Attracting more birds - goldfinches and hummingbirds

This morning, my oldest son alerted us to the presence of a yellow bird in the tree, near one of the feeders. I immediately recognized it as the American Goldfinch. That's the first one I've ever seen in the neighborhood, let alone in our tree. However, goldfinches tend to be harder to spot as they like to hide in tree with yellowish leaves that make them blend right in. Today, it was in our cherry blossom tree where it wasn't well camouflaged. It took a turn in one of the feeders before it flew off. In our backyard, we have added a hummingbird feeder. Hummingbirds like to drink nectar, so they require a different feeder than the seed-eating birds. We haven't seen any show up this week, but we'll have to see how it goes this summer.

Come one, come all to the birdfeeder

The birdfeeder that we put out last year is certainly attracting the birds. Last year, it was almost exclusively used by the house sparrows. This year, we have seen it used by a variety of species -- red-winged blackbirds, brown-headed cowbirds, house finches, and common grackles. We also have about a dozen mourning doves who will eat the birdseed that is scattered underneath or out on the lawn, as well as an occasional blue jay. We also have some robins, but they tend to stay away from the crowd at the feeder.

With spring here, we are starting to see some more species return to the area. I have noticed some northern mockingbirds around our house, and I've seen a killdeer by the main road.

Don't be disappointed if you put out a feeder and no birds show up. If you keep putting food in it, eventually birds will find it. Don't be afraid to try some different seed mixes until you find the one they like the best.

Advancing in rank... and choosing not to advance

Nathan completed his Scoutmaster conference and board of review for Second Class, so he has advanced in rank from Tenderfoot. He has also completed all of the requirements for First Class, but he decided to hold off on those reviews for one simple reason -- he wants a chance to actually wear his Second Class badge.

Upon reaching the Scout rank (which is mostly a formality after joining), Scouts are allowed to work on Tenderfoot, Second Class, and first Class requirements simultaneously. These ranks all consist of "Scouting skills", so they do not have to be learned and signed off in any particular order. However, the ranks still have to be earned in order. So, even though Nathan completed all of the requirements for First Class before he finished Second Class, he could not receive that rank until Second Class was completed. This opens up the possibility of a Scout earning two of those ranks or even all three ranks simultaneously.

He will go for his reviews next week so that he can reach First Class, but for this week, even if it's mostly symbolic, he is Second Class. And I couldn't be prouder.

Never give up

Last year, most of the Webelos II Scouts from another pack crossed over into our Boy Scout troop. One boy didn't -- and that's okay. I wouldn't want to have a boy join a Boy Scout troop just because his parents are pressuring him to do it.

Sometimes, when you step away from an activity for a while, you realize just how much you miss it.

Fast forward one year. This particular boy is still friends with the other boys who were in his den, and he has started to miss the fun of Scouting. His friend invites him to check out a troop meeting, so he does... and he loves it. While the meeting might not have been the most fun a boy can have -- most of it was spent working on knots and lashings -- you could see how much he enjoyed being with his friends. He had no trouble joining the group, even with the boys he didn't know. He and his father took home an application, and they will join our troop this week.

As luck would have it, his old pack will be having a crossover ceremony tonight, and they will let him be a part of the ceremony, giving him a chance to do what he missed out on last year. It's a good opportunity to remind the boys that if they ever drop out of Scouting, they can always come back.

Good mourning, my little doves

This morning, we saw a mourning dove picking through the bird seed on the ground. I was surprised to see him all by himself, as I always see mourning doves in groups. He proceeded to pick through the food for about 20 minutes before flying away. However, he soon returned... with about a dozen friends. The ground was suddenly overrun with doves! I knew he wasn't all alone. ;-)

Meanwhile, we believe we have spotted at least one female finch to go with the two males that we have seen. We'll have to see if they move into one of the bird houses.

More birds

Having a well-stocked bird feeder while the ground is covered in snow is paying dividends by attracting more birds. During the week, Deana spotted a house finch. This morning, the kids and I were able to confirm it, spotting two males. They look a lot like sparrows, but the male finches have red throats and chests. We will have to keep on the lookout for the female finches which will be harder to distinguish from the sparrows.

The early bird gets the... snow

We have had a very dry winter this year. There has barely been any snow so far. So, at the beginning of February, some of the birds that ventured south for the winter made their way back north. Of course, that's when it started snowing.

