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Visit

We’ve had a busy few days! Grandma Debbie was here from Thursday-Saturday so that Katie could go to the first 3 days of staff training. Nate was here from Friday-Monday. And Grandma and Grandpa Whited came all the way from Ohio from Saturday-Monday! It’s been nonstop fun for Xander and Augustus!

On Saturday, it rained all day so Xander, Nate and Grandma and Grandpa headed to Duluth for the day. They checked out the Duluth Aquarium.


Sunday was Father’s Day and we were lucky to have not just Daddy, but also Grandpa to celebrate with!

Everyone left on Monday afternoon and the camper is much quieter! It was so fun to have everyone at camp and we can’t wait for more visitors to come soon!

The Staff

Eating dinner in the middle of the program meeting

Lifeguard training and CPR/First aid certification classes are done. I actually enjoy teaching both of them, but it is a busy 5 days and Augustus refuses to take a bottle these days, so poor Katie had to patiently comfort a very unhappy baby a few times in the last few days. 

Grandma Debbie is here now and Nate arrives in the morning, and staff training officially begins tomorrow! Staff training is super fun (one of my MOST favorite parts of camp actually), but it is 12 hours a day! Friday and Saturday are mostly lead by me (which is a lot of time listening to my voice for our new staff!) but then after that, Meghan, Julia and Amanda take over, so that will be excellent. It will be an intense 7 days. 
S’mores
shoveling with Ross
All of the staff are here now and it’s been so fun to watch Xander and Augustus interact with everyone. Augustus has recently been in a super clingy phase, crying for me even when Nate is holding him. But we have several staff this summer who love babies and I’ve been very pleasantly surprised by how comfortable and happy he is with them, even when I’m within view.
And Xander… well, there are not enough words to describe how wonderful the staff have been to him, and how much he is enjoying all of the attention he receives every day. I just want to follow him around with a camera all day and watch him interact with people. He bosses people around, asking them to get him chocolate milk at dinner, asking for them to help with his jeep, drive him around on the golf cart. They not only help him when he asks, but go out of their way to let him be part of things. The other day, I saw Katie and Augustus, but not Xander. He was riding around on the golf cart with Amanda, helping collect garbage. He loves helping. 
frisbee with the staff
This evening, a group of counselors were playing frisbee on the field- Xander wanted to play and was standing off to the side. I was getting ready to explain that they were busy and we could play later when they ALL yelled to him to come over and play. They threw the frisbee to him and helped him throw it back. It was SO cute. 
There are definitely some challenges to being in a tiny camper in the woods with 2 little kids and without Nate for the most part. But the camp staff make life easier and bring so much joy to all of us. I believe it is good for the boys to have so many wonderful people around them. Camp is kind of a perfect little community that is safe and wholesome and nice and filled with lovely people who want to help each other. It makes me so happy every time I see Xander being confident, outgoing, friendly and independent. He is growing up before my eyes and I’m very proud of him.
Every night before bed, I lay with him and ask him about what made him happy that day. Every day he says, “friends” or lists people by name. He will say, “my friend Julia” or lay in bed and list “Katie, Amanda, Meghan, Julia, Ross…” 

Fishing

Well, we attempted to catch a fish. Xander was actually ok at casting the line and if he had kept the bobber in the water for more than 30 seconds, he might have caught a fish. Not this time though.

Grass, dirt, rocks, sticks and more

There are few things as exciting as when the lawn crew comes. We had a front row seat while they weed whipped our yard and then we headed out to watch the riding mowers cutting the field. 

We spent almost all day outside. Xander drove his jeep from one end of camp to the other, checking out the mud pit several times, stopping to (attempt) to shoot some slingshots, and checking in on Ross, Julia and Meghan to see what they were doing every few minutes. Xander is the ultimate supervisor because he likes to keep close tabs on everything they do.


Ross was using a sledgehammer to demo a giant stone bird bath today. We spent about an hour watching and attempting to help. Xander spent some time hitting it with a stick and climbing all over. Then when Ross got out a shovel, he went back to our house to get HIS shovel, . Some days it’s like we’re running a montessori school over here… but really, what else are little boys supposed to be doing all summer, if not hitting stuff with sticks and digging in the dirt?!

Tomorrow we have 6 staff arriving for lifeguard training, so camp is about to get much busier with lots of new faces. I’m eager to see how the boys respond to all the new people and the commotion that they will bring. Camp has been pretty quiet for these last few weeks, but the exciting part is coming…

S’more Fun at Camp

Camp days are BUSY days. Grandma Debbie and Katie have kept Xander and Gustus busy for the last 2 days… or more like Xander has kept Grandma Debbie and Katie running nonstop. But either way, there’s been a lot of jeep driving, running around, blowing bubbles, going to every corner of camp and spending long days outside. Days end with dirty, tired little boys (and bulldog)!

