4.5 seconds

Connor just participated in his final Pinewood Derby. During this race the boys make their own cars, with some support from an adult, and then race them down the track. From start to finish, each car takes about 4.5 seconds to get to the end. If you blink; it's over.


It. Goes. By. So. Fast.

There are options when building a pinewood derby car. You can go for a beautiful car which looks fantastic but which may not make it to the finish line in one piece. You could build a strong, aerodynamic car which doesn't look so great but finishes ahead of all the rest. Or, you could make something in the middle. Something that looks decent and finishes right in the middle of the pack. No matter what you choose to build; the more time you put into it, the better you will do.

This was Connor's last Pinewood Derby. It's not that Connor isn't participating in the derby next year, or that he has chosen not to make a car. Rather, Connor will no longer be a Cub Scout next year. If he chooses to stay in the program he will instead become a Boy Scout. Did you hear that? My son; my baby boy is suddenly too old for something, and has aged out. He is growing up.

Connor has done the Pinewood Derby for five years now. Each year it's exciting and each year we are able to reflect on the changes in the cars and the strategies. But mostly we reflect on the changes in the boys.

Connor's first derby took place when he was six. His car looked great and it ran well. In fact he placed in third place and was able to move to the District Pinewood Derby. Not bad for a newbie!

The second year his car looked nice. And.... that's about it. It was slow moving. Connor had a very hard time with this. Our evening was spent balancing tantrums and learning about how to cheer for our friends. At the end of the night we were proud that he had the worst car but the best behavior. That was our slogan and boy did we work hard to claim it.

The next year the derby happened to be on Connor's birthday. It was fun and carefree. Connor had a good time; people sang to him and he enjoyed the attention.

The fourth year Connor's car was a speed demon. It was far, far ahead of its fellow racers. Until... it fell off the track. That was a blow. There were some tears. We talked and learned and grew from it, and we learned about congratulating the winners.

This year, the same thing happened as above. This year though, Connor was equipped to deal with that and was totally fine. He was happy to participate and happy to have made a car with his dad. This year Connor was overheard cheering for other scouts, and encouraging his fellow scouts to cheer for other scouts. This year my son was thrilled with the progress that his friends had made, and was genuinely happy when his friends did well. This year we talked about not chanting "Go Steve" and cheering for one person only, but rather cheering for everyone. Later on in the evening I heard him passing that same bit of information on. "Guys, it's not fair to cheer for just one person. Let's cheer for everyone".

I teared up.

As I sit back and I look at pictures of Connor at the Pinewood Derby, and I think about each Derby, I am truly amazed at the growth he has made. Yes; he learned about physics and he learned about air pressure and speed and velocity. He definitly learned some wood working skills as well.

But more so; Connor learned how to be a gracious winner. He learned how to be a calm loser. He learned how to cheer for his teammates and how to mean it. He learned how to participate as a member of his community. 

I still cannot believe that this was his very last derby. I cannot blieve that my baby boy wil be eleven next week, or that he will be crossing over to Boy Scouts.

It seems to have gone by in 4.5 seconds.

But when I watched him last night, and I watched how he cheered, I knew. I knew that he was ready. He has learned so much and he is ready for what comes next.

I hope that we have offered him the right combination of looking good and being strong so that he makes it to the finish line at the right speed for him.  I can only hope that we have put in enough effort ahead of time to prepare him for the race. Given what we saw last night; I'd say we are on our way.

Connor's first derby 2009

Connor's last derby 2013.

Harry Potter!

This morning, at midnight, was the release of the final movie of the Harry Potter seires. Connor and I have read (and loved!) all of them. Shelburne Museum celebrated this movie opening by holding a special Harry Potter event. (Similar to the doll event of not long ago).

Connor and I went along and had some special time, just he and I.(For those who have not read the book, underlined text will take to you a link explaining the reference)

First, we began (obviously!) at platform 9 3/4.It was here that Connor was able to get his wand from Mr. Ollivander, the wand-maker.

Connor was chosen by a wand made with Phoenix feathers. (Similar to Harry's for some reason...)

Once he had his wand, he realized he needed his robes.

We then headed off to the great hall, where Connor was sorted into his house.

He then had to find the sorcerer's stone, taking great care not to wake up fluffy!

Next we went to defense against the dark arts, where we learned how to duel. I was Connor's dueling partner, so didn't get any pictures. I can assure you he won with the old stand by "expelliarmus".

From there we learned the basics of Quidditch. Connor was a beater.



He did voice his frustration at the end of the game that they could not fly. I do agree that would have been a much more exciting game!

From there we left to participate in the maze of the triwizard tournament. Connor made his way through in record time and was able to solve the riddle, earning himself a galleon.

From there it was off to pass his O.W.L.'s.

Thankfully he was able to pass with a grade of "outstanding".

After that it was off to Weasley's Wizard Wheezes for some fun. Here we attempted to make a snitch out of golden origami. We failed miserably, but had fun trying.


Next we went off to find all seven Horcruxes. This was a challenging quiz through which Connor sailed like a pro! I was actually surprised at how much detail he remembered from the books!

