Trials and Tribulations of a Band Parent

Yes, I know that James has only been in the band for less than six months, but I am not sure if I am cut out to be a band parent.

These six months have been wonderful for James, as he has truly enjoyed playing the saxophone. For me, on the other hand, it has been a stressful experience, and it has nothing to do with the home practice sessions of the budding musician.

We started out trying to save some money to make sure that James would like playing the saxophone, by having him use my brother Dave's old one. In hindsite that may have been a mistake. After numerous visits to the music store to get the proper song book and reeds, the maintenance aspect of using an older instrument kicked in.

For a period of time it seemed that something new was wrong with the saxophone every single day. As fast as I could repair one item, a new issue popped up the next day. Finally a large piece broke off that I had to take to work to get the maintenance department to reattach.

Finally James declared that his teacher told him that he needed a new saxophone.

Fortunately the school has lent him a tenor saxophone to use for the rest of the year. Low and behold, soon after it breaks down also and goes into the music shop. There is sat and sat and sat as the Winter Concert approached. On the day of the concert after many nervous emails (from Michelle) to the teacher, his saxophone was repaired and returned.

On the much happier side, his Winter Concert was wonderful and the 6th grade band was very impressive. James could not have been any happier. He looked pretty sharp in his suit also.

He certainly has enjoyed the band experience far more that I ever would have guessed. He has made great progress and he likes playing the saxophone and he likes his teacher.

Check out the video clips of his concert, in the video section of the page. They did a great job.

...now if being a band parent wasn't so difficult...

After more than 25 years I discover that Winter Camping is still cold

Hello again! Before I start my revelation about the experiences of camping in a tent when it is below freezing, I want to share some learnings about the difficulty of keeping good habits.

I've decided that writing and blogging is a good habit that I am trying to keep. This is a great way to share family happenings and stay in touch. Ive also decided that this is a lot like dieting. You know that it is a good thing that you are doing, and when you are keeping to it on a regular basis it is not to hard to stick to. BUT...If you take a break from it for even little bit, then it becomes very difficult to get back on the wagon and get yourself into the good habit routine.

Today Iam trying to get myself back into the good habit routine.

So back to the topic at hand....Camping When It is Below Freezing.

A week ago, (you see, time lags when you get out of the good habits), James and I went camping with two patrols from Troop 42. This was a special campout that only included the youngest scouts and focused on completing some necessary requirements for their early ranks. We had 10 boys and 2 others adults besides myself.

We spent two nights at camp Cherokee, which had a much different look to it, compared to how it appeared during Summer camp. We had the entire camp to ourselves for the weekend.

The boys learned about First Aid and we spent time practicing fire starting skills and teaching boys how to cook over camp stoves and campfires. The pace of the campout was not rushed, because we didn't have to really be anywhere at a special time.

Aside from the twentysome degree nights, it was a really nice way to spend the weekend.

It wasn't the extreme cold that I remember from years ago during the Polar Bear Campouts with snow on the ground in Ohio, but it was still cold enough to bring back many of those memories. We all bundled up and made it through the nights, with plenty of hot chocolate and hand warmers to keep us warm.

We wore pleny of layers and James and I broke out our new warm fleece long underwear and doubled up our sleeping bags at night. Toasty might not be the right word, but we weren't cold.

I am glad I did not have to camp in the cold again this weekend, but I can still say that I had a good time and I will do it yet again in the future.

As we reach the end of the year, I will focus my efforts on keeping my good habits and setting my New Year's resolutions to keep at it.

until next time.......

Swimming is a Year Round Sport

Swimming is now a year round sport in our family. Both James and Madison have decided to work on their swimming for the entire year instead of just during the summer.

You would think that 4 basics strokes would be relatively easy to master, but there’s a lot more to it than that. They have to learn the special kicks associated with each stroke. They have to learn when they are supposed to breath. They have to practice how to turn at the end of the pool and come back, within the guidelines for that particular stroke.

There definitely is a lot more to it than what I learned taking basic swimming lessons, 30 or so years ago. It takes a lot of hard work, but you can see the improvement that comes with repetition and practice.

Swimming is not only a competitive sport, it is a life long activity that can be enjoyed, and it is a skill that can potentially save your life.

