On My Honor: Real Life Lessons Learned as a Girl Scout

Yesterday two Girl Scouts, all decked out in their snazzy green uniforms, came to my door selling cookies. Sashes proudly displayed their numerous badges that were surely earned with great dedication and pride, and just a few steps behind them was their mom, patiently waiting and smiling as her girls made yet another successful sale. Not only do I love Girl Scout cookies (seriously could there be anything more delicious?), but the Girl Scouts organization truly holds a special place in my heart.

“You know,” I told the scouts, “I was a Girl Scout too, and my mom was my troop leader.” The youngest piped up to exclaim “Our mom is the troop leader too!” I waved to her mom and told the girls “Well you are very lucky. Be sure to thank her.”

 Immediately I started thinking about the life skills learned while a Girl Scout. Who would’ve thought some of the most valuable skills I learned came years later when I became a mother thinking about my own mom and troop leader.

While there are badges for photography, music,  and gardening, there really should be one for multi-tasking and making it work. Because to make my Girl Scout years fun-filled and full of smiles, my mom surely earned those badges.

The camping, the songs, the crafts, my mom loved it all, but she really cherished that her own mother was her troop leader and that she could do the same for me. While digging through photos of her Girl Scout days, I found this gem. Check out my super stylish mom at camp (first row, second from the right):

When it came time for me to become a Girl Scout, my mom was all in. Even though she already had a full plate with a million other responsibilities, she jumped in and planned each meeting and activity with such thoughtfulness (or at least it looked that way) and skill (again, it really did look that way). Even a troop full of girls that really hated to be outdoors earned a few more badges than they thought they could.

Mother/Daughter sleep away camp with matching shirts? You betcha!

 While my grandmother painstakingly sewed each and every badge onto my mother’s sash, my mother had no time for that nonsense. She hot glued those bad boys right on, and if one popped off, she’d just fire up the hot glue gun. Sometimes you just have to make it work.

But more importantly than badges or camps was the fact that my mom knew being a Girl Scout was something I loved and she wanted to be a part of something I loved even though it made her already hectic life even more bananas.  So maybe the most important life skill I learned as a Girl Scout was not how to make jewelry or line dancing, but being present for your kids, being a part of what they love, and using a hot glue gun to make it work.

The Girl Scouts have declared February 7-8, 2014 as National Girl Scout Cookie Weekend! This special event is a great opportunity for Girl Scouts to share the importance of the Cookie Program and what it does for the girls and their communities! Through this effort, Girl Scouts hope to show when we buy a box of cookies, we’re helping the girls learn important skills like goal setting, decision making, money management, people skills and business ethics— skills essential to life and success!

So if you love the Girl Scouts and Girl Scout Cookies (and I know you do), join them for the National Girl Scout Cookie Weekend February 7-8!

Want to learn more about the Girl Scouts click here

To learn more about the Girl Scout Cookie Program click here

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