Pumpkin Racing

Becky thought of cool thing for the Bear Scouts to do today.  They each decorated a small pumpkin and then went out onto the big sledding hill behind the school and raced them by rolling them down the hill.  It sounds like a sure recipe for pumpkin gut explosions, but none of their pumpkins busted.  The scouts all loved it.  I expect this may become a yearly tradition.

Scouting For Food

Pack 90 asked the other students and families at school to bring in food donations for local food pantries.  The response was great, exceeding their expectations.  People even kept donating more food after the deadline.  This may become a yearly tradition.

Popcorn In The Basement

This is the view of one corner of our basement to give you a taste of what it looks like to store multiple cases of Scout popcorn for our pack.  The kids are already looking forward to getting their playspace back.

Family Miakonda Campout

Today the whole family came out to Camp Miakonda for an overnight campout.  Two other Bear scouts from Alex's den came with their families also.  They had multiple stations set up to showcase speed - real race cars on the parade ground to check out, bottle rockets made by hooking 2-liter bottles to air compressors, archery and of course...

...the obstacle course.  Aaron was so tickled to be able to come along.  He really loved the "big kids" obstacle course, tackling it 4 times while we were here, and doing quite well. 

Another neat thing we did was learn how to make fire with twine, steel wool and a 9v battery.  We made a nest by unraveling the twine, then loosened up a ball of steel wool into the center of it.  Then when you touch the battery terminals to the steel wool, it heats up hot enough to ignite the twine nest.

That night it dipped down below 40 degrees.  We toughed it out in our small instatents, two to a tent, layered up in warm clothes.  While we're proud of ourselves for making it through the cold night, we're not looking forward to doing that again any time soon.

Show-n-sell Bass Pro 9/20

This year we were much more on the ball with fundraising popcorn sales for Alex's Cub Scout pack.  Becky preordered a LOT of popcorn yesterday, most of which is now either in or soon will be down in our basement.  This allows us to fill people's orders within a few days, rather than a few weeks.  It also allowed us to participate in Show-n-Sells.  This is where we hangout at the exit of a store asking everyone that comes out if they'd like to buy some Scout popcorn.  Becky got one of the first spots lined up at the new Bass Pro Shops in nearby Rossford.

For four hours we stood in the sun (OK, we brought a beach umbrella) and tried to cajole people who had already spent money inside the store to buy a little more.

A big highlight was the Corn Hat.  The boys took turns wearing the corn hat which actually got us noticed.  I think a few people even offered to buy the hat (not for sale).

We even got free sample popcorn from the area Scout Council that we made ahead of time and portioned into paper cups for the boys to pass out in front of the store.  This also got us some business.  We did better than we expected we would, but we also took a lot of popcorn home.  We got a lot of participation from the kids and parents.  The store was running a scavenger hunt that day, so we took the boys in shifts to try their hand at winning Bass Pro swag.

Tiger Den

This is Pack 90's Tiger Cub den in their best tiger pose. Laurie is the mom of one of the Tiger Cub scouts and agreed to be the Tiger Cub Den Leader. This makes our Pack 90 member count up to 12 from the 6 we had last year.

Paper Scout Planes

Becky got the Scouts to make paper airplanes from a pattern book that she found.  They decorated them in the art room and then...

...went outside to the jungle gym to launch them.  They had a blast and it was a great kickoff to the new Bear den.

Open House

Today we got to bring the kids back to their school for Open House.  It was a chance to meet with their teachers, bring in their school supplies early, and let the kids see their new classroom areas.  Alex is moving up to 3rd grade in the Lower Intermediate Section of the school, which are combined 3rd and 4th grade classes.  His teacher is Mrs. Augustyniak and seems very nice.  This year he'll have to carry around that big green binder with a homework planner in there.

Aaron will be moving up to preschool 5 days a week at the same school.  He'll have Mrs. Choka, the same P-4 teacher that Alex had when he started here.  He liked his new teacher and classroom.  Most of the kids he knows from last year.  He is very proud to be moving up to the big preschool out of the 3 year old building, though he will miss Mrs. Meinecke.

Becky also took this opportunity to recruit for Cub Scouts. She made the posterboard display with pictures of previous scouting activities from last year.

