Hey there, Fans of Everything Summer Camp!

It’s been one of our goals with this Blog that our readers get to know everyone who works here at Everything Summer Camp—at least, as well as you can get to know us by following a Blog post. That’s why we try to tell you a little bit about ourselves, our jobs, and our lives. To avid followers of this Blog, you may recall about eight months ago, when you virtually met our Sales Director, Matt DeMuth.

Matt’s a family man, never failing to cherish his wife and twins on a daily basis. Matt and his wonderful wife, Chris, are the proud parents of their twin children, Quinn and Reagan. This brother and sister duo are an adorable handful who bring so much joy to their tired, loving parents. With the two of them now four-and-a-half-years-old, Matt and Chris have prepared themselves for the third addition to their family.

Matt and Chris will soon be welcoming their new baby girl, into the world. With Chris now 37 weeks pregnant, she’s ready to drop any day! The due date is only ten days away now, set for December 13. This also happens to be a Friday (Friday the 13) which Matt pointed out to me and then quickly added, “Luckily I’m not a superstitious man.”

What he is, is a great father. His beautiful boy and girl have constant smiles on their faces and wonderment in their eyes. “It helps having a wife as amazing as Chris,” Matt said. “She’s just such a great mom.” It’s wonderful to think that this loving couple will soon be bringing a third child into their wonderful family, into their great home, and into this world!

On behalf of everyone at Everything Summer Camp, congratulations to Matt and Chris.

- John

Hey, Shoppers!

It’s time, once again, to make stuffing and roast turkeys in our ovens! And you know what that means! Thanksgiving is here, of course. This year’s Thanksgiving holiday, however, is packing twice the punch that it has in the past because Black Friday is starting earlier and earlier every year. So early, it’s part of Thanksgiving. Tis the season to be shopping!

Black Friday got its start in Philadelphia during the early 60’s. It was called Black Friday because of the thick, disorderly traffic (of vehicles and pedestrians) that filled the streets. Black Friday started to catch on in other places and on a more national level by 1975. It’s shot up in the ranks of busiest shopping days throughout the years, but it’s really gotten crazy in the last few.

Five or six in the morning used to be pretty early for retailers to open their doors, but in 2011 this was taken to an extreme when a handful of stores opened at midnight for the first time. Black Friday has steadily been the busiest shopping day of the year. The crowded shopping day has only increased in popularity over the years. The shoppers are typically aggressive, ruthless, even violent!

How can you reap the benefits of amazing sales on Black Friday while still steering clear of unbelievably massive crowds? Try finding some good sales online. Everything Summer Camp is slashing their prices in response to Black Friday. Online shopping is a great alternative to ridiculously overgrown and even dangerous crowds.

Camp trunks, trunk accessories, and an endless list of summer camp supplies and camping gear make for great Christmas gifts. Shop around on the Everything Summer Camp Web site this Black Friday to find great deals on quality products and avoid all those crazy crowds!

Happy Thanksgiving, Blog Readers!

Thanksgiving is a national holiday that I’m sure all of you avidly celebrate, but few probably know what it’s actually about. Giving thanks, right? Well, sure—of course it is—but thanks for what? Turkey and the Macy’s Parade, right? Well, no…not exactly. See, taking a day to give thanks way back when used to be a much broader tradition.

I’m sure you all know about the Pilgrims who landed on Plymouth Rock and learned the ways of the Native Americans to celebrate in the harvest feast with them. What you probably don’t know is that thanksgiving days were already a tradition celebrated by the Pilgrims before they landed in the New World.

Days of thanksgiving were once held rather frequently throughout the year, actually. What was a European custom became an American custom for years to make a day of thanks. What were they thankful for? Anything. It could have been a crop that came in really well that year, the end of a drought, or simply making it through a harsh winter.

When the Pilgrims first came to the New World, their harvest feast with the Natives just became one more reason for being thankful. Thanksgiving Day would not become an annually celebrated national holiday until Abraham Lincoln proclaimed it in 1863.

