Scouts check in

[miranda]

I think there are several in scouts, so lets try a scouts check in? Let's intro again giving our background, and what we're looking forward to most this year.

DS is a Webelo this year. DH and I have been den leaders since the beginning, solely because there was no one else who was going to volunteer. DH and his dad and my dad are Eagles. But DH is not comfortable leading boys, and the Pack we are in is horribly disorganized and our den is WAY too big- 23 boys. We have had many long arguments over what to do going forward. Last night we finally agreed to stay where we are, continue to lead the Webelos together, but leave it up to DS whether he wants to cross-over to boys scouts. DS says he would only do Boys Scouts if DH stays on as a leader, and I'm 90% sure that ain't happening. He hasn't made any connections with kids, but he does participate in all the games and such.

I'm looking forward to farming out adventures to other entities. One advantage of older kids is that there are more organized group activities we can do. We have great local park districts that offer inexpensive programs tailored to cub scouts. Our den only meets once per month so I don't think we'll be getting much done at our actual meetings, which are in a church classroom. Maybe some first aid training. Certainly not cast iron cooking or a 3 mile hike!

[mamaturtle]

DS is a Bear Cub Scout and I am just an unregistered adult volunteer.

I was in Girl Scouts since I was 5, I got my Silver Award and am doomed with a life time membership when I got my Gold Award. All I wanted was a scholarship when I received gold because previous gold awards were scholarships. I was not happy about having to do the award because my mom made me do it. Honestly, nobody cares if you got a gold award in your resume.

My dad is an Eagle Scout and my brother was in Cub Scouts and Boy Scouts for a time.

DS's Cub Scout Pack meets every Sunday afternoon with every second Sunday off. The pack is very small there is one tiger, no wolves, a couple of bears and a couple of webelos. I doubt the parents want to step up to be a den leader because of all the hard work in planning. I would do it but membership for me is expensive and we are going to leave town at some point.

Our second meeting, DS had to use a pocket knife to carve a bar a soap. I did not get the pocket knife but they bought plastic knives and I am glad the leader did because DS is left handed and I can only imagine DS would cut himself. Another scout did cut himself at our meeting and the mom performed first aid. DS uses his carved pyramid and sun soaps during bath time.

This weekend we are selling popcorn for two hours on Saturday and two hours on Sunday. The leader wanted each of the Cub Scouts to do one day with 4 hours shifts. I thought that was too long for DS to handle.

[waverly]

Hi I'm wavery- two kids boy almost 7 and in first grade (SN kid) and a 4 year old girl in pre-K. Our scout orientation is tonight, so I will probably have more later.

H was in 4H and boy scouts probably about 2-3 years. I was in girl scouts k-7th grade and in 4H for 2 years.

I am looking forward to teaching him more survival and outdoor skills, more community leadership skills and independence. I am hoping H takes a more active role and meets some more friends to hang out with. We are 5 hours from family and his siblings and cousins aren't close anyway, so he is always needing more friends.

[orval]

I have an Arrow of Light scout with DCD/dypraxia. DS crosses over in Feb to Boy Scouts.
I am the committee chair right now, although I resigned in May. We have no one to do everything. I am not a fan of our sexist and condescending Cubmaster. Our recruiting night went well so hopefully someone new will step up. Just picked up all of our popcorn supplies yesterday.
We have pack meetings on Sunday once a month. We have completed most of our requirements over the summer so we won't have a lot of den meetings. We have a Web/Aol camp out in Oct and a camping trip with the Troop in Nov. Those are the highlights for my ds.

[auntie]

I'm district committee marketing and membership chair. I volunteered as DS moved through cubs and became a committee member, merit badge counselor (Communications, the Cits, Family Life, Journalism and Reading) and eventually became the troop's Eagle Scout liaison helping over 30 scouts make Eagle in the 3 years I held the position.

My class A has an Eagle Mother pin, an Award of Merit knot and 9 Eagle Mentor pins. DS and DH joke that I'm "the real boy scout" in the house.

In retrospect, DS's large mega troop and pack- which are chartered by a HOA and as diverse as you'll find here- suited us well.

[waverly]

The first meeting went ok. I saw a few people I know and signed up for the bigger pack. I know one of the co leaders for that pack. Seemed ok just was pretty late with the fact we didn't have time for dinner beforehand. It's a bit overwhelming but I didn't sign up to volunteer so I can ease into it.

