Trying to be an "intentional" parent

Especially during the school break schedule for many children, as a parent, I sometimes feel the weight and importance of the time spent with my child. I try to advocate being an "intentional parent" as much as possible.

What exactly is an intentional parent? For me, an intentional parent is one who is willing to do the very hard work of helping a child be the best the child can be. The intentional parent does a lot of giving: giving of time, giving of sleep, giving of money, giving of attention—generally, giving mightily of oneself. It is certainly not easy, and as far as I know, is not meant to be.

Every parent—intentional or not—gives their child many things. Some of those “gifts” are things children might not necessarily want to receive (and/or parents don't necessarily want to bestow on children); our bad habits sometimes have a way of living on whether we want them to or not. Nonetheless, most gifts we choose to bestow on our kids.

Parental “gifts” say a lot about parents. Some just want to get through the child-rearing years with as little effort as possible...to survive, they will give the child whatever is demanded, so the kid will be quiet and stop bugging them, so that the parent can carry on with whatever the parent is focused on. Some choose to give their child the “in thing” or what's most popular, without necessarily considering whether that thing will be the most helpful. Some move through their children's worlds deliberately and purposefully; these parents give what is useful, after carefully thinking through what would be best.

That is an intentional parent. Easy? Certainly not. Going unrecognized? Probably. Helping to create a better world for their child and the world beyond them? For sure. That's an intentional parent.

Perfect day

We loved that pool session this afternoon! It was the best thing since sliced bread! Then we had a Cupstacking tournament, played Racecar and Gotchya. It was definitely another fun evening! In the words of Lou Reed, "It's such a perfect day".

Olympics and pool party!

We had a yummy breakfast to start a crazy fun day. We begin the activities with camp Olympics. This involves mud volleyball, campers sinking counselors in canoes and wacky field relays. The afternoon promises a fun pool party. We are looking forward to more fun water activities to keep us refreshed and cool!

Good times!

What an awesome end to the day! We had a cooling, refreshing swim in the late afternoon, before a tasty dinner, then moved on to a cup stacking tournament, race car game and gaga tourney. We then had our touching ceremony recognizing our returning campers. To finish off we had a beautiful campfire as the sun set in the sky. We love Kupugani!

Awesome fun!

What a beautiful day! The birds are singing and the sun is out. We're all drinking lots of water!! We had an excellent breakfast of sausages, pancakes and grapes. In the morning before it got too hot, we had some awesome camptivities like rock climbing, dam jumping, improv, tye dye, archery and hiking. Our modified schedule is allowing us a nice long time in the swimming pool this afternoon. Really looking forward to it!!

Wicked!

A late afternoon nice all camp swim. It was so nice and cool! After camp chores, we grabbed a lovely meal of spaghetti Bolognaise, garlic bread and salad...Natasha and Fer really know how to cook a wicked meal! To wrap up, we had the untalent show and dance...a great end to another great day!

Hot hot hot!!

Another fantastic sunny day! Another good hot one to enjoy the pool and water activities like dam jumping. We cleverly switched camptivities to the morning so the girls good do some rock climbing, pearler beads, canoeing and practice for the untalent show tonight. Looking forward to the show tonight!!

Dramatic day!

Another amazing day at camp, filled with some awesome activities. We had great fun with camptivities, followed by an all camp Kupugani 5th B'day pool party to enjoy the warm weather while in the pool. After dinner, we had the annual camper-staff soccer game...though the staff raced out to a 2-0 lead, the campers stayed focused and staged a dramatic second half comeback, culminating in a last second goal to make the tie! After the game's excitement, the day ended with a campfire complete with yummy smores!

What a day!!

Some refreshing morning rains have come through, helping to cool things off a bit and get some nice fresh air. We have kicked today off with some team building activities, with this afternoon bringing camptivities such as rock climbing, practice for the talent show, pool and chill time. It's certainly not boring here at Camp Kupugani!

Safely enjoying the hot weather!

Some nice sunny weather and beautiful blue skies make for a perfect day at camp to have a sleep in, picnic lunches with cabin groups at various (shady) spots around camp while the girls prepare cabin skits and songs, then a fabulous afternoon planned of playing in the pool! Of course, as usual, the girls are moving around camp with their water bottles, and being sure to stay hydrated. As we tell them often, clear pee is good, apple juice color not so much...

Awesome

It has been another day of ultimate enjoyment! We wrapped up the day's camptivities with a challenge hike, ultimate frisbee and pearler beads. To finish it off, the girls are enjoying a night sleeping under the stars. The beauty of nature is all around!

