My best friend was the leader of her daughters Sparks group (the youngest girl scout level in Canada I believe) and the volunteers she had when she needed more hands? Me, my daughter and another friend of ours. None of the parents was ever available, for them it was free babysitting not an activity to share with their child.
Well, yeah. Adult supervision of any child or teenage activity is kinda like the organic repartition of chores in a couple: whoever has the most tolerance for the chore never being done wins by default.
The flip side of that is that if you don’t do the chore, you don’t get to pitch a fit when it’s not done the way you like.
This, this, a hundred times this. In particular, as the complaining mom shows, kids today and for the last probably two decades are NOT getting enough practice and experience in how to decide things as a group and deal with the group decision, lobby for their cause in an intelligent way, etc, and believe me it shows in any organization populated by 20somethings or early thirtysomethings.
As long as the troop leaders took pains to make it as little of a pure little miss popularity contest as possible, the process of learning how to decide strikes me as more valuable than anything they could have possibly spent the money on.
For what it’s worth, this information turned my opinion around (and might have avoided some negative responses if it had been included in the OP).
When I read “Spa Day” I pictured an actual spa, where adults are getting massages and trying to relax in whirlpools and quiet rooms – and suddenly a troop of 8-year-old girls descends on the place! What a nightmare! I was going to post something snarky about any spa that would allow this.
But, the above actually seems like a perfectly appropriate activity for little girls. Carry on.
These are great points and I will use them in my diplomatic reply. I truly thought that it wasn’t too much to ask 2nd-graders to come up with ideas, check them out, present them to a small group, and vote on what they wanted to do. I really think my only mistake was to give them such a large budget (maybe).
I’m going to keep gathering my thoughts for a few days.
Deep breaths . . .
Fuck the other mother. On the other hand, I’m with needscoffee; as a cookie buyer, I am somewhat shocked to learn that my cookie purchase is funding facials and aromatherapy rather than Girl Scout activities and uniform purchases and so on.
It’s not facials and aromatherapy, Really Not All That Bright. Have you actually read where the money is going, beyond this little celebration?
This is an age-appropriate, fun reward that the girls chose for themselves. The rest of the money is indeed going to their activities for the year, their uniforms, etc. Just like you thought.
No, I totally missed that post, thanks. Objection withdrawn!
What the hell part of “we let the girls decide what they want” is being a leader?
If you think that letting them have their say is that important, you should have come up with your own list of appropriate activities and let them vote on it.
And next year, be sure when they’re out selling to tell the people that they are selling overpriced cookies so they can go to the spa. I’m sure they’ll do real well.
Thanks, I missed that.
For what it’s worth, according to the cookie faq, each troop only gets a few cents per box. The rest goes to the bakery, to pay for the cookies, and to the Council itself to help cover costs. If a bunch of 8 year olds want to take 2 cents from each box to throw a party, I, for one, don’t have a problem with it.
I’m a girl scout leader.
And this year - our service unit leader daughter event is a spa day. Don’t worry, its not funded through cookies - its $4 a person and most people pay out of pocket. We are doing it ourselves - I think the only “hire” is the masseuse - and you pay her per minute separately. We are in a church basement - we don’t have a well off or extravagant service unit.
A whole lot of the early Junior badges are around self esteem and hygiene. Learning to take care of your body is part of growing up. Believe it or not, not all third grade girls are interested in washing and combing their hair. So, yeah, I don’t have any problem with a spa day. A little positive peer pressure around taking care of yourself at that age isn’t all bad.
And yes, the girls decide. You direct a little. But there is a whole lot of learning to present your ideas, work with others, and accept the end result in a girl scout troop. You don’t always get your way. As a troop leader, its the hardest thing to do - because it is so much easier when I tell them rather than when they decide.
I’m fairly lucky with my parents, but yes, there is a whole bunch of “I think you should…” The idea of the volunteer form in an envelop marked complaints is a great idea. When I became a leader three years ago, it was because my daughter wanted to be a girl scout but there was not troop for her to join. I’m really not in this to provide baby sitting for YOUR daughter or to make sure YOUR daughter gets her way or to meet YOUR objectives for Girl Scouts.
If you are concerned about where your cookie money goes, ask your girl scout. We are saving ours for a “big trip” although what that trip will be will be something the girls decide - and that is going to be “fun.” But we only get $.50 a box - most of the proceeds go back to council - who use it to support camps, provide opportunities to girls who wouldn’t otherwise get them, and host council sponsored activities. We also use it for uniforms, badges, and troop activities - a lot of craft supplies - they go through paintbrushes like crazy. And we will use some of it to support our Bronze Award, but I’m trying to do as much of that with donated supplies as possible.
I love when threads like this come along and shake the idiots out of hiding (hint: they’re the ones all upset because “I didn’t know the money from them over-priced cookies was for a spa day!!”).
I don’t see what the big deal is. People buy girl scout cookies because they are unhealthy and tasty. If you want to contribute to charity, contribute to charity, don’t justify your cookie buying that way.
If they want to use some of the money left over from paying after they have paid their other expenses, why not. Letting them vote is age appropriate and teaches them to think for themselves.
I hate to say this, but I’m gonna do it anyways. When I was with my ex, I took care of a lot of the time with the girl and boy scouts. Both kids were in troops at the same school but none shared common parents.
The boy scouts? Well organized, a bit strict, and free of drama. I went to all of the meetings and events.
The girl scouts? What a clusterfuck. Petty backbiting, whining parents, exhausted troop leader, and lots of passive aggresive emails. My ex was kicked out of meetings for telling a couple girls to be quiet and listen to instructions, a couple parents complained about a stranger disciplining their children. (So then I got put on double duty of going to both). Instead of asking for volunteers for an event before it happens, annoyed emails would go out after the event saying that not enough volunteers for X event when the last one had too many. Luckily for me, after two events, the troop imploded on itself after an email chain started and caused a huge rift.
It might have been just that troop, but I heard some horror stories of other parents who had tried out a couple troops with the similar disappointments.
As for the OP, maybe next time let them choose from a list of parent-approved activities?
As opposed to fucktards like you, who leave their idiocy out in the open.
In my town, a place opened up a year or two ago that is specifically aimed at little girls: Sweet & Sassy. It seems to be mostly haircutting and styling, makeup, nails, make-your-own-lotion, stuff like that. One of her best little friends got a trip there for her 4th birthday, and they got all made up, dressed up in little Disney princess dresses, and walked down a catwalk.
I’ve never been in the place, and never intend to; that level of girliness is too much for me.
It was…
My WAG is that the parent in question either didn’t read it, didn’t notice it, didn’t care, didn’t think it would win or meant to say something and just plain forget.
Whatever the case, if the parent knew ahead of time that the spa day (as it was explained here) was one of the choices and she chose not to voice her concern until now, that’s her problem. She could have said something before all the girls even knew it was a possibility, not after they’ve all voted on it and are excited about it.
Nope. I’m probably the smartest poster here. So you’re wrong.
Are you the smartest person in the world? Even smarter than that lady who writes for “Parade”?