Summer is here and with it a lull in the usual Girl Scout activities. Although troops tend to take a hiatus in the summer, camping is a big activity that fills that gap. Your local council and/or neighborhood will be able to tell you what kind of camp activities are available in your area.

Last year my eldest daughter went to day camp with a buddy. She came home every night exhausted and happy and earned a Try It along the way. This year she is spending two weeks at an overnight camp. It will be her first and second experience at a sleep-away camp and she is very excited, mostly because she gets to ride horses at one of the camps. I am very excited that I've finally managed to pull together all the items on her packing list and completed 25 Swaps for her to take along and exchange at the first camp.

Actually the SWAPS have filled several hot days for not only me but for my daughter. We have to tackle another 25 soon for her second week, which will likewise keep her out of trouble for at least a couple of hours.

If camps are not your daughter's thing; Girl Scouts can still fill those summer days. Some of the try its and badges are not very "troop friendly," meaning that they aren't easily done with a group of girls. For Brownies, I recommend working on the Hobbies try it in the summer, particularly if there is a 'collecting' hobby that your daughter is interested in pursuing. Both of my daughters chose stamp collecting but doing the try it and learning to organize has led them to collect and organize other things, such as rocks, dolls, and shells.

Another good badge to do at home with a Brownie is the Make It, Eat It try it. Last week, my youngest daughter and a friend of hers made Monkey Bread as a part of that try it. If you're not acquainted with this recipe, it's refrigerator biscuit dough that your child breaks into small pieces, rolls into balls and then coats in melted butter/margarine and then a mixture of sugar and cinnamon. Then bake according to the instructions. It generally takes two cans to fill a pie plate and the results are yummy.

For Juniors, many of the badges are geared towards invididuals working on them. So far this year, my daughter has dabbled, doing a few requirements for the computer badges, almost all of the camera badge, and a few of the books badge. At this age level, I believe the Books Badge is a particularly good summer activity. My daughter and I spent quite a bit of time at the library doing a scavenger hunt for one requirement and we're going to do some more of the requirements when she finishes off her Camera badge requirements.

So if you're counting the days until school starts, break out the Girl Scout books and find something to keep your daughter busy!