New week, new camp (July 8)
We started a new week the other day which means we’re doing the same thing many other suburban families are doing during the summer: we’re playing new camp roulette. And when you have a kid slightly prone to anxious thinking, a new camp means we’re in for a bumpy week.
Plotting out the summer schedule is like doing multi variable calculus where one of the variables is a sweet but chaotic 8 year old who has very specific tastes on what makes her happy. And what makes her happy is the same school, same teacher, same desk to sit at, and same friends to play with. While many kids look at summer as an escape from homework and school, Lily sees it as a favorite things getting ripped away. And then every few weeks the reset button is pushed and we get to start all over with a new camp or new experience.
In the long run this will be good for her. Life is all about learning to deal with new people and new places and new processes. But in the meantime, we get to ride an emotional roller coaster.