I feel bad for these birds. It's too far for them to turn back and go south again, so they are stuck here. However, since we have a well-stocked bird feeder in our tree, we are attracting all sorts of birds. We have seen cardinals and blue jays for the first time in our yard, and we have a flock of robins hanging out as well. We even have one bird that we can't quite identify yet, but it looks like a baby turkey. Of course, we still have the house sparrows that stayed through winter.

If you have a birdfeeder in your yard, keeping it stocked in winter is even more important than keeping it stocked in summer. When it's warm out, the birds can find food just about anywhere. When the ground is covered with snow, your feeder might be the only place that they can find food.

From trash (literally!) to treasure

As I was driving in to work one morning, I saw that somebody had put several wooden tool handles in with their trash. I don't know what tools they came from, but the handles were dark, spattered with paint, and generally in rough shape. But while this person saw these as trash, I saw them as something different. They are about 5' in height and 1" in diameter. Also, tool handles are typically made of hard woods like oak or hickory. I pulled them from their trash pile and put them in my car.

My son and I used an orbital sander to quickly strip off the layers of paint, stain, and grime from their previous use. Once we did all that, we were left with a very nice piece of wood. We used a woodburning tool to put his name and Boy Scout troop at the top. We applied a stain with polyurethane to give it a nice color and shine. We then wrapped the handle area with a colored cord, starting with a clove hitch, doing a series of half hitches to create a spiral, then finishing with another clove hitch. At the bottom, we put a furniture bumper.

In the end, we had a beautiful hiking staff -- one that he will be proud to take with him on hikes and campouts. And to think that somebody was just going to throw it away.

Ceremonies

When I took over as Cubmaster several years ago, the outgoing Cubmaster gave me some scripts that had probably been passed down by several other Cubmasters before him. One was for our Arrow of Light ceremony, another was for the Webelos II Scouts crossing over into a Boy Scout troop. We have used these for the Blue and Gold banquets for as long as I've been involved with the pack.

While the crossover ceremony isn't bad, the Arrow of Light ceremony is a snoozefest. It is long, drones on, and none of it sounds like anything I would say. If I feel that way as I read it, I would hate to know what the audience thinks of it.

Here's the bottom line: there is no "official" ceremony for either the Arrow of Light or crossing over to Boy Scouts. You are free to do what you want, but you still want to make sure it is all about the boys and making them feel important and proud of what they have accomplished.

So, with that in mind, I whittled our Arrow of Light ceremony down from three pages to only one. It is short, sweet, and to the point. No more endless droning. It sounds more like a ceremony and less like a sermon.

In the end, I didn't make a lot of changes to the crossover ceremony. It has some elements that I really like, and it feels traditional to our pack.

Old-fashioned, hand-cranked ice cream

Hot summer days are great for enjoying some cold ice cream, but there's is nothing better than ice cream you make yourself. Best of all, there are no mystery ingredients.

If you are lucky enough to have access to an old-fashioned, hand-cranked ice cream maker, it is a great activity for the kids. They will all be excited to take a turn cranking the handle, and since it will take 20-30 minutes for the ice cream to solidify, you should be able to give all the kids a chance.

To make the ice cream, you will need:

* 1/2 half gallon Half & Half
* one 14oz can sweetened condensed milk
* two tablespoons vanilla extract
* coarse salt
* lots of chopped ice

Place the wet ingredients into the ice cream canister and seal it up. Place the canister into the mixing tub. Fill the tub with ice, occasionally adding the salt to the ice. Crank the ice cream for 20-30 minutes or until the ice cream reaches the desired consistency.

The importance of being on time

This weekend, our Boy Scout troop participated in the Mountain Man Rendezvous campout. It as an event where patrols compete for points (represented as beads) at several events. The winner gets to take home a buckskin trophy which is mounted on a frame of poles that have been lashed together (although it has to be returned the following year). The boys are also supposed to dress up in period costume.

Our patrol consisted of two older boys, one in the middle (my son Nathan), and four scouts who had just crossed over from Cub Scouts this year. The patrol got off to a slow start, showing up for camp flags on Saturday morning. For that, they only received 5 out of 10 points. They did very well for the rest of the day, including setting a new record at the fire-building station. They managed to start a fire (without using matches or a lighter), cook a pancake (which they got to eat), put out the fire, and clean up, all in less than 10 minutes. Most patrols took about 30 minutes to complete that event. They struggled a little bit at archery where they lost some points for not following all of the safety rules, and they probably could have scored more points at the highland strength games if they had more older and stronger scouts.

