Scouting check in

[waverly]

Since I am in my second year of cub scouts and just signed up for Girl Scouts for DD, I seem to be the expert answering all the questions for my friends with similar age kids even though I know very little about Girl Scouts (except my experience 30 years ago).  


How is everyone else doing with scouts?  

[orval]

My ds(11) is a Tenderfoot and just left on a weekend camping trip. Boy Scouts is much more relaxed than Cubs -- our troop is anyway. I am a committee member and helped with our recent Board of Review.

[funchicken]

Hi! I have two Girl Scouts: a fifth grade Junior and a second grade Brownie. My junior troop has been really busy already. In addition to our regular meetings, three of the girls led a Brownie meeting this week, and we're going camping in a few weeks. We're hosting my younger daughter's Brownie troop at the campout. We're also starting to talk about Bronze Award ideas.

[mightymaude]

Cub Scouts has lost what minimal luster it had for DS. I am pretty sure he won't want to do Boy Scouts. DH wants him to try it from when he crosses over until the end of the school year, but I expect resistance.

DD is trying Girl Scouts again. She tried it in kindergarten and found it entirely too overwhelming. The troop of 12 was not under control and I am pretty sure she was the only introvert in the troop, so coupled with social anxiety and a speech delay it was torture. This new troop only had six girls so far, and at the first meeting there were only three there. DD not only participated, but also talked. She says she doesn't want to go again, but we are going to keep it up for a while to see how it goes.

[waverly]

I don’t really expect DS to continue to Boy Scouts. Maybe it’s different nowadays but when I was a kid most of the troops disbanded somewhere in the 5th-7th grade.

[miranda]

5th and final year of being a cub scout den leader for myself and DH. It's been a journey. I recall the first year when our den had 5 kids and DS would melt down and scream if he didn't get the lemonade flavored juice box. Or when he didn't win the pinewood derby the first year and I had to drag him out to the church lawn and let him scream and cry. Then our den swelled to 23 kids one year and DH got sick of the chaos and jumped ship, leaving me stranded, but forcing me to learn how to ask for help from the other parents. DS learned to shine in those moments too, because he is still a "rule-abider" he disliked watching the other boys screw around and became a model scout (starting ADHD meds helped too). Last year our den shrunk to a more reasonable 12 boys and they all started to get to know each other a lot better. DH came back and is much more supportive.


Whether we cross over to scouts is still a bit undecided, I suspect like mightymaude, we will at least try it through the end of the year after crossing over in March. DS is adamant that he wants to continue, but I know he's only in it for the hardware and the bragging rights (lots of Eagles in our family). DH is over it and I won't be able to count on him for support if we continue. We're having a hard time deciding on a troop as well- there are dozens to choose from. The logical choice closest to our house is pretty hardcore camping, which I think DS will burn out on quickly (1x a month year round). I like how close it is (he and a friend could eventually bike there for meetings), but the same men are involved at that troop that I've dealt with the last 5 years in his pack and frankly, I'm over them. I'm tired of being mansplained and dismissed. I'm the only female involved in the pack and it's rough- they wing it and don't plan anything outside of their den meetings, so if I do anything above and beyond they roll their eyes. The only time they ask me to do something is when they want help buying food for the campout or cooking for the Blue and Gold!

On a personal note, I've undertaken some cool projects to celebrate the end of scouts and our Pack's 100 year anniversary. At our den meeting last month we worked on the "Build It" and sawed, sanded, and stained boards to build an arrow of light bridge (our pack is currently crossing over on a two by four..) . My sister donated time to make the scout law in vinyl letters on her Cricut to put on each board. It looks so awesome. I used all recycled wood from my parent's woodpile, and a clear stain so it looks funky and rustic. I also undertook to finally decorate the display board at the church with pictures from our Pack (it hasn't been decorated in the past 20 or so years!). I even paid a nominal sum to have someone make a Pack logo for us. It looks great. I get a lot of satisfaction from seeing projects to completion.

[auntie]

Oct 1, 2018 19:22:20 GMT -5 waverly said:

I don’t really expect DS to continue to Boy Scouts. Maybe it’s different nowadays but when I was a kid most of the troops disbanded somewhere in the 5th-7th grade.

Cub scouts end some time around mid-5th grade with cross over to Boy Scouts. How robust your boy scouting program is may be an issue. Or it could be the unit most cubs cross over to isn't very good. Most families "shop" Troops as part of the requirements to participate with a Troop during the last year of cubs. 

[waverly]

auntie, good to know I didn't realize people shopped around for boy scout troops. I was thinking of girl scouts where I think our troop could continue, but many of the girls thought it was uncool in 7th grade, so we ended then. I think many probably ended in 6th as that was the divide between elementary and middle school in our district back then.

[auntie]

waverly, I have noticed that trend as well. Of the scouts who crossed over who were DS's age, all but one had a sister. Of those 8 girls, 6 started out in Girl Scouts. Only one stayed past 6th grade and went on to Gold Award; all of the boys who crossed over made Eagle. A couple of those same girls joined the BSA Venture Crew associated with the Troop once they hit high school to take advantage of more camping opportunities like Jambo, Philmont and Sea Base.

