Week 4 of my 52 Week Challenge

Week 4 of my 52 Week Challenge

This week I was able to make it out to both our Hike it Baby Tuesday hike and to a park for Free Forest School. But I'm telling you, if I had not put a hike on the Hike it Baby calendar, there is no way we would have gone out on Tuesday.

Hike #4
Date: Tuesday January 23, 2018
Place: Mt. Tabor
Route: Loop - Green/Blue trails, with a stop at the top
Distance: 2.3 miles

It was wet and miserable out and Lake sure didn't want to. He even tried holding on to the car seat to prevent me from getting him out of the car once we arrive at the trailhead. I told him that if no one was there for the hike, we would go back home...two other moms showed up with their kids, so off on a hike we went. Once we got moving Lake started to enjoying himself.

About half way through, when we were almost to the top of the hill, he starting getting fussy, but managed to make it to the play ground and had a miraculous recovery and didn't want to leave. At the crest of the park is a bronze statue of Harvey W. Scott, editor of The Oregonian newspaper from 1865-1872 and from 1877 until his death in 1910. Of course I had to spend a few minutes doing research to see if we were related...I do have a Harvey Scott in my family tree, but not this one.

This was also the last week of Hike it Baby 30 Challenge. The challenge is to get you and your children outside for 30 miles in 30 days or 30 minutes three times a week. There is only one more day left in the challenge, and we are going out tomorrow to add a few more miles to our total. So far we have 18.98 miles, so #atleastwetried on the miles. But we totally crushed the outdoor time with 1245 minutes tracked so far.
                          

                            

Park #4
Date: Friday January 26, 2018
Place: Powell Butte Nature Park
Event: Free Forest School
Distance: one-ish miles

Although we have been hiking at Powell Butte before, I am super interested in participating in the Free Forest School that has just started meeting at Powell Butte on Friday mornings. Part of the idea is that the same group of people meet every week at the same park so the kids can see and get to know one another and notice the change in nature over the year. The school is kid lead, is intended to give them confidence in themselves and in nature. I believe that Lake will thrive in this environment.

It was windy and cold last Friday but about a dozen families braved the weather and joined us at the trailhead. After introductions, the kids took the lead and headed up the trail. We didn't get very far that day but did find a nice protected place to have a snack and a story behind a couple Douglas Firs.  Lake and I were one of the last two families at the end...he was having fun.

Week Three of My 52 Week Challenge

Week Three

We did a lot this week! Started and ended with cultural events and had a few hikes and visited a couple parks in between. And Grandma Carol and Pap Pap Al arrived half way through the week!

On Sunday we headed up to Dawson Park in NE Portland, and although it has been well over a year since we've been to this park, I did not count this as one of our new parks for our 52 Week Challenge. We went for the tangle ball climbing structure which Lake likes, and because Chris had recently reminded us of this park. I wanted to take Lake again now that he is older, also, I can't get over the 70's ashtray merry-go-round.

 On Monday we did two different things for Martin Luther King Jr. Day. First we headed over to the Mittleman Jewish Community Center in SW Portland and attended their toddler MLK Service Day program. We donated some new socks, gloves and a few of our gently used jackets. Lake listed to a few songs, colored a place mat, and picked out a new book from the book table. After that, Lake enjoyed some time at their indoor gym, jumping on the trampoline, riding cars down a ramp, and navigated an obstacle course.

Then we took a trip to North Portland and joined a few hundred other folks in the 4th Annual Children's March for Social Justice. Lake was great, if not a bit serious when he joined in the chants. I was both proud and very sad to hear his little voice "Black Lives Matter, Black Lives Matter, Black Lives Matter", "Brown Lives Matter, Brown Lives Matter, Brown Lives Matter", "Hands Up, Don't Shoot, Hands Up, Don't Shoot, Hands Up, Don't Shoot". That last one was particularly hard...and I'm a white mother with a white son, I can't even imagine how terrifying it must be to raise a child of color in today's America. I hope that I am doing right by Lake and the future by teaching him (and reminding/learning myself) that it's up to us to be peaceful and loving towards all people.