Yesterday we spent 5 hours at a swim meet. They are not all that long, but none of them are short. The meets are where the kids can show off what they have learned and try to improve on their personal bests for times. Michelle and I can definitely see the improvement in both of the kids. Both swam three different strokes during the meet: Backstroke, Breaststroke, and Freestyle.

I am attaching pictures to this posting and also on the Life In JT’s World website you can watch YouTube video clips of the kids in their races. I was able to capture each of the kids individual (3 each) races on video . You will be amazed at how well they can swim if you haven’t been able to see them swim in person.

Surrounded By the Colors of Fall

Amidst the splendor of Fall colors, James and I spent our weekend backpacking with the Boy Scouts. This month’s campout was at Pilot Mountain State Park in North Carolina.

The theme for this camping trip was Backpacking. This was to be James' first backpacking experience, and my first in over 25 years. We had spent the previous two weeks preparing for this trip. We had older scouts present proper gear to bring and how to pack our packs. We took a practice 5 mile hike with weights in our small packs to simulate what we would be going through. We even had to bring our packed packs in to a meeting to be reviewed to make sure that we weren’t bringing unnecessary gear along for the trip.

Despite all of the preparation, the only way to know for sure if you are ready is to just do it! We had 16 boys and 10 adults go on what was supposed to be a 5.5 mile backpacking hike. We left early Saturday morning and drove to the park. We dropped off our packs and gear at the beginning of the trail and then spent the next 30 minutes shuttling the cars to the campsite at the end of the trail.

Once everything was ready, we started our hike. The temperature was in the 50’s at the start of the hike and moved into the 60’s during the day. The weather was perfect. We were surrounded by the color filled forest as we hiked along. About the halfway point, we stopped and had our lunch by the trail. At this point, everyone had been keeping up and doing pretty well.

After lunch things got a little tougher. The packs seemed to get heavier and each successive hill was a little more difficult to climb. The group started to get further spread apart. It was also becoming evident that the trail was longer than advertised.

James, like many of the other boys was struggling during the second half of the hike. I moved his tent from his pack to mine to lighten his load by about 6 pounds. This helped a little, but not enough.

Finally, I took his whole pack, as well as mine (50 lbs total), and allowed him just to hike. We probably did this arrangement for about 2 miles or so of the hike.

Our 5.5 mile hike, end up being our 7.5 – 8.0 miles in length, but everyone made it to the campsite!

One we reached the campsite everyone set up their tents and relaxed a little before it was time to prepare dinner.

The boys had to chop up the vegetables for their dinner, while I lit the charcoal for them to cook over. Once the charcoal was hot and ready, the boys prepared their individual foil packs with a sirloin burger and their choice of: potatoes, mushrooms, onions, tomatoes, carrots, broccoli, and spices. They placed them on the coals, flipped them after 10 minutes and let them cook for 10 more minutes.

They turned out great and the hungry boys really enjoyed them.

Now it was time for desert. They boys had peeled and cut up some apples into small chunks. They then took a ½ of a pre-made pie crust, added apples, cinnamon, white sugar, and brown sugar to it. Folded the crust in half and sealed the edges to make a sealed pie. They wrapped it in foil and put it on the coals for 20 minutes, flipping once halfway through.

The apple pies turned out great! It was a recipe that I had invented earlier in the week and had tried it out on the family at home to make sure that the boys would like it.

As night fell, we spent some time looking at the numerous stars in the sky and enjoying the peacefulness. Then we moved to the campfire for warmth before retiring to our tents for the night.

The temperature dropped below freezing overnight and a frost developed by morning. The boys hurried to get a fire going to get warm as soon as they woke up.

After breakfast, we packed up our gear and patrolled the campsite to make sure it was as nice as we had found it. Then we held a short church service there in the wilderness.

Finally, it was time to head home after another wonderful camping experience.

Halloween Pumpkin Artists at Work

You can tell that the kids have come of age, when they are designing and cutting their pumpkins on their own at Halloween.

Without any input, I believe that they both have come up with some pretty creative looking pumpkins.

Madison has taken a traditional Jack-O-Lantern face and dressed it up with a natural hair that really gives her pumpkin a unique look.

