Bonney Lake, WSGA Campout in Enumclaw and Lindsay's Birthday Party

Friday, July 28th

We had talked with Trish earlier in the week and told her we were going to come visit from Friday to Saturday and that we had a geocaching event we wanted to go to on Saturday afternoon. She said it was going to work out perfectly because she had to work the afternoon on the Saturday.  We discussed what we were going to have for dinner when we arrived there after work.  She suggested meat and veggie kabobs, a green salad and a potato salad.  She told me to bring the green salad and drinks.  We also talked about Ben installing new smoke detectors because hers were expired and needed changed.  I also finally talked her into going to the dump, so that is what we were going to do on Saturday after breakfast.

After I got off work, I assembled an overnight bag and waited for Ben to come home so we could go.  I packed up some drinks into a small cooler and the salad making stuff.  Ben had to stay a little bit later at work than anticipated, so he didn't get home until after 5:30.  It never fails, when we have something planned, he has to stay late.  Lame.   We got him motivated to get ready to go.  He changed his clothes, got an overnight bag ready, grabbed Ticket to Ride and Pop Darts and headed out.  It was Ben's turn to drive.  We let Trish know we were on our way so she could have a good idea when to finish the food. 

We didn't hit any traffic, which was surprising for a summer Friday night and arrived at his mom's house around 7:15.  We unloaded our stuff out of the Edge, put our bags downstairs and the cooler in the kitchen.  I got out the salad stuff and assembled it in one of Trish's large bowls.  She said that the kabobs were almost done.  She said she was excited to have a chill night since the week was busy because of month's end.  We told her about our week, grabbing plates and forks, as dinner finished cooking.  

We ate our dinner outside on the deck while we enjoyed the warmth of the summer evening.  We shared stories as we ate delicious food.  Afterwards, Ben got out the Pop Darts and we taught Trish how to play.  She had a great time throwing the darts, but it did come with a learning curve.  I did not win.

I got out the new beer I bought the other day from a brewery in West Side Olympia the other day called Headless Mumby.  I enjoy the Amber Ales, so I picked up a NW Amber Lager.  I thought this one was a good one to keep in mind to have again.  We went inside to get away from the bugs and set up Ticket to Ride.  We got Amy to play the game with us even though she was reluctant to do so.  I barely lost to Ben who got points for the longest train.  

I decided that I needed a shower, so I went downstairs and turned on the shower and discovered that the shower head was leaking really bad.  It was getting all over the floor because it was spraying up and over the shower curtain and the shower curtain rod.  I tried not to get a lot of water on the floor by adjusting it.  I hustled with my shower, got dried off and put my jammies on.  I went upstairs and told Ben and Trish that the shower head was leaking, and it got all over the floor.  I told them that I tried to mop up as much water with towels as I could.  They said they would have to go to Lowe's to check out the shower head selection and change it out. 

Ben spent some time playing the old school Nintendo and was able to get a few rounds of Punch Out in before the Nintendo failed.  He tried Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and we both played that for a while until it stopped working.  It probably needs the cartridge reader replaced.  

It got to be about midnight, and it was time for bed.  We brushed our teeth, got the fan and the nightlight on and headed to bed.  Trish said she was going to get up around 9 and start breakfast. 

Saturday, July 29th

I woke up around 9ish because I had to pee really bad.  I could hear Trish upstairs getting stuff ready for breakfast. I used the restroom, washed my face and put on some flip flops and went upstairs to see if she needed help.  She had the pancakes cooking on the griddle, bacon and sausage cooking in the oven and scrambled eggs cooking up on the stove.  I helped her stir the eggs.  We chatted about random things as breakfast cooked.

As it was getting close to being done, I went downstairs to make sure Ben was up and we both yelled towards Amy's bedroom door letting her know breakfast was almost done and to get out of bed.  We got out the plates and some silverware.  Trish was on her first cup of coffee.  Ben emerged from downstairs, and Amy finally came out of her room.  We all grabbed some food and sat down at the dining room table.  Amy had some pancakes with her syrup.  I had a small glass of orange juice and everyone else had their gallons of coffee they think they needed.

We cleaned up our dishes and left them in the kitchen for Amy to take care of.  Meanwhile, we finished getting ready, Trish put the rest of the stuff she wanted to get rid of in the back of the truck and Ben started to put the smoke detectors up.  He had me help him by handing him the stuff he needed. Once we were done, he synced them and made sure they were all functioning.  He drove to Lowe's to get another shower head while Trish and I hopped in the truck and headed to the dump, which was literally a few minutes down the road.  

This time, it wasn't as busy, but we did almost get cut off by someone who had no idea how the dump worked.  We backed up in the spot the lady told us to, got out and threw the stuff in.  There is something always satisfying about throwing stuff into the dump and breaking some sort of window, mirror or glass. Trish thought that I have way too much fun at the dump.  She had no idea about all the times we went with Dad in our lifetime. From there, we drove to the parking lot of Lowe's because that's where Bonney Lake apparently recycles glass.  She pulled out tons of these little empty bottles of hemp oil she takes before she goes to bed.  She told me not to judge her and it helps her sleep.

We went home shortly after that and saw that Ben had fixed the shower head.  He also adjusted the shower curtain bar, so it was a little higher up on the wall.  Trish thanked us for helping her get that stuff done.  I told her we would help her with whatever and she just had to let us know.  She got ready to go put in a few hours of work while Ben and I got ready to go to Enumclaw for the WSGA Campout for a couple hours.

