Thank you to those who joined us at the Colonial Plantation this past weekend. It was a fun filled day of interactive puppet shows, witch trials and warm cider.  We got to meet Delilah the new milking cow and run amongst the sheep.  Unfortunately Goaty was not being carefree due to a recent injury to his foot but is being well tended to while recovering.  Abigail kept watch as the children went through the haunted barn and emerged with treats from the ghouls and monsters that awaited them inside. While making corn husk characters the witch reappeared with corn snakes a plenty to teach the visitors about. Then ending our day with some candle making and visits to the pigs.

Scouts attending the event had an opportunity to earn the following:

Tigers:

• 1G  Go see it
• elective 22  Picnic Fun
• elective 31   Learn about animals
• elective 36  See a performance

Wolves:

• 10 c
• 10 f
• elective 9 b
• elective 23 g

Bears:

• 3c  Go see old homes near you :  Plantation would be 1/2   If you went on the tour at Germantown this is complete
• 3d  Go visit historical place near you
• 10a  Go on a day trip with family – farm
• 12 c  Picnic with your family
• 12 d  Attend an outdoor event with your family
• elective 16 b  Farm Animals

Webelos:

• Traveler #4
• Artist  #9

A friendly reminder that tomorrow 10/28 is our annual Halloween party. It is time for the whole family to get ghoulish and have some fun. This is a perfect time to put on your costume, hang out with new friends and play some fun games.  And thanks to the parents and families there will be some great snacks.The party is from 6:30p – 9pm. We can’t wait to see you all there.

I have attached the sign up sheet for those that may need a reminder or if you didn’t have a chance to check the list and want to bring something.

Halloween Goodies

Colonial Plantation was a huge success and everyone, adult and child alike, had a great time.  Everyone loved the plantation and suggested we camp there again.  Due to the positive response, the great experience had by all, and the hospitality of the plantation we are strongly considering making this an annual camping trip.  It is also a very conducive environment to new campers and would serve great as a fall camping trip to introduce new scouts to camping.

So what did we do?

Friday afternoon/evening the leaders and webelos scouts began to arrive. We selected the campsite, the location for the campfire and then began setting up out tents and the kitchen area.  Bob, our period correct guide from the plantation, instructed the scouts on various plants to avoid while at the plantation and took us down to the tool shed where he handed out period correct tools with an explanation of how they were used on the farm and the importance of each. He then gave the boys a lesson in how to dig the fire pit using the colonial tools in the colonial fashion. Interestingly, this was one time every boy was eager to dig the fire pit.  We then sat down and had a lesson on fire safety, how to prepare a camp fire and how to light the campfire, after which the boys started to collect tinder, kindling and firewood.

After the fire was going strong, we started prepping for dinner while the scouts ran around the open fields playing games and coming over to assist late comers getting set up. We had hot dogs, sauer kraut, and macaroni and cheese for dinner. Once everyone was set up, we gathered around the camp fire for songs and smores.

Saturday morning we woke up, got the fire going again and had pork roll, egg and cheese sandwiches for breakfast.  The boys set off exploring the farm or playing an assortment of games such as volleyball, kickball, Frisbee, and catch.  As the cubs began to arrive, the older boys offered to assist them getting squared away. After which the boys got a tour of the farm, got to meet all the animals, and volunteered to assist the farmer/gardner with their chores.  The boys spent the morning, of their own choice, weeding, gardening, feeding the animals and before you knew it lunch was upon us.

For lunch we ate beefy macaroni and then headed up to the farmhouse to begin our workshops.  The work shop was supposed to be a 2 hour workshop broken down into 3x 40 minute sessions.  The first session was colonial toys and games.  The scouts learned about a wide assortment of toys and games from the colonial era and got to try, play each of them. They also got to make their own colonial toy.  The scouts had so much fun with this that what was supposed to be a 40 minute session was easily an hour and a half.  From there they moved into a split session of farming and chores.

The first segment started with the well. The scouts learned all about the well, how they were used and how they were cared for. They learned how to retrieve water from the well and the various tools used to do so. They also learned how to transport buckets of water from one place to the next using a shoulder yoke.  Each scout and sibling was then given the opportunity to retrieve a bucket of water and try carrying buckets on their shoulders.

