Tagalongs

Well, I do have to be honest, I am very opinionated on this subject.

Let me begin with... I was pregnant with twins when I became a leader. BUT, I never brought my younger children to meetings.

If you are the leader you are needed to give your attention to the girls not your younger children therefore you should plan your meeting day/time for when you can have their father or grandparent watch them. Or have a parent volunteer to be the troops "nursery" mom to watch sibs during meetings.

I feel all girls need time away from their siblings to grow more independent and have time just for them. There are plenty of family activities out there but so few that is ALL about her! Especially is she is the older sibling and having to help watch younger sibs.

I do not allow siblings at meetings. This rule is stated very clearly in my parent manual. They are disruptive, use up supplies, get in the way, and take attention away from the leader or girl who is talking.

Younger sibs are welcome at ceremonies but even then often they steal the spotlight from the girls being honored. Often parents don't remove unruly children, a big issue for me.

I am not one to have very many family events. Our service unit has one father-daughter and one mother-daughter event a year. My troop has 3 ceremonies a year to which sibs are invited. And I have a family potluck before Christmas. Otherwise, I have almost nothing that is a family event. No definitely no overnighters.

I refuse to do a family camp and now with the 'every adult must be registered and background checked' to even stay at a meeting much less camp, just too much extra to deal with. All the extra insurance and trouble with having sibs there is not good for me.

I do not like that my son always had moms and younger sibs at camp when he was a cub scout. I never attended one, this was Dad-son time and I was not willing to interfere on their bonding time. Loved it once he got to boy scouts and they were not invited anymore.

You are required to buy extra insurance for every non-registered child/adult going to anything. Troop funds are tight and we can not pay for extra insurance nor am I willing to open up a can of worms with 'parents can pay for sibs to come including insurance'.

Everyone is entitled to their own opinion on this subject and...that is mine!