Saturday, October 24, 2015

Goose and Bug Adventures- Heron Pond

Heron Pond, located just west of Vienna, is one of the easiest hikes we've done this year.  The terrain is flat and the paths are large.  This would be a great walk for people who aren't use to hiking.
We convinced a couple of people to join us on this trip.  My mother and Goose's best friend both came along for the ride and I'm hoping we turned them into adventurers like we are!

When you first enter the trail you cross a large bridge and it's beautiful rippling water on either side of you.



As you travel along you stay right beside the river for a while, turning with the water until you come to a fork where you can choose to continue on the trail and hike for as long as you want or you can go out onto a floating bridge and go right into the middle of the swamp.

We chose to do both paths.  First we went down the regular hiking trail where you come to a State Champion tree.  The girls were disappointed that the tree is a champion because of its girth and not the height.



After we turned around to head back we did the swamp bridge and it cheered them up a lot.  They loved that you go directly into the middle of the swamp until you can no longer see land around you.  It really feels like you are in the middle of nature, more than if you were on a paved hiking trail.




This was the farthest we've traveled for a trail so far and overall they enjoyed it.  They're already asking when we can go back and try one of the longer trails.  I had fun, but I like the scenic trails a lot more.  I want big rocks and mountains and hills to climb rather than easy breezy trails.


Monday, October 5, 2015

Nail Polish Coffee Mug

I've seen this craft everywhere lately and wanted to try it since I love coffee mugs and I have been adding a lot to my collection lately.
Since it's almost Halloween I really wanted to try a themed mug so I bought orange and black nail polish to try. 

What you need:

-White mug (I bought mine for $4 at Wal-Mart but I think going to a yard sale or Goodwill would be a better bet)
-  Painters tape
-  Nail polish
-  Deep bowl
-  Sealer (next time I'm going to look for a spray sealer instead of this one because it made the cut super slick)
 


Fill the bowl with water and tape around the rim of the cup.  You don't want polish or sealer where you put your lips.  Drip however much you want of each color into the water.  Do this quickly!  It starts to firm up after just a few seconds.  Dip the mug into the water being careful not to get any inside.  Pull it up and turn it upside down to dry.  I let mine sit for a few days just to be extra-careful.  Once it's dry cover it with your sealer and peel the tape off.  Make sure you let it dry a few more days before giving it a good handwash and always continue to handwash every time you use it.


As you can see the paint was lighter on the sides because I dipped it at a tilt so they didn't get much color but I love it like that.  I love all the layers and colors it made. 

The downside to this craft was that when the mug is filled with hot water the nail polish smell continued to stink up the room and I could not stomach trying to lift it to my lips to drink.  So to solve this problem I would continuously fill it with water every time I used my Keurig.  I'd turn it on, fill it up with the largest setting, set it off to the side until it cooled, and then drink my normal coffee out of a different mug.  After a week or so of doing this two times a day the smell disappeared.

Now I have a super cute and cheap Halloween coffee mug to only bring out once a year and cherish!