James really got creative with his pumpkin. He decided that he wanted to add some extra depth to his creation, so he utilized toothpicks to attach the ears and give the top a floating effect.

I think you will agree with the comments from the neighborhood children that the end result on both pumpkins is pretty cool.

On Halloween night the kids got dressed up for a night of trick-or-treating in our neighborhood. Madison dressed up as Asoka - from the Stars Wars ~ The Clone Wars movie and James is dressed as a menacing, sword wielding, cloaked creature.

We had about 100 trick-or-treaters visit our house and the kids made out well while they canvassed the neighborhood for candy.

All in all it was a very nice Halloween.

James goes Horseback Riding with the Scouts

This past Saturday, James went with 6 other Boy Scouts to the Camp Keyauwee, Circle C Ranch to work on their Horsemanship merit badge.

This was his first horseback riding experience and he certainly looked a bit nervous at first.

To his credit, he followed the instructions and after they groomed their horses, it was time to learn how to ride.

James was paired up with Penny. She was the largest horse of the group, but she also appeared to be the most gentle. This made the day go much smoother for James.

He learned how to make Penny walk, stop, and turn where he wanted to go. They got plenty of opportunity to practice, riding around the very nice indoor area on this cold rainy Saturday.

Near the end of the practice they each had to make their horses trot to a designated location, slow down to a walk, turn a complete circle, walk again, then stop and have the horse back up a couple of steps, and then proceed on forward. All of the boys were able to successfully complete the sequence (It helps to have good horses).

The boys then dismounted and removed the saddle and reins and then walked their horses out of the arena and back to the stable area.

They learned quite a bit and had a great time in the process.

Camp Keyauwee is the local Girl Scout camp, but they have an excellent year ruond horse program. We found out that we were the first Boy Scout troop to come there to learn and ride. Once word gets out about the great time that we had, I' quite sure there will be more wanting to visit.

What a Difference a Week Makes

“It’s amazing the difference that a week can make.” That is the thought that went through my head this past Friday night as I was laying in a tent listening to the rain as the temperatures dropped into the 40s.

Let’s go back in time one week and see how this whole story unfolded….

Exactly one week earlier from that reflective moment I was at Disney World in my warm and cozy resort room with a view of Downtown Disney, after having spent the evening with Michelle at Epcot.

Michelle and I had travelled to Disney World earlier that day to spend a quick mini-vacation during her Fall break from college. My mom had come to North Carolina to visit and spend the weekend with the kids while we were gone.

It was a very nice break from work for me and from homework for Michelle, and the kids were spoiled by their Grandmother while we were away.

I left a day by day trip report of our Disney visit on my Disney World Blog, so I won’t rehash it here, but if you are interested just click here: Trip report.

Once Michelle and I returned home on Tuesday, it was time to get our house ready for the twice a year High Point Furniture Market. We scurried about and got the house in order and moved out on Thursday morning. We moved in with Ed and Judy, who graciously allow us to invade their home during this time.

This brings me to Friday October 17th. I had previously signed up for Boy Scout Leadership Outdoor Skills Training and this was the weekend for it. This was a weekend long, camping/training adventure that I shared with 50 other Scout leaders like myself.

I arrived at Camp Cherokee, about an hour’s drive from home, around 6:00 pm and the all day rain continued. I was placed into a Patrol with 6 other leaders that I would be getting to know and working with all weekend. About 8:00 pm we set out in the rain to hike to our campsite and set up our tents. After the tents were set up we went back to the dining hall for team building activities and information about what our weekend would entail. At about 11:00 pm we returned to our tents to get ready for bed.

This brings us back to the beginning of my story. As I laid there in my sleeping bag, I reflected on all that had gone on during my busy week and the extreme difference going from Disney resort to tiny tent in the rainy forest. It was all good. It just represented the varied paths that my life includes. This week had it all: Vacation, Work, Family, & Volunteering. It was a great week and I am very lucky.

Fall Is A Blur As It Rushes By

Hello again!

As everyone in my family has gone back to school and settled into their new routines, I've have decided that Fall is the season of the BLUR months. You know - Septem-blur, Octo-blur, Novem-blur, and Decem-blur.

I call them that because every Fall all of the activities start back up and the Fall just flies by. Here we are in October and I can't believe that the new school year had started back in August.

