Jumping Jacks Sports - Snow Day Camps and MORE!

With all the recent snow, cabin fever is setting in throughout Loudoun, with school canceled for 6 days in a row due to weather... then add weekends and previously scheduled days off, and the kids just aren't going to school these days at all! 

In our house, we've done some common and uncommon outdoor and indoor 'snow day activities'; we've done 'kid friendly recipes for snow days'.  At some point, these kids need a change of scenery and people with whom they can interact.  But, school is closed.  Daycare is closed.  Many businesses are closed. It's cold outside, and yet they need to burn off some serious energy. 

My cure for cabin fever this bad?  I take them somewhere that they are encouraged to climb the walls:  Jumping Jack Sports! They plan 'impromptu' snow day camps most days that school is canceled. They offer half day or whole day camps, and popin playtimes on snow days!  Check their web site for information on these camps, since they are often planned very 'last minute' after school closing decisions have been made.

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What is Jumping Jack Sports? 

A kids gym.  Unlike others we have in the area, this one is run by a mom, and I can tell.  Jumping Jacks is targeted toward a wide age range of children and their families. 

In the main gym, you'll find an inflatibles obstacle course, and a large moon bounce with basketball hoop inside.  There are gymnastics mats, a climbing wall and all kinds of fun toys - like hula hoops, scooters, inflatible horses, etc. Upstairs is an XRKade filled with active, virtual reality type games like boxing, bicycling, skateboarding and more.  The XRKade is particularly popular with older kids.

This is a special place, run by a true mom and business woman who believes that fitness is supposed to be fun, and having fun is not just for little kids.  So, Jumping Jacks offers much more than it's competition.

Yes, birthday party packages are available and there is a nice private party room available for serving refreshments.  But, because of the variety of features, even adults will enjoy this kind of an adventure, and JJS offers team building corporate events, too.

Yes, there are classes, but it's not just for the little ones, the age range is 2 to 12 for the various classes.

There are day camps for summer and school holidays. This has saved me more than once, and unlike a drop in daycare option or babysitter, my kids get very excited when they end up spending the day at Jumping Jacks, so there's no fussing, whining or crying, and it prevents or cures cabin fever.  If your kids are there for the whole day, they have arts and crafts and non-gym activities planned, too... but the real draw IS the open play, space, and options to do the high energy stuff that gets them into trouble at home.

JJS also offers Family Challenge Nights. They have events and races planned based on expected attendance and age groups, and they even serve dinner.  You race and play (REALLY play) with your kids of all ages and it is truly great fun. It's a much better alternative to watching a movie and ordering pizza at home - better for you, and way more exciting!  You will get your heart rate up, probably break out into a sweat and work off stress and calories while having a great time with your family.... but nothing about it will feel like a work out. Isn't that what we all need in our lives?

Learn more: http://www.jumpingjacksports.com/

Should I Be A Cheerleader?

With all the local summer camp options in Loudoun, it's nice for kids to try various activities. It keeps the summer interesting and keeps them constantly learning, sampling different activities that may (or may not) be of longer term interest to them. After horseback riding camp, I enrolled my 6 year old daughter (Rachael) in a Cheerleading Camp with DMB Sports, which was held at the National Conference Center on the east side of Leesburg.

The first day, Rachael was a little apprehensive since she didn't know anyone there, but she quickly made new friends, and found a few kids that she knew from other local activities. And, she fell in love with her camp staffers, especially Lauren who she said reminded her of me. (Isn't that sweet?)

The two weeks there were ones she'll remember for a long time. Each day, they'd swim. They played games and had many activities other than cheerleading. DMB is careful to make sure that having fun is more important than someone learning whatever cheer or whatever they are teaching that day. But, they did, of course, practice cheers and gymnastics. They learned some stunts - mostly what Rachael learned was she was scared to do stunts, but at least she was making an educated decision having had the opportunity to learn.

DMB also brings in a professional athlete to each camp, and Rachael got to meet Katie and Ana from the Washington Redskin Cheerleaders, and has a bring home souvenir with autographs. she was THRILLED. After that experience, she has decided she will be a cheerleader when she grows up. I doubt that she will, but if I can just get her to sit down with us and watch a football game, I'll be thrilled.

On the last day of camp, they had a cheer show. We really made Rachael feel special...grandma, two of her brothers, dad and I all came to see her show her stuff. It was a nice show, and I know that all the girls felt very good about having learned something that they could show off.