[miranda]

Sept 7, 2017 20:36:14 GMT -5 waverly said:

The first meeting went ok. I saw a few people I know and signed up for the bigger pack. I know one of the co leaders for that pack. Seemed ok just was pretty late with the fact we didn't have time for dinner beforehand. It's a bit overwhelming but I didn't sign up to volunteer so I can ease into it.

Our meetings run into dinnertime too. We start at 6 and aren't done until 8:30. When DS was a tiger he was a mess, and DH and I often left early, even though we were leaders. We had to work with his psychiatrist to figure out a different dosing strategy for scout nights.

[auntie]

2 1/2 hours for a Den/Pack meeting is crazy. Our den meetings tended to be about 60-90 minutes- after dinner since the adult leaders often worked in NYC with a long commute. Pack meetings were generally closer to 2 hours, but more structured once started.

Our pack doesn't "do popcorn" leaving that for the older scouts who need more funding to run programming. I don't envy those who sell it. It's probably my least favorite part of scouting; under my watch we used to sell at the local PLCB (liquor store) where we raked in money- especially donations- from men who came to get set up for televised football games. Alas council shut that down as "unseemly" for the boys.

[miranda]

I should have clarified- our den meeting is 60 minutes, followed immediately by a 90 minute Pack meeting. Still not ideal; parents drop off and don't show up until the end of the pack meeting so I'm responsible for them the whole time and the parents then don't receive important information about upcoming events.

Also thank you jeebus we don't sell popcorn either. We sell wreaths, which go like hotcakes around here. Just leaving a signup out at my work nets 20-30. The wreaths are cheaper than the local grocery store, so all our neighbors buy them as well.

[freezorburn]

DS isn't currently doing scouts, but I'd like to lurk and learn. I'm actually not sure if Boy Scouts has much of a presence in my area ... can't remember seeing them around, but maybe I'm just not in the right circles.

Growing up, I was in GS from Brownies until about 5th or 6th grade. My troop seemed to just fizzle out after that. But GS was pretty much my only exposure to camping as a child, since it wan't something my family did otherwise. I'm so glad to have that experience, since it gave me a foundation for exploring the outdoors as an adult.

My older brother did Cub Scouts for a while, and my mom did her turn as a den mother, so I tagged along for a lot of that. I remember wishing that GS also did a Pinewood Derby.

[miranda]

Sept 8, 2017 11:36:27 GMT -5 freezorburn said:

DS isn't currently doing scouts, but I'd like to lurk and learn. I'm actually not sure if Boy Scouts has much of a presence in my area ... can't remember seeing them around, but maybe I'm just not in the right circles.

Growing up, I was in GS from Brownies until about 5th or 6th grade. My troop seemed to just fizzle out after that. But GS was pretty much my only exposure to camping as a child, since it wan't something my family did otherwise. I'm so glad to have that experience, since it gave me a foundation for exploring the outdoors as an adult.

My older brother did Cub Scouts for a while, and my mom did her turn as a den mother, so I tagged along for a lot of that. I remember wishing that GS also did a Pinewood Derby.

Camping is and isn't my family's "thing". We like to car camp as a family, and we go 2-3 times a year for a couple nights at a time, tops. We might take a short hike, go geocaching, or swim at the beach. We like visiting the state parks, seeing the touristy stuff, roasting hot dogs, eating smores, and napping in the tent. We're a pretty sedentary bunch, but we like the outdoors.

The amount of camping involved in scouts has surprised me- it shouldn't, but it does. As a Girls Scout we never camped, it was all arts and crafts. ETA: DS's current Pack camps twice a year for one night. Another pack we looked at camps three times a year for 2 nights at a time. The Troop camps once a month, all year. They take a "big" trip every other year; last year was Denali, so this year it is "small"- they are camping in the Boundary Waters once in each of the four seasons.

DS has had some exposure to the Troop he would join if he continues on and he's leery. They spent two weeks camping at Denali this summer and judging by the powerpoint they showed us, it certainly wasn't car camping! In three years (when he would be eligible) they are going to Kilamanjaro. At first DS was excited about the prospect; but then the realization of camping for three weeks in Africa (without his parents) made him subdued. I'd like to encourage him to attempt the task; DH is much more reluctant. Neither DH nor I have 3 weeks of vacation time to spare, so he'd be going it alone.