Hike #3
Date: Tuesday January 16th, 2018
Place: Cooper Mountain Nature Park
Route: Loop - Cooper Mountain, Blacktail, Little Prairie Trails.
Distance: 2.9 miles

Cooper Mountain Nature Park was lots of fun. This was supposed to be my second Hike it Baby hike, but I put the wrong date on the form when I submitted my hike to the calendar. I sure hope if people did show up when I wasn't there, that they had a good time anyway. Lucky for me, I had let a friend know that we were going on Tuesday and low and behold, she and her two boys were there when we arrived. I sure was happy to have them with us on our adventure. Along the trails are hearing funnels...to better hear the bird life. It was pretty windy that day, so all we really heard was the wind...the boys didn't care. We did see a pair of Red Tail Hawks flying overhead which was awesome.

Park #3
Date: Thursday January 18th, 2018
Place: Oxbow Regional Park
Route: River trail from the boat ramp
Distance: 1 mile

On Thursday we took advantage of Portland Metro's free day in the park program and took a drive out to Oxbow Regional Park. Even though it is only $5 to get in usually, it was nice to not have to pay. Although we have been to this park before, I've decided it does count towards my 52 Week Challenge because we explored a part of the park we have not visited before. After playing in the sand and rocks down by the river we took a short hike down the river trail and checked out one of the group camping areas. Grandma Carol came with us and we toughed it out even though it was raining. Once we started moving it wasn't at all cold, so that helped for sure. We all loved looking for special rocks and each of us brought home a few super pretty ones.

   

On Saturday. I wrapped up the week with two cultural experiences/events. First I went to a Chinese dumpling cooking class. It was offered for free through the Multnomah County Library and even though it was taught in Chinese, I was still able to get quite a bit out of the demo and practice. At the end of the class we were asked if we'd be interested in another class, we all said yes and suggested bao. Will be keeping my eye out for that one!

  

After cooking class I cam home and got Lake and we went to the Winter Pow Wow at PCC Sylvania Campus in the far SW. We got there just in time to get in line for the free community dinner of chili and corn muffins with fruit and cake. After eating we wandered up stairs and found a seat to watch the Aztec dancers and listen to the drummers. Somehow, through all the noise, Lake fell asleep in my lap for about an hour. He woke up just in time for the grand entrance, a parade of representatives from all the attending tribes in their amazing outfits and head dresses....the drums got really loud!

After that we headed home and relaxed at the end of our big week of hikes, parks and cultural events.

The Best Deal

Question: Which one local museum membership will get us into 11 other museums for the least amount of money?

Answer: Deepwood Museum and Gardens in Salem at $30 for an annual membership.

Background Info:  Ever since we've moved to Portland I have been aware of the reciprocal program shared by some of the local museums and attractions. With membership to one location, members can get into the other attractions one particular month per year.

The first year we were here Lake was on WIC and because of that we qualified for an annual membership to the Children's Museum for only $10...it usually costs close to $11 per person per visit, so it was a fantastic deal. And that year, the Children's Museum was part of the reciprocal program. We went and saw a few other places in town which was great. The next year, we were gifted a membership to the Oregon Zoo from Lake's grandparents and we again enjoyed a few of the reciprocal benefits. Last two years we had no memberships and I didn't really look into getting one. This year I knew I wanted to see who was participating in the program and figure out our best membership deal.

Current Participants: In 2018, members of the reciprocal program are the Oregon Zoo, Oregon Coast Aquarium, World Forestry Center, Columbia River Maritime Museum, Oregon Historical Society, Lan Su Chinese Garden, Architectural Heritage Center, Rice Northwest Museum of Rocks & Minerals, Evergreen Aviation & Space Museum, Washington County Museum, & Deepwood Museum & Garden.

Analyst: With this list in hand, I started looking up membership costs and figuring out the right choice. Turns out that two of the locations, Oregon Historical Society and Washington County Museum are actually free to visit, no memberships needed. We had just visited the zoo in January, the free month for the reciprocal program, and I figured that by going on the $5 Day we could go to the zoo at least 7 more times this year for less than a membership, so that one was out too. Looking at the list I didn't see a location that we would likely visit more than once per year...so that in mind I was looking at the one with the lest expensive membership. So come March, Lake and I will be heading to Salem to visit the Deepwood Museum and Gardens and be getting our annual membership.