The dinner was worth 30 points, it has to be prepared entirely by the patrol, and they had to invite a guest from the staff. The boys invited "Catapult Ken". During lunchtime, they began preparing a Dutch oven stew, and it sat on coals for the afternoon. After returning from their final events, they prepared an appetizer which was essentially Italian bread pizza, and they also prepared garlic bread for the dinner. One of the rules is that you have to pick your guest up for the meal to start at 6:30, and you can't be early, and you can't be late. Some troops had their food ready too early, while one had their cooking get caught in the rain, so they weren't prepared to eat until around 7:40. "Catapult Ken" absolutely loved the boys' cooking, as well as their hospitality, and they earned full points for dinner.

On Sunday morning, they reveal who won the event by doing a countdown. "If you have X points, take a step forward." This continues until only one patrol is still moving, and they can then claim the trophy skin. Our patrol had a total of 180 points out of a possible 190, although some bonus points were given out. As the countdown reached 150, there were only a few patrols still moving forward. They got to 170, and there were only two. They got to 180, and our patrol leader took a step forward, while the other patrol's leader didn't. Momentarily, it looked like the countdown was over, but the leader doing the countdown corrected the other patrol leader and told him to step forward. Knowing that we had reached our total, this now meant that we had lost out. The leader then told anybody with 181 points to step forward, and signalled to the other troop to keep going. They were the winners.

It turns out that the other troop had 184 points, beating our troop by a mere four points. In hindsight, had our boys not shown up late to the morning flags, they would have won by a single point. Although they were a little bit heartbroken to come so close twice -- they lost by only three points last year -- they still took heart in what a great job they did, especially when you consider that their patrol consisted mostly of younger scouts, while the patrol that won it consisted mostly of older scouts. Perhaps with an additional year of learning the Boy Scout skills, they will win it all next year.

Soda bottle rockets

Most people are familiar with model rockets, but here I have made a "rocket" out of an ordinary 2-liter soda bottle, and the "launch pad" is constructed out of PVC pipe. The "fuel" is air and water.

To make the launch pad, I used a 5' length of 1/2" PVC water pipe. I cut two 11" lengths which were glued into a slip/threaded T connector. One end was capped, while the other end was capped with a cap where a hole was drilled and a universal valve stem was inserted through the hole.

A threaded connector was screwed into the T connector, and I glued a 32" length of pipe into that. A 90 degree elbow connector was glued onto the open end, and the remaining 6" length of pipe was inserted into the elbow. At the end of the 6" piece, another male threaded connector was glued on, and the threads were wrapped a few times with electrical tape, just enough to make a tight seal when the 2-liter bottle is placed over the top. Test fit a soda bottle over the end to see if you have the right amount of tape.

To launch the rocket, a soda bottle is filled about 1/3 full of water. (Too much water will make the rocket too heavy to go high, while not enough water will prevent it from building up enough pressure.) Invert the bottle and quickly put it over the taped end, twisting it in the direction of the tape to ensure a good seal. (If you twist it the opposite way of the tape, you could cause the tape to loosen up and come off.) Use a bicycle pump attached to the valve to pump air into the system until enough pressure is built up and the rocket launches into the air. By using an automatic friction release, we won't end up putting so much air into the system that the bottle might explode before launch.

I spent about $3 at Lowe's on the PVC pipe and components, and an additional $3 at an auto parts store for a pair of valve stems. I had to purchase more PVC glue for about $4 because I had run out. (I still had a bottle of PVC cleaner.)

So, the total cost in materials was about $10. My kids spent the entire afternoon launching soda bottles into the air, so it was well worth it.

How to make a birdfeeder

This is a fairly easy project for making a birdfeeder from a plastic milk jug or juice bottle. This can be used toward Tiger elective 32, Wolf achievement 5e, Wolf elective 13, Bear achievement 5b, or the Webelos Craftsman activity pin (which could also be helpful for completing the Naturalist activity pin).

