The Ojai Raptor Center is a state and federally licensed, non profit organization dedicated to the rescue, rehabilitation and release of birds of prey and other wildlife, and to providing educational programs about wildlife and our shared environment. The Open House focused on nesting season and all things baby raptors and birds.  There was also Chumash stories and percussion biface demonstrations.  We didn't get a lot of participants this time, so Ms. Ayesha will coordinate with the Pasadena Audobon Society for a workshop.  

Girls attended their first Girl Scout activity, "Tiny Living Things," Planet Earth Observatory's workshop on the beneficial microorganisms in our soil.  They also had a tour of the garden and picked carrots and garlic to take home.  Listening to live jazz under the veranda, kids and parents feasted on fresh fruit and lavender lemonade and and ended the day using acrylics and their imagination to create petri dish art.  

Dani, Alicia, and Nyla worked volunteer hours at the Aspires booth at Chris Holden's 17th Annual Block Party and Community Resource Fair.  Aside from it being a very beautiful street, lined with trees and elegant Craftsman style homes, the event was very nice and well attended.  The Aspires booth was filled with visitors interested in the free book giveaway and services offered.  The girls passed out flyers to people who had children and told them a little about Aspires.  There were great hands-on science and art activities for the kids.  There was event an earthquake simulator and a Mario Brothers gaming van.  Also, there was a live jazz band and free food and snacks--hot dogs, chips, donuts, and lemonade.  Backpacks filled with school supplies and other great giveaways were handed out.  

What a great time we had at Vacation Bible School at FAME Pasadena.  Coming up to the door, we heard soulful church songs...  I was trying to get the girls to VBS for dinner and fellowshipping, but we got there really late.  But although we got there late, the sister at the door said, "Have  they eaten yet?"  I said, "No."  She said, "Hurry up and send them over there to get something to eat."  Considering dinner is from 5pm-5:45pm, and opening worship starts at 5:45pm, it was so nice of her to let our girls eat something.  They served baked chicken, mashed potatoes, and green beans!  It was a delicious dinner.  I filled out the paperwork and the ladies prepared the girls' name tags and lanyards.  We were given a green slip that set the ground rules for the week (even though this was Wednesday, and our first day there) and made a promise to be kind and loving.  It was really nice, too, because this is one of our host churches, so to see people that we already know, including Luna's grandmother, Ms. Stella, was comforting.  After that, the kids were dismissed to class.  I went up with them to make sure they were settled in. I wanted Kayleen to be with the 9 year olds, but she was in another class, but had no problem at all making friends and did not not have one bit of trepidation being in a new environment.  At the end of the night, she recruited a new Girl Scout and had a VBS bestie.  So I went into the other girls' classroom, and they were just fine, since they were all together.  Later they mentioned that they knew some of the kids and adults there, so it was nice.  I went off to the adult VBS in the sanctuary and it was very good.  Our scripture for the evening was Mark 2.  Around 7:30p, we headed back to the multipurpose room and watched the kids play Bible Jeopardy.  They were totally into it.  Our very own, Mackenzie was chosen as a participant and did a great job.  After service was over, they made a short video of Mackenzie doing Jacob's Ladder, with Lailah and Kayleen fighting for screen time and Alicia hiding behind the camera.  Lailah showed us some salsa steps as we went to the car, and we went and got popsicles before everyone being taken home.  

What a great time we had at Vacation Bible School at FAME Pasadena.  Coming up to the door, we heard soulful church songs...  I was trying to get the girls to VBS for dinner and fellowshipping, but we got there really late.  But although we got there late, the sister at the door said, "Have  they eaten yet?"  I said, "No."  She said, "Hurry up and send them over there to get something to eat."  Considering dinner is from 5pm-5:45pm, and opening worship starts at 5:45pm, it was so nice of her to let our girls eat something.  They served baked chicken, mashed potatoes, and green beans!  It was a delicious dinner.  I filled out the paperwork and the ladies prepared the girls' name tags and lanyards.  We were given a green slip that set the ground rules for the week (even though this was Wednesday, and our first day there) and made a promise to be kind and loving.  It was really nice, too, because this is one of our host churches, so to see people that we already know, including Luna's grandmother, Ms. Stella, was comforting.  After that, the kids were dismissed to class.  I went up with them to make sure they were settled in. I wanted Kayleen to be with the 9 year olds, but she was in another class, but had no problem at all making friends and did not not have one bit of trepidation being in a new environment.  At the end of the night, she recruited a new Girl Scout and had a VBS bestie.  So I went into the other girls' classroom, and they were just fine, since they were all together.  Later they mentioned that they knew some of the kids and adults there, so it was nice.  I went off to the adult VBS in the sanctuary and it was very good.  Our scripture for the evening was Mark 2.  Around 7:30p, we headed back to the multipurpose room and watched the kids play Bible Jeopardy.  They were totally into it.  Our very own, Mackenzie was chosen as a participant and did a great job.  After service was over, they made a short video of Mackenzie doing Jacob's Ladder, with Lailah and Kayleen fighting for screen time and Alicia hiding behind the camera.  Lailah showed us some salsa steps as we went to the car, and we went and got popsicles before everyone being taken home.  

