Please join me in welcoming Samara to the Camp Canadensis family!  I got to spend some time with her family over winter break, right after she returned from a fun trip to Mexico!  Samara is a current 3rd grader, and will be a Junior Girl – she lives in Princeton, NJ, which is one of my favorite towns to visit if I get a free weekend!

Samara stays busy every day of the week, between ballet and hip hop class, Hebrew School and piano lessons – she can’t find time for all the other activities she enjoys, including soccer!  She gave me a tour of her house, and her room was covered with many art projects she has created.  She had mosaic art and hand loomed tapestries above her bed, a cute paper mache penguin she made in Kindergarten and a mask she had made in Mexico.  She loves crafting, and she is specifically excited about getting to tie-dye at camp! She’s also looking forward to the lake activities, waterskiing – and she’s considering auditioning for the show, or signing up for horseback riding lessons.

She’s a big sister to brother Griffin, who is currently in Kindergarten, and might join us for the Tour & More overnight weekend either this summer, or another summer soon.  Griffin also has a super cool room with a rope ladder that goes up to the ceiling, and it’s good practice for our camp ropes course!  Griffin & mom whipped up one of Samara’s “oreo ball” recipie while we chatted – and then we got to enjoy them while we played games.  Samara taught me Tenzi and I showed her how to play jacks with the new set she had gotten – which came in a Canadensis carrying case!  Everyone should know how to play jacks at camp, and if you don’t know yet…we’ll teach you!  I hope she’ll find time to practice, so we can play this summer!

Links:  Oreo Ball Recipe – Tenzi –  How to play Jacks

Although the break was very relaxing, I wanted to tell you about a few of the adventures I got into…

Now that Rachel Waxman (from Evening Activities) lives in Philadelphia, I get to see her monthly for catch up dinners – and since BeckyJ (2012 Upper Inter Group Leader) was home from college during winter break, I got to see both of them over break!  We had a camp “comfort food” style dinner of mac & cheese, grilled cheese and tomato soup…and then we wandered around town until we found an open cupcake store!

I also had lunch with Julia Eckenrode, who will be returning this year as our Glass Fusion director – it was great to start talking about her project ideas for this summer.  I’ll be getting to see Julia a few times in January because Cara Corradetti and I have signed up to take her glass blowing class…we are SO excited, and we’ll definitely be sharing pictures of our projects on the blog!

Also during the break, Dave and I took a trip to Texas – we spent 3 days in Houston with my sister, and then spent 2 days in Austin exploring town.  It was a great trip, the temperatures were mild and we ate tacos for breakfast, lunch, dinner…and even dessert!  Would you eat a s’mores taco at camp this summer??

Annie came with us too, and we found a restaurant called “Annie’s” – how could I resist the photo-op?

We also found another restaurant called “Texadelphia” which was perfect since my sister lives in Texas, and I live in Philadelphia…we didn’t try the cheesesteak taco though.

Of course, no vacation or break would be complete without crafting!  At the top you can see a box a made for my best friends twins, and a card I made for my friend who just welcomed baby Nora.  I didn’t want to share my Chanukah cards on the blog until I got to give out all my gifts, but check out the designs I crafted using my silhouette – it was fun playing around with the colors.

I also got to make thank you cards for all the great gifts we received – I even tried making the envelopes too (they need some tweaking…) We can’t wait to show you how to make your own stationery at the new elective this summer!!

Hi Everyone – I’m excited to be back on my blog sharing a great story from the weekend with you all!

On Sunday morning a few of the 2013 CIT girls joined me, along with Pam and Dani, to cook dinner for the families staying at the Ronald McDonald House in Philadelphia. The Ronald McDonald House is one of my favorite philanthropic organizations – if you want to learn more you can visit their website here:

http://www.philarmh.org/who-we-are/history/

We were planning to cook a few casseroles for the House, which they then put into the freezer and take out when they need a meal in a pinch; most large dinners are donated or sponsored. At the last minute the Sunday night dinner donor cancelled – turning Camp Canadensis into the Sunday night dinner crew! We upped the number of casseroles, picked up some more ingredients, and got to work cooking enough dinner to feed 90 people!

I am so proud of the hard work everyone put in to making Sunday a success. I can’t tell you how many times I heard someone reference Jojo’s cooking elective at camp as we put our chef skills to the test! The best part about this service experience is the fun we had while preparing the food – there were lots of giggles and even a few noodles escaping on to the floor. We were all so happy to know we would be making a difference for the families staying at the house last night.

As we continue to look for opportunities to get out and take on service projects with our camp families,  I hope you will let us know about all the great work you’re already doing on your own! We love to hear about all the good deeds our Canadensis families are doing to make this world a better place!