Rachael took one of the later camps in the year, but I will be looking forward to signing her up again next year. DMB offers many summer and holiday camp programs in eastern Loudoun County. Camps include Art Camp, Echo Camp and many various sports camps. Check them out online at http://www.dmbsportscamp.com/.

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On a scary note: Rachael was in the pool with other campers when a 6 year old little boy had a terrible accident. He was noticed at the bottom of the deep end of the pool. He was not breathing and had no pulse. Emergency services were called and he was revived poolside, and then taken to Loudoun Hospital, where they quickly transferred him to Fairfax Hospital. Each update I've received is positive, but it was very scary and the little boy was in the hospital for many days as they drained the water from his lungs.

Throughout this, DMB communicated WELL with other parents. I do not know exactly what happened, it is so easy for an accident like this to take place with children. PLEASE, make sure your children know their limits and do not succumb to peer pressure and venture to a deeper end of the pool. And, teach your children how to swim early, or keep them out of the pool all together. Teach them how to react when they fall into the pool. Not panicking can be the difference between life and death. Our children are just too precious.

My prayers continue to be with that little boy and his family. I'd like to think DMB for being so quick to respond, and so proactive about their communication with other parents.

Tasting Farm Life

Even though we live in town, Loudoun County is well known for its horse farms and agricultural heritage. So, living in Loudoun, it seemed fitting that my daughter at least get to sample some aspects of this.

This summer, I found a nearby farm that offered a riding camp, one that had reasonable prices, and hours that worked with my schedule. My goal was for Rachael to learn a bit about horses and get a bit of experience riding. But, she learned far more than that! She got a little taste of farm life, and, as she discovered, it's pretty different from her "normal" life.

For seven hours a day, for five straight days, she was emersed in the everyday happenings on a horse farm. The kids at the camp cleaned stalls, fed and groomed the horses and, handled other farm chores. It was summer, and it was HOT, and the kids were outside all day.

If it's been awhile since you've been in a barn, I'll remind you - it is not just hot, it STINKS. One reader commented that the smell of a barn in the summer is like Christmas to horse lovers. I had to chuckle at that. I love my dog, but sometimes I do not love the smells she makes. And, I prefer Christmas smell more like cinnamon and pine. But, ...to each their own!

After seeing (and smelling) Rachael at the end of the day, I was reminded that living and working on a farm is seriously hard work... I guess I had forgotten that when I told her it would be "fun".

You see, I used to spend part of my summers on my uncle's dairy farm. Looking back, I realize that I had been somewhat romanticizing my own memories of those times. But, it's something everyone should experience. On a farm, you get a true appreciation for work, for the land, for animals and how we're all tied together. Without the experience, you really just can't get it.

I am grateful for those times. I just wouldn't be the same person without them. The rule was, kids stayed out of the house during the day, from sun up to sun down. When we weren't herding, feeding or milking the cows, gathering eggs, cleaning stalls, or picking veggies from the garden; we had a lot of fun. Where else can you sprain your ankle jumping from the top of the silo into the grain, play hide and seek in a cornfield, admire momma animals with their new babies, chase chickens (and then by chased BY chickens), and wade in the river and catch trout with your bare hands?

Rachael's experience was quite different from mine, but she was just as dirty and sweaty at the end of the day as I used to be. And, just as tired.

Being as social as Rachael is, it was kind of a tough week for her. She was out of her element, and was probably the youngest in the camp. She really only bonded with one little girl. But, she definately bonded with the horses. She very much liked giving me the end of day tour and lectures on which horse likes what and who I can pet and who I can not. After 7 hours of being the one who listened and took orders, she had the opportunity to show off a bit and be the one to teach someone else. It was nice to be a bit of an "expert".

At the end of the week, did she like it? Well, there are mixed reviews. She wants to go back and see the horses, but she has not asked to go back the camp next year. Maybe she'll feel different in time, maybe she'll start to romanticize the memories, too. Either way, she may not be a true farm girl at heart, but she will carry with her special memories from the experience for the rest of her life.... THAT week, the week she tasted farm life.

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Main Tree charges only $335 per week and the hours are 9 to 4; and you provide all drinks, snacks and lunch. Although there is a house there; the kids don't go into it. They are out in the elements all day - no air conditioning at all. The bathroom is a port-a-potty outside the barn. There is a shed of sorts they use to store their foods and clothes and where they can change. They sometimes eat their lunch by the pond at the neighbors' place and feed the ducks. A few afternoons, they go swimming in the private pool there on the farm. On Friday, they have a bar-b-que and everyone brings a dish to share. Like I said.... a little taste of farm life.