As I mentioned my family has gone back to school this Fall, the whole family. Michelle is now a full time college student working towards her elementary education degree. The kids are in their new classes and like their new teachers. It's amazing how fast they are growing up!

This Fall both kids are part of the YMCA Dolphins swim team. They practice 3 times a week and have meets about once a month. They are also both in Scouting, James in Boy Scouts and Madison now a Jr. Girl Scout. James' Boy Scout Troop also goes camping every month year round.

I can't forget the dance practice, which now covers ballet, tap, and jazz. There is also the church youth groups that both kids participate in every week.

Since I didn't want to be left out, I have taken some Boy Scout Leader training and have another all weekend training session coming up in October.

You may have noticed that the blogging frequency has slowed down a little, but that isn't quite true. I am actually writing articles pretty much every day now. I started a 2nd blog that is dedicated to all topics concerning Disney World. It has been a lot of fun and it is officially my new hobby.

I will continue to update this site about 1-2 times per week to keep everyone updated on the activities of our family and to keep in touch. I continue to learn about blogging technology and I am playing with new ways to get more pictures available on the sites as well as some video clips of the family.

Feel free to share this site with anyone in our extended family and be all means please tell anyone you know about my Disney World site: www.onlywdworld.com .

It's time to head off to Ohio again for the weekend! There is know such thing as sit down and relax for a weekend. We wouldn't know what to do, we would get bored!

Camping on Bear Island

This past Friday, 32 Scouts and Scout Leaders from Troop 42 boarded the Troop Bus and headed for the Coast.

We arrived in Cedar Point, NC at around midnight and started to set up camp. After about an hour we had everything set up and it was time to get some sleep because we needed to get up at 7:00 am in order to meet our planned schedule for Saturday.

Well 7:00 AM rolled around pretty early, but everyone got up to start the day. The first order of business was to make breakfast.

The Cobra patrol, with James acting as head cook for the trip, was making scrambled eggs, bacon, and pancakes. Everyone ate well with a busy day ahead of them.


















After the breakfast was cleaned up we boarded the bus for the short trip to Hammocks Beach State Park. Once we got there we broke up into two groups. The 20 individuals who would kayak the 2 ½ miles to the island and the 12 of us who would take the food and supplies on the ferry to the island.

Those of us who rode the ferry got to the island first. Then we had about a half mile hike across the island to the beach. Bear Island is very pretty and isolated. It is owned by the park service and no one lives there. It’s original name was “BARE” Island, but it was arbitrarily changed years ago by a map maker to Bear Island.

While the scouts played on the beach and in the surf, another leader and I created a mile long orienteering course for the scouts to practice their compass skills. It took the boys about one hour to complete the course, but they had a lot of fun doing it.

Everyone had a picnic lunch at the beach and enjoyed the mild overcast day, which was warm, but not too hot.

At about 3:00 pm it was time to head back, but several of the boys who originally kayaked wanted to trade for seats on the ferry. James stepped up and volunteered to kayak back and was able to stay up with the lead group for the whole trip back!


















We drove back to our campsite and cooked a big meal for dinner. James’ Patrol made Spaghetti with meat sauce and everyone had plenty to eat.

That night, everyone was tired and had no problem sleeping. The next morning we got up, at breakfast and then started to break down the campsite and pack up. After all of the gear was packed, we held a short outdoor church service.

Finally, we boarded the bus for our return trip home. The weather cooperated for the entire trip and we all had a great weekend.

459.84 Miles from Home

According to Yahoo Maps, my one way driving distance to the home where I grew up and my mom still lives is 459.84 miles.

This trip can take anywhere from 7 hrs flat to over 9 hours, depending upon the weather, traffic, and calls of nature along the way.

This is a trip that I have made many times during the last 6 years since I have moved to North Carolina. I have made this trip by myself, with my family, and my family has driven it without me on occasion as well.

The route is certainly very familiar at this point and there is no need for a GPS to tell us which way to go. Pretty much any where along the route I can tell you how much further to our next landmark (like the Golden Dome to mark the halfway point) and how far to arrive at our destination.

