Hello Blog Followers! Today was a beautiful day on Columbia Lake! The campers met at the flagpole at 8am for flag raising, the pledge of allegiance, and chicken fat (our morning stretch exercises). Today's breakfast included blueberry bread, a variety of cereals, and fresh orange slices, with orange juice and hot chocolate to drink-- a perfect way to start the day! Campers then went back to their cabins to do their cabin duties (sweep, straighten bunks, and straighten the clothesline). The next bell that rang was camp duties. A few campers from each cabin went to help the staff sweep the lodge, get the oars/paddles in the boats for boating classes, collect the garbage, and help clean bathrooms. At 10am, campers were excited to start their class periods. The first day of camp re-familiarizes the campers to the Asto Wamah routine. The campers travel to each period with the other campers in their areas (Hilltop, Lakeside, and Seniors). In Arts and Crafts today, all campers made a journal/scrapbook to use during the session. They picked out fun-patterned paper for the cover and put filler paper in the middle, using ribbons or yarn to hold the book together. Some campers started to make baskets with Carol. In boating classes, our smallcraft director Colleen went over the parts of the boat and proper boating procedures. In sports, campers played a fun game up on the field, and in swimming classes, instructors evaluated campers' strokes and skills to see where most practice was needed. Campers went to three classes in the morning and then to one in the afternoon (fourth period). At Dinner (we eat our big meal of the day at lunch time), campers feasted upon ziti, salad with ranch dressing, and baguettes. They finished the meal with chocolate pudding! After Dinner, campers got to pick out a candy treat at the "store" to take with them to rest hour. Rest hour was from 2-3pm, a time for campers and counselors alike to rest, listen to music, read a book, write a letter, or work on an arts and crafts project. Once the hour was over, the whole camp went in for a general swim before the fourth period of the day. The last event before supper was activity period. During activity period, the campers were offered a choice to participate in a game on the field, jump off the tower, or play aquarium games. Some campers who had signed up were taken out on our stand-up paddleboards, and a few got to go out on a Sunfish (our small sailboats)!
Supper was promptly at 6pm and included chicken patties, carrots, applesauce, and chips. The dessert tonight was cheesecake, a camp favorite! After supper, the campers went up on the field to play a camp-wide game of capture the flag. It should be a fun one for sure! The campers will play until 8:30 or so and then get ready for bed at 9pm. Tonight the campers will be so exhausted from such an exciting day that they should have no problem falling asleep!
Until Tomorrow!
-The Birch Blogger