End of a Daisy Era

Juliette finally was able to receive her God is Love medal at mass. We sat through the entire mass (daddy was unable to attend, but Grandpa, Grandma, Cub, and I were all there). After communion, the priest called up Juliette and the Director of Religious Education (who had asked to attend, then helped us schedule and reschedule when we were grieving). Father asked her to share about Juliette, then he gave her the medal. It wasn’t a big presentation, but it was perfect for her. A small acknowledgement of her accomplishment in front of the parish.

Note: This is a long post because I started it, then forgot and went back to it and decided to add EVERYTHING instead of splitting it into separate posts. It’s 2-3 months worth of badges.

STEM Sister Super Star

It’s official – Juliette is a STEM Sister Super Star again! Last year, there were 154 STEM Sisters and Juliette was one of only 15 Super Stars. They just posted a form for this year and I immediately submitted hers.

By end of the GS year (9/30/26):

1. Complete Cybersecurity Challenge
2. Complete Health Sciences Challenge
3. Complete Energy Challenge
4. Complete Entrepreneurship & Finance Challenge
5. Complete Cybersecurity Career Exploration activity – meet the pro night
6. Complete Health Sciences Career Exploration activity – meet the pro night
7. Complete Energy Career Exploration activity – YouTube video of doctoral engineering student interviewing an engineer in the solar industry and visiting her lab (she had rainbow hair!)
8. Complete Entrepreneurship & Finance Career Exploration activity – watched short interview of Sara Blakely
9. Participate on Padlet at least once during the year, OR Complete at least one activity from your No Bummer Summer Box – shared on padlet!
10. Attend at least one GSWPA program or STEM-focused event in your area – when I emailed for ideas, they confirmed that the Lowe’s and Home Depot kids workshops that Juliette does every month count

She’ll get a certificate and various goodies, but, as an added bonus this year, she’ll also get free registration for next year as a Brownie!

Buddy Camper

We finally had a chance to try camping! And then I discovered you don’t technically need to go camping to get this badge if you follow the booklet, no matter what the third step says…

1. Help plan a camping trip
2. Help pack for your trip
3. Go camping

Juliette helped plan the camping trip by following the idea of making a camping kaper chart. She came up with ideas of what we would need to do when we got to the campsite and throughout the first day and evening along with who would be assigned each task. I helped her come up with anything she had missed. For step two, Juliette had helped pack, but she also asked me questions about what to expect when camping since I had been camping with my family many times as a kid. Strangely enough, the booklet says to go camping, but to accomplish step three, the Daisy Girl Scout needs to learn a new skill (a square knot or take a hike). We reviewed the Safe Camp Rules and took a hike around the campground.

Daisy Trail Adventure

Since we took a hike anyway, I realized that we had likely completed a step of this next badge.

1. Choose your outdoor adventure
2. Prepare for your adventure
3. Go on your outdoor adventure

So the booklets make it sound like the steps aren’t the actual steps… again. When choosing an adventure, it says to act out hiking and jogging to choose. And for going on the adventure, it says to do specific things… But, since that’s not the steps, I decided we could do this on our own. Step one – Juliette enjoys walking so she chose to take a walk and follow a trail… while camping (see above 😉 ). Step two – we looked at the campground map to see where we wanted to go and consulted it on our walk. Step three – we took a walk/hike. Since we were camping in a camper with running water, we didn’t have any water bottles. We soon realized that it would’ve been good to bring one for Juliette and Cub who were thirsty after playing at the playground. We also stopped so the kids could paint ceramics on the way back to the camper (memories of camping during my childhood!).

5 Flowers 4 Stories 3 Cheers for Animals Journey

I don’t remember everything we had to do for this because the booklet was confusing, but Juliette did it. We read some of the girl’s book and I searched through the leader guide. Juliette and Cub made nests out of paper bags at home and made a makeshift birdbath out of whatever materials we could find at the hotel. (Steps are from The Badge Archive because they were taken down from the GS website ahead of the journey being retired on October 1, 2026.)

1. Birdbath Award – Learn about yourself and how to take care of yourself.
2. Red Robin Award – Learn how to take care of animals by yourself and how animals and people both need care.
3. Tula Award – Plan and do a Take Action Project (TAP).

