Wilderness Men!

Well, Stephen and Michael survived their 3 day, 2 night trek into the woods for the summer Cub Scout camp out. Stephen loved every minute of it and Michael called on the cell from time to time so that I could stay abreast of all of the wonderful things that Stephen was experiencing. While he was involved with a bevy of activities, his favorites were archery, whittling, wood crafts and learning how to shoot a B.B. gun. I'm glad I was not there! I would have been a nervous wreck watching my baby handle knives, guns and arrows! UGH! Michael was so proud of him and seemed to enjoy the experience as well. From what he has told me, everything was very organized and well thought out. Although, neither one of my happy campers were very pleased with the 7:00 am wake up calls via a bull horn. Meanwhile back at the ranch, Matthew and I were snoozing soundly each morning until roughly 9:00am. Not to mention my wake up call of "Mama, let's go downstairs and get me breakfast" was much more pleasant and bullhorn free!!!!! :) I'm glad that Stephen is enjoying his adventures in Cub Scouts and that Michael is such an involved dad sharing every moment with him. Again, as I have said before, what a lucky girl I am for having such a wonderful bunch of boys to call my own! Yes, even my 41 year old!:) Enjoy the pictures of Stephen in action at Cub scout camp.

Cub Scout Stephen

Stephen is starting his second year of Cub Scouts and really seems to be enjoying it. Michael is very involved as a sort of "co-leader" for his den, although it's not an official title. They started the new year with a weekend of fun at the Kalamazoo Air Zoo. He and Michael have spent the weekend rotating around stations in order to earn a variety of badges and beads to add to Stephen's uniform. I have to admit that Michael looks pretty cute in his scout shirt as well!! I'll have to get a picture of him as well to post. Next weekend they are off for 3 days of camping. If the outside temps continue to rise I don't envy their sleeping in a tent at all! I'll stay inside and enjoy the central air! I wonder if they have a badge for that. Just kidding. Even if it is hot, Stephen is very excited about the trip. This is a pretty big deal with things such as fishing and archery among other male bonding type of activities. Matthew and I have big plans for that weekend as well, most of which revolve around shopping and eating out. Now that's what I call a bonding experience! I'm sure, at some point, there will be an ice cream stop as well. We'll think of Stephen and Daddy baking in the sun as we're sitting in the air conditioned ice cream shop sharing a chocolate shake! :)

Water Babies!!!

Boy oh boy have the swimming lessons paid off! I think both boys have grown gills and I'm sure webbed feet will soon follow! While Stephen's lessons have mostly helped him to hone his swimming strokes, Matthew's lessons have really helped him to develop more independence and confidence in the water. On the last day of his lessons, he finally put his face in the water and has been doing it every chance he gets since then! He thinks he is hot stuff and I have to say that his daddy and I agree. It is so much fun to watch the boys hanging out in the pool and having a good time. Here's a clip so that you can share in the fun!





It's hard to believe that the boys are as big as they are and that another summer is almost over. At least we'll have clips like these to keep as memories!