She made Scout popcorn and Alex got in his uniform also to attract 1st through 5th grade boys to the table.  She got lots of people interested in the popcorn (it's quite good) and got several kids interested in looking into Cub Scouts when they start it up in a month or so.  More importantly, she found a parent interested in walking the 1st graders through the Tiger Cub requirements.  She'll make one more appeal in a few weeks at the Parents' Back To School night.

Scout Ballfield Campout

Last night we went to the Mudhens stadium for another game and another Scout sleepover.  Becky and Aaron joined us for the camping portion this year.  Becky was very involved with the Scouts this year and Aaron was very distraught about not getting to stay last year.  Thankfully the weather this year was better as we didn't get soaked like last year.



Before the game, all the Scouts got to parade around the front of the field.  Becky and Alex went around this time, both in full uniform.



Alex wore his new Bear hat and neckerchief as well as his patch vest which houses all of the extra patches he has earned, but can't wear on his uniform.  The big yellow "C" on his left is the equivalent to a high school "letter" where he can house his Sports and Academics pins.  Right now he has a Swimming pin, but may have a couple more joining it from Day Camp activities.



Becky got Aaron a Little Scout Buddy ball cap and t-shirt so he'd feel like part of the crowd.  He is very much entrenched into the Scouting mindset and is looking forward to starting Tiger Cubs in a couple more years.  Onto the side of the hat, Becky sewed the patch that he got for camping here tonight.



Another Scout from Alex's den, Nicolai, was here tonight also (which represented a majority of the 3 Scout den) and sat with us and ate popcorn and drank hot chocolate while we watched the animated baseball movie, Everyone's Hero.  Becky discovered a solution to last year's tent hassle.  Since we can't use stakes to anchor the tent, she found 2 small tents that don't require any.  These "InsTENTS" (get it?) pop up to a usable form with a minimum of effort in under a minute.  A few minutes later and the rainfly is strapped on and we could toss our stuff inside.  Becky and Alex slept in one tent on a full-size Aerobed mattress which just fit.  Aaron and I slept on self-inflating pads in the other tent.  The kids slept better than we did, but we made it through the night.  A 5:30am rain shower made us glad that we set up those rain flys.



This morning we got up and packed up the gear.  Stowing the InsTENTS is almost as easy as setting them up and they were light enough to carry on and off the field with our other gear all in one trip.  We ate a buffet breakfast in the Roost on the upper balcony before heading home.  This is now officially a tradition that we'll plan on doing for many years to come.

Look Where I Found This Gum

This year the Cub Scouts were able to have their campfire ceremony outside again thanks to fair weather.  Each team prepared a skit to present to the rest of the camp and assembled family members and friends.



Alex's team' skit involved one Scout stashing his gum on the stage for later, with the rest of the team coming by, one by one, and stepping in it or putting their hands in it accidentally before stomping off of the stage making disgusted grumbling sounds.  I think you can guess where Alex found the gum. You can probably also guess the punchline - the original Scout coming by to reclaim the gum and start chewing it anew.  Yum.

Blue & Gold Banquet 2008

After his soccer game today, we ran home and Alex changed into his full Cub Scout uniform, including the patch vest that Becky had put together for him, using all of the extra patches that he had accumulated.  Then we all piled in the van and drove to the Pack 90 Blue & Gold Banquet.  Traditionally this is the award ceremony for Scouts that have earned their advancement badges, and is usually done in February or March.  We had been working hard on everyone's achievements and had started a little late in the year with our meetings in October; so this year's Banquet got pushed into May to give everyone time to complete the requirements for their badges. 



The banquet was held at the house of one of the Bear Scout's parents. After the playtime on their massive jungle gym and pizza for the banquet part of the night, we all assembled in the rec room in the basement for the ceremony.  Alex had completed the achievements for the Wolf badge a month ago, but he'd been waiting until tonight.to receive it. Becky went through all of the extra awards the boys had earned first, including Sports and Academics belt loops and pins.  Then Alex received his Wolf badge and the 4 elective arrow points from her and looked very proud.  The other boys got their badges, and then we all got to eat cake.  Not bad for our first awards banquet. 

Pack 90

This is Alex's Cub Scout Pack from Maumee Valley. Becky has been working with the 3 in the front row, Nicolai, Alex and Cole in the Wolf Den. The 3 in the back row - Jacob, Devin, and another Alex - were in the Bear Den. They are meeting once a week as a group for flag ceremonies and snacks. They separate (usually) in between to work on achievements for their specific badges.

