Punch Buggy, No Punch Backs!

Well, I just got the gears from my son, who is traveling in Scotland, that I have not posted for a very long time.  Yes, I gave myself the luxury of a blog vacation lately.  When you are not paid, it is very easy to give yourself a vacation after many many years of posting and posting and posting.  My son is keeping a blog while he is away, so now he knows it's fun, but sometimes it's hard to come up with something witty, wise, interesting or informative to say.

Lately, we've wrapped up the school year.  Here are the recent highlights.

Father's Day breakfast was served by Lizzy and Anna on our bedroom patio.  It was a lovely day.  There was a Father's Day massage, a Zingerman's lunch and a nice dinner at the Left Bank.

We missed Michael, but, he was off at writing camp in Scotland working hard and building stone walls.  You can read more about that portion of his trip on his blog by clicking here.

The girls were in tennis camp.  The best thing about tennis camp?  Shopping for cute tennis clothes, of course.  The camp was demanding physically, so they were tired, but happy.  On one afternoon, we went to the local library where they held "Reading to a Dog" day.  The Humane Society brought a dog who actually listens to the kids read.  It was pretty cute.  We also took this time to revisit our favorite childhood books.  You can see Lizzy below with her friend, Zoe.

At the annual Summer Solstice party, we enjoyed a beautiful night on the beach.  This year's effigy was pretty amazing as you can see below.  It went up like crazy once it was lit.  Out with the old, time for a fresh, start.

Kiki did not get lost this year at the party.  Last year she disappeared and we searched for over an hour in the dark, frantically trying to find her.  This time, we anchored her, and she still had lots of attention and treats.

Anna bravely let Roxy off the leash and let her wander around the beach.  It was pretty cute, Roxy stuck to Anna like glue.  Rather unusual for the dog who is apt to run off to greet any dog.  Any dog.  She loves other dogs so much, she must be the friendliest dog ever.  She loves to sneak in a French tongue kiss, so watch out!

Lizzy's friend Reynolds came along and enjoyed a giant roasted marshmallow.

This is not a very good picture, but last night was the "super moon."  It was bright and gorgeous.

Today, the girls left for camp.  They are off for two weeks of fun in the mountains.  Anna says that she has CPD.  Compulsive Packing Disorder.  We had to remove a giant stuffed animal, her entire comforter and pillow set, and thumbtacks and a poster from her back before she shipped out.

Mom and Dad were sad to see them go, but we are heading to the wilderness of Canada for a few days. Lots of posts to follow under the heading Canadian Chronicles.

Lizzy and her friend, Catherine, are off to be Counselors in Training (CITs) this year.  This is Lizzy's 8th summer at the camp.  Hard to believe that!  It's the 5th year for Anna.  Yikes, we are getting old, see picture above!

The big bus, getting ready to roll out!

Well, that's it for now.  More to come later!  Summer has officially started for everyone.

Humane Society Camp

My girls just finished a week of Humane Society Camp. As my friend put it, "The only camp that comes with a puppy."

Every day they met different pets. Every day I needed self control of steel to fend off the cute fuzzy faces of homeless animals. On Bunny Day, cute, little, sweet bunny Zipper needed a home. Couldn't we please find space for such a small critter?

Day Two, Misha the Rat with a very soft tail needed a home. Couldn't we please find space for Misha? She was even smaller than Zipper and only needed a very small cage.

Day Three, Cookie's kitten sister, Klondike, had been adopted, leaving Cookie alone in the cage. My girls were heartbroken that these sisters had to part. Couldn't we please take Cookie home so that she could live with our cats so that she wouldn't be so lonely?

On day Four, Mia, a pug-beagle mix with an extra long tongue needed saving. She was having trouble finding a family to accept her special tongue attribute, even though she was a loving, active puppy. Couldn't we please bring Mia home to meet our dog? Couldn't we save her from a world where having an extra long tongue only works in rock and roll?

And all along there was Figgy. The cutest little puppy I had ever seen. She is a chihaua, which is not a breed I genrally am drawn to, but she had the most expressive eyes and a little face that said, "You need me."

By the time we hit Friday, I was a nervous wreck. I am an animal lover, and would love to give all of the animals a good home...but already having two cats and a dog, I know the reality of how much care pets require. My husband is not such a big fan of the pets--he loves our dog more than me, but that is a particular, separate case.

We said our good byes to all of the fantastic pets we had met over the week. I was confident in the fact that our particular Humane Society will keep a pet until it finds a home, no matter what. Some cats have been there for years.

I am sad that we don't have a bigger house, more money, more time and a better lifestyle for more pets. My girls are still hopeful that we will go back and rescue long-tongued Mia.

