Welcome to scouting - June 2000


The end is in sight - January 2011


Actually, there is never really an end to scouting in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, but don't tell the youngest son that right now.

Today I am thankful for

a son who put his scout uniform on when I asked him to.
a daughter who took pictures of her brother.
another daughter who provided the camera and technical support.
a son who made a special trip to my house to help me get all my scout pictures into one file.
a husband who burned the pictures to a cd and delivered it to where it needed to be.

Signed, Sealed, Delivered - It's Done!

HURRAY! HURRAY! HURRAY!
Tonight in the "Rain Storm of the Century" the youngest son and I FINALLY delivered his COMPLETED Eagle Scout Leadership Service Project notebook to the person in charge.
IT IS DONE!
Now he has to present his project to the Board of Review on Tuesday night and when they approve it he will be FINISHED.
Let me say it again - HURRAY! HURRAY! HURRAY!

Today I am thankful for

a husband who can quickly change the color ink cartridge in the printer and knows how to burn CDs.a cooperative son (at least every once in a while).
a little sunshine on a rainy day.

I'm not sure that ASU red and gold are his colors, but he can definitely brighten up any moment.

Breakfast with Santa

This has been Eagle Scout project month for us. Last night I helped scrub cupboards for a friend's son's project. He cleaned and painted two two bedroom apartments and helped furnish them for the Save the Family Foundation which helps homeless families get off the streets and into a home. He is only 13 and we are all proud of him for getting his Eagle earned early.

Today I got invited to take behind the scenes pictures at another friend's son's project. This was a Breakfast with Santa to collect books, toys and cookies for the Phoenix Children's Hospital.


Can I just say, this was by far the most fun eagle project I have participated in. I am quite capable of eating and taking photographs. I am capable of cleaning, painting and shoveling dirt as well, but that's not quite as much fun.

The oldest daughter and I felt that this was a wonderful time for the grandson to get introduced to Santa so a few (more like half) of the behind the scenes photos I took included the grandbaby. Who can blame me though when he is so dog gone cute?

He happened to be one of the more content, small children sitting on Santa's lap.

I wasn't responsible for the photos with Santa, so hopefully the scout's mother, who was, got a picture that wasn't quite as blurry.

The grandson was actually a lot more interested in talking to the Christmas tree than in talking to Santa however. It's obvious he hasn't figured out where the presents come from yet.





To show that I wasn't just taking pictures of the grandson though, here is a wonderful shot of the scout doing exactly what an Eagle Scout candidate is suppose to do - Telling people what to do.

And this last picture of a very tired mother is proof positive that without moms very few young men would ever earn their Eagle Scout rank.

Four Birthdays at Geronimo

Today my youngest son turns 17 and he is not even here to celebrate with. He is spending his 4th birthday in the last 6 years at Scout Camp.

He was at Camp Geronimo when he turned 12, 13 and 14 as well. Although he has sometimes complained ahead of time that he is going to miss his birthday, usually he comes home feeling like it was OK. The cooks always bake him a cake to make his day special. This is this year's cake.

Happy Birthday Dear Son. I hope you're having a wonderful day!

Today I am grateful for

kids to go to the temple with me.

my youngest son. He makes my life more exciting.

word processing programs, much easier than using a typewriter or writing things out by hand.

One year ago today - My baby is 16, A Cell Phone - Finally!

Off to Camp

A couple of months ago I got an interesting phone call from my hubby. He asked me if our youngest son was going to scout camp this year. Our ward takes the 12 and 13 year old boys to Camp Geronimo for a week each year. I thought that perhaps my husband was getting old and had forgotten that our son is almost 17, not 12 or 13. I replied, "No, why?" He then told me that he had received an e-mail from the scoutmaster that said that our son was attending camp this year as the Junior assistant scoutmaster. Hmm, this was news to me. When my son came home from school that day I asked him about this. He told me "Yeah, I told him I would go if that wasn't the week of our Priest Summer activity." I was surprised that he was so agreeable with the idea.

