webelos and scouting

i've been a webelos leader for about 8 months.

as much as i hate it, and confirms my feeling twice a month

that 10 year old boys are weird, annoying and stinky.

there is a part of me that likes it.

i think i like the working for and accomplishing a goal.

i never bring the kids but had no choice

 as we had just dropped eddie off at the airport an hour earlier.

i went straight home, fed them dinner, bathed and dressed in their pj's.

they then sat for an entire 2 hours in the stroller.

never once complaining or trying to get out. i was one lucky mama.

we had an arrow of light ceremony as 4 of my boys had earned them.

it was nice to get rid of these boys....i mean

it was nice to see them be recognized for their hard work.

our pack is a combination of 4 wards together, since our numbers are small.

so only one boy 'bridged' as he is the only one super serious about scouts.

the other boys will attend scouts, but only cause their parents will make them.

spencer is the cutest.

after pictures he came up to me and thanked me for helping him.

i never looked at it that way.

i just do my church calling and make sure they boys are progressing.

spencer with the order of the arrow.

travis with the order of the arrow.

one of the shiest kids i know. and awkward.

jordan with the order of the arrow.

 

elijah with the order of the arrow.

 

 now i am just down to one kid...well and two who don't show up.

then on saturday i had a merit badge event for the 11 year old scouts
i am on the stake primary board over scouting.
basically i am in charge of the merit badge event.
and the little philmont, leadership training.
i was lucky enough to have mike come teach robotics.
which is a new merit badge.
he is an elementary school teacher and did an awesome job.
we also had finger printing and genealogy....boring!!
but the two easiest to fit into a two hour period.

emi spent the night at gpa's and hung out with him all day.
while makai tagged along with me.
he was kind of a terror but it all worked out.
we walked around the building as much as i could get away.
eventually we went and found all the pianos.
he wore his scout onesie i picked up from the scout store last year.

18 out of the 22 boys showed up
robotics was a big hit.
mike was able to bring these robots from his school.

they had to work in teams of two to build and program the remotes.

makai was on ice duty.
he spend a majority of lunch by the drinks.
eating small chunks of ice or sucking on big ones.
the adults thought it was hilarious....
and probably thought i was a horrible parent but whatever.
he was happy and wasn't bothering anyone.

 now to start planning the next event.

weekly update

i usually try to run all my errands while emi is at school

or the kids are asleep in bed.

this afternoon makai got to ride in the car cart.

he seemed to enjoy it except for the fact that every time i stopped

he assumed it was time to get out.

i tried to get a picture of him and when i stopped the cart he tried to get out.

so i had just told him to sit back down in this picture.

makai is obsessed with his crocs.

like he wears them anytime he is awake.

and cries when i take them off when i change his diaper.

we rented the book on tape finding nemo.

she listens to it every single time we are in the car.

she was glued when i showed her the movie.

the beginning was a little scary and confusing.

 the book doesn't describe what happens but just says

that she goes out of their (anemone) house in front of a barracuda.

so when the scene was over, she was like what just happened?

that was fun to explain....food chain.

mr wiggle worm loves to be outside.

emi and i went over to gma and gpa's while the were out of town

while the garden was being watered we picked some cherries.

makai loves to paint in the bath.

i have been separating emi and makai during bath time.

as i am suppose to work on body parts with him

and when she is in there he doesn't care.

 

nakie bears at the dinner table.
we had just gotten home from the splash pad.
eddie was in charge of baths and pajamas.
but dinner was ready before he got them in the bath. so we ate first.

sometimes when emi wants to do something

like color or play with pay dough or have a snack.

something i would usually say yes to anyways...

i say: ok, but only if i can take a picture of you first. works every time.

makai has no fear.

this crazy boy prefers the 5-12 age appropriate area.

some girls were emi's age scared to go through this tunnel.

he was getting mad they wouldn't move out of his way.

the girls' dad thought it was hilarious.

here his two daughters older than makai were scared (how emi is)

i just had to explain he has no fear.

every single time she insists on climbing this dang rock.

she gets to the top then yells: help!!

making every parent turn their head and look.

even though i am usually just standing there waiting for her.

i was trying to get a picture of them in this bubble.

then makai heard a motorcycle.

he is obsessed with truck and motorcycle noises.

ah! finally some drapes for the sliding glass door.

eddie also installed ceiling fans in the kids rooms.

love my (learning how to be a) handy man!!

county fair

i talked eddie into going to the county fair with us.

i wanted to go to support the youth we are friends with.

