6000 miles ....

And about 3000 more to go! Today I'm posting from Wade's childhood home in Sacramento, CA. We drove up from San Diego on Monday morning. Wade's parents have the drive north perfected!

1. Pick Up Venti Starbucks coffee the night before & keep in refrigerator.
2. Wake up at 3:30 to prepare for 4:30 AM departure.
3. Warm up above mentioned coffee in microwave right before you run out the door.
4. (Addendum) Pick up sleeping kids in their sleeping bags & carry out to van.
5. Drive Away.
6. Hit L.A. before the hoards of humanity clog the freeways. We did well - as we were leaving the valley, the south bound traffic heading into LA was insane. Why...Why...Why...
7. Drive over the Grapevine (why is it named that? I didn't see any grapevines along this section of I-5). Just asked: it's named because this stretch of highway used to wind about much like a grape vine.
   
8. Stop on the north side of the Grapevine at the first Starbucks available for coffee #2. By this time it's about 7:00am.
9. Continue drive north - & stop at Coalinga at Harris Ranch for breakfast around 9:00am.
10. Continue drive north & arrive in Sacramento prior to 1:00 pm.

Pretty amazing huh? We logged in a 500 mile day before 1:00 pm! The great things - we beat the crazy traffic & the kids sleep a good portion of the trip. Also - great knitting time once the sun comes up. I'm working on:
Baby socks! - I had lots of extra yarn from Monkey Sock #1 - plenty to churn out a couple of socks. A high school friend is a daddy to a baby girl - thought I could give these to Baby Cleo when we visit them in Bellingham at the end of the month.

The cool thing that happened during trip north? Look carefully at this photo:
If you look at the odometer closely, you'll see it's reached 77,777 miles. Pretty cool! I was driving & saw we were close to this epic mileage about 20 miles before. It was quite distracting as I didn't want to miss it. Wade was napping, so I quickly woke him up so he could snap this photo. (Tricky to get it in focus when you're shooting from the passenger seat.) So - we've logged over 6000 miles thus far.
Last night we finally saw the new Harry Potter movie. I thought it was great! Followed the book pretty closely as far as I can recall, although I remember Dolores Umbridge as being more toad-like in appearance as well as demeanor. I'll have to chat w/my friend, expert on all things Harry Potter, Margaret. I can't wait for the next book!!!!

Today we went to Wade's dad's (is that correct grammar?) Softball game.A fun morning & great for his team as they won.

Next on the day's agenda: The California Aerospace Museum to see the Leonardo DiVinci exhibit. Well done & informative. Great displays & hands on activities for the kids. Of course, the military aircraft display outside on the tarmac was a hit with the boys. You could practically smell the testosterone emitting from the pores of all males in the vicinity. One of the volunteers was kind enough to answer the boys' questions such as "Where are the bombs?" "Are there any missiles?" "What kind of things does this shoot?" They were in 7th heaven when he offered to show them some bullet holes in the side of a plane that was used during Desert Storm. Arghh... I say we let women run the world & curb the fascination with war & destruction. Wade & I don't allow our boys to have toy guns, toy soldiers, or playthings of that sort. It's fascinating how it seems so ingrained. I think I need to start knitting lessons soon!After the museum, Sylvia & I left the boys to their own devices while we checked out a couple of knitting shops "Filates" and "Babettas" in the Sacramento area. Again - I exercised restraint as I'm waiting to find some STR yarn when we drive up to Oregon.

Ciao~

Mountain Life

Arghhh matey! Who's the leader of my club? Love the Disney ears - no? Yes - we do get a bit silly in our old age. Can't resist the ears when you go to Disney land. These are one of my sons' hat - I did not get one for me, although in hind sight perhaps I should have. However - our school has a "No Hat" policy for students AND staff, so wearing the ears while I'm teaching would not only make it more difficult for my students to pay attention, but it would also be a big "no-no" according to school policy. Party poopers..

We just returned from our three day trip to the family cabin on Palomar mountain. Great relaxing time. The temperatures cooperated for once - very pleasant. Now if only the biting flies would just buzz off. I can't decide if I'd rather have Alaska mosquitoes, or California biting flies. I'm thinking mosquitoes on this one - their bites don't last nor itch as long. Also, the mosquitoes are slow - they don't stand a chance against our Ninja-like reflexes. These CA biting flies are quick buggers.