We headed out towards Buckley and saw there was an Adventure Lab, so we decided to stop at the various locations to grab the information we needed and completed the lab.  We saw that there was a bonus cache but decided to do it later if we had time.  If not, another day we were out this way.  I saw there were a bunch of new caches that published for the event and the poker run.  We were not going to do the poker run but thought we should grab some of the new ones before going to the event.  I realized I forgot a sweatshirt so I knew we couldn't stay out for a long time. 

We drove out towards Mud Mountain Road to grab Washington State Bird: Willow Goldfinch (GCABJWQ).  It was in a really weird spot.  Ben pulled over and I got out to go look for it because I thought it would be in a straightforward spot.  It wasn't.  The coords were jumping all over the place and the hint was pretty vague.  I continued looking and then Ben got out to help look.  We finally found the darn thing hidden behind a tree.  Lame.  We signed our names, got a picture, put it back and headed to the next one, just up the road. 

We followed Mud Mountain Road to the Pinnacle Peak trailhead parking.  This parking area was not here when we did the hike back in November 2012.  It was pretty nice and there were quite a few people hiking.  Washington State Dinosaur: Suciasaurus Rex (GCABYQC) was one we could literally drive up to.  Ben pulled up next to it and we were within 20 feet of the cache.  This one, was an easy park and grab.  We got our names on the logbook, noticed the envelopes with the mystery cards inside, got a picture and headed to Enumclaw. 

Ben and I haven't been to the King County Fairgrounds since we went to the Highland Games back in 2015. We pulled in and parked in one of the lots next to the RV and campgrounds.  We hung out for a few minutes until we saw someone we knew.  Ben was waiting to see Mike, because he had posted on his Facebook page if someone wanted his Seahawks preseason tickets against the Dallas Cowboys, and Ben had jumped on that opportunity.  He got four of them so he could take Kenyatta, Del and Josh on August 19th.  Kenyatta has never gone to a game and his favorite team was playing the Seahawks. So, we talked to Mike for a bit...about football, geocaching and life in general. I can't believe I've known Mike since 2011, when I went to my first event in Everett, he was one of the first people I met.

More people started to arrive after the poker run.  We headed up, signed the logbook for the event and chatted with Antoine and Nikki for a while. Then the conversation merged to the rep from south central, "French" Ben, who is a huge player in the TriCities Geocoin Challenge, and then we made our way to the tent where everyone was hanging out, getting ready for the online WSGA meeting. We ran into Annette and Dick, and I asked her for her address because I was planning on sending them out before Christmas.  She was so excited that we invited her to the wedding.  After a few hi's and bye's, we headed back to Bonney Lake to gather up our bags and such.

Trish was back after working a few hours at the dealership, so we thanked her and Amy for letting us come and visit.  We gave out some hugs and left towards home.  Ben said he was hungry but didn't want to eat at home because it was getting late.  I asked him where he wanted to go.  He said Mexican, so we got off the highway and made our way to South Hill.  We found a Mazatlan and went inside.  We were seated right away.  We both ordered a water and were given chips and salsa while our waiter grabbed our drinks.  

He came back and Ben ordered a Colorado burrito, and I got a chicken chimichanga.  I was glad we didn't have to wait a long time for our food.  We ate, paid and drove home.  There wasn't any traffic, so we made it home around 8:30 or so. It was nice to relax a bit before it was time for bed.  I did log some caches, made some notes on the day and had some popcorn.  Of course, we went to bed late.

Sunday, July 30th

We slept in, had a light breakfast and got ready for our day. Lindsay had texted me a few days ago about celebrating her 40th birthday at the end of the month. I asked her the specifics, what time, where and do I need to bring anything.  She answered all of those questions. It was going to be at 1 p.m., at Keven and Amber's house in Rainier and not to worry about bringing food because there would be plenty of it. I told her I would see her on Sunday.  

Since the Escape stopped working the week before, the battery kept disconnecting itself for some reason, so Ben had to drive us out to Rainier.  I gathered up some drinks in our little cooler. We left around 12:30, so we would be there on time.  We got into Rainier and into Keven and Amber's driveway exactly at 1.  The property and the house have changed so much since the last time I visited; I had no idea where we were supposed to park.  We just drove out where all the other vehicles were and parked.  I texted Lindsay about what time she and Justin were going to arrive.  They haven't left yet and were going to be there closer to 2.  Why did you tell us to be here at 1 then?  Ughhh.

I really didn't know Keven and Amber that well and it was going to be awkward making small talk until everyone arrived. Ben and I got out and walked up to the door.  We knocked and Amber answered the door and welcomed us in.  Then she proceeded to give us a tour of the house since it's been remodeled.  It looked completely different, and they did a lot of work to the house.  She had quite the spread of food on the counter.  She had a charcuterie board full of meats, crackers and cheeses, chips and dip, fruit and veggies, salads and other little finger foods. 

The kids got their swimming suits on and hopped in the pool that was set up in the back yard.  It was a little smaller than my grandparent's pool. Ben chatted with Keven about random guy stuff. A little while later, Lacey, Nicole and Del arrived, followed by Lindsay, Justin and Wes.  Keven was in and out of the house cooking chicken on their BBQ. Lindsay's parents arrived with Nathan, and a couple other family friends I didn't know. It was close to about 20 people or so.  We hung out and chatted for a little bit.

