Just dropped the girlies off at Camp.  Overnight for 2 weeks.  Their flurry of packing has demolished the house.  But I don’t mind.

You see, WT (World Traveler) husband is in Brussels for a week for work, so I’m all by myself!  Whoot!  I have stocked up and am looking forward to eating cereal for dinner and bon bons for breakfast and anything else I feel like doing!

Reading books, yes!  Exercising, yes! Sleeping, yes!  Cooking, no!  (Well, our stove is broken anyway.) Nagging, no!  Yelling, no!  Acting as the frontal lobe for everyone else in the family, N-to-the-O!

The drop-off just demonstrated for me again, the differences between my children.  Sometimes I know Lily’s world so well, that I forget that it’s not ‘normal’, until I see Zoolander in the same situation and realize again that her reactions are more like other kids’.

Actually, that’s how we finally realized that Lily was different than other babies.  After Zoolander was born, we were surprised to discover, “Ohhhh, that’s how babies are supposed to act!  You mean, you can actually follow the instructions in those baby books and they work??!!  Holy crap, THIS is a piece of cake!”

Photo by Zoolander

Both the girls’ counselors came to our car to help with the luggage.  Without question I knew that I would go with Lily to her cabin first, to help her transition.  Of course, she was anxious.  Zoolander was on her own with a stranger.  Of course, she didn’t care.

I helped Lily make her bed and there was one other girl in the cabin.  I overheard the girl tell the counselor that she attends ‘Suchandsuch Academy’, a private school that specializes in educating Twice Exceptional students and students with learning differences.  Hmmmm.  Maybe Lily will pick up on that.  She usually does.  She has told me before, “Mom, that girl/boy is like me.”

Last summer, the one girl she really made friends with at camp, turned out to be in her Gifted and Talented class this year.  [An aside–Just read an interesting post at Asynchronous Scholars’ Fund about helping Gifted kids ‘find their tribe’.]

Anyway, a gaggle of her cabin-mates arrived loudly and Lily instantly retreated, turned away, wouldn’t make eye contact, didn’t introduce herself.  I sensed it was time for me to split, before she wanted me to help her out of this social situation.  I quickly left, but wished I had given her a better pep talk beforehand–reminding her specifically how to be friendly.  It makes my stomach hurt thinking about it.

But I know that the counselors will include her and help her warm up.  The young counselors always seem to know what to do and how to handle her.  And that’s just one of the reasons why we spend the money to send Lily to this amazing camp that encourages campers to be themselves and to respect others for their differences, so that she can practice her social skills in a safe place.

Photo by Zoolander

As I walked down the road approaching Zoolander’s cabin, I could see her standing on the balcony waving wildly.  When I walked up, she was jumping up and down she was so excited and talking, talking, talking, “Mom, isn’t this awesome.  I love this balcony.  I got a top bunk.  I was worried about that, but I got a top bunk and it has a shelf where I can put my stuff.  Remember my friend I met last year? She’s going to be here and she’s in my cabin and isn’t that so great.”  Zoolander didn’t even notice when I left.