Our ward recently held a Court of Honor. Noah was presented with his Tenderfoot, Second Class, and First Class Scout ranks, as well as a good number of merit badges. He was busy this summer at two Scout camps and it paid off! He is also serving as his Troop's Assitant Patrol Leader. I'm beyond proud of the young man he has become. He just rocks!
In order to fit football into his schedule this Fall, Spencer has been taking an online Biology class with occasional "real-world" labs. He had to watch a wild animal for 30 minutes and write down his observations, so I took him to the Riparian Preserve and we spent a delightful late afternoon watching birds. I was amazed at the variety of birds we saw right in the middle of the town of Gilbert. The setting was beautiful, Spencer got his lab done, and he finished his Tracking merit badge, too. What more can you ask for?
Happy Birthday, Jacob! You're NINE years old!
It was so fun watching Jacob open his presents this year. He was genuinely thrilled to receive the R/C helicopter, Bowser video games, Scout stuff, and more.
He is so excited about the money and gift cards, too, because now he can buy himself a new bike.
While Jacob was opening his presents, Isaac got so upset. He cried as soon as he realized he wasn't going to get a turn. So sad.
The next day, Jeremy took Jacob on a special Father-Son birthday outing. They went to the ASU football stadium for a meet-the-players evening.
Jacob got a new football and many of the Sun Devils' football players signed it. Jacob and Jeremy were able to go onto the field and play, too. He was in heaven!
On Saturday, Jacob invited his friends to his birthday party. Of course they had to spend the first half hour playing what? Football in the backyard.
It was fun to see this group of friends as fanatical about football as Jacob.
We all piled into the van and car and took the party to AMF bowling.
Some of the boys had never been bowling before and I just giggled at their excitement when they knocked down the pins.
Isaac just acted like one of the big boys!
Go Jacob! Go Jacob! Fortunately, he bowled the highest score at his own birthday party.
Even more thrilling than watching the pins was watching the video screen with the cartoon instant replays. A fun time was had by all! Happy Birthday to You.
Our Cub Scout Pack has a wild traditional advancement ceremony for boys earning their Wolf badge. The badge is sealed in a ziplock bag and placed at the bottom of a whipped-cream-filled pie tin. As the boy tries to fish it out with his mouth (no hands!), the crowd chants, "Wolf! Wolf! Wolf!" Both Jacob and his friend Richy gave it a try this month. It wasn't easy, but Jacob persevered and succeeded in retrieving his badge. Congratulations on all your hard work, Jacob!
Rain in itself is such an event where we live, but the end-of-summer monsoon storms leave an aftermath that is irresistible to my kids. It's just way too exciting to play in the water that accumulates!
