His Idea

The mohawk is back!

Drumroll, please...

Boylee decided against the sleepover. That's despite the offer of two bribes: a Swiss Army knife (because Mr. X allows them during the sleepover, to sharpen sticks for toasting marshmallows), and a new Wii game. Oh well. If he turned down those bribes, then he really, really didn't want to go. So we just have to accept that. Maybe next summer.

Mr. X was really cool about it. He even offered to let Boylee attend camp two days next week to make up for missing Thursday and Friday this week. So he'll get to do a hiking day and a beach day again, and his best pal Liam will still be at camp next week, as will Liam's older sister and two other kids from this week.

Lastly, here are some highlights from today -- Mr. X is great about quickly posting camp pictures!

Day 2 at Mr. X's Camp

They went up to the local mountains for a hiking and creek adventure. Here are a couple of highlights:

The rock where they ate lunch.


Goofing off in the creek.


Bear poop!

So far, Boylee has said nothing about the sleepover...

One Last Thing

Boylee apparently cried several times during the camp day. Mostly because he was homesick. Ugh. He also apparently repeatedly asked Mr. X what time it was, to judge how much time was left before pickup. Ugh.

He's with his best friend! They spent the day at the beach!

Tomorrow they go hiking. Maybe he will enjoy it more. I told him I'd pack a watch for him so he could watch the time himself if he likes.

Mr. X Posted Some Pictures

Here's what he wrote on his website about today's camp adventure:

First Venice, then Santa Monica Beach. Too rocky and deep for boogie boarding. We won’t go there anymore. Instead lots of digging, playing, and sand crab fishing... Mr. X thought he put on sunscreen, but in reality he put on diaper balm :) They found that amusing...

Boylee and Asa digging a hole. Asa wasn't in the same class as Boylee last year, but he is known to us as the boy who told Boylee that another kid had put a "kick me" sign on Boylee's back. Asa reminded me of that this morning: "I didn't put the sign on!" I said, "I know you didn't!"

Boylee heading up the rope. I'm sure he made it to the top, as he does this all the time at gymnastics. Next to him is Eva, who is the teeniest-tiniest little girl. When I see the size of her feet, I just smile. She was the littlest kid in their class last year.

This Week's Camp Is...

Mr. X's Camp! (Okay, it' s not really Mr. X, but I don't want to put his real name.) Mr. X is the P.E. teacher at Boylee's school, and during the summer he runs a small, weekly camp.

This week's attendees are: Boylee; his former first grade colleagues Lukas, Eva and Liam; Mr. X's son who's going into 4th grade; and another 4th grader. Here is the weekly schedule:

Monday -- beach

Tuesday -- hike to a creek

Wednesday -- beach

Thursday -- up to the mountains for creek-playing, barbeque and sleep-over, all in one giant tent that Mr. X calls "the condo."

Friday -- mountain play and come home

Currently, Boylee believes that he is way, way too scared to participate in the overnight, despite the presence of his best pal, Liam. I am really, really hoping that changes.

Race Day @ Destination Science!

Here is Boylee with his unique creation. All the kids started with the same basic kit, but each person customized his/her own robot car. Boylee told us that the orange thingy towards the center is the driver, who is "a hippie." (Also, Boylee was in the green group this week, and all the kids were asked to wear appropriately colored clothes for today's big camp finish.)

All the robots on display. (They did a little parade so they could see everyone's creations and say "good job" to one another.)

Then the competition got started...


Here Boylee gets ready to face off against Patrick, with sweet counselor Wendy as judge. The object is to make your creation push the other guy's creation out of the circle. I watched as Boylee lost several of these challenges in a row. Don't know why...since they're all basically the same.

Or you could opt for a straight out race from a start line to a finish line. Boylee's robot won several races!
There was even a first aid station for any robots needing repairs or fresh batteries!

This Week's Camp...

...is Destination Science. And this week's topic is ROBOTS vs. ALIENS. Here's the description:

Calling all robot inventors! If you think robots are cool…join us this summer and build 2 all new robots. Each morning you will work on your very own Team USA Robot (our biggest robot ever!). As an inventor you must prepare your robot for the Robot Parade, the Robot Grand Prix Raceway and the Team USA Battlebot Rally. As a true inventor your robot design is up to you. Our morning includes: Techno fun with electric lightning you can touch, super sonic sound, and more.

After lunch travel out of this world for an alien encounter with a futuristic robot invasion and build your own Alien Robot. What new techno tools will you add to your alien spacecraft? Our action packed afternoon includes the incredible balancing sonic bird, mini-microscope adventures, “strawstrucion” and much much more! And the best part? The robots come home with you when camp is over to continue the experimentation and fun!

Science Concepts Include: electricity, center of gravity, conservation of energy, speed and time, and much more!

A highlight for Boylee: his group is ALL BOYS which is, I think, a nice switch after the last two girl-centric weeks at the Bolinas camp.

The Overnight

(He went in a canoe.)

Apparently he got very, very homesick around 10pm, but when Mark's dad tried to call me they didn't have any cell service. So the dad read the boys some Percy Jackson, and that was enough to get them through the night.

They did, however, call me at 6:45 this morning. I drove over to the site, and instead of picking him up I hung out till about 8:45. Boylee was very eager for cuddles, and then he showed me the highlights of the campsite (rope swing, firepit, bathroom). Around 8:45 he asked me to drive him to the morning camp location, instead of walking with the rest of the kids. So we cruised over there (took about 1 minute) and then we had a few more minutes for cozying before the rest of the campers arrived.