Our pack has a "friends and family" division for the Pinewood; we get probably 30 cars entered that way. It's a lot of fun.

[auntie]

miranda,

A Boy Scout unit has to camp at least once a month throughout the year and to do at least one week of camping as a troop during the summer to be considered a quality program. Larger troops have a range of camping events from a week of summer camp for 6th-8th graders, to Jamborees for 1st Class and beyond (7th grade+) to high adventure for high school aged boys. Most boys pick one major summer camping experience based on their age.

[freezorburn]

Wow, once a month seems like a lot. Like it might make it difficult to pursue other activities/interests.

Camping as a brownie was really camping lite. The troop was small enough that we could all be on cots in a lodge, we had a full kitchen and flush toilets. But we learned some fire basics and some outdoor cooking, as well as some trail skills. That's what I remember.

And mountain pies and s'mores.

The campground had platforms for tents but we didn't use them.

[auntie]

Sept 9, 2017 1:27:11 GMT -5 freezorburn said:

Wow, once a month seems like a lot. Like it might make it difficult to pursue other activities/interests.

Scouting makes an effort to play well with others. 

All of the scouts from DS's old troop had other activities. DS and a bunch of his friends were in marching band; the trombone section his first 2 years were all scouts except one- Kelsey.Other boys played travel team sports and then varsity sports in high school. We had a couple altar servers, acolytes and one who taught Hebrew school. One thing that always struck me was how many of the high school sports teams and the band promoted scouts into leadership positions because they brought experience leading peers and do well on the interview (a boy scout will do a Scoutmaster Conference and separate Board of Review with each rank advancement- by the time they make Eagle, that BOR can be 60-90 minutes long- it's a bit like a job interview)  those making the choices. 

It's a good way to teach time management. In high school, DS tended to miss the October campout because he had a football game Friday and a competition on Saturday- other times a parent would deliver a group of kids after their game or activity. Most non-LDS troops camp Friday night to Sunday morning. 

[mightymaude]

DS is a Web 1. Today he had booth popcorn sales and used his powers of observation on people. I was freaking amazed. It was a little fall festival. He discovered that the best people to hit up were older men who might reminisce about Boy Scouts and people pushing strollers with toddlers because the kids probably wanted a snack. He also discovered that people who had the free popcorn from the daycare down the path were lost causes, and to stay far away from single older women, who were prone to not buying but instead kissing him on the cheek and ruffling his hair. (Problem with being really short, adorable, and articulate.)

Cub Scouts popcorn booth--people reading 101.

ETA: DH is an Eagle Scout+ (he did more after Eagle, but IDK what those designations are) and is currently the pack committee chair and has decided he is going to pursue further awards because he is an award collector. DS has intermittently "quit" Cub Scouts here and there b/c he isn't overly enthused, but he loves camping and loves selling popcorn.

[miranda]

Sept 9, 2017 3:56:10 GMT -5 auntie said:

Sept 9, 2017 1:27:11 GMT -5 freezorburn said:

Wow, once a month seems like a lot. Like it might make it difficult to pursue other activities/interests.

Scouting makes an effort to play well with others. 

This appears to be true in our Troop. One of the boys in football and they mentioned they don't see him for a few months at a time. Our den chief (Boy Scout who assists our den occasionally) has ASD and doesn't attend every single campout, although his mom is really good about encouraging to attend as many as possible.

I've said this before but- I'd like to continue on in Scouts even if DS doesn't attend every single campout. He could do the week-long summer camp and several of the monthly campouts. And attend the weekly meetings. DH admits that even though the camping wouldn't be DS's favorite thing, he does like working towards the merit badges, and would benefit from the satisfaction and confidence he would achieve.

[auntie]

mightymaude,

Probably Eagle Palms.

Most of my guys skated in just under the wire of their 18th birthday, but a few made Eagle young enough to earn Palms. One of my higher achievers even went on to earn a Silver Hornaday which makes earning Eagle look like child's play.

[waverly]

Is it common to have something Scout related every weekend? We have something 3 weekends in a row.

I'm frustrated because H won't take him today. I think he'll do the next two events so I shouldn't be.