Juliette earned the birdbath award by following the booklet. We talked about what humans need to live and what animals need to live. We discussed differences for types of animals and ones that were pets versus wild. Juliette chose to learn how to care for axolotls for her take action project, then she told several people how and made a video about caring for axolotls so she could share with even more people. Fish would’ve been easier since she’s had them as pets, but she dreams of having a pet axolotl and enjoys watching videos by Aquarium Info who has at least one pet axolotl. Note – I looked through the leader guide to ensure everything was covered to earn the awards, but I might not have mentioned everything single activity here.

My Promise, My Faith Pin Year 2

1. Find a story, song, or poem from your faith with the same ideas as a line from the Girl Scout Law.
2. Ask a woman in your own or another faith community how she tries to use that line of the Law in her life.
3. Gather three inspirational quotes by women that fit with that line of the Girl Scout Law.
4. Make something to remind you of what you’ve learned.
5. Find out if your faith community offers a recognition program for Girl Scouts.

Juliette chose to focus on “I will do my best to be friendly and helpful.” Although there aren’t Catholic things with those specific words, “All Are Welcome” by Marty Haugen best represented this idea. Juliette asked her friend’s mom, Ashley, a Christian, how she uses that in her life. Ashley spoke about being friendly in her community. Even if she’s in a bad mood, she tries to smile and say hello. She also volunteers and helps in her community.

Juliette wasn’t a fan of the quotes I found, but we looked up as many as we could. Here are three:

• “Women’s friendships are like a renewable source of power.” Jane Fonda
• Talk between women friends is always therapy.” Jayne Anne Phillips
• “Female friendships that work are relationships in which women help each other belong to themselves.” Louise Bernikow

Juliette drew a picture to remind her of what she learned, and, as mentioned earlier, she’s already aware of the Catholic recognition program for Girl Scouts and participating in it.

Board Game Design Challenge

This is the last of the mechanical engineering set for Juliette.

1. Come up with an idea for your board game
2. Design a spinner for your game
3. Test your game and make it better

Juliette is ridiculously creative so she came up with a fun game that would ensure that mommy ended up covered in pie and called it “Pie You Later”. Unlike Pie Face (a game by Hasbro that she’s never played or seen), she decided that people would roll a die and get a pie in the face for the number on the die. The game is 20 to 30 minutes long and doesn’t have a game board. “If you get the highest number on the dice, you have to be pied triple that number.” I suggested she use special dice and she agreed; three sides have 0, and the other sides are 1, 5, and 10.

Making a spinner was the hardest part of this badge because I don’t have any brads. But I realized that we can just use a nail on wood since Juliette does so many kids workshops and is handy with a hammer! She drew and colored in the circle for the spinner and made the arrow, but then she found an actual arrow for a board game spinner to use. She hammered a nail through the circle spinner and slipped the arrow on top. We tested the spinner and it worked…. Though she and her brother kept getting 1s and I got 6, 7, or 8 so I’d get so many more pies in the face.

I refused to actually play this game (way too messy… definitely better outdoors!), so I asked her to imagine playing and figure out ways to improve it. She likes the idea of the spinner instead of the dice, and she also said that every time you pie someone else in the face, you say “pie you later!”

Outdoor Art Maker

1. See the colors of nature
2. Hear the sounds of nature 
3. Share your outdoor art

I’ve been looking everywhere for ideas, and saw that step one could be completed by going outside and doing a color scavenger hunt. Juliette and Cub were able to find blues, greens, yellows, reds, and many other colors to match the outfits they were wearing. For step two, they could make maracas out of spoons and whatever supplies we could find. I was pretty unsuccessful, but Juliette did better and then turned the supplies into an ASMR experience… later making a mess that we needed to vacuum up lol. She then drew a picture of the good she can do outdoors (planting seeds and watering them).

World Thinking Day 2026

World Thinking Day is celebrated every year on February 22nd by Girl Scouts and Girl Guides worldwide. Luckily it can be earned at any point during the year since we got majorly delayed in celebrating.

