Post-Camp Exhale

Haaaaaah.....

As you may have guessed, that is the sound of me exhaling after my son's two weeks of sleepaway camp. Don't get me wrong. He was excited and I was excited for him. I was also nervous for him and hoping that all went well (aka no phone calls from camp). 

Just to recap, my very creative, curious, active, and funny son who is sometimes challenged by impulsivity, inattention, low frustration tolerance decided that he wanted to explore the opportunity and experience that is sleepaway camp. So that's what he did and we went all in by doing a full two week session. 

He's been back for two weeks now and we've both had time to reflect on the experience, the bumps, wins, and lessons learned. 

Lesson 1: "Mom please bring me sockes." (First letter home)

Before you write a letter home, double check your trunk to confirm that you don't actually have what you think you're missing. Needless to say, the sp Ms were packed in the trunk. Also, if you are writing with a request, you may also want to share a tid bit or two about things you're doing at camp. 

The win: he wrote to us

Lesson 2: Crochet, not croquet

It's important to pay attention and listen to the counselor slurs as they introduce each available clinic. My son ended up in crochet because he thought he was signing up for croquet. 

The win: he stuck with it, learned something, and actually enjoyed trying a new craft. 

Lesson 2: Cabin living is not without challenges 

My son experience homesickness the first night, but with the support of his counselors he got through it and was better the next day. Plus getting into a routine helps too. 

Secondly, living in a cabin means sharing a space to which you are all bringing different sleep and living habits. Hence letter 2.... "can I go home? it's miserable. Don't feel bad, I don't hate it. I haven't slept a lot lately. Someone keeps waking us up during the night." We received this letter four days before pick up. Our son going away to camp meant no extraction efforts would be employed regardless of sentiments expressed in letters. 

The win: he knows he has to figure it out since his parents won't bail him out at the first sign of discomfort and challenge. 

As concerned as I was about possible behavioral issues, my son walked away from camp having earned four beads for embodying each of the camp values: Caring, honesty, responsible, respect. #proudmommy

On top of the beads, he embraced many new experiences like sleeping in a cabin, fishing, crochet, polar bear swim (lake swim at 6am) and an overnight on treehouse. His curiosity makes him willing to try new things and, in this case, it's a good thing. 

The major win of the whole thing (outside of us receiving no calls) is that my son wants to go back next year and the next; he's even already starting thinking about wanting to be a counselor in the future and he'd be fabulous, if I do say so myself.