Shaving Cream Fight Video

Ever had a shaving cream fight? Armed with a couple of cans, and dressed in your bathing suit, have you chased your friends around trying to smear them with shaving cream? Has anyone ever sneaked up to you and planted a handful of shaving cream on your neck? No? Well take a look at this video and see just how much fun it can be!

100% Rockbrook.

Decisions to Make

One of the distinguishing features of Rockbrook is our tradition of campers signing up for their activities after they arrive at camp. Instead of sending families a form with a list of options, we’ve found it’s important to let the girls themselves, not their parents, make the decisions about how they spend their time at camp. After all, an activity might be more attractive once you learn more about it, see what specific parts of it are like, which counselor is leading it, and who else among your friends has signed up for it. Being trusted with the responsibility to make their own personalized schedule, one based primarily on their interests rather than the assumptions of someone else, is also a great way to gain a sense of independence and self confidence. Furthermore, we let the girls do this several times each session, so they can make those decisions again and change activities if they like… “grown up” kinds of decisions… limited choices that mean selecting and neglecting at the same time. All this can make things more complex and difficult for the counselors and directors to organize, but we feel it’s worth it to provide the campers this kind of flexibility and opportunities to grow. Combined with our daily, scheduled blocks of free time, this philosophy enhances the feeling of freedom and choice Rockbrook campers so enjoy.

With all of the other adventure, sports and crafts activities going on in camp each day, it’s easy to forget about the huge horseback riding program as well. Kathleen, our full-time camp photographer, spent a good deal of time at the equestrian center today taking pictures of the riders. There are 29 horses at camp this summer and lots of girls interested in horseback riding. At any one class period, more than half of those horses will be tacked up for one of four separate riding lessons going on simultaneously. Here too, the riding schedule is rather complex because some girls ride only a couple of times each week, while others take lessons more often because they are more advanced riders or they are simply really excited to learn more. Occasionally campers will ask and change their riding time so they can take advantage of another activity instead, or vice-versa, to ride more days per week. Audrey and her team of horseback riding instructors are always patient and accommodating as girls’ interests wax and wane.

This has been an adventure trip week as well. Mattie has taken several groups hiking in the Pisgah National Forest, a Junior hike to John Rock being a highlight. Clyde led a rock climbing trip to Looking Glass Rock where a group of Middlers and Seniors climbed an area known as the “Nose.” I took the Hi-Ups out for a chance to swim at High Falls in the Dupont State Forest. And another group of Middlers and Seniors, again with Clyde, enjoyed a day whitewater kayaking on the Green River. These are optional out-of-camp trips that girls can select in place of their regularly scheduled set of activities. Going on a trip, therefore, means missing whatever is happening at camp. That’s sometimes a difficult decision to make if you really love pottery, riflery or horseback riding, for example, but again, it’s theirs to make and is certainly a chance to weigh one experience over another.

After dinner tonight, during our “Twilight” period of free time, we announced a surprise shaving cream fight and slip-n-slide to be held down on the landsports field, and a short Taekwondo workshop taught by Alex in the hillside lodge. Again, both were optional activities… decisions, decisions. The Taekwondo workshop was a simple introduction to some of the stretching and moves common to the sport. Meanwhile, most of the campers were having a ball running around the lower field armed and ready to smear each other with shaving cream.  There are no rules to this, just a chance to get messy, maybe create a funny hairstyle, and strike a pose for the camera.  There’s plenty of shrieking and laughing, and a look on everyone’s face that they can’t quite believe they’re being allowed to do this.  And to crank it up another notch, we just had to add a slick ride down the slip-n-slide. Too much! It really is almost too much fun for the girls.

Celebrating the 4th

Happy 4th of July! This has been a completely packed, exciting fun day at camp, and if the number of photos we took and added to the photo gallery is an indication (966!), it may be a record. Following a long 4th of July tradition at Rockbrook, we started the day with shouts of the “the British are coming! Wake up! Wake up!” from the equestrian staff as they rode up and down the cabin lines. They dressed up the horses with red, white and blue stable wraps and wore their best patriotic colors.