Keven said that the food was done and that everyone could dig in.  I didn't hesitate, I grabbed a plate and piled on the food. We all ate outside on the patio and did more chatting.  My group of friends talked about the upcoming weddings the next summer.  We found out Nicole and Del set a date for their wedding, September 21, 2024.  Next year is going to be super busy. We took a couple group pictures and then a few people had to head home. 

Amber gathered up everyone so we could sing to Lindsay and have cake.  We all gathered around the patio table and Amber brought out two different kinds of desserts from Costco.  I think one was a strawberry Tiramisu and the other one I believe had peanut butter in it.  We sang and Lindsay blew out the candles.  I decided to have a piece of the Tiramisu because I am not a huge fan of peanut butter. She opened a few gifts.  I stopped by her house the previous Tuesday and gave her the birthday present and a cupcake.  I also dressed up in a Hawaiian outfit for fun.

We thanked Keven and Amber for their hospitality and thanked Lindsay for the invite.  We told them we had a date with our neighbor, Randy, who was going to look at the Escape when he was done refereeing soccer games. They thanked us for coming.  I went inside and grabbed some more chicken to bring home with us, so I didn't have to make dinner the next night.  We drove back home.

Randy came over and he and Ben spent some time trying to figure out why the battery kept disconnecting to the Escape.  I went out there about 10 minutes later and I was very surprised the Escape was working. They asked me if I wanted to know how stupid it was, and I said sure.  Randy loosened one of the terminals a little bit and banged on the alternator.  When he did that, they heard some sort of build-up fall off of it and the Escape magically started. He had a device with him that showed if the battery was holding a charge or not, and it was.  Whatever he did made the Escape work. 

I still had some appointments with Dad's mechanic and the car dealership so I could find out what actually was happening with it.  I just had to be patient and wait for my appointments. We thanked Randy and paid him in beers. I decided I should drive it around (it had been sitting in the driveway for a week) just to get it driving around. I went over to Erika's house to drop off a couple things. I came home and we got ready for the work week and went to bed.

Next Adventure:  Stone Temple Pilots and The Smashing Pumpkins Concert at the White River Ampitheater 

Erika and Zac's Second Wedding with Family

Zac hastily proposed to Erika in March, she said yes.  We planned to have an actual wedding sometime in July, but we weren't sure where to have it.  They decided on doing it at Zac's mom's house in Vancouver but had to scratch that idea because Zac's dad wanted to come.  His parents don't like each other.  Then my friends Lindsay and Justin said that she could do it on their riverfront property, we took a trip out there, but then we had to say no to that idea as well because of Mary, Zac's disabled grandmother.  She needed an actual toilet nearby not a porta potty.  We thanked Lindsay and Justin for the suggestion. 

Then Erika got tired of renting and dealing with her landlord, so she and Zac started looking for their own place.  They found one, but it required a lot of work.  To make it easier for the home buying process they got married at the courthouse on June 10th, she asked Ben and I to be the witnesses.  Afterwards, they were able to purchase a house with her VA loan.

Our family helped them move in before the 4th of July and it was a lot of hard work spanning several days.  They were glad to be away from their rental and that location out in Hawks Prairie. 

Then literally a week and a half before the second wedding, Erika decided to start planning the 25-person wedding in like four days because Zac couldn't decide on anything.  Erika told us that Mary wasn't coming after all, ughh.  The week of July 17th was a very busy one.  Mom and I did most of it.

Two Thursday's before I had an idea that we could have the ceremony at Rainier Vista Park, the park that is literally next to my neighborhood.  Everyone, except Zac's family knew where it was. Erika made online invitations and sent them out to everyone that was on her short list.  I went and looked at possible areas of the park to have the quick ceremony at.  I sent Mom pictures.  

Friday, the next day, I didn't want to work that hard trying to find chairs, plus none of ours matched and would look like a yard sale, so I drove into Lacey and stopped at the Celebrations place to see what kind of chairs they had available and if I could rent them for fairly cheap. I chatted with Mom and ended up reserving 30 of them.  We would pick them up on Friday morning and take them back Monday at lunch time.   

The weekend before Erika and Mom looked for dresses in Centralia and ended up getting a wedding dress and a nice blue dress for Mom.  Erika used her tax return to purchase them.  It works out great because now Mom has a dress to wear for my wedding next summer.  

We asked Josh if he and Ben would make the food on the grill, and they said they would.  Erika said she would pay them in beer.  Mom got a hold of Taya and she said she would take photos for us at the ceremony and the reception. 

On Monday, I drove into Yelm to meet up with Mom at the office so we could go over to Taya's house to go through her wedding decorations from their wedding they had in May. She basically made us take all of it.  Some of it we could use and some of it we weren't going to be able to.  We packed it up into my Escape and I drove it home to go through. We plan on keeping it in the garage when we were done and finding someone to donate it to.

We contacted Aunt Janet to ask if we could go through some of her decorations and she told us we could come over and visit on that Tuesday.  I haven't seen Janet in a while because I know she's been busy trying to navigate life without Manley.  She has been busy going through everything they own, getting ready for a huge estate sale and we got to meet her little dog, Buddy.  We went through several outbuildings but didn't find an arch or any other things we could use except a few fake flowers we could use to drape.  We were over there for a while.  She gave me some signs to have that used to be Manley's.  She didn't want anything for them except hugs, so I gave her some hugs.  We thanked Janet for having us over.