Yesterday and today we also had a campfire and s’mores after dinner, which was a wonderful, sticky end to the day.

Lifeguard training begins on Sunday, so I’m trying to get done as much as I can possibly do before my days are FULL and life gets CRAZY!

Family Fun Day

Modeling his new Paw Patrol rain coat

Since the forecast said rain ALL DAY, we decided to take a little road trip to Duluth today. Duluth is about 1 hour 15 minutes away from camp.

We left after lunch and both boys slept all the way there.

We went to the Duluth Children’s Museum and there were a lot of cool things to look at and play with! It was a fabulous rainy day activity.


After the museum, we went to the Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory where we bought a lot of wonderful treats. The we headed to Grandma’s Saloon And Grill for dinner (and dessert of course!).

both boys love going out to dinner

just 25cents for one of the best parts of the day!

It was still raining when we got back to camp, but it was time for baths, pjs and bed. What a fun day!

June 1

Wearing his lifejacket just because.

It was 90 degrees until Wednesday and then today it was down to 65. It was a very nice break from the heat!

The lawn crew was here with 2 riding lawn
mowers and 2 guys with weed whips.
Xander was very interested. 
One (of MANY) golf cart rides around camp today. 



Grandma Debbie and Xander have played this game for several days and he continued today without her. He is playing Paw Patrol and pretending he is Ryder. Olivia insisted on laying right under him even though he stepped on her several times as he climbed up and down.

Xander LOVES the 4wheeler and goes for “rides” many times a day. 
We played with play-dough for a while today. 


And then the play dough bucket became a hat.

Nate arrived before dinner and we are all very happy to be back together. It is supposed to rain ALL DAY tomorrow, so we have a family fun day in Duluth planned.

Nanny Katie

Nanny Katie arrived on Wednesday and Xander was very excited. We’ve been talking about Katie coming to camp for several days, but Grandma Debbie was also at camp, so I wasn’t sure if Xander would act as excited about Katie as he actually was.

Xander had 2 daycare teachers this year who he loved. He talked about Miss Maggie and Miss Amy daily. He said, “I love Miss Maggie and Miss Amy”. Every time he had a shirt he liked or new shoes or anything new, he was SO excited to show them and he would talk about it the whole drive to school. And then we would get to school and he would put his hands in his mouth and be super shy and quiet. He’s a pretty normal 2 year old. So I expected him to be quiet or aloof when Katie arrived.

I wasn’t actually there when he saw her, but my mom said he ran right up to her and was happy to see her, so that was a very nice surprise. And I was happy to see her!

Nanny Katie was with Xander for the 6 weeks we were at camp and I couldn’t have been happier when she said she wanted to come back for another summer. Finding someone who is not only good with kids, but also willing to live at camp, work a crazy intense schedule, and who likes Olivia… small miracle is the only way to describe it. And the fact that she is so amazing makes my job and my life SO MUCH EASIER!! And it’s so nice for Xander to have another wonderful adult to love him and take care of him and make his life awesome. He is a lucky dude.

Xander spent some time with Katie today and some time with Grandma Debbie and I finally got some solid work done. There were several times today when he had something he was excited about and immediately said, “I need to show Katie!”

Every night before bed, I lay with him and ask him to tell me things that made him happy that day. Paw Patrol is typically first on the list, and it was today too. But then he said, “and Katie!” so we’re off to a strong start!

Our day began this morning at 4:45am when I heard a loud smashing sound and LEAPT out of bed. The clock had fallen off the wall and shattered (who puts a GLASS clock in a camper?! I didn’t even know they made glass clocks!). The crash didn’t wake the boys, but me sweeping the glass did.

I managed to get Augustus to go back to sleep from 5-6ish, but Xander was wide awake and wiggled around in bed asking to play until about 5:15, when I finally let him get up.

Xander doesn’t nap anymore, but since we are so active at camp, I am trying to re-institute nap this summer. Today was the day. He cried and didn’t want to lay down, but once his head hit the pillow, he was OUT.

I’m very hopeful that 4:45am doesn’t happen again, but that regular napping does!