Camp rocks!

A healthy breakfast of farm fresh eggs, Natasha's delicious coffee cake, and fruit to kick off the day has everyone ready for another great day! We are beginning the day with team activities, moving towards some fun camptivities river floating, canoeing and four-square this afternoon. We are ready to rumble!!

Buzzing day

A nice, warm day at Camp Kupugani! It started with some team activities of "Yeehaw circle", "Who am I", "Do your best" and "Take me to your leader" in the morning. After a tasty lunch and a relaxing siesta, the fun was through the roof, with camptivities such as belly dancing, biking, crate stacking and archery! Spirits were scintillating and the camp is buzzing with bliss! Later we had canoeing, and arts and crafts "God's Eyes" projects which were awesome! Yummy chicken Kievs for dinner, followed by a rousing game of capture the flag with the whole camp. The time really is flying by!

Blue skies, Fun on the Fourteenth

Blue skies and a fresh breeze to wake up to this morning! We loved the breakfast including sausages and French Toast and orange juice. Energized for the day, the campers moved on to their team activities including "I am from" poems and team building games. Using the poetry skills they learned yesterday they are sure to be confident. This afternoon, we have camptivities including drawing, cricket and canoeing to look forward to! It is going to be another great day!

Another great day!

Another great day at camp!! Second camptivity kicked off with sand volleyball, a nature hunt and poetry. It looks like we have some Emily Dickinsons or Maya Angelous in the making. An evening off fun running around activities in the top field and now some quality cabin time. As usual, another excellent day at camp!

Gooood Morning

Skies are blue, and our flowers are blooming too! This morning's team activities featured the "assertiveness activity" and "I-Statements" so that communication gets even better! Some rain from yesterday has helped camp get greener. Looking forward to some afternoon camptivities including dance, softball, river walking, and chill time. Fun fun fun

What an amazing day! The great 85-degree day kept everyone's spirits high. We had great fun fishing, doing archery, doing improv acting games, and chilling in the forest. Providing a nice end to another great day, after an awesome meal of spaghetti bolognese, the girls enjoyed an evening activity doing the "dot game" and diversity show and tell. Ending the night, they had a beautiful campfire. Good night all!

A beautiful blue sky day at camp with exciting team games out on the field! After another great morning of activities during team time, on the menu for this afternoon is crate stacking, GaGa, challenge hike, mud volleyball and fishing. With the fantastic weather, everyone is looking forward to the fun-packed afternoon. We've really got it going on here at Kupugani!!

Exciting first day!!

It's a new dawn, a new day and we're feeling good! We had some refreshing, revitalizing rain to make camp feel green and more natural. There is excitement at camp on the first full day of the session. The forest is filled with the sound of singing birds. Looking forward to an epic day of camptivities including biking through the forest, canoeing down the river, river walking and games in the pool. It's gonna be a day of fun-filled activities!

So it begins

Session two is under way, with the campers and parents receiving a warm welcome with a tour of the grounds, cooked to perfection hot dogs and burgers plus the great pot luck dishes brought by camper families. The campers are now settled into their cabins after an evening's welcome, delicious first meal at camp, fun with Ship Island and RoShambo Evolution, and a key log ceremony around the camp fire. Campers are smiling, making friends and getting excited for tomorrow's activities. Let the fun BEGIN!!!!

Farewells and fun

Another beautiful day with the ladies from Kupugani. This morning a fond farewell to our two-week campers being treated to a parent show with the pictures and videos from the session, then a fantastic day with the four-weekers at Magic Waters on a perfect, sunny 85-degree day. Mico and Mama had a blast too!

The last day

So the sun goes down on another amazing two weeks of Camp Kupugani. The day we have been putting off for two weeks, the final day. But what a great day it was!!!!

Our last day kicked off to a great start as the campers enjoyed a morning of eco challenge. We had climbing by the river, swimming in the sun, mud volleyball, crate stacking and some of our campers made tie dye shirts!!!!

Campers finished the day with a journey to the campfire, a reflective hike down trials and across rivers to reach the campfire were there were tears of joy as counselors read out quotes from the eco challenge, and Kevin's poem to the campers was read.

Olympics!!!