Here are some of my favorite pictures from Sunday’s Guest Chef experience:

It was well past time for me to refresh my Camp Canadensis car bumper magnet!  Take a look at the 2-year old one on the left, and the new one on the right.  They use to be the same color!  Now that my magnet is looking spiffy and new, I feel like my camp spirit is more alive!!

If you need a magnet refresher for any reason, please be in touch with me (pam@canadensis.com) and tell me your address and I’ll get one in the mail for you!

Good reasons to refresh your magnet:

1.  You are a CIT who is learning to drive and wants a magnet of your very own!

2.  It got washed away at the car wash…

3.  It’s faded…

4.  You never got one in the first place!

Also, check out these amazing Canadensis holiday cookies!  It was a delicious “refresh”ment that we got to enjoy at the office today, thanks to our Lower Junior Group Leader, Melissa Torban.  Melissa is going to be spending her 3rd summer at camp, and she is incredibly talented at working with kids both as a teacher during the year, and in her role at camp.  Clearly, she’s also incredibly talented at baking and decorating cookies…she made around 150 unique designs.  And…they are delicious too.  Thanks Melissa!

I have a new favorite Philadelphian, and her name is Milly Belle!  Here she is just 1 day old, snuggling with her dad.  She’s an amazing little girl, and she has two wonderful parents!  Her mom is one of my closest friends, and former Camp Canadensis counselor, Ali Margulies Garber.  While Ali was pregnant this summer, she came up for a 4th of July visit at camp, so Milly’s already sorta been to Canadensis, and has even enjoyed some cornman!!

All of them are doing great, and this new family of three have a lot of love coming their way!  One of the ways I show my love is through crafting, check out some of the crafties made specially for Milly!Her dad has a favorite sweatshirt (doesn’t everyone??  I hope your favorite sweatshirt is a Canadensis one!), you can see a little bit of it in the picture above.  It’s from a family owned grocery store in Margate, NJ (in case the name sounds familiar).  Since he often wears the sweatshirt when relaxing, I wanted Milly to have her own version to wear on lazy Sundays…

I picked up a plain red onesie, and made a stencil with adhesive backed paper.  I used non-toxic fabric paint, and voila…check out the finished product!They’ve requested larger sizes for Milly as she grows, and I’m excited to make more for this adorable girl!!

This is a crocheted blanket with her initials – for those of you who took the crochet elective at camp, it started off as a “granny square”, and I just kept making it bigger and bigger!

A flip welcome card…

And even a card for their dog…

I can’t wait until the day Milly and I can break out the coloring books and markers, and start crafting together!

This is a story of second chances…

I was lucky enough to receive a Silhouette electronic cutting printer for my birthday last year, but I set it up one time at camp, it wasn’t working and I just about gave up on it.  UNTIL…Cara got a Cricut, learned how to use these amazing little machines, and gave me a lesson (camp friends are the best!).  Now, I can’t get enough and I’ve been crafting up a storm!

Check out just some of the things I’ve created this week above!

1.  Mini giftboxes with cupcake or bow toppers

2.  Birthday cards and envelopes

3.  Note cards

4.  Paper shapes (I can’t wait to do this elephant bigger and frame it for a kid’s room!)

Wouldn’t it be more exciting to write home this summer on super fun stationery?  Would you enjoy learning how to make your own creations at camp?  Below are some more crafties I did in the past two weeks…(I’ve also made Chanukah cards, baby cards, and more…but I  need to keep it under wraps until I have the chance to give them away!). 1.  A pop up birthday card for Grandma Esther

2.  The envelope for Simone’s 1st Birthday Party

3.  A campy note card

4.  An engagement card for my friend Amy5.  A flip card with a Camp Canadensis heart!

6.  A stereo card for Dave (he was getting a card every day when I first started using the machine, especially since he’s the one who got it for me!)

7.  The thank you card I sent to Muhlenberg College after my hiring trip there

8.  A note to my good friend, Julie, in San Fran

Now you can see how personal you can make each card!  I’m so glad I gave the Silhouette a second chance after letting it collect dust in the box for 6 months.  I’m enjoying learning new tricks, and creating special cards…the best part is giving them away to the people you care about!

Hello Canadensis…

So, I’ve been up to camp twice in the past week and it inspired me to blog to my Cyberspace Camp Family.  Being up at camp, even when it’s 40-degrees outside, is always a good time.  On the day after Thanksgiving, Jaime and I headed up to the Poconos as we are in the midst of our wedding plans and had to meet with our caterer to sort out the details of our big day, which is going to be May 11 up at camp.  Then, earlier this week, me, Eric and Neil headed up to talk about some facility projects we have in store for Summer 2013.  Right now, one of our big projects are updates on two bunks on girls side.  Another project in the works is creating a bigger area for our Senior Canteen.  Check out some pictures…

After Hurricane Sandy, we have received many inquires as to how camp held up.  Well, we are fortunate to say that we didn’t suffer any significant damage at all.  Camp braved the elements quite well.  In fact, camp looks great!  Our winter staff of Bob, Jimmy, Val and Jeremy have been working hard to maintain what we think is one of the most beautiful camping facilities.  We always appreciate the hard work that goes into the upkeep of the property.

