"Do you know how you say 'Venezuela' in Italian?"
"No, how?"
"Venezuela."
"This stuff is so easy."
Friday, July 21, 2006
We are the Champions
...just not of the world. Or anything of great significance for that matter.
Yes, that's right...we found the cache. Last night DH, our two kids, and I went back to the park (this time the sun was still up and we had no wine) and set about looking in every spot we had already checked like it was invisible the night before and would magically appear now that the sun was up. The kids were excited and delved into bushes, looked on top of walls, stuck their fingers into things that probably didn't need fingers to be stuck in, and had all the fervor that we had had the night before. I can't count how many times they asked us how big the cache was or what it looked like. The first few times we told them we had no idea. The last few we just stared at them...blankly. And blinked. Which never works with our kids as they're programmed to our sense of humor. Eventually they gave up on asking us--or maybe the finally got it--but either way we were still coming up with bupkis. I could tell the kids were losing hope. After all, they're kids and anything that takes more than 5 mins. to find is typically deemed unworthy of finding. Plus the swings and climbing equipment were calling their names. It wasn't looking good--especially since we had no wine for us...or them.
As the kids and I turned our attention to the ground, something out of the corner of my eye caught my attention. It was my very resolute husband wielding a large rock and headed straight for the fence post and it's unyielding finial. He was not to be deterred. With one quick thrust the finial came flying off. EUREKA! But wait...cut to slow motion as we watch the finial fly up into the air, do a full circle, hit a wall almost being lost forever, then ricochets back, and falls into the fenced area. We look at each other and he knows what is coming.
"I told you to hold onto it if you tried that."
"I can still get it."
Two minutes later, covered in dirt, twigs, and other things that no man should ever be covered in, DH pulls his arm out from no man's land holding his prized posession. Inside the finial was a small closed tube with a log. "This time I was more determined" he told me. Then he showed the "treasure" to our uber excited children.
"That's it?!!" the kids exclaim.
"It's just a piece of paper!"
"That was boring."
I signed the log and DH replaced the finial. He marked the cache as "found" on his GPS. As we headed back home both of the kids asked, "Can we go find some more?!" Ah yes...nerds in the making.
Yes, that's right...we found the cache. Last night DH, our two kids, and I went back to the park (this time the sun was still up and we had no wine) and set about looking in every spot we had already checked like it was invisible the night before and would magically appear now that the sun was up. The kids were excited and delved into bushes, looked on top of walls, stuck their fingers into things that probably didn't need fingers to be stuck in, and had all the fervor that we had had the night before. I can't count how many times they asked us how big the cache was or what it looked like. The first few times we told them we had no idea. The last few we just stared at them...blankly. And blinked. Which never works with our kids as they're programmed to our sense of humor. Eventually they gave up on asking us--or maybe the finally got it--but either way we were still coming up with bupkis. I could tell the kids were losing hope. After all, they're kids and anything that takes more than 5 mins. to find is typically deemed unworthy of finding. Plus the swings and climbing equipment were calling their names. It wasn't looking good--especially since we had no wine for us...or them.
As the kids and I turned our attention to the ground, something out of the corner of my eye caught my attention. It was my very resolute husband wielding a large rock and headed straight for the fence post and it's unyielding finial. He was not to be deterred. With one quick thrust the finial came flying off. EUREKA! But wait...cut to slow motion as we watch the finial fly up into the air, do a full circle, hit a wall almost being lost forever, then ricochets back, and falls into the fenced area. We look at each other and he knows what is coming.
"I told you to hold onto it if you tried that."
"I can still get it."
Two minutes later, covered in dirt, twigs, and other things that no man should ever be covered in, DH pulls his arm out from no man's land holding his prized posession. Inside the finial was a small closed tube with a log. "This time I was more determined" he told me. Then he showed the "treasure" to our uber excited children.
"That's it?!!" the kids exclaim.
"It's just a piece of paper!"
"That was boring."
I signed the log and DH replaced the finial. He marked the cache as "found" on his GPS. As we headed back home both of the kids asked, "Can we go find some more?!" Ah yes...nerds in the making.
