Summer classes are underway

This year, two of my five boys are enrolled in summer enrichment classes. I was pleased to see what fun courses were being offered for second through fifth graders this summer. My soon-going-into-third-grader was so excited when he brought home the flyer from school weeks ago telling me he wanted to enroll in "Summer Musical." He is often gung-ho when he first hears about something and his enthusiasm quickly fades -- as has happened with swim lessons, soccer, baseball and other activities. I was hesitant to sign up since the last couple weeks were a bit of a struggle as he expressed his displeasure with going to school because it was 1) boring, 2) stupid, 3) not air conditioned, 4) not fun or all of the above. He didn't want to go to school anymore and it wasn't easy getting him out the door in the morning. I figured it would be more of the same if he was going to summer school. But - I signed him up anyway.

My middle son will enter fourth grade this fall. He wasn't too keen on the idea of a summer class at first, but I told him there was a Harry Potter class being offered and that changed things. He was recently turned on to Harry Potter by my sister, who is - in a nutshell - a Harry Potter nut. She's seen the movies more times than can be counted. She's read the books over and over. She has posters, props and other Potter-related items. She follows Potter blogs. She plans her travel around Potter-themed events. She recently traveled to New York to see Daniel Radcliffe (who plays Harry Potter) on Broadway. She hangs around with a group that gets together for Potter Parties. She's become friends with people who produce Potter podcasts. She and I went to see Glee Live recently. I went because I'm a fan of the show, love the young talent and like to hear the variety of music thrown into different episodes. My sister went for one reason only - Darren Criss - who plays Blaine. He also wrote, produced and starred in a musical based on Harry Potter. She's a bit of a fanatic. So, anyway...my son is now a Potter fan after she brought the DVD set to introduce the boys to the stories. I was bummed that the class didn't go because of low enrollment. He ended up in Latin Fiesta, which he has enjoyed so far. He's excited to be learning words in Spanish and making a pinata.

So, four days into it, so far so good. Today was the first day I really got any grumbling about going, but it didn't last long and at the end of the day, they were both excited. Hope it continues. Three more weeks to go.