A holiday painting party!

Our holiday party will be Monday, Dec. 6 at Painting Fun Spot from 6:30 to 7:30 p.m. We will be painting, so have girls dress appropriately. You may even want to leave your Daisy tunics at home. We have enough funds in our troop account to cover the entire cost, so you don't need to send any additional money. Miah S. is scheduled to bring snack.

Also, if you'd like to donate a teddy bear or gently used stuffed animal to the Disorderly Bear Den, we'll be accepting those. (This is our "Girl Scouts Give Back" project for the month of December. Participation is 100 percent voluntary.) If you'd like to read more about the Disorderly Bear Den, click here to see a great article that appeared recently in The Journal Gazette. 

We hope you all have a wonderful holiday season. We look forward to seeing you in January. (Stay tuned ... Girl Scout cookie sales begin Jan. 14!)

Girl Voices Survey

Our council is sponsoring a national Girl Scout Voices survey, and we'd love for each of you to register. The survey will provide information about what girls learn in Girl Scouting and help our council plan engaging activities. The survey takes about 10 minutes. Go to www.girlscoutvoices.org to participate.

Fire Station Tour

We know it's been a long time since we've met, and we're really looking forward to seeing everyone on Monday, Nov. 29!! It's going to be a great meeting, as we have a great opportunity to tour the fire station! Girls will earn their magenta petal (Respect Authority) for attending this event. (Please note: Some girls may already have this petal.)

A few notes about the meeting:

• We have 19 girls in our troop, so good behavior during the tour is extremely important. Please talk to your daughter ahead of time and remind her that she should listen to the firefighters while they are speaking and respect their home away from home. (Anyone who is disruptive to the group during the tour may be asked to sit in the community room with one of the leaders.)
• The tour should last about 45 minutes, so our regular drop-off and pick-up times will be perfect.
• Alina is scheduled to bring snack. If we run out of time, we may send snacks home with girls to enjoy after the meeting.

Operation Christmas Child update

Thank you to everyone who submitted items for the Operation Christmas Child shoeboxes! The first graders (Troop 20048) and second graders (Troop 20661) collected enough items to fill about 10 shoeboxes. In addition, we used troop funds to cover shipping costs for six of the boxes ($21 from each troop). Way to go, girls!!!!

Operation Christmas Child

At Monday's meeting, we will be collecting donations for Operation Christmas Child. This organization supplies wrapped shoebox gifts to children during the holiday season. You may donate small notebooks, pencils, toys and/or personal hygiene items. For more information, go to http://www.samaritanspurse.org/index.php/OCC/.

As always, donations are optional. We simply want to engage girls in an ongoing discussion about helping others in our community and beyond. 

Also, Troops 20048 and 20661 worked together last month to collect more than 53 pounds of canned goods for the Community Harvest Food Bank! If you think about it, that's about as much as a first-grade girl (give or take a few pounds!)

Upcoming Meetings

Here's a quick rundown of our upcoming meetings ... 

Nov. 1 -- We will continue our "Daisy Journey" and discuss the importance of being "Considerate and Caring" (girls will earn their light green petal). Petals earned to date will be distributed at the Nov. 29 meeting.

Nov. 29 -- We will take a tour of the fire station. The girls will earn their magenta petal, which represents "Respect Authority."

Dec. 6 -- We will have a Holiday Party at Painting Fun Spot. Please note the change in location. Meeting times will remain the same. The cost for each girl to paint an ornament is $10 -- the troop will cover half, and we ask that parents send the remaining $5. Checks should be made payable to Troop 20048. We'll send more information about this event in November.

Also, several families still owe paperwork, petals and/or troop dues. Jennifer will send individual emails to let you know what you still need to turn in. If you don't get an email, you're all caught up!

Reminders

It's time to put on your dancin' shoes! The Sock Hop is this Saturday from 7 to 9 p.m. at Summit Middle School. We have about 15 girls attending from our troop, so it should be a fun event! (We may try to gather for a troop photo at some point during the dance, but we're not sure of times. Stay tuned!)

We also have a meeting scheduled for next Monday, and we're looking forward to seeing everyone!! (So sorry for the long break between meetings ... our schedule is a bit sporadic this year, due to the availability of the fire station.) We'll officially begin our Daisy Journey, "Between Earth and Sky." If possible, girls should bring a few fall leaves from their yard or neighborhood. Savannah is scheduled to bring our snack.

