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My Aching Back

You've heard we had a record snowfall in the DC Metro area over the last week and a half. Well all that snow had to be shoveled -- from the front walk, from the driveway, from the pipestem/alley, from the cars, from in front of the elderly neighbor's, from the driveways of neighbors with health issues. We even had to shovel a big moat around our fence so that our dog couldn't step over it. (really, he could step over a 3 foot fence, and he did!)

Wherever it was, we shoveled it.
We tried to keep ahead of the accumulation, shoveling in shifts about every 2 hours. The problem wasn't really the shoveling, although that wasn't fun, it was where to put all the snow. The mounds were big after the first snow. After the 2nd you couldn't scoop and throw it high enough! (Having stilts or being really tall might have helped!) You had to really bend and reach to get it out of the way and on top of a mound/pile.

So all that shoveling, lifting, scooping, throwing, was not great for my back. (And I'm just plain old!)

Add to that the fact that for the last 2 weeks I've been living in either boots or slippers - not the best for foot, leg and back support. (I'm used to Dansko clogs or walking shoes with orthodics).

Needless to say, I'm really looking forward to NO MORE Snow and a trip to the chiropractor and masseuse next week.

veggie snacks

Since we've been snowed in for DAYS, we've been doing A LOT of cooking and baking. Tollhouse cookies, turkey wraps, pancakes, etc.., basically eating a lot to re-energize for all the playing and shoveling we've been doing.

Here is our favorite veggie dish that my kids LOVE. (I don't think they realize they're eating so many veggies!)

Vegetable Salad Bars

1 can crescent rolls
1 pkg. (8oz) cream cheese
1 pkg. DRY ranch dressing
2 rounded tsp sour cream
2 rounded tsp mayo

½ small head cauliflower
½ sm bunch broccoli
2 sm carrots

Shredded Cheddar, Swiss or Monterey cheese

Shred the veggies in a food processor

Unroll the crescent rolls and lay out on the jelly roll pan – pinch together the seams
Bake as suggested
Let cool

Mix together cream cheese, dressing, sour cream and may – you can let this sit overnight.

Cover roll with cream cheese mixture
Pat on shredded vegetables
Sprinkle with cheese
Press firmly

Cover w/ Saran Wrap and refrigerate
Cut into bars and serve.

Will keep for several days.

Summer Camp Guide

Yes, it's that time again.... time to think about summer camp.

Here is a list I have compiled over the years as a mom, as a Parent Association President and the writer of the Parent Association's Newsletter.


SUMMER CAMP GUIDE

General Camp Information:

American Camp Association (Virginia section)www.acavirginiascamps.org
Frost’s Summer Camp Guide www.gocamps.com
Camp Page Guide to Summer Camps www.camppage.com
National Camp Association www.summercamp.org



Programs specifically geared towards children with learning differences and special needs:

Oakland School, Keswick, VA www.oaklandschool.net
Basic Concepts, Rockville, MD www.basicconcepts.org
Camp Little Foot, Rockville, MD www.ttlc.org
Oakwood School, Annandale, VA www.oakwoodschool.com
The Lab School, Washington, DC www.labschool.org
Paladin Academic, Sterling, VA www.nubellearning.com
Capital Camps, www.capitalcamps.org
Camp JCC, www.jccgw.org
Summit Camp, Honesdale, PA, www.summitcamp.com
Over the Rainbow Camp, Bethesda, MD 301-384-5081
Kamp A-Kom-Plish - MD, www.kampakomplish.org
Summer Treatment Programs – http://128.205.76.10/stp.html
ADDitude's camp Directory – www.additudemag.com/directory.asp
Directory of Summer Camps for Children with Learning Disabilities - $5,
Learning Disabilities Association, 4156 Library Road, Pittsburgh, PA
15234, 412-341-1515
Kids’ camps – www.kidscamps.com


Other camps/programs:

DAY CAMPS

CompuWrite, George Mason University, http://kihd.gmu.edu/camps
Institute for the Arts, Fairfax Cty. Public Schools www.fcps.edu/DIS/OACE/prek12.html
Sport Rock Climbing Center, Alexandria & Rockville locations
www.sportrock.com
Washington Sailing Marina, Alexandria,VA
www.washingtonsailingmarina.com
Challenger Space Camp, Alexandria, VA www.launchpad.challenger.org
Virginia Baseball Club – various locations www.govbc.com
Torpedo Factory/Art League, Art camps, Alexandria, VA www.theartleague.org
Sports Broadcasting, Washington, DC www.playbyplaycamps.com
Browne Academy, Alexandria, VA www.browneacademy.org
Burgundy Farms School, Alexandria, VA www.burgundyfarm.org
St. Stephens/St. Agnes, Alexandria, VA www.sssa.org
Flint Hill School, Summer on the Hill www.flinthill.org
The Langley School, McLean, VA www.langleyschool.org
Episcopal High School, Various sports programs, Alexandria, VA
www.episcopalhighschool.org
Potomac School Summer Programs, McLean, VA
www.potomacschool.org
DayJams Music Camp – various locations www.dayjams.com
Adventure Links, various VA locations www.adventurelinks.net
Rockville Skate Park, Rockville, MD www.ci.rockville.md.us
Fairfax County Park Authority www.fairfaxcounty.gov/parks
Fairfax County Public Schools, http://www.fcps.edu/news/sumsch.htm
Khary Stockton Soccer Camp, Alexandria, VA www.kharystocktonsoccer.com
Discovery Creek, Vienna, VA www.discoverycreek.org
Mt. Vernon Community Children’s Theater www.mvcct.org
Animal Camp, Vola Lawson Animal Shelter, Alexandria, VA www.alexandriaanimal.org
Calvary Road Christian School wwwcrcs.org
Computer Camp, Georgetown University, www.internaldrive.com
Arena Stage, www.arenastage.org
Wilderness Adventure, Virginia locations, www.wilderness-adventure.com
Congressional Camp, Falls Church www.cogocamp.org
Creative Cauldron Arts Adventure, Mason District Park, Annandale
www.creativecauldron.og
Potomac Overlook Park, Jr. Naturalist www.nvpa.org
TADA!, musical theater camp, NVCC – Annandale Campus
www.americanmusicstage.com
TIC, Technology Camp, Bethesda & McLean www.ticcamp.com
Modeling Camp, Tysons, www.modelingcamp.com
Studio Theater Acting Conservatory, Washington, DC www.studiotheater.org
Basketball Camp – Bishop Ireton H.S., Alexandria, VA www.bishopireton.org
National Zoo – various camps – www.fonz.org
Sailing Camp – Belle Haven Marina – www.saildc.com
Alexandria Country Day School - www.acdsnet.org
ArtStar Youth Camp – www.lortonarts.com
Camp Creativity, Corcoran College of Art – www.corcoran.edu/campcreativity
Shakespeare – www.shakespearetheater.org
Chesapeake Academy Summer Session – www.qualitygraduates.org
Chinquapin Camp – www.alexandria.gov/recreation
Congressional Camp – www.congocamp.org
Fairfax Collegiate Summer Program - www.fairfaxcollegiate.com
Jewish Community Center of No. VA. –
Camp Achva – Fairfax – robinv@jccnv.org
Camp Shavuon – Falls Church- amyv@jccnv.org
Camp K’Tona – Alexandria – amyv@jccnv.org
KidSpanish – NVCC Alexandria – www.kidspanish.org
Levine School of Music – Arlington, DC – smennel@levineschool.org
Mad Science – Alexandria, Arlington – www.madscience.org/dc
Traveling Players Ensemble - Madiera School, Mclean, VA
www.travelingplayers.org
Cybercamp – NVCC Alexandria – www.cybercamps.com
Theater Lab school of the Dramatic Arts – Washington DC,
www.theatrelab.org
Living Earth – Charlottesville, VA http://www.livingearthva.com/


Overnight Camps - CoEd

Camp Flintlock- MD, NC – www.campflintlock.com
Kroka Expeditions – Newfane, VT – www.kroka.org
Randolph-Macon Academy – Front Royal, VA – www.rma.edu
YMCA Camp Letts – Edgewater, MD – www.campletts.org
Camp Conrad Weiser – Wernersville, PA – www.smymca.org
Camp Hidden Meadows – Allegheny Mountains, WV –
www.camphiddenmeadows.com
Camp Highroad – Middleburg, VA – www.camphighroad.org
Camp Horizons – Harrisonburg, VA – www.camphorizonsVA.com
Camp St. Charles – Southern, MD – www.campstcharles.com
Camp Staunton Meadows – Clover, VA – www.campstauntonmeadows.com
Camp Tall Timbers- High View, WV – www.campfallingtimbers.com
Camp Twin Creeks- Marlington, WV – www.camptwincreeks.com
Capital Camps – Waynesboro, PA – www.capitalcamps.org
Kamp A-Kom-Plish- Southern, MD – www.kampakomplish.org
National Young Leaders Conference – Tysons – www.cylc.org/nylc
Summer Camps on the River – Christ Church, VA –
www.christchurchschool.org
Wilderness Adventure at Eagle Landing- New Castle, VA –
www.wilderness-adventure.com
YMCA Camp Silver Beach – Jamesville, VA – www.campsilverbeach.org
SOAR – Success Oriented Achievement Realized - NC, www.soarnc.org