Settling In

Our second full day and we’re settling in and trying to establish some routines. For the next 2 weeks, we are in pre camp, which is just me working on my own (I have SOMUCHTODO!) and with the lead staff. After that, we will have 2 full weeks of lifeguard and staff training, which will change things because our cook will start making meals and we will move to the dining hall (right now, I’m cooking for us), and because those days are SUPER busy for me. After those 2 weeks, actual camp will start and we will be able to have a set routine for the following 8 weeks. I’m looking forward to that, but until then, I’m trying to get the boys on somewhat of a schedule.  
Both boys were up by 6, so we had an early morning jam sesh, watched a little paw patrol and had some popcorn, read some books, and hung out in the camper before going over to the staff house for breakfast. Our camper has a small refrigerator and a small stove, but I am storing the majority of our food and doing all of the cooking in the main staff house because it’s a regular house with a full kitchen and it’s MUCH easier than trying to do all of that in a tiny camper. 
After breakfast, we took a drive around camp, threw rocks, played with toys and tried to stay in the shade as it was 90 degrees today. 
Xander took a break from driving to help Julia, Meghan and Amanda who were unloading the camp van and moving stuff around camp. 

Right before lunchtime, Grandma Debbie arrived. I think we were all beside ourselves with joy. Grandma Debbie is Xander’s favorite person and I am thrilled to have the help! 
More jeep driving, swimming in the pool, and trying to stay cool kept us busy. 
After dinner, the sky got dark and the wind started blowing. A huge storm was on the way, so we ran around like crazy women trying to put away the jeep and stroller, pull in toys and get all the windows closed before the rain came. 
A few years ago, every time the wind blew or a drop of rain fell, the whole area around the lake would lose power. The electric company has worked hard to take down trees and make improvements, although we still sometimes lose power. The wind was CRAZY and I was sure we would lose power tonight, but I wanted both boys to take a bath. I gave Gustus a super speedy bath (enough to wash off the sunscreen and sweat from such a hot day).
It is inevitable that when you are in the biggest hurry, a toddler will be in the opposite mood. His latest phrase is, “not yet”. As I hurried to peel off his sweaty clothes, I explained, “sometimes at camp, we lose power and it’s an ADVENTURE! So we have to hurry hurry hurry to get your bath done.” I don’t think he knew what in the world I was talking about, but he seemed captivated enough not to have a fit about being rushed along. 
Both boys took baths and then the rain stopped and we didn’t lose power, and now I know we can complete bath time in 15 minutes if necessary. 
It’s supposed to rain for the next 3 days, so send dry thoughts our way, because while the heat has been nearly unbearable, I can’t keep a toddler trapped in a camper for 3 days or we will all lose our minds! 

Home Sweet Home

In 2012, the lake flooded and destroyed one of our staff houses. As a solution, the board bought a brand new previously owned luxury 400 square foot camper for me to move into. I LOVED the camper. It had everything I needed- a tiny kitchen, a tiny bathroom, a surprising amount of closet and storage space, and even air conditioning. It was PERFECT for me and 2 fat bulldogs.

The camper had beige carpeting (in what scenario would beige carpeting EVER work in a camper?!). We had a big roll of linoleum, which we put over the carpet and duct taped down. The linoleum was a mess, so this year, I re-did the floor, this time with the plastic that you might use to covers steps (a huge upgrade if I do say so). The carpet was still in great shape, despite years of wet, sandy dogs living here, so I stand behind the decision to use the linoleum, even though everyone gives me a hard time about it looking janky.

3 years ago, we took the table and chairs out to make room for a crib. The crib has a mosquito net around it and curtains to make it somewhat dark and quiet.

The camper came with a big old tube tv. That also got removed and became the changing table area. Last year, we took out one of the recliners to make a play space for Xander’s table and toys. I still love the camper and I can’t remember what it was even like before all the changes we’ve made since that first year when it rolled onto camp and into my heart.

This summer, we’ve added a baby and approximately 700 toys because toddlers have a lot of stuff! But yesterday, I was an organizing madwoman and I’m still feeling good about our tiny home. I was a little nervous about the bathtub situation, in that there isn’t one. We have a makeshift tub, but Xander loves bath time, so I wasn’t sure what he would think of the baby tub.

I’ve spent the last week building up camp bath time. Every night at bath time, we talk about how, at camp, he will use a very special tub and then use a sprayer (the shower head detaches) to shower off “just like Daddy”. I bought a Paw Patrol bathmat and Xander said, “time for a bath in my Paw Patrol tub”. I’m not sure why it’s a Paw Patrol tub, but I went with it. He sat in the little tub and looked a little apprehensive but he LOVED the sprayer and by the time we were done, the tub was filled all the way and overflowing and he was having a blast.

A woman, a toddler, a baby and an old bulldog go into the woods to live in a camper… sort of sounds like the beginning of a bad joke, but no, this is our life.