Last Day (Friday)

Let me just start by saying "What a week this has been". Your children are all worn out. However, last night started with a visit from the girls to the boys cabin. What started out as a nice visit turned into a Silly String blitz. The girls got the boys good. There was Silly String everywhere. But don't count the boys out yet. We slyly made our way to their cabin while they were in line waiting for dinner and took all their mattresses off of their beds and piled them in the middle of the floor. Revenge is sweet!!!

Thursday Night Live was good. There were some really good skits. Mr. Eddy and Mr. Doherty (Lincoln-Thompson) were part of a skit.  We were two suckers on a stick.  The staff did an excellent job bringing out the acting skills in the children.

This morning was up early and out early. We had to have all of our things in the field by 7:30. Now we know what you parents go through to get your kids up and off to school. They didn't want to move. The staff took them back to the cabin for a thorough cleaning while we filled out evaluations.

From 10-11 the kids have field group one last time. After that we have lunch and say our goodbyes. I would like to thank Mrs. Matsubara, Mrs. Powers, and Mr. Whittier for taking their time to come up as chaperones.

Mrs. Hennessey dragging her luggage.

I will be posting pictures when I get back on the website.

Until next year.

Thursday Morning

I have to start with yesterday since there was no time to write about it last night. The hike was awesome. Some of the groups hiked into the woods and roasted marshmallows. Others found beaver dams and other signs of animals, and yet others just hiked and hiked and hiked and hiked for 3 hours. They were cold when they came back, but some of the boys wanted to stay outside and play basketball. The high yesterday was 27 degrees and windy. We had pizza for dinner. It was pretty good. The boys are playing a killer game of UNO Attack. It was a nail biter.

Last night was incredible. All the children had nothing but good things to say about the Underground Railroad activity. It gave them an inside view about what happened during the slavery period in the US colonies. They played the roles of slaves being transported to the colonies and then bought and brought to a plantation. The chaperones were the conductors on the Underground Railroad and brought them to freedom in Canada. Along the way we had to collect red, white, blue, and yellow cards. During our “journey” we encountered bounty hunters, sheriffs, and land owners (the counselors) looking for slaves. They interrogated us as to why we were out late at night and traveling north. Mr. Whittier told them we were hauling cottage cheese to the rich folks in New England and we needed to travel at night because of the cool temperatures.

However, the goal was for the kids learn how slavery and bullying are similar. The counselors did a great job at relating the two in ways the kids understood. I am certain they will tell you all about it.

Mrs. Graul finally made it at about 6:45 after a dark trip. This place is not easy to find in the dark considering there are no street lights.

We had french toast and sausage for breakfast with a little Black Sabbath "Iron Man" thrown in to wake them up. LOL. They are now on their field groups either doing activities or hiking around the property. Later

they are playing a big game of tag called Predator vs. Prey. This is a great game.

The chaperones are beginning to become a little weary. All except Mrs. Powers who came up yesterday. She is however, realizing what it is like to have sixteen girls in one cabin. FUN!!!

Yes, I am doing the ORT Report dance.

PS. The kids are saying they don't want to come home.

Wednesday Morning

We are patiently awaiting the arrival of Mrs. Graul. The kids are excited that she is coming up. I hope she brings up her warm clothes. :)

The kids went to sleep a little bit earlier and probably earlier tonight. I just love waking them up with Van Halen. LOL.

The night experience was a blast. The kids learned how wintergreen lifesavers make sparks when you chew them in the dark. They also found rocks, not flint, that spark when they are struck together. Right now, they are in class. The big draw was shark dissection. Most of them wanted to do that. Others were doing yoga, making water rockets, learning how to make a shelter in the woods, and play frisbee golf. The chaperones will be playing that later on.

At about 12 we head out on a four hour hike. This will certainly make them tired. Later tonight they will participate in the Underground Railroad activity. It will probably be the best thing they do all week.

