Camp B, Day One: Food Day

For the next two weeks, both of my boys will be home all day, every day. I intend to soak this up, but of course, there are also common work and household tasks that must get accomplished. I have been brainstorming about creative ways to get these things done while providing my boys with two really fun last weeks before Big B's first day of kindergarten.

Over the weekend, I was inspired by a friend from Big B's preschool, who hosted 'Camp Aunt L' for her nieces this summer. She had fun camp-like activities planned each day. I decided to follow her lead, but mold our days after things that are already on the schedule. Today we had to go to the grocery store, so I decided to kick off 'Camp B' with Day One: Food Day.

We began Food Day by talking about where our food comes from and how it gets, eventually, to our table. We took the back entrance into our grocery store and watched how food is delivered to the store. Big B noticed how dirty the crates were and how much packaging was being used, which led to a great conversation about how much fresher and healthier our food tastes when we get it from our organic co-op or one of the produce farms we frequent.
Once inside, I involved Big B in every decision, from choosing fruit to meal planning to finding buy-one-get-one deals. We played a game where he guessed in which food group our selections belonged. He was really good at that! Big B loaded every single item onto the conveyor belt, from heaviest to lightest, grouping cold items together and making sure bread and eggs were last. As we pushed our cart to the car, I asked Big B if he knew the reason we use the infamous green bags. He had a great answer ("because they say Publix on them?"), but it made me realize I had never actually explained it to him. I told him what ultimately happens (or more importantly, what doesn't happen) to plastic bags, and how we have to make differences in whatever small ways we can.We offloaded our groceries and headed to our office for lunch. We are lucky enough to work for a family business that operates on ten acres, and while Papa and I had a meeting, Grammy took Big B and little b for a ride on the golf cart. In the spirit of Food Day, Big B brought the camera along to take pictures of the fruitbearing trees on the property. He also brought along Freeze, his most trusted companion.They spotted an Avocado tree,a Surinam Cherry tree,
a Papaya tree, several Citrus trees, and a Mango tree, bringing our Mango selection from the grocery store full circle.When we came home, I put together a quick activity (along with a healthy snack) for Big B, to continue the game he enjoyed so much at the grocery store. We went to the USDA Food Pyramid website for preschoolers and personalized a pyramid for Big B. I cut pictures of food from magazines and grocery store circulars and divided a piece of paper into food groups. Big B's task was to put the pictures in the right categories.He did a great job, and really enjoyed it! Once he had everything categorized, he glued the pictures down and made a food groups collage.For a special 'Camp B' late afternoon treat, we decided to make homemade chocolate chip ice cream sandwiches. I got the ingredients ready, and Big B poured them in and mixed the dough.One of the great joys of childhood is licking a beater dripping with cookie dough. I'm quite sure this is Big B's favorite step in the process. Food Day at Camp B ended with a special treat, two happy boys, and a mama who achieved her household and work tasks for the day. Looking forward to day two!