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Archive for the ‘Scouting’ Category

Mondays are for Dreaming: The Perfect Camping Trip

May 25th, 2009 by bsmith | 5 Comments | Filed in Mondays are for Dreaming, Scouting, Smith Family Misadventures

Ok, I screwed up.  I was trying to post a comment on the Mother of All Trip’s blog and ended up  entering the “Mondays are For Dreaming” blog round up instead.  Oh well, it gives me a chance to show off my cute kid pictures from this weekend.

I am dreaming of the perfect camping trip.  Somewhere far away and wooded.  It should include a lake  for canoeing and fishing, flush toilets and showers, a campsite and trails that allow dogs, lots of trails to explore, and plenty of boulders to climb on. 

 On this perfect trip I  would cook healthy gourmet meals and the whole family would eat them cheerfully.  The kids would entertain themselves effortlessly with twigs and dirt.  Someone would watch the other kids so I could go on stress free jaunts with each one individually.  Perhaps I would be able to squeeze in a solo sunrise hike.  I would have remembered everything including socks for each member of the family and tent poles!  Oh, and every kid would eagerly pose for pictures with a perfect smile.

OK, that’s my dream camping experience.  Now on to what happened this weekend:

Here’s what we ate:

destinys-healthy-dinner-smores-followed-by-pizza

Destiny's Healthy Dinner-S'mores Followed by Pizza

Destiny's Other Dinner Courtesy of a Mom Who Brought Healthy Food

Destiny's Other Dinner Courtesy of a Mom Who Brought Healthy Food

 Here’s where we slept:

I Forget the Tent Poles for the Big Tent So Mom and the Kids Squooshed into this Tent. Dad Slept Outside Under the Stars.

One Small Tent for Five People

 (I forgot the tent poles so four of us squeezed into one small 3 man tent. Daddy slept under the stars.)

Here’s how much my son liked posing for pictures:
Justin's Grumpy Face

Justin's Grumpy Face

 Seriously,  we enjoyed our Mataguay adventure, and I look forward to sharing it’s beauty with you in a future Photo Friday Post.

Happy Trails,

Bridget

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Taking Your Preschooler Iceskating + Free Skating Lessions…Such a Deal!

March 30th, 2009 by bsmith | 1 Comment | Filed in San Diego Day Trips, Scouting
Jared and Mom Teeter Along at the Escondido Iceoplex

Jared and Mom Teeter Along at the Escondido Iceoplex

 

As I have said before Cub Scouts provides great opportunities for family adventure.  A few weeks ago, my four year old,  Jared and I had the chance to accompany big brother Justin to a Pack Iceskating event at the Escondido Iceoplex.   I must admit I didn’t think I could juggle two preschoolers on the ice so Destiny stayed home and had quality time with Dad.

Admission was superaffordable due to the cub scout connection…Justin was free and Jared and I paid $5 per person for admission.  Skate rental was included for all of us.  I paid an additional $3 for a little walker to keep Jared steady on the ice :) .  Needless to say it was worth every penny and helped keep me steady as well.  I was able to push Jared around around the ice without falling down once.

Iceskating with preschoolers requires alot of patience, and some outside support where possible.  Some of my den parents helped me get Jared’s skates on.  He didn’t quite get the concept of maneuvering his foot into the skate.  My friend Karen was kind enough to capture the event with still shots and video using my camera.

Jared slipped, slidded, and fell down alot, but he always got up ready to go some more.  He insisted on heading to the center of the rink.  I was glad for the PVC walker, since I usually don’t venture into that territory when I am on my own.  My main problem was that he kept stopping to lick the ice…yuck!  Here’s the video.

 

Jared and Mommy’s Iceoplex Adventure

 You don’t have to be a cubscout to enjoy a great bargain at the Iceoplex.  Every Thursday from 5:30-6pm this April they are offering free skate lessons…yes you heard it free!  This includes free skate rental and admission to public skate time on the day of the lesson.  I really wish we could join and take advantage of this great San Diego Bargain, but we are going to be out of town the second week in April.  Check it out for me and let me know how it is!  To sign up contact the skating director at 760-489-5550 ex 303 or Lexie@iceoplex.com.

Happy Trails,

Bridget

justin-and-jared-ready-to-hit-the-ice

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Scouting Adventures at San Diego’s Fleet Science Museum

February 24th, 2009 by bsmith | 1 Comment | Filed in San Diego Day Trips, Scouting
Justin whispers to a friend

Justin whispers to a friend

My husband and I are reluctant cub scout leaders.  Ken travels for business ALOT, and I try to juggle my responsibilities as the informal assistant leader for Justin’s den in addition to my role as business owner, mother of preschoolers…you get the picture.  We serve our den as best we can, but we are blessed with alot of parent support.

As we entered into a busy year of Webelos this year, we called upon the parents to each help the den complete on badge activity.  The results have been spectacular and the source of some great family adventures.  So far the boys have toured a working construction site, City Hall, and the Gemological Institute of America.  In order to earn our Science badge, Den 7 headed to the Fleet Science Museum last weekend.  They present a wonderful comprehensive science badge workshop with fun hands on activities.  It was lead by a spirited young graduate student.  The boys did an amazing array of very simple experiments to learn more about the scientific laws discussed in the Boy Scout book.  The boys blew ping pong balls with straws and launched film cannister rockets.  The day reminded me of just how fun science can be, and how sad it is that this kind of interactive science seldom seems to make it into the public school classroom.

Other information about the Fleet Science Museum:

The Cafeteria food is overpriced like most tourist destinations, but at least it is high quality and yummy.  They have a wide variety of kid friendly choices including hot dogs and cereal.  Justin ordered a Greek salad and a hot dog.  That’s my boy :) .  I had the Tortellini salad.  With drinks lunch was about $17.

If you pack your own lunch or snack, you can’t eat it in the museum, but there is a beautiful plaza with a fountain right outside.

The museum is small, with some very fun hands on exhibits.  Plan to spend about 2-3 hours exploring.  Is it worth full admission?  That’s a hard one.  You might want to try to visit on a free Tuesday or combine your visit with an IMAX show.

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