Camptown Ladies sing this song, doodah doodah!
Schools are out, and summer is here, which means it's time for summer camp. Some of my favorite childhood summer memories took place at summer camp.
As soon as I was old enough, my parents signed me up for any and every day camp possible—Sports camp, dance camp, cooking camp, you name it. Summer day camps were a great way for me to try out new activities. Day camps allowed me to attend a week-long camp to see if I enjoyed the activity before joining the team or signing up for an entire year of lessons.
Day camps were also a great way to meet other kids in my area. Since most of the day camps that I attended were local, I met lots of kids from the other side of town and made lots of new friendships.
Once I got a little bit older, I started going to sleepaway camps. Attending sleepaway camp was the first time I had ever really been away from home or my parents for more than one night, which really helped me develop a sense of independence. I still learned lots of new activities as I had done at day camp, but I also learned how to do things by myself, like waking up and getting ready, packing my suitcase, getting places on time, etc.
When I was packing up to leave my very first sleepaway camp, I threw all my dirty clothes back into my suitcase, including my wet towels and bathing suits. At the time, I didn't realize that the wet clothes would get everything mildewed in my hot suitcase throughout the day. Needless to say, that was a lesson that I learned the hard way, and one my mom still has never let me live down.
Attending summer camps provides kids with the opportunity to learn new things, meet new people, and gain independence from their parents. It is such a wonderful opportunity with so many life lessons.
Click here for my local summer camp round-up, which includes both day and sleepaway camps that your child may enjoy this summer. Below is a recent Living Local Carolina segment, where Rainee and I got a behind-the-scenes look into Wildlife Action Summer Adventure Camp at Fork Retch Wildlife Refuge in Mullins, SC.