Wednesday, July 19, 2006
Misadventures in Geocaching
In August, my husband and I will be going to Italy for our 10 yr. anniversary. Trying to find ways to blend in and yet not get lost, led to DH buying a new GPS for the trip. We already have one but apparently it wasn't quite as "cool" as this one--or something like that. While he was checking out maps and other things that techy guys like he came across Geocaching. Both of us had heard of Geocaching and once upon a time I had even registered at a Geocaching site after a friend of mine told us about it. For those that don't know, Geocaching is where you search for "treasure" left by a person (or persons) after you put in the coordinates. They can be little items, logs, bugs (for logging info--not the creepy crawly kind, although I guess you might run across those too), and other fun things. Needless to say reading the logs and FAQ's re-ignited our interest. When DH found that a cache was down at the park (a mere half a block from our house), we decided to take a quick trip down and see what we could find.
At 9:30 p.m. After the sun had gone down. With no flashlight.
After writing a note to our kids (in case they woke up and thought we really did join the circus like we told them we would one day do), and with wine and GPS in hand, we trekked to the park determind to find our first cache. After about 5 mins. of searching by the light of the GPS screen (think cell phone bright--cut in half) we decided that a flashlight was in order. Back to the house we went.
9:45 p.m., flashlight, pen (for the log), GPS, wine in hand, and after reading what others had written about the "cleverly hidden" cache, we flip-flopped our asses back to the area we had combed only this time we were armed with extra knowledge. The people who had come before us had said it was tough for the vertically challenged. Naturally we looked up. And up...and around...and up some more...until we finally convinced ourselves that it had to be inside of a fence post surrounding some kind of water tank thingy.
10:00 p.m., flashlight, pen, GPS, a screwdriver, and more wine in hand, we started lamenting about what big losers we were. After all, all these other people found it and said it was easy. The site listed it as 1 1/2 stars for degree in difficulty. "Maybe we should start with a 1 star." "Do they offer 1/2 stars?" Each time a car drove by I'd yell, "Kill the light" and we'd hold our breath like some high school kids up to no good. In the meantime DH tried to gently pry off the top of the fence post but it wouldn't budge. We stuck our fingers in holes not meant to be stuck in, felt along the tops of walls, inspected the porta-potty way too close...you name it...we tried it.
10:20 p.m. we headed home empty handed. The wine glass now half empty (or half full).
"We better hope no one dies there tomorrow."
"They're going to think we did it."
"The neighbors will tell the cops: 'We saw these people last night fooling around with flashlights, and a screwdriver, and something that looked like a detonator.' We're like Al Qaida"
"We are so screwed."
"And we're losers because we didn't even find the damned cache."
"1 star from here on out."
At 9:30 p.m. After the sun had gone down. With no flashlight.
After writing a note to our kids (in case they woke up and thought we really did join the circus like we told them we would one day do), and with wine and GPS in hand, we trekked to the park determind to find our first cache. After about 5 mins. of searching by the light of the GPS screen (think cell phone bright--cut in half) we decided that a flashlight was in order. Back to the house we went.
9:45 p.m., flashlight, pen (for the log), GPS, wine in hand, and after reading what others had written about the "cleverly hidden" cache, we flip-flopped our asses back to the area we had combed only this time we were armed with extra knowledge. The people who had come before us had said it was tough for the vertically challenged. Naturally we looked up. And up...and around...and up some more...until we finally convinced ourselves that it had to be inside of a fence post surrounding some kind of water tank thingy.
10:00 p.m., flashlight, pen, GPS, a screwdriver, and more wine in hand, we started lamenting about what big losers we were. After all, all these other people found it and said it was easy. The site listed it as 1 1/2 stars for degree in difficulty. "Maybe we should start with a 1 star." "Do they offer 1/2 stars?" Each time a car drove by I'd yell, "Kill the light" and we'd hold our breath like some high school kids up to no good. In the meantime DH tried to gently pry off the top of the fence post but it wouldn't budge. We stuck our fingers in holes not meant to be stuck in, felt along the tops of walls, inspected the porta-potty way too close...you name it...we tried it.
