Wallowa Fiddle Camp

The first day of camp none of us knew what to expect.

The girls and I had a heart to heart before going in....they needed to TALK to their teachers, PLAY their voilins, and MEET new kids.

Avery's class was a good fit from the beginning. She was able to be one of the leaders of the Pre-School group. It took her a couple of days but soon she was singing as loud as anyone else and having a great time.

Kyndra was signed up for an intermediate class. They learned 5 songs before lunch on the first day! Two other moms and I decided this was too much for our little girls that hadn't even been to a full day of school yet. We moved them into Avery's class. That class was divided into 3 groups...pre-school, 6 year olds...older. It was a good fit for them. They got to sing, play, be in a small group, and learn music. None of the 6 year olds were playing to their ability but us moms decided it didn't matter...they were having a good experience and having fun...that matters!

At camp they played played played (and not all music). There were jam sessions at night, at lunch, and in the morning. We loved Aunt Beth's Pop-Up..>THANK YOU! FYI: I want to reserve it for the same week next year.

We met new friends almost instantly. I only had to talk with the girls the first night about not being shy and that we were there to meet new people and to have fun. Then they were off! I sometimes had to go looking for them and would find them at other camps, in the bathroom, on the playground...it was great.

This experience included amazing instruments and the opportunity to see people (big kids) making music together just because they wanted to, not because it was "practice time."

The girls practiced at lunch...by choice!

There was a dance with live music from participants. Yes! Those are socks on the "callers" legs (hee hee) and YES! that is Kyndra out on the dance floor dancing with a friend! I couldn't hide my shock. This is where Avery was after one dance....

she was so tired, we all were. Class went from 9-3. We weren't in class the whole time, the different groups had different times, but still..we were pooped. Also, the basket-ball court was right outside our camp spot. They were playing at 6:30 a.m. and until 10:00 p.m. Note to self: Don't camp next to the the basket-ball court next year!

This is the whole class. What a crew!

Overall I think it was a great success. We all learned some new music (did I mention I ot to take a dulcimer workshop), we had fun, met new people, fell asleep to music and woke up to music, and had a week together!

**I forgot to mention what Avery said when she learned that Joe wasn't staying with us "camping" for the week..."But what are we going to eat??? Who is going to cook??" She knows that Daddy does all the camp cooking and was very concerned!