We were running out of time to find an arch, so Mom bought a small one from Amazon and we really hoped that it got here before Saturday.  She also ordered some purple bows to go on the back of the chairs.

After Mom got off work on Wednesday, she drove out to my house, and we hit up a few stores.  Fred Meyer was having a sale, so I ended up with a brown belt, brown flip flops, a new swimming suit and a few other things.  The belt and shoes were for the sage summer dress I bought a couple weeks prior at TJ Max.  We went to the Dollar Store to get a few decorations and to Michaels to get some more drapey flowers, safety pins and wire.  Mom had an idea of what she wanted the arch to look like.

Mom met me at my house again on Thursday.  We drove over to Erika's house to pick her up so we could go to Costco and Walmart to purchase the food for the reception.  We basically just did burgers, hotdogs, chips, potato salad, fruit, the condiments, buns and veggies.  Erika didn't seem to thrilled about anything but I think she was just tired of Zac not making decisions.  We took everything back to her house including the stuff we borrowed from Kallie.  Erika's office was covered in wedding decorations, containers, plates, cups and non-perishable food.

We all had Friday off so we could focus on getting Erika and Zac's yard and house ready for the event the next day.  Doug and I picked up the chairs from Celebration's and put them in my living room so we could continue using the truck.  We packed up the BBQ from the back yard and took it with us back to her house.  Once at the house, Sonya met us there and we spent some time cleaning up the yard, the bathrooms, putting stuff away, filling in holes and preparing some of the food in advance like the potato salad.  This was the first time everyone collectively met Sonya for the first time.  That afternoon, Mom and Erika drove into Centralia to pick up the dress, I went to Party City for a cake topper and Hobby Lobby for some lavender table covers.  Doug, Dad, Ben and Zac took a trip to the dump and Silver Springs to drop off branches and yard debris. 

Somehow Mom found an arch through Rhonda.  Her son Josh had a friend named Steve who lived in Rainier and said they would deliver it after they got off work.  Mom and I went back to my house to go through decorations and wait for the arch to arrive.  I packed up my two folding tables and a canopy we borrowed from our Rhonda, across the street, and delivered those to Erika's house.  I wanted to make sure everything we needed to get done that day, got done.  We knew the next day was going to be even busier and we were on a time limit. 

Saturday morning, we all got up early.  Mom drove out to Yelm to grab the cake and bouquet at Safeway.  Doug and Ben helped me get the arch and chairs to the park.  We did not realize that the entire park was filled with vehicles for pickleball, soccer and other activities for the day.  There was no parking at all.  Rhonda tried meeting me at the park to start decorating the arch and I had to tell her to park on the backside of the park.  I took Doug, Ben and Grandma Karen with me so we could clean up the area a little bit.  There was a bit of trash, sticks and lots of goose poop.  We did the best we could to make it look good.  Someone or something had ruined the cattails in the background of the willow tree we were going to use.  It was not like that earlier that week so it must have just happened. We got the chairs all set up, got the bows on them and Mom arrived to get the arch put together.  I took Grandma, Ben and Doug back to the house so they could get ready.  I drove back to the park to help Mom and Rhonda.  I got the table set up for the guest book with a couple pens and a vase with lavender to make it look like we were having a wedding. 

Erika and Zac were supposed to be ready at 10 a.m. so Taya could start taking pictures, but they were very late.  Zac didn't really want to cooperate.  Mom had to apologize to Taya.  Once we got everything looking good, I went home to go change into my dress I bought two weeks ago at TJ Max, I threw on my belt, my brown flip flops and did my hair and make-up.  I am not a hairdresser nor am I a make-up artist.  I did the best I could.  Once we were all done, I took a bunch of people to the park and dropped them off.  Erika, Zac and Zac's family finally got to the park.  Luckily, some of the park goers started leaving so there were parking spots now. 

Taya immediately started taking pictures since they were late.  She spent about 45 minutes taking pictures of the different family groups. 

I spoke to Erika on how she wanted to walk in and so I arranged with Dad how that was going to work. Shane, Zac's brother was the officiant, since Zac was his officiant at his wedding back in 2020.  Yes, he wore the same robe Zac wore at his.  It was almost time to go as it was nearly noon.  I asked everyone if we were ready to go and everyone said yes.  Zac's dad was in the back row videoing and taking pictures.

I sat in the front next to where Dad was going to sit and a photo of our grandparents who couldn't be there. They would have loved this little wedding.  

For some reason the speaker I brought with me didn't work so we just had to use Ben's phone.  Dad walked Erika down the aisle and handed her off to Zac.  It was such an awkward wedding.  Shane gave his speech; Zac said a few words and so did Erika.  They traded their rings, they kissed and the wedding we've been planning for several weeks was over in about a half hour.  I can see why you pay someone else to do this part in a much bigger wedding.

Ben and Josh left to go start the food at Zac and Erika's house.  I thanked everyone for coming out and reminded them they were invited for the reception.  We cleaned up the area, took the chairs and arch back up to the road and Doug rumbled up with the truck.  We loaded them up and I went to go get the Escape so I could take people back to my house.  I did it in two loads.  I helped Doug take the arch out of the back of the truck.  He took the chairs over to Erika's.

