Engine 2 at Camp Balcones Springs!

This past week and weekend at Camp Balcones Springs, our retreat staff hosted Engine 2, a plant-based dietary group based out of Austin. Approximately seventy Whole Foods employees from all over the country entered the gates of CBS last Wednesday for the Engine 2 immersion program, spending seven days eating a plant-based, Engine 2-designed diet, exercising, and having their cholesterol and blood pressure tested to measure the effectiveness of the Engine 2 program.

Aside from eating specially-crafted meals designed by Engine 2 and prepared by camp's renown chefs, our Engine 2 guests had time to go for runs around camp, play tennis, paddle board and kayak on Lake Ted, and even go down the zip line!

The Engine 2 diet is a vegan-based diet that also eliminates all plant-based oils (olive oil, coconut oil, flax seed oil, etc.), salt, processed sugars, and refined grains. We hope to have picked up some healthy cooking and eating habits from Engine 2 over this last week that we can apply to our camp food this summer! (But don't worry, we won't be getting rid of Nutella or chicken tenders just yet.)

Family Camp!

To help tide us over until the summer, this past weekend at Camp Balcones Springs, we hosted several wonderful families at CBS Family Camp!

Moms, dads, brothers, sisters, and dogs alike all arrived Friday evening to a fiesta dinner in the Rio Grande. Afterwards, parents could relax with appetizers and drinks, while the children (and maybe some of the dogs) watched a movie in our Live Oak room. The next day was packed with activities, featuring horseback trail rides, the zip line, rock climbing, gaga ball, fishing, archery, riflery, cookie decorating, a scenic hike, and even spray-tanning for the moms!

After the fun-filled day, all of the families gathered in the Rio for dinner, featuring a huge "Monster" chocolate cake made by our Boys Camp Director. After dinner, families played games in the Rio and put their pipes to the test with family karaoke! The next morning, after some more horseback riding and sports playing, we said goodbye to all of these wonderful families. It was so fun to have a small taste of what camp will offer this summer, and we hope to see you then for more of the fun!

Here are some kind words from the families who visited with us this past weekend:

"This is our second Spring Break at Balcones Springs, and we love it. We love how relaxing the area is and how all families participate in the activities. And dogs can come!" "We couldn't have have enjoyed ourselves more. The friendly and relaxed staff really lends itself to the overall relaxed atmosphere without feeling overly catered to or structured." "This is the best place ever! I wish I could live here. It is so fun. This is funner than everything in the world!"

How Children Succeed

Two weeks ago, the CBS Camp Team traveled to the American Camp Association National Conference in Dallas, Texas, where they heard an exciting lecture by writer Paul Tough on how children succeed. According to Tough, who has gained recent fame for his book, How Children Succeed: Grit, Curiosity, and the Hidden Power of Character, the qualities we have valued in the education and development of children—namely, high test scores and measured academic performance—are not beneficial to or indicative of a child’s success, and the environments created by quests for these achievements can actually damage and hinder a person’s ability to succeed.

The real skills, according to Tough and other like-minded researchers, are not related to IQ, but instead come from qualities like curiosity, optimism, empathy, perseverance, self-discipline, zest, social intelligence, and grit. The last of these, grit, was the topic of Tough’s discussion. Tough defines grit as “perseverance in the pursuit of a passion,” and it has been a proven measure (by way of the Grit Test) of the determination necessary for success in work places across the US.

Although an appropriate amount of “licking and grooming” (comfort, protection, and consolation) is necessary from parents in the early years of infancy and childhood, continued protection from all ill-will is just as unhelpful as facing an extraordinary amount of adversity. According to a study cited by Tough, the most successful people face somewhere between 2-5 adverse events during childhood, while people facing no adversity or too much without any support system show an equal, and relatively lesser, degree of success.

A student can have all the success academically, succeeding in high school and at top-tier universities, but if she lacks grit, as soon as she encounters a set-back—for instance, the first job application post-graduation being denied—she will shut down, having no experience dealing with failure or how to move on from it. If our mindsets are fixed, we will see these failures, and any failure, as impervious to change or growth, and we will be halted and unable to push on towards success. However, if we train our mindsets and the mindsets of our children to be growth-oriented, failures and setbacks will not be defining and permanent, but rather, something we can move past or change in the future.

Protecting our children—whether it be in doing too many things for them when they are equally capable, taking things into our own hands to ensure their success, or physically shielding them from new or independent experiences—is doing more harm than it is good. Character traits like grit and self-control are born from failure, and it is important that we teach our children how to manage failure instead of shielding them from it. If you want your children to succeed, you must first let them learn how to fail. In addition to having deep reserves of grit, self-control, and optimism, those who succeed also tend to have help, so it is important that we as parents, educators, and mentors, learn to appropriately respond to and assist with failure.

Hearing all of this enforced how we feel about our mission here at Camp Balcones Springs, for it is in places like camp that children—and especially the overly protected children of today’s world—can take risks, face challenges, and learn that failure does not equate disaster. In stepping out of their comfort zones—and actually learning to be comfortable in those areas—campers have the rare chance to develop grit and the qualities necessary for success.

Mother/Son Weekend!

Two weekends ago, our retreat center hosted a weekend of fun outdoor adventures and bonding for several of our camper mothers and their sons--and some new friends!

The weekend started off with a hearty dinner, followed by a tie-dying activity, and then a relaxing evening of wine and cheese for the mothers, while the boys enjoyed ice cream and a screening of the movie Holes. The next day, mothers and sons explored all that camp has to offer, going on horseback trail rides throughout the property, climbing the rock wall, going down CBS’ infamous zip line, and canoeing and kayaking in Lake Ted. Some boys even managed to paddleboard without falling into the freezing cold water!

