Great Maine Days and Nights…..

What an amazing week!! Our oldest campers are having a blast on the seven-day extended trip. Senior Bec and Bago returned last night from their Montreal journey – always a summer highlight. Last night was our annual bowling night for Senior Baxter and Sequoia who left for the evening to hit the lanes at Lucky Strike. Today was another busy day filled with Crack of Dawn Fishing, lots of intercamps and tournaments, and awesome evening programs. Today is an exciting S-Day with lots going on — Sequoia kicks it off with our annual Sequoia Olympics where our 5th and 6th grade boys compete in various Olympic-style events for gold, silver, and bronze medals. Acadia and Apache have a Gymnastics Show in the morning and hit the town to catch a movie in the afternoon. Should be a great one!

Montreal…Sunday river…Boston…Rafting and More

What an incredible weekend! Saturday was Visiting Day and families came from all over the country to visit. We were thrilled to show our parents, siblings, cousins and grandparents Camp Laurel as they had a chance to play tennis, swim in the lake, jump on our Aqua Glide Water Trampoline, make s’mores over a campfire and much, much more. Campers had a blast showing their parents all the incredible things they’ve accomplished over the summer and introducing their families to their counselors and friends. On Sunday, we jumped right back into regular programming from Crack of Dawn Fishing in the morning through Sports Night at night. Yesterday, we sent out extended trips for all of our oldest campers. Junior Bec and Bago are in Boston; Senior Bec and Bago left for a four day trip to Montreal, and Super Seniors are gone for seven days traveling all over the great state of Maine. Everyone arrived safely and we hear they’re already having a great time.

Visiting Day awaits…..

A perfect weather day in Maine. All trips and intercamps have returned as we begin the arrival of Parents Day tomorrow. It was an amazing week filled with fun and friends….trips and activities….shows and tournaments…laughter and fun. Tomorrow we eagerly anticipate greeting our parents and siblings from all over the country. Last night was our annual Group Sing in the Hockey Arena. It was incredible. Tonight we gather around the Council Fire and get an early nights sleep to welcome our visitors tomorrow. We can’t wait!

Time Flies….

Time sure flies when you’re having fun!  This weekend was awesome! Traditions Day kicked it off…we woke up to watch the beginning of Bec Swim, where the ladies of Bec broke the long-standing record for most laps swam in a day.  They broke the record!! The guys of Bago completed their Bago Sprint around Echo Lake! Congratulations Bec and Bago.  Then we saw Jem and Debbie and ten of the campers’ favorite staff members get wet and dirty during our annual Chaos.   Each of the age groups then participated in their traditions, including the  Baxter Car Wash for charity.  We finished the day with our first Dance Show where the girls who have been working hard all summer long got to show off their moves and boy, did that work pay off.  We then headed to the Council Fire for an all-camp campfire led by the Super Seniors.  Saturday was a busy program day with intercamps and camping trips and Sunday was the Luau for Acadia and Apache where our youngest campers danced the hula and limbo-ed the evening away on the waterfront to some breezy Hawaiian tunes.  Monday was Western Day and we brought in a professional square dance caller to teach some moves.  We also had our annual Gold rush – definitely a camp favorite.  Visiting Day is just around the corner but we have plenty to do before then including our first musical production of the summer…Once On This Island.

From Rockets to Traditions to Campfires…

Wow have we been busy this past week! We had 14 intercamps and tournaments the past three days including our annual Climbing Invitational with nine other camps in attendance. It was non-stop action capped off by some flag football and basketball wins at Andro and Winnebago…a great Boys Tennis Tournament with seven visiting teams; an overtime under-9 girls 2-2 soccer tie vs. Vega; a 9-8 loss against Caribou in boys U-12 lacrosse….and much, much more. Overnight camping trips are going out almost every day taking campers to the most beautiful state and National Parks in Maine. Yesterday was our first rocket launch of the summer where campers who worked hard the last few weeks building and designing model rockets blasted them into the Maine sky. Last night was the annual Five-Year-Club trip where campers who have been at camp for five or more years received personalized t-shirts (lime green this year) and a trip to the movies. Today is our annual Traditions Day featuring the Bec Swim, Bago Sprint, Baxter Car Wash, Super Senior Campfire and so much more. The Laurel Spirit lives on!

The Action Never Stops….

Another wonderful weekend at Laurel. Friday night was our annual Carnival and everyone had a blast with rides galore, fried dough and ice-cream cones, games, face painting and so much more! Saturday was busy as usual with seven different intercamps and tournaments going on and two camping trips out. The older campers danced the evening away at our weekly Saturday night social while the younger campers hit the fields for Sports Night. On Sunday, Senior Bec and Bago left on their overnight whitewater rafting trip down the Kennebec River and we hear they’re having the time of their lives! Sunday night was Festivus—the celebration of all holidays at once. Today, we sent out trips all over the state of Maine. Senior Acadia and Apache went out to Aquaboggin and Bec and Bago stopped by Funtown/Splashtown to beat the heat at a couple of Maine’s finest water parks. Baxter and Sequoia hit the shops and sights of Boothbay Harbor, while Frosh and Junior Acadia and Apache went to Rummels for some afternoon ice cream and mini golf.

Program in High Gear!

What an awesome week of camp with nearly perfect weather every day – low 80s and sunny. On Tuesday, we sent the whole camp to the Maine Waterparks because it got really hot. A great time was had by all!! We had an incredibly busy week with great programs and activities. More than 25 intercamps and tournaments…flag football, basketball, baseball, 6 v 6 soccer at Manitou…girls softball at Vega….soccer at Andro and the list goes on. It’s the Laurel Boys Tennis Tournament today with seven visiting camps on site. More than 40 campers were on Adventure overnight camping trips…Super Seniors began their first community service initiative at Camp Sunshine…and the new hypnotism show was a huge success with 20 staff members doing hilarious acts under a trance for nearly an hour!! It was unbelievable. Tonight is one of the most exciting nights of the summer—our annual Carnival! We have bouncy rides, face painting, fried dough, ice cream, and tons of other carnival games. We can’t wait!

Fireworks…Baseball…Tennis…Sailing…Intercamps…Non Stop Fun!

It was amazing weekend at camp. The weather has been magnificent and activities are in full swing. Adventure trips are out…our new Gourmet Cooking program is all the rage…Golf Plus is awesome…we’ve participated in more than 12 intercamps and tournaments already….and last nights Patriot Games and then fireworks on Echo Lake were unreal with the finale culminating in the lighting of the Moose! Today all campers and staff venture out on our first S- Day Out for 2010. Because of the great weather, we’re sending Acadia, Apache, Baxter and Sequoia to waterparks all over Maine…while Bec and Bago campers are headed to Boothbay Harbor and Old Port. It’s been a great first 10-days of camp!!

First Week — A Smashing Success…

What an amazing first week of camp! Laurel is in full swing with tons of fun activities happening every day. Last night was the first Sports Night of the season with Bago Football, Bec Soccer, Baxter Hoops, Sequoia Hockey and Apache Wiffle Ball all happening at once. Intercamps also kicked off yesterday with a U-13 boys soccer tournament at Laurel and a U-15 girls soccer tournament at Wekeela…we should have some incredible teams this summer! Last night was the annual Talent Show where some of our campers get to perform in front of the entire camp. Today is the first S-Day and we kick it off with a bang with The Quest. We’ll divide the camp into 18 teams that compete in various games and activities. The winning team gets a Chinese Dinner at Allliquippa. Good luck to the Super Seniors who get to have their first leadership experience of the summer as Quest captains. We can’t wait for Sunday’s Fourth of July Fireworks!!