Had a good few days at camp. I must admit, it was a day too long, I was a bit over it by Thursday afternoon but probably due to the weather rather than the kids.
It was organised differently this time, each adult was given a specific activity which was rotated so we had one in the morning & one in the afternoon, the groups of kids then came to our activity. The plus side was that if you got a group with some of the more um - "challenging" kids, you only had to put up with them for an hour or so at a time.
Generally the kids were fantastic, there were a couple of little shits but what do you expect with 160 odd 12 & 13 year olds?
Lowlights:
- a bit rushed & disorganised especially on day 1
- no camp staff on some activities which I think should have had them as the parents had to teach the kids & if we didn't know then they were not getting the best out of the experience.
- the weather was a bit crap (raining on & off Wednesday & Thursday)
- MatthewM breaking him arm on the BMX bikes whilst I was the parent in charge (believe me there were a couple of other kids who I would quite happily have injured)
Highlights
- meeting the kids & getting to know them
- seeing how some of them had changed & matured since year 7 camp or in some cases primary school was the last time I saw them
- Being pleasantly surprised by some of the kids I was expecting to be a pain turning out to actually be some of my favourites.
- the overall good manners from all the kids when doing the activities and also when dishing up their meals to them (still a few who need to learn to say Thank You but generally only ever needed one reminder)
- the parents accommodation was great (Carolann & I shared a room), we had our own showers & loos so did not have to share with the kids, plus we actually had a full kitchen (wish we knew that before we went)
- the camp food was actually pretty tasty and plenty of it, the kitchen staff were lovely (usually the people who run these kitchens make the dinner lady on Jamie Olivers school food show seem sweet & kind)
- Carol Ann & my detour to Tirau for some shopping & a stop in Cambridge for Gelato (Thanks to Mike for agreeing to pick the kids up from school so we could do that).
The biggest & best part of it all was when I got home & Siobhan came flying down the drive and flung herself at me and gave me the biggest hug ever and told me all night how much she had missed me AWWWW :-)
Oh - and wine!!!!! Not allowed alcohol at school camps these days so was glad to come home to a nice bottle.
On the Thursday night one of the teachers managed to get hold of a TV set so we got to watch the final of the netball - what a nail biter!!! It was a good way to finish the night but I think most of us were so would up after such a nailbiting final we took a bit of time to get to sleep.
Tuesday, October 19, 2010
Sunday, October 10, 2010
Back to School
The second week of the holidays was all good, Monday Gary had the day off work so he took them out for lunch & to MOTAT.
Tuesday to Saturday was the NYTC All Stars so that took up heaps of time. It is a week of singing, dancing & acting culminating in a show on the Friday night, Saturday afternoon & Saturday night. It never ceases to amaze me how much these kids can learn in 4 days.
Gary & I went to the Friday night show & Sue & I went to Saturday nights. Both shows were great. Samyson just blew us away, he had one solo song (Hey there Delilah) plus a duet with Gabe (What you Own) and he was just awesome. Even his dancing in the group numbers was the best I have seen him do.
Siobhan did a duet with another girl Jade and she did really well, Friday night she was clearly really nervous but by Saturdays show show she performed much better, we could hear her voice when she sang & she did not look at Jade for direction the whole time.
All excited to get back to the normal school week routine - until I remembered that Samyson has school camp from tomorrow and I am going as a parent helper. I hope the weather is good and it is not as cold as it was this morning.
Tuesday to Saturday was the NYTC All Stars so that took up heaps of time. It is a week of singing, dancing & acting culminating in a show on the Friday night, Saturday afternoon & Saturday night. It never ceases to amaze me how much these kids can learn in 4 days.
Gary & I went to the Friday night show & Sue & I went to Saturday nights. Both shows were great. Samyson just blew us away, he had one solo song (Hey there Delilah) plus a duet with Gabe (What you Own) and he was just awesome. Even his dancing in the group numbers was the best I have seen him do.
