the green spot blog

Ooooooo - I love lists. Christmas time just screams lists, doesn't it? I'm sure with all that has been going on in your world - there's not a lot of time to make another one. So I went ahead and created it for you! Today marks only 15 days until Summer Camp Registration opens. If you haven't thought about Summer 2018 yet...you should really start (along with baking cookies, giant turkeys, wrapping gifts, and chasing the cat out of your Christmas tree). Camp is awesome. You know that - otherwise you probably wouldn't be here reading this blog. Or maybe you're a first timer...thinking about sending your son or daughter to camp and you are just trying to figure out if this "outdoorsy, crazy game-filled, Bible camp thing where my child is in the hands of complete strangers" is really the right thing to do... Let me help. I am what you call a camp veteran - a lifer . I'm not ashamed to admit that. I attended camp every year from when I was f...

I would never imagine myself complaining about the warm December weather. Yet here I am - concerned that it just hasn't been cold enough. Who would have ever thought?! A year ago last week - it was between -20 and -30...This year? Battling +10! There has been some pretty awesome results of that nice weather. The Fallen Timber Creek that flows through our land is amazing. This is a pretty rare occurrence. Typically the creek freezes bumpy and it's pretty difficult to get it smooth unless we get some long periods of warm weather...which we've had. Our Dish(rack)tion has been diligently clearing snow on the creek. And you know what? All that nice weather caused the creek to flow over top and smooth out the bumps. Once it froze again - it was magic. I often get asked if we're worried about ice and Pond Hockey and you know what, we're happy. With this being our ninth tournament, we have seen extremely cold weather, extremely warm weather and just about everythin...

It's certainly easy for me or anybody that works at camp to tell you why it is so awesome and why it is so important for kids to experience. I started attending camps when I was five years old and kept attending straight through graduation, when I turned into a seasonal staff member - working during the summers between university semesters. I still couldn't keep away - I then became a full-time director. You can see why it's easy for me to talk about the life-changing role that camp plays in one's life. It played that role in mine. Many people agree with me. The activities, games, and the outdoors obviously make camp so amazing. When we ask kids what they love about their week the normal, expected answers pop up. But would you believe me if I told you that one of the things that campers talk about when asked what they love about camp is that it's a break from their devices? Camp is a place unlike any other. Freedom from devices and technology, outdoor advent...