GopherJudy

"Santa" left my son Mark the Family Life merit badge book, a hot spark & a mending kit in his Christmas stocking! Mark's 11 & he doesn't believe in Santa but my daughter who's 9 still does so I reminded Mark to believe for her & also his younger cousins, 4 & almost 3! I also got Mark the Boy Scout knit hat & 2006 calendar - really cool pics on the pages, gloves & thermal underwear from Wal-Mart for winter camping. He of course got video & computer games from my brother & SIL & their children, Harry Potter DVD set & clothes. I got some money fro

I wouldn't have the boys who didn't earn the AOL participate in the AOL Ceremony, that wouldn't be fair to the other boys who worked hard & earned it. The boys that haven't earned the AOL & want to continue & meet the age requirements for Boy Scouts should cross over with the boys that earned the AOL. The boy who won't be 11 til May & if he hasn't earned the AOL at the B&G could cross over to Boy Scouts in May or June. You could have a simple crossing over ceremony at a pack meeting in May or June with the SM & a few boys from Boy Scout troop that he wished t

When my son's den (7 boys total) crossed over in March 2005 the pack gave them portable hiking stools & they were about $8.00 each. The DL who's also the CM works in NJ & picked them up at the Campmor store, I had checked out the website to see what they had & the prices. They were handy when the boys went camping with their troop. they had a place to sit! I think giving them something they can use as a Boy Scout is very useful. If they don't have any of these things already how about a compass, canteen, mess kit & utensils, belt bag or fanny pack & my mind just went b

Isn't that a lot of Eagle Scouts? Do the LDS scouts have different requirements for Eagle Scout? The reason I'm asking this is because it's been mentioned here that they do some things different & at the moment the only thing I can think of is that they don't have Tiger Cubs & I think someone said their Cub Scout dens are arranged (can't think of a better term) differently that other dens. Judy

I'm glad that the boy is doing ok! What I don't get is why would anyone have a pocketknife while raking leaves & with the blade out too? It's real freaky! Judy

Merry Christmas & Happy New Year to all! May everyone have a special day with family & friends! Judy

Glad you like the idea & were able to check out the patch on the Council's website! Good luck! The Webelos were very proud to receive the Support Our Military Patch & other boys in the pack received it in November. I will have my Tigers work on it - the flag ettiquette & folding - in May when it's closer to Memorial Day, our pack marches in the parade & Flag Day, we go & participate in a flag retirement ceremony. Let me know how the boys do in earning that patch. Judy

Happy Solstice to all! I don't know how wishing someone this is following pagan beliefs! The 1st thing I thought of when I saw this was an episode of the children's show "Little Bear"! They celebrated the winter solstice & put out food for the animals! My 2 children watched this show when they were younger & I watched it with them & we enjoyed it! Judy

Acco, That was funny! Thanks! Was that when Rod Stewart was with Faces? My brain cell is a little foggy on that! Miss Moody Judy

Our council, Suffolk County Council, has a Support Our Military Program patch. You might want to check to see if your council has that. Good luck! Judy

I know that I'm overweight & have had a weight problem most of my life. I know I should exercise & eat better but unfortunately due to severe stress - not scouting related - I tend to eat what I shouldn't! I'm sure a lot of people to that besides me! I do want to start walking again so I'll be able to march with the pack in the Memorial Day Parade without huffing & puffing my way through town! I hope to accomplish this & fairly soon! Judy

When I was the AWDL for my son's den, the boys called me Mrs. Bain at the den/pack meeting & my son called me Mom! Outside of scouts, there were 2 families that we were friends with & the boys called me Judy which was fine with me as there are personal reasons why I didn't want to be called Mrs. Bain. I'm a Tiger DL this year even though Mark is in Boy Scouts now & the boys call me Miss Judy. I think that's easier for them & I have no problem with it. The boys call the DL's Mrs. + last name or Miss + first name, all of the DL's are female & the CM is Mr. + last n

No Semper, you're not strange, I think we all are! I know I am & I'm proud of it! LOL!! I didn't do it til I read your post! But, I do "tickle" the photo of my 2 children that I have as my wallpaper! I'll "tickle" their underarms, tummies & noses with the cursor! They get embarrassed when I do that in front of them! Hee Hee!! Good luck with "your problem"! LOL!! Judy

Good grief! If a parent gets that upset over the term "Holiday Party", they need some serious therapy. They're being rather childish over this & to want to pull their sons out of the troop is so absurd! I wouldn't worry over it & if they want to leave over something so trivial then let them! My son's troop had a Holiday Party yesterday, the term does not offend me & the boys had a good time. OGE's quote of Rick Nelson's song "Garden Party" is right on the mark. Life is too short to have to deal with nonsense like this. Judy