I got changed, some people hopped into the Escape with me, and we headed over to Zac and Erika's house.  When we got there, we immediately started getting the tables and chairs ready, got the tablecloths on them, finished getting the food all cut up and placed on the island.  I got the present table ready; we opened all the cups, plates and silverware (I had purchased a sage and a lavender set from Michaels and Party City), and Ben and Josh got the BBQ and grill going. Many hands made light work during that first half hour of the reception. Taya took pictures of just about everything. 

It soon calmed down a bit and the burgers and hotdogs were just about done when we told everyone that food was ready and to come inside and grab a plate.  I went through the line and grabbed a burger, the fixings, some potato salad, chips, fruit and headed out to the tables in the front yard to eat and visit with everyone.  I was pretty hungry since I really didn't have time to eat earlier that morning with everything going on. 

After we were done eating, we all went inside to watch Erika and Zac cut their small wedding cake.  Grandma Karen made Zac an apple pie because he really isn't into cake as much as Erika is.  I even brought over some sparkling cider, but we didn't end up getting to that.  The people who wanted cake got cake and the people who wanted pie got pie. 

We went back out to the tables and Erika and Zac opened their wedding gifts and cards.  They thanked everyone for coming and for the gifts.  At that point, everyone started thinking about heading home.  

We got all the tables, chairs, leftover food, the BBQ, the grill and some of the stuff we borrowed from other people packed up in the appropriate vehicles. I took a few people with me in the Escape and headed home.  Once we got back to the house, we brought in the stuff from the back of my Escape, Ben's Edge, the BBQ in the truck and stuff from Mom's Expedition and put it away.  Trish, Ed and Amy headed back to Bonney Lake and Grandma also went home. Mom hung out for a little bit and told me the plan for the arch.  She was going to meet me in Rainier once we got a hold of Josh and got the address to Steve's house. 

It was a lot of work, time, effort and energy but we got it done.  I am not sure if they appreciated what we did for them, but it was the thought that counted...and everyone's family got to be a part of it.   

Next Adventure:  Bonney Lake, WSGA Campout in Enumclaw and Lindsay's Birthday Party

Trish's Backyard Family Bash!

Every few years Trish's family comes up from Texas to visit.  The last couple times it's just been her sister Becky but this year everyone came.  Even the elusive Becca and her boyfriend Greg from Louisiana that I've been sending a Christmas card to every year.  She was so excited to meet the famous Val.

I had talked to Trish for weeks about the planning of this back yard family bash after we found out when everyone was going to be in Washington.  I told her that we couldn't come up until Sunday because Ben was on call at JBLM.  She was disappointed to hear that, but we were all hoping he didn't have to come in.  We were planning to drive separate just in case.  She asked me to bring an extra table, a few chairs, the banana bread, mac n cheese, ice, beans, ice cream, sugar cones, lemonade and the beverage dispenser.  I made sure I had all of that loaded into the Escape.

That morning, we slept in a little bit and then started to get ready slowly.  I had Ben help me get the table and chairs into the Escape, we ate a small breakfast and I got everything for the mac n cheese out.  I had planned on making a baked mac n cheese, but I ruined the roux.  It seized up on me.  I was frustrated and just decided to make a pot of noodles, cheese, butter and milk and hoped that it turned out.  I gave Ben a spoonful and he said it was good. 

As we got everything ready to go, Ben got a phone call from JBLM and had to go in.  Are you serious?  They don't call you yesterday when you weren't doing anything and now you have to go in because we have something planned.  Typical. I let Trish know that Ben will be joining us after he was done with whatever issue he had to go fix.  We were hoping it was quick, so he didn't have to waste his day. 

He headed out about the same time I did, after we put the food and other random things into the Escape.  I wasn't sure how long it was going to take me to get to Bonney Lake, but I had to be there around 1.  I was really hoping traffic didn't suck.

I got on the freeway and let Trish know I was on my way.  She told me she would see me in a bit.  Luckily, traffic wasn't terrible.  I actually made pretty good time until I got to Bonney Lake.  I think I had to stop at every single light until I got to the turn off, I wanted.  I rolled into the neighborhood just after noon.  There were a lot of vehicles parked in the driveway, so I had to figure out where I was going to park and bring stuff in.

I took the folding table and all the chairs around to the back yard with Amy's help, and then started bringing the food in.  The first time I went inside Becca literally yelled from across the room, "VAL'S HERE!"  She ran over to me from across the room and gave me a giant hug.  Mind you, I've never met or talked to this person before in my life.  From there, I met Ethan, Michelle, Matthew, Evan, Jadan and Greg.        

I helped Trish with the rest of the food preparations, I put the ice cream in the freezer, made the lemonade and kept the mac n cheese warm in the oven.  She got the grill going for burgers, I started the beans, we had to keep Amy and Ed out of the potato chips, or they would all get eaten before the food was done.  Jean was out on the deck with Becca, Becky and Michelle visiting.  

I found out we were also celebrating Evan's birthday that day.  He was turning 6, so there were decorations all over the dining room.  Trish said that she bought the wrong decorations and had to go to the Dollar Tree to get different ones.  Trish also said never to bring Becca shopping with you because she has no quiet button and will embarrass you in public.  We all laughed at her story.  Trish also added that she took Becca and Greg to the weed store in Buckley, and they bought a giant container of weed to go through while they were here.  Since they were from Louisiana, they don't sell recreational weed to the public like we do here.