Siobhan did a duet with another girl Jade and she did really well, Friday night she was clearly really nervous but by Saturdays show show she performed much better, we could hear her voice when she sang & she did not look at Jade for direction the whole time.
All excited to get back to the normal school week routine - until I remembered that Samyson has school camp from tomorrow and I am going as a parent helper. I hope the weather is good and it is not as cold as it was this morning.
Monday, October 4, 2010
School Holidays - week 1
Well it is into week 2 so I had better record what happened in the first week so I can recall.
Monday & Tuesday the kids were at Carolanns camp. They came home Tuesday night with cookies they had made & iced and stone sculptures. Both tired & cranky as they had little sleep.
I had Wednesday off work as I had a Dr appointment so figured I could spend the rest of the day with the kids. We went shopping at Save Mart, I got a jacket, Siobhan got a really pretty dress, a Hannah Montana T shirt & a pr of pink trousers, she has pretty much lived in the t-shirt & trousers since. Samysons friend Gabe came over for a couple of hours & he & Samyson practiced the duet they are going to do for All Stars this week, it sounded really good, I love listening to the kids practice, especially when they don't go all shy & silly.
Thursday they came to work with me in the morning, I dropped them off at Sylvia park & they went to the movies after which they had lunch at the food hall. I was most disturbed to find out the next day that an hour before I left them at the mall there had been an armed robbery!!
Friday, both at work with me for the day, chilled out & watched DVD's, one of Ian & Geraldines neighbours kids, Andrew was here also so he & Samyson played chess & watched a DVD.
Weekend pretty quiet, Saturday I told Siobhan she needed to practice her audition piece for All Stars and she packed a monumental wobbly. Later Gary & I went out & did some shopping, the kids were at home, supposed to be practicing. I had 2 texts from Samyson asking where were we & when would we be home, when I rang he said Siobhan was in a shitty mood and could I bring him something deep fried & covered in chocolate to compensate.
I arrived home to find peace had been restored but in the middle of the lounge was a dining room chair & on the chair was a desk lamp, Siobhans balloon poodle wrapped in electrical wires, a steak knife, a shot glass & a note, the note read;
" Next time you leave me with her - the poodle gets it.
PS The vodka bottle is now empty"
Obviously Siobhan was particularly difficult, still she had her audition piece and was learning it, somewhat fittingly the song is "pieces of me".
Monday & Tuesday the kids were at Carolanns camp. They came home Tuesday night with cookies they had made & iced and stone sculptures. Both tired & cranky as they had little sleep.
I had Wednesday off work as I had a Dr appointment so figured I could spend the rest of the day with the kids. We went shopping at Save Mart, I got a jacket, Siobhan got a really pretty dress, a Hannah Montana T shirt & a pr of pink trousers, she has pretty much lived in the t-shirt & trousers since. Samysons friend Gabe came over for a couple of hours & he & Samyson practiced the duet they are going to do for All Stars this week, it sounded really good, I love listening to the kids practice, especially when they don't go all shy & silly.
Thursday they came to work with me in the morning, I dropped them off at Sylvia park & they went to the movies after which they had lunch at the food hall. I was most disturbed to find out the next day that an hour before I left them at the mall there had been an armed robbery!!
Friday, both at work with me for the day, chilled out & watched DVD's, one of Ian & Geraldines neighbours kids, Andrew was here also so he & Samyson played chess & watched a DVD.
Weekend pretty quiet, Saturday I told Siobhan she needed to practice her audition piece for All Stars and she packed a monumental wobbly. Later Gary & I went out & did some shopping, the kids were at home, supposed to be practicing. I had 2 texts from Samyson asking where were we & when would we be home, when I rang he said Siobhan was in a shitty mood and could I bring him something deep fried & covered in chocolate to compensate.
I arrived home to find peace had been restored but in the middle of the lounge was a dining room chair & on the chair was a desk lamp, Siobhans balloon poodle wrapped in electrical wires, a steak knife, a shot glass & a note, the note read;
" Next time you leave me with her - the poodle gets it.