1. Explore World Thinking Day
2. Experience World Thinking Day with purpose
3. Investigate this year’s World Thinking Day theme
4. Share what you learned and commit to a better future

This year’s theme is “Our Friendship.” It’s hard to find any information on it, so I had to search the GSUSA site for the guide again. They already switched to a guide for 2027, but we’re using it anyway and just modifying for this year’s theme. Juliette and I listened to “The World Song” for step one again and it still sounds unfamiliar… just like last year. But she again wrote a song to celebrate the theme as mentioned in the guide. Here are the lyrics – she sang it as a video and Cub came on screen near the end as you could guess lol: 

Friendship is like a circle, it never ends

You should make friends too, cause having friends are fun, and friendship is good

You should love your friends, cause friendship is really good

Cause friendship is like a circle, and friendship never ends

This global (whatever the holiday is) I’m going to make a new friend

This is my little brother, he’s my best friend (“That’s me!”)

Bye bye, see you later

Step two included the option to “Investigate what’s global in your community” which included “finding signs of culture” and mentioned places of worship. Although the visit wasn’t for the purpose of this award, we visited a Buddhist temple recently. She shared what she noticed there and her observations. For step three, we looked at the WAGGGS World Thinking Day 2026 guide. Juliette practiced saying “Hello, Friend” in many languages and we also discussed how to be a good friend. For step four, Juliette shared about the Buddhist ceremony with friends and chose to move forward with being a good friend to everyone she meets.

Think Like a Programmer Badge/Journey

Since this journey is being retired, they’ve already removed it from the VTK. I found last year’s plan with it, but the links wouldn’t open. Yet again, I’m disappointed that everything is updated to be inaccessible BEFORE the start of the Girl Scout year (and retirement of journeys) on October 1. I searched Google for ideas and asked AI to help me with an earning plan.

1. Learn what Computational Thinking is.
2. Do three activities to practice computational thinking (Building a Foundation, Happy Maps, and Plant a Seed).
3. Plan and do a Take Action Plan (TAP).

AI explained computational thinking then shared four questions that explained the concepts in a simplified way. These questions were much easier than me trying to come up with examples for a 7 year old!

To build a foundation (persistence), Juliette had around 14 or 15 plastic cups, brainstorming time, then 5 minutes to see how high she could build a tower. She managed to get it 9 cups tall before it fell while adding cup 10. After more brainstorming time, she noticed a cup holder and decided to use cup holders in her next attempt. She managed 8 cups and 8 cup holders! Juliette was hoping to get a world record, but I told her that she had a house record.

For happy maps (algorithms and sequences), I printed a 4×4 box grid and we talked about how to get from one side to the other. I shared some complicated routes and she chose the most simple. We took turns choosing routes and having the other follow our “programs” (instructions). I also moved the starting and end points around so that each route would be different.

To plant a seed (real-world coding), I was a robot that didn’t know how to garden and needed her to tell me every step in detail. It was awesome because it was an opportunity to correct her if she forgot steps (like using a shovel to put the dirt into the flower pot), but she remembered every step and was very thorough. I was impressed.

To take action, she made a flyer/poster of step by step instructions (like a program or the “real-world coding” of planting a seed) of how to brush your teeth and I shared it on Instagram. She’s very good at sharing her thoughts and ideas with…. everyone… so I’m sure she’ll share it even further.

Daisy Outdoor and Think Like an Engineer Journeys

Juliette previously completed her Think Like an Engineer badge but needed a take action project to complete the journey. She had already made a solar oven, so she made a poster about how solar energy works and I shared that online.

Juliette earned Buddy Camper and Outdoor Art Maker Badges (above) so she just needed a Take Action Project to complete the Daisy Outdoor Journey. She created campfire safety stones. Each stone had a picture to share about campfire safety and I wrote on an index card to share what each represented with a note to use the stones to create their own safety story. The stones and index card were put into a baggie to drop off near a trail.

Bridge to Brownies

1. Pass it On: Inspire younger girls by sharing what it’s like to be a Daisy.
2. Look Ahead: Find out what Girl Scout Brownies do.

Depending on where I looked, step one was about remembering a girl’s time as a Daisy or about sharing their memories with younger girls. In order to do both, Juliette made notes of things she liked and would want to share and she also made a video of her favorite moments. For step two, she looked at the Brownie badges and their steps. She discovered that Brownie badges have 5 steps compared to the 3 for most Daisy badges. She chose a few that she wants to earn (including First Aid, Girl Scout Way, and Snacks) and she also looked to s for which ones were similar to badges she earned as a Daisy (like Cabin Camper).

