geomom42

@ Gitchee-Gummee - that's a good idea. I'll give that a try. Thanks! @ JPatton - I'm glad I wasn't the only one. I tried it several times to make sure I was doing it right. Thanks for trying it & letting me know.

That's a good idea too. This one might be named "my FTF's!" Thanks for the idea

I tried to create a pocket query for the zipcode 72019 and it gave an error that this zipcode was not found in the database. I know this postal code exists; it neighbors my own code. Has anyone else come across this problem?

LadyBee4T - that's a neat idea to track your own mileage. I hadn't thought of that. Thanks for the idea.

I received an unactivated geocoin as a FTF prize. This is the first geocoin I've seen. I've read the faqs, but still had a couple of questions. Once I activate my coin and set up its mission can I drop it in any cache I come across, or do I need to put it in my own cache (I have not yet placed a cache). Would you put it in a small ziplock bag (to protect it) along with information about it, or just drop it in the cache as is? Thanks for any tips on geocoin etiquete.

Since I'm not a very observant person (for details anyway), I read them all before ground zero. If I get really stuck, I pray that someone posted a picture Hopefully, I'll get used to the way caches are hidden, & will become more experienced thus not needing to depend on the hint or pics.

I don't like opening a cache to find the swag is nothing but torn-up store receipts, old library cards, or stuff that seems more like trash. I am always tempted to clean it out, but being a newbie, I guess that's the type of stuff people leave? My girls & I like to leave little toys or bookmarks (I love to read).

This was an interesting thread. I enjoyed reading the different explanations. As for my name Geomom42, well, I'm a (new) Geocacher and I'm a mom for (4) 2 girls - thus geomom42

About 15 years ago, my boss at that time mentioned that his family enjoyed geocaching together. He explained what it was, and I thought it sounded interesting, but didn't think about it again. Last summer, I went to a professional development class that discussed using gps to teach longitude and latitude to students. As part of the class we each received a basic Garmin gps handheld unit. I decided that I had to give it a try, so my girls & I spent some time last summer geocaching and we enjoyed it. I didn't do anymore geocaching during the school year, but resumed again this summer using the iPhone app which is so much better than the simple gps unit I had. Can't believe I waited so long to give it a try!