Geocaching...

Way back B.K. (Before Kids), when Dan and I were looking for a good excuse to get outside and walk around, we would often go geocaching. For those of you unfamiliar, it is basically like a grown-up scavenger or treasure hunt. People (anyone who wants to) hide a cache (usually containing random small trinkets and a logbook) and post the longitude and latitude on a geocaching website. Then anyone with a GPS can search for a cache - get a latitude and longitude, and off you go!

We went a couple of times when Max was a baby, but since then, it has fallen by the wayside. This weekend was full of fabulous weather, and we thought it was a good time to start up again. Dan chose a couple of local caches, we hopped in the car, and off we went.

Max, as always, was filled with questions. What were we doing? How did it work? Why did we have to take our stuff (a sheet of stickers and container of playdough) and give it away. We did our best to answer them, but the first cache hunt did a much better job.

We got as close as it looked like we could with the car, then began walking. Dan let Max hold the GPS and direct us. It only took about 4 minutes to find - a perfect, fast result for kiddos who weren't quite sold. The cache itself wasn't particularly interesting, but it was enough for Max. He couldn't wait to do the next one.

We tried 3 caches on Saturday (found 2). Both boys loved being outside - Max loved the hunt, and Luke was happy to be along for the ride. Dan and I had a good time sharing something we've enjoyed. And better yet, both boys keep asking when we can go again.


Here's a great site to check out if you are interested in giving geocaching a shot:
Geocaching.com. With over 900,000 current caches, there's sure to be one near you!