You are all reminding me that DD might want to go to overnight camp for a week this summer. What age did your kids start? She turns 8 this summer and will be going into third grade.
We normally do 100% day camps at the YMCA, which has tons of options and the kids can be together, and the hours are great. I’ll be on maternity leave this summer, though, so maybe we’ll branch out and do some non-Y camps that have hours that aren’t as great but sound like fun.
sdlaura, DS started at age 8. DH wanted him to go at 7, but I didn't think he was ready. DD will be 7 if she goes this summer. I am still waiting to make the call. The good thing though is that DS would be there. They won't be in the same group or cabin, but they will be in the same area, so she will see him maybe if it is only once a day for 5 minutes. She will know he is there with her.
DD1 started sleepaway camp last summer - she was 9 and heading into 4th grade. She had never spent a night away from us or our nanny. She did not ask to go - we sent her. She needed to go, and we needed her to go.
It was such a great decision. She loved it so much. I feel like 4 weeks is a lot, but DH and DD1 feel like it’s time. She learned a lot about independence. She needed it, and she needs it again.
So the overnight camp I am looking at is 1900 for 1 week, or 3750 for 2 weeks. 1 week is only an option for kids age 6-9, so DS could only do that this year and next.
I don't think DD is ready for overnight camp.
There is another one that is cheaper by a few hundred dollars, and then yet another one that is half the cost of the most expensive one. The most expensive one is secular and the other two are christian. It seems like most of them are Christian, which I don't have a problem with exactly but I think my DH might? But I sent him 3 choices to look at. I just happen to know families that have gone to the most expensive one and loved it..of course.
I have to say that I don't really know of anyone who has gone to any overnight camp and not liked it. But I'm sure such stories do exist.
Damn! That’s pricey! The camp we send our kids to (YMCA so I guess Christian-ish, but not really) is $850 for 1 week (Ages 7-12) and $1700 for 2 weeks (ages 10-14). I looked at some that were a lot more expensive, but we couldn’t afford that for all of the kids so we went with basically the cheapest option.
You are all reminding me that DD might want to go to overnight camp for a week this summer. What age did your kids start? She turns 8 this summer and will be going into third grade.
We normally do 100% day camps at the YMCA, which has tons of options and the kids can be together, and the hours are great. I’ll be on maternity leave this summer, though, so maybe we’ll branch out and do some non-Y camps that have hours that aren’t as great but sound like fun.
My 8 year old going into 3rd next year is going for the first time this summer. My oldest went for the first time at 11 and middle went for the first time when she was 8. We do a YMCA overnight camp that is amazing, but they fill up fast so if she wants to go start looking now.
Post by erinshelley21 on Jan 9, 2020 22:28:04 GMT -5
Hiiiiiii! It has been a while, but I am trying my hardest to get back into the swing of things and back to my normal, interacting here being part of that.
We moved into our new house on December 13th like we planned. Got everything moved in, spent the weekend unpacking and getting furniture delivered and internet set up. As the weekend ended, we all just felt at peace and happy to be in our home. No rough nights, minimal whining from either kid, and DH and I weren't even short with each other for the amount of work that we had just gotten done. Monday rolled around and went fine. Then BAM! Tuesday morning at 6:30 DH steps out of his truck and BREAKS HIS MOTHER F'ING ELBOW after we had only been in our house for 3 entire full days. We had not one single room completely unpacked, our washer and dryer hadn't been hooked up, and I was now responsible for 90% of all housework and parenting because how much of that can actually be done with 1 arm when you have a kid still in diapers?! And all the week before Christmas, which I've talked before about how long our Christmases are. 5 gatherings plus Santa. We hosted 2 of the 5, which one was committed to before the broken bone.
So, the remodeling has come to an end, or at least a much slower pace since the shower I tiled still doesn't have doors, but the crazy has not stopped. It's starting to get to me but progress on unpacking and getting settled is being made every day. I'm hoping for a big push through all of it this weekend. My office and our bedroom are the least done of all the rooms and the 3rd least done is the room we enter the house in, so I am literally greeted or surrounded by our things that still don't have a place yet each and every day.
erinshelley21, in a few years, this will all just be a blip on the radar. But you'll have leverage to pull out early and often for several years to come.
$330 is a very nice house in my area. That will get you 3-4 bedrooms, 3 bathrooms, 3000 square foot. In the rural area, you will get 5+ acres. In the suburbs, it will get you into a vary nice, upscale neighborhood with amenities.
