Court of Honor

This is the Court of Honor right after summer camp, so there were tons of merit badges to present tonight.

Calvin earned his Mammal Study, Archery, Environmentalist (earned at a merit badge college), Emergency Preparedness, and Rifle Shooting. Whew. That's a lot. He has one more requirement to meet for Reptile Study.

They also presented the boys who went to camp with special achievement awards.

Calvin earned Bieber Award (I'll let him tell that story).

Joshua earned "Smile King" for being so smiley and good-natured even when the temperature was above 100deg and humidity was around 90%.

Joshua was also presented his Scout Rank tonight.

Bridging Over

Joshua was received on the other side of the bridge by his brother, Calvin.

Arrow of Light

Webelos Super Achiever

Joshua has earned his Webelos Super Achiever Award. He earned all 20 of the Webelos Activity Badges. This is quite a feat as he's only the 2nd in the pack to ever earn the award.

Webelos Boy Scout Camping Trip

Once a year Troop 401 hosts a camping trip for the Webelos IIs of Pack 401. This meets a requirement for the Arrow of Light and prepares them for bridging over into Boy Scouts.







Jeremiah got to tag along. It was a very special treat for him.





Calvin helped teach the younger boys how the Boy Scouts earn their Firem'n Chit and Totem Chip cards. These cards give a scout the right to carry a knife and make fire.





Joshua and Calvin will share many special scout experiences as Joshua bridges over.

Roller Skating Beltloop

We decided to complete the Roller Skating Belt Loop and Pin as a Pack at one of our "Summer Time" events.

Belt Loop

Complete these three requirements:

1. Explain ways to protect yourself while roller skating or in-line skating, and the need for proper safety equipment.

2. Spend at least 30 minutes practicing the skills of roller skating or in-line skating.

3. Go skating with a family member or den for at least three hours. Chart your time.

Sports Pin

Earn the Roller Skating belt loop, and complete five of the following requirements:

1. Participate in a pack or community skating event.

2. Demonstrate how to disassemble and reassemble skates.
3. Explain the proper clothing for roller or in-line skating.

4. Spend at least 15 minutes, on two occasions, practicing warm up exercises before skating.
5. Play a game of roller hockey,
6. Learn and demonstrate two new roller skating skills: forward scissors, forward stroking, crossover, or squat skate.
7. Participate in a roller or inl-ine skating skill development clinic.

8. Demonstrate how to stop quickly and safely.

9. Demonstrate how to skate backward. Skate backward for five feet.

10. Play a game on roller skates, roller blades, or in-line skates.

The skating rink we went to was SUPER friendly. We explained what we were trying to accomplish and they were happy to help us out. They took the boys to the back to give a tour.

The employees were so funny (totally cracked-me-up). They even took it a step further and let the boys practice "working" working there by retrieving the right size skates for customers.



Then they showed the boys what a skate looks like when it needs to be repaired.



Then EACH boy got a turn taking the skates apart and putting them back together again.



The rest of our time was spent having fun. This was a great belt loop to work on together!

Cub Scout Family Campout

Camping is unanimously our favorite part of scouting. This campout is different from a council or district camporee. This is just our pack and it's completely parent/den leader run. We tailor all of the activities to the needs of the scout majority. In the spring there aren't usually an requirements needed towards rank, so we work together on various achievements.

This weekend we are working on the Fishing and Weather beltloops and pins, the kickball beltloop, along with the Outdoor Activity Award and Leave No Trace Award.

Friday night is spent setting up tents, our camp kitchen, and ends with time around the campfire. We usually set a time of 10:00pm quiet time, but we usually end up staying up really late enjoying ourselves.

Some things on our schedule are set in stone. Like flag raising. We do that every morning at camp. Then there's breakfast and clean up.





Here the boys are working on some of the written requirements for the Fishing Pin.



Both Jeremiah and Joshua caught their first fish ever.





Jeremiah even learned how to grab a fish by the bottom lip to release him. We have some great leaders who really take their time teaching the boys.



After fishing the boys settled in for lunch and some play time. Then we got them busy working on their Weather Beltloops and Pins. They defined some terms, made weather vanes and rain gages, and also started their charts to track the weather for one week.





After "so much school work" we took the boys out to the field to earn their Kickball Beltloops. They ended up playing for over an hour. They had a BLAST!



They also went on a 30 minute hike just before dinner to work towards their 100 Years of Scouting Ribbons.

After a dinner of hot dogs and hamburgers the boys settled around the campfire to perform skits and sing songs.







They also worked together to respectfully retire an American Flag.





Finally the moment came that they've been waiting all weekend for. S'MORES!!



Some decided the campfire was too hot (marshmallows melted right off their sticks)and they used the hot coals left over from dinner instead.

Kelsea is our Pack Story Teller. When we don't have the boys busy with a task or game, you can find several gathered around her listening to one of her many great stories. These scouts swarmed around her at 7:00 am when they were waiting for breakfast.





Once breakfast is over and Tent City has been broken down we gather around the fire pit for our Sunday Service. This usually includes a moment of prayer and a story with a good moral lesson.





The very last thing we do with our boys is to instill our Leave No Trace policy. We line up side by side on one end of camp and march in line through to the other, looking for trash or any other debris that may have fallen on the ground. We also rake over our tent beds to make sure we truly leave behind nothing but our footprints.