Scout Skit

The annual Cub Scout Blue & Gold Banquet was last week.  As the Bear den leader, Garry was in charge of making up a skit for the boys to perform at the meeting.  It was very funny--kind of long, but hilarious. Garry and Ira, the other leader, stood behind Tyler and Jayden and used their arms to act out some funny scenes.  As you can see in the video, the kids LOVED the skit.

Here's Tyler all suited up for the skit.

And the eight-minute performance.

Part of the evening was a Father/Son cake decorating contest. Tyler spent part of the day (a snow day) making the rainbow cake by himself, and simply "decorating" it with chocolate frosting and sprinkles.  In years past, the decorating has been a much more elaborate effort, but Tyler was content with what he did by himself.  He won the "Most Classic" award.

As usual, Kate grew weary of the event before it was time to go, so I spent some time chasing her up and down the halls. That's just how it goes when we support the scouts.

Super scout!

Tyler needed a bucket to carry all of his awards after Cub Scout pack meeting last week.  Our boy earned the Bear rank, 10 belt loops (soccer, swimming, video games, art, astronomy, computers, geography, good manners, map and compass, and music), one pin (art), and one gold arrow point. He is a self-driven, motivated scout, and has worked hard! We are so proud of Tyler.

Tyler is excited to join the Webelos next month (when he turns 10! how did that happen?), but the advancement will be bittersweet.  He has had so much fun with Garry as his leader in the Bear den. Fortunately they get to spend the year together in Primary; Garry is his class teacher, too.

Da Bears

Garry has been Tyler's Bear Den leader for about a month, and they are having a lot of fun together.  Last week we hosted a Christmas party for the boys (there are only three Bears right now).  They built marshmallow snowmen, drew pictures with their heads, and had a snowball fight with crunched-up paper.  Garry made a little video from the pictures he took.  It really captures the fun they had that night.

Tyler is excited that Garry will be his Primary teacher next year, as well as his Den leader until February (when Tyler advances to Webelos).  The father/son bonding will be great for both of them!

Zackie Chan and the band

Our family is charting new territory: middle school.

Last week we attended the middle school band's instrument selection event (say that ten times fast).  Zach would like to join the 6th grade band, but only as a drummer.  Fortunately for him, the two years of piano lessons I have forced upon him paid off; that much piano experience is required for playing in the percussion section.  Zach did a great job with his mini audition.  Garry and I were pleased to be able to tell the band director that Zach is a good boy and a great student.  The director said he needs kids like that in percussion because they sit in the very back of the band room and have weapons in their hands.  (Nice.)

So, with visions of weapons in his hands, I took Zach to the high school band's end-of-year concert.  The top band played with the Air Force Academy band (correct me if I'm wrong, local friends), and the concert was fantastic.  Afterward, a young man in our ward gave us a tour of the band room and showed him every drum, cymbal, and noise maker there.  Zach got a better idea of what fun things happen in the percussion section.  It was great.  I'm looking forward to the adventure ahead (trying not to think about the noise) and so is Zach (he can't wait to make noise).

In other Zachary news, he has given himself a new moniker: Zackie Chan.  I'm not sure what the name means (he's never seen a Jackie Chan movie...), but he writes it on all of his school papers, notebooks, and things at home.  Whatever his name, we are proud of our boy.

Derby #2

Tyler participated in his second Pinewood Derby on Saturday.  He built and decorated his car all by himself this year and was very proud of how it turned out.  Tyler was bummed that his car wasn't faster, though.  It's hard not to win!  But at least he had a great time. We are proud of our little Bear!

The cub becomes a boy

Last night was a big one for our oldest child.  Zach attended Cub Scout pack meeting for the last time.  He earned the highest award in Cub Scouting, the Arrow of Light, and also "crossed over" to Boy Scouts.  It's the end of an era!  We're so proud of our Zach and all that he has accomplished.

Last night was also a milestone for Pack 537, since it's the last time they would meet all together.  Our new ward, Explorer Park, will create its own scouting troop, with new leaders and smaller groups of boys.  Likewise, Cordera scouts will carry on with their own program.  I'm so glad we had this final meeting together.  Zach's buddy, Trace, hit scouting milestones right along with Zach, so receiving their final awards together last night was bittersweet.  Trace will be in the Cordera Ward, so the boys' days of scouting together are over for now.  (Boohoo!)

I loved the part of the meeting when the Webelos gathered to recite the Scout Law together: "A scout is trustworthy, loyal, helpful, friendly, courteous, kind, obedient, cheerful, thrifty, brave, clean, and reverent."  I'm pleased that Zach has it memorized.  I hope he always will!

The Arrow of Light ceremony was short and sweet, highlighting the seven virtues the award encompasses: wisdom, courage, self-control, justice, faith, hope, and love.  The Webelos Den helped present the ceremony, and then John and Mickey Miller, Zach's wonderful Webelos leaders, presented Zach and Trace with their arrows and plaques.  Then each of the boys and their families had a turn to walk across the bridge to the waiting Boy Scouts, who welcomed them with new neckerchiefs.

Just a note: Brother Miller, above, is the "John" in my tender mercies post from last week.

We look forward to Zach's new adventures in Boy Scouts!

Give him a hand

Last night Zach had a happy scouting milestone: he earned his Webelos badge and Religious Knot.  Both awards represent a lot of hard work on his part...and some on mine, too.  At pack meeting the Cubmaster also presented Zach with four activity badges and three belt loops.  Zach has actually earned the highest honor in Cub Scouts, the Arrow of Light, but apparently our ward has decided to award those on a quarterly basis, so he won't participate in that ceremony until December.  Zach will "cross over" into Boy Scouts at pack meeting next month, right before his 11th birthday.

