Three times a year we have an awards ceremony to celebrate the hard work the girls do with their service projects and badge work. The ceremony starts with the girls processing in, and then we do the regular opening ceremony that we do at the weekly troop meetings.
The girls favorite part is always singing the AHG songs!
This awards ceremony we had 2 new girls earn their Joining Award, we gave out lots of service stars (for service hours) and lots of badges that the girls worked hard to earn.
After the ceremony we had a short dessert time with treats and sweets before dismissing.
While we were working on the Artastic Badge, one of the moms had a great idea to have a guest leather worker come in and teach the girls how to stamp leather! The girls learned how to prepare the leather, then worked with tools to design and stamp their own bracelets.
It's fantastic to watch the girls develop new skills! Everyone went home with a leather bracelet they designed themselves, a key chain with their initial on it, and the leather piece they practiced on.
At our last Troop Award Night we had 2 new girls receive their Joining Award from American Heritage Girls. The Joining Award is the very first award that the girls receive, and after they complete the requirements they can move forward with badge work.
Each of the Joining Award requirements have the girls working to learn the AHG Oath, Creed, Sign, Salute and Mission Statement; as well as the background of American Heritage Girls. The girls also must be in proper AHG uniform code, recite the Pledge of Allegiance and begin to work on the first requirement of the Our Flag badge.
It's always exciting to add new members to our troop!
Our AHG Dads love American Heritage Girls and love being active in our troop! This spring, our AHG Dads hosted a group "Daddy/Daughter Date." It instantly became a troop favorite.
They received a gift bag, which included some crayons and activity sheets, as well as a picture frame to decorate, and their fun "patch" to mark the occasion on their uniform! They each also received flowers, and met for a group dinner at a local restaurant.
The Festival of Purim, commemorated by Jews every year, tells the story of an attempt thousands of years ago to annihilate the Jews. Sound familiar?
The story behind Purim is found in the Book of Esther in the Bible, which records how God used a man named Mordechai and his niece, Esther, married to the Persian King Ahasuerus, to thwart a plan to kill every Jew — from the youngest to the oldest — scattered throughout the 127 provinces of the Persian Empire.
This year, we celebrated Purim with our American Heritage Girls troop, and we had a blast! I think we might have started a new annual tradition!
First, we made a “Gragger” noisemaker to drown out Haman’s name! I did not use a paint stick- we just put beans in cups, and then I gave the girls rolls of decorative duct-tape (leftover from a birthday part craft last year), to cover the cups with.
Then we made Paper Plate Crowns. We had the plates pre-cut for them, so the girls could decorate them more quickly.
Once the girls had completed their crafts, they then dressed up! We all brought in princess-type costumes, and the girls had a blast sharing clothes (ahh, yes, it has begun already) and dressing up like Princess Esther! As an added bonus, I had recently cleaned out the girls’ playroom and was able to gift each girl with several Mardi Gras bead necklaces, because all Princesses need beautiful jewelry, right???
Once they were dressed we assembled and sat in our “ceremony area” once again, and we all tried Hamentaschen cookies (a Purim tradition). I was able to get these at Costco, hallelujah, but you can also check your local bakery or make your own! We then watched two short videos about Purim!
So here are some coloring pages and other activities I found to share!
I really love celebrating this story each year. It seems like every year we all learn something new and get something awesome out of it. Plus, it’s a fabulous female role model for our girls!
Great ideas for a troop's Valentine's Day Party!
This year, we simply exchanged Valentines and ate cupcakes. We also made Valentine's to send to wounded veterans at Walter Reed Medical Center. I can't wait to add some new ideas next year!
