Ketchup…You know, the ANTICIPATION.

I post again…FINALLY…after long last!

(And there was much rejoicing…)

Well, to quote a very wise man, “Lemme essplain…no…there is too musch. Lemme sum up.”

Over the course of the next several days, you will be treated to “ketchup” – a little dab here, a little blob (or should I say blog?) there, hopefully none on your white shirt. Think of these posts as those little packets you get from McDonald’s. 🙂 Rather than catching you up on our life over the last 3 weeks in one long post which I know you won’t read, I’ll ketchup one delicious bit at a time.

Today’s little bit of ketchup will revolve around Tiger Cubs. When last we left our Loyal Scout, he was in the throes of Poptober. (No kidding, that’s what they really call it.) Did he escape the buttery wrath of the Popcorn Kernel? Did the gods of Poptober blow a favorable wind of hot air to increase his sales? Will he pop his way onto a battleship aircraft carrier overnighter? Oh, the drama….

I am happy to report that yes, Trey did meet his Popcorn sales goal of $500. In fact, he POPPED it!! (Last popcorn joke, I promise) He sold over $600 in fact, to earn a trip to the USS Lexington in Corpus Christi in January. For his very first time to experience door-to-door sales, he did an excellent job! We were so proud of him. We took 3 Sundays to go around the neighborhood – my, how it has grown! – and met a lot of new neighbors. We also took it to church one Wednesday to sell to church friends. He wore his Tiger Cub uniform, which makes him look absolutely irresistible. It’s all just part of our marketing ploy, heh heh. Now we await the next task for our fearless Tiger Cub. Will he be able to deliver all this popcorn? Will the blessing of the Poptober gods be enough to sustain him as he travels, wagon in tow, throughout the land of Sloan Creek, spreading buttery smells and giving goodwill to all? Tune in next time to…(cue sappy organ music) Almost All Our Children (Well, Really Only One).

Trey missed a Den outing while we were away on our trip (a visit to a Fire Station), but we brought his book and were able to complete some of the electives for his Tiger Track beads. We figure having a neighbor who is a volunteer Fire Fighter with the Fairview FD might give us an inside edge into getting a visit scheduled to the local FD sometime soon.

While we were gone, we did complete the final requirements for him to earn his Bobcat badge (a requirement for all Cub Scouts). He was presented with his badge at a Pack ceremony on the 24th, and can now work on earning his Tiger Cub badge.

This past weekend was CUBe, a major Scout event for the Arrowhead District. It was held at Myers Park in McKinney, the same location as the Pack overnighter Matt wrote about a few weeks ago. Each pack involved hosted a booth or event, with scouts at all levels (through Webelos) earning belt loops and electives. Trey participated in all the events except woodworking, because they ran out of kits before we got there. He learned to shoot a BB gun at a target – well, he learned to shoot a BB gun. Not necessarily at a target. Or if there was a target, it was somewhere else, changing each time he shot. He learned to shoot a bow and arrow, and though he didn’t hit the target there either, he did much better on that one. He made a “magic” wallet, a neckerchief, and a mask; learned about knot-tying and first aid; attempted a water rescue throw; competed in a “rain gutter regatta” and rocket launch – quite successfully in both, thanks to Architect Dad’s great designs – and created a bagel birdfeeder. It was a long and busy day, but lots of fun, and Trey earned two belt loops and completed enough electives to earn his first Tiger Track bead.

So on we traverse this Cub Scout way, giving goodwill, following Akela, and doing our best. Tune in next time as we follow our Scout through his Popvember escapades…