God blessed us with a safe and fun trip.  You have to thank the Lord when you go on a beach trip with 10 little girls, watch them play in the ocean, take them to get Icees and funnel cakes on a busy board walk, and come back safe and sound.  Well, that's exactly what we did.  We caught the special Santa Monica trip bus at $3 per person, through a special program paid by Supervisor Antonovitch, from Loma Alta Park.  The trip to and fro took about an hour each way.  It was so exciting seeing the girls, one by one, getting dropped off by their parents.  And it was super nice to have our one dad join us and give us some manly help and guidance!  Chris Walker came along with his two girls, Nichelle and Dani!  Raequel London, Marsha Payne, and Paulette Bailey were the moms and grandmoms who came along to relax and to provide that maternal supervision and assistance that only mamas can give.  Mom, Karen Lopez, sent a light-weight pop-up tent that was perfect for traveling on the bus and carrying to our location.  Finally, after pulling off, the girls got relaxed, parents started talking, and we were off to the beach.  Paulette Bailey and her granddaughter, Casey, who was visiting all the way from Louisianna, came along, and blended right in with our Troop 4601 family.  The ride seemed quick since most were was engaged in conversations.  As we approached the beach, the girls were excited as they saw the ocean.  Our bus driver gave us explicit directions for pick-up and Mr. Chris suggested our location, and we were to our spot.  Almost immediately, the girls were putting their backpacks down and putting on their bathing suits.  First they had to listen and pay attention to the safety and line of sight and hearing rules.  And they were off.  Thank  the Lord for Ms. Marsha who spent the first hours watching the girls while the moms and dad spread out and coordinated their areas.  One of the highlights of the trip were the catching of sand crabs.  The girls were busy huddled around one another catching these little creatures called emerita, and putting them in Casey's pink bucket.  The girls spent a lot of time using their creativity for making sand castles and exploring their senses while catching and observing crab.  When they started talking about taking them home, Ms. Ayesha told them to throw them back to their home, in the ocean.  Raela bought a boogie board, which was another highlight for the Brownies and Juniors.  And those little fearless Daisies kept trying to inch out near the big girls.  All of the girls loved waiting for those waves to wash them forward.  They were having so much fun that they didn't want to sit down to eat.  They just wanted to grab food and go, but the beach bricade wasn't having it.  Mr. Chris laid down the law in the very beginning, that all kids could run around near the water, but they had to walk slowly to our location, so that sand wouldn't be kicked up all over the place.  So when they came over one by one, dripping wet and sandy, trying to get into those well-packed backpacks (good job moms!  those lunches and snacks were detailed, organized, and comprehensive!), we attempted to get them to sit down and eat, but they weren't having it.  We were surprised by how fast time went by because before we knew it, it was time to pack up.  The girls finally were receptive to sitting down and eating. Highlight snacks from the parents:  Ms. Marsha and the cold powdered donuts; Ms. Paulette and the Albertson's chicken and Hawaiian rolls; Ms. Ayesha and bagels and cream cheese; Ms. Raequel and the Doritos and watermelon and plums; Mr. Chris Bubba Gumps...  We packed up while the girls got dressed and played frisbee.  Then the parents took the girls up to the boardwalk to get Icees and funnel cakes while Ms. Ayesha stayed and watched all of the things.  On our way to and fro, the girls tried it with the electronics, but they were reminded that when they are together, they have to enjoy each other's company.  So they put the tablets away, played hand games, Charades, Concentration, and more.  Ms. Ayesha tried to introduce the "Quiet Game," but it didn't work, so she used the string from Ms. Paulette's hat and showed them the beginnings of Jacob's Ladder.  She showed them the video and challenged them to learn it.  Some girls stuck with it, and other fell asleep, and others found blankets to cover them because the air was on full blast.  God blessed us with a safe trip back to Loma Alta (where the kids still wanted to run, play, jump, and tag for while) and into the hands of their parents.   

How honored we felt by the visit of Fire Chief Bertral Washington and the Pasadena Firefighters!  This visit was a continuation of a lot of good work toward the First Aid Badge that some of the scouts did a couple of weeks ago.  Chief Washington talked about his background and growing up in Inglewood, California and going to school at Kelso Elementary School and Westchester High School.  He also talked about his college years in Washington, D.C., at Howard University, part of the Historically Black Colleges and Univesities family.  He said that afterwards, he became a teacher at Raymond Avenue in South Central Los Angeles; and later moved to Las Vegas.  There, he became a firefighter, then a paramedic, and then he worked his way all the way up to fire chief for all of Clarke County, NV before moving here to Pasadena, where his beautiful wife grew up!  He also spoke about his unconventional journey towards becoming a firefighter, and later a fire chief.  He encouraged the girls to become firefighters and told them that they would learn a lot through the Girl Scouts program.  The girls asked very good questions.  Our little Daisy, Anarra, asked him how he earned his badge (what a great question!).  Alicia asked what happens when a fire reaches a telephone pole.  The second part of the visit began with Captain Chris Reno from our local First Station 36, just right down the street from the library introducing his crew.  There was Carrie, a firefighter paramedic and Keith Holloway, fire engine driver.  The captain gave a lot of excellent information about our evolving first aid kit.  He also commended Alicia's homemade first aid kit for its inclusion of cough drops and for its "green" toilet tissue roll that she repurposed as the container.  The crew displayed their first aid kit, and described all of the contents.  They also taught the girls how to bandage a cut, and the supplies needed to do it.  Unfortunately, the crew had to leave to respond to an emergency, so we didn't get a chance to see the fire truck.  But it was okay because the girls were treated to a root bear float and Chief Washington came back to give the girls toy fire hats and stick-on badges.  Thanks to Dana Washington for coordinating the visit and to Lisa Derderian for getting us a crew to talk about first aid.  The event was opened up to the community and library goers, so not only did the Girl Scouts learn a lot, but so did other peoople as well. 

