Prologue: Ong Family Summer Art Camp 2008

With school officially over a few weeks ago, I became like all the other moms I know and hurriedly began to look for fun activites for the 3 kids. I know I wanted them to continue with their annual swimming classes. Plus there is the church sponsored soccer clinic that I really want J to join. And then, J has also shown some interest in skating. She definitely wants to do arts and crafts. I was also thinking of football for them. Joining the McDonald's Kiddie Crew was also discussed. It was a long drawn lists of activities between the 2 of us, J and me.

So off we went to Art Camp Bezalel to make some inquiries about their 3-week module of arts & crafts for both J and B. J has already attended two years ago and she really had a great time then. It was the usual Q&A between the probing parent and the eager-to-close-the-deal receptionist. Then it hit me that I can do this whole arts and crafts shebang right at home! I love doing arts and crafts. I love painting. I love drawing. And I definitely love baking. So I hastily ended the conversation with the receptionist and prepared to leave. While driving, I casually dropped the idea about this whole project to J, which I now famously call “The Ong Family Summer Art Camp 2008”. She was as excited to say the least. She went online the moment we got home and researched for activities to do. We finalized her list after lunch and went straight to the bookstore and crafts store to buy all the supplies that we were going to need. We made a schedule that we can stick to, that way we can all treat it like the real thing and not slack off in the middle of the project (okay, maybe I was the only one who needed that). We came up with themes for specific days. Like we made a “Make-it-Monday”, “Field Trip Friday”, Tuesday’s Tasty Treats”, and then there’s also “Swimming Saturday”.

The list goes on, and we are just as limited as our imagination. I will be posting some of our works and trips in the coming days.

Of course, I will still be enrolling the kids in the things that i can't teach them personally, due to lack of , ehem, talent. Soccer clinic is ongoing as I write this. Swimming should come after, and should J find that soccer is the sports for her, I have already found the perfect soccer module for her right here.

This is one of the best decisions I have made regarding their summer activities. For not only did I save C P15 grand. I also get to spend a lot of time bonding with the kids. And that is simply irreplaceable.