PS The vodka bottle is now empty"
Obviously Siobhan was particularly difficult, still she had her audition piece and was learning it, somewhat fittingly the song is "pieces of me".
Monday, September 27, 2010
Date Night
With the kids away for the night at camp, gary & I decided we would go to a movie & out for dinner. I can't remember the last time we went to the movies.
After searching through the Entertainment Book, we decided to go to the Backyard Bar in Northcote for dinner. We shared a plate of Salt & Pepper squid which was really lovely & tender and then we both had lamb cutlets, again lovely food, perfectly cooked.
After dinner we went to see Grown Ups, it is a comedy with Adam Sandler, Chris Rock etc, a fair few laughs and just what we felt like, nothing too heavy.
Off home, a couple of drinks & off to bed, it was a really nice evening, Gary even won me a soft toy in one of those claw machines at teh movie theatre - just like a real date :-)
After searching through the Entertainment Book, we decided to go to the Backyard Bar in Northcote for dinner. We shared a plate of Salt & Pepper squid which was really lovely & tender and then we both had lamb cutlets, again lovely food, perfectly cooked.
After dinner we went to see Grown Ups, it is a comedy with Adam Sandler, Chris Rock etc, a fair few laughs and just what we felt like, nothing too heavy.
Off home, a couple of drinks & off to bed, it was a really nice evening, Gary even won me a soft toy in one of those claw machines at teh movie theatre - just like a real date :-)
Sunday, September 26, 2010
Nice afternoon with my girl
The kids had rehearsal yesterday and Samyson wasn't finishing until 7pm so I picked Siobhan up and we went to MOTAT, we were hoping for a ride on the new double decker tram but we kept missing it. We did get a ride on the steam train & a trip from MOTAT 2 to MOTAT 1 on 2 of the other trams. It was fun just to hang out for a couple of hours. She comes out with some of the funniest things and has a big grin on her face.
When we got home she had to pack her bag for camp. About half way through she got all stroppy because she decided she could not fit everything. Khan from next door came over in the middle of her meltdown, he asked what was wrong and I told him, he just said "I can help with that" and proceeded to help her get all her stuff together & pack her suitcase - what a cool kid. They then spent about an hour playing with the fallen tree (including erecting some sort of stick art in the corner) and then played a couple of board games before Khan had to go home.
They are at Carolanns kids holiday overnight camp for the next 2 days, Samyson & Taryn are team leaders. They were late for camp because I forgot to change the time on the DVD player in my room, I was an hour out and it was not until I was sitting smugly in the lounge thinking that it was 8am & we should be leaving in a few minutes and we were all ready that I looked up and saw it was 9am - mad panic to get them out of the house & into the car.
Gary & I are going out, hopefully to a movie & dinner if we can find something we both want to see. The kids are back tomorrow & I have Wednesday off to spend with them, not sure what we will do, it depends on the weather but if it is a nice day I think we will go somewhere for a bit of a hike.
Wednesday, September 15, 2010
Lady gaga is in the house!!
Last night was the Glenfield Intermediate School talent contest.
Samyson was in a lyp sync group with 3 others. They were doing the Lady gaga/Beyonce song Telephone.
I know he put a fair bit of effort into it especially his costume because it was an expensive trip to Save Mart.
He was also MC for the night with 2 other girls. so his act was last.
Anyway, cue music and then onstage comes my son dressed in platform boots, leopard skin tights a fur top & hat completed with a blond wig. It was a fantastic performance he worked the stage & the room (even going off the stage and playing up to the judges) everyone cheered when they finished.
He stayed in character for the final MC part then the judges came back with their decision - HE WON!!!!! You should have seen the look on his face, talk about shock, he did not think he could because he was also MC and only entered as a bit of a laugh.
Unfortunately I do not have any photos so I have asked him to get some of his friends to email some to him.
Saturday, September 4, 2010
Earthquake
Well today has been interesting.
I woke up at just before 7am hearing a text on my phone - seriously who the hell sends me a tect at that time on a Saturday. Turns out it was Ian, my boss - telling me there was an earthquake in Christchurch & that Rosinsa place was a mess. I jumped onto the internet & realised it was not good.