Since this son is the youngest member of our family, he doesn't get too many opportunities to be the leader. At least not in our home. We all tend to think of him as the one who needs to be led, not the leader. That is why I am glad that his scout leaders view him differently and are willing to give him the change to be a leader. He seems to rise to the occasion when he is given responsibility by them and it is a great thing for me see.

This morning he was up early to head to camp.

Somehow, since our first conversation, the son has become a little less agreeable with the whole camp idea. It has turned into "I had no choice." and "I'm not going to survive or some of the punk scouts are not going to survive". I think this is just him trying to uphold his image. You don't want to admit that going to scout camp with a bunch of 12 and 13 year olds sounds fun to you when you are going to be a senior in high school. Hopefully it will turn out to be a positive experience and he will be the helpful leader that his leaders, and his mother, know he can be.

New and Improved

Frequently companies come out with new and improved versions of their products. Sometimes I am a fan of the new version and sometimes I wonder why they couldn't have just left a product I already liked alone.

Take the new and improved brown licorice - not a fan.

However, Press and Seal plastic wrap - a big fan.

I would have to say that I am definitely a fan of the "new" resealable Oreo cookie package.


Now, I know that this design has been around for awhile, but I usually only purchase Oreos once a year so I haven't really tested it out before now. I thought it was a great improvement. I could close those cookies up pretty tight and still get at them in a matter of seconds when the urge hit me.

Then I think there are some improvements that sound like a good idea in theory, but end up having some inherent problems. Recently my youngest son became the proud owner of a new pair of scout pants. These pants are the new Centennial design and they are long pants with legs that zip off to become shorts.

Great idea you would think but let's think a little harder. Here is a group of scouts out hiking. They get hot and wah-la their long pants become shorts. Perfect. Unless you are a mother of one of those scouts. If the bottom portion of the pant leg actually makes it into the back pack rather than left on a rock or accidentally dropped from a pocket somewhere along the trail, it most likely will not end up in the laundry when he returns home. It's small and easy to miss. I have spent lots of bonding time with my sons searching for a missing scout shirt or scout pants 20 minutes before that court of honor where a scout uniform is a requirement. These new and improved pants just add the very real possibility of 2 more missing items to frantically hunt for.

Or imagine the last day of a week at scout camp. All of the scouts are packing their bags and the scout leaders are picking up the left over items. Here we have a pile of scout pant legs. How do they decide which legs belong with which pair of pants? The boys certainly don't know which ones are theirs. It's possible the ones from their tent belong to them, but it's just as possible that they were thrown into their tent during a pant leg fight. The leaders very efficiently divide up the legs. Each boy gets two and quite possibly ends up going home with one short leg and one long leg, or 2 left legs. Not a pretty sight. Perhaps other scouts are more responsible they my boys were at 13, but I'm not counting on it. This might be a great idea or it might be a huge mistake. I will wait to give my final verdict on this change, at least until my 17 year old gets home from scout camp on Saturday, hopefully with his pants all in one piece.

One year ago today - Poison Cake, Lunch in a Truck

Flying the Flag

For quite a few years now our scout troop has posted flags in neighborhood yards on holidays as a fund raiser for scout camp. The sons, the hubby and I have all taken our turns getting up early on holiday mornings and driving around the neighborhood searching for the tiny PVC pipe flag holders often hidden in the various subscriber's front yards. We have all lived through it. This morning when I walked outside and noticed the flag flying in our neighbor's yard I will admit that I was grateful that my sons are both too old to have to put up flags anymore.
Every year I have declined the offer by various scouts to place a flag in my front yard. For some reason this is a fund-raiser I have a problem with. I firmly believe that each home in the United States should own an American flag and be responsible for flying it on national holidays. I don't feel that this is a scout responsibility. I feel it is an American privilege.
I remember as a child standing at attention, with my hand over my heart, as my brother raised or lowered the flag on the flag pole in our front yard. I was taught to respect the flag, honor it, and how to fold it properly. This was important to me and still is.
This morning when I saw the neighbor's flag I went inside to get our flag and put it up. I found the flag, but the flag pole was missing in action. I searched in every closet, behind every door, under every couch, but I couldn't find it anywhere. Finally, I sent the hubby to the store to purchase a new one. Soon the flag was flying and I once again felt like a grateful American as I enjoyed watching it wave in the breeze.


