The boys and I had our first day of Scouts yesterday, not at a meeting, but at a popcorn sale! Our new group gives families the choice to fund raise for their membership dues or just pay them. Its easy to write a check and have the school reimburse us, but its more fun to give the boys a chance to work hard and earn the money (and the prizes).
But then it rained. Hard. Torrential downpour! Our carport flooded! And I really wanted to stay home and forget the whole thing. But I wanted to set a good example for my boys and be cheerful and prepared and DO MY BEST (which is the Cub Scout motto). So we donned our galoshes, layered our shirts, and drove the long trip in to the grocery store where our table was set... in the rain. But wouldn't you know it, the rain stopped! And the boys raised half of their memberships in three hours.
The great thing about returning to the town I grew up in was that I saw several people I knew a long time ago. For example, I saw my high school choir teacher. I called to him by name. He had to stop and make polite conversation with me and ended up donating all the cash he had in his pocket. He had to. I spent hours and hours fundraising for our choir in high school!
So selling popcorn in front of the grocery store ended up being not as bad as I thought it would be and the boys and I are really glad we did it. We had way more sales than we did just asking friends and family last year (so for my friends who are involved with our old pack, sign up for the store option if they have it!). Our first actual meeting is tomorrow, so I will take a picture of the boys in uniform then.
