Monthly Archives: August 2014

What we did on our summer vacation

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In short…. A LOT!!  The kids are so fun and really enjoy summer fun!

We started out with our trip to England.  Clearly a highlight!  No question we all loved our trip- the things we did and saw and experienced.  There are still conversations about the trip and I suspect there will be for a long time (Bren is obsessed with Wicked).

IMG_7102Camps were a big part of the summer- sailing again for Aidan plus a week of science camp, drama camps (plural) for Brendan.  We saw a few shows too- ones Bren and his friends were in and also Finding Neverland at the ART (it’s going to Broadway!!)

We had half of July and all of August to enjoy.  And boy did we!!  We had a couple of trips to York Beach.  It wouldn’t be summer without toes in the sand, crashing waves and a trip to Brown’s to end the day.  It is fun to watch the kids venture out a little deeper and spend a more time playing together. It gives me and Chris time to enjoy the summer too.IMG_1372

We went back for another shot at Zorbing.  So much fun to roll down a hill!  We also tried kayaking for the first time.  We went to Canobie Lake (first time in four years for the kids- first family trip!!).  Chris and I LOVE roller coasters, the kids need more convincing.  But we all got to do the things we wanted to do and had a great time.

IMG_1578There was also time for friends.  Aidan got to invite his friend Trinity to come spend the day and go out on the boat.  We also went to the Hatch Shell and saw his friend Tierney.  There were a couple of playdates with his friend Andrew too.  What is more fun than hanging out with friends in the summer?

I really feel like we enjoyed every part of the summer- the fun days, the chill days at home, the days we went to a pool with friends or just went to the park.  I know this is going to be a summer we all remember as a lot of fun- and one that will be hard to top!!

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Why drama camp is awesome.

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IMG_7084Drama classes at the three different places Brendan has taken classes, is well documented as his favorite thing ever.  Since Bren was four years old he has gone to drama camp.  Also well documents, particularly last summer’s opportunity to perform in Pippin.  This summer was the next step- two week sessions that ended with lengthy presentations.

The first was Boston Children’s Theatre’s Studio 2.  This was two weeks with kids older than him – 8 to 11 year olds.  There was one other seven year old like him.  To hear his version, he basically created his part.  The play they worked on was Aladdin.  He insisted Abu was needed and that he should be Abu.  He was.  No lines, lots of facial expressions.

Bren talked extensively about “theater in the round”- something new he learned.  He talked about new theater terms and friends.  The performance was great and included a program which he stated he loves unicorns.  There were hugs from friends and lots well wishes from the teachers.

He got to see some when we went to see the Studio 3 and 4 performances and meet up with old friends from Pippin in the weeks that followed.

IMG_1434The second two week camp was at Wheelock Children’s Theater.  The performance was a circus.  No one had main speaking parts but there was lots of opportunity to show off their acting.  For Brendan especially as a tightrope walker.  I got the sense there was a lot of time spent on working as a team.

So here is what I see that Brendan learned.

1. To work as a team.  He is often the kid directing on stage.  There was less of that.  Working with other kids- mostly older than him- let him be a follower and not the leader.  Something different and out of his comfort zone.

2. You don’t need lines to make your character’s impact.  His expressions as Abu were just awesome.

3.  There are lots of roles off stage that are pretty awesome- directing, lighting, costumes, drama coach.  He learned a lot from the people at both camps in these roles.

4.  Besides new friends he got to spend time with other kids like him.  There weren’t many boys (4 out of 25 in each) but everyone he was with had the same passion as him.  To see him dropped off excited to show off hie Wicked shirt while other kids were waiting to show him their Annie, Wizard of Oz and other shirts was fun to see.

There will be a lot more of these and I know Brendan will be excited to keep up with all his new friends!

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Pippin Friends!

Science Camp

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Aidan wanted to try something new this summer.  We found some great week long camps at the Museum of Science.  So we decided to try one out- creating your own video game.

Minecraft has been Aidan’s big thing since getting his laptop for his birthday.  He loves to build things and is really proud of what he can make.  During his week of science camp he was super enthusiastic every day.  He couldn’t wait to see what was in store and eagerly looked forward to showing us the game he created.

A few things stood out for me though- there were no female instructors.  Four men- two staff from the company running the camp and two MIT college students staffed the week.  There were twelve students (it was limited and “sold out” in April!).  Of the twelve students only two were girls.  When it was time for the students to present, one of the girls had asked in advance for the instructor to demo her game while she showed it off on the projector (the reverse of all the other students).IMG_1338

I know how much Aidan loved the camp and he really wants to do something like this again.  It was my first experience seeing the effects of girls and STEM camps.  It made me realize how important supporting girls in STEM fields are and making sure my boys know how valued everyone is in whatever field they choose.