Waldorf Summer Camp

Henry came home from his last day of camp on Friday and brought home the most beautiful watercolor paintings. This was Henry's first year of summer camp and he had a wonderful experience. He went to the Chicago Waldorf School which is a very established Waldorf school. Waldorf schools are very big on child-centered learning, having a clear rhythm to the day, and lots of time for art, music, sports, being outside and unstructured play. The school is up North and close to the Lake so every afternoon they spent a few hours at the beach.

The environment was extremely warm and nurturing and Henry just soaked it up. Always one with a big heart, his compliments and hugs were infectious and he really bonded with his teachers in just the two weeks. He also made several best friends and developed a real affinity for building sand castles, tunnels and collecting treasures.

Although the experience for Henry was wonderful we most likely won't be headed back there next summer. I knew that the 30 minute one-way commute was going to be difficult to mesh into our schedule (especially since Ms. Brenda is 15 minutes in the opposite direction). But it became patently obvious that 1.5 hours in the car each morning just doesn't fit our family. Besides not relishing the idea of expanding our carbon footprint by that much each morning, the experience confirmed my notion that time together is one of our key family values. It doesn't hurt of course that we live in a city bustling with summer camps-- so i've already bookmarked a few to explore for next summer-- both around the corner from Ms. Brenda.

5 Years in Pictures at the Beach

You know how lots of people take pictures of their babies in front of the same stuffed animal to visually mark how they grow? Heading to the beach each summer offers visual reminders of the boys' growth and development, along with all the memories looking back at these pictures evoke. But for now i'm leading with the pictures...

Henry 3 Mos and Nonna:


Henry 14 months:


Henry 14 months:


Henry 2 Years:


Henry Beach 4 Years:


Henry Beach 5 Years:


Silas 4 Months:


Silas 15 Months:


Silas Beach 2 Years:


Silas Beach 2 Years:


Silas Beach 3 Years:


Boys Beach 2010:


Family Picture 2008:


Family Picture 2010:


Parade 2008:


Parade 2009:


Parade 2010:


Baseball Game 2009:


Baseball Game 2010:


Sherman 2008:


Sherman 2009:


Sherman 2010:


Carousel 2008:


Carousel 2010: