UK Pen Pals

Last year our group decided to complete the Brownie Pen Pals interest badge. Since I'm a member of a few UK Girl Guiding Facebook pages I thought it would be great to find some pen pals to do a swap. In no time at all we had three units lined up for a swap. My unit made crafts, sent pictures and badges - they were really excited. 

Unfortunately, weeks then months passed and we heard nothing back from our pen pals. I tried to contact these units on Facebook and although they confirmed that they had received our packages they never ended up sending things back to us. My girls were really disappointed and I was frustrated as well. 

In the summer I posted the story onto one of these Facebook pages to see if there was any other way to contact these groups. I was then overwhelmed by the response of people who wanted to send us something to make up for these other units. 

We ended up receiving letters and parcels from 8 different groups containing all sorts of things from letters and photos of their groups to guiding teddy bears and UK badges for our girls to earn. I was simply overwhelmed by these guiders generosity. 

Since there was so much sent to us (8 groups after all) we split up the goodies between the girls from last year and our current group. Our current girls wrote back to these new pen pals and will be doing some of the challenge badges that they sent us. Our girls from last year got a lovely package of badges in the mail from the groups that wrote back. 

I'm so glad to know that the guiding sisterhood extends near, far and overseas and that we truly have friends where ever we go. A HUGE thank you to the UK Girl Guide groups that wrote back to us. We are so thankful that this story had a happy ending. 

Key to I Can - Cooking and Tool Skills

We're heading into December now and working to finish up our program area - Key to I Can. The girls have been super eager to try their hand at cooking and some wanted to work with tools so we thought we'd do a meeting that incorporated both. 

We decided that alongside the Key to I can we wanted to do the "Mouse around the House" challenge from Alberta. This challenge focuses on basic home skills, things like setting a table, cooking and woodworking - very "traditional" brownie skills. 

For this meeting Tanwy Owl took over the "tinkering" section of programming. She went over all sort of different tools with the girls and talked about their uses. Then using our fancy colour-changing unicorn night lights from camp she showed the girls how to change batteries using a screwdriver to remove the base plates. Also, bring the crafty leader that she is Tawny Owl taught the girls about different kinds of simple circuits taking apart and putting back together the night lights entirely. 

While half of the girls worked with tools, I did pizza and s'mores making with the other group.  The girls loved learning how to use the can opener and cut up all of the toppings for their pizza. Leader Tip: Before you put your girl's pizzas in the over have them take a picture with their creation. Then you can (hopefully) match up the pizza with its owner when it's finished cooking. 

After the pizza was done it was time to set the table. The 2nd year girls learned how to do this last year when we completed the "Girl Guides Gateway to our Past" challenge so happily took the lead to show the younger girls what to do. Once the table was set it was time to eat. 

The Girls Loved this meeting and were so happy to go home with some new badges for their sash and camp blanket. 

Brownies Enrollment - 2017

One of my favourite events in the fall is our annual Enrolment ceremony. Its so exciting to see the girls work so hard to learn everything Brownie. They take a lot of pride in their uniforms and sashes, knowing their Promise, Motto & Law and being a part of a fairy circle. 

This year we did a lot of work to prepare for the Enrolment Ceremony. The girls created lanterns for decorations and we created a whole introduction/setting up of the toadstool for the second year girls to get more involved. 

We were all ready to invite parents into our meeting space for the ceremony when there was a big issue. The church had double booked our space by accident and it appeared that the other group couldn't be moved into another space. The girls were a little worried about the ceremony and what was going to happen next but we assured them that Brownies are flexible and we would still have a great time. 

Cue the move across the hall to the church's storage room. Big enough for a very cozy Enrolment, our girls moved over and set up all of our props and chairs for our ceremony. In about 10 minutes things were back to normal and after a quick run through we were ready for family and friends. 

The girls did a wonderful job and were so proud of themselves. So happy to be a leader with this amazing group!

Emergency Preparedness

The second program key we are working on this year is the "Key to I Can". We decided to cover a large chunk of first aid and emergency preparedness tonight - covering what is and what is not an emergency. 




We had a great discussion with the girls, played some emergency preparedness running games and finished off with a plasticine craft about natural disasters. Below are some of the girls Emergency Preparedness artwork!

Its Halloween and time for a Party! We do a joint Sparks/Brownies Halloween celebration every year and its always a blast. This year we decorated pillowcases for collecting candy, made monster pop-puppets and played all sorts of games for candy prizes. 

We finished off with a potluck reception and treats were had by all. Happy Halloween everyone!

Brownies Visit Mountain Equipment Co-op!

Every year as a unit we complete several interest badges in addition to the program keys. Typically the girls get to choose which interest badges they want to complete together and then my co-leaders and I pick a few more to round out the other badges we are doing. Now that its my 5th year leading a Brownie group I've pretty much done every interest badge with my girls. There are however a few that have always been tricky to accomplish as they require going somewhere specific. 

In early October I got a call that our meeting space wouldn't be available that week due to a large church function. I was worried we would have to cancel as its often hard to find a meeting space - especially in a time crunch. Luckily with come quick thinking and a great community partnership led to the perfect idea. A Trip to Mountain Equipment Co-Op!

When I called up our local MEC store and asked if i could bring a bunch of rowdy 7 & 8 year olds to run around their store for an hour and a half I wasn't sure what the were going to say. The gentleman I spoke to was AMAZING and said not only that the girls could come to tour the store but what programming did he want them to provide? I sent him the requirements for the "Go Camping" interest badge and he said not to worry he would plan something awesome for the girls. 


When we got to the store we were greeted with this happy sign. We chatted with the girls about using our best manners in public and that since the store was still open for shoppers that we would need to be mindful of our voice volume. The first thing we did was meet with Graeme our MEC Liaison who answered any and all the girls had about camping equipment and gear. Afterwards he handed out a group scavenger hunt which had the girls tour the store and find out information about different products they might use while tent camping. 


We went around the store in small groups - taking pictures of the fun camping gadgets and equipment that were available to purchase. The girls learned a lot about what was things were waterproof and why it was so important to stay warm and dry when being outside. 

All of the Brownies loved the "tiny things" you could take camping with you. Collapsable water bottles, tiny flashlights, etc. were all super exciting to the girls. 

After the scavenger hunt we came back to the MEC community room and got to learn about tents! The staff at MEC provided 2 tents for the girls to practice setting up. We learned about where is best to pitch tents, about tent poles and most important - the waterproof rainfly. The girls LOVED setting up and playing in the tents. Truly a highlight of the trip!


Thank you SO MUCH Mountain Equipment Co-Op! We had a FANTASTIC TIME!

Key to Brownies Camp 2017!

So every year I have this great idea to take the Brownies camping right away - Like 5 weeks into the guiding season. I think camp is a pretty magical thing. Something about being at camp brings the girls together so much faster then just sharing weekly meetings. For the second year in a row we've bridged with the 374th Toronto Brownies for a Fall residential camp at the Girl Guide property 

Camp Ma-Kee-Wa. 

This year we were able to rent the Barn which was great because we had a FULL house. Every bed was full and only 1-2 Brownies did not attend. We use this camp as a way to complete most of the requirements needed for the girls "Key to Brownies" and to start building the camp skills they will need throughout their time at Brownies and once they go off to Guides. 

The girls arrived Saturday morning brimming with excitement. This year we opted for a one night camp (girls arriving Saturday morning vs. Friday evening). This worked out WAY BETTER then we could have ever imagined. Not only did it give the leaders a full evening to prep for the girls and settle in to the building space, but it allowed the girls to get a good Friday night's sleep in their own beds, unwinding from the school week on Friday and being ready for camp on Saturday. 

Once the girls were settled in we went over camp rules and then went outside to start our adventure! We began by making friendship trail mix as a snack the girls could keep in their bag and eat anytime throughout the day. Each girl brought with them a small container of one ingredient (nut-free!). When we all came together the girls added their ingredients to the blanket. A few quick tosses and shakes and everyone had a snack for the day!

After the trail mix was divided up we split the group in half to teach trail signs and to work on a service project. While Guider Wendy worked with the girls on building trail signs I worked with them to collect rocks and sticks from the field so it could be mowed and relocate river rocks from the space beside the Barn. Of course we had to work in some time to roll down the Ma-Kee-Wa hill!

After these activities it was time for a hike to the Fairy Forest. Before the girls came we leaders worked some fairy magic and created cards for each girl stating which fairy circle they were a part of. It was so magical to see the girls wander into the forest and one by one realize that there was a card from the fairies with their name on it! Inside the fairy forest the girls found their groups, learned their fairy circle songs and learned how to do the grand howl to thank the fairies for their generous gift. It was so fun to watch them explore the forest, looking for signs of magic!

After we got back from the hike it was definitely time for LUNCH! Tawny Owl our wonderful quartermaster was hard at work while we away and prepared an amazing meal for the girls. Once everyone had eaten it was time for some patrol duties. The girls all enjoyed learning how to wash their dishes properly and helping with other patrol duties!



Once we finished up the chores the girls (and leaders) were ready for a little down time. Girls had a choice of a rest in their rooms, crafts in the Barn or playing outside. 

The weather was so amazing this weekend and the girls were so engaged with their friends that we forwent the structured round robin activities in the afternoon for a more free-flow system. Since the girls all received patches from the fairies earlier in the day we felt that they should learn how to sew them to their sashes. 


That afternoon we did 2 sewing projects. Most girls sewed their new fairy emblems onto their Brownie sashes and many sewed fist aid kits which we would fill later the next day. 

Before dinner we thought it might be good to get some of the girls energy out so Guider Kate ran a mix of tag games with the girls. Hospital tag, freeze tag, everybody is it tag. I've never seen the girls run so fast!

After tag it was time for parachute games! The girls loved the games cat and mouse and of course under the toadstool!

The rest of the night was filled with dinner, night games and campfire (all of which I sadly didn't get pictures of). The girls had a blast and actually got to bed at a really decent hour - which NEVER happens at Brownie camp. 


Since they went to bed at a good time the girls were up EARLY - like 5am early. The leaders eventually gave up trying to get them to be quiet and decided it would be a great time to finish off that Brownie Hiking Badge.

While some guiders stayed to make breakfast the rest of us took 25 girls for a morning hike around the property. It was pretty wet with the morning dew but we got to see all sort of different plants, birds and animal scat! 

After breakfast the girls packed up their things and we had some free time to play outside. Parents started arriving around 10:30 and soon everyone was headed back to the city. We had an AMAZING time at this fall camp - can't wait for next year!