Author: Calla Craze

We love the Holiday season for all the reasons you might expect: spending time with friends and family, enjoying traditions new and old, the anticipation of the first snowfall of the year and all of the activities that come along with it.

Presents are always a big part of the festivities, and we care about them because to us, they are more than just “stuff.” When we gift generously and thoughtfully we demonstrate our love for other peoples’ joy.

In that spirit, we are sharing our gift guide for the Woodland Girl, where we’ve compiled our best ideas for meaningful presents to encourage growth and connection. Of course, experiencing camp is the best gift ever, but these are just a few extra ideas!

This blog is inspired by a North Carolina camp.

As the month of November comes to a close, we are reminded of Charlie Brown’s Thanksgiving Special.  Charlie Brown ends up serving Thanksgiving dinner for his friends thanks to Peppermint Patti’s self-invitation when he is really supposed to go to his Grandmother’s for a traditional Thanksgiving meal.  Charlie Brown enlists the help of Snoopy to set up for the feast and, low and behold, a non-traditional fare ensues.

When Charlie Brown’s guests sit down to dinner on an assortment of lawn chairs placed around a ping-pong table, his friends are surprised to find popcorn, toast, jelly beans, pretzels, and ice cream sundaes on the menu.  After a much disgruntled Peppermint Patti voices her opinion about the food selections, Linus reminds the group about the true meaning of Thanksgiving and how important it is just to be together by retelling the story of Myles Standish and the Pilgrims on that very first Thanksgiving Day.

After having recently been to the Woodland Camp Reunion this past weekend, I am thankful for the opportunity to get together with camp friends at the start of the holiday season.  It was so fun to see campers, staff, and alumni gather 3 months after the close of the summer.  It was a special time for friends to reunite and catch up on the events of our days away from camp while knowing that summer ‘23 is now closer than it was in August!  We were even able to share a similar fare to Charlie Brown’s Thanksgiving feast (popcorn, pretzels, cheese sticks, grapes, juice boxes, and other tasty treats!) while watching the highlights of the summer of 2022 and playing camp bingo to increase our chances at winning some amazing camp swag in the raffle.  Camp memories were relived and shared, stories retold, friendships rekindled, and plans for next summer were formed!

HAPPY THANKSGIVING to all campers, staff, alumni, and friends…we are grateful for your membership to the Woodland/Towering Pines Family!  Many blessings in the year to come!

And now, a special thank you to the girls of Hilltop for sharing some of their insights from summer 2022:

What is something new that you learned about yourself at camp in 2022?

“That when I put myself to do something and try really hard I can do great.” – Julia S.

“I learned that I can try new things!” – Clara S.

“I learned that you should never try to hide your feelings.” – Phoebe H.

“That I should focus on the good. Also that I have the power to make or break my summer (mindset!)” – Molly K. (Liv-In CIT)

In what ways did you GROW this summer?

“Passing levels in activities and by speaking up for myself when I need to.” – Norah G.

“I grew this summer by always trying new things and never saying never.” – Natalia G.

“I grew in riding because I went out of my comfort zone and tried trotting on my own again.” – Zoe C.

“I grew by being less scared about things.” – Karen R.

“I tried archery and I skied, which is scary for me sometimes.” – Julia S.

In what ways did you feel part of your cabin and the camp COMMUNITY?

“When we did our camper council!” – Alex M.

“I felt a part of camp when I got announced at assembly and I felt a part of my cabin when I helped someone and made the right choice.” – Sydney A.

“When I went to exchanges. I also felt so good about myself during Olympics because everyone was cheering me on.” – Norah G.

“Everyone was always nice and kind to everyone which I appreciated a lot.” – Natalia G.

“I felt a part of my cabin when we all worked together on things.” – Zoe C.

In what ways did you see RESPECT this summer?

“I saw it in people knowing and loving each other.” – Clara S.

“I saw respect so much throughout camp. No matter where you were, you saw kindness and excitement.” – Sydney A.

“I learned to respect people’s space. I also learned to be more patient with people’s differences.” – Phoebe H.

“Appreciation for each other and support for each other’s goals. Also being friends with all kinds of people from all kinds of places.” – Molly K. (Liv-In CIT)

***Inspired by Kim Aycock’s 2019 post.

October is one of the most popular months of the year. With the crisp autumn air, the beautiful shifting colors, and so many fun fall activities to do, what’s not to love about October? To cap it all off, there’s HALLOWEEN! It’s always such fun to think about how to celebrate and, of course, what costume to WEAR!

We all know that camp is one of the most magical places on Earth where you can truly be yourself, make amazing friends, and learn new skills. It is also a place where you can be goofy and celebrate in costume all summer long. We love coming up with different themes and dressing up for every occasion. It seems like every day is a holiday at Camp Woodland!

Thanks to our super CIT’s who work so hard to plan special events, we get to be transported to different worlds and play the role of so many different characters throughout the summer. They are most definitely the “costume queens” around camp, so we thought it would be fitting to highlight the 2022 achievements of Aquarius, home of the CITs, this month:

What is something new that you learned about yourself at camp in 2022?

“Something new I learned about myself was that I really enjoy teaching! Helping and instructing the younger girls is so much fun! I really enjoy seeing my feedback being taken, used, and becoming helpful.” – Brianna K.

“I learned more about how I am and what I want to be and how I want to live my life from now on.” – Isabella S.

“Reading is an activity that calms me and makes me happy. I need to make more time for it at home.” – Maya S.

In what ways did you GROW this summer?

“I went to ropes course even though I’m really afraid of heights. Even though I had a rough time with riflery, I put my attention towards helping the younger girls.” – Maya S.