As the food was getting done, we finished cutting up lettuce, tomatoes and onions and putting all the food on the table in an orderly fashion.  Trish ended up putting the extra leaf in the table for a bigger table with more room.  I rarely see the table that wide, but it was necessary for the amount of people that were over.  I think this is also the most people I've ever seen at Trish's house since I've been coming around.  Ben texted me that he was on his way to Bonney Lake and that the call he had to go on took way longer than it should have.  I told him to be safe and we would see him when he got there.

A little bit later, Trish announced to everyone who all wanted cheese on their burger.  Most everyone told her yes.  I helped her get the cheese ready as she was putting the last few coats of BBQ sauce on the burgers.  We let everyone know that the food was almost ready as we finished up everything.  Ben showed up just as everyone was grabbing food.  Everyone sat outside and ate except for Amy.  We weren't sure why. Ben and I spent most of our time talking to Ethan. He was an interesting kid.

After we were done eating, we played a couple of card, dice and board games...I even got everyone to play a "tournament" of marbles. Ed really hated losing at that. Trish had bought a small kiddie pool for Evan and Jaden to wade in for a little while.  I helped Trish put some stuff away to make room for a birthday party.  We got everything all situated, sang and he blew out his candles.  Trish served a piece of cake and an ice cream cone to everyone who wanted one.  

A little while later you could tell the little kids needed a nap.  Evan started acting up because his mom wouldn't let him pile rocks in Trish's lawn.  He pouted for a while.  We spent some more of our afternoon sharing stories, visiting and playing games outside. It was fun learning about people we've only had a Christmas card relationship with. 

As it approached the evening, we helped Trish put the food away, the decorations and got the dining room in some sort of order, it was almost time for us to go home as well.  Of course, when you're getting ready to go and have all the intentions of leaving, you get pulled in to talk some more.  There were a bunch of pictures taken, hugs, people taking stuff out to their vehicles. etc.   

We thanked Trish for hosting a great back yard party.  You could tell she was tired but had a great time being able to hang out with family on her deck.  She thanked me for bringing the extra tables and chairs, the food and the help.  I told her anytime.  

I gathered up the rest of our stuff and made sure it got in the Escape or the Edge.  Ben left and I stayed longer than I wanted talking to Becca out in the driveway until about 10:15. Becca loves to talk!  I told her I had to go because we worked the next day.  She thanked me for a great time, and she said it was great to finally meet me.  I told her likewise.  She said she will see us at our wedding!  I told her she sure will!

I got out of Bonney Lake and Puyallup and onto the I-5 in Tacoma. I still had to go check on Alicia's dogs, so I called Ben and told him what I was doing.  He said to be safe.  I let her dogs out, gave them some treats and put them back into the garage.  Alicia was supposed to come home the next day fairly early.  I didn't get home until almost 11:30. I got in a quick shower, and then went to bed since we had to work in the morning.  Wow, what a day!

Next Adventure:  Erika and Zacs Second Wedding with Family

A Belated Birthday Geocaching Experience for Bev with a Trip to Papa Pete's

Ben and I were invited to Bev's birthday party at El Sarape on Martin Way on July 5th with their family.  It was nice to be included for her 80th birthday since it was a huge milestone.  I can't believe she and Bob are 80!  Some people don't get to celebrate 80.  It was a nice gathering and as always, good food.  

I told Bev that I would come up with a Saturday where I would take her geocaching and to Papa Pete's as my birthday present.  My July was getting full, but I managed to find an available day.  I asked her if July 15th would work, and she said yes.  I started planning and writing down which geocaches and Adventure Labs to get as we make our way down the I-5 corridor towards Castle Rock. I didn't realize that when I picked that date that it coincided with the Seattle to Portland bike ride.  Whoops!

I made sure I had everything ready and packed up the night before in my orange backpack, including snacks, paper, pens, and other odds and ends I bring with me for an all-day outing.  I told her I would be there around 8:30 and to be ready by then.  She agreed and was looking forward to it. 

I woke up around 7:45 and got ready.  Ben was on call at JBLM and couldn't go with us. Doug offered, later on that day, to go to the dump since our cans were full.  I put some water, ice and other drinks into one of my small coolers and told everyone I would see them later.  Ben told me to have fun.  I drove into Rainier and was late getting to her house by a few minutes.  I had to follow a slow porta potty truck with no opportunities to pass it.  She tossed her stuff into the back and off we went!

We got onto Hwy 507 and made our way through Tenino, Bev said that Sami was working the farmer's market and when we drove by, we tried spotting her.  It was still early enough that we were not going to encounter bicycles from the STP until later on that afternoon. We made our way to I-5, hopped on and drove south.  I had our first stop of the day ready to go on my phone.  Bev already had Home of the Happy Ending (GCA4RG9) but I wanted to grab it really quick while we were in Centralia.  It was in a bush in someone's front yard.  A lady came out but didn't say anything to us.  I write my name on it quickly and stuck it back where I found it. 

We drove back across town, under I-5 on Harrison, and drove behind the outlet stores to grab Freckled King II (GCA8NP5).  We had to read the hint, so we didn't end up down the embankment.  It was easy to spot once you were in the correct place to see it.  Bev spotted it before I did and was glad we didn't have to walk down the hill.  

