Killing two birds with one stone.

It is crunch time.  There are still five achievements to complete before our blue and gold in February.   Thursday evening we completed the Start a Collection and Tools for fixing and building achievements.  All the boys in the den are collectors.  Everyone had something to share.  Pokey Mon, Baseball cards, Marbles, rocks, Mc Donald’s toys, Jumping beans and Hess Trucks.  The Cisco Kid has every Hess truck they made since the year he was born. 2003 through 2010. For some reason he didn't want to bring in the helicopter, the pickup truck and the flat bed truck.

After we talked about our collections we built a Game box. A friend of mine told me they went to Lows for their Tools for fixing and building achievement and took one of their classes for kids.  She explained they built a game box and Lows provided the whole kit.  I thought that would be a great idea for my den.  I went to Lows and talked to a manager to see if I could purchase some of the kits.  She told me that they had some left over and since they already had the class she would donate them to me.   The boys loved them.  They were nice and easy to put together.  I also brought in Phillips head screwdriver, flat head screwdriver, several different kinds of pliers, and some mystery tools.  I had a vintage wood plainer, paint can opener and a class cutter.  We discussed what all the tools were used for and how it made working easier.

 

Class Field Trip

There are three class field trips this year.  This time we had our second trip to Publix.  They are so supportive of the schools. Publix tour staff did a complete tour of the store and explained every department in detail.  The first stop was the children’s favorite part.  The Bakery!!!!  The cake decorator showed us how they make the icing roses.  It looks so easy.  I can’t wait to try it on one of my cakes.  She also let them feel the dough they make bread with.   

Our next stop was the deli.  The Deli Manager gave all the children wear a hair net and discussed all the food they had to prep in advance.   

Next stop was the back of the store.  It was fun to see how Publix works behind the scenes.  They showed the boys how the box compactor works.  They let them see how cold the walk in freezer is.  Then we went back out front to see how they stocked the shelves with milk.  The amazing thing about the back of the store was that they do not have much stock.  The back was very small and very little on the shelves.   

The Butcher!!!!  This guy was a trip.  He talked about all the different kinds of meet and what animal it came from.  He showed this great big knife that they use to cut the meat.  He also talked about safety when using knifes.  To keep their hand safe from any accidental cuts they use a metal chain glove.  I wish I had one of those gloves.     

Then he went to the fish department and pulled out a great big lobster from the tank and let the kids touch it.  Funny enough this Lobster does tricks.  He had it stand on its head.  Very funny!!

Our last stop was the cash register.  They were all allowed to ring up some groceries and given a receipt. 

The Field trip continued at CiCi's Pizza for lunch. 

 

Pinewood Derby

It's that time of year again.   Cub Scouts Pinewood Derby!  One of the cub masters has a band saw and was kind enough to bring it to the Den meeting so all the boys could have their cars cut to order.   Now all the boys will have to do is sand the car smooth and paint their designs.  Last year The Cisco Kid had a fire engine.  This year it is a Police car. 

 

Vegetable Baked Zeti

Baked Ziti is one of those comforting meals that you can put together in just 30 minutes. Then bake it for 45 minutes and you will have this delicious hearty meal.


1 lb. box of Ziti
2 cups of Mozzarella
4 cups of your favorite tomato sauce
1 medium onion cut into bite size pieces
1 medium green bell pepper cut into bite size pieces
12 mushrooms sliced
1/8 cup of Olive oil
Salt and pepper to taste

I start out by cutting all my vegetable. I then sauté them in the Olive oil until they are all golden brown. Set them aside.
Boil one pound box of Ziti noodles. Strain and run cold water over it. This slows the cooking process down.

In a baking dish start off by layering a small amount of tomato sauce on the bottom. This is so the noodles will not burn while they are baking. Then layer noodles, followed by vegetables and cheese. Start the process all over again until all the ingredients are all gone. The cheese should be the last item. Bake at 350 for 45 minutes.

 Step one in the layering process.

 Step two.

 Step three

Step four 

Step five 

 Step six

WOW Santa!!!!!!

Last night The Cisco Kid left Santa his cookies and milk and reluctantly went to bed because he knew that Santa would not come unless he was asleep.  The Cisco Kid woke up before the sun rose at 6:45 a.m. this morning.  He was so excited about all the gifts and could not wait to open them.  But first he had to read the letter Santa left him. 

  One of the gifts Grandma and grandpa got the cisco kid was a projector.  

The Chief and The Cisco Kid are putting together some playmobil sets.

Here The Cisco Kid is working on his energy lab. 

He loves to play in the water so Santa got him the Ramones water station with some color changing cars.  He could not wait until Ramones station was put together so he tested the color change in the sink. 

It was a nice day out so The Cisco Kid could play with his new toys.

Its 8:30 and we have been at it all day.  We are totally exhausted.  I need to re-phrase that! The Chief and I are totally exhausted.  The Cisco Kid is still ready to go.  I hope everyone had a very merry Christmas.