studio 103: Grandma Day Camp!!! 2017 Day 1

We split up our day camp this year… 2 days in early July and 3 days later… I’m just here to say that Kim and I are getting old and it takes longer to recover from GDC…

Theme: Pirate—just for shirts..which you will see in tomorrows pics. We got compliments on them.

First day:

Flag: We try to always have a flag ceremony and say the Pledge of Allegiance. All kids help and have to learn how to present the Colors. After flag ceremony, comes camp songs. Lydia's favorite is "A-Root-i-Choot" or however you spell it. You get to sing bad words--butt-- and sing with your tongue hanging out. That's the fun of GDC-- singing inappropriate words. There's many a song with them.

Knife safety, Whittling, Walking Sticks: The kids always look forward to using knives and making their walking sticks. They are getting better at stripping the bark off and making designs. It really isn’t whittling, but it starts them learning how to use knives and sharpen them. Kallie can burn names and designs into the sticks.

Nature Hike: There are woods and a creek that runs thru Kim’s property, so we ride in the mules down to the woods, get boots on—that in itself is a huge project! And off we go with walking sticks and all. Where else do you walk in the creek, thru quicksand, down and up steep hills? And thru the meadows to Malorie’s back yard. Picking every wildflower… Kim knows almost all the names and has a book to look up what she doesn’t know.

Lunch: This year we didn’t make the committees; partly due to laziness and partly to the kids getting older and coming and going. They have other activities and jobs that make it impossible to count on them being there. The oldest is 16 and has a full time job; the next oldest is 15 and too cool to come, but can’t stay away, then you have the others that have ballet, sports, and band. We just went with whoever wasn’t busy cooked. First day we had Roll-up stuff and chips and veggies. I only have pics of the livestock getting fed.

Bird Houses: The wood (a cheap fence board, cut to the sizes that Kim knows), After Reed drilled the bird hole, the kids nailed them together. It works easier if you start the nails for the 4 year old crowd. They love using their hammer and making something. There were plenty of nails used, lots coming crookedly out of the walls. But that’s the birds’ problem. If you look at the very top pic, Lydia kept stealing nails from the can that Malorie kept hiding from her. It was really funny.

Plant Hangers: Kim needs some plant hangers for her sun room, so she decided that the kids needed to learn basic macramé. They made plant hangers and actually turned out well! That is how we decide many of our crafts.

Snack: Poop on Ice: The ever popular poop on ice! Warm no bakes over ice cream. Everyone loves it except the 4 year olds. They are too literal to eat poop. They want just ice cream. Especially when the poop jokes start.