When up at Palomar, you have the opportunity to do lots of things, such as:

Baseball: Orion & Iain were thrilled w/new gloves from their Uncle Ryan. Orion predicts he'll be a pitcher w/the Padres when he grows up. How is he going to balance that w/a career in the EPL (English Premiere League) or the MLS (Major League Soccer)? I love his ambition! Can't you tell from the photo that he already has a wicked fast ball? Just ask him how many times he struck me out.

Enjoying a good beverage. I know it's hard to believe - but this last birthday just tipped me past the legal drinking age. I know, I know - hard to believe. Hush Margaret, that's enough out of you. Cheers!

Reading a good novel. I think Orion here is finishing up The Box Car Children #2. The Box Car Children series was a favorite of mine when I was a youngster (not that many years ago...). I finished The Friday Night Knitting Club. This book is as much about knitting as the movie "Bend It Like Beckham" was about soccer. Good read - great story of how wonderful friendships can develop from knitting. Friends & I would like to start a weekly or monthly knitting group - Alaska knitters/bloggers, I'll keep you posted.

Here's my father-in-law, Ron, falling under the reading spell.

Of course - quiet relaxing time = KNITTING! I finished Monkey sock #1. I used Lorna's Laces sock yarn in the Somerset colorway. The way the colors popped out reminded me of a sunset - appropriately named yarn & perfect for this pattern. For the pattern, go here. Again, my needle & method of choice is Addi Turbo #2 & Magic Loop. I changed the pattern ever so slightly by using a star toe as found w/the Embossed Leave sock in Interweaves Favorite Socks book. I really like the fact that I don't have to graft the stitches together at the end & think the star pattern is pretty cool.

Here's another peek of the sock. You can kind of see the star pattern.

Photography. My husband is quite the shutter bug. I rib him a little about it, however, when you take over 300 photos, certainly one is bound to come out. See below - a beautiful sunset over Palomar. Great view from the cabin. I told Wade it was certainly "blog worthy" (as are several other photos) & he'd get full credit.

Photo by Wade J. Roach, July 2007, All Rights Reserved.

I need to upload the other photos & make a slide show. Too many to put on one blog.

Oh yes, I almost forgot - the day prior to departing for Palomar was my birthday (as well as Jessica Simpson's & Bella Fleck) - the one that tipped me past the legal drinking age. Fun Day - Started off w/a little knitting and coffee and then:

The Beach - Can't go to So. Cal w/out visiting the beach. As my birthday was on Tuesday, we didn't have to fight the typical beach crowds & were able to find a parking spot. I can easily explain the lack of a tan: I'm from Alaska & of course wear SPF 50 sunscreen to protect the skin. It couldn't possibly be because my melanocytes don't produce much melanin. :-)
The boys were happy as clams to build sand castles in the surf & catch sand crabs. They don't go to the beach to swim - you can do that in a pool. They are all about the sand & shovels.
Later that evening Wade & I met up w/my college roommate & matron of honor, Hilarey. She & her S.O., George live in a very cool Loft apt. w/a view of Petco Park. Now you can't see a baseball game from their place, but it's in a pretty neat location downtown. I love how we can get together & chat & laugh as if we had just seen each other yesterday. She was also my adult companion on my first trip to Europe w/students back in 1997.

After a great dinner at a local Thai restaurant (I love Thai food - Thai Kitchen, back in Anchorage is our fave), we had dessert at "Extraordinary Desserts". OMG - You name it, they've got it. Almost too many choices, it's overwhelming. I finally decided on something akin to death by chocolate. Ahhh - heaven. Death by chocolate is not an exaggeration - I literally fell out of my chair as we were leaving. Never underestimate the power of chocolate. A bit embarrassing as I wasn't even drinking. I blame the chocolate. Never underestimate the power of chocolate.


As you can see here - another year definitely added to my maturity.
Fun times..

Tonight we're off to see the new HP movie. Can't wait for the book. Knitting & blogging might have to be put on hold after next Saturday until I've finished the book. Would hate to run into any spoilers.

Ciao

Out There Having Fun

In the warm California sun. Ahh... San Diego. So much to do! San Diego is a wonderful place to visit. Great weather & lots of activities for the whole family to enjoy. My husband's family is originally from San Diego and he and I graduated from U.C.S.D. so we find ourselves down here almost every summer. I can't imagine trying to enjoy all San Diego has to offer in one visit.