This is why I don't watch House Hunters anymore. I just get pissed. Here $330k would get you a 1000-1200 square foot, dated split level house with .25 - .5 acres depending on the neighborhood. And sadly, that's basically my dream upgrade right now from my $250k 900 square foot 1940's cape on .18 acres.
An update. I’ve been playing phone tag with the recruiter for the job in Phoenix. We are now scheduled to talk later this morning. A mom at my kids’ school lived in Phoenix and went to the private school we would send our kids to. She says it’s a great school. So that’s a nice thing.
On the housing price issue, we are in an area where home prices are really affordable. We have a nice 4 bedroom 2800 square foot home we bought for $275k that will probably sell for about $380k. Phoenix, or more precisely Scottsdale where this job would be, is like triple that. So OMG. This would have to be a great offer.
mommyatty my cousin’s family just moved to Phoenix for work with their two girls. I stalked their new address from their Christmas card and was pretty surprised about the house cost - not even Scottsdale, but I think the rent was $6000k+ and it was definitely a million dollar plus house. I always thought of Phoenix as being less expensive. I will say it was way more house and yard than you’d get for that price here.
You are all reminding me that DD might want to go to overnight camp for a week this summer. What age did your kids start? She turns 8 this summer and will be going into third grade.
We normally do 100% day camps at the YMCA, which has tons of options and the kids can be together, and the hours are great. I’ll be on maternity leave this summer, though, so maybe we’ll branch out and do some non-Y camps that have hours that aren’t as great but sound like fun.
My 8 year old going into 3rd next year is going for the first time this summer. My oldest went for the first time at 11 and middle went for the first time when she was 8. We do a YMCA overnight camp that is amazing, but they fill up fast so if she wants to go start looking now.
THis thread has inspired me to send lots of other options to DH and ask him to look at their websites. The expensive camp struck me as expensive, but I know people who send their kids to camp out of state in Arkansas and Colorado so I thought....this is probably cheaper than that right? Anyway I'm glad to have that reality check.
mustardseed2007, Yes our camp is in MI sort of in the middle of no where, so the price is cheaper because of that, and it is $650 not $600, I double checked. I know camps in the DC/ Northeast area are in the thousands, so it is definitely #regional.
Re: Camp - one thing I researched was the schedule. At DD1’s camp, there is very little downtime. After breakfast they clean the bunk, and after lunch there’s an hour of quiet time, but otherwise they are scheduled and engaged in something. I think that she simply didn’t have time to think about being homesick.
When I went to camp, we would have hours of free time and nothing to do, and I hated it so much that I broke into the head counselor’s office and called my parents and begged them to come and get me.
My 8 year old going into 3rd next year is going for the first time this summer. My oldest went for the first time at 11 and middle went for the first time when she was 8. We do a YMCA overnight camp that is amazing, but they fill up fast so if she wants to go start looking now.
THis thread has inspired me to send lots of other options to DH and ask him to look at their websites. The expensive camp struck me as expensive, but I know people who send their kids to camp out of state in Arkansas and Colorado so I thought....this is probably cheaper than that right? Anyway I'm glad to have that reality check.
We are in CO and so is our camp. And there are quite a few families at the camp who don’t live in CO. It’s interesting to me because it’s just a YMCA camp, which I would assume would be everywhere, but I guess not. It’s a really great camp so I guess if the parents went there as kids and then moved and they want their kids to go there too, that’s how that happens maybe. But I know at least 2 families here who send their kids out of state to camp (one to CA and one to TX). It’s all So interesting where people send their kids to camp and the whys.
Yeah the camp we use also doesn’t have much downtime, just an hour in the afternoon and then a little bit before bed. They are mostly outside the entire time and moving their bodies and no electronics. That’s my absolute most favorite part, especially for my teen who goes for 2 weeks with no phone access. It’s glorious! I think kids really need that these days, but it’s almost impossible in modern life to make it happen without sending them away to the woods. Hahah.
At least we know that if/when we move, housing prices anywhere will be more affordable than what we have here.
I do not imagine that either kid will be able to afford to live here, so if/when they move, I hope they end up somewhere near each other so that we can end up somewhere near them. I mean that's my dream as a parent. They may be like me and want 3-4+ hours travel time between their parents.
k3am that's what we figure, too. One day we can hopefully sell our house here and buy smaller places near our kids.