In fact, it seemed like there was red, white and blue everywhere at camp.  The campers themselves must have planned for this day of dressing up because we saw hats, head bands, and all kinds of t-shirts proudly designed with sparkly red, white and blue.  The dining hall had balloons, streamers and paper decorations. We passed out patriotic temporary tattoos.  Even Allison’s muffins kept the theme with strawberries and blueberries in white cake.  At the meals, the girls sang every song they could think of that had “USA” or “America” in it…  “Party in the USA,” “Born in the USA,” “American Pie,” and even “Yankee Doodle.”  Throughout the morning, as the girls took on their different activities (painting “Happy Birthday America” cards in Hobby Nook, for example), we celebrated the 4th in color, song and spirit.

After lunch, we surprised everyone with one of the more popular events at Rockbrook: Biltmore Train! This is our special all-you-can-eat ice cream extravaganza recalling the Biltmore Dairy’s ice cream truck and its camp visits. Armed with tubs of ice cream and cones, the counselors served up scoop after scoop to the campers. The trick is to get right back in line so that you can be ready for another scoop. One camper bragged to me she had 6 scoops, but I think that might have been an exaggeration!

For dinner, Rick and his crew, with some help from the Hi-Ups, shucked 4 bushels of fresh corn to complete the burgers (lettuce, tomato, cheese, ketchup, mayo, mustard), homemade sweet potato fries and bomb pops. Classic. After dinner, we announced yet another surprise for twilight: an all-camp, though optional, shaving cream fight down on the landsports field. We passed out almost 100 bottles of shaving cream to the campers, and ready in their swimsuits, they took off spraying each other, smearing white slippery foam all over themselves and each other. This truly is good “clean” fun, just brimming with the most amazing wide-eyed smiles and laughter, and the girls absolutely loved it.

Topping off the day, as it grew dark around 9, we treated everyone to a 40-minute fireworks show. Everyone gathered out on the hill with crazy creek chairs, blankets and sleeping bags to get a perfect view of the sky above the lake where Jeff, Jerry and Richie launched the pyrotechnics. There were plenty of “ooohs” and “aaahs” as the colorful flashes and exciting reports kept everyone entertained. It was a perfect ending to a very full day. We all stayed up a little late, but it was worth it in so many ways.

The Good, the Food and the Fun

It’s such a great treat to spend time at camp and see so many girls enjoying the outdoors. Just about every moment around here, we’re swimming in the chilly lake, lounging in the sun on one of the huge rocks, exploring critters in the creek, and enjoying all sorts of outdoor activities— the adventure, the horseback riding, the sports! Even at night in our traditional open, screened cabins, Rockbrook girls are close to nature. This is so important too. As the National Wildlife Federation, and others, are reporting, kids today are spending half as much time outside as they did 20 years ago (during the 90s). You’ve probably heard about the negative consequences of this “nature deficit” for children. Camp, of course, is a wonderful antidote for this. All this time outside opens our senses, encourages caring and compassion, and connects us more intimately with each other. Sure it’s a lot of fun too, but it’s good and lasting too.

We’ve really been eating well these last few days as Rick has served up several favorites. Breakfast today was a classic combination— scrambled eggs, homemade fried potatoes, bacon and fresh fruit (a blueberry and blackberry mix). The yogurt and cereal bar had even more fruit available too for those who preferred peaches, apples and bananas. These girls can eat some fruit! Then for lunch we had what is probably everyone’s favorite lunch, grilled cheese and tomato soup. Rick makes the soup by first processing a huge pile of carrots, celery and garlic, cooks and seasons this puree a bit, and then adds vegetable stock and tomatoes. That gets cooked some more and finally blended to just the right consistency. A bowl of this soup, a grilled cheese sandwich, and a salad from the salad bar makes a fabulous lunch! Dinner was a little simpler —baked tilapia, fresh steamed green beans, and white rice— but still yummy. I think the highlight of dinner, though, was the dessert, chocolate pudding. Thanks Rick for keeping us strong!

Tonight after dinner we offered an optional activity down on the landsports field— a slip-n-slide and shaving cream fight extravaganza! You unroll a long sheet of plastic down a gentle hill, add a little baby soap and a spray of water, and you’ve got a fun slippery ride. The girls took turns running and flopping down on their stomachs to take the plunge. Campers from every line decided to join in, though I’d say it was most popular with the Juniors. To top off the evening, we then pulled out a couple of cartons of shaving cream to have a good old-fashioned shaving cream fight. The rules here are simple; use up the shaving cream in your can by smearing it on everyone else. This means running around, chasing friends to put a blob on their head, back or legs. As things unfold, some of the girls become completely covered. Creative hair styling is also part of the fun. Check out the photo gallery for more pictures.

