We had a very busy first week without Daddy here. Unfortunately, it was a week that would have been better with a daddy here, but we made do, with Mommy's less-than-stellar scouting abilities, and a new world that includes webcams and Skype. Thank goodness for technology to connect us across the miles.
Ethan had his last pinewood derby on Tuesday. He built a race truck, thanks to the pre-cut kits available at the local hobby shop. However, the axle tracks were too large for the "official BSA derby wheels and axles" (aka. crappy nails). So, the truck being race-ready was also thanks to Gorilla Glue and its ability to hold crappy nails in wooden grooves long enough to make it down a wooden racetrack five times without falling off.
Mommy even carefully weighed the truck, added and removed weights, and re-weighed until we got to exactly five ounces. However, no one ever told Mommy that you shouldn't put the weights on the bottom of the car (which I did to keep the center of gravity as low as possible), or they will drag on the track that the wheels straddle, creating enough friction to make your son come in nearly last in every race...as evidenced by the shiny scrapes on the metal after all was said and done. The good thing is that the scout leader noticed this, and promptly let Ethan know that his car-building was not to blame, nor were the Gorilla-glued axles, but it was the weights put on by his mother that caused him to race poorly. I was okay with that. Still, if Daddy had been here, he likely would have known that, being the seasoned Eagle scout that he is. All I remember of derby days gone by is being totally and completely bored by my brothers' little cars running down a track for hours on end (or so it seemed).
In the end, Ethan was very proud of his car, and was convinced he would have taken first, if it hadn't been for his mother. He also received his Bear award at the event, and a "Super-Achiever" award, for being the only scout to finish ALL 24 achievements for the Bear, when only 12 were required. This is where Mommy came in again, with her great scouting knowledge. I thought all the achievements had to be done, so Ethan and I spent a couple weeks, just before D-Day (his next birthday, and the deadline for getting his bear award), trying to cram in as many scouting achievements as possible. Maybe this is why he complains about going to scouts. Ah well, his leader thought we just really loved scouting. No harm done. And, although Ethan has yet to learn how to tie his shoes, he can tie a mean square knot on a piece of wood.
To top off Ethan's great week, he received the Student of the Month award, and also made Honor Roll. It was a good week for him. We would have liked to have Daddy here, and I know for a fact that Daddy would have liked to be here as well. Thank goodness, once again, for smartphones, Skype, and instant messaging, so Daddy didn't have to wait long to join us in congratulating Ethan on all his great accomplishments this week.