To make this, you will need a plastic milk jug or juice bottle (with the cap!), a drill, a utility knife (or a hobby knife or good scissors), a hot glue gun, a 5/8" dowel (approximately 12" long, depending on the size of the jug or bottle), and waterproof rope. Optionally, you will need permanent markers or waterproof paints to decorate the birdfeeder once you are done.

First, thoroughly clean the jug and soak it in hot water to remove any labels. Then dry it off.

Next, use the drill to make a small hole in one of the side panels. Use your knife or scissors to cut out an opening so the birds can get in and out. Make sure the bottom of the opening is high enough so that there will be room at the bottom of the jug for plenty of food. Otherwise, you will have to refill the birdfeeder frequently. Depending on the shape of the jug, make a second opening on either the adjacent side or the opposite side.

Drill a 5/8" hole below each of the openings, then slide the wooden dowel through. Use the hot glue gun to seal around the edges where the dowel pokes through the jug.

Drill two holes at the top of the jug, big enough for the rope to fit through. Feed the rope through the holes.

Optionally, you can decorate the birdfeeder with some bright colors to help attract the birds. At the very least, you should paint the wooden perch to help protect it from the weather.

Hang the birdfeeder about 4' to 6' above the ground. Try to pick a place that birds would consider "safe". Hopefully, birds will spot your birdfeeder, and you should have regular visitors after a few days.

No-mess model rocket painting

If your son is like mine, painting a model rocket can be a messy proposition. If he holds the rocket with one hand while he paints with the other, he will inevitably get paint all over his hands.

To keep his hands from getting messy, you will need a metal coat hanger. These can be found at dollar stores in packs of 10 or 12. Take the triangular portion of the coat hanger and pull the neck away from the long, straight end, thus turning the triangle into a square. Beck the neck at a 90 degree angle, perpindicular to the square. Straighten out the neck and bend it into a zig-zag shape.

Your son can now slide the launch lug (the part that looks like a small piece from a drinking straw) over the open end of the hangar, and the entire assembly can be set down on a table. You should still lay out some newspapers to catch drips, but at least the paint won't be all over his hands!

Birdwatching update

Today, I saw a red-winged blackbird eating from our birdfeeder. That's the first one of those I've seen all spring, and it's also the first bird other than a sparrow that I've seen at the feeder.

So far this year, I've seen many different birds in my neighborhood. I've seen house sparrows, red-winged blackbirds, mourning doves, crows, robins, Canadian geese, cardinals, northern mockingbirds, starlings, and red-tailed hawks. Not too far from my house, I've seen blue jays, mallards, and wild turkeys.

When you stop and take the time to look around, you will find that there are many different types of birds in your area.

It's a bird! It's a plane! It's... no, wait, it's a bird!

Over the past few years, we've seen plenty of birds in our yard. We have robins that like to make nests under our deck, and I've seen plenty of house sparrows, red-winged blackbirds, and other species that I am not so sure of.

A few weeks ago, my kids and I constructed a birdfeeder from a plastic juice jug and hung it in a cherry blossom tree in the front yard. We were hoping it would attract birds not only to the feeder, but to a birdhouse that we hung in the same tree. So far, the feeder has been dominated by the house sparrows, and we've been able to get some close-up looks at them (both male and female varieties) out of our living room, as the feeder is only a few feet away from a window. (A feeding sparrow can be seen in the picture at the upper left. This is the view as you look out the window, although the camera gets obscured/confused by the mesh screen.) So far, still no takers on the birdhouse.

As the temperatures finally start to warm up in Rochester, I'm starting to see some new species arrive. Until recently, all I've seen in my yard have been the robins and house sparrows. Lately, I've been seeing something in my neighborhood that looks similar to the house sparrow -- possibly a fox sparrow? This morning, I saw a pair of northern mockingbirds in my front yard, with one coming very close to a window so I could get a good look at it.

For help on identifying birds, I suggest trying whatbird.com or Scotts bird identifier. (Yes, that's the same company that makes all the grass seed and fertilizier.) It is important to make note of as many details as you can before you rush off to try to identify it. If you keep track of its size, coloring, beak shape, etc., your ability to identify it will greatly increase.

Potato prints

This is an easy craft for kids of any age, although younger kids may need some assistance from a grown-up because a knife is involved.