One name that we should all remember on Thanksgiving is Sarah Josepha Hale, an American writer and editor (as well as the writer of the nursery rhyme “Mary Had a Little Lamb”). For 20 years, Sarah campaigned for our national holiday that we all know and love. She was 75 by the time she finally convinced Lincoln by mail that this would be a good holiday to help unify the country after the Civil War.

Thanks to her, we celebrate with turkey, stuffing, potatoes, cranberry sauce, and pumpkin pie (all her idea). The “first” Thanksgiving Day celebrated by the Pilgrims and Natives served a fairly different menu consisting of deer, various types of fowl (like turkey and duck), fish (like cod and bass), and flint corn. Like I said—thanks, Sarah!

From all of us at Everything Summer Camp, Happy Thanksgiving!

Hey, Blog Buddies!

I know that I’ve already told you about the Manager of our Graphics Department here at Everything Summer Camp, Nate. How he oversees production, keeps an eye out for quality control, gets his hands dirty with product development, and stays busy in a number of other ways. But I haven’t told you about his favorite product that you can find right here at Everything Summer Camp.

For the last three years, with a knack and strong passion for product development, Nate has enjoyed his employment with Everything Summer Camp, appreciating the variety that his work creates for him.

Due especially to his passion for product development, Nate can’t quite decide which he likes better: “It’s a toss-up between our new Iron-On Clothing Name Labels and, of course, the Lid Skinz,” Nate says.

“Both are just a couple of cool products with cool design options,” he goes on to say. “You got a whole package of colors, backgrounds, and icons…they’re pretty impressive products, I think.”

On the one hand, the Iron-on Clothing Name Labels are a practical product and, for most camps, they’re a necessary product! Lots of summer camps insist that every single item that goes to camp should be labeled in some way, shape, or form. Everything Summer Camp’s Iron-on Labels make a required item fun.

And on the other hand, with Lid Skinz, the possibilities are limitless! They may not be as practical as Iron-on Clothing Name Labels, but they’re a million times more decorative! These full color, vinyl decals are made to top a camp trunk. We print the giant sticker here in our facility and then cover our Lid Skinz with protective laminate making the Skinz more durable than paint!

“I guess it’s a tie,” Nate concedes. “Both are absolutely great products!”

Which do you think is better?

Shalom, Boys and Girls, and Happy Hanukkah!

Once again, it’s time to get out the dreidels and menorahs! Starting tomorrow night at sunset, the first night of Hanukkah begins! Eight days and nights follow to observe this traditional Hebrew holiday until nightfall on December 5. Because of the time of season it falls on, Hanukkah is sometimes considered a sort of Jewish Christmas, but what exactly is this celebration about? Let’s take a deeper look.

First of all, as opposed to Christmas (which is a steady Dec. 25), Hanukkah goes off of a lunisolar calendar which is based on the sun and the moon while the traditional Gregorian calendar only considers the sun and the time it takes the earth to move around it. Hanukkah consistently begins on the 25 of Kislev, a month of the Hebrew calendar.

The history of Hanukkah goes back to 165 B.C. when a Jewish rebel army known as the Maccabees defeated the Syrians and rededicated their holy temple in Jerusalem. The eight days of Hanukkah are about a seven-day miracle in which the Maccabees only had enough oil to light the temple’s eternal flame for a single day, yet the lamp kept on burning for eight!

Onto Hanukkah’s main tradition, the lighting of a distinctive, nine-branched candleholder which is often times referred to as a menorah (like in the second sentence of this post). Not everyone knows that this name is actually incorrect for the traditional nine-branched candelabrum. It’s actually called a Hanukkiah. A menorah, on the other hand, has only seven candleholders—like the lamp that was used in the ancient holy temple in Jerusalem.

Hanukkiahs have nine candleholders so that there’s a candle for every night of Hanukkah and then one more to light the others. If you celebrate Hanukkah, you now can educate your friends and family on the holiday you’re about to celebrate! Happy Hanukkah.