Cub Scout Carnival, Collett Version

Joseph is working to earn his Bear Rank in Cub Scouts.  One of the requirements is to work with the den and organize a carnival for the rest of the cub scouts. Unfortunately, the den here did this activity in early November, before we arrived and before Joseph was even 9.  Joseph is going to be turning 10 in a few months and we didn't want to risk waiting for another chance with the den, so we said, organize one yourself for the FHE activity!

Today, Rebekah spent several hours helping Joseph organize games and create tickets and signs for the carnival.  They did a great job!  Here's what they did and how everyone enjoyed it...

Everyone got an invitation that had been handwritten, with several ticket taped inside.  No two were the same!

The admission ticket got us "into" the carnival, and a chance to punch a spot and reach inside for a piece of candy. A couple of them had two pieces; I was lucky enough to get a starburst AND a dum dum!  (It's perfectly understandable if you feel some jealousy.)

Notice the clown.  Joseph did an excellent job dressing as a carnival clown for the activity.  Don't miss the socks!

When Daniel took his turn, Joseph had to grip the box a little harder.  I'm suspecting Daniel was trying to get a little more fun from the moment than Joseph had planned on.

The carnival had several things to do and each station had a sign.  They really put a lot of effort into this!

Leah playing horse shoes...

You've already seen the tickets.  Here is Rebekah demonstrating how to "pay" for the game.  I think they thought of everything!

Near the horse shoe toss was a lawn darts game.  Considering the fact that we had two throwing games in close proximity, I feel grateful no heads (or anything else) were injured during the evening!

There was also a petting zoo.  I think Rebekah had a lot of influence in this one!  Poor Luke and Suzie were the only animals that could be staked out there (the cat wasn't really an option).  They endured the attention with great patience.  

Lastly, there was an abbreviated croquet course set up.  Sarah tried to beat Daddy in a game.  I'm not sure what the result was.  I know what she'd say!

The whole carnival was small, but they put a lot of thought and work into it and was pretty impressive for an 11 (almost 12)-year-old and 9-year-old!  I think everyone had fun.

Here is our master clown and host.  I think he had fun, which is most important!

Have you met our cat?  Rusty ventured upstairs while the dogs were safely tethered outside in the petting zoo.  Comfortably seated in the window, he kept an eye on the croquet game (and the dogs).

The weather was perfect and the mosquitoes were not too bad.  It was a great activity for our FHE.  After we cleaned it all up, we went inside for a lesson to support Sarah's upcoming baptism and then we finished it all off with German chocolate cake, compliments of Nathan.

Joseph's date with mommy

Twice a year, each Collett kid gets a chance to go out with mom or dad for one-on-one time.  We try to do something they choose, though sometimes they need a little guidance in choosing.  February was Joseph's month and my turn to take him.  He wanted to go mini golfing.  He was sure he'd never been because he couldn't remember our golf trips in Idaho.  There's a nice golf course in Cape Canaveral that is only $5 a person.  Because it's outdoors, it's best in cooler weather, which gives us about a 4 month window.

Time for a selfie with a photo-bombing gorilla!

This is a little golf dance that Joseph made up.  It's one of the few times he was detached from his shadow.

Putting into a cave.  Very skilled puts are required for this hole but neither one of us qualified.  This might be one of the holes that Joseph got to start over again when his ball returned to him!

One last selfie.  It was a beautiful morning and we had the golf course to ourselves.  The fact that we are still smiling means that we had fun despite being horrible golfers!

Joseph didn't do too badly for his "first time".  But neither one of us got a hole-in-one.  Maybe next time.

The arcade had been very tempting as we passed through it on our way to golf.  I'm sure it's placement was no accident.  Joseph wanted to play some games, so I gave him the choice to spend the money on games or getting a treat together.  Guess which one he chose.

Ten dollars in quarters equals a lot of quarters!  It would have seemed less expensive if the games had taken tokens and not actual quarters.  But Joseph had a lot of fun and got a bit of a workout.  ;)

Our last cub scout!

Joseph turned 8 last November (yay!) and officially started Cub Scouts.  After watching his big brothers do fun things in scouts, Joseph was more than a little excited to get his own uniform!  I can't say I missed going to Pack Meeting, but now we're mostly all at the church anyway.  His older siblings don't join us because they are involved in their own scout or mutual activities.  And Daddy slips in and out.  But we do our best.

Daddy did get to be present when Joseph earned his Bobcat.  Big things are in store for Joseph!  :)

Fifty States...Nifty!

Joseph has to learn the 50 states in school.  Ugh.  Joseph doesn't like to work.  He gets mad easily and without warning so it can be tricky to get much done.

We've learned 13 states so far...and they aren't the original colonies.   I guess that means we are a quarter of the way through!  I prefer the western states because they are big and fast to learn.

I also prefer the western states because the bugs are smaller.

Tree Fort

The last big branch of the tree came down on Saturday.  A portion of the fence came down under it, but this post is not about that.

