Summer Plans

My spring semester officially ends on May 10. I am planning to take the kids on a field trip on May 11. I am considering that to be the last day of our school year although I do plan to have them continue some things (such as math flashcards, practicing the piano, reading) at least some days between May 12- August 27. I haven't worked out all the details of what we'll be up to this summer. For example, I'm hoping to add at least one week of tennis lessons (for all three), one week of swimming lessons (Oliver), one week of diving lessons (Nadia), and a minor league baseball game to our schedule. In many cases it's a case of choosing what to do and at the same time what we are going to skip this summer because it's impossible to do everything! I asked Nadia if she'd rather skip going to Montage Mountain or the Lycoming County Fair. She said that was a tough choice, but she had to be willing to give up one of those two things if she wanted to do a week of Adventure Camp at Bloomsburg University. She really wants to do the camp because it includes kayaking, rafting, hiking, rock

wall climbing, high ropes/zip-line, etc. She ended up deciding to skip going to Montage Mountain. Because she's doing that camp, we're going to skip PA Wilds Child, which is a one day event at a state park on a Saturday in June. Ian surprised me and said he wanted to do the Adventure Camp, but considering how fearful he still is, I think it would be a big waste of money. If I see that he's more willing to try things like rock wall climbing, then maybe I'll send him next year. That particular camp is for kids ages 8-13.

The last two years Nadia and Ian were in an art camp (in other words a 3 hour art class that lasted for 5 days) at the Children's Museum, and last year they also did a one week maker camp there as well. The minimum age requirement for their camps is six. One of the art camps is from July 30-August 3, and she said he had to be six at the start of the camp. His birthday is August 7. Because Oliver wasn't allowed to join

and because Nadia and Ian have been in an art class at the Christian school this year, I decided we'd take a year off of art camp. Nadia and Ian really wanted to do art camp and Maker camp again, but it's impossible to fit everything they *want* to do into one summer. Two years ago Nadia and Ian did a week of horseback riding camp. Last year we skipped that. This year I am signing all three of them up for a week of horseback riding camp. That is an all day camp (9-3) for 5 days). The last two years Ian didn't want to go to Camp Susque for the 3 night Adventure Camp. When Nadia was eight she had her first full week of camp there. Eight year olds can choose either option. That's the oldest you can be to do the 3 night camp, and it's the youngest to be in the full week camp. So this year the choice I gave Ian was whether he wanted to go to camp for 3 nights or 7 nights. He picked 3 nights. He's going June 20-23, and Nadia will be going from July 21-28. I am hoping that all three kids will be able to participate in Camp Good News in July. It will be Oliver's first time,

Nadia's second time, and Ian's third time. The other camp Nadia and Ian might do is a History camp at a museum near us (9- noon for 5 days). They did a history camp at another site two years ago.

In addition to registering the kids for various camps, I've been planning other getaways. I contacted one of our Senators recently to request a tour of the Bureau of Engraving and Printing in DC on June 14. They said requests had to be made at least three months in advance. I also want to buy our tickets to see Jesus at Sight and Sound in the near future so we can have more of a selection of seats than we did in December. With the full realization that plans change and what actually happens might be rather different than the current plan, here is what I have mapped out thus far for our Summer 2018:

May 12-27: one day at Knoebels, kids' choir presents their musical, Brothers Grimm play, tour the Pleasant Gap Fish hatchery, see the "Greatest Pirate Story never told," visit Sky Zone (trampoline park), and possibly take a 2 day trip to NYC to visit the Museum of Math, National Geographic's Ocean Odyssey, and the Bronx Zoo

Paymaster's office at the Iron Furnace

May 28- June 6: vacation to California! (highlights will include Sea World, Disneyland, LEGOLAND, San Diego Zoo, USS Midway, Maritime Museum, Fleet Science Center, and San Diego Natural History Museum)

June 7 -17: possibly Sesame Place, Jesus at Sight and Sound, one day in DC, one day in Baltimore, 3 nights of VBS

June 18-24: Nadia at Adventure Camp (9-4 for 5 days), Ian at Camp Susque (3 days/nights), attend a Pow Wow, Nadia's birthday!

June 25-30: Horseback riding camp for all 3 (9-3 for 5 days)

July 1-7: possibly go to Long Island to visit my Aunt Janet

July 8-14: 5 nights of VBS, Star Wars Day, Charlotte's Web play, Lycoming County Fair, one day of summer history camp (9-3) for all three kids at Buggy Museum

July 15-20: Camp Good News for all 3 (9-3 for 5 days); 5 nights of VBS

July 21-28: Pinkalicious

Cornwall Iron Furnace

musical, Nadia at Camp Susque for 7 nights, one day at DelGrosso's, concerts at Knoebels one night, Acorn Family Festival

July 29-August 5: roller skating, possibly a history camp for Nadia and Ian from 9-12 at the Taber Museum, Big Daddy Weave concert, weekend 2 day trip to Pittsburgh (Bushy Run Battlefield, Fort Pitt Museum, Pittsurgh Zoo, etc.)

August 6-17: Nadia theater camp from 12-3 for 10 days total, Oliver's birthday, West End Fair, National Night Out, Little League World Series game

August 18-27: 4 day trip to Niagara Falls, Rochester, and Buffalo, Building 429 concert at Grange Fair

Thinking about how Nadia will be turning ten this summer is a vivid reminder to make the most of our summers because we don't really get that many of them with our kids before they are grown and gone!