Did you know that the photo gallery allows you to easily email photos to friends? It’s a great way to share what’s going on at camp.

Camp Carnival Fun & Games

Welcome August Mini Session Campers!! Welcome to Rockbrook! Today a big group of new and a few returning campers arrived for this, our last mini session of the summer. Like our other mini sessions, these are shorter sessions perfect for younger and first-time campers, so for the majority of these girls, this was their first day at Rockbrook. After waiting most of the school year and now until August, their anticipation made for high pitched, and maybe a little nervous, excitement. It doesn’t take long though to settle down after meeting the staff members and other girls, and realize how friendly and welcoming everyone is. Parents are sometimes surprised how quickly and easily their daughter is ready to say goodbye, and to run off with her new cabin mates.

While the new mini session campers were checking in and getting settled, the full session girls followed our regular Sunday schedule— sleeping in a little, enjoying a breakfast with fresh Krispy Kreme donuts, dressing in their white uniforms and red ties, performing the flag raising ceremony, and attending the wooded chapel service. Chapel today was put on by the Senior campers and the theme was “Growing.” Right before lunch the whole camp gathered under the big walnut tree on the hill with the gorgeous mountain view in the background, for our Sunday assembly. This a chance to introduce key staff members (e.g. Mandy, Jessi and the Line Heads), see skits about the various activities available at camp, present the “Mop Awards” to the cleanest cabins, learn and sing a couple of new camp songs, and afterwords, take state photos. Biggest state this session? North Carolina, by far.

Right after lunch the new campers and their counselors zipped down to the lake for their “swim demonstrations.” Sarah, several lifeguards, and Elizabeth, our head of the waterfront, ran through the exercise designed to test everyone’s ability to swim and tread water. When a girl “passes” the swim demo, she receives a special colored buddy tag alerting the lifeguards of her swimming skills. If someone’s uncomfortable in the water, or if they can’t complete the “demonstration,” she will have to wear a life jacket and stay in the shallow end of the lake, but is certainly welcome (though not required) to come down for swimming lessons during her swimming activity or during one of the free swim periods.

The afternoon’s activity was a crazy water carnival we held down on our sports field. It was crazy because there was so much action, so many girls having fun in different ways at the same time. We had a giant inflatable water slide where after climbing up, would shower you as you flew down into a pool of water at the bottom. There was a tent where several counselors were painting faces (and arms, and backs and stomachs!). We had a coconut bowling game going on, and a “cake walk” game where the girls danced in a circle, landed on numbers, and if lucky won a tasty cupcake prize. The snow cone machine was making icy treats non-stop, and everywhere there was someone working out a hula hoop.

The slip-n-slide was probably the biggest hit. What could be a better use for a long sheet of plastic? Stretch it down a gentle hill, add a little baby soap and water, and launch yourself down for a wet slippery ride! Add some upbeat music and you’ve got an awesome time. The big surprise though, was a shaving cream fight at the end of the Carnival. We passed out a couple of cases (yikes!) of shaving cream, and the girls took off trying to spray each other, splatter it in each others’ hair, and ultimately cover their entire bodies in white slippery foam. All kinds of creative hairstyles soon appear, with laughter and smiles all around. Be sure to check out the photo gallery to see more of that. We rinsed off a bit under the hose, and headed back up for a quick shower before dinner. Whew! What a fun afternoon, and a great way to open the August Mini session.

Welcome New Campers

Today we welcomed a new set of campers to Rockbrook as we opened the 2nd July mini session. Most of these campers are returning from last summer and a few are new to RBC, but regardless, you could feel the excited anticipation everywhere. The 4-week campers were also thrilled to see their old friends returning to camp and to meet the newest Rockbrook girls. It sometimes surprises people when they arrive at camp an see how friendly everyone is. We get the comment all the time, “Everyone is so nice here!” It’s true; Rockbrook is a down-to-earth, friendly place, quick to welcome new smiling faces. It takes about 5 minutes for a new camper to find a friend and head off to explore the camp. It may seem odd, but it’s a good feeling for parents, when their daughter tells them, “OK, bye mom,” effectively saying everything is fine and she’s ready to begin enjoying camp. Fostering a sense of independence is a big part of being at camp, and with friendly people all around to provide encouragement, this is a lot easier to accomplish.