• Oregon Zoo - $69
• Oregon Historical Society - $60
• Deepwood Museum and Gardens - $30
• Lan Su Chinese Garden - $60
• Architectural Heritage Center - $40
• Columbia River Maritime Museum - $65
•  World Forestry Center Discovery Museum - $60
•  Clark County Historical Museum - $40
•  Rice Northwest Museum of Rocks & Minerals - $50
•  Evergreen Aviation & Space Museum - $75
•  Oregon Coast Aquarium - $80
•  Washington County Museum - $40

 The list of attractions has also prompted some future plans. A trip to Salem in March, to Astoria in June, Hillsboro in September, McMinnville in October (maybe more than once!), and Newport in November.

Perhaps you will join us on one of our museum adventures!

Schedule:

• January 2018: Oregon Zoo 
• February 2018: Oregon Historical Society
• March 2018: Deepwood Museum and Gardens
• April 2018: Lan Su Chinese Garden
• May 2018: Architectural Heritage Center
• June 2018: Columbia River Maritime Museum
• July: World Forestry Center Discovery Museum
• August: Clark County Historical Museum
• September: Rice Northwest Museum of Rocks & Minerals 
• October 2018: Evergreen Aviation & Space Museum
• November 2018: Oregon Coast Aquarium
• December 2018: Washington County Museum

The benefit is valid for the whole month, just as it would be for members of that attraction. You may use it as many times as you like at the featured attraction each month.
Visitors must show their proof of membership along with photo ID to the gate attendants at the designated attraction to receive 4 admission tickets.
This benefit is solely for attraction admission during regular business hours. The membership benefit does not extend to discounts on classes, camps, store merchandise, or special events.

52 Week Challenge - Week Two

Week Two went really well. Although I've taken the time to plan out our hikes and park visits for the month, flexibility was the name of the game when it came to our park adventure this week.

It was raining and I was not feeling like a long drive to the planned park. So, instead of going to Marshall Park, we went to a different sort of park, we went swimming at a new-to-us indoor pool. I checked the schedule and saw that there is family swim at the East Portland Community Center on Thursdays, 11:30 - 1:00, perfect. The pool was not at all crowded, just half dozen or so families consisting of a couple young moms and a few grandparents.

Lake loves the pool...although not quite ready to put his head under. He went down the kiddy slide, laughing all the way, having such a blast. He really likes the river current part of the pool and after a few times around with me holding him he was comfortable enough to float in his life jacket by himself...with me just inches behind him. He's getting so brave! One of the things I like about Portland Parks and Rec is that they provide life jackets and I don't have to worry about getting/bringing one myself.

And to be clear...I'm not going to let a little rain stop us from our 52 Week Challenge!

In addition to my own 52 Week Challenge, I remembered that I am also part of the Hike it Baby 10K Woman Trail Project. The 10,000 Women Trail Project, is an initiative to get women and girls on trails all across North America. The goal is to encourage women to bring female friends and family on a trail at least once a month.I totally can do that, already did it this month, with hike #2 and see no problem being able to make this goal as long as I keep going/hosting Hike it Baby hikes. My last hike on Tuesday there were two newbies who had never been on a HIB Hike and four of us total.

The other challenge I discovered and joined this week was the 52 Hike Challenge. From their web page: The 52 Hike Challenge is a global movement empowering you to take a personal journey to discover the physical, mental and spiritual benefits gained though hiking once a week for an entire year. Again, I feel like this challenge fits in perfectly with the challenges I've already set for myself for this year. And, it's another way to help me stay motivated and accountable.