After the well they moved over to learn how to saw wood using a 2 handed saw.  First they learned what the saws were made of, how they were made and how they were used as well as what they were used for.  They got to see home made saw horses and then got to saw their own wood with an explanation on what a cord of wood was.

Once finished with the saws, they moved up to the barn where they were introduced to a series of hand tools used for rudimentary wood work, primarily to make other tools such as a maul. Then they moved outside where they learned how to split rails.  They started by learning how to inspect the log, strip some bark, read the wood and then begin splitting it into rails.

Needless to say after all this hard work the boys were tired and hungry.  We got back to camp and had some hamburgers, leftover hotdogs, and chili made in the dutch oven.  After clean up the boys got back to playing games, exploring the farm and playing with the farm animals.  until the sun started to set.  We gathered around the campfire  had some smores and peach cobbler and before you knew it the boys were heading to bed on their own.  Not surprisingly as they got into their tents, within 5 minutes they were silent, out like a light.

After a nice long good night’s sleep, everyone awoke for pancakes (plain, blueberry, or chocolate chip) and sausage. We began to break camp, fill in the fire pit, and canvass the area.  Finally, scouts got to say goodbye to all the farm animals and feed the pigs one last time. We were out of there by 11:00 and word is that most scouts were fast asleep less than 10 minutes into the ride home.

Note: We are working on mapping the sxperiences the scouts had with the requirements from their books. We will list what they were when complete and give the scouts credit.

Pack 155 had an incredible weekend at Camp Ockanickon this weekend.  Our scouts had the opportunity to work on a wide assortment of belt loops, pins and activity badges.  Friday night was a little hectic as we had a late check in into the camp but we had our campfire and the boys sang their songs.

On Saturday we had bacon, eggs, and hash browns for breakfast and then it was off to the morning activities. After a chicken sandwich with a side of mac & cheese for lunch it was back to the fun until our Thanksgiving style turkey dinner at the camp dining hall.  After dinner we got ready for the Campfire where we sang songs, did some skits, and made brownies inside oranges.

Sunday we had breakfast delivered right to our campsite and packed up to head home.  It was a great weekend and fun was had by all.  Many of our scouts were lucky enough to catch their first fish ever — congratulations to our new fishermen.

So what did they have the opportunity to have fun with?

• Archery Belt Loop & Pin
• Art Belt Loop & Pin
• BB Rifle Shooting Belt Loop & Pin
• Crafts
• Fishing Belt Loop
• Geology Belt Loop and Pin
• Knot boards
• Map & Compass Belt Loop
• Music Belt Loop and Pin
• Photography Belt Loop
• Ultimate Frisbee Belt Loop
• Volleyball Belt Loop
• Whittling Chip
• Webelos Art Activity Badge
• Webelos Geology Activity Badge
• Webelos Showman Activity Badge (Drama, Music & Puppeteer)

As our season winds down, I wanted to give a brief update on what is remaining for the rest of this season.

• Our last regular den meetings will be tonight and next Monday, May 13th. During these meetings we will be taking care of the Tuft’s University CAMP study, so if you wish your son to participate be sure to be there. We need a parent there for each child participating in the study.
• We have our Cub Camping event up at Camp Ockanickon on the weekend of May 17th/18th/19th.
• We will not be meeting Monday May 20th as we will have been away at Camp Ockanickon over the weekend and we will not be meeting on May 27th as it is Memorial Day.
• Monday June 3rd will be our last meeting for the season. It will be a Pack/Parent meeting.

On Monday June 3rd, we will formally close out the scout year.  We will give out any remaining accomplishments and/or patches as well as the Summer schedule.  We will go over the National Summertime Activity Award, what it entails and how your scout can earn it. We will also have an open discussion about the new season in September for those interested in doing so. We can discuss ideas, trips, events and volunteers and more.

It is IMPORTANT that at least one parent from each family attend this meeting, even if your scout can not attend as we will be covering our summer plans and possibly the beginning of next season.