Just Say “No” to Flip-Flops!


The following is from an old Facebook post, but it still applies. Please, spread the word.

~🦶~

Dear parents,

This is a PSA: Flip-Flops are terrible. 👣

👟 If your kids (or you) are going to summer camp, church camp, day camp, play camp, rec camp, bible school or any activity that isn’t the beach, a pool, or a shower, leave the flip-flops at home. They are unacceptable footwear for just about every activity that involves placing one foot in front of the other.

Relay races, kickball, volleyball, archery, hikes, creek walks, night games, and even campfires become dangerous when flip-flops are involved. Please, douse them in gasoline, set them on fire, and never purchase another pair. 🔥

Sent with love,
Signed every camp counselor your child will ever have. 😬

I’m going to leave some proof below. Please share your Flip-Flip hate in the comments. This does not extend to sandals or Crocs, as they can be somewhat more acceptable footwear. You have to be ready to adventure at camp, and Flip-Flops are not the vehicle to that destination.

Here is an excerpt from my last letter to campers/parents:

We do have a few notes from past experience on attire.  Please remember to have shoes appropriate for games and outdoor activities at a moment’s notice.  Flip-flops or sandals are good for the shower, and that’s about it.  It would be great if you had shoes appropriate for hiking, running, and maybe an old pair for a possible creek walk.  Also, though it is sure to be hot, some long pants for hikes add an extra layer of protection against ticks and a hoodie or other light jacket will help for cool nights around a campfire.  In addition it can help to have a sleeping bag and/or sheets blankets for the bunks appropriate for warm or cool nights.

And, from past checklists I usually include to remind kids & parents what to bring & what not to bring…

□ Sneakers – 2 pairs of sneakers if possible (Flip flops or sandals don’t count unless you want Eric to have some more campfire fuel!)

□ Walking shoes (bring an extra pair, if possible)  Flip-Flops are never acceptable for any type of camp activity be it a game, archery, a creek walk, kickball, or anything other than being used as fuel for a campfire.

Let’s start a list of why we should hate flip-flops!

  • They’re not good for kickball.
  • They’re not good for hiking.
  • They’re not good for creek walks.
  • They’re not good for gaga ball.
  • They’re not good for running.
  • They’re not good for riding bikes.
  • They’re not good for climbing.
  • Burning embers from a campfire can land on your toes.
  • You can kick them off by accident.
  • They can get stuck on a multitude of things.
  • You can be super annoying, kick them off on purpose, and lose them or get them stuck.
  • They are a broken or sprained ankle waiting to happen.
  • They’re not good for that swing amusement ride.

Can you keep the list going in the comments?

Please, post more flip-flop fail videos or stories, too!

🏊 Shenanigans at the Plake 👷🚧


My wife & I have very generous cousins with a cabin in the woods where they throw a bunch of fun parties throughout the year.  One yearly weekend gathering can get exciting.  Here’s some video of Molly swimming in the plake (big pond or a small lake?), and Ian getting a lesson on some heavy machinery!

Molly Swimming at the “Plake” 🏊:

Ian Driving a Skid Steer with “Uncle” Jim 👷:

Ian Driving an Excavator with “Uncle” Jim 🚧:

As always, we had a great time!  Molly is getting confident with swimming lessons, and Ian looked so serious in those machines.  I am so grateful to be able to share these kinds of experiences with these two.

My phone seemed to “skip” a bit.  May be time to back up & remove photos?  Also, I’m getting used to playing with the YouTube Video Editor, and it’s apparently going away?  Boo, I say.

So, they call it a Babymoon…


Apparently the newest annoying word for some time away is Babymoon.  It’s better than Daycation or Staycation, but still annoying.  The word is annoying, but the actual time away isn’t.  With the impending arrival getting closer and closer, many online pregnancy-related websites & email lists suggest taking a babymoon.  This goes especially for first time parents, as a nice little last fling before all of your apparent freedoms disappear.

We decided a while ago that a nice little getaway to a cabin would be the way to go.  We have been tent camping at Forest Ridge Cabins and Campgrounds before, but had never tried out the cabins.  They always looked quite inviting.  The campground itself is always clean, and the owners are quite hospitable.  The prices are competitive with other places that we checked out online, and really quite affordable.  Important for the babymoon aspect, it’s not that far away.  Cabins are our thing now I guess… since we honeymooned in one in Gatlinburg, TN.  It all just seemed to make sense.

We booked the date a while ago, assuming that since it was spring we’d have a nice warm weekend.  It was a nice weekend, but there was about 5 inches of snow on the ground, and the temperature never got much above freezing.

We stayed in the Allegheny cabin, and it was warm & cozy inside.  We brought along some DVD‘s, cooked some s’mores (with peanut butter cups) around the campfire, and just had a nice relaxing weekend.  The kitchen was stocked with all kinds of cookware and utensils, we made a nice steak dinner on Saturday.  I also made a friend in Oliver, one of the campground cats.  He strolled up as I was waiting for the last log to burn out on the campfire, then followed me up on the porch to hang out a but on top of the hot tub cover.  He liked to look in the window at us, then look away when he saw that we were looking at him.

I think we’ve decided that Forest Ridge is “our place” as far as camping when we’re not going camping at Living Waters.

Check out Forest Ridge on Facebook, Twitter, & Yelp, and check out some of our photos…