Let's see - since my last post, what have we done? We've been to the beach. No photos - I was worried about getting sand in the camera. I just hung out on the sand watching the kids play & enjoying the "scenery" - use your imagination here. :-)
I've done a bit of knitting. I finished Jaywalker #1. I don't think the Jaywalker & I will have a long term relationship. In fact, I think we need a break. Sure - I'll come back for a visit. We just weren't meant to be. On the other hand, I did find another love. Remember the "Tulip Sweater" Stephanie blogged about June 5th? Remember how she just couldn't stop knitting it? Well - I jumped on the sweater bandwagon & immediately fell under its spell. The yarn! Dream in Color yarn! OMG!!! It is sooooo soft, the colors so rich. I just couldn't take my eyes and hands off of this yarn. While I was knitting this sweater, I kept fantasizing about what other projects could benefit from this yarn. I mean - knitting this sweater almost made me want to have another baby so I could knit more sweaters! Wade is relieved that those thoughts quickly passed. My sister is expecting a baby at the end of August, so I'll just have to knit for him/her (the gender is yet unknown). If you would like to fall under the spell of this sweater, please visit Coldwater Collaborative . All babies should have this sweater! Have a peek of where I am thus far: Only the sleeves to go. Did I mention there is NO SEAMING involved? Anyone who knows me well (Hi Margaret!) knows I avoid seaming like the plague. However- I've vowed to turn over a new leaf & pick up that needle & actually finish some projects that are sitting at home in my closet waiting to come together.

The Lower 48 Yarn Crawl has continued. While here I've visited "Common Threads" and "The Black Sheep" both located off S. Coast Hwy 101 in Encinitas. Both fabulous stores. No new yarn - a couple of books (including a finishing book). I'm waiting to find some STR yarn when I get up to the Pac Northwest.
Today we went to the Wild Animal Park. I haven't been there since I was in college (14 years ago!) so it was nice to return. Nice day - not too hot thankfully. Here's some photos of what you can find in the park:











Tomorrow is my birthday - I'll leave it that my age contains two of my favorite digits & that my favorite band is Duran Duran. Nothing planned thus far - hopefully dinner out & getting together with a college friend. I'm sure some knitting and coffee will also be on tap. I've cast on a Monkey Sock using my new Lorna's Laces yarn in colorway "Somerset".

Ciao~

Take Me Out To the Ball Game...

We've arrived at Wade's brother's house in San Diego. Okay - technically he lives in Carlsbad, which is north of S.D. But - when you've driven almost 5000 miles, it's close enough.

Today we went to Petco Park to watch the San Diego Padres take on the Florida Marlins. Let's cut to the chase - the Padres lost. Not much of an exciting game - 3 up, 3 down. Great pitching by the Pads, but horrible hitting. Apparently they forgot that in order to score - you have to get on base. In order to get on base, it's usually easier to hit the ball really far & run. Relying on the opposing pitcher to throw balls or hit you with a pitch is really a poor strategy. See - I don't even play baseball & I can figure that out!

As I mentioned in a previous post, I had the opportunity to go to Germany last summer & attend a World Cup Soccer match. My friend Lisa & I went to the U.S. vs. Ghana game. The U.S. lost, but that didn't matter - it was the atmosphere & experience which made for an unforgettable time. During the excitement - I had time to ponder the striking differences between watching a soccer game vs. watching a baseball game.

Going to a game is a fun outing for the family. We sat on the third base line in row 11. A few foul balls were hit our way - that certainly gets your attention. I'm not a great baseball player by any stretch of the imagination & I was a bit worried about a ball bouncing off the tops of our heads. Fortunately we didn't have to worry this time. The fact that complete strangers can get together & celebrate a double play and commiserate a missed opportunity is fascinating. It's a great time to forget about the horrible things happening in the world. It's an opportunity for hope. Perhaps the World's leaders need to forget this war thing & agree to duke it out on the futbol pitch or baseball field. Again - just a thought.

Of course - another fun thing about a baseball game, is it provides great opportunities for knitting! :0)

The Happiest Place on Earth!

