As we pass the midway mark of camp, we stop and take a look around about what we’ve accomplished the last four weeks and what we have in store the next three. In addition to our regular program, our Bec and Bago campers depart tomorrow on their traditional Extended Trips. Junior Bec and Bago head to Boston to enjoy all that city has to offer. Our 8th graders (Senior Bec and Bago) leave for the Canadian border and the great city of Montreal for an incredible four-day adventure. And our Super Seniors depart on their seven-day trip throughout New Hampshire and Maine.

While this is happening, our younger campers have the “run of the place” and love having all the program specialty areas to themselves.  Of course, we mix in some special treats for them, normally reserved for our older campers. Wednesday is the Laurel Olympics – truly one of the summer’s special event highlights. Last night’s performance of FAME was out-of-sight! Well done to this well-rehearsed cast and crew. And tonight is our annual Group Sing. Lots of great times behind us…and lots of amazing things to come!

We’re very excited to see you on Visiting Day! Your children can’t wait to see you and look forward to introducing you to their friends and counselors and demonstrating some of the skills they’ve acquired during the first month of camp. Here are a few reminders that will help you have a great visit.

• Camp opens to visitors at 9:30AM tomorrow morning. We encourage you to arrive by 9:00AM so that you can park, pick up the schedule of the day, enjoy a cup of coffee, and get directions to meet your child(ren).

• While you are welcome to bring a modest amount of food, please ensure that you absolutely avoid products with nuts. Also, keep in mind that, on Sunday, all goodies left from Visiting Day will be donated to a local food bank, so don’t overdo it.

• The forecast is for a hot Maine day with chance of thunderstorms, so please take it easy, dress accordingly, and drink plenty of fluids, which will be available at multiple locations around Camp.

We look forward to seeing you tomorrow!

Hard as it seems to believe, Thursday begins the Second Program Rotation of the summer. One of the hallmarks of Camp Laurel – as our camp families and parents well know – is our unique and skill-focused scheduling system, which allows campers to try a great variety of different sports and  activities at a young age, and dive further into mastering skills in more programs of choice as they get older.

For the last three weeks, campers have participated in a base of 10 core activities (which includes a balance of team sports, water activities and individual pursuits) on an A/B alternating basis.  Built within that framework are certain requirements and certain electives, depending on a camper’s age.  The electives were selected at home with each camper’s parents.  The younger campers have mostly requirements and a few electives, while the older campers have more choice in their scheduling day. Nothing is left to chance, and the schedules are set for 3.5 weeks and campers see real progression within that time. For the Second Rotation, campers make their selections with the help of their counselors.  It’s great to see the interaction among campers and staff as they go through process. It’s very “collegiate like” and campers are excited to make selections and see the results as they embark on their new scheduling rotation.

Also this week, we had an amazing Carnival last night, are into a nice round of all-camp programing, and everyone’s psyched for tomorrow’s First Rotation Dance Show.

Even though the world around us continues to whiz by at a dizzying pace, it’s so refreshing to be secluded and disconnected in Readfield, Maine. No 24-hour cable news; no iPads; no newspapers; no outside gossip. Our own world where we can just be. Play. Exist. Relax. Unwind. Learn how to overcome hurdles and obstacles in life. And be each other. Now that cabin groups are functioning like a family (with the usual familial speed bumps and ups-and-downs) we go into the next phase of camp. Campers are taking advantage of spending time with each other; their counselors; and of course focusing on their mastery of skills recently developed or, perhaps, never knew that actually had.

After two-and-a-half weeks of camp, we are very mindful of “switching it up.”  While the base of our program – Athletics, Waterfront, Tennis, InterArts, Adventure, Equestrian has never been stronger – our In- and Out-of-Camp S-Days are a welcome break from the routine. It’s a great balance of instruction, recreation, competition, trips and more. As we approach the weekend, we look forward to more exciting programming, our All-Camp Campfire, and of course Sunday’s Camp Laurel Annual Carnival. One of the highlights of the season!

The energy at camp is palpable as we’ve fully hit our stride near the completion of Week #2. On top of the already active daily program, our camping trips have been in full swing with more than 95 campers having taken advantage of our day and overnight excursions through the great state of Maine and into New Hampshire. Our Intercamp and Tournament calendar is proceeding with great results as campers test their skills and sportsmanship playing neighboring camps in Basketball, Soccer, Lacrosse, Baseball and Softball. There’s more to come in Atheltics, in addition to Tennis, Swimming, Gymnastics and even Climbing!

Today, we’re in the midst of Traditions Day (Polar Bear Plunge, Bec Swim, Bago Sprint, and of course the ever popular Acadia and Apache Rainbow Games). Tonight’s an all-camp Campfire and then we swing back into tomorrow’s A-Day.

Camper phone calls begin this week. While most families connect on the phone with their campers, some chose to do their communication the old-fashioned way: letter-writing.

While we’re running full force in all areas of camp, we’re ever mindful of everyone’s heath and make sure to build in time for rest and recharge. We’ve got so much to look forward to ahead…and we cant wait, waking up each day with the excitement of what lies ahead.