I took my 7-year-old to space camp. I got to live out my own childhood dream and bond with my son.
As a gift, I booked a long weekend for me and my son at space camp at the U.S. Space & Rocket Center.
The astronaut training activities fulfilled childhood dreams for many of the parents attending.
My son and I pushed ourselves to try new things and bonded a lot during this special weekend away.
My son has been captivated by all things space and astronauts since he was a toddler, so as soon as he was old enough to participate, I surprised him with the ultimate Christmas gift: a trip to family space camp at the U.S. Space & Rocket Center in Huntsville, Alabama.
Once he and I were driving to Huntsville for our long weekend at sleep away space camp, I realized that this trip would help me live out my own childhood dream, too. My 90s childhood was filled with watching Nickelodeon shows such as "Are You Afraid of the Dark?" and "Salute Your Shorts." Heading to space camp gave me nostalgic vibes, but I hadn't been able to figure out why. Then, it hit me: space camp was often the top prize on Nickelodeon's kids' game show "Double Dare." As a kid, I'd dreamed of sorting through that green, snot-like slime to find the hidden flag and win a trip to space camp. As an adult, I finally made it happen for myself while bonding over a weekend of fun with my son.
From the start, camp was a blast
When we arrived, leaders informed us that we were now part of a group of more than a million participants who'd experienced space camp since it began in 1982, including graduates who'd later become NASA astronauts. Of the 100 or so people participating in our weekend camp, we were split into smaller groups of around 16.
Traditional sleep away camp usually has cabins, but space camp has something they refer to as habitats: otherworldly buildings filled with bunk rooms for astronauts-in-training to rest in. Habitat is an apt name for the sleeping quarters. It feels like a futuristic settlement, like what NASA would build if there were people living on Mars. The single beds were simple and not exactly built for comfort, but sleeping in the habitat added to the ambiance of being immersed in our training. My son quickly claimed the top bunk.
I didn't anticipate this ahead of time, but attending sleep away camp with my son allowed me to help him navigate all the ways camp differs from sleeping at home. I was on hand to help him organize his toiletries to take to the shower in the communal bathrooms. I helped him navigate the start and end of each day, and how camp thrives on everyone in the group following a routine. Since I never went to sleep away camp as a child, it was heartwarming for us to be able to do it together.
The experience was better than I imagined
We had four full days of nonstop astronaut training, including riding in the facility's multi-axis trainer, which spins riders around in every direction to simulate tumbling in space.
"I'm extremely scared," my son said to me as he watched other kids take a turn. I'll admit, the trainer looked intimidating. Three large metal rings on the rim spin on their own axis, so the rider has no control over or anticipation of which way it'll turn. Riding the multi-axis trainer requires full surrender to wherever the moment moves you.
When my son's turn came, I stood at the border of the trainer, encouraging him to choose to be brave even when he felt scared. As soon as our group leader turned the device on and the trainer tilted his body backward, a huge grin came over my son's face. His body relaxed and his mood lifted. He realized the ride wasn't going to be scary, it was fun. He spent the rest of the weekend asking me when he could do another space tumble.
I was one of the last people in our group to ride the multi-axis trainer. My ride started with several backflips, then in a second switched to flipping on my side, then forward, at various speeds. It was impossible to anticipate which way I'd go next. The miraculous thing about it is since your stomach stays in the same place, it doesn't make riders dizzy or nauseated. My beet red face wasn't so lucky — I must've spent too much time upside down.
One of the highlights of the weekend was building our own model rockets; every person had to build their own out of cardboard and plastic. When we were finished, we went to a large field and launched them. It was exciting to see how high each creation would go and I was proud when mine was immortalized by getting stuck in a nearby tree.
We made memories we'll never forget
Some of the best memories from space camp were the tiny moments spent problem solving with my son. Together, we faced the pressure of conducting timed experiments. When we didn't get things right the first time, we learned through our mistakes. We learned how to work through camp challenges as a dynamic duo, and I had many opportunities to tell my son how proud I was of him for giving it a go.
Since all of our activities were done in a group, my son got to meet like-minded, space-loving children, too. I soon realized about half of the accompanying parents were there for reasons similar to mine: they grew up interested in space camp, and now they were bringing their children along to fulfill a childhood dream.
At the end of the four-day weekend, camp leaders held a graduation ceremony for those of us who'd completed our training. The ceremony hadn't even ended before my son began asking if we could come again next year. After a long weekend filled with problem-solving, educational classes and bonding experiences with my son, I should've been the one asking him if he'd like to do it all over again.
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