Calling all dads!!

Sign up now for the first-ever He and Me Campout, which will be Nov. 12-13 at Camp McMillen.This first-of-its-kind event will give Girl Scouts and their dads (or other adult male) a chance to spend time together in the great outdoors! You can choose to spend the night Friday -- or just attend Saturday’s activities. You'll enjoy dinner over a campfire, a special dad-daughter craft, games, and S’mores! Cost is $20 for each dad-daughter pair ($25 for dads with more than one daughter). Girls will earn a fun patch.

If you are interested, please let us know so we can get you the event flier and registration form. Space is limited, and all registration forms are due Nov. 8.

Tweet, tweet!

Looking for fun, inspirational and informative tidbits about the Girl Scouts of Northern Indiana-Michiana? Follow GSNIM on Twitter!

Sock Hop -- last call!

If you plan to attend the Sock Hop on Oct. 23, please be sure turn in your form and money no later than Monday, Oct. 11. (There is a box on Jennifer's front porch where you can drop off forms.)

Meeting reminder

Just a quick reminder about our next meeting (Monday, Oct. 4). Here is what you will need to bring:

• $15 troop dues, checks should be made payable to Troop 20048
• An optional donation for the Community Harvest Food Bank
• Sock Hop permission form and money, if you plan to attend
• Fall product/cookie permission form (Participation in the fall product sale is completely optional, but here's some food for thought: Even if you chose to renew or subscribe to one magazine, it will help our troop!)
• For those new to our troop: A pack of petals, available at the Girl Scout store on Dupont Road (If you haven't had time to go to the Girl Scout store, it's no problem. Just get them turned in when you can.)

Caroline will bring our snack. (Drinks are not necessary ... will we fill our reusable plastic cups with water.)

Hooray for Girl Scouts!

According to this piece in the Aug. 23, 2010 issue of Woman's World magazine, children who are enrolled in scouts are better behaved! Hooray! :) 

Can you help?

We received the following email from another area troop. If you have anything you would like to donate, feel free to bring it to our next meeting. We will gladly deliver any donations to the troop leader. (Note: these middle-school girls have been saving and planning a long time to make this trip a reality ... pretty exciting!)

We are Cadette Girl Scouts and we need your help. We are working on our Silver Award and are trying to help those who face great hardships. We are collecting diapers, wipes, books, toys, and clothing for babies and toddlers of homeless mothers ages 17-21. We will be traveling to New York to personally deliver the items we collect. Please help us by contacting our troop leader, Kim Pavicich, kefapavicich@verizon.net.

Thank you,
Allyson, Candace, Gabbi, Morgan, Penny 

Fall Product Sales

Each year, our Girl Scout council does two major fundraisers. The biggest, of course, is cookie sales – which take place from January through March. We also do a Fall Product sale (magazines, cookies and nuts). Participation in the Fall Product sale is completely optional (please see Jennifer if you would like a packet), but it does help our troop earn money!

New this year -- there is only ONE permission form, and it covers both Fall Product AND Cookies. (Hooray!) We're going to pass the forms out at our first meeting, and we'd like to collect them as soon as possible. That way, when cookie season rolls around, we're all set.

Troop dues

Our troop dues for the year will be $15 per girl. This money is used to cover the cost of craft supplies/materials and to help offset the cost of some events. Checks can be made payable to Troop 20048. (We will not be collecting $1 per meeting as we did in the past.)

Poodle Skirts

Are you interested in wearing a poodle skirt to the Sock Hop? Here are some easy ways to find that perfect 50s-inspired garb:

1. Check Goodwill! The store at the corner of Jefferson and Covington roads usually puts out a row or two of Halloween costumes sometime in mid-September -- but they don't put everything out at once! Make a point to stop in every week or so, and you may just luck out!

2. Watch eBay. Again, timing is everything -- but if you're diligent, you can get an adorable poodle skirt for a great price!

3. Make your own. Click here for some simple do-it-yourself directions. 

Are you ready to ROCK 'n ROLL?

Come dance the night away at the SU 616 Mother/Daughter Sock Hop! This fun event will be Saturday, Oct. 23 from 7 to 9 p.m. at Summit Middle School. Cost is $6.50 per person.