Baden, I think what you do for 1st year Boy Scouts is a great idea! I wish my son's troop did that. It's a great way to get involved & to see what skills the new boys have. My son did go camping a few weeks after he joined, the 2 NSP went along with older boys but I think it would have been better if it was focused on the new scouts & getting acclimated to what is expected of them at the Boy Scout level. Judy

This is a great question as my son Mark crossed over to Boy Scouts in March 2005! There were 7 boys from his pack (the troop & pack have the same CO) & 6 boys from the SM's son's pack (a different pack # & CO). All 13 boys are still active in the troop & 8 boys (4 from each NSP) have earned Tenderfoot & are almost done with 2nd class. Now when my son 1st joined a few of the older scouts helped out & 2 of them, 15 at the time now 16 & in 11th grade thought he was a cool kid! Now, my son was 10.5 & in the last half of 5th grade at the time & thought that

I'm 48 & I grew up in the 60's & 70's too & wore bell bottoms, hip huggers (not that low), halter tops & hot pants BUT I was older when I wore them. I was in high school & not in elementary school! There is no need for a little girl to look like a hooker! That's the whole thing, trying to find decent clothes for little girls! Judy

I agree about the clothes. It is sad to see girls dress like this & really sad when they're young! My daughter is 9 & I have a lot of trouble trying to find clothes that are appropriate for a 9 yeara old. Most of the clothes are rather provocative & I will not buy them for her. Also, I won't buy her hip huggers either! She doesn't need to be exposing herself & her butt crack. I only buy her a one piece bathing suit, no two piece or bikini's! It's a shame that most of the stores have "slutty" clothes for this size group 7-16. Hopefully one day someone will wake up & make dec

I'm sure that they're are lots of reasons! I do use my first name but I would never use my first & last name because there are some whackos out there; not here but surfin' the net! I'm on the children's group The Wiggles message board, been there since January 2001 & I'm really original in that I sign in with "Judy-Long Island NY"!!! LOL! I wanted to use something sorta cute & I came up with Gopher Judy! In case you're wondering how I arrived at that, I'll tell you! When my son was in Webelos, I was the Assistant Den Leader, we had a problem parent. I had called her up ab

I'm having problems too! I thought it was because I haven't been here in a while! I was getting a syntax error message when I clicked on a topic on the right side. Then I decided to click on "More Discussion Topics" & I was able to see the forum! I have no clue why that is! Good Luck! Judy

I'm sure that there are a lot of reasons & 1 of the reasons was mentioned at our Roundtable last month - burnout! I can't expand upon that because I'm not there yet. My son crossed over to Boy Scouts in March & I felt very "lost" & "denless". I was hoping to get involved with the troop committee but was told that they don't need my help, maybe in September! I'm still involved with the Pack though! I'm a Tiger Den Leader now & no, I don't have a son in Cub Scouts! When we had our fall recruitment I said if none of the parents want to be the Tiger DL that I would do it. I ha

This was in today's Newsday, I copied & pasted the article. It's such a shame. The Scout troop was in Great Neck (Nassau County, Long Island) but the "leader" was from Bayside,Queens which I found strange since you would think that most of the leaders would live in the same area as the troop. It didn't mention if he had any sons in the troop or if he had any children at all. Both towns, Great Neck & Bayside are near the Queens/ Nassau border. It's very sad too because this "leader" even took YPT! Judy Long Island Newsday Scout leader took abuse course Volunteer lea

Eamonn, Thanks! Maybe my son Mark will be able to go the the next Jambo! Congratulations to the Scout who had his Eagle COH! What a proud moment that is! Sorry to hear about your ASM's son gettin injured in Iraq, I hope that all is well with him & his family. Judy

Eamonn, I'm so glad to hear that you & your boys had a great time at the Jamboree despite the heat & humidity! I'm sure that you'll need a week to recuperate! I hope that when my son Mark is older, he'll be 11 next month & received his Tenderfoot rank on June 14th that he'll be able to go to the next Jamoree. You said that your lads were young, how old does a scout have to be to go to the jamboree? Take care & have a great day! Judy

First let me say this, the past several years I have grown to hate cell phones! I think that a lot of people using them (adults & children) have absolutely not ettiquette (?sp) regarding when to use a cell phone. There is nothing so rude to be at a school event, church or somewhere else & as someone is speaking to the audience someone's cell phone goes off & a conversation is started. It is so annoying to be eating in a restaurant, whether it's Red Lobster, Friendly's, TGI Fridays or Burger King than to have some yakking away on his cell phone during the meal! The height of rudenes