The kids have really been enjoying the cooler weather combined with the instant fortress created by huge tree limbs resting on the ground.  They have even used the broken boards from the fence to nail benches onto the branches. 

It seems Joseph has claimed this wing of the tree fort as his own.  He went out to read there this evening.  He is nearly in heaven!

Unfortunately, he got a late start out there today because I didn't get home to stay until after 5 pm.  So he didn't really get to do much reading.  They aren't allowed out there if I'm not home.  :(  I want to be around if someone decides to have the first official broken bone in the family!

Tomorrow is a new day for tree forts...as long as it doesn't rain.

Jeepers, Creepers! Who belongs to those peepers?

When you enter our home you are in an entry way that immediately transitions into our living room.  And from our living room, there are 5 door ways to other rooms (three of which are french doors).  One of the rooms off of the living room is the master bedroom. The french doors here have clear glass, but have been covered, more or less, by vinyl clings of bamboo stalks of faux stained glass.

The previous owners applied the coverings and though I want to replace them, other things keep taking priority. So there they remain.

Because the vinyl wasn't uniformly cut, some panes of the doors are not fully covered.  These small gaps are good for peeking, but their translucent nature makes peeking hard to do with much stealth.

Here is Joseph giving it a wothy effort this afternoon. He's a funny kid. 

What the kids don't seem to have picked up on is that the vinyl is applied to the outside of the door and would be so easy to peel away.  Maybe it's just that they are such good kids that they would never even think of such an invasion of privacy  (though peeking seems to be ok).

I really should at least put it on the other side.  But if I'm going to go through the effort of that, I'd rather put something of my own choosing up there!

Morning Madness

Mornings can get pretty crazy around here.  Thursdays are even crazier as we try to leave 30 minutes or more earlier than normal.  This is because Joseph and Leah were both elected as class representatives a couple of months ago.

This morning Joseph was trying to finish homework that should have been done last night.  So his temper was precariously perched on self-destruct.  I found it funny that he would choose the LARGEST pencil in the house to do the work.  But somehow, it relieved some tension and helped him finish the task.

Sarah was a little reluctant to wake this morning and left herself very little time to wake up/dress/eat/groom before we had to leave.  So she skipped the waking and grooming part.

She had braided pigtails yesterday and thought they should still be good for today.  Considering they barely survived school yesterday, today was not going to happen.  She wasn't happy about the loss of her precious tails and refused to let me do anything more than put in a barrette...including taking a picture of her crazy mop.

As we got to school, she decided she wanted a ponytail after all.  Unfortunately, we didn't have any ponytail holders, so she was out of luck.  She walked into the school trying to tame her waves.  :)

It's seemed so quiet at home after the bedlam of the morning.

Quote of the Morning

This gem of four-year-old reasoning comes from Joseph.

"Mommy, I know what rich people are. Mean people."

At this point I gave him a strange look and he asked, "Are they're?" (Are they?)

I know what my conscience is telling me to say to him, but I really only know one rich person, and he IS mean!

Heavy Headed

Joseph was leaning over the side of the arm chair I was sitting in and leaned his head into my hip. I exclaimed my discomfort about the pressure put onto my bone and told him his head was heavy.

To this he replied, "That's because my head has so much bones in it!"

I couldn't dispute it. And incidentally, my hip still smarts.

Baby Dragons

Joseph asked me today if dragonflies were baby dragons.

It's an interesting train of thought, really.

Because of all the dragonflies we get around here, I'm very glad that they AREN'T baby dragons!

Neglected Children

While I was outside shoveling the snow off the sidewalk and driveway (so glad we finally got some), Joseph(4) and Sarah(2) were left alone inside. I knew Sarah needed to be dressed, but PBS was doing such a good job keeping them busy, that I decided to let it wait until I came back inside.

I have such helpful children. It doesn't hurt that Sarah is so fun to take care of, either. So when I got back in the house, Joseph mentioned he was having trouble getting Sarah to let him put her shirt on. BUT, he did told me, he was able to change her diaper! And before I was able to put my boots away and hang up my coat, Sarah had pulled her own shirt over her head.

Here are the triumphant children. The shirt is on right (she got lucky, think), the diaper is on backwards. However, I think it would have still served its purpose. Good job, you two!

I'm just glad you didn't decide to start cooking while I was outside!

More pancakes?

The kids are having pancakes for lunch today (because we had extras from dinner last night).

I walked up to Joseph near the end of his first pancake and asked, "Do you need more pancakes?"

"Not yet," he answered. So I stood for 10 seconds longer and watched as he forked the last piece into his mouth. He looked up at me and said, "Now I do."

Such precision.

Bouncy Power

A story about the power of motivation...starring a bouncy ball and a passionate 4-year-old boy.

Joseph wanted me to wash his clothes but he didn't want to help get them collected. I suggested he just pull the laundry basket to the top of the stairs with all his dirty clothes in it and I would take it from there. He pulled a half-filled laundry basket to the top of the stairs. At the request that he drag it back to his room and put ALL of the dirty clothes in it, he flashed into a screaming, stomping, pint-sized monster. It was about that time that I walked away. I don't "rescue" in situations like that. Or maybe I'm just as lazy as he is!