It was a nice and very warm night (89 degrees) at Victory park.  Also, because of the wildfire in the hills, there was a lot of soot in the air from the fire, but that didn't cancel the movie.  The content of the movie, "The Good Dinosaur," was another story, though. There were great themes of friendship, family, overcoming fear, loss, and home.  The landscapes looked realistic while the characters were cartoon-like, which made the movie seem more fictional than reality.  So the animated "big bang," as the creation of life, seemed to be more a part of the drama than an editorial of reality.  Also, the fact that the dinosaurs and humans were living at the same time might also raise questions about evolution.  Here are some great reviews from Plugged In, the Movie Guide, Kids in Mind, and ChristianAnswers.net.  Thanks to Alicia for her delicious brownies and to Chris and Sandy Walker for the scrumptious tacos.  After the movie was over, a couple of the girls played tag, and after that the night was over.  Now, they are off to bed to get some rest before archery in the morning. 

We met at the Rose Bowl Riders and received a great tour from Amelia, who is also assisting English riding trainer, Kaite, with the day camp.  The girls met nearly all of the horses and learned about their eating and sleeping patterns, personalities, and more.  It was a hot day, so there were a lot of flies.  The girls saw that the flies had masks covering their eyes and wondered if the horses could still see them.  Amelia told them that the horses could see, and took off one of the masks to allow the girls to look through the mesh. As we moved around the grounds, the girls expressed their senses.  As they saw wild rabbits and squirrels and red ants, recognized new scents, and heard and felt buzzing flies, it became apparent that we needed to spend more time in this green space before the girls became comfortable with the horses and their habitat.  The grounds keeper, Ariel, let the girls feed her horse, and while the girls had a great time, they were also adjusting to seeing and feeling the horse's mouth and saliva on their hads, and were adamant about finding the hand sanitizer.  After stepping in unknown puddles and piles, they also realized that sandals and mesh tennis shoes were probably not the right choice for touring a horse facility.  So all in all, as Ariel noted, these city kids could benefit from extra time working on their nature badge.  Ms. Ayesha talked to them about respecting our natural and green environments and how to express themselves in the midst of unfamiliarization, discomfort, and fear. Learning to be calm, courteous, and respectful while visiting the homes of animals and bugs is something that our troop will work on improving.  After our visit, we talked about the volunteer work--washing down the bleacher, sweeping the club patio, etc.--that the girls would be doing on the "Horses in the Arroyo" day in August.  Afterwards, we all carpooled back to Loma Alta park where we had a wonderful parent meeting, with at least four (4) prospective parents in attendance.  Faequel London volunteered to watch the kids and keep them busy during the meeting, and thanks to Dorena Rodriguez-Gould, Esmeralda Nava-Boateng, and Chris Walker, we had delicious Subway sandwiches, pizza, chicken, and other snacks. Highlights from the day included Angels Walters signing up for product sales coordinator and Tiffany Marshall volunteering to be our new treasurer!  This is really going to help our troop a lot!  It was a very productive day.  Thank you, Lord.  

We started at 8am and ended at 6:30pm and the girls didn't want to stop practicing double Dutch jump roping.  We reviewed the Girl Scout shamrock logo information, learned about the Brownie elf story (historic Girl Scout information for all levels), and did Badge work for the First Aid and Practice with a Purpose badges (or fun patches for Daisies).  Alicia and Kayleen created a skit describing a 911 emergency and Mackenzie and Nyla created posters about steps to utilize in case of an emergency.  Although the girls refused to jump rope early in the morning, Ms. Penny's staff got them motivated when they volunteered to jump and help the girls learn how to jump.  Many of the kids in the Loma Alta summer camp started joining in, and a couple of the break out stars were the summer camp leaders and a little guy who had skills!  Once the girls got over their initial fear, they jumped on and off all day--literally, until 6:30 p.m.  Later in the day, as the trash was growing from the summer camp, the bees arrived--lots of them--so finally, we had to change our location because we didn't want to go around swapping the endangered bee (Maybe our troop can come up with a good way to deter the bees from the trash cans from the common sitting area...  We will do some research and it might be a good Bronze Award project for the Juniors).  Later, we made cards for Nyla who is turning 10 on 7/13 as well as Ms. Quiana and Ms. Karen, who all share the same birthday!  We also learned that Ms. Marsha had a birthday on 7/11!  The girls also started making a card for Suzy Boyett of the Music Center.  We ended the day with delicious cupcakes that Ms. Quiana bought, watermelon slices that we shared with the wonderful staff of Loma Alta.  Even at 6:45 p.m., the girls were still jump roping.  Ms. Penny said that we could start a Double Dutch roping club with music!  That would be fab!  It's great fun, exercise and increases dexterity and coordination.  Learning and practicing to Double  a summer rite of passage that many of us old schoolers have experienced...  Click here for a throwback song that might get you excited!  Pics of the posters that the girls made will be posted here as well as some other places.  The video will also be edited and posted soon.  Stay tuned! 