And, even without the campers and staff, it is as if you are always there when I go up.  After seven summers at Canadensis, I can truly say that I can “hear the voices” of all of you when I’m up there.  No, I’m not going delusional (Ha Ha!).  It’s just that when I am up there, even in the dead of winter, I can picture CBL games on the Skin Diamond or tie dying going on in the Art Shack or a waterskier cruising around Lake Lenape.  And, as I picture these images in mind, I smile…a lot!  I guess it’s not too early to already start the countdown to Summer 2013!

Over the past month, it was great to see so many of our campers at the four different Canteen on the Fly locations in Pennsylvania, Westchester County and Northern New Jersey.  Anytime we get to see you is just awesome as we love to hear just how much you love camp.  We especially want to thank some of our staff that camp out to make the event extra special, including Robin Forti, Melissa Torban, Pete Tarnoff, Will Wekesa and Matt Manglona.  The campers were really happy to see you.  Our Long Island Canteen on the Fly, which was cancelled due to Hurricane Sandy, will be made up in 2013.  Of course, we hope that we see many of you at our next gathering, which will be the Annual Camp Reunion on Saturday, January 5.

Things are really starting to pick up already in our plans for Summer 2013.  We have heard from a ton of staff that are planning to return next year.  In the upcoming weeks, we will start hitting college campuses and flying abroad to meet so many new staff that are looking to work at camp in 2013.  The process of assembling at talented team of 200+ staff to work at camp certainly is a challenge, but one will anxiously look forward to each year.  At the same time, we have started to plan our summer calendar, talking into consideration all of the wonderful feedback we received from the online summer survey filled out by campers and the exit interviews we conducted with staff.  As always, if you see or hear about anything good that would work at camp next summer, please let us know.

In the upcoming weeks, we will be sending out to our camp families the much anticipated copy of the 2012 Video Yearbook.  We will also be unveiling the Virtual Camp Tour on our website, which should be a cool enhancement to www.canadensis.com.  The camp tour has been a project that started last summer when we had a company come in and take 360-degree photographs of camp’s facilities.  The project is now in its final stages.  So far, it looks awesome!

Last week, I stumbled across this really funny commercial that I just had to share with all of you.  It is for a product called Campfire Cologne.  This is an actual thing.  That’s right!  For all of you that are just dying to walk around smelling like a campfire, this product is for you!  Check out the commercial (too funny)…

As is usually the case, some fun home visits to tell you about…

In Lower Gwynedd, PA, I got to hang out with Lower Senior Max Rapoport.  Max is now in the 7th grade and he has been busy with sports, playing football in the fall and basketball in the winter.  This year, his weekend calendar has been full with Bar and Bat Mitzvahs of camp and home friends.  Max will be back at Canadensis in 2013 for his fifth year honor jacket summer and can’t wait to finally be on Senior side.  Here is a pic…

In Tenafly, NJ, I got to see Freshman Boy Dylan Carruba, who will be back for Summer #4.  Now in the 6th grade, Dylan played on his fall baseball team, the Tenafly Tigers, where he played both pitcher and 1B.  Pretty soon, he will start wrestling season.  Over the past few weeks, he has seen several camp friends such as Jake Berlin, Harrison Keim, Max Kruman and Max Steele.  In Summer 2013, Dylan told me that he can’t wait to be up on “The Hill.”   He also let me know that after this football season, he is switching his NFL allegiances to the New York Football Giants (smart choice, Dylan).  Each year, we compete in a Nok Hockey game, where this year was the first time he beat me by a score of 21-18.  Here is a photo…

In Livingston, NJ, I spent some time with Jacob and Dylan Dennis.  Jacob is back for his 3rd summer and will be in our Upper Inter Boys division while Dylan joins us for her first summer as part of our Lower Juniors as she is in 2nd grade.  Now in 5th grade, Jacob just finished up his fall season for his traveling soccer team, the Livingston Lava, where he led the team in assists.  He was happy to report that his fall basketball team also were the season’s championship team.  Jacob has plans to see several of his camp friends very soon.  Dylan is currently taking a fashion course.  She is extremely creative, loves arts and crafts and has even been known to make homemade birthday presents for friends and family.  This summer, she is looking forward to the lake activities, like canoeing, fishing and the water trampoline.  She is also excited that she will get to share her brother’s birthday with him while at camp this summer.  Here is a picture…

It’s always great to receive photos from campers and staff, letting us know what they are up to.  As always, if you send them to me, I post them here on the blog.  Here are some camp get-togethers and news from our campers that I got this time around…

Well, that’s all of the blogging for now.  I will be back soon with more camp news and fun stuff!  By the way, if you are interested in being a guest blogger, put something together and I’ll post it here for everyone to read.