Spending all that time in a car (or van as the case may be) gives you plenty of opportunity to notice and discover things along the route:

Animals, Animals Everywhere!
A favorite way to pass the time is to be the first to spot the animals as we drive by. Michelle is exceptionally adept at this skill and usually is the first to spot the animals. We have seen all varieties of creatures. From the basic farm animals like: Cows, Horses, Sheep, Dogs, and Cats; to woodland creatures: Deer, Groundhogs, Squirrels, Fox, Hawks, Owls, Wild Turkeys, and Buzzards; to the not seen everyday roadside animals: Turtles, Llamas, Coyote, Pygmy Goats, and a Camel!

I’ve Gotta Go!
We certainly can tell you which exits have restrooms, which exits have clean restrooms, which Fast Food places have clean restrooms, and which gas stations we should never try to visit their restrooms again. There are literally very few exits along this route that we have not had to make a stop at during one of our many journeys. This has led to many close calls, but we have always been able to find some place just in the nick of time.

I’m Hungry!
I’m now convinced there is no surer way to upset the harmony of a car travelling family than to ask the question “Where would you like to eat?” It’s not like we haven’t spent any time together before. For some reason there will always be at least one stubborn dissenter who has chosen this opportune time to voice their newly found dislike for the eatery of choice. I’m sure that sometime in the future they will tell me that they have just been playing a trick on me and they just do this for the entertainment value.

Do you have the money ready?
Our favorite game along the way is called “exact change”. It is paramount that we gather the appropriate funds to pay our three $1.25 tolls each way. The money must be readied ahead of time and handed to the driver in a particular manner or you lose. It is a moral victory, if nothing else to be able to minimize stopping time by choosing the shortest toll lane and handing them the exact change so that we can zoom off towards our next checkpoint. It’s the little things in life that make me happy.

The Weather Forecast is ……
I have now made this trip in all kinds of weather, during the day and the night. I can honestly say that I enjoy the drive much better when the weather cooperates. There is nothing like driving 70 mph through the mountains of West Virginia during a 32 F freezing rain at night. Although the one that probably tops them all is the drive from Ohio to NC during a snow storm where I couldn’t see the road for a 150 mile stretch of snow covered, 1 lane, freeway driving.

Orange Barrels and Holiday Traffic
I’ve learned first hand why they say to avoid Holiday Traffic. It will suck the Holiday spirit out of you faster than you can say “Happy Thanksgiving to you too, buddy!” Construction barrels are like rabbits as they always seem to multiply. Traffic grinds to a halt as it tries to merge into a single lane usually combining with the “I gotta go now!” crew declaring that although they didn’t give me warning as we were passing all of those convenient exits, they really gotta go!

Achieving the Zen of the Long Drive
One of the best things about these mega-highway experiences is the opportunity to relax and reflect upon the world. While the kids are watching their movie and Michelle is looking for wildlife, I have the opportunity to relax, think, dream up new blog subjects, and unwind. There is certainly something to be said for having the ability to take some time to be alone with your thoughts in this busy, non-stop multi-tasking world.

Maybe those long drives aren’t so bad after all.

Talented Baker Discovered - Shares Her Secrets

I had the opportunity to recently to interview the newly discovered baking prodigy as she showed off her current specialty: "Amish White Bread".

LJTW: Thank you for being here. That bread smells wonderful.
MPC: Thank you, I just made a couple of loaves of my Amish White Bread.

LJTW: So tell me, when did you start cooking?
MPC: My first cooking memory is when I was 6 and attempted to make French Toast in the toaster. I've improved a bit since then.


LJTW: I certainly agree with that! What inspired you to start baking?
MPC: One day I just decided that "I wanted to cook!"


LJTW: What is your favorite item to cook?




MPC: You're looking at it, my Amish White Bread.



LJTW: Can you tell me about the process for making your now famous bread?
MPC: Basically I follow the recipe, but I make some minor changes to the amounts of the ingredients and my special secret is to use the Kitchen Aid mixer first and then knead by hand.