Tried to call Mum & Dad, Dad's cell went to answerphone, tried Mum (don't know why she never has it on), sent a text. No reply.
The bloody earthquake was reported as a 7.4 - I work in insurance - that is NOT GOOD!!!!!
Finally had a text from Dad, they are OK, no damage except a bit of porcelain. Suggested he not go to golf & Mum not go to work - the reply ... "get real".
Phoned them and sounds like they were really lucky. They have power & phone, a couple of minor ornaments broken, Don & Sancho & King Tut are all OK (they are the expensive ones). Told Mum NOT to go to work, Civil Defence were telling people to stay home & the people she works for treat the staff like crap at the best of times and she is too old to be going in there picking stock up off the floor & resiting shelving.
Watching the news on TV and it was completely devastating. Ian managed to get hold of the Ovendens (cracks in walls & chimney destroyed in Tai Tapu) and the Prestidges in Darfield - they live at the epi centre but all Bruce had was a few cracked tiles!! We have let the EQC & the insurance companies know & convinced Rosina to stay at home & keep it secure.
Texted Stephan & Paul, both OK, Gary rang Stephan later & all they had was a couple of pictures down, Paul had no damage.
Watching it all unfold over the day our families were so lucky, I am so grateful but really feel for those who have suffered so much loss and destruction. Watching the news the property damage I can cope with but I get a bit teary watching the personal stories.
End of day - Mum did not go to work (and her Boss actually phoned to check they were OK & will get his son to make sure shop all OK before she has to go back to work), Dad played golf - had to go to the local pub for the after match drink because the clubhouse was closed - can't keep a good golfer down.
The kids are taking it OK, Siobhan wants to ring Bayley & Michaela tomorrow to make sure they are OK, as far as I know they are with Kim over the weekend so I will give Paul a call tomorrow to see when the kids can talk to them.
I woke up at just before 7am hearing a text on my phone - seriously who the hell sends me a tect at that time on a Saturday. Turns out it was Ian, my boss - telling me there was an earthquake in Christchurch & that Rosinsa place was a mess. I jumped onto the internet & realised it was not good.
Tried to call Mum & Dad, Dad's cell went to answerphone, tried Mum (don't know why she never has it on), sent a text. No reply.
The bloody earthquake was reported as a 7.4 - I work in insurance - that is NOT GOOD!!!!!
Finally had a text from Dad, they are OK, no damage except a bit of porcelain. Suggested he not go to golf & Mum not go to work - the reply ... "get real".
Phoned them and sounds like they were really lucky. They have power & phone, a couple of minor ornaments broken, Don & Sancho & King Tut are all OK (they are the expensive ones). Told Mum NOT to go to work, Civil Defence were telling people to stay home & the people she works for treat the staff like crap at the best of times and she is too old to be going in there picking stock up off the floor & resiting shelving.
Watching the news on TV and it was completely devastating. Ian managed to get hold of the Ovendens (cracks in walls & chimney destroyed in Tai Tapu) and the Prestidges in Darfield - they live at the epi centre but all Bruce had was a few cracked tiles!! We have let the EQC & the insurance companies know & convinced Rosina to stay at home & keep it secure.
Texted Stephan & Paul, both OK, Gary rang Stephan later & all they had was a couple of pictures down, Paul had no damage.
Watching it all unfold over the day our families were so lucky, I am so grateful but really feel for those who have suffered so much loss and destruction. Watching the news the property damage I can cope with but I get a bit teary watching the personal stories.
End of day - Mum did not go to work (and her Boss actually phoned to check they were OK & will get his son to make sure shop all OK before she has to go back to work), Dad played golf - had to go to the local pub for the after match drink because the clubhouse was closed - can't keep a good golfer down.
The kids are taking it OK, Siobhan wants to ring Bayley & Michaela tomorrow to make sure they are OK, as far as I know they are with Kim over the weekend so I will give Paul a call tomorrow to see when the kids can talk to them.
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