February is when we have a big Camp Fair for parents thinking about summer camp for their kids. It is sponsored by the free monthly parenting magazine, Nashville Parent. They’ve been hosting this Camp Fair for as long as I can remember living here in Nashville.

I was lucky to be able to attend several different types of summer camps while growing up. New York State has a huge selection of camps, from overnight camps in the mountains to day camps closer into the City.

For my grandkids, I am thinking about suggesting they go someplace very different from Nashville, such as at the beach in Florida or maybe in the desert. I heard about the Hummingbird Music Camp in Jemez, New Mexico from our school’s music teacher. New Mexico is a long way from Tennessee, which makes it ideal for what I want the kids to experience this summer. And it is a music camp, art camp and chess camp, along with all the traditional overnight summer camp activities like hikes and bonfires.

My thought is to fly into Albuquerque, rent a car, and drive the kids to Hummingbird Music Camp on a Sunday, when camp starts. There is a full day of Sunday Activities for arriving campers and their parents. Then, I will drive back to Albuquerque and stay at a nice resort, do some sightseeing and shopping, and visit a dear friend from college who moved there right after graduation and has lived there ever since.

Denise married her high school sweetheart, who was from New Mexico and his parents moved the family to New York.when he was a senior. After they graduated from college and got married, they moved to Albuquerque where she got a teaching position in the public schools and he took a sales job with a computer company.

They are one of the few couples that got married right after college and are still married today. How cool is that? I would love to spend some time with her and catch up on everything while the kids are having fun at the camp!