2015: A Year in review

Hi!

So being 2015 is coming to a close I wanted to share some of my favorite things that I have experienced or heard about. For me 2015 was a year of new things, of firsts. 2015 was definitely not a bad year. So here is my list of 2015 favorites in no specific order.

1. I started my Freshman year of High School.

Despite what people say from my first 4 months of High school I can tell you that it is definitely not an awful or scary place. It is a place full of amazing opportunities from theater to sports to more challenging classes to the social aspects. Though I don’t know how many new friends I have really made so far but I personally have grown closer with the ones I currently have.

2. I attended NerdCon:Stories.

My mom and I after a full day at NerdCon.

On October 9th and 10th I got to attend this amazing event at the Minneapolis Convention center. This event was created by Hank Green and Patrick Rothfuss for people who love stories. It didn’t matter what types or how these stories are shared. This convention had a wide range of special guests from authors like John Green and Rainbow Rowell, to rappers like Dessa Darling, to actors like the cast of Welcome to Night Vale, to activists like Jackson Bird, to singers like Harry and the Potters and Paul & Storm, to YouTubers like Vlogbrothers (John and Hank Green) and Rosianna Halse Rojas. There was even a Giant Squid! Coming into this event I didn’t know who the majority of the guests but I left excited to learn more about them and experience more of their creations. Not only did I get to meet some of these special guests I also got to meet other people my age who loved stories just as much as I do. This year was the first year of NerdCon and will be held again next year. I can’t wait to go again!

3. I (we) earned my (our) Silver Award!

Yes as you may have guessed this is my Girl Scout Silver Award project, along with Haley’s and Julia”s. After about 2 years of hard work we got our project officially approved by the Girl Scout Council. So thank you to everyone who helped and supported us through this amazing experience. I personally can’t wait to start my Gold Award.

I can’t wait to see what 2016 brings!

I wish you all a Happy New Years!

~ Abby

2016 Resolutions!

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It's so hard to believe that in a couple days it's going to be 2016. I feel like it just became 2015 and now it's going to be 2016. This is that time of year when people set their New Year's resolutions.

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Resolution:

A desicion to do or not do something

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Why Keep a Resolution

Now let's be honest, not that many people actually keep their New Year's resolutions. But they help you realize things that you want to change in your life. That is the main idea behind them, they outline the goals you have for yourself throughout the next year. That is the reason why you should make one. If you want to try to beat the odds at keeping resolutions try to find ways that work for you for keeping it. If you still don't have any ideas, look at some common resolutions and see if they help

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Some Ways to Keep a Resolution

1. Only make one resolution (that is practical as well)
2. Make a plan of action (Don't go in blind)
3. Keep trying (Don't quit after a slip-up)
4. It helps you to have a visual reminder as well. There is really no concrete evidence on  how many days it takes to form a habit but 30 is a good standard. Here is a tip, take 30    post-it notes and stick them on the wall. Everyday when you keep your resolution take one   down. When you run out of post-it notes put more up and keep going.

Some Common Resolutions
1. Quiting a bad habit
2. Exercising/getting healthy
3. Learning something new
4. Travel
5. Spend more time with family/friends
 

My new years resolution for this year is to stop procrastinating. I also asked Julia what   hers was and she said it was to appreciate the smaller and simpler things in life.

-Haley

Self Esteem Craft

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We had the kick-off for our blog a couple months ago. As part of the event we did a craft. We thought that it would be a good idea to share this craft with people that could not attend. This craft is all about improving self esteem using positive words. It doesn't take that long and is pretty easy. Have fun!

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Materials

A Canvas
Scissors 
Pencil 
Mod Podge
Dish for the Mod Podge
Brush
Letter of Your First Name
Positive Words That Describe You

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Step 1

Take the scrapbook paper, mod podge, and brush and mod podge the scrapbook paper on the canvas however you want. You can use just one sheet of paper or little scraps. You can rip them or cut them out. You do not have to worry about bubbles because the mod podge dries flat and it also dries clear.

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Step 2

Type the words that describe you and then cut out all of your words. Also get your letter of your first name. You could make your own like I did with construction paper or buy a pre-made one. Once you are done, mod podge them onto your canvas and you are done!

-Haley

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Around Minnesota

Living in Minnesota never gets old. Why? There are so many different components, cultures and lifestyles that make up Minnesota that traveling a few miles can make you feel like you’re in a completely different state. Recently I went up North to the Lake Superior shoreline, near Grand Marais. If you’ve ever had the privilege of visiting Grand Marais, then you know that it truly is the coolest small town in America. But the temperature might be the only cool thing about it. The atmosphere and the people are incredibly warm and inviting. It’s like you have entered an entirely different world. Minnesota nice really does sum up what this town is all about. And of course, the views...just, wow. Imagine looking out onto an ocean, a vast, shining body of water, and realizing that you are nowhere near the coast. Lake Superior, the coldest and cleanest of the great lakes, is the ocean of Minnesota. It’s an amazing experience to stand on the shore and just breathe in that cold air. Yes, it is cold; layers of clothing are imperative when up North. But this area of Minnesota is stunning. If I could travel to any part of the world, I would go back to Grand Marais.