LJTW: Can we share the recipe with my readers?
MPC: OK, here it is:


Amish White Bread


Ingredients:

• 2 cups warm water (110 F)
• 2/3 cups white sugar
• 2 tablespoons active dry yeast
• 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
• 1/4 cup vegetable oil
• 6 cups bread flour

Directions:

1. In a large bowl, dissolve the sugar in warm water. Stir in yeast. Allow to proof until it resembles a creamy foam.
2. Mix salt and oil into the yeast. Mix in flour one cup at a time. Knead dough on a lightly floured surface until smooth. Place in a well oiled bowl and turn doughto coat. Cover with a damp cloth. Allow to rise until doubled bulk, about 1 hour.
3. Punch dough down. Knead for a few minutes and divide in half. Shape into loaves, and place into two well oiled 9x5 inch loaf pans. Allow to rise for 30 minutes or until dough has risen 1 inch above the pans.
4. Bake at 350 F for 30 minutes.
5. Makes 2 loaves.

LJTW: Thank you for sharing. What will be your next great cooking creation?
MPC: I'm planning on making my grandmother's recipe for Cinnamon Rolls.

LJTW: One last question: Is this a hobby or will it be a possible career choice?
MPC: Although I enjoy cooking, it's just a hobby for me.

LJTW: Thanks, It has been great talking with you today.
MPC: You're welcome!

James (J.Leo) Collins - My Role Model

Role Model is not a title that one can bestow upon themselves.

It is a title that has to be given to you by someone that admires your qualities and actions, and aspires to be like you.

J. Leo Collins possessed many desirable qualities:

Industrious & Energetic: He was a hard worker that was always engaged in a number of projects. He loved to multi-task before the term was invented. His energy encouraged me to approach life in a similar fashion.

Intelligent: He used his logical approach to problem solving to help him become a mechanical engineer. Dad was also a voracious reader. He always looked to learn more and gain a better understanding of his interests. From a young age, I shared his love of reading and always knew that I wanted to grow up to be an Engineer like my Dad.

Competitive: He was a competitor in every endeavor he entered into. This included Drag Racing, Golf, Bonsai, Rabbit Raising, among many others. His competitive nature drove him to improve, learn, and strive to do his best. These are all traits that I have tried to incorporate in my life.

Engaging Conversationalist: Dad could carry on a meaningful conversation with anyone on a wide variety of topics. I was always amazed how easily he could find something in common with someone and have productive conversations.

Teacher: He really enjoyed sharing what he knew and has learned about his hobbies and interests. He had a great ability to teach without belittling or talking down to someone. It was always done with the interest of helping someone understand or improve themselves.

I am very proud to say that my Dad, J. Leo Collins, is my Role Model!

The Official End of Summer

This weekend marks the official end of Summer!

Wait a minute, doesn't summer officially end in September? Well it would if you are a calendar watcher, but for my family and most families with school aged children, summer ends on the weekend prior to the return to school.

Since the kids are returning to school it is time to reflect on our brief, but busy summer.

The summer with the beginning of Elk's swim team and swim practice. The kids made good progress with their swimming and ended up with James competing in the Greensboro city meet.

Next came the family vacation to Walt Disney World. We got a chance to check out the new Animal Kingdom Lodge Villas and we stayed at the Beach Club Resortfor the first time ever. One of the things that I love about visiting Disney World is that we are always able to easily find new firsts to do each trip there.

I would say that riding the new Toy Story Mania attraction was one of the highlights for me, although this picture of James and Cinderella has to be near the top of the list.

After returning from Disney, it was time to focus attention on Summer camps.

J.T. went first. He went to his first summer camp as a Boy Scout. He had a very successful week at Camp Cherokee, earning a variety of awards and merit badges

Madison then went for a week of Girl Scout camp at Camp Keyauwee. She got to share a cabin with her friends Cecelia and Rachel while enjoying the Spooky Holiday Fun Theme.

We travelled to Ohio to visit family, including the newest edition, Ryan Scott Humberson.

We also travelled to Hilton Head, SC with Ed and Judy. It was the first time that any of us had ever been there and we loved it. From the resort we stayed in, to the soft sandy beach, we all had a great relaxing time.

I made time to play my first baseball season in 22 years. I really enjoyed the chance to play again, and I'm already thinking about next year.

Michelle took a Psychology Class during summer session at GTCC.

The kids and Michelle had several Daycations while I worked. They went to Spencer, NC to check out the transportation museum and they also went ice skating a couple of times to beat the 95 F heat.

J.T. & I then went camping along the New River in the mountains of NC with the Boy Scouts. The weather was beautiful and it made for a nice escape for the weekend.