We drove through downtown Centralia and followed the road, past the fairgrounds into Chehalis to do the five waypoint Adventure Lab in the downtown area.  We found a free parking spot on the street and walked around to the various location to grab answers off of a set of murals and plaques.  We had a great time walking around and taking pictures.  Once we got them all, we assembled the numbers we retrieved off of the journal pages to find out where the bonus cache was.  It was all the way over on the other side of I-5 near the airport.  I asked Bev if that is one, we should do on the way back and she said sure.  We kept that one on our list.   

We plugged the next one into Nuvi and followed it to the next cache, This Old Stairway (GCAA9BB), which was on the really tiny, one-way road, north of Washington Avenue.  We had to awkwardly park on the street, but we knew we weren't going to be there that long, so we took the risk.  Bev didn't want to walk down the stairs, so I went down.  The coords led me astray for a while, but I eventually figured out where the cache was supposed to be and pulled it out from its hiding spot.  I got our names on it, a photo and put it back.  We walked back to the Escape.  

We set the Nuvi to the next cache, but first we stopped at the Rite Aid down the street to use the restroom.  Mom called me to ask some questions and to tell me about Erika's cake and bouquet for the wedding next Saturday.  She and Erika were in Centralia checking on wedding dresses.  She said that she was going to send pictures of some dresses and I was supposed to give my opinion on them.  I told her okay.

Bev and I started seeing STP riders. 

Ashely and Dan (GCA65A3) was down an alley way, off of McFadden Avenue, through the residential area of Chehalis.  We parked and walked down the small alley to someone's side yard.  There was a bunch of pets buried in their "graveyard", we found the cache, it had an unopened Covid test inside of it and we listened to a guy yell at his dog for barking.  We signed the log, put it back and walked back to the Escape.  We made our way to 13th Street.

We got on I-5 off of 13th Street and had to watch out for STP bikers.  I had the GPS set for I'm Rooting For You (GC9W16Y) in Winlock.  We got onto the freeway and headed south to the Winlock exit. 

For some reason the Nuvi tried to lead us astray but found our baring and figured out where we actually had to go.  The coords redirected themselves to Winolequa Park, a place we've been to before in the past to grab caches.  They've since been archived but there was a new one, we needed to grab.  We parked in the lot, noticed there were a bunch of people camping at the park, which on the sign coming in, says no camping allowed, but maybe making an exception for STP'ers and their families.  We were just speculating because we didn't know.  

We walked down to the Olequa Creek on the small dirt trail.  It was getting hot, so it was nice to be down by the water for a few minutes. The coords bounced around and our signal was kind of weak.  I checked most of the tree roots and then found the tree roots that it was hidden inside of. We signed our names and walked back up the hill to the Escape.  I had to keep in mind that Bev is not an off-road vehicle, so we went slow.

I put the next set of coordinates into the Nuvi and down the road to Vader we went!  We were led astray once again by the Nuvi.  It thought we could go through someone's private driveway to get to the cache.  We did figure it out and found the correct road to McMurphy Park, a place I have been to in the past for other caches. 

We drove into the park and followed the circular dirt road towards the river.  We parked and followed our phones to the correct location to find, Blow Me 2 (GC9XRHD).  It was a square container inside of a rotted tree.  I could see this one disappearing by muggles or when the river swells in the winter and spring. I took a picture of the little falls as we left. 

We back tracked a little bit so we could drive out towards Ryderwood to pick up Little Falls Cemetery (GCVZHJ).  We drove in and had the place to ourselves.  We parked the car near the little building and walked the rest of the 100 feet to the cache.  We made this cache harder than it needed to be because we looked too much into the hint and what everyone else said in their logs.  I literally went to the tree I thought it was at the entire time and found it.  I felt dumb after we found it.  We signed it, put it back and walked back to the Escape.  We left the cemetery and drove back towards I-5 to get on the freeway to head south to Castle Rock.

We put Twinkle Toes (GCA5JZ1) onto the Nuvi and she took us the most roundabout way possible to the cache once we were off I-5.  We parked near the beginning to a newer neighborhood, got out and pulled it out of the guardrail.  It was a handful of objects such as a baby, a shoe and a flower, stuck on a bison tube.  We got our names on it and put it back.  It was hot outside.

We hopped back into the Escape and followed Powell Road over I-5, took a left onto Dougherty Road and stopped at Batman & Robin - Where Are You? (GCA5JZ0) in the middle of a guardrail on a side road.  We thought it was an odd place along the guardrail to hide a cache.  We signed our names and put it back.  I was glad no cars came down that road while we looked.  

We drove up the side road that paralleled I-5 and back into Castle Rock and finally to Papa Pete's.  We were both excited to be there because it's been a while since our last visit. We went in and ordered a family sized pepperoni pizza and olives.  We had to sit and hang out for 40 minutes but that was okay.  We washed our hands, talked about which other caches we wanted to get and hung out.  My name was finally called, and we chowed down.  I had about four pieces and Bev had three and a half-ish.  I got a box to take our leftovers in, used the restroom one more time and headed out to grab a few more caches.

We followed the side road south towards Longview.  We stopped and was led astray by the Nuvi once again while driving to Gimme a Cache #3.1 (GC8RNGJ) which was hidden near a power box on the side of the road, covered with rocks.  I retrieved it and brought it to Bev, who was sitting in the car, keeping cool with Big Bird.

