Ape Caves

A few months ago I had the pleasure of spending the day on Mt. Saint Helens. My sons teacher was taking the kids into the upper half of Ape Caves. If you've never been there, the upper half is the hard part. I decided I'd do some boxing in the area while I waited for them to come out.

It was a gorgeous day on the mountain! The weather was warm enough to be comfortable in shorts and a tank top. I talked Dork into joining me for the day and he too dressed for the beautiful spring weather.

We arrived at the parking lot for Ape Caves, got the kids sent off with Jay's teacher with headlamps, gloves, emergency flashlights, and lunch. Then we took a look at all of our clues trying to decide where to start. Really there's not many boxes out that direction, but I had brought two to plant while we were there. As we talked about the caves and the boxes located in or around them, I found out that Dork had never been into Ape Caves. I knew then that we had to start by touring the lower caves. I couldn't bear to have such a tragedy on my conscience. So we stopped and read the signs that reminded you that the temperature in the caves is 42 degrees year round and that jackets are a must. Hmm, no jackets, not even a sweater. Oh well. The next paragraph strongly suggested lanterns with a back up flashlight. There is NO light in the caves and if your lantern goes out, you're stuck. Well, we didn't have a lantern or a headlamp, but I did have my little emergency LED flashlight out of my car. That should be good enough shouldn't it? Heck, in an emergency we had his cell phone light and my camera flash.

Down the stairs, past the snowbank, and into the bowels of the cave. This was my second trip into Ape Caves and I have to say it still took a moment and a deep breath to step into the utter darkness of the cave. Once past the initial wall of dark it got much easier and we strolled along admiring the formations left by the lava that had formed this tube. We passed the infamous "meatball" and the "rails".

The roof narrowed down pretty dramatically. I had to duck, Dork didn't :)

We saw this on the left...

and then this on the right...

Hmmm, did I tuck a little something into that crevice on the right? Could be. There was a very jealous chimp in my backpack. One that was quite ticked off over the fact that the Apes had gotten an entire cave named after them and they'd gotten nothing. I just might have stuffed him into that little nook just to shut him up.

We reached the end of the cave, or as far as you can go standing up. I sat down in the dark and let Dork take the flashlight into the crawl space so he could check out how far it went. When he came back, I got this great picture.

It was a great day of boxing and exploring! I highly recommend it.

Follow the Yellow Brick Road

Are you a crafty person that would like to make a few dollars? If so, join us at our school carnival and craft fair.

For only $10 you get a table to sell your goods at and exposure to lots of people AND you get to hang out with Maiden, Dorks Anonymous, and Happy Papaya. How could it get any better?

If you'd like to rent a table, contact Maiden :)

All Creatures Big and Small

Spring Break Challenge Day 3

Day 3 of spring break dawned drizzly and gray, but that was not enough to distract me from my mission.


First the kids and I joined Bookworm and Miss Marple for lunch. One of the things I love about being off work is the chance to meet up with Wormy and chit chat. I don't get to see her nearly enough. Miss Marple is a new letterboxer that Wormy corrupted from work. The Ides of March gathering was her debut into the letterboxing world and she has jumped in with both feet. She is a very nice person and I look forward to seeing more of her!

After lunch we headed out to find and plant some letterboxes. I had considered going to the zoo, but changed my mind when I discovered a mystery box closer to home that I somehow missed seeing posted.

We drove right to the park and then preceeded to hunt for the landmark. Out of the corner of my eye I spied something that could have been the landmark. The only downside? It was DOWN a very steep hill. Hmmmm, could it be? Well, having heard the stories about the planter at Live and Breathe, yes it could definately be the spot. I took one more look and then sent Lady Macbeth down the hill to look. (You didn't really think *I* was going down there did you?) She searched and searched and searched, but nothing. After scrambling back up the hill, I discovered the real spot, not ten feet away on perfectly flat ground.

After that we headed for Oregon City to find two new boxes there. There's a new boxer in OC that has planted several boxes in the last month. They have been very well done. Today's hunt led us along the promenade with beautiful views of Willamette Falls and the West Linn Bridge.

By the time we'd found the second box, I was starting to feel pretty horrible. As we drove towards the park I intended to hide a box in, I was feverish and my stomach hurt. I decided that challenge or no challenge, it was time to go home.

