Its summer time......

Hanging out with the family, staying cool and having fun!










Celebrating year long accomplishments!

Learning new skills!

Enjoying the beauty of God's world and............

Getting lots of excercise and sunshine!

Hanging with our best buddies, making memories..............

Checking out the local scenery

Otherwise just haning around ;)

Happy Summer Yall!!!!

Scouts and Accomplishments

So several months ago I wrote that I would be updating this blog and letting you know how we were managing to accomplish the Boy Scout journey without compromising my son's Sabbath observances. At the time it felt like a dismal and daunting task, some days it still does! Yet today I am happy to say that just a little over 1 years since he transitioned to Boy Scouts he has earned his First Class Scout Rank.

For those of you who don't know much about the ranks, you earn them in this order:

Scout
Tenderfoot
Second Class
First Class
Star
Life
Eagle

The first 4 ranks are about learning the scout skills, hiking, camping, first aid, orienteering, cooking, swimming, etc.

The last 3 ranks become learning your leadership skills, serving in a leadership role in the troop, earning merit badges, learning about and planning their Eagle projects. These ranks are timed, so to speak, you must remain in these ranks for a certain time period. This keeps boys from rushing ahead and getting to the end of the journey as clueless as when they started. This is where the true Eagle Scouts come from. Those boys who hang in there, earn the badges, serve the troop and stay active.

We have camped, hiked, oriented ourselves, cooked, etc.....all with respect to his Sabbath and we have managed to get this far! YAY!!!!! Joseph is so proud of himself and is so motivated to continue that it is hard not to be caught up in his enthusiasm.

Monday night we will have our Court of Honor and watch him receive his Rank and Merit Badges. I will try not to cry, just because I am that kind of Mama :)

Now off to plan more events for these Scouts!

Love

Love, in my eyes is unconditional. I can love you and except you as my friend regardless of race, religion, politics, or what you may have done in your past. I also love you whether or not you do what I expect, want, or wish you would do.

Love is

being disappointed but shaking it off and moving on
wishing for a better result but trying again
wanting more and always hoping for the best
embracing your heart with two arms and holding your secrets with me always

If we could only begin to think of how we handle our relationships as the old rule of "do unto others as you would have them do unto you". This is a lesson I am learning too........

I know crazy rant right....its okay it is out of my system now.....besides how many really read this anyway?