Building Bat Houses

Becky and the Cub Scouts of Pack 90 built bat house kits as an Earth Day service project.  They are going to be put up all over campus to encourage bats to move in, which will eat mosquitos which will require less pesticide to control - in theory.  They even presented their work in front of the rest of the school during the weekly town meeting.  Alex used this as part of the requirement for his Wildlife Conservation Award.

Dad & Lad 2008

This year's Dad & Lad campout at Camp Miakonda had the theme of Science and technology.  This time our cabin was near the front of the camp.  We were in the Einstein group and, like last year, our group rotated amongst various events and stations around the camp.  Here we did several science experiements using baking soda and vinegar - such as inflating a balloon over a bottle with the mixture producing carbon dioxide gas.



This year in the fort the Scout Leader demonstrated how to clean your hands in the field with bins of soapy water, then bleach water.  The boys then took turns dumping ingredients into yet another bin until it made a thick cornmeal batter.  Then he showed us how to stack cast iron dutch ovens with charcoal briquets to bake up Dutch Oven Cornbread.

1	cup butter; melted	2	cups cornmeal
4	eggs; beaten	3	cups all-purpose flour
3	cups milk	4	tsp. baking powder
2	cups sugar	1	tsp. salt

In a large bowl mix together butter, eggs, and milk. In a separate bowl sift together sugar, cornmeal, flour, baking powder, and salt. Mix dry ingredients into wet ingredients 1 cup at a time until well blended. Spoon cornbread mixture into a lightly greased 12" Dutch oven and spread evenly. Cover Dutch oven and bake using 8-10 briquettes bottom and 14-16 briquettes top for 45 minutes or until cornbread turns golden brown. NOTE: For even browning make sure to turn the oven and lid 1/4 turn in opposite directions every 10 minutes. Serve warm with honey butter. Serves: 10-12

We participated in the father & son obstacle course which had rope swings, balance beams, concrete culverts, hopping stumps, climbing walls, and this tire wall at the end.  There was also a BMX track, though this year I helped Alex around the track.  By next year's Dad & Lad, he'll be a pro. 



We had some scheduled free time that we used to find items on our scavenger hunt list.  Our team found all the items, though actually all the teams found all their items also.  We practiced our campfire routine which included a song and a skit. We also found Alex a walking stick.  Other kids would try to nab it if he laid it down somewhere, so I carved his name in it, which helped in its recovery a couple of times.





Once again this year, Alex had practice with archery and BB gun shooting.  He already earned a Sports belt loop award for these from last year's Dad & Lad.  Our campfire skit was threatened by rain so we had it in the Council Lodge again.  I can't reveal the punchline of the skit, but it turned our very brave scouts and dads into scaredy-cats just because someone showed up with cookies. I can however, share our song:

Tom the Toad

Oh, Tom the toad, Oh, Tom the toad,

Why are you lying on the road?

Oh, Tom the toad, Oh, Tom the toad,

Why are you lying on the road?

You did not see the car ahead;

Now you're all marked with tire tread.

Oh, Tom the toad, Oh, Tom the toad,

Why are you lying on the road?

The next morning we packed up our gear and had a Paul Bunyan breakfast.  We lined up outside the mess cabin and as we went through they gave us a napkin, then a pancake dipped in cinnamon sugar, then a sausage link.  We folded it like a taco and ate it in line for our next one (with a cup of milk from a side table).  I made it through 4 times, and Alex made it 5.  We are really looking forward to next year's adventure, hopefully with more kids from our pack.

Firefighters Museum Tour

Today Alex's Wolf den met at the Toledo Firefighter's Museum.  We took a tour first, with a former firefighter showing us all of the old equipment that they used to use decades ago.  The oldest piece of equipment was a manual pumper wagon that was pulled by the firefighters to the fire, then one hose was snaked to the nearest pond, river, or swimming hole while the other hose was used to spray the fire under the force of a pump operated by 10 men on each side of the wagon pumping a huge lever back and forth.  They saw old firetrucks, protective gear, and call boxes.