I ended the day curled up on the couch with a blanket. So, three finds, but no plant for day three. Hopefully day 4 will allow me to plant two boxes, making up for day 3.

Spring Break Challenge Day 2

Day 2 of spring break was a lovely wet day in Portland.

I started the day back at work. You know how teachers are, they can't leave work at work, even during vacation. We interviewed three potential candidates for our 8th grade class. We chose a person I believe will be great, only time will tell for sure.

Then I took my niece and children to lunch someplace fun. I mean really, where else can you eat in a room filled with fairies, trees, owls, elves, nymphs, dragons, and other wonderful things. The food was great (and gluten free). They even came and read us a story while we ate. Now THAT'S service.

While I was there, I hid a letterbox. I've been wanting to hide a box there for a very long time and today was the day. The business does NOT know about this box. (Primarily because the owner wasn't there for me to ask.) If this bothers you, I apologize and you certainly do not have to go look for this one. If this does not bother you, then take your appetite and head down to Milwaukie.

Hopefully you will be seated downstairs and hopefully there won't be anyone else there. I was there on a Monday at lunch time and we were the only ones in the whole building. When the chance arrives, feel under Mother Goose for a little Sock Monkey that stowed away. He decided this place of wonder and joy was much more fun than my craft room or even riding around in my car.

He was carved by Penguin Patrol and sent to Oregon via a stamp swap on the AQ boards. Be sure to drop her an email and let her know you enjoyed it.

Spring Break Challenge

Spring Break has officially begun. This may be the best time of the year for teachers. It signals the beginning of the end. After spring break the year flies by. I believe this is due to the fact that the students are so much more capable. All of the teaching you have done for the previous 6 months has sunk in and they are ready to do great things. The sun is shining, allowing us to get outside more which helps with attitudes and illnesses. All in all, it's just a great time of the year.

For spring break this year I am sticking fairly close to home. My plan is spend each day cleaning a little, boxing a lot, and generally relaxing.

I have challenged myself to get out and find at least one new box each day and to plant at least one box each day. For my faithful blog readers, one planted box each day will be exclusively available here.

Today I went out and found a box in a local park by a new boxer. It was a very nice walk in a nice park that I'd never been to before.

I also planted a box today. Since I only planted one, it will appear only here.

Clue:

Therapy Dogs Touch Lives

Find a park on the eastern side of the Willamette River that features this mural:

Once there find the off leash area. Play with the dogs. Dobby had a great time playing with the Greater Swiss Mountain dog that was there and the Newfoundland, and a bunch of other smaller dogs. When you've gotten your share of therapy from these good hearted canines. Head west. Look for a concrete trash can next to a large tree. The tree has a great root system with lots of holes in it. Inside the north side is the letterbox for your stamping pleasure.

A Fabulous Day of Zoo Boxing Part 1

Let It Snow, Let It Snow, Let It Snow

12-19-08

12-20-08

12-21-08

12-22-08

12-23-08

12-24-08

Keeping Busy While Snowed In

Here are three of the LTC's I made while snowed in. If you would like one, let me know via AQ mail :)
This one is called "The Pirates of Teddy Bear Cove". The stamp, along with two others, was a gift to a good friend in Washington. The matching teddy bear is destined to become an LTC later today if this snow continues. Getting the twine on the sides for the frame was the most difficult. I tried 3 different attachment methods and finally had to call Marmalade for advice. Every LTCer should have a Marmalde. She is my "technical advisor". What that basically means is that when I'm banging my head against the wall trying to do something, she will tell me what I need to do, and does it without making me feel like a moron. She's a great person and my LTC's wouldn't be half as creative without her encouragement and advice. Thank you Marmalade!


This is my Nightmare Before Xmas card. The background is hand drawn. It seemed like such a simple idea, but I'll tell you what, by the time I got done making 15 of them, my hands hurt and I was DONE! The image of Jack is embossed. This stamp is destined to be a HH in its very own screaming coffin container. Look for it in a letterbox near you.

This card was made *just* before being snowed in. I made it with the ornament stamps that I put in the ornaments for the ornament exchange. The stamps should be on a letterboxer's tree somewhere :)

And that is that! Looking out my window and seeing the heavy snowfall, I'm sure there's more to come!