Please, if you are considering a dog, check your local shelter. Why pay hundreds of dollars for a bred pet, when you can free a pet from bars and give them happiness? Maybe an extra long tongue means extra long kisses?

Mom's Letter To Her Summer Camp Kid

John's at sleep away camp, Day 9. No letter home...yet:



Dear John,

Are you o-k? Are you having fun? Did a mountain lion carry you off? Were you eaten by bears? I do think you actually did get on the right bus, because I saw you in a picture from camp that your counselor's sent me. You looked pretty happy, but maybe they said that they wouldn't feed you if you didn't smile for the picture. I know how much you like to eat.

Since I haven't gotten a letter yet, I'm wondering if you wandered off from camp? Did you take a wrong turn on a hike? Are your counselors afraid to tell me that they can't find you? Maybe they figure that you're just as lost on Saturday as you are today, so they might as well tell me that they've lost you when I go to pick you up.

On the other hand, maybe you are locked in a cage with the other boys because you are all too hyper and the counselors need a break? Or, it could be that you won the video award and you and all of your friends are in the special video room with the big, comfy couch and videos and movies on 24 hours a day with lots of sodas and chips--therefore no time to write your mom.

Seriously, we all totally miss you and look forward to seeing you when you get back. Write, write, write, write, so that I can hear about all of the fun that you are having with both your old and new friends.

Love, Mom (Remember me? I gave birth to you!)

P.S. If you can't find a pencil, maybe you could scratch me a note in a piece of wood or a stone. Don't send me a smoke signal, though, I don't want you playing with fire. :)

Night Camp

About 5 p.m. last night I birthed the brain child of Night Camp. Spending quality summer time with your angels seems like a good idea in early summer or even earlier in the day, but by 5 p.m., aren't you and your kids ready for Night Camp?

Tired from the long day? Exhausted from running your kids willy nilly to playdates and random half day camps? Just broken up your millionth sibling fist fight of the day? Cleaned up another spill of something sticky all over the kitchen floor? Confiscated the Guitar Hero guitar and kicked your kid's off the computer or Wii again?

Drop your kids off at Night Camp. It opens as early as 4:30 p.m., just about the time you are contemplating another caffeinated drink or your first glass of wine. Drive up in your car and we'll meet you at the passenger's side door and whisk your children off to a land where you don't plan the activities or figure out where their next meal is coming from.

Our counselors are all under the age of 15 with lots of energy. Our camp motto is simple: if your kids are still alive when you get back, then we are doing our job. You don't have to worry, and at 5 pm do you really care? Night Camp will be all your kid's desires wrapped up in endless movies or computer time or video games, they will love it and you will be oblivious to it under the Don't Ask Don't Tell program.

Bars and fine dining are conveniently located down the street. We will even deliver you kids home and tuck them in, if you need to catch a movie, or a nap, and not be disturbed. If your kids are anxious about night camp, have them read below. It won't take much for all parties to declare this a win-win situation.

Kids! Parents driving you crazy? Come to Night Camp and play Guitar Hero on full volume 'til your mind is numb and your fingers are blistered and cramping. No one will nag you here. At Night Camp we allow endless behavior that would make your parents cringe. Watch YouTube unsupervised with your friends or just watch the same iCarly episodes over and over and over. Come on, you know you never tire of watching the same episodes more than once. Get rid of your parents, eat pizza and candy and ice cream with no one constantly monitoring your every move. Kids, you need Night Camp as much as your parents!

Day Camp: $450 a week. Night Camp: priceless.

Who's with me?

Thelma and Louise Summer Camp for 6 Year Olds: Flashback 2008

It's day 5 at the beach house, and we haven't seen Thelma (Birk) and her sidekick, Louise, for days. As soon as we arrived, the BFFs, disappeared into their self titled "dorm."

The mini mighty amazon girls settled in Kid Animal-House-Style: clothing everywhere, snacks hidden under the bed, a big jug of spring water and bedding in a twist. They were stocked and locked like they were in a bomb shelter. The biggest battle for these warriors? Brothers, bed time and lack of sugary snacks.

Seriously, these girls could be on Kid Survivor. Once in a while they pop up asking for a dry towel or a new dvd, but they are mostly locked behind their self-made, masking tape posted sign on the door that says:

NO BROS ULOD IN ThE GRLS CLUB

When they o.d. on movies, spring water and bananas, we might catch a glimpse of them--hair snarled, still in pjs or bathing suits. Ruth is the voice of 9 year old reason and keeps a sisterly watchful eye, but for the most part, the 6 year olds are running wild.

If they happen to clean the windows with Shout, at least it's good, clean, fun, right? That's what makes the most excellent summer memories, good times, good times...