10:20 p.m. we headed home empty handed. The wine glass now half empty (or half full).
"We better hope no one dies there tomorrow."
"They're going to think we did it."
"The neighbors will tell the cops: 'We saw these people last night fooling around with flashlights, and a screwdriver, and something that looked like a detonator.' We're like Al Qaida"
"We are so screwed."
"And we're losers because we didn't even find the damned cache."
"1 star from here on out."
Countdown
In honor of one of THE coolest couples I have ever known, I present to you a countdown ticker for their wedding day. Heidi & Jon...it will be here before you know it. I will bring Kleenex and try to see well enough to shoot!
Sweet ride
Just this past weekend I had to decorate a wedding for my other company (CWE) and knew that what I would need to take to said wedding would not fit in my car...or my husband's truck...or my father's Jeep. Granted, if I took two cars it would but seeing as I have not yet mastered the art of cloning that possibility was out. So I opted to rent a car from Enterprise (whom I highly recommend). And not just any car...but a mini-van. A mini-van with Sto 'n Go seats. Now keep in mind this is the first time I have ever driven a mini-van yet, let alone my children being in one. Ian said he had been in his friend's mom's mini-van but it was not like this one. All the seats (except for the bench in the back which was already sto'd 'n go'd) were captain's chairs and both kids thought that was "cool." I was surprised by how nicely it drove and I lurved the driver's seat. My body just melted into it and I thought about removing it and putting it in our living room but then thought better of it. After all...I still had to get my stuff out to Black Butte.
As we were driving home my daughter pipes up from the backseat:
"Momma, if people see us driving in this car, they're going to think we're HOT!"
"You think so?"
"Yeah...this is a sweet ride! You should invite all your friends over so they can see the sweet ride and how hot we are."
Friends--you missed it, but we were hot and it was a sweet ride. Not only did it get myself there and back to BBR in one relaxed state of mind 4 times, but it also fit one mammoth Happy Hour Tower, 3 large plants, 12 seating cubes, a garbage bag full of pillows, parasols, a bucket, two end tables, a box of lights, and a partridge in a pear tree. And although my husband hates mini-van's, I caught him enjoying the sweet ride on more than one occasion. Now that right there says it all.
As we were driving home my daughter pipes up from the backseat:
"Momma, if people see us driving in this car, they're going to think we're HOT!"
"You think so?"
"Yeah...this is a sweet ride! You should invite all your friends over so they can see the sweet ride and how hot we are."
Friends--you missed it, but we were hot and it was a sweet ride. Not only did it get myself there and back to BBR in one relaxed state of mind 4 times, but it also fit one mammoth Happy Hour Tower, 3 large plants, 12 seating cubes, a garbage bag full of pillows, parasols, a bucket, two end tables, a box of lights, and a partridge in a pear tree. And although my husband hates mini-van's, I caught him enjoying the sweet ride on more than one occasion. Now that right there says it all.
Ted & Bethany
This wedding took place in a small town called St. Paul, Oregon on Bethany's family's tree farm. The grounds and home were so beautiful--the house looking as if it had been in the family for generations. Maybe it hadn't, but I like to think that it has. You could see Mt. Hood not too far off in the distance and the wildflowers that Bethany's father planted were luscious and beautiful. Although it was an extremely hot day we all made it out unscathed and something tells me that Bethany has not stopped smiling since they ran down the aisle together. I had the privilege of taking Ted & Bethany's engagement pictures and had a total blast with them and really enjoyed documenting the two of them becoming "husband and wife." I wish you guys all the best!!
The rest can be seen at: Ted & Bethany
Monday, July 03, 2006
Jake & Kendyl
My first wedding of the year took place at a lovely venue called The Gardens at Flying Diamond. Kendyl and Jake were so sweet and easy going that it was a nice way to start the season. Although it was quite warm, we were happy to see the sun out instead of threatening rain. Here is a teaser--the rest can be seen at: Jake & Kendyl
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