Today I am grateful for

sons who both worked very hard without even being asked.
the freedom I enjoy because of the men and women who have made sacrifices in my behalf.
the privilege to own and fly the American flag.

One year ago today - Frogs don't like Orange Peels

No More Merit Badges

Tonight our scout troop had a Court of Honor that I attended. It is always fun to see all the young men accept responsibility and accomplish their goals by earning merit badges and rank advancements. There were a lot of awards given out tonight. It often seems like in the church once boys turn 14 their progress in scouting seems to really slow down or stop completely. Tonight all the Life Scouts were challenged to not quit but to keep moving and receive their Eagle Rank. My youngest son was one of these scouts. His Scoutmaster officially told him that he could "stop earning merit badges". He has enough.

Now if he can just push himself a little bit longer and harder and get that Eagle project completed. He is so close. He is not sure that this is important to him, but I know that someday it will be. I hope he can hang in there and just do it!

Today I am thankful for

the scouting program that has helped my sons learn to set goals and accomplish them.
scout leaders who expect my son to rise to his potential.
friends to sit by at church meetings.

Family Life Merit Badge

Tonight in Young Men
our youngest and his peers
worked on the Family Life Merit Badge.

This merit badge and
an Eagle Scout Project
are the only two things
standing between this son
and his Eagle Scout Rank.

During the evening he was asked to:
List 10 reasons you are important to your family.
He came up with two that I fell privy to,
from a peer, not from him.
1. Comic Relief
2. Good Looks

When I heard about his response
I did laugh.
I'm not sure if I laughed
because of the Comic Relief comment
or the Good Looks one.
Anyway, he does contribute
Comic Relief to our family.
I won't mention that sometimes
it is because of him
that we need it.
Oops, I guess I just mentioned it.

I am his mother
and of course I think he is good looking.
I'm just not quite sure why
that makes him important to our family.
Is he trying to say that it is
only because of him
that the camera doesn't break every time
we take a family photo?

I found his paper where he had recorded his responses
and he had one more listed.
3. Protection

I guess he is getting big enough that
he could protect me if he had to.
I hope he never has to.
I know he is willing to stand up for
what he believes in and by doing so
he is protecting our family
and the values that we have.

I personally thought he would have written down
4. Slave Labor

but perhaps I haven't been demanding enough lately.
He does provide slave labor for me
and even his siblings sometimes,
usually not by choice.
I know from experience that this
is the job of a youngest child.

I have decided to come up with the other 6.
5. Affection

He is still willing to show affection
to every member of our family.
Even his mom.
Even in public.

6. Youth

He helps keep me and the hubby young
by involving us in his school
and church activities
and by challenging us to
one on one basketball games.
The hubby takes the challenge
more frequently than I do.
He is willing to show me how to work
the computer or my cell phone
and other new technology
when I feel old and stupid.
He also explains to me what all
the current words and phrases
teenagers use mean.

7. Hard-worker

He has the strength and the stamina to
complete a lot of the hard labor around our home
when the rest of us start fizzling out.

On the youth trek this past spring

his pa refered to him as the work horse.
When he puts his mind to it
he is a very hard worker.

8. Knowledge

Even though he sometimes tries
to keep it a secret
he is one smart cookie
and he has a lot of information to share
both intellectual and spiritual.

9. Enthusiasm for Family Traditions

He is the family member
who always wants to get out
the Holiday decorations and
have family activities.

10. Helpful

He can be the most helpful
member of our family
when he chooses to be.
I just wished it happened
a little more frequently. (:

This young man is an important
part of our family
and I hope he knows it.

Today I am grateful for

Young Men Leaders who encourage my son to work on merit badges and to earn his Eagle Scout rank.
My children who are all important to our family.
Four movie passes that I won as the door prize at tonight's Indian Education parent meeting.

Today's birthmonth present to myself was a trip to the public library. I think libraries are one of the greatest inventions in the whole wide world.