I guess we made pretty good use of our summer.

Time to hit the books and dream of next summer!

Boy Scouts Experience Tubing on the New River

This weekend Troop 42 headed out to explore the New River for their August campout. We left Friday evening for the 2 1/2 hour drive into the mountains of NC.

We arrived at our destination after dark, carefully navigating the twisty back roads to get to the primitive campground.

We set up camp in the dark, along the banks of the New River. We were literally right on the bank on the river.

We learned that this is one of two rivers in the United States where the water actually flows in a Northerly direction.

After making breakfast on Saturday morning we took the one mile hike to the place where we rented our tubes. A group of 18 boys and leaders dared to tube down the river.

James and fellow scout Daniel are shown here enjoying the relaxing tube float on the river.

All in all it took about two hours to make the river journey down to our campsite.

Everyone had a good time although the water level could have stood to be a little deeper. The dry NC weather had lowered the river level below optimum.

After taking a break to cook lunch in camp. The boys played in the river for most of the afternoon.

It was then time to turn attention towards cooking dinner.

The boys made dutch oven pizzas. James is shown making his special "stuffed crust" pizza.

The adults were a little more traditional, cooking grilled chicken breast and roasted corn on the cob.

The focus was to practice cooking over an open fire, so all of the boys got involved in the meal preparation.

The weather was perfect for the trip and the calming sound of the river made an excellent backdrop for sleeping at night.

Sunday morning, it was time to make breakfast, then break camp and head back home with another successful campout in the books.

6th Anniversary = Paint?

Life isn't always glamorous.

In between the awards, vacations, and fun activities there is the real world waiting it's turn for attention.

On July 20th of this year we celebrated 6 years of living in our home in North Carolina. Although it is hard to believe that the time has passed that quickly, a lot has certainly happened during that time. Both children have now spent more of their lives in North Carolina than they did living in Ohio.

To celebrate this anniversary, Michelle decided that it was time to paint the remainder of the house that had not been repainted since we moved in. Knowing full well that the 19 foot high foyer was not going to be fun, I have been putting off this needed activity for as long as I could. Finally Michelle declared that now is the time.

We started our adventure by choosing a paint color. After several rounds of the fun filled games: "What do you think of this?" & " "How does that look?" we settled for "Camel". I'll admit that "Camel" does not sound like a fun color, but fortunately the freshly painted walls do not invoke visions of large, shaggy, multi-humped animals.

The painting has been a whole family activity. Michelle and James started out in the upstairs hallway, with help from Madison's trim work and my ability to reach tough areas without a ladder.

Michelle then tackled the living room by herself, doing an excellent job.

The next, much dreaded area was the foyer. I inherited the lion's share of this activity. Starting at 8:00 am on a Saturday morning, I toiled away until 5:00 pm to nearly complete this large space. Using a twelve foot extension pole, I was able to get the walls painted. Then using the pole and a ladder I completed most of the trim.

As this is being written the final touch-up work still awaits, but the bulk of the painting has been completed. I still have some exciting extension ladder work ahead of me in order to complete the fine trim work that remains.

Not wanting to only blog about the fun activities, I thought I would share this family work endeavor, that helped us celebrate our 6th anniversary in NC.

Quick Trip to the Slow Pace of Hilton Head

Early Sunday morning, we hopped in the van, drove a few miles to pick up Grandpa Ed and Grandma Judy, and headed south. In under 6 hours we arrived at our destination, Hilton Head Island.









This was the first time that any of us had been to Hilton Head, so we didn't really know what to expect. I can tell you that we were all very impressed with the relaxed feeling that one gets when on the island. The abundance of trees and plants, makes you feel much more isolated than you really are.









The first stop was to visit our resort - The Disney Hilton Head Island resort. We didn't see Minnie or Mickey, but we did see a well themed resort that had a very friendly staff, that we all enjoyed. The two bedroom villa had more than enough room for the 6 of us.



My favorite part was being able to cook the breakfasts in our room then all eat together on our balcony overlooking the pool.

The resort was located on Longview Island which is actually a small island on the interior of Hilton Head Island. The resort itself had a view of the marsh. There was also a beach house located a mile away that gave us access to the beautiful beach.


