Summer Camps

As if the stress of getting your kid enrolled in school was not enough, then comes summer and camps.

Summer time is so much fun but all the planning that can go into a successful summer can be taxing.  Right now I am working on choosing some camps for T and S, so I will have some time to work and maybe a little time for myself with no kids.  Once kids hit K or age 6 there seems to be alot of activities available in the summer and choosing can be most difficult.  I want them have to some downtime during the summer also.  But during the downtime you want to make sure there are some friends around to play with, so your kids are not walking around the house asking about what they are going to get to do next.  I would love to hear all the camps that everyone likes.  I will list the ones below that we have either attended or I have heard are good from other Moms: Camp Shalom(lots of swimming), Vacation Bible School, Kirk Summer Program, Faith Summer Program, Waterworks via Tulsa Parks, Tulsa Zoo Camps, Philbrook Camps, YMCA Camps, TJC day Camps, Jenks Public School Camps, Tennis Camps at the Grand, Little Links Golf, ORU Sports Camps, A church in BA not sure which one that offers a music camp that last week in July, BA Theater Arts Camps, Camp Loughridge, Shepard's Fold, Jenks Dance Academy Camps, Holland Hall Camps.  These are just a few. So you can see how a summer can fill up fast.  A lot of these camps offer early and late pick up which is ideal for the working parent looking for a spot of their child in the summer.

I know that some of the Vacation Bible Schools are during the morning but I have had friends that their kids have gone to ones in the evening that offer dinner.  This may allow the parents for a quick dinner out without any kids.  What a pleasure!!

One of things we have done for the past few summers are some semi educational/fun field trips.  I have group of friends and we plan at least one activity a month that is fun and sometimes educational.  This is really fun as long as someone wants to set it up and then we email it out to pretty much everyone we know and who ever comes comes.  Here are some ideas that have worked out for us in the past:  the fire station, Kids love it!!, Blue Bell, water park in Muskogee or the wagoner public pool is alot of fun too(separate baby pool and big kid pool), Kripsy Creme tour and we always try to include a lunch at fun places like Ollies. 

I hope this helps out if you are trying to plan some summer fun. And do not forget to schedule your swimming lessons.  These are must pool safety should always be on our minds once the pools start to open.  We had taken lessons from Coach Sellers in the past.  And we were very sad when we heard that he past away this winter.  Both S and T are good swimmers for their age but I feel at this point, you can not have enough reinforcement on swimming, so we will be taking lessons again this year. 

Please list different camps and fun activities you have done with your kids in summers past.  I know as a Mom I am always looking for fun fresh ideas to keep us busy.