Angela 2011

Cub Scouts:  This year I am the Utah National Parks' Pony Express District Cub Scout Roundtable Commissioner, usually at least a 3-year assignment - which is our plan.  Roundtable is one evening a month, where 120 Cub Scout leaders come to learn practical ideas how to be effective in their position and how to make Cub Scouting more fun for themselves and for the boys.  I have the absolute best team working with me! They really are the ones pulling the whole thing off.  We created a blog (that I as Cubmaster go to often) for anyone in Cub Scouts:  ponyexpresscubs.blogspot.com   It's fun to once in a while see that people from Citrus Heights, Eldorado Hills, and Placerville get on.  It's also fun to see that people from Egypt and India and Pennsylvania and Arizona also enjoy this blog regularly.

Probably the biggest news:  I cut off all my black hair  (no, I'm not bald...sheesh!) and now am going my natural color.  At first it was a pixie. Now it looks similar to the family picture at the top of our Christmas newsletter, only a LOT lighter.

I love having exchange students!  Martin came to visit us from Germany for 3 weeks at Easter time.  He went to high school with Jonah, brought a German game called Carcassonne which we played over and over and over again, got to ask his girlfriend (who was here with another family) to a school dance the Utah way and have a traditional all-day date with a group, and for the first time ever played baseball - well, more like 3 flies up.

We were friends online with Anne Lene for 2 1/2 months before she came to visit us.  She brought the most amazing soft and sweet goat cheese (called Norwegian brown cheese)!  She went to Westlake High School, got a membership at an exercise club, and went on several dates - including a formal dance, of course went shopping, and got to dress up as a vampire (with character contacts) for Halloween. When we moved, she transferred to another family.

Woodbadge:  Back when Lord Baden Powell was still around, they had leadership training at Gillwell in England, and they called it Woodbadge.  Woodbadge is still going on all over the world, and no matter where it is held, the camp is nicknamed "Gillwell".  Rick and I have been wanting to go to Woodbadge for about 12 years, and we both got to go this year.  I was placed in the Bear patrol, and Rick was placed in the Buffalo patrol. When we leave, to earn our beads, we make 5 goals.  I am excited about all of my goals, but especially my goal to learn 30 useful knots, lashings, and bends!  I have challenged the Boy Scouts to a tying contest in February.  It'll be so much fun!

DoTerra Essential Oils:  A year ago when we were in California for Christmas I brought my essential oils with me. Essential Oils are beautiful, and they work almost on contact for so many things.  I have now decided that I am a DoTerra girl, because they are the only ones who are so strict with the quality and purity of their oils that it is safe to put most of them in your mouth!  I have decided to sell them.  Amazing, beautiful, natural, pure, healing stuff!