We had some great food during the trip even though we didn't get to eat in the "famous" Sea Shack due to the long lines. We made up for it by getting Ed's best meal ever at Carrabba's.



The kids had fun visiting the Hilton Head lighthouse, playing in the ocean, and playing in the resort pool. They even talked Grandma Judy into going down the slide at the pool. Don't forget to ask her about it the next time that you see her.





Ed had a hard time picking out which Yacht he wanted as we walked along the marina. We definitely saw some very impressive ships.



Even though this was only a two night trip, we all had a great time. The feeling of relaxation just flows from the island. There was a lot to do that we just didn't have time for and put it on our list for a future trip.



I think everyone decided that this is one place that we would definitely want to visit again!

Today is Michelle's Birthday!

Today’s blog honors my wife of nearly 14 years who happens to turn 41 today.

Shortly she will be stepping up her pursuit of her bachelor’s degree in Elementary Education by going to school full time. She has a 4.0 grade point average so far, so we know that she will be up to the challenge of being a full time student.

She has done a great job of balancing work, home, and the kid’s activities. She is always trying to find something to do that the kids will enjoy, whether it’s taking them to the latest movie or letting them go ice skating to beat the 95° F weather.

Her new hobby is trying to set new records for the different activities on the Wii Fit. It is quite entertaining watching her try to beat Madison’s best at the Hula Hoop Competition.

I am forever greatful that she allows me to indulge my passion for visiting Disney World frequently. We have had many great trips and experiences there over the last several years and we are looking forward to visiting the Epcot Food and Wine festival this fall.

Happy Birthday Michelle!

We love you!!!

Kids Visit DollyWood

Late July, James & Madison took an impromptu trip with Grandpa Ed and Grandma Judy to Pigeon Forge, TN, the home of DollyWood.

On the first day after driving to Tennessee, and having dinner, they arrived at DollyWood around 5:00 pm.

J.T. and Madison rode the Teacups and everyone rode the Bumper cars.

J.T. practiced his marksmanship at the old fashioned rifle range arcade.

Later they left and went back to the hotel for a late night swim to cap off a busy first day.

The next morning after breakfast at the hotel, they drove around Pigeon Forge to see all of the shops in the area.

The kids were really impressed with a cool building called WonderWorld. You can see it pictured here. The kids liked the fact that the entire building was upside down. Even the inside!

After that it was time to return to DollyWood.

James rode the Tennessee Twister, a wild triple loop, 75 mph ride. It was so fast the ride only lasts for about 10 seconds. He had to ride by himself because everyone else was too afraid.

Everyone went to see a couple of shows.

In the middle of the 1st show, it was cancelled due to incoming severe weather. After grabbing a funnel cake for a mid day snack, it started pouring down rain like crazy. They sought refuge in Dolly's church. Even a soggy funnel cake tastes great!

After the rain stopped they went to one last show called: Country Tonight. It is a really cool show that every week a new country star comes to be on the show.

The last ride of the day was Grandpap, J.T., and Madison rode the rapids.

It was a great trip that everyone enjoyed!

Hiking at the Piedmont Environmental Center

On a very warm Saturday in July, the Cobra Patrol from Troop 42 took a 5 mile hike.

The four boys (Christopher, Cory, Michael, & James) were joined by Madison, Michelle, three dads, & myself.

We got off to a good start at 8:00 am in an attempt to beat the heat. The goal for the day was to successfully complete a 5 mile hike utilizing a map and a compass, and identify 10 different forms of wild animals along the way.

After orienting our position on the map and deciding which trail we were following, it was time to start our hike.

The boys did a great job of behaving and they also were very good at spotting the wild animals along the trail.

We saw several toads, a couple of different species of ducks, cardinals, sparrows, loon, a woodpecker, two different species of turtles, and squirrels.

The turtles were probably the most interesting animals that we spotted on our trip. They literally were on the edge of the trail as we walked by, so we were able to stop and observe them and compare them to our animal spotting guide.

After we finished locating all of our required animals it was time to focus on our compass skills and see if we could use them properly.

We had a great time and everyone was able to complete the hike. Some of the boys were even thinking that they were ready to tackle the Hiking merit badge now.

These are the kinds of days that make Scouting fun!