Summer birding is upon us, but we have to get out early, before it gets too hot.  When we first arrived to the Arboretum, we were greeted by peafowl (a peacock and a pea hen) that were just casually walking around like they usually do.  Our magnificent docent, Julie, made everything a teachable moment.  Although many of us think we know so much about peacocks, Julie and the rest of the ornithologists were such information and fact portals!  They know so much about the birds--what the shape of their beak means, their song patterns, their nesting patterns, and more!  Julie was a magnificent docent.  She and her 90 year-old mother were clearly enthusiastic about birdwatching, listening for bird sounds, and just observing them in their habitat as well as their relationships with other birds.  During our hike, we saw wood ducks, black-crowned night herons, red-whiskered bulbuls, yellow-chevroned parakeets, acorn woodpecker, hummingbirds, hawks, western scrub-jays, mourning doves, band-tailed pigeons, northern mockingbirds, yellow-rumped warblers, and more.  We learned interesting facts about each one of them.  For you grammar girls, click here to read about the birding nomenclature as it pertains to capitalizing bird species.  Also, to get your girl started with birdwatching, visit these websites:  Birding with Children, Cornel Lab of Ornithology, Bird Sleuth 101, Buggy and Buddy, Nature Play Trips, Bird Watching for Kids, Love is for the Birds, and Playful Learning Stations.  Birdwatching is a great way to help kids develop a respect for nature and introduce kids them to the field of orthinology.  Girls can earn a fun patch for 10 hours of birdwatching and/or education.  The information will be posted on the page, "Badges." 

We had such a good time!  Our day started very early with moms dropping off kids before heading out to work.  A group of us went to Super King to get sandwich meat and cheeses and then headed to the park.  When most of the kids got there, we read, "Firebird" by Misty Copeland and just the introduction of "Of Swans, Sugarplums, and Satin Slippers."  The first book was inspirational.  It encouraged a young girl's faith in herself and showed her how, through hard work and dedication, that she could also become a Firebird.  Included in the second book was the actual play.  The intro explained that the story was adapted from several Russian fairy tales and legends and gave information about Michael Fokine, choreographer and Igor Stravinsky, the composer.  After the story, we piled up into three cars and caravaned over to Lisette's house to pick her and her sister, Elisia up.  In our car, we prayed for a safe trip to and from the event.  Then we headed to the Music Center.  There was hardly traffic and we made it there--with 11 girls, 1 boy, 1 teenager, and 6 chaperones--without a hitch.  We enjoyed our lunch in the Music Center Plaza and then entered the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion to hear the pre-show talk with dance historian/writer, Elizabeth Kaye.  The talk was very engaging and educational.  We learned about the movement of emotions, the story of the Firebird, and a lot about the dancers and about the American Ballet Theater.  Students were invited to share answers and ask questions.  We were all bummed when the speaker said that Misty Copeland would not be there.  So we entered the theater and the performance began.  Everything--the costumes, setting, stage, etc.--was beautiful and for many of the older girls, the ballet was that much more meaningful because of the pre-show talk where the story was explained.  So when they saw the performance, they understood it and were very engaged.  The biggest highlight was when the Firebird, Misty Copeland, graced the stage with her beauty and grace!  We thought she wasn't going to be there, but she was!  We passed around binoculars so that everyone could see her up close (which kind of started a sharing ruckus with the younger scouts), and it was great.  When the performance was over, we had forgotten that it was only a rehearsal.  It was a beautiful and magical dance journey.  Since we couldn't take pictures during the rehearsal, we took several afterwards.  After that, we returned to Loma Alta Park, dropped off girls, and waited for pick ups.  It was a good day.  Thanks to our drivers, Traci Cecconello and Marsha Payne!  Without them, we wouldn't have been able to get all of our kids there!  Thank you to our chaperones Sachiko Speaks, Miki Asukara, Barbara Lindsey, Marsha Payne, and Traci Cecconello!  And thank you to the parents for preparing the girls to come!

