Pinewood Derby

 Pinewood Derby always starts with a last minute panicked building and painting of cars.  We always let the kids choose their shapes, sand their cars, and decorate them as they choose.

Daniel's Car:

 Fiona's Car:

Genna:

Heidi's Car:

And I don't know what Lula's car looked like because for some reason, I didn't get a picture of it!

Waiting for the race to begin

Racing!

There were so many racers.  The Cub Scouts.  The girl scouts. The Boy Scouts.  Adults.  And siblings.  They all raced in their own races.

Daniel got fastest Wolf Car

 Genna got first place and Fiona got third place in the sibling division.

 And Daniel WON THE PINEWOOD DERBY FOR THE SECOND YEAR IN A ROW

 What can I say? You can't keep a Downen down!

Spelling

Today I got to show Daniel why it is important to be a good speller.  He doesn't want to be the adult responsible for this:

I do love getting a spelling/vocab lesson out of this blooper (wolves/wolf's/wolfs).  I asked what he was wolfing down in the picture and he laughed. I heard they are going to do retakes because the pictures aren't even in focus.  And that's why you should never hire your friend to take "portraits" unless your friend happens to be a real professional.

Pinewood Derby

The same weekend Genna and I were in Lynden for Vault Into Spring, Mark held down the fort and took the rest of the kids to opening weekend for baseball and the Pinewood Derby!  Mark has tons of experience building Pinewood Derby cars, but there is always more to learn.  After sweeping the entire race, he is happy to host a STEM clinic for scouts about building a winning car.

Daniel: First Place

Lula: First Place and Fiona: Third Place

Mark is quite certain Heidi's car was the fastest of the bunch, but may have been disqualified simply because the judges didn't want the Downens to bring home all the trophies.  Did I mention Mark is now the Cubmaster?

Daniel's Winter Camp Out

Daniel got to spend the weekend participating with the Cub Scouts at their Winter Campout.  He and Mark didn't stay overnight (both of them like to go to bed early and get up early and eat their own food early), but they still had lots of fun!

One of the fun activities was a giant swing.  The swing was simply a climbing harness attached to a long rope.  The rule was, if the harness fit, you could swing.

 The way the swing worked was you climb a tall ladder on a platform, get pulled by a staff member until you were really high in the air, and when you were ready, you unhooked another rope and you swung free over a ravine.  I'm so glad I wasn't there.

See that tiny thing up there? That's my baby.

 I much prefer the safety of a climbing wall.

They also played lots of fun, competitive games and Daniel was chosen for teams frequently.  He has been a late bloomer socially, so have Cub Scouts has been invaluable.  Being stuck between two sets of sisters was supposed to gentle him a bit, but I don't like the way he is starting to mimic the way they talk.

Wilderness survival was probably the most fun.  Daniel built a very nice shelter, don't you think?

Launching to Cub Scouts!

Daniel has been so excited to start Cub Scouts. Yesterday was his first day and what better way than launching a rocket?

He was ready and waiting in the car a good half hour before they needed to leave.

Since we didn't know if he and Mark would make it to the launch, Mark had to run to the store at the last minute and buy a rocket that was pretty much snap together.  Then he had to drive to another store to find the right engines.

We'll save the fun of building rockets together for another day, when all the kids are a little older.  Genevieve acted as my photographer and she took over 200 pictures!

But this one is my favorite.  Daniel has been MY boy for the last six years.  I had a hard time not packing all the girls up and making his first day of scouts a family event (which it was).  I sighed and silently passed my invisible Daniel baton over to Mark. The time has come to let him grow and learn with his dad.

Crossover (Shane)

Last night, Shane crossed over into Boy Scouts and received his Arrow of Light award.  Arrow of Light is the highest award a boy can earn while a Cub Scout.

Before the Ceremony

Shane was also a Webelos Super Achiever because he earned all 20 of the activity badges.  But you can't see them...they are little pins on his shoulder.  All those other giant patches all over his red vest are for participating in other activities like the Pinewood Derby and selling popcorn.  I ran out of places to put these patches and had to dangle them from safety pins in between other patches.  The most meaningful patches for me were his patch from his first summer camp, the baseball game, and the medals he earned by placing in Pinewood Derbies (1st and 3rd) and Raingutter Regattas (1st, 2nd, and 3rd).

