Projects, Projects & More Projects!

We've got quite a few projects going on around here right now!  This week Kyle will be finishing up his Pinewood Derby car.  His final Cub Scouts Pinewood Derby race is this coming Saturday!  With quite a few Pinewood Derby cars under his belt now, Kyle was able to construct this one pretty much all by himself, needing very minimal help from Jim.  He is looking forward to the races on Saturday, but he knows that - unfortunately - even if he wins he will not be able to advance due to the fact that the Pinewood Derby is a Cub Scouts event & the Regional race is scheduled to happen after he crosses over to Boy Scouts.  I'm kind of disappointed about this - especially since Kyle will become a Boy Scout at the very end of February & the Regional race is in early March...but I guess this is how it's always been.

Also this week Kyle will be attempting to finish the work required to achieve the Parvuli Dei award - a prestigious Cub Scouts religious award given out by Fr. Codega on Scout Sunday - February 8th.  The Parvuli Dei workbook includes many time consuming - but fun - activities which need to be completed before the 8th.  Kyle has been doing 1 activity per day but starting this week he will do 2 to ensure that he finishes the workbook in its entirety with plenty of time for the Religious Coordinator to review (and approve) the book.

In between the projects mentioned above we will be working on our first "Road Trip" presentation.   "Road Trip" is a monthly activity hosted by our local homeschooling community.  Each participating family chooses 1 State (out of a list of about 4-5 States) to "present"; we are supposed to share facts & interesting tid-bits about the State & bring in a food/drink item that is popular from that State to be shared at the pot-luck style lunch.  It sounds really interesting & fun to me, so I signed us up!  I let Kyle choose the State that we'll present - he chose 'Arizona'.   We spent a little time last week doing some research & have decided to make a poster board collage that will have various pictures stating facts about the State.  So far we've got pictures of the Arizona state bird, animal, flower & flag. I am going to have Kyle & Bella cut out & label the pictures for the collage, then Savannah can glue them on the poster board & all 3 of them can color them in.  We're also planning on listing some unique facts about the State, too.   For our pot-luck contribution we will make Enchiladas - a dish that originated from Arizona.  The first "Road Trip" class of the month meets in just a couple of weeks, so I'd like to get this project done & out of the way soon.

Jim & I also have some projects of our own going on; We have to create the Arrow Of Light board to present to Kyle at the Cub Scouts Blue & Gold event (at the end of February).  Jim actually cut the board last year, so that's one less thing to have to worry about.  We received the arrow yesterday, so now we can start working on what will end up being a very special piece of memorabilia for Kyle.  I want Jim to stain the board before we start decorating it with various items from Kyle's uniforms, belts and vest - patches, belt loops, achievements etc.  I spent a ridiculous amount of time yesterday detaching these things from his stuff..not easy!  I would also like to have the board engraved.  I'm going to see if the person who engraved his Black Belt sword can engrave the board for us, too..

And finally, as we near the end of our adventures in Cub Scouts, I am busy getting the Scouts in my den all situated before they make the "cross over" next month.  Tonight we are attending a meeting at Boy Scouts.  The boys will get a chance to see how the Boy Scout meetings are run while the parents can discuss with the Scoutmaster what kinds of activities to expect once their boys are "officially" Boy Scouts.  I will likely sit in on the next Boy Scout Committee Meeting, too.  After we tackle the Pinewood Derby on Saturday, we have our final "Pack Meeting" to attend next Tuesday - where the boys will get their last batch of Cub Scouts awards.  Then, towards the end of this month, I have planned a short hiking trip at a nearby wildlife refuge trail located in Seekonk.  Once we do the hike we will have completed all of the requirements needed to achieve the "Arrow Of Light" - whew!  I've also planned a Blue & Gold Planning Meeting to happen this month.  It's a big, detailed event so I'm hoping to rope in at least a handful of volunteers.   In early Feb the other den leader has invited my den on a camping trip, but I do not know if Me/Jim/Kyle will be able to go.  At the moment our plates are overflowing with multiple activities because, in addition to Scouts, we're still juggling Karate & Dance, too.  Our time can only be stretched so thin.