Scouts learned that there is meaning behind every part of the Girl Scout logos.  They learned about the insignia tab that they all wear on their left side, over their heart.  The top is the WAGGS (World Association of Girl Guides and Girl Scouts) pin and the bottom is the membership pin.  Each level--Daisy, Brownie, Junior--has a different color insignia tab and different membership pin.  But they all share the World Trefoil (tree-foil) Pin that represents their connection to the worldwide sisterhood of Girl Scouting and Girl Guiding.  The word "trefoil" is from the Latin word "trifolium", which means "three-leaved plant", and is a graphic form composed of the outline of three overlapping rings used in architecture and Christian symbolism and applied to other symbols of three-fold shape.  They learned that the outer circle represents the World Association, the golden yellow trefoil on a bright blue background stands for the sun shining over the children of the world, and the two stars are the Girl Scout Promise and Law, the base of the stalk represents the flame of the love of humanity, and vein pointing upwards through the center is the compass needle pointing the way.  After learning about the World Trefoil pin, the girls learned about the foundation of the Girl Scout logo, the 3-leaf clover (aka a "shamrock").  The word shamrock comes from the Gaelic word "seamrog," which means "little clover."  The clover is the commonly used name for plants belonging to the genus "Trifolium," which means "having three leaves."  The girls learned that St. Patrick wanted to convert the Irish to Christians and used the shamrock to explain the holy trinity with each leaf representing God the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.  They also learned that  learned that the each leaf represents 1/3 of the promise (1/3 - to serve God and my country, 2/3 - to help people at all times, and 3/3 - to live by the Girl Scout Law).   Some say that the three leaves stand for faith, hope and love.  The girls learned that in rare instances when a clover grows a fourth leaf, it is said to represent "luck" since the chance of that happening is rare.  So they learned that for St. Patrick's day, when you see a 4-leaf clover on t-shirts, flyers, or other memorabilia, they should know that it is erroneous.  After all of this learning, they practiced drawing both the WAGGGS trefoil and the shamrock.  After drawing, we introduced new Girl Scouts, Raela, Kayleen, and Annara.  Later, we celebrated the 8th birthday of Kayleen with a beautiful cake, yummy ice cream, lemondae and fruit punch that her mom bought.  This was just the beginning learning about the Girl Scout logos and plants.  The Brownies and Juniors will be creating a video explaining all of this information in kid-friendly terms and with their own drawings. 

There was delicious bbq, garden grown produce, home style food, raffle prizes, resource booths, and great jazz music by a student band!  Ms. Mary welcomed the Girl Scouts and their parents at 11:30 a.m., before the start of the picnic, and showed the girls and their parents where we would distribute the drinks.  The area was nicely tucked over near the wood chips area.  There were tables, metal ice bins, and lots of drinks and water.  Ms. Mary also gave the girls a talk about bathroom safety, staying together in groups, and always being supervised by an adult.  Mr. Agemon gave us the manpower to transport the drinks from the shed to the cold containers throughout the day.  He also won several raffle prizes; one was a basket from a popular bakery and another one was a gift certificate to Office Depot!  He shared the pistachios and candy from the basket and they were real yummy.  Thank you Ms. Angel and Ms. Sachiko for taking a shift at the booth! Also, Mr. Robert was there taking pictures that he will share on our Shutterfly and Flickr sites.  Moms were on hand supervising the scouts and taking shifts.  Ms. Sachiko took lots of pictures and helped to keep the girls busy and helped to cover the booth.  The girls took pictures with members of the Police and Fire Departments and Supervisor Michael D. Antonovich.  They also went to visit Ms. Lydia at the weather station booth and heard what a tree in distress in the Swiss Alps sounds like. The girls ended the day catching t-shirts launched from a student-created rocket (you'll have to go to our Flickr page to see the videos).  Oh, and check out the girls' t-shirts that they designed with Ms. Mary.  Alicia's grandmother helped to jazz them up a bit by cutting fringes at the bottom.  A giant hug goes out to the parents of Milan, Luisa, Cassy, Mackenzie, Sayuri, Alicia, Nichelle, and Danielle for coming out to help and support our troop.  By the way, we were over in the corner, and this was a great area because the parents could sit right there, eat their delicious food while keeping an eye on the girls and helping with the booth.  Ms. Mary and the gentleman from LA County said that they are looking forward to the girls volunteering again next year.  So mark this event on your calendar as an annual activity for Troop 4601. Because of Ms. Mary, we were able to collect $47 in tips!  She's going to give it to the Garden treasurer to put into their account.  Thank you, Ms. Mary!  All of the girls will receive 3 hours of volunteer time!  They really did a great job!  For videos from the event, you need to go to our Flickr page. 

