Almost July!

I better get busy and get another post in before June turns to July.  DH and I are flying to Anchorage, Alaska on Tuesday, and will spend 12 days in Alaska.  We have been before, but want to see some different things this time.  It is such a magnificent awe-inspiring place.  I sure wish by some miracle that Mt. McKinley would bring its head out of the clouds while we are there, but I understand sightings are rare, so it likely won't happen.  Anyway, I hope to have some good photos to share from time to time.

I have been working hard on a quilt that has a deadline on it, and with this trip, and another to follow this one, I am feeling pretty pressured, but will somehow get it done in time, and then after it is gifted, I will post pictures.  I also have another grandchild to feature, and will do that before too much more time passes.

Today was a Relay for Life in support of cancer survivors and to raise money for cancer research.  It is a very special event lasting 24 hours, because cancer never sleeps.  If I am not mistaken, it takes place in many cities.  As I have mentioned in previous posts, our DDIL was diagnosed with breast cancer last fall.  She has had surgery, chemo and radiation, and is now in remission.  She was at this Relay, and the pictures I have are of her and the two children.  Our son is a firefighter, and today was his day to work, so he missed out on the events.  We were privileged to spend some time at the Relay, and it was a very touching, poignant event.  A cure is desperately needed.

Granddaughter highlights

Our younger granddaughter, age 8, has played softball for three years, and really enjoys it. We love watching the little girls. This is the first year that the girls have pitched, so there are lots of balls thrown and not a lot of strikes.  After the pitcher throws four balls, the coach comes in and pitches a maximum of three pitches. Prior to this year, they used pitching machines. This first picture shows our DGD after having connected with a pitch and placing it out in center field. The next picture is her on base. The third picture was taken a while back when she caught this big trout. She won the biggest fish competition among her family and friends. 

Today she and I made cupcakes, and I've come to the conclusion that with her and her cousin, the favorite part of the process is licking the bowl.

Next grandchild feature will be our oldest, and he is our baseball, football and basketball player.  So stay tuned...

Covered Bridges

Sunday we drove down to Cottage Grove, Oregon, and spent the day there walking and taking a scenic drive looking at the covered bridges in the area. There are several, and it's always a treat to see them. As you will see in the following photos, when we were walking in town, we saw an old Studebaker pickup. That struck a nostalgic note with us, so we had to get a picture of it. My parents had a Studebaker (not a pickup though) at one time, and you hardly ever see one any more.  The river picture is the Row River, which is just one of several very scenic rivers in that area.  Our car is shown coming out of the only covered bridge still in use for car traffic.