Hike #2
Date: Tuesday January 9th, 2018
Place: Hoyt Arboretum
Route: Loop - Spruce Trail to Redwood Trail
Distance: 1+ miles (I forgot to track the miles, this is best guess by the group)

This was my first time hosting a Hike it Baby hike. I was happy to have three other women with their kiddos join Lake and I on our hike. I picked this trail because I was feeling a bit homesick for Humboldt and I hoped a stroll though the Redwoods would cheer me up. Have to say that although it was beautiful, there is nothing like an old growth grove in Northern California. The Redwoods in the arboretum were not the towering giants with their humongous trunks that I am used to seeing, at least not in the old growth groves. But they did have those split rail fences that seem so iconic of the Redwood parks in California, and for some reason that made me happy.

The hike was short, Lake still had tons of energy...and we were in Washington Park where it was $5 day at the zoo. So off we went to the zoo, were we almost had the place to ourselves. I was surprised that there were not more people taking advantage of the discount day...I guess there was rain predicted, although we did not have to deal with any. We must have added another 2-3 miles to our day walking around that place. Lake is finally old enough to start noticing the animals, which is nice, because that means that I can start noticing the animals, instead of chasing after my small squirrel child.

These are the pictures that were taken of us by the folks at the zoo, that I did not buy, hence the watermark. I just couldn't bring myself to pay $15 for one picture. We're cute though.

52 Week challenge

My 52 Week Challenge of 2018

To keep myself accountable I'm going to document my 52 Week Challenge. I have lived in Portland for five years now and in that time I have accumulated a huge list of trails I want to hike, events I want to attend, classes I want to take. There are a lot and I want to share it all with Lake. So last week I decided to start going through the list and making a plan.

The challenge is to visit 52 new Portland (area) city parks, hike 52 new trails, one a week each for a year. In addition I want us to experience at least one cultural event a month.

Besides documenting the challenge, in a second effort to keep myself accountable, I am posting the hikes to the Hike-it-Baby calendars and am committing to host the hikes. Now I HAVE to show up...even if it's cold and raining, or hot and windy.

Portland is an amazing area and I look forward to seeing more and sharing my love of the outdoors with Lake.

Week One: January 2, 2018
Hike: Forest Park - Wild Cherry Trail to Leif Erikson Dr. to Dogwood Trail
Distance: 3.33 miles
Lake, Gaius and I

I was happy to have Gaius with us on our first trip of the year. For the most part it's going to be Lake and I on the trail and maybe a few other Hike-it-Baby moms on some of the trips.

We started at the trail head on NW 53rd Dr. and made a loop out of the Wild Cherry Trail, Leif Erikson Dr. and Dogwood Trail. Damn, it was cold and windy on top of the hill, but once we dropped down from the top the bite of the winter winds lessened, making it much more enjoyable. The ground around us, and many trees trunks are covered in ferns. It was beautiful and reminded me of hiking around Humboldt County. With trees missing leaves, we could see quite a ways down the hill though the park, all the way to the river and even downtown in some places. During one stop to rest we checked out a big ship on the water.

Lake was a trooper, although it was a bit tough going about half way through when he wanted to be done hiking and back at the car. After a short rest, he was good to go and was fantastic the rest of the way. Both Gaius and I were surprised that we hiked 3.3 miles, it really didn't seem that far.

I look forward to exploring more of Forest Park and am thinking about how to fit the full length of the Wildwood Trail into our plans.

Week One: January 4, 2018
Portland City Park: Luuwit View Park
Location: NE Fremont @ NE127th Ave.

Luuwit View Park is one of the newest parks developed by the city of Portland, project finished just this year. I have to say I thought it was fantastic. It was another super cold day, but we didn't let that stop us...but it seemed to stop others as we only saw one other child playing in the park and she didn't stay long. There are several play areas, two amazing tangle ball climbing structures, swings, slides, covered picnic area, at least one bbq grill, musical xylophones and bells, hills with that padded rubber surface material, green areas, a nature area with rocks and logs, and although it was not turned on (thank goodness!) there is a water feature here too and it's surrounded by what will be a tunnel of green, willows I think. There is even a really cool art sculpture. I bet I'm forgetting something, because there was so much to see and it was so cold! Oh, the view...it was cloudy and raining off and on, but we could certainly see airplanes coming and going at the airport, we even got to see military jets. And on a clear day we would have been able to get a great view of Mt St. Helens and more.\

We will be back for sure!