Grand Prix

Noah was very excited to be old enough to be a Spark in AWANA last year, and this year he was doubly excited, as he knew that being a Spark means you're old enough to participate in AWANA Grand Prix.

Grand Prix is a competition building wooden cars that you race on a downhill track. You buy the kit from AWANA, so that everyone starts with the same size block of wood and the same wheels. There are size and weight specifications, but other than that, it is a chance to show your imagination and to try to build the fastest car. Prizes are awarded in each class for speed and for design.

Noah had a great time imagining his car, and he decided he wanted to build Mater, the tow truck. Daddy helped him with the bits that involved sharp machinery, but Noah did alot of the work himself. They had a great time together.

Here are some photos of the woodwork and the race:

Learning to operate Daddy's wood-working tools. Mommy was a little nervous! But, Noah loved it.

Getting the wheels on
Staining the truck-while Daddy encouraged him NOT to stain his fingers.

Finishing painting the eyes

The Finished Product

The Race Track

Watching the Race

Mater might not have been the fastest car, but Noah won 1st Place in the Design Competition! His friend Bailey won 1st place for speed, and I can see many years of friendly competition in the making here.

He is so pleased, and he's already full of big plans for next year's race. So is Daddy. Daddy is especially excited, as Nathan will be ready for Sparks, so there will be multiple cars to enter and multiple chances to win. There is already talk about designing for speed. Sigh. I see lots of saw dust in my future! Still, with a smile like this and the amount of memories made, what's a little (okay, a lot) of sawdust?

Red, White, and Blue

The boys celebrated Veterans' Day this year in unique style. It was Red, White, and Blue night at AWANA, and they were also collecting care package items to send to our soldiers stationed overseas.

Noah had a fantastic time thinking about what it might be like to serve as a soldier in the desert, and then to pick items that would be useful. He chose Gatorade, chapstick, ink pens to write letters home, chewing gum, and a variety of hard candies.

The children were supposed to go dressed in red, white, and blue, and I had visions of making an Uncle Sam costume, but time was short, I was tired, and so we went with something a bit easier.

We attracted LOADS of attention from the neighborhood children, as I took the boys out front to spray their hair. Only time in my life that I've ever heard the word "COOL" applied to the boys!

Anyhow, they loved it.
They wore red shirts and blue jeans, and Noah also wanted his face painted. Face paints were impossible to find, as Halloween is long gone, but a trip to the dollar store found lipliner and eye liners in the right colors.

Thankfully, none of it was hard to wash off afterwards! Now, I need to think up a costume for this week, when they have a Thanksgiving theme. I love AWANA-I'm tired of thinking up costumes, though!