Escape from the Backyard!

For this week’s adventure, we discovered that an evil villain had captured Minnie, Desi, and Joshua. A countdown was set to 999 seconds. Jessica and Cameron had to free Minnie and Desi, then make their way through the a series of 6 challenges to free Joshua before the time ran out.

Minnie and Desi have been handcuffed! — And Matthew is very concerned.

The “bomb” strapped to Joshua is set to go off in just a few minutes.

The first thing the kids had to do was free Minnie and Desi from their handcuffs. But how!?

The keys were hidden somewhere near by. As the precious seconds ticked away, they searched and searched. 

Finally, they found the keys, but the locks were a puzzle!

After some careful maneuvering, they freed the captives.

Once Minnie and Desi were free, they all looked around a bit and found a strange box with a key it. Obviously the key was important, but how were they to get it out?

Another search uncovered some tools that looked just right to carefully extract the key from the box.

With the key out, the search for a way to diffuse Joshua continued. The kids quickly spied an interesting cylindrical contraption. The device had numbers on one side, a large dial with the letters A, B, C, and D in the center, a button on one end, and…. a key hole underneath. 

What do you know, the key from the peculiar box fit perfectly! 

Glancing around the area, Cameron spotted what looked to be tiny deck of cards. Further inspection revealed that each card had a three digit code on it and a puzzle. The correct answer to the puzzle revealed a letter. Quick as a whip, they figured out that they needed to select the number of the card on the cylinder, then solve the puzzle on the card to reveal the correct letter. 

The number and letter combination allowed them to push the button, which pushed out a… you guessed it… key! — But it didn’t come out all the way. Was it broken?

Nope, turns out they had to solve 3 of the card puzzles and put in the right combination of numbers and letters to get the key all the way out before they could move on to the next challenge. 

The next challenge was a doozy. The key from the last one unlocked a plunger at the base of a little tower. The plunger popped up a ball inside the tower, like a carnival strength test hammer game. At the top of the tower was a button that could be used to trap the ball at the top of it’s path and press it against a lever that popped open a hidden compartment. The compartment housed a million dollars! — No, wait, it held another key.

This test of dexterity probably took the longest for the kids, until Cameron worked out that he didn’t have to do the puzzle the right way at all. Turns out that the tools they used from the box puzzle fit perfectly into the hole at the top of the tower and he could use that to press the lever. Is that cheating? Probably, but it was clever.

After getting the next key, the kids scoured the area until they found a odd little box with a metal marble attached to the end of a magnetic rod. 

The box had hieroglyphics on it, depicting the marble being inserted into a hole in the side. Just above the hole for the ball was a key hole. Turning the key dropped the ball into the box. The hieroglyphics explained that the magnetic rod should be used to carry the marble through a maze inside the box. 

Minnie skillfully navigated the maze and deposited the marble at the appropriate spot at the far end of the tiny box. The marble’s weight pressed down on a lever to release another hidden compartment. You’ll never guess what was inside.

The next contraption the kids found was a small ramp with more drawings on it. They discovered that the same marble should be used on this device. The key from the box maze opened a little tunnel for the marble to start its journey down the ramp, but the marble just got stuck. 

A quick survey of the area uncovered a set of puzzle pieces that fit into the center of the ramp! Lining up the pieces correctly allowed for the ball to roll from the tunnel all the way down the ramp and into one of the three holes at the bottom. 

It took a second, but the kids finally figured out that the three holes were coded, and they worked out which of the holes was the correct one. Then they had to build the ramp pieces so that the ball rolled from the tunnel, down the ramp, and into the correct hole. Once this was achieved, a hidden compartment on the ramp popped open, revealing a birthday cake! — I mean, a key.

Undeterred by the continuing effort, the kids bounded off in search of the next obstacle. It wasn’t long before they found a UFO shaped object that looked a lot like one of those carnival rides where everyone stands against the wall in a circular room and it starts to spin. On this object, the bottom spun as well. The key fit into the top of the spacecraft-like thing, and when turned, stop the spinning wheel along the bottom and unlocked a bunch of little hatches positioned along the top. 

Upon opening one of the hatches, the kids found an arrow pointing to the left. They decided that meant they needed to open the hatch to the left. That hatch had another arrow pointing left. One more hatch to the left was opened and in it was a secret compartment housing a jelly fish! — And by that I mean another key.

At last, the kids had made it around the yard and to poor, desperate Joshua. The final key was inserted into the device around the sobbing baby and a button was revealed. Desmond pushed the button. The timer stopped counting down with just 11 seconds to go, and the strap released. Joshua was free!

They had so much fun! And it was definitely the highlight of my week as well. I sure love these little guys.

See you next time!