My parents did that, but both their kids moved to more expensive places than where we grew up. My parents now have a condo near me and a bigger house near my sister (since that's their home state where all their friends are, they spend more time at the house). We didn't have a lot of money growing up - one government income - but now that my Dad has two pensions and they both get social security (and they waited till 70 to draw it so they get a higher payout), they were able to swing even nicer purchases in more expensive areas.
TWERK: DD had her first ice skating lesson of the new season yesterday. I left her in the level the teacher suggested. She was disappointed not to move up to beta, but her class is all kids her age and ability level (last class had MUCH younger kids), and I think it's where she should be.
DD is still disappointed to not be in the next level up, but apparently her friend told her that the higher class is so hard it's not fun.
Post by mustardseed2007 on Jan 10, 2020 15:43:03 GMT -5
k3am, wow you know I think that's a good move then! It sounds like they messed up with her friend in placing her which sucks for everyone. :/
So in looking at other camps...to find a camp with a lot of fun outdoors activities, they look like they are at the same price, like within 100 dollars of each other. If you want to go to a religious camp where the mornings are bible study and signing bible songs then that is where it's like half the price. I think my kids...would probably still enjoy that kind of camp (?) but it's not what I had in mind. I don't think H would like them going there. But I'm going to sit him down and explain to him what the differences are.
I want them to be close so out of state is off the table. I want them to have lots of activities but if we're paying a price that's equal to a family vacation...we need to do that with our eyes open and understand fully what camps we are passing up. : /
mustardseed2007, when I look at out sample schedule it looks like a lot of religious activities. But when I see the actual pictures (they post daily or every other day), they are usually swimming (indoor pool, outdoor watering hole with play structure). It depends on what kind of activities they have there, and DH went as a kid so I had to recommendation from his entire family. But yeah if it truly do nothing but bible study, I think the kids would think that is boring maybe...
Do you know anyone who went to those camps to give you the inside info?
erinshelley21, welcome back. I wouldn't stress about unpacking. As long as you have your essentials, everything else can wait.
I'm trying not too. All of the clutter and everything being disorganized makes me anxious. It has more to do with my ADD than being wanting the house to be picture perfect. I'm expected to know where all the things are for the kids and if we are being real, DH too. Everything having a place is the only way I pull that off.
Post by mustardseed2007 on Jan 10, 2020 16:14:06 GMT -5
waverly, yes and really no one who went to any of them have anything negative to say. I mean, when the kids are THERE they are enjoying it, no matter what camp they are going to from what everyone is telling me.
One parent did tell me that at one certain camp they aren't allowed to bring any books other than the bible and the girls must wear shorts to swim. Well, girls wearing shorts to swim, there could be a lot of reasons for that. The no books other than a bible, is kind of eyebrow raising but ok. She said her daughter loved the camp.
Another camp, the first half of the day is bible study, singing, and bible related crafts. The second half of the day is activities which are all really fun. Everyone loves that camp too.
Then the two camps that are less religion based have a wide wide breadth of activities. Wake boarding, water skiing, horseback riding, drama, photo journalism, movie making...Those two are the most expensive ones.
Cost is 900/ week for most religious Medium religious is 1800 for 2 weeks The other two are 3650-3750 for 2 weeks.
The cost difference is pretty huge. I think the difference is in the breadth and cost of the activities and camper-counselor ratio.
Kids enjoy all of them though and that's kind of the hard part.
We don't have 3750 to spend or want to spend because we have other things we want or need to spend it on. I would personally do medium religious if I were OK with religious values. If I were not OK with religious values being taught then I would skip overnight camp unless I had that money lying around and don't need it for anything.
We don't have 3750 to spend or want to spend because we have other things we want or need to spend it on. I would personally do medium religious if I were OK with religious values. If I were not OK with religious values being taught then I would skip overnight camp unless I had that money lying around and don't need it for anything.
3750 x 2
We have two kids. I mean, they aren't both going to camp right now but one day DD theoretically would if DS is doing it.
mustardseed2007, right! That's 7500. And if you do for one, you'll feel guilty and think you should do for the other. And then what if they want to go annually?
I think mae0111, your advice about looking at the schedule is really good. I'm focusing on that as well. And honestly I need DH to weigh in here. He's the one who doesn't want to go to church. I'm fine going to church. I just get busy. Maybe the idea of saving THOUSANDS of dollars will make him decide he kind of likes religion? LOL