Weekend Fun

What to do in Alaska in May when the temperatures reach 50°F, the sun is shining, and the snow is gone? Why - you put on your swim suits & run through the sprinkler, of course!

Spring so far has been fairly cold - temperatures are still dropping below freezing in the evenings - even though it's the middle of May! Fortunately, the sun comes out & the temperature warms up quickly. After the freaky snow storms, we're not letting any opportunity to play in the sun pass us by!

You can see the leaves on the trees & bushes haven't even popped yet, although it shouldn't be too much longer. Iain and a neighborhood friend thought it was fun to get a drink directly from the sprinkler.

Leave it to the boys (with help from Dad) to figure out a way to keep playing in the sprinkler even after you begin to get a little chilled. A couple of lawn trash bags - with holes for head and arms, and you're good to go.

You know what the following photo can only mean...


The 2nd annual Roach Road Trip isn't too far away. In fact, we're scheduled to hit the road next Sunday, May 25th. School lets out on Friday, May 23 and I've convinced Wade that perhaps rather than leaving on the 24th, we could use that extra day to do some packing and organizing.

The itinerary for this year's trip is similar to last year's but w/a few extras. We leaving early so we can catch two, back-to-back RUSH concerts at the Gorge Amphitheatre in George, WA and another at the Clark County Fair grounds in Vancouver, WA. Winston's Mom and her hubby, Dave will be there for both shows too! I think even Sandy is planning to attend the show in Vancouver. I hope we'll be in the area for a Monday night dinner. We have to be in the Seattle area to pick up Wade's brother on May 30th - 5 days to drive down should be enough time.

After some time in Washington, we'll head down to Oregon to visit friends and perhaps Smith Rocks for some climbing. We'll return to Wade's hometown of Sacramento to visit his family and then work our way south to San Diego. Planned highlights of this year's trip include:

- 2 RUSH concerts
- MLS Soccer Game -- LA Galaxy vs. Columbus Crew. Orion is really hoping for an autograph from his soccer idol, David Beckham. I'm trying to let him know that there are no guarantees that will happen.
- Family Reunion (my side) in Sheboygan, Wisconsin. Yup - we're going to drive to WI and then back.

Yes - the gas prices are really going to take a chunk out of our summer budget. However, when you factor in the price of 4 air tickets from Anchorage, to well, anywhere, it's really just a wash. Wade and I figure the experience is much more rich by driving - we're really looking forward to this time together as a family. Every morning the boys do their "Road Trip Countdown" - it's pretty cute & I know they're excited as well.

So - have we started packing, you ask? Well - sort of. I've done this:

I've re-wound two balls of my Kauni yarn. I had a hard time seeing what the color transitions were when they were in their original form.

How exciting, no? My plan is to perhaps start the Anne-Evilla sweater by Ruth Sorenson while I'm gone. It's pretty much knit in the round, so it shouldn't be too bad.

A knitter has to have their priorities, set - right? I mean, if I'm going to travel 12,000+ miles this summer, I need to plan ahead on what projects to bring along. So far I've planned this:

1) Leafling - Socks That Rock May Kit
2) Anne-Evilla sweater by Ruth Sorenson
3) ???? - More socks I'm sure

Any other suggestions on portable projects? I might do a few more hats from Charlene Schurch's book, Hat's On.

Well - soccer game in 2 hours - gotta go.

Ciao~