Hey, Camp Fans!
The camp stories we received for our ‘Share your Camp Story’ Contest here at Everything Summer Camp were so great! It was a wonderful time reading through them all and now I’m excited to share them with all our followers on the Blog and post each submission right here on its own day!
After our ten lucky prize winners, I’ve moved on to the rest of your submissions. The following post is from Lindsey S. who wrote in to tell us about her daughter’s camp experience at Camp Longhorn. Here’s her submission:
“This was my daughters first time at camp. Neither my husband nor I went to sleep away camp as kids. Needless to say, we were all nervous the months leading up to camp. Once a month we did the Camp Longhorn merit questions together. That was fun because there were little details about the camp that made my daughter, Bobbi, excited about what to expect at camp. Once summer started, I knew it was time to start packing for camp. I had no clue how to pack a kid for a week at camp. My friend told me to start with ordering the trunk. Bobbi ended up asking Santa for her trunk and accessories. It was fun to have her pick out and personalize everything. As a mom, I wanted all of her things to coordinate, but she just wanted all kinds of different things. It seemed like every week we were thinking of something that I needed to order to make her stay comfortable. About a week before she left, we started compiling everything. She was very into helping me. She wanted each outfit in a different labeled Ziploc bag and everything to have a place.
The bus to camp came on a Sunday morning to the Target in our town. I knew she didn't know anyone at her camp location and I was excited for her to meet new people, but when the bus arrived and she did not know anyone and it seemed like everyone else had a familiar face to sit by, I felt terrible for her. I had tears in my eyes because I felt guilty for sending her away with no friends but she went on the bus with no tears. I remember checking the website constantly that evening checking to see if there were any pictures of her. I just wanted to see one smile.
Finally, I saw her laughing and smiling with her cabin. We picked her up after the week and she exhausted. When I unpacked her trunk—it was like she was only there for 3 days because most of her clothes were never touched.
The best thing I can say about the camp experience is this story. My daughter is very timid and does not like to try new things. We went to a waterpark the week after camp and she did not want to try anything. I asked her if she did scary things at camp and she said she did because she was having such a great time with her new friends. I knew that camp was the right decision after that. I think camp is important because it gets kids out of their comfort zone!”
Absolutely, Lindsey! As comfortable as our comfort zone may be, it won’t do much for personal growth. Sounds like Bobbi had a great time at camp if she was so distracted with having fun that she tried new, scary things! Here’s to many more fun summers for Bobbi and further steps outside her comfort zone!
For everyone else, you can give Camp Longhorn a closer look by clicking right here and, as always, thanks for reading!
- John