Last Days of Summer Linky

Our summer is quickly coming to close.  I know many are back to school but not us yet. I have lost the will to post any links.  So all you get is some videos.  Enjoy!

Going Ape

Standing by the Going Ape Sculpture

Going Ape is a Mega Geocaching Event held in August every year at Iron Horse State Park - Hyak. This was our first time attending. Description below of the event

The APE is found in the rugged, snow-capped Cascade Mountains, just a short drive from Seattle, where you can walk through the spooky 2-mile-long Tunnel of Light, find one of the oldest caches in Washington, and visit the APE tribute cache. Plus, we hear that Sasquatch and Fen Dweller have been sighted in the area - so watch out!

We only walked the tunnel and went on top.  We did not make it all the way to the tribute cache.  The Snoqualmie Tunnel is 2.3 miles long and we walked it to the end and back.  It felt wonderful on a hot day. We did find the Fen Dweller in the tunnel. The tunnel was quite busy with bikes and hikers. This is totally the year of the rail trail.

Hubby and I after walking one way through the tunnel

We also got a chance to hike to the top of the tunnel entry.  I wish I had gotten a picture of people on the top. 

Boys on Top of Tunnel

We also had the opportunity to do a lot of lab caches.  Theses are special caches.  One of the lab caches was a lock pick cache.  All the boys managed to pick the lock.

We turned in our Ape Tag for a Glow in the Dark Special Edition Ape Coin.  Check out Spotting Ape to see how we found our tag.

Linky Love

 Summer is winding down for some of us.  These are some interesting videos and links I found this week.



New Edible Park Opens in West Seattle

Michael Bennett setting up Book Club for Seattle Seahawks - I think this is really cool.  I am already a big Michael Bennett fan.  Apparently the first book they are going to read is Outliers.

Very Large Herd of Mountain Goats Gathers Near Mt Baker - Mt Baker is in Washington State  and I can see this large mountain from my house.

T-Shirts with a Message - #10

In honor of Value Village's 99 cent t-shirt sale, that is happening today.  I thought I would do a round of T-shirt humor.  As long time readers know, I love a t-shirt with a slightly inappropriate saying or picture.  My form of entertainment is to go to Value Village and browse the t-shirt section for gems. Here a few I found earlier this summer.

What I Read August

Summer brings many things.  I like to read a bit lighter during the summer. Check out what everyone is reading at Modern Mrs Darcy's Quick Lit Link Up.

My parents left me two David Baldacci books.  I read The Simple Truth on a road trip.  It was the perfect book for that kind of adventure.  This legal thriller involves the highest court land, the Supreme Court and a death row inmate.

This book has a few miles on it after
traveling with my parents and then me.

Hammer Head: A Making of a Carpenter by Nina MacLaughlin  I picked up on a whim.  It is about a journalist that changes careers to become employed as a carpenters assistant.

Nina decided she was tired of clicking on things for a living. By clicking things, I mean computer work. I can relate to that.  I have this need to create something physical. Overall, this started out a bit clunky to me.  It was written in a similar style as Dirt Work.  They both broke down the chapters based on the tools they used. I am not sure I like this as a literary device.  I am of the camp just tell me the story and less about educating me on the different tools. Nina has an interesting woman mentor, Mary, and I loved when she talked about all the different jobs they did.  So if you want to indulge your inner Nicole Curtis or hammer holding blog goddess Ana White, check this one out.

Linky

Tired of the Olympics and Back to School Shopping.  Here are some links for your enjoyment.



Maybe We Should Stop Entertaining Our Kids So Much

5 Ways to Simplify Summer - I know some have headed back to school but  a select few of us are still rocking summer.

The New Psychiatry: Forget Everything That You Ever Knew About Mental Health - This article is a bit skewed in my opinion but I keep running into this argument.  There is some valid points in the midst of all the rest.  Take this one with a grain of salt.

You have to watch the design reveal for Emily Henderson's  Nanny.  This is so sweet.

What Normal Look Likes

Cleaning Secrets of Hotel Maids

Transition - What NOW

I have been documenting my son's transition from high school to the real world.  
Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4

Have you ever felt limbo?  Well, I think that is what this "in between" is what my kid is feeling.  He applied to DVR  and the school transition program doesn't start until this fall.  My kid wants to work. I love that!

I am going to go dark on the transition subject.  My son turned 18 so this is totally "his story" now. There is a lot I would like to share but I want to preserve at least a bit of my son's privacy on this blog.

HOWEVER, I still plan on sharing all the interesting autism/mental health links I come across. I am always open for questions on autism, transition and mental health in the comment section.