Mark's assistant leader bringing the boys in.

Mark's favorite memories are also placing in the races, catching fish, and of course, the polar bear swims.  Shane's favorite memories are the same as Mark's, plus tubing at Camp Sheppard, ("Oh yeah, that was great!" says Mark).  Another classic story would be Mark's first camping trip as a leader when he came home with ticks.

We were fortunate that the new covered picnic shelter at the Civic Center was completed in time for Crossover!  The rain poured down all day and didn't stop!

Mark did a wonderful job leading the ceremony...too bad I missed it.  Heidi didn't like the cold, the rain, the crowd, or the drums.  Another leader offered to hold her so I could present Shane with his award.  She did not like that and kept checking to make sure I was holding her for the rest of the evening.  I shouldn't have even bothered going, but I love Shane and I'm so proud of him.

Arrow of Light: The stripes on the arrow represent Shane's awards and past participation

I'm proud of Mark too.  He had the most difficult den I have ever heard of.  The thing about being a den leader that no one really understands, is being a den leader is like another full time job.  Once a week for five years, Mark (or I back in the Tiger/Wolf years) had to come up with a meeting plan that would keep these boys active and interested in scouts for an hour and a half AND get them through their rank requirements.  The work is not without its rewards.  As Mark painted each boy's face, he felt like he knew each boy personally, which he did.  He was just as proud as each boy as he was of Shane.

It rained, it poured.

After the boys received their Arrow of Light, they crossed the rope bridge constructed by the boy scouts.

Waiting his turn

After the crossing, the Boy Scouts surrounded their new member and dress him with his new scarf, slide, and epaulets. 

This mom is happy that her First Class Scout was involved with his brother's crossing.

As this point, the rain was absolutely dumping on us, but it didn't "dampen" anyone's spirits (thanks for the pun, Mark).  Mark was fondly remembering all the rainy day camping trips and thought it was appropriate to be huddling under a pop up shelter.  I was remembering how it poured down when we entered scouts and how it was pouring as we left... and how it just seemed to pour the whole time we were involved with this pack.

Mark's den (raindrops keep fallin' on my lens...)

The pack that we knew is now the troop we still know, so crossing over isn't going to be a new start, just a new meeting day where the boys will have to learn to manage themselves. Both Shane and Ian have learned so many life lessons from scouting, as I've said before.  After five solid years of scouting with the same group of people, one would think that our family would have become close with at least one other family, but I'm starting to think that isn't going to happen.  One of the most important lessons we are learning together is friends come and go, but family is family forever.

It's all fun and games...

I went through my pictures for the last five days and they were all just a random bunch of snap shots... But every snap shot tells a quick funny story...

Like Daniel getting buried in the sandbox.  Normally this is fun.  But when all the carpenter ants in Washington State are swarming and mating and they really like our sandbox, burying your sibling might seem like a form of torture. 

Ian and I found Ninja Penguin defeated by a foe.  Again, it was Fiona.  Did she have an explanation? She said something about him attacking the dinosaurs they were playing with or something.

Awww...my little thumb sucker!  I love the age she is in right now.  She knows me and lights up and laughs when she sees me coming to rescue her from her bouncy seat.  Mark tried giving her a bottle this evening so I could get dinner heated up.  But she wouldn't accept him feeding her! Only her mama and siblings can hold her bottle!

This is a snap shot of a wedding that Evie and I watched live online.  The bride is the oldest daughter of one of my favorite bloggers and a family we scouted with before we moved.  For some reason, this wedding had a huge effect on me.  I had to spend a few days thinking about why.  And I think I figured it out... I'm a reader and have always loved reading.  The worst part about a good fiction tale is that the story ends and you always want to know what happens next.  You feel like you get to know the characters in the book (I swear, Ramona Quimby, Laura Ingalls, Jo March, and Anne Shirley were my best friends growing up) and you cry when they cry and laugh when they laugh.  Reading someone's blog is like reading a book that never ends.  You experience the ups and downs of their lives right along with them (you know, as long as the ups and downs are blogged)!  That beautiful bride gave us Ling-Ling five years ago when she was twelve! And now she is married and moving to the other side of the world! Evie was so enchanted by the whole story of the bride and groom and every word the pastor said about marriage.  I thought about my own marriage and was inspired by the pastor's message.  The wedding was such a special moment my little girl and I shared, thanks to the family that opened their lives for others to peek in to...