Overall: a success.

What Happened Was...

...He was very, very nervous to go. He actually grasped my hand, wordlessly, across the table when he was having a snack beforehand. And when we got down to the dock, he was very quiet and reserved. And we waited, and waited, and waited for his friend Mark to appear. Even when the counselors got everyone's life jackets on. Even when they figured out who was going to kayak (the older kids) and who was going to ride in a canoe (the younger ones). And finally Mark (and his dad) appeared, and Boylee was HAPPY!

There was a lot of organizing going on, and all the kids' stuff was tossed in the back of the truck. Finally, off they went: first, one lone boy who'd had enough of this organizing stuff and who just wanted to wade to the campsite. Then the kayakers, working hard against the tide which was flowing out of the lagoon. Finally, the littles in the canoes. And Boylee smiled and waved and was off.

It's a grand adventure -- but the funny part is they're not going far: they're going to camp on land owned by a family friend, and that can't be more than a half a mile (at most!) from the dock. Noni is going over to that house for dinner, so I'm sure she will stop by the campsite to check on Boylee.

Here is the little dock where they launched:

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BREAKING NEWS!

The boy decided to attend the camp sleep-over, which is tonight! He's off playing with his pal, Mark, for an hour, while I'm assembling his pile of supplies. Going: sleep pad, Noni's headlamp, clean clothes for tomorrow, a jacket, swimsuit and towel, water bottle, plastic plate + utensils. Being borrowed from Mark's family: a sleeping bag. Not going: his toothbrush. I just don't think he'll use it, and in fact he might lose it. I'm pretty sure he will consider this is best day ever, because he HATES brushing his teeth.

It Only Took a Week and a Half!

The sun came out! And Boylee is having a post-camp playdate with his new bromance, Mark. They spent the day at camp visiting tidepools, playing tennis (okay, I spied on this part while I was taking a walk), and playing at the beach.

Tuesday's Highlight

Someone fell in the Newt Pond at the Audubon place. And it wasn't this bird.

Update

Weekend in Mendocino with friends: Beautiful! Fun! Happy!

Flat tire on the way home in the fast lane of the 101, going 80: Not so much fun! But ended okay!

Monday hours spent at the Honda dealership getting everything squared away: Again, not so much fun! Thankfully, not too expensive either!

Boy's reward for waiting hours at the Honda dealership with me: a new book, on my dime.

Then he spent his allowance on this:
And coming up at camp this week: a visit to a hummingbird house and a newt pond, tennis, sandcastles, tidepooling, art, garden games, face-painting and dress-up, kickball and water balloon-launching contest, among many, many other things.

No Love for Kent Island

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Boylee reported that he spent "two seconds" on Kent Island (after walking a few hundred feet across the low-tide lagoon to get to it). It was TOO COLD and TOO WINDY. When I picked him up at the dock, he was sort of disgusted by the entire thing. Almost all the other kids were bundling up after having been in their swim suits, but I do admit that almost all of them were shivering fiercely. Boylee may be the smartest one in the group.

A Mystery

There was no foot massage today, despite the schedule. Boylee says no one even mentioned it. Oh well.

Up for tomorrow -- according to the schedule, which may or may not be accurate -- drop off at the school, followed by dance, snack, art, nature games, lunch, tennis, walk to the dock, then traversing the lagoon at low tide to visit Kent Island.

Fun with Cousin Yves

You know this is Boylee's favorite kind of play!

Throwing Candy to the Crowd

First Day of Camp

We walked down to the town tennis courts for the first day of camp...and found a crowd of happy, super-casual peeps. There seem to be about 50 kids altogether, so it's pretty small. We introduced ourselves, and found Boylee's counselors, Ellie and Ozzie. He joined the group already assembled -- which was about four girls. And then we waited. And then a few more girls arrived. And then we waited -- and I could actually feel Boylee's tension. And then a couple more girls showed up -- until it was EIGHT girls and Boylee, and I was really starting to sweat!

FINALLY another boy showed up, and then and then another, and then it seemed to be ages and ages later when the one boy Boylee knows, Mark, came. Finally Boylee relaxed! Things shifted during the day, so it turns out Boylee and Mark are the only two boys in the group, but I think that's enough. (I mean, he'd be happy with a few more, I'm sure, but one will do.)

Today was an all-camp getting-to-know-you-day, which meant games on the tennis court, then a one-minute walk to the beach where they did an obstacle course, played games, did face-painting (Boylee did not participate) and generally had fun. The day started drizzly and quite cold, which did not seem promising. I even had to hike back up to the house to get Boylee a pair of long pants to change into. And then when I delivered the pants back at the camp group, Boylee did not want to give me a kiss. He did snuggle against my shoulder, but I guess kissing mama at camp is not cool.

A few hours later I was taking a long walk around the town when my feet just happened to lead me down the beach where the camp was assembled. I looked, and looked and didn't see Boylee -- then finally found him, buried up to his waist in the sand. He was back at the far end of the beach, against the cliffs. I was at the water's edge. I wondered if I should say hi, and then he saw me and waved. I did get close enough to ask if he was having fun and he said yes -- and then turned away from me to horse around with Mark and another boy. Point taken -- MAMA NOT NEEDED AT CAMP!

Okay, okay, I learned my lesson.

Tomorrow I drop him off at the local school where they will be doing, among other things, storytelling and foot massages. I don't know whose feet will be massaged by whom. I will report.

Happy 4th!