Interesting Linky's

Why ADHD Kids Say I DON"T KNOW

Do Alternative Treatments for Autism Work?

Autism 205 - Understanding the Developmental Disability Administration (DDA):New Pathways to  Future - This was really helpful to me understanding the DDA and their services.  It is complicated. This is specific to Washington State.

Rebecca Burgess' Comic Redesigns Autism Spectrum to Crush Stereotypes

Diagnosing Depression in those with Autism I wish I had knew about this earlier.  This article does a really good job of discussing this.

US Dept of Education Releases Guidance to Schools on Ensuring Equity and Providing Behavioral Supports to Students with Disabilities -  As I have said from the beginning, all students can benefit from positive behavioral supports and social skill training.

Shocking New Role Found for Immune System: Controlling Social Interactions - I am interested to see some more research on this.  It is really intriguing.

Trash Can Potato Harvest

Well, this is the smallest potato harvest I have from my trash can growing container. More details about growing potatoes in a garbage can here.This year I did reds and purple potatoes.  It was my first time doing purple potatoes.They are pretty awesome.

really purple inside.

I turned my harvest into roasted potatoes with sausage. YUM!

It is so pretty.

All Things Podcast Related

I am loving podcasts.  I enjoy them immensely so I thought I would share some stuff about podcasts. Stuff I love and stuff to check out.

PODCASTS YOU SHOULD CHECK OUT

5 recent podcast episodes I loved

How to listen to podcasts on your smart phone

15 Funny Podcast for Parents to Enjoy by the Pool

I really enjoyed the Lazy Genius -   Episode 9: Soul Whispering Boss Lady - This is with Emily Freeman " Chatting at Sky"  talked about the creative process .  I found it super interesting.  Loved the concept of "Choosing Absence" which also includes "Choosing Your Presence"

Raising Men: What Navy Seals Teach Their Sons First off, I have no idea how I found this particular podcast.  It is actually on the blog The Art of Manliness.  I think this podcast could apply to all parents and to sons and daughter.  In fact, they talk about daughters at the beginning. Eric Davis is an author and retired Navy SEAL.

The Demise of the 27 cent bookcase

Way back in 2008, I purchased this lovely mint green bookcase thing for 27 cents.  It had obviously been storage in someone's garage.  I cleaned it up and repainted it and the bookcase became part of my son's retro vintage military room.  

The bookcase is extremely heavy and large.  So to make way for a bigger bed in my son's room, the bookcase had to go. The easiest way to accomplish this was to take it apart.  Of course, my husband and son were all for taking it apart.

I think we got our money's worth!

Olympic Linky

Ok, I am big gymnastic fan.  I loved this promo for gymnastics. 

10 Career Lessons You Learn From Competitive Swimming

17 Photos That Prove That Synchronized Swimming is Kind of Insane

Garnet Ghost Town

On our road trip, we had a chance to visit Garnet Ghost Town. This well preserved gold mining town is set 11 miles off the road.  We had a chance to visit. We stopped at the many pullouts along the road with historical information.  We stopped to visit these miners graves and pay our respects. There is also a geocache here.

My favorite building was the hotel.  It must of been pretty grand in its time.

Of course, no stop would be complete without a pose with a honeypot.  This was a deluxe 2 seater to boot.

Happy Birthday to C and C

This is one of my most favorite pictures that I have of my Mom and my oldest Son.  Today is my Mom's birthday and tomorrow is my son's 18th birthday.  Interesting fact:  My mom had only girls and only has grandson's

HAPPY HAPPY BIRTHDAY

to you both !!!

What I Learned July

SINGLE PARENTING

My husband was gone about 4 weeks between June and July.  I don't enjoy parenting alone.  It is HARD even though my kids are teenagers.  I found myself frequently at the end of my rope and my kids behaved pretty decently.  Parenting is WORK and two male teenagers equal gross. I love them though.

BOOMER PHELPS

Did you know Michael Phelps, Olympic swimmer, has a baby and he has his own Instagram account(@boomerrphelps)? You so got to check it out.  It is so sweet.

MONTANA HAS 130 LICENSE PLATE OPTIONS

We were on a road trip to Montana and were playing the license plate game.  Anyone else play the license plate game on road trips? I noticed that Montana has a lot of license plates. Evidently, they have about  130 different choices. 

HYDRANGEAS

photo by AB

Thanks to the Princess of Quite A LOT I have noticed Hydrangeas everywhere. She has been noticing all the different colors and experimenting with watering her mother's hydrangeas with different things. Love this article - 13 Facts about Hydrangeas.