I call this picture Bigfoot Sighting.  Ian earned his First Class rank in Boy Scouts this week AND his feet are bigger than mine!  Mark and I left Shane in charge of Fiona and Daniel and enjoyed a potluck dinner with only two little kids in tow (Evie was in dance class) for Ian's Court of Honor. It was almost like being on a date...with two babies....and a room full of scouts...  and then Lula decided she was no longer a good little girl and I spent the evening with her in the car.  I would have just left and come home, but I left the keys at the table.  We are so proud of the work that Ian is putting into scouts.  He seems to have figured out how the whole system works and is showing a lot of growth in his time management and goal setting.

Daniel has been pretending the wood stake and flower pot are a teeter-totter.  He was not happy with the way the stake kept sliding off the pot, so his little scientific mind went to work...

 ...he needed some way to stick that stake to the pot and the stickiest thing he could think of was glue.

I loved, loved, LOVED watching his mind go through the scientific method all on his own and coming to his own conclusions.  I couldn't have planned a better problem solving activity for him.  Of course the glue didn't stick and he wandered off to do something else before the glue dried, but watching him identify a problem and come up with a solution just made my day.

Now if only he could come up with a solution to the hole in our bathtub!  Can you believe that Lula did that with her CHIN?  The same chin that split open? The doctor must have added some reinforcement or something, because she hit that tub HARD!  I was washing her hair and she tried to escape, but she slipped.  I pulled her right out expecting to see blood pouring down her chin, or at least out of her mouth, but there was nothing...just a teeny tiny scratch on her scar.  Mark was MAD. He said to Lula, "You are the most expensive kid yet!" Yep, highest charge for her birth, had to buy a new van, the bill for the stitches, and now replacing the bathtub! (We are actually going to patch the hole, but when Mark called her the expensive kid he didn't know the hole was fixable)  She is also the first kid to wander down to the pond by herself, so I'm going to install some field fencing around the sandbox/play area and lock her up!  There isn't enough money in the world to replace my Lula Joy!

Tomorrow is going to be a big day for us.  Shane is crossing over from Cub Scouts to Boy Scouts.  We are packing up the entire family for this.  And the weather forecast is for rain! 

I've been trying to locate all the patches Shane has earned this year and get them sewed on for his last day as a Cub Scout.  I'm out of room though...

First Class Scout

Mark, Ian, and Shane went camping this past weekend.  The Boy Scouts and Cub Scouts shared one camp and enjoyed earning fishing merit badges and belt loops on opening day for trout season.  This was the first time the Downen boys were able to go fishing on opening day since Mark is working (he worked on this opening day too).

One of the requirements for the fishing merit badge is catching, cleaning, and cooking a fish.  And Ian did it! Note that EATING said fish is not required for the merit badge.  But Ian ate his fish too (he caught two).

Shane (in the green and black jacket) practiced catch and release and caught three trout.  He also decided that fishing is way more fun than video games.  This was Shane's LAST camp out as a Cub Scout.  In just a few days, he will be receiving his Arrow of Light award and crossing over into Boy Scouts!

Ian also completed the last requirements he needed for First Class Scout.  He lashed a tripod ("It was such a nice tripod. The Scoutmaster could hang from it." -Ian), completed Safety Afloat (boat safety), and meal planning.

It rained most of the weekend.  Ian's tent mate pitched their tent in a low spot.  The second night, when it really poured, their tent flooded!  Both boys ended up abandoning their tent and sleeping in the covered eating area...

...on cement!  Ian's spot wasn't wet, but he was a good friend and stayed with his buddy.  You only need to learn once that pitching a tent in a low area is a bad idea.

And, of course, Mark can't go on a camp out without organizing a polar bear swim.  One brave parent and our two boys were the only ones to join him.  I hear it was pretty cold!  All three of them came home in high spirits.  Scouting has been very good for them.