Boy Scout Camp

 

Nathan and Dawson both went to Boy Scout camp this week.  This is Dawson‘s third year and Nathan‘s first year at camp. Neither one were nervous and both were excited to pack and leave! We’ve been so busy that packing has been a scramble, so I was really hoping we didn’t forget any key items in their bags! They are easy-going boys, and they have gone with the flow this week! There’s been a lot of rain, heavy storms, tornadoes, and sunshine. Can’t wait to see them in a bit!

Here Are Dawson and Nathan all packed up and getting ready to leave for the week. He has a smile on his face and he is ready to go!

The troop carves sticks with the kids name on them. These sticks go at their tent site so they know which boys belong to which tent. Nathan was excited to get his name.

Here are all of the first year scouts. It is a combination of kids from St. Vincent’s Cub Scouts and Leo Cub Scouts.

Nathan‘s tent was with Andrew and Oliver.

It looks a little bit messy and stinky!

I got to come up for family night. Originally it was on Wednesday night, but because of storms, they moved it to Thursday night. The troop always makes 10 or more different types of cobbler over the fire on hot Coles to share with all the families that come visit. It’s fun to hear the boys versions of their experience so far this week and to see their stomping grounds and their tents and where they’ve been spending their time. Nathan had lots to share! And Dawson felt right at home at camp 

Dawson shared a tent with Thanwa one of his good friends.

The gaga ball tournament is a huge deal at Boy Scout camp. You have to sign up ahead of time and create a team and have a team name. They have jerseys and referees! Two teams would compete against each other in a bracket and the last team standing was the winner. Nathan participated and Dawson was an excited observer!

Earlier in the week, the gaga pit filled with water, but it looks like they didn’t stop playing!

The first year Scouts spend a lot of time with Tony their Boy Scout leader, to check off lots of requirements in their book. It’s a little bit boring, but they go through lots of information.

Nathan was signed up for the basketry merit badge. In his mind, he thought it was shooting baskets and playing basketball. When he found out, it was weaving baskets out of twine. I think he was a little bit disappointed!

The campfires are always special. The workers have so much energy and they make camp so much fun.

Tony brought his whole music set up and played music by the trading Post all week. Nathan said it has been such an uplifting thing while they have dealt with all the rain and storms. He really enjoyed Tony’s music.

This is the head worker. He is so animated and so skilled in his role. He makes everybody feel at home at camp and runs things so smoothly. We see him here after year after year. He’s wonderful.

Tuesday night the kids ended up in the storm shelter for some tornado warnings. But Wednesday night, the day we were supposed to have family night. Some major storms came through with tornado watches. They were in the storm shelter for almost 2 hours. A lot of the kids apparently were pretty freaked out. Nathan said he got extra freaked out when they closed the doors of the shelter. In the past they leave the doors open, but this time they closed the doors and they were inside of this dark shelter while the storms and tornadoes raged outside. It was a freaky moment for him. After it was all over, they were told that there was an actual tornado touchdown on the south end of the Camp Chief Little Turtle property. Crazy! 

What a fun week at camp! Can’t wait To pick them up this afternoon!

Golfing for the first time

 One of the graduation parties involved, a nine whole golf scramble. So we all got to try golfing for the first time. Nate has done it before but not very much. Owen and I have never done it before. Not real golf anyways. Owen dressed the part with a golfing polo. Nate has a set of clubs, and we have a set of kids clubs from way back when Jack and Coop took golf lessons.

Owen loved golfing! He loved it so much. He might be a little golfer someday.

But the real part he loved the most, was driving the golf cart! He knew that it was illegal and I was letting him do it illegally and he got such a thrill out of that. He drove pretty well and absolutely loved it! That was the highlight of the day!

Cooper’s Visa!

 Cooper had applied for his visa a couple of weeks ago when we took our trip to Chicago. They told him it would be 4 to 6 weeks before his passport would be ready to go. This made us slightly nervous because if he were rejected, he would have limited time to reapply. However, about a week after our trip to Chicago, he got a notice that his passport was ready! This also made us nervous because if it was ready this fast maybe it was a quick rejection. Of course the BLS doesn’t give you any information and they make you come in person to the BLS office in Chicago to find out the resolution on your application. Cooper decided to take a day off of work and he went by train with Sami back up to Chicago to pick up his passport and hope that he was accepted. The whole process seemed so complicated but when he showed up and gave Them his name, they had his passport ready to go all stamped with his visa completed! He was surprised and relieved, and so excited! Everything is falling into place! The last step for him going to Spain is to figure out housing. Everything else is done!

Congrats Cooper!

The Keplinger’s Visit

 Andrea and Dennis Keplinger came by to visit. They live in Tucson Arizona now but they were in Indiana for a few weeks visiting family. I’m so glad they made time to come see us. They were key individuals in our home and family during some difficult motherhood times and I’m so grateful for their friendship. They couldn’t believe how big the kids have gotten and that Cooper Graduated. We even FaceTimed Jaxton so he could say hello as well. The younger ones don’t remember Andrea and Dennis and Owen never knew them. But Jaxton, Cooper, and Kaylee remember them well. Dawson thinks he might remember, but he was very little. I’m grateful for their friendship very much.

Mastodons Basketball Camp

 

Nathan and Owen spent the week at the PFW mastodon’s basketball camp. This is always a highlight of the summer! The PFW mastodon basketball team coach coaches and runs the camp for kids from first grade through eighth grade. The kids had some friends join this year, which was extra fun! They loved it as always. Owen‘s team won his championship division game on the last day of camp and he was so proud! Of course, at the end they spent time getting signatures and autographs from all the players. The players become role models and heroes to these kids.

The coach, Jon Coffman, would make any kid that was wearing a rival college Indiana school Tshirt (like IU, Purdue, St Francis, Butler ) pay “rent” in the form of pushups.  So funny! 

Owe & Wyatt

Nathan & Elliot

One morning before camp started, I walked the kids down the hallway to see the display of mastodon bones that were found in Orsie Routsong’s farmland. It’s pretty cool to see the Routsong family posted on the wall at PFW. Orsie Routsong was digging a pond in 1969 and came across some large bones. He had the IPFW geology department come check out the bones and complete an excavation of almost an entire mastodon skeleton. They studied the bones and laid them out and discovered that the bones were between 10,000 and 12,000 years old. What an amazing story! We have a special tie to PFW because of that story. Orsie Routsong was grandpa Bill Routsong’s uncle.