specifically two of the boys being my cub scouts.

jacob raised and showed a steer as a novice.

except his older brother is an expert and does it for a living.

well he just got home from his mission but will do it i should say.

it was fun to watch him show...and the other kids for that matter.

one of the kids his mom had to come out cause his steer kept charging him.

his mom came out and whipped the steer into shape.

he was obviously disqualified...

jacob got 4th. he is 10 the other kids were in high school.

right after this picture or if you look closely you can see his steer leaning into him

his steer then charged him but jacob did a great job handling him.

alyssa is one of the young women from our previous ward.

i helped rescue her hogs that she showed last year. 

she placed 2nd this year in weight.

macie is also a young woman from our old ward and alyssa's best friend.

i think alyssa talked macie into doing a steer with her.

she had bad luck...her steer wasn't castrated properly the first time. 

so since it was a bull it didn't qualify to be shown at fair.

they purchased a second steer only to come underweight at 1,000 pounds

which makes it unqualified to be sold for meat at fair.

elijah is one of my webelos.

this is his first time at fair and chose a hog.

my personal opinion...super hard. he said he would never do it again.

he placed 2nd in weight, so that was good.

it was hot and dirty...and if we didn't see friends. it would have sucked.

don't worry i washed his hand before he had a snack.

it was pretty miserable as far as heat goes.

but makai loved all the farm animals.

emi on the other hand. hated it the entire time.

she drank all her water, ate all her snacks...and was hot and sweaty.

poor thing was sweating so bad. you can even see the sweat dripping on her forehead.

weekly update

emi is a freak and acts freezing when i have the ceiling fan on.

she must get that from her great gpa. he use to hate any wind blowing on him.

but i thought she looked so cute while watching tv.

i've been at my computer a lot this past week.

we have a huge stake merit badge event i am in charge of.

so i've been calling, emailing, designing handouts and posters.

crossing my t's and dotting my i's. i will be so happy once may 31st is over.

so since i've been on the computer more than usual. we have been blowing bubbles.

makai loves it. at first he wasn't sure about them. now he loves them.

a lady at eddie's work has given emi clothes for like the last 2 years.

 she seriously loves this outfit. she loves all of them.

but this one is her favorite. and basically has been wearing it daily.

she claims all she needs now are come cowgirl boots.

thursday was our 10 year anniversary.

and it was a pretty crappy day.

in the morning makai has a in-home appt to have his hearing tested

in the afternoon we had our bi-annual  a/c...furnace check-up

we had to add some freon...if i never heard that word again i would be happy.

we either needed to file a claim with our home warranty 

or have leroy, our favorite technician fix it for the same price as our service fee.

later we headed to costco....for dinner and shopping. so romantic. ha!

we planned to go somewhere for a romantic getaway but that budget is blown. 

as well as my new counter top and sink budget.

we ended the night trying to troubleshoot why my a/c in my car isn't working.

then we added freon and that didn't solve the problem.

and to add a cherry on top...i had my new shorts on that have jewels on the back buttons.

i forgot and leaned back on the car while eddie was working on the car.

as he asked me a question and i pushed my body off the car

my bejeweled button put a big ol' scratch in the car.

(which i did a second time 3 days later, but on the other side of the car. ugh!)

one good thing. we had some good family time that night.

makai was showing daddy his basketball skills.

eddie went for a run while emi rode her bike.

when they got home. makai was obsessed with her helmet.

i thought he looked so cute.

i had to get the propane tank to our bbq filled.

the cheapest i found was at ace hardware near my parents.

i invited emi to come along so she could see gpa (gma was at work)

it was a super sunny and hot day.

she wanted a picture of her on this little bench.

i had left my phone in the car and before i got it she didn't act like it was too sunny.

but when i took her picture she about fell off the bench.

she is such a funny girl.

i was trying to get a picture of makai hiding in his closet.

he covers his face and you can see his eyes through his fingers.

it's a cute and funny sight.

i didn't get a picture of makai, but i did get one of emi being a stinker.

on our way over to gma and gpa's she found her clown nose.

i guess last week at school they talked about clowns and the circus.

so she wanted to give this nose to her teacher for next year.

but she wanted one last picture with it.

tanner was so excited to show me the start of the garden.

which he claimed he did all by himself....

a few days later my dad claimed to doing it all by himself.

so i am not sure what the truth is. but it looks great.

his hair is getting crazy and long.

the top right portion is what gets crazy.

i love going in and checking on him.

more and more i think...when did he get so big.

sunday he had the most adorable outfit on.

another mom gave me some hand me down boots for makai.

they were perfect since all his church shoes don't stay on.

he did great in nursery. we attended our old ward, my parents current ward.

i had a stake primary meeting there during church.

eddie had a meeting at our church building 30 minutes before my meeting.

which is a 15 minute drive. so we went to 9am church.

we learned a few things. we are rusty at 9am church but we were still early.

