Hi Ho! Hi Ho! It's Off to Scout Camp He Goes!

Yesterday, today and tomorrow, Zach will be consumed with all things Cub Scout. That includes: constructing and running obstacle courses, taking hikes, making soap boats and floating them down the stream, building birdhouses, learning Native American folklore, eating roasted hot dogs and marshmallows, playing marbles, climbing rock walls, golfing and using a bow and arrow, to name only a few!! Honestly, these three days are packed with every cool thing a boy could dream of, and more!

And can I express the complete joy in his heart brought on by all this boyness? I cannot. It is beyond description. Cub Scout Day Camp is now his favorite thing in the whole world, and I expect tears on Thursday afternoon when it ends.

Since moving out here, much of our summers are filled with travel; I think we are really only going to be here in The Springs for about six weeks total this summer before school starts up again. Plus, with a big family and a lot of fun things to do at home, camp is one expense we willingly say goodbye to. The older boys have done some sports camps in the past, but with the busy sports year, it's not hard to let those go. So Scout Day Camp is a big event for our Zach. He's gettin' while the gettin's good and absorbing every minute of it! His brothers are already waiting for their day in the distant future.

Yesterday I went to camp as a volunteer, and although I was needed elsewhere much of the day, I did get a peek at him from time to time. His face was alight with joy, he was laughing at everything, and completely consumed in whatever activity he was assigned to for the session. And at the end of the day, he was filthy. You know me, I believe that the dirtier the boys are, the more fun they obviously had. And if that's the scale, the day's activities were fun to rival all fun.

When I loaded the washing machine last night to get his t-shirt ready for today, it was a must. However, as I searched the dryer, filled with the clothing I had washed last night, for the beloved shirt, I found he had not stuck it in the washer as instructed, but in a basket...where it was still sitting...drawing ants and stray dogs--it was so dirty and stinky. So today he headed to the second day of camp in a disgusting shirt, tucked into his shorts, in the hope that it might mask some of the nastiness. {ahh, boys. how i love them!} Needless to say, I will be placing it in the washing machine myself tonight. I guess if there is a silver lining to the misplaced shirt: it really needed stain spray, so at least I didn't wash the stains in, even if practically walked itself onto his little body this morning!

I guess clean shirts just aren't the point, and if his attire says anything, it's, "I had the best time of my life yesterday! Can I have more?" And the answer is: Absolutely.

Zach yesterday morning, excited for the big day up at the Scout Camp Ground at the Air Force Academy!

Here's Zach (yellow hat) on the Wolf Scout one-mile hike with his buddy from our scout den, Grant. This was the activity I led. We had a good time, all 39 Wolf Scouts from our Stake and I, but a hike at the end of a long, hot day is hard even for the toughest of boys; next year I am going to suggest they start with this and finish with something nice and simple, like sleeping!

Thank goodness for Scouts! Zach really loves participating in it. It gives him a community, a brotherhood beyond our family (a tribe, if you will), a way to release that inner all-boy, time with friends from church who are at different schools...and a way to be "Zach" that he can't be anywhere else because he is being "Scout Zach:" fearless explorer, curious experimenter, helpful friend, team player, knowledgeable leader, interested listener, goof-ball entertainer all rolled into one great kid!