Hey Moms! It's been such a while since I've been on here!!! Life was so crazy I had to give up my Mampedia time for a while :( I missed you guys and the board and all the opinions! But now I'm glad to be back!
Anyway- does anyone know where I can get the Girls Guide to Girl Scouting Brownie edition? I'm doing badge work with my little Brownie over the summer and I need the guide but that sucker is expensive! The book itself at the GS store is $22.50 and then you have to buy 3 inserts at $4 each insert! That's over 30 bucks for the entire book! Plus I have to purchase each badge she completes along with paying for whatever materials she'll need to complete the badge work for each badge.And then there are Journey books (3 that are $7 each) Besides that I just can't bring myself to pay over $20 for a single book. The cheapie in me just can't do it. LOL
So any ideas ladies?
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Just to clarify- my daughter is in a troop but they break for the summer and my kid wants to continue to work on badges throughout the summer. I'm not a leader- just one of the moms. I've been wanting the book for a while- the frugal part of me just can't make myself fork over 22 bucks for one book. We probably won't get the journey books as I've heard the journeys are not that great. She wanted to earn the pin/award that comes with completing all 3 journey books but looking over it more- I don't think that's going to happen. She gets a little antsy- she's kinda badge addicted- and her troop takes a long time to complete badge work (the whole year they've done 4 badges) and so I thought summer work on our own would satisfy her badge wants and keep her busy. We wouldn't do any badges that the troop would work on together. I have an email in to our troop leaders to get their okay and find out who I would have to submit her badge work too.
As far as the book- I've checked the library and our council. No dice at the library and the council has an in house book to look at only. But you're not supposed to copy anything- they want you to buy the book. I put a request on Free-cycle and I'm going to keep looking on ebay and Craigslist.
I was helping with Camp Fire Girls and found their guide at Goodwill. You could also try googling the name of the guide to see if any on line bookstores are selling used editions. You may even find a new one at a very reduced price that way. If googling the book's title doesn't get you anything, google used books and then go to the sites and ask for the guide.
Welcome to the new Girl $cout$. All your troop profit from the cookie sale will go right back to the company store! What a clever organization! And if you'll notice, most of the new core badges focus on making money for girl scouts...
Try Ebay/Amazon/craigslist, etc. for cheap used books. Then photocopy the pages and pass them out to the troop as needed. Sometimes the service unit can provide you with books other troops are getting rid of.
Definitely check out the options listed below for getting the book at a cheaper cost. If you do end up paying the $22.50, hold off on the 3 inserts. And you only need to buy one Journey book at a time. I am a Brownie leader right now and my girls are working on one Journey and we've only had time to complete a few of the badges in the Guide itself. We haven't used any of the additional inserts. Good luck!
Hi! I'm a daisy scout leader and we'll be bridging to brownies soon! You should check with other local/former troop leaders to see if they can give you the book? Maybe craigslist? Another thought is to collect dues from your troop(couldn't be more than a few bucks a family). We used our troop funds to front the cost. Check with the leader who handles funding to see if you have dues left over that could cover the cost!
do you have a used bookstore in your area? call and check to see if they have any used Girl Scout Books- brownie edition. You might also check with the girl scout area office in your area. We used to have a "recycling room" where you could leave extras or things your girls had outgrown and other girl scout leaders could pick them up for free to give to girls in their troops who had financial needs. You could also see if you can find a Daisy troop who are moving up to Juniors and see if anyone there wants to "give you or sell you" their used books. Good luck
Check to see if your local council has a library. I believeour council will allow you to review the book in the office but not check it out. Might be worth a call to ask about this.
Have you checked with your local girl scout region? They may have a book or direct you where you can get one.
Good luck with the books. I remember a big green book that looked like a dictionary for Brownies/Girl Scouts. I also recall the brown button down dress in brown and green with a yellow scarf.
Happy Scouting!
the other S.
i too am a cheapy but i really have to say that these book will last 2 years, so the basic book ends up being around $11 a year. You can get a great start with out the extra inserts.
Very rarely do i need to purchase materials to complete the badge work, most of the stuff is household items, if not I ask on freecycle and usually get what i need, craft stuff etc.
the badges are less than $2.00 each, although i believe you might be able to find them on amazon cheaper. Or again ask your service unit if any one has extras I usually buy the next 3 badges ahead and we had a girl drop out so I had a few badges left over. I think i could ahve returned them but just never got to it.
The journey books to me are useless unless you have the adult guide, if you have the adult guide you might not need the journey book. but again, if you are doing them right , you aren't going to need all 3 journeys at once.
Mostly, 'I"M confused on what is really happening here, Your DD is not in a troop??? you are a registered Gs leader or you are just a mom starting your kid off in scouts??? or she needs to catch up with her troop???
If she has a troop then you need to talk to the leader, one troop sharing a book would work really well and save everyone money, but remeber that money does sort of trickle down to the girls and by cheating the system you might be doing more harm than good.
if you compared GScouting to gymanstics or dance or softball. it is a very very cheap activity. I know i spent hundreds on dance lessons, costumes, tights, hair do etcs the one year my dd took dance. so put in perspective GS is cheap.
Is it at the library?
I agree with Becky. I've gotten used Brownie books from Amazon at better prices. They had a little writing in them, but that's okay.
I was a girl scout decades ago, Brownie through Cadette, and back then we had one thick guide for each level. Now they really do make you fork out too much for badge work. It's crazy, and slightly infuriating. My girls love their troops, though.
