Lots of pictures below!

07/26/08
I am enjoying my time at camp tremendously – especially my daily (often multiple times a day) opportunities to interact with the 15 Ohr Kodesh campers (and 1 current staffer). I am pleased to report that all of our children are doing well and seem to be enjoying themselves and their bunk. Being able to see them in this environment is truly wonderful – our kids shine in all sorts of expected and unexpected ways here. The beginning of camp was a bit rough in terms of weather with 2 days of thunderstorms, but the weather turned beautiful on Friday and remained so through Shabbat. The staff here did a great job of accommodating the weather and still providing fun and meaningful experiences during the rain (including taking the youngest campers – Kochavim and Gan – out for a trip to the local bowling alley on Thursday afternoon). Friday we were able to have our first fully outdoor day, which was great (especially for me and the other working on the Ropes staff – both staff and campers did a great job at indoor trust games, but we were all ready to be outdoors again). Emma Neusner and Talia Wolfson are both in my Ropes chug (activity), which means I see them daily for an hour for two weeks and help them climb the tower. I daven most mornings with Shoafim (in which Emma is a camper) and gave a d’var Torah there on Thursday morning. I also had a chance to lead services for Ilanot (entering 4th & 5th graders) Friday morning and I davened this morning with Nivonim (I was supposed to give the d’var Torah, but Rabbi Gordon Tucker of White Plains was visiting and we had been double-booked so I deferred to him!) and was able to spend time with Jeremy. I am teaching a weekly session for the bunk where Miriam Blumenthal is a camper on Shabbat afternoons. Also on Shabbat afternoons, campers with parents in camp are allowed to visit their parent’s bunks (it is the only time during the week) and bring their friends, so we had a few visits from Elianna, with Lena Lerner and Lilah Neusner. I’m not sure if they were happier about the Twizzlers, spending time with Oren (who is the camp mascot, just like at home!) or being in air conditioning! Friday night, I enjoyed singing and dancing with the students in the Chadar Ochel (Oren jumped into Jeremy Halpern’s arms and then asked “Where Hannah?”). I will be doing a session for Gabe Wolfson’s bunk sometime this week and other teaching opportunities as well. In addition, I love seeing all of their smiling faces around camp as we walk to the Chadar Ochel, or are just moving around camp.
Friday afternoon was "Yom Foam" -- a firetruck comes and fills up an entire field with foam and the kids have a great time jumping around and playing "slip and slide" in it -- great pictures below!

07/31/08
Despite the on and off thunderstorms (Tuesday was our first completely dry day), Camp continues to be great! Yesterday was Yom Trip, with all of Tzad Aleph (entering 3rd -7th graders) going to the Zoo for a fun-filled scavenger hunt and Tzad Beit going to the Basketball Hall of Fame and Bowling. I took Micah and Oren for a tour of Fenway Park -- certainly a great thrill for both Micah and I, and Oren learned to see "Green Monster". Also made it to the best Jewish book shop in the country -- the Israel Book Shop in Brookline, MA.

I also had the personal pleasure of belaying many of our youngest campers to the top of the wall on Tzad Aleph, along with working with many of the older ones on the Alpine Tower.

I wish that I could spend more time on Tzad Beit with some of our older campers (and even more wish that I had my camera with me when I did see them -- sorry for the relative lack of pictures!), but otherwise, camp continues to go very well.