Gimme a cache #4.1 (GC8RNQ2), was the next one up the road.  I parked in a pullout and Bev wanted to stay in the Escape, which was fine.  I walked to where the coords were taking me and could not find anything at the posted coords.  I wandered around the side of the road for several minutes.  I just could not find the darn thing.  I read that the coords were way off, on the wrong side of the road and was hard to find.  I managed to figure it out off of a photo a past cacher had posted to their log.  As you can tell, I really hate logging DNF's. I was not going to leave this area empty handed.  I hopped back in the Escape with Bev and told her that one was really hard to find and explained the process in which I found it. Glad to have that one off of the list.   The next one, Gimme a Cache 5 (GCA5JZ7) quick park and grab by a guard rail.

We went as south as we could and started making our way back to Castle Rock.  We saw we didn't have one outside of Castle Rock near the southern end of town. Jabberwocky. JabberRocky? (GC8RNQH) was near a small park near the Cowlitz River.  I parked as close as I could because there was another car in front of us very close to where the coords were pointing me. I got out and really couldn't look without being super obvious.  I ended up just telling them what I was doing so it wouldn't be as awkward. They thought it was interesting when I pulled it out from the hidey hole of the large rock. I showed it to them, and they looked at it like they were intrigued by it. They thanked me for the information and got back in their car.  I logged our names on it and put it back.  Bev asked me when I got into the Escape about those people.  I told her that I had to explain to them what geocaching was.

 We drove into Castle Rock and had to wait to cross the bridge because of construction.  The last time we were here I said that this bridge needed some serious work done to it.  I was glad they were finally fixing it but wasn't glad to wait for the light to turn green so we could cross.  Once we got to, we turned right onto the Westside Highway and started making our way north.  We had to dodge STP'ers since we were seeing them more and more as it got later into the day.  We took a side road to grab two caches, one of them Bev already had. 

We stopped to grab ET (GC1N1FR).  This was one Bev already had so she sat in the Escape while I went into the Henson's yard to grab it.  It was one of those orange cylindrical plastic protector you would put over exposed telecommunication wires.  I have found a couple like these over the years. I got my name on it, put it back and joined back up with Bev in the Escape. 

Just down the road was our next one, Bird Droppings (GC9BWHF) and that one had several favorite points, so we knew it was going to be a good one.  Bev decided to stay in the Escape again, so I hopped out and found this bird house.  I wasn't sure what to do with it at first but after a few seconds of inspecting how it was done, I figured it out, turned the knobs and strigs attached to it, lowered the bottom of the bird house so I could grab the container.  Pretty cool cache!  

I asked Bev if she wanted to go into Toledo to do an Adventure Lab - Toledo Art and she said sure.  We drove back up to Vader, looking at all the groups of STP bikers, crossed over I-5 and onto the east side of the freeway into Toledo.  We opened up the Adventure Lab to see where all of the waypoints were.  Most of them were in the downtown area.  

We parked along the street and did the first three and then had to find a bathroom.  There was an art shop open, and the lady came out to ask what we were doing, because it looked like we were looking for something, and we told her what we were doing.  She was interested and asked us more.  Bev asked if she could use the restroom while I continued talking to the lady.  She used to be a teacher in the Toledo School District.  We thanked her for her kindness and walked across the street to find our fourth waypoint. We finished off the Adventure Lab as we headed out of town at the water tower.

We got back onto I-5 and headed north.  I had Bonus Cache - Unusual History of Chehalis (GCA9N0V) on the Nuvi.  We got off I-5 at the Adna/PeEll exit and drove to where the coords took us.  We had to watch out for STP bikes again.  We got onto Airport Road and managed to find a break in the bicycles for me to pull over and grab the cache out of the guardrail.  It had a little alien on it. We signed our names, got a quick picture and I ran out and put it back before the bikes came.  I asked Bev if she had time for one more.  She said yes.

We drove further up Airport Road and found a place to pull over.  There were a bunch of bikes we had to watch out for. Majestic Cedar - An Airport TB Hotel (GCAA9V4) was hidden inside the tree.  I thought the container was going to be bigger when I spotted it.  It was hanging off of one of the limbs from inside the tree.  I grabbed it and brought it out so Bev could see it, plus she had the pen.  We signed our names and took a selfie to commemorate our last cache of the day. 

We drove back to Rainier, dropped off Bev, stayed for a few minutes, she gave me some raspberries, strawberries, salmon and halibut to take home.  I planned on making some pies, desserts and hopefully some fish and chips with it when I had time. I thanked her for the food. 

I drove over to Mom and Dad's house to fill up water jugs.  Mom and Erika came home from dress shopping in Centralia and actually found a dress to wear.  Erika also bought Mom a dress she can wear both to Erika and my wedding next summer.  Mom showed me her dress.  There are lots of things to do over the next few months.  I drove into town and decided to stop at Erika's house for a few minutes to drop off some stuff and see her dress she bought. I then went over to Alicia's house to check on her dogs while she was away and then finally went home.  Ben made chicken teriyaki and rice for dinner.  I logged my caches, made banana bread and got the stuff together for a visit to his mom's party the next day. 

I got in a shower and Ben and I went to bed too late which is easy to do in the summer time.

Next Adventure:  Trish's Backyard Family Bash!