Summer is done and we're headed to Kennedy Krieger!

We've had a great summer!  The week after school ended in June we had a nice slow week with a lot of pool time.  The following week Reagan and Cole went to swim camp together.  Then we took a family vacation to TN followed by another week of swim camp for Cole while Reagan went to a riding camp.

The swim camp the kids went to was at the same school where they've been taking lessons - Tom Dolan School.  They had a great time and will miss going to lessons while we're at Kennedy Krieger.  The kids also had their last day of Tae Kwon Do today until September.  Although we will miss the Masters there, I'm sure the kids will be practicing while we're gone! They just got their new belts and are anxious to keep learning new moves!

Reagan loved riding camp at Red Gate the last two summers so we planned another one this year.  Unlike the last two years, however, she stayed ALL DAY this year!  It was tough for mom to let the cord get quite so long, but Reagan had a blast and didn't look back once.  She rode the same pony she usually rides in lessons named Tuppence.  It's such an amazing group of girls there - both the kids who attend and the CITs.  The Counselors In Training, or CITs, are teenagers who meet certain qualifications to help out with camp.  They make it a lot of fun.  Reagan was lucky enough to have her cousins there too!  Jacqueline and Robert kept an eye on her and it was fun for them to spend the week together.

The camp is broken into two groups - one group rides first while the other works on a craft.  Then they swap.  And each of the two groups is divided in half so the kids in the group have very similar riding ability.  This week they made concrete stepping stones with horse shoes and glittery gems, tie die t-shirts, foam door hangers, and they decorated a picture frame.  After a morning of riding and crafts they break for lunch in the pavilion and time to play on the moon bounce.  Then after lunch they have swim time in the pool at the house.

The last activity for the week is a costume parade where the kids dress up their ponies.  Reagan decided to dress Tuppence up as a fairy with a flower crown full of ribbons, pink and green wings, sparkling pink fabric around her belly, a pink bracelet around her leg and pink bow on her tail.  And she and her partner decided to wear the extra tutu's I had packed in case they wanted to use them for Tuppence. Reagan and her partner had help from their CIT for the week, Hannah and their costume won a first place ribbon for "Most Glittery".  It's fun to see Reagan around such a great group of girls creating such a bond with friends.  And she truly does have a love for horses.

Now the fun is done and it's off to Baltimore for 5 weeks of hard work. That's of course not the way we're talking about it though!  After sensing some anxiety over having the cast on full time, I've repositioned things (at UVA she could take it off to sleep). We are going to "camp" next week in Baltimore. It's all about positioning and expectations right?!

Unfortunately we couldn't get into the Ronald McDonald House so we'll be staying at a hotel (with a hospital rate).  The up side is that we have free breakfast and a pool (albeit very small) and Reagan's cast will be water proof.  The hotel also has a city bus route across from the hotel so we are hoping to not have to pay the expense parking lot fees to go to dinner every night.  Apparently Reagan will have "themes" every week at camp so hopefully it will feel like camp not therapy.  Honestly I'm a little anxious about 6 hours per day and 5 days per week, but we're going to jump in full speed with a positive attitude.  More pictures to come next week!