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Groundspeak’s Geocaching Block Party Encourages Play Time Outside

August 25, 2011 By 15 Comments

Any day is really a great day to get out and Geocache, but geocaching isn’t just about locating caches, there is a whole community in geocaching and in our area there are events almost every weekend such as meals – BBQs, potlucks, meet and eats; clean-up projects; and cach-aversary or holiday parties. On Saturday, August 20, 2011 my family attended Groundspeak’s Block Party (GC2FYVM) in the Fremont Neighborhood of Seattle, Washington. This is a local event for us as we live in the Seattle area which just so happens to be the home of Groundspeak.

At this event there was a scavenger hunt of tasks. We had coordinates that led us to tasks sponsored by host businesses; this year’s hosts were the community of Fremont, Theo chocolate, Evo, and Mischief Distillery. After we completed a task then we received pieces to a puzzle. When our puzzle was complete we had to bring it back to the event GZ and obtain an event trackable.

Here are some pictures of our day of fun to inspire you to play outside and geocache! You can also discover my event trackable:

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About Summer:

Summer is very active in our Local MOMS Club chapter, she is the mother of two adorable active boys, and is always thinking of ways to help others. She is a friend, a wife, and always busy as all mommies are. She is very active on Facebook, addicted to Geocaching and very interested in organic and green living while cooking up a storm.

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Night Geocaching with Coghlan’s Bug-Eye Headlight

August 10, 2011 By 16 Comments

It’s summertime and for our family this is a great time for camping and geocaching. When night falls though I have two people I need to take care of as they’re afraid of the dark – me and my 4YO. Good thing we have our Coghlan’s Bug-Eye Headlight for kids. (NOTE: I have a small head, but there was still room to be had in the adjustable band.) This is perfect for getting you around any camp site or night cache or other dark spaces.

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On a date my husband and I set out for our first night cache. I’ve wanted to do one for a long time and this one is right down the street from our house, so we finally did it. I wore the Coghlan’s Bug-Eye Headlight and then the goal is to look for reflectors like the white one on this tree trunk:

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If you’d like to find Coghlan’s online and check out the Bug-Eye Headlight for kids or other products, then check them out on their website. You can also join others like you, who are into survival and camping gear with Coghlan’s on Facebook.

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If you need one of your own, Amazon currently has only 5 Bug-Eye Headlights left with more on the way, but get it now before you’re on the wait list.

The Coghlan’s Bug-Eye Headlight for kids is also perfect for simply living in the Pacific Northwest. In the winter months the sun is not out too often. This is a great lamp to walk to school, use at the bus stop, take out the trash in the evening, walking the dog after school; you get the idea if it’s dark then Coghlan’s Bug-Eye Headlight for kids is a good thing!

We received samples for this review.

 

About Summer:

Summer is very active in our Local MOMS Club chapter, she is the mother of two adorable active boys, and is always thinking of ways to help others. She is a friend, a wife, and always busy as all mommies are. She is very active on Facebook, addicted to Geocaching and very interested in organic and green living while cooking up a storm.

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Geocaching: Refer a Friend Help Groundspeak Give to DonorsChoose.org

June 9, 2011 By 3 Comments

Louise has told you all that I’m involved with Geocaching. If you don’t know geocaching is a high-tech outdoor treasure hunting game that’s a great way to explore the world with friends, family or on your own. Participants use GPS-enabled devices to locate hidden containers called geocaches. There are over one million caches hidden internationally – so you have no excuse not to give geocahching a try because I know there’s a cache near you, just waiting to be found (visit Geocaching.com to search for geocaches near you)! As a member of Groundspeak, the organization which coordinates geocaching, I get a weekly newsletter; this week’s newsletter touched my heart and I wanted to pass it on.

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This is Karla. She is a student at a low income elementary school in Texas and is a member of Tech-Click, the school’s after-school technology club.
In 2009, Groundspeak provided 3 GPS devices to Tech-Click through DonorsChoose.org, an online charity that connects teachers with donors to fulfill classroom needs [Mom Start has written about Donor’s Choice in past posts].
These 3 GPS devices allowed Karla and others in her club to learn about latitude, longitude, spatial concepts and more. Now, you can help others like Karla learn about GPS technology. I’m doing my part by simply telling MomStart readers, my Facebook friends, and Twitter trackers about geocaching.

From June 1- 30, 2011, for each new member that is referred to Geocaching.com, Groundspeak will donate $1 to DonorsChoose.org. The more people referred, the more money Groundspeak will donate to classrooms in need — up to a total of $10,000 USD!
Check out the Groundspeak blog refer a friend to read more. It has some details such as after being referred you MUST fill out the “referred by” field on the account creation page. You also MUST log at least ONE geocache between June 1-30, 2011.
clip_image004For regular updates on the number of referrals obtained by Groundspeak, stay tuned to their blog (Latitude 47) and check out the Geocaching Facebook page.

Lastly, but not lastly, thank you for helping to provide students like Karla with the tools they need to have engaging learning experiences. So consider this your formal invitation: Summer (Username: OleksyFamily) invites you to become a Geocaching.com member. IT’S FREE (for a Basic membership)!

About Summer:

Summer is the President of our Local MOMS Club chapter, she is the mother of two adorable active boys, and is always thinking of ways to help others. She is a friend, a wife, and always busy as all mommies are. She is very active on Facebook, addicted to Geocaching and very interested in organic and green living.

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Eco Gift Idea, Give the Gift of Experience

December 3, 2010 By 2 Comments

Eco Tip number three from our friend Summer is to find gifts for your friends and family that give them an experience:

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Need a green gift that just keeps giving? Try experience gifts! Memberships to the zoo, tickets to the local performing arts theatre, season tickets to your local sports team, or joining a club such as geocaching.com to name a few. These gifts continue for an extended period of time beyond the receiving day. Most don’t require more than an envelope to wrap or you can get a reusable gift card ornament or Santa can slip it into their stocking.

I think this is a great gift idea, it gets people out of the house and active and is quite creative. You can think really far outside the box with this one. The world is at your fingertips.

If you haven’t noticed yet, we’re doing an eco tip every day. One Green tip during the holiday season of red and green for the whole month of December and all of the tips are coming from a friend of mine. Day one was Eco Advent Calendar ideas, and day two was Eco Christmas Tree tips.

About Summer:

Summer is the President of our Local MOMS Club chapter, she is the mother of two adorable active boys, and is always thinking of ways to help others. She is a friend, a wife, and always busy as all mommies are. She is very active on Facebook, addicted to Geocaching and very interested in organic and green living.

Filed Under: 2010 Gift Guide, green Tagged With: , , , ,