Happy Birthday to the U.S. of A. A special thank you to all who have served & continue to serve - my Father (K.I.A. - Vietnam, 1970) my Dad (Career Officer of 24 years), and several students, so that we may enjoy independence. How fun that my family & I got to celebrate at the Happiest Place on Earth - Disneyland! We enjoyed a fabulous fireworks show at the end of the evening. It's such a treat since 4th of July in Alaska doesn't allow for such a spectacular display of fireworks due to the sun still shining late into the evening. It doesn't matter that we are now on the downswing of daylight hours - it's still light. Too light for fireworks.

Despite the expense and the amazing crowds - Disneyland was fun. Orion met Mickey as soon as we walked into the park. Iain was too shy (unbelievable) to stand with him for a photo. First stop: Star Tours. The boys loved it & were convinced for a moment that we were really traveling into outer space. A bit jerky, but it was fun & more importantly, the line was manageable with two small boys.

The boys have been looking forward to "Jedi Training" since they heard about it. Children are chosen randomly from the crowd to participate. Orion was one of the chosen. Iain was a bit disappointed, but he helped protect the crowd from Darth Vader & the Storm Troopers using his "Force Power". Orion had the chance to fight Darth Vader, who proclaimed "The Force is Strong With This One." Orion was victorious - all is safe with the world.

We continued our 1st day's visit with the all time favorites: Tea Cups (not Wade -too spinny); Dumbo's Flight, Pinnochio's Adventure, and of course: It's a Small World. That last one was worth the price of admission as it provided a relaxing ride in AIR CONDITIONING. As Lisa & I said last year during our Heat Wave Tour of Europe "God Bless the Person (man most likely) who invented air conditioning!"

Day two at the Magical Kingdom started at California Adventure Land. The first ride was "Rushin' River" - something akin to Splash Mountain, but in rafting type vehicles instead of a log. Fun, Fun, Fun! The warning tells you that you MAY get wet. Yeah - that is the understatement of the year. Iain & I were facing backwards as we went down the 1st hill & got soaked. I mean wet to the core. We're taking dripping wet. Iain & I were wringing out our clothes hours after we got off the ride. My socks were still wet by the time we left after the fireworks at 10:30 pm. In any case - it was a fun ride & the line moved quickly. I'm amazed how Disney has mastered the art of cramming people into lines. I highly recommend this ride - however, remember - you MAY (ha ha) get wet. Don't say I didn't warn you.

Here's a shot of Wade, Orion, and Wade's mom Sylvia on what we thought would be a tame ferris wheel ride. Ha! You have the option of swinging or non-swinging gondolas. Wade suffers from vertigo on spinning rides, but we were assured the swinging option was pretty tame. Not so much. Fortunately Wade emerged unscathed. We rode other rides in California Adventure & then bounced between parks to see all of the parades. I was amazed at how quickly the time flew - the boys had a great, memorable time. It'd be interesting to see the bank records for the park. With thousands of people in the park paying an average of $60 each - we're talking big bucks!

I do have to say that despite the crowds, Disney seems to bring out the best in humanity. Everyone was well behaved (except for one fellow who felt the need to light up his cigarette as thousands of people were moving toward the exits like cattle. I'm sorry to offend those of you who exercise your right to smoke, but I choose not to smoke & try to provide as healthy of an atmosphere for my children as possible. If you choose to become addicted to such a horrible product - please don't subject others to smoking's nasty byproducts. Okay - enough said, I'll get off my soap box now & be nice.) As I was saying - everyone was really nice & patient when leaving the park. Yeah!

No knitting at Disney, although it would have provided a nice distraction while waiting in lines. I'm just not at that point & it was nice not carrying anything around. Plus - it was hot & I was at the gusset of my Jaywalker. With my luck I'd drop a stitch & lose a marker. After frogging this sock & restarting several times, I wasn't ready to take any chances.

Ciao ~

Out of the frying pan...

Into the fire. You'd think when you leave Tucson that anywhere you go would be cooler. Yeah - not so much. Especially when you stop in the desert to camp over night. We opted to revisit a favorite climbing spot from college - Joshua Tree. We couldn't really appreciate it when we arrived as it was dark & we needed to quickly cook something up for us to eat for dinner. Let me advise any of you with small children - Easy Mac is only easy when you have a microwave. Just adding boiling water won't cook it. On the other hand - if you cook it too long over a coleman stove, it turns into mush. The five year old wasn't pleased, and Wade & I felt like extremely bad parents. Of course - we were eating something different (cup of soup - which does need only boiling water). To appease the masses we offered whatever else we could find which didn't require cooking. I think chocolate was the main course. Arghh...