Arctic Blast

Monday, December 15, 2008
Hooray!
It's a snow day. As everyone knows, or should know if they just thought about it for a second, teachers love snow days. The only thing better than a snow day is a snow day just before the holiday break. An entire day to myself. I think I'll do some laundry and then make some LTC's. What a perfect day, a cup of tea and a good book. Oh the possiblities! Maybe I'll carve a new stamp or go out and play in the snow with the children. Maybe I'll add some more letterboxes to my tree, or do some baking. (Did you see that people, big ole fat hint, the 12 Days of Christmas boxes are on my Xmas tree, along with 8 other boxes.) What kind of cookies should I make? I've got everything I need to make peanut butter cookies, oatmeal raisin, sugar cookies, or gingerbread.

December 16th, 2008
Tuesday
Wow! Another snow day. What a gift from above. Today I'm going to get some great photos of the dog and kids outside in the snow. I'm going to make hot chocolate from scratch. Maybe I'll clean the kitchen before I start baking. Oh no, I'm low on sugar. I have brown sugar, but no white sugar. What can I bake today that does not use white sugar? I'm sure there's still plenty of things I can make. But I want to make fudge. It will be fine, so fudge, but I have a full day off to do with as I please. But, I really want to make fudge. No sweat, I'll go through my cookbooks to find the perfect recipe, maybe try something new. Oh look, peanut butter fudge, molasses cookies, vanilla fudge, dog biscuits, double chocolate fudge, rice krispie treats, peppermint fudge. It's a conspiracy! ACKKKKK. Breathe Melanie, breathe. It will be fine. You are snowed in and there is no way you can go and get anything. Find something else to do, it will be fine.

December 17th 2008
Wednesday
Stupid snow days. I've got presents to buy, I'm out of sugar, flour, and milk. There's nothing to bake and I want to see people. I'm done with this stupid ice and I'm sick of hearing ridicilous reporters talk about things they don't understand. Someone rescue me!

December 18th, 2008
Thursday
I'm going out and I don't care what it looks like. Woo hoo! Look at me, I'm shopping, I'm driving, I'm OUTSIDE! I think I'll deliver the Christmas presents that I should have been giving out today at school. A shopping we will go, a shopping we will go, hi ho the dairy oh, a shopping we will go!
Oh heck, more snow!

December 19th, 2008
Friday
Darn snow. I'm going back to bed.

Happy Halloween

Halloween is one of the greatest holidays. I love to take the children out trick or treating and just people watch. It fascinates me to see the different costumes, the age range of trick or treaters and to see if I can discern what trends correlate to other trends.

For example, this year there were twice as many people out trick or treating than I've seen in the 7 years we've lived in this house. I identified several variables, some of which were:

• the economy


• the weather
  
• new housing built in the area


• word of mouth advertising of the quality of hand outs in the area
  

Of these, I think the weather had the largest impact. This is the first year that it has not rained or been so cold that you couldn't see the costumes due to jackets, scarves, and gloves.

There was a huge variety in costumes, from your typical fairies and angels...

to penguins...

to Greek Goddesses. Can you name this Greek Goddess? If so, let Lady Macbeth know and she has a special stamp for you :)

I hope your Halloween was as much fun as ours!

How Time Flies

Boy does time fly when you're having fun! Back to school and my poor blog goes by the wayside. Thank goodness I have great friends like Pupp to point out to me that I'm a big slacker butt.

So what have I been up to? Work, work, and more work of course! We just finished up our weather unit in the classroom so of course we topped it off with a field trip to the pumpkin patch and the water treatment plant. We went to the COOLEST pumpkin patch in the entire world!

The first thing they showed us was how they make apple cider. It involves 14 types of apples, a giant apple bath, and a really big pressing thing. It squeezes out all of the juice and leaves what they call "apple pizza". Apple pizza is apple without any juice left. They feed it to the animals, which I think is the only thing that it is fit for.


I loved these hay bales. They were painted like various creatures and each one brought a smile to my face!

Is that a Dork peeking out from the corn? You have to watch out at pumpkin patches, you just never know what is lurking out there.

This particular pumpkin patch also have beautiful potted plants.