirror in the hallway for a while, then returned home with Sweet Pea and Little Man. About an hour later the director of the school called me to say that CC was doing just fine, playing outside and having a great time. Whew!

When I picked CC up after lunch, she greeted me with a huge smile and talked non-stop all the way home about her day. "I played in the sandbox and the little house! And I swung on a big kid swing. Miss Anna pushed me because I did not want the other teachers to push me. We painted. I did not eat my carrots. They had dinosaurs in the room! Davis was there but I did not play with him much. I sat on a little chair for lunch. They did not have riding toys. Our same llama book was there! I cooked in the pretend kitchen," and so on.

She is looking forward to going back tomorrow, although she tells me, "I might cry again. Just a little."