Twilight Camp

It's probably not going to be shocking when I confess that I am not super excited about being in places that require bug spray and allergy meds, wearing a uniform, or being surrounded by 400 little boys.  But...that's how I spent my week.  After I dropped three girls and a set of crutches off at a muddy trek site, I transformed into a walking den leader for McKay's little pack of Webelos at Twilight Camp.  3:30-9:00pm Monday through Friday.  

Five little boys in matching yellow t-shirts piled into my van armed with buckets full of day camp necessities...water bottles, neckerchiefs to distinguish them from all the other little boys in yellow t-shirts, lunches, hats, and swaps!  

Swaps are little trinkets (either homemade or store bought) that the boys bring to trade with each other.  They collect as many as possible and pin them onto their hats.  By the end of the week, most of the boys are covered in swaps.  

last year's swaps...we made the little boots at the top

this is last year's hat covered in swaps (holy cow! look how little McKay was)

This year, we made a cute little sushi swap.  (You just never know what's going to catch the interest of a 10-yr-old boy.)  These were really fun and easy to make, and apparently a big hit with the other 10-year-old boys.  By the end of the week we saw lots of sushi swaps walking around camp on boys' hats.  

I have to say, as reluctant as I was to actually put on my camp shirt and go hang out in the wilderness with Cub Scouts, it wasn't nearly as bad as I had anticipated.  These camps are amazingly organized.  The boys spent the week rotating through projects and activities directed by trained volunteers.  They were scheduled down to the minute every single day.  All I really had to do was follow them around and assist with an occasional hammer or glue stick.  

Ring Toss wood project

Noodle Wars

BB Shooting (that's my little bandit second from the left)

Astronomy (that's a telescope in McKay's lap...that he actually assembled)

And this was my favorite project of the week...Game Boxes!

On Monday, the boys drew templates on a wood box and colored them with Sharpie markers and turned them into multi-functional, portable game sets.  On one side there is a Tic-Tac-Toe board.  One the other is a checker/chess board.  And inside is a backgammon board.  The boys received checker/backgammon pieces and Tic-Tac-Toe pieces with their boards on the first day.

 On Wednesday, they made their own chess pieces out of nuts and bolts.  So cool! 

And then on Friday, they had a chess tournament.  By the end of the week, 400 boys had earned their chess belt loop and academic pin, and part of their Craftsman requirements from just this one little game set.  And they loved it!  

I actually really enjoyed hanging out with my little Webelos this week.  They are smart and funny and get along with each other really well.  Twilight Camp wasn't as difficult as I thought it would be.  The weather was blissfully tolerable.  I was able to spend a whole lot of time bonding with McKay in a way that we typically don't get to.  And I did things I didn't think I could do.  Who knew that I would willingly let 30 boys attack me with pool noodles?  Who knew that I could learn to ignore grasshoppers even while I ate my lunch?  Who knew that I would be completely unphased by the tarantula that crawled through our little woodworking site?  I know the girls did some really hard things on trek, but I did some pretty hard things this week, too.  It was a week filled with personal victories!  

There is so much work that goes into Cub Scouts.  I'm so grateful for people who aren't deterred by a little heat and a few grasshoppers, and who sacrifice countless personal hours to make Twilight Camp happen.  And I am in awe of the ones who do it year after year after year.  

Throwback Thursday

In 2003, just after McKay was born, we sold our beautiful home in Atlanta and moved to Utah.  

Craig had plans to open his own insurance agency once we got to Cache Valley, but there was a transition period while he looked for office space, trained with Allstate, and took a series of licensing exams.  For almost 3 years, we lived in his parents' basement.  Even though my in-laws had a lovely, spacious home and generously shared it with us, I don't often look back on those "basement years" with fondness.  It was difficult for me to live in someone else's house with four little kids and most of our belongings in a storage shed.  I longed for the day when we could buy our own home and I wouldn't have to worry about toys left in the pathway of elderly people.  Eventually we did move into a perfect little house just a few blocks away from the grandparents, and family life returned to normal…for a little while.  

We have moved into and out of three houses since those basement years, and I still don't think about them without remembering a good share of challenges.  But today, when I came across these pictures, I was suddenly filled with so much gratitude for my in-laws, especially my father-in-law.

Craig's dad is an infinitely patient man who adores his grandchildren.  I had forgotten until today about those days when McKay would climb up the stairs to read the paper with Grandpa in the mornings...  

…and how Grandpa always invited McKay to help him fix things.

By far, McKay's favorite place to be was outside.  As soon as the snow melted, Craig's dad was out maintaining his beautiful yard.  And McKay was right there with him.  Every tool Grandpa used, McKay had a matching one.  Every job that needed to be done, McKay was the official helper.  If Grandpa was wearing his work hat, McKay would wear his.  Grandpa rarely made a move in those days without his small shadow right behind him.

And even though there were jobs to be done, and Grandpa was very busy, he always made time to not only include McKay in the work, but also to teach him and talk to him.  They stopped to look at birds and worms.  They talked about the kinds of flowers and trees they were caring for.  They carefully cleaned and put away all the tools they used.  And then they would sit on the deck and have a little lemonade after they were finished and admire all their hard work.  And always, Grandpa would rave about how much help McKay had been to him.   McKay learned from his Grandpa the joy of being outside, the pride that comes from a job that's done well, and the great talent of figuring things out.  At ten years old, McKay is a meticulous sorter and organizer.  He can take apart anything AND put it back together.  And he is eager to learn everything he possibly can.  I'm sure that is, in large part, due to those early years with a Grandpa who was a wonderful example.   

Even though those two and a half years were long for me, they were such a huge blessing.  Having grandparents around definitely eased the burden of keeping four children entertained.  They were our on call babysitters when we needed to escape, and our live-in advisors when we had late night questions about Craig's business and our plans for life.   Our kids were able to forge strong, lasting bonds with their grandparents in those two and a half years that would have taken them much longer had we lived in our own home.

So...ten years later, from a vastly different perspective, I am grateful for the places we've been, the roads we've traveled, the storms we've weathered, and especially for my kind and gracious in-laws for making so much of that possible.  Our lives have truly been blessed because of them.