November 25th Love Yourself

Tonight we are going to be doing the Love Yourself challenge.  We will be making "Love Yourself" buttons, listening to some stories regarding body image, and completing the body pride pledge.  The girls will receive the badge at the end of the night.

Upcoming Events:

Winter Camp: Do you want to build a Snowman?

We have worked out the details for the winter camp. The camp is going to be held January 16,17, 18, 2015 at Camp Woolsey.  The cost of the camp will be $50 per child. This will include 2 nights accommodation, all of our food for the weekend, and craft materials.  The girls will be dropped off Friday night at 7pm and picked up Sunday at 10:30am.  We have lots of fun activities planned including snow shoeing, ice sculptures, snowmen etc all themed around the movie Frozen.  This camp has limited space and to ensure that every girl has a equal opportunity to attend, we are setting up a special email address.  Once the camp email has been sent out, you will need to send an email stating that your child would like to attend the camp.  The first 80 girls that email, will be going to camp.  Please note that once you email your response, you are not guaranteed a spot.  There will also be a date when payment will be due. We will be keeping a waiting list and those that do not get their cheques in on time will be dropped.  So, it is going to be like City of Ottawa swimming lessons...please email as soon as you can...so that everyone in our group is able to attend.


December 2: Diversity Challenge

December 9: Diversity Challenge: Part of this challenge we need to have sparks share one of the following:

 Share a story of someone you respect
 Share a story of a time you took responsibility for something you had done or said
 Share a story of you being brave
 Share a story of when you told the truth even through it was hard to do so
 Share a story of when you felt sad or happy for someone

If you could help your Spark with one of these stories and so they are a bit prepared for the meeting and have something to say.

December 16:  Christmas Party

 Mom and Me Christmas Party.  Please remember to bring a book to share.

Thanks

Jewel, Sunshine, Sparkle

November 18th Being Me Keeper

This week we are going to be finishing up our Being Me Keeper.  The girls should bring in something that is special to them for Show and Tell.  We will also be doing an art project with Tissue Paper.

We have been talking with the girls about charity.  With the Christmas season sneaking up on us, we are trying to come up with an idea of a charity we can support. As part of our Diversity Challenge, which we will be working on in December, we are to look at those in the community that are in need.  Last year we collected hats and mitts and donated them to the Snowsuit fund.  The girls were very excited to give away all of their used toys, since they are getting new ones for Christmas.  We are trying to steer away from that concept.  We would like to pick something simple like toothbrushes and toothpaste for care packages at the food bank or baby food for the baby food cupboard.  Let me know if you have other ideas of what we can do. The point of the exercise is to get the girls to go out and buy something small ($5-$10), with hopefully their own money, and donate it.  If anyone has any ideas or comments, please contact us via email.  We want this to be a positive experience for the girls and obviously need their parents onboard.

We are also planning a Mom and Me Christmas party this year.  Our last meeting before Christmas is December 16th.  As part of our diversity challenge, we are to have each spark bring in a book that focuses on different cultures, different family orientation, different family traditions, etc.  We are going to separate the group into smaller groups of 4 or 5 and each mom will read their story to the group. We will also have some treats and refreshments and make a special craft.

If you have any questions feel free to contact us,

Thanks

Jewel, Sunshine and Sparkle

November 11th: Remembrance Day

In honour of Remembrance Day, this week's meeting will be all about Peace. We are hoping to have a couple of the Peace Builders (grade 6 students trained in mediation skills) from St.Jerome's school, join us to talk to the girls about peace keeping in the school yard. In addition we have games, crafts and stories themed around being peaceful and good friends.

Girl Guides Canada asks that all girls wear their uniforms for whole day on Remembrance day.

***Just a reminder as the weather turns colder and wetter that the girls should have indoor shoes they can change into for our meetings*****

Coming Up....

For the November 18th meeting, we will be finishing up our Being Me keeper. Please have your Spark bring an item that means something special  to them. (ie special book or toy or blanket etc) We will be setting up sharing circles, so the girls can practice sharing with the group and listening to others.

November 4th Karate Night

Karate Night

Tonight we are going to learn a little about karate. We are going to have a karate demonstration and try some of the moves. This is going towards our Being Healthy keeper.  We are going to talk about how it is important to stay active, in order to maintain a healthy lifestyle.