“I tried new things that I was afraid of at first. I also made new friends even though I’m usually a shy person.” – Natalia G.

“I skied every day even when the water was cold and I didn’t feel like it until I got way better. I also learned how important mindset is when trying things like riding or getting my advanced in tennis.” – Tess W.

“I joined Sail Race and improved in tennis. I offered ideas whenever I felt I could. I got better at being able to let things go and working through negative emotions.” – Isabella S.

In what ways did you feel part of your cabin and the camp COMMUNITY?

“When I felt a sense of community was when we had shows and everyone was cheering for one another! There was so much love and support. There was also so much joy from the entertainment, it’s hard to contain our support for one another.” – Brianna K.

“Whenever we had an evening activity because I would have some people in my cabin, but also girls from other cabins. I was able to branch out and talk to them as well.” – Lindsey R.

“I felt included with all of the inside jokes and all of the deep conversations we have.” – Cuau D.

In what ways did you see RESPECT this summer?

“I think everyone in my cabin was very respectful of each other because we all have different interests and levels of skill in different areas, but we were always kind and willing to learn from each other.” – Tess W.

“During olympics, specifically when one team was not doing the best, the other team would cheer them on. We always cheer for each other’s teams, bringing each other up rather than tearing each other down.” – Lindsey R.

“When all of the girls helped each other in different ways and didn’t laugh if something bad happened.” – Cuau D.

In honor of National Croc Day (October 23rd) we would like to show some love for our favorite camp footwear. Who would have thought that colored plastic laced with holes would be part of the camp ‘uniform’ at Woodland?! By looking at the shoes left on every cabin porch and on feet of all sizes and shapes, it is obvious the Woodland campers love their Crocs! While Crocs are not officially on the packing list, it is definitely something we tell new campers about so they can be part of the Camp Croc Craze.

Crocs are comfy (check out the cushion), practical (they make great shower or lake shoes), stylish (sort of – they do come in a variety of fun colors even though they tend to exaggerate a person’s normal shoe size), warm (if you add socks), and are virtually indestructible (I have been wearing the same blue crocs since 8th grade, and I am happy to report that they have survived about 15 summers at camp!).

You may also notice in the above photo that Crocs can be personalized with fun Jibbitz shapes and characters that can be inserted into the holes. Maybe they are more waterproof this way for when we have a little Woodland Dew?!

The girls of Sunrise are strong supporters of the croc trend, so I thought it fitting to share a little more insight into their 2022 camp experience:

What is something new that you learned about yourself at camp in 2022?

“I learned to try new foods because I might end up liking it.” – Eleanor S.

“I learned how to do a belly flop!” – Maria A.

In what ways did you GROW this summer?

“I kept trying to pass my level in swim lessons.” – JoJo T.

“I tried again in olympics” – Alegra C.

“I ate the broccoli even when I didn’t want to.” – Olivia K.

In what ways did you feel part of your cabin and the camp COMMUNITY?

“I felt a part of my cabin because all of my cabinmates respect me and my background.” – JoJo T.

“I was included in games with my cabinmates” – Alegra C.

In what ways did you see RESPECT this summer?

“My cabinmates and I always apologize to each other and ehlp each other out.” – Olivia K.

“My cabinmates respected me by teaching me spanish because I don’t know it and wanted to learn and be included.” – Eleanor S.

Spring has sprung! Similar to dreary rainy days leading to the beauty and light of spring, one could say that the challenges we are presented in life help us to grow and flourish into better, stronger people.

At Camp Woodland we believe in challenging our children to push themselves out of their comfort zones both mentally and physically. Our long term program leads to the development of the child as a whole as  they hone in on new skills at all of their activities and build strong, meaningful relationships with those around them through shared experiences all summer long.

It was such a joy to watch the girls of Sunrise, a cabin of all first year campers, blossom through their new experiences at Camp Woodland last summer. These girls jumped right into the camp routine and embraced any given challenge with enthusiasm. We can’t wait to see how much more they grow and flourish this summer!

In what ways did the sun shine for you this summer?

Riley: Activities and my cabin mates.

Lilly: I love the activities, the food, PJs on Sundays, and CIT games.

Abigail: My favorite things I did were Gold Rush and Farm Zoo. They were so fun.

Brooke: The story and all the activities to choose from.

Maddie: I got to level 2 in Archery before the 2 weeks were over. That’s the thing that made my sun shine.

Hannah: Farm Zoo, food, the weather, campfires, the book we’re reading, and getting letters!

What was something that took you by surprise and was better than you imagined?

Riley: cheesecake!

Lilly: Canoeing, archery, and riflery.

Abigail: Archery and riding. I got to trot and go on rides through the woods!

Brooke: My cabin mates. I was worried about having mean people and being left out.

Maddie: Trying new things like foods and activities and swim lessons.

Hannah: The food, the animals, and my cabin.

What was something you were able to do that you have not been able to do over the past year?

Riley: Trot without being scared and having fun.

Lilly: All of my new activities!

Abigail: Riflery! It’s so fun and so is Archery.

Brooke: Socialize with multiple people at once.

Maddie: Trying things that I was scared of and trying things that I didn’t like at home.

Hannah: Hang out with friends!

What did you learn most about yourself?

Riley: I really love bunnies. Also, I want to ride again.

Lilly: I’m good at stuff I never thought I would be like archery, riflery, canoeing, and riding.

Abigail: Be true to everyone.

Brooke: That I love to horseback ride and love archery

Maddie: I went out of my comfort zone and I loved things I didn’t know I liked.

Hannah: I can’t ski, but I am good at making my bed.