Nearly 97 degrees, we were cooled off by the refreshing Jamba Juice smoothies that Ms. Dorena bought us.  At first, we thought we didn't have flags to use, but we found some tucked in the corner of the closet.  Since the physical layout was a bit different from the previous ceremony, Alina wanted the girls to practice.  At 12:40 p.m., Troop #4601 began the ceremony. Right before going on, Alina thought ahead and asked, "What about the Black National Anthem?  Should I just lip synch it?"  Ms. Ayesha said, "Yes, that's good."   Again, Alina did a great job at at libbing.  But this time, it was even that much more impressive because none of the girls have been required to learn all of the words to the songs, but because of the larger stage setup, when it came for the singing of the Black National Anthem, you could not hear the audience, and since Alina held the microphone close to her mouth, you could hear her voice.  Ms. Ayesha stood at the front and sang loudly and Alina followed, but she also remembered a lot of the words as well!  From practicing it in the car, humming it throughout the day, and singing it in the previous ceremony, she remembered the melody!  Alina also remarked how well she did in spite of not knowing the words (she was actually, quite proud and not embarrassed a bit).  Great job!  We were all proud of how she made lemonade out of lemons, and with so much confidence!  Raela once again, did a great job reading the history of Juneteenth and Alicia stayed serious and at attention, even when the top of the State of California flag started slipping down and Nyla led with the American flag with grace and dignity.  The best moment of the day was after Alina, the Caller, dismissed the color guard; she said, "I may be dismissed."  Then she bowed.  It was great.  The mayor was on next and mentioned that it was his favorite part.  Next time, Ms. Ayesha said that she will have the girls memorize the songs and practice more.  Great job, girls!  All (including Lailah) have earned their Flag Ceremony patch.  *Note:  The Caller, Alina Rodriguez-Gould, is a descendant of African American Civil War veteran, William B. Gould, I., so this was especially memorable for our troop since African American soldiers were instrumental in fighting for the freedom of slaves and getting the word out about Texas.  

Ms. Penny and her Loma Alta Park students and staff put on a beautiful event last night!  The weather was hot outside, but inside it was cool and refreshing.  Ms. Ayesha and the girls arrived at the park at around 5 pm to practice the flag ceremony.  Juniors, Alina, Nyla, Lailah, and Raela (our newest sister scout), along with Brownie, Alicia did such a wonderful job practicing, remembering flag etiquette, and making sure they stayed in formation.  Thanks to Ms. Raequel, all of the girls had white gloves!  She scoured the streets of downtown Los Angeles to try to find reasonable priced gloves and finally found them.  With some nips and tucks, they were perfect for our first flag ceremony.  Ms. Linda, as always, drove from Carson to help guide the girls and provide assistance.  Ms. Dorena and Mr. Bill and Ms. Quiana and her husband were also on hand to help out as well. Although our opening ceremony went a little long with 2 additional unexpected songs, our wonderful flag bearers--Nyla, Lailah, and Alicia--stayed at attention the entire time!  And that was a hard feat to accomplish.  During practice, they couldn't stop twitching, dancing, spinning, moving, jittering, smiling...  But when the event began, they were serious, poised, and conscious of doing the right things.  Girl scouts, Danielle and Nichelle, were part of the park's dance presentation, so they were not able to participate in the flag ceremony.  Our reader, Alina, was a delightful Caller and did a great job at ad libbing when things didn't go as planned.  She also provided excellent leadership to the troop during practice.  New Girl Scout, Raela, not only did a excellent job at reading the history of Juneteenth, but she was also a member of the choir that sang the Negro National Anthem and other cultural favorites.  Since Alicia was carrying the Marcus Garvey Pan African flag that didn't have a post, she held it the entire time.  Ms. Ayesha motioned her to rest the pole on the ground and she gave worried eye contact that indicated that it would break the code if the flag touched the ground, and it did (which Girl Scout, Nichelle, noticed and pointed out later), but Ms. Ayesha didn't want Alicia's already trembling arm to get any more tired.  So afterwards, she said that the troop should raise money for a stand for all of their flags.  After the ceremony, the girls conked out on the couch and then went out to the playground and played until almost 9 o'clock, while intermittently going back and forth to the courtyard to eat the delicious Taste of Soul samples, get their face painted, and play in the room that was designated for Chocolate Storytime.  Kudos to Ms. Penny and that successful cultural celebration.  Also, when you look at the pictures, check out the beautiful historic mural in the background--created by the staff and children of the Loma Alta Summer program! 

We had a full day from 8a to 6p!  Alina hung out with Ms. Ayesha and went to Trade-Tech to borrow the Pan-African Flag for the Juneteenth Celebrations.  After that, they picked up Alicia from home, Nyla from Longfellow, and Lailah met us at the park.  Ms. Ayesha brought some goodies from home and then went to buy sandwich meat and strawberries from Super King.  After that, Alina and the troop began working on the Flag Ceremony.  They watched videos, practiced over and over, played some, drank water and juice, ate sandwiches, then got back to work.  Okay ladies, now let's get in formation... 

