Happy Thanksgiving!

We love holidays here at Everything Summer Camp! You won’t catch any of us without a full plate of food at our Thanksgiving celebrations for this holiday. How could we go without the traditional turkey, stuffing, potatoes, gravy, and other delicious assorted dishes? And, of course, we stick to these warm, fun traditions because they bring us together.

Always thankful for our families, we take time out of our busy, bustling lives to get together with those who are closest to us. So I thought it would be nice to go around the office and see what people are up to for their Thanksgiving plans. Let’s hear from Art, Missy, and Mellina on what fun festivities they have planned for their Thanksgiving celebrations!

General Maintenance
Art and his wife, Pat, ventured out for the day-long trip to Texas yesterday so they could be with their son, also named Art, today. This family of three keeps it a tradition to spend Thanksgiving together in Texas.

When I asked about how he handled the long drive from northern Wisconsin, Art didn’t even bat an eye—“My son’s culinary skills are worth every mile,” he told me. They’re feasting well today!

Reception
Missy, our receptionist, isn’t actually doing Thanksgiving today. She’s holding off for the weekend so she can do it up right. Life on the farm is demanding for Missy, her husband Mike, and their three kids, Chelsea, Morgan, and Luke. “It’ll make life a lot easier to hold off till Saturday when the farm schedule isn’t as hectic,” Missy said.

The rest of the family then has the option on Saturday to either help in the kitchen or pitch in with the weekend chores. “They always pick the chores,” Missy offered. They’re sure to take care of the dishes afterward, though.

Printshop Production
Mellina’s Thanksgiving celebration is being delayed as well. “I wouldn’t dream of skipping our traditions, though!” she followed up quickly. Her family is waiting till Saturday when Mellina’s mother-in-law returns home. She and her husband Jeremy are very eager to have her around for the holidays.

Coming back on her third deployment from the marines, she is no doubt ecstatic to be heading home soon to celebrate and feast with her family. This family is thankful simply to be together this year.

We hope your Thanksgiving brings happiness, togetherness, and—of course—a big, fat feast for the whole family to enjoy. Happy Thanksgiving to all of our readers and, as always, I’m thankful for all of you. Thanks for reading!

- John

Hey, Excited Shoppers!

The shopping event of the year that has crept into hours so early they don’t even wait for Friday to start, Black Friday is waiting for you right after your Thanksgiving feast! But, despite how Black Friday hours start earlier and earlier every year, we’re just too excited to wait until the end of the week here at Everything Summer Camp!

That’s why you can find discounts on our website starting tomorrow! From November 22 through to the 29—Tuesday of next week—our Black Friday sales will be in effect! We’ll have over 200 items on sale between 10% and 50% off throughout this monstrous sale. Let’s run down what that means:

First of all…
It means you’ll find sales all throughout our website. For instance, prices on our trunk accessories are dropping—our exciting Trunk Name Plax have dropped more than seven bucks!  We also have discounts in our sleeping bags department for our quality Wenzel brand bags, the Wenzel Moose and the Lakeside 40°. We have lowered prices on a JanSport backpack and activity books, as well as plushy pillows and wool blankets.

Second…
You can also find of our Traditional Steel C&N Camp Trunks on sale—$25 off throughout the week and, of course, offering free shipping on each one that you order. This sale applies to our Happy Camper, our UnderGrad, and our Graduate footlocker trunks.

Third (and definitely most exciting)…
For each order that gets placed during this sales week, our customers will have a chance to win a Sony Playstation VR! Are you a virtual fan? We’re offering the launch bundle which comes with everything you’ll need to escape to a virtual reality (aside from the PS4 console).

Enjoy the savings and keep your fingers crossed that the Playstation VR is yours! As always, thanks for reading.

- John

Hey, Summer Campers!

In this chilling autumn season, it’s not uncommon for northerners and folks on the upper east coast to do some California Dreamin’. Ever wish you could Go Where You Wanna Go and not just for the weekend, but Monday Monday and any other day of the week? An east coaster herself, Ellen Naomi Cohen dreamt of warm California too, or should I say Cass Elliot, as she changed her name to? 

Well, you probably know her best as Mama Cass of the Mamas and the Papas anyway. She didn’t have California, but she had Camp Louise of Airy & Louise. Earlier this month, I posted about another former Louise camper, Shari Lewis—the voice of Lamb Chop (you can check out that post right here).

These brother/sister camps are located just a few miles away from each other in the Catoctin Mountains of western Maryland, Airy and Louise, each camp stretches out about 400 acres to display natural beauty along with the camps’ prided rustic facilities.

Some time after her camp experience, Cass’ family moved to a town called Alexandria in Virginia. She enrolled in George Washington High School, where she attended classes alongside rock legend Jim Morrison of The Doors. It was here, in her high school days that she adopted the name ‘Cass’. It wasn’t until later, however, that she would assume the surname ‘Elliot’ in memory of a friend of hers who died.

