Hi everyone! I thought I would start a journal or blog of sorts about our journey through scouting.
So I guess I will start off as I would a trip report and make some introductions.
First there's me, Christie. I'm 37 and apparently I am going to be known as "Akela".
More on that later. I spent one year (3rd grade) as a Brownie Girl Scout.
Then there's my husband, Jay. He's 39. An Eagle Scout, a former Assitant Scoutmaster and has worked a few summers at our local district Boy Scout Summer Camp.
And last but certainly not least, because without the boy you can't have a boy scout, is our son Joshua. He's 6. Make that 6 1/2. He is thoroughly excited about joining scouts.
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First I guess I should address why my husband, scout extraordinaire, is not the one to be involved in all this. Normally he would have been. I think this is the moment he has been waiting for ever since the sonogram confirmed we would be having a boy.
But, Nissan (his employer) had other ideas. In an effort to not lay people off, they have been getting creative with weekly work schedules and moving people around within the various departments. Well, last month they decided to go to a three-shift operation for the first time. And of course Jay got moved to the afternoon/evening shift.
He works from 3-11, plus commuting time, so now he can't do anything during the week. Cub scouting requires an adult to participate in all aspects of scouting with the boy, and since Jay can't do it, guess who gets the privilege?
That's right, me. I'm excited about Joshua being in scouts, and I hope he sticks with it all the way through, I just wish Jay could be the one to be more hands-on on a daily and weekly basis. Of course one day he might get moved to a different shift, so maybe I won't be there forever. One can only hope.
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One day about a week ago Joshua brought home a note from school that stated there would be a meeting at First United Methodist Church for anybody interested in becoming a scout. This church is one of a few in our community that sponsors a troop, so that's why the meeting was there.
A few days later Joshua brought home a flyer from our district scout office about the meeting. It gave the date and time and told how much the registration fee was. It mentioned the Boys' Life magazine subscription. But the best part was, for everybody that joined that night they would receive a free Pinewood Derby racecar kit! Oh boy, was Joshua excited!!!
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Thursday, September 4, 2008
Info/Registration Night
We arrived at the Methodist Church gym thinking we would be a little late. We had left our house in plenty of time, but the shortest route takes you across the train tracks. And of course there was a train. A long train. A slow train. A long line of cars waiting for said train to go past.
And because there is a traffic signal immediately after the train tracks, once the train passed it still took quite some time for the traffic to clear. But we made it to the church and found a great parking place.
There were a few rows of chairs set up in the gym and most were already full. As we entered, volunteers from one of the local packs were handing out some paperwork. We got the official registration form, a sample issue of Boys' Life magazine, an informative flyer about events throughout the year and two more flyers about a couple of upcoming district-wide events.
I led Joshua to the far side of the seats where there were a few chairs still empty. A lot of people were just standing up in the back. I learned later that tonight was one of the most heavily-attended info sessions they've had in the past few years.
I started filling out the registration form which was tricky with no hard surface to place it on.
After a few minutes the program started. A boy scout taught everybody the cub scout salute and we said the pledge of allegiance. Then the district director (?) spoke for a short while about scouting in general. Next up were representatives from the three local cub scout packs. (I had thought there was a fourth one at the Catholic Church, but maybe they are only Boy Scouts and not cubs.) One was sponsored by the church we were at tonight, Pack 88. Another was sponsored by one of the larger churches in town, Pack 345. And the third to speak was sponsored by the church we are members of, Pack 12. They each told a little about their pack, like when they meet, some of the things they do each year, and stuff like that. Then - surprise - the director came back and said we had a couple of minutes to discuss with our boys which pack they would like to join, then a decision had to be made.
A lot of people were not prepared for that. The lady next to us leaned over and said, "Did he just say 2 minutes???" Well, there wasn't really anything for me to discuss with Joshua. He doesn't know any other boys in scouting so there was no reason why he would pick one pack over another. And I would prefer to be involved with the pack that is sponsored by our own church. Since all the packs' meeting times were convenient to us, that's the pack we chose.