9am is so much better for makai than 11am church.

and we miss our old ward!!

emi has been into wearing my clothes lately. specifically this dress.

i guess she wants to be just like me.

so makai has been clingy and feverish.

well i thought he felt hot a few times this past week but never took his temperature.

turns out....he got his bottom 2 year old molars.

he was very oral at his speech therapy appt.

which meant he was soothing himself, which i thought.

she asked if he was teething. i said no and checked his mouth after she left.

sure enough...those suckers snuck up on us.

gma finally had a day off. she is running herself ragged.

she works m-f, then this past month has been working weekends.

so sunday evenings are about the only time we see her lately.

emi was more than happy to help with the watering.

makai was trying to figure out where the hose was coming from.

emi stands on the edge of couch to look on the ledge for the remote.

not the huge one in her hand but the small apple tv remote.

i wanted to take her picture...and this is the look she gave me.

i knew it was gonna be an awesome day {insert sarcasm}

luckily an hour later i sent her off to school.

i just can't figure out makai's nap schedule. 

he usually naps at 1pm but lately by 11:30 he just can't stay awake.

when emi starts school in august...which seems like forever from now

she will go to school at 11. so maybe i can come home and lay him down.

we literally live less than 4 minutes from her preschool and he was out within 2.

makai sleeping through lunch meant emi got to have a 'picnic'

she requested a burrito (homemade) with fruit.

tuesday morning we drove the car to the repair shop 

for so much money i wanted to be able to make shaved ice 

with a whole new a/c everything...

on the way home we stopped by the park.

emi in her favorite outfit. ha!

makai has no fear and went down all the "big kids" slides

including going backwards and on his stomach.

he also climbed that ladder in the background...alone.

some man came to the park with his great dane.

when the dog saw the kids he came strutting over.

the man said: don't worry he is good with kids.

as i turned my head cause i had no idea he and his horse dog were there.

when i turned back to say: ok, my kids love big dogs

makai was on the last step...and i had a minor heart attack.

before i could even help him he was up and fine.

then the kids crowded the dog.

when the dog got excited and lunged towards emi she said:

whoa horsey!! the guy laughed so hard. makai was in dog heaven.

after we made it home makai pulled his favorite prank.

he pulls his pants down in a different room.

then comes in running and laughing his head off.

it really is so funny. he has such a fun personality.

one of the words we are working on is bubble.

well any word with a b...baby, ball, bubble

so i have been blowing lots of bubbles.

i am trying to have makai ask for more bubbles.

i thought this picture was hilarious. emi was saying bubble.

this boy cracks me up.

i was cleaning up the kitchen the other morning.

he seriously laid like that while i unloaded and washed some dishes.

finally, i decided i needed a picture.

he is also notorious for stealing my smoothie in the morning.

and drinking all the water in the spray bottle while i do emi's hair.

i went to water our garden one morning and was surprised with a strawberry.

our first couple of strawberries were victims to rollie pollies/potato bugs.

i had no clue a new one was growing.

i have yet to have one yet....just emi has been able to enjoy them.

makai was mesmerized by the a sign flipper.

like he literally looked like this the entire light.

i am sure he was like what in the world is going on.

plus the person was dancing...and he loves dancing.

one of the activities i have been working with makai on is body parts.

he was not interested in using a mirror, like suggested from his therapist.

he has really enjoyed the mr. potato heads

this past week he learned: nose, hair, ears, eyes and feet.

a huge improvement as just last week he only did nose and hair sometimes

emi has enjoyed them more.

oh man!! so i saw someone do a photo booth effect birthday video.

i convinced eddie we had to do it for russell's b-day.

niki, lookout for yours. ha!!

we laughed so hard. i cried i was laughing so hard.

eddie was featured on his barber shops IG account.

too bad the guy who cut his hair did a crappy job.

eddie claims it was the style of cut he tried. i beg to differ.

eddie spends more time on his hair

 than he does taking a shower and getting dressed for the day.

playing nicely together.

until he knocks over her tower, then all hell breaks loose.

she has been a devil child this past week. 

but that cute smile of hers smooths things over.