It was also in high school that she took interest in the art of acting. She was cast in a school play and really got into it. She moved to New York City after her high school days to further a career in acting (as mentioned in the biographical Mamas and Papas song ‘Creeque Alley’).

Cass searched the inflating folk music scene, watchful for where she might fit in until she stumbled upon two fellows, John Phillips and Denny Doherty, who had formed a group called the The New Journeymen. They knew they needed a new name with two females joining their group. A call to women as ‘mamas’ on television inspired Cass and Michele (the other lady in the band) to shout goofily, ‘We’re the mamas, we’re the mamas.’ John looked at Denny who was quietly saying, ‘The Papas?’

Incredibly famous in their day, The Mamas and the Papas went on to exceed greatness, but Cass in particular was always the star vocal in the group. After The Mamas and the Papas, she continued an impressive solo career with so much to offer the world. Check out the video of her beautiful serenading below and, as always, thanks for reading!

- John

Hey, Pilgrims!

We’re getting ourselves prepared for the Thanksgiving Feast in advance this year. And we thought, while we’re at it, we may as well help all of you get prepared as well. After all, there’s always so much to do come early Thanksgiving morning: there’s the turkey—the star of the show, you have stuffing, mashed potatoes, gravy, cranberry sauce, pumpkin pie, and so much more.

I went around the office today, asking people to share their personal recipes for all the basic food groups that are presented in the typical Thanksgiving dinner (pretty much everything I listed above).

Mark’s Turkey
Mark, vice president of Everything Summer Camp, takes a different approach to his turkey preparation with a cooking method called spatchcocking. Check out what he does for Thanksgiving right here.

Matt’s Stuffing
Matt, our Sales Director, makes a mean stuffing dish. Take a look at the recipe he uses every year.

Nate’s Gravy
What’s a Thanksgiving meal without any gravy on your turkey, potatoes, or stuffing?! When you make it this good, you’ll want it on everything. See what the manager of our graphics department, Nate, does for his Thanksgiving dinners.

Anita’s Mashed Potatoes
Our Call Center Supervisor, Anita has her Creamy Mashed Potatoes down to a science. Here’s how she gets them perfect every year!

Missy’s Cranberry Sauce
Cranberries? Apples? Marshmallows? This sauce didn’t come from any can. Make cranberry sauce like our Missy does for a delicious Thanksgiving treat! Get her recipe right here.

Mellina’s Pumpkin Pie
Leave room for pie! This traditional pie is a favorite for most families at Thanksgiving. Get Mellina’s recipe for her delectable pumpkin pie recipe right here.

Tim’s Layered Jell-o
Crazy about the Jell-o his mom makes every year, Tim wanted to share this recipe for Layered Jell-o, made using cream cheese. See the recipe right here.

Art’s Stuffed Dried Fruit
This last recipe sounds like a refreshing, light, bite-sized treat after a fantastic feast! Get the recipe from our Maintenance guy, Art, right here. This one has been in his family for over 80 years!

Stick with these tried and true recipes and your Thanksgiving feast is bound to be a smash-hit among your friends and family. Enjoy the holiday and, as always, thanks for reading!

- John

Hey, Camp People!

It brings us great joy here at Everything Summer Camp to work so closely with about 250 summer camps across the nation. That’s why we’re happy to tell you about what fantastic camps they are! So this week, we’re fixing our spotlight on the beautiful campgrounds of Camp Cheerio, an hour out from Winston-Salem in North Carolina.

Sitting on 135 acres at great altitudes on the eastern side of the Blue Ridge Mountains, this YMCA camp offers a great place where campers can have a great time whether they’re relaxing or getting all riled up. A quiet, peaceful setting away from home allows Cheerio campers to be themselves as they have the summer of their lives.

Days at Camp Cheerio stay pretty busy when camp is in session. After all, campers have a lot of activities to choose from! There’s Aquatics, Challenge Sports, Field Games, Creative Arts, Nature Study in the daytime and crazy fun to be had in the evenings like Counselor Hunts, Carnival Night, Spy Hunter, Capture the Flag, and Skit/Talent Night.
Cheerio campers also take advantage of the awesome Blue Ridge Mountains and other jaw-dropping landscapes nearby to the campgrounds. Kids will get a chance to set off on daylong adventures like canoe trips, caving, climbing, and woodsy excursions.

Complete with accommodating cabins, a first-class Dining Hall, Health Center, Gym, Athletic Fields, Tennis Courts, Lake Kiwanis, Swimming Pool, Climbing Towers, Riding Stables, High Ropes Course, and Rifle Range, the Cheerio campground is a fully functional playground that’s not only fun, but also developmental for youth.

Set your sights on Camp Cheerio next summer! It’s a safe, supportive place for your kids to take their first few subtle steps toward self-discovery all while enjoying the summer of their lives. Does Camp Cheerio sound like it just may be the camp for your kid? Check it out right here and, as always, thanks for reading!

- John