Did you know lots of critters live in the desert? Yeah - like Jackrabbits, Kangaroo rats, and my favorite snakes. Let's just say one of my favorite things about living in Alaska is that I don't have to worry about snakes. When I tell people (who are not from AK) this, they always respond, "Yeah, but you have bears!". Sure - but I'm not going to step on a bear. When I squat to use the woods, I'm not going to squat on a bear. I'm also a terrible singer, so my voice is enough to scare off any bears within a 50 mile radius. See - no worries! Okay - I do worry about bears a smidge when I'm out traipsing around in the woods, but still - I'm happy there are NO SNAKES!!

Fortunately we didn't see any snakes while we were at J. Tree. The jackrabbits and kangaroo rats are a completely different story. Those turkeys came out in force when we arrived & were not necessarily scared by us. The kids actually named one of the rabbits "Joshua". They didn't bother me as much as the rats. We were worried the vermin would either chew through our screen or climb under it, so we slept with the back of the van closed. Yikes - it was like sleeping in a sauna. We did get to witness a beautiful moon rise (almost full). Too bad the little point & shot digital couldn't capture it adequately.

After an early breakfast & drive through J. Tree - we were off toward LA to pick up Wade's mom & check into our hotel. The drive was interesting - vast desert & then hoards of humanity. The traffic alone is enough to remind me why we don't necessarily want to move back to So. Cal. (That & the cost of living on teachers' salaries might make it difficult). We missed an exit & ended up very close to San Diego when we discovered our mistake. Oops.

The plan is to visit Disneyland over the next 2 days before we depart for San Diego on the 4th. The weather forecast is calling for "extreme heat" here over the next several days. Wonderful. Just when we thought we were escaping the heat. Last summer when my friend Lisa & I traveled through Europe for 3 weeks for the World Cup Soccer tournament & fun, it was hot, hot, hot. We dubbed ourselves "The Climate Queens" as we never escaped the heat - we seemed to bring it with us. I guess my title is intact. I am still a reigning climate queen. Yikes.

I'll leave with a photo of the Roach & Sivils clan. Can't wait to see them again, perhaps next March. On the knitting front - the mojo has returned. I've turned the heel & hope to complete the gusset today.


Ciao ~

We're Going to Disneyland!

Last day in Tucson. It's projected to be 110°F today - so, it's probably best for us to move on. Also - we need to give our friends Jen & Steve some time to completely unpack & get settled. They just moved down here from Chicago so Steve can begin his surgery internship. Doesn't he look very doctorly?



Let's see... yesterday was a good day. We met one of the "locals": He scared the begeezus out of me. I was looking through clean clothes & saw him nestled within the pile. Of course, I'm not used to seeing such critters, living in Alaska and all, and naturally thought it wasn't real - my boys have several rubber lizards at home. However, when the darned thing moved, well - that was enough to send me into orbit. That began the "lizard hunt" by all of the menfolk in the house. They were successful & released him into his natural habitat - the outdoors.
Boys and girls then split up for the afternoon: the boys went to the mountains while Jen and I scouted out another LYS. We found it in "Kiwi Knitting" A very nice shop & close to where Jen lives. This time - the yarn spoke to me. I ended up purchasing 6 hanks of Lorna's Laces. Would you like to take a look? Here's a cake posing with some local flora: That was fun - it's not often I'll have an opportunity to photograph my yarn with a cactus! I've already packed it into the van, so I can't remember what the colorways are. I think Jungle stripe is the green & purple. The other two names escape me.

As the title of this post suggests, we're headed toward Disneyland. We'll drive for a few hours & then probably camp somewhere near Joshua Tree. That was a favorite climbing spot for Wade & I when we were in college. It's too hot to hang out there in the heat of the day & we didn't bring climbing gear on this trip. We plan on arriving in Anaheim sometime tomorrow afternoon, pick up Wade's mom from the airport & then check into a hotel. We'll hit the park on Tuesday & Wednesday. Orion & Iain are very excited as I promised that when Iain turned 5 we'd go to Disneyland. Well - he's 5, so it's time to make good on my promise. It's the happiest place on earth - why wouldn't we want to go. (Besides the heat, hoards of people, and cost?)

I've joined the Jaywalker KAL, so I hope that will help the knitting mojo with my Flamingo Stripe jaywalker sock.

Blog soon. Ciao ~