In order to make it official, we also drove around and found a bridge over a pond. Together we said the Girl Scout Promise and shook hands and she walked over the bridge to become a Brownie. Hopefully she can participate in the Service Unit or the Council bridging ceremony next time, but I think this was alright. Although she wants to join a troop, unfortunately there are no local troops that meet when we’re available. Maybe I’ll try again to start a homeschool troop… it almost worked last year but none of the parents wanted to be a co-leader. For now, she’ll head off to Brownies as a Juliette!

An Update on Progress

• Juliette earned everything she could as a Daisy, and now she’s a Brownie!

Badge Numbers 50 – 57

1. Promise Center (and Home School patch)
2. Democracy for Daisies (and 2024 Election patch)
3. Make the World a Better Place
4. Honest and Fair
5. Space Science Explorer (and Mars patch)
6. Friendly and Helpful
7. Animal Observer (and fun patches: Girl Scouts of Hawai’i, Queen Liliʻuokalani, WWII Remembrance, I Love to Travel, Cruise Ship, Hawaiian Luau, STEM Sisters, Space Science)
8. Considerate and Caring
9. Courageous and Strong (and My Promise, My Faith Pin Year 1)  
10. Responsible for What I Say and Do (and Daisy Global Action Award Year 1)
11. Think Like a Citizen Scientist Journey
12. Respect Myself and Others
13. Robotics 1: What Robots Do (Robotics fun patch and Total Eclipse)
14. My First Cookie Business (GS Council CEO, GS Council, and Cookie Rally fun patches, and Cookie Entrepreneur Family Pin Year 1)
15. Respect Authority (Safety Award Pin and World Thinking Day Award 2025)
16. Use Resources Wisely (Techie, Booth Sales, Gift of Caring, 200+ bar, Embrace Possibilities, 2025 Year bar, Charm patch with Embrace Possibilities charm, My First Cookie Sale 2025, STEM box)
17. Be a Sister to Every Girl Scout
18. Good Neighbor
19. Automotive 1: Design
20. Automotive 2: Engineering
21. Automotive 3: Manufacturing
22. Craft and Tinker
23. Cybersecurity 1: Basics
24. Cybersecurity 2: Safeguards
25. Cybersecurity 3: Investigator
26. Eco Learner (Chemistry, Weird Science, and Meet-the-Pro Chemistry, Robotics, Space Science)
27. Between Earth and Sky Journey
28. Robotics 2: How Robots Move 
29. Robotics 3: Design a Robot (Stall Catchers fun patch)
30. Welcome to the Daisy Flower Garden Journey (Daisy Journey Summit Pin)
31. Money Explorer (2025 Lunar New Year – Year of the Snake, Big Sister, Police Department Visit)
32. Daisy Snow or Climbing Adventure (Outdoor)
33. Digital Leadership (Summer Reading, Read Across America, Outdoor meeting, STEM Sister Superstar)
34. Art and Design (STEM Sisters, STEM Sister Early Bird, STEM Sisters 2025/2026, Brought My Bestie)
35. Create and Innovate (Cybersecurity)
36. Model Car Design Challenge
37. Roller Coaster Design Challenge
38. Fun with Movement
39. Toy Business Designer (STEM Sisters – Attended Meeting 1, Women in STEM GSTFL, Gingerbread)
40. Cookie Goal Setter (Cookie Rally, I met the CEO, Cookie Entrepreneur Family Pin Year 2)
41. My Money Choices
42. Shapes in Nature (STEM Sisters – Attended Meeting 2, Attended Meeting 3, Attended Cybersecurity Panel, God is Love, Mass, Global Action Award Year 2)
43. Numbers in Nature
44. Design with Nature
45. STEM Career Exploration (Energy)
46. Think Like an Engineer Badge – not Journey (Aloha)
47. Coding Basics 
48. Digital Game Design
49. App Development (Entrepreneurship)
50. Buddy Camper (STEM Sister Super Star)
51. Daisy Trail Adventure
52. 5 Flowers 4 Stories 3 Cheers for Animals Journey (My Promise, My Faith Pin Year 2)
53. Board Game Design Challenge
54. Outdoor Art Maker (World Thinking Day 2026)
55. Think Like a Programmer Journey
56. Daisy Outdoor Journey (Think Like an Engineer Journey!)
57. Bridge to Brownies