Pack Holiday 2013 - Sunday

29/9/13

We were woken at 7:30 this morning by the girls so I got out of bed and went into their room to try and keep them quiet for a little longer so that the adults could wake up. Most of them were fine until one girl went into the toilet and came running back out shouting about a daddy long legs which was in there! I ended up having to go and get a glass and a piece of paper to get it out because they were refusing to go near the bathroom with it in there... After a while Snowy came up and said that all the adults were awake, they just hadn't left their room so we let the girls go down to the living room as long as they were quiet. All the ones who went down there ended up reading some of the really old Brownie Annuals which are on a bookcase in there which was a bit unexpected as none of them had brought a book with them (as far as I'm aware) and I've heard quite a few of them say how much they dislike reading in the past... I'm not complaining though, it was nice to see loads of them sat quietly reading; it reminded me of my pack holidays when I was a Brownie.

Eventually the adults got up and started to make breakfast, which was the same as yesterday. I ended up helping in the kitchen for most of the time which meant that, by the time I sat down to eat, there was only the one sausage for me not the two I'd been promised. I didn't really mind because I quite enjoy helping out the cooks by co-ordinating the girls who come to take the food through to the table (it gets too complicated for the cooks to try and do it while they're serving the food and they are always grateful for the extra pair of hands) and I know there will be more food during the day.

The craft for this morning was owl 'cushions' which were more like mini stuffed toys because they were quite small... They were pre-cut out and had holes punched in them to make it easier for the girls to sew them. They worked quite well as they were fairly easy although Snowy hadn't trialled it beforehand (second nature to Mum and I) so she didn't know that you also needed glue (for the feet) or that starting below the ear wasn't a good idea because it made it quite hard to sew it up once you had stuffed it... I know that I have to let her make these mistakes and learn from them but I find it quite hard to comprehend not trying out a craft before giving it to the girls because it's pretty much been drummed into me from the beginning. Some of the girls were getting quite frustrated with theirs which I think was a combination of them being very tired and them finding it quite complicated, especially after they had stuffed it. Snowy ended up having the leave the room at one point because one girl was continually crying because it wasn't going how she wanted it to! Eventually all the girls finished though and they all thought that the owls were cute.

We then had elevenses, basically a drink and cake/biscuit/fruit to keep them going. I was surprised at the number of girls who chose to have fruit as well as their cake; when I was their age, my parents struggled to get me to eat fruit and veg (I'm much better now, although there are still a fair few things I can't stand)...

Once they had finished one of the sixes was tasked with finding a couple of hymns that the other girls would know and a prayer for our mini church service which we have every Sunday morning. I don't really know why or when it started but we've always done it since before I was a Brownie! Most of the girls go to the same school and therefore know the same songs for the most part. I went to the same school as them and the songs they learn haven't changed much so I know most of them too. The prayer they chose was a prayer we used to say before lunch when I was in the infants (age 5-7) and I was surprised (and pleased) that I could still remember the words! After the brief service, we sang Happy Birthday to one of the girls because she turned 9 today. All the girls had signed a card for her last night too which Snowy gave to her as well. She seemed happy that we hadn't forgotten, particularly as she had been crying earlier because she couldn't see her Dad for her whole birthday.

Then we had a cooked lunch. We had roast chicken with potatoes, Yorkshire pudding, veg and gravy which went down really well with the girls, who almost all finished every mouthful! We had a small glitch at the beginning though because the two plates with no gravy on had gone missing... The cooks said that they had definitely sent those two out first but no one knows what happened to them because not only did they never made it to their intended recipients, they never made it to the table! They decided that they must have come back to the kitchen but I don't remember any plate coming back and I was in there the whole time... I suppose we'll never know what happened to them but the two girls who didn't want gravy were given food from other plates which hadn't touched any gravy and everyone tucked in happily. Once they had finished, I went back to the kitchen to help serve pudding, jelly and ice cream. We had a small mishap when one of the girls was sick (she thinks it was because she ate too quickly because she didn't want to be last to finish again) but we managed to get all the food out without losing any this time!

After lunch, the girls had rest hour again where they were supposed to be packing all their stuff away, ready to go home. This went well, for the most part, although several girls complained that they had lost things. Most of them showed up while other girls were packing but a couple of things had to be located under beds and other people's stuff. Mum suspects malicious intent but we can't be sure and no harm was done so we just left it be. We then had our tuck shop and then it was time to go home. We had a quick circle where all the leaders were given thank you presents and the girls got a badge to say they had been to Macaroni Woods, their toymaker badge (everything we did this weekend counted towards it) and a Brownie bear ornament as a memento.

Finally, at 4pm, we let the parents in to take the girls home. All the girls were very pleased to see their parents again but also sad to leave, as they are every year. After everyone had gone, us leaders were left to tidy up and pick up any lost property (surprisingly we only had an odd sock which was claimed by one of the cooks as being her daughter's). We finally left around 5:30 and went home ourselves. I was absolutely shattered and pretty much had some food, a bath and went to bed!

This year's pack holiday, while being slightly different because Snowy was running it, was still thoroughly enjoyable, as usual! As much as we complain about it, I think all the leaders actually really enjoy it because it lets us get closer to some of the girls as they always seem to open up a bit and talk about more during a meal or walk than they can during an hour and half's meeting. It also brings back really good memories for me from the many other pack holidays I have been on over the years from basic ones of the building to more specific ones about old friends I haven't seen in years... All in all, a very good weekend!