DONE!!!

Well, I worked like a slave but it is now OVER!! It was a huge success for the first time but I have learned something for the next year--besides that it takes more than 3 months to plan and execute a day-long camp like this. The planning was fun and relaxing; the execution more challenging! Hopefully, the photos will come up so you can see the Weiner Dog lady at least. She was awesome!One thing I learned is NOT to have a memorial service at the end in a room that is adjacent to the playscape which is having a birthday party!! Not good. Another thing I learned was NOT to have kids who have just finished a counseling session on dealing with anger to hammer ice cubes into chunks to make ice candles with. They tend to pulverize the ice which, then, lies on the bottom of the cup preventing any wax at all from getting there. I had not tried that before: having the kids crush the ice. The preschoolers who have done it don't hit the bags that hard!! They had a great time; even the one little gal who insisted that if she had to go at all, she would be miserable and make everyone around her miserable too. She was laughing after the first set of games! I heard her telling her little brother, "Come on, put some enthusiasm into this!" The newspaper coverage was awesome. The photographer who did the actual camp coverage was wonderful. He came and talked with the kids and had snacks with them, took a silly photo, until when it was time for them to go to a class, they invited him along. He was very discreet and got some good photos. It was printed yesterday--a whole page, color prints. Wonderfully done. I wrote thank you notes to him and the reporter--and their editor also.Have found that I am too old to do it often! Those young uns at St. Anthony's do a teen one and an elementary one back-to-back in one weekend! Not for this old lady!!! I was so tired, I hurt all over the next day!! My old feet hurt so badly that I had to go to hospice and lie down with them elevated for a while before I could even drive home. BUT, that said, I will do them next year happily. It was fun for the kids and grown ups too, I think. We had the best volunteeer help ever! Everyone was just fabulous--a real team effort. I am so grateful to everyone for all their help!!!