ANOTHER CAMPER SPENDS THE WEEK WITH AUNT JOAN

My bright, beautiful and excited 10-YEAR-OLD grand-niece, NORA spent a week with me while she attended the UPPER MAIN LINE Y day camp. Her first time at camp AND her first time away from home alone for a whole week!!! I'm so proud of her.

You might have read a previous Blog sharing that her older sister GRACE was here for the same camp two weeks ago. NORA wanted to take "cooking" at camp too, but it was already full, so she settled for ART at camp and cooking dinner each night with her AUNT JOAN. WOW! I'm impressed with how well she did and how healthy she has learned to eat from her Mom.

NORA'S first bite of a CHOCOLATE CROISSANT!! (Not her Mom's choice, but her AUNT JOAN'S). She said "DE-LICIOUS!!"

NORA'S second day at camp.  Less nervous than the day before.........

On the way to and from camp we pass what NORA describes as "THE POLKA DOT HOUSE".

She had a GREAT second day in ART CAMP, came home with some wonderful creations and cooked salmon with rice and fresh green beans for our dinner. It was DE-LICIOUS!

So was her dessert - a mini CINNAMON BUN from WEGMANS!!  (AUNT JOAN!!!)

A relaxing dip in the pool - dog lover that she is, NORA gives this little guy great "confidence".

The next day, AUNT JOAN had a BARNES & NOBLE coupon burning a hole in her pocket, so we stopped after camp for a quick look around. AUNT JOAN bought HARPER LEE'S new book (out that day), "GO SET A WATCHMAN". NORA choose a story about a dog and a Blank Journal to begin capturing her memories of camp.

NORA got creative with leftovers and made a chicken and rice casserole for us for dinner.  YUM!!

When her sister GRACE was here, she baked a loaf of BREAD with AUNT JOAN.  

NORA chose instead to make our family recipe "COFFEE CAKE" (her great-great-grandmother KISTLER'S).

Our SWEET TOOTH'S are TRYING to leave some leftovers to take home with her for the rest of the family to enjoy.......

CINNAMON and SUGAR across the top before baking.........

Since AUNT JOAN is going to dog-sit 9-year-old Black Lab, SAMMIE for a week, a pre-visit was in order to learn the boundaries of the INVISIBLE FENCE here. 

NORA LOVES DOGS!! (and HORSES)

One of the fun ART projects at camp was creating a FAIRY HOUSE with a seashell roof. She added a ceramic FAIRY, live moss, yellow flowers and a LABELED STONE over the doorway when she got home. NOW IT'S COMPLETE!

Her second-to-last-day of camp was "up in the air" in the morning because NORA was feeling terribly HOMESICK. We've all felt that way, haven't we? MISSING OUR MOMMY?!!!

She toughed it out, enjoyed her day and decided to stay here overnight and not miss her LAST DAY of camp.

I couldn't be more proud of NORA this week and she was such great company for me after losing my precious dog WILLOW last week. I'm really going to miss her and hope that she'll decide to visit again for camp next year.  

JOAN