Anyway, about 10-15 minutes later, Joseph approached me with a deal. If he brought down all his dirty clothes, I would give him a bouncy ball. Minutes ago he couldn't even bring down an half-filled basket, but now he has the strength to return to his room and get the rest of the clothes and bring it down the stairs, up a couple of different stairs, through two rooms and a hallway and into the laundry room for a small piece of foam rubber.

I didn't make it through 11.5 years of motherhood without learning to recognize a small victory. So I agreed to the deal. The clothes are now tumbling in the washer. Joseph and Sarah fought over, I mean played with the ball long enough for me to get a shower. I think I got the best part of the bargain!

Here is the object of desire.


It just goes to show what a little motivation and feeling like you have control of the situation can do...even if you are just 4 years old.

Joseph's 4th Birthday

Somehow it happened, I'm still not sure how, that Joseph turned 4 years old on Sunday! I tell you, I sure love that kid. He is so much fun to have in our family. He is Sarah's best friend and is so stinkin' smart! He also talks constantly. (I could use a break from that.)

As his birthday approached, starting in about July, Joseph would want to know if his birthday was before Halloween or after. I have no idea how many times I answered that question!

Thankfully, his birthday finally arrived. He had been looking forward to getting called up to the front in Primary to pick his scripture pencil and bookmark. Chad and I were in there that morning because Leah had a talk, so I got to see the huge smile on his face. He was so excited, that he started inching out of his seat as he anticipated them formally calling him to the front. And then he stood there stoically while we all sang. I loved it.

I had started the cake two nights before when I made the top of the decorations. I baked the cake Saturday night and slapped all the frosting on during a quiet time Sunday afternoon. I don't think it turned out too badly. In fact, it's my best Butter Cream Transfer to date! (I still have room for improvement.)


I bought some Toy Story sugar decorations to put on the cake. I made sure there were exactly 6...for obvious reasons.


I also picked up a game for everyone to play. I am just not a birthday party kind of mom. Daniel had the most parties, Nathan's had one and Leah is looking forward to her first one in January. So we had a party game for our family time. It seemed to work. :)

The kids were sticking on shields or sheriff stars, depending on their height. Here is Joseph, trying to get Buzz Lightyear's shield on his arm.


Sarah's blindfold slipped off, but we didn't force the rules on her. It's a good thing she's such a favorite around here!


Leah did NOT want to do a shield, but she consented to help us keep the peace (Rebekah did not want to do a shield, either). Leah is usually the one that helps us work things out. I am so thankful for her! But does it look like she's cheating??!?


Here is Rebekah putting on the first star. It looks like poor Woody is about to be
gagged.


Nathan's turn was next. He got it a little closer to the target.


Knowing Daniel, I'm pretty sure he felt his way to the right place. I would suspect him of peeking, but it doesn't look like the blindfold was cooperating.


Next it was time to open the presents. There are always a lot of helpful suggestions when it comes to opening birthday presents in this family! Sarah is trying to get Joseph to take the next gift from her before he finishes checking out the one he just opened. (I guess the dining room light was off. I promise there were some lights on somewhere when I took these pictures!)


I made Joseph a shirt with my Silhouette. He wore it the next day. :) The vinyl was fuzzy, so he spent the whole day feeling his shirt.


I think Joseph's favorite present was a backpack full of tools. He still claims that he knew he was getting tools. He didn't but he's so smitten, that he can't stop talking about them. I think that means I chose well.



Daniel and Joseph found some of their things that they could wrap up for Joseph. I love it when the kids made that kind of effort to celebrate each other. Leah didn't have anything to give Joseph, so she decided to give him a hug. It brought the biggest smile to his face!


After presents comes cake. I don't know when we got out of the habit of having ice cream with the cake. It would be delicious, but I guess the extra sugar isn't really needed.

OK. The lights were out for this shot. We wanted to see the candles! Joseph got the candles out in 2 breaths. The first breath got the candle the farthest away and the second got the closest three. Such talent! ;)


As I've said before, the birthday person gets to cut the cake. That often means we get some creative cuts on our plates. Thankfully, Joseph let me cut the rest of the cake once he dished up his own piece.


Leah was our videographer for the cake this night. It seems a little abuse of power was going on here!


It gets quiet around here when the kids start eating something they like.


Sarah really got into her piece of cake! Hmm...it looks like there was a bit of black frosting on her plate.


Joseph's eyes were bigger than his stomach. Once he'd had his fill of cake, he was gone to the living room to play with his tool set. I wish I could walk away from food like that! (Sadly, I found the best, untouched piece of cake from his plate and ate it. I can't stick to my own food!)


Joseph wasn't the only one who wanted to play with his tools some more!

At the end of the celebration, this was what was left. Joseph, Sarah and I had a little for lunch on Monday and then Chad and I finished it off (before it got stale)!


Happy Birthday, Joseph! We hope you felt special on your special day. We sure love you tons!