The day after the Giants sealed their place in the Super Bowl, Brian and I went to visit Noah & Rachel in Wynnewood, PA. Everyone in their family is a HUGE Giants fans! It was very fun for them to get to celebrate the victory together. Noah is a current 5th grader, and will be an Upper Inter Boy at camp for his second summer. He had just celebrated his birthday last month, so we met his “birthday gift” a super cute cat he named Hamlet, that enjoys getting to hang out with their other cat Heidi. Noah stays really busy with sports, baseball is his favorite…but I also got to see some of his dance moves – he did a great touch down dance for us!
Rachel is a current 3rd grader, and will be a Junior Girl for her first summer at camp! I first met her at her home a year ago when we came to meet Noah, but she wasn’t too interested in camp then…she even fell asleep while we were there! In the past year, I’ve gotten to know her on several occasions…she came to the Sixers basketball game, the Jewish Relief Agency volunteer event, and most importantly, she came to the sibling Tour & More Weekend to test out camp last year. Rachel was at camp on one of the hottest days all summer, so we changed up the regular program and we took all the campers on a golf cart tour of camp, ending with cooking workshop where we made delicious milkshakes – this was her favorite activity of the weekend!
Rachel and I have a shared hobby of knitting/crochet – I got to see some of the projects she made, including a stuffed owl animal, and a super cute scarf. She’s really good, and she even knows how to make pom poms. Going to the Handworks Studio is one of her favorite afterschool activities, so I think she will enjoy the Fabric Arts program at camp. Her number one activity is definitely dance! She is dancing a few times a week, and even was doing ballet moves during our visit. She was recently in 12 performances of The Nutcracker with the Pennsylvania Ballet. She was a toy soldier/bunny – and Noah was there to cheer her on at a lot of the shows. She is very comfortable dancing in front of a lot of people, so the camp crowds will not be a challenge for her!
Rachel loves a lot of things…corn (good thing because Canadensis campers LOVE the cornman!), carrots, American Idol and Michael Jackson. She is also very creative, she came up with her own Halloween costume this year, she wanted to be a witch that flew into a wall, so she dressed up as a witch with crutches! She is ready to try everything at camp this summer, and since she has done an excellent job transferring to a new school this summer, I know she’s going to do great at transitioning to her first summer at Canadensis!
Our next stop was very close by, also in Wynnewood, PA. We rang the doorbell at Cole & Sophie house, and we were greeted by four amazing and very sweet dogs at the door! Once we were inside, we got a chance to get to know Cole, a current 6th grader who will be a Freshman Boy and Sophie, a current 3rd grader who will be a Junior Girl. They are both coming to camp for their first summer, and it was great to see another set of siblings that really enjoy spending time together!
This was one of the most active home visits I’ve ever been on! Sophie has tons of energy, and was jumping rope while we chatted, and before the end of the night she got me skipping rope too – but she is much faster and more graceful than me! They gave us a tour of their basement, and they showed us how they can close of the doors to make a Gaga area. We played a four person round of the game (it’s like dodgeball) and I was the first one out! We have two dedicated gaga pits at camp, and I’m excited to challenge them again at camp this summer.
I was glad to get my energy up over a great vegetarian dinner – and we discussed the many veggie options we have at camp. I told them that whatever meal is being served, there are always a few options for the vegetarians like us – some of my favorites are the tofu stir fry, tomato basil mozzarella sandwiches and veggie meatballs! They told us about their favorite things to do, including taking trips to places like Universal Studios and Vermont. We also talked about favorite TV shows, and Sophie loves Spongebob! Their afterschool activities include Main Line Girls Basketball, Handworks Studio and some time to play the drums – they have two sets in the basement!
Sophie also gave me a tour of her newly remodeled room – her father had surprised her with a redesign while she was at school! The purple walls and carpet were the same, but all the furniture had been shifted. A lot of the artwork on the wall was her own personal work, art is one of her favorite activities. She has a special “tea party” area of her room, and she is taking care of some baby cactus, which have a prime location on her desk. Luckily, cactus don’t need a lot of water to survive, so she won’t have to worry about them while she’s off having an amazing summer at camp!
