This is a momentous occasion for two reasons. First off, this will mark the first time I am actually blogging in real time (and not playing catch-up). Second, Joseph earned his first awards for Scouting. Joseph earned his Tenderfoot and 2nd Class ranks tonight in Troop 668, as well as five merit badges: swimming, leatherwork, art, engineering, and woodwork.
So, this may be our last chance for an Easter egg hunt, for a while. It always seem to end in disaster and contention. We tried to lay out the ground rules, but they were disregarded.
Now, I don't mean to point any fingers, but notice the size of Joseph's Easter egg collecting basket . . . er . . .bucket. He made out with twice as many eggs as everyone else, by not following the rules (everything UP HIGH and HIDDEN for 11 year olds).
Aleya had the most fun of all the kids, with no complaints.
Competition sparks a lot of heated feelings.
Where's the candy? All the eggs were empty this year (to be traded in for a bag of candy) because some eggs from last year were not emptied and were stored in the garage to the delight of the rats. They chewed through the plastic eggs to get the candy. YUCK! So, no candy in the eggs this year.
They look happy only because I told them they wouldn't get their candy if they didn't smile! It was actually a lot of tears and angry voices following this hunt. Why can't they just be happy and have fun? NO FIGHTING!
After time-outs and apologies we did a family "do-over" and the kids earned their Easter Baskets. This joy was more sincere. The kids received some fun Easter toys, books, computer games, and crafts.
Joseph brough his friend, Kyle, with to the 2009 San Diego Scout Fair at Qualcomm. We had a fun day together, sweltering in the heat. The pavement just acts like an oven.
We hit the troop kitchen sample area first. The donuts were the best.
The reptile area is always a family favorite.
Joseph has a new neck scarf.
Can I have a pet iguana?
The games areas are of course the most fun for the kids.
There were other boy scout activity areas to explore.
Don't ring the bell!
The water bottle rocket launchers were awesome! Maybe we can build our own.
Joseph worked on two merit badges while he was there: Astronomy and Shotgun.
Orrin earned the Chess belt loop. He has nearly all the other belt loops.
Orrin played a duet with me: "Heart and Soul."
Amara played a duet with me: "I Am a Child of God."
Joseph enjoyed skipping school for his first middle school track meet.
Joseph won 2nd place for the broad jump. He also beat a meet record by jumping 7 feet!
Our family road trip took us to Barstow, CA and a nearby restored mining town.
This really wasn't much of a Ghost Town, since it's been all fixed up and filled with shops and eateries.
The streets were pretty deserted, for Spring Break. But, I guess this is one of those less-visited roadside attractions.
Next, we visited the local saloon.
The sign did say "Kids Welcome!"
We ordered us up some sasparilla and took in the atmosphere.
We took a cute little train ride that gave us a brief history of the town. Burned twice, rebuilt twice. Large population when the silver mines were at their best.
After spending the night in Needles, CA (a true treasure), we headed off to Lake Havasu.
After a small debate, we settled on renting paddleboats instead of a speed boat.
I really didn't want my kids touching the lake water since there is some parasite in the water that goes up into the brain and kills children. So, we washed there hands thoroughly after this. We had fun racing the boys. We kept changing people from boat to boat, periodically.
Next we headed off on Historic Route 66 in Arizona.
Yes, it is that scenic.
We stopped at the historic Grand Canyon Caverns. This chair was in the restroom. :0)
This is the largest "dry" cavern in the U.S. and the third largest in the world. There is no water and no plant, animal, or bug life inside. It is 21 stories below the ground. You ride in an old rickety elevator to get down inside it.
It was pretty impressive, but not as many cool formations, as in the wet caves.
This is a recreation of a giant sloth that fell into this cavern long ago and tried to claw its way out, but didn't make it.
This was a cool photo opportunity in front of the diner at Grand Canyon Caverns.
We continued on Route 66 to the town of Seligman, to buy a souvenir.
It turns out, that the place we stopped to get a souvenier was the birthplace of the "Historic" status of Route 66. The owner of this barbershop was the first to petition the government to give this road historic status and put it back on the map. The town businesses had gone dry for ten years after the new interstate bypassed this town. (It was the inspiration for the setting of Radiator Springs in the movie, CARS).
If you own the CARS movie, check your extras and there's an interview of the owner of the barber shop, from this very chair about his experience living in this Route 66 town.
A large full moon rose up on the horizon as we left Route 66 and drove on toward Flagstaff.
The kids always race on the luggage carts when we stay at a nicer hotel.
We had a huge family room with a king bed in a separate room and two queens.
This hotel also had an indoor pool and hot tub that the kids LOVED!
 |