Unfortunately, we weren't able to get there as early as we would have liked. The cafe was serving butter beer, and they were all out by the time we got there. (We had some stuff going on at home).We scarfed down a quick sandwich while we walked around for dinner.

We did have a blast, and it is always so much fun to hang out with one kid at a time! It's also such a blast that Connor is getting older now and can share interests! We had a lot of fun. Thanks Connor!

Connor's new hobby

For those of you who have never met Connor, I need to let you know he is a brilliant, imaginative, exciting, inquisitive, and sensitive boy. However, he NEVER sits still. (I have no idea where he gets that from....)

It can be a challenge sometimes to keep him occupied. A few months ago, I wrote about how we had found an electric circuitry kit for him to play with. This was an awesome thing for him, and he played with it nonstop. However, he played with it nonstop, and within a matter of days he had made his way through all 101 circuits and was in need of something else to do.

As a toddler he enjoyed the wooden Thomas the train stuff that you can push around the table. However, he really only mildly enjoyed it and for a short period of time. He then owned Geo Tracks, and again, enjoyed this for a short period of time. Just recently he found the Geo tracks in the basement, and brought them upstairs. He played with these all day, and kept trying to make the set do things it wasn't really designed to do.

This made me think about model trains. My brother did these for a short while growing up, and I know Al enjoyed them too. I chatted with Connor about it and we did some research online. We talked to Al and let him know Connor wanted to build a little set, and Al lit up like it was Christmas!

Al just happened to have his trains and switch from when he was younger. He just had to go out and buy some track and a board for it all. The boys worked on this track all day today and have had a blast! I think this hobby will be something Connor will stick with for a while, since it can be ever evolving. I hope he doesn't expect it to be done and perfect right away. He has a tendency to be like that... (Again, no idea where he gets that from....) I also hope Al, in his excitement, doesn't take over for Connor! I am so glad that they have found something they will both enjoy. I think this will provide them both with hours of fantastic time together and some great memories.

(Do you think I will ever have my basement back again?


Didn't think so....)



Do you think I will ever have my basement back again?


Didn't think so....

Connor

Connor's been a bit busy too!

Connor has been working on his personal project for third grade. This is essentially a project where he chose something he wanted to learn more about, and then decided how he wanted to learn about it, and then how he wanted to tell his class about it. A pretty cool concept; although for this step by step mama it was a bit to wrap my head around!

No worries, Connor decided he wanted to learn more about ham radio. Since I can't help him there, he and Al were on their own. (For this control freak mama that was a bit challenging too!) As you can see, he's been interested in this for a while:

(circa 11/2005)

They did some exploration with electricity. We bought Connor a kids' circuit building kit. (This one, in fact). Connor had an amazing time with the kit from the moment we brought it home. It was the perfect thing for his busy and inquisitive mind. He was very excited to build the different circuits, and I think we've found a new toy category for him!
Once he finished exploring, he also needed to figure out what to present. He did some research this morning with Al, and created a great presentation. In fact, it's so great that I don't understand any of it!

I'm proud of the work he did on this. It wasn't without struggle; he's such a stinkin perfectionist! (No idea where he gets that from....) But, in the end I think he did great and learned a lot. I'm also glad he and Al had an opportunity to work together! He's excited to present it tomorrow, so that's great too!

Getting older!

Not me, of course!

Connor just turned nine a few weeks ago. I'd say I'm having a hard time believing it, but that would be a lie because BOY has he started with the attitude of a pre-teen! Yikes we are in trouble in a few years.

For his birthday this year Connor opted to have some friends go ice skating with him, and then he invited a couple of friends to sleep over. The group of friends that he invited is a group of kids with whom he has been friends since first grade. They are a great group of friends, and I hope they remain friends.

It was a great celebration and everyone had a great time. At the sleepover, one of his friends had to go home early (like, 3:00 AM early!) because he got sick. That was a bummer, but not surprising for my life!

Enjoy the pictures of his big day! (Al had come from a cub scout event, that's why he's wearing his uniform. I assure you it's not generally a wardrobe choice for him...!)

Our big nine year old!

Connor and Quinten!
These guys are two days apart,
and were roommates in the hospital.

Yes, my son is a nut. I know.

The best group of friends you could ever want for you kid.

The girls!
The sisters and Connor's Godfather's daughters
(who are the exact same age as Siobhan and Aisling)

Seriously.
She just makes me smile!

Is any party really complete without frosting covered two year olds?
I did not make this year's cake.
I know, it bugs me too.

Overall, I'd say he had a great birthday. He got a lot of money and gift cards for his birthday, and was able to use that plus his own money to buy a DSi. He's pretty proud of that.

I am still reeling from the fact that he is nine. He is turning into a wonderful boy, of whom I am very proud. He has an amazing way with both of his sisters. He is so kind and gentle to both of them, and is genuinely concerned if they are not feeling well or something happens. He is an amazing friend too, and I love to watch him around his friends. He has always had an extremely high level of energy, and that has certainly not changed! As he gets older though he has figured out how to channel that into positive things, like dance. He dances constantly and really loves it. I think he's pretty good at it too! He's a bright kid and it's so fun to watch him learn and figure things out. Now that he's getting older it's exciting to sit and have conversations with him about things in the world. He has a great perspective on the world.

