Camping Printables

I'm writing inspirational fiction for middle grade readers (ages 8-12).  Though I am not yet published, I believe I'm making large strides toward this goal.  I invite you to check out the puzzles and games I created based on my current work in progress.  Since the Mad Lib and Would You Rather... worksheets are related to camping, I thought Girl Scouts and their leaders might find them to be entertaining.  Work on them while on a camping trip, or print them out to occupy the girls while you're waiting for parents to arrive at the end of a meeting.  However you choose to use them, I hope your girls enjoy!

An Exciting Announcement

I am excited to announce I am writing books for middle grade readers. This week, I officially launched my website:   http://lauriestroupsmith.com/  Though I am not yet a published author, I will document my experiences on the new website as I pursue this goal. Additionally, I hope to connect and inspire readers and their families through fun reading and writing projects, puzzles, and games related to my books. 

If this idea interests you and your Scouts and you would like to encourage this journey, I invite you to visit and "like" my Facebook page.  I'm looking forward to connecting with you there.  Thank you in advance for giving it a chance.

As promised in a previous post, I will continue to document on this blog the badge steps and projects my daughters complete as Juliettes.  I truly appreciate the support you have given this blog over the past four years.  Thank you for reading.

Craft: Tie Dye Crayons

This spring, my daughter's third grade class held a Product Fair.  For several weeks leading up to the special day, students earned play money.  Each student created a product and designed a poster, hoping to entice fellow classmates to spend their hard-earned cash on his or her goods.  My daughter decided to make tie dye Lego crayons, using silicone Lego molds we had purchased from Amazon several years ago.  Here are the steps she followed (with parental supervision, of course):

1. Choose the crayons to use.  My daughter used 2-3 crayons of each color.

 










2.  Place the crayons in a zippie bag.  She used a separate baggie for each color.  The wrappers fall off when the crayons are smashed with a hammer or a rolling pin.  This is much easier and less time consuming than peeling the wrappers from the crayons.
3.  Preheat the oven to 200 degrees.
4.  Place the silicone molds on a cookie sheet.
5.  Sprinkle the crayon crumbles into the molds as desired.
                          
6.  Slide the cookie sheet into the oven and bake until melted.  We checked the progress in five minute intervals, adding minutes as needed.  The Lego men finished in about twelve minutes, and the Lego bricks took about 20 minutes.

NOTE:  After removing the Lego men from the oven, my daughter noticed the finished product was not going to be as thick as she had expected.  She sprinkled more crayon crumbles on top of the melted wax before sliding the cookie sheet back into the oven for about five more minutes.

    

7.  Let the crayons cool before popping them from the molds.

NOTE:  If a tie dye crayon happens to fall on the floor and crack in all the excitement, place the pieces back in the mold and bake until melted.  Once the crayon cools, it will be as good as new.

My daughter paired a Lego man with a Lego brick and packaged them for the Product Fair in a 4x6" clear treat bag.  These Lego crayons were quite a hit!  She was really excited to be the first in her class to sell out at the Product Fair.

With such a variety of silicone molds available today, the options are endless.  Tie dye crayons make great birthday party favors.  Consider trying this craft on a rainy day, during a birthday party, or at your next Scout meeting. (Think about using a bug-shaped mold to make a bug craft for the Brownie Bugs badge.  Remember these crayons as the girls experiment with different shading materials for the Juniors Drawing badge).  I would love to hear how this worked for you and the special kids in your life.  Thank you for reading.

Girl Scout Juliettes

In the fall, I posted our plans for the school year.  At that time, many of the girls in our troop planned to participate in other extracurricular activities which placed greater demands on their time.  Some changes needed to be made to retain our membership.  We were so happy we were able to accommodate schedules, and we did not lose any girls this year.  As our older girls prepare to start Junior High this fall, I imagine they will be faced with some tough decisions. 

Speaking of tough decisions...after serving for six years, I decided to step down as troop leader.   I am focusing my time and energy on a special project I hope to have completed by the end of the summer.  Please stay tuned for an announcement about this project. 
 

While my daughters will not be involved in troop activities next year, they will be registered as Juliettes.  I will mentor their badge work, and continue to share our experiences here.  I have truly enjoyed connecting with other leaders through this blog.  I hope you consider checking back with us as we start on this new adventure in Girl Scouting.  Thank you for reading.

Girl Scout Bridging Event

This spring, our combined troop of Brownies and Juniors were ready to bridge to the next level of Girl Scouts.  When talking with the girls about the occasion, they made it clear they did not want to have a ceremony, nor did they wish to invite family members to attend our event.  But they did love the idea of doing something special.  We agreed to schedule an evening trip downtown (Cincinnati).  The girls wanted to cross the Ohio River on the Suspension Bridge before celebrating the occasion with a sweet treat from Coldstone Creamery in Newport, Kentucky.

Since we had already scheduled an evening service project at the Fisher House in April, we agreed we could extend the evening and head downtown after cleaning up the planting project. 

After reviewing the budget, we leaders knew we had enough money in the troop account to allow the girls to order a small ice cream with the one complimentary topping of their choice ($4.54).  Troop funds also covered the cost to park in the garage adjacent to Newport on the Levee ($2/car on this specific evening).
  