[Sidebar: Zach lost his scout shirt (yes! lost!) a month ago, so we have borrowed a friend's shirt for the remaining weeks of Cub Scouts.  That's why the shirt he's wearing already has a Webelos badge sewn on the pocket.]

Our ward is ginormous.  The Cub Scout pack includes 25 Cubs.  Our meeting last night was huge.

In other news, Zach hit a rock while riding his scooter home from school yesterday and crashed.  He hyper-extended the fingers in his right hand when he hit the ground, and hours later, they were still throbbing and sore to the touch.  He couldn't grip a pencil for homework or a fork at dinner.  After pack meeting, we stopped at the home of a friend who works in sports medicine.  She and her husband, a physical therapist, assessed Zach's hand and fingers.  They had a split decision on "wait and see" versus getting an x-ray.  We ultimately decided to try ice and ibuprofen and wait at least until morning for medical attention.  While Zach iced his hand (aren't his glasses cool?), I served as scribe for social studies homework.

This morning Zach was still miserable.  Garry took him to Urgent Care while I did the morning school routine.  It turns out that Zach's hand and fingers are not broken, so he has a prescription for more ice, ibuprofen, elevation, and movement.  Poor kid.  We hope his pain abates quickly.

Day camp

This week Zach and Tyler attended our stake's amazingly awesome Cub Scout Day Camp.  It's fun for me that the boys got to share this experience (for one year!), and fun for them that they both had such great activities to enjoy for three days.  They came home filthy and exhausted every day, much to our mutual delight.

Our stake Primary presidency did an incredible job of organizing and executing this day camp!  The boys made leather wristbands and neckerchief slides and fire-starter kits and other cool gadgets.  Tyler also built a step stool.  Both boys played pioneer games, went on hikes (Zach's was three miles!), rode horses, shot arrows and BB guns on the archery range, and went ice skating.  They completed lots of requirements for rank advancement, but had testimony-building opportunities as well.  I'm so grateful for my boys' chance to have such great experiences with their friends.

I spent Wednesday afternoon up at camp, which was held at the Air Force Academy.  I was reminded that the navigation part of my brain has totally died (I used to be so good with directions!), even when traveling familiar routes to common landmarks.  But eventually I got where I needed to be and, even though we took a detour, transported my group of boys to the ice arena.  I thought I'd be spending the afternoon in the bleachers with the other leaders, but instead got to ice skate with the boys.  It was tons of fun!

On Thursday night we attended a "closing ceremonies" family program at the Academy.  A bluegrass band and some square dancers entertained us while we snacked on popcorn and licorice.  Gavin and Lexi stole the show with their awesome dance moves (they even danced hand-in-hand for a while).  We enjoyed the cool breeze and watched the sun set over the B-52 plane.

Today Zach gets to attend a special camp for Webelos only.  He and his buddies will earn their Engineering badges.  And then Day Camp will end for another year.  Even though Day Camp cost us a water bottle (Tyler lost his), a bicycle helmet (Zach lost his), $40 to the babysitter, a few gallons of gas, and a crack in our van's windshield (plus camp registration fees), it was just so great.  Day Camp will definitely be a highlight of the boys' summer.

Derby Day

The Pinewood Derby has come and gone again.  This is the only year that we'll have two Cubs in the Derby.  Pretty fun!

Zach and Tyler worked hard on their cars with Garry.  On race day, Zach had a pretty spiffy Wii remote, and Tyler had a flashy Rock It (from the Mario Kart video game).  Both cars needed a little extra weight at check-in, but then they were good to go.

This was MY first Pinewood Derby.  I'm glad we got to go as a family this year.  Gavin and Lexi were happy spectators (and donut eaters), and Kate eventually fell asleep in the stroller.  We all enjoyed watching the races.

Overall, Zach and Tyler were middle-of-the-pack racers.  Neither boy qualified for the stake's race-off this evening, but they each won a few heats and were mostly pleased with their performances.  Tyler was especially excited when his car beat Zach's.

Near the end of the Derby, everyone present sang "Happy Birthday" to me.  (The stake Primary president tipped off the cub master.)

Then the boys got awards and we all went home.

Zach has already asked if he can attend next year, even though he'll be too old to participate.  I'm sure the Pinewood Derby will be a family tradition for many years to come.

This week in pictures

Monday

Kitchen haircuts.

The promise of spring: tulips.

 

Tuesday

This looks like a boy with an ear infection.

Cub Scout Blue & Gold banquet.

Wednesday

Children who "don't need naps anymore."

Thursday

Silly girls on a snow day.

Session at the Denver Temple.

Almost ran out of gas on the way home.  I've never put more than 16.9 gallons in the van, even with the "empty" light on.

Friday

Sanity break [aka lunch] at Target.

Gavin's sliced thumb, courtesy of a steak knife (he was attempting to cut a banana).  Jennie came to the rescue, patched him up, and saved us the trauma of the ER and stitches.

Daddy's homecoming and celebratory Red Robin dinner.

Well, we made it.  This was an exceptionally hard week for me.  I had many life-saving helpers, though, and they deserve a shout-out.

To Starr, Melissa, Julee, and Karla: Thank you for bringing me dinner and treats.

To Dr. Yochim, Summer, and Jennie: Thank you for patching up my sick and injured kids.

To Melissa, Julee, Jenny, Leah, and Jennie: Thank you for visiting me.

To the random guys on the street: Thank you for helping me shovel my driveway.

To Leah, Jenny, Sharise, Tammie, Janice, Holly, and April: Thank you for watching my children.

To Melissa and Melanie: Thank you for talking me off a cliff.

To Connie and Tana: Thank you for going to the temple with me.

To Holly: Thank you for babysitting for free for five hours while I went to the temple.

To United Airlines and Garry's dirty old car: Thank you for safely returning my husband to our home.