The Derby (dar-bee)

Pinewood Derby was a greatly anticipated event in the Williams' household. Walt and the kids started a month before. So great was the excitement that not only did Ethan make a car, but Cameron and Laurel each "needed" one of their very own. That's right 3 cars.

Walt let each child pick and draw their design on a paper that he cut out and then cut the pine with. Ethan did all the work on his car except the cutting of the wood. It was truly HIS car. He loved it.

Unfortunately, even with starting a month earlier than the race we ran into some snags. Ethan was sick. He got sick the week before the race, when they planned to have all the painting and wheels on, pretty much done. Then Ethan and Walt were going to test the car and tweak it. We he just didn't feel up to it. So the car didn't get finished until the night before.

The morning of the Pinewood Derby Ethan woke up sick. Really sick. His throat hurt. I took him to the doctor to find out that he had strep throat, again. Normally, I'd have made him stay home. But come on, the kid spent a whole month designing and building his 1st car. Not to mention the years of watching previous derbies. Oh the anticipation was very high.


So this was our solution. I gave him 2 doses of antibiotics and he wore a mask. He had strict instructions not to touch anyone or any other car. He washed his hands about 10 times (I exaggerate, but it was a lot) during the event. To my knowledge, no one else got sick and Ethan enjoyed himself immensely! He also took 3rd place, of which he was pleased. It was a fun night, even if he was sick. Success!