Saturday 30 June 2012

Beautiful Day

 "Today is a beautiful day," said the Little Princess (on waking at half past six in the morning, but perhaps we won't dwell on that), "because today I get to wear my Brownie Uniform."
And so she did.
"I was a Rainbow, but now I am a Brownie. And this is my Brownie Uniform, and it is for beautiful me on a beautiful day, and you are a beautiful Mummy because you did get it just for me."

And I'm recording verbatim as I had to go back through the archives here yesterday, looking for a certain key date (nb L - 5 years, not 6; I feel better about that although I'm not sure why!), and I found some of tLP's earlier speeches recorded. And I had forgotten how hard she has worked to become the articulate girl she is today. It's easy to get fixated on the bits she gets wrong and forget to celebrate how far she's come.
 It was and is a beautiful day, too. Miss Mog here somewhat inelegantly supporting the Swedish banners - our Brownies having been chosen to represent Sweden in the Division On Your Marks Olympic Event. Mog took part in the opening ceremony, carrying the Brownie Flag as the oldest Brownie in the pack. 

Our Guides made do with a hurriedly scribbled blue cross on the back of a couple of white permission slips to represent Finland - sorry guys; we brought the girls but not the gear. 

Being with our Guides, I missed Miss Mog and tLP attempt their own version of a Haka. I saw their handmade Olympic torches, and I cheered them on in the obstacle courses (whilst also taking note of our fleetest Guides and mentally assigning to them the role of gopher at summer camp).
It's been a long time since I made it to a Division event (GirlGuiding UK is divided up in to regions, then counties, then divisions and then districts. Our district is very very local, our division is our town). Lovely to see Guides and Brownies and Rainbows all mixing and joining in, in an afternoon formally opened by our Division President, who just happens to be my old Guider. You might get too old to wear the uniform (although there's always the Trefoil Guild), but you never stop being a Guide. 

tLP's first official event as a Brownie, and Miss Mog's last; she will be joining us at Camp as a Guide, meaning that once again, we will have three generations in Blue. 

And so a beautiful day. Just enough (OK, more than enough) wind to keep the flags flying (sorry about the hurdle races, but hey, they weren't wheelchair accessible anyway), enough sun to bring out a nice pink glow without frying anyone too badly, and the most perfect note of all; flash storms and torrential rain which started two minutes after I'd pulled out of the car park and stopped just as I pulled up outside Miss Mog's respite centre. Sorry for those of you who got stuck with the clearing up though!

And now Miss Mog is in respite, and very pleased to be there in her Brownie Uniform, showing off all her badges. The Little Princess is enjoying the non-sleeping part of the Brownie Sleepover, and so whilst I wait for a call letting me know the others are off to bed and can I pick her up, I have the house to myself. A properly beautiful day, and a first for a Saturday night, I think. 

Tia

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

Yeah for firsts!
Debra

pippinsmum said...

Tia, you are amazing what you do with the girls, Hope you enjoyed your bit of rest and relaxation
Pat

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