Ms. Mary gave us the task of buying and designing t-shirts for the upcoming Garden Picnic on 6/25/16.  So we bought the t-shirts and she provided the sponges, paint, and other supplies for the activity.  She also created wonderful hand crafted GS logo stencils (which are in the shape of a shamrock or three-leaf clover).  Ms. Ayesha went to pick up the supplies and get some training from Ms. Mary.  While there, she met their cat, Pipsqueak who was laying in the chair, and two pesky birds--one mama and one baby.  The baby looked like it was just learning to fly and once flew so low that it almost capped Mr. Goddard's head!  The criteria for painting the shirts was for each of the girls to keep the main part of their design within the area of a horizontally place piece of paper, use the stencil to create the outline of the clover, draw something of their choice on the inside, and include the troop number.  Ms. Mary cut out sponge stamps in the shapes of hearts, leaves, and stars.  The older scouts also created their own.  Alicia and Lailah helped to set everything up and made ham and cheese sandwiches before everyone came.  Once the girls got there--Milan, Alina, Sayuri, Nichelle, Danielle, and Cassie--the fun began!  Ms. Mary came by and took the girls to see the progress of the flowers and herbs they planted.  Ms. Sachiko took awesome pictures!  The girls had a lot of fun painting their t-shirts and produced some creative designs.  They used glow in the dark paint, created new colors by mixing, and used sharpie markers to outline their designs.  After that, the girls had popsicles and played on the grass.  Some of them then went over to Loma Alta Park for a summer fun event and ended the day playing in the park until dusk and getting fruit from Super King market.  One of the girls got a little headache, which she said was from the heat.  But if you watch the video and see who was having the most fun jumping around and shaking her head from side to side so hard, I think you'll know who she is.  Oh, the other highlight of the day was what Alicia called a giant gerbil!  I guess they actually saw it run into a hole in the ground and bury itself in the dirt.  Everyone was standing around it and watching the dirt floor move around.  Everyone was excitedly terrified, but kept watching for movement.  Little William was moving the dirt with his feet to see if the dirt would "move back."  Eeebie jeebies... 

The girls took turns reading the Daisy story to earn the Sunny "friendly and helpful" petal.  Afterwards, they answered questions and then created a dance and song routine to demonstrate what it means to be friendly and helpful.  When they finished, they were introduced to the etiquette of handling and folding the American flag.  Then the girls took turns folding the flag.  If you go to the calendar page, there are links to videos and resources about what each of the 13 folds represents. 

The time has come for our official Investiture Ceremony!  This is a special time where new members—girls and adults—are welcomed into the Girl Scout family for the first time. Girls receive their Girl Scout, Girl Scout Brownie, or Girl Scout Daisy pin at this time.  Our original plan was to do some painting with Ms. Sachiko and then have our ceremony, but a scheduling conflict relocated us to Loma Alta park and we had to postpone our art activity.  The girls opened the ceremony with prayer and sang the song, "Make New Friends."  After that, each girl was pinned by Ms. Linda.  The girls had been waiting all day to eat popsicles from Ms. Barbara Lindsey and mini cupcakes furnished by the Walkers.  If you have pictures or videos to share, upload them here or to our Flickr site. 

We met at the Pasadena Humane Society & SPCA and learned a lot about dogs and other animals that are abandoned or who run away.  Before we got started with our tour of the grounds, our docent told us not to touch the animals because they could get sick or we could get sick.  We also gave her all of the dog toys that we created and she said that the Humane Society was very grateful to us for creating them.  She also told us that there are 15 cats and 145 dogs to every person and that we need to spay and neuter them to keep down the population.  The PHS has 100 staff members and more than 600 trained volunteers!  They walk the dogs, give them baths, feed them and more.  The Humane Society also offers grooming, spaying and neutering, and medical treatment to dogs.  If you are going on a vacation, they will also keep your dog.  All of the fees paid to the Humane Society goes toward keeping this place open and running for animals who can't help themselves.  Once the PHS receives an animal, they work very hard to figure out who owns it so they can give it back.  But if not, they hold the animal for some time and then put it up for adoption.  Each dog has it's name on its card and the color that represents his disposition.  Yello means happy go lucky...    

Oh my gosh!  It was such an engaging and perfect day that we didn't even realize that we had been at the museum for more than 5 hours!  Again, God blessed us with wonderful LA weather, clear blue skies and a cool spring breeze.  Danielle, Nichelle, Alicia, and Nyla were the girls who were able to make the trip.  Alicia's grannie came as well.  We started off at the Otis Booth Pavilion with Bug chefs David George Gordon and Zack Lemann creating dishes like deep fried dragon flies, fried tarantula, chocolate chip protein cookies, and cricket trail mix.  The girls were mesmerized by this entertaining chef duo and didn't want to leave until the very end of the demonstration.  It was great, too, because Paolina, a Brownie from a sister Girl Scout Troop, and her family came and spent the day with us along with her little brother, mom and dad.  After the protein-filled snacks, we went to do the "Pinning Bugs" activity.  The Natural History Museum's Entomology Department showed guests how to properly handle, label, and pin bug specimens.  It was a great learning experience.  All the girls got their own beatles and pinned their bugs themselves.  Since we were in the edible garden, we were blessed to be there right around the time nectarines were picked off of the tree, so we feasted on organic fruit after the activity.  Off we went to the play area for a while.  And walking through all the exhibit halls were awesome.  Although it was really crowded, everything was so interesting that the girls really enjoyed going to each booth and asking questions all along.  They also made a "bee hotel," tried their hand at bug oragami, played with tarantulas and Madagascar beetles, and went shopping in the gift store.  We walked through the Exposition Park Rose Garden to get to the car, and there was a great art and jazz show put on by the Dysonna City Art Gallery.  Also, the girls were able to take a picture in front of the Space Shuttle external fuel tank (also known as "ET).  Afterwards we feasted on a KFC meal, soft serve ice cream, and played the who can keep quiet the longest game (but nobody won).  At the end of our day, I thought they would fall asleep in the car, but their energy level was still at 100.  To view the videos, check out our Flickr Bug Fair album.  