At this point, the boys were ushered over to the far end of the gym, where some boy scouts had set up a tent and other items to make a campsite. They were supposed to talk to the new boys about scouting, but I think it quickly degenerated into chaos, as most of the boys ended up running around the gym chasing each other.
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The parents split up into separate rooms, based on which pack you decided to join. There were about 9 who went into our group. I think about 4 of those were parents of first graders, which will make up the Tiger Cubs. A couple of leaders from the pack were there to discuss details and answer questions. We were informed that we didn't have to pay the full amount for either registration fees or the Boys' Life subscription. Because this pack is chartered on a calendar year, the amount due would be pro-rated for the remaining four months of the year. So that was good news. Even though neither one was very expensive, we were still able to save a few dollars at this point.
Uniforms were discussed. We were told that all the boys really needed were the shirt, neckerchief, slide and cap. And of course the Tiger Cub Handbook. A few of the parents had questions, but otherwise it was pretty quiet in our room. We were told that we would not meet this coming Monday. That would be a leader meeting so that the calendar could be set. The first pack meeting would be Monday, September 15. We were told where to meet at the church. I was a little surprised at us being the only church members here tonight, considering the number of boys at our church. So the other parents were not familiar with the church. What they have done in the past, I guess it's the easiest way, is for everybody to meet by the church playground on that first night. The playground is on the back side of the church, right across from the two main parking lots, so that should be a simple thing.
I gathered Joshua from the gym, then tracked down our free Pinewood Derby kit. For some reason, they weren't making a big deal about handing them out. Maybe they forgot? But since it was being advertised, I wanted to make sure we went home with one. Joshua wanted to open it when we got home. He was a little disappointed to see that it was just a block of wood.
I tried to explain that he had to build the racecar. He wants to get started right away, but the derby is not until the spring, so there's lots of time for that.
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September 6, 2008
Time to Get the Uniform!
Today is Saturday so Jay is off work. I have informed him that he "gets" to take Joshua to the local scout shop to purchase his uniform and handbook. He didn't sound very excited about it, but I reminded him that this is one of only a few times he is going to be able to be directly involved with Joshua in scouts, so it was his task for the day.
He told me to make him a shopping list so he wouldn't forget anything.
Tiger Cub handbook
Cub Scout uniform shirt - either small or medium
Tiger Cub neckerchief - orange
Tiger Cub neckerchief slide
Tiger Cub cap
the patches he needed for his uniform
Jay wanted to argue with me that Joshua could use one of his old neckerchiefs (because any neckerchief will do) but I said no.
I explained to him that Tiger Cubs have to wear an orange neckerchief, and since he was never a Tiger Cub he doesn't have an orange neckerchief. I don't know why this was such a big deal for him to argue about.
But can you tell how seriously I'm taking my role as "Akela"? By the way, Akela means "good leader" and that is what the cub scout's adult partner is called. I even had to register myself on the official form, so I got the pleasure of being able to tell Jay that I was official about this!
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Jay had other errands to run while they were out, so it took them a while to make it back. But they were able to get everything on the list. They got a medium-size shirt so hopefully it will last him all three years of cub scouting. Webelos (4th and 5th grade) wear a tan shirt so he will need a new one by then anyway. Maybe we can take care of it for three years. Maybe.
We got the council strip patch - we are in the Andrew Jackson Council in Mississippi. We got a "1" and a "2" for the pack number. And we got the purple circular patch that Jay says is something about world scouting? My question is, if every scout has to have that patch, then why doesn't it just come already on the uniform, like the American flag patch does, and the Boy Scouts of America strip does?
Well, if you've read any of my trip reports, you know that my strength is in planning and organizing. It doesn't matter what it is, if there's anything that needs a plan of attack, I love to take that on as a challenge. So I've already read over most of the handbook so I know what we need to start working on now, and what order things need to be done as you earn your badges, patches, beads and pins. I think this is going to be fun!