Tuesday Afternoon/Night

The afternoon was verrrrry cold. Of course they are all frozen because they still haven't learned how to dress themselves in the cold weather. The chaperones have been talking and have never seen so many missing articles of clothing. It is like their mittens and hats get sucked into a giant vacum.

We had cheeseburgers and fries for lunch. Tasted just like chicken. LOL. They had field group classes today. Some of the things they did were water rockets, pig dissection (lots of dissections up here, but not on the kids), facials with bananas, honey, and yogurt, float your boat, made a jungle gym, ate bats and rocks (also tasted just like chicken), and made butter(yep, chicken).

The pillow fights have quite extreme. The girls actually had teams. The boys tried it and wanted to jump off the top bunk onto each other.

Dinner was actually chicken. We had fajitas with real sour cream. Yummy!!! Tonight consisted of a night time experience. What that entails is walking in the woods without a flashlight. The counselors are the only ones who have light. Scarrrryyyyy!!!!! After that it is quiet sing time and then bedtime. Yes, they will be in bed early. The girls all look like walking zombies, including the chaperones.

They are having a blast. During transation (free) time they have been playing basketball, football, soccer, and just hanging around. So they are getting plenty of excercise and we can pretty much guarantee they will be sound sleepers on Friday night.

Tuesday Morning

"The bags are too heavy"








Last night was fun. The kids had a blast with the science experiments, but the cold has not subsided yet. Then they listened to The Jackal tell a story of his adventures on the MBTA. Next, they sang some songs like "I'm a Believer, Yellow Submarine, and We are Going to be Friends" and then bedtime.

The boys were awoken at 6:55 to the delightful sounds of Metallica. However, it didn't go as planned. Many of them were already awake. Excited to start the day I guess. Mrs. Hennessey used her fog horn to get the girls up. And from what the girls said it was loud. I hear the girls didn't go to sleep until 1:00 am. That will change tonight. They are going to beg to go to bed. Mrs. Hennessey said there were a couple homesick girls, but they seemed ok today.

Breakfast was really good this morning, pancakes and sausage. After, the kids went out with their field groups around the camp grounds. In field group they go with the counselor and explore the woods and may do various activities while out there. Today they were dressed much warmer.

I am trying to post a slide show of pictures but am having a heck of time getting the software to work. I will post picts in this blog though. I'll update more later this afternoon.

Monday, November 17

We made it. After a smooth two hour ride the kids are very excited to be here. Yes, it is very cold and the kids think they can wear only sweatshirts. There were some red noses and cheeks. However, they quickly learned what not to wear. There was a snow shower around 2:00. The first sign of winter. Yippeee!!!

For lunch we had grilled cheese and tater tots. Yummy. The kids are getting their first taste at working in the restaurant business. Each one has to be a waitron. They have to get the food and serve it to the rest of the table. When we are done eating they have to clean the table and wipe it down. No complaints yet.

They had there first class which may have been dissection of a sheep lung and heart, making things with duct tape, learning about forest fires, or doing arts and crafts. They even made the USA out of rice crispie treats and ate it. What you are looking to at the right is a sheep's eye being dissected.

The accommodations are nice. Each cabin has heat and indoor plumbing. There are bunk beds for them to sleep on and they love the top bed. Mr. Whittier has a whole side of the cabin to himself. The girls have to use both sides of their cabin, so no privacy for Mrs. Hennessey and Mrs. Matsubara.

Later we are going to head to the main lodge for a science fair and sing along time. I’ll let you know how it was tomorrow.

Are You Ready???

Well, here we are at the cusp of a fun filled week in sunny (I hope) Freedom, NH.  I hope the parents have gone over the list of suggested supplies to make sure your child will be comfortably dressed.  The forecast is looking to be in the mid-30's for most of the week.  To left you will see a link to the weather forecast.

I would like to have everyone there by 8:30 so we can leave on time at 9:00.  There is no need to go to the school that day; just go to CVS.

We'll see everyone on Monday morning.  Enjoy the weekend.