Monthly Archives: June 2022

Camp Update

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I got my babies back today. Yay! They had a *great* time at the Governor’s Institute. This morning there was a whole presentation where the director talked about the experience and showed a slideshow of everyone’s final projects. Then we had time to walk around and check out all the final projects. They ranged from digital designs, to video games, to physical robots and “makerspace” projects. They were all pretty cool.

Eve made a really neat wooden box with her drawings engraved in the side. She also created the graphics for a video game that Lex programmed, and a screen printed poster of the game logo. They had fun working together. They also both joined a Dungeons and Dragons group and are now fully addicted. 😄

Eve also made cool/weird/pretty earrings and a little mushroom out of clay and paint. They are adorable, but the earrings are huge. :)

After we were packed up and checked out, we headed to Church Street for yummy bagel lunch and Lake Champlain Chocolates ice cream. We also made a stop at the local game store to buy D&D dice. Yep, they are hooked!

Alan took Lex and Eve back to his house for a bit while I dropped B’Lake off at his Governor’s Institute mathematics camp. It was a very different drop off experience than last week with Lex and Eve. For the math camp they were disorganized, lax, and extremely informal. I hope it ends up being as much fun for him as L&E had.

Em the snail went to camp to keep B’Lake company. 💙💛

After dropping him off I stopped at Alan’s house to pick up the other two and we headed home. Huxley was VERY glad to see the kids again! He slept in his crate every night this week and is definitely missing his cuddles with Lex. 🤗

Tomorrow we’re off on another adventure! Life is good.

Governor’s Institute

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Eve and Lex are spending the week at a fancy tech camp called the Governor’s Institute. The camp is held at Champlain College, a beautiful location on Champlain Lake. I dropped them off yesterday, in the rain. I was a weird nervous person trying to be double sure on the parking and plans. I think I drove Lex crazy. LOL. The camp is a super cool camp. Lex and B’Lake did it last year, but it was virtual due to Covid, so it was fun, but not AS fun as in-person. This year Lex and Eve signed up for the “technology and design” session and B’Lake signed up for the “mathematics” session, which is next week.

Eve was up at 4:30am, feeling anxious, I think. She didn’t say as much, but she said she had a stomachache and worried she might have Covid (she tested negative before I even work up). She was excited and nervous, so I knew it was all ok.

I helped them both get packed, ran a few errands with Eve (she needed headphones and Lex needed laundry detergent –he’s planning to do laundry!), then we headed to college. It was a super weird experience.

  • First things first — Covid tests. One poor camper who had driven 2.5hrs tested positive and was sent home. It was a nerve wracking – yet boring – 15 minutes.
  • Eve in her dorm. She has a lovely view of construction. Lex wanted no help in his dorm room, but I’m assuming they look about the same.
  • Forced fun photo for mom. It was drizzling and I made them stand in the rain anyway for the photo.

I don’t think I was too much, but by the end when I wanted one pic of the two of them together, Lex was done with me. :) I jokingly said something about Lex being ready for me to leave and he less jokingly said yeah, he was. :) That boy is exactly where he should be for a rising senior!

Eve, on the other hand, needed extra hugs, texted me before I was even home, and called me at night. She said she was having fun, but that there was a lot of people and activities and she was very tired. I’m hoping she’s having a good day today. She texted me a picture of the clouds this morning, so that’s a good sign.

Red sky after the rain.

March for Our Lives

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The gun violence in this country is so out of hand and I struggle to make sense of it. Every time there is a school shooting my heart breaks for the families and children and communities. It impacts ALL of us. Going to school the next day and trying to reassure students (and ourselves!) that it will all be ok is becoming more and more difficult. I don’t know what to do, but I need to do something. I started small today by attending a March for Our Lives rally in Montpelier, organized by GunSenseVT and Moms Demand Action. I signed up for their lists. I held a sign, wore their buttons, and tried not to cry as speakers discussed how school shoots have impacted them and their communities. It is scary and terrifying and infuriating. There were a few moments of levity when the annual naked bike parade came pedaling by, but even that could only do so much to quell the somber mood. I wish we could do more.

  • It was a beautiful day.
  • The rally was not well attended, though this picture doesn’t do the crowd justice. There were probably a few hundred people in total.
  • I need to work on my posing (hello chins!) and I wanted the picture to show my “Stand with Educators” shirt, but alas, this is what I got. It’s not about how I look anyway, right?? :)

I did not take any pictures of the naked bikers who then moved into the park was the March for Our Lives rally was ending. They sprawled out on the state house steps and posed for group (team?) pictures. We left and got some pizza before driving home.

One of these things is not like the others…

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DBS had a spring concert tonight. We had to break it into two concerts this year, K-2 and 3-5, which is better than the no concerts from the past two years. The K-2 concert went off without a hitch, but the 3-5 concert the following week had to be rescheduled when our music teacher tested positive for Covid. The concert was pushed back a week and now on a Friday night, so not everyone could attend.

Our music teacher is super awesome and super cool, but also gets super anxious about stuff and when she found out she would be missing one or more percussionist she kinda freaked out. She was debating having her fiancé (a fellow musician) step in, but worried about the look of that. So I volunteered Lex! :) He took the news very well and put on concert attire and came with me to the concert without any fussing.

The music teacher introduced him to the band before the show started and he was a shining example of how practice pays off. They were impressed with him. We’re all pretty impressed with him. The boy who would barely do his own elementary school concerts is now happily helping out six years later. 💗