RIght before lunch, the entire camp assembled on the hill. This is a chance to sing camp songs, learn about the camp activities through a series of skits, and today, enjoy the warm sunshine and mountain view. The Hi-Up girls lead most of the songs taking time to teach everyone several of the most important ones. The Line Heads also present their “Mop Awards” to the cabins that have done exceptionally good work keeping their cabin clean. This year, and different from last year, the three Line Heads decorated their mops (really brooms) as the three ships from the Christopher Columbus expedition: the Niña, the Pinta, and the Santa Maria. Why? Well, just for fun of course!

Lunch really hit the spot. We had homemade macaroni and cheese casserole, fresh local steamed green beans, and bowls of blackberries. The salad bars and peanut butter and jelly station saw a little action, but that Mac and Cheese was popular. Good stuff.

For the afternoon, a group of counselors organized a fun Hawaiian Carnival down on the landsports field. They set up several activity stations all around the field: slip-n-slide, snow cones, pace painting, hula hoops, and coconut bowling. We also had a huge inflatable water slide and another inflatable obstacle course set up. With grass skirts and colorful leis for everyone, and music pumping it was an excellent summer afternoon party. To top it off, we just had to have a shaving cream fight too. When you’re already wet, and maybe a little messy from running around, it’s so good to “clean off” with shaving cream… crazy designs on your friend’s back, outrageous hair styles. It’s all great fun, and hilarious for the girls. A quick rinse under the hose, dip in the lake, and shower before dinner, and the girls were feeling good. Be sure to scroll through the photo gallery to see more.

A great first day in the “Heart of a Wooded Mountain.”

Big Sunday Fun

Today we welcomed to Rockbrook the June Mini Session campers to join the girls already here for the full First Session. This is exciting because most of these campers are new to camp, and are even more eager to experience camp life. They’ve been thinking about camp for months, writing their pen pals, wearing the RBC t-shirt, packing (and repacking!), so when opening day finally arrives, they are about to pop with excitement! Parents are sometimes a little surprised when after checking in and getting settled in the cabin, their daughter confidently says goodbye and runs off with her new cabin mates. All that excitement wants to get busy right away.

Everyone’s first day at camp includes a trip to the lake for a “swim demonstration,” a chance for each person to demonstrate her swimming ability and receive a buddy tag. With our waterfront director Elizabeth in charge and several lifeguards in the water, everyone takes a turn jumping off the dock, swimming out 60ft, back another 60ft, and then treading water for 30 seconds. Doing so “passes” the swim demo. If a camper’s swimming skills are weak, she receives a special colored buddy tag (alerting the lifeguards) and must wear a life jacket in the shallow end of the lake, but she will also be offered swimming lessons during her swimming activity or during one of the free swim periods. We don’t insist girls take these lessons or require anyone to go swimming, but we do limit anyone’s use of the lake if they can’t swim well.

Later in the afternoon, the whole camp put on bathing suits and went down to the landsports field for a giant “Hawaiian Water Carnival.” This included a huge inflatable water slide, a long slip-n-slide (wet and slick!), a fun coconut bowling game, face painting, snow cones, dance music, hula hooping, and plenty of bright sunshine. It was a very warm day for this time of year (in the upper 80s), so it felt really good to get wet on the slide or the slip-n-slide. If you haven’t seen a slip-n-slide, it’s a long piece of plastic draped down a gentle hill, and with soap and water sprayed on it. Girls start at the top of the hill, run, and leap onto the plastic sliding themselves down the hill… on your knees, sitting down, on your stomach, they all work great.

After an hour or so of the Carnival, we planned a surprise shaving cream fight too! The counselors suddenly came running out with shaving cream cans ready to spray, and in no time just about everyone had blobs of the stuff in their hair and in some cases, all over them. The campers grabbed cans too and enjoyed chasing and spraying each other. It doesn’t take long to see hilarious hairstyles (Mohawks!) and designs drawn in the shaving cream on someone’s stomach. The girls love this kind of crazy, silly, and messy (!) fun. To end the afternoon, we hosed off most of the shaving cream and all headed to the lake for a swim, or back to the lines for a shower. And at dinner, everyone smelled super clean.