Connor, happy happy birthday! I love you very much and am so proud of who you are becoming.

Last year I actually had time to make him a birthday video.
I didn't have time to do that this year, but here's a link to last year's.

Cake!

Connor had his annual Cub Scout cake bake last night. Last year, when he had this cake bake, he ended up unable to go, because he spent the evening vomiting. But, not to worry, this year he took care of the vomiting the week before the cake bake, so we're in the clear.

The theme for the year was "Big Change Round Up". The cake bake is part of a big fundraiser the Cub Scouts do for The Vermont Children's hospital, and that's the theme. Check it out here. The children's hospital is near and dear to my heart, having taken such good care of my breathless babies... but that's another story.

This story is about cake. Connor did nearly all of the work on this cake himself. He was very proud of the cake, and I am very proud of him!

Cracking eggs.
(The cake was free of eggshells you'll be happy to know!)

Yep, he's turning on the oven.
We may regret this later.
Obligatory bowl licking.
(I promise this happened
after the cake was out of the bowl
Well, most of it did...)
Frosting:
Finished Product:
Proud boy:
Connor's cake at the auction table.
(We bought it back for $10.00.
Something seems wrong about this...)
Dr. Lewis First was there to help kick things off
and auction off the winning cakes. He seems like a really nice guy.
He was able to get someone to pay $80.00 for a cake,
So he's a pretty good money wrangler too.
Of course there was cake eating too.

Connor did a great job. His cake didn't win any prizes (last year he won second place in his den). But, he told me that he was still really proud of his cake. Not bad for the world's biggest perfectionist!

Just what we needed

I'd like to thank everyone who bought Cub Scout popcorn from Connor.

Thanks.


He sold over $600.00 worth. That means he earned a special 600 club patch.

Yay!

It also means, however, that he earned a marshmallow crossbow.

Clearly, that's exactly what our house needed; was a crossbow to shoot marshmallows. We were just not complete as a family without this particular item.I am sure I can't imagine the ways in which this crossbow will be used to torture his sisters.

Don't forget your mittens

Tonight Connor was excited to play the computer. Excited that is, until I reminded him that he had lost it for three days for hitting his sister. Then, suddenly he was miserable and yelling about how awful life was and how stupid he is. That didn't get him any feedback, so he went upstairs.

A few minutes later he came back downstairs with his suitcase, presumably packed. He let us know he was moving out. We said goodbye.

I reminded him that it was cold out and that he should grab a hat. He obliged, and grabbed his jacket. He then went out the door.

Curious, we went to check on him. What we saw was Connor sulking on the front porch. When he saw us, however, he bravely jumped up and started walking down the driveway yelling "I mean it. I am leaving".

"Okay" we called out. "Just keep warm".

We closed the door and went inside. Hoping he wouldn't take it too far!

A few seconds later, the door opened and he ran inside, yelling that he had been joking all along.

Yeah, he was joking. All along.

At any rate, I am glad he didn't actually go anywhere. If you want to run away from home, you probably need to live more down south. It gets cold early here!

Boston; a nice place to visit.....

The last weekend in October is always a long weekend in Vermont. We took the opportunity to head to Boston. We spent one day at the Boston museum of science, and another day to go to the Lego store, and American Girl store. It was a weekend well spent. It was nice to have some time to visit with my dad too.

First we went to the museum of Science in Boston.

Brush brush brush!

Playing with magnets:

We had discovered that there was a meeting for Lego Club members the next day at the Natick Mall, coincidentally the same mall where we were going for lunch at the American Girl Store. Score! Connor and Al hung out building things:Lego Club members also get a special t-shirt:

(obviously an exclusive club)There was also a little indoor playground in the mall.
Wyatt and dad waited while the kids played for a few minutes.
(Although this looks like a prison line up picture, I assure you it's not)

We then took everyone to the American Girl Store. Aisling had a gift card for her birthday. She was able to get her doll's ears pierced. (The things you can pay people to do these days.....) The girls were in heaven. They each got a special high chair for their dolls, as well as a special tea cup and plate.

Connor tried really hard to maintain a cool image; although I think he rather liked the food...how can you not like three mini ice cream cones; even if you are surrounded by pink?

Wyatt was just thrilled with the whole weekend!

Siobhan and I shared a giant sundae:
You'd be surprised at how much she ate!
The girls had a blast, and I am sure they would love to go back there someday. Thankfully, we can send Connor to the Lego store!

We had a really great time. We also helped Poppy rake leaves the next day. I'll post those pictures later.

Visiting Boston makes me remember how much I love it there. However, I also remember why we left. Holy cow is there a lot of traffic, and so many people! And, everyone is in such a rush. Also, we got lost so many times. I think we went both ways on the Tobin Bridge. Ugh. I am so glad we are close enough to visit, but I'm not sure we'll ever move back!