Then we all went upstairs to Jed's Room.  Jed's room is a house fire simulator that they used to teach the kids to crawl low under the (fake) smoke, to call 911 and what to say to the operator, and even how to slide down a short pole at the "firehouse" as the firefighters came to the rescue.  All of the roles were played by the kids - Aaron volunteered to be the first "Jed" in the picture above.



Then they let anyone who wanted to try on the gear that the firefighters have to wear, including the pants and coat, the helmet, and an oxygen tank.  Alex thought it was very heavy.



This helped the Wolf scouts fulfill requirements for visiting a historic building (it was a former firehouse) and learning about fire safety. 

Pinewood Derby 2008

Alex was chosen as one of 2 Wolf Scouts from his den to participate in the Swan Creek District Pinewood Derby. It was held in the shell of the old Southwyck Mall in South Toledo. They were actually great - donating the space and setting up judges' tables and chairs for the audience. First, Alex had to get in line to have his car inspected. Each car had to conform to certain size requirements, both in physical dimensions and in weight. The also were prohibited from certain modifications (like liquid lubricants).
The Scouts then took turn racing each other three at a time on mutliple tracks. Becky showed up in her uniform to support her Pack, but was quickly spotted and recruited to be a race judge for one of the tracks. Alex was thrilled by the round-robin style of the derby. Since this was our first one, he was concerned that it would be done in a single or double elimination tournament style. As it was, he did not have one of the fastest cars, but still got to race it multiple times.
He actually came in third in all of the races except his final one, in which he got very excited to come in second. While this put him near the bottom of the standings, he took it in stride. Coming from a small pack, we also enjoyed seeing all of the Scouts and leaders in uniform participating in the same event. Becky got him and all of the Cub Scouts in his pack a participation ribbon. He was a good sport and conducted himself very well throughout the day. I took the boys home (Aaron had had enough by that point) and Becky stayed to help judge the Bear Scouts' heats.
Alex has already started mentally designing next year's car. It was important to him this year that he designed a car that looked cool, but next year he wants to design it for speed.

Derby Racing at Town Meeting

Alex and the rest of Pack 90 got a chance to show off their Pinewood Derby cars in front of the entire Lower School during the weekly town meeting today. Maumee Valley had an old track that had been in storage, but Becky tracked it down and the maintenance crew set it up for them in the Resource Center in the middle of the Lower School. Not only did they get to show the other kids their cars and how they race them, they held the Pack Derby heats live at town meeting. Only 2 kids from each Den can represent their Den at the District Wide Pinewood Derby, so they raced their cars and got the 2 fastest. Alex was one of the Scouts who will get to race his car at District. All of the kids will get to participate though because of our small numbers, the slower cars can enter the design competition at District.

Go, Go Speed Racer

Today Alex and I finished his Pinewood Derby car for Cub Scouts. He designed it on paper and then we went to the Anderson's hardware department a few weeks ago where they cut out his shape with a power saw. We sanded it and painted it. Alex hammered in the wheels. The steering wheel is a recycled wheel from another toy car. Alex applied the decals that Becky found for him. The car was a little lighter than the limit, so to make it speedier, we screwed 4 screws into the bottom to make it heavier. He was thrilled to make something like this that works from his own design. His pack race is in a few days, and then the district wide race is in a few weeks so he can put it to the test.

Scout Recruitment Party

Becky assembled the scouts of pack 90 and their families for a pizza & movie party tonight. We advertised it to the whole school, hoping to get some more kids interested. One extra kid and his dad showed up tonight - the dad had been a boy scout and believed in the Scouts as a way to help raise young men. Becky put together a great display of the Scouts and their adventures so far this year.
Wolf Den member Nicolai and I demonstrated what he had learned this year about folding the flag in the school cafeteria.

The kids enjoyed a movie called Down and Derby about parents relieving their Scout Pinewood Derby days through their sons' Derby. I had never seen it before, but it was actually funny, though I think it would be funniest for Scouts and their families, but not so much for the general population. It reminded us that the Derby should be fun and for the kids, not the parents. Our Derby will be in a couple of months.

Touring the Firehouse

Pack 90 took a tour of the Sylvania Fire Station today to learn about fire safety. They got a toor of the pumper trucks and ambulance. The firefighters demonstrated several pieces of their equipment and let the kids try out an infrared camera that they use to find hot spots in buildings. This tour and fire safety lecture got the boys one step closer to completing their Wolf and Bear badges.