It is Saturday morning. A day of getting up too early (see previous posts regarding this subject!), cartoons with gratuitous violence (my kids have a ‘Tom and Jerry’ addiction. You should see my DVR list), followed by a few household chores.
Now, the boys have spent the entire morning holed up out in the workshop/ shed working with dedication. Working without a break. Working their little hearts out for a common purpose.
The Pinewood Derby.
That’s right, my friends. It’s Pinewood Derby time… and if you’re not familiar with it, every Cub Scout makes their own racing car out of a block of pine that they will race against other cars (also made out of pine… are you noticing a trend?). And it is an EVENT. Notice the capital letters. It’s a big deal, and Davis is so excited about his car. Who am I kidding? Phil is just as excited to be doing this with him.
They’ve sketched out plans. They’ve had long conversations. They’ve gotten advice from an old pinewood pro (Uncle Dave). They’ve checked out other derby cars to get ideas. Davis has made the cuts and drilled the holes for the weights, under his dad’s direction. He’s sanded and polished, and is getting ready to start the painting.
Phil is being a real stickler for making sure that Davis does most of this himself. That is, the things that don’t require possibly losing a couple of fingers in the process. That’s a pretty steep learning curve.
Now, I don’t really know of these plans. In fact, some of this is quite the foreign language to me. So far I have not been allowed to even ‘see’ the car.
Me: Can I see the car? How is it going?
Davis: No! Not yet. It’s not ready.
Me: Well, I’d like to take a picture of it for my Project 365.
Davis (thinking): Well, Daddy can take the picture.
*Sigh. So this is their ‘thing’. They are having a great time. They are bonding over this, and I guess that’s the idea. A father and son project. And if I’m lucky, I might just get a few pictures of the process, if not yet the product.
Because while building the car is important, and it will be amazing, the other things they’re building are that much more amazing and special.
Now, the boys have spent the entire morning holed up out in the workshop/ shed working with dedication. Working without a break. Working their little hearts out for a common purpose.
The Pinewood Derby.
That’s right, my friends. It’s Pinewood Derby time… and if you’re not familiar with it, every Cub Scout makes their own racing car out of a block of pine that they will race against other cars (also made out of pine… are you noticing a trend?). And it is an EVENT. Notice the capital letters. It’s a big deal, and Davis is so excited about his car. Who am I kidding? Phil is just as excited to be doing this with him.
They’ve sketched out plans. They’ve had long conversations. They’ve gotten advice from an old pinewood pro (Uncle Dave). They’ve checked out other derby cars to get ideas. Davis has made the cuts and drilled the holes for the weights, under his dad’s direction. He’s sanded and polished, and is getting ready to start the painting.
Phil is being a real stickler for making sure that Davis does most of this himself. That is, the things that don’t require possibly losing a couple of fingers in the process. That’s a pretty steep learning curve.
Now, I don’t really know of these plans. In fact, some of this is quite the foreign language to me. So far I have not been allowed to even ‘see’ the car.
Me: Can I see the car? How is it going?
Davis: No! Not yet. It’s not ready.
Me: Well, I’d like to take a picture of it for my Project 365.
Davis (thinking): Well, Daddy can take the picture.
*Sigh. So this is their ‘thing’. They are having a great time. They are bonding over this, and I guess that’s the idea. A father and son project. And if I’m lucky, I might just get a few pictures of the process, if not yet the product.
Because while building the car is important, and it will be amazing, the other things they’re building are that much more amazing and special.
3 comments:
Can't wait to see the one picture Davis's allows you to have!! What a wonderful time for the boys.
Jen
That sounds like a lot of fun. Boy Scouts sounds like a great experience, now if I can just convince Adam to let Andrew join! Also, I can not wait to see the pic!
Some of my fondest memories are with Dad, in scouts. I hate to say it ladies, but to a boy, nothing in the whole world is better than time doing something you love, with your Dad.
WTG Phil!!!
Can I get a copy of those plans? I always made the slowest cars!
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