This last week,not only were my allergies bothering me, but I came down with a cold as well. How can I tell the difference? I don't get stuffy with allergies,but my eyes get really dry and itchy. With a cold I get stuffy,and I don't feel well overall. The cold started about a week ago,and I was not going to let it interfere with my apple picking plans with My Dear Friend Michelle. We went Tuesday to Butternut Farm,where the public can pick their own fruit,pumpkins,etc. I got a bag of MacIntosh ( Rick's Fave) and a bag of Honey Crisp ( my Fave). After we were done, Michelle wanted a bite to eat,so we went down to the little restaurant where we meet for our muffin dates. I wanted a cup of tea,so I knew I wasn't feeling well.( I like tea, but am more of a coffee kind of gal.) After we had tea and a muffin, I was suppose to go grocery shopping ( as Tuesdays are grocery days) but I really wasn't feeling well,my stomach was off and on unsettled,and my head was feeling weird. So I called the Boys and asked them if they would mind getting the groceries this week. No problem! I drove home,made up the list,and Rick and Brian went to the store. Now, normally I would have the list already made,but since I wasn't feeling 100 %, I was just going to grab the normal things we usually get. Since I do the shopping,they didn't have a clue what to get,so I had to write it down.
By Friday, I was feeling better,which was good, because Friday night was the beginning of our district Boy Scout Fall Camporee. We had been keeping an eye on the weather forecast all week,and it had been the same-rain. It's pretty well known that any Abnaki District event conjures up rain at some point,so it wasn't surprising.Being involved in Cub Scouts for 5 years,and now in Boy Scouts,one tends to get used to rain. However, one still hopes that the front will move through faster,or will move more to the south. No such luck.
We were fortunate though that we were all set up in camp and settled in our tents before it started raining in the wee hours of Saturday morning ( about 2:00 AM). And did it rain! It rained most of the day Saturday,with some short breaks. The boys,however,had great attitudes and worked well together at all their stations-archery,.22 target shooting,paintball wrist rockets,first aid,troop jeopardy,orienteering,and water rocket targets. Rick and I followed the boys from station to station,though we were a bit behind them because Rick cannot walk as fast as they can. He kept telling me to go on ahead,but I stayed with him. He was in a lot of pain,but determined to do what he could. The other adults were helping run the paintball wrist rocket station.
Like I said, the boys worked very well together,and we did not hear them complain about the weather once. In these type of situations,attitude is everything. If you let the rain get you down,then you will be miserable,and your attitude will affect those around you. Chris,the Senior Patrol Leader,gave the boys a little pep talk before the days events started,and said as much. This was his last district event,as he is working on his Eagle Scout rank,and will be leaving us very soon. He wanted this to be a good weekend for everybody,for the boys to have good spirit,work together,and have fun. It was a good speech,and everyone took it to heart. The boys sang,cheered each other on at the various stations,and had good attitudes. It paid off. The troop won Most Creative for their Mud Cake in the dessert contest,second place in Troop Jeopardy,first place in First Aid,and won Honor Patrol. Honor Patrol is a special award for the patrol that best exemplifies the patrol method-working together,scout spirit,etc. It doesn't matter how many events you place at,the whole purpose of the patrol method is teamwork. Chris was especially pleased,since he had been wanting the troop to win this for a long time,and this was his last chance with the troop to do so. We are so proud of all of them.
We got home late morning on Sunday,unpacked all our gear,took showers,and by 2:00 PM,Rick and I were both sound asleep in our recliners. I slept for three hours,but Rick was very hard to wake up. We had to wake him at 6:00 PM for his morphine,then again at 8:00 PM for his night time meds. He also ate supper,then fell back asleep. Poor guy,he was exhausted but had a great time getting to know the adults and seeing the boys working do what they do.
Tonight is our Court of Honor,and Zach is excited because he will be receiving his first Merit Badge that he earned at Summer Camp-Fingerprinting. It is a basic badge that all first year campers earn. He could've have earned his Swimming badge as well,but it took him a few days to pass his BSA Swimmers Test,and that put him behind. You really have to pass it the first day so you can complete the rest of the of the requirements during the week. That's OK,though! He had a great time at camp. It has inspired and motivated him to work hard,and that is very heartening. Like he says,next year he will kick butt!!! :)
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