Outdoor Explorers Camp...a glimpse into Morgan's day

Now that Kindergarten is over we had to decide what Morgan was going to do for the summer break. Elizabeth's daycare doesn't really fit well for older kids and we wanted to make sure Morgan had lots of activities to keep her busy during the week so we finally decided on a program through the Carmel Parks Department. They had several camps to pick from all with a different theme and the one we picked was slightly outside of what we thought her comfort zone would be, but thought she would have fun. Morgan started the Outdoor Explorer Program right after Memorial Day and none of us were too sure what to expect. One of the best things I've noticed is that her camp leader takes pictures everyday and posts them online so the parents can see what the campers did. It's been great to see what Morgan is up to and it gave me the chance to share it with you.

The Outdoor Explorer's Program is Monday through Friday 8:30 to 4:30. Two days a week they are bussed to a field trip location (normally local parks) and on Wednesdays is swimming day. The other two days they have a pretty low key day with lots of playing, exploring, hiking and on Friday's the have a camp fire with roasted hot dog and s'mores!

They spend most of the day outside and when they are on field trips eat their lunch wherever they can find a spot.

Yesterday they went to Flowing Well Park in Carmel which is actually right down the street from our house. We have never been there so I was amazed when I saw the pictures of what the park had. The kids were allowed to walk in the creek and search for rocks and animals.

Morgan loves rocks!

Every week there is a theme for camp- so far we have had 'Into the Wild', 'Amphibians and Reptiles' and 'Bugapalooza'. So each place they go to on a field trip there is some educational component or places they can look for bugs, animals etc. There is almost always a playground too!

They play a lot.

And then there is Morgan's favorite day of camp- Wednesday. Why is it her favorite, because she gets to hike to the Monon Center and swim! The Monon Center pool is really great. Most of the pool is less then 3' deep so Morgan can touch almost everywhere she goes. They also have a huge playground in the pool. They typically stay there for 2 or 3 hours, and Morgan always comes home with little sun kissed cheeks. And she is even developing freckles like her mom!

Friday's are laid back at camp. Around lunch time they start up the camp fire and let all the kids build fortresses around the campsite. For lunch they provide hotdogs and s'more fixin's. Who wouldn't love that!

They also spend some downtown making crafts. So far Morgan has made a sit-upon for use at camp and a painted lizard during the 'Amphibian and Reptile' week. I'm sure we will get many more over the summer.

The other thing I find really amazing is all the cool animals the campers are able to find on their outings. The first day I went to pick Morgan up I had Elizabeth with me and all the campers found a SNAKE! Morgan and Elizabeth were both pretty interested surprisingly. But so far they have found toads....

Some kind of salamander...

A crayfish...although Morgan told me they caught a lobster and it wasn't until I saw the pictures that I realized she meant crayfish.

And a soft shelled turtle which I thought was the coolest one so far!