I had all of these grand ideas and plans about blogging. In my mind, I'd be posting my den meeting plans with project details and a what worked/didn't work within a day of two of the meeting. The brain has a way of making your ideas and goals seem awesome and easily attainable. Life likes to step in and say "HEY! YOU DON'T HAVE TIME TO WRITE A BLOG POST! GO DO THE LAUNDRY! WHAT'S FOR DINNER? DON'T FORGET YOU HAVE TO EMAIL 50 VOLUNTEERS INDIVIDUALLY BEFORE TUESDAY!"
Sometimes I forget just how busy my life actually is, and before you know it, I haven't blogged in 7 months, and I only have a handful of den meetings left before another school year comes to a close. So here is my recap of the last 7 months, in list form, because who doesn't love a good list? Hopefully, I'll be able to create some more posts going into greater detail. Here goes (and not in chronological order):
1. The Bobcat Fortune Tellers were a big hit. The older boys partnered with the Tigers and helped them remember it all!
2. Campfire Pack Meeting in October. We had an awesome fireside Bobcat ceremony, made s'mores, and had one of our Bears demonstrate the proper way to start a campfire. The evening concluded with a game of flashlight tag (in an open area far away from the fire!)
3. The Bears earned their Whittling Chips, but not without a meltdown when I had to take a plastic knife and bar of soap away from one scout. To be fair, they were all given ample warning of the consequences of not handling the materials properly or safely.
4. A unit on astronomy. The boys made their own solar systems and constellations in preparation for our space themed Blue and Gold Banquet.
5. Electricity. Those Slinky brand electricity kits from the craft store were a fabulous learning experience, and even started a small fire! Luckily, I was RIGHT THERE, and we had several adults at the meeting supervising the groups. The boys learned the importance of reading the instructions FIRST before playing with circuits!
6. Cooking! The boys made "fireless s'mores", monkey bread cupcakes, and instant pudding. The Tigers made Food Guide Pyramids, and played a food group matching game as well.
7. Outdoor fun. The first beautiful day of Spring happened to be a den meeting day, so the boys went outside in the sunshine and earned their kickball belt loops.
8. Lots of knots. I don't especially excel at knot tying, but took a class at PowWow so we made our way through. Some of the boys caught on quickly and others struggled, but everyone did their best, and that is all that matters.
I thought I could get to 10, but I haven't had enough coffee yet to recall more of what we did. What is sticking in my mind are some of the "problems" we've been having this year. In our first year, our parental involvement was fantastic. We used a sign up for snacks and everyone did their fair share. Not so much this year. It's mostly been two of us leaders switching off on the snacks. Emails to parents asking them to sign up have been mostly ignored.
Tiger parents not attending, or showing up late to den meetings. The papers that went home in the beginning of the year said that a parent must attend with Tigers. We've got it mostly straightened out now, but it was a bumpy road. This is our first year with Tigers, and before doing this particular program, I didn't understand why a 1:1 ratio was a big deal. I do now. I really, really do.
The biggest issue for me was having a scout family that didn't/wouldn't/couldn't pay their registration fee for the year. We charge one flat fee, and that covers all awards, pinewood derby car, Blue and Gold Banquet, and the fees for the boys' for trips, along with the cost of registering them with the council. This fee was due at the end of September. Multiple emails and verbal reminders did nothing to get this family to pay. The boy continued coming to meetings, I let him stay, I'd remind the parent at pickup that I needed their fees. Finally, after winter break, I told the parent (at the end of the den meeting) that he couldn't continue coming to den meetings if the fee wasn't paid. The boy missed the next three meetings, so I thought that was the end of it. Pinewood Derby rolled around the the parent went directly to the cub master to sign the boy up. CM informed them that he couldn't participate if the fees weren't paid, because he had to be a registered scout, and couldn't be registered until the fees were paid. (This was a fib, I gave them the benefit of the doubt and registered him with the council at recharter). The boy didn't participate in Pinewood Derby. The boy didn't come to the next den meeting, or the banquet. Again, I thought that was the end of it. Next den meeting rolls around, and guess who shows up? As horrible as I felt, I didn't let the boy stay for the meeting. This is certainly not this boy's fault, it is the fault of his parents. His parents were certainly taking advantage of me and our group at this point, 6 months of reminders later. I sent him to after school care, and his older sibling brought him back to the meeting a few minutes later, chock full of attitude. I calmly explained the basics of the situation and sent them both on their way. I should mention that I sent an email along with CM's email AGAIN letting them know what needed to be done so that the boy could participate in the derby. I really did give them every chance and opportunity for this boy to participate. Fast forward a few weeks, day before the next den meeting, last den meeting before Spring Break. I get a phone call from the parent asking what what needed to be done. REALLY?! They claimed their email was "hacked" and they didn't get my email. Except they admitted to getting CM's email, and mine was sent only 10 minutes after, and the timing of when they "got hacked" and when those emails were sent were weeks apart. I am a nice person. I am an understanding person. I am a patient person. But I CAN NOT stand being lied to. Without coming right out and saying it, I let them know what I didn't believe the story, but send the fee in tomorrow and the kid can stay. Lo and behold, the kid hands me an envelope right before the meeting, check enclosed. Perhaps I should have taken the tough love approach sooner, as that is the only thing that ended up getting results. What would you have done, or what have you done if this happened in your group?
Until Next Time (and hopefully not seven months from now!),
CubMom
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