Aunty Camp 2013

As we did last year (here and here) and the year before (here), we had our nieces stay with us for a full week, what has come to be known in the family as "Aunty Camp." Each visit gets better than the previous one; they're a year older each time -- they're now 9 and 12 -- which makes a huge difference, and I have more experience under my belt, which also helps considerably.

There was a significant complication, however, in that D. managed to dislocate her right shoulder on Friday, necessitating a trip to the ER! So that was unexpected and awful for her and a bit scary for the girls since she was so clearly in terrible pain. And then on Monday we had to scuttle all potentially fun plans for me to drive D. to work, then spend 45 minutes on the phone getting her an orthopedist appointment for that afternoon, then picking up her x-rays, picking her up from work, and taking her to the doctor's appointment, all with the girls in tow. But they were very good sports and I tried to sweeten things along the way (including literally, since we had half an hour to kill before her appointment and so went into a donut shop). The good news is that D. finally got to take off the arm sling that she had to wear all weekend; she's supposed to get physical therapy for both shoulders, since not just the right one but also the left one are wonky. She's still in some pain but is bearing up well.

So it was a difficult week because I was worried about D. and trying to minister to her while also trying to keep our nieces amused, all of which felt quite tiring at times. But everyone was a good sport, and the girls and I did have lovely times together: hiking, swimming a couple of times, movies (Despicable Me 2 in the theatre and several movies on DVD), a museum, a little cooking together, a book for collective out-loud reading (Katherine VanCleve's Drizzle, which we all loved), some drawing and crafts, and lots and lots of just hanging out and talking. Plus, on Sunday D. was feeling better, and we took the girls to our Adventure City aquarium, which has become a tradition for us during Aunty Camp. She also taught them to use Scratch, which Elder Niece in particular really took to. So it was a good week.

But I think what helped most is that I consciously decided before they arrived that I wasn't going to try to get anything accomplished -- no work for school, no writing -- so that I wouldn't feel torn in two directions. And then of course I was torn anyway because of D's shoulder, but at least I wasn't torn in three directions! Obviously that wouldn't be possible if one were a full-time parent, and I'm not at all convinced that it was healthy for me even for a week of full-time auntying, but consciously putting my own ego and interests on the back burner (which is how I thought about it) made the week go more smoothly.

So it was a great week, and I'm sad that the girls are gone as of this afternoon, because I love them so much and don't get to see enough of them. But at the same time, I'm so looking forward to doing what I want to do when I want to do it for the next four days! (After that I have to be at summer school by 8:00 each weekday morning for the next three weeks, but I'm not really thinking about that right now.)

Comments

[nicoleandmaggie]

fun!

[Janice]

I'm glad that D is recovering and that Aunty Camp was generally fun. My sister's doing her first version of "Aunty Camp" by taking Eldest with her to Exciting City Elsewhere for a week in August as a high school graduation gift. It will be a lot of fun for both, I expect.