Like last year, you can wear clothes from the 50s, 60s or 70s (dig out those poodle skirts, tie-dyed T-shirts and bell bottoms!). Or, if you prefer, come in your favorite Halloween costume. (Both moms and girls can dress up!)

Please note: the planning committee has opted not to take individual pictures at this year's event, but we'll have an opportunity to take a troop photo. (Bring your cameras, and I'm sure we'll have plenty of candid shots, too!)

Registration forms will be sent home at our first meeting on Sept. 27. Please fill them out and return them (with payment) at our second meeting on Oct. 4.

Special message for Girl Scouts

Joey King and Selena Gomez, stars of the summer hit Ramona and Beezus, give a shout out to the new Girl Scout Journey, It's Your Story. Check it out!

How much does Girl Scouts cost?

If you are new to our troop, you likely will find that Girl Scouts is one of the most affordable extra-curricular activities around. You can expect to pay $12 to register your daughter, $12 to register any adult that wishes to become involved with the troop, between $20-25 for a Daisy tunic and petals and $15 in troop dues. Occasionally, we have limited expenses associated with outside activities throughout the school year, but we try our best to keep these to a minimum. When possible, we use our troop funds to cover activity and craft expenses (troop funds are primarily a combination of dues and money earned during cookie sales).

Are you registered?

It's that time of year again! If you are new to our troop, or if you did not participate in the spring Early Bird registration program, here's what you need to do:

• Complete a Girl Registration form
• Complete a Girl Heath History form
• Submit a $12 registration fee (Checks should be made payable to GSNIM)
• Consider making a contribution to the Family Partnership Program

Adults may register, too! In fact, if you are a parent that plans to attend meetings, drive girls to events or serve on a troop or Service Unit committee, you should register, as well. You will need to:

• Complete an Adult Registration form
• Complete an Adult Health History form
• Submit a $12 registration fee (Family members can combine payment on one check, made payable to GSNIM)
• Consider making a contribution to the Family Partnership Program

Paperwork should be submitted to Jennifer no later than our first meeting on Sept. 27, but preferably before then. You may mail it or drop it off at Jennifer's house, 2213 Candlewick Dr., 46804.

Family Partnership Program

Please consider making a contribution to the Family Partnership Program, which helps cover the ongoing cost of council-wide programming, camp sessions, membership assistance, volunteer training, etc. (Your $12 registration fee goes to Girl Scouts USA, while this money stays right here in our council.) Any girl whose family donates $15 or more will receive a patch.

Rockin' Rebate!

If you visit our council store, Patches and S'Mores, between Sept. 7 and Nov. 24, SAVE YOUR RECEIPTS! Turn them in to Jennifer before Dec. 1, and our troop will receive a 5 percent rebate on all purchases made during this time! (Every little bit counts!)

Reminder!

If your daughter earned any Cookie Cash during last year's cookie sales, it needs to be used by Sept. 30. There's lots of great stuff in our council store, so head on over and do some shopping!

Parents, we need your help!

We are fortunate to be a part of a fabulous Service Unit that plans TONS of great activities for our girls ... but in order to make these events happen, we need lots of volunteers. We are currently looking for parents that would be willing to serve on a Service Unit committee. Typically, the committees meet once or twice before an event (depending on everyone's availability), and members work together to handle specific tasks (organizing snacks, games, photos, etc.) If you are able to help in any of these areas, please let us know! We would love for our troop to well-represented!

• Sock Hop Committee (Tentatively scheduled for Oct. 23)
• He and Me Camp (This is a new event for dads and daughters, tentatively scheduled for Nov. 12-13)
• Father Daughter Dance, Feb. 5
• Brownie Daisy Day, May 14
• 3rd/4th Grade Camp-Out, May 20-22 
• Older Girl Camp-Out, June 3-5

Zoo Patches

Those of you who attended our zoo field trip this summer have earned another patch for your tunic! We will distribute the patches at our first meeting in September.

Welcome, Daisies!

Wow! It's so hard to believe that our first year of Daisies is behind us. Don't worry -- we're gearing up for another exciting year, and we have lots of fun activities in store! Stay tuned for more information about our upcoming events.

Jenn, Becky and Annette