After dinner, everyone enjoyed s’mores and a bonfire before being surprised by camp’s most famous event--Mission Impossible! Mothers and sons were put on teams and given a “mission” to find certain glow sticks hidden all over camp. This process was more easily said than done, however, as they were being pursued in their search by bandits armed with water balloons!

The next morning, we bid adieu to all of our lovely mothers and sons, but hopefully not for long! Camp is just around the corner, and we hope to see all of our guests--and more--back here in no time!

If this sounds fun to you and you missed out, don’t fret! We are hosting a similar weekend retreat for the whole family--CBS Family Camp--March 8-10, 2013! Go here to find out more!

CBS Election 2012: Politics Can Be Serious and Phun

 

As many of you might have noticed on the CBS Facebook page, there have been ongoing campaigns in an intense race to become the first Camp Balcones Spring President! The two official parties blazing the campaign trail are the Old School and New School parties, represented by our very own Teddy James and Jeremy Jenkins, respectively. Both party candidates have shown themselves worthy of the honor through their contributions to Camp, and are proud to be CBS-ers. I am sure it will be an exciting race that will go down to the wire, hopefully with no recounts.

Each candidate has his own platform for improving Camp Balcones Springs, and there’s no better example of a man who wants change than Jeremy Jenkins. Born in the swamplands of Louisiana and raised by alligators, Jenkins has plenty of experience dealing with ornery animals as well as unruly B-compounders. What he lacks in experience, he excels in problem solving.

Speaking of experience, there are few at CBS who are as tenured as Teddy James. The man has been around the block a few times, and knows the ins and outs of how to successfully lead Camp. His résumé includes a successful bout as Term 2 sponsor, multiple appearances as “Legend”, and a term as Secretary of the Department of High School Programs. Yet, will his age have any effect on the opinion of voters?

Careful consideration should be given to the topics and issues such as Llama rights, the Lake Travis drought, and the future of Campout. The candidates posses a wealth of knowledge on each subject, but differ in their opinions on how to address each topic. As a voter, consider your own judgment on how you would like Campout improved, or how to tackle the ongoing breach of Llama rights. It’s up to you, so make your vote count!

As we watch the CBS campaign videos and analyze the candidates, just remember that participating in an election is the best way to show your patriotism. Whether you go red or blue, New School or Old School, we still have the best “President” of all, and he resides in Heaven.

God bless the U.S.A and God bless C.B.S!

Wet Weather Finally Visits CBS

 

Interestingly enough, this past week we saw a mysterious liquid falling from the sky quite frequently. Could it be? Yes…it was RAIN! The sweet smell of Fall precipitation was in the air as our poor, dehydrated grass gulped as much water as its roots could hold. In fact, it rained five inches in less than 24 hours! The cooler weather also felt quite nice compared to the oppressive summer heat.

All this talk of rain makes me think back to the summer of 2007; the summer of the great flood of CBS. Those of you who were at camp that year know exactly what I’m talking about.

One fine day in June that summer, it began to rain—and rain—and rain some more. It poured for two days straight and increased the lake levels by five feet! It just would not stop raining. By the end of the month we were beginning to wonder if we would ever see a full day of sunshine. Toward the end of the summer the city of Marble Falls had to evacuate citizens that were caught in the flooding down by the lake. The water had overflowed from Travis and came almost all the way up to the riflery range! Pretty hard to believe, right?

Needless to say, CBS has certainly had its fair share of extreme weather. But one thing remains constant: we always find ways to have as much PHUN as possible, no matter the circumstances. Whether its story time during water breaks or rainy day games in the gridiron, counselors never waiver in their commitment to build lasting relationships.

So when you have the rainy days blues, or when you’re tired of the unrelenting heat, always keep in mind how quickly the weather and your attitude can change. God has a way of turning a grey sky blue, and changing a boring day into a day to remember.

Summer Camp - How Sportsmanship is a Part of the Olympic Dream

CBS Celebrates Olympic Spirit with Kick Off of London Games

For former camper Adam Bull, the London Olympic Games (with 33 Texans representing the USA), hits especially close to home, having recently competed in the Olympic Trails in swimming. The Bull family has been a dedicated camp family, sending both Adam and sister, Lauren, to CBS for several years. As one of Adam’s biggest fan clubs, we have had the opportunity to watch his swimming career rise to the world stage. Adam currently holds the CBS record in the Ted 10 set in 2009 at 12 min. 38 sec. after having broken his own record from the previous year. At the Olympic Trails, where athletes vie to earn spots on the American team, Adam competed in the 400 IM, where he finished in 39th place, giving him incentives to look to future Olympics!

Adam’s success in the water is due to hard work, dedication and sportsmanship – lifelong skills we try to teach our kids at summer camp. For many Olympic athletes, summer camp was a special part of growing up, and some athletes go on to share stories about how they developed a passion for the sport that took them to the Olympics on sport courts, hiking trails, playing fields and lakes just like Lake Ted. 

At CBS, our mission is to change peoples' lives for the better through relationships, spiritual impact and fun and there is no better time to celebrate the spirit of respect and “sportsmanship” than the Olympic Games, which begin today. While we offer the traditional camp experience, teaching skills and values that will be with campers forever, we also strive to make competition fun, giving every camper a chance to compete in all of their favorite sports and activities.

Over the next two weeks, we will look for stories inspired by the summer camp experience, and join together to cheer on the USA team and especially our athletes from Texas!