Take a potato and cut it in half using a straight blade, such as a paring knife or pocketknife. Don't use a serrated blade because it will make a wavy surface, and you won't get good prints from your potato. Blot the two halves on a piece of paper towel.

Take a nail or other sharp implement and scratch the outline of your design into the flat (cut) side of the potato. If you are planning to make a letter or number, remember to make your design backward so that it will print out correctly! Carefully use a paring knife or pocketknife to trim away the areas outside of your design.

Once your potato stencil is ready, press it firmly into an ink pad, then onto a piece of paper. Depending on how fresh your ink pad is, you can probably get two or three good prints before you need to re-ink your potato.

Leader awards

Kids aren't the only ones working on some sort of badge for their uniform. Yes, leaders can earn awards, too. It's nice to receive recognition for the time you put into Scouting. I recently earned my fourth Boy Scout square knot award -- the Cub Scouter award (pictured at the top).

The first two square knot awards I earned, I actually earned when I was a Cub Scout. Way back when I was in Pack 3, Den 2, I earned the religious emblem for Cub Scouts and the Arrow of Light. As an adult, I am entitled to wear the square knot emblems corresponding to those achievements (bottom left and bottom middle). Two years ago, I earned the Cubmaster Award (bottom right) for being fully trained at my position and completing several other activities related to the award. At this month's roundtable, I received my Cub Scouter Award for completing additional activities at my position.

If you are a leader and would like to work on an award, you can check out the different awards and their requirements at www.boyscouttrail.com/square-knots.asp.

The Amazing Ropemaking Machine!

This simple machine for making your own rope was supposedly conceived by Leonardo da Vinci. All it takes is some scrap wood, a metal coat hanger, and some twine.

Make the primary base by screwing together two pieces of scrap wood. Drill small holes (large enough to slide pieces of coat hanger through) 1" apart on the upright piece. Take a small piece of scrap wood and drill similar holes 1" apart. This will be our crank. Cut three 6" pieces of coat hanger and bend a hook shape at one end. Slide the piece through a hole one the upright piece and bend it down and out so that you have an end to fit through the crank. Once all three hooks are in place, you should be able to fit the crank over the ends so that all three hooks can be turned at the same time.

Make the secondary base by screwing together two more pieces of scrap wood. Put a big hook on this upright piece, or make one coat hanger hook like you did for the first base.

Make a separator tool by taking another small piece of scrap wood and putting notches at the top and on each side. This will be used to keep the strands from twisting together until we are ready.

Clamp or hold down the base pieces. If you are using poly twine, your rope will be about as long as the distance between the bases. If you are using fiber twine, you will need to extend the bases as the rope will shorten considerably as you crank the handle. Tie the twine to the first hook, loop it around the hook on the first base, go around the hook on the secondary base, then around hook #2, back down to the hook on the secondary base, around hook #3, back around the hook on the secondary base, then back to hook #3 where you can tie it off and cut off the excess. For thicker ropes, double or triple up on each hook. For more colorful rope, using different colored poly twine on each hook.

With the twine in place, use the separator tool to separate the strands, and move it down by the secondary base. Begin cranking in a clockwise manner, making sure the strands stay separated as you crank. Keep cranking until the strands are almost ready to kink up. Tie off the end by the secondary base and remove it from the hook. Grab the tied end and slowly pull the separator tool toward the primary base. The strands between the separator tool and the tied end will twist together and form a solid rope. Keep working this way until you get all the way up to the primary base. Unhook the three strands and tie the ends together. Trim off any excess and whip or fuse the ends of the rope to keep it from unravelling.

You know you have a good Scout activity when the boys don't want to stop when you run out of time!

Cold weather cooking - it's all in the preparation

My son, a Tenderfoot Scout, has spent the evening cracking dozens of eggs and cutting up pre-cooked sausage. Why? Because his Boy Scout patrol is in charge of making breakfast for the entire troop at this weekend's Klondike Derby, and they chose to make breakfast burritos. So, rather than crack dozens of eggs and cut up sausage outside in the cold where his egg-splattered hands would get way too much exposure to cold air, he can do these things ahead of time in a warm environment where he also has access to warm water and soap. The eggs have been cracked, whisked, and poured into a gallon jug, and the sausage pieces have been cut up and placed into tupperware. When it's time to actually make breakfast, all his patrol will need to do is heat up the food.