When we reviewed our expenses for the year, we realized we had some money remaining from our Bake Sale in the fall.  That money had had been promised to the men and women who have served our country.  Our girls voted with their families, and we decided all remaining troop funds be donated to the Bake Me Back Home project with Bake Me Home.  Our donation will deliver a jar of cookie mix and 48 baked cookies to the Fisher House every week for one month.  

Seems like it was yesterday when they were Daisies.  Please check back soon.  I will share our plans for the future in my next post.

Service Project: Planting Flowers for Veterans at Fisher House

For the final service project of the year, our troop served our Veterans and their families.  When we finished our badge work during meetings this winter, we pulled out cardstock and markers and let the girls decorate.  The cards were delivered to guests staying at the Fisher House when we planted flowers there  this spring.

At our school's Open House this fall, our girls hosted a Bake Sale.  All proceeds were to benefit Veterans and their families staying at the Fisher House.  Note:  For our Cincinnati-area friends, contact the House Manager directly when trying to schedule a service project.  We were originally working through her, but somehow one of our messages was routed through Volunteer Services.  I placed multiple calls and left many messages for them, but we couldn't get answers.  I was eventually able to get back in touch with the House Manager, and she promptly scheduled a date for our visit.

Prior to this event, our co-leader and I visited the House and assessed the needs.  There were two corner boxes and two round planters on the front porch.  We decided on the number of red, white, and blue flowers to purchase and made a note to pick up plastic gloves and top soil.

One April evening, we carpooled to the Fisher House and got to work.  The girls removed the dead mums that remained in the planters from the fall.  They added topsoil to the planters and arranged the new annuals as desired.  After cleaning up, the Fisher House had a fresh look for spring.
 

The girls raised the money on their own and made these improvements themselves.  They were quite proud of this accomplishment, knowing the beautiful flowers may brighten the day for others in need.  After cleaning up, we headed downtown for a Bridging Event.  I invite you to check back soon as I'll be sharing those details in my next post.  Thank you for reading.

Exploring Beneath the Surface: Hidden River Cave and Mammoth Cave Tours

A friend of mine was heading to Kentucky over Spring Break on a research trip, and she invited my mom, my girls, and me to join her.  Knowing my husband would be working those days, we jumped at the chance to explore with her.

We headed toward Horse Cave, Kentucky, on Good Friday morning.  We were hoping to visit Detweiler's Country Store, but they were closed for the holiday.  We altered our plans and visited R&S Salvage Groceries.  We ordered our sandwiches and purchased our favorite Amish baked goods.  Later in the day we arrived at Hidden River Cave in time to take a tour.  

We chose the Public Guided Cave Tour.  Reservations are not necessary.  Upon our arrival, we paid admission ($15 Adults, $10 Children ages 6-14, Free for kids under age 5).  The admission fee includes access to the American Cave Museum.  We did not check it out the exhibits because we only had to wait about 10 minutes for the next tour to begin.  Our party joined another family and we were escorted to an elevator that took us to a short walkway that led to the mouth of the cave.  Another tour group was zip lining across and rappelling into this sinkhole.

We began our hour-long tour by descending the 230 stairs into what was once the most polluted cave in the country.  Great efforts have been made to restore the cave, and the American Cave Conservation Association continues to improve the experience for guests.  At the bottom of the steps, we were led along a bridge that crossed a river.  Just over the dam, we entered a cavernous room where we saw a variety of formations and were introduced to an albino cave crayfish.  This tour was really cool!

The next morning we headed over to Mammoth Cave for the Frozen Niagra Tour.  We planned to join the 10am (CST) tour.  Thankfully we purchased our tickets in advance!  Upon our arrival around 9:30am, ALL tours for the day were SOLD OUT with the exception of the self-guided tour for which $5 tickets were being sold.  As we waited at the Visitor Center to load the bus to take us to the entrance of the cave, we picked up the Junior Ranger guide books for my girls.  At ages 9 and 10, they completed the activities in the books to earn the 12 points required for a Junior Ranger badge.  A couple years ago, the girls earned their Junior Ranger badges at Sleeping Bear Dunes National Seashore along with a badge and a patch that we sewed on the back of their Girl Scout vests.  When they turned in their books at the Mammoth Cave Visitor Center , they received the Junior Ranger pin and a certificate.  Unfortunately, the park did not provide the patch for free, but we were able to purchase one from the gift shop for $5.95.  There were several patches from which to choose.  While the patches were a little more expensive than I was hoping to spend, I wanted the girls to have something to remember our time together.  These are the two patches my girls selected:

 

The Frozen Niagra tour was breathtaking.  I'm 5'7" tall.  Even though there were a couple areas when I had to duck or swivel sideways for a step or two, I never felt claustrophobic.  The cave is well-lit.  At one point, our amazing guide turned off the light so that we could experience being in complete darkness.  Though it was pitch black for only a minute, this could be frightening for someone who is afraid of the dark.  For perspective, there were several families in our group who had toddlers and preschoolers, and these children were fine during the blackout.  What a fun road trip for families, friends, and Scout groups!  This could be a great way to spend some of the money earned through the Girl Scout Cookie Sale.  I hope to return to Mammoth Cave as a family in the near future so we can go on the Domes and Dripstones tour.  

The girls in our troop recently finished their last service project for the year before attending a Bridging event.  I will share all the fun details in my next post.  As always, thank you for reading.