[auntie]

miranda,


I find troops all over the place. In many troops, mom-power is recognized as critical to the process of advancement and other parts of delivering quality programs. Our Advancement Chair, Treasurer, Merit Badge Coordinator and Eagle Scout Coordinator were moms. Trips to summer camp and the year adventure base trip were organized by moms. In others, it's all men, all the time.

[waverly]

First the funny story, DH and DS went on the cub scout camp out last Saturday. It got down to 36 degrees. DH called me at 10:30, and was shivering uncontrollably on the phone. I told him to pack up and go home.

I am feeling a bit micro managed and nickel and dimed by the girl scouts. We haven't even had our first meeting besides parent meeting. And so far there has been a voluntary fall fundraiser (I opted out). I had to pay $50 to the organization. And $125 to the troop- includes uniform. The $25 part of that was for incidentals for the girls, but already I am being asked to pay $7 at the meeting for someone to put together a raffle basket which is part of a Pancake breakfast fundraiser with no explanation if that is part of the $25. I mean we used to only do cookies when I was a girl and now it is fall fundraiser, pancake breakfast fundraiser, cookie sales and spaghetti dinner in the spring. I now see why they feel the girl scouts is all just fundraisers. We haven't done any daisy work at all yet. They overcommunicate too. I get e-mails, I get texts, I get facebook posts. They say you must respond by this arbitrary date, why can't we respond at the meeting which is 4 days later? It's for an event that is a month away. I get they are trying to be organized but it feels like overkill. There are 4 leaders for 18 girls maybe that is why.  Or maybe they are all type A personalities?  Communicate yes, but it's OK to be relaxed.  

[auntie]

Oct 15, 2018 15:04:03 GMT -5 waverly said:

First the funny story, DH and DS went on the cub scout camp out last Saturday. It got down to 36 degrees. DH called me at 10:30, and was shivering uncontrollably on the phone. I told him to pack up and go home.

I am feeling a bit micro managed and nickel and dimed by the girl scouts.  Or maybe they are all type A personalities?  Communicate yes, but it's OK to be relaxed.  

Boys need better gear. 36F is balmy. ha ha

DS troop was one that relied heavily on moms, especially around administrational stuff and helping families bridge from parent-led Cubs to boy-lead (and sometimes chaotic Scouting). I never felt less than an equal part of the unit's success but I know they were less welcoming of those pushy type-A GS moms. The eye rolls would commence at adult leadership meetings where we'd discuss a concern and one of them would pipe up with "well at Girl Scouts this never would have happened..." or "At Girl Scouts we do...". And OMG, the emails.

[waverly]

auntie, true. We weren't sure if it was worth buying super strength sleeping bags (ours are rated for a low of 45) for 1 camp out a year though. The spring one was a lot warmer. We might be mysteriously busy the weekend of the fall camp out next year.

[CrazyLucky]

Oct 16, 2018 9:05:52 GMT -5 waverly said:

auntie , true. We weren't sure if it was worth buying super strength sleeping bags (ours are rated for a low of 45) for 1 camp out a year though. The spring one was a lot warmer. We might be mysteriously busy the weekend of the fall camp out next year.

DH was on a business trip for our spring campout this year.  He got back late on Friday and showed up at camp around noon on Saturday.  When we woke up on Saturday, it was 33.  Have all the great gear you want, getting out of the sleeping bag when it's 33 is a hard sell.  The forecast for Sunday was 34 and 100% chance of rain.  DH was like, "Maybe we should go home early."  Yeah, ya think?  I try to tell myself DS will appreciate all this when he's older

[waverly]

@crazylucky- Yup DS has a blast at these camp outs. The majority of the activities are the night before. In the morning all the did was lay out pumpkins for the camp, so I don't feel like he missed much.

And the previous year, I heard the boys just ran around and were climbing trees in an unsafe way while all the parents except 1 ignored them, so don't feel like he missed much that morning either. We left at 7 am that trip.

[mightymaude]

Our cub scouts troop canceled the second night of camping last weekend because they assumed no one had gear for the 30s. DH is considering upgrading. He apparently hasn't come to the same conclusion as me regarding DS's likely discontinuation of scouting.

(DH is an Eagle Scout+. He has a bunch of stuff that he earned as an adult too. He obviously has high hopes for our unambitious 10 year old.)

[auntie]

Oct 19, 2018 19:00:33 GMT -5 mightymaude said:

Our cub scouts troop canceled the second night of camping last weekend because they assumed no one had gear for the 30s. DH is considering upgrading. He apparently hasn't come to the same conclusion as me regarding DS's likely discontinuation of scouting.

(DH is an Eagle Scout+. He has a bunch of stuff that he earned as an adult too. He obviously has high hopes for our unambitious 10 year old.)

DS liked boy scouts a whole lot more than cubs. Maybe give it a chance.