Have a great day!

-Brian

We hope to see many of our Westchester and Northern New Jersey families this Sunday at Canteen on the Fly!  We love Long Island…and we will be rescheduling our Canteen o the Fly for later in 2013!!

We had a blast last week in PA seeing campers and introducing new friends, check out some photos below! (I’ve brought back the frames!  Thanks to Cara and Matt for all the photos!)

With 2nd year, Lower Inter Anna!

Friends + Ice Cream…what’s better?  Jenna, Brooke, Kylie, Alexa and AlexaHaving a “cow” of fun with Avery, Haley, David and Group Leader, Pete Tarnoff!

Giving out t-shirts to campers like 4th year, Upper Inter, Tes!There were so many great colored in tees, this one by new Lower Inter, Sierra was amazing!!Some of the New CIT’s of 2013 with their fearless leader!  Mindy, Lauren, E-beth, Alix & Cara

More awesome designed tees, with new Junior camper Samara, and her brother!

Cara and I got to do a fun project today at work!  We used fabric markers to color in a brand new Camp Canadensis t-shirt, and the best part is that we hope you’ll get to do this project too at our Canteen on the Fly events in your area later this month!! All campers and counselors who attend the event get free ice cream and a t-shirt!  We wanted you to have an example of what the shirt can look like colored in…I went for a blue and gold theme, and Cara went for fun neon motif.  Here’s what they looked like halfway through…We’ll keep the final results as a surprise for when we see you at Canteen on the Fly!  I like my finished product, but Cara’s shirt is absolutely amazing (Eric and Matt agree!)…it’ll inspire you to make your own stunning and personalized shirt!  If you want to practice before testing it out on the t-shirt, you can print out this blank design:We hope you have our Canteen On The Fly events marked on your calendar…we’ll send out updated information about it soon!

Hello Canadensis…

We here at camp wanted to reach out to our camp family and make sure that you are all doing well after the events of the storm we experienced earlier this week.  If there is anything we might be able to do to help, please let us know. We understand that many of our camp families are without power.  We just wanted to let you know that our thoughts are with our Canadensis Families and Staff.  We wish a speedy recovery to anyone affected by the storm.

In areas that are still celebrating Halloween, we wish you a safe and Happy Halloween!  Here is some cool Halloween stuff I found for you to enjoy.

Some really cool Halloween pumpkin carvings…

Halloween Light Show – Gangnam Style…

Haunted Halloween Light Show…

Crazy Halloween Prank…

Have a great day!

-Brian

I got to spend some time up at camp last weekend…and Camp Canadensis is beautiful no matter the season!  I’m sure a lot of you have never seen camp at this time of year, so I snapped a few photos to share with you.

First of all, Barrett Township (a group of 5 villages that includes Canadensis) is transformed during the month of October into “Scarecrowville”.  The town signs are all transformed, and Aunt Terri told me that even the post offices change their stamping machines to say Scarecrowville! 

(Mountainhome is a town right next to Canadensis)

Most of the homes and business in town were decorated – including a personal favorite…Callies Candy Kitchen!!!  Callies makes the most amazing sweet treats – it’s a great place to stop for last minute visiting day candy, or to visit after a tour of camp.  Our campers have the chance to win a trip to Callies during the summer if they keep their bunk the cleanest all summer!

Annie had a great time up at camp – it was a perfect day!  She missed all of you down by the lake…One of my last stops up in the Poconos was at a farm stand to pick out my pumpkin!  My neighborhood has a pumpkin carving contest each year, so I wanted to make sure I found a great canvas to work on.  I will be carving over the weekend (can’t wait for the pumpkin seeds!) and I’ll post photos of the finished product!Finally…last week while the Canadensis Crew was answering phones at the NPR Pledge Drive in Philadelphia, I got to meet Terri Gross from “Fresh Air“!  It’s a radio program that has been on NPR for more than 25 years and is broadcast nationally.  I listen to Terri’s show everyday on my drive home from work, and she’s the most incredible interviewer.  She’s talked to nearly every celebrity, and she explores great topics daily…she’s the radio version of Oprah!  Listening to her daily has really helped me get comfortable with interviewing people…which is something I do quite a lot in the winter office…we do have around 220 staff members to hire each year!  She is a role model of mine, and she was so gracious with her time.

Have you ever met a celebrity that you look up to, or your favorite celeb??  Email us photos so we can share it on Facebook!