It was a perfect 74-degree day at Loma Alta Park.  The scouts started off with a prayer and the Girl Scout promise.  Like the 3 parts of the promise, the mighty and wise ant has the same number of main body parts--the head, thorax, and abdomen. After the girls learned about and shared their knowledge of the ant, they  looked for and observed ants.  They captured them on a white sheet of paper and gave them to Alina to put in the petri dish to observe them in a controlled environment (she set them free, back to their habitat, soon after).  Then they labeled a diagram of this tiny little creature.  Afterwards, the girls painted a 3-section egg carton representing the ant's head, thorax, and abdomen, and attached pipe cleaners for their antennae and legs.  Before they left, they watched the demonstration of the making of the fleece dog tug toy.  Although Nyla and Germany weren't able to make it for the activities, by they did come by and say "hello."  Thanks to Ms. Sachiko, Ms. Linda, and Ms. Stella, we were able to complete our activities. 

A little rain didn't damper our sketching party!  Ten girl scouts, 4 moms and 3 dads carpooled to and/or from the Norton Simon Museum to do some sketching towards a drawing/art badge.  All of the girls gathered around 2 Van Gogh pieces, "Portrait of a Peasant" and the "Mulberry Tree" and began sketching, using fast strokes and paying attention to detail.  Nichelle gave some sketching pointers from what she has been learning in her art class.  Most of them had clipboards, art paper, graphite pencils and kneaded erasers.  They all did a phenomenal job, followed the museum rules and etiquette, and produced great art work.  On the ride to drop everyone off, Lailah and Nichelle made up a song to sing in the car.  They are going to write down the 3 verses and teach them to the other girls. 

Girls met at Camp Mariposa to practice the skills of Double Dutch and regular jump roping.  Troop leader, Ms. Ayesha demonstrated how to jump and some of the girls gave it a try.  But as we all know, practice makes perfect.  So after trying out the new skill of Double Dutch, the girls went to single jump roping and worked on their skills.  They sang songs and practiced the first part of the Girl Scout Law--being honest and fair.  So they took turns and didn't use more than their allotted time.  Great job girls! 

Girl scouts came to Chocolate Storytime at La Pintoresca.  All of the guests were engaged in the books, After reading several books, including, "I Smell Honey," "Bye-Bye Binky," "The Perfect Pet," and "The Quickest Girl in Clarksville," the girls created mother's day cards using cupcake holders, pipe cleaners and cardstock paper.  And of course, Chocolate Storytime wouldn't be complete without chocolate kisses for all of the girls.  It was a pretty fun Friday. 

It was a beautiful day for planting the spring garden at Altadena Community Gardens.  We began the day helping Ms. Mary pull out the rosemary bush and creating bunches bound with red, white, and blue ribbon to give out to parents and friends.  Later, we made rosemary infused butter and spread it on homemade bread.  After that the girls picked mint and flavored their water while they helped to spread the leaf mulch on the herb garden.  After pulling the weeds, spraying down the rosemary, the girls had a full day of service and fun! 

Girls started off with their opening ceremony and then moved to the back computer room to work on a fun patch, Barbie's "Do Anything, Be Anything."  Girls dressed up their paper dolls in outfits that represented different careers and colored a road of options.  It was also a time for the Daisies to work on their first petal, Lupe's "honest and fair" petal.  The girls acted out a couple of scenarios demonstrating honesty (having the opportunity to look inside a gift bag, but choosing not to do so) and fairness (taking turns while playing ping pong) and acted them out in front of the group.   

First Girl Scout Troop 4601 Meeting!  You've got to watch the video.  The girls received a mailed letter from their troop leader that contained the Girl Scout promise.  The girls practiced it so well that they were able to recite it at their first meeting.  As part of their requirement to earning the "Girl Scouts Way" badge, the girls also discussed and selected their jobs for the kaper chart, practiced the pledge of allegiance, and learned some of the other GS traditions that will be included in each opening and closing ceremony.  Way to go scouts! 

The Ojai Raptor Center is a state and federally licensed, non profit organization dedicated to the rescue, rehabilitation and release of birds of prey and other wildlife, and to providing educational programs about wildlife and our shared environment. The Open House focused on nesting season and all things baby raptors and birds.  There was also Chumash stories and percussion biface demonstrations.  We didn't get a lot of participants this time, so Ms. Ayesha will coordinate with the Pasadena Audobon Society for a workshop.  

Girls attended their first Girl Scout activity, "Tiny Living Things," Planet Earth Observatory's workshop on the beneficial microorganisms in our soil.  They also had a tour of the garden and picked carrots and garlic to take home.  Listening to live jazz under the veranda, kids and parents feasted on fresh fruit and lavender lemonade and and ended the day using acrylics and their imagination to create petri dish art.