Time goes way too fast when you have fun...camp is nearly over for session one! After a great night yesterday of "untalent" and "talent" at our Untalent Show, and some great dancing at the dance, some of the ladies went to the top field and did "solo" sleeping under the stars. Mother Nature working her magic I think. Today was the time, yes that time when our campers strive for excellence, play fair and have an super amazing time at the Kupugani olympics........GaGa, Slip n slide relay, Mud tug o war and Canoe sink are the activities, and every one of the four teams competing are really going for this...it's so fun to watch. Enjoy a few pics from the untalent show and dance, and make sure you clear the house up from that two-week long party you been having as your special and super empowered ladies are returning in 2 days!

Attention: Backwards day at camp!!!

Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls, children of allllllllllllllll ages..........it's the moment we have been all been waiting for.......the........Camp Kupugani 'Untalent Show' and dance whoooooooooooooooooooooooooop! The ladies are prepped, the stage is down, the decorations are up, and the PA system is rigged up and ready to go. We are expecting skits from individuals, camp friends, cabins etc, singing, dancing, acting, improv, you name it happens here :) We don't just encourage them to become empowered women, we encourage them to have fun. And after the sweet untalent show, we will be dancing to awesome music including Miss Independent, Just the Way You Are, Cupid Shuffle and of course, Don't Stop Believing. This is definitely one of the best days of camp as they have already done teams and activities again this afternoon, along with it being backwards day, where we have crazy hair, and wear our clothes backwards....only at camp haha. P.S., we had chicken nuggets for breakfast and pancakes for dinner, this day really is backwards :p

Kupugani flag flying high!

Walking up the What a puff a me trail first thing in the morning and seeing the Camp Kupugani flag flying is awesome. People, dreams truly can come true :) This morning during team time, the ladies really stepped up their comfort levels by doing leans and lifts as further trust building activities. It was very cool to witness the development over the last 9 days. Now, after a tasty lunch and a restful Siesta, it's the girls favorite part of the day CAMPTIVITIES. We thought why not have an awesome pool party after dinner so it's nice and cool and a great way to unwind after another awesome day at camp.....more to follow later!

Week two begins...

What a weekend! Yesterday we had a very busy, fun cabin day, which included the annual camp photo and also a waterfront activity afternoon. The heat continued its fine form for us and the mid session relaxing/chill break was awesome and amplified the developing friendships camp is creating.....grrrrrrrrl power rocks! The beginning of week two started amazingly, with the Taco ingredient game during teams, another busy session at the pool and also some cool Kupugani benches were made that will be painted and put around camp for future and current campers. Well, it's bed time for us, and the campers are enjoying a night under the stars around a campfire, truly being one with the awesome nature. Night folks!

Week one ends in style!!

The hot sunny days are awesome and they keep on coming :) The camp wide soccer game we had was awesome, with some shining performances from both counselors and campers, and a final score of 2-1 to the counselors capped an awesome game. One of the most notable performances was from Kupugani director-in-training 5 year-old Mico who saved several late efforts to deny a late tie or victory for the campers. This was swiftly followed by a refreshing water break, La Tienda time, and then a camp pool party to cool off :) Well home cooked curry for dinner for first- and second-year campers, while 3rd-years and up enjoy a visit to Cimino's Restaurant! Almost the end of a fantastic first week of camp! Extra extra read all about it Kupugani's got soul there's no doubt about it!

The heat has been crazzzzzzzzy!!

Ms. Sunshine definitely bought the heat today! After a slow start to the heat, it picked up over lunch and produced an awesomely hot day!! The pool was a big favorite today, with playing with Mico, and a diving contest making for great additional fun. Tonight we played Snake tail which is a very cool crazy game of tag, and then we had our traditional returning camper ceremony where 2nd year, 3rd year and 5th year campers were given their Kupugani mementos. Playing in the sun has made us all rather sleepy so hi ho hi ho, it's off to bed we go with a Kupugani cheer and a Kupugani smile its off to bed we go, night!

Sun shine will do me fine!

I'm alive, awake, enthusiastic...I'm alive, awake, alert, enthusiastic! Goooood morning folks! The weekend is nearly upon us, as is the 95 degree heat we have been expecting and looking forward to as a reason to do even more water activities! Last night we went on a secret mission to cover the mirrors at camp so the ladies can feel empowered and recognize that inner beauty is of critical importance...the cool part is that no one seems to mind the lack of mirrors. I sense this crew of young ladies could produce the first female US president...we'll see! Well, almost lunch time after a great morning of teams, and activities still to come today, and lots of H2O, mmmmm delicious fresh well water yummy.