Boys Overnight

Camp Sea Gull – Arapahoe, NC – www.campsilverbeach.org
Science Camp Watonka – Hawley, PA – www.watonka.com
Valley Forge Military Academy – Wayne, PA – www.vfmac.edu
Camp Kooch –i-ching, Int’l Falls, MN – www.kooch-i-ching.org

Girls Overnight

Camp Carysbrook – Riner, VA – www.campcarysbrook.com
Camp Rim Rock – Yellow Spring, WV – www.camprimrock.com
Camp Seafarer – Arapahoe, NC – www.seagull-seafarer.org
Hameau Farm in the Big Valley – Belleville, PA – www.hameaufarm.com
Kroka Expeditions – Newfane, VT – www.kroka.org

Because you just can't make this stuff up.....

And because I can just now write about this without cracking up or have my husband get mad that I would share this…..

Christmas Eve 2009—
That morning my boys were sleeping, I took the dog to the dog park for a good run, and my husband was going to do his wrapping. I wasn’t gone long when my husband calls me and says he thinks he needs to go to the emergency room, he’s cut his fingers. I said I’ll be right home. I was thinking how bad can a wrapping paper injury be?
Not five minutes later he calls me again and says an ambulance has sideswiped a car in front of our house. The ambulance was not there for him.
So I come rushing home to find an ambulance, a police car and the fire chief truck in front of my house.
The ambulance was called for a neighbor’s elderly mother who was ill and it couldn’t get down the street due to the record amount of snow we got in the last few days and cars parked on both sides of the already narrow street.
The driver and everyone were laughing about it saying if they just had an inch or so more they could have made it. The car they hit was from a "hanger on" from a neighbors Christmas party the night before, they had to go wake the poor guy to tell him.
(The elderly women who was taken to the hospital in another ambulance and is doing just fine.)

Anyway, when I got in the house, my husband was bleeding pretty badly from his left hand. When I asked what he was wrapping and what had happened, he fessed up that he was wrapping a joke gift for me. That joke gift was a wooden spoon, because I tend to break wooden spoons by slamming them on the counter to make a point to my kids (better than using the spoon on the kids, right?!).
The spoon had come with some pretty thick shrink wrap stuff on it, so he was using the scissors, open, to slide between the wrap and the spoon to get it off. The scissors slipped and cut into his thumb and 2nd finger.

Since the EMT guys were just hanging out in front of the house, I told my husband to go see what they suggested and if they’d take care of it for him.
He walked out and they told him he bought himself a ticket to the ER, but he’d have to take himself there. They thought he would need about 20 stitches between the two fingers. Since it was a hand injury, they were required by law to ask if he was trying to kill himself/commit suicide. My husband’s response was “No, my Christmas shopping is all done!”
So the EMT wrapped his fingers and sent him in the house.
And I sent him on his way to the ER, about a mile away.
He was there for several hours. Calling me every so often to give me an update and tell me about all the people that were there for a fall on the ice and snow and the shoveling injuries. Nothing as fun and interesting as a wrapping injury.

When he came home he had 9 stiches in his thumb and 3 in his finger. He was so bandaged up – it looked worse that it actually was, and he couldn’t get it wet.
So I had to make Christmas Eve dinner by myself which was ok, but I’m not the best cook in our house! And then I had to get his food ready for him. We always have lobster tails and steak for Christmas Eve. Which meant I had to get the lobster out and cut up his meat - like having another child.

My kids slept through the entire incident, even the ambulance crashing into the car.
The joke over the next few days was “don’t give dad anything sharp”, “don’t let him open that box”, etc..
I did lay out some scissors on the kitchen counter Christmas morning to see if he would notice. He said I was “cruel”.

When I opened my presents Christmas morning, the wooden spoon was loosely rolled in black tissue paper.