Cub Scouts hike by the lake

 Nick loves to climb! even walls!

 Nick and super buddy, Sam.

 Classic outhouse, this is for real! :)

Eagle Mountain Lake

And a HUGE tribute to moms, who tote their little tots to all of our Cub Scout events, even hiking. I admire them, I appreciate them and we have a blast with all our Cub Scouts. As a Cubmaster, I am lucky to work with men and women devoted to the wonderful, inspired cause of Scouting: Courage, Perserverence, Faith, Positive Attitude, Fitness, Compassion (Six of the 12 Core Values of Cub Scouting).

Cub Scout Caroling

We took our Cub Scout pack to a nursing home nearby on Sunday, Dec 20th. They sang lots of songs (all the scouts' siblings came which was wonderful!) We had about 25 people. Our Wolf Den Leader (a marvel!), Kristi Johansen, taught the boys (and some girls) how to play these chimes and so the kids played some pretty Christmas carols on the chimes for those in the lobby and cafeteria. It really brought the Spirit of Christ(mas)! I love going caroling!

Here's Maddie and some of scout siblings:

and here is Nick (next to Pete and Vince) playing the chimes.

Way to go, boys!

Christmas Crafts at Lowe's

Our groovy friend, Kristi, Nick's Wolf (Cub Scouts) Den Leader tipped us off on the Lowe's Build and Grow events that take place two Saturdays a month. Free, craft kids, goggles, aprons and a patch.

Today's craft was Gingerbread Houses

with a "lid" that opens. Nick wants to put birdseed in his and put it outside :)

Thanks, Kristi, the great idea!

Cub Scout FUN day rocks!

Get a bunch of boys, about 20 games, sports, and high energy--

and you have a CUB SCOUT FUN DAY!

A very Texan sport: calf roping!

Archery and BB gun-shooting

Walking on tin cans--it's harder than it looks!

Bowling on the Green

and waiting in line for the rock-climbing wall...

I don't think 8-9 year old boys know how to NOT make a funny face for the camera!

I want to mention that I am the Cubmaster and I am loving this volunteer work!!

Pinewood Derby 2009

A few months ago, we began our families first experience with Cub Scout's Pinewood Derby. Nick's grandpa was here and the kids LOVED working with him on sanding, painting, and adding weight to their cars. I never knew that there existed "regulations" for pinewood derby cars, so this was our first "official" experience.

Step 1: Cutting off excess wood/shaping the car. This was done by our Cub Master at his house the day before.

Step 2: Sanding the car

Nice shades, Nick!

Step 3: Painting the car Step 4: Attaching the wheels Step 5: Weighing the car and figuring out how much more/less weight it needs.

Thanks to our friends/neighbors for the use of their tiny scale. Step 6: Drilling holes to put the tiny metal balls of weight in (see bottom of car).

Step 7: Tightening wheels and putting graphite on the axels (graphite is very messy, if you haven't used it before: do it outside)

Here's all 3 cars, Ted's old one that his dad re-worked, Maddie's eyeball car, and Nick's shark car.

Now we watch the races and see how our cars do. Out of maybe 15 cars, Nick's came in 4th place for time. He was psyched!

The track was huge and there were signs everywhere and black & white checkered flags, it was really a fun night.

Maddie's eyeball car...

Our three cars raced each other--Nick's won.

The Three Buckwalter Boys: Nick, Ted, and "Bompa" Jim.

What made the weekend so special was having grandpa there to work with the kids--he enjoyed it very much and took all the regulations very seriously, which made the kids even more excited about the preparations and the race. We're so lucky he was here!!!

Our new Cub Scout!

Cub Scout Nick!

Once the kids at our church turn 8, they can join Cub Scouts. Nick worked to memorize the Cub Scout motto, handshake, theme, etc. and thus earned his Bobcat by his first Pack Meeting. It was Pinewood Derby and his car took 4th place!!

Much thanks to Bompa (Ted's dad) who helped him work on his car all afternoon while here visiting us in Texas. It was so fun. We are so proud of Nick!