Feeling hot, hot, hot!

Evening all! Today has been a beautiful, sunny hot day...high 80s and more to come this weekend :) That's what we like to hear. After being sure to get hydrated and stay hydrated at lunch and via our delicious fresh water, the ladies had a super active day including river float, canoeing and pool to enjoy the weather via awesome water activities. To chill out after the heat and water, there were fort building and improv lessons...only at Camp Kupugani, right? Well, the campfire has wound down, having sung some cool songs like the 'empathy song' and 'fighting is not the solution', we know another magnificent day of camp has ended. Night all.

Good morning good morning the little bird said...

Hellllllooo! Well, what a great night's sleep.....I hope the campers enjoyed theirs as much as I did :) I'm sure many of them did on super comfy new 5-inch mattresses! And now our awesome facilities manager Brian has put the cool nets up over our new mud volleyball and new sand volleyball courts, and also prepared some great building ideas for camp building projects like super cool Kupugani benches, and also some sweet bat boxes. We'll try to add some pics of the ladies building away when they do those activities....."I said a bench build a bench, I said a bench build a bench, I said a won't you build a bat box for mosquitoes chick a boom :) Ahhhh camp songs are the best. xoxoxo

Another great day in the books!

Hola! Bonjour! Ciao! Hallo! Just saying hello in a few of the different languages we have had here at Kupugani :) Well today has been awesome-- amazing weather and the camp family has been shining just as hot as the sun!! A productive morning learning about conflict resolution using "I statements" went super well--skills they can bring home for when they get frustrated because they are not at camp any more ;) Shrinky dinks at arts and crafts, mud volleyball gathered more followers, and then the kitchen staff made an awesome dinner of Salisbury steak with 'grrrrrrrrrrl power' cake which was absolutely incredible mmmm mmmm mmmm. Well, it's bed time for not just the campers but me as well, night folks speak to you all tomorrow. Hey Ho, Kupugani's got soul! G'night! xxx

Wednesday fun day :)

Announcement time...announcement time...listen to Kupugani, it's announcement time!!! Wednesday morning already? Wow, camp is going so fast! Earlybird animal and bird watch was super popular :) and there is already talk about who is going where for activities...mud volleyball and arts and crafts may be a popular choice for this afternoon maybe! Well, team time is about to start, so off to enjoy the girls empowering themselves in the morning! Yaaaaaay camp!

Activities and campfires make our day!!

Hey...does anyone know where I can rock climb, crate stack, go on a challenge hike, play mud volleyball and then chill at the pool? I do! Camp Kupugani...these days just get better and better, no wonder we all love camp and its awesomeness. And, after our fantastic farm fresh hamburgers at lunch and amazing spaghetti dinner, we all continued our personal development journey with a great "My People Are" evening activity, followed by our talented camp guitarist and a moving campfire. Time for bed! J Catch you all tomorrow xxx

Pancake breakfast!!!!!!!

Goood morning all!!! Its 10AM and already a super productive day for our Kupugani ladies J Earlybird volleyball? Check. Community gathering? Check. Delicious pancake breakfast? Check. Camp chores to keep camp beautiful and instill responsibility? Check. I can hear "Little Sally Walker" being played in the rec hall, which means it must be time to break up into our morning teams! More later...

Its CAMP time :)

WHOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!! Camp Kupugani 2011 has begun; the campers have arrived and have moved into their summer homes :) The Camp Kupugani flag is flying high (literally). We have already nearly finished our first full day, and the campers have already been super busy...tacos for dinner; campfire last night. Today, there have been swim evals, riverwalks, canoeing, pool time and morning and evening group activities. Super fun! Camp is back and better than ever!

Spring in the air, and empowerment on the way!

Now that the grass is greening, the birds are returning, and the smells of spring are in the air, it gets more and more exciting to prepare for camp. It's really magic contemplating what will happen this summer. What child will experience the first-time joy of doing something she didn't think she otherwise could do...from the “I can't” to the “I did!”. And carrying that over to her life—whether it's 5 days, 5 months, or 5 years forward, when another “impossible” task arises, and she has the confidence to attack it, knowing that she's already accomplished the “impossible” before at camp. So, this year, whether it's dam jumping, rock climbing, celebrating her identity, meeting a friend from a background that she would never have interacted with if not for camp...I can't wait!

10 tips to empower girls webinar link

Here's a link to download our recent webinar about empowering young women:

http://campkupugani.com/mp3/030611.wmv