Another great book for parents

For every parent who has had a child at camp, there is a parent waiting by the mailbox hoping for a letter chronicling news about new friends, fun activities and unique experiences. Going to sleepaway camp can be full of unimaginable happenings, some funny, some touching, some emotional and some heart-wrenching. It is always the comical or unexpected that are the most memorable. Vicariously we can live through them through the words of our children however slanted they may be!
This delightful compilation of actual letters from real kids assembled by Diane Falanga is called P.S. I Hate It Here!! Kids’ Letters From Camp. It is a great read for any parent with a child away at camp. It is amazing how universal these letters are.
Write us about letters you have received. We have a book to give away to a random responder. We hope to hear from you soon!!!

Great book to read for new campers

JEMMA HARTMAN, camper extraordiane by Brenda Ferber is a wonderful example of how a book can help initiate discussion about fears a camper may have in anticipation of going away for the first time. It is a fabulous find for both mothers and daughters to share and many of my clients have read it for their mother-daughter book groups.
Jemma is going to Camp Star Lake with Tammy, her former best friend who has moved away. She looks forward to having a perfect summer with her, sharing activities and fun like it used to be. She doesn’t anticipate that her once solid friendship has changed. Nor does foresee Tammy’s cousin, Brooke, also attending, creating a threesome and lots of anxiety.
Although Jemma may know what the camp will look like and what the schedule is like, she can’t predict the actions of other campers. She feels excluded by Tammy, in competition with Brooke, and plagued by Delaney, the camp oddball. In this touching story Jemma learns through experience how to manage relationships and build friendships.
A anonymous quote prefacing the book says it all: “You can’t control the wind, but you can adjust your sail.”

California teen ideas

There are so many new activities for teens in California for 2010. There's lots more community service, on campuses in Santa Barbara and Los Angeles where you can work with children, animals, the elderly, the environment, the needy and so much more! Work in San Francisco at Glide Memorial, with marine mammals, and at Lake Tahoe. Work with Habitat for Humanity and Ronald McDonald House in Southern California. Call us for these ideas and others!