One thing you can do if you don't have serious gear and are car/resident camping, is to double bag. On a really cold night, DS would slip his zero degree mummy bag into his 3 season bag. For shorter boys who haven't grown into an adult bag, belting off the lower portion near their feet can help retain their heat. A balaclava helps a lot overnight, too. 

[waverly]

Good idea on double sleeping bags.

[mightymaude]

Oct 20, 2018 4:03:04 GMT -5 auntie said:

Oct 19, 2018 19:00:33 GMT -5 mightymaude said:

Our cub scouts troop canceled the second night of camping last weekend because they assumed no one had gear for the 30s. DH is considering upgrading. He apparently hasn't come to the same conclusion as me regarding DS's likely discontinuation of scouting.

(DH is an Eagle Scout+. He has a bunch of stuff that he earned as an adult too. He obviously has high hopes for our unambitious 10 year old.)

DS liked boy scouts a whole lot more than cubs. Maybe give it a chance.

One thing you can do if you don't have serious gear and are car/resident camping, is to double bag. On a really cold night, DS would slip his zero degree mummy bag into his 3 season bag. For shorter boys who haven't grown into an adult bag, belting off the lower portion near their feet can help retain their heat. A balaclava helps a lot overnight, too. 

DH double bagged DS when they were camping that weekend, and he was left with his pad and a blanket.

One of the reasons DS doesn't want to do Boy Scouts is because he won't be allowed to sleep in the same tent as DH anymore. Every time DH has tried to get him to tent with other boys, DS has decided he won't camp at all--even though camping is his favorite part of cub scouts. 

I do think he would like Boy Scouts overall. He's a rules, routines, and goals kind of kid, so it's right up his alley. But, he's also lazy and despite said goals, doesn't actually want to work for any of them, lol.

[miranda]

Oct 25, 2018 15:12:17 GMT -5 mightymaude said:

Oct 20, 2018 4:03:04 GMT -5 auntie said:

DS liked boy scouts a whole lot more than cubs. Maybe give it a chance.

One thing you can do if you don't have serious gear and are car/resident camping, is to double bag. On a really cold night, DS would slip his zero degree mummy bag into his 3 season bag. For shorter boys who haven't grown into an adult bag, belting off the lower portion near their feet can help retain their heat. A balaclava helps a lot overnight, too. 

DH double bagged DS when they were camping that weekend, and he was left with his pad and a blanket.

One of the reasons DS doesn't want to do Boy Scouts is because he won't be allowed to sleep in the same tent as DH anymore. Every time DH has tried to get him to tent with other boys, DS has decided he won't camp at all--even though camping is his favorite part of cub scouts. 

I do think he would like Boy Scouts overall. He's a rules, routines, and goals kind of kid, so it's right up his alley. But, he's also lazy and despite said goals, doesn't actually want to work for any of them, lol.

That's great that your son loves camping- but I don't know that he wouldn't be "allowed" to sleep with his dad any more. There are IEP's for scouting just like there are for school. Unless you're telling him this to start weaning him from parental involvement.  In preparing DS for the realities of Boy Scouts I warned him that he would have to assemble his own tent and that DH and I won't be coming along to camping. The tent building is what really concerned him. In reality I know he could get help if needed, but the kid is allergic to hard work and I'm afraid he'd give up immediately and I'm not convinced the adults or other boys in his troop would be accommodating. I have said before that I'm surprised that Scouts has so much camping. Color me naïve and/or uninformed.  DS seems to like the advancement activities, and has always enjoyed the citizenship/leadership/environmental aspects of the program. We're going to visit a Troop which I've been told is very laid-back and does most of their meeting with the associated Pack. They focus on monthly community service projects, merit badges, and camp twice a year. 
    

[auntie]

Oct 25, 2018 15:12:17 GMT -5 mightymaude said:

Oct 20, 2018 4:03:04 GMT -5 auntie said:

DS liked boy scouts a whole lot more than cubs. Maybe give it a chance.

One thing you can do if you don't have serious gear and are car/resident camping, is to double bag. On a really cold night, DS would slip his zero degree mummy bag into his 3 season bag. For shorter boys who haven't grown into an adult bag, belting off the lower portion near their feet can help retain their heat. A balaclava helps a lot overnight, too. 

DH double bagged DS when they were camping that weekend, and he was left with his pad and a blanket.


Sort of like his  OA ordeal. 

One of the reasons DS doesn't want to do Boy Scouts is because he won't be allowed to sleep in the same tent as DH anymore. Every time DH has tried to get him to tent with other boys, DS has decided he won't camp at all--even though camping is his favorite part of cub scouts. 


There is no try. Only do. Have you considered a sleep-away camp to get past this? Sleeping independently of dad is why DS was able to travel to Jambo, the Bahamas, Senior Class trip to WDW and a tour of Argentina with out us.. 

[funchicken]

We took the GS troop camping last weekend, and it got down to 30 at night. We definitely need better gear, but the girls had a blast anyway. I'm definitely going to try double-bags for DD next time.

[waverly]

My mom just let me know that when they were camping in October they used a tent heater. Now she said that, I remember us using it, but had totally forgotten about it otherwise.