Welding

My Owl

Anika's Flower

My Flower

Anika's Fish

Anika welding with Grandpa

Me welding with Grandpa

My grandparents live on a farm, which is pretty cool. Throughout my life I have looked forward to going to the farm, because I have been able to do some pretty cool things there that I can’t do at home. A while ago, my Grandpa started to weld some really cool sculptures using old farm parts. Welding is when you join together two metal pieces by heating them to the point of melting. My sister Anika and I went to the farm for a few days last summer without my parents. My parents and grandparents really thought that Anika and I should try welding. While we were at the farm for those few days we decided we would learn how to weld. The first thing we had to do was get some really “cute” welding clothes. We each had a pair of my cousin’s old sweatpants and one of my grandma’s old shirts. We had to wear special helmets and gloves while welding because the sparks could damage your eyes if you looked at them for too long. The sparks could also burn you. Anika managed to burn a hole in her shoes which I think is pretty funny.  The first day we decided to start with an easy little flower. We got to look through a huge pile of metal farm parts to find the things we wanted to make our flower. We each chose some gears for the flower, a stick for the stem and some pieces of a chain for the leaves on the stem. My sister went first and I was excited to give it a try as well. Welding is unlike anything I have ever done before. It was actually pretty easy and not as scary as I thought it was going to be. I think it's so cool how you can just melt together two pieces of metal. The next day we decided that we wanted to try again and make something a little more advanced. Anika made a fish sculpture. She had to use this crazy blow torch thing that cut through a steel plate. I made an owl. My grandpa came up with the idea. We used some horse shoes, some washers, this kind of metal lattice, and some random other metal sticks. I think that it is really cool that I know how to weld. I like seeing the people building at my school welding all of the steel columns together because I know how to do what they are doing.

-Haley

They Planted a Garden!

We are very excited to have a quest blogger! So heres a blog written by Jamelia about their silver award.

~ Abby

Silver Award Project 2015

Jamelia, Elizabeth, and Madison.

In our community garden, Madison, Elizabeth and I decided to plant cherry tomatoes, jalapenos, red and green bell peppers and herbs. The type of herbs that we planted, were cilantro, rosemary, thyme, and basil.

Madison, Elizabeth and I are part of the River Valley Girl Scout troop 12717. Elizabeth has been in the troop for about 9 years, Madison for 5 years and I have been in the troop for 4 years. Being a cadette we have many responsibilities, we continuously learn how to accept leadership responsibilities, and take on new and exciting projects, while educating others about our community projects.

Where we decided to have our community garden on the back patio of a senior living home called Trails of Orono. We chose this specific area because we needed a place where the garden was going to be appreciated and cared for on the days that we were not able to water. We also choose to start the garden at Trails because we contacted Chelsea, the activities director, and she had mentioned that the residents living there loved to garden and would also love  Girl Scouts to be involved.

Our Girl scout troop decided to start a community garden, because we wanted something that would be sustainable as well as something that would provide for the community Our Girl Scout troop has gained many things from the community garden. We developed our gardening skills, improved our communication skills and developed responsibility skills as well do. Choosing Trails of Orono as a location to start our garden was a great idea, as it created exciting opportunities for the seniors, as well as ourselves over the course of this summer.

The Adventures of A Little Free Library

Hi!
So a while ago Julia and I got to help out with a friend's Silver award project. So we wanted to share this awesome way Annika chose to impact her community, so I asked Annika to tell us about her project. Here's what she said:

Connection of neighbors, connection of learning. These two concepts were the basis of my silver award project. My project was to build a Little Free Library for my neighborhood. The need I saw in the community was to make a place where neighbors come together. As I started thinking of possible projects, I thought of a new craze, Little Free Libraries (LFL). A LFL is a mix of a birdhouse and a mail box but instead of holding birds or mail it holds books. Silver award projects require many hours of planning, time, and leadership. I had to plan an event to start building the library and an open house to introduce my neighborhood to their newest addition. I had to use my leadership as a Girl Scout to turn these ideas into action and actually make them happen. There were many bumps in the road but eventually the smooth pavement came to relieve the struggle. The moment I put the last screw into the counting post felt like the best thing in the world. Now as I see my neighbors stopping by I know I have made a difference in their lives by giving them a first-class trip at their finger tips. As for you, when you have a dream, big or small, make them reality no matter how bumpy the road may be.

~ Annika 

    Troop 13749

You can find Little Free Libraries all over the world. To learn more or to find one near you visit: http://littlefreelibrary.org 

Have a wonderful week!

~ Abby