But sometimes it just eats at me or drains me that I do 95% of the doctor appointments, school stuff, sports and kid activities. He didn't go to IEP. We've had 10 million doctor appointments in the last year and he has been at one. Because of work mostly. So I just think on the weekend he should do more. However our kids are by no way shape or form deprived from activities.

He returned home from a birthday party and acted like I had burdened him for asking him to go. Sooo frustrating.

And we had a great date night last night and church this morning and now I am frustrated. Ugh

He is sick (actually sick) and tired so I get it but more ugh.

[miranda]

Sept 17, 2017 13:55:01 GMT -5 waverly said:

Is it common to have something Scout related every weekend? We have something 3 weekends in a row.

I'm frustrated because H won't take him today. I think he'll do the next two events so I shouldn't be.

But sometimes it just eats at me or drains me that I do 95% of the doctor appointments, school stuff, sports and kid activities. He didn't go to IEP. We've had 10 million doctor appointments in the last year and he has been at one. Because of work mostly. So I just think on the weekend he should do more. However our kids are by no way shape or form deprived from activities.

He returned home from a birthday party and acted like I had burdened him for asking him to go. Sooo frustrating.

And we had a great date night last night and church this morning and now I am frustrated. Ugh

He is sick (actually sick) and tired so I get it but more ugh.

I think for some Packs it is, although I find Fall to be more heavy on the Scout activities than other seasons.

I joke that our Pack is for busy kids and busier parents. It's terribly disorganized, and we only meet once a month. But our den continues to grow; we have been getting kids from neighboring Packs whose parents couldn't fit in all their activities. I'm making it a goal this year to try and do 1-2 extra den activities per month; our den meetings are Friday nights when few kids have sports or obligations, and I try to do one (short) outing on a Sunday afternoon. I typically get good turnout.

Amen to being frustrated with DH. Add in a man cold and, well, that's a recipe for a whiny manchild. My sympathies!

[waverly]

miranda, I was kind of getting that impression that fall was more heavy because they said they wanted the requirements done by Feb when they have some kind of ceremony. I forget what it is called now. So that is good that it might let up a bit in Spring/ Summer.

Yes and that is what he has is a man cold. He has been figuratively dying for about a week now. I know I should be sympathetic, but it's on my last nerves.

I still need to get a belt and pants (doesn't have to be cub scout pants since they said they run huge). Oh and sew on the troop patch and den patch, but the next two events don't require the cub scout shirt just the activity t-shirt which luckily was free. We went to the scout store, and man did the woman there see a selling opportunity because she loaded us up and some things the pack would have provided so we didn't have to get, but oh well. $$$$

We did the first adventure and it went well. Just got to finish up a little at home.

[miranda]

Sept 18, 2017 10:52:13 GMT -5 waverly said:

miranda , I was kind of getting that impression that fall was more heavy because they said they wanted the requirements done by Feb when they have some kind of ceremony. I forget what it is called now. So that is good that it might let up a bit in Spring/ Summer.

Yes and that is what he has is a man cold. He has been figuratively dying for about a week now. I know I should be sympathetic, but it's on my last nerves.

I still need to get a belt and pants (doesn't have to be cub scout pants since they said they run huge). Oh and sew on the troop patch and den patch, but the next two events don't require the cub scout shirt just the activity t-shirt which luckily was free. We went to the scout store, and man did the woman there see a selling opportunity because she loaded us up and some things the pack would have provided so we didn't have to get, but oh well. $$$$

We did the first adventure and it went well. Just got to finish up a little at home.

I used to have to rush through the requirements too, because our Blue and Gold Ceremony was in March. Then a bunch of us den leaders just said- meh, let's advance them in June and let the B&G be about the Arrow of Light scouts advancing. Made my life a lot easier. It sucks having to race through adventures. Selfishly, my work schedule is nuts in the Spring, so I naturally frontload activities in the beginning of the year. We don't meet at all June-Aug.

[auntie]

Sept 17, 2017 13:55:01 GMT -5 waverly said:

Is it common to have something Scout related every weekend? We have something 3 weekends in a row.

Most of the better cub packs here have a themed pack meeting (often Friday night) like Raingutter Regatta one week, then a pack activity (usually a Saturday- could be an outing to an historic site, a service project or local sports event) the next and then Tigers meet monthly/other ranks every other week. Some AOLs meet weekly here. 

Boy scouts camp at least monthly, weekly meetings, plus volunteering on Eagle and other service projects.